20 percent bullshit allowance

I have a whole lineup of podcasts I listen to when I'm driving around or working out. Last week on the Next Big Idea podcast episode with Morgan Housel, author of The Psychology of Money (2020), I heard an idea I think is really useful: the "20 percent bullshit allowance." Housel explained it like this:

Like anything else in life, anything that is rewarding comes with a cost attached to it. And the cost for a lot of things in life is the willingness to put up with and endure uncertainty, hassle, nonsense, pain, bullshit, all of it. I think in anyone's life, you should give yourself a 20 percent bullshit allowance, that 20 percent of the time and 20 percent of the days, 20 percent of the things that happen are gonna be things where you're like, alright, I guess I gotta put up with this. My flight is delayed, my toilet is leaking, my car broke down, I'm sick, my kids are sick. Whatever it is, 20 percent of your life is going to be some form of b.s. And if you are not willing to put up with that, you are blown apart by the tiniest petty annoyance in your life.

This strikes me as a corollary of the idea that you'll have a happier life if you just lower your expectations. The best-known formulation of that idea is this equation (though there are variations*):

Happiness = Reality − Expectations

There's an article in Psychology Today describing the "pitfalls" of maintaining low expectations to boost happiness levels, but it can definitely have some benefits for those of us who let our enjoyment of some things (like new restaurants) suffer because our expectations going in are way too high. And it’s a great reminder that you can have an awesome vacation despite the inevitable travel hassles.

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*I've also seen the equation expressed as "Happiness = Reality/Expectations,”which really bumps up the effect of lowering expectations. In the much less pithy version in Mo Gawdat's book Solve for Happy (2017), he gives the equation as "Happiness ≥ your perception of the events of your life − your expectation of how life should behave."

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There is no bullshit allowance needed for these cookies, which require only melting and stirring and not even any baking. And definitely no using a candy thermometer like “real” fudge, which I don’t like as well as these anyway. Win win.

 

Step four

 

 No-Bake Oreo Fudgies

Adapted from Cook’s Country (Dec/Jan 2024)

Time: ~30 minutes + at least 1½ hours chilling time

36 Oreo cookies (~410 grams) broken into rough pieces
340 grams (2 cups) bittersweet chocolate chips, divided
113 grams (1 stick/8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces, divided
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoons (10 grams) vanilla extract
rounded ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

    1. Tear off a 12-by-12-inch sheet of aluminum foil. Turn a straight-sided 8-inch square baking pan upside down, center the foil on it, and fold the excess evenly over the sides of the pan. Fold and crease the corners like you're wrapping a present. Slip the liner off the pan. Turn the pan right side up and insert the liner, carefully working it into the corners of the pan. Spray the liner with Pam nonstick cooking spray.
    2. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal “s” blade, blitz the cookies to fine crumbs, about 30 seconds, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Transfer the crumbs to a large mixing bowl.
    3. In a small microwave-safe bowl, nuke 255 grams (1½ cups) of the chocolate chips and 57 grams (4 tablespoons) of the butter at 50% power until melted, about 2 minutes (more in our underpowered microwave), stirring occasionally. Using a silicone spatula, scrape the mixture into the bowl with the cookie crumbs. Add the condensed milk, vanilla, and salt, and stir until evenly combined; the mixture will be very thick.
     4. Scrape the mixture into the prepared pan. Press into an even layer. Park in the fridge until firm, at least 1 hour.
     5. In the same small bowl, nuke the remaining 85 grams (½ cup) chocolate chips and 57 grams (4 tablespoons) butter at 50% power until melted, 1 to 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir until the mixture is completely smooth. Using a small offset spatula if you have one, spread the mixture over the firm cookie base. Park in the fridge until the top layer is set, about 30 minutes.
     6. When set, lift the block out of the pan and place on a cutting board, removing the foil as you go. Using a sharp chef’s knife, cut the block into 64 one-inch squares. Serve chilled or at room temperature. (The fudgies will keep in the fridge for up to one week.)