A Good Life

What does it mean to have a good life?  Do you define a good life as financial success; a life that is free of major conflict or struggles; maybe a life where you get to live out your dream-like lifestyle; and perhaps a good life is determined for you by your charitable deeds.  Whatever your definition(s) may be, it is certainly more complex now than any time in history. But why?

As society continues to progress, it has a tendency to accelerate the pace of activities; the internet, global communication (including social networks), productivity requirements, intellectual competitiveness, physical and health improvements; all are contributing factors to social dynamics that might influence what a good life is composed of.

But here is another perspective, perhaps a good life begins very early.  Perhaps a good life is based on our ability to learn and do what is right.  As we age we are influenced by our parents, people closest to us; then peers, in school, our neighborhood; teenage years expose us to larger social groups, work environments and extra curricular activities.   It is how we receive and process information in these groups that informs our behavior- perhaps not solely (as we are hard wired differently), but certainly in a way that can lead to a good life.

As I look back and reflect on my own upbringing, I think about the people who I have a strong appreciation for, as I attempt to emulate their positive attributes.  My reflections also force me to think about misdeeds, cruel or unkind things I might have said or done.  At times it allowed me to fit in to certain group, as the group dynamics took their toll on the victim of our jokes or remarks.  Seemingly harmless, but the long term effects are what concern me most.  I realize this now as I continue to mature (hopefully until the day I die) - I call that learning.  And periodically when we learn more about ourselves, we get the opportunity to go back in time and make amends with such misdeeds from our past.  It is my belief that this makes us better people.  It is a different way to build character through struggle- our internal struggle.  It is not about having regret, but about the affect of not completing our life's circle; when you do something that is not in harmony with the circle, a piece gets removed until you figure out how to get it back so you can be complete.

Liberating myself from past behaviors grants me more freedom to enjoy what I consider to be a good life; I am a sailor, cyclist, runner, hiker, reader, writer and friend.  For me, these are the components that make up a good life now.  Caring about people, how my actions affect their life, and how my actions affect the planet is yet another aspect of a good life.

I have a certain peace about me, like never before- I call it happiness.  So here is my pitch, be happy-- every day of your life, strive for it.  Teach people around you about being happy and what you do to maintain happiness.  I made a list a long time ago that I still use and share.  Make a list of 10 things that make you happy, promise yourself you will do and acknowledge one each day.  Having done at least one of those things; I believe you will spend the rest of your life being happy.  This is a good life, this is my theme song- Good Life enjoy

Relationships Don't Always Go Green

This article is more personal (man, woman, and green) in nature so if you are looking for a technical stimulant, you'll want to take a pass on this one.

Not too long ago I met someone new, in an attempt to explore building a relationship with someone.  She is an amazing individual with a list of accomplishments and a sense of independence and determination that would rival any over achiever.  I am honored to share a part of my life with her.

As most new relationships go, we had a conversation about attributes we appreciated about one and other as well as expectations.  Within this context, she expressed concern about her personal lifestyle and not wanting to be pressured to change.  This came on the heels of a statement about my commitment to sustainability as my lifestyle relates to it.  My lifestyle by far exceeds her level of commitment to sustainability, which forced her to share that such a chasm could very well be too much of a hurdle to overcome.

It is very early in the relationship so there is no real level of commitment at this point, this can also be known as the discovery period.  You learn about the other persons habits, lifestyle etc. and determine if going forward makes sense.  The other good thing about these tougher conversations is that you are not too engulfed in the relationship that you can't see daylight on the other side because all that seems to matter is how caught up you are in the moment of emotions, like you wound up and twisted in a potpourri of your favorite chocolates.  It is great that our more sensible/ mature side has prevailed.

My response to her concern was simple; as a grown woman, I don't expect her to change her lifestyle rather I believe my lifestyle habits might encourage her to change her own after seeing the ease of sustainable adaptations.

I do what is good for me and the environment; my hope is that my behaviors and lifestyle choices will influence people in a way that encourages them to make significant changes- of their own volition.  Such changes will likely have a more profound impact not only on the environment, but will also systematically foster changes in people who are not as committed, to shifting lifestyle impact on climate change.  So while I don't expect her to change her lifestyle, I do expect that my choices will encourage her to make lifestyle changes.

My lifestyle choices have evolved over time.  Because of my circumstances or personal choices; making the adaptations have been profoundly easier for me than such changes might be for virtually all other people.  This does not make me a super hero (except perhaps in my own mind), but stands to explain how I have positioned myself for success relative to environmental sustainability issues and that I can continue to do so- a priority in my life.  Just as one must position themselves for financial success by strategically positioning specific actions and objectives, so have I done with sustainability.  Each day I grow better at what I am capable of doing because of my intentions.

Where does this leave our relationship, I cannot say with certainty, but choosing to broach the conversation positions each of us to make well informed decisions going forward and it will not be a hurdle that was stands in the way of our pursuit of happiness.

Climate Change News: Dying Aspen

Climate Change News: Dying Aspen

What The 99 Wants...? Deliberate trajectory ?

The Struggle within the We Are The 99 (The 99) is merely speckling the landscape of big financial interest having celebrated their two month anniversary (Nov. 17th 2011).  But with each advancement their efforts seem be derailed due to the overwhelming strength of the financial institutions and politics.  The concentration of wealth may be the concern, but a well thought out counter proposal must be developed if they are to succeed.

It is not hard to face the fact that we live in a quasi-capitalist society (true capitalism would not provide subsidies industry); nowhere is that more true and evident, than in the United States, during times such as these.  And with each argument, government seems to respond with further questionable act of decision-making (or lack there of), when concerning groups associated with social justice concerns such as The 99.

• Between 1976 and 2008, the pretax income for the top 1% of the U.S. population went from 8.9 to 20 percent of the nation's income.  This tells us that tax and revenue policies have continued to work in favor of the most wealthy. (Quarterly Journal of Economics, 118(1), 2008)

The 99 is in need of a specific objective with a road map of how to reach that objective as a set of proposals or demands.  Such a proposal should be methodical and well reasoned that gets the concerned population closer to transforming the status quo for the people they represent.  The current reality might start out... we know where we are, we are learning where we want to go, we have an idea about how to get there; this is our proposal...

This proposal should have some expertise(able minded people) behind it, that represents well reasoned research addressing specific issues; one example might be how much are you asking from the corporate giants or greed agents/ white collar capitalists (whatever your perspective might be); what do you expect that ask to achieve, how will it redistributed?  Also what are the implications and turn around time for the desired affect?  Identify what is standing in the way and why you believe it is movable.  This is only a small example of what should be happening.  Instead what seems to be occurring is The 99 is losing steam.

 What is wrong?

• Disparity between wealth and poverty on a perpetual  path of disproportionate growth
• Opportunities for elevation out of poverty increasingly distant
• Families and individuals unable to maintenance and prevent poor health
• Lack of job security
• Inability to secure prosperous housing
• Poor academic environment
• Deteriorating communities

These inequities foster the flames that create much of the fire in the relationship between the  extremely wealthy individuals, and other 99 segment of the population.  There are multiple examples of where an equitable society has proven to make a difference.  Not all of them are in the most obvious places, but The 99 should begin to assemble those pieces together and transform their argument into a statement of purpose, if they plan on being agents of change rather than advocates.

Change is most likely to occur when something is really wrong, an assembly of people work to change what is wrong and a plan is developed to make what is wrong obsolete by presenting a better alternative.

Global Pollution and Prevention News: Chevrolet Carbon Story 4 Rockingham County Landfill

Global Pollution and Prevention News: Chevrolet Carbon Story 4 Rockingham County Landfill

sustainability news: Global CO2 Emissions Reach All-Time High, Rising More Than 5% in 2010 to Close Out Past 20 Years

sustainability news: Global CO2 Emissions Reach All-Time High, Rising More Than 5% in 2010 to Close Out Past 20 Years