Pleasure....... and other things

Today was to be the day I put it all together. Wake up early, stretch, go for a walk and begin to work at calling editors and asking what they look for for submissions in their paper, or magazine. Alarm was at 6 am, got up and turned it off. I was fast asleep. Got up at 730 instead and just got on with it. I haven't been good at dealing with uncomfortable body things for the last few years, and being extremely tired is one of them. But, I'm committed to living my life, and doing what I need to do regardless of how I'm feeling or thinking. And that is where I started seeing more connections to the body, mind and spirit of the human condition, relationship to pain, fear and other maladies.

Dale Carnegie wrote 'How to Stop Worrying, and Start Living' in 1948, 3 years after the end of World War II, on the 21st of June. It would have been an interesting time, full of hope and promise after a devastating and tragic era of global warfare. Instead, it spoke of people who had literally wasted away physically from the trials and tribulations of life. Bed-ridden, various physical ailments and diseases, and hopeless. Carnegie was able to pinpoint the cause of all of these problems: the patient's minds. These people had literally worried themselves sick. Losing farms, marriages, children's deaths, money problems were just some of the problems of the day.

Now fast forward 60 years. Some thought we would have all been flying around in personal spaceships with robots tending to our every need by now. Not yet. But we do have a mind-blowing array of technology that invades most of our every waking moment. HD Tv, internet & computers, video games, cell phones....... and now cell phones are stuck to us every where we go whether it's hiking the mountain or taking the kids to soccer practice. No escaping it. We as humans have the exact same genetic makeup, and are the same human beings that walked this earth 50 years ago, and 50,000 years ago. But now we have these technologies that have entered our lives, and we're just accepting them as what is, without really thinking of the consequences. Now add bills, and 30 year mortgages, and work, and being a supermom. Why can some people handle it with a 'just pull your boot straps up honey' attitude, and some can't?

Some of us simply have too many 'antenna' picking up signals. Some of us simply need to shut down from time to time, and process it all. It doesn't mean we're defective, or weak, or shouldn't be allowed to pass on our genetic information. It means we were the eyes, ears, and mind of our people for thousands of generations, and now, it's too much. We've learned our calculus, our chemistry, our work functions, and we need a little time to learn about us.

Here's the consequences. I believe there is a direct link between conditions such as fibromyalgia, ADD, anxiety, depression, bi-polar, personality disorder, and tension. Society has generally adopted a sedentary lifestyle in just 100 years, if you consider the average 4-6 hours of technology use, and 8 - 10 hours sitting at a desk. Only the most dedicated and determined take the time to go to the gym to keep their body moving. As my chiropractor Dr. Mason tells me, "whether there's pain or not, a body has to move". As we don't have to work to get our food (except an hour at the grocery store once a week) and we don't have to walk anywhere to get it, our powerful minds can have the ability to turn in on oneself as a means to occupy itself.

I think it is simply a business opportunity for pharmaceutical companies, doctors, and the entire medical industry to take advantage of. I have proven, despite my own difficulties, that with changing diets, restricting technology use and distractions, outdoor exercise, and changing how I behave, I have changed how I think, and feel. When I am totally engrossed in something, I don't feel an ounce of pain, discomfort, or even aware of any negative thought. Our bodies are designed to tell us when something is wrong and needs attention. Our lives, unfortunately, are now filled with things to ignore, distract, and cover up these signs. More ice cream and chocolate please this is too much to handle!!! Furthermore, these bodies of ours are not designed to hold an extra 50 pounds of unneccessary weight. They will break down as it is, not to mention the extra weight put on from sedentary lifestyles. I have proven to myself that my fears are the ones that stop me from doing what I need to do in life, and by working everyday at doing the things I know I need to do, I stay healthy and happy.

Now add to this our society's accepted way of going into our homes, locking the doors, and separating ourselves from both our neighbours and the rest of the outside world. Everything in our homes is meant to comfort us, entertain us, keep us warm, and feed us. In fact, I realized I was getting a bit agoraphobic last night, and forced myself to get out. It was happening to me. The problem is, that outside lies new people, interesting things, exercise, sunshine, basically a host of new and interesting options to actively engage oneself in life. It surprises me everytime I meet someone new, and they have all these stories to tell. You can't unlock those stories if all you're going to do is say hello and goodbye whenever you go to the store.

So, what do we do, completely change society? No, the answer is education. People need to know there are options, and to be able to integrate the best of other cultures, other ideas. Of course these people will only try to search for it when there's a problem. Noone in their right mind will do much of anything if their lives seem hunky dory. It's when a problem arises that a person usually begins to search. Most of us are on auto-pilot for most of the day, so 'problems' are just something to smash through and obliterate as fast as possible. But changing diets, and behaviours take time, time that is not available when you have to check facebook, and email, and watch your favourite program, and cook dinner, and go to work, and feed the kids. Something else has to go. Dont' forget the cell phone going off with texts and phone calls every 10 minutes.

I really do think we, as a society can expect more severe crimes, more mental and health problems, and overall general malaise in the coming years. Despite our knowledge, it's not getting passed on to others, mainly because there are so many perceived differences between us. "Oh, that's their kid, it's not my problem." "They cook that awful smelling curry i don't want to go over there". And of course, old Eleanor Roosevelt's quote "I only give my opinion when I'm asked for it". Granted, she's right. Nobody likes a know-it-all coming into your life and telling you what's wrong and what you have to do about it. But, do anyone of us really allow for the time for someone to even ask for help? Most of the time, we run from office, to car, to home, as there is little point stopping and talking in between..... we're too busy for that!

(editors note: Jason likes to take his liberties when he's lazy. Please change all the 'we's, you's, and they's, to 'I'.)

Now a story of love. I found corn dogs in the bakery today. They were even warm. I didn't know what they were, but I thought I'd try them and alas it was my corn dog. Maybe they were invented in Brasil for all I know. But I'm marrying this corn dog............ then we'll be a couple of old corn dogs.

And last night, on my 1/2 hour journey outside (as I said I had to force myself to get out) I took a picture of the band that is right across the street from the gymnasium. As it is a planned city, the block has a dirt bike track, skateboard park, tennis courts, beach volleyball, basketball, and several restaurants. It seems a nice idea to keep the city streets alive and occupied at night, and not let it become just a throughfare. Some hard shelled thing on trees here don't know what they are.