Shock - Primarily of the Psychological Flavor

(N.B. This posting is the first of several relating to some of how I am thinking about sudden events of enormous impact. There are many reasons to think about these types of things, but for me it is at least partly related to the fact that my first conscious memory is that of hearing that Pearl Harbor was attacked. I was little more than an infant and I remember crawling around in the back seat of my parents car, driving to church in lower Manhattan and (I think) someone saying to be still so everyone could listen to the news which was announcing the attack. I had no idea of whether it was important or serious since at that point the only driving forces were squirming in a crowded car, wanting to look out at tall buildings and moving from one sensation to another. But on some level, I suppose, there was some imprinting on my personality over those next several years that the world could be suddenly dangerous and also that I / we not only survived but also thrived.)

Shock when not intended is a nasty event. It can be caused by a number of different situations, e.g., having an experience that follows seeing something grotesquely out of the ordinary, or finding out something that changes our underlying sense of self and/or other, or having a physiological / medical event which is the result of the body suddenly being put on overload or overwhelmed with an event which threatens survival itself.

I use the word in the context of a sudden event which has the power to overwhelm the system, whether it is psychological shock or physical shock. In the physical situation, a state of shock can be induced by, e.g., a sudden loss of blood from whatever cause threatens the very survival of the person. Or if a bacterial infection overwhelms the natural defenses of the body, the system will start emergency internal procedures which activate certain systems and shut down other systems which are not as essential for survival. The body will start this process without any conscious thought on our part precisely because it is so threatened by the actual physiological events.

I say this to differentiate it from the panic process which can start when a person locks into an image or a series of images ("what-if" scenarios) which can be so realistic to the mind and so scary to the body that they call forth a cascade of physiological effects collectively referred to as the fight, flight or freeze process. In the "pure" physiological situation, not only is the body gearing up to deal with a crisis internally, in effect putting out an "all hands on deck" call, but the people around the person will recognize the sudden and profound shift taking place and will naturally want to set up an external alarm to get help - fast.

To be stunned is to have a taste of shock. But the stun does not call forth the whole crisis event. It momentarily leads to a gasp or to the experience of not being able to say or do anything. The stun, in a sense, puts the person into a state of temporary suspended animation.

(Just a side comment: it is a mistake to say that one effects the physical and the other effects the mental. There is no hypen between mindbodymindbodymind... Each is influenced by each would be one way to awkwardly put it. However, there are many subtleties which don't rise to the level of full awareness but the bodymind is listening in and moving about nevertheless.)

Now consider the following hypothetical scenario. You are called into your boss' office on a Friday afternoon and you're told that you are being laid off and you have 20 minutes to clear out your desk. You will be escorted while you do that and then out of the building. No matter how "you cut it" that's big. Even if you knew that there had been several layoffs already in your company and you knew that there was another round about to happen. When it "hits" you it's big. Would that be a stun or a shock?

It's pretty clear it would be a significant event for most people. Few would walk away whistling a happy tune and feeling that it had little immediate impact, although it is conceivable that some would take it as a desired event. For example, if a person really hated their job and they were having a difficult time deciding whether or when to leave the job, this may provide the needed impetus to pursue other things which he or she had been thinking about as a possibility for work. Or a person who was planning on handing in their resignation the following week, it could be seen as a stroke of fortune, especially if there is a severance package involved.

The person goes into "overload." The less they had anticipated it, and the less they had prepared what and how they would handle the situation the more the overload would immobilize them. In some situations the immobilization may not be a negative, in fact it could be a positive development. The immobilization could be acting like a "shock absorber." It helps to dampen the sudden effect so the system isn't jarred too aggressively.

Stuns are probably inevitable in life and, in a sense, we should not try to insulate ourselves from any exposure to them. It's helpful to remember that it's not a "hothouse world" out there. Being delicate may be good for sensitivity, etc., but it doesn't help in what can at times be a rough and tumble world. Neither do we want to become so insensitive that we don't experience these shifts. So it would seem that we have to be sensitive enough to register differences but at the same time, as the stun level goes up, to not go into a state of collapse.

In my next post I plan to talk more about a few lessons from history and how we can learn how to buffer ourselves for big changes in our lives.

The Continuing Saga of Television Withdrawal - or: "I must be getting better"

I watched just enough TV yesterday to see the Patriots pull off a sweet win over San Diego. Sweet.

Then, and this amazed me, I completely forgot about the 2 hour first show of the season for "24." That used to be one of my must-see shows. But in the early days of the (internal) change last year I found myself turning it off more and more frequently. Watching the adrenaline junkie feed his addiction for more adrenaline and watching him doing whatever it took to accomplish his task, twitching all the time, and having all that all doled out in 15 minute "cliff hangers" just got to be just too much.

Let's see, they had action - non-stop; betrayal - ongoing; torture - in the name of what choice do we have; an opportunity to break every law you can think of - in the name of expediency; torture and brutality - did I mention torture and brutality; governmental incompetence - well maybe not too far off that mark; and non-stop miraculous recoveries from just about every life-altering accident you could imagine. What's not to like?

I publicly apologize to my wife for a season or two of getting hooked into that program and telling her: "not now honey." The only lame excuse I can come up with is that I was suffering from television addiction.

"They" are so good at it. The marketeers. Here is what I think is their master trick: they hook you in the same way as they do for potato chips, ice cream, movies, must-have gadgets...they identify a deep need / wish / desire and then they offer all kinds of sizzle which "promises" to fill that need. And the interesting thing is they are able to do that from the first bite or the first viewing.

Well, they sort of meet the need. I think what they do is create an experience in such a way that you have a sense of the need being met - momentarily. And then the only way you can go further is to come back for more. And, you got it, they have the coming attractions for that program and for other programs of the same genre. Open mouth, shut mind, bite the hook and ask for more.

Of course this all has to be done with much hoopla so you don't think too much about it. If you did think about it you would find a better way of entertaining yourself and then maybe you wouldn't feel so empty. The emptiness has to be perpetuated to keep you coming back. That must be a bit what it's like to be hooked on crack.

Tonight, the truth must be told, I turned on "24" for about 3 twitches of the adrenaline junkie, one car crash from which both people walked away without so much as a stretch of the neck or back, driving to endanger multiple innocent people, terrorists all over the place, a gun shot wound, home invasion, a secret package, and .... oh yes, thank you Lord, I found the sanity to push the off button.

My wife said....approximately: well, no I'll leave that out.

Oh, and yes, I filled the artificial void encouraged by the TV world with this posting. Yes!

(Oh, #2, did I say the Patriots won last night? Sweet.)

Go give a hug to someone.

I'm Curious About That Speech Last Night and "The Unthinkable"

Yes, I am curious about the President's speech last night.

We all know that for a speech to be effective the attention of the audience has to be led in certain directions and away from other directions. Starting with that premise, and recognizing that discussion is vitally important, I am mulling over the following questions:

1. Just what are the mistakes which the President is taking responsibility for? If we knew what they were, then at least we would know what he is talking about and then the country could compare notes and know if he is referencing the same mistakes which undoubtedly led to certain consequences at the November elections.

2. What are the consequences which are so "unthinkable" that he doesn't make reference to? To my way of understanding the only thing which is unthinkable is something which is not real, something which you can't imagine. By his saying that those consequences would be unthinkable leads people to too quickly say, "uh-oh, we better not think about that / those things which are so unthinkable that we can't even begin to think about what they are." Huh? And, anyway, on the most basic of levels, hasn't a majority of the whole country been thinking about not "staying (that) course?" So it must be something else that is so unthinkable. Well what is that? Let's get that out on the table so we can then take appropriate steps based on that unthinkable thought.

I heard of a research project years ago where a speaker asked the audience what their most horrible fear of dying was. He then asked them to write it down briefly, and not sign it. The papers were collected and to make the story short, he then later gave the papers to a group of mental health professionals along with another group of papers which were written by people suffering from anxiety disorders. The task of the professionals was to distinguish which diagnostic group had written the fearful (unthinkable) thoughts which would then show that it was a reflection of their diagnostic group. (The papers were anonymous, but they were also marked in such a way that the researchers knew which group the responses were coming from, i.e., from the audience of "normals" or from one of the diagnostic groupings. Since the evaluators did not know which group was which, they were "blinded" in a research sense.)

Guess what: the worst fears were worst with all groups. The evaluators couldn't distinguish "normals" from "people with a formal diagnosis" on the basis of their fears! We all have these unthinkable thoughts. To me, even knowing that we all have them, even though mine will be different from yours, is somehow comforting.

(N.B. I heard this story many years ago. I remember thinking afterwards that I would like to have seen the original research study but have never been able to track it down, but in honesty I haven't really tried all that hard. Nevertheless, in this context I believe it speaks to a vitally important issue.)

If it is so unthinkable, it must be so really terrible that we as a nation would be willing to continue contributing to the chaos over there. What is the titular head of this country saying that we have to avoid ... here ... at all costs?

Is it the consequences of peak oil that we can't talk about? Or of peak debt and the consequences of that? Or of rampant diabetes? Or of not being able to go to pixel heaven and buy the next bigger sized plasma TV?

3. I am curious about which "American interests" he is referring to in his speech. I presume he is talking about oil, oil, oil, but maybe he's referring to other interests. As a curious person I really am curious about what those interests are. I am not saying that as a country, a great country, we shouldn't have national interests, but since he was speaking and appealing to the country directly, I feel I would like to have more clear statements so we can make better informed decisions .

Well, I had been wanting to get back to writing about trance induction and television, and about the importance of the food chain and the importance of an unrushed lifestyle, but they will have to come later.

Perhaps I should also end this posting by saying that maybe there should be no comments added to this post since unthinkable things which many are already thinking anyway might be said and then who knows what that would do to the (un)balanced way of life we don't have.

Turning off the TV and not rushing has helped me to think these thoughts. Is that unthinkable for me to have done those two things?

End Of Year Review...A Few Thoughts

I've had a good year and I feel sorrow that it is ending.

Big on my list for this year was starting this blog and entering the world of blogging. As the slogan on Technorati.com says, "55 million blogs...some of them have to be good," and it has been my good fortune to have come across a number of them already. I have started leaving comments on a number of blogs and in the coming year I hope to continue visiting people in my new neo-community. I hope that others also find my postings interesting and worthwhile.

OK, now here are some of my first thoughts from this past year. I'm happy to say that I've been implementing these and not just "jawing" about them - but there is much room for improvement. Yes, it's all about on-the-job training.

Most important preserve your health - walk, eat better food and minimize junk food, get enough sleep, manage your stress levels well

Know what you're eating

Turn off the TV

Work less at work

Love what is

Every day cultivate a sense of appreciation

Start each day with a walk followed by meditation

Stay present for longer periods of time

Be aware of the dance that in continuing and evolving around you

Choose joy

Use peace of mind as a compass reading

Appreciate the present abundance

Be aware of how most of the comforts of our society weaken us

Pay down all debt

Have a kitchen garden and grow as much as you can (this is way up on my list for next year - a totally new endeavor for me)

Accept uncertainty as a fact of life

It's all about energy

Nothing goes in a straight line for long

Consume less

With dependencies, proactively go through withdrawal

Develop mental toughness

Laugh more

Learn skills that will stand you well in arduous times

Be useful

Compass readings are generally more valuable for me than specifics

I will rush no more!

Happy New Year, and let's do our part to make the world a better place.

Tim

A Brief Comment On Sunning Yourself And Proprioception

For those of you who are interested in keeping your balance - literally - I added an additional brief comment in the posting on Seasonal Affective Disorder dated 11/26/06.

Beautiful sunny day here in Massachusetts. Go Pats!

A Seemingly Quiet Pause

I haven't posted anything for several days partly because of the Holidays and, well frankly, I've been indulging in some laziness.

But there's a further reality here and that is that there is so much I want to express, and the topics are so important, that I am having difficulty choosing which ones to go with first.

A peek into the queue in my mind:

Reactions and thoughts about the video "the Future of Food." The implications for going towards an organic diet become more and more important. Kitchen gardens will similarly become more important for self-sustainability and health and well-being.

Questions about the peak debt and peak oil. Along this line I have been reading a blog: SuddenDebt and anyone who is thinking about the financial picture of the U.S. and the world would do well to take a look and give some thought to what is presented there. By the way, I left several comments on that site as: SimplyTim

Along the line of "waking up" and "elevator pitches" I have been wondering if large numbers of people are simply in trance states, and if that is accurate how that comes about and what people can do to come out of that state. (One definite hunch that I have is that television may be one of the major portals both into, and out of, those states.)

Stay tuned.

"How do you think it's all going to play out?"

I went for a late lunch at Harry's Pastrami Shack on Route 9 in Westborough. I like going around 2:30 in the afternoon because my favorite booth is open and I don't have to feel like a hog sitting there all by myself because there are plenty of other places available.

Walking in, I notice a man who reminded me of Mr. Clean from the old commercial sitting at the table next to "my booth."

My "Mr. Clean!" got a smile in response.

My plan was to have some lunch and read a few pages of Dmitry Orlov's essay: Post-Soviet Lessons for a Post-American Century. I was in the part where he says that "an equally useful quality in a crisis is apathy," when my mind was being drawn to the conversation between Mr. Clean and a couple at the counter.

Counter Guy: "People complain about having to reset their clocks when there's a power outage. (On the TV they were talking about the storm in Denver) But it's much more serious when it's much more serious."

Mr. C: "Big changes in the weather."

Counter Guy: "the spring was worse with all that rain. I work for a pool company and we couldn't put in the pools. We were down $100,000 in receipts by July and there's no way you can regroup after that."

Later, and after Counter Guy leaves, I say, like out of the blue: "how do you think this will all play out?"

He looks at me and I say: "with the weather, the changes."

Mr. C: "Ya don't know. We haven't been there before."

I start talking about my previous posting about climate change and talk about Jim at Big Bear, California (he knew it instantly - I could see him 20 years ago growling up the mountain on a good old fashioned hog) and Laura in Sasketchewan. He listens attentively.

He tells me about how there was "flowering going on, on the north side of PJ Rhodadendruns; 6 months early."

He then goes on talking about the melting arctic ice shelf and how that's all fresh water and how it will upset the current (that circulates from the North Atlantic to the Gulf of Mexico and then up the Eastern seaboard of the States.)

You really have to wonder how this is all going to play out.

For my part I liked how I got into the conversation with the elevator pitch of "how do you think this is all going to play out."

His comment of "ya don't know, we haven't been there before" is incisively spot-on

The other thing I took away from this conversation was how easy it actually turned out to be to "get at" what was going on beneath the surface with the right question.

He offered his hand, we shook and I left.

Needed: A Few Good Elevator Pitches for Global Warming

Here in the northeast the weather is just lovely. Mid-50's today and the Patriots won. What more could you want for the week before Christmas?

On the other hand, all this continuing and truly unseasonable weather is further evidence of a basic planet wide system which is moving further and further "out of whack."

I started Friday by reading a "rant" by Jim at his blog. It's probably not a good idea to starting off my posting with a suggestion that you go and read his post, but that's exactly what I'm going to do. Go now; it's the posting for 12/15/06. While there also read the comments section. Especially the entries from Arcolaura, and mine under the name of SimplyTim. Oh, and by the way, don't forget to come back here for the rest of my post.

Now, where to go with all this. I tested the waters with several people over the past few days. The form of the brief conversations was:

"Beautiful day."

"Yes. But so unseasonable."

"I'll take it anyway. Rather this than snow."

I would put in a few comments, for example, "I wonder if this is what they mean by Climate Change," or "It reminds me of Al Gore's movie - 'An Inconvenient Truth,'" or "Changes are happening."

Well the truth is that I thought those last three comments but didn't give voice to them. Why? Why not say it? Why is it that with so many people who have concern about global warming that they are hesitant to bring those concerns up for discussion? I point the finger at myself as much as anyone else, maybe more so.

The simple truth is that the people I mentioned it to clearly weren't interested in going any further with a serious discussion, at least at that time. (In some of my previous posts I easily went into what could be called an elevator pitch by saying that I had recently taken a "vow...I will rush no more." In those instances, the conversation went from there easily. Why not with this topic? Maybe it's because with rushing almost everyone can identify with it and have multiple examples in their mind. With the weather, with climate, it's too abstract. Maybe that's the real problem here in terms of mobilizing people towards action, towards outrage.)

With one person I said after a pause: "the change is coming."

He said: "Yes."

I had the distinct impression that he was just saying that winter will get here eventually. But there was a question in my mind as to whether he saw what I was saying in a much larger picture but didn't want to get into it.

And that's where I am wondering what some good "elevator pitches" would be. People in business and politics and activists do it all the time. Why are there so many others who are so reluctant to get the message down pat and practise it so that it can bring the conversation a few steps further. I would love to hear what some of your thoughts are.

Arcolaura said that she tends not to come up with quick responses while some others can. My sense is that there was so much depth and perception in her comments that it would be hard to spontaneously come up with them on the spot. That depth requires time and mulling over. However, her ideas perhaps could be shunted back to some of the spinmeisters to polish "pitches" which can break through, or invite more discussion; not just of the presence of changes, but of the implications and also what can or should be done.

Some other thoughts:

1. On NBC nightly news tonight there was an "in-depth report on global warming." I didn't time it, but they think 120 to 180 seconds is sufficient for an in-depth analysis. I won't even say it - yes, I will, are they for real?

There was a "chilling" reference to a new report that it is now thought that all of the ice in the arctic may be gone by 2040. I want to say: "WOW!" But the reality is that I don't know what that really means. I can imagine that it is big but what does it really mean? Maybe that's part of the problem with taking the discussion further with lots of people. The implications for most people are unclear. And with that lack of clarity, it's easier to keep doing business as usual.

A few moments later one of the scientists put it well: "It's what we don't know (about the implications of continued global warming) that concerns me. What are the surprises waiting for us?" Well said. There was a report in the paper yesterday about how they can't find any more dolphins in the Yangtze river. The end of a species, they wondered. I'm sorry, I can't relate to that. Maybe I have this gigantic blind spot but what does that really mean to me? I know it's important but there's that blind spot again - it's like I can't just see over the horizon. Maybe that's where the spinmeisters need to help out with scripts that will move conversations and me as well.

What would be a good example of a sound bite or an elevator pitch which captures one's attention, and seems to stop opposition? Well, when vice president Cheney said: "the American way of life is non-negotiable," it seemed that all discussion stopped for a while. That's powerful. It had the effect, I think, of stopping alternative thinking and by default, let things go on as usual.

Thankfully the discussion didn't stop in my mind and just possibly it didn't in the minds of many others. It takes time to look at that and to see behind the words and the rhetoric. Could it be that in the recent elections that is what the electorate was saying, that the non-negotiability of it all, and the raw power which is used to maintain that position is inherently wrong. Following that logic, the majority of the people didn't really know what has to be done, but they knew that a change had to take place, and they voiced that with their individual votes.

A lot of maybe's here, but maybe that's why the collective "we" don't take the real discussion further, why we don't make a collective decision to slow down, to change direction, because the vice-president was right, that there is a part of us which doesn't want to change. We'd collectively rather rush forward towards maintaining so nothing is lost. But remember, there is the other side in that same collective mind which knows it has to change...but the path, the route, the actions are not as collectively clear. Maybe my elevator pitch to that when combined to global warming is: "I wonder if global warming gives a hoot about the non-negotiable American way of life?"

In a somewhat disjointed way, I keep thinking about that frog in the movie, An Inconvenient Truth; if the heat keeps going up very slowly he doesn't do anything. He doesn't jump until it's a reflex - is that what we're talking about here? It will take a surprise, a threat to not the American way of life, but to the safety of the planet to then change? The nation know that we are collectively taking in too many calories, and yet look at the obesity rates. Now change oil for calories and wonder what would get the "collective" to change. The mind-set which is perpetuating the current direction is monumental and pervasive. The change will have to come from within. It will be a simple awareness, perhaps captured by the clarity of an elevator pitch which is so direct, so stealthy in it's clarity, that it leads vast numbers to shift direction in one way that will make a difference. Then legislation will help the mind-set to move in a direction, not the other way around.

2. As far as I can tell the government has been doing nothing substantive to deal effectively with this problem. Individual politicians appear "green" and will posture this way and that way, but as a whole, the government is deadlocked as usual. I'm basically a pretty conservative guy, but really, the political process on this matter is a joke. Yes, I know how that is a terrible overgeneralization but that's just how I see it. The bigger joke is, I suspect, most people know it, just like most people know that we are witnessing climate changes, but don't know how to move the process forward, for real. What we need is a good "meme" which in it's simplicity changes everything in a positive direction, at least with to the question of global warming.

3. A step in the right direction would be to do what the province of Quebec did, change the speed limit to 60 miles per hour. AND enforce it! Not with giving a ticket if you go 5 miles over the limit, but if you go 1 mile over the limit. My solution would be not to give a financially crippling ticket, just a modest ticket, but take a long time to give it. And then do it again 3 miles down the road, and repeat the process over and again. That would work. It wouldn't solve the whole problem but it would be a step in the right direction.

4. Remember that the basic rule of storms is that they continue until the original imbalance which created them is resolved. If CO2 is one of the major culprits, and we keep producing more and more CO2, and ...

5. A good piece of news may help. I went to two stores today looking for a copy of Al Gore's movie: An Inconvenient Truth, and both stores were sold out.

Addendum: 12/18/06 - My elevator pitch is: "I will rush no more! " Here's why that is so sweet: with that the emphasis is off global warming, and yet it's related. Everyone can identify with the natural balancing which is contained in the mantra, it gets underneath the usual counterarguments. And since rushing is essential to the perpetuation of the life style which we have all been inducted into, to change that piece, from within, one individual at a time, the possibility of "viral marketing" is very real.

Sitting in Traffic

A few days ago I hopped in my car and went out for a sandwich. It was 2 in the afternoon and the weather was just great. I only had 2 blocks to go, and one traffic light. It should be no problem, but guess again.

Getting through that traffic light took 3 light cycles. No problem for me since I was in no rush. I let one woman enter traffic from the right, got a smile from her and an angry honk from the man in the car behind me. No problem for me because I was in no rush and it still took another light cycle before I was at the light. I wonder if my doing some neck rotations while sitting there got him even more angry - he thinking that I might miss a possibility to "move like lightening" if the 15 cars in front of me should somehow magically disappear. The poor sucker, doesn't he know that time pressure kills - slowly?

While I was waiting for my sandwich I watched all the traffic on the major roadway. It was endless. I felt there was some insight which wanted to happen. What came to me was that it would have made much more sense to have walked rather than ridden. My feet, eyes, heart, muscles, my everything would have had more enjoyment had I walked. The problem, and it is a problem, is that even for short distances it is as if we don't even consider using the doggies for transportation any more.

It must surely be a conditioning thing. The hidden expectation is that if we ride, we will be more comfortable. We will save time. We will be protected from "the elements." We will be seen by others riding in a powerful, sexy, well polished car which is not impeded by traffic, and if perchance we stop at a traffic light a stunningly beautiful or handsome member of the opposite sex will admire us. Oh my, what a crock of baloney!

In this instance, for a short "trip," I was comfortable in my car, but not more comfortable than if I had had a leisurely walk. I didn't save any time. And like I wanted to be separated from a beautiful day?

I think it's a conditioning thing and as with all conditioning, it becomes habit and one of the prime characteristics of habit is that, after a while, it is automatic and does not require thinking to intervene. It gives a certain speed and efficiency, but at what cost? At the cost of being alive and conscious and, yes, free. We think we are free because of our cars. There is some truth to that. But on the other hand, what I observe is that most people are captive to their daily "trips." Where is the freedom in that?

I am not yet ready to be car-free, but I do wonder about what it would be like if my wife and I shifted from 2 cars to one. Perhaps 1 car and a bike. Perhaps this spring. Yes, that will be good and it will bring me a step closer towards a further goal I have of being "cage free and free to roam." Why should the chickens have all the fun?

(Addendum - 12/12/06) Another beautiful day today with just a touch of chill in the air. Walked for my sandwich today. Smiled all the way!

New CategorIes for Blogs I Regularly Read

I have begun switching and adding blog categories on the right side of my blog.

Addition #1: Blogs About Lives of Conscious Simplification.

Addition #2: Contemplating BIG Changes.

From time to time I will add more based on relevance, quality of content and the reality that they have been "presented" to me and have earned a space in my mind.

The addition to #2 today is Dmitry Orlov's blog. His material is simply outstanding and I suspect I will be drawing from it in future posts.

Addendum: 12/9/05...by "presented to me" I mean that they seemed to come to my attention without any effort on my part. For some time now I have somewhat trained myself to pay attention to these, shall I say, events, or comings together of readiness and opportunity / information. Another such event was in the dream which I partly related in my first entry when I started this blog.