20190114 Meh

Rainy day.

Meh.

20190109 SAVERS for WEDNESDAY

SILENCE

Silenced brain for 60 seconds; focused on numbers.

AFFIRMATIONS

1. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
2. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
3. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
4. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
5. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
6. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
7. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.

Also said aloud for 60 seconds.

VISUALIZATION

175 by 1/31

EXERCISE

Did my full 30 day routine for a Wednesday, push-up day:

1. ankle/wrist circles 60
2. toe/finger stretches 60 + 10
3. bicycle crunches 60
4. shoulder rolls 60
5. inversion table 3 1-min sets.
6. push-ups 60

READING, WRITING

Read 60 seconds in SAPIENS by Yuval Noah Harari.  He discusses the changes that occurred with advent of the Agricultural Revolution.  Foragers were living on a large variety of plant & animal species, but farmers focused on only 1 or 2 of potatoes, rice & wheat.  They relied on maintaining control over their lands, but if their lands were threatened by others, they had to move on, or fight.  This resulted in Sapiens becoming more violent than their foraging ancestors.

This makes sense to me.

I'm guessing that Harari is making the case against the Agricultural Revolution is such a way as to prove his point, which is IMO largely valid.

But what shoud we 21st C Sapiens do about it?

Dunno.  Reading on.

20190108 SAVERS for TUESDAY

SILENCE

Tried to silence my brain for 60 seconds.  Today I tried to focus on the time only.  That seemed to work.  But my thoughts were still about SOMEthing:  the time passing "1001, 1002, 1003, etc."

AFFIRMATIONS

1. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
2. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
3. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
4. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
5. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
6. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
7. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.

Also said aloud for 60 seconds.

VISUALIZATION

175 by 1/31

EXERCISE

Did my full 30 day routine for a Tuesday:

1. ankle/wrist circles 60
2. toe/finger stretches 60 + 10
3. bicycle crunches 60
4. shoulder rolls 60
5. inversion table 3 1-min sets
6. squats 60

READING, WRITING

Read 60 seconds in SAPIENS by Yuval Noah Harari.  He says wheat domesticated (i.e., made Sapiens make their HOME (domicile) near the wheat).  Til then, Sapiens were not adept to the rigors of farming - we developed new ailments as a result of changing our lives from H/Gatherers to Farmers, and our bodies were not evolved to Farming.  Bones suffered, etc.

That makes sense to me.

20190107 SAVERS for MONDAY

SILENCE

Silenced my brain for 60 seconds, but it wasn't easy, and I need more practice.

AFFIRMATIONS

1. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
2. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
3. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
4. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
5. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
6. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
7. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.

Also said aloud for 60 seconds.

VISUALIZATION

175 by 1/31

EXERCISE

Did my full 30 day routine for a Monday!

1. ankle/wrist circles 60
2. toe/finger stretches 60 + 10
3. bicycle crunches 60
4. shoulder rolls 60
5. inversion table 3 1-min sets
6. push-ups 60

READING, WRITING

Read for 60 seconds in SAPIENS.  The author, Yuval Noah Harari, says that 10K years ago, wheat was just one of many plants on the planet.  But wheat manipulated Sapiens into cultivating it in larger and larger quantities.  Over 2K years, wheat changed the way Sapiens lived.  Sapiens nourished the massive growth of wheat (cleared land, removed rocks, watered and fertilized, etc.)  So Sapiens abandoned their life of hunting & gathering, and replaced it with a farmer's life.

So, THAT'S what happened!  This is a previously unknown gap in my perception of the history of Sapiens.  It makes sense.

20190106 SAVERS FOR SUNDAY

SILENCE

Silenced my brain/mind/spirit for 60 seconds.  Or TRIED to.

AFFIRMATIONS

1. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
2. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
3. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
4. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
5. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
6. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.

Also, said aloud 60 seconds.

VISUALIZATION

175 by 1/31

EXERCISE

Did my full 30 day routine for a Sunday:

1. ankle/wrist circles 60
2. toe/finger stretches 60 + 10
3. bicycle crunches 60
4. shoulder rolls 60
5. inversion table 3 1-min sets
6. squats 30
7. push-ups 30

Did 'em all relatively easily, in spite of having taken almost a month off.

YAY!

READING, WRITING

Read 60 seconds in SAPIENS.  The author, Yuval Noah Harari, says that the Agricultural Revolution did not signify, in the balance, an advancement of civilization.  Rather, as Sapiens became farmers, they worked harder (to produce much more food), and adopted a less healthy diet along with it.  They were not "smarter" since they already knew well the specifics of the animals and plants they hunted and gathered.

Rather, Sapiens "bought in to" the domestication of 3 plants that changed all human life:  mass production of wheat, rice and potatoes.  This led to greater population growth, and pampered elites.

Harari says that these 3 plants domesticated Sapiens, and not vice versa.

IMO, Harari is almost "bent" on lamenting the progress of mankind, rather than addressing 1) why such a smart population (i.e., the hunter gatherers) would go down the path of domestication as we did; IOW, why did we commit such a "fraud" (his word for it), and 2)  what benefits we derived from mass production of food.

He leaves that out, IMO.  But I'll read on.

20190105 SAVERS for SATURDAY, RESUMPTION, REDEMPTION

Before I go into SAVERS today, I must acknowledge myself:

1.  Spent 3 weeks in Cyprus and London, eating without regard for my weight, or my health in general... I made smoothies about 1/2 of the mornings, but they were not what I do at home - they were whatever happened to be available.  But so bet that.

2.  I weight 180.4 this morning!!!!!!!  I had thought I'd be closer to 190, and I was fully prepared to set a goal of losing 10 pounds over the next 1-2 months.  But I need not!  I can shoot for 175, and get ther easily!!!!  HOORAY!!!!!!!!!!

3.  My "jet lag" is minimal - took melatonin every night, and last night, took 2.  So I'm going to slack off of that, and eliminate it after I return to work on Monday.

SILENCE

Tried to silence my brain for 60 seconds.  Didn't do it a bit!  Too many thoughts of what my life will be like this new year:  2019

AFFIRMATION

1. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
2. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
3. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
4. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
5. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
6. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
7. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.
8. I, Ken Taylor, am an important part of the Universe.

Also said aloud for 60 seconds.

VISUALIZATION

175 by 1/31

I.e., lose 5 pounds over the next 3 weeks.

EXERCISE

Did my full Saturday 30 day routine:

1. ankle/wrist circles 60
2. toe/finger stretches 60 + 10
3. bicycle crunches 60
4. shoulder rolls 60
5. inversion table 3 1-min sets
6. squats 60

(yay!)

READING, WRITING

Read 60 seconds in SAPIENS by Yuval Noah Harari.  THe author says that the agricultural revolution took place where it DID (Middle East, China, Central America) and not in Alaska, South Africa or Australia because there are only a few domesticatable species on the planet (of the thousands living here), and they only lived in the "DID" areas listed above.  He states:  "Most species of plants and animals cannot be domesticated."  Those that CAN lived in the "DID" areas above.

Well, so be it for today.  While I was away for the last 3 weeks, I listened to several podcasts, among which was one by Infants on Thrones (recovering Mormons), and the lead guy there (____________)(DAMN, why can't I recall names & facts when I need them????)    whose voice I love, created a podcast episode called "The Meaning of Life, Part 1" in which he stated that he had been life-changingly influenced by reading SAPIENS.

YAY!  Maybe I will, too.