How much time do you spend worrying about things? Do people tell you that you worry too much? That's not really useful, because that feeling of impending doom (or even just a little discomfort) is difficult to turn off. But are you worrying too much? Maybe, but you shouldn't worry about it. Worrying might actually be a good sign.

Well, maybe because — sometimes, in small doses — worrying can actually be good for you. In one study, for example, worrying was linked to recovery from trauma and depression, as well as increased “uptake of health-promoting behaviors,” like getting regular cancer screenings or resolving to kick a smoking habit. Others have found that worriers tend to be more successful problem-solvers, higher performers at work and in graduate school, and more proactive and informed when it comes to handling stressful events that life throws their way.

In other words, worry means you are being mindful about things that need solving or improvement. The key is to turn that worry into a plan to change what you are fretting about. If it's a problem you cannot change, some stress relief might be in order, or you can turn to worrying about something else that you can change. The Science of Us has more on the positive side of worrying.

(Image credit: Maxwell GS)

Here's a superstition I had never heard of until now. Disposable lighters come in all colors, but the white ones are bad luck. It's supposedly even more unlucky than lighting three cigarettes with one match. At least that one made sense, because you could burn your fingers if you held a match long enough. The white lighter taboo seems to be entirely magical thinking.

Even in 2017, it’s not uncommon to encounter smokers who not only won’t purchase white lighters, but won’t use them to light things even if they belong to someone else. Some people don’t even like being in the room when one is being used. But how did this legend get started in the first place?

The most common origin story behind this myth is actually tied up with another popular urban legend. The so-called “27 Club” includes young artists and musicians—Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin, and Jimi Hendrix—who all died at the age of 27. A number of superstitions revolve around the 27 Club, one of which being that those musicians, as well as a later addition to the club, Kurt Cobain, had white lighters on them when they died. They didn’t.

There are a couple of other possibilities for the origin of this superstition, one that even makes sense, that you can read about at Atlas Obscura. The article is part of their series on luck running all this week.

Pusic was taken in when he was a very sick kitten abandoned in a box. He pulled through, as you can see in this video, and grew up to love the Russian couple who took him in. He especially likes getting picked up by his mommy, as you can see here, and biting his daddy's ear, as you can see in this video. But last fall, Dad went away for twenty days, and that was hard on Pusic.

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When he finally came back, it was a joyful reunion for the cat. -via Laughing Squid

Dino Ignacio took his daughter to Star Wars Celebration last week, and they went fully equipped. He made a batch of plastic datacards as the plans for the Death Star for his tiny Jyn Erso to deliver. In case you haven't seen Rogue One, Jyn Erso was the main character, and getting the Death Star plans to the Rebel Alliance was her mission.   

Jyn is actually named Harley, and she and her father Dino attended Celebration in Orlando last weekend with a special goal in mind, to pay tribute to the dearly departed Carrie Fisher. Harley, in costume as Rogue One’s Rebel Operative, would locate as many Princess Leia cosplayers as she could, and hand them a specially-crafted copy of the datacard containing the Death Star plans.

See pictures of Harley and the different incarnations of Princess Leia she found at Star Wars Celebration at io9.

PS: Harley was Rey last year.

Cats love boxes, but some boxes are better than others. To determine which is the best, they must all be thoroughly checked out. Simon's Cat and the kitten are channeling Maru and his sister Hana in the latest animation from Simon Tofield.

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If he fits, he sits …and if he doesn't fits, he sits anyway. In color, no less. -via Tastefully Offensive

Did you ever have the macaroni nightmare? It doesn't have to be about macaroni, but anything you could possibly say that makes everyone laugh at you. And I guarantee we've all had that dream where people laugh at how uncool we are. It's almost as bad as people laughing at you in real life. This is the latest comic from Buttersafe.

Ferryville, Newfoundland, is in the global spotlight right now because of an unexpected visitor. The town of about 500 people has seen its share of icebergs float by, but this one is a doozy- 150 feet tall! That's bigger than the iceberg that caused the Titanic to sink. The berg showed up on Easter weekend and is hanging around the Ferryville shoreline, drawing photographers, news media, and tourists looking for a thrill. Too bad the town's only two restaurants won't be open for another month. See more pictures and a video of the Ferryville iceberg at TVOM.

My neighbors think I am a great gardener. The secret is to immediately get rid of my failures, so that only the successes are seen. When someone compliments my lilac bush, I don't mention the several previous lilacs that died. Similarly, people talk about the risky behavior they survived in their younger years, while no one gets to hear from those who actually died. That is survivorship bias. This guy won the lottery, but that doesn't mean he has any particular wisdom about it, much less a foolproof method. After all, the many people who lost money on that lottery were not asked to speak about their experiences. This illustration of survivorship bias is brought to you by Randall Munroe at xkcd.

The 1970 Black Sabbath song "Iron Man" is a heavy metal classic, no pun intended. Or maybe it was intended. Anyway, you can't get any further from the popular concept of heavy metal than the angelic music of the harp. So of course, Camille and Kennerly Kitt, known as The Harp Twins, had to play the song on harps.  

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In case you're wondering about the fascinating backdrop, this was recorded at the Sanfilippo Estate in Barrington, Illinois. See more videos from the Harp Twins. -via Digg

In February, 93-year-old Tom Sitter entered The Moth in Madison StorySLAM storytelling contest in Madison, Wisconsin. He told about his Valentines Day experience in 1933, when he was in third grade.    

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Sitter scored the competition's first-ever perfect ten. Maybe it's because he told it so well, or maybe it's because we can all relate to the tale. Or both. He now advances to the StorySLAM championship round. I hope we get video of his performance in that round. -via Tastefully Offensive 

Undercover #420 operations are in place. Discreet traps have been set up throughout the city today. #Happy420 pic.twitter.com/Jo8mh0Z5lQ

— Wyoming, MN Police (@wyomingpd) April 20, 2017

Police in Wyoming, Minnesota, set up a sting operation to catch revelers celebrating 4/20 today. They had all the proper bait, and a butterfly net. Wonder if they caught their limit. -via The Daily Dot

We love dogs, but remembering all the breed names is next to impossible, especially when they're all good dogs. We should give them names that have something to do with their appearance, behavior, or at least their impressions on us. That would be especially useful for those of us who have trouble distinguishing between a dog and a cat, or a dog and a dragon. This chart by A Good Guy …Maybe makes a lot more sense than trying to remember breed names. -via Boing Boing

Jody Foster and Anthony Hopkins star in the most romantic movie of the year! She's an ambitious young FBI agent, just trying to make it in a tough profession. Then she meets him, and everything changes. What's not to love about that?  

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Cinefix once again shows us how selective editing and mood music can shape a film into anything you want it to be. -via Laughing Squid

A  couple of years ago, we were treated to Biisuke Ball’s Big Adventure from the Japanese TV show Pitagora Suitchi (Pythagoras Switch). The bad news is that video has been erased from the internet, but the good news is that we now have part two of Biisuke, Biita, and Biigoro's adventures. In this story, Biisuke becomes trapped and must be rescued by his brothers Biita and Biigoro. In case you don't remember, the three brothers are balls who race around on some amazing chain reaction courses. In Japanese with English subtitles.   

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What a world we live in that a Rube Goldberg machine can have a plot, victims, bad guys, and heroes. -via Digg

Millennials know that hoarding is bad, and can lead to dangerous conditions in your home. But they live in a different world, and some suffer from a different kind of hoarding disorder.

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Do you know any digital hoarders? Yeah, I'm guilty of this myself. Not videos, but notes and URLs. I have documents in folders within other folders going back to 2005, stuff I jotted down that I thought might be useful in my work someday. I might get around to abandoning that stuff sooner or later. After all, most of it is in a format I can no longer open, anyway. -via Boing Boing