Connecting our Youth and the Arts Through the Spoken Word

Poetry SlamI first heard the phrase when I was running a fundraising Facebook-a-thon back in November of 2012.  You may now be wondering what a Facebook-a-thon is, I can cover that later.  My question was - what is a poetry slam?I found a YouTube video featuring a very passionate young women reciting an original poem.  It was a sad,

http://www.empowernetwork.com/debsroom/2013/08/13/connecting-our-youth-and-the-arts-through-the-spoken-word/

What is Your Brand?

I have been thinking about my brand for quiet some time.  Not my business brand but my personal brand.  It was easy to brand my business.  I'm a waxer, I wax.  Pretty simple.  But what do people think of when they think of Debra Felske, the person?  Energizer Bunny is the first thing that pops in my mind based on comments like:"You have

http://www.empowernetwork.com/debsroom/2013/08/13/what-is-your-brand/

Debra Felske just posted a new blog titled The Sun is Not the Enemy.

Debra Felske just posted a new blog titled The Sun is Not the Enemy.

Relationships - Other

In my last post I mentioned friendships and their ability to keep us feeling young.  In an effort to cover all the bases on that I shall add that pets and plants can be great friends too.  I prefer the plant based friend, they aren't as messy but still require a bit of maintenance.  Enough said.

Moving along.  Other relationships - this for me would be the male/female type since I don't have and exclusive dating relationship.  This is really my round about way of bringing up the subject of sex and it's youthful qualities.  I truly believe that an active sex life keeps people young, happy and physically fit.  The problem comes in finding a partner, this goes for married couples also.  Almost every magazine that comes into the salon, covers some article on sex:  how to do it better, how it flattens your abs, how to tell him what you want, yadda, yadda, yadda.

For my On the Road to 50 purposes I'm interested in the youthful and flat abs aspects.  Emotional well-being would only be available if it was a long-term, monogomous realtionship.  Well, I suppose I could live with myself and be emotionally OK if I had a different partner every week, but it wouldn't be my preference. Now we get into the moral and wellness aspects of having a happy sex life.  Is it right/wrong to have sex without marriage?  How dangerous is having multiple partners? ( I know the answer to that one, just throwing it out to remind everyone.)  If your significant other no longer wants to have sex with you, do you have any "correct" options?  And lest you think you get the same youth building response from other devices, you are wrong.
 
Have Sex and Stay Young "There are physiological factors too," said Dr Weeks. "Sex is the most intense kind of pleasure and that triggers certain chemicals. In women it produces a human growth hormone which helps the process." Regular, loving sex came second to physical and mental activity as the factors most important to retaining youth.

I am not providing any answers here, just giving points to ponder.  If you are in a relationship that doesn't provide you with an happy sex life,I suggest you start doing some work on yourself and that relationship.  This is an important part of traveling down that road to 50 or any other age for that matter.

Friendships

I have always considered myself a friendly person however I have never felt like I have deep friendships, at least not the two way kind of friends: I'm a good giver, not that great at receiving.  The reality of life is I'm kind of a loner and I like it that way.  As I grow older, I feel like I should have some long, term wonderful friend that I can call up in the middle of the night, travel with or go out puppy hunting with. (Puppy hunting - what Cougars do when they are out looking for prey.)  Reflecting upon this delema I realize that I really have a lot of friends, we just don't hang out together.  Every day I see clients whom I have shared a relationship with for over seven years.  I ask about their kids, spouses and careers and they remember to ask about my kids, dating life and remodeling projects.  It is these relationships that keep me young and vibrant and yet I took them for granted as if they did not even exist.  Go figure!

I truly believe that one of the secrets of aging gracefully is having good friendships and people to share with.  I still want that "call in the middle of the night friend" but maybe I'll get lucking and wake up and find him next to me some day. LOL!

Here's to good friends, tonight is kind of special.....

The Power of Peace

Feeling at peace with the world and yourself produces a wonderful glow that I can only call "youthful."  Once you let go of the ego's attempt to control your thoughts and allow your all knowing soul to take control, the stresses of life seem to melt away along with the frown lines.  I have discovered lately that I react to negative circumstances because people expect me to, not because they really bother me.  It is quite peculiar that folks don't like others to be happy all the time, or feel that someone is using you as a "doormat" if you don't react negatively to being "used" or slighted.  I really just don't care anymore!  My ego is no longer in control of my thoughts, my soul is in control of my life.  It is a beautifully, age reducing feeling.

I had the lovely experience of paying $1453 to have my truck repaired, when there had been nothing wrong with it when I dropped it off.  I'm sure someone else can relate.  As I was paying the bill, the mechanic was discussing the good ole days, he was probably 30 something, when I mentioned that my family had lived in the area since the late '50s.  He said, "you can't have lived here that long, you only look 38 or 39."  If I had been stressed out about my truck, I might not have looked 38.

Anti-aging strategy:  Don't sweat the small stuff.....you know the rest.

Why is adjusting a diet such a hangup?

I admit, it has been many weeks since my last blog.  The topic was supposed to be diet and I froze.  I'm not overweight, I know how to eat right, (don't always do that), I enjoy cooking, I have lots..lots...lots of diet and nutrition books...why then does adjusting my diet to a more anti-aging approach throw me into a tale spin?  Easy answer...it requires change, discipline and I would actually have to go to the (daunt daunt DAH!) grocery store with a list. EWWWW Yuck!!!  Changing my diet would take away my spontaneity.  Oh well, I'm a big girl, I can do it!

I've decided to start of the anti-aging diet thingy with a cleanse and since I LOVE Biggest Loser, I went out and got Jillian's cleanse.  It was so nice that the young lady at CVS who got it out of the locked cabinet it was hiding in said I didn't need to do a cleanse.  Wasn't that sweet?  I've also chosen to focus on the pH Balance Diet as opposed to the Eat Clean Diet I was going to use.  Already did the Fiber 25 Plan and the Flat Belly Plan and the Fat Flush Plan...need I go on.  I hate to state the obvious, but I like routine but hate plans.  I am so having an AH HA moment here.  I plan EVERYTHING, 'cause I love to plan, but I don't ever follow my plans.  Whoa!  What an eye opener. Well, enough of me finding myself through a blog.

Cleanse may start tomorrow and I'll just mosey into the new pH diet program, no plan.