Week Break

Unfortunately my schedule this past week and the week coming up has not allowed me much time for writing and for that I appologize. Do not fret though as I will be back on track next week! Still I'll try and post 1 or 2 interesting reads this week as well. Thanks for visiting!

-jc faubion

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Daily antics: This afternoon

I guess these daily antics are not really being so daily, so I will try a little better about providing some more reads. Aside from moving from the bed to the couch I haven't taken on much of any physical labor today. I think we're all deserving of at least one of those days a week, right? 

If anyone out there has suburb fireplace starting skills I applaud you. For what feels like the 30th time I attempted to start a little fire only to have the entire house be engulfed in smoke! I don't understand this contraption. Even when I open the vent the place still looks like the inside of a cloud. I guess this is natures way of telling me to stick to the heater and blankets from this point moving forward. 

Now today was suppose to be my day off, but I decided to pick up a night shift, bills never sleep after all. I just watched this really neat documentary about Burts Shavitz on Netflix. For those that dont know he is the co-founder of Burts Bees. I recommend if you have time, to watch it in its entirety! 

I'll close with saying that young cats can be extremely annoying at times, specifically mine. A guy can only take the constant meows and the picking up of a knocked downed Christmas tree so many times before taking them out to the pasture starts sounding like a good idea, but alas I love the little guy.

Have a phenomenal day!

- JC

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Right or wrong? School district removes religious holidays from its calenders

One of the largest school districts in Maryland voted unanimously (7-1)  to remove ALL holiday names from their calenders after the Muslim community sought a form of recognition of a holy day (see. Eid al-Adha). Of course, the students will still receive their time off from school for the christian and Jewish holiday. This is not a new move as several districts throughout the country have already removed religious words associated with breaks(e.g. winter break). 

It would be naive to say that there is not a percentage of the American population that holds a prejudice against Muslims given the misinformation and over-generalization by the media and government.  With that being said there has been a major uproar in the Maryland community, specifically the christian sector, concerning how the religion of Islam is being forced down their throats and their own beliefs being squandered.

It is important to realize that the Muslims who were looking for recognition of their holiday did not have the overthrow of other religions on their agenda. It was the districts decision to remove the Christian and Jewish nomenclature as opposed to just granting the Muslims the same rights that the other two religious sectors already had. It would seem that this is not a case of religious rights,but more so the fear and intolerance from a small group of people. 

Given that America was founded on the idea of having religious freedom it is logical that there should be an innate provision that all religions get some form of recognition.  There is just one monkey wrench of course- the separation of church and state.  Right of the bat it can be argued that there should NEVER have been any mention of a religious group within a schools jurisdiction. 

It is safe to say that this argument and clash between the religions will not be settled easily or quickly. Everyone has their own set of paradigms when it comes to these issues which will generate a lot of debate and conflicting views. Whats yours?

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Walmart questions I ask myself

Why does parking suck?

Why do some people do their  monthly grocery shopping for their family of 34 at 12 pm thereby clogging  the only checkout?

Why is there only 1 checkout past 11pm?

Why must the personal lubricant section be so close to either the  protein bar sections or nasal medication giving on lookers the wrong impression?

Why are the vontage reps in  electronics harassing me to buy a land line, do they realize its 2014?

what happened to the the big trampolines that use to be outside for sale?

Is it apart of the ambiance to have a horde of  villainous flys  and a colossal mound of overflowing garbage cans at the in-store McDonalds?

Why is it standard that there always be at least one screwed up wheel on a buggy?

Should there be an age requirement at the self checkout?

Can aisle football or tag become a recreational sport?

Is there such a thing as too large of a ramen bulk box purchase?

Starter brand...

Do people actually stop by for haircuts at the salon?

Why does the toy aisle suck?

Will I be held legally liable if I  "accidentally" start a domino effect of falling shelves? 

Is it intentional that nothing fits right, clothes wise?

Was the state penitentiary or a juvie highschool  used as inspiration for the mens restroom conditions?

That is all, have a great day!

- JC





 

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6 steps to create immediate lastings change

A couple hundred years ago it was thought impossible to get from New York to California in less than a few weeks. By today's standard it can be done in as little as 5 hours. This illustration of advancement of travel is the result of a change in method. One person got up and thought to themselves there must be a better and more efficient way. This moment of epiphany and ingenuity not only resides in the realm of technological advances, but mental and physical improvements as well. The technique to do this is called Neuro Associative programming. It was developed by Richard Bandler and Dr. John Grinder “in their effort to model communication strategies of effective therapists”. A similar interpretation of the technique is also made famous by Anthony Robins which he tweaks and calls neurological associative conditioning. But the premise still is the same.

Change of the inner self can take a matter of minutes. This is in contrast to the archaic thinking that it can’t be that simple; that the concept of change must take months or years, and be immensely complex. You see humans think in complexities all the time, but when it comes to the self the simplistic approach is typically the best. Now the bases of NAP or NAC, is that for you and I there are 2 determining factors for behavior: to avoid pain and to gain pleasure. Essentially the mind is in a constant juggling act with every choice you make under these two constraints. To put this into a visual, think of a man or woman addicted to drugs. The drug acts as a way to eliminate stress and to relax i.e. the pleasure. Most struggle with stopping the addictive behavior because that pleasure far outweighs the pain that the drug causes both physically to the body and psychologically in the mind and soul. What this person in the scenario has to do is change up their thinking and begin to increase the negative association with the drug use so it outweighs the pleasure they receive from it. This can be done is the 6 simple steps of NAP

1. Know what you want

This means exactly what it says. Know the desired behavior or outcome that you wish to experience. By knowing what you want and focusing on it you unconsciously wane towards that behavior naturally.

2. Know what is preventing you from what you want

This is just as important as number one. By recognizing there is a force or pattern that is preventing you from attaining what you truly want, you then can manifest it into a tangible enemy that you must stop no matter what.

3. Interrupt that pattern or break the old behavior

What this means is that with anything we do, we have a set order of operations. The problem most people have though is they maintain the same patterns and order of operations and expect to get different results. There are multiple ways to break the pattern. One is to stop cold turkey, the other is to change the sensory input associated with the situation that is bothering you. For example, think of a time when you were in an argument with a coworker and it has been bothering you for a few weeks. Every time you reflect on how the conversation played out you just continue to feel like crap. You know what you want which is to feel happy again…you know that feeling sad and continuing to go over the incident play by play just as it happened is preventing you from attaining that joy you want. Now you implement the third step, changing the pattern of thought or obstacle. Instead of replaying the conversation that you had with your coworker in your mind just as it happened, change the pitch of the voices or imagine a big glob of mustard on your coworkers face as they do jumping jacks while arguing with you. By doing this you interrupt the old pattern that lead you to feel upset and now your mind has switched gears to humor and creativity! From here you have officially interrupted your brains old routes of thought and now can move to the next step.

4. Choose and install the new behavior or pattern

Therapists and coaches who utilize these steps on their clients find that this is the most critical aspect. Finding an alternate behavior that can replace the old dis-empowering behavior can be a challenge, but it is most certainly attainable. In the previous example with the argument you are having with a coworker you could replace that old behavior of just brooding over what happened and take a minute to think about your situation and voice in a calm manner how the previous engagement left you feeling a certain way and you wish to either move forward or in some way reconcile.

5. Condition yourself to the new behavior or pattern

Repetition is your friend here. By constantly repeating the new, healthier behavior or thought pattern you begin to stitch it into the fabric of your mind and it becomes daily routine

6. Test it

After you have performed the first 5 steps successfully, with regards to whatever it is you are struggling with, see if the tribulation still maintains the same level of control or unhealthy feeling over you.

Now every therapeutic technique can work at any given time. But the NAP or NAC approach truly puts the power in your hands in what some can say as the most efficient and rewarding way. You can change now and rightfully should. Why delay the improvement of the quality of life you live both physically and psychologically?

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