I’m like you. I’m not unhappy, but I’m not happy. Just sailing somewhere in the middle, but closer to the happy side. Maybe a 6 or 7 if happy is 10.

I won’t complain much about my slow connection today. It’s been raining a lot here for over a week and all this old copper phone line is saturated. That means more noise and slower connections. Today I’m connecting at about half the speed I normally do, and the normal connection is slow. sigh.

I hear thunder approaching slowly, looks like I may take some time off to read or take a nap, soon.

Act on your dream!

JD

I need to give up more of those things you mentioned. I have diabetes but not high blood pressure, and no problems with cholesterol; at least not yet. And I don’t complain about how I feel in public unless specifically asked; just being “okay” works for me because I’m not lying, and it’s almost a noncommittal answer, if you know what I mean.

I keep forgetting about your slow internet connection; man!
.-= Mitch´s last blog ..An Interview With Jim Turner =-.

I hope you catch all of these, too. I think the process of working through these questions and the thoughts they bring up will be beneficial to anyone who participates and may have value for others who just read what we’re saying.

You said:

I’ve noticed that less than 50% of the time do I have both criteria over 5, which is midpoint but not quite, if you know what I mean. Now, I don’t know that I complain about it all that often, but I do acknowledge it, and I don’t like it one bit. I will tell my wife I’m tired, and I’ll acknowledge when my glucose is high, but otherwise, I tell people I’m okay so often that they expect that’s just my pat answer instead of how I’m feeling

You raise a great point here. Is acknowledging that we feel bad the same as complaining? I don’t think it is.

Still, it may come across that way to others.

Truthfully, I don’t know which is better, to just disappear for awhile when I’m not feeling good enough to write, or to acknowledge it and try to do whatever I can each day.

I certainly don’t go around telling everyone I come into contact with that something is wrong with me, but, if they ask, I tend to tell the truth. That may not be the best strategy, but it is honest.

I learned a long time ago that there just isn’t any point in trying to force myself to do something I don’t feel like doing. When I do, I’ll produce an inferior product at a slower pace. For me, it’s better to do something else until I feel like being productive, again.

Then, almost always, I can do enough in a few days to more than make up for the days I missed.

I’m not saying that would be right for everyone, but it does seem to work well for me.

I also think you’re right about eating well. A few years ago, I completely changed my diet. As a result, I’ve lost over 100 pounds and I know the foods that I’m eating are better for me than a constant diet of hamburgers, pizza, fried chicken, and all the related side-plates.

These days, I tend to eat more baked chicken than fried chicken, a hamburger every couple of weeks or less, and pizza only rarely.

As much as I love doughnuts and cinnamon buns, especially with my morning coffee, I rarely eat them anymore.

I’m eating a couple of boiled eggs instead of three or four fried eggs with bacon or sausage and several biscuits. Many mornings, breakfast consists of a little oatmeal, instead of the omelets I love so much.

I’m eating more fruit, even though I really don’t like most fruit.

I love ice cream, but now I eat only a tiny fraction of what I used to eat.

I think it has made a real difference, but it has not helped me feel better.

Truthfully, I felt much better eating a terrible diet when my health was better, but we grow older and have to make adjustments.

I would love to watch that video, but my Internet connection is so slow that I won’t be able to see it. Maybe the next time I visit my daughter or go to the library I’ll remember to watch it. I do appreciate the suggestion.

The matter of being happy has not seemed all that important to me.

I enjoy the things I do, but I have never been a real smiley and laughing kind of guy. I love visiting my family, but would not say that it makes me happy.

I’m going to have to think a lot more about this whole happy thing. Right now, I just don’t grok it.

When I lived in a city, I loathed all the noise, traffic, and congestion. Now that I’ve lived in the mountains for a couple of decades, I find that I’m content here and really appreciate that I’m living somewhere I enjoy. I love the scenery, the people, and the friendlier atmosphere.

So, in almost all aspects of my life, I’m content and satisfied.

Is that more or less important than being happy?

Act on your dream!

JD

As a result, I took a break, ate a snack, and watched the movie, again.

While watching the movie, I had a flash of inspiration.

I realized that when I was growing up and for most of my adult life, the only time I could really take a break was when I was sick. If I was sick and running a fever, I could stay home from school. The same was true for staying home from work.

In my family, being sick was the only acceptable reason for not doing something that was required of us.

I’m thinking now that I may be making myself feel worse than I should as a way to get out of doing some things I don’t want to do, or at least to take a break.

The ironic thing is that I’m an adult and own my own business. I can take a day or week off any time I want and I don’t have to be sick to do it.

But, am I still a product of my upbringing?

Do I still feel the need to be sick when I want to take time off to think or sleep?

I’m thinking right now that this may be the case, at least part of it.

There’s no doubt that I’ve had health problems, but by focusing on them instead of focusing on being healthy, there’s a good chance that I’m making things worse, even if that isn’t my conscious intent.

Something to think about.

Act on your dream!

JD

The last six weeks, I’ve been doing the Get Clients Now process, and a part of it is grading how you feel each day, as well as how your body feels. I’ve noticed that less than 50% of the time do I have both criteria over 5, which is midpoint but not quite, if you know what I mean. Now, I don’t know that I complain about it all that often, but I do acknowledge it, and I don’t like it one bit. I will tell my wife I’m tired, and I’ll acknowledge when my glucose is high, but otherwise, I tell people I’m okay so often that they expect that’s just my pat answer instead of how I’m feeling.

Having said that, I don’t let it stop me from doing things, though I produce a heck of a lot more when I’m feeling better. I try to find something to help me break out of the malaise, and I find that when I’m serious about it I’m eating better; seems to be a correlation there.

I’m sorry you’re not as happy a guy as you’ve been in the past. I hope this link gives you at least a quick little laugh: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdwuiyO7hOU&feature=fvw
.-= Mitch´s last blog ..Creating Your Own Products; Let Me Talk About Mine =-.