Thursday, July 10, 2008

More Minor Blog Changes or 50 Ways to be Sneaky With Your Life

On the left sidebar I've added a list of minor lifestlye changes I'm currently making. Some of them are for greening. Some are for health. And some are for personal environment. A few of them are familiar ones you keep hearing others suggest. I swung them to my own idiosyncrasies.

Examples: Instead of parking as far away as possible I just stopped trying to be closest. Or, instead of doing tons of crunches and squats I've changed my desk chair for a balance ball. Thank you, JS! That was a strategy I learned during my student teaching days. It works on abs, legs and thighs, and posture. It also helps you focus or burn energy if you happen to be ADHD. I also take gummy vitamins because I hate swallowing pills. Not every pill comes in gummy or liquid form so I take those I need to with a thick milk or soy smoothie thus adding necessary calcium and other good live/active cultures into my diet. Another source of calcium is added to my coffee while making it into a mocha drink. One bulb at a time I'm making my apartment greener by using CFLs. I can't see any good reason to replace a bulb early. It would then require some form of recycling which has its own expenses. So I just wait...the incandescent bulbs burn out fairly rapidly.

Popular life change philosophies often seem to say you need to push to make yourself better. One my childhood messages would add: "And if you haven't pushed to success you haven't pushed hard enough." I hate that attitude. It makes me want to cringe, sit down, and be lazy. So I sneak these pleasant little changes into my life. Why suffer? Life should be fun! Got a good sneaky idea? Let me know! If I add it to my life I'll include it on the list. Oh, one more way to save and recycle...use those one use soap filled buff puffs for cleaning your face and then scour the bathroom sink with it. Then it's good to toss and you've not used any nasty cleaning chemicals. May a green, peaceful, positive lifeforce be with you! Joy!

11 comments:

San said...

Baby steps seem to be the most calming way to approach changes such as you're making, Lee. You're right with regard to that "push yourself" mentality. It's fraught with guilt and anger and frustration.

A baby in the womb takes nine whole months to grow into a being ready to be born into this world. It's a wonder the pharmaceutical companies haven't developed a drug for mothers to take to hurry up the process. They're probably working on it in some cloistered lab.

Lovely post, Lee.

murat11 said...

For some reason, your sneaky ways made me think of this: "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Matthew 11:28-30

The "well then, you've just not pushed hard enough" mentality gripes me, too.

I also thought of this, regards the sneaky ways: "Set Your eyes on one movement and it will lead you through all patterns and it will seem to you the master movement. But the seeming will be true. There seems no plan because it is all plan: there seems no centre because it is all centre." C. S. Lewis

Peace/out.

Lee said...

San, I think your feelings and mine might stem from either personal wisdom or a book I read a long time ago...Way of the Peaceful Warrior. Dad liked that book too. :) One remembered image from the book was about how many times an infant falls down and gets back up while learning how to walk. I wonder what jungles or caves that child is exploring while they cling to things and totter about?

Glad you liked the post, San! Thank you!

Hugs!

Lee said...

Paschal,

Perhaps because of the way I look at life, that being one thing at a time, I find that I can understand some things in those words by C.S. Lewis. Thanks! Which book did that come from?

Peace!

murat11 said...

Perelandra.

Lee said...

Ooh! You've got a good memory. :) I read that one so many years ago that I've forgotten most of it. Thanks! (more books to the reading list)

jsd said...

I'm trying to stop pushing and be more like 'afloat atop the water', i'll eventually arrive after much back and forth, but oh what a view :-)

Lee said...

Floating atop the water sounds fun and relaxing to me. GO for IT, JS! I do believe we both know that flotation is a life preserving skill. :)

Hugs!

murat11 said...

Floating is better for the coracle anyhoo, jsd.

Sandi McBride said...

Mama had a saying...whatever works for you...it may not work for others, but what's important is that it says something about you and your lifestyle! You're growing so much Lee...
hugs
Sandi

Lee said...

Your Mama was a wise woman, Sandi! Wouldn't it be nice if everyone had that kind of attitude?

Thanks! I'm up another inch I think. LOL

Hugs!