mermaidcamp
Keeping current in wellness, in and out of the water
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Alternatives to Dissapointment
July 21, 2013
— 7 Comments
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune are brutal. If you find yourself in a world you never made looking for ways to avoid reality, you may be heading for the ultimate disappointment, the end of your life. You are heading in that direction with or without your own acknowledgement. One of the important steps to take is facing mortality. Your parents and all our relations have ,or will at some time, die. Typically we never think of ourselves in this group. The dead are like traffic; you consider yourself as separate from the activity even when you are in the middle of it. Of course if you are reading this we think you are alive, but this is not a permanent state. Eventually you will run out of time, no matter how you have spent it. You probably mind your financial accounts. When will you begin to account for your time?
Time and responsibility are needed to create:
- well being
- strength
- flexibility
- humor
- mental agility
- strong constitution
- social balance
- family unity
- community peace
Assbook, Social Media Platform for the Obtuse
July 20, 2013
— 10 Comments
vortex
energy
ligth
I have heard much ado about civility online lately. I agree that there has been a lapse in good manners in the comments and discussions taking place. I participate in many social media platforms happily now. In the past I have connected with people who do not have the slightest interest in me, but would like to add me to the list of recipients of their highly ill-matched sales pitches. It took me some time to figure out how to avoid them in the first place, but I removed the ability they had to communicate with me. I have learned from experience how to detect and eliminate the one way, all selly-sell-sell relationships in the bud. I have also learned by being the recipient how to offend and run off potential business with an obtuse view of how media works for everyone. I was taught by the best to be a Trust Agent, but only after a few years of practice do I grasp what that means. Basically, to be trusted one can not be seen as a selfish ass. To make sure you are not seen as an ass, refrain from all infantile negative activity on-line. Everyone acts stupid with friends and family in person, in context, and frequently at home. Let that be your only venue for assholic behavior. You will get you immediate retribution from those live folks in a fully appropriate karmic way that will not require the attention of the public….no need to tweet us about it….just keep it to yourselves.
I propose that those of you who insist that social media platforms exist to assist you in poisoning the water for everyone form your own social network. Assboook could be a place for meaningless promotion and insincere influence credit. To exchange +A with others will be a form of building and defining influence as an on line jerk. Categories of influence, and groups aligned with these special interests will show Assbook members where to go to find the most meaning:
- MLMs
- Coaching
- Social media experts
- Narcissism
- Bacon
The only reason to include bacon is that no social media platform could ever expect to be popular without at least a little #bacon.
Meditation, It’s Not What You Think
July 19, 2013
— 4 Comments
Meditation can take many forms, but it has been confused with nihilism. Emptiness is a holy state leading to enlightenment. Nothingness is not the same as nothing. Jeff Zlotnik gives a simple demonstration of an easy breath following meditation technique in this video. Calm, peace, and a sense of spaciousness are the results of time spent practicing meditation. Thinking and reacting, compelled to control, we slip farther away from health and well being. Doing nothing without freaking out is a skill to cultivate, no matter which style you choose to practice. Breath is usually a component, but walking, painting, writing poetry, chanting, and archery can be formats for meditative practice as well. Find a form that feels right to your physical and mental constitution, then practice.
Corporalita
July 19, 2013
— 2 Comments
Leonardo, the maestro, was guided by core principals. Cultivation of grace ambidexterity, fitness, and poise were central to Da Vincian thought. He viewed healing as “restoration of discordant elements” in a person. His copious notes on personal responsibility for our own health and well being were left for history. Many think of the Mona Lisa smile as his signature work, but probably the best known of all his art work is the anatomical range of motion dude in a circle and square known as Vitruvian Man. His study of anatomy was accompanied by observation of his own body in relation to his wellness and fitness routine. His self portraits are studies in facial anatomy as well as in painting technique.
He advised people to dine, not eat. One of his many specialities was preparing vast feasts and party catering for wealthy Florentines. He collected knowledge about food and nutrition, recording recipes. He was known about town as having “more than infinite grace in every action”. His cultivation of effortless poise and ambidexterity in his own body made him famous in a rock star way. Florentines would come out on the street for the thrill of seeing Leonardo walking. His notebooks reflect a focus on balance, posture, and centering.
His favorite metaphor was the human body. It is also my own. If you consider any entity it will have a head, a heart, a circulatory system, consumption, and processing of waste. It will have dynamic balance and movement. It will present itself as open or closed, happy or sad. It will have chronic maladies and moods, a backbone, and sharp or weak senses. Often the right hand will not know what the left hand is doing. Next time you need to analyze an institution or business use this metaphor to create a picture in your mind. Ponder one of the maestro’s most famous observations, “every part is disposed to unite with the whole, that it may thereby escape from its own incompleteness.” At this moment, gentle reader, can you see how this applies to you?
Vitruvian Man
Protagoras, the Gods, and You
July 17, 2013
— 2 Comments
Writing twenty-five hundred years ago, the Greek philosopher Protagoras (c. 490-420 BCE) might provide wise counsel to our troubled, conflicted age, and offer some hope: “Concerning the gods,” he wrote, “I have no means of knowing whether they exist or not, nor of what form they are; for there are many obstacles to such knowledge, including the obscurity of the subject and the shortness of human life.”
When a pantheon ruled many dramatic events took place between gods and goddesses, as well as between the immortals and the mortals; life was more exciting. The potential for anything to happen was greater in the collective consciousness before pesky science invaded religious belief. Philosophy turned a corner when Protagoras, a sophist who died when Plato was young, brought forth his teachings. He wrote and taught from 490-420 BC, and is reputed to be the first Greek to make money in higher education. His fees were reputedly very steep. He wrote, but none of his written work survived. He was itinerant, traveling all over Greece to find students. The new ideas he fostered and taught were:
- Relativism- there are two sides to every story
- Orthoepeia- it is possible to convince the majority that the the lesser choice is the better one with rhetoric
- Agnosticism-there is no way to have direct knowledge of any of the gods
This has meaning today as we see those who defend absolute truth of any kind. Modern courts of law have their foundations in these three ideas. Law schools teach orthoepeia as part of trial training. Reasonable doubt is relativism. Before Protagoras all earthly events were explained by relating nature to the gods’ whims. Once there was reasonable doubt of that, the world started to look more controllable. Justice, however, is not served when these valuable teachings are not spread equally and given to all citizens. We still have giant problems with democracy and education. What would Protagoras teach the Congress of the US???
The Catalyst is not Consumed
July 16, 2013
— 3 Comments
The catalyst archetype is rare in human personalities. Intuition plays a key role in the transformative power of this person. Intense scrutiny and focus is the special realm of the human catalyst. Rebels can be catalysts, but there are a few different kinds. The American Heritage Dictionary defines the word:
- Chemistry. A substance, usually used in small amounts relative to the reactants, that modifies and increases the rate of a reaction without being consumed in the process.
- One that precipitates a process or event, especially without being involved in or changed by the consequences: “A free press … has remained … a vital catalyst to an informed and responsible electorate” (Robert O’Neal).
To modify or increase rate of reaction without being consumed is no small feat. Most folks who go out intentionally to make big change in the world burn out and are consumed in the process. I am not such a person. I am a true catalyst. My view is basically not in line with the views of those who surround me; often it is diametrically opposed. Infiltration is the key to changing anything. The only time I sincerely burned out and quit as an agent of change was when I infiltrated the VA as a volunteer to improve health care for vets. That was just too much for me. My specialty as a catalyst is as a mendacity meter. People lie all the time, and I am very sensitive to the common practice. I am gifted with a very accurate sensor that detects dishonesty of all kinds. This is neither a blessing nor a curse. It is my unique talent that I am somehow obligated to use for the betterment of mankind. We catalysts have a moral obligation to avoid snark because, tempting as it may be, outing people is not usually beneficial to anyone.
People lie for many reasons. I find that usually they fail to tell the truth because they have no knowledge or training in the truth. If brainwashing works, then the victim believes what has been inculcated. As I review my life I clearly notice a strong tendency to spy/rebel/teach, as a cycle. I love infiltration for no reason:I enjoy the feeling of being a foreign object in a strange culture, incognito…I almost never go for status quo ….and I fill my teaching with subversive messages I hope will be released into the students’ brains as a constant reminder to do due diligence and individuate. I have a mission to tell the truth, but in a helpful way. Not everything that is true needs to be said, but when it does I am ready to say it. This blog is my channel to put this gift to the highest and best use. Thanks to all the gentle readers who give me this opportunity.
Healer Archetype
July 15, 2013
Healers have obstacles to overcome in learning to practice their arts. Today many must endure heavy hazing in the hospital residency period to become an MD. The apparent cruelty is set up to show the prospect what to expect when entering a medical career. Overworked and tired, those who survive will become the next generation of MD’s. The training may not include any advise on self care or setting a healthy example. Empathy is not taught, but acquired. The mythical Chrion represents the fortitude and wisdom required to heal the bodies or souls of others. The positive healer uses energy and talents wisely to benefit everyone. The shadow healer harms others, sometimes unwittingly. The present system of health care in the United States qualifies, in my opinion, as a wounded healer that has yet to acquire empathy for the patient.
Farm to Table Dinner at Zona 78
July 15, 2013
Last night we attended our first farm to table dinner in Tucson. Zona 78 prepared a fresh and exotic menu featuring produce from Sleeping Frog Farms in the San Pedro valley. Four courses featuring produce were presented, along with a delicious berry cocktail or a glass of wine. All of our expectations were exceeded, from service, presentation, variety, to innovation. If you have not tired Zona 78 or Sleeping Frog Farms produce, I highly recommend that you do. We hope the farm to table dinners will become a regular feature because it is an extraordinary way to dine and expand horizons. We met cool people and discovered new cuisine, which is exactly our style.
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- menu
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- chefs
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- refreshing cocktail
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- pickles
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- beet foam
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- pickled delight
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- squash
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- social crowd
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- enjoying my squash
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- melon and chili sorbet
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- tasting root veg dish
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- fish for Bob
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- root veg in coconut milk
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- farmer
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- happy diners
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- festive
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- great service
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- Bob
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- pleased Pamela
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- special cocktail
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- private dining
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- fresh flowers
We were pleased and happy to taste and enjoy such creative innovative cuisine.
Floating
July 13, 2013
— 2 Comments
raft floating
floatation devices
deep end with supervision
experimenting
free time
safe and fun
Floating is a pleasant sensation that requires letting go of the edge. Floating has a lot to do with breathing;if you think about it it is obvious. Inflation of the lungs floats the thoracic cavity. Body fat floats very nicely, so having the right distribution is helpful to effortless floatation. Tension will sink the body, so this effort to attain emptiness and nothingness is impossible to fake. Most people reflexively hold their breath in water, and are unaware of their breathing altogether. Athletic muscular people often can’t swim very far because they exchange very little oxygen with shallow breathing. Tension and fatigue set in quickly when you have no air to use during an aerobic activity. Fully exhaling underwater is the first step to doing everything else you ever want to do in water for the rest of your life. Once you know you can exhale, and have changed your reflex by blowing bubbles each time your face is in the water you have begun to take control of the situation. Since there is a natural fear factor, this is not so much an intellectual practice as a physical one.
Teaching a young child to float, blow bubbles, and eventually swim is a chance to instill confidence and self esteem. Both parent and child develop confidence and build trust during this important introduction to a dangerous environment in which they can easily drown. Fear is entirely appropriate for non swimmers around water, no matter how old they may be. A parent or teacher’s job in showing young children the pleasures of swimming and water sports is to draw clear safety guidelines. Adults must set boundaries, define rules, and perhaps for the first time in a kid’s young life, assign appropriate punishment for violating pool or lesson rules. Even if kids are good strong swimmers they can potentially be injured or injure others if left without any supervision or guidelines. In order to preserve the joy and fun in visiting the pool or lake use common sense:
- Never assume another adult is watching the kids.
- Balance practice time with free play time.
- Teach games that challenge level of skill with risk (boundaries clearly set).
- Encourage stroke or diving practice early in the session, not when the student is tired.
- Understand you are modeling risk assessment more than anything.
- End before dehydration and mayhem ensue.
- Use all kinds of floatation devices to stay safe as well as comfortable
The same rules apply for adult swimmers. Pace yourself and stay safe. Doing nothing but floating on your back in the water taking deep breaths can become easy, but it requires complete focus. Start in shallow water and work up to going deeper. Like the backbend in yoga, the trust fall into water requires a level of confidence that can only be acquired through practice.
Bigamy in Oswego
July 12, 2013
— 3 Comments
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- Oswego, KS
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- Oswego Historical Society
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- main street
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- old town
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- downtown Oswego
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- mural
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- Osage Village
My great-grandfather, Edward Scott, was the telegraph operator in Oswego, KS. His first wife, my great-grandmother, divorced him for having another family. He was born in Ohio, the son of a Civil War veteran. His mother, Maria Pendergrass moved to Kansas with Edward after her husband died. He and Sarah Helena married and had four daughters together, the last daughter born in 1905. By then Edward already had a son who had been born in 1902, with his other woman, Edna. Edna and Edward married in 1909 and lived in Oswego until he died. This must have been a major scandal at that time. Labette, where is daughters lived is very close to Oswego. I can’t imagine how he could keep this situation secret for very long. Somehow my great-grandmother was able to get a teaching job and make ends meet. She managed to get my grandmother through undergraduate school with a teaching degree before she married my grandfather. That seems like a big deal at the turn of the century. I don’t know if he saw his daughters after the divorce or not. He is one of the black sheep never mentioned.
Edward Ewing Scott (1874 – 1941)
is my great grandfather
daughter of Edward Ewing Scott
son of Olga Fern Scott
I am the daughter of Richard Arden Morse
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