Hey baby! Working is overrated! Especially on a Friday. Allow me to distract you! Here are some rad things that I (& your fellow nonpareils!) have found around the internet this week. Let’s go!

Susie Bubble’s new legwarmers are extremely excellent. I want some!

Washington Ballet put out a book & it looks incredibly beautiful.

Want to hallucinate at home? Try the Ganzfeld procedure! Cheap & safe, & no risk of jumping off a building. Probably!

Free advice: show up early. You should read this. Everyone should read this!

Create luck, embrace chance & tune in to your serendipity. Amber Rae knows what’s up!

How to be a positive person, in under 300 words from Zen Habits.

30 habits that will change your life. Which of these do you follow already?

Science continues to back up what we already inherently know — Staying optimistic keeps you healthy & junk food as addictive as heroin & smoking.

Yuli’s post, What Do Social Media and The Aquarian Age Have In Common? is FREAKING AMAZING! Read this! It’s so good.

The Sandra Bullock Trade from the New York Times ends up really being a piece about what creates the most happiness in a person’s life. Viz:

“If the relationship between money and well-being is complicated, the correspondence between personal relationships and happiness is not. The daily activities most associated with happiness are sex, socializing after work and having dinner with others. The daily activity most injurious to happiness is commuting. According to one study, joining a group that meets even just once a month produces the same happiness gain as doubling your income. According to another, being married produces a psychic gain equivalent to more than $100,000 a year.”

Losing It, what I lost when I lost my job. Dominique Browning was the editor of House & Garden, & this piece follows what happened when the magazine folded.

Rap graphs. I laughed so hard at this that I actually snorted. & was glad no one else was around to witness it.

Insecurity doesn’t pay the bills. Oh holler!

Alien vs. Pooh?!?! Honestly. Some people…

P & P is my new favourite fashion blog! Aahahaha. YES it is the best parody EVER!

One Scientist’s Prescription: Grow Your Own Drugs from NPR. “James Wong thinks you should grow your own drugs. No, we’re not talking about the illicit kind. We’re talking about a living pharmacy of plants from your own backyard: fennel and rose hips; echinacea and dandelion; horse chestnuts and nettles.”

Soda: A Sin We Sip Instead of Smoke? Oh dear.

“Sugared beverages are the No. 1 source of calories in the American diet, representing 7 percent of the average person’s caloric intake, according to government surveys, and up to 10 percent for children and teenagers. These calories, they point out, are worse than useless — they’re empty, and contribute to a daily total that is already too high.”

I mentioned Jamie Oliver yesterday. I LOVE HIM. He won the TED prize this year, which is a really big deal, & 100% deserved. This is his acceptance speech, & it drives home how important the work he does really is. Please watch this.

You can offer your help — & they need lots of it — here.

Midtown Girl interviewed Tina from Violetville Vintage. I love Tina! The interview is really cute too.

Theme Friday: Dogs in the bed. Aw! Jonathan Levitt’s photo is pretty much my life.

TED Talks: Daniel Kahneman: The riddle of experience vs. memory. “Using examples from vacations to colonoscopies, Nobel laureate and founder of behavioral economics Daniel Kahneman reveals how our “experiencing selves” and our “remembering selves” perceive happiness differently. This new insight has profound implications for economics, public policy — and our own self-awareness.”

Love Your Vagina! Yay!

The New Yorker wrote about Polyvore, calling it “the world of virtual Anna Wintours”. Totally fascinating! We all know how much I love Polyvore…

Curves Ahead is a Tumblr collection of body-positive loveliness.

@url_elf reminded me that it is Hans Christian Andersen’s birthday! Read The Little Mermaid in honour!

Sign up for the Tell Your Story class here! It’s a six week online journal class & it costs $60. Looks like so much fun!

This story about Gunn High School in Palo Alto, CA vs Westboro Baptist Church is truly inspiring. It shows that the most powerful way to respond to expressions of hatred is through expressions of love. If it is hard to summon love when surrounded by rage, hatred, and even threats of violence, consider this insight by James Baldwin: “I imagine one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense, once hate is gone, they will be forced to deal with pain.”

Ever wondered what it would be like if your dog could talk? Now you know! Thanks Adrienne!

Ahhhhh! Yes! Now you can search Flickr by colour! How fantastic. I have been saying this for years! Thank you so much @whitneymae!

The Tao of Pink. YUM!

Neil (my much-neglected friend in Toronto) sent me Aw, What The Hell, Here’s The Micro-Walkman We’ve Been Developing For 20 Years, Starbucks Listens to Customer Request for More Sizes (check the date on the post, wink wink) & 1000 Awesome Things #536 When you’re being chased by zombies and suddenly find a hidden stash of guns and ammo.

Is your logo design phallic? Aahahah. Oh my god.

Have a look at Small thoughts for a big world & The Century Project (though that second one is NSFW — that means Not Safe For Work by the way!).

The Cherry Closet has a lot of really lovely vintage clothing.

Danielle Meder makes amazing paper dolls. Also, she is super-sweet.

Seven Fashion Icons That Everyone Should Know from College Fashion. Agreed!

I’M HERE is a robot love story by Spike Jonze. I haven’t seen the whole thing but the trailer is beautiful, I’m sure it is brilliant.

Feel Good: Fashion Activism is British Style Bloggers’ e-book about body image.

Drummbellina is a nonpareil who makes super-cute tote bags (“made from fabrics collected on my thrifting adventures”). I like them so much! Especially this, this & this! Way adorable!

Zoetica (old married lady, CONGRATULATIONS! Love you!) is having a small & tiny paintings sale! Go!

If you’re in New York City, you should go see The Pomology of Sweetness & Light. (It comes recommended by Angeliska, who has impeccable taste!)

Finally, Alexandra sent me this.

Do you think that anybody can damage your soul?
Then why are you so embarrassed?
I laugh at those who think they can damage me.
They do not know who I am,
they do not know what I think,
they cannot even touch the things which are really mine
and with which I live.
— Epictetus

Have THE BEST weekend!