Breathing for Life . . .

Do you know how to breathe?  Silly question, huh?


We breath thousands of times each day .  .  .  Each person will take between 15000 and 20000 breaths in 24 hours .  .  .  So, we all know how to breathe, right?  We inhale, we exhale, repeat, repeat, repeat .  .  .  Pretty easy .  .  .   The truth is, however, most people have no idea of proper breathing technique .  .  .  Proper breathing technique has profoundly positive physical and psychological benefits .  .  .  It helps to calm the mind, removes toxins from the body more efficiently, energizes mind and body, promotes better sleep, stimulates the immune system, decreases stress, harmonizes energy flow (prana) throughout the body .  .  .  There is no downside to proper breathing .  .  .


I've taught proper breathing and also some other specific breathing techniques to many people, and they all report positive benefits if they stay with the program .  .  .  Like anything else, it takes time for the benefits to accrue, but it's well worth taking that time .  .  .  And, it's painfully simple!    


Let's begin with the most basic of breathing .  .  .  Lie down on your back, close the eyes and relax .  .  .  Place the right hand on the abdomen with the palm centered over the belly button .  .  .  Inhale long and slow (3-5 seconds), first feeling the upper lungs filling in the collar bone area, then the rib cage expanding, and finally the abdomen rising .  .  .  The right hand will rise as the abdomen expands .  .  .  Hold that for a bit, then exhale feeling the abdomen pull back, then the rib cage dropping back, and then the upper chest dropping back .  .  .  Hold for a second or two, then repeat .  .  .  This is diaphragmatic breathing, the most efficient way to breathe .  .  .  This can be done for five minutes anytime, such as upon waking, before going to sleep, and anytime in between .  .  .  And, once we have the pattern down, we can do it sitting or standing anywhere we are .  .  .   Once we've practiced this for a period, it will become our normal way of breathing at all times .  .  .  Most people are shallow breathers, meaning they inhale into the upper chest only .  .  .  This is very inefficient, and is like driving a car with its air intake restricted .  .  .  It isn't going to work as well!  And neither do we if we are inefficient in the most basic thing we ever do, which is breathing .  .  .


Try it out, and keep practicing, and reap the benefits!  More to come on this topic .  .  .


Life is beautiful baby!


Peace and love .  .  .


Until next time .  .  .  Ciao!!     

'Tis the season to . . .

.  .  .  stop worrying!

Do you know someone who is lost in worry and anxiety?  Is it rational?  Is it logical?  Has their worry ever led to a positive outcome, to whatever it is they worry about?  That's rhetorical BTW, because we all know the correct answer .  .  .

I had a conversation with a young woman at the gym on Tuesday that really got me back to thinking about worry .  .  .  Hence, this blog entry .  .  .

I'm not going to say anything more for now, except .  .  .

Take a couple of minutes and check out this video .  .  . 

Life is beautiful baby!

Peace and love .  .  .

Until next time .  .  .  Ciao!!

Hello Croatia!!

The significance of the title will become evident if you simply keep reading .  .  .


When I started this blog in April 2009, I really had no idea what it would amount to, or how far it would go, and how long .  .  .  Here we are twenty months in and it's still truckin' along, albeit with a few short breaks hear and there, and one rather extended hiatus .  .  .  A part of me is somewhat surprised it's still here, but then again, on the other hand, I'm not surprised at all .  .  .  That's called duality .  .  .


It can honestly be said that this blog is inspired .  .  .  And by that, I don't mean it's exceptionally good .  .  .  "Inspired" in this case means I've felt inspired to write every entry in some way, shape, or form .  .  .  Every one of them is from the heart .  .  .  What you see and read is what you get .  .  .  That's me .  .  .  Take it or leave it .  .  .  No phoniness, no contriving, no making s*** up .  .  .  This blog is a piece of me, as much as my left arm .  .  .  Many entries have been written after meditation when I'm trippin' on a few levels .  .  .  Many have been written out of nowhere, meaning, I don't plan any particular thing to write about with much deliberation .  .  .  It just happens with some inspiration from a higher source .  .  .  The beauty of it is, it's often a complete surprise to me how an entry turns out .  .  .  

I haven't planned the breaks I've taken for the most part, and that LONG interlude from Feb. 9th until Oct. 12th shocked me, in a sense .  .  .  When I posted Dem Saints in February while spending an extended time in Florida, I had absolutely no idea I would be gone until October .  .  .   Looking back, I simply lost the inspiration to write anything .  .  .  Not feeling the love, and stuff was happening .  .  .  It wasn't a case of writer's block, it was just that there was NO desire to write .  .  .  No doubt, that's not uncommon .  .  .  And honestly, with every entry, my feeling is, this should be the last .  .  .   


I truly enjoy reading other blogs, and finding new ones covering any and all subjects .  .  .  The writing process fascinates me, and there are as many approaches to writing as there are people who write .  .  .  I'd love to sit in a room with people whose blogs I find very stimulating and entertaining and just talk about how we all approach things in a writing sense .  .  .  It would be highly educational for me, and I think also very enlightening, because my guess is our approach to writing mirrors our approach to life in many ways .  .  .  Writing can be a great voyage of self-discovery .  .  .  There are people who I know or who I've come across, and I've encouraged them to do some writing .  .  .  Some have done it, and some not .  .  .  Strictly up to them .  .  .  It's important though to reach out and plants seeds .  .  .  The nice thing about the internet is that we can be as anonymous or as out there as we'd like .  .  .

Only yesterday did I realize that I can see where the traffic is coming from to this blog .  .  .  That's very cool .  .  .  Not only are there readers in North America, but also in the UK, Germany, China, Russia, Denmark, South Korea, Slovakia, Singapore, Poland, Holland, Belgium, France, and Croatia .  .  .  Hello Croatia!!  But, where's the Middle East exposure?  Where are you Israel and Egypt?  And how about the South Asian sub-continent?  Where are you India?  Maybe one day .  .  .  

Not only does this blog give me an outlet to speak from my heart, but it also permits reaching out to a big world (or is that a small world?) in a way only made possible by some incredible technology .  .  .  Within my inner circle of friends and family, I can count on three fingers the ones who know about this blog .  .  .  Whether they ever read it or not, I have no idea .  .  .  But, they're sworn to secrecy and I know it's in the vault .  .  .

Hey, thanks to all who take a few minutes here and there to check in and read what Snake has to say .  .  .  and if you ever want to send an e-mail my way to say hello, by all means feel free .  .  .  Ask a question if you like .  .  .  This Snake is very friendly and welcoming, and most definitely doesn't bite!  I'm right here in my tiny corner of cyberspace .  .  . 

As a gift to my brothers and sisters, here's a video of one of my favorite songs of all time .  .  .  The vibe is warm and rockin' .  .  .  Crank it up!  Let's meet on the Road to Shamballa!!

Life is beautiful baby!  







Peace and love .  .  .


Until next time .  .  .  Ciao!!  

Let's laugh . . .

We need to laugh more, don't you think?  

Mitch Hedberg was a standup comedian with a quirky sense of humor and a unique delivery .  .  .  Sadly, he passed in 2005 from a drug overdose .  .  .  But, he left us some VERY funny material, and a lot of it is on Youtube .  .  .  So, take a couple of minutes and enjoy this clip .  .  .  Very funny!!

Life is beautiful baby!

Peace and love .  .  .

Until next time .  .  .  Ciao!!

Blindsided

Remember the last time you felt like you'd been run over by a six ton Greyhound bus?  Did you get the license number?

We've all been there .  .  .  I remember a certain hockey game .  .  .  I was sixteen, a teammate was passing me the puck, it was just about to touch my stick and .  .  .  The next thing I knew, I was flat on my back looking up into a combination of blackness and exploding light .  .  .  NOT a good experience .  .  .  It reminds me of an old expression .  .  .  If I knew what was REALLY going to happen today, I might never get out of bed!

However, I'm not so much talking about that kind of thing .  .  .  It's more of an emotional experience I'm referring to .  .  .  We get blindsided emotionally from time to time .  .  .  Sometimes good, and sometimes not .  .  .  And, there are times when events and the accompanying emotions are catalysts for change in our lives .  .  .   And often, we don't even realize at that point that change might be necessary until well after the fact .  .  .  But, someone parachutes in, seemingly out of nowhere, and things begin to go in a different direction .  .  .

I go back to 2001 .  .  .  A man named Denis suddenly appeared in my then workplace as a replacement for a colleague who had become quite ill .  .  .  Some people didn't care for him, and I could never understand why .  .  .  Denis and I became very good friends from the get go, and it was completely out of the blue .  .  .  I was having a difficult time with a few things at that period in my life .  .  .  Nothing traumatic, but some things had to be worked through and I was doing that .  .  .  But Denis was the one who said a few things and exhibited some behaviors that put me over the top in a sense .  .  .  I'm a great believer in synchronicity .  .  .  Was it preordained that we meet the way we did, and that he would be the catalyst I needed at that point?  I have some definite views on that .  .  .

Yes, I believe that if we're open to the Universe and its messages, we're going to receive those messages all the time .  .  .  They could take any number of forms, but they happen .  .  .  I've seen it over and over .  .  .  And, they can blindside us .  .  .  Just, BANG!  Here's a message for you Sport .  .  .  You'd better be listening to it!  And I know I've been the catalyst in other peoples' lives now and again, and they didn't see it coming in any way, shape, or form .  .  . 

So, the point is this .  .  .  Be OPEN to the messages we're being sent .  .  .  Don't run away from them, or minimize them, or ignore them .  .  .  Listen to the inner voice of intuition .  .  .  It's usually right, and often coming from a higher source!

Life is beautiful baby!

Peace and love .  .  .

Until next time .  .  .  Ciao!!

Gym Rat

I've been a lot of things in this lifetime, and one of them is a gym rat .  .  .  And I say that with pride!  GYM RAT!!  I absolutely love working out, and get to the gym five or six times a week .  .  .  And, I consider myself VERY fortunate to enjoy it so much, both lifting and cardio (I really do need to do more stretching, but what guy likes to stretch?) .  .  .  Because, so many people despise exercise of any kind, and if we look around, we can see pretty quickly which ones they are .  .  .  I'm six feet, one eighty, and have been blessed with some great genes .  .  .  However, I still work my butt off at the gym, and hope I'll be able to continue that until my last day .  .  .


We're getting close to New Years Resolution time .  .  .  What's on YOUR list?  Maybe you already have some kind of regular fitness routine .  .  .  If so, congrats and keep it up!  If not, well .  .  .  You might want to think about it .  .  .  Because, we can give ourselves some terrific gifts, and one of the greatest is the gift of feeling good!  And, that is a happy byproduct of getting fit and then maintaining what we've worked hard to accomplish .  .  .   You don't have to kill yourself .  .  .  Slow and steady wins the race!  Avoiding injury is key, so be smart about it .  .  .


So choose something, ANYTHING, that eventually gets you to where you want to be .  .  .  Make it fun, but still strenuous enough to gain some benefit over time .  .  .  Your quality of life is hanging in the balance!  OK, that might be a little strong, but quality of life is SO important .  .  .  And when we feel good, everything else improves along with that .  .  .  And, do you know that many studies show that exercise is just as effective, if not more so, for many people than prescription medication for things like depression and anxiety?

A note especially for the ladies .  .  .  Adding some weight/resistance training has nothing but positive results .  .  .  Not only will it tone and define the muscles (and will NOT create bulkiness, so no worries there), but it will also strengthen the bones by stimulating them to absorb calcium .  .  .  Keeping osteoporosis at bay is so crucial!  It's never too soon to start .  .  .   And BTW, yoga can also strengthen upper body musculature and bones .  .  .  The key is to find something we like and that's fun .  .  .  There are plenty of fitness options out there .  .  .


So let's get that onto our Resolution List for 2011, and keep it there .  .  .

Life is beautiful baby!




Peace and love .  .  .


Until next time .  .  .  Ciao!!

Life is for the living . . .

 Life is what it is .  .  .  But, what IS it?!

We've all experienced joy, sadness, and everything in between .  .  .  What is life, except a kaleidoscope (and at times a roller coaster) of experiences and emotions?   With every experience comes a plethora of emotions, and it's the emotions which make events memorable .  .  .   The more intense the emotions, the more vivid the memory, whether good or not so good .  .  .

This time of year can be a challenge for many .  .  .  And, that includes ol' Snake .  .  .  Four very dear friends have passed during the holiday season within the last eight years, and that timing makes the feeling of loss seem just a bit more intense .  .  .  The most recent was last Christmas Eve .  .  .  A car accident on an icy highway after a family dinner .  .  .  

However, this blog is NOT about sadness and morbidity .  .  .  That isn't what life should be .  .  .  After all, we are all born, and we all will pass .  .  .  It's an inevitability for all of us .  .  .

My opinion, and mine only .  .  .  Live, laugh, love, be happy, be positive, don't look back, make a difference, see the Divine beauty in others (even if they can't see it in themselves), live as though we are here to make others' lives easier, enjoy the moment, avoid self-pity, be consciously grateful for all we have, put a smile on your face, and someone else's as a result, wish the best for all human beings, understand that events don't always play out as we would like, and when we would like .  .  .  And, when someone close to us passes, we can honor them by becoming more like them .  .  .  

We can't bring anyone back to join us .  .  .  Gone is gone .  .  .  We can, however, carry them in our hearts .  .  .  Their memory, their being, their spirit .  .  .  If we do that, they live on and we honor them .  .  .  And, we should smile and laugh and celebrate in their remembrance .  .  .

I'm not Jewish, but I have no doubt I was in another lifetime .  .  .  Hasidic Jews believe that celebrating, and laughing, and dancing, and experiencing joy takes us closer to God (whatever that concept means to us) .  .  .  Melancholy is to avoided .  .  .  That's a GREAT image .  .  .  So, in that vein, lets sing and dance and celebrate being ALIVE!  And MEAN IT!!

Life is beautiful baby!!

Peace and love .  .  .

Until next time .  .  .  Ciao!!

 

 

L'air . . .

Larry is a great buddy, but we call him L'air .  .  .  A former girlfriend gave him that name, and it's stuck .  .  .  None of the inner circle call him Larry .  .  .


L'air has been hospitalized since mid-October .  .  .  He was given three weeks to live, then we were told three days to a week .  .  .  And finally, he won't last the weekend .  .  .  That was early November .  .  .


Can you imagine?  L'air is still with us, and making progress at a rate no one, and I mean NO ONE, could have predicted, without being considered a Pollyanna .  .  .  But survive he has, and we continue to see positive signs day by day .  .  .  The latest?  He's getting physio daily, and has been told he needs to go to a different facility, because the one he's in now doesn't have the ability to meet his level of progress .  .  .

Think about this .  .  .  A person is told he/she has a 5% chance of survival .  .  .  How does that news resonate in the psyche?  Truth is, it means in cold hard probability that 95% of people in a similar position don't make it .  .  .  But, and this is the kicker, 5% DO MAKE IT!!  Somebody has to be in that 5%, so why NOT L'air?  And people like him?  There is always hope, tempered with a dose of reality .  .  . 

Life is beautiful baby!!  

Continue to think beautiful thoughts, and let the rest take care of itself .  .  .

Peace and love .  .  .

Until next time .  .  .  Ciao!! 

Twenty years . . .

Every human being has defining moments, and defining experiences, and defining periods of time .  .  .  So many people wish to be able to go back, to be younger, to be that fresh faced twenty-five year old again  .  .  . 

If the Archangel Gabriel taps me on the shoulder and says, Hey Snake, wanna be twenty years younger?  We can make it happen!  All you have to say is, Yes .  .  .

Would I do it?  Would ol' Snake want to take twenty off the top?  In a nanosecond, NO .  .  .  I don't want to be anything but what I am, and where I am, and WHEN I am,  because .  .  .  Life is beautiful baby!  

With twenty years gone, that would mean I'd miss the 60's .  .  . The SIXTIES!!  Truly, the decade that most defines where we are right now as a society, and as a world .  .  .  The 60's turned everything on its head .  .  .  Again and again .  .  .  

The great promise of 1960 .  .  .  The upheaval of 1969 .  .  .  And everything in between .  .  .  The Kennedys, Martin Luther King, civil rights, Jim Brown, Selma, the Mick,  Motown music, Vietnam, the Beatles, Nikita Khrushchev, the Yankee dynasty ending, the Six Day War, TM, Moshe Dayan, assassinations, Sandy Koufax, Cuban missile crisis, bomb shelters, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Timothy Leary, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, Tony C, my first girlfriend in the 4th grade, Joe Willie Namath, the Berlin Wall, Fidel Castro, Rolling Stones, the summer of love, the Rat Pack, Mississippi burning, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, flowers in your hair, acid, Johnny U, San Francisco in '67, Charles Manson, Abbey Road, Ed Sullivan, Marilyn Monroe, man on the moon in '69, Let It Bleed, Pierre Trudeau, Mrs. Robinson, the Doors .  .  .  The list is endless!  What decade it was, and I was lucky enough to see it all .  .  .

To my mind, the single ongoing event that galvanized a generation in that decade was the Vietnam War, and it did it worldwide .  .  .  And the song that has become attached to it, rightly or not, is The End, beautifully and brilliantly and disturbingly used by Francis Ford Coppola in Apocalypse Now .  .  .

Peace and love .  .  .

Until next time .  .  .  Ciao!! 

Law and Order . . . Texas Style!

First, let me make two things very clear .  .  .  One, I'm as much in favor of law and order as the next guy .  .  .  And two, I've been to Texas a few times and have always enjoyed it .  .  .  I have nothing whatsoever against Texas .  .  .  But, this story falls into the category of, What on earth were they thinking?!  This is hard ass, if I've ever seen hard ass .  .  .  


Take a look at this, and if you don't agree it's hard ass, then you and I just don't perceive reality quite the same way .  .  .  Maybe they could use a little more peace and love in Baytown, Texas .  .  .





I mean, seriously .  .  .  Putting someone in jail because of library books?  Ouch!


Peace and love .  .  .


Until next time .  .  .  Ciao!!

June, Ruth, Anita . . .

The Pointer Sisters .  .  .


Sadly, June has passed too soon .  .  .


A Christmas classic .  .  .





Peace and love .  .  .


Until next time .  .  .  Ciao!!

One of the things . . .

.  .  . I enjoy doing when time permits is navigating around the blogosphere .  .  .  It's educational to read what may be peoples' innermost thoughts, their most intimate feelings in some cases .  .  .  It's human nature standing completely naked and exposed in front of the entire Universe .  .  .

There are some incredibly entertaining blogs .  .  .  There are some which are full of insight, and we can learn from those .  .  .  There are some where I think, WOW, I'm not sure I'd want to put THAT out there .  .  .  However, people do and more power to them .  .  .

When I come across a blog that's really good, I often send a quick e-mail just letting the author know their efforts are appreciated .  .  .  Or, in very, very few cases, leave a comment on an entry .  .  .  Human beings aren't averse to a pat on the back every now and again acknowledging their skill and effort .  .  .  I'm not saying every blog is good .  .  .  But then again, to each his own .  .  .  And my opinion is only that, my opinion .  .  .  As someone who despises bananas and pickles, I know there are millions who can't get enough .  .  .

So, to all the bloggers out there who are intelligent, articulate, entertaining, informing, insightful .  .  . THANK YOU for making the effort to reach out to others with your thoughts and feelings, whether we always agree with them or not .  .  .

Peace and love .  .  .

Until next time .  .  .  Ciao!! 

This is a classic!

I've always been a huge fan of Edith Piaf and Nat King Cole .  .  .  What they have in common is that they both could weave their magic around a song like no one else .  .  .  And, they both passed at far too young an age .  .  .  I posted a video of EP a while ago (Non, rien de rien . . .) , and here's one from NKC .  .  .  Oh, and Natalie is pretty good too!!





Peace and love .  .  .

Until next time .  .  .  Ciao!!

We are each a jewel . . .

Yes were ARE, . . . a jewel that shines and has the potential to provide light for others, and perhaps show them their own lustrous quality, if they are capable of seeing it . . .

The jewel that we are is representative of our Godliness, our energy which is our life force, the vibration of consciousness which exists at the core of our being . . .  in ALL of us!!

When we realize our true nature, we undergo a transformational experience, which may be sudden or perhaps gradual . . . A true understanding of our Macrocosmic nature is nothing more and nothing less than the understanding of WHO and WHAT we are . . . And we become light, exhibiting compassion, empathy, love, kindness, generosity, and so on . . .

We cannot control, and should not seek to control others . . . We all have our Journey, and through that Journey we are destined to learn important lessons about life and existence, about ourselves, and about our connection with something higher, but which we are a part of . . . My lessons are not necessarily your lessons, and I should never assume that I need to impose my lessons upon others . . . However, others may ask advice about this or that and at that point, I can share my experiences and insights, but not in a way that says, You MUST do X, Y or Z! Advice should be shared in a loving, compassionate manner which doesn't come across as preaching . . . We should always remember one thing, and that is that we ALL want to be HAPPY!  And, each persons Journey is equally sacred .  .  .

By realizing and living our own jewel-like existence, we send out a positive, life-enhancing vibration into the Universe and the light of that existence shines on all who come into contact with us . . . Some will see it, and some might be blind to it . . . However, the light is there, it has a profound effect, and we should never forget that . . .



Life is beautiful Baby!

Until next time . . . Ciao!!

Freddie Mercury . . .

No question, he was THE best rock 'n roll front man of all time .  .  . 


And, a good man!





Peace and love .  .  .


Until next time .  .  .   Ciao!!