Amazing Life Amazing People

It was 3:00 p.m. Sunday afternoon on a late Spring day.  Having gotten up early to do some gardening, much of the day got away from me.  It was about this time that I was feeling like I needed to be doing something else.  I didn't just want to go for a drive but I was still lost... almost lacking focus.

I fired up the Harley Davidson VROD, having decided that I would take a quick spin since it was so nice outside.  Still, I wasn't sure where it was taking me.  Initially I planned on going to the grocery store to get some multi-grain bread.  While Trader Joes has my favorite bread, they don't have many of my other favorites (I try to stay away from processed foods).

My friends in Estonia have a strong sense of national pride and it is one of the things that makes them so amazing to me (Allan and Karoli).  And this is the heart of this article, the impact friends have on what you do in life.  Where you meet them, what is occurring at the time and where you are spiritually/ metaphysically etc.


I lead a very ordinary live, my experiences are exceptional, and exceptional experiences become what they become because of what I want out of those experiences.  Secondly, the people I meet are amazing not because of who they are (meaning their social status) or what they have, but because of what they want out of life.  Zach C. I met during his short and simple visit in Boston, but he had a lasting impact on me as a result of our discussion about decisions regarding college, professional writing experiences, social networks and technology.  Lisa is a woman I met from Canada who moved to Australia.  She is amazing in so many ways; from the very natural way she inspires me to write to her insights into my being, she seems to understand things about me no one else does.  Andre and Andria befriended me and have become life long friends after talking about my book Seed (still in the works).  Andria's background directly relates to the topic of my writing interests.  Lise from Quebec has an exceptional gift of kindness and has invited me to come and visit with her and her husband.  They are an extraordinary couple and seeing them together elevates the joy in my heart-- there relationship is magical yet simple.  David who is an English specialist from Switzerland has chosen to return for another visit.  David also dances competitively (he is quite good).  And Amanda and Mark, whom I visited with last summer opened their home and hearts each is a master in their fields of photography and sculpture (respectively).

I have made friends with people all around the world.  Today was exception on a local level.

Four years ago I met Mario after purchasing a sailboat to sail from Boston to Cape Cod, on my first solo open water journey.  No instructions just faith, research for what I needed.  Prior to making the full trip, I connected with Mario after searching for an alternative motor for my sailboat on Craigslist.  Mario provided  a motor I needed to make the trip safe.  Upon arriving in Hull, MA, Mario greeted me with kindness and as promised, a motor.  Harry was a long time friend of Mario's and offered a battery that I needed, further ensuring safe travels.  So my motorcycle ride took me across Boston, into Cambridge, back to Boston and then out to Wollaston Beach in Quincy, then to Hingham and finally to Hull, where I would be reacquainted with Mario after passing his house-- four years after our initially meeting.  Having passed his house, I turned around noticing two boats in the driveway.  That had to be him I thought.  To my pleasant surprise, Mario was working on his boat.  We greeted each other as old friends might.  His hands soiled with grease and dirt from working on the motor, firmly gripped my own, it was a comforting familiarity.  We began talking about sailing, motorcycles and Craigslist- as friends would.

Each of the persons I have just spoken of reflect something in me that is somewhat of a quest.  Perhaps it is a quest to get the most out of life, possibly to answer questions I have not been able to answer myself, or perhaps it is to engage with people who seem to make my life more amazing just by knowing them.  Their kindness, positive energy and personal journeys speak volumes of what I seek myself.  In this respect I suppose we are very much the same.  We all had a journey, a story to share and a desire to listen for something new.

Networks and Economic Struggles?

Online the Economist wrote, "The IMF has cut its forecasts for economic growth in its twice-yearly World Economic Outlook. It expects world GDP to increase by 4% in 2011"  .  The research suggest that growth rates have been revised from .1 of a percent to .9 of a percent in different countries.

Evidence of this hard to accept reality, hit home when someone very important in my life, informed me that they would be filing for bankruptcy.  Sometimes the seemingly most unfortunate choices are the best choices, if in such a troubling predicament.  But what has this to do with networks?

After speaking with this friend, she informed me that she went to the federal tax collection agency and stated that the very first question they asked was if she had any affiliation with any social network.  Really!  Since when is who I socialize with or what group I am connected with related to my reconciliation with my back taxes?  As far as I am concerned federal agencies including our political leaders and revenue collection services could just as easily be investigated for malfeasance.  Why? Simply because the wealthy are paying a smaller percentage of taxes than ever before.  At one point in the U.S. the tax rate for the wealthy was nearly 90%. Today with tax loopholes and write-offs, the expense for the wealthy is significantly reduce.  And they pay (at least in the U.S.) is 15% on capital gains.  In contrast, more than 15% of the U.S. population is at or below the poverty level ((2010 U.S. Census), granted that our poverty level is still well above undeveloped nations).

Essentially if you are poor, you are required to reveal more and more about yourself, losing control of your privacy, than if you are wealthy.  However I do not like to use scare tactics to address an issue.  Both Fox and MSNBC hosts of various programs do plenty of shouting and finger-pointing-- attempting to drive fear, while also providing some useful information.  But fear should not be the driver behind making tough choices.

Networks play an important role in our society.  From Palestine to Libya, from Sudan to the United States, from Japan to the Caribbean; social networks help us learn more about what is happening in the world around us.  Maintaining that privacy is critical to feeling a sense of security.  Despite that exploitation of online organization like Facebook and others, networking gives us a sense of interconnectedness.

The fact that I can touch people in Estonia, Japan, Africa, the British Isles, and different parts of South America, from my blog indicates that technology is not really separating us (as was once thought with personal electronic musical devices and mobile telephones).  I respect the confidentiality that my followers deserve, and expect to some degree- I would imagine.  At the same time ( and I don't want to sway back and forth here) I understand the importance of security from violent acts, in any form; from groups that want to act out maliciously, to individuals who bring harm to innocent members of society.  So monitoring is important.  What do I hope for then and where do I stand?

It would be great if the public were more involved in the decision-making.  Just like successful corporations, the government could crowd-source top decisions to come up with truly democratic decisions.  Granted that not everyone has access to technology, but there could potentially be ways to address that as well by looking at algorithms perhaps.

With all of the challenges we face as individuals, it is important that we continue to monitory decisions that are affecting our lives- especially with the advent of so much political turmoil in effect.  When chaos is in play, it is easy to look for answers from people who are purporting to be experts and leaders who are suppose to be performing on our behalf.  This is in no way a request that there be any type of civil disorder, rather that we maintain a watchful eye on policy changes that circumvent the people process.  There was an excellent piece on National Public Radio (npr[ a U.S. broadcast), about how susceptible we are to opinions, when we are seeking answers or disorder is present.  Don't panic, do your research, and use your voice by being active in what actions by anyone (friends, politicians, or experts) influence your life.  Doing so will help curtail the negative impact regulations have on open social networks.

ps happy birthday Jim Henson

Zen at 304

What is Zen, and how do you achieve it?

Zen is not something you pursue, Zen is an enigma yet ubiquitous, it will find when it is time for you (i.e. the current [flow] in which things occur).

It is a point at which you arrive in your own life; you learn to understand that nothing has dominion over you, not even nothing. Zen is about peace, balance, but not to achieve those things- it is more like being those things.

Allow yourself to be in the joy of your struggle; if you believe something to be so and it is not, accept it not being so; you are not wrong; it is only that what was to be, was different that what might have been so.

When you arrive you will see it is more a state of being rather than any form of attainment-- this is the what is around you; you become an observatory where each of your actions reveals a new layer of understanding.  You stop with yourself, and in each moment you, accept/ reject, and uncalibrate what has been ordered in your life.  There is no order in Zen, in some respects, one should not follow Zen, the mere act of doing so rejects Zen.

Enjoy Life; Balance all things; Come into yourself; Breathe the gift of the human experience; Allow expectations to escape- un-expect; Fear is nothing and what is, is everything- but do not want for it.  Detach and allow yourself to be unconsumed by all things- then observe them.

Unprescription for happiness

by Scotland Willis
I was speaking with a good friend this morning who is visiting with me from out of town; she has been prescribed lots of drugs- eight to my knowledge.  These drugs ranged from antidepressants (prescribed as a method to help them sleep) to pain pills.

Thoroughly concerned about the use of prescription medicine as a solution with no end; I shifted into my life coach mode and asked her to do me a favor.  I simply requested that she take a moment to go up stairs and write a list of ten things that make her happy.

While she was doing this I decided to do some research about the various drugs- most of  it was not positive.  The risks associated with taking the prescribed drugs ranged from suicide to further depression- be more depressed... so I can sleep?  That didn't wash with me, so I furthered my research, all the time knowing and informing her that I am no doctor and am not offering medical advice.  I went a step further.

What we should all know
With only novice experience in heal risk affects, I started to research the NIH (National Institute of Health) and the IRIS (Integrated Risk Information System) to increase my understanding of what I was looking at- more bad news.  Both offer valuable insights to toxicity and responses to various toxicants.

As it turns out, and is sometimes the case, I discovered that what had been prescribed was the very same thing I was requesting of my friend; find happiness- but the drugs were limited in understanding human nature.

The drugs force the release of additional serotonin ( a contributor to a sense of well being sometimes called the happiness hormone (though it is not actually a hormone).  Excesses of serotonin like any toxic affect, can have a negative outcome.   To no surprise she complained about discomfort in her gut (where 80% of serotonin is produced).  An excess dose of serotonin could potentially result in this response.

Putting it all together

After about an hour, she came to me with her list.  Next, I went through the list of ten things she wrote down for me, that make her happy or that she likes to do.  I read them with great care.  Then I went through each one and asked her, "when was the last time you went to the museum?" followed by; "when was the last time you went to a movie"... followed by; "when was the last time you..." until we went through the entire list.

As it turned out she had not participated in any of the things she enjoyed in less than the last six months!

I absolutely could not believe this; I could not believe what I was hearing.  Now I have plenty of stress in my life; but I do not allow a day to go by without doing at least one thing, that makes me happy.  If ever I have, I know that I would not feel good about myself, vis a vis, I would not be happy i.e.,  I would not have the natural dose of serotonin already in my body, that I needed.

So I proceeded to give my nonprescription, "My friend, I said, "I want you to go out and do at least two of the things that make you happy today.  Take your journal and write about how they make you feel and pay attention to what is occurring for you as you make your observations."

A real difference

Immediately, as I was looking at her beautiful self, it was as if a huge burden had been lifted from her.  A smile came across her face that was glowing in a way I had not seen since she arrived.  To me that indicated that the dopamine ( a biological reaction that occurs when you are craving something) was being released at the mere idea of taking time to do some of the things that make her happy.  My belief is that she will get the sense of well being from the interaction between what she stated makes her happy and making a conscious decision to partake in such activity.

And that is it friends, don't allow life to pass you by because you forgot to do something that makes you feel good (the serotonin) every day.

You might  start by going off somewhere right now and making that list of the ten things that make you happy.  If the natural dopamine in your is being released, you are probably experiencing a smile or your salivary glands acting up at the idea that you are going to reward yourself by treating your happiness hormones to doing something nice for someone else, or nice to yourself.

I feel happier already

Don't worry be happy, because there are some things that you just cannot change- accept that and find a alternate happy path.  For the other things, that you can change, as long as they don't make someone else unhappy, go and do them.  Join a new group, pick up an instrument, go for a walk, a bike ride, show someone you care, get an ice cream cone, breathe fresh air, write in your journal, garden, etc. Do a physical or mental activity that nourishes you and can make you begin to feel whole again.

In my non-medical opinion, the first prescription doctors should offer is the prescription of inquiry, and ask what makes you happy.

We forget things all the time as humans, just don't forget to be happy

Resources:

http://www.epa.gov/iris/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emotion#Neurobiological_theories

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serotonin

Stress and emotion: A new synthesis, 1999, New York: Springer Pub. Co.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0004531/

Emotion and adaptation, 1991, New York: Oxford University Press