Life & Death, Yin & Yang, & Reviews & Re-Visions…and Teaching?

Recently discovered Ghetto Hikes, where a 28 y.o. guy takes urban kids on nature excursions, and just notes the awesome things they say.

This reminds me of some good teaching moments, funny quotes, interesting observations, etc…but even better because it is NATURE.

I’m so excited about my new job (going to pursue this). Or if not this, then maybe I could see about if that guy’s married or not, and if not, just join along for some fun, and maybe a marriage or somethin’ like dat.

TLDR; CHECK OUT GHETTOHIKES.COM IT’S HILARIOUS AND AFFIRMATIVE OF THE AWESOMENESS NATURE BRINGS OUT IN EVERYONE, ESPECIALLY KIDZ.

I basically got a girl’s number. But I’m a girl. So. I’m more excited about the mental/philosophical possibilities that lie therein.

Okay, even though I titled this post “Bridesmaids – not just a movie for women in their 20s/30s”, it probably is better enjoyed by women, and best enjoyed by those who have ever had the blessing of (or have been forced into) being in a wedding, or two, or three, or 27.

The movie is so full of good scenes and quotes I wouldn’t know where to start or stop (maybe that’s why I’ve seen it at least 10 times and still thoroughly enjoy watching the whole movie over again). Here’s a good example of the humor and a good roommate scene:

I can relate to Annie. Lots of women can. Lots of people can. Yes, it is a vulgar movie, and I think it’s partially because most movies are male-centered that this could seem particularly crude. It also is, and most of it is hilarious.

Here are some of the best quotes and scenes to relive if you’ve loved watching it: Watch and Rank the Best Bridesmaids Quotes/Scenes

For more good movie quotes and info, check out IMDb’s Bridesmaids’ quotes page.

One part I particularly like is when Megan reminds Annie that she’s wallowing in her own self-pity and says this gem:
“I do not associate with people that blame the world for their problems. Cause you’re your problem, Annie. And you’re also your solution.” That’s true in many ways. The movie has lessons, people!

It is a great movie. I love it. It’s my favorite movie currently (amongst many others, of course, but really is one that’s made it into the permanent ranks of all-time favorites!)

If you haven’t watched it, you should (it’s good for ALMOST everyone, preferably above the age of 18). I love it. I can’t get enough. Kristen Wiig is hilarious, and so is Megan McCarthy. And all the rest of it too.

Words with Friends has been an amazing addition to my lifestyle lately. No, it’s not pathetic. It’s the perfect way to fill the gaps in between pauses in listening to my work. Well, that’s how I intended it.

I got very addicted. Playing many games at a time, often having to wait a while for anyone else to play a turn (and thus wasting even more time). But my addiction could be worse, ala Alec Baldwin getting kicked off a plan while refusing to stop playing it (one of my favorite lines from the article is about how W.W.F. is more popular because it is not Scrabble, and so “this gives it a much broader audience beyond word nerds — or rather, it turns players into word nerds so gradually, they barely realize it’s happening.”).

On the flipside, however, there is a benefit. And yes, I did have to recently resort to my first game with strangers (as I’d been waiting for several hours and knew everyone was asleep). BUT! Words with Friends Helped Save a Man’s Life! And it could maybe help me too if I was choking on food, I could still type for help!

My advice? Don’t start playing, unless you’re ready to get real addicted.

If I, a successful, bright, intelligent, popular, attractive person, spends as much time on facebook as I do, I’m scared to think of kids these days, with all the time in the world on their hands (i.e. not just after school, but during school while teachers aren’t looking or every chance they get, when they’re supposed to be doing homework, at (under) the dinner table, and when they’re supposed to be sleeping)…it’s not just facebook. It’s Twitter, Foursquare, Check-in, music sharing, games, apps, texting, oh I can’t go on!

But they can. I tried to do some proper research on the amount of time spent on the internet, but, a recent silly report is pervading the internet with lies and fear:

Social Networking Increases Risk of Teen Drug Abuse

Favorite quotes from that fear-mongering article: “But for this same age bracket, social-network-savvy teens are five times more likely to use tobacco; three times more likely to use alcohol; and twice as likely to use marijuana than teens who do not spend any of their day on social networking sites.” -and- “The results are profoundly troubling … the anything goes, free-for-all world of Internet expression, suggestive television programing and what-the-hell attitudes put teens at sharply increased risk of substance abuse,” [said some "important" guy].

This side-tracked me from my timeless, pointless blog post, and got me interested in this stupid idea that pervaded the majority of each of the first few google page results I could tolerate looking through.

Increased time spent social networking is not the cause of increased drug/alcohol use. Society today is. These kids’ parents (many of which are just ridiculous grown children) are a big part of the problem- how are they making efforts to better raise their kids? Maybe we can even blame the economy- it’s at fault for nearly everything. And so maybe these parents themselves are on prescription drugs and the somewhat-socially-acceptable alcohol train to destruction town! Drowning their sorrows because they can’t find work, or hate their jobs, or are afraid of losing them, or hate their entire lives!

WOH, WHAT AM I SAYING?! WHERE IS THIS GOING? THESE ARE RANTINGS AND RAVINGS WITH NO SOLID STATISTICS. People want, need, believe in, and exemplify statistics. So a “study” says kids who spend more time online are more likely to do a line? Well, then, let’s get them off of facebook!

Ironically I am totally veering away from my original intentions (about the degrading quality (and frequency) of social interactions due to social networking and being online), and making this a hodge-podge-mcdodge.

The only good result obtained in my extensive research was this link: A moronic survey says social networks will cause teens to do drugs

A Moronic Survey Says Social Networks Will Cause Teens to do Drugs

They make so many good points:

1) Most kids go online and use s.n.’s, so you’re really making a pointless comparison between random kids in this crappy study.
2) One of the National Drug Whatever Waste of Money Study Company’s main points is that kids are seeing other kids drunk, high, smoking, or whatever, on these sites, and are likely to then do that?

No. Kids are doing that. And the problem is they are posting it online and then everyone’s commenting on it. Same thing with sexually (morally) degrading pictures, emphasizing looks and body features, and sharing superficial sectors of their lives.

Oh wait, where are kids getting the examples for that? (Think media in America. Think political scandals…wait, kids don’t care about those. But! They do hear about them more and more.)

So maybe I made some loony points myself, in a completely scatterbrained order. My main points are these: Society is #$%ed and a lot of Americans are becoming more and more like the movie Idiocracy.

I guess part of my rant/rave comes from being bewildered by kids these days, from middle-to-high-school age, trying to teach them, and being up against a huge amount of forces working against me (of course the education system is a big part of the problem as it pretty much always will be, but there are so many parenting issues and technology addictions and intelligence gaps, oh dear, here comes the anxiety).

What can I do? I guess I will temporarily quit facebook. And I may not go back to teaching anytime soon. But I can tutor kids. I could make videos to help them (one that makes it viral would be best). I can hold off on pro-creating until I am certain that me and my partner are ready to climb the mountain of raising a child with awareness in today’s world…a balancing act for sure.

I guess, to end on a positive note, I’m secretly really hoping the world does end, at the end of 2012.

Is a Broken Heart a Real Thing? Yes. I thought so.

Well, for one thing, I’d recently heard of the term Takotsubo’s Cardiomyopathy a.k.a. “Broken-heart syndrome” and seen the article describing the stress-induced cardiomyopathy occurrence. Cardiomyopathy is heart muscle disease, if you didn’t know.

But today, there is a New York Times article (which, therefore, is a lot easier and slightly entertaining to read (= read fit-for-the-average-American), entitled Really? The Claim: Grief Can Cause a Heart Attack

The article confirms what I had seen before, and with simpler explanation.

Especially the day after a loved one dies (especially say, a spouse), heart attacks are just waiting around the corner. Well, perhaps the people in the study were more likely to have a heart attack than a very healthy human. But yes, death of a loved one, especially your so-called soulmate, could induce enough stress to cause a heart attack!

“The study, published on Monday in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, found that a person’s heart attack risk is 21 times higher than normal the day after a loved one dies.”

Recently, with all the deaths, I’ve heard a few people say their heart is actually hurting. That scares me. This article mentions that even weeks or months after the death, there is still an increased risk.

And, I myself must admit, I have been having some palpitations. I am not at all at risk. I am a young and healthy young-adult. But, as a doctor points out at the end of this short article: “…Bereavement could provoke depression, anger and anxiety, all of which can elevate the heart rate and blood pressure and increase blood clotting”.

I know I am just finally getting over a sickness related to odd sleeping patterns. What can you do? I think if there’s one thing you get out of this, hopefully if you read this (and I hope it doesn’t happen any time soon, if ever), and you lose someone near and dear to you (or you’re paying attention to what happens to family members), just pay attention. You really could have a heart attack and die of it just after the death of your beloved family member. But do not fear, it’s probably not that likely to happen. Though the after-affects of losing someone are devastating. And, I still don’t feel in the clear personally as far as being concerned about some of my family members.

And nothing is worse then losing two family members in a close amount of time. I’ve not only read about it, I’m living it. This post is going nowhere anymore, but, keep the words in mind. Broken hearts are real things. And, there is a good physical basis behind it.

I watched this video clip about Haiti, the cholera infecting as many as some 200 people a day! and the aftermath of the earthquake that killed thousands of people.

How weird is it to think of those thousands of people left in the devastation, trying to rebuild their lives, while burdened by the loss of their homes, members of their families, and their possessions.

There are lots of places suffering after natural disasters, all over the globe, including in the U.S. And then we have the economic depression and superficiality and difficulty making ends meet with the burden of debt so pervasive in America.

And I sat this evening, too melancholy for words, for a while. Alone. Lost.

I can relate somewhat to these people, having lost two family members entirely too close together this year. But then there are some people who lost everyone, or everything, or both! I do not have to worry about cholera, but the aftermath of my grief is massive. I had some life changes just before the first death, and now have recently had many more changes, and I am left clinging to what?

I do not know. I know possessions are not important. So I’m going through a phase of both letting go of and getting rid of things, but also trying to fend off a desperate clinging to items that have emotional significance for me, and an increasingly obsessed effort to live a healthy, organic lifestyle (so as to prevent cancer).

But. I cannot know what will come. There is a lot of uncertainty for me. I have had many more luxuries than say, most affected in Haiti or Japan, but comparisons do little to really help in the long run. I don’t wish I had been forced to face one of these horrible natural disasters, but, I do find it hard to be in my grief, and balancing “moving forward” with so many people completely unaware of the depths of sorrow and distraught-ness inside me (strangers), and those who do know me mostly expecting I will “move on” as they have, or many just think it would be the normal time to. I don’t know. I feel lost a lot. But, after a good cry, I know that I need to move on to something else. And maybe that something will include helping others in grief. Who knows.

I know I need to be gentle with myself and forgiving instead of critical. I have sympathy and empathy for those living in Haiti and elsewhere, struggling every day. I have a different set of burdens. Mine are better and worse, in different ways, and would certainly be different if I were another person (like another one of my family members).

I don’t know what else to say, so I’ll end this post with an interesting thought a friend of mine who lost her husband (and is a mother to three kids) said recently. Everyone was wishing her a happy birthday, and she wanted to be authentic about her situation. So she posted that lately she had been thinking maybe God/life wants her to appreciate the ups as much as the downs. To enjoy, so to speak, the sadness and the happiness. As we are often reminded, you can only experience fuller joy by experiencing the lack or opposite of such a feeling. And maybe we’re not just supposed to live for joy. Although, I would definitely like to see more of it in my life, and, I guess if I alter the way I look at it, I do.

Everything’s cuter if you say it twice. Is it though? Well, we’re all just humans.

I want you to think about that. Think about yourself- how great you are, how weird you are, how terrible a person you can (or occasionally perceive yourself) to be (in a still decent way hopefully), how insecure you are, how wonderful and vibrant you are and/or can be?!

We’re all humans. And we all view the world so differently. And most of us just desperately want to be loved, esteemed, reassured, and mostly snoogled. Everyone loves a good snoog.

Go out there and hug your fellow people, or, if that sounds outlandish, at least make the effort to actually give a stranger a compliment you thought in your head. Or do a random act of kindness. Do it! It’s awesome.

CHARITY – it’s where it’s at.

And if you don’t really get what I’m talking about, I am talking about you, UBUNTU.

For further information, appreciate.

Because I bet most of you, like myself, need to be nicer to yourself and easier on yourself. Most, I say.

I knew I was bound to get sick sooner or later, what with the stress and the ridiculous schedule I was keeping! In fact, it had been a LONG time since I’d been sick. I do highly believe in the power of positive thinking (more than just that, but yes I strongly believe research and stories about how your thoughts deeply influence your health). And part of me almost was allowing myself to get sick, so I’d have an excuse to not go out, which, of course, is the opposite of what I end up wanting to do- I want to go out. I want to hang out!

Now that it’s definitely here and at a stage where I’m trying to shift it towards the upshift (aka GO AWAY phase), it is harder than I thought. Wait, didn’t I just say something about thinking?!

Well, I’m having trouble thinking. I reflected that I do indeed need to slow down, chill out, and appropriate my time better. So I’ll do that. I also almost missed today’s blog, and then had a vision of me sometime soon remembering I have to write a blog and just writing “This is my blog for the day” or rambling on endlessly like I sort of am right now.

While it’s far too early in the year to abandon my goal, I am open to the option of shifting it around so I add a minimum of 365 blog entries to my blog this year. And if they are higher-quality, all the better. So maybe one day I could knock out 12 blogs (it is not unfeasible, as I have some flexibility in my schedule right now).

I have oodles of things to talk about. For now, remember to find positive mantras to repeat in your head.

I AM HEALTHY. MY CELLS ARE JOINING FORCES AND FIGHTING DISEASE.

Or something like that

but i didn’t. started the post before 12, that’s all that matters right?! it’s only me who’s caring at this point, anyway.

so the meteor shower went alright. interestingly enough, as soon as i decided to bundle up and go outside (after stepping out and back in because it was WAY too cold), i immediately saw one big shooting star, followed quickly enough by another that i hadn’t even settled in to my blankets and stuff.

and then after that, it took a while. so i like to think it was a sign from my two beloved ones who recently passed on. i don’t know. i mean, it’s sort of a stretch, but, it’s also not. i was surprised by how few (in comparison and in frequency) i saw over the next hour (as compared to that first 20 seconds)…maybe i should have called it a day after that. ha.

i am fighting off a cold, which, i have done a good job of until recently. i didn’t get sick last year, which is surprising given the huge amount of stress(ors) i went through. i do think a lot of sickness has to do with preventable stuff, and some of it is indeed your thinking. more on that as this year progresses. the power of thought as a catalyst for change!

and then, the most exciting part of today, was my reading i got over the phone with an intuitive. but. that was so exciting, it needs a whole post. a well-thought out, well-written post. one with direction. which is what i’m getting toward. i am pretty excited about this.

then it was business as usual (admittedly, a lot of mismanagement of time bordering on time wasting), and now, i’m about to watch a great netflix video. and probably eat a ton of crap, in a cycle of feeling bad/sad, eating sugar and junk, and then feeling worse, and so on and so forth. it’s emotional eating at its finest. but, whatever. i’m also moving in the direction of working out more.

and maybe giving up sugar?!

signing off, another discombobulated post,
love,
-amandoo

(p.s. i intend to soon be posting more and putting more into each post, and instead of putting these posts under the category of lettin’ loose i can have more diversity. or my “daily” post will be under lettin’ loose and the other posts will be in my new, exciting categories to come!)