Living on Adrenaline, Decreasing Stress

All evidence these days points to stress as a major contributor to ill-health, in both body and mind. Apparently stress stimulates the body to respond with creating the hormone cortisol (in the adrenals).

Cortisol is the flight and fight hormone. High and prolonged levels of cortisol decrease bone density and muscle mass and increase sugar imbalances. Cortisol leads to increased abdominal fat. Also, cortisol inhibits collage formation (hello, wrinkles!).

About.com writes, “Studies have also shown that people who secrete higher levels of cortisol in response to stress also tend to eat more food, and food that is higher in carbohydrates than people who secrete less cortisol.” http://stress.about.com/od/stresshealth/a/cortisol.htm

The wikipedia explains that cortisol addiction also contributes to clinical depression. The Mayo Clinic lays things out clearly about the negative effects of allowing stress to continue eating away at your body: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stress/SR00001

In our modern world, we’ve created a high-stress culture using adrenaline as a fuel source. The adrenals were never meant to be stimulated like this - it’s a very unhealthy fuel.

I’ve been seriously working to decrease stress in my life. I don’t think we take stress seriously enough; we just live with it. Trying to actually eliminate stress is a worthwhile goal! And one I do not think is too far out of line. The adrenals are intended to help us work through temporary stressful situations - ones that we cannot control. Using cortisol as a daily fuel; that was never intended. That is what I am going to work on eliminating from my life.

Twitter Grade

I just checked my Hubspot Twitter Grade for HippyGeek - scored a 97 out of 100, and apparently there is nothing for me to improve on. I like hearing that! I need constant positive strokes to fuel my self esteem.

Here’s my badge:

I’m not sure exactly what they are basing the grade on. Follow ratio? Amount or frequency of tweets? Mixture of tweet types?

Have you checked your Twitter Grade? Twitter Grader

I’m usually a Scrooge about the holidays

I don’t do Christmas trees. It just seems like a lot of work each year, and I really don’t care about the holidays. I did hang up some white lights in the house, but not for xmas - just because I like it as indirect, romantic lighting. It stays up permanently.

What is different this year is that I was unpacking some things I had in storage here in AZ and came across a small handful of Xmassy things, like a Santa hat, a potholder with geese wearing Santa hats, some red fuzzy Christmas stockings, two little Elves that have been in my family since I was a tyke, and two green little jingle bells that someone gave me to wear from my ears (even though I do not have ears that are pierced). So I hung them along the kitchen railing that has some of my white lights.

And I also grabbed some mistletoe from a nearby tree and hung it in the doorway to kiss under.

So in spite of my complete lack of holiday spirit, I actually have a few things up this year after all.

Starting to Meditate - Five Minutes a Day

I am trying to practice mindfulness in my life, but it’s tough when I constantly keep myself occupied with so many projects and interests. The days fly by and I only get any real alone time in the bathtub and on walks.

So I have been trying to meditate each day for five minutes. I know that is a short time, but it’s a good start for me. I don’t think I could really sit there still with empty thoughts for an hour or even half hour at this time. So for me, five minutes is a triumph.

I asked DH to do it with me each day. He figures he can take five minutes from his time to do something nice with me, so this was our third attempt today.

Each time I set up the timer for five minutes and sit quietly, I am surprised how quickly the time goes by. I always thought meditating would be soooo slooooooow and five minutes would seem like an hour.

So I am happy to report I am really enjoying this small time-out each day. I sit on a small pillow on my yoga mat, cross legged with my hands palm-up on my knees. Dan just sits near me and quietly stretches. I have a small Buddha set up nearby with some candles and incense, and also some smooth stones to hold if I want them.

I am thinking about making my own meditation pillow from some scrap fabrics at the thrift store, and also finding some meditation music to download.

Does anyone meditate? What do you do, set up, listen to, state at a candle, whatever? Eyes open, closed? Do you chant, think a mantra, try to empty your mind? Do you listen to music, have a sacred space set up, or combine meditation with yoga?

Or do people find the idea of meditating intimidating? I know I always did. That’s why I am am starting with small expectations. I want to set myself up for success.

Do Animals Feel Compassion?

I was reading in the BellaOnline Forums about whether dogs instinctively know someone is dying. People were commenting that dogs will lie beside a dog who is dying, or a person in a nursing home, and simply BE with them when death is coming.

I think animals have it right and they instinctively know a few important things - you can’t change when it’s someone’s time to go, and that no one should have to die alone. They give the comfort of their bodies and presence to the dying.

It’s the same thing as a predatory mother animal allowing a baby prey animal of another species to nurse from her…in the spaces near life and death, comfort comes before aggression.

I do think compassion, love and comfort are our natural state. In times of stress and competition for resources, strife/aggression emerge…but overall nature seems to prefer everything finding its own niche. This is how lions coexist with the Serengeti herds most of the time - when they are not feeding, they just hang out with all the other animals.

It’s a complex topic, as some people do not ascribe emotions to animals, considering them in a more Cartesian light. Personally, I no more consider animals brute ‘machines’ than I do myself. Why would a dolphin save a human? Why would a gorilla cradle a lost kitten? Why would my dog, not hungry for the moment for food, look at me with eyes I interpret as sending me love and adoration? My dogs come to me when I cry, are lonely when I am not with them. If it’s all due to the scrabble for resources, then so is my own existence.

Thoughts?

My Two Dogs

I added a photo of my dogs Kaylee and Frodo to the About Me page. Because, while this blog is all about me, my dogs are pretty much also all about me.

Scroll down past the self-aggrandizing about myself and the dogs are there, peeking in.

Top Ten Episodes of Star Trek, the Next Generation

I was thinking about this with a friend the other day, so here is my list (not in any order, although Inner Light is my top favorite ep)

1. Inner Light
2. Darmok
3. Measure of a Man
4. Family
5. Cause and Effect
6. Disaster
7. The Host
8. A Matter of Honor
9. Parallels
10. Chain of Command

The finale All Good Things is also up there, but it kinda doesn’t count. Finales are kinda their own category. 

I know Best of Both Worlds is usually in people’s top 10, as well as Yesterday’s Enterprise, but they only make my personal top 20. I find the others I listed more compelling.

I also like the Nth Degree, Elementary My Dear Data, Remember Me and Lower Decks. The Q episode where he is made mortal (Q Who, I think), the transporter mishap one where Picard and some others are made into children, and The Child also stick out in my mind.

What are others’ top ten? Do you remember the episodes I listed?

One Year Goals Update, October 23

I am documenting my life goals on this site as a way to keep myself accountable, and to possibly inspire others to do the same on their blogs. One friend already took my example to make her own life updates on her blog: Adventures in Writing, Goals for 08-09.

With no more ado, here is my most recent update:

* My next shorter term goal was to break in to the 20ks at Amazon (and have 100 reviews up) - Reached 28K this week. Yeah! Teens are coming next! I have set until May 09 for this goal so I think i will get there way before that. I still haven’t posted 100 reviews yet - I seem to do reviews in batches. I am waiting for the next time I feel inspired to make a batch.

* Taxes - There’s been some crazy IRS stuff. I finally filled out my 2007 forms and need to figure out where to hand them in. ASAP. I hope I can do this tomorrow on my way out of town. We don’t like heading down the mountain unless we have to - gas is too expensive! I also need to figure out how to roll my 2001 penalty into the rest of my penalty plan. AND got to get together with my new taxes person to figure out how to get 08 in order. I don’t want to be late, ever again.

* Stuff in Storage - We are heading to AZ this weekend to pick up our things from storage. We’ve rented a uhaul trailer ($200! Yeeps). We arranged to stay with a friend for two nights and to see some people while out there. Just need to pack a few things tonite. We won’t be getting my RV this trip, but i’d like to grab a few things from it. So I will still have to make another trip out there soon.

* Organizing Utility/Laundry Room - This has been a fun project and I am almost done. I am pleased with how this came out. YAY me!

* Paint Living Room - The kid we hired never ever showed up. So I just did it myself last week. I’ve never done anything like this before and it was trail and error. But my accent wall came out lovely and DH really approves too. As far as the flooring, this will wait. The economy is too sucky right now. And we decided to return the ceiling fan and just use the one that is up already (get our $119 back from Lowes).

* Office Organized - I did most of it but still need to set aside time to do the drawers. I documented my office cleaning project.

* Crestline Living Website - Still improving in traffic, now has a page rank of 3, and is getting much much closer to my goal of number one Google search result for Crestline California.

* Making 1k a Month from my Projects - Still not seeing things pay off, but I am still in the building phase. Sigh. Too much to do. I think this goal is too big for one year. Maybe I should break it into smaller steps.

Misc New Goals -

* Organize walk in closet
* Organize bathroom shelves

It’s Fun When Authors Link to Your Reviews

I love it when authors whose books I review link to me. Or comment on my site. I do the happy dance and then show my husband, who acts suitably impressed.

• Here is the link back I just found on Anne Cushman’s author website for my review of Enlightenment for Idiots:

Enlightenment for Idiots - News & Events page:

~  “…I could have traveled with Amanda and Devi Das stumbling for enlightenment for years.”

• Previously, Debra Gallant commented on my review of her Book Fear and Yoga in New Jersey:

Thanks for the nice review. I especially liked this insight: You can taste the sense of squeaky-clean New Jersey suburbia - and understand the price people pay to maintain such outward “perfection.”

• And lest you think only yoga authors keep track of who reviews them, here is the nice comment I got on my review of Blogging for Dummies from author Susannah Gardner:

hi jill,thanks for the great write-up of blogging for dummies — i really appreciate it and i’m glad you are finding it useful :)  - susannah.

What is extra cool is I met Susannah recently, at the IzeaFest Blog Expo 08, where she was speaker. She graciously granted me an interview, which I will post shortly.

It’s strangely fun for me to get a shoutout from an author. Realistically, I know it’s not a big deal - I am an author myself (Arizona Off the Beaten Path, 4th and 5th editions). Some of my best friends are authors. But still. Everybody likes to be noticed.

We Continues to Hate Flying

Want to read about my bad experiences with US Airways recently? On JillFlorio.com I posted my recent lovely experiences of nickle and diming by the airlines:
Fly the Hostile Skies on US Airways