A lot of big, tragic and important things have happened to this wonderful country of ours since April 2014. None of which I have covered. I was too busy writing about hungover parenting, ancient philosophy and my dog Colin.
Out of the 536 columns I have written, 27 were about that guy. Far too few. He is such a good boy, he deserves an article a week.
Today is the end of an era for me, and whenever these final events pop up in our lives, we can’t help but think about the ultimate end.
Everything we do, we will one day do for the last time. That’s why you have to enjoy things while they are around. It’s not just big events like leaving a job, house or loved one either. Whatever moment you happen to be in now, you will never get it back, and you don’t know how many more you have.
Everything we do in life, from eating pizza to spending time with the people we love, to driving, writing, drinking or breathing, we will one day experience for the final time. It might happen tomorrow. This can be either a depressing or an inspiring thought, depending on how you look at it.
A few years back in this column, I interviewed professor of philosophy William B Irvine, of Wright State University, Ohio, on this very topic. He put it this way on a Zoom call: “Recognition of the impermanence of everything in life can invest the things we do with a significance and intensity that would otherwise be absent. The only way we can be truly alive is if we make it our business periodically to entertain thoughts of the end.”
Today’s column is very meaningful to me because it is my last. Like the last night with a lover before she goes overseas. And just like a lover, there have been some half-arsed efforts put in from me over the years. Last week, for example, I spent 750 words moaning about how bad my cricket team is. But the truth is that any of my columns could have been the final. If I had reminded myself every week for the past 10 years that the end is inevitable, I may have been more grateful for having a column and appreciated writing them all as much as I am this one.
While everything we do could have more meaning with a focus on finitude, some things are inherently more worthwhile than others. There is no doubt my column “The pros and cons of wearing Speedos” from November 2022 was less meaningful than most things in this world. That was a waste of everyone’s time. So, if we only have so much time, how do we pick the best things to do?
Well, Oliver Burkeman, the author of Four Thousand Weeks – Time Management For Mortals, suggested this to me in a 2022 column: “Ask yourself, does this choice enlarge me? You usually know on some unspoken level if it does. That’s a good way to distinguish between options.”
With that in mind, I don’t feel great about my 2018 article on “New Zealand’s best hole”. That didn’t enlarge anyone.
There will be people reading this column right now who have loved my writing in the Herald and are sad to see it end. Others will have hated it and are glad to see me go. Many won’t have any opinion at all. But for those in the first camp, I have good news. I have a book coming out on May 28 called A Life Less Punishing – 13 Ways To Love The Life You Got (Allen and Unwin Book Publishers). It’s a deep dive into the history, philosophy and science of not wasting our time lost in anger, loneliness, humiliation, stress, fear, boredom and all the other ways we find to not enjoy perfectly good lives. It’s available for pre-order right now (google it if you’re interested).
A Life Less Punishing took me two years to write and is equivalent in words to 100 of these columns. Which would be a complete nightmare for those in the hate camp, but as I say, great news for those who want more.
Anyway, thanks to the Herald for having me, thanks to the lovely people who make an effort to say nice things to me about my column nearly every day and thanks to the universe for every single second we get.
Bless!
Simon Cowell Fans Concerned By His Appearance As They ‘Don’t Recognize Him’
Simon Cowell alarmed followers with an appearance on social media that some couldn’t even identify him.
Well is a well-known English TV personality, entrepreneur, and record executive who is most recognized for her roles as judges on talent competitions on television, including America’s Got Talent, Pop Idol, and The X Factor.
In addition, his constantly shifting appearance has some followers wondering if he’s had plastic surgery.
The rumor gained more traction after a video featuring the media mogul went viral.
When it comes to his history of cosmetic surgery, Cowell has always been very open about it.
In a 2018 interview with The Sun, he acknowledged having had a procedure known as a “21st century facelift.”
The AGT judge disclosed that he had a Silhouette Soft Lift at the office of Dr. Jean-Louis Sebagh, a cosmetic surgeon.
A thread lift procedure called a Silhouette Soft Lift tightens and corrects the neck, brows, jawline, and midface.
“There’s lots of things you can do now,” Cowell stated in a conversation with The Sun. You’re not limited to using Botox and fillers on your face.
He continued, alluding to an incident where fans saw his bruises and reportedly swollen eyes. “I probably did have a little too much a couple of years ago,” he said.
The media mogul stated he made the decision to discontinue injectables because he had “gone a bit too far” in an interview with the journal from 2022.
“I saw a picture of myself from ‘before’ the other day, and I didn’t recognize it as me at all,” he recalled.His son Eric was going crazy. It had to end. My face is completely free of filler now. None at all.
However, Cowell just stirred up suspicions about cosmetic surgery once more.
Everything began when a since-deleted video was posted to Britain’s Got Talent’s X, formerly Twitter, account.
In the widely circulated video, Cowell exhorts viewers to apply for the well-liked ITV program, saying, “I always say on this show, two or three minutes can change your life.” It has, too. And perhaps it will be you this time.I look forward to meeting you, so please audition soon for the upcoming season.
Fans, however, were commenting about Cowell’s supposedly altered look in the video for a very other reason.
One viewer commented, “That doesn’t look like him at all,” in response to the video.
One more person asked, “What’s he done to his face?”
A third admirer posed the same question: “Is that Simon Cowell? What has become of his face?
Very hard to believe that’s even him,” said another person.
Others responded in the comments, speculating that Cowell’s altered appearance might have been caused by a motorbike accident in August 2020, which necessitated the insertion of a metal rod in his back for stability, according to The Independent.
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