My COVID Times Diary – the highs and lows

Posted on June 1, 2020 by Michael Kane

My COVID Times Diary – the highs and lows

5/31/2020

covid times, apocalypse

Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams, because every second of the search is a second’s encounter with God and with eternity. ~ Paulo Coehlo

Well I think we’re at week 10 of our shelter in place, work from home reality.  Things are certainly starting to change.  Here in California yesterday, there were 53 deaths, 46 of those deaths occurred in Southern California in LA or Orange County. The infection is certainly on the downslope here in Northern California.  People are tired of the limitations, of working from home, of being in their homes a lot.  They in general don’t like the idea of wearing a mask and taking precautions.  Where required, people are being compliant enough.

But we find ourselves at an interesting crossroads here in the United States of America.  The fact is our economy has not show itself to be particularly resilient and our government has been unable or unwilling to provide support at a level that would allow the shelter in place to continue without significantly hurting the economy.  The pain of the economic crash is growing and so we move forward with “opening” our economy.  What this really means is that we will remove the restrictions that we have in place for safety, in order to increase spending to support the economy.

This of course has significant risks.  As we have seen in China and other places that the reduction in this health and safety protections inevitably leads to additional infections.  it just makes sense, if more people interact with each other, a disease that spreads best by face to face contact is going to be more successful if there’s more face to face contact.  Now this does not have to be a catastrophe.  If people follow the proper protocols, including maintaining social distancing, wearing masks, limiting group sizes and avoiding unprotected sustained face to face contact, and washing their hands then sure there will be some minor outbreaks, but those should be able to be handled.  Pair this with increased testing ability, quarantine policies and effective contact tracing and we’ve likely arrived at a safe new normal.  Assuming all of those pieces are in place.

The High

So let’s be optimistic first, let’s take the position of the, this is no big deal crowd.  Let’s say that the infection has burned itself out enough in places like New York and San Francisco and we can effectively ease restrictions without significant outbreaks.  That sounds really amazing, it leads to thoughts of dinners out with friends.  Of rebooking the trip I cancelled in March to Las Vegas and returning to throw some dice at the craps table.  We can dream that places like LA and Houston are just a few weeks behind other cities and similarly they’ll be fine in a few weeks as well.

This sounds so inviting, reopening schools with some sense of normalcy in August.  Full plane flights as people move around the country to vacation.  Hotels re-opening, attractions re-opening, life, as we knew it, almost the way it was with few inconveniences.  Those of you dreaming this are not alone, Las Vegas and Reno are re-opening June 4th, Notre Dame University is opening for face to face classes on campus in August.  In Florida, Walt Disney will open in July, but if you can’t wait, Seaworld in Orlando will be open in June.  Heck I bet we can even reschedule high school graduations and proms for some time in the summer.

It’s a lovely vision that I would love if it held up.  It would mean that I could consider booking my trip to Australia to hike the Overland Track in Tasmania.  But is it realistic?

The Low

So, maybe our fantasy above doesn’t pan out.  And I’ll put in a little trigger warning right now.  If you’re someone who is totally freaked out by the whole COVID reality don’t read the rest of this, it will not help your anxiety.

I’m going to start with an image.

covid times, social distancingThis was a place called Lake of the Ozarks on Memorial Day weekend, as soon as the place was open.  The same thing happened in bars in Wisconsin within hours of restrictions being lifted.  In the picture there are no masks, no six foot distancing going on at all.  People in this country feel entitled to do what they want and don’t care about the rules in place.  So much so, that they actually get violent at times when asked to do what’s best for society.  Here are two examples.  A woman in Michigan was told that her and her child needed to wear a mask in order to enter a store.  A little while later her husband and son returned to shoot the security guard who was enforcing the rule.  In Oklahoma, two women angry that their McDonalds wasn’t offering dine-in service like other restaurants shot teenagers working there.  I watch people even here in liberal California, mostly only wearing masks when they know they won’t get what they want without wearing one.  Meaning at work, grocery stores and while getting take out.  But even then, I see some people wearing the mask over their mouth but not their nose.  I see people handling and putting products back on the shelf, and walking right up next to others with no consideration for the potential risk.  Americans are acting like Americans and refuse to let anyone tell them what to do, even if it’s for their own good.

covid times, AmericaSo what does this American attitude and re-opening of our economy mean in light of this?  Well it means more infections and more death.  When we add into all of this the recent protests, first by people opposing shelter in place restrictions and secondly the social justice protests after the killing of George Floyd and you just have more and more opportunities for the virus to spread.  Include the increased contact from people being together in restaurants, gyms and salons and it all screams second wave.  Ok, we all expected a second wave, so what’s the big deal?  Well, lets compare COVID 19 to the last time we had a novel virus creating a global pandemic, the 1918 Spanish flu.  Which in fact, killed far more people in 1919 during its second wave, than it did in it’s first wave.

spanish flu, covid timesAnd keep in mind, as the graph above shows, there was also a third wave of the virus.  All of this took place over a roughly two-year period.  Now, there are differences between the two pandemics.  The 1918 flue was far more deadly, our medical systems were not as good, and we know far more about viruses now than we did then.  Which is one reason why not as many people are dying during this pandemic.  But it’s not the numbers I want you to look at in this graph, it’s the pattern.  Sure, the 1918 virus mutated to become more virulent during its second wave, so the spike from COVID might not be so extreme, but it is almost certainly coming.  Given what I’ve discussed above I would say the chances are very, very good it comes again in the next few months, further exacerbated by the normal factors around flu season and flu season itself.

So what we are looking at on the low side of this discussion is a second wave of COVID, along with a long-term recession/depression.  We are already at nearly 15% unemployment rate as of the end of April, with continuing increased numbers through May.  Airlines and other industry have been discussing additional layoffs as a result of the pandemic, so things are likely to get worse before they get better.  Even with the opening of the economy, it will not spring back like a rubber band without extreme consumer confidence that they are safe, and I know few people right now who feel safe.

So right now in America, we have an pandemic that has killed over 100,000 people in effectively three months, the worst unemployment rate since the great depression and the specter of a second and possibly worse wave of COVID looming in our immediate future.  The big question is, what is America’s breaking point?  With food distributions serving hundreds and thousands of families running out of food in a couple of hours, with unemployment climbing and riots in the street, at what point is any of this too much.  I would say we’re resilient enough to handle what we’re facing right now.  But were there to be one more major stressor, it might be too much.  So let’s hope and pray that fire season isn’t too terrible, that the big one doesn’t hit the New Madris or San Andreas faults, that the Yellowstone Super Volcano doesn’t blow or a meteor doesn’t slam into the planet.  Not very uplifting I realize and the fact is that reality will likely be somewhere between the fantasy high or the most depressing low.  But this is where my head is tonight and as I’ve stated in each of these pieces.  I’m writing this mostly for posterity, a diary of where my thoughts were at during the pandemic.  ~ Michael ‘Rev’ Kane

Other COVID Times posts you might like

Living our values

Back to normal

Is this the end?

 

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How can we have happiness now?

Posted on June 1, 2020 by Michael Kane

How can we have happiness now?

2020 riots, racism

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

I’m going to take a left turn tonight, I’ve resisted the inclination for the ten years that I’ve been writing this blog to write about anything political or controversial.  Only recently have I, under an extraordinary reality, begun to write about anything other than the base concept of having a happier life.  Those have been my COVID Times Diary posts.  Tonight I’m going to take some latitude with that core happiness mission and expand it to a grand concept.  That concept is for our entire society in America, to be happier.  As I’m writing this blog tonight, America is not only in the midst of a coronavirus pandemic but also undergoing some of the largest scale racial justice protests since the 1960’s.

Let me start with a simple statement.  For America as a whole to be a happier place, there has to be less racism, more equality and equity in our society, including in the very structure of all of its institutions.

Why are people protesting and rioting?   Is it for justice for George Floyd who was killed by a Minneapolis police officer?  For some people yes.  Have there been peaceful protests about this, absolutely.  There have also been a lot of violent riots and looting going on around the protests.  These types of protests have been occurring my entire life around the same issues.  From the Watts riots in the 60’s through the Rodney King beating inspired riots in the early 90’s, until today.  One of the things you can always count on during these times of protest and turmoil, is that there will be instigators of violence.  Within these protests there are without a doubt, ANTIFA and other leftist trouble makers and anarchists.  Almost certainly there are white supremacist instigators trying to push the country into the race war that they feel is an inevitability and will lead to the race separation, white America fantasy that they dream of at night.

Like the inevitable thoughts and prayers proclamations that come out after a mass shooting.  The response to times of protest and violence have their own standard rhythm.  First there will be calls for calm from political leaders.  This will be paired with statements of understanding and how all of society must work together to get better.  In police violence cases, there may be an initial charge or investigation, but far too often, like in the Freddie Gray case, the officers are either acquitted or have their charges dropped.  The family of the victim at some point will ask for calm and peaceful protest, religious leaders will do the same.  The political right will of course scream about ANTIFA and the violent left, the political left will blame the president and the political right for their inflammatory rhetoric and actions. At some point, the political right will blame George Soros, which quite honestly is just code for the old racist idea that the Jews are at fault.  In the end, heavy levels of law enforcement, the National Guard and eventually protest fatigue will calm things down.  Then, much like we do with gun violence, we will do very little and talk very much, and then simply move on until frustration rises and it happens all over again in the future.

So what are the protestors in the street actually asking for?  If it were simply justice for George Floyd then the fact that the office has been indicted should put everything on hold and calm the streets.  But as we can see, that was not the case.  And the reason that was not the case is that, justice for George Floyd is not the issue.  Police violence against people of color and their unfair treatment by law enforcement is only a symptom.  There absolutely are good cops out there, and they have a terribly difficult and dangerous job.  Unfortunately in every department, there are also racist cops and the law enforcement culture far too often reinforces the negative attitudes and stereotypes that the worst of them believe.  But again, the police aren’t the root of the problem, they are a symptom of the real issue.

So what is the real issue, it’s racism.  Racism reinforces and exacerbates income disparity, inequity and inequality in our country.  It leads to lower levels of education, wealth and success.  It fuels these and other issues that also lead to higher levels of negative health issues like high blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes.  With lower levels of home ownership and wealth, higher unemployment and poorer health, hope is harder to come by.  Under these conditions, anger and frustration build and so it’s not surprising that in a time when we are facing a global pandemic all you need is a trigger.  That trigger has come in the form of the deaths of two unarmed black men in the last couple of weeks.  One, hunted down by racists vigilantes while jogging in Georgia, a second killed by a police officer in public.  Both events horrifically displayed on the internet for all to see.  This racism is generally directed primarily at non-white people in this country.  But how we, as a society, even define white is often racist in itself.

Racism pervades every aspect of our society.  It is wholly and simply a learned behavior.  Children have to be taught that people that don’t look like them are bad or less.  Racism is both as simple and complex as that.  Simple in that we absolutely know how it happens, but complicated because it does happen and now pervades our entire society.  It can be changed, things can, and have gotten better.  We see racism in the most subtle ways in our society.  You have a discussion with a relative, they are upset about a delivery.  They talk first about the UPS driver and the delivery they made.  Then, they talk about the FedEx driver, he’s black, and the delivery he made.  Without a doubt, you know that the UPS driver was white, because they didn’t feel the need to describe their color.  That tiny thing is unconscious and ubiquitous and mostly unnoticed and not called out in society.  But when you’re on the pointed end of that comment, again and again and again, you know you’re thought of as different, as less than.

Things have gotten better in America over time for everyone.  Everyone, save some convicted felons, have the right to vote.  Yes, gerrymandering and voter suppression is an issue, but no longer do armed white men sit at polling places denying the ability of minorities to vote.  Women are no longer considered the property of their fathers and husbands, there are still equity gaps to be addressed but they’re smaller.  Although not enough representation exists, we see women and minorities as CEO’s , head coaches, team owners, speakers of the house, college presidents, presidential and vice-presidential candidates and even as the President of the United States.

I point these examples out for a simple reason, if progress has been made, I have to believe that more progress can occur.  But progress is slow, progress is change, so it’s resisted.  But if we ever truly want to address the issue of these type of social justice demonstrations that can turn violent, these issues have to be addressed in a fundamental way.  This means not only each of us making changes in our own life.  But it means fundamental structural changes need to be made to all of the systems in our country.  There is no magic bullet or policy that does this.  It will not happen over night, but if we make obvious steps forward in addressing these issues, if we show the progress being made and that it’s real, we diffuse the anger and frustration that leads to these tragic events.

I know this is hard, just look at the NFL’s recent efforts to make changes to the Rooney Rule to try and increase the number of minority head coaches and executives in the NFL.  But either we do the hard thing and make the world better, and happier, or we don’t and we will again and again watch violence erupt, homes, cars and business burn and people die in the streets at the hands of cops and protestors.  The choice is completely ours.

2020 riots, racismLet me finish this piece the way I started it.

For America as a whole to be a happier place, there has to be less racism, more equality and equity in our society, including in the very structure of all of its institutions.

Let’s hope for a happier day my friends. ~ Rev Kane

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TED Talks on Happiness

Posted on May 31, 2020 by Michael Kane

 TED Talks on Happiness

happiness

Matthieu Ricard

For a few moments, be aware of your potential for change. Whatever your present situation is, evolution and transformation are always possible. At the least, you can change your way of seeing things and then, gradually, your way of being as well. ~ Matthieu Ricard

The holidays are a very stressful time for everyone and an exceptionally hard time for some.  So, until the New Year I’ll be posting a Holiday Happiness post each day to try help folks out who are struggling.  As always you can reach out to me at Happinesskane@aol.com for a kind word or someone to listen. ~ Rev Kane

There have been a number of fabulous TED talks about happiness.  My favorite is by Biochemist turned Buddhist Monk, Matthieu Ricard. So tonight, his talk and some other for you to enjoy and help  you have a happier day my friends ~ Rev Kane

Matthieu Ricard on the habits of happiness (20:54)

Dan Gilbert: The Surprising Science of Happiness (21:16)

Shawn Anchor: The Happy Secret to Better Work (12:20)

Matt Killinsworth: Want to be happy, stay in the moment (10:20)

Stefan Sagmeister: 7 Ways for making more happy (9:33)

 

 

 

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Three Questions and some thoughts from Anza-Borrego State Park

Posted on May 30, 2020 by Michael Kane

Three Questions and some thoughts from Anza-Borrego State Park

happinessWhat is the purpose of the giant sequoia tree? The purpose of the giant sequoia tree is to provide shade for the tiny titmouse. ~ Edward Abbey

As many of you know I’ve quit my job, sold my house and am traveling across the United States towards my appointed start date of February 26th to do a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail (AT) from Springer Mountain, GA to Mount Katahdin, ME (2189 miles). ~ Rev Kane

So I camped for several days in Anza-Borrego and it was good practice for my three questions exercise I’ll be doing on the Appalachian Trail, so here we go:

12/23

The most beautiful thing I saw today was my first ever desert oasis

happiness, desert

What made me happy today was just the pure joy of being outside on an 80 degree winter day, really should have been hiking in shorts today!

What I learned today was to be more careful on descents with tricky footing, the trail was covered in cantaloupe sized rocks, easy to land wrong and tweek an ankle or a knee, both of which I did today.

12/24

The most beautiful thing I saw today was the smile I got from a beautiful woman when we passed each other on the trail today.

What made me happy today was talking to my mom and hearing her sound clear and strong after being in the hospital for a couple of days

What I learned today was that when my batteries are dying on my boombox losing FM is the first sign.

12/25

The most beautiful thing I saw today was the view over the valley from the top of the hike I did today.

happiness, desert

What made me happy today was a lot, a great hike, talking to family, seeing two bighorn sheep on a ridgeline, all in all a really happy day.

I’m sure I learned something today but it escapes me.

My thoughts after the hike on the 25th from my journal:

Today I felt a bit like Edward Abbey as I spent five hours on the trail in the desert alone with nothing but the aloe plants, the ocotillo, little lizards scrambling away and big horn sheep fleeing over the ridge line. Out there like that I feel more alive than at any other time. You cease to be out in nature, an observer, and you start to integrate and feel part of the landscape around you. Most likely it’s coincidence but whenever this mode kicks in I always seem to see more wildlife. Perhaps the lack of otherness makes them a little more comfortable with you in their environment. There was an absolute sense of joy dancing down the slope, rock hopping with 40 pounds on my back beginning, just beginning to feel like a thru-hiker. Bliss!

On the road again, several days of driving, have a happy day my friends ~ Rev Kane

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Tips for Better Life/Work Balance

Posted on May 29, 2020 by Michael Kane

Tips for Better Life/Work Balance

work, life, balance, happiness

happiness is balance

You actually don’t have to do it all ~ Danielle LaPorte

So last weekend I had the opportunity to do one of the keynote talks at the California Business Educators Association conference in Anaheim.  The topic for the conference was the Walt Disney quote, “if you can dream it, you can do it.”  So for the conference I thought it would be good to talk about life work balance and how doing a better job of balance can help you live a happier life.

I started by talking about the importance of happiness and balance and related my own journey, also known as the hard way.  I related when I was working at Hartnell College how I’d taken on way more than any sane person should have.  I was working the equivalent of three full-time jobs at the time and putting in over 80 hours a week.  It was this period of time that got me thinking about how to create better balance in my life.

Appalachian Trail, hiking, happiness

White Blazes make me happy

Along with doing some standard things to improve my life/work balance it was also this period of time that started me thinking about the current plan of action I employ of taking major time off every five years.

Starting at Hartnell I set up a series of events to celebrate my 40th birthday in 2004.  Then in 2009 to celebrate turning 45 I cycled in Ireland, hiked in Scotland, spent time in Bryce Canyon National Park and the grand finale a 22 hike in the high passes of the Himalayas.  As regular readers of this blog know, for my 50th birthday I decided to go bigger!  So I hiked a 1000 miles on the Appalachian Trail, swam with Manta Rays and Whale Sharks and finally spent a week photographing Polar Bears in the Arctic.  I also briefly talked about positivity and the three questions that I developed for my  Appalachian Trail hike that helped me focus on positivity.

hike, hiking, armstrong woods

Rev Kane in Armstrong Woods

I realize most people haven’t gotten to a point where they can do these type of things in their life, at least not yet!  So one of the things I do when I do a talk like this is to make sure I give the audience something they can implement immediately after going home.  So the following list are the things I recommended they implement to get more life/work balance.

Tips for increasing life/work balance

Find something your passionate about – It’s important to identify those things we truly enjoy.  How do you do that? Focus on things that make you lose track of time, one of those for me is photography.

No working 7 days in a row – Always make sure that one day a week you don’t work.  The reason is that there is no 7 days in a row, if you work 7 you automatically add the next week and end up doing 12.  This is the quickest way to stress and burn out.

Claim your space – Personally, I do not work at home.  This means I might have to stay in the office til 10 at night but it keeps my home separate from the stresses of work and truly makes my home a sanctuary.  I get that this doesn’t work for most people and if you have a family you will have to work at home.  However, claim your space at home, only work in your office or one space in one room.  Don’t let your work bleed into family time or to the family dinner table.  I understand that 3 year-olds obey no rules or barriers so if you’re dealing with toddlers, do the best you can.

Take mental health days –  We all have sick days, note they are not called physically sick days.  Don’t be afraid from time to time to just call in for a day and take a break.  It’s just as important to rest and keep your mental health in good condition as it is for your body.

Take your vacation days – This drives me nuts, how is it that people can max out their vacation time and HAVE to take a day off to keep form losing time.  It’s so important to give yourself a break, do something you love or just do nothing at all for a day or a week.  Take your vacation days my friends.

Take real vacations – Finally, take REAL vacations.  What do I mean by that?  Don’t take that vacation that leaves you saying you need a vacation from your vacation when you get back home.  A real vacation is one where you can completely get out of your life for at least a couple of days.  This means a vacation where you cut the electronic leash that is your cell phone and where you do some that so engrosses you that you can leave your everyday life behind, it’s the only true rest you’ll ever really get.  Also, if you leave town, don’t come back on Sunday and go to work on Monday.  Give yourself a buffer day or two between vacation and returning to work.

Now I realize some of you out there have the perfect job.  One that does not feel like work, a job where you wake up in the morning and can’t wait to go to do what other people feel like is a chore.  If that’s you, fantastic my friend but for the rest of us these tips can help us gain a bit of balance and have happier days my friends.  ~ Rev Kane

 

 

 

 

 

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A Slower Pace of Life can Make You Happy

Posted on May 28, 2020 by Michael Kane

A Slower Pace of Life can Make You Happy

rev kane, slower pace of life, relaxing

Rev Kane relaxing in the arctic snow flurries

Slow down and enjoy life.  It’s not only the scenery you miss by going to fast –  you also miss the sense of where you are going and why. ~ Eddie Cantor

Tonight I want to talk about slowing down the pace of your life.  As I’ve been writing about the past few weeks I went through a bit of a rough patch lately.  I’ve talked many times about the process I take when I’m out of sorts.  Getting the basics (sleep, eating, exercise) in order, doing more writing, strengthening good social connections.  All of these things are important but tonight I want to focus on slowing down.  I’m someone who has a very clear sense of his mortality, I’m under no illusion that I’m guaranteed next year, next week or even tomorrow morning.  I try to follow Taoist philosophy in the context of life, planning for the future but living for the day.  It’s hard, the concept of the end of life is such a powerful fear for most of us that our minds refuse to consider it.  We always think there will be enough  time for us to do all of the things we want to do.

Understanding, truly understanding in a conscious way that there won’t necessarily be time puts a special kind of pressure on me.  I’ve really started to feel that I don’t want to waste a minute of this gift of life that I’ve been given.  The upside, it focuses you, makes you make choices that are more full of value.  Not just social value but personal value as well.  The downside for me is that it can also send Jack down the dull boy road.  You see it’s all too easy for me to get locked into the to do list of things I want/need to get done.  Working on my next book, keeping the blog current, building my social media networks, working out, marketing for my current book Appalachian Trail Happiness.

Of course, what you don’t see in that list is just relax and have some fun.  I enjoy the things on the list, but when you feel pushed it can all start to feel a little too much like a job.  So what do you do?

flowers, super bloom, travel

Rev Kane in the Antelope Poppy Reserve

Steps to a slower pace of life

The first thing is the simplest, the easiest to do and the one that escapes our mind the quickest, just breathe.  I mean that literally, of course your breathing, but you’re not breathing correctly, and by that I mean taking deep slow breaths.  Deep breathing benefits include lowering blood pressure, relaxing you and helping clear your mind.  Just taking several small breaks each day to do a couple of minutes of deep belly breathing can pay more benefits than you would expect.  A big one, it helps create that slower pace of life by getting you to clear your head and give you space to think, instead of just doing all of the time.

A site I reference often, Zenhabits.com has some great tips on a piece about slowing down the pace of your life and they include:

  1. Do less
  2. Be present
  3. Disconnect
  4. Focus on people
  5. Appreciate nature
  6. Eat slower
  7. Drive slower
  8. Find pleasure in anything
  9. Single task
  10. Breathe

A lot of these suggestions depend on a single idea, consciously deciding to have a slower pace of life.  The proverbial stop and smell the roses if you will.  This was something I really experienced on my Appalachian Trail hike.  When you are simply walking every day, things slow down, the days get longer and life just moves along at a really amazing pace that just seems more right than the pace we normally live at.

How slowing down can make you happy

As I mentioned above, being out of sorts I work on the basics, I did that.  I had some things that were bothering my mind and I worked through a number of them.  I also got some things off of my to do list that were putting some pressure on me.  But this pace thing has been on my mind and I knew slowing down can make me happy, so I’ve been trying.  So what have I been doing?

Well first off, because it’s summer I work 10 hour days and get Fridays off.  I’ve also recently moved someplace where I have a pool.  Given that our summers here in the Mojave Desert give us temperatures that daily range over a hundred degrees I decided to make use of the pool on Fridays.  Now being the second whitest man in America and having recently shaved my head, baking in the sun is not really an option.  So I scoped out the pull and realized that around 4PM each day the sun starts to dip behind some trees near the pool and by 6PM the entire pool is bathed in glorious shade.  So I bought a couple of pool noodles and each Friday afternoon (well two in a row so far) I take my noodles and trod over to the pool.  The pool is really quiet, I have had it to myself each time and I purposefully leave my phone at the apartment.  I do a couple of lazy laps when I first get in but quickly I slide up on the noodles, lay back and just float.  I spend anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour like a napping whale in the ocean just letting the wind blow me around the pool.  I then get out and lay in the shade, it usually only takes about twenty minutes to completely dry out and start to get warm.  Going back to the house I feel incredibly relaxed.  It’s a combination of not just taking the downtime, but of also unplugging from all of my communications for an hour or so.  No email, no Facebook notifications or marketing calls are able to interrupt that time.  During that time I find myself naturally falling into deep belly breathes, a good sign that I’m truly relaxing.

There are other small things I’ve been doing as well.  I’m one of those people who eats at his desk while answering emails.  I’ve pushed myself to stop that, I’m not perfect, I’m still eating at my desk but I take the time to at least look at something not stressful on the web, a good science article, or video on hiking, a fellow hiking friend Darwin has some great ones through his site Darwin on the trail, check it out.  I’ve been taking some breathing breaks and trying like hell to single task but my job doesn’t always allow that to happen.  These are things that any of us can do, I’m also just trying to have some stupid fun and even just chill out and watch a movie here or there without being on my computer at the same time.  It all seems to be helping and definitely I’ve been feeling happier over the last couple of weeks.

slower pace of life, can make you happy

A slower pace of life can make you happy

So remember my friends, a slower pace of life can make you happy and that’s worth the effort.  So be calm, take a breath and have a happy day my friends ~ Rev Kane

Articles related to a slower pace of life and how that can make you happy!

Ten things you can do to be happier today!

Slow down and be happy!

Remember the sweet things

Happiness and not wasting a day

 

 

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My COVID Times Diary – A New Day

Posted on May 27, 2020 by Michael Kane

My COVID Times Diary – A New Day

covid masksChange the changeable, accept the unchangeable, and remove yourself from the unacceptable. ~ Denis Waitley

As I said in my very first COVID Times post, part of the reason I’m writing these posts is to leave something to posterity.  Something for little nieces and nephews to read in twenty years.  Especially the little ones, I have several under the age of 7.  I’m not sure they completely get what is going on.  My little 5 and 7 year-old nephews in Brooklyn left their apartment for the first time in ten weeks today.

What I wanted to write about tonight was the surreal image I experienced at the grocery store on Sunday morning.  You see I came walking out of the grocery store Sunday morning, I looked around and every person I could see was walking around wearing masks, hands covered in gloves.  It was early in the morning, very quiet and just felt completely surreal, like I’d suddenly stepped into a dystopian film.  I’d left the store, sparse of customers, again, everyone wearing a mask, many wearing gloves.  There is a sanitization station at the entrance to every store, an entrance that is marked and controlled for access.  The store, that used to have people flowing in and out of every door in every direction, is now a unidirectional controlled series of ingress and egress doors.

There are no more dividers to separate people’s orders on the conveyor at the register.  You see, no one is supposed to stand within six feet of you and only one order at a time can be put on the conveyor, so you don’t need dividers.  You now talk to the cashier with a clear plexiglass border between the two of you.

For most of us reading this right now, you’re likely thinking what a silly little piece I’ve written.  And that’s because this has become completely normal to you.  But if I’d written this piece six months ago saying this is what the world would look like in May, you’d have thought I was a madman.  I wonder how long this will be our new normal?  Will this be the way it is from now on?  Even after the initial outbreak has past, even after we hopefully and finally have a vaccine?  Will that piece of plexiglass remain between you and he cashier as a reminder of our COVID Times life in 2020?  Only time will tell. ~ Michael ‘Rev’ Kane

Other COVID posts you might enjoy!

COVID Times – Fear

COVID Times – Living Our Values

COVID Times – A Little Levity

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My COVID Times Diary – A Little Levity

Posted on May 26, 2020 by Michael Kane

My COVID Times Diary – A Little Levity

We don’t laugh because we are happy, we’re happy because we laugh.              ~ William James

We’re living in serious times, people are anxious, afraid they’re feeling uncertain about their future and the future of this country.  It leads to a lot of bad things, but people also deal with fear and anxiety with humor.  A friend of mine has been collecting COVID memes on her Facebook page and so I decided to raid her page for the ones that tickled my fancy.  They are below, enjoy. ~ Michael ‘Rev’ Kane

 

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Memorial Day – A Day to Remember

Posted on May 25, 2020 by Michael Kane

Memorial Day – A Day to Remember

memorial dayIt’s Memorial Day, a day designed as a day to remember those who lost there life in military service for the United States.  All of us likely have someone, somewhere in their family tree who made the ultimate sacrifice during war. For me, my great Uncle Tony was killed in World War II.  I, of course, only know him from pictures and stories.  The intention for today is to remember those people and they certainly should be remembered.

However, during my lifetime, as experience with wars with large numbers of dead grow fainter and fainter in our collective memory, this holiday becomes more and more about the start of summer.  Sure, we fly some flags and have some parades.  War movie marathons play on cable TV, we see a lot of John Wayne on Memorial Day weekend.  Some people, painfully have recent and raw memories of loved ones who have died in our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.  The veterans of those wars and their families, are still very much in the depths of remembrance that this day was intended to bring forth.

This year, much like after 9/11, a group other than the military is being lauded for the sacrifices they are making on our behalf.  Front line healthcare workers are becoming ill and losing their lives while trying to save others during the coronavirus pandemic.  People have also recognized that people like meat packers, grocery store workers and other retail workers have been in a somewhat similar position.  All of those who have lost their life this year from coronavirus,  who got ill in the service of others, deserve to be remembered.

memorial day, covid, ny timesFor this year, that’s enough of an addition.  But long-term I want to change the purpose of this holiday.  Not in anyway to diminish the sacrifice of our military dead, but to increase our recognition of all of the others who lose their life sacrificing for others.  But let’s not stop there, as well, I think there is more than enough space on this one designated day of remembrance each year for us to take some time to remember those who have sacrificed in any way to make our lives better.

A day to remember the sacrifice of parents, caregivers, grandparents, friends, even kind strangers who made a difference. For me personally I can include a parent, grandparents, other blood relatives and friends on the list of those people.  Hopefully in remembering, we’ll all be more likely to do that for someone else in their times of need.

Today, take a moment to think about anyone, who in your life has sacrificed on your behalf, to help you live a better life and have happier days my friends. ~ Rev Kane

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Happiness, Attitude and Simple Pleasures

Posted on May 22, 2020 by Michael Kane

Happiness, Attitude and Simple Pleasures

happiness, attitude, simple pleasure

Sitting in the sun and sipping tea and working on my attitude in the Himalayas, another simple pleasure

My advice to you is not to inquire why or whither, but just enjoy your ice cream while it’s on your plate.  ~Thornton Wilder

It has been a hectic time for me lately and I’ve been really stressed out.  The impact of this has been that I have felt fairly joyless over the last couple of months.  The things that normally made me happy haven’t really been raising a smile.  Even some significant events that have a occurred have left others confused that I’m not more excited.

Whenever I feel like this there are some things I do.  First, I do as instructed by Taoist philosophy and go back to the basics, eating, sleeping, and making sure I’m safe in my world.  I also write, not the blog writing I’m doing right now, but more emotive and evocative writing, primarily poetry.  I try to use that as a mechanism to release what emotions may be brewing under the service to get that energy out of me.

It didn’t seem that my usual plan was working this time and certainly if it was, it was taking its sweet time to elevate my mood in any way.  The surest way I know things are wrong is when I’m not eating or sleeping and I’ve been there for a while.

Sometimes nothing works however but reaching down and grabbing yourself up by your bootstraps and willing yourself forward.  More than likely what I had been doing was helping, albeit slowly and the added boost of self-determination has gotten be back over the top.  How do I know I’ve gotten there, well even though today was a very hectic day.  I found myself excitedly and happily watching sports, cheering on my favorite team.  Then it hit me, wow, I haven’t been this happy, over something this simple in quite some time, it feels good to be back.  I hope you are also having a happy day my friends ~ Rev Kane

Other Happiness Posts You Might Enjoy!

Remember the Sweet Things

Happy Anniversary – Ministry of Happiness

Appalachian Trail Happiness: My Best Posts

 

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