32 Things That Are Worth Caring About
Responding to people who text you as promptly as you can, within reason. No one likes to be left hanging on a "what's up" for three hours.
1. Keeping in touch with friends when one or both of you move away, even if that means reserving time to talk to them even when it isn’t convenient.
2. Listening to someone when they’re going through a breakup and need someone to vent to.
3. Paying attention to what your body needs in terms of nutrition and exercise, and not denying it things or overloading it with unhealthy stuff.
4. Forgiving yourself for making mistakes when it comes to your health and not falling victim to the “Oh, well, I ate badly today — may as well give up forever” line of thought when it comes to getting healthy.
5. Having good access to reproductive health and sex education for everyone.
6. Keeping a home environment that is at least reasonably clean/organized, and which promotes productivity — or at least doesn’t make you feel like a disgusting bridge troll every time you open the door.
7. Being surrounded by people who make you feel good about yourself, and don’t shame or judge you for who you are.
8. Being a good host to people who come and stay with you. (There is nothing worse than being made to feel like you are inconveniencing someone whose home you are staying at.)
9. Dressing in a way that makes you feel attractive and comfortable, even if other people may think of it as tacky or bizzare. If you want to dress up like you’re perpetually on your way to an anime convention, you do you, weeb.
10. Living in a neighborhood that is conducive to your lifestyle and in which you feel safe — even if it’s a little bit less centrally-located than you would have liked.
11. Saying an actual “Happy Birthday” to people whom you care about, instead of just scribbling it on their Facebook wall with a million other acquaintances.
12. Staying within your budget each month, even if that means forgoing something you really want until later in the year (or saying no to social events that you’d like to attend).
13. Having friends who are understanding about your need to stay in sometimes for budget reasons, and don’t make you feel guilty or lame for it.
14. Dating someone who is proud to introduce you to their friends and family (and whose friends and family treat you with respect and kindness).
15. Responding to people who text you as promptly as you can, within reason. No one likes to be left hanging on a “what’s up” for three hours.
16. Being on time for meeting people — because nothing says “My world is more important than yours” than being perpetually tardy. We’ve all got things to do, be on time.
17. Showing up for events that are important for friends, even if it means going out of your way to do so, or it may not particularly be your cup of tea. If your friend is having a show for her artwork, you get your ass out to that tiny gallery.
18. Getting out on the floor and at least trying to have fun when you’re out at a dance. No one cares if you don’t really know how or you look stupid. Everyone looks stupid — it’s a dance.
19. Finding roommates who are adapted to your lifestyle and know how to be respectful of other human beings.
20. Working a job that doesn’t make you hate your life every time you hear the alarm clock go off.
21. Traveling to places that you probably won’t get a chance to see once you have a mortgage and children and a thousand other responsibilities.
22. Having a significant other who makes you feel sexually desirable and loves your body the way it is, and who wants to touch it in ways you enjoy.
23. Eating a good breakfast in the morning so you’re not constantly on the verge of death every time the lunch hour rolls around.
24. Handwriting actual thank-you notes for people who do important things/give important gifts in your life. I KNOW IT SEEMS LIKE A LOT OF EFFORT BUT IT IS WORTH IT.
25. Getting rid of people who are only friends with you under circumstances.
26. Voting.
27. Telling someone you like them, because even rejection is better than living the rest of your life wondering what would have happened if you’d just been honest with them.
28. Not allowing anyone to cheat on you or, more importantly, to lie about it afterwards.
29. Being kind to people you pass throughout your day, even if you’re in a bad mood, and even if you don’t think they will remember it — they will.
30. Leaving a good tip at a restaurant (or, if you can’t leave one, not going out to eat in the first place).
31. Not looking down on any of your friends, no matter what they may be doing for work. Especially in this economy, being judgmental about something like professional success is nothing short of a slap in the face.
32. Getting to know someone and giving them the benefit of the doubt before you lay down a judgment. It’s so easy to see people at one weak moment over the course of a lifetime and think that they are an inherently bad person, but even strangers are real people with complex lives and motivations, and we cannot expect people to be understanding for us if we never are ourselves.