Going out with the Mindbender
November 21, 2024
Got the cover design yesterday for my latest book, which will be my 29th, and wanted to reveal it here first.
It’s called “Let It Be Good: Simple Insights for a Satisfied Life.”
The book explores a variety of things, both good and bad, that ultimately teach us how to navigate this messy world.
And it all sprang from one simple comment during a vacation, a comment that found its way to the radio show a few days later: “Why didn’t we just let it be good?”
Like the radio memoir I released in March, this book is filled with personal thoughts and experiences, each of which became a life lesson for me—and which might impact your life, as well. Or the life of someone important to you.
“Let It Be Good” will be out in the spring of 2025. If you’d like to receive an email when the time gets closer, just sign up here and I’ll be sure to reach out to you. 🙂
Let's get on with the countdown.
Along with today's Mindbender you get these bonus stories:
Next year’s vacation trends
Why we avoid certain restaurants
Proposal questions
But first, today's Mindbender:
Nearly 80% of women will stop dating a man for this reason.
I'll have a clue coming up.
Next year’s vacation trends
A study found the average American took three trips this year, with two of them planned and one purely spontaneous.
Personal note: The spontaneous ones are often the best, by far. They even have a name for it: Slow travel.
So what will the biggest travel trend be in 2025?
According to the study, we’ll be taking more road trips than anything else.
And microcations will be popular. Those are quick trips that last four days or less.
And nearly one in four say they’ll concentrate on spots close to home, because they don’t feel like they’ve explored their own backyard enough. Probably true.
Pack some good car snacks and get going!
Why we avoid certain restaurants
Have you ever walked into a restaurant, spent about two minutes, then turned around and left?
What are the top reasons we do that?
Someone posed the question on social media and got plenty of responses, including:
- Loud music blaring
- Any bad smell
- Lots of flies buzzing around, or the sight of even ONE cockroach
- Children running around, screaming
I’ve written before about the stress caused by TOO MANY choices in the world, and that’s backed up by this answer from people:
- A massive menu that’s all over the place. (I’m looking at you, Cheesecake Factory.)
Here's a clue for the Mindbender:
Pucker up, buttercup.
Proposal questions
Personally, I think a wedding proposal should be a quiet, private moment between two people.
But not everyone feels that way, which is why we’re rolling into engagement season, where thousands of couples get engaged over the holidays in front of family and friends.
That’s why Google reports a surge of questions around this time. Some of the top questions people ask are:
- How to propose?
- What knee do you propose on?
- What to say when proposing?
And maybe my favorite question that comes up: “Why won’t my long-term boyfriend propose to me?”
They should Google “cow/milk/free.”
And now, the answer to today's Mindbender:
Women will stop dating a man for what reason?
He’s a bad kisser.
That’s why it’s good to date as many people as possible when you’re young.
It’s like getting a degree in making out. You learn all sorts of things.
That'll do it for today's Mindbender. Thank you for being part of The Club.
Enjoy your day!
Dom
Oh my God, I'm getting pulled over. Everyone, just . . . pretend to be normal.
Need some inspiration to start writing?
Dom Testa understands. He waited until he was in his early 40s before publishing his first book.
You don’t need to wait any longer. Check out Dom’s Substack page called Big Fat Words.
Each week he uploads a new post exploring another element of the writing/publishing world, designed to help you prepare mentally for the writing life.
No, this is not a “How To” series of articles, but rather thoughts from a writer’s life.
There’s no obligation on your part. Just check it out here and, if you like it, be sure to subscribe.
Happy writing!