the wisdom of Anthony Kiedis.

Warning: spoiler alert.

Anthony Kiedis has a way of living that I am a little envious of. It’s something I’ve been working toward for the last several years. It’s the ability to just go with the flow of life, tackling any obstacles head on, the best you can and letting go of all control.

Just finished reading Scar Tissue, and it is hands down one of the best reads I’ve ever had. The reminisings of his life are exciting, scandalous, illegal, sexy, and just outright wild. He’s not afraid of anything. He will try to talk his way into and weasel his way out of of anything to get the desired outcome he is looking for. An opportunist, a fearless dirt bag. It’s kinda of amazing he didn’t die or get arrested with all of his shenanigans.

His drug addiction was the main theme of the book. The relapses, the getting clean, the withdrawals, the pawning off of stolen items to get his hands on any amount of dope he could find. And what was his saving grace? Meditation, prayer and sitting with the emotions.

I’ve made the decision to stop doing drugs many times before, but I  never followed up with the daily maintenance, the cultivation of a path to a spiritual awakening. I think that anyone who comes in and works all of the steps and goes to meetings and is of constant love and server is guaranteed to stay sober. But anyone who comes in like I did in the past and picks’ and chooses and thinks, “I’ll do it some days, I won’t do it others. I’ll work some steps, but I won’t work the others. I’ll take the call sometimes, but sometimes I’m too busy.” is doomed to failure. You can’t buy seven tenths of the way into the program and expect to get seven tenths back; you get nothing back unless you give yourself completely.

Some other big takeaways if you wish to kick a bad habit, and these can be applied to whatever your addiction may be (love, sex, food, drugs):

• take care of yourself and lead by example
• be a “program of attraction, rather than promotion” because nobody likes being told what to do
• when you feel shitty, go out and help someone else. The minute you get out of your self-centered mind you are free of pain
• be willing to admit you don’t know everything and were wrong about some things
• when the obsession or craving comes back, sit with the feeling and allow it to pass by
• get a dog!

Conclusion: amazing read, highly recommend it.

 

Gratitude

To be upset over what you don’t have is to waste what you do have.

beauty is pain?

Women are on a mission to stay young, tight, and beautiful! Primping, priming, painting, crimping, extending, removing, gluing, taping, sucking-in, bleaching, waxing, plucking, etc. etc. etc., the things we do to ourselves to achieve and maintain beauty.

We know beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but here is what the dictionary says:

Beauty (noun)

1. a combination of qualities, such as shape, colour, or form, that pleases the aesthetic senses, especially the sight.

That basically explains why the Kardashians are so beautiful! They’ve manufactured themselves into the right shapes and colours! And all of us? We’re just trying to catch up.

We buy products that celebrities endorse, we try the workouts they publicise, and eat up the fad diets they promote (celery juice anyone?).

I write this as I cradle my stomach, and think I would do anything to have a beautiful flat tummy! Will this body obsession ever go away? It’s like we are striving for “perfection”, this balancing of the bust-to-hip-to-waist ratio and this obsession can be consuming af!

A brief moment in beauty history

Did you know hair removal started with the Egyptians. They made tweezers out of seashells to get rid of unwanted hair. “In ancient times, hairlessness signified social position and wealth.”*

Long, straight hair was all the rage way back in the day. Hair was how women showed their femininity. Some cultures would even punish women who had sexual indiscretions by shaving her hair off! And if a woman wanted to be liberated? She’d shave her own hair off!

The Covid-15 is real!

Carbs carbs and more carbs, this is what I’ve been eating day after day during pandemic, and it’s starting to show!

Oh weight loss, why does the struggle gotta be so real?

People will come to me and tell me how they know they need to lose weight, that they no longer like the way their clothes fit, or how they look in the mirror. It’s hard to keep someone motivated on their weight loss journey because losing weight is a process! And the process can feel like a struggle. The reason for that is because we want those instant results, that instant gratification: fat melting, toned arms, flat stomachs. We think that after a couple of days of mindful eating + cardio we will be “skinny”. SMH.

I’m sorry to say, weight loss is hard. If it was easy, everyone would do it!

Easy vs. Hard.

Is it easy to have a slice of cake? Yes. 

Is it hard to resist that sweet, creamy, light cake vanilla temptation? 100 x Yes!

That right there proves losing weight is not easy and it’s not for everyone. We live in a society drowning in junk food, constantly offered cookies, chips and crap on the regular.

Here’s a hard truth: it’s going to take months of discipline, embracing change and saying YES to ourselves in a whole new way to see the results we want.

When you think about it, accumulating weight takes months and years of poor eating habits and inactivity. So, when it comes to losing it, it’s important to recongize that we need to give ourselves patience and trust with the process.  

Some important factors to weight loss success:

#1. Mental toughness: Having the mentality that this is what you want! Making your mind up that you want to lose weight.

Two of my aunt’s were talking:

Zia L: “How do you do it [weight loss]?”

Zia AM: “Step one is up here,” as she pointed to her head, “you have to decide you want it.”…and that right there is some mad truth!

#2. Consistency: Consistently exercising 3-5 days per week, consistently saying “NO!” to unhealthy food choices. Being consistent with our healthy actions is like planting a seed that we must water and give sunshine to every day for it to grow.

#3. Body Acceptance: Loving and appreciating your body exactly as it is right now. Yep, that includes our tummies, thick thighs and bat wings. Give it up to all the things our bodies do for us: breathing, seeing, smelling, feet to stand on, legs that move us, teeth that chew our food – you get the point! And for those Moms out there – you gave birth! Holy heck! What an amazing feat!! Our bodies are pretty awesome and we need to let our holy temple know how much we love and appreciate it.

#4. Awareness: Taking the time to be aware of how your body feels. For example, how does your body feel after feeding it a nourishing meal VS. a sugary bowl of cereal? Are you more energized? Less bloated? Or, how do you feel after a long walk or spending time in nature?

Our bodies will respond to how we fuel it. Sugar = inflamation,  refined carbs= bloating for a lot of people, whereas whole foods will leave you feeling and looking your healthiest.

When we are aware of our bodily sensations we are equipped to choose better.

Side note: Did you know 4 grams of sugar = 1 teaspoon. So if a can of Coke has 39 grams of sugar, that’s 9.75 tsp of sugar… that’s a lot of fucking sugar.

#5. Speak your goals: Write them down, say them out loud, and share them with a trusting love one who can keep you accountable.

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I understand that if I want my body to look a certain way, there are things I need to do in order to achieve those goals.

Being disciplined is hard! It’s easy to give in for the quick fix of junk food. Sugar is a drug after all and weight loss is very much a mental game.

The steps to weight loss are clear, and if you follow it, it’s actually pretty simple: you have to make better choices. It’s about not eating the white stuff, and if you are, don’t do it two days in a row. It’s about discipline, and asking yourself if the food choice you’re about to make is going to help you reach your goal or detour you, it’s about knowing the difference between appetite and actually being hungry.

If losing weight is something you actually want to do, try a move of empowerment and kindly turn down that slice of cake while saying “YES” to you, your body, and your goals!

judgement detox.

“Your truth is what heals” – Gabby Bernstein

We can’t blame other people for not giving us what we want and need when we want and need it. We all have our own “stuff” going on, and coming from a place of understanding and compassion may be the wisest thing we can do for our own peace of mind.

I’m currently reading Gabby Bernstein’s Judgement Detox, and it urges readers to leave the judgement on the shelf.

People are who they are; You are who you are.

They are the way they are due to their beliefs, values, standards, upbringing, environment, personal life, and so many other life factors.

We judge other’s because we are judging ourselves, we feel a lack of…, insecure, vulnerable, and a slew of other not so pretty feelings.

Gabby says:
– We get a quick hit of self-righteousness when we judge others, and it’s a reliable crutch when we feel hurt.

– Our judgements toward others make us feel better about ourselves. She goes on to say when we judge our energy weakens and we become unaligned with who we want to be.

….And food for thought, maybe that’s someone who leads with love, compassion and understanding?

a Sunday pick-me-up

When you need a little pick me up, try Transforming:

Fear into Courage

Not Enough into Plenty

Old Patters of Behaviour into Fresh Responses

Anger into Cleansing Breath

Sorrow into Hope

Grief into Rebirth

Loneliness into support

Dis-empowerment into Confident Action

Creative Dormancy into Full Expression

Superficiality into True Being

Masks into Love of What Really Is

Shortsightedness into Eagle Vision

Limitations into Possibility

Projections into Conscious Ownership

Stuckness into Movement

Depression into Light

Bondage into Freedom

Control into a Loose, Flexible Grip

Obsession into Letting it Be

Anxiety into Flow

Fragmentations into Wholeness

Shame into Acceptance of the Process of Life

Mistrust into Trust

Judgement into Allowing

 

 

 

relationship goals

It’s easy to say that our relationship goals are based on pop culture and society. We are bound to how society dictates the way life should be. We are mezmorized and influenced by the things we see in movies and hear in love songs thinking what we see and hear are how relationships should look.

#1. Go to college

#2. Start career

#3. Get married

#4. Have babies

= the formula to show society you are a life success

Goal: the result or achievement toward which effort is directed; aim

My goal is to have a relationship based on mutual attraction, respect, and support. It is secure, committed, fun, and playful.

And again this has me circling back to relationship standards. I once heard that instead of following our feelings, we’d be better off following our standards. By doing this we’d get a clearer picture on what’s happening in our hearts and minds.

Do you believe two is better than one? I do. I believe in partnerships, and being the yin to someone’s yang. There is a balancing out of personalities, strengths and weaknesses when two people are perfectly paired. With a partnership, there is a better chance that each individual will succeed.

that funky spunk

Reader beware, this is going to be unappetizing.

Yup. That’s right, we’re talking about semen. I don’t know about you, but I’ve had my share of funky tasting spunk, jizz, cum, spooge, whatever you want to call it. And you never know what you’re going to get when you’re with a new lover. The mental scenario is usually something like this when you’re performing oral sex: “Okay, he’s about to blow, I hope his cum tastes decent!”

From sweet to tasteless to downright CRUDE, I’ve experienced a palette of flavours when it comes to jizz.

So I was wondering, how much of an impact diet has on semen. The article I read said there hasn’t been enough research to really know, but from my personal research (ahem), I can tell you it makes a huge difference. For example: someone who smokes, eats processed foods, and sugar may have semen that tastes bitter, pungent or sour.  Whereas someone who eats relatively clean will likely have semen which may taste sweet.

Some men have this kind of weird obsession with their ejaculate – having an urge for women to want it, taste it, and frankly eat it up. So I ask: do you think a man would change his diet if he knew it affected the way his semen tasted? And if so, how is this even a discussion you bring up?

universal tests

To prove you are in alignment with your intentions is determined by if we pass or fail a series of universal tests laid out in front of us.

This is how it works: The magic of the cosmos will present us with a circumstance in order to gauge how intent we are on our intentions. I find that most of these tests are integrity tests.

You can kinda break it down like this:

#1. We set our standards and values;

#2. The Universe throws something our way to see if we really stand by those standards and values; and then

#3. The Universe carries on accordingly with the information we provide it.

For example, if we wish to no-longer attract a certain type of person (deadbeat, loser, no job), we tend to get that exact person delivered to us! This is the test. Whether or not we take that person up on that date, exchange phone numbers, or even bother to reply, is entirely up to us. Our response dictates to the universe what we are willing or unwilling to accept. AND it will keep presenting us with the same situation until we chose to act in accordance with our intentions. It’s not just about speaking out our intentions, but we must live – them – through.

Here is a current personal example:

What are your dating standards?

Let’s take a moment to talk about DATING STANDARDS

Sticking to my dating standards during the pandemic has been difficult, or rather, I’ve been lazy. Bypassing the tinder texting phase and almost instantly sharing my phone number, bypassing my social media non-share practices and sharing my online life with a stranger, bypassing the feel-the-vibe-out phone call before a meet and greet…and boy oh boy do I now see more than ever why I have these measures in place. They truly help weed out people you don’t vibe with.

I fully understand why my dating practices during pandemic haven’t been inline with the type of relationship I want to cultivate, and even the type of I high-value person I strive to show up as. All this curtailing of my standards was in an effort to find connection in a time where being social with the outside world had become pretty obsolete.

…and you know what they say, awareness is key.

So after a short Covid fling, I took some time to re-evaluate my standards, and here are some edits to my long list of what I’m looking for:

• someone who opens doors for me
• calls me his gf
• has a clean living space
• texting back within reasonable time frame
• wants to see me, excited to see me
• makes me breakfast
• not into video games

I read a quote recently, “Don’t change your authenticity for someone else’s approval” and it rang like sirens through my head. You know this is happening when you start second guessing your moves, or editing your responses and over thinking your outfits. In these times, we need to take a step back, and maybe pray and ask for a little help.