Dealing with micro-stress

I read an article published a year or so ago today. When it was published doesn't really matter, but its content does, which is why I'm writing about it here.

The article talks about the impact of micro-stresses on your health. What I take micro-stresses to mean are things like: being late for an appointment, or having an awkward social interaction, or having to pretend to pay attention to someone you don't know in traffic, or losing your glasses, or having to pretend to pay attention. Maybe even stubbing your toe. Well, these micro-stresses can accumulate and negatively impact your health, as the author affirms throughout the article by citing an American psychiatrist.

Psychiatrists are probably good authorities to refer to when it comes to talking about stress, so the article didn't turn me off, which, again, is why I'm writing about it here.

I can relate to the micro-stress thing. The major stress, things like work and relationships, I'm used to. But when the minor things start accumulating, they can turn into something pretty major, and your health can suffer. Bad habits creep in. In my case, junk food is definitely at the top of the list, and because they're habits, you can stay stuck with them, which in my case, means I'm way overweight.

As mentioned in the article, because you are more likely to get support from others when you have major stressors (think like a broken leg or something), when the minor stressors take over, you often get no support. The four tips Dr Samantha Boardman (the psych) gives to counter that are:

• Imagine what the situation you're currently dealing with will look like a year from now. I like this one. I had a therapist mention this one years ago and I do find myself using it in the present moment when I think of it.
  
• Laugh. I really need to do this more. Full stop.
• Go outside. Touch grass, basically. Literally too. Yeah, I like this one because I do my best to go out in nature.
• Don't take it personally. Kinda related to the first tip in my opinion. I think I could work on this more. I can get caught up in my own head bubble pretty easily. But the psych seems to be saying that having a positive mindset is what's important.
  

Perhaps these can be useful to you as well.

Karma Aspiration Linger Entity Iodine Darwin Overcast

Ulysses Grievous Hawt Spectre Citron Ophilia Philharmonic Eyeless

If I don't publish this now, I might start rewriting this entence again.

Apologies for the ridiculous paragraphs. Still just me bloggin' away over here...

Little blue buds

I took a picture of this a few years ago and I cannot remember what they are

Electric pedals

This summer, I've been exploring different parts of the city on my first e-bike. I'm not the most athletic guy, and I never would have just picked up and pedalled to random spots in the city on a regular bike, but with an e-bike I feel driven to go to new places because I can - really easily.

I take pictures here and there. Here are my latest ones.

Behind that row of trees is a canal that feeds into the Humber River.

At Evergreen Brickworks. There wasn't much going on the day I went so the most enjoyable part was the bike descent through Moore Park ravine.

Parked on the side of the main road inside High Park.

I thought this plant looked especially vivid in a tiny little natural alcove called Peace Garden near Evergreen.

Nature pics

I use Bluetooth like once a year, if that. I prefer cables. I was pretty happy when I managed to get Bluetooth to work to upload these.

I thought this tiny shrubbery thing was vibrant.

Really puts life into perspective doesn't it?

This is a falcon I saw in high park last autumn.

A neat intersect between human & wild.

My little photo exhibit wouldn't be complete without a train track picture.

Another midsummer

 I don't intend for this to be long.

I haven't gotten around to transferring my photos over and uploading them yet. But I have been thinking about it, which is something, considering how infrequently I have been updating my blog the last couple years. And now I am here, writing again. I guess it's because I feel a little lonely.

I remember when I first started my blog, I was definitely not lonely. Not one bit. I was in high school, so I was around people all day. When I came home, one of the first things I would do was log onto MSN messenger. And I'd be there for hours and hours. So it was very social, even though it wasn't strictly organic. Wow. That's all completely behind me and in the past - MSN is gone. The closest thing nowadays is something like Discord, but I barely use it.

Nostalgia is hitting pretty hard it seems. Well, although I am lonely, it's not all bad. I'm steadily employed. I'm not in a dream job or anything, but it's something. A thing.

I hang out on Twitch a lot these days. It's a weird place sometimes.

Those nature photos are comin'.

Perhaps a window into something

 I think I might start posting some pictures I've taken. I'm not posting them right now because I'm too lazy to deal with transferring them off my obsolete Windows phone. But when they do show up on here, I reckon the quality won't be too bad because they were taken on what was once a state-of-the-art camera phone.

I like taking pictures of nature because I don't have to worry about symmetry very much. Things are as they are and I like the feeling of capturing something either living or something having once lived. If I'm in nature, I'm usually in wooded areas, because Toronto is full of ravines. But the other day, I went way down to the lake, near High Park, so I captured something different for once. I guess that's what I'll post next time.

I don't use Facebook anymore, and the pandemic completely wiped out any semblance of a social life I thought I had. I haven't seen any friends in years. Feels kinda sad. I hang out with the cats a lot. I've got one snoozing next to me right now.

Summer's here.