Latest news with #Loneliness
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Utah's new holiday to help folks combat loneliness is on Saturday
The last Saturday in April — this Saturday — is a new state holiday. The Utah Legislature created Utah Social and Community Health Day to nudge people to mind their relationships. The day is a reminder to nurture friendships and to reach out to others to counter the growing problem of loneliness, a challenge that has seeped through communities across the country. 'Think of it as a day to level up your friendships,' said Brent Reed, one of the architects of the holiday and a strong advocate for the value of forging connections. 'Every major problem — and every joy — is easier to face when we're not alone." The holiday's goal, he told Deseret News, is to get everyone to do something, however small, to connect with someone else. He'll be having lunch with an old friend he almost lost track of as both of their lives got busy. Reed, 59, is a Highland dad with seven kids, who range from teens up to their 30s. He owns a window cleaning business. Reed said he got interested in the issue of social connections in 2023, when news stories were chronicling a loneliness epidemic. He took stock of his own life and realized he'd let many of his social connections drift away. About the same time, Reed said he saw some of the work done by BYU professor of psychology Julianne Holt-Lunstad, who had been studying and publishing research on the impact of loneliness and isolation — which may not be the same thing. You can have people around you and still feel lonely. You can be by yourself and not feel lonely. But many people do suffer from feelings of one or the other — or both. Reed got involved with 'friendship labs,' coming up with tools to help people increase the quantity of their friendships and improve the quality. He kept trying different things, plagued by the notion that disconnection was a solvable societal problem. But loneliness is tricky, he said, because no one wants to own that they feel that way. 'Being lonely seems to be generally frowned upon,' he said. He took his concerns to a legislator, who agreed that a day of recognition might be 'leverage to tell people to take it more seriously.' State Sen. Brady Brammer, R-Pleasant Grove, sponsored SCR4, while state Rep. Steve Eliason, R-Sandy, carried it in the House. The resolution says the day, which became official in 2025, 'recognizes loneliness and social isolation as critical public health priorities' and 'urges individuals to prioritize building positive relationships and fostering social connections.' Holt-Lunstad, a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Brigham Young University and director of the university's social connections lab, believes having a designated day could be 'an opportunity both for increasing awareness as well as for taking action.' She helped polish the resolution's language. She's long been heavily involved in sounding the alarm about the very real dangers of loneliness and isolation, noting health risks more dangerous than obesity, air pollution, physical inactivity, excessive alcohol consumption or smoking 15 cigarettes a day. 'No factor is more consistently associated with long life and happiness than strong social connections,' she said, pointing to findings from Harvard's Study of Adult Development, which is the world's longest study of happiness. When U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy issued his advisory on loneliness, which he characterized as an epidemic, she was the scientific editor. She's also a technical adviser to the World Health Organization's commission on social connection. The commission will issue a new report in July. Despite recent attention from officials, Holt-Lunstad said she thinks there's a 'significant lack of awareness around this issue' among the public. So besides the push to get people involved with each other on a personal level, she believes an awareness day provides an opportunity to 'create messaging and campaigns and dialogue that can help us start to increase awareness around just how critically important our social connections are, not only for individuals, but the thriving of our communities and society. 'We know it impacts health, education, safety, prosperity, several different kinds of outcomes — and for far too long, our social connections have been taken for granted and so this is an opportunity for us to create awareness but also for communities to plan events, for individuals to take action in their own relationships and communities,' she said. The day should remind people how important connections are, said Holt-Lunstad. Reed said his own focus is on fortifying spiritual, relational health. 'Lots of groups are building parks and paths, and there are lots of things that build community. But until you start talking to someone, making friends, going to lunch, it's for naught.' What he wants to do, he said, is 'level up as a friend. If people did that, it would be fantastic.' It's easy to let a relationship slide if it's not minded, according to Reed, who is pretty sure that on Saturday he'll be having lunch with someone who's been his friend for 30 years, but with whom he almost lost touch, then working in the man's backyard for a bit. Helping others, doing things together — even chores — forms or strengthens bonds. Holt-Lunstad talks about a randomized controlled trial she was part of that asked people to do just small acts of kindness for their neighbors over the course of a month. 'What we found was that when people did that, that reduced loneliness, it reduced stress and it also reduced conflict in neighborhoods.' Action on behalf of others is free, simple and anyone can do something, she said. A single commemorative day is not going to change much, she adds, or be as helpful as something done consistently over time. But it could get people started thinking about others and launch some new connections. Doing things with and for others makes people feel good. So it can lead somewhere important on a personal level. 'Relationships take time to develop and time to maintain,' she told Deseret News, noting the day 'really should be a reminder, more than a one-off.' There's a website under development at It will be built out with ideas for connecting and with different resources, Reed said. Holt-Lunstad added that she's glad the holiday focuses on social connection, rather than targeting loneliness explicitly. 'I think oftentimes we focus so much on the problem that we lose sight of what we're aiming for. Social connection is something everyone needs and everyone can take part in. I'm happy that Utah is focusing on the bright spots.'
The Guardian
10-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
‘I had to spit in Michael Caine's face': Jack O'Connell on Skins, impostor syndrome and stripping off
Your new film, Sinners, sounds scary. What scares you? MrSOBaldrick Loneliness. I've always wanted to act, but I've never taken the plunge. Has there been a role where you felt you took a plunge out of your comfort zone? AliciaGrace1 Getting to portray an American comes with inherent impostor syndrome, because so many other US actors could take the role. The roles I've played in the US have bigger distinctions from my lived experiences than some of my other roles. But it can be rewarding and fulfilling to do something that's very different, so it works both ways. '71 was one hell of a white-knuckle ride around the backstreets of Belfast. Did you get that sense of urban claustrophobia when filming it? Aubrey26 We didn't actually film any of it in Belfast. I think it would be quite insensitive to shoot that type of story on the streets where, not so long ago, that ferocious, urban conflict was getting lived out for real. There's no way you can pull that off without upsetting people. We shot a lot of it on the Derbyshire-Yorkshire border. Did the '71 screenwriter, Gregory Burke, draft the screenplay to fit your background, for example the line about Derby and Nottingham folk not getting on? Inverclydediaspora Yeah, dead on. Originally, my character was from Sheffield. I think the original line was people from Sheffield and Leeds not getting on, but those local rivalries are relevant over the whole country. Did Michael Caine really yell: 'Star of the future!' at you while filming Harry Brown? And did Angelina Jolie really hire a helicopter for you to join a family dinner in Derby while filming Unbroken? TurangaLeela2 Michael Caine had me tied up to a chair, interrogating me. I had to spit in his face, which was massively daunting. I think it was doing that that caused him to come out with that. I've not forgotten it. It was totally mind-blowing for a 19-year-old to be working with someone like Michael Caine, a hugely important actor for young, working-class actors. We were doing prep for Unbroken. I had to lose quite a bit of weight [to play the Olympic runner Louis Zamperini], so I was hunkering down in a hotel in Ascot, dieting and learning my lines. Before we went off to shoot in Australia, Angelina wanted to meet my family, my nearest and dearest. We got together somewhere on the outskirts of Derby that was rural enough to land a helicopter. Everyone just buzzed off each other. My nana picked a moment during the meal to stand up to say a few words, in that way old-school nanas would, and I think that really stuck with her [Jolie]. How did you prepare for your role in Starred Up? ExileCuChulainn Jonathan Asser [the writer] was generous enough, once we'd been cast and rehearsed a few times, to step back and give us licence to invent stuff and bring new things to the fold. We filmed sequentially, so it was very organic. We shot it at this empty, crumbling Victorian jail in Belfast and had free rein there, apart from the odd guided tour. It can certainly be challenging when the subject matter is dark, because you're dealing within trauma. It helps to equip yourself with as much information as possible to do justice to what you're trying to portray. Who is your favourite character you've played? jessputnam I couldn't possibly say. I've been very fortunate. I think it's obvious what character people associate me with [Cook from Skins], but I don't mind that – it's a massive compliment. I think by the time we turned up [the second iteration of characters in season three], we knew we were on to something that felt culturally important. It amazes me that people still talk to me about it, 15 years on. You made your directorial debut last year, directing the video for Paul Weller's Nothing. Are you a big fan of the Modfather? VerulamiumParkRanger Always have been: the Jam, the Style Council, his solo material. It was a huge honour. We shot it over three or four days and I loved every second. It's made me hungry to do more. He originally asked me to be in one of his videos. That's when I chanced my hand and said: 'I could direct one?' He obliged and I shat myself. I saw you in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. How was it performing nude night after night? Kellysahero1970 There's a nude scene at the start of the play and another at the end. The play starts in the shower. It would be very odd to be in the shower wearing clothing. So I just assumed: I'll be naked. You just crack on. But I guess, for the audience, being met with that image of me being naked … I remember a few gasps in the matinees from the coach trippers. They weren't there after the interval. What was it like working with Danny Boyle on 28 Years Later? TopTramp A dream come true. We shot two films – the sequel and the sequel to the sequel [28 Years Later: The Bone Temple]. Growing up, his work meant an enormous amount to me. What his films have done for cinema, British cinema and culture, is hard to encapsulate. On set, I was all eyes and ears, absolutely beside myself. He's there by the cameras, in the trenches. He's not sat on some hilltop being fed blueberries. He's among it and it's all very immediate. Which Derby County player would you most like to play in a biopic? I reckon The Marco Gabbiadini Story is well worth telling (Goals! Glory! Caravans! B&Bs!) but that may be a bit before your time. Loumo I love this question, man. I'm gonna go for [the Italy striker] Fabrizio Ravanelli, for the glitz and glamour, so long as we can ignore the [1996-97] Middlesbrough era. I expect the offer will come in now. That's usually how it works. I say something in the Guardian, tongue in cheek, then someone will write a script. Sinners is in UK and Irish cinemas from 18 April
New York Times
04-03-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Review: ‘Moby-Dick,' the Opera, Cuts the Blubber
The opening line of Herman Melville's 'Moby-Dick' is one of the most famous in literature. But Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer, whose moody, monochromatic 2010 adaptation arrived at the Metropolitan Opera on Monday, conspicuously avoid placing those classic three words at the start. It's an early declaration of independence, the kind that artists have always had to make when turning a well-known novel — especially one as sprawling and shaggy as Melville's — into singing. Heggie, who also composed the well-traveled opera 'Dead Man Walking' (2000), and Scheer, an experienced librettist, have narrowed one of the canon's most overflowing works to its core plot. For readers who enjoyed 'Moby-Dick' but yawned through the rambling digressions about whaling, do I have an opera for you. The compressed adaptation is direct and clear, at least. Some contemporary operas, of which the Met has offered a burst over the last few seasons, lean heavily on confusing devices: complicated flashbacks; characters shadowed by doubles; singers playing metaphorical qualities like Destiny and Loneliness; split-screen-style scenes crossing place and time. 'Moby-Dick' wants none of that. It stretches across a year or so, but in a linear way. It never leaves the ship Pequod and its salty surroundings. Its characters are flesh-and-blood people. Yet the opera only rarely takes on flesh-and-blood urgency. While the story is streamlined and straightforward — a ship's crew struggles with the demanding whims of a vindictive captain — Heggie and Scheer also want to capture Melville's brooding grandeur, philosophical profundity and portentous language. So the prevailing mood is a dark, ponderous blue — a lot of stern, turgidly paced musings directed straight at the audience. The goal seems to have been to create a piece that's lucid and vibrant, but also dreamlike and meditative. A piece, in other words, much along the lines of 'Billy Budd,' Benjamin Britten's opera based on another seafaring Melville tragedy in which a ship becomes a petri dish for archetypal struggles. This is where the ambitions of Heggie's 'Moby-Dick' adaptation run up against his limitations as a composer. 'Billy Budd' fascinates because of the haunting complexities of Britten's music, but the meditations in this 'Moby-Dick' end up feeling dully one-note, as shallow as a tide pool. Even the circumscribed world of the opera includes a storm, a mast lit up by St. Elmo's fire, intimations of the South Seas, night and day, stillness and dance, vast expanses of sky — yet the music fails to meet the demand for these textures and colors. Heggie doesn't have many ideas beyond squarely undulating minor-key references to Philip Glass, John Adams and Britten himself. Every composer's work has influences, but these quotations are startlingly unadorned, even if played with spirit by the Met's orchestra under the conductor Karen Kamensek. Lovers of traditional operatic forms will find much to admire here, as Heggie and Scheer have embraced the kind of ensembles — duets, trios, quartets — that allow this art form to present multiple perspectives at once. But the variety in the text is not matched by variety in the score, and the conflicts that should energize the story don't always feel vital. The real tension is — or should be — between Captain Ahab, whose obsessive pursuit of the whale Moby Dick has drowned his humanity, and Starbuck, the sensible first mate who tries to steer the whole operation clear of disaster. But the opera gets distracted by a side plot about finding brotherhood amid racial and religious difference: Greenhorn — the name the opera gives the novel's narrator — first fears and then befriends Queequeg, the Polynesian harpooner. It's not until nearly an hour and a half into the three-hour opera that it really holds your attention for the first time. In a ruminative aria, Starbuck mulls whether to murder the sleeping Ahab to save himself and his shipmates. In the end, he can't bring himself to do it, and he slinks out as Ahab softly moans and the curtain falls. The sequence is riveting — but we've waited until the end of the first act for it. For the other highlight, we have to wait again, until late in the opera, when Ahab finally lets down his guard with Starbuck and confronts the cost of his single-minded mania. It is the calm before the final, doomed hunt, and Heggie endows it with real tenderness. Ahab, though, primarily expresses himself through drearily similar monologues, grounded in Melvillean diction and given a similarly antiquated musical feel through robustly shaking Handel-style coloratura. The tenor Brandon Jovanovich, stalking the stage with a belted-on peg leg, conveys a sense of Ahab's weariness more than of his intensity. The cast is entirely male, with the exception of the soprano who plays the young cabin boy Pip; Janai Brugger captures the boy's otherworldly purity. The baritone Thomas Glass was a solid Starbuck and acted with remarkable confidence, given that he was announced as a replacement for an ill Peter Mattei just a few hours before the opening on Monday — a performance that began with the orchestra playing the Ukrainian national anthem, the Met's latest gesture of solidarity with that country. While the tenor Stephen Costello was a plangent Greenhorn, the bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green sounded underpowered as Queequeg, with little to do except intone native prayers. The sweet-toned tenor William Burden was piquant among the smaller roles. Leonard Foglia's handsome production, with sets by Robert Brill, costumes by Jane Greenwood and lighting by Gavan Swift, is dominated by masts and rigging. The deck cleverly curves up into a backdrop that cast members can climb up and tumble down, seeming — with the help of Elaine J. McCarthy's projections — to be lost at sea as their boats are broken in the whale hunts. It is a clear staging of a clear piece. But that piece lacks the ingenuity and depth to hold its own with its source material, let alone break free. And it turns out that Heggie and Scheer's opening salvo of independence was just a coy deferral until the opera's closing moment. As Greenhorn, the Pequod's only survivor, is rescued by a passing ship, the captain asks his name. Costello answers, singing low and mournful: 'Call me Ishmael.'
