Dear Diary: June 1st
Just moved to Oklahoma ! Now this is a state that knows how to live!! Beautiful sunny days and warm balmy evenings. It is beautiful. I've finally found my home. I love it here.
June 14th:
Really heating up. Got to 99 today. Not a problem. Live in an air-conditioned home, drive an air-conditioned car.
What a pleasure to see the sun everyday like this. I'm turning into a sun worshipper.
June 30th:
Had the backyard landscaped with western plants today. Lots of cactus and rocks.. What a breeze to maintain.
No more mowing the lawn for me. Another scorcher today, but I love it here.
July 10th:
The temperature hasn't been below 100 all week. How do people get used to this kind of heat? At least, it's kind of windy though. But getting used to the heat is taking longer than I expected.
July 15th:
Fell asleep by the community pool. (Got 3rd degree burns over 60% of my body). Missed 3 days of work. What a dumb thing to do. I learned my lesson though. Got to respect the ol' sun in a climate like this.
July 20th:
I missed Lomita (my cat) sneaking into the car when I left this morning. By the time I got to the car at noon, Lomita had died and swollen up to the size of a shopping bag, then popped like a water balloon. The car now smells like Kibbles and Shits. I learned my lesson though. No more pets in this heat. Good ol' Mr. Sun strikes again.
July 25th:
The wind sucks. It feels like a giant freaking blow dryer!! And it's hot as hell. The home air-conditioner is on the fritz and the AC repairman charged $200 just to drive by and tell me he needed to order parts.
July 30th:
Been sleeping outside on the patio for 3 nights now, $225,000 house and I can't even go inside. Lomita is the lucky one.
Why did I ever come here?
Aug. 4th
It's 110 degrees. Finally got the air-conditioner fixed today. It cost $500 and gets the temperature down to 85.
I hate this stupid state.
Aug. 8th:
If another wise ass cracks, 'Hot enough for you today?' I'm going to strangle him. Damn heat.
By the time I get to work, the radiator is boiling over, my clothes are soaking wet, and I smell like baked cat!!
Aug. 9th:
Tried to run some errands after work. Wore shorts, and when I sat on the seats in the car, I thought my ass was on fire. My skin melted to the seat. I lost 2 layers of flesh and all the hair on the back of my legs and ass . . . Now my car smells like burnt hair, fried ass, and baked cat.
Aug 10th:
The weather report might as well be a damn recording. Hot and sunny. Hot and sunny. Hot and sunny. It's been too hot to do Shit for 2 damn months and the weatherman says it might really warm up next week.. Doesn't it ever rain in this damn state? Water rationing will be next, so my $1700 worth of cactus will just dry up and blow over. Even the cactus can't live in this damn heat.
Aug. 14th:
Welcome to HELL! Temperature got to 115 today. Cactus are dead.
Forgot to crack the car window and blew the damn windshield out.
The installer came to fix it and guess what he asked me???
"Hot enough for you today?"
My sister had to spend $1,500 to bail me out of jail.
Freaking Oklahoma .
What kind of a sick demented idiot would want to live here??
Will write later to let you know how the trial goes...
Monday, July 25, 2011
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Reprinted from Dr Judith Orloff, M.D." Emotional Freedom"
Are You an Emotional Empath?
by Dr. Judith Orloff
adapted from Dr. Judith Orloff’s book, Emotional Freedom; printed here with the author's permission
Empaths are highly sensitive, finely tuned instruments when it comes to emotions. They feel everything - sometimes to an extreme - and are less apt to intellectualize feelings. Intuition is the filter through which they experience the world. Empaths are naturally giving, spiritually attuned, and good listeners. If you want heart, empaths have got it. Through thick and thin, they’re there for you as world-class nurturers.
The trademark of empaths is that they know where you’re coming from. Some can do this without taking on people’s feelings. However, for better or worse, others like myself and many of my patients can become angst-sucking sponges. This includes the sublime capacity to absorb positive emotions and all that is beautiful. If empaths are around peace and love, their bodies assimilate these and flourish. On the other hand, negativity often feels assaultive and exhausting.
Empaths are particularly easy marks for emotional vampires, whose fear or rage can be ravaging. As a subconscious defense, they may gain weight as a buffer; when thin, they’re more vulnerable to negativity. This is a missing cause of overeating explored in my book Positive Energy. An empath’s sensitivity can be overwhelming in romantic relationships; many stay single since they haven’t learned to negotiate their special cohabitation needs with a partner.
When empaths absorb the impact of stressful emotions, it can trigger panic attacks; depression; food, sex and drug binges; and a plethora of physical symptoms that defy traditional medical diagnosis from fatigue to agorophobia. Since I’m an empath, I want to help all my empath-patients cultivate this capacity and be comfortable with it.
Empathy doesn’t have to make you feel too much all the time. Now that I can center myself and refrain from shouldering civilization’s discontents, empathy continues to make me freer, igniting my compassion, vitality, and sense of the miraculous. To determine whether you’re an emotional empath, take the following quiz.
QUIZ: AM I AN EMPATH?
Ask yourself:
Have I been labeled as too emotional or overly sensitive?
If a friend is distraught, do I start feeling it too?
Are my feelings easily hurt?
Am I emotionally drained by crowds, and require time alone to revive?
Do my nerves get frayed by noises, smells, or excessive talk?
Do I prefer taking my own car places so that I can leave when I please?
Do I overeat to cope with emotional stress?
Am I afraid of becoming engulfed by intimate relationships?
If you answer yes to 1-3 of these questions, you’re at least part empath. Responding yes to more than three indicates that you’ve found your emotional type.
Recognizing that you’re an empath is the first step in taking charge of your emotions instead of constantly drowning in them. Staying on top of empathy will improve your self-care and relationships.
Emotional Action Step: How To Find Balance
Practice these strategies to center yourself:
Allow quiet time to emotionally decompress. Get in the habit of taking calming mini-breaks throughout the day. Breathe in some fresh air. Stretch. Take a short walk around the office. These interludes will reduce the excessive stimulation of going non-stop.
Practice guerilla meditation. To counter emotional overload, act fast and meditate for a few minutes. This centers your energy so you don’t take it on from others.
Define and honor your empathic needs. Safeguard your sensitivities. Here’s how:
*If someone asks too much of you, politely tell them no. It’s not necessary to explain why. As the saying goes, No is a complete sentence.
*If your comfort level is three hours max for socializing - even if you adore the people - take your own car or have an alternate transportation plan so you’re not stranded.
*If crowds are overwhelming, eat a high-protein meal beforehand (this grounds you), and sit in the far corner of a theater or party, not dead center.
*If you feel nuked by perfume, nicely request that your friends refrain from wearing it around you. If you can’t avoid it, stand near a window or take frequent breaks to catch a breath of fresh air outdoors.
*If you overeat to numb negative emotions, practice the guerilla meditation mentioned above before you’re lured to the refrigerator, a potential vortex of temptation. As an emergency measure, keep a cushion by the fridge so you can be poised to meditate instead of binge.
*Carve out private space at home so you won’t be stricken by the feeling of too much togetherness. (In chapter eight of Emotional Freedom, I discuss nontraditional living settings compatible with an empath’s comfort zone.)
Over time, I suggest adding to this list to keep yourself covered. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel each time you’re on emotional overload. With pragmatic coping strategies, empaths can have quicker retorts, feel safer, and their talents can blossom.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Judith Orloff, M.D., is the author of the New York Times bestseller Emotional Freedom: Liberate Yourself From Negative Emotions and Transform Your Life, upon which this article is based. An assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at UCLA, she synthesizes the pearls of traditional medicine with cutting edge knowledge of intuition and energy medicine. Dr. Orloff will be giving a weekend intensive at Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California, from October 28-30, 2011, on The Power of Intuition and Emotions to Heal. For more information, visit, drjudithorloff.com or www.esalen.org.
by Dr. Judith Orloff
adapted from Dr. Judith Orloff’s book, Emotional Freedom; printed here with the author's permission
Empaths are highly sensitive, finely tuned instruments when it comes to emotions. They feel everything - sometimes to an extreme - and are less apt to intellectualize feelings. Intuition is the filter through which they experience the world. Empaths are naturally giving, spiritually attuned, and good listeners. If you want heart, empaths have got it. Through thick and thin, they’re there for you as world-class nurturers.
The trademark of empaths is that they know where you’re coming from. Some can do this without taking on people’s feelings. However, for better or worse, others like myself and many of my patients can become angst-sucking sponges. This includes the sublime capacity to absorb positive emotions and all that is beautiful. If empaths are around peace and love, their bodies assimilate these and flourish. On the other hand, negativity often feels assaultive and exhausting.
Empaths are particularly easy marks for emotional vampires, whose fear or rage can be ravaging. As a subconscious defense, they may gain weight as a buffer; when thin, they’re more vulnerable to negativity. This is a missing cause of overeating explored in my book Positive Energy. An empath’s sensitivity can be overwhelming in romantic relationships; many stay single since they haven’t learned to negotiate their special cohabitation needs with a partner.
When empaths absorb the impact of stressful emotions, it can trigger panic attacks; depression; food, sex and drug binges; and a plethora of physical symptoms that defy traditional medical diagnosis from fatigue to agorophobia. Since I’m an empath, I want to help all my empath-patients cultivate this capacity and be comfortable with it.
Empathy doesn’t have to make you feel too much all the time. Now that I can center myself and refrain from shouldering civilization’s discontents, empathy continues to make me freer, igniting my compassion, vitality, and sense of the miraculous. To determine whether you’re an emotional empath, take the following quiz.
QUIZ: AM I AN EMPATH?
Ask yourself:
Have I been labeled as too emotional or overly sensitive?
If a friend is distraught, do I start feeling it too?
Are my feelings easily hurt?
Am I emotionally drained by crowds, and require time alone to revive?
Do my nerves get frayed by noises, smells, or excessive talk?
Do I prefer taking my own car places so that I can leave when I please?
Do I overeat to cope with emotional stress?
Am I afraid of becoming engulfed by intimate relationships?
If you answer yes to 1-3 of these questions, you’re at least part empath. Responding yes to more than three indicates that you’ve found your emotional type.
Recognizing that you’re an empath is the first step in taking charge of your emotions instead of constantly drowning in them. Staying on top of empathy will improve your self-care and relationships.
Emotional Action Step: How To Find Balance
Practice these strategies to center yourself:
Allow quiet time to emotionally decompress. Get in the habit of taking calming mini-breaks throughout the day. Breathe in some fresh air. Stretch. Take a short walk around the office. These interludes will reduce the excessive stimulation of going non-stop.
Practice guerilla meditation. To counter emotional overload, act fast and meditate for a few minutes. This centers your energy so you don’t take it on from others.
Define and honor your empathic needs. Safeguard your sensitivities. Here’s how:
*If someone asks too much of you, politely tell them no. It’s not necessary to explain why. As the saying goes, No is a complete sentence.
*If your comfort level is three hours max for socializing - even if you adore the people - take your own car or have an alternate transportation plan so you’re not stranded.
*If crowds are overwhelming, eat a high-protein meal beforehand (this grounds you), and sit in the far corner of a theater or party, not dead center.
*If you feel nuked by perfume, nicely request that your friends refrain from wearing it around you. If you can’t avoid it, stand near a window or take frequent breaks to catch a breath of fresh air outdoors.
*If you overeat to numb negative emotions, practice the guerilla meditation mentioned above before you’re lured to the refrigerator, a potential vortex of temptation. As an emergency measure, keep a cushion by the fridge so you can be poised to meditate instead of binge.
*Carve out private space at home so you won’t be stricken by the feeling of too much togetherness. (In chapter eight of Emotional Freedom, I discuss nontraditional living settings compatible with an empath’s comfort zone.)
Over time, I suggest adding to this list to keep yourself covered. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel each time you’re on emotional overload. With pragmatic coping strategies, empaths can have quicker retorts, feel safer, and their talents can blossom.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Judith Orloff, M.D., is the author of the New York Times bestseller Emotional Freedom: Liberate Yourself From Negative Emotions and Transform Your Life, upon which this article is based. An assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at UCLA, she synthesizes the pearls of traditional medicine with cutting edge knowledge of intuition and energy medicine. Dr. Orloff will be giving a weekend intensive at Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California, from October 28-30, 2011, on The Power of Intuition and Emotions to Heal. For more information, visit, drjudithorloff.com or www.esalen.org.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)