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Monthly Archives: July 2019

Daily Ramblings – Wisdom Wednesday – Awareness

31 Wednesday Jul 2019

Posted by Dave Gardner in Wisdom Wednesday

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Tags

Aeschylus, Awareness, Hump Day, Intuition, Learning, Wednesday, wisdom

“He who learns must suffer. And even in our sleep pain that cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart, and in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom to us by the awful grace of God.” — Aeschylus

Credit: Brainyquote

Today’s Wednesday Wisdom is about learning and growth. Look back over your life for a few minutes today. Think about the time you grew the most, learned the most, or made a life-changing decision. I bet these were times of great pain and suffering.

I don’t know why, but these times, although unendurable at the time, are the times we grow the most. The point this quote makes is that it is impossible to grow or learn when things are easy. When things are easy, the human mind likes to live in its repetitiveness. Why change? Everything is wired, and the brain loves repetition. Then–BAM!! You get blindsided.

The blindside could be a financial problem, a friend or loved one that betrays you, your job goes away, or any number of disasters. Immediately you go into “scramble mode”. At these times of high stress and trouble we become very creative. We reach out to friends, we read, we do Internet searches, anything we can to find potential solutions to our pain. It is these times that we truly grow.

We learn the things we did or didn’t do that caused our problem. Sometimes we learn that the things we just lost weren’t that important to begin with. Maybe the relationship you were in was on its way out months or even years ago and you’ve held onto it, even though in your “heart of hearts” you knew it wasn’t working for you or them and neither of you could drum up the courage to end it. Maybe you lose your job, again, knowing the company was having financial problems and ignoring the signs. You see, we ignore these signals because our brains want things to stay the way we are. As human beings, we just don’t like change, even though some changes are needed. We just let things go to maintain the status quo, only to discover that they will change anyway—normally at the worst time possible.

None of us want pain in our lives. None of us want change, but life tends to have a way of forcing change, even if we don’t want it. We get sick because we don’t want to change our diet or exercise. We get blindsided by a layoff when we knew we should have started looking for a new job months ago. We knew our significant other wasn’t really into us anymore but stuck around, anyway.

The pain we suffer results from our attachment to the status quo. We like things the way they are and we don’t want them to change, even if the change is happening right before our eyes. So why not make the change ahead of time? It’s hard. We are so good at telling ourselves lies and procrastinating. So what do we do?

The only advice I can give is to be decisive, ask the hard questions, learn what the right thing is and do it. You know when you’re putting on weight, your job isn’t working out, or even a relationship that isn’t fulfilling anymore. You feel it in your bones. You just know. We all have this intuition. We also get warning signs in advance of a real disaster.

These warning signs normally start out as gut feelings. Something isn’t right, but you can’t put your finger on it. Then they elevate. They become more blatant. Now you know something isn’t right but you still avoid doing something. Then, it’s a baseball bat to the head or a kick in the gut. You guessed it. You got blindsided again.

Pay attention to these intuitions. They are not crazy or paranoid. We all get them. It’s important to act on these intuitions, even if it is just looking for more information to test them out. Do not ignore them. I’ve learned this hard lesson so many times and it took so many disasters before I woke up and figured it out.

Now I pay attention to all of them. If something happens that doesn’t make sense or I get the feeling that something is going sideways, I immediately begin digging and looking to verify whether this is something real or my imagination is just overactive. More times than not, the intuition is right. By acting on these intuitions we can avoid a lot of pain and suffering. Being blindsided is no fun. It is better to avoid bad situations by circumventing them now instead of letting them fester.

Well, that’s it for today, folks. I hope all of you have a terrific Wednesday.

Until next time…

Dave

42.997350 -82.510643

Daily Ramblings – Workout Routine – Chest and Abs

30 Tuesday Jul 2019

Posted by Dave Gardner in Workout Routine

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Tags

chest, Cross Crunch, Crunch, Home Workout, Pushup, Reverse Crunch, Russian Twist

Workout:

Chest:

  • Pushups 5 x 10

Abs:

  • Crunch 1 x10
  • Vertical Leg Crunch 1 x 10
  • Reverse Crunch 1 x 10
  • Russian Twist 1 x 10
  • Left Cross Crunch 1 x 10
  • Right Cross Crunch 1 x 10

See you at the finish line!

Dave

42.997350 -82.510643

Daily Ramblings – Ted Talk Tuesday – AJ Jacobs

30 Tuesday Jul 2019

Posted by Dave Gardner in Ted Talk

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AJ Jacobs, Funny, health, Healthy Eating, Noise Reduction, Wearing a Helmet

Here is a comical look at living healthy. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Until next time…

Dave

42.997350 -82.510643

Daily Ramblings – Workout Routine – Hamstrings and Abs

29 Monday Jul 2019

Posted by Dave Gardner in Workout Routine

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Tags

Abs, Crunch, Glute Raises, Glutes, Hamstrings, Home Workouts, Obliques, Plank, Russian Twist

Workout:

Hamstrings

Compound Set (4 sets x 10):

  • Glute Raises
  • Single Leg Glute Raises Right
  • Single Leg Glute Raises Left
  • Glute Raise with Hamstring Walkout

Abs:

  • Cross Over Crunch Left 1 x 10
  • Cross Over Crunch Right 1 x 10
  • Plank 1 x 10 seconds
  • Russian Twist 1 x 10
  • Side Plank Leg Lift Right 1 x 10
  • Side Plank Leg Lift Left 1 x 10

See you at the finish line!

Dave

 

42.997350 -82.507366

Daily Ramblings – Motivation Monday – Productivity Hacks

29 Monday Jul 2019

Posted by Dave Gardner in Motivation Monday

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Consistency, Do Nothing Day, Follow your plan, motivation, Recurring Tasks, Take advantage of opportunities

Image by TeroVesalainen from Pixabay 

It’s Monday!

One of the best hacks for productivity I have ever discovered was the recurring to-do list. I don’t care what tool you use (I use Google Tasks). Having all the things listed out on my computer every day is awesome!

I wake up, mix up my pre-workout, and get to work. I can be sick, mentally out of it, or just not in a good mood, and my to-do list is there, telling me what I need to do today. It is the daily doing of things that makes such a huge difference. You still have to be motivated to do these things.

From time-to-time, I’ll do an inventory of all the things I’m doing every day and revisit my motivation to do them. Some things become tiresome. This feeling passes once I see how close I am to a milestone or achieving a goal. For example, I tasked myself with reading 48 books this year. I’m at 45! This is just one goal I am talking about and this leads me to my second productivity hack—consistent, small efforts. If you want to read a lot of books, read one chapter a day. If you want to get into good shape, workout every day, even if it’s only a few pushups. It’s the little things we do consistently that contribute most to our accomplishments.

That being said, life will happen. We get sick. Family issues will crop up. We do something that will disrupt our programmed day. You run your schedule, your schedule does not run you. What if a childhood friend comes to town and wants to do something? Blow off your day and hang out with your friend. What if you’re not feeling well? Stay in bed and take care of yourself.

Another productivity hack I have found to be really helpful is the “do nothing day”. My do nothing day is on Sunday. Sunday is the day I do not follow a schedule or set any expectation for myself, other than sleeping in, getting in some good movies, playing some games, and enjoying myself. It is the one day I do what I want. This makes Monday so much easier to execute. I am totally rested and ready to attack the week.

 

What productivity hacks do you use to accomplish your goals? Reply in the comments below.

To summarize:

Hack 1: Use a recurring task list

Hack 2: Consistent small activities build into big achievements

Hack 3: Your schedule does not rule you

Hack 4: Take a “do nothing day” each week.

 

Until next time…

Dave

 

42.997350 -82.507366

Daily Ramblings – Workout Routine – Arms and Calves

28 Sunday Jul 2019

Posted by Dave Gardner in Workout Routine

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Tags

Bicep Curl, Calf Press, Compound Set, Home Workout, Overhead Triceps Extension, Spider Curl, Superset

Yesterday’s workout:

Compound set:

  • Bicep Curl Left 5 sets of 10
  • Bicep Curl Right 5 sets of 10
  • Calf Press 5 sets of 10
  • Overhead Triceps Extension 5 sets of 10

Superset:

  • Spider Curls 5 sets of 10
  • Calf Presses 5 sets of 10

Overhead Triceps Extension L 5 sets of 10

Overhead Triceps Extension R 5 sets of 10

See you at the finish line!

Dave

 

42.997350 -82.507366

Daily Ramblings – Spiritual Saturday – Bonus Content

27 Saturday Jul 2019

Posted by Dave Gardner in Bonus Content, Spiritual Saturday

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Bonus Content, God, Good Story, Heart-warming, Human Heart, Link, Spiritual Saturday

Image by Jill Wellington from Pixabay

How God Enters the Human Heart

This is a link to an article on the Eckankar Blog. You may enjoy the story. I hope so. Happy Saturday!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Spiritual Saturday – Simple Things

27 Saturday Jul 2019

Posted by Dave Gardner in Spiritual Saturday

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Birds, Calm, Chipmunks, Free, Joy, Peaceful, Simple, simplicity, Squirrels

Sometimes I think about the simple things in life. I was just staring out my window and watching the leaves flutter in the wind. The simple things don’t cost any money. They are there for our enjoyment. My Dad placed dispensers of corn and nuts in our yard and the squirrels and chipmunks love them. In appreciation, they give Dad a show to enjoy all day.

Another benefit of having these dispensers are the frequent visits by a pair of Mallard ducks. They come every few days to pick up the nuts and corn the squirrels have left behind on the ground.

We have a squirrel my Mom nicknamed Pete. He enjoys chewing on a dog bone that our last dog stopped chewing on. We also have a chipmunk who comes to our deck from time to time to visit. Then there are a collection of birds that entertain my mom in the morning.

I have been helping my wife study for a teaching exam she has to get through by November. It is nice to spend time with her and help her. We go through questions, remember funny things about our past, talk about them, and then get back to the questions. It’s nice.

It’s nice to sit in my easy chair and type out these words. I’m enjoying the quiet, typing these words, and thinking. Simplicity. Quiet. Calm.

Until next time…

Dave

42.997350 -82.507366

Daily Ramblings – Workout Routine – HIIT Cardio

26 Friday Jul 2019

Posted by Dave Gardner in Workout Routine

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Blood pumping, Consistency, daily, Day Off, Friday, HIIT cardio, Recover, Stair stepping

Today’s workout was cardio-only, since I treat Friday as my one day off during the week. HIIT cardio is fast and easy and easy to do anywhere. Today, I did some stair-stepping in the house, 1 minute on, 1 minute rest, for 20 minutes.

Happy Friday!!

See you at the finish line.

Dave

42.997350 -82.507366

Daily Ramblings – Funny Friday

26 Friday Jul 2019

Posted by Dave Gardner in Workout Routine

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Chuckle, Funny, Funny Friday, Giggle, Hilarious, Laugh, Laughter

An elderly man called Keith.
Mislaid his set of false teeth.
They’d been laid on a chair.
He’d forgot they were there.
Sat down, and was bitten beneath.

Credit Pun.me

Have a great Friday, folks! Today, I’m helping my wife with a teach test she has to take, going to get some yard work done (trim our hedges), and then get the rest of my stuff done.

Until next time…

Dave

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