Category Archives: Health
How to Think Rationally With Your Emotions
Stripping oneself of emotional beliefs ultimately leads to the inability to possess judgment. In simpler words, people often try to detach themselves from their emotions because they believe it will make them stronger. In reality though, emotions are coping mechanisms; ways to remove a burden or two, which allows room for rational thinking.
People often think that ridding themselves of emotions will make them stronger and able to handle anything; this is not true the least bit. Truth of the matter is that emotions give you the Human Element; leisure, happiness, momentary judgment, etc. To cage one’s feelings is close to being a robot: You have a formula for everything; an equation to every situation. This would not work because even the most stubborn person will admit that life is unpredictable and there is no real way of controlling it.
NOT ENOUGH EMOTION
Relating to examples from my life, I once was an eerie teenager with a deep fear of emotional thinking; I was afraid of getting hurt. I reconciled the same inhuman behavior, and before I knew it, I was more machine than man. I have no intention of sounding like the Terminator, but it was quite true. I extirpated all “irrational” thoughts from my mind as well as my life.
For a good period of time, I believed, with all my heart, that I was doing the right thing by lunging my humanistic beliefs aside and trying everything by a belief system I created (that comes later). Now, when I look back on it, I feel like I’ve wasted a good part of my life. True enough I’m only 17, but high school is a time to be cherished. I gaze back at the past and see that all the times I’ve attempted to be right and true to life’s equation looks like a sham; a sorry excuse for fear and failure. All of those years I thought I was doing the right thing, but in fact, my life was more damaged than the average person’s.
I’m not saying I regret those years (I regret nothing), but I certainly wish I’d realized the error of my ways sooner rather than later. The events that occurred blossomed me into the person I am today, but I could have easily avoided the death traps had I known the simplicity of nearly all of the events that transpired.
TOO MUCH EMOTION
Being a machine is one thing, beyond human is another. At this state, a person is making him/her feel bad for the simplest of things; drama would fall under this category; and although things might suggest to be “The most important thing of your life!”, I assure you, it isn’t. Gander at the big picture here, and don’t be stuck in the present. Ask yourself, “Will it be important 10 years from now?”
People who let their feelings get the best of them often find themselves giving into peer pressure or doing things they would never actually do just to fit in. Over thinking is also common among these fine critters; situations that are normally child’s play turn into exhausting mental dribble.
JUST RIGHT
I suppose having a proper amount of balance in anything is essential: The right foods with the right diet, plenty of sleep due to hard work, etc. This is especially true when it comes to emotions though. You don’t want to turn into a zombie robot, but you don’t want to go lower than a willow tree because of the slightest occurrence.
Balance, the key is balance, not too little, not too much.
How to Find Inspiration
Many times, whether it’s writer’s block or just blank thoughts, we can’t find any descent forms of inspiration. Simply, nothing comes to mind and you find yourself unable to put pen to paper, or digits to keyboard, or to click a simple button on a camera. Whatever your artistic interests may be, there are a few key places that a person can look. These places, when searched systematically, have endless pools of fresh ideas; an eternal stream of data, just waiting for someone to transform it into magic.
Family and Friends
When we are depressed, we often go to one (if not both) of the two sources and ask for help and advice. Well, inspiration can work the same way. They don’t have to be noted of it; just behave like you would generally, but examine yourself and the world around you more thoroughly and remember what or how you feel. Normally, you would think nothing of it, because family is SUPPOSED to make you feel safe and secure, and friends are SUPPOSED to make you feel excited and cheerful. In these harsh times though, where the cost of inspiration is skyrocketing through the roof, you can use everyday experiences and people, such as your family and friends, to give you the boost you desire.
Nature
Sun: the natural light bulb. Wind: the natural air conditioner. Earth: the natural home. Without knowing it, we have isolated ourselves from most of the outside world. It might not feel that way because we have the freedom to decide to stay in or go out, but needless to say, we choose the less intelligent one. Writers read much off of the internet and photographers look for photos on the internet for one MAIN reason: to hijack ideas and transform them into their own. A little thesaurus or Photoshop, and half an hour later you have a perfectly “creative and exclusive” piece of work. It’s not a crime to get thoughts from similar thoughts, but it might be better to start somewhere else first. Nature leads us to find amazing landscapes, marvelous creatures, and an infinite amount of inspiration. The trees, the sun, the moon, wildlife, etc. There are unfathomable amounts of dreams just waiting to become reality.
Music
From good to bad, music is in a category all on its own. Without a doubt, music can bring us from the most unearthly hellish slums, to pure enjoyment and ecstasy. The moment you press play, you can feel enlightenment travel through those headphones, through the air. It tweaks your brain, making you take notice to things that seemed unreal or impossible before. It isn’t a scattered form of art, but more a language. It is a form of energy, and you are the converter. It builds up inside you, until you are full, then it seeps through, exiting your body in form of words or images. You are borrowing its power to make power of your own. It has the capability to make a person with a metal leg run a marathon; it can influence a town, city, state, country, or even the world! Its capabilities are limitless, all you have to do is put them together.
Site for photographers: http://www.alphacoders.com/
Positively inspirational artists: AC/DC, Aerosmith, Beatles, Bob Marley, Guns N’ Roses, Heartless Bastards, Joy Division, Interpol, Killers, Led Zeppelin, MGMT, Rolling Stones, Utada Hikaru, White Stripes, etc.
How to Overcome All Fears
Understanding Fear
Clearly put, most fear is created by your own mind, and in most cases is harmless. Understanding is the key to solving life’s problems (such as fear). One way to beat what you’re afraid of is by using this little thing that most of us are gifted with: logic. We use logic to solve our everyday problems, so why can’t it work for this? Use logical knowledge to outsmart your fear. Take the dark for example; many are afraid of the darkness, but we clearly understand that it is simply the daytime without light.
Try to find out why you’re afraid of what you’re afraid of. Your journey could lead you to discover that what you’re afraid of isn’t so frightening after all.
Overcoming Fear
Most of it is just a psychological game; if you can dig deep within your mind, you will surely discover the root of your horrors. It can only scare you as much as you let it. Keep your mentality strong and you will surely overcome the dreadful situation you are in.
The best thing about conquering your fear is that it may eliminate other fears. For example, riding a roller coaster could ultimately erase your fears of roller coasters AND heights. Hit two birds with one stone. There are also questions that can mentally stabilize you such as, “What’s the worst that can happen?” or “Can it really harm me in any way?” More times than others, facing your fears head-on is the most resilient solution, and the quickest.
Don’t Forget:
– Fear stops success
– Face your fears head-on
– Most fear is psychological, and unable to harm you
– Understand your fears before you act upon them
And don’t forget to smile!
The Key(s) to True Happiness
Why can’t anyone be happy with what they have?
Do your possessions own you?
Stop and smell the roses…
Why can’t anyone be happy with what they have?
I have pondered over this question for years now, and still no answer. Nothing I have done (and probably nothing I will do) can lead me to uncover the answer. It has boggled my mind since the first time I tried becoming enlightened. The only conclusion I came up with is that it is in human nature to WANT. It must be something neurological, because it is etched into our brains. I cannot rid myself of this curse, no matter what I do. What should I do? What can anyone do? No one is ever satisfied with what they have. Think about it: every time you get something, you want something else. An endless cycle, and it is truly impossible to stop. There is a bottomless void and it is only filled by possessions (until you die). If anybody has ever come that far let me know. There is no logical explanation to this (none that I’ve found), and so I am just going to stick with my earlier statement: it is in human nature to behave this way; uncontrollable.
I have been pushing forwards, trying to make it better, and I have progressed a bit, but not enough to give up all worldly possessions. There are some things I just can’t let go of. I am certainly not willing to go as far as the Buddhist monks and isolate myself, meditating for hours and hours on end. My main point is to just TRY not caring about your items as much. In the end all they do is blind you from true happiness.
Do your possessions own you?
You are a slave to what you own. Charge your ipod, water your plants, make your bed, pay your bills, take care of your car. Now I’m not telling you to just find the closest stranger and give all of your belongings away; no. All I’m saying is that there could be more freedom involved. Stop making your bed, no one cares how neat it is, and who do you have to impress? Get a crappier car; then it won’t matter if it gets damaged. You get a couple scratches on it, no big deal! Buy a cheaper house, or move into an apartment. Less payments, more money in your pocket, for things like vacationing.
Just downgrade a bit. Like Tyler Durden always says, “Things you own end up owning you.” A lovely Fight Club quote. Amazing movie, for those of you who haven’t seen it. It’s a must if the only thing you want is to NOT want.
Stop and smell the roses.
Try and be happy with what you have. Take the good from the bad. Try to take a negative and turn it into a positive. Stop and admire the world around you; the clouds, the sun, your family, a warm meal, the roof over your head. Be grateful and hold things most dear to you close at hand. Have the ability to let that which does not matter truly slide. Forgive and forget. Don’t spend all of your time troubling about the past. It will not help you whatsoever. Worrying about the future won’t either. Mapping out all possible outcomes is just crazy, and it’s all a very deep state of paranoia. The future is just a projection of what YOU think, not the actual outcome. Just relax, sit back, and enjoy life. No point in trying to stop something that is out of your control.
Conclusion:
– Be happy with what you have.
– Don’t let your possessions own you.
– Stop trying to impress people.
– Calm down and let life be the way it’s supposed to be.
– Stop trying to control everything.
Health
Physical, mental, family, and life health are important aspects in life. You cannot be healthy without being well in all four subject areas. This article takes a look into each section and see how you can be more healthy starting today.
Physical Health
Who doesn’t want to be physically fit?! This is a very important asset to have. So why is physical health so important? Well, for one, it lengthens life expectancy. Live longer! It might be hard to pick up at first, but it is important in the long end. Exercise also makes you feel fantastic. More confidence, and it makes you happy. It is proven to release endorphins that make you happy. So when you’re feeling glum, go exercise. Another very peculiar thing that it does is it lets you sleep better. Most people often complain about sleeping problems, and most of those people are lazy. Exercise regulates your internal clock, and it helps you sleep much better. And last but not least, let’s not forget, it makes you look more attractive! So if you are trying to impress that one special person, why not get in shape and do just that?!
Mental Health
Mental health is very important in everyday life for many reasons. Think clearly, think faster, perform tasks better, makes speech clearer, and it just, on average, makes you sound smarter. This is a type of chain; one sets off the other, and so on. Mentally helps you think of words or sentences faster, get your work or homework done A LOT quicker, and it gives you better word choice to make you sound like a pure genius! Reading, writing and mental games such as chess or checkers all help progress this process. These are all things to exercise your mind with.
Family Health
Whether it’s just your parents or your wife and three children, it’s always good to have a good relationship with your family.Although people say they are cheerful alone, they are never as happy as they are with their family. It is key to true happiness. It is a new kind of love that must be experience. A life is wasted without family, for family is a main ingredient in the hodgepodge we call “living.” They support your decision and they back you 100% on anything, even if you’re wrong. And most importantly, they are always there to cheer you up when no one else is. Family helps you up at your weakest moment.
Life Health
A well-maintained life is very important. Inside you is the spark of true happiness, and the world is your fuel. If you have a healthy life overall, there is nothing you can’t accomplish. You can control so much more than you think. YOU have the power to shape your future any way you want! All that is needed is confidence and willpower.
Conclusion
Exercise to live your life longer and feel better.
Train your mind to be more knowledgeable.
Support your family, because they’re always supporting you.
With all of this you can become everything you’ve ever dreamed of!
Wisdom Tooth Removed – Ouch!
Yesterday I got to do something very fun. Ok, not quite. I have went to the dentist’s office a few times over the years, and one of the things the dentist kept on saying is that I have 3 wisdom teeth, and the tooth in the lower left side of the jaw needed to be removed? Why? It is what is called an impacted wisdom tooth. These type of tooths grow at an angle, and if you leave them in as you get older, you can except excessive crowding of your other teeth, as well as the chance for the gum to grow over the tooth and get food and bacteria stuck in it.
So what did I do? I bit the bullet, and decided to have the wisdom tooth pulled out yesterday. Thank god I only had 1 tooth to pull out. This is what happened.
Recipes for the soul. [and for the gut]
Stepping outside of the box, the traditional blog post you would find here, as part of life, comfort food is something almost all of us, whatever interests, culture or backgrounds we originate from. So for whatever it is you do, here’s a list of some of the best tasting stuff I’ve made for events I’ve been to in recent months. Note that I did not create any of these recipes, but only compiled those that I’ve made in the past which everyone enjoyed. For the ones people did not enjoy, please leave a comment of request.
So, why not start with dessert?
Root Beer Float cookies (with root beer glaze) – average time 15 minutes (depending on oven)
http://desertculinary.blogspot.com/2005/07/root-beer-float-cookies.html
With or without the glaze, served soft and warm, these are very relaxing. You can take a couple or down 10 and you’ll still feel satisfied. Hardly filling and taste very well like a root beer float. I recommend adding way more powdered/confectioner’s sugar, enough to make the glaze gooey that dries sort of shell like. Following the recipe will make a more watery and runny glaze.
Puppy Chow (with peanut butter) – average time 20 minutes
http://www.recipezaar.com/9370
Something about Puppy Chow, especially with peanut butter. Not quite sure what it is, but tons of people I know can’t stop eating this, even when they start to get sick. Please, do not feed to any actual animals, especially puppies and dogs.
Cheesy Spinach and Artichoke dip – average time 35 minutes
http://www.recipezaar.com/1209
This is a great appetizer for people who want something that tastes great but makes them feel like they’re eating healthy. Great for parties or small hang out sessions, LAN parties, you name it. You can set it to cook in the oven and go for a few frags against your buddies or get the house ready for a movie night. Also, a nice versatile dish for vegetarians, instead of platters of meats.
Chicken Cordon Bleu (with bacon!!) – average time 35 minutes
http://kalynskitchen.blogspot.com/2007/04/recipe-update-easy-chicken-cordon-bleu.html
For something that sounds so fancy, the flexibility of this dish is invaluable. As the recipe page mentions, you can quickly prepare the ingredients in 5-10 minutes and freeze it over night and save it for later in the week. Great for kids and family dinners, and come on. What carnivore doesn’t love bacon?
God speed, and Best wishes. (and bon appetit!)
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Staying “off the grid” [volume.2]
As my intentions were for the second volume of Staying “off the grid”, I would like to present to you part of the inspiration for the interest in this lifestyle: 30 Days by Morgan Spurlock, and in this episode, 2 big time “waste consumers” live in a small off the grid experimental area with other people who are accustomed to living off the grid. Whether or not you agree with the lifestyle, the show itself is very entertaining, and offers things other than how to live an off the grid lifestyle. Please watch:
This was the ONLY place I could find this video, so for the MySpace haters out there (you know who you are 😉 it’s ok.) try to grin and bare it. You don’t need a MySpace account to watch, this is a direct link to the video page. Enjoy!
God speed, and Best Wishes.
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Metal Gear Solid 4//Fighting Zombies to Feel Good, Inc.
This week in lieu of several things, I’ll be delaying Staying off the Grid volume 2 until next week.
To mix things up a bit, this will be the first “multi-post” from me. This format may or may not appear again, but is definitely necessary this week.
First off, today is the LONG awaited and anticipated release of Hideo Kojima’s 21 year old masterpiece, Metal Gear Solid 4. It’s an honor having the release fall on the day I post here, so I felt only obligated to post tribute to it.
For those of you that will be playing it today, congratulations! I’ve been a huge Metal Gear fan since the late ’90s and think it’s one of the best game series out there. Kojima truly satisfies his fans, while appealing to a broader and broader audience with each game he releases. Note that the AC!D series for PSP isn’t strictly done by Kojima, he only oversaw the projects.
In retrospective, I would like to post this video which is probably the single best trailer in video game history. For those of you that aren’t fans, all you need to do is read a review on Metal Gear Solid 2 and it will all make perfect sense, although it is very enjoyable anyway:
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Amazing games aside, time for some inspiration of another kind.
One of my previous blog posts got a comment yesterday asking if they could use a picture from the post for a book they’re writing about blogs. He left an e-mail address and I decided to be all crafty and grab the second part of his e-mail and try it as a website. Well, it’s one of the coolest things I’ve stumbled upon in my entire e-life. You have to check it out:
Have you ever felt like there is just no one that relates to you? Well, granted this site is still growing, I was shocked at the depth and amount of contributions in this multi-colored “dot cloud” like applet that collects everyone’s feelings, thoughts, comments, whatever little snippet they decide to type up, with an optional picture, and generic details about themselves, like age group, weather, country, state, city, and emotion. You can punch in your info and a specific date to see if you felt the way someone else did on that date.
I totally and randomly stumbled across this one, and I love it.
If you haven’t had the pleasure of listening to Feel Good, Inc. by Gorillaz, please do so now:
song: http://search.playlist.com/tracks/feel%20good%20inc
video: http://youtube.com/watch?v=01C4RPEinM4
I tried searching one of the biggest nationwide days for emotional feelings – 9/11 – and the results were astounding. Some people make subtle references to their pain of the attacks, while others may not have even thought about it. As light or dark as it may be, it is a fantastic website that has many goals, and I greatly encourage you to promote it so it can grow.
A much better and complete description can be found here:
http://www.wefeelfine.org/movements.html
And what a cool name for a site too.
[ Sources: Stealth/Action/Video Game creation virtuoso Hideo Kojima ; WeFeelFine.org ]
God speed, and Best wishes. [woobwoob too]
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Brain Train. [part 2]
Briefly, I would just like to apologize for being absent last week. However, due to the events I promise you better information than what was available last week.
Also, I have two shout outs: One for all the Indy fans out there! I hope you all enjoy the movie today (or last night) as much as I’m sure I will this weekend. Secondly, a dedication to a very special someone who has loyally read my articles and grown to become one of the single most important things in my life. You know who you are. : ) Thank you for everything.
On to this week in That’s GN:
Have you ever done something, and later you realize you have no idea why? This is commonly dubbed as an “impulsive action” or usually something you do that you “didn’t think about”. How would you like to be in better control of, not only your impulses, but know how to tap into the impulses of others?
You have three brains, similar to what we discovered last week. What we’ll talk about this week is the survival part of our brain, that controls involuntary actions like breathing and our heart beat.
There are 6 stimuli, or, “attractions” that need to be understood about our “old brain”. It has been dubbed the old brain since every living creature requires it, and in fact has it, to sustain their life. The other 2 brains we as humans possess, many other mammals and creatures do not. Let’s divide these stimuli into points:
1: Self centered – To illustrate, please watch this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=–Fwjtd_KxI
This is an example of the old brain lacking communication with your other brains, thus working on instinct rather than incorporating and reason into the decision. Thus the humor of the commercial, since anyone in their right mind would make a different decision.
2: Contrast – Our old brain easily picks out differences, or contrasts such as night and day, near and far, black and white.
3: Tangible – Things we can touch and feel whether it be physically or something we perceive to be real, despite how unrealistic it is to our minds (in other words by sight), it can appeal to us. Here’s another commercial that will give you an exaggerated idea of this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67MuBNnJC60&NR=1
While we know it’s (most likely) impossible to get the strength to push a car over a cliff from an energy bar, the point is well made, that this energy bar will give you a very good dose of energy. Instead of telling the consumer it does, they make the idea tangible by appealing to your tangible senses.
4: Beginnings and Ends – Please read this passage out loud:
“Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a total mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.”
How long did it take you to read that? Surely not very long compared to if it was unscrambled. In addition to this point, YOU MAY NOTICE THAT IT’S PROBABLY EASIER TO READ NON-CAPITALIZED SENTENCES SINCE CAPITAL LETTERS ARE NON-FEATURELESS BLOCKS yet sentences with letters having more variety in ascending and descending fashion are easier to differentiate between letters.
5: Visual – Aristotle said the mind needs an image to think. This is fundamentally entirely true. You can first think of when we hear a loud crash, you might think someone is breaking into your house. You naturally visualize on impulse someone breaking into your house, so you think of that. When we see an image, a split second process occurs.
To explain, there are actually two reactions that occur, and each follow a separate path through your brain. Both paths start at the thalamus where they split. The faster reaction path goes to the amygdala which specializes in reacting and triggering what you would consider the emotional fear. The second path travels to the cortex first, where the information received is analyzed using information from the other parts of the brain, then to the amygdala. The first, faster path produces an immediate “instinct” like reaction 250 times faster than the second path, which determines whether or not the reaction is actually needed. In this example, the loud crash could be a harmless cat, instead of a robber as our immediate reaction might tell us.
Even though the reaction differences are so fast, 250 times is still much faster. Coupled with that reaction speed, once an emotion is turned on, it’s difficult for the cortex and your reasoning to turn it off, so fishing for this sense makes your “hook” difficult to unhook.
6: Emotion – Do you remember where you were and what you were doing on 9/11? For the more experienced audience, what about Apollo 13 or Kennedy’s assassination? I remember where I was and what my family said exactly during the morning of 9/11. Our old brain makes associations with emotion. Very few of us weren’t heavily impacted by 9/11, and most of us probably remember exactly what was happening when we actually heard the news, not necessarily when it actually happened.
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Whether your talking to someone, giving a sales pitch, or even picking someone up, keeping in mind these 6 stimuli will give your message more attraction to that instinctual part of your brain. Why is that such a big deal? When something appeals to your involuntary senses, it makes more sense to your voluntary senses to move forward or progress in that direction; it makes it more reasonable to come to an acceptance of it.
[ Sources: http://www.neuromarketing.com ; Entrepreneur.com – Is there a buy button? Inside the brain. ; Serendip.BrynMawr.edu – The Role of the Amygdala (paragraph 4) ]
God speed, and Best wishes.
¥
Welcome to the Underground. 