Simply Better Living

The goal of life is not merely to work well, but to live well. There is a belief, deeply embedded in many cultures, that success comes primarily from working harder. Work longer hours. Take fewer breaks. Push through the exhaustion. Sleep less. Do more. Yet a growing body of research suggests that the relationship between work and achievement is not nearly as simple as that. In fact, happier people often achieve more. That may sound like wishful thinking. Surely success makes people happy, not the other way around? The reality appears to be more complicated. Human Beings Are Not Machines One of the great mistakes of modern life is to treat people as if they were machines. Machines can often produce more simply by running for longer. Human beings do not work that way. We need rest, purpose, relationships, recognition and a sense of control over our lives. Without these things, performance often declines long before effort does. Many people know this from personal experience. Have you e...

 Why I’m Eating Less Meat as I Get Older For most of my life, I never seriously questioned eating meat, dairy, and eggs. Like many people of my generation, I simply grew up assuming this was normal, healthy, and necessary. But over the past year, I’ve gradually begun changing my mind, not only because of concerns about animal suffering, but also because of health and environmental issues that become harder to ignore as we get older. I am not writing this as a strict vegan or as someone trying to lecture others. But I do think many of us could benefit from moving towards a more Mediterranean, pescatarian, vegetarian, or partly plant-based way of eating. And perhaps especially in later life. Health as We Age One thing becomes increasingly obvious after 60: our bodies no longer recover as quickly from years of excess. Many doctors and nutritionists now agree that diets rich in vegetables, legumes, olive oil, nuts, fish, and whole grains are linked to: better heart health lower blood p...

Why I Switched from Apple to OPPO My Review of the OPPO Find X9 Pro & OPPO Watch X2 After nearly twenty years in the Apple ecosystem, I made a decision that would once have seemed unthinkable: I left. Partly this was practical, partly philosophical. Concerns about data privacy and my own private unease about the direction of the United States pushed me to start reducing my dependence on American tech giants wherever possible. That led me, somewhat nervousl, into the Android world. And to my surprise?  I have been genuinely delighted. My new setup is the  OPPO Find X9 Pro  paired with the  OPPO Watch X2 . T ogether they have proved to be one of the most impressive technology combinations I have ever owned. The Phone: OPPO Find X9 Pro The first thing that struck me was the  camera . It is, quite simply, phenomenal. Photos are sharp, rich, and beautifully balanced, often to the point where friends have asked whether I was using a dedicated camera rather than a ...

Moving to Linux With No Regrets Why my computer now feels faster, calmer and more mine After nearly thirty years of using mainstream computers — first Windows, then nineteen years with Apple — I have finally moved to Linux. Not just to experiment. Not just on an old spare machine. Properly.  And I have no regrets. Part of the decision was practical. Part of it was ethical. I have become increasingly uneasy about handing so much of my digital life to a few giant technology companies, especially when privacy, politics and personal values feel more connected than ever. So I wanted something different.  Linux has given me that. It Feels Fast Again The first thing I noticed was speed. My computer feels lighter, quicker and more responsive. Apps open quickly. The system starts cleanly. Nothing feels as if it is dragging a heavy suitcase behind it. Linux does not constantly try to sell me something, push me into a subscription, or run mysterious extras in the background. I...

The Family: Where Human Flourishing Begins We live in an age inclined to treat the family as merely one lifestyle choice among many: important perhaps, but ultimately interchangeable with any arrangement sufficiently loving and well-intentioned. Yet history, psychology and ordinary human experience suggest otherwise. Before the state, before schools, before therapists and welfare systems, there was the family. It is there that a child first learns whether the world is safe; whether love is conditional; whether conflict destroys or can be survived; whether authority protects or humiliates; whether they themselves are fundamentally secure and wanted. Long before formal education begins, the family has already taught its curriculum. Why Family Matters Healthy family life gives a child the internal structure from which adulthood is built: security, attachment, discipline, resilience, self-worth, emotional regulation, and a workable model of intimacy. No family can guarantee psych...

Intimacy After 60: Why Closeness Still Matters — Perhaps More Than Ever Because growing older does not mean growing distant There is a quiet assumption that settles in somewhere around our fifties or sixties. It goes something like this: that part of life is behind us now. We may not say it out loud. But it shows up in small ways. We stop reaching for each other quite so often. We let routines replace attention. We accept a kind of affectionate companionship, but leave intimacy to memory. And yet, if you speak honestly to people in long relationships, whether heterosexual or gay, a different reality emerges. The desire for closeness does not disappear. What changes is how it is kindled. It’s rarely “just age” When intimacy fades, it is tempting to blame the calendar.  But more often than not, the real causes are quieter and closer to home. A partner comes in tired, carrying the day like a heavy coat. Conversations become practical: bills, appointments, what’s for dinner. Evenings d...

Stress in Later Life: Letting Go, Reflection and What Remains There is a different kind of stress that comes later in life.  Less urgent.  Less driven by ambition. But no less real. When life begins to change  By this stage, much has already happened. Paths have been taken. Decisions made. Years lived. And life begins to change its rhythm. There may be more space. But also more awareness: of time passing of things ending of what cannot be undone The weight of reflection With more time often comes more reflection. Looking back: at what went well at what didn’t at what might have been different This can bring a particular kind of stress. Not about the future — but about the past. What cannot be changed There is a moment, sooner or later, when something becomes clear: Much of life cannot be re-written. Not the choices. Not the missed opportunities. Not the things we wish we had done differently. And resisting this reality creates tensio...