No, not THOSE blues!
Okay so this post is sort of a double-whammy. I'll tell you a bit about my depression and my game plan for it, and a bit about my political views (I'll be sure to put on a full suit of armor first!)
Lately I have been feeling sort of down. It happens off and on, and usually doesn't have any sort of recognizable trigger. So I got to thinking... what could cause random bursts of sadness?
Well, let's start with the biology of emotion. The brain is an AMAZING machine! It is malleable in its disposition, in other words, it's a very plastic mechanism, and can be shaped and reshaped almost an infinite number of times.
Of the many parts of the brain, the Limbic System, is the most "emotional" region. The Limbic System gives birth to many social phenomena such as humor, curse words, art, fictional literature, and my favorite: music!
Which brings me to one possible way to combat the onset of the deep, insatiable depression. Listening to or performing music. It's well known that certain people who have neurological damages that limit speech are able to sing beautifully, or emulate classic works of music from Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, etc. or can paint masterpieces that last throughout the ages... or fluently talk like sailors. Or even a combination of the aforementioned (THAT would be an interesting sight).
When I listen to music, usually one of three things happen: 1- I instantly feel calmer (this is the most common, even when listening to the heaviest of death metal), 2- I feel excited, motivated, or otherwise "pumped up." (this is the least common, and usually only occurs when I am doing or about to do physical activity), and 3- I become more emotional - mostly angry or sad (This usually happens with holiday songs, or songs about heavy issues such as bullying, suicide, etc.). My theory is that with enough exposure to 1 and/or 2, I can train my brain into being relaxed and content before going into a scenario where music will be either unavailable or falling into category 3. If I set my mind into a certain positive mood, I should be able to either counteract or nullify the negative emotions that occur when my mind goes idle.
Another theory on sadness: that four letter "D" word that everybody hates. DIET. You are what you eat, they say (That's odd, I don't remember eating a sexy beast this morning.). So, if I am cramming my face with food loaded with simple carbohydrates and trans fats, a.k.a. junk food, I'm probably going to end up with junk emotions. However, back when Mollie and I were on a strict vegetarian diet, I observed something extraordinary: I wasn't sad all of the time. In fact, I was just about the happiest I had ever been. So, with that observation in mind, I will be going back to a vegetarian diet, effective immediately. :)
On a completely unrelated note, I've done some self-evaluation of my values, beliefs, and ideals, and I have noticed something pretty shocking to me. Now, this part is probably going to cause an internet firestorm, but I like it that way... Anyway, after serious self analysis, I've figured out that I'm almost 100% Left-winged when it comes to politics, economics, etc. I can only come up with a handful of Right-winged values I agree with, the main one being the fact that I'm a Christian (and that's not necessarily anti-Left), and that I am Pro-life (save medical emergencies, mortal birth defects, etc). After being blessed with having Michael, I believe there's no excuse to kill off an unborn child because someone was being imprudent.
Before the army of internet trolls detect me, I'll continue to another section of my Leftist spiel. I've noticed that I am very much on the side of Socialism, due to the programs in place to aid the poor, the disabled, and the otherwise disenfranchised. I am very harsh critic of wealthy individuals, especially those in industry. Getting rich from show-business isn't usually immoral, although there have been cases. But more often than not, becoming insanely rich from industry and commerce involves shady ways to save a buck, such as unfair trade, not paying domestic workers a living wage, unsafe work environments, unsafe ingredients/cheap parts, unethical monetary exchanges, undermining other businesses to come out on top, etc.
I believe in equal rights to marriage. Look, the Bible is MY constitution for MY life. But let's not pretend for a moment that the United States government is working under the teachings of Christ. The American government is the most corrupt group of suited vultures I have ever laid my eyes on. If they want separation of church and state, then they need to cut the ties instead of playing with their silly double-standards. I would personally rather them be either completely immoral, or completely Biblical. You can't blend the two.
I'm anti-war as well. Although my initial reasons for protesting against war were superficial, I have discovered more and more atrocities committed by both the U.S. Military and the Middle eastern insurgents. I do NOT support this war. That being said, I DO support programs such as the Wounded Warrior Project, etc. I'm against the chessboard, not the pawns.
I guess you could call me a genuine hippie! All I need now is a beard (which I am in the process of growing), bell jeans, and a tie-dye shirt, and I'll be good to go!
Oh, and for the record, I may be mostly Liberal, but even I can't stand Obama... just because he's Leftist, doesn't make him GOOD at it.
I understand that the second half of this post is pretty sensitive material, so once again, I'd like to remind my dear readers that: you need a sense of humor when reading these or else you'll end up giving yourself a heart attack from the inflammatory things I say, and that I WILL delete hate mail.
Okay so this post is sort of a double-whammy. I'll tell you a bit about my depression and my game plan for it, and a bit about my political views (I'll be sure to put on a full suit of armor first!)
Lately I have been feeling sort of down. It happens off and on, and usually doesn't have any sort of recognizable trigger. So I got to thinking... what could cause random bursts of sadness?
Well, let's start with the biology of emotion. The brain is an AMAZING machine! It is malleable in its disposition, in other words, it's a very plastic mechanism, and can be shaped and reshaped almost an infinite number of times.
Of the many parts of the brain, the Limbic System, is the most "emotional" region. The Limbic System gives birth to many social phenomena such as humor, curse words, art, fictional literature, and my favorite: music!
Which brings me to one possible way to combat the onset of the deep, insatiable depression. Listening to or performing music. It's well known that certain people who have neurological damages that limit speech are able to sing beautifully, or emulate classic works of music from Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, etc. or can paint masterpieces that last throughout the ages... or fluently talk like sailors. Or even a combination of the aforementioned (THAT would be an interesting sight).
When I listen to music, usually one of three things happen: 1- I instantly feel calmer (this is the most common, even when listening to the heaviest of death metal), 2- I feel excited, motivated, or otherwise "pumped up." (this is the least common, and usually only occurs when I am doing or about to do physical activity), and 3- I become more emotional - mostly angry or sad (This usually happens with holiday songs, or songs about heavy issues such as bullying, suicide, etc.). My theory is that with enough exposure to 1 and/or 2, I can train my brain into being relaxed and content before going into a scenario where music will be either unavailable or falling into category 3. If I set my mind into a certain positive mood, I should be able to either counteract or nullify the negative emotions that occur when my mind goes idle.
Another theory on sadness: that four letter "D" word that everybody hates. DIET. You are what you eat, they say (That's odd, I don't remember eating a sexy beast this morning.). So, if I am cramming my face with food loaded with simple carbohydrates and trans fats, a.k.a. junk food, I'm probably going to end up with junk emotions. However, back when Mollie and I were on a strict vegetarian diet, I observed something extraordinary: I wasn't sad all of the time. In fact, I was just about the happiest I had ever been. So, with that observation in mind, I will be going back to a vegetarian diet, effective immediately. :)
On a completely unrelated note, I've done some self-evaluation of my values, beliefs, and ideals, and I have noticed something pretty shocking to me. Now, this part is probably going to cause an internet firestorm, but I like it that way... Anyway, after serious self analysis, I've figured out that I'm almost 100% Left-winged when it comes to politics, economics, etc. I can only come up with a handful of Right-winged values I agree with, the main one being the fact that I'm a Christian (and that's not necessarily anti-Left), and that I am Pro-life (save medical emergencies, mortal birth defects, etc). After being blessed with having Michael, I believe there's no excuse to kill off an unborn child because someone was being imprudent.
Before the army of internet trolls detect me, I'll continue to another section of my Leftist spiel. I've noticed that I am very much on the side of Socialism, due to the programs in place to aid the poor, the disabled, and the otherwise disenfranchised. I am very harsh critic of wealthy individuals, especially those in industry. Getting rich from show-business isn't usually immoral, although there have been cases. But more often than not, becoming insanely rich from industry and commerce involves shady ways to save a buck, such as unfair trade, not paying domestic workers a living wage, unsafe work environments, unsafe ingredients/cheap parts, unethical monetary exchanges, undermining other businesses to come out on top, etc.
I believe in equal rights to marriage. Look, the Bible is MY constitution for MY life. But let's not pretend for a moment that the United States government is working under the teachings of Christ. The American government is the most corrupt group of suited vultures I have ever laid my eyes on. If they want separation of church and state, then they need to cut the ties instead of playing with their silly double-standards. I would personally rather them be either completely immoral, or completely Biblical. You can't blend the two.
I'm anti-war as well. Although my initial reasons for protesting against war were superficial, I have discovered more and more atrocities committed by both the U.S. Military and the Middle eastern insurgents. I do NOT support this war. That being said, I DO support programs such as the Wounded Warrior Project, etc. I'm against the chessboard, not the pawns.
I guess you could call me a genuine hippie! All I need now is a beard (which I am in the process of growing), bell jeans, and a tie-dye shirt, and I'll be good to go!
Oh, and for the record, I may be mostly Liberal, but even I can't stand Obama... just because he's Leftist, doesn't make him GOOD at it.
I understand that the second half of this post is pretty sensitive material, so once again, I'd like to remind my dear readers that: you need a sense of humor when reading these or else you'll end up giving yourself a heart attack from the inflammatory things I say, and that I WILL delete hate mail.