Noise All Around - Breathing Space Blog

Eleven years ago, the article “Noise Busters” by Richard and Joyce Wolkomir appeared in Smithsonian Magazine. From the authors:

“Nature quiet is now preserved in only 7% of Arizona’s Grand Canyon national park and nowhere in Hawaii’s volcano’s National Park.”

“Among city dwelling Americans, 87% are exposed to noise so loud it has the potential to degrade hearing capacity over time. But you will not necessarily find piece in the suburbs or country side either, not with the on slot of leaf blowers, snow blowers, lawn mowers, chain saws, snow mobiles, power boats, and all terrain vehicles.

“Researchers have demonstrated that noise can raise your blood pressure and change your blood chemistry… Adrenaline levels can rise, indicating the imposition of stress.”

Noise is unwanted sound it is derived from the Latin word for nausea. In 1960 there were no leaf blowers, no jet skis, no car alarms, and few snowmobiles.

Noise on one side of the school has been shown to diminish children’s test scores compared with that of children of the other side of the school in a relatively noise free zone, who otherwise have the same academic capabilities and demographic profile.

Do you want to do your best work? Get away for the noise

Like Contented Cows - Breathing Space Blog

On a recent plane trip from Raleigh to London it became abundantly clear that all of the electronics installed, including private movie screens on every seat back, music channels, and headsets were a way of "medicating" passengers. The plane's aisles had been designed so that no one could move about easily.

Instead, people were induced to stay in their seats, sit, eat, and not circulate. I guess the airline determined that most passengers would gladly accept electronic medication if it would make the time in the sky seemingly go faster.

Between Birth and Death - Breathing Space Blog

Here are some motes from What to Do Between Birth and Death: The Art of Growing Up, by Charles Spezzano, Ph.D. (William Morrow):

* You don't really pay for things with money. You pay for them with time. "In five years, I'll have put enough away to buy that vacation house we want. Then I'll slow down or get out of this business altogether." Okay, that means the house will cost you five years. That's one-twelfth of your adult life.

* Translate the dollar value of the car or the house or anything else into time, and then see if it's still worth it. Sometimes you can't do what you want and have what you want at once because each requires a different expenditure of time. Those are the moments when you have to think of the cost of the thing in terms of time and not dollars.

* The phrase "spending your time" is not a metaphor. It's how life works.

The Consumer Republic - Breathing Space Blog

Stampedes and riots at shopping malls of late have made me think of the 2003 book,
A Consumers' Republic: The Politics of Mass Consumption in Postwar America,
by Lizabeth Cohen (Knopf). Dr. Jones is a professor of American studies who asks
* How did mass consumption establish itself as a basic component of citizenship in the United States?
* How have the economic, political, social, and cultural structures engendered by mass consumption changed your life?

Get Off the Edge - Breathing Space Blog

For years, I stayed on the edge of my savings, my time, my resources, and my energy rather than storing these up for selective use when opportunities quickly presented themselves. As I began to formulate the Breathing Space principles, I realized my folly.

Get off the edge, put more away in savings, rest more often, eat properly and relax periodically throughout the day. Stop substituting motion for accomplishment.

On Not Competing - Breathing Space Blog

Often the most effective way to compete in this world for jobs, lovers and whatever you covet is to not compete at all. Don't compare, analyze, or dwell upon what others are doing. Instead created your own path, follow your internal guidance system, and have faith that your way will work.

Renew Your Lungs - Breathing Space Blog

Advice told to me: To keep your lungs young, do this simple exercise two or three times a day: Stand straight and slowly exhale until all your breath is gone. Then slowly inhale until your chest is completely expanded. This exercise takes your lungs to each limit, which combats the loss of efficiency and elasticity that come with aging.