Happy spring! With cherry blossoms blooming all around, Dean and Tom float into an exploration of ikigai, a concept for finding happiness and purpose in everyday life, in Japanese culture. Along the road of their discussion, they also stay at a ryokan and relish wabi-sabi – all while occasionally being interrupted by the Licensing department. Whether you’re subtly finding beauty in the imperfection of this episode (there’s plenty here!), or you’re taking the “full-blown, get-in-the-van” approach to finding pleasure here, we hope that your listening experience with this episode leaves you feeling quite content!

***Subscribe to Dean’s Substack here for all of Dean’s CultureQuizzes, “Culture’s Consequences” articles, and much more!***

Have a cultural question or episode idea? Reach out on X/Twitter & Facebook (@OopsCultureShow) or by email at [email protected].

Hosts: Dean Foster & Tom Peterson

Audio Production: Tom Peterson & Torin Peterson

Music: “Little Idea” – Bensound.com