The other day I watched my neighbor run up the street dragging her garbage can behind her.

I am a mix of Okinawan and WASP and I have no feelings.

Both cultures value tight lips, stiff upper lips, and an even keel. My family motto would have been “never complain, never explain, and never say you’re sorry” except for the Japanese part that expects profuse and elaborate apologies.

All suffering is due to anger, greed, and ignorance.

As a kid, I called bullshit on Buddhism. Anger and greed, sure. But ignorance?! I thought ignorance = lack of knowledge. No biggie. Just go read some books. Nope. “Ignorance” means confusion, self-doubt, and delusion. Big stuff, hard to fix.

I am a Psych 101 cliche.

I do the New York Times Spelling Bee puzzle every day.

I don’t try to get a perfect score, I just aim for 90%. I do the puzzle to take my brain’s vitals, the way I’d take my blood pressure. It tells me whether I’m rested or in a funk, and gets the gears turning before coffee.

I was born a couch potato.

If I could get high from working out. I’d have the self-discipline and motivation to do it all the time. Instead, I pay the big bucks and work with a personal trainer, Malik, four times a week.

Sadly, I’ll only go to the gym if there’s someone counting on me and money at stake. I have to con myself into good health.