Be Excellent to Each Other...
and yourself.
Happy Thursday!
Please don’t judge me, but Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure is one of my all-time favorite movies. In case you’re not familiar with this flick, it’s the 1989 hit where Bill & Ted are failing history, but get a chance for redemption when they find a time machine that helps them create the “ultimate” history presentation.
I mean, does a movie get better than that? All I know is that after I watched it (4 or 5 times), I thought it was really funny when I’d reply to people’s random comments by mocking an air guitar and saying, “Excellent.” (This was also when I had a perm and lived in neon yellow Umbro shorts and oversized t-shirts, so I guess you could say I fully embraced the 80s.)
At any rate, I’ve often thought that Bill and Ted were actually kind of profound dudes and delivered some great life advice with their signature line Be Excellent to Each Other. (Closely followed by “Party on, Dudes.”)
As you may have guessed, Bill & Ted’s advice is What I’d Rather Be Talking About. Only I’m adding to their advice with a reminder to also Be Excellent to Yourself.
Because, I'm not sure if you noticed, but sometimes Numero Uno is last in line when it comes to kind actions, words, and thoughts. (We can be pretty hard on ourselves. Agree?)
So, in light of that, this week I’m throwing out nothing but good vibes and excellence, and gentle reminders to take care of each other and yo-selves.
Oh, and I also might throw in an 80s reference or two.
With that… party on dudes.
Abbey
LISTEN TO THIS:
Let’s start with a podcast. Actually, two, as this is a 2-parter. If you like history & also design (home, fashion, & art), tune into Dear Alice for a glimpse at Design Through the Decades (1 & 2).
Wondering how design fits in with this week’s excellence theme? Well, it doesn’t - exactly. But it does go with the Bill & Ted time travel theme, as it takes us on a journey of design through the ages. Plus, it reminds us that our environment affects how we feel, and good design is important. Consider this your RX to go buy something pretty for your home.
GOOD STUFF TO WATCH:
Here’s a kid who seems to know a thing or two about believing in oneself and working hard. If you want to feel the fear of God (or your high school football coach, most intense teacher, or your own dad after you’ve screwed up) give this kid a watch.
And, in case you need to chill after that, this little baby shows us how relaxing a little self-care can be.
Finally, the most excellent news of the year. Per my lunchtime date with Hoda & Jenna today, I learned that Ted Lasso comes back on March 15! YAY for another season!
GOOD READS:
My sister Beth is great about sharing cool content she finds online. In fact, it was this site that she shared that gave me the idea for this week’s theme. It’s called Nice News! Isn’t this what we’ve all been looking for?
Who wouldn’t be inspired after reading stories like:
A Denver man named James Warren witnessed someone sitting on the dirt waiting for a bus and proceeded to build benches for all the bus stops with no seats. He didn’t think anyone should have to sit on the ground and said, “The most important takeaway message… is that we all deserve dignity in this world.”
Or how about the students who made a prosthesis for their teacher’s three-legged dog who lost a leg to cancer? Can you even?
And let’s not forget the 79-year-old grandmother who can bench press 200 lbs and wants to inspire other women.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT (OR FOOD FOR GOOD PRICES):
We all know that nobody’s perfect, and neither is our food. Speaking about not being perfect, how about the prices at the grocery store? Enter Imperfect Foods - I’d heard about it and its great deals, but thought I’d get bananas shaped like circles or lumpy melons or something. So I asked my friend Lizz about it - she’s an Imperfect Foods devotee. Lizz is really happy with their produce (she’s a juicer so goes through a ton of it) and told me she finds much more than just produce on their site & at very competitive prices. I just shopped for my first load and noticed the prices were indeed great. Stay tuned for a pic of my haul in next week’s letter. (In the meantime, if you want to give it a try, here’s a referral link where you can save $20 on your first order.)
BEING EXCELLENT TO EACH OTHER:
Here’s a story I took straight from Facebook… it was posted by FCN- Fannin County News:
Laura Failner is a SkyWest flight attendant. On January 7th, she witnessed this moment of kindness. "I love looking for the good in the world! As I flew up to Washington today, I had this cute little 94-year-old lady get on my plane. She was frail and had a hard time getting back to her seat. There was a bit of confusion about where she was supposed to be seated. In first class, this wonderful gentleman saw her plight and flagged me down. He said, "can you please get her and put her in my seat, and I will take hers." He walked back with me to get her and take her to first class. She was so touched. The woman gave him a big hug and said, "Never in my 94 years has someone done that for me. Thank you, young man." She had tears of gratitude. It was amazing how his thoughtful act changed the attitude of everyone on the flight. May we all look for the little things we can do to help others around us and show kindness. In this crazy world, let's all try to be good.
AND, ON A SERIOUS NOTE:
The above airline photo is a great segue into my weekly “on a serious note.” I started today’s newsletter with the reminder that we can’t forget ourselves when we’re going around being excellent.
What’s the big deal? Well, being good to yourself is important - kind of like the airline theory of putting your oxygen mask on first, so you can then help others.
And by doing what we can to feel good about ourselves - physically, mentally, and emotionally - we set ourselves up to be able to bring those same good vibes to the world. Kind of like the sentiment - feel good, do good.
The “oxygen mask theory” can look like living your life in a way that you can be and feel your very best, which results in you naturally just putting good vibes out into the world. When we’re happier and healthier, our outlook on the world and the way we interact with it and the people around us are also positive.
And then we spread that goodness in various ways.
Consider this message your permission slip to buy great food, go for a long walk, book that massage, sleep an extra hour, and listen to all the positive affirmations in the world to tell you how awesome you are. Because that’s the truth, and don’t tell yourself otherwise.
Now, go be excellent to each other.
Party on.
Dudes.
Abbey