Aching To Smack The Minimalists Around

I do support the minimalist blogs out there and their nomad and environmentally friendly lifestyles, don’t get me wrong.  I appreciate reading about how they avoid those yucky cars, sit in cafes blogging about hip memories, and stick their well traveled tongues out at whoever isn’t “master” of their lives. Ya well it isn’t all leprechauns and rainbows boys and girls.

You see…we can’t all chuck everything and go globetrotting at a moment’s notice.  Some of us have serious family commitments, a fascinating career (that may actually help make the world a better place)…and pets…and …oh ya… children.

And some of us really do like ascetically pleasing material goods. Is it bad to treat ourselves? Hey, if I’m going to sit in traffic for part of the day I WANT to be surrounded by soft leather and a Bose sound system.

Yeppers,  I have a 40 foot in ground pool with funky rock gardens surrounding it. After work, I plunge into that cool revitalizing water and skim under the surface in total silence.  Love it. Jagged beams of sunlight greet me to create a golden mirror effect throughout the baby blue water. It’s a fucking alternate universe. Love it.

Am I being authentic about my life? Hell ya. Do I always believe in it? Hell no. But I’m providing a beautiful haven for my family, my pets and myself (for now).

I’ll get to climbing Mount Pica Chu perhaps in a few years. And thank you for teaching me about the horrors of bottled water.  But for now I’m going to take my time to cook a delicious meal, crack open a fine red Syrah and be grateful for all that life has bestowed me.  You are all welcome to join me.

Cheers!

Now WTF am I going to do during winter?

Related posts:

Stop Complaining, Whining Or Making lame Excuses And Start Living

3 Reasons Why I Didn’t Sell My Website

I had an offer to sell my website but decided it was in my best interests not to.

I built this website to provide you with a tool and blog to help you make life changes. The first step to help you make a life change is for you to think about your life as a whole - “Who Am I“, and then link this to your core personal values and finally your goals or habits. By using this method you break your life down from the big picture to small bite sized chunks. If I can help you make one life change, or at least begin to think about making changes then I know my job is done. The blog is from my life experiences and the hundreds of books I have loved and read.

The blog allows me to express myself, search for meaning and purpose AND become a better writer. I love to write. Writing clears my head, provides a forum for my ideas, puts things in perceptive and expands my creativity.  Lately I have been trying to express myself through stories. Stories give me more meaning and I have to live my stories to make them real. The more stories I live, the more memorable a life I have experienced, written and shared.  This goes in parallel with one of the best tips I learnt about writing nonfiction. Express how something “feels”.  Without feelings, nonfiction writing can be robotic and bland.  People relate best to feelings and emotions. And perhaps most of all, writing has helped me open my heart to the world.

The blog helps me overcome my fears. Writing for an audience always brings up a certain fear factor.  You are afraid that you might not have something interesting to say.  You are afraid your writing style is boring. You are afraid your dream of becoming a writer will fail. But as I have gotten over those fears I have overcome times of horrible resistance.  I am a writer. I’m not afraid to call myself that now.

I also believe fear is the cause of many if not all problems. It is the root of negative assumptions and the destructive emotions of anger, jealousy and possessiveness. This is why I’m learning to open my heart and let negative energy flow through without becoming attached to it.

These are three reasons why I did not sell. This website has become part of who I am. At times writing was like swimming through molasses, other times like floating on a cloud. How can I sell that?

Are you living in fear? Have you explored your passion?

Lebron James And Our Consumer Society

Ok. I have to write about this Lebron James fiasco. As the world goes to complete shit, approximately 20 million human lemmings tuned in to see what his relocation decision was. Even people in my home town of Montreal who probably have never watched a full basketball game were blabbering about it, like they knew the guy personally and he was over for a drink and cigar the other night. Maybe we need an escape from out dreary fucked up lives, I dunno.

Lebron has already began to sell his new personal brand  with companies like Microsoft pushing Bing on the public and people dying to buy his sweater. What pure materialism idiocy.

In the end we will turn on the television and bask in Lebron James stupefying play and 30 gazillion dollar contract.   Then we will go back to beating the shit out of our kids and kicking the dog until Lebron comes back to pacify us.   All hail the American culture!

Powerful Blog Links To Give You That AH HA! Moment

A terrific article on how to find your natural writing style.  How to Find Your Writing Voice

Great advice based on facts  How To Get Hundreds Of Tweets And Comments On Your Blog Post

This one will really make you think about what is truly important. Why Friends Matter At Work And Life

What is your ideal day? 24 Hours In The Life Of Everett Bogue

Saying HELL YA will REALLY clear your mind   No More yes. It’s either HELL YEA or no.

Some heartfelt inspiration about my own personal journey Lessons From Mom And A Life Well Lived

Have a fabulous day!

Have You Been Creating Memorable Stories With Your Life?

Lately I love writing about creating memories.  The quality of your life is dependent on how you remember it. The quality of your life is a collection of stories interwoven together from a lifetime of memories. When you talk about the stories of your life are you feeling happy or content? Do your stories create sparks of joy? How about when you talk to yourself about your stories? Are you proud about your stories?

Sure you can stand around the water cooler on a Monday morning and talk about the BBQ or recommend what novel you are reading. But what about the stories that make your heart skip? What about the stories that tested your courage?

A friend of mine once gave me a plane ticket to fly to three cities in Europe. I landed in Zurich and was also allowed to fly to Sweden and Finland as well. It was a fabulous gift. I decided to include side trips to Italy and Estonia. A week before leaving, I took out my Let’s Go Europe book, highlighted a few choice youth hostels and took off. When I think back to that experience I’m amazed that in three weeks time I walked, took trains, ferries and flew to some incredible places.

I got lost in Italy at 1: AM searching for my youth hostel, shared my cigarettes with a Russian bus driver (I was the only customer) in Finland, and shared tea in Helsinki with a British art critique and an American improving lives of orphans in Russia. In Sweden I stayed on a 200 foot sailboat and went to a lingerie fashion show (poor me). My courage was tested a few times during that trip, but the memories will last a lifetime.

Staying in and experiencing the present moment is an amazing habit to find peace and even joy, but ultimately the overall quality of our life is governed by our memories and stories . This is your remembered self.

How do you remember yourself? Are you making life changes so that you think back upon your life with happiness and pleasure? What stores stand out in your memory? Are your glued to the Internet and television while the world passes you by?

Maybe it’s time to make new memories, and create a few new stories. There is a whole wide world to explore.

Reference:  Daniel Kahneman - TED - Ideas Worth Spreading

How To Save The World – Part IV

I’m regularly grateful to have experienced being a part of this beautiful blue and white planet which slowly twirls amongst a trillion stars. It is an amazing thought if you really take the time to think about it. Picture one of those photos of our planet taken from space and remember that you are actually walking upon that beautiful orb.

Doesn’t everything else seem trivial compared to that thought? We live our lives with hundreds of useless thoughts cursing through our heads everyday and tend to easily forget how truly amazing life on this planet is. Sometimes our thoughts can turn into conditioning or beliefs that lead us to acts of selflessness, cruelty or even war. By now we are all aware that we are slowly ruining our home - this planet. As an animal we have forgotten how to share this planet with not only ourselves but with all other living creatures.

I have written extensively about awareness, consciousness and living in the moment. I’ve written about meditation, conditioning and beliefs. Many times I’ve thought that people don’t give a shit about using “consciousness” to make this planet a better home. People are more concerned about what celebrity had no underwear, how to lose 20 pounds in a week, how to make a million dollars over night, or are just trying to survive. And yes I’ve been guilty of those thoughts as well.

Fortunately, over the centuries humans have overcome some astonishing challenges. The formation of civilizations, revolutionary and religious wars, plagues, great depressions …the list goes on. But now we are faced with the threat of dwindling resources, constant MacDonald’s commercials, and an ever expanding population.

Is it an iPad that will save the world? Or is it a deeper consciousness? Do we resist buying bottled water (the plastic is made from oil, the transportation of the bottles creates pollution, and they stay in landfills forever if not recycled. Birds ingest floating caps out in sea thinking it’s food and even feed it to their young with both dying a painful slow death).

I am certain that the next big evolution for mankind is consciousness and awareness. We are done with the industrial age and the informational age is only choking us. There is no time like now to think before we buy, feel empathy for all living creatures, rejoice in our planet, reduce our carbon footprint and connect with fellow human beings all around the world (hey, maybe the iPad will help after all).

Over the centuries humans have overcome some astonishing challenges. The fight to save this planet has only just begun. I haven’t placed much hope lately in our governments to make any difference. It’s been only one big slobbering orgy at the mutual feeding troughs of government, corporations and banking for years now. Each and every one of us needs to try to clean this mess up.

I hope it isn’t too late.

Are we living just to survive or are we ready to fight? Are we leaving our children a beautiful planet or an orb dying a slow and agonizing death? Are we living in nature or looking at it through the screen of an iPad?

Consciousness and awareness. The next big evolution