Brain Resilience

Interest

2012-01-02T06:04:00.002-06:00

Live with interest and zest in 2012. Keep your spirits up and engage in activities that inspire and interest you. Overcome obstacles and press on with liveliness and energy. Life is short, live it to the full! Live up to your potential, listen to your inner voice. Make time for your inner voice and be gentle to yourself.

My new favorite poem for 2012 is Desiderata. "Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle to yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars, you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should."

Move with confidence in the New Year! Embrace new opportunities and look for growth in yourself. Plan for the next twenty years. This is the Kindergarten of your life. Use a beginner's mind to take a fresh look at everything that you have achieved and realize your good fortune. You are much better off than so many people in the world. Be grateful, live with an attitude of gratefulness.

The past two days were spent with my young nephew and niece and their fresh outlook has helped me to refocus and recharge my mind. I am grateful for this time with them.

No stone unturned

2010-08-27T14:24:00.002-05:00

At the end of the day, I would like to say that I did not leave any stone unturned in my endeavors. Success requires perseverance. Every idea and thought needs to be pursued with diligence. Every contact needs to be followed up.

No laziness!

Mental inertia is an indication that you do not have interest and/or determination to succeed. Both interest and determination are essential to success.

Every down moment needs to be faced with determination and courage. Don't stay down, get up now! Do it now!

Examine every option and follow its path until it reaches a dead end or it evolves or bifurcates into another path. Keep hustling. Get one more ball back in play!

Grit!

Zestful Living

2010-07-18T08:30:00.003-05:00

I want to feel totally alive and vibrant all the time. Down times are terrible.

I had a totally wonderful day in downtown Milwaukee with Usha yesterday. The high that I got out of experiencing the photo walk on the streets of Milwaukee is now a low, the next morning, with the realization of duties that have to be completed. Open loops of work that needs to be done.

Yesterday afternoon, we walked from our condo to Duke's. It was a very short walk and Usha and I chuckled about the location of our condo. We've been feeling joyous about our condo every since we bought it two months ago.

It was beautiful, sunny, summer day and perfect for an outing. Usha had on her "Fresh Cut Collective" shirt and both took our Canon cameras. Let me make clear that Usha is the photographer and I am not. Yesterday, for the first time, I accompanied her on a photo walk. It did not seem right to go along without a camera. Usha has several cameras - she upgrades them - her not so new Canon 5D was available.

Ongoing pull

2010-06-30T09:53:00.000-05:00

I have an ongoing pull to continue my work in brain fitness. I wish that I could make a living out of it. I wish that I could break into my passion totally!

Dana Blog

2009-12-20T19:17:00.000-06:00

http://danapress.typepad.com/weblog/2009/12/society-for-neuroscience-posts-conversation-with-magicians.html

Prepared mind

2008-12-06T10:56:00.003-06:00

Off-load all the baggage so that you are able to concentrate in the moment. Stop brooding over a problem, instead do something to solve the problem. Act on it, don't brood on it.

How to consistently "hit the clear key" on brooding? This is the challenge.

Exercise helps me if I am not too tired after the exercising. Today, I played a crisp game of tennis and then had a protein shake after I came home. I continued to stay as focused after tennis as when I was playing tennis. I came home determined to sit and blog and now I am doing it.

The uncertainty of the next shot from the opponent is no longer an issue in tennis if I approach it with a "prepared mind". I can use relaxed concentration to respond to where the ball is hit. Some anticipation is useful. Too much anticipation can make you lean the wrong way.

Same thing with my personal to-do list. When I make a to-do list, I "hit the clear key" on the feeling of being overwhelmed about everything that I have to accomplish. One by one I cross-off the tasks on my to-do list. One shot at a time on the tennis court. Play the shot and be prepared for the next one to come back over the net. Respond to the next shot and so on.

I wish that I could to articulate a set rules to make this happen consistently. Some days I am able to have the prepared mind better than on other days. How to minimize the other days?

How to have a prepared mind at least 80% of the time?

How to Feel

2008-12-04T18:39:00.002-06:00

I need to start feeling my feelings again! I must not bottle up my feelings and let them fester inside me.

Distractions

2008-11-30T20:29:00.002-06:00

It is difficult to stay focused on task when you are surfing the internet. When I search for a piece of information, I get the information but then I get interested in something else and it takes away another hour of my precious time. It is very disconcerting to me. I need to stay on task. No distractions.

This weekend I have significantly improved my understanding of different memory systems. Recent research has focused on the difference in roles of the striatum and the hippocampus. I have to find a way to include this understanding in my presentations.

Anticipation

2008-11-28T11:37:00.003-06:00

I am feeling anticipation for novel creative expression in my life. An outlet for a being within me that needs to speak and is looking for a breakthrough into the open field/court. There is a bubbling feeling of anticipation of things to come that I will not be able to control. I will have to let go and let things happen as they will. I have held back this creative expression for too long and it is applying a pressure on me that is compelling and determined in nature.

Reading Og Mandino's "The Greatest Salesman in the World" , again after all these years, has made think about renewing my determination to succeed. My determination is stronger and getting stronger. I will succeed. I will act upon my feelings of creativity. I feel an anticipation of great success to come.

My time is now and I am going to win. I will overcome my feelings of fear. I will face and overcome the things that intimidate me.
These are my words. This is my fire-in-the-belly. I own my success. Nothing can hold me back if I am determined and dedicated enough to succeed.

Come into my world

2008-11-27T21:09:00.003-06:00

Enter my sanctuary

I have a story to share

It is relevant to you

It will help you

Stay here in my sanctuary

Awhile

Listen to the flute and sitar

Calm down

Enjoy the moment

Come here won't you?

I care about you

I do

Stay here in my sanctuary

Awhile

Listen to the waves

As they splash onto

the rocks

Splash ripple ripple

I love you

Come into my world

Making it snappy - boosting your energy

2008-11-27T17:35:00.004-06:00

Picking myself up when I'm down is a process! I mean it, it is a process! I wish it was as simple as snapping my fingers.

I mean like in the song "Spoon Full of Sugar" (in the movie, Mary Poppins):

"In ev'ry job that must be done
There is an element of fun
you find the fun and snap!
The job's a game"

How to: Find the fun and snap ?!
How to: Turn a job into a game ?!
How to: Find an element of fun in every job that must be done ?!

Keep it moving, roll with your intuition and stop thinking so much!

Excerpt from "Swann's Way" by Marcel Proust

2008-11-21T21:27:00.003-06:00

I've always marveled at Proust's description of memory. Tonight, I awoke in my bed after having slept at 6:30 pm and it is now only about 9:30 pm. I was able to compare how I felt with Proust's description of a similar moment.

"but then the memory - not yet of the place in which I was, but of various other places where I had lived and might now very possibly be - would come like a rope let down from heaven to draw me up out of the abyss of not-being, from which I could never have escaped by myself: in a flash I would traverse centuries of civilization, and out of a blurred glimpse of oil-lamps, then of shirts with turned-down collars, would gradually piece together the original components of my ego."

Perhaps this sleep that I had was a continuation of my distracted recollections, earlier today, of a time about twenty three years ago when I was a doctoral student. The abyss of not-being is analogous to the time-bubble that I had created around me while remembering my aspirations while I was a graduate student. I had traversed a quarter-century to explore a blurred recollection of the person that I was and had returned with regrets about things that could have been.

Narrative Generating Mind Wandering

2008-11-15T15:08:00.002-06:00

This phrase has been sitting written on a Post-it note on my desk at work for some weeks now. I have not thrown it away because it strikes a chord in me every time I see it. It is a reminder that the story in my mind can take my focus away from the task at hand. It is a reminder to stay centered in my firm place. After all these weeks of not blogging, I return to the concept of firm place. It is a lasting idea. I don't think that I would recognize the gal who gave that presentation but the concept that she talked about has lasting value. The Post-it on my desk triggered my thought back in this direction and the thought I had as I awoke from a nap this afternoon about the importance of "chunking it" for ease of memory have combined to make me write in my blog again.

Also, reminds me about the 1944 Gilkey sermon wherein he talks about an hourglass and the sand going through one grain at a time. To stop get getting overwhelmed, we must think of an hourglass. Life can happen only one moment at a time. Memories are built one chunk at a time. "Cinch by the inch; hard by the yard"

Focusing on the moment of importance; staying in your firm place!

Emil Coue: "Every day in every way, I am getting better and better!"

Note that we don't say every day we get perfect! Don't let perfect get in the way of better!

Don''t let your mind run away with you

2008-06-14T17:08:00.003-05:00

Concentration is the key to success in everything I do. I do well when I concentrate and I don't do well when I get distracted. It is a simple as that. As long as I stay focused on the task I am comfortable and in the zone. When I let my mind run away with me, I am find myself in some other place and I stumble and fall.

It goes back to the firm place that Jackie talked about during the POLs by the Public Allies yesterday. As long as I am focused on a firm place in mind and centered on the task at hand, I am going to be successful. The firm place in my mind is key to my ability to be strong in tough situations. The firm place or my "good inner voice" helps be in touch with my inner strength and draw upon it when I need it.

My mind runs away with me when I am caught up in a circle of concern and get worried about what others will think about me if I fail. If I proceed fearlessly, I win. If I proceed fearfully, the world smells the fear and takes advantage of it. This is my constant battle. I want to be loving toward the world but in the process of that friendliness I get caught up in a circle of concern. The world would be much friendlier to me if I was in my circle of influence and succeeding in my efforts.

Thank you Jackie for reminding to think about my firm place and my circle of influence. Thank you also for helping me connect meditation with the discovery of my circle of influence. Discovery of my firm place leads to a centering that helps me perform better in the world.

Jackie, Jackie, Jackie!

Cope with uncertainity

2008-06-08T22:17:00.004-05:00

It is very important to learn how to cope with uncertainity. Life is all about uncertainity. We cannot be sure what is going to happen in the future. All we have is the present and we can influence the present. By focusing on taking the right steps now we work towards a more predictable future.

Inner strength

2008-06-08T21:57:00.002-05:00

Learn to listen to your inner voice and develop inner strength. This will help you with your brain resilience. Replace worry with work.

Sometimes it is really difficult to identify your inner voice and encourage it to continue to talk to you. Your inner voice is your strength, it is your faith in your abilities. Your inner voice is your accumulated wisdom, listen to it!

Resilience

2008-06-08T21:52:00.002-05:00

Resilience is about getting up when you are down. It is about fight instead of flight. It is about believing in yourself even if you don't have the strength to believe. Brain resilience is about having confidence in your brain fitness.

It starts with a commitment to success. Resilience is about fighting for each point like it is the match point. Resilience is about not quitting.

Learning about Labyrinths

2008-01-25T09:36:00.001-06:00

See link:
http://www.lessons4living.com/learning.htm

Labyrinth Walks - Life Coaching

2008-01-25T09:20:00.000-06:00

The following is quoted from the website
http://www.lifecoachtherapy.com/content/labyrinthWalks/

What is a labyrinth and where does it come from?

Labyrinths have been in existence for over 4,000 years. Over the years people, cultures and traditions have used the labyrinth in their search for meaning and guidance. Labyrinths are usually single (unicursal) pathways that lead to the center of the pattern and then back out by retracing the same path. Unlike mazes, one cannot become lost or trapped. A labyrinth provides a sacred space. It invites the walker to set aside the cares of the world and to enter into the realm of the Holy. It quiets the mind and opens the soul. It inspires change and renewal.

To walk the labyrinth is to make a pilgrimage, to discover something about ourselves and our life. The destination is not important, the journey is. The labyrinth is a path for prayer and meditation. It echoes the turns and twists of life. The best way to learn about it is to walk it – with an open heart and an open mind – and experience your own sacred response. There is no right way or wrong way to walk the path. Relax and enjoy the experience.

Labyrinth - a whole brain experience:

2008-01-25T08:59:00.000-06:00

The following is taken from the website:
http://www.samurai-of-light.com/labyrinth.html

The Power of the Labyrinth

Psychiatrist Carl Jung called the labyrinth an "archetype of transformation". The
effect of the winding walkway results in the synchronization of the left and right
hemispheres of the brain, allowing for "whole brain" thinking and the union of the
analytical and feeling selves. This whole brain synchronization leads to altered
states of consciousness and powerful opportunities for transformation.

Some say the path of the labyrinth - as it winds around and doubles back on itself
- becomes a mirror for where we are in our lives and thus opens us to powerful
insights. Entering into the labyrinth - the journey towards the center is often
considered the stage of letting go...of our anger, self-pity, judgement, control
- those things that cut us off from our own Divine Center.We arrive in the center cleansed of the limiting beliefs we released upon our journey inwards and we wait with an open heart and open mind to receive. The center of the labyrinth may be experienced as a powerful vibration, a rush of energy, or simply a calmness
within.

As you journey back out from the center you travel your path with new perspective and new focus. Returning to where you began with a new sense of direction. The commitment to follow that new sense of direction is a choice you have free will to keep.

Guidelines on Walking the Labyrinth
Walking the labyrinth is a very personal journey...there is no "right" way. You may wish to keep the following in mind:

* Let go of any expectation of what you "should" experience..and do not compare your walk to others. Allow any emotions to be expressed...feel free to dance or skip, or simply reflect quietly.
* Walk at your own pace. It is fine to pass the person ahead of you.
* Since the entrance and exit to the labyrinth are the same, you will meet others along the way. You may choose to connect with them soul-to-soul, embrace or simply step aside to let them pass.
* Stay in the center as long as you wish, then follow the path outward.
* Know that the vibration of the labyrinth is multiplied by the number of individuals within it. See each person as one cell in the Greater Being that is the One.
* Some people may wish to bow or pray or touch the ground upon entering or exiting the labyrinth. Allow yourself to follow any impulses that may come to you.

Labyrinth

2008-01-21T19:10:00.000-06:00

Walking a labyrinth is wonderful way to create a whole brain experience. The path weaves to the center and we know that it will reach the center. However, the weaving is so intricate that we soon forget to think about the direction that we take because we know that the path will lead us there. We have faith. So with faith, we proceed along a path and soon our thoughts become focused on the spiritual journey.

Gut memory

2007-11-14T17:10:00.000-06:00

In sports we have muscle memory, in daily life we rely on gut memory. If a memory is internalized enough it becomes a gut memory that we can recall at the snap of our fingers without even trying. Aim for gut memory, and more importantly, trust your gut memory. Just like we have to trust our muscle memory while playing a game like tennis, we have to trust our gut memory in daily living.

Caregiving

2007-11-02T08:42:00.000-05:00

I met with Kari Berit, author of "The Unexpected Caregiver". She articulates the problems of caregiving really well.

Last week

2007-09-05T10:51:00.000-05:00

Last week, I enjoyed presenting to a group of 60 older adults. I think that a major takeaway is the idea that we have to "get it" before worrying about forgetting it. As we get older our eye sight and hearing becoming weaker, we don't see and hear things as well as we used to, and we don't "get it" quite often. Then we hesitate to ask for a repetition of the information, we feel self-conscious. This is the major cause of our downfall.......

Don't be bashful, ask for a restatement or a re-showing of the information! This will a huge difference to your assimilation of information, this will be a huge first step to a better memory.

"If you don't get it, how can you forget it!" It was never in your memory banks in the first place.

Website development

2007-08-27T08:52:00.000-05:00

I am slowly developing a website for my brain fitness presentations. It is more for fun than as a marketing tool.

I do have two lunch time presentations of "Brain Jogging" this week.

Ending my silence

2007-08-10T10:37:00.001-05:00

For the last four months, I have been neglecting this blog. I was somewhat unenthusiastic about life in general. During the last two weeks, I had to teach a class of 16 middle school students and the kids kicked me back into gear! Thank you kids!!

The class was "Lego Mindstorms Robotics" as part of College for Kids at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. See the following link for a robot designed by the kids:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPavLMd1z58

I think that you can see why I am out of my funk now :)

Go and do something different and all of sudden you'll find that life has possibilities!

Attended a presentation

2007-03-25T13:41:00.000-05:00

At St. Luke's, I attended a presentation called "Boost Your Brain" by Michelle Braun, Ph.D., a neuropsychologist. She presented a list of Brain Boosting Tips. I will list them here soon.

Neuroplasticity

2007-02-07T10:48:00.000-06:00

This radio interview is a neat summary of findings that have been available to us now for more than five years.

Article in Washington Post, Dec. 20, 2006

2006-12-20T09:42:00.000-06:00

See link
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/19/AR2006121901431.html

Inner Guide

2006-12-20T05:28:00.000-06:00

The concept of visiting an inner guide or guides exists in the Silva Method. It is also there in a meditation exercise written by Shakti Gawain.

Yesterday, I did a meditation practice with a group of about 10 people at WPSC. I played Dr. Andrew Weil's CD for Optimum Health, the first two to show the importance of breathing, then read one about Inner Sanctuary from Shakti Gawain. Then I played Dr. Andrew Weil's readings on Self-love and Loving kindnesss. I ended by reading one from Shakti Gawain on meeting your Inner Guide.

Our inner wisdom tends to hide from us. Why? It is obfuscated by the pressures of daily living. It is under the surface of daily consciousness and we usually don't make time to turn to it for advice. Meditation makes us turn to our own inner wisdom and makes us take stock of our problems in an objective manner.

There is a deep sense of self assurance that emerges from meditation. I have begun a journey to find my inner guide so that I can reach inside myself to find solace whenever I need it.

My inner guide can take different forms and feel different each time. I am not going to constrain myself to a form or feel or sound.

Inner Sanctuary

2006-11-21T13:43:00.000-06:00

I read Shakti Gawain's meditation exercise about inner sanctuary to a small group this afternoon. The reading had a profound effect on one of them. She was able to articulate the experience to the group. She also said that my style is different from other meditation readers. My voice is louder and it gave a different kind of experience.

Another attendee said that she liked the fact that I allowed her to develop the meditation in her own way in her mind and did not force an experience. She found it be more of a free flow and less intimidating than previous readings.

A third attendee wants to find a recording of meditation so that she can give it to her mother.

Face your Vulnerability

2006-11-07T15:51:00.000-06:00

What are you scared of? Face your fear! The moment you do that this nebulous thing - "fear" - dissipates and you feel a sense of release or freedom.

Allow yourself to be vulnerable! Face your vulnerability! Don't be macho. You will open doors to an entirely new world.

Boredom Alert -

2006-10-24T09:25:00.000-05:00

Do you ever find yourself suddenly feeling apathy? Not caring about the future because the present stinks? Don't worry, you are just bored! Life hasn't presented you with the challenges that can keep you engaged. It's a boredom alert letting you know that you need to find the next mountain to climb.

Just don't make it too high a mountain. That can overwhelm you. A modicum of need for achievement is good for the soul. Too big a goal may look unattainable and throw you into despair.

It all amounts to a balance.

A boredom alert lets you know that your life is out-of-whack. How do you bring your life back to an even keel? How do you stay alert to the possibilities that emerge when you are unbalanced?

Prompts

2006-10-14T18:02:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to remind myself about the word prompt. We used to have prompters sitting patiently at the side of the stage reading along and ready to prompt us if we could not remember our lines. Wouldn't it be wonderful to have a little prompter sitting in our head reminding us about stuff?

I wonder if it is useful to think in terms of a little person in your head that can prompt you whenever you forget someone's name or forget why you went into the other room.

Hmmmmmm

Cleaning - Aroma

2006-10-13T23:20:00.000-05:00

I enjoy washing dishes because of the smell of the dish washing liquid. I enjoy lawn mowing because of the smell of freshly mowed grass. I enjoy a meal more when it smells good. I enjoy the smell of a good wine. I trigger positive associations with good smells.

I recently read somewhere that if you want to pull yourself out of a funk it might help to go and smell something rotten...the example used was horse manure. I wonder if it is possible to pull yourself out of grief by smelling something bad so that you stop your mind from dwelling on the grief.

Eleanor Roosevelt quote

2006-10-05T09:33:00.000-05:00

"No one can make you feel inferior without your consent"

Schedule a date with your creative side

2006-09-30T19:28:00.000-05:00

Daily living requires organization and planning and when all is said and done there seems to be no time for creativity. So trick your organized structure by scheduling a date with your creative side. Set time aside for creativity, just as you would set time aside for meeting with someone. It will be an item on your planner and you have to complete it.

The other side of your brain feels neglected, so make a date with it and pamper it. When it realizes that you care about it, your inner strength will take hold and allow you to flow yourself into the creative venture.

Long before Julia Cameron, there was an author named Dorothea Brande who recommended methods like this. I have been enjoying reading Dorothea Brande's approach to writing. It has allowed me to tap into my inner magic and I have been journaling in my personal journal much more during the last three weeks. Today I thought I would try to do some free writing in this blog.

Dorothea Brande recommends writing one more sentence than you would like to write because you have to reach into your inner thoughts more each time. Once you get used to reach into your inner thoughts and not allow judgement to get in the way of the writing, it becomes easier to become a writer. There is a calming influence of free flowing writing. It is empowering to realized that we can tap into our strengths by resonating with our unconscious thoughts which reveal themselves through our writings.

Laziness or Fear to Think?

2006-09-29T02:13:00.000-05:00

When we don't think through a problem completely, is it that we are lazy or that we fear that all the effort will still get us nowhere?

Let's say that it is laziness. If it is laziness, what can be done to overcome the laziness? Examine the benefits of the effort and motivate yourself more. Give yourself more reasons to be thorough.

Let's say it is fear. Courageously press forward, knowing that the effort in itself is the reward. The outcome may depend on factors that are not entirely in our hands.

Expressions of Gratitude

2006-09-21T11:39:00.000-05:00

Mother knows best...not father....in this regard anyway. My mother expresses her gratitude for her life every day of her life. She is always aware of the gifts that she has in her life.

I wish I could have the discipline of expressing my gratitude each day for my wonderful life. For it is wonderful indeed. I have been fortunate to be born into a wonderful family and I have been blessed in so many ways. Often I wonder if I deserve my good fortune and it makes me want to give back to this world.

Personal Strengths and Anger

2006-09-21T06:17:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I was with the support group at the VA again. Bob had invited me on Monday. I was not sure what to discuss and decided to use a handout that I had created this summer. On side one, I asked them to think about one personal strength. Period.

We went around in the circle and everyone stated one personal strength. Julie, Gloria, Maury, Joe, Bill, Don, Norm, LLew, Bob, Bob, Clarence, and Denise. Somehow, the conversation did turn to anger and I was able to use my other handout where I asked them to list ways to take the "grrr" out of their anger.

I then shared an excerpt from "The Lively Mind" by Jules Willing. I shared that Jules Willing wrote this book when he knew that he had a terminal illness and that he wrote it because he did not want his ideas to get lost with him.

Release the Unease

2006-09-04T20:14:00.000-05:00

To focus on something new for 20 seconds, is that realistic? For example, the lyrics of a song. The new words come at you much faster than that. How do some people have the ability to remember lyrics while others don't? Talent? Unconscious competence?

Or do they have the ability to focus so hard on the lyrics that they do not need 20 seconds? Do they remove all other distractions and bring themselves completely into the present? What's their secret? Do they have the ability to release the unease so much that they can fully absorb new information?

Get rid of the hidden unease

2006-09-04T09:07:00.000-05:00

Without realizing it, we tend to be in a state of unease. The unease pervades our lives......

On Saturday, I got a professional massage for the first time in my life. As Catz massaged me, I discovered that there were many regions of tightness in my body. She had to work on so many knots of tension. I was amazed at the difference it made to me. She was deliberate and methodical and discovered all the tension spots in my body.

This got me to thinking about how the unconsciousness of unease that is in the body is also in the mind. Hidden unease in the mind prevents us from focus on the present. In my presentations, I talk about the importance of concentration for creating strong memories. I talk about distractions. Perhaps, I should start emphasizing the important of getting rid of the hidden unease. Hidden unease could happen due to grief or anger and I have alluded to these as sources of distraction. But like during a massage, maybe I need to find a way to release the tension in the mind due to the hidden unease. I think that I am successful at doing this already but not in a conscious kind of way.

"There's Hope!"

2006-08-03T15:09:00.000-05:00

Pat is in her sixties and today is her birthday. I gave her a copy of this article from Time Magazine, January 2006. See link for .pdf file.
http://cabezalab.org/pdf/Kluger06_Aging_TimeMagazine.pdf

After she read it, her reaction was "There's Hope!" and this from a lady who told me about "Stop the World I Want to Get Off!"

Many, many happy returns of the day, Pat!

Inspiration to be yourself

2006-07-24T02:06:00.000-05:00

Two of Anna Quindlen's books inspire me - "A Short Guide to a Happy Life" and "How Reading Changed my Life".

The link that this post takes you to is a commencement speech by her. It relates to my quest for authenticity.

"Cinch by the inch, hard by the yard"

2006-07-11T14:19:00.000-05:00

One of the attendees in my "Brain Jogging" presentation last December used the above slogan when I said that memorization is easier if the task is broken or distributed into smaller parts.

For example, rather than memorize the names of all the Presidents today, all I need to do is memorize one today and do it thoroughly. So, I repeat to myself a few times, during a time span of about 20 seconds in order to help my working memory, that John Adams was the second President of the United States of America. During twenty seconds, I can say "John Adams was the second President of America" at least six times. It turns out that this allows for effective reinforcement so that I can remember this fact later in the day.

Through this concentration on one fact, I can overlearn this one fact today. And tomorrow, I can overlearn the next fact that is important to me. As I develop a practice of overlearning one fact each day, I develop a practice that is useful for remembering an appointment or a task until I get an opportunity to put it on my calendar or to-do list.

Heightened Consciousness

2006-07-01T21:12:00.000-05:00

How do you get to a state of heightened consciousness or awareness?

It is easier to remember things that you experienced with heightened consciousness - it is not just about emotion.

How do you push your mind into heightened consciousness? If it could be taught, could we improve the sharpness of anyone's mind?

See my previous post on May 5, 2006 entitled "Consciousness"

Excerpts from "Lively Mind" by Jules Willing

2006-06-29T13:17:00.000-05:00

Excerpts from "Lively Mind" by Jules Willing

Chapter IV – Mental Liveliness – What Holds it Back?

If you listen carefully to what people say about their own mental ability, you will observe that most of it is disparaging….I had long thought that this self-disparagement was a form of modesty, a kind of social convention, but I have concluded that it is not; in most cases it is a genuine appraisal. Many people really do deplore their minds, and the adjectives they use are the same they employ in referring to irresponsible children: lazy, undisciplined, wandering, idle.

The consequences are far more serious than one might suppose, for the mind reflects and responds to our own evaluation of it, and this opinion draws the boundaries of our mental universe; our mind will tend to be only as “good” as we think it is.

The only person making the judgements about the value of what is going through your mind is you. This is an enormous responsibility that most of us take very lightly; most of us don’t think of it at all.

Consider this example. An obscure employee in the Swiss patent office – a young man in his twenties named Albert Einstein – had some thoughts about the nature of the universe. Fortunately, he considered them to be significant. Although he had never written a scientific paper, was not associated with any academic institution, did not move in scientific circles, and was ignorant of much of what had been published on the subjects, he wrote not one but five papers, which he mailed to the editor of Annals of Physics. They lacked the usual references and citations, nor were they based on his own laboratory research or experiments. Unlike traditional scientific documents, they were simple statements about what he thought. They were ideas that eventually earned Einstein the Nobel prize and permanently changed our conceptions of time, space, gravity, electromagnetism, and the nature and shape of the universe.

We know this now, but Einstein could not have known that his ideas would have these tremendous consequences. The difference was that the young patent clerk decided his ideas had value. So he wrote them down and sent them in.

Consider what would have happened if, when these ideas passed through his mind, Einstein had considered them to be of interest to no one other than himself, or if he had thought that these ideas were interesting but not important. He would probably have thought about them a while and then gone on to other things. Like so many of the thoughts and ideas all of us have, they would have died in the silence of his mind.

Theoretically, at least, any one of us is capable at any time of generating an idea that might shake the world. It can never cause the slightest tremor, however, until we first:

pay attention to it, and then
decide it is worth expressing to someone else.

Every thought and idea that fails this two-part test passes into mental oblivion. It astonishes me that we take this responsibility so lightly.

My puppet

2006-06-28T14:22:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, I brought my puppet to life during a presentation at WPSC. My puppet is now called Trigger - as in memory trigger. Trigger is a distant cousin of Tigger and looks identical to Tigger. During the past four years, Trigger has been my mascot and not a puppet - now that has changed, thanks to my sister. My sister, Ratnamala Nori, is a puppeteer in Hyderabad India. She uses puppets to educate and entertain us.

When I was talking with her during a recent visit, she made me realize that I was not willing to take a risk and bring my puppet into my presentations. She made me realize that I was doing the very same thing that I urge my attendees not to do. I feared rejection of my puppet - in other words, I was unwilling to risk trying something new. For four years, Trigger has been quiet! Now he has to speak at every presentation.

Tone your memory

2006-06-23T14:39:00.000-05:00

Exercise your brain - it will help you tone your memory...see link!

Sometimes I wish....

2006-06-16T13:27:00.000-05:00

that, as I walk past a shelf of books that I recognize, I could scan all of them into my brain with some kind of chip and register the understanding with some kind of master computer.

Sometimes I wish that, as I get a flood of thoughts and feelings in my brain, I could express myself in writing in a "flash" of brilliance in a way that the whole world would understand me.

Sometimes I wish these things, I do, sigh! My thoughts as one with the world and the world's thoughts as one with me.

Then I think that if there would be no need for critical thinking or for choice or uniqueness. Nothing special about my consciousness, or feeling of what happens. Then I am grateful for the privacy of my thoughts and inability to express them completely. Would I really want you to know "all" about me?

Marketing neuroscience

2006-06-15T15:34:00.000-05:00

What's the driving force? See link

Slow it down with exercise...aging I mean!

2006-06-15T13:35:00.000-05:00

Research indicates that sedentary people over 50 who begin to exercise may see a slowing down of aging. See link above

From "Scientific American Frontiers"

2006-06-14T10:33:00.001-05:00

Excerpt from above link

"Memory, like most brain abilities, seems to suffer fewer ravages of aging in individuals who keep mentally active. Scientists believe this may be due to the continued reinforcement of the brain cell pathways along which thoughts travel. As you think, messages move along the living network of brain cells. When a brain cell is stimulated, it releases chemicals called neurotransmitters. Some neurotransmitters carry messages to neighboring cells. Others maintain the health and longevity of the inter-cellular connections. Still others encourage the growth of new cell connections to produce even more robust pathways. So by using an assortment of thinking pathways, you can sustain and even improve the fitness of your network of brain cells."

Fascinating!

2006-06-14T09:12:00.000-05:00

I just got back from a two week vacation and this link caught my interest.

History shows that we are explorers at the core! New frontiers, new mindsets, fresh inspiration are at the core of everything that drives us forward in life.

Presidential Mnemonics

2006-05-24T15:22:00.000-05:00

Will a jolly man make a jolly visitor (for Washington through Van Buren)

How terribly poor that forlorn paper boy looks just getting his goods at cost (for Harrision through Cleveland, i.e. his first time)

What you think about your memory is important

2006-05-24T09:36:00.000-05:00

Excerpt from the above link

what you think about your memory affects your ability to remember. If you tell yourself you have a bad memory, such a statement: produces distracting emotions, lowers your expectations for success, and decreases your motivation to use methods that can help you build better memory skills.

It's important to become aware of how what you think leads to an emotional state of mind that can interfere with—or enhance—your memory. When you say to yourself, "I'll never remember this," you are sending your brain feelings of worthlessness and fear, hampering your ability to remember. By the same token, positive mental feedback sets up an expectation of success.

At the VA again

2006-05-19T15:13:00.000-05:00

Bob invited me to present at the VA again. He keeps inviting me back to the support group there :o)

Last time, I was embarassed because I could not remember Gloria and Maury's names. Don't know what it is that makes me forget their names but I know that I will remember them next time :)

I remembered Clarence!

The other names that I want to keep on record are Norm and Nora, Al, Mark, Bill, and Don because they were all there the previous time too.

I do want to remember Julie the nurse who was there this time and Carol who was there last time.

Memory "juices"

2006-05-16T21:30:00.000-05:00

Think in terms of getting the memory "juices" going. Sort of analogous to developing the need to exercise regularly. Missing the exercise and missing the memorcise.

Our own worlds

2006-05-15T01:25:00.000-05:00

We all live in our own little worlds. At the core of our thoughts are certain basic precepts and daily living seems to provide data to connect with those precepts. Prior knowledge to connect to current experience from the now can be accessed selectively and the picture is seldom completed. It is a jigsaw puzzle that always has some missing pieces.

Our own worlds are several jigsaw puzzles floating in a wrinkle of time. And we make sense of them?

Revisiting Parachute

2006-05-11T13:46:00.000-05:00

See link from Fast Company, 1999

I like the following best,

"You mentioned that it's human nature to avoid rejection. Over the last 30 years, what else have you learned about human nature, as it relates to work or the job hunt?

People don't just want to keep busy at work. Maybe that was enough when they were younger, but not as they grow older. They want a sense of mission in life -- and a sense of mission about their work."

Excerpts from "Positive Energy" by Judith Orloff, M.D.

2006-05-11T06:32:00.000-05:00

p. 129

Emotions are a dazzling expression of energy. As an energy psychiatrist, I know that they contain stupendous life force, negative or positive. Medical school taught me only a fraction of their power.

p. 131

Knowing the many dimensions of emotional energy gives you a jump on mastering it. This program is about choice, not victimhood. For most of us humans, though, inner peace doesn't just magically descend; we must keep fighting for it.

Naming the positive and negative forces within makes us immune to surprise attack.

Awakenings

2006-05-09T14:32:00.000-05:00

A lost part of my consciousness is stirring to wake up! A part of me that was repressed due to lack of articulation. I did not articulate it because I was afraid to own up to it. I was afraid to be held accountable for me. Now that I am discovering my inner story and acknowledging I am able to articulate it. By owning my thoughts and the outcomes of my thoughts I am better able to dialog with others. It is a slow process and yet I believe that I am getting better each day.

T.S. Eliot

2006-05-07T19:56:00.000-05:00

My reading about presence in Damasio's book led me to T.S. Eliot at this link.

Damasio describes a presence that is you and he borrows words from T.S.Eliot to describe that presence.

"hint half guessed"

"gift half understand"

Excerpt from "The Feeling of What Happens" by Antonio Damasio

2006-05-07T19:29:00.000-05:00

p. 10

You are looking at this page, reading the text and constructing the meaning of my words as you go along. But concern with text and meaning hardly describes all that goes on in your mind. In parallel with representing the printed words and displaying the conceptual knowledge required to understand what I wrote, your mind also displays something else, something sufficient to indiciate, moment by moment that you rather than anyone else are doing the reading and the understanding of the text.

Excerpt from "Mapping the Mind" by Rita Carter

2006-05-06T22:43:00.000-05:00

p.35

The left brain is what has made homo sapiens the spectacularly successful species it is. It is calculating, communicative and capable of conceiving and executing complicated plans. But it has always had a bad press. It is frequently held to represent the worst of the Western world: materialistic, controlling and unfeeling; while the right brain is seen as gentle, emotional and more at one with the natural world - a frame of mind commonly associated with the East.

This notion has spawned a small industry of specialized self-help books and training courses that claim to encourage right-brain thinking. There are books that show you how to draw with your right brain, rides horses with your right brain, even make love with your right brain. You can take all manner of courses to put you back in touch with your right half, and big businesses hire consultants to test their employees for left/right dominance and slot them into appropriate jobs.

Is it all nonsense? Brain scientists will tell you the idea of a rigid divide is a popular myth. They even have a word for the publics's enthusiasm for the subject: 'dichotomania'. Like 'modern phrenology' the word is a put-down, intended to imply that the real situation is far too complex for simple conclusions to be drawn.

It is true that the brain is marvellously complicated, and the constant interaction of its two hemispheres makes it extremely difficulat to pinpoin what is happening where. Even the most obviously lateralized of skills - language - is atypically organized in about 5 per cent of people. The brain is also very malleable and its wiring can be influenced by all sorts of environmental factors. Given extraordinary circumstances a genetically typical brain may end up organized in a very odd way indeed. Nevertheless, brain imaging studies confirm that the two hemispheres really do have quite specific skills that are 'hard wired' to the extent that, in normal circumstances, certain skills will always develop on a particular side.

Somehow related to me

2006-05-06T03:23:00.000-05:00

Does a memory that stick have to be somehow related to me? Does that relationship make it easier to lift it up in my consciousness or awareness? Is that idea of self that is part of consciousness easier to accept when we are younger? Do memories stick forever from childhood because they were originally so "acutely" present in our consciousness?

Memories that Stick

2006-05-06T03:12:00.000-05:00

My recent readings for the online brain course have got me thinking about the role of consciousness in memory. My mantra has been "I can remember anything if I pay attention to it completely and give it meaning or context for me" In other words the context or meaning for me may need to be explained with consciousness. I just got this thought in my sleep so I am putting it down in my blog so that I can pursue it later.

Consciousness

2006-05-05T12:03:00.000-05:00

I am enrolled in a FREE online course about the brain at Barnes and Noble University. The course started on May 1st but I got my books for it only yesterday. Today I took the bus in and so I had time to read one of the books- "The Feeling of What Happens" by Antonio Damasio. (The other book is "Mapping the Mind" by Rita Carter.)

I am reading about consciousness and have a glimmer of a connection to attention and memory. Attention is the starting point for creating a memory. Poor concentration is the root cause of a poor memory. However, even when we pay attention it seems like we cannot remember until we go through some kind of transformation of consciousness. Attention has to be followed by something that brings our consciousness to terms with the information that we want to remember.

Say that I want to remember that the birthstone for the month of May is emerald. I am told that the birthstone is emerald and I pay attention to this information when it is told. I develop a meaning or context for it by saying that the month of May is the real start of spring in Wisconsin and it means green grass. I associate the green of the emerald with the green of my lawn in May and this helps me remember that the birthstone for May is emerald. Is it now in my consciousness? Has my consciousness somehow been transformed so that the next time someone says birthstone for May, I don't have to think about it and it just pops into my mouth and I say it?

Attention to consciousness - this needs further exploration.

Journal - a record of ideas

2006-05-04T11:37:00.000-05:00

I really like the following from "The Lively Mind" by Jules Z. Willing

Excerpts from Chapter VIII – Your Journal: Embodying The Inward Mental Journey

“….write it, write it, put it down in black and white…get it out, produce it, make something of it – outside you, that is; give it an existence independently of you ….” – Sigmund Freud

Keeping a Journal is an excellent way not only to promote mental vitality, but also to develop the habits that sustain it. When you make a daily note of what you have been thinking about, you:

foster the habit of giving some time each day to reflexiveness,

preserve – make a collection of – ideas and thoughts you will later develop and respond to,

improve your mental fluency, the ability to allow thoughts to flow without intervention,
draw a portrait of your inner self and chart the evolution of your ideas and attitudes,

provide a first draft, a starting point, for expressing the ideas you will later share with others, as in your correspondence,

intensify your hold on the present – we tend to live far too much in response to the past and in anticipation of the future, and far too little in the present moment.

What we are talking about is not a diary, which is a record of events, but a journal, which is a record of ideas, thoughts, and opinions.

Environment, environment, environment

2006-05-03T09:51:00.000-05:00

I like presenting at some places - not only because of the room that we are in but also because of the person coordinating the event.

Yesterday, I felt so comfortable during my class in Mukwanago. As always, Cherie and I were happy to meet and catch up with each other. Cherie has a very nice aura about her.

Yesterday's group is going to be with me for the next three Tuesdays and I am looking forward to the next class. They were all very positive in their energy by the time we were done.

Positive energy, relaxed concentration, stress-free, learning in a nice environment with nice influences. Life is great!

Comments?

2006-05-02T15:00:00.000-05:00

If you would like to submit comments to this blog, please email me at brainjogr@yahoo.com

Sleeping point

2006-05-02T12:46:00.000-05:00

Is there such a thing - a sleeping point? A point of reduced stress and worry that makes you feel like sleeping a lot.

Persistence (Hanging Tough)

2006-04-30T23:48:00.000-05:00

Concentration requires persistence or "hanging tough". If you have a tendency to give up when the going gets difficult or rough, it becomes hard to concentrate. The most successful people are the ones who hold on when things gets crazy. They tend to have the wherewithal to focus on the things that they do well and stay the course.

It seems as though the ones who give up too soon are the ones who change paths often. Though, on the flip side, in the stock market it is referred to as cutting your losses early. The rule of selling 7% below the buy-point is about cutting your losses early. Hang on to the ones going up and take profit on some stock that gain more than 25%.

Are these counter themes? Is cutting your loss not the same as giving up? Are the ones who persist not mentally prepared for the need to cut their losses on the stock market?

BE HERE NOW

2006-04-28T14:56:00.000-05:00

Debbie was an attendee at my presentation today at lunch time. She asked about sensory overload and inability to focus when there are too many things happenning at once. For example, at a basketball game that she went to she was frazzled by all the various things going on - the music, the cheering, the televisions, the vendors, the applause, the partiers, etc. etc. I agreed that managing the clutter is important and then she said that whenever something important is about to happen, she tells herself "BE HERE NOW!"

I like this kind of self affirmation to bring the focus into the present. Being in the moment requires a conscious reminder to be in the present and a habit of self reminder with a simple "mantra" like Debbie's "BE HERE NOW!" is a lot more understandable than "Om Shanthi"

Congratulations Debbie! And thank you for sharing with the group.

Event Listing

2006-04-26T13:04:00.000-05:00

Yesterday's "Brain Jogging" was listed at the above link. 15 people attended. I was not entirely pleased with it. Somehow the energy level wasn't as high as I like to feel while I am presenting. I hope that I get a summary of evaluations soon so that I can identify what expectations I did not deliver on.

Do something stupid today!

2006-04-24T11:19:00.003-05:00

Dear Journal,
Okay, so I have to 'fess up that I do play poker with my school buddies three or four times a year! We have continued our get-togethers for more than five years and we have known each other for longer.

Last Friday, we had a rollicking great time! All of my friends have an excellent sense of humor! I have a great loud laugh to appreciate their humor.

Anyway, I don't usually do well at poker. By the time the evening gets going, I am not usually don't even know the difference between a flush and a straight. Don't ask me why, because I'm not going to admit to not being a teetotaler. Oops, I guess I just did, can't hide the truth from you ;)

Anyway, last Friday, I was losing as I usually do and Steve had heard of a new game that was making me really nervous. So, here I was, in way over my head and suddenly I decided to let go and bet without thinking too much about the odds! All of a sudden, lady luck turned my way! Literally, the first hand I was dealt a Queen high and the next two cards were Queens and I won quite a lot with the three Queens - hence lady luck turning my way seems appropriate :)

Do something stupid today! Your mental map may tell you it is stupid but maybe it's exactly what you need to do to be out-of-the-box! Maybe the stupidity will get you the breakthrough that you need.

I guess stupidity is neurobic!

Lesson learned from poker with the guys....

A Love Course

2006-04-16T01:22:00.000-05:00

Leo Buscaglia was able to teach a love course with great success after much skepticism from his colleagues when he started it. I would like to reinvent this course in the context of the early twenty-first century. It is now the year 2006 and the context now is certainly different from the context in the latter half of the twentieth century.

In the present day context, the concept of love is ensconced within the concept of positive energy. It appears that positive energy is a larger need than love by itself.

What are you going to pay attention to?

2006-04-10T09:30:00.000-05:00

Just for today, pay attention to the high priorities in your life! We have the ability to give selective attention to the various "tugs" at us each day. We have to own to the responsibility to pay attention to the Important and Urgent things! Own it! Own the choice, choose to pay attention to the high priorities!

Did you bungee jump today?

2006-04-07T13:33:00.000-05:00

Did you do something radically different from your routine today? Well, why not? What are you afraid of? Afraid to step out of your 'cage"?

Go ahead, buy a cup of coffee for the stranger who is behind you in the line!

I heard about an employee at my wife's company who pays for whatever the person behind her at the drive-through wants to buy. That is her bungee jump.

221B Baker Street

2006-04-05T13:49:00.000-05:00

I visited 221B Baker Street in London during my trip there in June 2005. The "bobby" was standing silently and calmly in front of the house until I wanted to get my pic taken. Then he quietly handed me a hat and pipe so that I could pose for the pic.

"Elementary my dear Watson!"

Memory Fitness for Life

2006-04-03T21:34:00.000-05:00

Stay memory fit!

Memory and Aging

2006-04-03T21:30:00.000-05:00

Click on the title of this blog, some useful answers

Random posts on a random evening

2006-04-03T21:20:00.000-05:00

I love my life, I love my family, I love my friends, I love mankind, I love the earth, I love the universe, I love creation.

Appalachian Spring

2006-04-03T21:19:00.000-05:00

Great American composition!!! Must read the website linked above. It is from npr.org

The concentration on the moment

2006-04-03T21:14:00.000-05:00

itunes and Verna Felton singing Bibbity Bobbity Boo. Believe in magic, believe in good fairies, believe in miracles, believe in magic. I believe in magic, life is full of magic. I believe in magic, those footprints are not mine. I believe in love, I believe in caring and love. I believe in succeeding against all odds because of friends and magic, magic and friends and love and friendship and caring.

Concentration on the moment, concentration on magic, concentration on tenderness.

In the moment

2006-04-03T21:10:00.000-05:00

Be in the moment, enjoy the moment, cherish the moment, be grateful for the moment, think not of anything more than the moment. Don't be afraid to lose the moment. Stay in the moment, cherish the moment, love the moment, care about the moment, be present in the moment.

Be in the moment, hear the sounds in the moment, smell the smells in the moment, feel the temperature of your surroundings, experience the sights and notice your surroundings.

Music is a Universal Language

2006-04-03T21:06:00.000-05:00

Society changes, music changes, people change and thoughts change. Thoughts change and times change, people change, music changes and society changes. Nothing is constant. Even when we think it has remained the same, it has not remained the same. The way we look at it changes, the way in which we pay attention to it changes. That which was so pure and exquisite does not look so pure anymore. What was it that made it pure and exquisite anyway?

Entertaining and educational

2006-03-31T00:38:00.000-06:00

I was at the Congregational Home in Brookfield on March 13th and this women's group was particularly memorable. There were about 40 attendees and when I was done presenting there was a definite strong feeling of pleasantness and connectedness with almost everyone in the group.

One of the younger women in the group, Jean H (and I do remember her last name), came up to me after the presentation and asked for my tel no. because she would like to invite me to another group. She used the title phrase to describe my presentation. Thank you Jean H for telling me that my presentation is "entertaining and educational" This is the highest praise that anyone can give me.

Thank you for reading this blog

2006-03-31T00:28:00.000-06:00

When I was at WPSC on March 15th, John told me that he and Jodi have read a few of my entries. If you two are reading, thank you for letting me know. It is nice to share my thoughts and feelings with known readers.

I enjoy visiting WPSC to do my Brain Jogging sessions. This time, I recognized Pat from the previous session because she had told me the Oprah Winfrey show method to make 20 seconds tangible. She had heard, on that show, that if you sing Happy Birthday twice it is about 20 seconds.

Anyway, I did not recognize her immediately after I met her this time. She told me that she had attended last time. This was my trigger/cue to remember. As soon as she said that she attended last time, I remembered exactly where she had sat down in the room and what she had shared with the class.

By the way, I have received corroboration for this 20 second reference from an attendee in a different group.

Anyway, I was thrilled that Pat had invited her sister Diane to attend this time. Thank you for attending and thank you for reading this blog!

And yes, Ann, it was nice to meet you again as always. I appreciate how you call me "Dr.V"!

Laziness - Inertia

2006-03-31T00:25:00.000-06:00

Why can't I be prompt about my blogs? I get lazy, Newton's first law...inertia....every body remains at rest unless it is acted upon by a force....I have to get the wording that we learned in Physics in high school.

What's the force that is making me write now? What can I do to generate this force on a regular basis?

It's about feelings

2006-03-12T09:59:00.000-06:00

Sometimes, you meet someone only peripherally. You hear them speak only a few sentences and you observe them in a meeting and at the end of the short interaction you feel a genuine connection with them. We don't feel confident enough to convey that connection.

Last week, I met Vanda from Latvia - a country that I had to look up on the map. She was part of delegation from Europe. At the end of the meeting, I gave her tight hug and told her that I would never forget her. She said that she too would never forget me. We acknowledged genuine good feelings between us.

Good feelings, altruism, and a sense of connectedness with the world! God bless my friend - whom I probably will never meet again!

UW-Parkside "Mind Aerobics"

2006-03-03T05:24:00.000-06:00

Pleasantly so, the class at UWP is a go. It is a two week version of my "Mind Aerobics" class.

We met on Tuesday Feb. 28th from 6:45 to 9:15pm, let me try to name everyone in the class.

Judy, Julie, Jenny, Janice, Jan, Jasca, Joanne, Felicia (Jenny's close friend - attended each others weddings), Kathy, Gloria, Mark, Eva, and Lori. And that's everyone. God Bless them all! I wouldn't have so much fun in these classes if it was not for the interest and attendance of all of these wonderful people!

I always amazes me to see a room full of people are willing to spend a precious part of their life to listen to the information that I present in the classes. I got extremely tired this time but it was worth it! At the end of the class Gloria told me that she really enjoyed the class and wanted me to know it because she cannot attend next week. That was so nice of her to let me know.

Compassionate Meditation

2006-03-03T05:05:00.000-06:00

In April 2005, I had referenced a blog on the topic of compassionate meditation. Yesterday, I had the opportunity to attend a presentation by the principal researcher of that topic.

Dr. Richard Davidson, a psychology professor at UW-Madison,, presented "Be Happy Like a Monk" at the Milwaukee Public Library. The presentation was very well attended, the group had to be moved into the main auditorium. I estimate that about 200 people attended it.

I am trying to come up with a review of the details of the presentation. Unfortunately I did not take notes. Unlike Holly, who sat next to me, who as it turned out had seen the description of my "Mind Aerobics" class at UW-Parkside. This was a nice aha for both of us.

Anyway, about fifteen years ago, Dr. Davidson was asked by the Dalai Lama to study the meditation brain waves of monks. The overall emphasis being to discover if meditation can help us learn to be more happy. It turns out that monks can sustain gamma wave activity in their meditative state for much longer times that the typical adult. This is due to the years of practice that they have invested in meditation - that is the premise. My understanding is sketchy.

Barnes and Noble "Brain Jogging" Evening

2006-02-27T02:59:00.000-06:00

On Thursday, February 23, 2006, I did my fourth session at B&N in Racine. It was an extra special evening for everyone. I am trying to analyse why.

First of all, in the circle were Jan Ca., Eileen, Irene, Barb, Lori, Don, Carol, Cheri, Lloyd, Susan, Molly, Jan Cl., and me. Jan Cl., Molly, Carol, and Eileen were the only ones there on January 26, 2006. That evening was very interactive because we were only five people. Seeing them in this group again gave me extra confidence. Susan was in my second session at B&N, this gave me more confidence. Barb was the organizer at St. Monica's three years ago, when my presentation was well publicized in the Racine Journal Times. Irene came with Barb. I know Jan Ca., from Usha's work group. Lori and Don looked familiar, and Lloyd looked keenly interested throughout the evening. Cheri, of course, is the organizer of this event at B&N.

Bottom line is that I related to all of them!!

Chess obsession

2006-02-22T01:03:00.000-06:00

Since the last post, I have been obsessed by chess. I have wasted too much time on it!

Thankful for now

2005-11-15T15:01:00.000-06:00

I am thankful for my life exactly as it is now. I heard the example of everyone sitting in a circle and God told them to throw their worst problems into the center. Then he/she/the force asked them to pick from the center....they each picked their own problem!

No such thing....

2005-11-15T15:00:00.000-06:00

No such thing as waiting for the right time to do something! Now is the time! Don't wait, move forward now!

Mental edging with Mind aerobics

2005-11-15T13:30:00.000-06:00

At Alexian, the three hour workshop cum dinner was attended by 13 people yesterday. I am happy with the experience, I am comfortable with the half-day workshop format now.

Paula got an aha when I talked about memory being like a jig-saw puzzle and not linear. She had an identical experience when she started playing the flute after a long time. The first time she picked the flute she had no idea what to do and similarly the next couple times. Then, one time she picked up the flute lined up with her arm out straight in line with her eye and placed her fingers comfortably in the correct positions. From then on she was fine and she was able to remember from her past lessons ...those lessons were many, many years ago.

Lee got an aha from the saying out loud recommendation. He did not remember it right away but towards the end of the class, he recalled that once his shop was robbed and he was able to remember the license plate of the getaway vehicle by yelling it out loud several times until he could talk to the police.

Enjoyed having Dot in class....very energetic! Also enjoyed Kathleen, Jo, Dee, and Marilyn. Marilyn had attended my four-week class about two years ago. Ilsa was there too!

Cedarburg

2005-11-08T16:39:00.000-06:00

About 40 people at Cedarburg Women's Club today. "Brain Jogging" from 12:45 to 1:45 pm. Lois is very alert, I enjoyed meeting with her.

Barbara told me that my enthusiasm rubbed off on her. Katie was very thoughtful in her appreciation. Several of the attendees complimented me.

Cuddahy - Feeling Good is Your Right

2005-11-04T06:10:00.000-06:00

Purpose and passion; socializing; and hope were major points of discussion in our "Feeling Good is Your Right" presentation yesterday. Though Barbara and I had not rehearsed for about two months, we were quite spontaneous and connected with our group of 16. There was plenty of discussion and there were a couple of poignant notes: (i) one attendee has not heard from here son after Katrina...though she and husband continue to be hopeful, and (ii) another attendee has macular degeneration and fears that she will go blind soon. Made me wonder how we can claim our right to feel good if we have such disturbing news in our lives.

I hope that our presentations are helpful in putting things into a bearable context. One lady in the audience, Jan, said that she would like to see everyone feeling good about life. I like that comment a lot! Thank you Jan!