22 sats \ 0 replies \ @486DX2 9h \ parent \ on: Looking to broaden my music taste ♬♪ Music
Fast Slow Disco (Live) by St Vincent
'Beware The Beast' is great too.
There's a quote that says:
"Don't promise when you're happy. Don't reply when you're angry and don't decide when you're sad."
It's so easy now to respond to anything immediately. Anonymous keyboard warriors everywhere; a bit like 'road rage' but with less personal consequence.
The older I've gotten the more I've realised 'right' and 'wrong' are all subjective, anything that comes out of someone's mouth is an opinion from thier point of view. Someone's point of view is dependent on their personal history of experience. It's a wonder humans get along as well as they do.
An anology I like to think about is a star consellation. We all know what the 'plough' or 'big dipper' looks like right? Well, we don't really, we only know if from our position in space. From another star system, another perspective it would look totally different and as you got closer it would look like nothing at all because ultimately 'it' doesn't even exist. Most things are like this, we perceive something but it's an illusion of an object which is just a combination of lots of other individual parts which themselves are too a combination of smaller parts ad-infinitum.
So what are we really fighting about?
Perhaps it's just good ol' competition and a distorted version of survival of the fittest?
Ever since the first life forms evolved out of the primordeal soup all species have been competitive. Most human lives have become abstracted from true competition for food and survival and yet that survival instinct is still there doing it's thing deep inside us. We convert it into more supposedly 'civilised' channels like sporting events or games or just arguments. I think we have a long way to go before we realise 'winning' is no longer necessary for the most part.
I would say always leave some space and time to consider your answer before arguing your point of view. First put yourself in you opponent's shoes and ask yourself how they got to where they are. Just because someone says something confidently or angrily doesn't mean it's right, but it also doesn't mean you need to get angry and call them out over it. Most times it's not worth it.
Think how hard people find it to change themselves - what chance have they got changing someone else?
But, hey, that's just all an opinion.
I neglected my health until I reached the grand old age of 44. I had sat at a desk for 20 years and the only excercise I did was a bit of walking and cycling. I noticed a pot-belly growing out from me and something clicked in my mind.
My body had been good to me allowing me to eat and drink most things and yet stay slim (weighing about 9.5 stone) but it felt like the payback time had arrived. I had to make make a change and commit now or I never would.
I found out about 'skinny fat' which is where outwardly you look ok (kinda shapeless with no definition) but inside is a significant amount of bad fat surrounding organs. I found out that we lose 1% muscle mass after age 30. I had some serious work to do if I wanted to be able to get out of the bath at age 65.
I started doing weights at home with dumbells and progressed to a bench and barbell. It was hard at first, I felt a bit ridiculous infront of my family (puny man syndrome) and I suffered a couple of minor injuries. I started to eat better as I learnt more about what I was doing. I got stronger and could lift more.
Motivation was hard, really hard; doing the same routine and noticing little change even after 6 months. I started to understand what the word discipline really meant.
I started to sleep better and had more energy. I enjoyed the post workout feeling. I thought I could actually see a change in my physique (still had the pot-belly) but my arms, chest and shoulders were looking a little more defined. I had less coughs and colds even when the rest of my family had them.
I went camping about a year after starting and a guy I didn't know asked me if I worked out. I was amazed, it felt incredible, a compliment from someone independent who could see I was working hard and that work was making a difference.
The weights were still boring. Lifting iron repeatedly in your garage is not a lot of fun. I started to listen to audiobooks which meant I could perhaps learn something whilst excercising.
It dawned on me that I was doing something, earning something that no amount of money can't buy. I was increasing my muscle-mass AND educating myself at the same time.
"The trophy is earned in the hours when no one is watching" This has become my mantra. I don't talk about my workouts much unless people ask.
The time spent alone working out has become a cherished time for me. It's my downtime that clears my head and resets everything; no matter what crap is going down.
I now weigh nearly 12 stone having gained nearly 3 stone of muscle over three years which for a skinny old man like me feels pretty good. I've listened to twenty books over the past year. I'm stronger and wiser. I haven't looked back and don't plan to.
It's possible to change who you are even later in life but you have to want to change. This sounds obvious but what I mean is that you can't go in to it and remain the same person you were before. You will change into a different person who looks at things differently and you have to accept that change.
"Becoming strong doesn't start in the gym, it starts in your head"
Really?! Is it hidden away in the OS T&Cs? Seems an overreach to be able to eavesdrop without making it quite clear that's what's happening.
Harry Potter. Any of them. Just feels like it's a bunch of ideas from Tolkein and StarWars stitched together whilst following round an annoying kid.