Don't Worry. Be At Least Marginally Happy.

Lobbyists and special interests take themselves too seriously and work too hard.  There, I said it.  I know this because I’m one of them.  Having just come off a vacation where I TRIED to relax a little in Key West, got caught in Hurricane Isaac, got bored and, as a result, worked several hours per day, I definitely felt I spent the Labor Day break, well, laboring.

That’s why I was so intrigued by this article in the Washington Post about a guy who holds up “honk if you love someone,” “smile,” and “today is awesome” signs on commuting routes in and around Washington, D.C. 

My first thought was, “hmmm, kind of a dork.” My second thought was, “hey, wait a minute, that’s sort of cool.” My third thought was “where is he? I want to go see him.”

Sometimes we’re so busy legislating, lobbying, influencing and “convention-ing” we forget that it’s OK to have a little bit of fun.  Many, many, many people come to Washington, D.C. to achieve their own definition of “what’s good,” and we should all be proud and excited to work on that.  Sure, our definition may not be the same as someone else’s. The fun is in convincing people they are horribly misguided.

As for me, I’m particularly fond of the “don’t be so hard on yourself” sign. This is a useful sentiment when Congress isn’t going to be doing anything and one feels, well, less than productive.  And perhaps we can spread the good vibes by being less hard on others as well unless, of course, they deserve it.