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Since the focus of AnyHigh is joy, today we're providing the link to one of the most entertaining and hilarious concepts we've come across in a long time. Some of you may have already seen this or be familiar with "Birds Aren't Real", but even if you have it's worth a second look. More than a million people have become followers of www.birdsarentreal.com - a movement that claims the birds you think you see flying in the sky are actually government surveillance drones. Wonderfully, it's all pure satire. And it's guaranteed to bring a smile to your face. We raise a toast to "Birds Aren't Real" founder, Peter McIndoe for his creativity and enthusiasm! Watch the 60 Minutes report here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsgnrYog6W0 #birds #birdsarentreal #petermcindoe #funny #humor #satire #60minutes

Even though we're already into spring, this particular date always brings to mind a special poem that's been with us for as long as we can remember. We share it here with you all to celebrate today: Hur-ray, Hur-ray It's the first of May. Outdoor fucking Starts today. Cheers! #birds #bees #may #laborday #sex #nature #poem #poetry #beauty

Better known as W.C. Fields and a character who in so many ways, speaks directly to the idea of decadence as a reward unto itself. Fields was a U.S. comedian, actor, juggler and writer whose comic persona was that of a hard-drinking egotist, who remained a sympathetic character despite his snarling contempt for dogs and children. In the early 1900s, while touring as a headliner in North America, Europe, Australia and South Africa, he was billed as “the world’s greatest juggler.” He began his film career in silent movies in 1915 and easily made the transition to talkies in 1932. So today we offer to you a couple of quotes from the man who, in the early 20th century, was such a spirited proponent of spirits (the bottled kind) and looked at the world with a witty, sardonic twinkle in his eye! “I was in love with a beautiful blonde once. She drove me to drink. That’s the one thing I am indebted to her for.” (From the 1941 film "Never Give A Sucker An Even Break"). “Once, on a trek through Afghanistan, we lost our corkscrew…and were forced to live on food and water for several days!” (From the 1940 film "My Little Chickadee") "Always carry a flagon of whiskey in case of snakebite. And furthermore, always carry a small snake." #WCFields #comedy #films #alcohol #gin #drinking #decadence

Though it often gets a bad rap (think self-indulgence or moral decay), we prefer to look at it in a more positive sense. Something luxurious or plentiful or an extraordinary feeling we get from consuming or experiencing something, well, extraordinary. Like...... A ride in an extraordinary automobile: A bottle of uniquely delicious wine: A sampling of chocolate truffles: A plate of Poutine from Canada: A fine bottle of rare spirits: Conquering that seemingly unconquer-able obstacle: Tell us about some decadently amazing experiences that you've had. #mteverest #chocolate #wine #sex #bugatti #divo #car #slodown #food #liquor #crownroyal #xr #whiskey #poutine #canada #truffles

.....sinking that putt..... ....going over that fence..... ....making that play...... ....taking that wicket..... .....scoring that goal..... .....slamming that dunk...... ....making that winning play..... We want to hear what makes you celebrate like this! #caddyshack #tigerwoods #golf #baseball #football #soccer #basketball #blakegriffen #hockey #sports #cricket #happy #happiness

Well, sort of, but not in the way you might think. Today, in our ongoing search for happiness, we share an interesting Ted Talk by Michael Norton, a social science researcher with the Harvard Business School in which he discusses how money might actually be able to equate to happiness... https://www.ted.com/talks/michael_norton_how_to_buy_happiness #happiness #harvard #tedtalk #science #money #harvardbusinessschool

......To Really Go Up..... But whether you're high is up or down, we want to hear about it.

For those of you familiar with that statement, it's coiner needs no introduction. For those of you who might not be aware, it was made famous by Jospeh Campbell and the dictum that has come to encapsulate Campbell’s philosophy on life: “Follow your bliss.” Campbell was a professor, author, the foremost authority on world mythology and arguably, one of the last century's wisest men. His seminal work on world mythology, The Hero With A Thousand Faces, was published in 1949 and his work has influenced academics and artists - George Lucas credits Campbell's work as playing a major influence on his Star Wars saga - but Campbell came to international prominence when a six-part series of conversations between himself and legendary interviewer, Bill Moyers (The Power Of Myth), was aired in 1987, a part of which was filmed at George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch in California. The complete transcript of the tv series was published under the same name and has been described, rightly so, as nothing short of secular scripture — a trove of wisdom on the human experience in the canon of such rare masterworks as Thoreau’s "Journals", Simone Weil’s "Notebooks", Rilke’s "Letters To A Young Poet", and Annie Dillard’s "Pilgrim At Tinker Creek". (We highly recommend it!) This is a bit of a long introduction into saying that, continuing the search for happiness from last weeks' blog post, we were curious what Joseph Campbell had to say about 'happiness'. Campbell felt that a person should pursue what makes them happy, without fear, and don’t let it go. "The way to find out about happiness", Campbell said, "is to keep your mind on those moments when you feel most happy, when you are really happy - not excited, not just thrilled, but deeply happy. This requires a little bit of self-analysis. What is it that makes you happy? Stay with it, no matter what people tell you. This is what is called following your bliss". Most of us are familiar with the bliss experience. A rush of joy, a loss of time, then suddenly it ends. We’re snapped back into the reality of our daily lives. Of course, we can't live in a state of sheer bliss all the time. Our brain chemistry has finite supplies of dopamine, so yes, bliss is temporary. But the experiences of bliss are truly beautiful because they are temporary. So, the secret to happiness and finding our bliss, we might conclude from Campbell's work, lies in an exercise simultaneously simple and complex: the simple act of paying attention to the moment. #josephcampbell #billmoyers #bliss #happiness #myth #powerofmyth #georgelucas #starwars #lucasranch #philosophy

Wikipedia defines happiness as "a mental or emotional state, including positive or pleasant emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy". Hap is the Old Norse and Old English root of happiness, and it just means luck or chance, same as the Old French heur, from which we derive bonheur, good fortune or happiness. German gives us the word Gluck, which still means both happiness and chance. Hindi gives us Khushee, which translates to pleasure, enjoyment, luxury, delight and ease. There is a theory that suggests happiness can be described as three distinct elements, which are more measurable and definitive than "happiness": 1) Positive Emotion meaning what we feel - pleasure, rapture, ecstasy, warmth, comfort. When we go on a holiday, spend time with friends, win the lottery we're experiencing that sense of positive emotion. 2) Engagement which is about being in flow with creative pursuits, sports, writing, painting, playing an instrument - pursuits where one loses sense of time and self. In this state the person becomes a part of the action and cannot separate the element from themselves. This is the zone of individual creativity. 3) Meaning which is always in relation to someone or something else, a purpose bigger than oneself. Because happiness is specific to each individual person, there cannot be one thing that makes every single person on earth happy. Indeed, each person experiences happiness in their own way which leads them down a road detailing their own joy. After all this, you might be asking how we define happiness. For us it is simply when reality winds up exceeding expectations. We can't wait to hear your "ahhhh" moments. Your stories of reality exceeding your expectations. #happymoments #happy #happiness #enjoy

In the moment you get lost...... ....you can find yourself.... That's what excess is all about.

This week we thought we'd send out a quote from one of our favorite people who truly lived life to the fullest and wasn't afraid to try new things, things that sent him on high's and always brought new meaning to everything he did - Anthony Bourdain. "Without experimentation, a willingness to ask questions and try new things, we shall surely become static, repetitive, and moribund." #AnthonyBourdain Words we live by!

In our ongoing search for experiences that take us to that next level - that level where we find ourselves suddenly stopped in our tracks and saying "Ahhhh" - we think it's important to always take a moment and look at things in a different way. It's this looking at things differently that gives us the chance to have an experience that's completely unique. Photo by Jack Gisel We don't necessarily have to climb Mount Everest or win a triathlon or go diving with sharks to achieve moments that are exhilarating and that will stay with us forever. Sometimes is as simple as standing on a table top or doing a handstand to get a completely new perspective on the world and our place in it. Photo by Elsa Gonzalez To paraphrase one of our favorite teachers, John Keating (aka Robin Williams), let's always take a moment to look at things from a different perspective and "make our lives extraordinary". Photo by Jean-Philippe Delberghe #RobinWilliams #Spiderman #handstand #ahhh #perspective