Archive for the ‘Living in the Green’ Category

Peer:

• noun, a person of equal standing with another; somebody who is the equal of somebody else, eg. in age or social class.
• verb, to “peer” is to look closely; to look very carefully or hard, especially at somebody or something that is difficult to see, often with narrowed eyes.

Have you peered at your peers, lately? Do they look, act and eat alike?

The New York Times and the New York Times Magazine have reported a particular peer-related study on obesity, asking the question, "do your friends make you fat?" The study concluded that when someone gains weight, their friends tend to gain weight, too.

The findings suggested that especially good friends seem to be the prime enablers in encouraging and influencing others to join them in overeating and in resulting obesity, which gives credence to the quote, "you are known by the company you keep"!

It’s no surprise that we tend to associate with people who share common likes or habits; including recreational eating, among others. Friends do share common habits and, according to this study, common maladies. Some may have hypertension in common; some share inebriation, and now, buddy eating is a confirmed cause of obesity. The opposite is also true, as the same study pointed out, that skinny people tend to "make" their friends skinny and/or mutually adhere to a chosen set of social eating habits.

For some people in some situations, it’s just not cool to stand out from the crowd. Unfortunately, many of us end up on the heavy end — perhaps, literally — of unhealthy habits and patterns by not trusting our instincts and better judgment, but opting for popularity among our peers. Over-eating; over-dieting, over anything that throws us off balance, over the top and out of the green, interferes with a full and healthy life, physically and psychologically. As a society, we seem almost driven to be noticed; not by singularity but by group consensus.

These are clearly stressful YELLOW and RED social messages that surround so many aspects of our lives, tamper with our self images and self worth, and can’t help but spill over into our work rhythms; to our co-workers; to our home environments and the loved ones who share it; and to other friends and acquaintances. The concept of socializing in the green — or doing anything in the green, for that matter — is severely threatened by peer pressure to "belong".

It’s just a matter of time before we run into problems if we start to believe that there’s something wrong with us if we don’t object to being cloned by the people we call peers and friends.

A guiding factor, in choosing friends — particularly green ones — is to make sure that they care about, respect and appreciate you for who you are, not for your suitability as a new addition to their group.

It’s uncomfortable to incorporate foreign behaviors or actions that don’t come naturally into daily living. So, if it doesn’t feel green and give you an uplifting dose of oxygen (and allow you to do the same) think twice before you become enmeshed in relationships that go against your important core life principles.

Staying true to ourselves, our core values, the lessons we learn from life and, of course, the Oxygen Plan, make socializing in bright green a very attainable goal. Healthy, green, social interactions bring discovery and positive, lasting benefits, and that unmistakable feeling of being completely at ease and comfortable with yourself and with those around you. That’s the healthy mindset of green groups of friends. Making confident, positive green social choices lets you become and share a joyful you with the world, not an unhealthy replica of something you aren’t.

Posted in Living in the Green, The Oxygen Plan |

For many people, February is the time of year when some of us, well… stagnate. Things around us just seem to slow down or run on auto pilot after the holidays pass; after the snow begins to melt (or clobber us, again), after people prepare their income taxes and learn they may have had more money last year and will have even less of it after they pay Uncle Sam, this year! Business activity and expenditures generally decline or tighten. Personal or household purchases may be limited. For many, February is a time of hibernation — at home, at work and socially.

Think back, for a moment, about your February, 2011. What green people, places and things have graced your life in the preceding 4 weeks?

• Did you spend the kind of green quality time with friends and family that renew and refresh you?
• Did you bring your partner flowers, for no reason at all, or spend lots of quality time with a child child?
• Did you change your scenery and sensory intake with short weekend trips or even go on a major vacation or take a cruise to some idyllic island paradise?
• Did you rediscover the timeless thrill of going to your favorite art or history museum?
• Did you run into an old friend and enjoy a cup of hot, freshly-brewed coffee together and catch up on old times?
• Or, did you take a vacation of the mind?
• Did you stock up on the books and magazines and lose yourself in some fantastic plot?
• Did you visit Italy by faithfully watching the Food Channel and by grabbing some incredible recipes that will really impress your guests?
• Did you create a scrapbook of an extra special event?
• Did you take painting lessons and produce a masterpiece?
• Did you do something good for someone else, like volunteering to read to kids at the local library; joining a theatre group (not all the jobs are onstage and every theatre company always needs help behind the scenes!) to usher or help build sets?

Doing something for someone who can’t do it themselves or who, perhaps, have never been exposed to certain kindnesses, makes the worth of our green deeds so amazingly high, for both parties!

Helping out at the local animal shelter will fill you with more green experiences, than you ever can imagine. Who doesn’t melt when an innocent little puppy licks your face and touches your heart?

In Freetown, Massachusetts, for example, the "Save Skippy" campaign is underway to rescue Skippy, a young golden retriever, who is at the center of an "owner neglect" issue. People from around the country and even Canada have expressed interest in fostering or adopting Skippy, as their own. This outpouring of concern and kind offers humble those involved and those who follow the story. Advocating for a living creature that cannot participate in his own fate is probably one of the most selflessly green things a person can do.

This particular story, in fact, shows people like you and me, reacting to an individual’s (the owner’s) very RED behavior by providing a very GREEN solution. Here, quite simply, is The Oxygen Plan, at work. The benefits of the plan, when applied to a very simple life situation such as this, are crystal clear, self-identifying and there, for the taking.

While you’re at it, give a quick look back at your year. What were the highs? What were the lows? Like Journaling, looking back at the big picture — or a solid year’s worth of activities and developments — gives us enough distance to see patterns, categories, actions and decisions regarding stressful issues and the strategies we used to deal with them — successfully or unsuccessfully.

Remember, that whatever you did to fill your month 02 with 02 can be repeated again and again!

Posted in Living in the Green, The Oxygen Plan |

Mother Nature has a very determined way of taking us from season to season, often ignoring what the calendar says and the plans we’ve written on it. Even though it’s now early June, in many parts of the country temperatures are gently warming, skies are clearing, trees are blooming, breezes are milder. It just feels like summer is impatiently waiting to arrive

Of all the seasons, spring and especially summer, hold the promise of good times to come in the greater outdoors (or in a place with refreshing AC!). Depending on what and who your “oxygenators” are, the balmy days of summer invite us to do our green things in the green, literally.

The onset of summer also signals the longest school break in the year, for kids who are counting down their last official days in the classroom.

Yet, when the thrill of not having to go to school for roughly two months begins to wear off, parents will invariably hear the universal sound of boredom coming from the mouths of their little darlings: “THERE’S NOTHING TO DO!”

This is actually a cry for oxygen; for mobility, for diversion; for nurturing and fun experiences that differ from those found in school books or classrooms.

The first step for any parent who values their sanity is to sweetly reply, “Sure there is!” (Just make sure you have back-up plans in your bag of tricks.) If you’ve just begun The Oxygen Plan, this may be the perfect time to set or review your Life Rules!

Arranging play dates for your kids would seem to be one of the first, less stressful things you can do, rather than embarking on full-fledged, cross-country camping expeditions. You know what you and your kids can handle!

When kids play with their friends, they are participating in solid, green opportunities to imagine and pretend without having to hurry home and do homework. If you or a neighbor has a backyard pool, consider the fact that your kids are not just flopping around and splashing water on dry adults, but that they are also exercising muscles in a different way and absorbing the benefits of inhaling and exhaling oxygen in a natural way, in a natural setting.

Schedules ‘ yours and theirs ‘ necessarily change, and so do eating habits. Chances are you’ll be cooking on the grill more and relying on simple fare at meal time. Eating outside, or anywhere that is not the kitchen, is a fun change for kids. Make it fun for you and your grown-up friends, too! Indulge in some delicious cooling drinks or whip up a new mango salsa.

Think of days spent at the zoo or the local park as educational experiences. (Just don’t tell the kids that they might learn something if they go. That’s a sure-fire way to sabotage their enthusiasm.) If they do go to summer camp and like the experience, they’ll be absorbing life lessons every day, anyway.

And if there are visits to friends and family on the horizon, remember that you love your kids, but cannot always obsess over what they will say, when they will say it and to whom! There’s no excuse for outright bad manners, but they are young and preciously unworldly!

Your own Oxygen Plan for the summer should, above all else, give you the green experiences which have nurtured you, all along. Summer break can be challenging for parents, but it doesn’t have to be a test of endurance; nor does it have to be action-packed each and every moment.

Remember your commitment to yourself; to live in the green and welcome refreshing experiences that enhance the best you! Whatever gets you there will keep you there this summer and all year round.

Posted in Living in the Green, The Oxygen Plan |