In typical Real Brian Show fashion, we've got an exciting discussion for you that goes from Tony's odd love for Folgers' coffee to "cuddle puddle" to some of the foundational concepts of healthy eating. Join Brian, Anna and Tony for another riveting Superhero Friday installment!
If there are any takeaways from this episode, it's that being healthy isn't just about eating or just about exercising or just about community. It is a combination of lifestyle choices that intimately affect each other. Think about it... the things we eat affect the energy we have, which influences exercise. Exercise affects stress levels and mindset. Stress levels affect sleep patterns. And sleep patterns affect the way we eat! Have you ever, when finding yourself hungry and awake at 1 a.m., said, 'Oh, I'll just make a nice green salad.' No. It's ice cream. Pizza. Or, in my case, cheese tortillas (filled with CRAP).
Self-care is continual and cyclical. The better care you take of yourself, the more you want to take better care of yourself. When self-care is de-prioritized, we develop a lot of habits that are convenient due to circumstance and exacerbate the lack of self-care. I have a terrible habit of putting self-care on hold while I take care of other things (usually work things). I'll put off so much that, eventually, something will happen that stops me right where I am and forces me to take care of what I've been neglecting. It used to be that I'd get really sick. My body would collapse and I'd spend three days puking my guts out and running a fever of 102. Lately, it hasn't been my health that takes a hit but other, peripheral things... like this week I was leaving for work and found standing water in my HVAC closet! 24 hours, and several dozens of gallons of mopped up water, later I have a brand new water heater, a declogged emergency drain and a stunned feeling of, 'What the heck just happened?!'
I've been reading a book that really digs in to the reasons behind why we neglect and put things off and how to turn things around. There is so much I'm guilty of, and so much I ignore... knowing that I'll eventually get to it, but right here and now I have to do what's right in front of me. Thinking about self-care, and especially thinking about health in a holistic way, I know that a great deal of my effort needs to go into how I can prioritize sleep and downtime (true relaxation) and learn to delegate responsibilities in order to achieve that.
There is no trick other than to figure out the lifestyle choices that work for YOU. That work for ME. We can share tips and tricks, but frankly the solutions we apply won't be the exact same as someone else's. And that's OK, right? That's why we have these discussions. The more you know, the more you can prepare for.
Be a nicer. It's the bitchin' thing to do! We're talking about remembering names and what rad verbiage cats are throwin' down these days. If it's cool with you, that is. If it's not, whatevs, we're goin' with the flowin' and jammin' with Shear Terror and Heroess Hannah. So pull up your britches, turn that frown upside down and have a little fun with us.
There are only a few people whose names don't seem to stick for me. It always happens when I second guess myself once, and then I continually lack confidence in knowing I know that person's name. On the whole, I'm not terrible with it. I usually remember too much about the person, not just their name.
During the first day of orientation after I transferred colleges, myself and my peers were gathered in a large assembly room where we were getting the low-down on campus. I don't recall much about that assembly, except for when the person leading the assembly had us all stand up and turn to the person next to us. We were to shake hands, tell each other our name, and then stare into one another's eyes while repeating their name.
No. Joke.
It was pretty dang awkward and I honestly have no idea what they hoped would become of that little exchange, but it scarred me. Just kidding. It made me realize that I never wanted to do that again, probably, which is why I tend to remember people's name.
My name (Emilee) is spelled a little differently than the traditional name. I'm cool with that, it's been funny to see who has a problem remembering how to spell it. I've been tracking my receipts from restaurants where they take my name for an order... and far from getting the double e correct, I see emliy, emmily, emilie... It's funny. But because my name is spelled the way it is, I know how meaningful it is when people get my name right... and so I like doing that for others. I think names are important, so I will double check emails or messages before I send them, I will apologize and ask someone to repeat their name if I didn't hear it properly, and then repeat it back to them.
Just like remembering anything, really, it's a matter of finding a system that works for you and
Don't... fall... asleep... Though we can't imagine that will be a problem with this installment of the podcast! We're talking Ready Player One with Tony (Captain Influence) and Anna (Mangodroplet). If you haven't seen it yet, we give a clear spoiler warning for when that particular discussion begins. Here's a great excuse to go out and see it! Don't worry, we have a lot of other things to cover!!
Since I have not yet seen Ready Player One, my mission here will be to direct you at all the content we talked about on the podcast! Also, if you haven't yet discovered Brian's playlists on Spotify... click here and click here.
Eat your feelings! Then eat someone else's feelings. Or don't, that might not be polite come to think of it. It's better to share! So get a nice bowl of spicy Thai noodles, or whatever form your feelings take, and curl up with this installment of the Real Brian Show! We're so happy to welcome back Shear Terror and, new guest, Hannah (heretofore Heroess).
I've probably mentioned this in blog posts recently, but I've been on a major Thai food kick for a couple months now. Once I started keeping regular Thai ingredients on hand it started getting easier to whip something up spur of the moment, or to just buy the more substantial aspects of a recipe when needed (fresh pork, chilies, you know).
If you like Thai food but don't really know where to start... here's a great recipe. It's simple: spicy Thai noodles.
What do you need?
Linguine pasta
Honey
Chili Paste
Soy Sauce
Sesame oil
Scallions, carrots, peanuts, cilantro, hot sauce
So simple, right? I add pork to this recipe. But here's what you do:
BOOM! Top with chopped scallions, carrots, cilantro... serve hot or cold.
I think I'm going to go eat my feelings now.