Landscape Escape

I'm one of those lucky guys who has lots of hobbies to occupy my time and energy. I am an avid reader and collector of books (as well as tea and turtles). I love to travel and play my guitar. And I stay busy with my writing, videos, and music projects (not to mention this blog and my video site). But one of my favorite hobbies is landscaping. I like nothing better than to take an empty or weed-strewn chunk of land and turn it into a colorful, blooming masterpiece that enhances the natural scenery and makes me smile every time I wander through it.

I enjoy landscaping so much that I consider it therapeutic, one of my great escapes whenever I need some time away from the everyday challenges and all too often stresses of life.

LANDSCAPE ESCAPE



Besides being a terrific form of exercise, landscaping is a wonderful way to get back to nature, to roll up those sleeves and dig your hands into the earth. There’s nothing like working up a sweat with the sounds of birds or squirrels singing and chirping away in the background.

Another thing that draws me to landscaping is the sense of accomplishment I feel when I (finally) complete a project. Life is a journey that should be enjoyed throughout each leg; the same can be said about landscaping. I like the fact that there’s a beginning, middle, and end, and while the finish line can seem a long way off at the outset of any project, the key is to enjoy every minute of the experience--I do this with landscaping, just as I try to do with all aspects of my life.

One thing I always talk about trying to achieve is the Triad of Balance, which is working on finding harmony between the Mind, Body, and Spirit, after first balancing each one on its own. Simply put: in order to lead the most fulfilling and purposeful life, I believe one has to work on the Mind, Body, and Spirit every day, and then balance all three together. If one of these is out of whack, then even though the other two are working fine, you are not complete, not in balance, and, therefore, not living your life to its fullest. Landscaping is one of those hobbies that helps me to stay balanced. My MIND is in constant motion, thinking and planning, focused on the tasks at hand and then executing and achieving. While my SPIRIT feels free as I dig up the dirt, plant flowers and trees, communing with nature. I also feel less stressful: when I am outside with a shovel in my hands I seldom allow distractions to interfere--a good thing. Lastly, my BODY gets plenty of work pushing a wheelbarrow around, freeing up boulders from the ground, and digging, digging, digging. Landscaping is great exercise and a calorie burner.

So what are you waiting for? Summer may be over, but fall is an excellent time to do some planting and work around the yard. Besides being a fun and rewarding hobby, landscaping is a chance to help you find balance between your MIND, BODY, and SPIRIT. Think about it.

Until next time…

peace,

Mike

Peace

I say peace a lot, and that's a good thing (I also say that a lot). For those unfamiliar with my videos, I close each vid with the one-word sign-off: "peace." I got that from my father, who used to say "peace" instead of goodbye, way back in the seventies. I thought it was cool and important as a young man back then, and I still think it is cool and important today.

Today, by the way, is the International Day of Peace, a day dedicated to global unity, with the goal of having one day out of the year free from war, fighting, terrorism, genocide, violence, anger and hatred.

In honor of this great day and as a tip of the cap to my old man, I produced this short video:



To learn more about how you can take action to help create a more peaceful world, please visit peaceoneday.com.

Until next time...

peace (what else?),

Mike

Break a Sweat Every Day

To sweat or not to sweat? Sweating, at times, gets a bad rap, and when you think about it, actually ponder the merits of having your skin break out in a cold (or hot) sweat, it’s a wonder we don’t all go running for the hills. But there’s the rub—if you did head for the hills at a good gait then chances are in no time you’d be drenched in sweat. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, sweating is as important for your health as proper diet, exercise, positive attitude, and the rest of all the good stuff I advocate at this site and livelife365.com.

There are many reasons why we sweat—hot weather, exertion, sickness, nerves, anxiety—all sharing one commonality: we need to! Why? Because sweating regulates the body’s internal temperature. When any of those above situations occur, you heat up inside. If you don’t have a place for this increased heat to go, you’re in trouble. But for most of us, the brain recognizes this warm up, sends a signal to the sweat glands, and, voila, in no time your hair becomes a matted mess (not mine: I Miss My Hair), your armpits a river of sorrow, your back and belly, face and neck, hands and even feet are suddenly coated in liquid. Again: This is a good thing!

Sweating:
· cools down the body
· removes excessive heat
· regulates your internal temperature
· removes small amounts of waste (like chlorine)

But even more importantly, if you’re sweating it usually means that you are moving around, exercising, working in the garden, playing with your kids, taking a walk or run, or just fooling around with your significant other. Many studies have shown that some of the healthiest cultures in the world find a way to sweat every day—you should too! Me? I like to:

Break a Sweat Every Day



Is it possible to sweat too much? Or too little? Yes, and yes. Hyperhidrosis is excessive sweating, that, while maybe embarrassing or uncomfortable, is usually not a cause for alarm. But anhidrosis, which is a rare disease where one has little or no sweat, can lead to heat exhaustion or heat stroke because the lack of sweat limits the body’s ability to cool itself down.

Pop quiz:

Q: Does sweat have an odor?

A: Believe it or not, sweat is odorless. It is the bacteria on one’s skin that mixes with the sweat that causes body odor.

So, working out, running around, exercising and frolicking in the sun, getting a good sweat going, is always a good thing, right? For the most part, yes, but you must stay hydrated or you could become very ill.

Symptoms of Dehydration:
· dry mouth
· tiredness
· thirsty
· weakness
· headache
· dizziness
· rapid heartbeat
· confusion

Symptoms of Dehydration



If you have any of those symptoms, you immediately should:
· seek shade
· drink water
· chill out, and drink more water

If left untreated, dehydration can cause a multitude of far worse maladies. Your best bet is to drink plenty of water while breaking that sweat and use common sense. Or, watch this video:

How to...Prevent Dehydration



Breaking a sweat every day is one of the healthiest things you can do, just remember to replenish those liquids you are sweating out to keep dehydration at bay. And, as always, have fun while living life every day in every way.


Until next time…


peace,

Mike

Change Is Good

The other day I dropped my favorite teacup, rendering it no longer a safe or viable receptacle for my daily consumption of my favorite beverage. To say that I was a tad upset is an understatement. I have had that green cup for years, thought of it as kind of a good luck charm, a talisman, if you will; it is even prominently displayed on this blog and in several of the videos on my video site. For one awful moment I thought: What am I going to do without my special mug? And then I shook my head and realized how ridiculous I sounded. Eventually I got over my dismay and as I often do, sat down and gave my little ordeal some additional thought. My conclusion was that change, even when it is thrust upon us or may seem bad or ill-timed, is a good thing.

“Things don’t change, we change.”~ Henry David Thoreau

But for many people, the prospect of change, especially major change, can seem daunting, downright scary, at times. This is a perfectly natural reaction. Why? Because most of us do not like being taken out of our comfort zones. We prefer the mundane routine to the new super new CHANGE because our routine is a familiar friend, something that while far from perfect is at least not full of surprises and new challenges. This is okay, unless your desire to do more with yourself and your life.

“If you are not changing, you are not living.” ~ Mike Foster

Unless we are testing ourselves, trying new things, removing that comfortable routine from our lives, we will never see our greater potential. The best bosses or managers or supervisors or leaders will often place their charges in challenging predicaments just to see how they react, to deem if they have what it takes to be all that they can be. Again, this is not a pleasant or even enjoyable exercise, but it is one that is necessary for self-growth, personal development, and living one’s life to its fullest.

“We know what we are, but know not what we may be.” ~ William Shakespeare

The biggest tragedy is not to have failed or shunned change, but to never have tried. What if by playing it safe you missed out on your true calling in life? Or passed on your potential soul-mate? Change, for the better, is a good thing. But what about change that you are not ready for, or change that is forced upon you? I am one of those lemonade out of lemons guys, someone who is always viewing the glass as half-full. If change comes and you look at it in a negative light I guarantee that the results will be bad. The good news is that while we may not be able to control the changes headed our way, we can control how we deal with them. In this video, I talk about how I dealt with the loss of my special teacup and how I like to deal with other types of changes:

Change Is Good



You can’t turn on the TV these days without seeing and hearing about how messed up the world is: hunger, war, terrorism, obesity, poverty, global warming, genocide, and just plain uncontrollable anger. How can we change the world when the world’s problems seem so vast? The answer is to embrace change and change yourself, to look in the mirror and honestly assess your own individual problems and issues and areas of improvement. While we may not be able to overcome the seemingly insurmountable problems facing the world, by taking important steps in improving self, the world’s issues will be reduced by one.

“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no on thinks of changing himself.” ~ Tolstoy

One of the biggest fears facing many people is the fear of failure. When facing big life changes or just mini-changes that upset the balance of your world, fear of falling flat on your face, of making mistakes, of failure, is natural. The good news: Failure is okay! Why? Because when we fail we are at least trying, and from that effort comes results, feedback from which we can learn, improve, excel.

FAILING = FEEDBACK!

“Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.” ~ Albert Einstein

The other day I thought that my luck had changed in a negative way when I dropped my favorite teacup and was faced with an unexpected change. Instead, I discovered that change, unexpected or planned, big or small, is a good thing. It all depends on how you embrace it.

Until next time…

peace,

Mike

Sunflower Power

Here’s a riddle for you: What is colorful and happy and smiling at the sun when empty, but bloated and droopy and falling apart when full? Give up? The answer, of course, is the sunflower. If you’ve ever had the pleasure of driving past a field of sunflowers when they are at their cheeriest, basking-in-the-sun splendor, you no doubt have witnessed them well before they are ripe and ready for harvest. Their flowery heads are tilted toward the sun, soaking in the rays like coeds during Spring Break, full of color and promise. It is a sight I never tire of.

Yet when these stunning flowers are ready for plucking, they appear almost depressed: heads bowed by the weight of their plump seeds, once vivid yellow and orange petals now wilted and brown, leaves shriveled and battered by that same sun they once seemed to worship (like those aforementioned coeds, who right about now, after too much exposure to the sun, are just as shriveled and sun-battered).

The sunflower is one of those paradoxes I enjoy, a mystery of nature—a lovely flower that brings both pleasure and sustenance, beauty and, ahem, the beast. For me, there is nothing as picturesque as a blooming sunflower field, nor as sad as one ready for harvest. But once they are beheaded (ouch!) and have had all of their seeds removed, they change from that ugly duckling into a swan of amazing health benefits and tasty treats.

Here’s another riddle for you: How can a city boy harvest sunflowers without making a mess of things? This is how:

How to...Harvest and Eat Sunflower Seeds



Easy to grow and surprisingly easy to harvest, sunflowers are a popular choice for the weekend gardener while also a booming industry. Sunflower seeds are used to feed birds and baseball players; they are great in salads and in baked goods; and delicious as a snack or to start your day in your breakfast cereals. Sunflower oil is considered one of the healthier oils, high in monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats, while low in saturated fats. It also has a higher smoke point which makes it a useful oil to fry with.

But wait, there’s more!

There always is, Mike.

True, especially when it’s about the healthy stuff.

Knew you’d get to that part eventually.

You know me well. Here goes:

TEN REASONS TO EAT SUNFLOWER SEEDS!

1. high in vegetable protein (around 5g per serving)
2. an excellent source of vitamin E
3. filled with good fats (low in sat fats!)
4. fiber! (Need I say more? Yes? Talk to Bernie.)
5. lowers bad cholesterol (because of the phytosterols)
6. loaded with magnesium (which helps reduce asthma, control high blood pressure, strengthen bones)
7. fights cancer (due to the high content of selenium)
8. a heart-healthy snack (low in carbs and calories; high in good fats and fiber)
9. may make you smarter (from the choline, which helps with memory and cognitive functions)
10. THEY TASTE GREAT!

But wait, there’s even more!

What, some goofy video?

Er, um, I wouldn’t exactly call it goofy…

But it IS a video, right?

As I said, you know me well…

Sunflower Power



One of the staple foods for the Native Americans for over 5,000 years, sunflowers were a popular choice then and still are today.

The next time I pass by a field overflowing with sunflowers, either rich in color and basking in the sun or hunched over from the weight of their delicious seeds, I’ll smile a smile of contentment and knowledge, while offering a silent homage to their amazing power.


Until next time…


peace,

Mike

Plum Crazy!

One of the things I love about this time of year is the bounty of garden-fresh fruits and veggies available. During my weekly visit to our local farmer’s market, I can’t seem to buy enough of the ripe tomatoes, crispy cucumbers, succulent squash and tangy peppers. And those are just the vegetables I’m trying to juggle in one arm while I ogle the assortment of just-picked fruit: apples (yes, the season has already started here), peaches, nectarines, and plums.

If there is a more colorful fruit than the plum I’d like to see it. Did you know that there are over a thousand varieties of plums in the world? With colors ranging from deep purple (insert favorite guitar solo here) and ink black, to bright oranges, vivid greens, and cheery yellows…name a color and, if you search hard enough, you will find a plum sporting that hue.

But I’m not crazy about plums just because they offer a rainbow of colors. No, I’m plum crazy because plums taste amazing and are good for you, too. Hey, you didn’t think I’d be writing a blog post about a fruit, even one as tasty and pretty as the plum, if it didn’t offer nutritional benefits worthy of some of my past fruit and veggie posts. Like these popular articles:

I Smell Asparagus
What Is Jicama?
Viva Avocado!
Fruit or Vegetable? Who Cares, Just Eat Tomatoes Every Day!
I Cannot Tell A Lie, Cherries Are Good For You

Okay, enough about all those other wonderful fruits and veggies, let’s talk plums…or better yet, how about a video?

Plum Crazy!



Plums are part of the drupe family: fruits that have a hard stone pit surrounding their seeds. Other members of this tasty family: nectarines and peaches, two fruits, by the way, that I love as much as plums.

Loaded with phenols, which function as powerful antioxidants, plums offer a multitude of health benefits:

* a very good source of vitamin C
* better absorption of iron into the system
* reduction of bad cholesterol
* may fight some cancers, arthritis, asthma
* strengthens the immune system
* lowers the risk of vision loss related to age
* good source of fiber, vitamin A, B2, and potassium

Maybe the best benefit of all, when consuming plums in their dried form as prunes, is their amazing effectiveness in assisting with regularity. Simply put: if you’re a tad bit backed up, have a heaping helping of prunes and your worries will soon be a thing of the past.

Quiz time!

Q: What do you get when you cross a plum with an apricot?
A: A pluot

What is a pluot? Glad you asked.

What Is a Pluot?



Sweet and juicy or tart and chewy, plums (and pluots), along with all those other delicious members of the drupe family, are ripe and ready for picking right now. And the best part is they are low in calories and surprisingly healthy for you.

Maybe that’s why I get a little plum crazy this time of year. You should too.

Until next time…

peace,

Mike

When in Doubt, Yank 'Em Out!

Is there anything more painful than a toothache? Okay, maybe a gunshot wound, but, thankfully, having never experienced being shot I can’t really make a valid comparison. Childbirth? Being of the wrong gender, I am legally not allowed to comment. How about having an angry ex-(anyone) rearing back and kicking you squarely in the lower region naughty parts? Having HAD experience with that, I can honestly say that, while having your family jewels rearranged is quite painful, a prolonged toothache is worse. How much worse? Bad enough to pay someone (a large chunk of cash) to knock you out under anesthesia and then take a sharp carving implement and have at the insides of your mouth. Turning you into something that resembles this:

WHEN IN DOUBT, YANK ‘EM OUT!



It all started with a little ache in the lower left side of my mouth. Being an avid tooth-brusher and compulsive flosser, as well as a regular dental checkup kind of guy, I figured the pain would go away, like one hopes an annoying neighbor will. Sadly, that is the wrong strategy to use for both toothaches and neighbors, so I paid a visit to my dentist. He probed and poked, x-rayed and consulted until he reached suitable recompense, then announced that I had a fractured tooth and that I should…

“Yes, yes?” I said, nodding hopefully, knowing that relief was just a few magical dental moves away.

“Wait,” my (not usually sadistic) dentist said.

“Huh?” said I.

“It’s fractured. Can’t fill it, can’t extract it, so just wait until…”

“Yes? Until…?”

“Until it either fractures some more or you need a root canal.”

After one more “huh?” and a few “what the…?'s”, my dentist smiled, nodded, and left me with drool on my chin and a still sensitive tooth in need of…what?

Patience.

So I waited, continued to eat my almonds and enjoy my dietary life as usual, while favoring that fractured side of my mouth. This went on for months and months, until…

AAARRRGGGOOOOOOOOCCCHHHHH!

The fracture fractured some more, creating enough pain to motivate me to make another visit to my dentist, who, after more adequate probing and x-raying to satisfy his curiosity and my deductible, announced:

“Looks like you may need a root canal.”

Through a mouthful of fingers, cotton, and that annoying little sucking machine, I said, “Warrgllehuhphmmm?”

My dentist smiled, nodded, added up my bill and decided to take one more x-ray, then shuffled me off to another practitioner of dental maneuvers: an endodontist, who specialized, I was told, in root canals, more probing, vague announcements, and, of course, additional x-ray taking. The biggest difference I noticed was the endodontist charges more and it takes longer to get an appointment. But if you tell them that you are in extreme pain, they will smile, recheck their appointment book, then tell you that whining won’t make the pain go away so take some Advil and practice…

Patience.

And that’s what I did, finally getting the pleasure of having a higher paid sadist probe my fractured tooth, while feeling the stirring of another tooth announce its painful presence on the other side of my mouth. So I said:

“What the heck, doc, it’s only money, right? Take a look at that other guy while you’re at it.”

My endodontist nodded, grunted, probed, ordered and received additional x-rays, probed some more then pondered and professed:

“You need two root canals. How much money do you have?”

My mouth stuffed with the expensive hands of a specialist, cotton, a dental assistant, and that annoying little sucky thing that sometimes gets stuck in the back of your throat, making you want to vomit and choke at the same time, I said, “Whadrrrgfhrrfertwwwooo?”

My sadistic little endodontist nodded, smiled, and left the room to order more x-rays. Leaving me to, you guessed it, practice…

Patience.

Finally the day arrived when I had my root canal exploratory exam that would let me know if I could save the fractured tooth, have the root canal, then be able to have a crown installed. The crown, of course, would be done by yet another dental practitioner and cost several arms, a leg, and the promise of donating various organs to science and x-ray development costs.

His hands deep inside my mouth, which was benumbed by enough Novocain to curtail the charge of a rabid rhinoceros, my endodontist announced:

“Tsk, tsk, bad news. Fracture is too deep, no root canal, have to have it extracted. I must leave now because you are no longer a viable money stream, but before you go let’s take a few more x-rays just to be sure.”

With that he left, leaving me with a numb face, two still very throbbing teeth, and an appointment with another dental professional.

While all this was going on, over the course of several months, I favored one side of my mouth over the other, effectively adding additional stress to that side, effectively causing the tooth that wasn’t yet fractured to SPLIT IN HALF!! This caused me enormous pain, and more trips to dental professionals, along with, you guessed it:

MORE X-RAYS!!

Finally leading me to this past Friday, where, after all three geniuses of the dental community, otherwise known as the Mike Foster Dental Retirement Fund Group, decided it was best that I had both fractured and root-befouled teeth extracted.

I, of course, had to find yet another dental practitioner, who, of course, took several more x-rays, and then, naturally, checked the balance of my dental coverage to make sure he charged enough, and then, thankfully, mercifully, at long last:

REMOVED MY TWO THROBBING TEETH!

Making my pain not necessarily go away, but at least be replaced by another pain, a healing, slightly bloody, cheek-puffing pain that while still nowhere near where I want to be pain-wise, at least was better than what I had been feeling for the past half-year.

The good news is I am feeling better every day, those two annoying teeth are gone (along with several painful extractions from my wallet and checking accounts), and I am well on my way to the road to recovery.

Hmmm, maybe just one more x-ray?


Until next time…

peace,

Mike