How do we ‘take’ time for living each day? Care to share?
I had to write a descriptive paragraph about this website and what we're trying to do here. The best I could come up with was to try to explain the importance of taking time each day to be aware of life, to really TAKE that time and TAKE hold of life, much as you'd grab onto a dear friend in a big hug.
How do you consciously take a good hold on your life and live it each day? Whether you have a Rolex watch worth tens of thousands of dollars, or one of a beautiful selection of Guess watches I was looking at online recently -- or a modest little "Wal-Mart special" sale wristwatch like I wear, you have the same 24 hours each day that I have to work with. It's really easy to let life's pace and business rob you of much of that 24 hours.
Since we all have the same 24 hours to work with daily, perhaps it would help if we share some of our successes at really grabbing hold of a special day and embracing it fully. What works for you? What do you do that's most effective when you lay on your pillow at night and look back on an especially worthwhile or rewarding day?
Personally, I find days most rewarding when I allow others to "intrude" on my carefully laid plans (those days when I actually HAVE carefully laid plans) and draw me away from myself and my activities. I don't really like it when that happens. But I always find myself feeling good about it afterward.
How about you? Any tips you want to share with all of us for grabbing onto life and taking time to live it today? Leave a comment and share with us, please.
Diet pills may work, but they work best with sensible nutrition, exercise
Have you ever used diet pills, either prescription or non-prescription? I honestly don't even know whether there ARE prescription diet pills anymore, or whether diet pills and other diet supplements are all over-the-counter now.
I was reading an online Hydroxycut review as part of some writing I was researching, and that reminded me of my one, long-ago experience with diet pills. I was still in college at the time and had to get a physical exam for a required PE class. (Do colleges even still require PE? I don't know.) The doctor decided I definitely needed to lose weight, so he gave me a pretty detailed diet plan and a prescription for some diet pills.
I was two weeks into the plan, which included taking one of these tiny purple diet pills at noon each day then eating according to the diet plan. I felt great. I don't know how many pounds I had lost, but I was fitter -- and I was bursting with energy. In fact, I could hardly shut down the old brain to sleep at night. What a great diet plan!
I discovered in a conversation with a pharmacist that those tiny purple diet pills were some sort of amphetamine. Look "amphetamine" up on the Internet and you'll find it defined in various ways, generally something like: "stimulant drugs whose effects are very similar to cocaine." I was more than a bit nervous about taking amphetamines -- not many Bible college students back in the late 1960s, early 1970s were on amphetamines, and I didn't want to set a precedent!
The amazing thing was this: Without the amphetamines, I STILL LOST WEIGHT. The little purple pill may have helped me feel better, kept my energy levels up, kept the metabolism zooming, or whatever, but the "secret" to permanent dieting and weight loss was in the sensible, nutritious food plan. My advice for you would be the same: Legitimate, useful diet pills are available, but you'll only find success at "dieting" if you stick to a sensible, nutritious meal plan.
Technorati Tags: dieting, diet pills, weight loss, take time for living
Are you a city person or a country person? I’m a sort of both
I was thinking about a great cultural dichotomy that runs throughout much of America's history: That metaphorical divide between city, which equals EVIL, and country, which equals GOOD and innocent. (Give me a break, I know. Probably only academics and writers think about such things -- I'm NOT an academic.)
Perhaps you aren't even aware of this city/country division that permeates American culture, but it's there and it's been there since early colonial times in America. Read the Founding Fathers, especially Jefferson, and you'll find the constant theme that "back to nature" or "natural" life in the countryside is desirable over the inherent deceptions and outright evil associated with city living.
Anyway, thinking about all that led me to thinking about my own experiences or preferences. If I had my first choice, I would live either in or near Seattle, Boston, or, yes, the Biggie -- New York City. But, given mostly financial constraints, as well as where my kids are located, I doubt I'll need to contact any New York movers to pack me up for transport to the Big Apple -- or any other apple beyond a local apple orchard or two. It costs tons more money than I could afford just to live a frugal, basic, POOR life in Seattle, Boston, or NYC.
But I think back to the two short (a few days each) business trips I took to New York City way back in the 1990s and I have to tell you: I know I would prefer it over "country" living.
On the other hand, I do enjoy mountains, beaches, and streams. I like watching corn growing in Nebraska, Kansas, Colorado, and Missouri corn fields. I have to admit I would feel poorer for it had I never lived in small towns, small cities, and on a couple of occasions tiny villages.
That's what makes America great, would be my bet: That cultural city/country dichotomy is just plan messed up. There are really good things about BOTH. Enjoy your day wherever you are!
Technorati Tags: American culture, city living, country living, take time for living
