The Re-Adjustment Bureau

Because of comparisons and the materialistic, consumer-based,

competitive world we live in, many of us consider ourselves less

successful and less of a provider when we are unable to maintain

the same lifestyles we had before. But the physical objects and the

community standings are beyond insignificant in the scheme of things.

After you recuperate from the shock and the depression, lifting your-

self up and establishing your spirit, your character, your stamina, your

energy is what will make the difference in carving out a new life for

yourself.

Never giving in to despair and defeat no matter how hard the fight

or how steep the climb. Continuing to embolden yourself and stay

optimistic, someone that you can be proud of. Remembering that

you have value intrinsic to your existence, and it has nothing to do

with income level or how others perceive you. 

Recalibrate to understand that.

**********************************************

Please DO Readjust Your Set

Because of the trap of comparing ourselves to others
(and their success) and the materialistic, consumer-
based, competitive world we live in, many of us consider
ourselves less successful and less of a provider when
we are unable to maintain the same lifestyles as before.

But the physical objects and the ability to keep pace 
really are beyond insignificant in the scheme of things.

After you recuperate from the shock and the depression
of the drastic changes your life has undergone, lift yourself
up and re-establish your spirit, your character, your stamina,
your energy is what will make the difference in carving out
a new life for yourself.

Never giving in to despair and defeat no matter how hard
the fight or how steep the climb. Continuing to embolden
yourself and stay optimistic, someone that you can be proud
of, even if in a new context, part of a new paradigm.

Remembering that you have value intrinsic to your existence,
and it has nothing to do with income level or how others
perceive you.  Recalibrate to understand that.

*******************************************

As it Turns Out....We Got Turned Out!



That's okay....we got this.
(Well, it's not 'okay,' but..)

Just because the system is broken
and 'the odds seem ever (not) in our favor'
doesn't mean we're counted out yet.

I plan on surviving and doing well
just for the pure, undiluted spite
of it all.

Success isn't about bank accounts;
it's about quality and attitude of living
(And, no--one is not dependent upon the other.)

***



Word Imperfect

The catch phrase of 'combatting poverty' makes it sound

like a visible consolidated Bogeyman is hiding under the

American bed...that we can wrap our hands around its neck

and dispose of it with a concentrated effort of unity and

disdain...as well as some food banks and charity.

But poverty is not a demon or a haphazard plight; it is a

social evil that is perpetrated upon the less organized and

less skilled, the less educated and the less prepared.

Sometimes there are those who are introduced new to the ranks

as a result of extreme circumstances, but often impoverished

conditions are a lifetime struggle...almost always a multi-generational

affair.

It results from specific actions by specific people and groups

and the laws that are enacted by the same. Almost always

avoidable.

Poverty is a state of mind that feeds on itself, But its origins

are man-made and inexcusable. It is a serial limiting of

choices and the willful allowing of people to die unnecessarily

and prematurely.

It places a money amount on a life.

On a child's health.

On a mother's hunger.

On a man's worth.

Poverty doesn't 'just happen.' It's an orchestrated design,

thrust on the less powerful by those who are unconcerned

about the consequences of their actions.

It's an entire system in place that rolls forward like a

Sherman tank, and has the full sanction and blessing of

those who can not be defeated.

We can fight a war on poverty...

but only by addressing the causes and

instigators rather than putting a band-aid

on the end results.

********************************************

Saving Sense

Every little bit of conservation

adds up!

Tough Love

Are you depressed?
Tired?
Unmotivated?
Listless?
In Pain?

Well, get up off your ass , get outta the bed, and
find something to do, anyway. And if you haven't
been doing so, get out of the house.

Fresh air, interaction, accomplishment, mobility, and
change of scenery are requirements for keeping the
demons at bay.

I speak from experience when I say it's an everyday
struggle to keep feelings and circumstance from
doing me in. We can't be ruled by emotion or fears.
Make yourself get up, drill sergeant style.

Whatever it takes to generate movement.
Activity is crucial to feeling better and accomplished.

To start moving is a magical.
Survival begins with refusing defeat.
You don't need a long-term plan to just start moving.

*************************************

Who's In Charge of Your Workshop?

As a realist and a cynic, I see things for what they are,
not the feel-good facade often promoted. I see the world
stripped bare of pretense.

Sometimes, that harshness threatens to consume me.

When you're going a spell without work, when having nothing
of value to occupy your mind (or hands,) when questioning your
worth based on the normal tenants of what people in our society
are 'supposed' to have in their lives....things can get rough.

When you're an unemployed person--shifted out of normal
society as we are--separate, detached, lost...you can lose
your grip on the world very easily...and quickly.

We have to work overtime to make sure that doesn't happen.
Any or all of these tips that can help are ways to avoid having
the situation get to you.

*Occupy yourself; keep busy and productive
*Reinforce your best attributes; stop beating yourself up
*Surround yourself with correct things, not negatives
*Keep working on what's important to you
*Don't let yourself go; maintain hygiene and house cleaning
*Keep to a schedule
*Keep working on goals
*Do something body-wise like exercise
*Do something for your mind like learning a new word, language, etc.
*Do something spirit-wise, like meditation
*Do something fun or freeing, like laugh, dance, or draw

You may not feel like doing any of these things, but just as a
job is sometimes a means to a paycheck, sometimes in life we
have to do the groundwork for a better outcome, even when we
don't feel motivated.

Make taking care of yourself your new full-time job.

*************************************************

Sunday is a Day of Re-Set

Keep working at it; keep battling.

No concern for resistance, no attention to past losses.

A man--a person--is not a cumulative effort of losses.

Losses are things that happen, inevitable, normal.

Don't lose perspective because you're in the midst of one now.

Regain that moxy and verve.

Don't accept a secondary position of value in your mind.

Don't let the opinions and condescension of others alter your self-concept.

Be strong, motivated, proud, audacious.

Don't let the emotions lead you.

Feel them...without being controlled or led by them.

YOU CAN DO THIS.

***

"I´m Still Standing"covered by André Fuckert

Gary Allan - "Every Storm Runs Out Of Rain"

No matter how committed you are, there are days when you wake up
and just "aren't feeling it."

When you think "Why bother?" and bemoan your self-diagnosed
terminal condition of "Nothing is ever going to change, no matter what I do!"
And those are the days where you have to make yourself do it,
despite the feeling lacking.

When you have to remember whatever inspires you, like maybe
the words to a good song, and hold it closer.

"Feel the apathy, and DO IT anyway!"

Get up. Get moving. Get active and stay that way.

*********************************************************