Tag: phases

The period of hope.

Today, I am asked to describe a phase in life that was difficult to say goodbye to. I believe it started sometime in 2018 and lasted until late 2023. I think of this phase as the period of hope. My life was in pretty bad shape when the period began, but someone came along who gave me hope that things would improve somehow. I just couldn’t figure out how to make the right changes happen without messing a lot of things up for everyone, so I just stalled. I relied entirely on hope, but at least I had that to keep me going.

Sometime in 2023, around the time I paused on my blogging, a couple of events occurred that caused me to lose all the hope I had of a miracle happening. It seemed to have been preceded by a reading of cards, indicating that a new beginning was coming. It was also around the time the person who started this period briefly came back into my life to announce her marriage was a total failure and she had filed for divorce. I think things will keep going and I will be okay, but I don’t have much hope things will correct themselves at this point.

Now, I have the period of drinking and bar patronizing to look forward to. What joy. At least my ability to write convincing characters with severe alcohol problems is maturing rapidly. I also have the bar scene down pat, if I need to incorporate that into a book. I mean, it’s not the first time I’ve heard of writers doing a bit of wine bibbing. Steven King devoted some lines to his experience with it in his book On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. At least I haven’t taken up smoking yet. I’m mostly just kidding about this (maybe).

It’s not all bad. The period of hope actual made me stressed enough to quit my job and take on a new one. It pretty much doubled my salary. The struggle to pay the rent kind of flew out the window after that, along with all my other money problems. Being able to live large did open up other doorways though, hence the bar hopping. It’s still lonely, but that’s kind of my fault. I can be lonely in a crowded room full of people, if it’s not the right people.

I’m not new to the phases of life, having endured quite a few by now. They all seem like mini lifetimes in themselves, barely having any relation to previous periods, each one with its own distinct personality and habits. I’m just now being introduced to this new one’s personality. Maybe he and I will become great friends by the end. You don’t know until it’s over, whether they will also be difficult to say goodbye to, or you welcome their exit off center stage with a swift kick. I guess we’ll see, but the most concerning thing to me is who I will be when they leave.

What phase did you hate to leave behind? Do phases of life seem to have a distinct personality? Ever have to give up hope on something you wanted badly? Do you struggle with loneliness? How would you describe the current phase of your life? Let us know in the comments, and don’t forget to like and subscribe!

My favorite form of physical exercise.

I would say that my favorite form of physical exercise is weightlifting. I like lifting weights, because it increases muscle size and tone, but it does something else. From my experience, when the amount of muscle increases on your body it sort of makes you feel healthier. I think it maybe changes your metabolism or balances your hormones or something. Seeing your muscles get bigger probably also boosts your self-esteem. The only downside are those days you really push yourself and can barely move the next three days. This doesn’t happen as often once you make it a habit though, or maybe you just get used to a certain level of pain. Overall, I still think it’s one of the best physical exercises you can do.

I used to lift weights more often, but I’ve kind of gotten lazy since I moved downtown. My building does have a nice gym as one of its amenities, and it doesn’t require a membership, so there’s really no excuse to not walk down there. They are all machines though, because that’s probably the safest, especially if you don’t have a spotter. I’m not against machines, but I think I do prefer free weights. Back when I owned my own home, I had a good weight bench and decent set of free weights in my garage. I used them quite often. To be perfectly honest, it might also be that I don’t care to work out around strangers. Having a private home gym was definitely a huge benefit for me.

A few years back, I sort of went through a health improvement phase where I was really into weightlifting. I lifted like three or four days a week. I would say the phase became habitual enough that it lasted for over a year. I was also following a workout plan laid out in a health book I had read. It’s really amazing how a book can change your life by giving you the right motivation. I wasn’t really that overweight, but I did lose a significant number of pounds during the process. I would honestly say that period of time left a very pronounced effect on my health, and I am still reaping the benefits years later.

The book and plan I followed was called Bigger Leaner Stronger by Michael Matthews. This book was geared toward men, but he also has a book specifically for women called Thinner Leaner Stronger. I really do believe it changed my life. I would be a lot less lean right now, and probably have a few more health issues if I had not found this book. I’m also considerably more muscular these days, which is kind of nice. If you need to turn your health around, I highly suggest getting a book with a plan and trying to stick to it for a year. You will be glad you did. Also, get a gym partner. It really helps to keep the motivation going.

Bigger Leaner Stronger: The Simple Science of Building the Ultimate Male Body

How to transform your body while eating the foods you like and doing a few challenging (but not grueling) strength training workouts per week. Oh, and cardio exercise? Completely optional.

Here are just a few of the things you’ll discover inside this workout book for men:

  • The 10 biggest fitness myths and mistakes that keep guys weak, fat, and confused. For example, “calories are all that matters,” “carbs and sugars make you fat,” and “some guys don’t have the genetics to get big.”
  • The primary driver of muscle growth that forces your muscles to get bigger and stronger. And no, it has nothing to do with “muscle confusion,” “functional training,” or any other pseudoscientific fitness nonsense.
  • How to create meal plans for building muscle and losing fat with foods you love so you never feel starved, deprived, or like you’re “on a diet” (and especially a “bodybuilding diet”).
  • 12 months of paint-by-numbers resistance training workouts for building a full chest, wide back, powerful legs, and bulging arms . . . in only 3-to-5 hours of weight training per week.
  • A no-BS guide to fitness supplements that’ll save you hundreds if not thousands of dollars on useless (and sometimes even dangerous) pills, powders, and potions

What’s your favorite form of physical exercise? Do you spend much time in the gym? Do you like free weights or machines? What’s your best advice on getting and staying healthy? What’s a book that really changed your life in some way? Tell us all about it! Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe!

Life is not short.

Life is short. You hear this phrase pretty often and it generally means that you better get a move on because life will be over before you know it. Unfortunately, this is not really a true statement. I mean, it is true for many people, but not for the average person. I believe at some point life actually feels interminably long, like you are somehow eternal, but then you know that’s not true.

When I was a child, it seemed easy to wrap my head around the length of my life. As I got older though, I began to see that there was a steady transition from one period of life to another, and as one period faded into memory, I began to realize that I would never be able to go back to that period again. It was locked away in time, and I was no longer that person anymore. It is sad when you first realize this, because some periods of life are quite pleasant, and you don’t want to see them go, but other periods are quite awful, and you hope they do not last for long. It is also noticeable that many of these periods are punctuated by events, some of which are quite traumatic, and some that you hardly even notice, but looking back reveals a definite transition. You have moved on, and you can never go back.

If you live long enough, the events in your past will actually begin to feel like another lifetime.

Sometimes it feels like it wasn’t even me who lived that period of life, like I just inherited it from biological memories recorded in my brain, and I have come to know that if you live long enough, the events in your past will actually begin to feel like another lifetime. You will be reminded of things you said and did, and ask yourself, was that me? I can’t believe I said that. You might even think, wow, I really liked the person I used to be, and I was so happy back then, with all the people I used to know still in my life, and now I’m here, and they are gone, and time moves on, and then another transition.

What are your thoughts on this? Is life long or short to you? Do you ever feel like you are not the same person anymore? Tell me in the comments, and don’t forget to like and subscribe!