Measuring happiness

We've just returned from a week-end trip to New York to visit family and inspect our twin grand daughters who are now over four months old.

On returning we hear the PM telling us that money does not necessarily measure happiness and he would like to develop a non-monetary measure.

Two good things about money is that it often works and you can measure it.

For my own happiness it is important to have some control over stuff.  This was evidenced on Thursday when my happiness levels plummeted sitting on an aircraft being delayed for an hour because of heavy rain in the Manchester area. And again on our return on Monday morning whilst sitting with 400+ people in a Boeing 747 on the runway at Heathrow,  very tired and full of a head cold, and waiting and waiting for a gate to be made available. (Had they not expected us?)

Having control is obviously relative and could be virtual or real.

On week-ends in Brooklyn (Cobble Hill since you ask) all the young Turks, (CEOs, CFOs, Marketing Executives and Account Directors) take over from Nanny, become REAL mummies and daddies and go to Carol Park with their little ones. Two year olds wear helmets and protective gear and there is a lot of rubberised floor covering in case of accidents.  Adults carry huge cups of coffee and chat away just like being down the pub. Somebody said it was like a zoo. The children uncaged from their luxury apartments run about and shout to their hearts' content

For the children the lack of control = happiness.  But control (a mummy or a daddy) is not far away.

So you can achieve happiness if you only think  you have control over stuff.

Quite wrong yet quite happy.