Pleasures and pastimes
Play
idea
All you need to know to start skipping stones like a pro
With the right attitude, stone skipping is a rebellious act that will leave you feeling like you have glitter in your veins
by Julie Benda
Creativity
idea
A life of splendid uselessness is a life well lived
Like the fertile soil of a well-kept garden, a life of splendid, utter uselessness yields abundance beyond our immediate aims
by Joseph M Keegin
Joy
guide
How to start having more fun
Fun isn’t frivolous – it’s vital for your wellbeing. Here’s a step-by-step plan to bring more pleasure into your busy life
by Mike Rucker
Transcendent experience
film
A record-breaking distance swimmer finds sublime peace in cold water
Directed by Thomas Beug
Play
idea
A game is not a game without a special kind of conflict
From 5,000-year-old boardgames to last year’s video-game blockbusters, all games feature a kind of collaborative conflict
by Eric Zimmerman
Pleasures and pastimes
idea
The brewer, the yeast, and the boundaries of human agency
The brewer and the yeast: why brewing beer sheds light on the philosophical debate about the boundaries of human agency
by Andrei A Buckareff
Music
guide
How to listen to, and enjoy, classical music
Whether you’re a newbie or an aficionado, these ways to navigate and approach the genre will enrich your experience
by Lawrence Kramer
Freedom and choice
film
Meandering with purpose across the US, on his mountain bike, aged 71
Directed by Brandon Watts
Sacred places
idea
I swim to think and to stay afloat in an ever-wetter world
‘The Beames my Bones, my flesh the plankes’: in pools, I glimpse the future of our terrestrial bodies in an ocean world
by Steve Mentz
Meaning and the good life
idea
What surfing says about the importance of serendipity in life
What surfers call the elated state of ‘stoke’ is really a celebration of life and the meaningful serendipities it brings
by Aaron James
Pleasures and pastimes
guide
How to wander
Whether in a city or the wilderness, near or far, there’s joy to be had in a journey where the destination doesn’t matter
by Jordan Fisher Smith
Travel
film
A beer sends a freewheeling couple on a 500-mile cycling pilgrimage
Directed by Tom Schroeder