Epictetus notes some things are up to us and some are not. OK, so about the only thing that is up to us is our beliefs, our judgements, our opinions, and our thoughts. All else is not up to us, that is events, situations, acts of others, and all acts of nature. This sort of defines the wisdom spoken of in the serenity prayer. Now there is a potential power concept.
In the words of Jules Evans, when "we try to exert absolute sovereign control" over something beyond our control, we are in for a world of hurt. If we do not take responsibility for the things in our control, our beliefs and thoughts, and instead blame our thoughts on the outside world; those who we first developed or acquired these thoughts from; we will be in a different world of hurt to walk through. (http://avantlive.wordpress.com/2013/09/07/philosophy-for-life-and-other-dangerous-situations/) , http://philosophyforlife.org/
So there we have it, some things are up to us and some are not. We are responsible only for those things that are up to us, the rest can go toot. Then the reciprocal opens us up to a world of hurt.
So we are responsible for our beliefs, for these I am responsible. Well now, a house cleaning is in order. God is a pronoun for a belief system will still work because that would place my belief system in control, but it really is anyway. The Stoics said our consciousness was a sliver of divinity. OK. so those two separate concepts lead to the same no god place. It is all empty and meaningless until we apply a purpose. But since I am responsible for my belief system, I can change it to anything. What power. A heady experience, this Epictetus concept, and freeing.
Sugar and wheat and that long list of chemicals are not food. It is improper to eat between meals. Nobody knowingly does wrong, according to Socrates. So where does that all lead to? It points to no eating between meals. Everything can be build from first principals.
So, consider what bothering you; is it up to you or others by Epictetus rules or not? Is it our belief that is the issue? Then change our belief to Epictetus and away we go, with tranquility at our back and the joy of life in our heart. Remembering that there is a space between the event, and our interpretation, and that there is a second space between our interpretation and any decision to do anything or react; never forgetting the zero alternative, blanking, we have time to respond or not appropriately.
I have never seen before such a clear concept of we are responsible for our beliefs and can change them at will. We do not need to even see events that are not up to us, we certainly do not need to judge them good or bad, nor even have a response.
Enough.
Sunday, September 21, 2014
Saturday, September 20, 2014
What will you do for recovery?
When I started around the program, I was desperate. Everything was new and I was interesting in studding it all. Of course, that was 2x (or should that be 20+X) years ago, when I was less old. I explored my belief system and and separated out what I believed and knew from all the crap and lies I had been told to believe. You will never believe how brainwashed I had been, through my youth, and early working life. That was all interesting and fun, but now that I have started to rebuild my belief system, I have all this spare time. Much things that I thought important are just time burners.
To me, within program, god is a pronoun for a belief system. What we believe is not of importance, but it may be better if it is true. We people range from the empty, meaningless futility of purposeless existence, to the human has assumed a purpose, and goes out from there, with all his finite daily energy, to fulfill that purpose.
Today I was out training future "potential terrorist" to shoot arrow or darts with a recurve bow. Some ass-hole within government, with their infinite wisdom, has decided we may be "training future terrorists", and now we need to "justify our actions in training". We are just a volunteer club with a 24/7/365 day 20 yard indoor range. How re-dick-u-less petty is the public service anyway?
anyways...
What has this all got to do with keeping busy where food is not. It is just Epicurius statement on death: "were death is, life is not; where life is, death is not; what is death to a living soul (person); it is not (nothing). This is the toggle switch decision. A or B, one has nothing to do with the other; they are mutually exclusive.
Haroldism: I will let you in on a secret; I was not always old.
Ok. Enough. OK.
To me, within program, god is a pronoun for a belief system. What we believe is not of importance, but it may be better if it is true. We people range from the empty, meaningless futility of purposeless existence, to the human has assumed a purpose, and goes out from there, with all his finite daily energy, to fulfill that purpose.
Today I was out training future "potential terrorist" to shoot arrow or darts with a recurve bow. Some ass-hole within government, with their infinite wisdom, has decided we may be "training future terrorists", and now we need to "justify our actions in training". We are just a volunteer club with a 24/7/365 day 20 yard indoor range. How re-dick-u-less petty is the public service anyway?
anyways...
What has this all got to do with keeping busy where food is not. It is just Epicurius statement on death: "were death is, life is not; where life is, death is not; what is death to a living soul (person); it is not (nothing). This is the toggle switch decision. A or B, one has nothing to do with the other; they are mutually exclusive.
Haroldism: I will let you in on a secret; I was not always old.
Ok. Enough. OK.
Wednesday, September 10, 2014
Home again, finally.
It has been a long summer, too many miles. Is it finally back to a routine?
First from around the web more expert bullshit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wE3fyQV_chI
Caused: well maybe not directly, but they often have a major hand in creating the situation where the trained in habitual response was overeating. Much of overeating is trained in, and becomes habitual. We then, as adults need to overcome that early training. Not an easy tasks when overeating/overfeeding becomes cultural. We need to step back from our culture to overcome this problem.
I am not saying they are to blame. We may not have learned what they intended to teach, but overeating is what we learned. It is our first time through life, as it was our parents, but they had a hand on the wheel also. Nobody understood the ditch was there. It was a accidental result of unknowing collaboration, but to hold them blameless is a bit untrue, however, coming from an expert, who is dependent on a parent to select them and pay the bill of any child with eating disorder, I can see why they would say that. Overeating may not be the disorder they are referring to, but it is the most common.
Now on with recovery; the act of living well while not falling back into the habitual / cultural / part of this disease, while living with family in our native to us culture. Not an easy task.
First from around the web more expert bullshit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wE3fyQV_chI
Caused: well maybe not directly, but they often have a major hand in creating the situation where the trained in habitual response was overeating. Much of overeating is trained in, and becomes habitual. We then, as adults need to overcome that early training. Not an easy tasks when overeating/overfeeding becomes cultural. We need to step back from our culture to overcome this problem.
I am not saying they are to blame. We may not have learned what they intended to teach, but overeating is what we learned. It is our first time through life, as it was our parents, but they had a hand on the wheel also. Nobody understood the ditch was there. It was a accidental result of unknowing collaboration, but to hold them blameless is a bit untrue, however, coming from an expert, who is dependent on a parent to select them and pay the bill of any child with eating disorder, I can see why they would say that. Overeating may not be the disorder they are referring to, but it is the most common.
Now on with recovery; the act of living well while not falling back into the habitual / cultural / part of this disease, while living with family in our native to us culture. Not an easy task.
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
Attitude of enough
Recovery is really about a change in attitude. Successful obesity recovery may be as simple as going from a deprivation attitude after a metered meal to an attitude of enough. It is all about learning to control our attitudes.
In the Enchiridons, Epectitus is quoted as saying "the things we control include our judgements, our impulses, our desires, aversions, our mental faculties. Attitudes are not specifically listed but it is likely lost in translation. We can manage our attitudes easier that desires. We just need to strongly believe and affirm the correct proposition. I have had enough already. No more feeling deprived of food. Enough is enough already. It is just as those who take pages to say something but never gets to the take away message. An attitude of "enough" can go along way to correcting the obesity, once we learn to give up all processed foods.
I realized that an attitude of "enough" already can go along way in relief, especially if we apply it to food.I have never seen that stated in any diet book, or self help stuff. We are in control of our attitudes, - those automatic thoughts that we run our lives by.
Apathy, I just do not care, is another good one for relief.
These may define Autism spectrum with it's limited interests, difficulty communicating, and social awkwardness.
Enough.
In the Enchiridons, Epectitus is quoted as saying "the things we control include our judgements, our impulses, our desires, aversions, our mental faculties. Attitudes are not specifically listed but it is likely lost in translation. We can manage our attitudes easier that desires. We just need to strongly believe and affirm the correct proposition. I have had enough already. No more feeling deprived of food. Enough is enough already. It is just as those who take pages to say something but never gets to the take away message. An attitude of "enough" can go along way to correcting the obesity, once we learn to give up all processed foods.
I realized that an attitude of "enough" already can go along way in relief, especially if we apply it to food.I have never seen that stated in any diet book, or self help stuff. We are in control of our attitudes, - those automatic thoughts that we run our lives by.
Apathy, I just do not care, is another good one for relief.
These may define Autism spectrum with it's limited interests, difficulty communicating, and social awkwardness.
Enough.
Thursday, August 21, 2014
KK draft solution
I have spent the last year studding cravings and attitudes, along with
Stoic philosophy, which has taken my mind off in a different direction. I
have found solutions to many problems but unearth more problems without
solutions.
Work is one of those necessary functions that we must endure some of the time, or we can change our attitude, desires, values, beliefs to whatever it takes to make work satisfying and enjoyable. The trick is in changing our attitude, desires, values, beliefs to something that works, and is compatible with our genetic makeup, and our current personality. The problem is in figuring out what needs to be changed in us. Occasionally we may be able to change our environment, but not often. We may need to accept the situation; people, places, things, who inhabit our world.
Our belief system can be used to separate what we can change and cannot change, what we are willing to change, and what we are not willing to change. Development of our belief system is important, along with understanding what needs to be changed and what processes will lead to suitable change.
Eating issues are the products of numerous things (log normal distribution), including expecting to get too much out of ourselves, expectations of others, of things, and expectations in general. We will always fail unless we have automatic obtained goals or expectations.
The wage slave solution can be improved by: the goal is spend x hours at y. Satisfaction is easy to achieve.
But what do I know?
Work is one of those necessary functions that we must endure some of the time, or we can change our attitude, desires, values, beliefs to whatever it takes to make work satisfying and enjoyable. The trick is in changing our attitude, desires, values, beliefs to something that works, and is compatible with our genetic makeup, and our current personality. The problem is in figuring out what needs to be changed in us. Occasionally we may be able to change our environment, but not often. We may need to accept the situation; people, places, things, who inhabit our world.
Our belief system can be used to separate what we can change and cannot change, what we are willing to change, and what we are not willing to change. Development of our belief system is important, along with understanding what needs to be changed and what processes will lead to suitable change.
Eating issues are the products of numerous things (log normal distribution), including expecting to get too much out of ourselves, expectations of others, of things, and expectations in general. We will always fail unless we have automatic obtained goals or expectations.
The wage slave solution can be improved by: the goal is spend x hours at y. Satisfaction is easy to achieve.
But what do I know?
Monday, August 18, 2014
Mor contemplation
Could this whole problem be a personality characteristic that has been whetted over the years, starting from genetic characteristic? A desire for more, it it were money it would be greed, but then greed is not exclusive to money. Is the desire whetted by comparing myself to others. I will always be found lacking, for in any one field there will always be someone better. Remember, on average, that a full one half of the population is smarter than average. Comparing is all we have to judge our progress, tests in school, jobs, our inability in academics, English, or athletics. But then how about work, production volumes, impatience with others who want to dilly dally around with something that would take me 5 minutes?
Stoic stuff this AM, I realized the goal should not to be happy, but to be satisfied. Big difference. Satisfaction is easily possible but doing right, living virtuously, without consideration for the outcome. Time does not enter in to the equation. It is not unlike the archer, who purpose is to hit the target (500 mm x 500 mms) , not the yellow (120 mm dia circle in the center). Or just to fire the arrows at the target, without concern for where they hit. Success is assured.
The process of knowing what we have control of, and only being responsible for that is a big relief. Living only in the present, is wonderful. Revisiting my values, beliefs, and attitudes - precepts and doctrine - and cleaning that which does not work has helped. Living without hurry, for today is all we have, but taking the time I need also has helped.
But then what do I know. Sophrosune, (or perhaps sophrosyne in englishs) a lovely Greek word, knowing yourself, humility without judgement, and self control, mental hygiene, all in one. Enough
Stoic stuff this AM, I realized the goal should not to be happy, but to be satisfied. Big difference. Satisfaction is easily possible but doing right, living virtuously, without consideration for the outcome. Time does not enter in to the equation. It is not unlike the archer, who purpose is to hit the target (500 mm x 500 mms) , not the yellow (120 mm dia circle in the center). Or just to fire the arrows at the target, without concern for where they hit. Success is assured.
The process of knowing what we have control of, and only being responsible for that is a big relief. Living only in the present, is wonderful. Revisiting my values, beliefs, and attitudes - precepts and doctrine - and cleaning that which does not work has helped. Living without hurry, for today is all we have, but taking the time I need also has helped.
But then what do I know. Sophrosune, (or perhaps sophrosyne in englishs) a lovely Greek word, knowing yourself, humility without judgement, and self control, mental hygiene, all in one. Enough
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