Weekends, Are You Doing Them Right? Finding Happy in Your Community

One of the joys of living in Playa Vista is the strong sense of community and easy access to everything. Growing up, our house was 20-30 minutes away from the nearest grocery store, so access is something I never take for granted. You can binge watch the latest original Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon series all weekend long, or you can choose to get outside and be an active member of your community. Remember those shows will always be there for another night or rainy day. Heck, you can even watch a few episodes before or after you go out in public if it's that important to you. Happy can be found in outdoor movie screenings where there is a combined love for picnics and cinema. Everyone at these events are in good spirits. I love going to the classic films and seeing younger generations experiencing a film for the first time.

This weekend, I saw Rogue One for my first time. My brother and I enjoyed mac n cheese and ice cream from the food trucks and finished some wine on our walk over to the park. It was a warm summer evening and I loved hearing little kids laugh at K2SO and one sobbing when he died. At the very end one child goes "welp, guess they all died. What a bummer, dad." I would not have that experience and commentary watching it alone at home. It brought me happiness to see all the families together. On the walk home, while my brother filled me in on the entire history of all Star Wars films and the order of the story, we saw two Darth Vaders skateboarding home by the light of their light sabers.

The following day, after catching up on laundry, cleaning my kitchen, and organizing my craft station a bit, my boyfriend and I ventured over to the grand opening of the new Wallis Anneberg PetSpace in Playa Vista. This is something to get out and see. Dogs definitely make my face happy, but seeing so many playing with families and getting adopted was incredible. Each dog has an individual suite with Lassie playing on a TV on loop. There are cats and kittens and rabbits as well. I dare people to go there and try to be in a bad mood. It's a great place where humans and animals are connecting and the community is coming together consistently.

Point of this post? At least one weekend a month, stick around your town and get out and be a part of the community, attend events and enjoy it. Involvement in your community is one of the pillars of happiness, so do it right.