Happy Birthday, Time To Die

For those of us convinced that life is a relentless accretion of pain and disappointment large and small, and that even the supposed joys — infrequent as they are — turn out to be razor-edged barbs wrapped up in candy coating (the better to disguise their wounding intent), here’s yet another unsurprising confirmation of just how pointless any effort at appreciating things really is: “Birthdays are a time for celebration. But, in truth, after a certain age few people greet yet another birthday with unconfined joy. According to scientists, the flatness we feel at the passing of another year is the least of our problems. It emerges that we are 14 per cent more likely to die on our birthday, according to new research based on a study of more than two million people.” There is also some theorizing going on about why men are more likely than women to commit suicide on that day. Hint: it involves selfishness. Anyway, good morning!

Photo by Nadina, via Shutterstock