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Welcome!

I, God, welcome you to my blog!

The good book says only God is good, so it seems to me somebody needs to step up.

I hope you enjoy reading this, the Jesse Journal, as much as I have enjoyed writing it. Please feel free to subscribe, write me an email, request that I write about any particular topic you may want my perspective on, send a prayer, click on the charity link, or donate money to my bicycle fund! Have fun!

Your pal, Jess
Ladies- I'm a single, straight, virgo/boar INTJ (age 51) who enjoys books, getting out into nature, music, and daily exercise.

(my email is JesseGod@live.com)

F.Y.I. There are about 2200 posts..

Here's a quote from Fyodor Dostoevsky to start things off right: Love the animals, love the plants, love everything. If you love everything, you will perceive the divine mystery in things. Once you perceive it, you will begin to comprehend it better every day. And you will come at last to love the whole world with an all-embracing love.

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Meditation (post 11)

This goes up to eleven! -Spinal Tap

review of 6 cards: A thing of beauty, Go to the light, Patience, Reading, Forgiveness, Acceptance

A THING OF BEAUTY
pick a beautiful object, any object
-meditate/breathe
-notice everything about it
-now, close your eyes and visualize it in as much detail as you can
-open eyes, compare images
-notice what you missed, and (lather, rinse, repeat)
-see how much you improve with each repetition

GO TO THE LIGHT
-light a candle
-med/deep breathe (for a few minutes)
-open your eyes and focus on the candle
-notice height, width, color of flame
-visualize the flame inside your body (ouch!) burning away doubts, fears, insecurities
-with eyes open and focused on the flame, meditate a few minutes more
-when u r finished, blow out the candle, imagining you are blowing out your problems.

PATIENCE
helpful exercise for when it will be tested
-think of an ongoing problem where you lose your patience (person, object, home, work)
-what's your normal response? does it improve the situation, or not?
-what are the shortterm and longterm fx of your response, for you/others
-imagine an alternate, patient response, e.g.
instead of lashing out, inhale deeply and exhale loudly making a whooshing noise.
-the exhale whoosh is getting rid of all the negativity :-)
-if the noise feels inappropriate, breathe deep without the sound.

READING
Contemplation is a type of meditation where you focus on a piece of writing, like my blog, or the koran, or the bible, or People magazine.
-find a favorite book (like a dictionary?)
-do a few minutes of med/deep breathing
-without looking, open the book
-again without looking, place your finger somewhere on the page
(this is called bibliomancy)
-read where your finger lands
-think about the meaning in the context of your current life situation
(everything relates to everything else, I think)
-if you receive any insights, use them during the day

FORGIVENESS
If you'd like to ask for from someone, but can't talk to them, try this:
-meditate/deep breathe
-imagine yourself in your sanctuary with you higher or wise self
-ask if it's an appropriate time to talk to the other's higher self
-if appropriate for both, invite this other's higher self into your sanctuary
-imagine both surrounded in light and love
-mentally ask the other for forgiveness, tell them how you really feel, and why you feel regret
-notice if there are any changes in the other person, and ask if anything else needs to be said.
-write your experiences, if you wish.

ACCEPTANCE
this does not mean passive resignation. This exercise is designed to make acceptance into an active, creative process.
-sit comfortably and close your eyes
-think about an event in your life that was difficult to accept
-what can you learn about what you truly want in life from that event
-refocus your energy on what you want, as clearly as possible (a picture should be your goal)
-without trying to force yourself to feel differently about the difficult event, explore whether you can see it as an opportunity to strengthen your commitment to what you want.
-come back slowly

Meditation (post 10)

Some biggies (important meditation topics)
or, in other words, important for getting your sh-- together.

They are: Compassion, A Fork in the road, Freeing yourself, Staying grounded, and Let it be

Compassion
you could interpret this in slytherin parseltongue as cum passion or as compass ion..
anyway,
card says here, "Compassion is on of the great creative forces in human relationships" and that this is an exercise in both giving and receiving it.
-begin with a few moments of meditation and deep breathing
-think of times when you've given, as well as received, compassion.
-focus on a "master of compassion", like someone you know, or someone like the lama doll's eye (ha). See yourself as a master of kindness, and imagine yourself interacting with people that you both know and don't.
-imagine receiving compassion from a master. Allow yourself to truly accept the offered kindness.
-gradually return and open your eyes.

A Fork in the Road
this should help if you're trying to decide b/w two separate courses of action..
-do a few minutes of meditation, deep breathing
-with eyes closed, imagine a symbol for each
-imagine the symbols, 1 in each hand
-visualize each course of action as fully as possible
-slowly bring your hands together and clasp them, melding each course of action into the other.
-notice if a new symbol forms, or if you have any insights about a third way of approaching this problem.

Freeing Yourself
everyone sometimes feels trapped in certain situations..
-write about what you are learning from this situation,
in what ways are you growing stronger,
and what positive qualities are you learning?
-med/breathing
-imagine you are in a box. how big is it. what are the walls made of, how thick?
-add doors and windows to feel more comfortable
-visualize breaking down the walls so you can get where you want to be. imagine tools if necessary.
-write about the experience.

Staying Grounded
For when you feel scattered or pulled in every direction..
-brief breathing exercise
-imagine roots coming out of the bottoms of your feet, connecting you to the earth's core
-imagine pulling nutrients and water out of the soil, as well as pulling in the solidity and stability of the earth.
-imagine branches growing out of you, into the sky, pulling light and oxgen into every cell in your body.
-every part of you is healthy and sturdy, like your favorite tree
-come back slowly

Let it Be
feel confident about conforming and "going with the flow"
-do a few minutes of meditation, deep breathing
-visualize a long, deep river
-there's a sturdy, attractive sailboat waiting for you at the river's edge
-you get in, untether, and either a gentle breeze comes along to fill your sails, or the current pulls you along. Easy steering.
-Obstacles like rocks or trees are easily and effortlessly navigated
-sometimes you go faster, and you still effortlessly guide the boat, secure in your competence and enjoying the speed. At other times, the boat slows down, and you enjoy the scenery.
-if you see places on the shore you want to visit, you stop and rest or play.

Meditation (post 9)

this post will cover 5 cards- 5 days of daily meditations, from a deck of "centering excercises and calming journeys to lead you to peace." They are: New Day/New You, In the shower, Eating an orange, Walking meditation, and Creating home.

New Day, new you
-choose a day in advance
-when you wake up, remember that you are waking up to a new you
-while still in bed, stretch and yawn in ways that feel good to your body
-choose a favorite comfortable, outfit, and imagine that it's your first time wearing it.
(feel the texture, appreciate how the colors make you feel)
-try and live your day as if it were the first day of your routine, as if you had never done it before, and heightening/being aware of your day's senses of sights, sounds, smells, tastes.
-write about it at the end of your day

In the Shower
-imagine that the spray has all the colors of the rainbow
-also imagine that it is washing out all the negative thoughts and feelings from you down the drain, leaving you clean in both spirit and body.
-sing a favorite song (loudly?)
-upon drying, imagine that it is stirring up all the good thoughts and feelings available to you all over your body.

Eating an Orange
-meditate, deeply breathe
-pick a tasty fruit, such as a large, juicy orange
-feel it's texture, close your eyes and roll it around in your hands
-inhale it's fragrance
-slowly peel it, feeling the inside
-break off a section, sniff n' pop
-roll it on your tongue
-chew slowly, feel the juice
-imagine all the nutrients deeply feeding your body
-finish the rest of the orange as slowlly and consciously as possible.

Walking Meditation
(ha, I do this all the time)
-do a few minutes of meditation and deep breathing
-take a brief walk in comfortable clothes and shoes
-notice your breathing. is it/do you want to, link it in a conscious way?
-is the air moist, dry, heavy, crisp?
-really notice the environment. the ground (firm or spongy, springy or hard?)
how does it feel every time your foot hits the ground?
-pay attention to nature, trees, leaves, color shades of brown and green..
-upon return, write in your journal what you noticed

Creating a Home
this is all about feng shui and queer eye and better homes and gardens...
-spend a few minutes looking at your home, noticing how you decorate-or not
what's it about? a theme or style or eclectic or both?
-How do you feel about it? Is the clutter creative or annoying?
-now do a few moments of meditation, deep breathing, with a journal nearby
-imagine your ideal home. What's your overall feeling about it? Calming or stimulating or some of both?
-what small thing could you do to bring reality closer to your ideal? writing space? vase of flowers? rearrange some furniture?
-write in the journal what you want done, and by when.

Saturday, August 29, 2009

L.O.A.

1) Love One Another
2) Law of Attraction

that's all I want to say here :-)

Meditation (post 8)

Maybe you're getting the hang of it, by now
But here's the Jesse-processed version of the visualization on Power Animals -from my wife's meditation deck.

POWER ANIMAL
I'm a turtle-monkey-skunk-dog (!) With a bit elephant and penguin, thrown in. Don't worry, I'm not a trapdoor spider. I met a guy named Parrot, and another guy who calls himself Snake. I like snakes. Snakes are cool. Can God be a snake? Sidewinders and anacondas and cobras and king and garter and ringneck and racer and rattler and gopher and reticulate pythons (that squeeze the breath out of you instead of crushing). Now that's power.
-sit, close
-go to your sanctuary
-invite one of your power animals to reveal itself. Let the animal come to you, instead of trying to choose. It may be shy and take some time to show itself. I saw an elephant and a snail, which could have been the shell of an ammonite or other shelled sea creature. I'm no Republican, though. Maybe you think I'm an ass? Ren and Stimpy like bumping theirs.
-when it appears, how does it feel? what does it make you think of? If it's too scary, open your eyes, but don't eliminate it...... Observe the animal, how has it influenced you, and how it may help in the future. Thank it for visiting you, say goodbye, and return, to write about the experience.

Monday, August 24, 2009

Meditation (post 7)

4 Visualizations:
Your Ideal Day, Inner Peace, Outer Peace, Intuition

YOUR IDEAL DAY
imagine your ideal day, start to finish, "sunrise to bedtime"
then
do a few minutes of meditation, deep breathing
imagine waking up from a deep, refreshing sleep
you yawn and stretch slowly in bed, bringing a feeling of health and life to your body
how do you start: e.g. walk, a favorite food, or exercise?
work: what kind, alone or with others, some of each, for how long?
lunch: when, what, with whom
what's your leisure(s)
how do you spend your evening, and end your day?

INNER PEACE
Creating this for within yourself is an act that is both powerful and comforting
-sit, close
-imagine yourself completely at peace
-think of the feeling as a completely positive state
(not a rxn to stress/disturbance), rather a state completely desirable on it's own merits.
-Visualize maintaining this state in different situations
(start with supportive situations, and gradually move on to situations of stress/distraction)
-imagine those around you noticing your peaceful quality, and responding positively to it.
Enjoy both your ability to maintain this state, and others' response.
-gradually return, and open your eyes.

Gatorade asks, "is it in you?"

OUTER PEACE
The line between internal and external might not be that distinct (!)
The card says, "We influence the world by how we think about it."
Everyone hopes for peace, in their personal lives, and for the world.
This exercise is an experiment in using creative thinking to expand the presence and influence of peace in your life. (the opposite can also be done, as I can attest)

-sit, close
-focus on your idea of peace. imagine it in your home, workplace, community, work.
How would it feel?
-Visualize yourself as a deeply peaceful person. Imagine that everywhere you go, your peaceful quality affects everyone around you, and that your presence brings a sense of calm into every situation- even the stressful and tense.
-imagine others expressing gratitude and appreciation for bringing peace into their lives. Enjoy the feedback.
-gradually return, open

INTUITION
Maybe you should use your intuition on how to do a meditation on it, itself.
Anyway,
-it's beyond the conscious, rational mind, the card says
sit and close
-think about a moment when you've surprised yourself with an insight, or in hindsight, thought to yourself how you knew that would happen.
-remember how this feels
-okay, this one's interesting (for me)...Is it, in any way, how we perceive God?
....Visualize offering advice to yourself, imagine you are sitting next to yourself, sharing insights.
-Imagine yourself alternately giving and receiving advice.
-when you're giving advice, imagine it's coming from a source beyond both your mind and your emotions.
-when receiving advice, imagine setting your emotions aside and considering the advice as objectively as possible.
-enjoy the dialog for as long as you like (you sick, sick person, lol)
gradually return to the present, and open your eyes.

Ignorance v. Wisdom

Ignorance is Bliss, they say.
and
Knowledge is Power

power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely.
God is corrupt?
Or is God ignorant?

also,
Smarting hurts.

Has anyone ever told you, "Don't be smart with me, young man (or woman)"
Why the hell not?
Meritocracy gives power to the smart.
So is the dalai lama, who has power, corrupt?
Does he suffer from a burden of wisdom?
As my wife says, "it's his job to be happy".
Just some thoughts.

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Meditation (post 6)

summary of visualization exercises:
Love, Romance, Joy, Friendship, Responsibility, Commitment
not too shabby, eh?

LOVE
sit, close
think, feel, think of different kinds: activities as well as people
where is love, where would you like more
imagine having as much as you'd like in every area
giving and receiving both
now imagine a small brilliant sun above you, pouring white light into your head, then torso, arms, and legs. Imagine it filling you with love, every cell in your body experiencing unconditional love. Enjoy for as long as you want.
Gradually return to the present, and open your eyes.

ROMANCE
you can use your imagination to issue an invitation
sit, close
think about, how does it feel
review your life. how much, what's your "romance quotient"
what would it mean to have more
what would a perfectly romantic day be (and maybe a bit beyond)?
Complete the day, and savor it
Gradually return to the present, and open your eyes.

JOY
I've said enough already, so I'll incorporate this funny song:


the actual video is pretty funny, too.

okay, I'll relate the new info :
sit, close
focus on joy. what does it mean to you. who do you know that is most joyful?
where is joy in your life present or absent?
what's your ideal of total joy
same old thing (light from above filling the body, from head to toes)
imagine the light is filling you with joy
gradually return and open your eyes

FRIENDSHIP
to create better and deeper friendships
begin with meditation/deep breathing
think about the people you feel closest to, what is it about each relationship that you cherish?
think about any positive aspect of friendship you'd like more of in your life.
how does ideal friendship feel?
in an ideal world, what would having friends be like?
gradually return and open your eyes.

RESPONSIBILITY
instead of being negative or burdensome, as is commonly thought-
this is about fully accepting your opportunities
in a joyful way
sit comfortably, close your eyes
think about what it means.
who do you have responsibility (for, and/or to)
what projects and outcomes
think of a past responsibility that you gladly accepted & led to positive experience.
what would your life be like if all your responsibilites were equally fulfilling
stay focused on this ideal of positive experience
imagine all the folks who will benefit from your experiencing responsibility in this way
gradually return to the present and open your eyes

COMMITMENT
perfecting the art of complete and joyful commitments
sit, close
what's your idea of it, where do your biggest ones lie
TOTAL commitment: how does it feel? what is so important to you that you could/might/have focus(ed) 100% on it.
imagine yourself completely committed in every major area of life and enjoying it.
imagine being a hero, because of commitment, to yourself and everybody around you.
visualize the white light from above (a "brilliant sun") flowing into your head and down to your toes, then becoming a white knight, happily filled.
gradually return to present, open your eyes
save the world, lol

Meditation (post 5)

I don't want to start any blasphemous rumors, but I think that God's got a sick sense of humor, and when I die, I expect to find him laughing. -Depeche Mode, Blasphemous Rumours

om.

cruel to be kind-nick lowe (in the right measure, means that I love you)

aha! you made it! Congrats, welcome to the afterlife! lol. now that wasn't such a big deal, was it, hohoho! lol. hehehaaha. You're gonna love it up here. Always and everywhere. Eternal bliss, now give me a kiss. Heheho.

This post deals with Abundance, Fun, and Freedom

I'm listening to the 70's and 80's station, ending with the Cure's Why Can't I be You.
Being God can be like that. Everything is relevant.
Envy is harmless, in small doses. But don't O.D.
Best ta check yoself befo you wreck yoself.
I still believe in Oblivion, though.
And being God can be anything else, too.
Maybe I'll hypnotize myself in my last moments in the hope of rising again.
Anyway,

More Visualizations, for your mental health and amusement:

ABUNDANCE
To clarify what's important to you-and create more of it.
sit comfortably, close your eyes, focus on and define for yourself what abundance means
think of the different kinds of abundance, and which you feel u have or not
envision complete abundance. what's your ideal.
imagine the ideal as a brilliant light shining from above. let it fill your entire body. breathe it in! come back slowly.

FUN
sit comfortably, close your eyes, think about having fun, think of different kinds of fun, laughter, playing with childhood friends vs. today, THEN think of how much fun you'd really like to have, what would you be doing, where, with who(m).
Think of a brilliant orange ball, bouncing around inside your torso.
Imagind being completely filled with the essence of laughter and fun (feel free to laugh out loud)
gradual return to present, and then open your eyes.
Not just agent starling needs more fun out of life!

FREEDOM
do a few minutes of meditation/deep breathing
focus your thoughts on freedom.
think about it in the most positive sense (freedom to do and be) rather than
freedom from problems (i.e. instead of freedom from financial worries, think of the freedom to obtain whatever you want).
do you feel free? in what ways yes, and what ways, not?
imagine total freedom
(what would you do, where, with whom..)
expand your vision
enjoy (your vision) for as long as you like
gradually return/open your eyes

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Meditation (post 4)

It seems, I have to say, that Meditation could be the solution to everything
(when paired with ACTion, no?)
"You say you want a revolution, well, you know, we'd all like to change your head"

Anyway, this post will deal with only 3 cards:
Meeting Your Selves, Meeting Yourself, and Meeting Your Wise Self
That order seems logical to me, but we'll see.

MEETING YOUR SELVES
-Hi, Nice to Meet You, Selves
People with MPD (multiple personality disorder) integrate their personalities, for treatment; I have to say, this sub-personality talk has me weirded out. Anyway, I guess you're supposed to have an idea of all your sub-personalities before you begin. I'm me, though. How many me's are there, lol. The dead milkmen sing Now Everybody's ME! I love those guys.
Anyway,
prepare w/ meditation/deep breathing.
imagine taking all sub-personalities to a beautiful meadow on the top of a mountain (think like The Sound of Music, I guess) Invite them to form a circle, join the circle yourself
Imagine a great white light in the center.
Invite any of the sub-personalities who is willing to enter the center and be transformed by white light.
Notice it's appearance before and after the light thing.
(you don't have to visualize everybody)
imagine rays of light from the center enter each s-p in the center
Finally, step into the light yourself, and imagine that all the lightened s-p's reincorporate into you.
take a few moments to come back, then write about the experience.

MEETING YOURSELF
This is all about defining your identity...
Actually, the title is a bit misleading. It's about a way to confront a specific s-personality.
meditate, breathe deeply,..
forget it, I don't get or like this one.

aha. it must be david. Ugh.
Completely annoying, mostly. Shutup please.
I feel occcupied, if not possessed, although my medications make it better.
whatever, shit. This is God speaking: go to hell, David.
I know, resentment doesn't suit me. How bout a simple Gr.

anyway, the card says to notice the sub-p approaching you, greet it warmly, know that it believes it's doing something positive, thank it for it's help so far, ask if it would be willing to do the same job from a different, higher up perspective (a promotion, eh?), then walk up through the meadow to the mountaintop, show it the view, notice if the appearance changes, thank it and say goodbye.. return to the present, write.

And now, card 3: Meeting Your Wise Self!

MEETING YOUR WISE SELF
it's a part of you/me that can help find solutions to challenges
-prepare with meditation, deep breathing
-imagine yourself at a self place, maybe that meadow or mountain
-sit comfortably
-golden light coming toward you from a distance, growing bigger and brighter, filling you with relaxation and delight. When beside you, it may be human, or still light
-bask or ask; if you have any questions, ask. or enjoy the radiance.
-imagine the light entering your body, filling you with a higher wisdom.
-thank it for its help; return slowly

okay, I have to admit I don't believe the sun is filled with wisdom, or that white light is any different than golden light (other than it's wavelength) , and I want to know what's going on with all this hypnosis. Gimme summa that wisdom, ball of light! I'm skeptical, but hey, whatever works.

I have to incorporate one idea that came to me. If we really each have a group of selves, we may have an idea about which self is good, better, best, or even worst. It seems we need to have compassion for ourselves, between each.

Friday, August 21, 2009

Meditation (post 3)

Visualization exercises, written by Elizabeth Dickinson and Christopher Childs
(summary of meditation deck of cards).
Health, Growth, Creativity, Inspiration, Life Purpose, Wisdom

HEALTH
-Sit comfortably, close your eyes, think about your body and its state of health.
-Then, compare how you ARE doing to how you'd LIKE it to be.
-Gradually focus more and more on your idea of perfect health. Enjoy!
Imagine a small sun over your head, beaming light down onto you.
Let it fill you. Bathe in the warmth and glow of it, for as long as you like.
Gradually return and open your eyes.

GROWTH
-meditate and breathe deeply, to begin
-which areas are you growing in and which areas of your life are you stuck?
-think about who you'd like to be, your ideal self...in detail, and larger than life.
-how does he/she look, interact, talk?
-imagine yourself growing in size until you fill the giant image you built of your ideal self
-feel what it's like
-come back to the present without shrinking

CREATIVITY
keep a dream journal. isolate yourself, so your imagination goes into overdrive. hypnotize yourself into thinking you're an inventor, creating things that will make people happy(ier).
Work at the patent office, like Einstein. Above all, Make things that make you happy, or write things...(those were my thoughts)
Now, for the card
people say we're born creative. Recapture it. Make something beautiful. Imagine yourself as creative as you like, or being Leonardo da Vinci, or -even further- you have a magic want to create anything you imagine, that fills you with creative energy. (it says to make an orb filled with light, from which you get your creative energy)

INSPIRATION
more inspired, more of the time
I have a dream...that YOU have a dream.
Inspiration is 1%, the rest is perspiration (?)
alright, you know the drill: sit comfortably, close your eyes.
remember times of inspiration and creativity
imagine being an inventor in a brightly lit studio or lab, feeling joyful, light, and intelligent.
imagine having a Wow! idea (whether or not you can specify it)
imagine being congratulated by excited and impressed people
come back slowly

LIFE PURPOSE
The highest purpose, the funnest purpose, the wealthiest opportunity...
hmm.
says here, on the card...that
begin with a few moments of meditation, deep breathing
meditate and breathe deely (mbd)
ask your higher self or wiser self to be with you (!)
make a symbol that represents your life's purpose
things, or qualities, or both -acceptable
imagine the symbol on the top of a mountain
walk, dance, or run to the top of the mountain
hold the symbol in your hands, surround it with light, and take it into your heart
return from the mountain
come back slowly
record your experiences

WISDOM
contemplate the difference between smart and wise
s.c. & c.y.e (sit comfortably and close your eyes)
think of the wisest person you know. ask yourself why.
think of past moments of wisdom in your own life
either to guide yourself, or somebody else
think of yourself, a wise elder, far in the future
gradually return and open your eyes

Meditation (post 2)

I forgot the most basic thing- Breathing!

BREATH
or, rather, focusing on and counting each breath
in silence/a silent place
with uncrossed legs
sitting up straight, with back support
so as to remove stress, lower blood pressure (reduce hypertension),

close your eyes
your breath will start to deepen and slow down
which is good

FOCUS
let go of distracting thoughts
perhaps using a mental phrase to keep the focus
your mind thinks it needs to be doing something
if you think of things you don't want to forget, have a pad and pen ready
imagine putting distracting thoughts in a balloon, and releasing them to float away.

do it once or twice a day for 10 to 20 minutes

conscious, rhythmic breathing
increases relaxation and deepens meditation
when you breathe, expand the lower belly
and slowly fill your body with oxygen
from the bottom of your belly to the top of the chest
then, exhale slowly, gently drawing in the belly

it seems there's a proper way of breathing...
do something 3 times, do something else 3x, then do something other for 4x.
do those 10 things 3x
it has something to do with counting time for inhale, exhale, and hold (for both)
which, unfortunately, I guess, I don't get. So, nevermind, I say.
It's more fun to discover an effective technique for yourself, isn't it?
I'll tell you what the card says if you email me.

People always wonder if they're doing it right
Another card says no matter what, you're doing it right.
Just the attempt is laudable
even for people who have meditated for years, some days are easier than others.

Sanctuary
It is recommended that, when meditating, you come from a good place
i.e.
-either a place you remember as safe and serene, or
-a place in your imagination, that permits escape to something better, like a peaceful natural setting. (I like where I am, with my 2 dogs- my cushion is the dog bed). The sun and breeze and birds and flowers and friendly animals make it ideal, for example.
Stay as long as you want, come back slowly, and maybe write down your experiences.

Journal
a useful way to record meditation experiences, that allows you remember and see progress. It's easy to think of yourself as the same person, but a journal shows change (incremental or transformative). Choose a blank book that you like, i.e. with or without lines, of whatever size, so you can write changes in your body, like being more relaxed, and insights you gain.

Stretching
They're always telling you when to exhale. What's up with that?? Anyway, place your right hand on your left knee, and rotate your trunk/spine to the left, then vice versa, twisting with the exhale.

Neck and Shoulder tension
-lower and raise your head (to and from your chest), without forcing it, with a relatively straight spine (exhale lowering, and inhale raise) 3X.
-Move your head to the right, to your back, and to your left side.
when finished, roll your head in a circle, 3x in each direction. Don't ever hold your breath.

(okay, they're not telling me why I can't hold my breath, or what's really going on, here. I would like to know)

Honesty
I find this exercise a bit creepy. Sit, close your eyes, think about times you've been honest to others, and others to you. Imagine sitting with a famously honest person, and have a conversation about what it means to be honest. Tell this person what you think the pros and cons of honesty are. Imagine the response, without debate, listen attentively, then gradually return to the present. (This smacks to me of talking to ghosts, like the crazy elder Tesla did. Or just plain crazy talking to yourself; aka self-talk, aka mental masturbation).

Sub-personalities
This sounds like schizophrenia or multiple personality disorder, watered down for everybody else, who seem to think they're sane. Common sub-personalities (less developed or mature aspects of your personality) include the inner child and the inner critic. Contemplate a recent situation where you wish you had reacted differently -what part of your personality seems to have been in charge? If it was a separate person (possibly a different gender), what does he or she look like, and how do they dress, speak, move? When did he/she appear first in your life?
Write down what you've learned.
(wow, this exercise is for everyone...perhaps everyone really IS crazy).
(wait, shouldn't it be ARE)

Visualization (Use your imagination to consciously create what you want)
This one you can lie down on, if you prefer. Sit or lie comfortably, meditate and breathe for a few minutes, to relax. Think of a quality you would like more of in your life. Remember a time when you felt you used and possessed that quality. Remember how it felt, and where in your body it felt present. Now imagine that quality as a colored light that spreads into every nook and cranny of your being, until you are competely filled with that light and quality. Come back and resume your day, and then notice that you can access this quality and feeling anytime.

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Meditation (post 1)

I actually know very little about it, so this is my understanding
-before I actually learn from 2 books my wife has on the subject,
The Meditation deck (of cards), 50 cards by Compass Labs, and
Meditation for Beginners (a book), by Jack Kornfield

a preliminary post
before conveying all the basic info I'm privy to from these sources.

okay,
One form of meditation is saying and repeating a mantra,
like nam myoho renge kyo, or Om.

Another is meditating on a subject, like compassion
or focusing on a single object (like a doorknob?)

Generally, you're sitting (such as in the lotus position, which I cannot do), and in silence.
Maybe there's incense. It's all about clearing your mind, gaining clarity. Or becoming. Or channeling energy to somehow make a better world, in addition to a better you. Invigoration. Purpose. Slowing down, calm, tranquil, relaxed. Feeling good.

It's the fanciest way of doing nothing. It might even be the most efficient way of doing anything.
Om.

At least that's what I think it is.
Like what christians call prayer, just from eastern traditions, instead.

Generating Power

Couldn 't excersize bicycles be paired with a battery or batteries to generate home power?

It, or something like it (a stairmaster?), could be a really cool way to convert extra calories into home electricity.

First, you could buy any type or amount of food you want. You can convert fat in your body, or extra calories from what you're eating day to day, to run all the appliances in your house.

And in an efficient way.
If you have a big household, maybe you could sell extra power to the grid.
I like excercise. You can listen to music, and get all sweaty, and feel the satisfaction of making progress (toward your new year's resolution?)

It's got to be really simple. When I was growing up, my dad had an excercise bike. If you make more power by going at a higher tension at the same speed, you'll feel twice as good, maybe.

It doesn't have to completely replace the grid, and I would imagine it shouldn't, but to burn a percentage of your bill into muscles, fitness, aerobic stamina, and overall health, these things should be everywhere.

An extra layer of oogies of joy when you work out.
Just an idea.

although, I saw a site trying to sell a pmm (perpetual motion machine), which would just go forever, presumably. It involves magnets, lol.

question: could you bicycle power your car if it runs out of gas, to get you to the station?

Monday, August 17, 2009

Water

It's been on my mind, lol

I saw a Ted lecture, given by the inventor of this filter, with nanoscale pores, that will work on muddy, diseased water, with a pump filtration system, that will save oodles of poodles (many people...scuse me, i'm feeling happy). If we, humanity, give everyone these filters, we'll all be happier. And healthier, too. I'm jazzed.

http://www.ted.com/talks/michael_pritchard_invents_a_water_filter.html

This can be merged with the water trike. It could be put on the pumps themselves, as well as the containers, I imagine. It just seems like a revolutionary invention. I wonder why there aren't the very best and brightest working together to systematically solve virtually any problem, like this engineer did, only after getting angry and deciding to do something about it.

There are de-ionizing machines, too, for whatever that means.
Then there's something called dry water. (does it have a lower evaporation rate?)
I don't know what freeze-dried water's about, either. Something about astrobiology.
Also, there's a vest that purifies the water inside it, by being exposed to sunshine.

And there are also Dr. Emoto's photos, which means thoughts or words directed like prayers toward the water will give it crystals, instead of lumps, which everyone seems to assume is healthier water. There's alot of uproar about this. I'm inclined to believe at the very least that the mind can change matter; for instance, with noises off (a scientologist told me that noises off were the sounds that your house makes, which I also associate with the clicks my tv makes when it is turned off. In my world, -off- tv's punctuate my thoughts and buses make exasperated sighs).

-The earth surface (not composition) is like 70% water, our bodies (adult) are like 70% water, and
-the trillions of chambers (cells) in our body strike me as being similar to the water featured in the dry water article, which are powder-coated droplets, affected by gravitational, electrical, or magnetic fields. (could pure water be packaged like m&m's?)

-waiter, more water. My weight is what? Angkor wat.. Dubya at ER.

Pisces and Aquarius are all about water, and I think there are other water signs. Does Africa have many swimming pools? I love to swim. Africans shouldn't have to worry about alligators, hippos, malaria, and worms, etc when they take a dip. I mean, unless they really, really want to.

Someone said you should drink half your weight of water, daily (IN OUNCES!). thx, shelley.

There's talk of future scarcity, or flooding, due to climate change, that will play into politics, and maybe even conflict. This book sounds interesting.

Here's the link to Engineers Without Borders (on Wikipedia); link

kay, nuf for now

Sunday, August 16, 2009

I seem to have defied Hermeticism


this quote, from Wikipedia's entry on "The All" speaks to me:

"According to Hermetic doctrine, The All is a bit more complicated than simply being the sum total of the universe. Rather than The All being simply the physical universe, it is more correct to say that everything in the universe is within the mind of The All, since the ALL can be looked at as Mind itself. [3] In effect, the universe is partially existent on the Mental plane, and we may in fact all be parts of The All's psychological makeup, representing parts of The All in its dream or meditation.

The Three Initiates (see The Kybalion) strongly caution that we restrain from simply declaring "I am God" for oversimplification purposes. Though you are a part of The All, you are but one small piece of that puzzle. You cannot be equated with God anymore than your toenail can be equated with you. You have the potential for perfection and to rejoin God, but you are not the totality of God. [4]

The All's mind can be seen as infinitely more powerful and vast than any of us could hope to achieve. [5"

SO, Has Hermeticism put the smack down on my blog?
Well, I am God, as you are God, as anything else is God.
Or even as nothing is God...because not everything is good.
perhaps.
But I'm not about to declare myself to be Jesus' toenail, lol.
I'm simply me, I am what I am, I am who I am,
and I have to say I understand what 'I am who am' refers to,
being crazy and all.
Plus I'm good,
and I love everybody (but not in that way, you horndogs)

I have my defense, but I suppose the Hermetics have brought me down a notch.
It's kind of fun to find a commentary like this on Wikipedia.

Notches that don't exist, or notches like, say, from me being #1 to all of us as #1, as in We're number 1, in this silly virtual game we're playing for moral and afterlife superiority, as if good were playing evil in some sporting activity. All-1 is the philosophy that the mystical Dr. Bronner's espouses on his soap bottles. But I already said that, I guess. Are we or are we not all equal? om. in what ways for either. Just as a gun can be considered The Equalizer, so is Oblivion. And of course, we're not born equally, no matter what the constitution says. We have equal rights, is all that means, I guess. Some people are more God than others?

Note: Oblivion has 'i liv on' in it (!)

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Ch.'s 4 and 5, of Happiness (for no reason)

a summary of Marci Shimoff's book, part 5 of 5

-listen to paraliminal recordings on headphones to engage your subconscious mind, "which is responsible for 90% of our thoughts."

-2 out of 3 adults in America have low self-esteem. She recommends the mirror exercise, in which you compliment yourself in as many way as you can think to do, stop judging yourself, and over time -you find the beauty and goodness in yourself, and through yourself, gain the ability to take time to savor the good things that make you stronger and able to love others more.

We're often raised not to toot our own horns, not to give ourselves credit or acknowledgement, and actually beat ourselves up, instead. (Althought I have to say I was congratulated my entire life, it seems like to me, I graduated through all the ranks of scouting and honors high school, getting a UC Berkeley alumni scholarship, and entering the UCD Integrated Studies honor program -taking a class in theology, for example. But anyway..).

-5 happiness "Action Steps" for your Mind
1. Don't believe everything you think- do The Work if you catch yourself thinking a negative thought (to see if it's true or not)
2. "Sticky" negative thoughts require the letting go exercise (Sedona method)
3.Mirror exercise, to register the + about yourself
4.Give happiness awards throughout your day, to reverse the negativity bias, or at least to partially counteract it (e.g. best garden, best flower, best thought, best smile, the most courteous driver, the best-behaved dog, etc.).
5. Choose your thoughts. Select the ones that make you happier.

----------
And now (now that we've finished Mind), onto the Heart
(body, soul, purpose, and relationships are the other 4)
-seems to me it's all the same thing, anyway

it (the heart) is the heart of who we are. the deepest and most valuable essence of our being.
the Upanishads say the whole universe dwells within it....(okay, whatever)

happy people have the same fears, pains, and disappointments as the rest, they just have different habits "that allow them to keep their hearts open in their daily lives." (open heart surgery? the metaphor and the actual organ are being used interchangeably..ugh.)

"The heart has a powerful energy field; they generate an electromagnetic field around us that is several feet in diameter and five thousand times greater than the field generated by the brain."

-the heart(beat) can have rhythm coherence or incoherence. Different emotional states have different patterns. Incoherence is damaging. Coherence is good: bp, aging, cognitive functioning, immune system. Positive emotions are good for you. Maybe 7 years of lifespan worth.

-negative emotions like anger, frustration, sadness release stress hormones and cholesterol into your body, and the heart pumps faster and blood pressure rises.
-positive emotions like appreciation, love, and emotional balance increase production of good hormones like the anti-aging hormone DHEA, improve cognitive function, and strengthen the immune system.

-here's the good part: when you focus on good emotions, you affect your heart rhythm at will.
Focus on Gratitude, Forgiveness, and Lovingkindness (the 3 happiness habit for your heart)

two steps
-a mantra from a zen master goes, "Thank you for everything. I have no complaints whatsoever."
-Another practice is to laugh for 10 minutes a day. A "little odd", Rico admits in his testimonial, but it adds health benefits through the added endorphins, cleanses emotionally, and keeps his happiness at a high level.

-law of attraction revisited: focusing your attention on what's already good, what's working, will draw more good to you. (what you appreciate, appreciates)

-people who describe themselves as grateful have more vitality, optimism, and suffer less stress. They also have fewer episodes of clinical depression than the overall population.

Dr. Emoto's photos. Water reacts to feelings directed at it... crystals vs. lumps were photographed when people were directed to focus love and thanks on one container of water, whereas 'you make me sick, i hate you' on the other. (this has me genuinely puzzled)

-Brother David, a youthful benedictine monk in his 80's, says "happiness is not what makes us grateful, but gratefulness makes us happy." He practices having a theme for each day to evoke gratitude, such as the sound of traffic, or water.

-another testimonial, from Marc Bekoff, says, "Happiness is just a part of who I am. At my core, I'm always happy- and there are times when also profoundly sad. They aren't mutually exclusive. The sadness doesn't take away the happiness."

-----
well, my library book is due back, so I think I'll just leave it at that.

I used to be, or act like I was to the extent I fooled myself, super happy and cheerful, like the tone of her book. I have consistently believed that I was happy before being on medications, and have only been medicated because people thought I was annoying. I have to say, although I haven't finished the book, it's kind of saccharine, and doesn't completely sit well with me, like she's trying too hard and reality is just SO goddamn miserable for so many that self-hypnosis to make your personal world impenetrable to depression seems artificial. In other words, I find HER annoying, a little bit. She's plainly a Buddhist, which makes me think of being fat and happy, (like Gautama?) which is fine, but obesity is a big problem. Did the Buddha eat his misery and drink away his troubles? Resentment vs. Gratitude, you be the judge.

I plan to continue reviewing (some of) the happiness literature for this blog (for myself as well as for all y'all). Peace.

Sunday, August 9, 2009

Just Plain Happy

Marci Shimoff's book, "Happiness for No Reason": my 4th posting of 5

My list of interesting points she makes:

Ch.4, The Mind (thoughts, beliefs, self-talk)
-can make a hell of heaven, and a heaven of hell
-to receive true happiness and inner peace, you have to change the way you think
-should support happiness, not sabotage it.
-scientists say we have about 60k thoughts a day, and 95% are habitual
-negative thoughts are common, say 80% of those 60k (more than 45k!)
-Dr. Amen calls them ANTs, Automatic Negative Thoughts
-these thoughts stimulate depression and anxiety, whereas
-positive thoughts are calming and beneficial.
(like poison and medicine)
-the solution is to know that Your thoughts aren't alway true.
-so, judging, worrying, overthinking, dwelling on the bad is contractive, while
-accepting, trusting, clear thinking, and savoring the good is expansive
-we most often aren't, or hardly, even aware that our thoughts might not be true
-negative thoughts are more powerful than positive ones, we're wired that way by evolution.
-it's called the 'negativity bias'
-the physiological reason negative experiences are "sticky" is the amygdala
-that's the part of the brain that sets off the alarm for fight or flight
-heart rate, adrenaline, and stress hormones go up
-many have overactive amygdalas, to boot ("hot"), and without fighting or fleeing
-the chemicals accumulate, causing fatigue and disease
-this is a major obstacle to happiness, and people with hot amygdalas
-have short fuses, panic easily, and make mountains of molehills
-are drama queens, rage-aholics, worrywarts, and chronic complainers
-there's hope. neuroplasticity research shows how new thoughts create a new brain,
-and maybe even alters your dna itself, she says (in quoting Dr. Davidson)
-"You can't paste a smiley face over your pain or spread a layer of icing over cake that's burned to a cinder."
-Neocortex to the rescue! it's where happiness lives (left prefrontal area o' brain)
-more alpha wave activity is the sign of a happy brain
-happy people are:
more skeptical of negative thoughts, question alarms, and override them when necessary
-are aware of the negativity bias, don't fight with them, "and go beyond the mind." (?)
-register their positive thoughts, and savor their positive experiences
-a jesuit said the false beliefs in your head are the Only cause of unhappiness, or
-as a tibetan monk said, "the real enemy of happiness is the mind's fixations and delusions."
-for any given disturbing thoughts or interpretations of events, ask yourself:
-is it true? can you absolutely know it's true? how do you react when you believe that thought? who would you be without that thought? This is called The Work, by Katie
-asking these questions is a way to experience the opposite of what you believe.
-She has it in bold-face, "All suffering comes from believing our own thoughts"
-This guy named Bruce, in his testimony to MS, says that he's "come to a place of real peacefulness, of letting go and accepting things as being just what they are and nothing more," despite a painful divorce, through The Work.
-specifically, the pain was reduced/eliminated happily, through the process of questioning his own assumptions, which led to the realization that the situation itself was not the source of his pain, but rather his interpretation of it.
-Epictetus, a Greek philosopher, said "We are disturbed bot by what happens to us, but by our thoughts about what happens.
-the bottom line: thoughts come and go, relationships and pain come and go, and clinging to your stories about what you think you want and need is a surefire recipe for suffering.
-that's only part of the story for being happy (in the mental sphere)
-A simple, effective technique called the Sedona method, a tool for personal growth, a way of letting go of all inner limitations, goes something like this:
-hold a pen. it represents your thoughts and feelings. your hand is your awareness. though uncomfortable, the pen feels "normal." Next, roll the pen on your palm. Notice the two are not attached to each other. You are not your thoughts and feelings. Now, turn your hand over and let go. Presto! The guy who invented this turned an expectation of imminent death into 42 more years of life (d. age 84).
-summary:thoughts and feelings aren't facts and aren't you. You can let them go.
-find your true essence, the happiness you were born with...(aren't most of us born unhappy?)
-while getting rid of your deadweight baggage (unhappy thoughts and feelings), so you can go beyond your mind.

Saturday, August 8, 2009

H4NR

Chapter 3 summary , and part 3, also, of my book report
of Marci Shimoff's work, entitled, Take Ownership of Your Happiness, pp. 49-81

To continue her Building a Home for Happiness (which I assume is like a turtle's) metaphor, she considers the foundation for happiness to be:

1)Focus on the Solution
2)Look for the Lesson and the Gift
3Make peace with yourself

H4NR, in addition to it's strong foundation (we're building a happy house; e.g. your body), there are also 4 walls, a roof, and a garden, each with 3 sub-points each for a total of 21 Happiness Habits. (Any connection to nun's habits?) She's talking about True happiness, and Enduring happiness. An ambitious book, I would say.

The Foundation of H4NR:
1. focus on the solution
victims focus on the problem and complain (contracting e).
Victors focus on the solution (expanding e).
(i still don't get the energy thing; i kind of suspect it's a woman's thing)
-someone told marci that the average person complains 70x a day.
that sucks! lol.
Seriously, though. All these damn vampires sucking the happiness out of you.
she mentions pastor Will Bowen, and his millions of bracelet shifters
-solutions-focus, developed by Mark McKergow,
rate (a situation, a relationship, whatever) on a scale of 1-10, 10 the most satisfied.
THEN, write down all the reasons you didn't score lower (vs. why you didn't score higher)
then, think of all the small steps that can be taken to increase your satisfaction level/score.
then, notice the times you feel more satisfied, and build up.stop complaining, and start collecting things/activities/strategies that make you happy in life, to keep you focused on what's working.
I think of it like a snowball, with momentum, getting bigger and bigger (the snow being your
happiness). I'm not over the hill yet, so it's a Sisyphean snowball. A naturally growing phenomenon.

2. Look for the Lesson and the Gift.
Don't blame. Not yourself, not anyone else. "Blame is a no-win proposition, and we all probably have better things to do like being peaceful, content, and happy," says Chellie, a member of marci's happy hundred (of which only 21 are quoted in the book). If anything, "blame" it on god, who has a higher purpose for you that you might not see. MS (Marci Shimoff) says both a)many of the things she set her heart on would have actually made her miserable, in hindsight, and b)often, the things she thought were bad turned out to be the greatest blessings in her life. So labelling events "good" or "bad" may be unwise in the first place. Instead, the happy hundred view everything as containing a gift or lesson, though they may not be able to see it in the moment. One never knows. SO, to expand your energy despite tough times, "try believing that what's happened is for the best. The universe is out to support you. Happy, happy. joy, joy. Just another day in Paradise. For realz. If you want to be happy, H4NR-style, you've got to accept the proposition that yeah, "it's all good."

Personally, I'm not sure I'll ever be this ridiculously gleeful a believer in divine control of everthing, so that it all works out for the best. I'm rather fond of the dark side of the force. AND, I think it's more realistic. Then again, as the Grateful Dead say, "I'm goin' to hell in a bucket, but at least I'm enjoying the ride." Like riding a rollercoaster into hell...ugh. I'm a firm disbeliever in hell, or any kind of afterlife for that matter, except oblivion, of course, i.e. being scattered to the 4 winds. I like the GD, but I hate the concept of hell. No one is going to suffer throughout eternity for anything, but some people might live some rather/fairly rotten lives. The belief in heaven can really help people cope. I look forward to eating my apple pie in heaven.

But Dr. Ellis, a psychologist, says, "The best years of your life are the ones in which you decide your problems are your own. You realize you control your destiny." Conversely, a study shows that people who blame others for severe accidents "displayed expecially low coping scores."

3. Make Peace with Yourself
I may be schizophrenic, but I'm at peace with myself. In college, I had a sticker of the Dead Milkmen on my bike, from their album Soul Rotation. If, in the words of x by y, I'm a million different people from one day to the next, I can't change...(you might know it), then maybe I have a few me's, that correspond to Goffman's presentation of self in society, and the different roles I play. Silence of the Lambs has a line about Your-self storage as being too hokey for Lecter. Robin Williams can get really nutty with his roleplaying, and speaking of lambs, the Lambchop's play along was some seriously crazy sh--. MS isn't really talking about all this, so I guess I'm a bit off track.

Anyway, what MS is saying is we need to get rid of our shame, guilt, self-blame (that eat at us), and instead accept our avoided feelings.And maybe even share them. Zainab Selbi, an author, activist, and founder/ceo of the humanitarian organization Women for Women International, describes how to make lemonade from lemons. The lemons, actually, are the unspeakable violence and rape of women in Croatia and africa. Selbi says, "If people are afraid to tell their stories, I tell them from my own experience, it will only lead you to a great fortune- of inner peace, and the joy and lightness that comes with it." That's the carrot. The stick is that "people who bury their traumas live shorter, unhealthier, unhappier lives than those who tell their stories."

The "happiness robbers" of complaining, blaming, and feeling shame (i.e. it's all my fault)(is it??), i.e. if you always feel like a victim, if not corrected, will draw the same situations to you again and again, such as the same type of unhealthy relationships. She quotes author Eckhart Tolle, "the past cannot prevail against the power of Now."

Instead of switching a bracelet around until you reach 21 days of perfection, she recommends having a fine (say 2 bucks) put in a bucket, for every time you blame, make an excuse, compain, indulge in self-pity, or beat yourself up. Eventually the groups she was in "stopped playing the victim game."

Finally, it's never too late. You can teach an old dog new tricks. She cites her mother, who exercises, meditates, travels, gets massages, and is a member of various clubs, at the age of 85.

Friday, August 7, 2009

Practicing Happiness

The Marci Shimoff way
summary of her book, part 2
(ch. 2 summary of her book, Happy for No Reason: 7 Steps to Being Happy from the Inside Out)

Her personality profile of someone who is HNR
-radiating energy, like small suns (points of light, HW Bush would say)
-optimists, not only half-full; rather, carrying a pitcher of water, and for others' glasses as well
-quiet presence of peace/contentment, centers of calm in the chaos
-love to spend time with; raises your spirits (even on grumpiest of days)

her dad
-loves everything
-excited every morning to be on the adventure called life
-advice for life to her: Be Happy!

Thomas Jefferson's pursuit of happiness doesn't mean chasing after,
but rather to practice, do regularly, make a habit

Psychologists say at least 90% of all behavior is habitual. Some say you can just make up your mind to be happy, and that's it, you will be. It takes practice, like becoming a piano virtuoso, she says. It doesn't happen overnite. Habitual thoughts and behaviors are like wiring in your brain, and you need to carve out new grooves or neural pathways, the habits of happy people, to become like them.

Regarding the brain, it's been found out recently that adult brains have neuroplasticity. In other words, habits can change, they are not set in stone, and we can think of things like compassion and happiness as skills that can be learned like tennis or a new musical instrument. (wow, huh?)

First, identify what (factors) leads to happiness, and what leads to suffering; then cultivate and eliminate. That is the way, according to the dalai. (what if you're a demon?)

2 Myths widely cause suffering, she points out:
the myth of more, and the myth of I'll be happy when

more, more, more! The M.O.M. is what the television bombards us with, on a constant basis. It's a deep-seated belief in the power of money, and all the things it can buy, to make us happy. However, nearly 40% of the Forbes wealthiest Americans are unhappy. And get this: Once personal wealth exceeds 12,000 dollars, more money produces virtually no increase in happiness. One story about the set-point is that people who win the lottery eventually return to their happiness set-point. Also, American's average level of happiness has remained the same, despite a two and a half times growth in personal income. Commercials are repetitive ad nauseum, and I will always loathe them, as long as they are interrupting something I would rather see, and especially if they advertise something I will never buy. I want my ideal society and I want it now. Waaa. Make a just-commercial channel, for Christ's sake (or Pete's).

The myth of I'll be happy when
Postponing happiness is like running like a hamster in a wheel. The time to be happy is, and will always be, NOW. Two other points: we're not very good at judging what will make us happy in the future, and anyway, the thrill diminishes with use of whatever was supposed to make us happy forever, through habituation.

Three factors toward happiness, to cultivate:
1)what expands you makes you happier
2)The universe is out to support you
3)What you appreciate, appreciates

1)what expands you makes you happier (this makes me think of santa eating his venison or whatever) (The fat santa -ho!ho!ho! reminds me of the big bellied laughing buddha). She's not talking about gaining weight (I think), but is talking about what the book The Lost Steps referred to as throwing out links to everything, which I have taken to heart as one of the last remaining jedis or something. I'm on the web. Maybe I'm Spidey. I saw a kid dressed up as the webshooting hero with his mom walking down the sidewalk in Calistoga a little while back. It's a small world, after all.

she thinks of it like this:
-everything in the universe is composed of energy, including you- so doing things like yoga or taichi, (actually, her directions are: sitting straight, bringing your shoulders back, opening your arms wide, take a deep breath, smile, and close your eyes)...are expansive, i guess, gets you into the state with oxygen absorption, dilation of blood vessels, muscle relaxation, smooth heart rhthms, and "increased integration" of your brain's functioning. It's described as free, open, joyful, with a feeling of expansion, lightness, and space.

She's really into expansive as good, and contracting as bad, for some reason. I don't really get it.

If you do the opposite, with hunched shoulders, fists, short quick breaths, and a frown- you'll feel anxious, tight, agitated, with a feeling of heaviness (which she calls contraction). I take it to mean she's on a mission, and wants to go global, to give her life meaning. I get that.

I just think of expansion as getting fatter, like a balloon about to pop, and contractions as part of the birthing process (which aren't known to be the happiest of motherly moments). But whatever.

But anyway, after you feel contraction, a physiologist could tell that anger, fear, sadness, jealousy contract us and "literally constricts the flow of our life energy" by monitoring muscle tightening, shallow breathing, and hampered circulation.

To me, this sounds like she's trying to make the fight or flight response a matter of contraction of chi or something. It's not sitting that well with me. I can't say that I've ever felt either contracted or expanded. The metaphor is just some words for me. I know she speaks and writes for women.... She says contraction is the feeling of unhappiness, fear, pessimism, constriction, resistance, low energy, disease, malaise, separation, and feeling bad.

Expansion, on the other hand (or in the other column, as it were) involves happiness, love, optimism, flow, acceptance, vitality, ease, well-being, connection, and feeling good. Well who doesn't want that?? Maybe people are trying to be a global telepath, like I might be -spreading the joy like butter on my breakfast toast. What's that rhyme bout bitter batter?

So how do you feel? contracted or Expanded? Let expansion guide you on your way, young paduwan. By using the force (expansion vs. contraction), you will have your own guidance system, like a GPS or the children's game of "getting warmer, getting colder". She says we should make a list of things in our life under both columns, and then work on "course correction."
Everything that expands you makes you happier, she says. (was she hungry when she wrote this? Maybe she wants a little Shimoff (open, joyful, expansion, light, space...).

2) The Universe is Out to Support You
There are 3 ways to think about the universe: a)out to get you b)indifferent, c)out to support you. What she says we should believe is the idea that there are no mistakes and we should accept what is, so we can get to work on what needs to be dealt with effectively NOW. Also, people who believe in The Universe/God/whatever, think that whatever difficulties come their way happen for their own good, and they look for the blessings in them. It engenders a trusting and relaxed attitude toward life. Medically, a study on HIV patients showed that those who believed in a loving higher power lived longer than those who believe in a punishing One. She admits that war, suffering, cruelty, pain, famine, etc. can really test this belief, but she submits to the wisdom of "all the wise men and women who have ever lived...who all share this belief" and allows for the possibility of their more enlightened and clearer vision (which just happen to validate her thesis). In other word, you might die earlier, and in misery to boot, if you don't join the religious sheeple. Come on! Just do it! God is good! (She recommends that you just try it for a week or two, and see if it (assuming the universe is on your side) makes you any happier).

3) What you appreciate, appreciates
It's based on the Law of Attraction (like attracts like). What you think, feel, say, and do draws like toward you like a magnet. (well, maybe not, since a positive side attracts a negative side of another magnet). ANyway, if you appreciate Happiness, badabing badaboom you got it! She makes an interesting side note: People try and use the law to attract things to make them happy, but that's backwards -being happy attracts whatever makes you happy. So set your thoughts and frequency on happiness, because as you think, so shall ye find manifests. Her particular angle on this is that "it's fine to manifest your ideal car, home, or job, but the key to happiness in life isn't manipulating the world to give us what we want. It's the goal that underlies all goals, which is becoming Happy for No Reason. It works for material gain, but it also works on the spiritual level, such as focusing on gratitude during heartbreak, or appreciating progress, however small.

She has a catchy way of summarizing her own personal "secret formula" for using the law of attraction: Intention, Attention, and No Tension. (in a no).

-Intention is clearly visualizing what you want -in this case, happiness.
-Attention is letting the seed grow constantly from subconscious and conscious thought processes. Use the Happiness Habits, and feed and water your mind's emphasis.
-No Tension is just to sit back, relax, and let the law work it's magic. Well, no. Actually, it's just trusting that you are removing the blocks to experiencing greater happiness.

The Happiness Habits, I assume, are:
focus on the solution, look for the lesson and the gift, make peace with yourself

question your thoughts, go beyond the mind and let go, incline your mind toward joy

focus on gratitude, practice forgiveness, spread lovingkindness

nourish your body, energize your body, tune into your body's wisdom

invite connection to your higher power, listen to your inner voice, trust life's unfolding

find your passion, follow the inspiration of the moment, contribute to something greater than yourself.

tend to your relationships, surround yourself with support, see the world as your family.

(No Reason at all kind of translates into 21 reasons (the happiness habits)...but once you've internalized them, then you'll just be happy from the inside out, I assume she means)

That's the book!

Happy for No Reason

A Book report on Marci Shimoff's book of the same name, Pt. 1 of 5 posts

Summary for "the 7 steps to being happy from the inside out."
(My third review of self-help books, after The Secret, and A Complaint-Free World.)

All 3 of these book espouse the same basic philosophy; in fact, Marci Shimoff, the author, was a featured teacher (hey, that rhymes) in Rhonda Byrnes' The Secret.

Basically, there are 287 pages worth of how to be happy (for no reason), which obviously includes a few reasons, I would have to say...the basic idea being that if your life incorporates all these strategies for being happier, your Happiness set-point will rise, and you will be happy for the reason that you read and believed and tried out everything in the book.

The forward says, "you'll find simple, practical steps for experiencing a deeper, more permanent state of happiness, regardless of your external circumstances." (This strikes me as being similar to buddhism, which is more a method than a religion, to finding happiness,

-which Aristotle said is the meaning and purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence.
-she calls it the holy grail, the be-all and end-all of life, if you cut to the chase.

It might just be easier if you buy the book. I got mine from the library, and there are pretty cheap copies floating around on the net. But I'm here to spread the joy, so, here goes:

Chapter 1's summary (pgs. 11-26)
all the reasons for being happy for no reason, lol:
1. Money
can buy happiness (if you buy the book, for example).

2. Marci Shimoff's personal experience: she's spent a lifetime looking.
Jack Canfield, who wrote the foreward, says there is no more universal need today than that of true happiness. (the book will help others as well as you, through you). Less than 30% of people report being deeply happy. In the U.S., 25% claim to be depressed. Worldwide, by 2020, depression is projected to be second only to heart disease in terms of the global burden of illness.
Jack is the nation's top expert on self-esteem, and Marci gave keynotes to hundreds of women under him on success/self-esteem. And yet...

She has a background in humanistic psychology, has read Herman Hesse's Siddhartha, and was a teacher of meditation, in her youth, and then became a public speaker- but still was searching, knew something was missing, wasn't exactly happy. She was involved with the 7 chicken soup books, and lived a whirlwind life, which left her drained. The high never lasted. She discovered famous people aren't happy, either. She fell in love and got married, but still felt empty. She finally got the idea that happiness doesn't come for any reason, and is out to share the gospel of her discovery. She's done the work for you -just read on.

3. The "happy hundred"/ genuinely happy (and for no reason) people
Don't just take it from her. There are interviews with happy people, whom she calls the Happy Hundred, genuinely happy people who have high happiness set-points. They're just happy for No reason.

About the happiness set-point: About 50% of it is genetic, and the other 50 learned. This was discovered by a study on twins in the late '80's by Dr. David Lykken (his book is in my local library, but I returned it for being too dry, lol) And the 50% that's learned is only TEN percent determined by circumstances such as job, wealth, and marital status.

4.The other FORTY percent of anyone's happiness set point is determined by

habitual thoughts, feelings, words, and actions
(which you can reprogram)
In other words, the self-help genre is about self-hypnosis

About the continuum of happiness (she breaks it down into 5 states):

two states of unhappiness
a)Unhappiness is different from clinical depression, which is characterized hy a deep despair and hopelessness, that interferes with the ability to have an a normal life, and for which professional help is absolutely necessary.

b)Garden-variety unhappiness, in which you're just bummed out, has the signs of anxiety, fatigue, feeling low or blue -and that's what this book will hopefully remedy, in addition to making happy people happier.

three states of happiness
She says you can be happy (temporarily) from unhealthy addictions (bad reasons), or satisfaction from healthy experiences (good reasons), but only those who are happy for no reason have an inner state of peace and well-being. She quotes the Upanishads, "Happiness for any reason is just another form of misery." True happiness isn't dependent on external circumstances.

c)unhealthy addictions are things like compulsive eating, gambling, retail therapy, television, drugs, alcohol, and sex, which only numb or allow escape from unhappiness through fleeting experiences of pleasure.

d)healthy experience, what most people call happiness, involves good relationships with family and friends, career success, financial security, nice house/car, and using our talents/strengths well. Pleasure from THINGS, she likes to point out. She's all for it; HOWEVER, true happiness does not come from collecting an assortment of happy experiences, having everything "under control", getting by, or numbing the pain. If you lose the things that make you happy, if they are the conditions for your happiness, then the good times are likely to go out the door with them.

e)Real happiness, Marci points out, isn't dependent on external circumsances, but comes from within. It isn't elation, euphoria, mood spikes, or peak experiences. It isn't a superficial high, or grinning like a fool. Here's the rub: "When you're Happy for No Reason, you bring happiness to your outer experiences rather than trying to extract happiness from them.

You don't need to manipulate the world around you to try to make yourself happy (is that what I'm doing with this blog?, or her with the book?); You live from happiness rather than for it.

She uses a metaphor. Usually, we try to make our lives like a necklace. We find just the right beads (experiences) to make a beautiful and happy life, when really it's the string we should make the happy part, to create a happy life (regardless of the good, bad, or indifferent beads). The happiness is unconditional, and you'll be happy by your inner life, however the necklace appears.

The happy hundred all have this string in them (!)

tangent
(are we talking about string theory or puppets, here? I'm guessing probably not, but it's something to think about). Aha! woven into the tapestry of life/society (I never did understand the "fabric of spacetime" expression). Kurt Cobain: yeah, whatever, nevermind

5. Repeated answers to her questioning of happy people yielded the same qualities:
-a sense of lightness or buoyancy
-feeling vital, alive, energetic
-a sense of flow, openness
-feeling love and compassion for yourself and others
-having passion about your life and purpose
-feeling gratitude and forgiveness
-at peace with life
-fully present in the moment

Matthieu Ricard, often called "the happiest man in the world" according to researchers who measured his brain's functioning in and out of meditation, said this:
"By happiness I mean a deep sense of flouishing that arises from an exceptionally healthy mind. This is not a mere pleasurable feeling, a fleeting emotion, or a mood, but an optimal state of being."

6. Marci goes on to say, "Happiness isn't just a nice idea. It's a specific, measurable physiological state characterized by brain activity, heart rhythms, and body chemistry." and

"We seem to know intuitively that our innermost essence is happiness. You don't have to create it; it's who you are."

7. The rest of the book (this is all from only the first 26 pages)
So what are the 7 steps?
1. Take ownership of your happiness The Foundation
2.Don't believe everything you think The pillar of the Mind
3.Let love lead The pillar of the Heart
4.Make your cells happy The pillar of the Body
5.Plug yourself into spirit The pillar of the soul
6.Live a life inspired by purpose The roof
7.Cultivate nourishing relationships The garden

So, the structure is pretty memorable. Each pillar can be a corner or wall in your house, then you have the foundation, the roof, and the garden. Physical reminders/prompts to the chapters in the book that make you happy/ier, if you want to encode it that way in your head.

The book has 9 chapters. Chapter 2 is entitled 'Practicing Happiness' (pp. 27-45). The next 7 chapters are Building Your Home for Happiness, a chapter for each step (maybe your house has stairs?).