by Jamesscotthenson | May 16, 2017 | Blog
The fact that we need to intentionally exercise is weird.
We have these bodies solely to do things for us. They help
us move around and pick things up so we can change the shape of the world
around us. How well they do this depends on how well we take care of them.
In the past, the body was in good shape by default.
We had to walk from place to place and hunt for things and
lift things all the time, so the body stayed as it should. We didn’t have
access to this high-calorie-sugar-rush-carb-based-diet so we burned off what we
ate more easily. It was all fuel, not entertainment.
Now, we have invented things to do all of our work for us,
so we had to invent other things that we use to keep the body in the shape it
used to be in.
We have things to lift and things that trick our body into
thinking it is walking somewhere when it isn’t. We have videos and DVDs that
tell us when to lift and when to move our legs and exactly how to do this to
get the maximum benefit.
It’s weird, right?
Even weirder is that most of us don’t do this like we
should. The only thing we have to move around the world is this body, and we
don’t do what we need to do to take care of it and keep it moving.
This isn’t judgment, I don’t use mine as often as I should
either. Maybe I only wrote this blog to remind me to get my shit together.
I actually really enjoy exercise when I do it mindfully.
Being aware of how I move, what it feels like to use the body
like it is meant to be used.
Yoga is good for this, but anything else can be as well.
This makes physical labor enjoyable as well, if we let it.
There is also something worthwhile about simply bringing
everything back to how it was meant to be, the body moving around the world.
Now where did I put the remote…
by Jamesscotthenson | May 15, 2017 | Blog
I don’t hate selfies as much as I am supposed to at my age.
I think they can be fun, I take them with Max all the time.
I don’t even get that mad when the group of young people in
front of me holds up foot traffic to stop and take their selfie.
Not that mad.
There is an ego-feeding aspect to the selfie culture that is
worrisome though, there is something about turning the camera back on ourselves
all the time that may not be the best thing for us.
There is also this driving need to document every situation
now, to document it with ourselves as the center of attention. I wonder how
many things we miss in an effort to never forget about them.
We already view the world through so many lenses.
The lens of our brain’s interpretation of different light
spectrums and sound waves.
The lens of our thoughts and feelings about the situation.
The lens of how we wish things were.
The lens of how we think things will turn out.
The lenses of our beliefs and culture and socialization and
everything else.
Now the very real lens of a phone or iPad.
It even shifts the focus of the situation from what is
happening to ourselves, and we see us instead of what is going on. We took the
time to go see something, paid money for it, and we are taking pictures of
ourselves.
I am not even saying this is necessarily always a bad thing,
but we can at least be mindful of what our focus is on.
We can, at the very least, ask ourselves if we need to be
the center of everything that happens.
Maybe some things are not about us at all.
Maybe.
by Jamesscotthenson | May 14, 2017 | Blog
Yep, I see the hypocrisy here too.
I’ll write this, and then post it on Facebook and LinkedIn.
I used to post on Twitter, Tumblr and Instagram as well. I may post this on
Quora. I’m less reliable on there.
We have created an entirely new level of awareness for
ourselves with our virtual networks and everything they entail.
Likes.
Dislikes.
Reactions.
Shares.
Comments.
So many ways to make us feel validated or invalidated, all
through collections of people we may not even know, or should have forgotten
about years ago.
But, like so many other things, these are neutral, it’s all
in how we use them.
Staying in touch is useful and worthwhile.
Sharing cool things is fun and may be helpful to someone.
Learning is good.
Social media can serve these purposes if we let it.
Notice how you feel when you are on social media. Notice
what it is you are looking for.
Are these things good? Do they make you a better person?
Notice the feelings associated with likes and shares and
comments.
What are we training our brains to crave there?
Is this good for us?
We can be mindful with social media, even if it is geared to
take this away from us.
It’s not easy, but it is possible.
by Jamesscotthenson | May 13, 2017 | Blog
Yes, I get the hypocrisy in writing a post about the dangers
of the internet and posting it on the internet.
The internet is much like money, no matter what you think of
it, you use it. Every time you swipe your debit card or use your GPS or check
your bank balance from the comfort of your living room or order something off
of Amazon, the internet is helping you out.
It is also like money in that it is neutral.
It’s a tool to be used, and nothing else.
But, like all things, when it becomes something it is not,
it creates suffering.
I am not even going to touch on pornography or videos of
people dying or the silliness of Tumblr. Those things are obviously problematic
in their own ways.
Just ask yourself how much time you waste online. Don’t even
think about social media, because we’ll look at that tomorrow.
Think about browsing news sites or memes or pictures of
cats.
There’s nothing wrong with these things, but they are not
useful beyond a small amount of time to decompress (whatever that means).
Are you mindful on the internet?
How often do you click on something that brings you
suffering?
How often do you feel that familiar twinge of guilt over the
time you’ve spent online?
How often do your kids or partner try and fail to get your
attention away from Reddit or whatever site has your awareness fixed?
It is hard to be mindful with a thousand choices flying at
your every second.
We are not evolved to handle things in this medium, yet we
saturate ourselves in it for hours each day.
It is insane to think this is free of consequences.
by Jamesscotthenson | May 12, 2017 | Blog
Money is a difficult thing.
I hear people say it doesn’t matter, but we live in a
society where it determines our health, our safety, how our family lives,
whether or not we get to take vacations for work (or even days off). It has a
major impact on how people see us, and whether or not they take us seriously.
Money matters. To say it doesn’t is to admit privilege.
How can we be mindful with our money?
The first way is easy.
Stop buying shit you do not need.
Stop buying shit at all.
Buy food and clothes and put gas in your car. Buy the things
you need to survive in a healthy way in our society, and nothing else. It is
amazing how much peace this alone can bring us.
When you do spend money, spend it on others.
I cannot explain how much easier everything is when other
people come before yourself.
Give money to those who have less than you.
Giving is a priority, not a luxury.
Stop comparing. Notice how much you already have, think
about how much it would seem like a treat if you did not have it. Go through
your stuff and see what you can rid of. Get rid of it.
Money is neutral, it’s not good or bad.
It’s a tool, nothing more.
We make it one thing or another with how we use it.
Use it mindfully.
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