Physics..

Sucks...

I just wrote a paper about how physics has a large presence in our every day lives... I left out the fact that I do physics homework for about 8 hours every day. I don't think that's what she meant by choosing that topic..

I'm so ready to be done with this physics class. And I'm so ready to take some biochemistry that's actually interesting..
Ugh.

Inhale the Good, Exhale the Bad

Well, that's what I'm going to do for the next few days. I have been noticing my body having some detox reactions this past week since I've been getting back to my normal weight. This summer has done a toll on my body. I have been eating too much processed food like pita chips, store bought hummus, tortilla chips, white rice at restaurants, etc. Well, after coming home from the beach and eating only fresh fruits and whole grains my body is trying it's hardest to flush out all those toxins stored in the fat I've also accumulated in the past month.

So, seeing as I haven't done my regular fasting detox in a while, I figured now would be a good time to give my body's detoxing process a little boost in flushing out all the nasty things in my system. It's also convenient seeing as I have a TON of physics work to do to prepare for my midterm that I'll be taking on Tuesday.

I have been feeling a little in the dumps this week. I'm not sure if that's part of the detox symptoms or a combination of that and I'm feeling discouraged about having such a difficult time finding a job, on top of the fact that all of my friends have been out of town this past week so I've been basically without human connections for 6 days.
All of that being said, I'm going to flush out all of those negative feelings with my detox with a little meditation at night.

I have been meaning to get into the habit of meditating regularly because it's good for your mental and physical state of being but I just haven't been doing it.
So, meditative stretching will be on my agenda tonight when my fun physics-filled day is through.

So, wish me good detoxing and studying.

Breathe in the good, breathe out the bad.

Good On You For Trying

So, I was watching this documentary on Netflix yesterday called Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead. It's about a Australian dude who developed a chronic disease and was overweight and decided to go on a 60 juice fast in the US because we are the nation of food and he figured to really overcome his addiction to food and an unhealthy diet, he should test himself in the place overflowing with that kind of diet. He did his first 30 days in NYC and then road-tripped all the way across the country for the next 30.

He talked a lot about how much energy he had even though he was only drinking about 4 glasses of fruit/vegetable juice and water every day. While he was traveling he would just chat with people about their diet and how long they really expect to live treating their bodies the way that they do...

Along the road, at a truck stop he met a 430lb man who had the same rare condition he had and offered the guy help and guidance if he ever decided to change his life.

The guy called for help about 2 weeks after the narrator had finished his fast.
Long story short, this morbidly obese, ill man lost weight and changed his life around.. you know the drill.

There was another lady along the 60 challenge that he convinced to do a 10 day juice fast and document her experience as well.
He suggested the juice fast to all of his friends and one of the things that really stuck with me was him saying how most people will immediately say that there is no way they could do a 10 day juice fast. But he said, if someone gave it a shot and stopped the fast at day-7 he wouldn't view that person as a failure, he would say, "Good on you for trying."

The failure is saying that you can't do something without even giving it a shot.

I have a lot of friends that are vegetarian. And even my friends who aren't vegetarian and still eat healthfully or not, whenever I suggest a vegan diet, all I get back are excuses why they couldn't do it.
So, many times I just want to say, JUST TRY IT!! Give it a week, 3 days a month, whatever. Give it a try.

All I would say is good on you for trying. I stumbled when I first became vegan, but everytime I slipped in the beginning stages and had something with cheese on it or made with any dairy, I felt more assured afterward that I much more prefer my vegan diet, no matter how good cheese fries taste. It took a good three months of eating dairy occasionally to completely be done with it and know I only wanted a vegan diet. I knew how awful I felt after eating dairy and how wonderful I felt on my vegan diet.

Our instincts are such that we want to eat what makes us feel good, but if you've only had lemons, you'll never know how good an orange tastes. I've you've felt how you feel on an animal-based diet, you'll never know how great you can feel on a plant-based diet.

And, let me tell you, the locally grown organic peaches from the farmers market that I had today are sooo good. : ]

Time Tested Beauty Tips by Sam Levenson

For attractive lips,
Speak words of kindness.

For lovely eyes,
Seek out the good in people.

For a slim figure,
Share your food with the hungry.

For beautiful hair,
Let a child run his or her 
fingers through it once a day.

For poise,
Walk with the knowledge
you'll never walk alone.

People, even more than things,
have to be restored, renewed, 
revived, reclaimed, and redeemed;
Never throw out anybody.

Remember,
If you ever need a helping hand,
you'll find one at the end of your arm.

As you grow older,
you will discover
that you have two hands,
one for helping yourself,
the other for helping others.

The beauty of a woman
is not in the clothes she wears,
The figure that she carries,
or the way she combs her hair.

The beauty of a woman
must be seen from in her eyes,
because that is the doorway to her heart,
the place where love resides.

The beauty of a woman
is not in a facial mole, 
but true beauty in a woman 
is reflected in her soul.

It is the caring that she lovingly gives,
the passion that she shows,
And the beauty of a woman
with passing years-only grows!

Buddah

"Happiness comes when your work and words are of benefit to yourself and others."

Focus

I'm really struggling with it.

Lately, I can sit and work on something for hours and still get nothing done. It's quite frustrating.

New resolution.. work on my efficiency.

I have trouble focusing at home or sitting in a house. Coffee shops help to isolate me and my work so I have fewer distractions but that's just pathetic. I should be able to sit in my room and just focus on my work and get it done.

I guess I just need to tell myself to buckle down and get to it.

Summer is killing me.. all this idleness is a hard habit to break after a month and a half.
Free time sabotages all of my efforts. When I don't have much to do, its hard to get even a few things done but when I have a ton of things to do, it's much easier to get it all done.. That makes no sense to me. How do I simple accomplish a moderate amount of work? Haha.

I will be glad when I get home and can get out of vacation mode. I've been in vacation mode since the middle of May so even though I'm having a good time on this trip, it's more of the same that I do at home. When I get home, there will hopefully be work to attend and other things that I can accomplish for my life.

I'm ready for the Fall semester to start.

Respect, Goals, and other randomness

So, I've been reading Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. So far, I'm really into it. First off, it's a great story, second, and because, it makes me think about things that I don't normally think about because I am not really concerned with them on a daily basis. I'm honestly not concerned with them even as I'm thinking about these things, such as the impact of big business and government interference on economy and the ideals and morals that these things indicate. I enjoy pondering this stuff though when time is permitting.

The philosophy of Ayn Rand that she explains a little through the book has prompted me to think about the respect we give one another. One thing that also has seemed to be hard for me to wrap my mind around is the ability to respect people who neglect to take care of or have any concern for their own health and well-being. I try to understand that I am extremely passionate about health as some people are passionate about sports or pop culture or scrapbooking, but I do not see how people cannot make their own body a priority in their life. Well-being... isn't it the goal of life? To be well in order to live life well? My sister has suffered from migraines her entire life and she has decided that maybe making a few healthier choices in lifestyle are worth having more days feeling well so that her experience of life is not hindered by her sickness.

Where these thoughts led me was in the direction of respect. I have a hard time respecting someone who doesn't desire to live well. Which also led me to the thought that the desire to live well stems from having goals. The goal of our lives is to live it. Let's live it well. If we don't have goals, aspirations, standards or values for our life, where does that get us. Passion sort of sums those things up for me. These things come from passion. Passion for achieving something that will give us the sense of accomplishment, of achieving something worthwhile, of a fulfilled livelihood.

Reading this book has really reaffirmed some of the desires I have for my life by the courageous, strong, dedicated characters.

I want to be a great, dependable, honest doctor some day. I want to help others to achieve another level of well-being.
I want to be true to my word and I want to be self-reliant.
I want to be educated and cultured.
I want to love as much as I possibly can.

A healthy lifestyle is crucial for me to reach these goals. My health is not the goal of my life, but it is something of great importance to the fulfillment of my goals and desires and values.
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Each year I learn more about myself and I change. For once I feel like I am owning my age and I'm beginning to embrace the circumstances in my life all the more. I can see my development.

Mostly, I am happier.

Live well.