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	<title>THE ESSENCE OF LIVING</title>
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	<link>http://happinessisessential.com</link>
	<description>FINDING YOUR WAY TO A HAPPY, MEANINGFUL LIFE</description>
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		<title>THE ESSENCE OF LIVING</title>
		<link>http://happinessisessential.com</link>
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		<title>One Scene Each Day</title>
		<link>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/09/16/one-scene-each-day/</link>
		<comments>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/09/16/one-scene-each-day/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 16 Sep 2012 03:18:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ragiacal</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://happinessisessential.com/?p=104</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Artists have long understood the essential elements of life with seemingly greater ease than the rest of us. This is what gives them the ability to teach us so much about what brings us happiness. I have often watched a movie and thought, “yes, I get it now.” Whether it’s the meaning of commitment depicted [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=happinessisessential.com&#038;blog=28522584&#038;post=104&#038;subd=happinessisessential&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
	
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		<title>You Count</title>
		<link>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/08/23/you-count/</link>
		<comments>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/08/23/you-count/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 23 Aug 2012 17:29:12 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ragiacal</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://happinessisessential.com/?p=101</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In a culture obsessed with fame, it seems that everyone wants to be a “someone.” Whether the notoriety is achieved through significant accomplishments, or simply through a strong public relations machine, the primary goal is recognition. It is often irrelevant whether an individual is famous for their good deeds and contribution to humanity, like Mother [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=happinessisessential.com&#038;blog=28522584&#038;post=101&#038;subd=happinessisessential&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">ragiacal</media:title>
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		<title>Divine Questions</title>
		<link>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/05/28/divine-questions/</link>
		<comments>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/05/28/divine-questions/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 28 May 2012 22:22:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ragiacal</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[blame]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[critical thinking]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[illusions]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://happinessisessential.com/?p=96</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I have often heard people say that they wish they could ask God a question—it’s usually something about the meaning of life or why bad things happen to good people. More often, it involves an angry diatribe about how messed up the world is, and how God owes us an explanation for this mess. As [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=happinessisessential.com&#038;blog=28522584&#038;post=96&#038;subd=happinessisessential&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">ragiacal</media:title>
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		<title>Miracle of the Day</title>
		<link>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/03/04/miracle-of-the-day/</link>
		<comments>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/03/04/miracle-of-the-day/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 04 Mar 2012 00:16:30 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ragiacal</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://happinessisessential.com/?p=89</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[There are days when I get up in the morning, and I’m not quite sure why I’m around. Don’t get me wrong; my life is fine. I have my issues like everyone else, but I wouldn’t trade my life for someone else’s. Still, I sometimes wonder exactly what it is that I am really here [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=happinessisessential.com&#038;blog=28522584&#038;post=89&#038;subd=happinessisessential&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>6</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">ragiacal</media:title>
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		<title>After The Last Play at Shea</title>
		<link>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/02/23/after-the-last-play-at-shea/</link>
		<comments>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/02/23/after-the-last-play-at-shea/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 23 Feb 2012 03:31:31 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ragiacal</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://happinessisessential.com/?p=82</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I was a quiet kid with few friends, and baseball was my link to the world at large.  I followed terrible NY Mets teams that only a true fan would enjoy watching.  It was never about how well the game was played, but the simple joy of watching the game. As I got older and [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=happinessisessential.com&#038;blog=28522584&#038;post=82&#038;subd=happinessisessential&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">ragiacal</media:title>
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		<title>Living Without Our Illusions</title>
		<link>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/01/22/living-without-our-illusions/</link>
		<comments>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/01/22/living-without-our-illusions/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 22 Jan 2012 17:14:51 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ragiacal</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://happinessisessential.com/?p=77</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Many of us live most of our lives feeling feel fairly certain of who we are as people. We feel comfortable with the image we have of ourselves, leading us to feel comfortable with most of our choices.  Unfortunately, the aspects of ourselves that we tend to feel the most certain of are all of [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=happinessisessential.com&#038;blog=28522584&#038;post=77&#038;subd=happinessisessential&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">ragiacal</media:title>
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		<title>A Society of Elvis Impersonators</title>
		<link>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/01/07/a-society-of-elvis-impersonators/</link>
		<comments>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/01/07/a-society-of-elvis-impersonators/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 07 Jan 2012 20:14:17 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ragiacal</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://happinessisessential.com/?p=41</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I have always found Elvis impersonators somewhat disconcerting. While I have always had a fondness for the King, I’ve never understood what satisfaction could be drawn from transforming, on a daily basis, into someone other than who you really are. What confused me more was the strange allure that these impersonators seem to have for [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=happinessisessential.com&#038;blog=28522584&#038;post=41&#038;subd=happinessisessential&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://happinessisessential.com/2012/01/07/a-society-of-elvis-impersonators/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>9</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">ragiacal</media:title>
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		<title>Walking Out of Hell</title>
		<link>http://happinessisessential.com/2011/12/31/walking-out-of-hell/</link>
		<comments>http://happinessisessential.com/2011/12/31/walking-out-of-hell/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 31 Dec 2011 22:02:56 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ragiacal</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[caring]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[happiness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[love]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://happinessisessential.com/?p=35</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Once upon a time in a miraculous Universe where all things are possible, amidst the fires of hell where all is unholy, the devil had a son who had nothing in common with his father. Good to the core, virtuous and loving, the young man was a saint by the definition of anyone on heaven [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=happinessisessential.com&#038;blog=28522584&#038;post=35&#038;subd=happinessisessential&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>9</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">ragiacal</media:title>
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		<title>Supermarket Sweep Life</title>
		<link>http://happinessisessential.com/2011/12/23/supermarket-sweep-life/</link>
		<comments>http://happinessisessential.com/2011/12/23/supermarket-sweep-life/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 23 Dec 2011 18:39:15 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ragiacal</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[happiness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[materialism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[work-life balance]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://happinessisessential.wordpress.com/?p=30</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[When I was kid, there was a strange game show on television called Supermarket Sweep. Part of the show was a live-action, timed competitive race through an empty supermarket. Contestants would hurl the most expensive goods they could find into a shopping cart in a given time period. The total value of what was in [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=happinessisessential.com&#038;blog=28522584&#038;post=30&#038;subd=happinessisessential&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://happinessisessential.com/2011/12/23/supermarket-sweep-life/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>15</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">ragiacal</media:title>
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		<item>
		<title>Welcome to The Essence of Living Blog</title>
		<link>http://happinessisessential.com/2011/12/04/welcome-to-the-essence-of-living-blog/</link>
		<comments>http://happinessisessential.com/2011/12/04/welcome-to-the-essence-of-living-blog/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 04 Dec 2011 17:50:23 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ragiacal</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://happinessisessential.com/?p=18</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We have all heard the complaints that our stressful and complicated world has made it difficult for us to live joyful, meaningful lives. And there is no doubt—the stress and complexity is real. But some of these problems and complications are real, some are anticipated, and some are seemingly fabricated by our own fears or [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=happinessisessential.com&#038;blog=28522584&#038;post=18&#038;subd=happinessisessential&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://happinessisessential.com/2011/12/04/welcome-to-the-essence-of-living-blog/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>6</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">ragiacal</media:title>
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