Hey hey, my friends. It’s Thursday. It’s Apex Money. I’m J.D. Roth. Today, I have one of those occasional installments in which all of the links are connected. Let’s take a look at loneliness — and friendship.
Loneliness poses risks as deadly as smoking. [AP News] — “Loneliness increases the risk of premature death by nearly 30%…Isolation also elevates a person’s likelihood for experiencing depression, anxiety and dementia, according to the research.”
Parrots taught to video call each other become less lonely. [The Guardian] — “The study, which involved giving the birds a tablet that they could use to make video calls, found that they began to engage in more social behaviour including preening, singing and play. The birds were given a choice of which ‘friend’ to call on a touchscreen tablet and the study revealed that the parrots that called other birds most often were the most popular choices.” [Actual research paper] Here’s a video about all of this.
Live closer to your friends. [The Atlantic, so possible paywall] — “Having a pal around is also just practical. For people with kids, a friend in the neighborhood might be able to help with child care in a pinch, saving you the cost of a last-minute sitter; those without children might welcome the chance to bond with friends’ kids. And for people who live alone, proximity to friends can make saving on some things easier: You might share household items you don’t need every day or split bulk groceries, for example.”
To close out this lonely installment — an installment that hasn’t had any explicit financial advice — here’s a morose song about loneliness: Harry Nilsson’s “One”, sung by the songwriter himself.
Yikes. That’s a downer. I’ll be back tomorrow with some links that aren’t quite as depressing…