The Hopeful Humanist Cafe

Welcome to another Sanity Quickie!  In this episode, I hand the microphone over to Captain Jack as he shares his off-the-cuff thoughts about a possible Stoic response to the question about how fate plays itself out in our lives.  Peace, take care & be well!   

Welcome to an ¨S.Q.¨ moment, a Sanity Quickie, where I will share with you a daily practice I have incorporated into my days to stand up to the chaos thrust into our lives because of the covid-19 Pandemic.  The tile for this episode is both a description of the shared hardships of our collective reality and a sanity prescription to boost optimism, elevate levels of happiness (even if only by degre...

In this episode (#33), we start off with a "germ-free" couple of clips from Danielson and then switch the discussion to explore four things a person might do to prepare for one's first ever therapy session.   The orienting framework includes the following: 1) T-shirt Idea: "Explore, Expand, Become" 2) A moment of free-association: Attitude, Awareness, Attention; Self-Compassion, Patience, Acceptan...

In this episode, I share an imaginative glimpse I had looking forward to the early years of 2030 when the 8, 9 and 10 (Generation Alpha) years old of today get ready to be "Alphas at the Helm" of tomorrow.  I am building on the "In-the-Clouds/Nebulous" novel of episode 31.  As a prelude to that moment, let me again turn our attention to the unnamed "Man in the Mirror" from Danielson's novel first...

Welcome to another episode of The Hopeful Humanist Cafe, a "Just Some Guy" production by me, Steve, The Hopeful Humanist.  In this episode, after a humourous introductory segment by Woodrow II featuring two silly clips from Captain Jack, I attempt to weave together a novel first sentence from Danielson in Episode 29 and a novel first sentence I shared in Episode 26 (the sentences will be noted bel...

Salutations!!! Join me, Steve, The Hopeful Humanist, Woodrow II, and Danielson along with all the background sounds of life (I may have gone a little overboard with the sounds of life in this episode?!) as we initiate a tip-of-the-iceberg discussion about some resources accessible on YouTube that might help you get a sweet, slumbering sleep.  The musical intro played by Woodrow II is called "Jazz...

Join me, Steve, The Hopeful Humanist, my oldest son, Woodrow II (his chosen cyber-handle), and my friend and spiritual brother, Captain Jack, for a very cold and brisk winter walk (-3 degrees Celsius feels like -9 and you can hear the chill in my voice) as we pit two quotes against each other for a quote-off about the benefits of schedules.  I would encourage you to go to the Good Reads link provi...

In this episode, Steve, The Hopeful Humanist, in another "one take, unedited" discussion will explore the benefit of creating a "Being Day" in an effort to show our commitment to slowing things down in our otherwise busy, fast-paced, hectic lives.  Perhaps, one thing we might do on such a "sacred day" could be to talk to the universe to gain insight for personal wisdom, perseverance for the strugg...

Welcome to another "one-take, unedited episode" of Blithering Thoughts at The Hopeful Humanist Cafe.  With a drum roll, and the hug of a tree, you can construct a rationale for your vision board for the new decade as we step into the "Twenty-Twenties."  The unmentioned T-shirt idea for this episode to usher in the next decade is "Explore, Expand, Become."   Showcase Resources: 1) Do you feel your...

The new audio content for this episode is available The “Chop wood, carry water” (An expression I discovered while reading about Buddhism) thing to do when you find yourself unfulfilled and craving for more on the hedonic treadmill that is swirling about in the middle of the hectic rat race called “Life,” is to TRY and bring it back to a mindful breath and just SLOW THINGS DOWN.  Join me, Steve, T...

Join me, The Hopeful Humanist, for a blethering trite conversation about the apostrophe's demise, a "This, that, there ..." challenge and an invitation to take and make the invented, silly, post-modern tradition of 'Festivus' your own.  Check out the resources below:   Videos: 1) Watch these clips of the Seinfeld episode called "The Strike" to learn more about "Festivus," https://www.youtube.com/w...

On October 21, 2019 Canadians will cast votes for the next federal leader of Canada.  In this episode, I encourage Canadians to get informed, engage in respectful conversation and get out to vote because voting is a right.  I provide a number of resources to explore to prepare for the upcoming vote.  So please, check the sources, check the images, and check the claims, and stand up to the "Why vot...

Welcome to another "make you think," "one take," blithering moment at the Hopeful Humanist Cafe.  In this episode, I invite you to step into the nuts and bolts life of Bruce as he struggles with social acceptance.  The focus of the episode is this novel first sentence: "Bruce's silicon synapses spontaneously started sparking with a gnawing curiosity. Would they accept him? What if they didn't? Hmm...

Welcome to this Hegelian synthesis of Blithering Thoughts at the Hopeful Humanist Cafe, a post-post modern, surrealist, phenomenological, first person, empirical exploration of ideas in flow, the good life, T-shirt notions, etcetera moments and resources for your spiritual toolbox.  #okaythen. In this episode, I invite listeners to think about what competencies or meta skills we need to equip our...

The "crumple basket," the joy of nonsensical words, and "dialoguing memes" are explored in this final episode of the three part series called, "Pass the salt, I'm in France."  It concludes with this novel first sentence for your free-writing pleasure: "Back there, I had everything but nothing; here, I have nothing but everything." And in the non-sequitur spirit of Blithering Thoughts about T-shirt...

In this 2nd episode of the 3 part series called, "Pass the Salt, I'm in France," it becomes clear that T-shirts can be controversial and create feelings.  One is invited to imagine two T-shirts engaging in an open conversation to discover if there could be a common ground.  The novel first sentence to play with in your journal goes like this: Life is not a fairy tale but it is full of everything t...

Let me introduce the first episode of my re-boot for my sister podcast on the Anchor platform called, "Blithering Thoughts about T-shirt Ideas, Novel First Sentences, and Etcetera Moments." This episode is the first of a 3 part series called, "Pass the salt, I'm in France."  My hope is to share inspiration to inspire creativity in an unscripted, raw flow of blithering conversation with all the sou...

In this awkward episode, I will provide some resources to explore a possible link between happiness, mental health, sexual health and -- yes, the "M" word -- MASTURBATION.  The showcase resources are as follows: 1) www.teenhealthsource.com  - A great resource for teens and parents that provides information about birth control, sexual identity, puberty & the body, relationships & self-esteem, and s...

In episode 20, the second episode in the mini-series On Choice, I will showcase a Hopeful Humanist concept called "C-cubed" (C3) so we can add some new ideas like "The Dawning of agency," "The forfeiture of choice," and "The field of influence" to our spiritual toolbox.  In this episode, I tell a sort of story about the phenomenon called choice by exploring a formula for empowerment captured with...

In this episode, we will initiate the first discussion of an on-going exploration about choice.  Our departure point starts with the question: Does choice exist?  While the showcase resource is a book by Barry Schwartz called "The Paradox of Choice," my hope is to also provide a number of additional resources to construct a "grasshopper" (qualifier provided by the 1972 television program called Ku...

Join me as I take a breath and start off the episode by making the power statement that "I am the Mitochondria" to help me sing a debut song to set the scene about how hard it is for parents to make a radical choice to practice self-care while living in an Age of Anxiety.  In this episode, I showcase a book by Ann Douglas called "Happy Parents Happy Kids" where she talks about the importance of se...

Welcome to another episode of the Hopeful Humanist Cafe. Happiness is a life-long process that is definitely possible, BUT it requires happiness-work or what others call soul-work.  What should a curriculum for discussion look like for our youth.  In this episode I will offer six possible topics of discussion to explore during dinner conversation for the youth in your family.   Show Case Resources...

In Episode 16, we are going to re-examine our relationship with boredom.  At first, I thought that "There is not enough time to be bored," but perhaps the real question should be "What is the cost of never being bored?"  In this tip-of-the-iceberg conversation, I have compiled a lot of links in the show notes below all worth a perusal, but I would like to highlight ¨60 productive websites to spend...

Salutations and season greetings!  Episode 15 is an invitation to join me, The Hopeful Humanist, in a year end review as the Hopeful Humanist Cafe turns one year old so that we "Don't forget what we know."  With some foundational thoughts in place, we can then think about creating a vision for a happier life as we step into 2019.  In this episode, I will showcase two resources related to my vision...

Welcome to another "Just Some Guy" production of the Hopeful Humanist Cafe.  This episode we are exploring the importance of creativity to happiness and showcasing the resource called Anchor where you can learn about the easiest way to start a podcast.  For me, The Hopeful Humanist, the essence of micro-podcasting can best be described as "optimistically creative and helpful brevity" that is a "cu...