Showing posts with label Sleep. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sleep. Show all posts

September 7, 2021

Deep In Meditation


Love this image of meditation and 7 chakras (energy centers of the body).

Mindfulness, centered, focused, clarity, connected. 

Also, some nice relaxing meditation music here

 (Credit Photo: Youtube)


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July 23, 2021

My Big Kahuna

So my new massage chair came today.

Kahuna LM-7000 in this amazing red color. 

It was awesome how the chair came completely assembled. 

Just plugged it in, jumped on, and started it up. 

I was lying back in a spaceship reclining position getting kneaded, tapped, knocked, and shiatsu'ed.

This was better than I had imagined it would be. 

I am hoping this helps with aches, pains, and sleep. 

I've got my big Kahuna now!  ;-)

(Source Photo: Massage Chair Heaven


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October 12, 2020

Sleep Number Got My Number

I am very excited about ordering a Sleep Number bed. 

My good friend got one and recommended it!

Went to the store today and tried them out. 

I was really amazed, especially since I have some significant back pain that I am dealing with. 

I am hoping, G-d willing, for some pain relief and some extra Zzz sleep! ;-)

(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)


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June 26, 2020

Recliner Stuck

So yesterday, there was a huge pouring thunderstorm and lightening.

After a bolt or two that must have hit our power line, ALL the power went out.

That was not fun when sitting in an La-Z-Boy electric recliner chair.

Where the f*** is the safety release on this thing when there is no power?  ;-)

(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
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February 9, 2020

How Fish Come Up To Breathe

This was one of the most interesting facts that I learned recently.

Dolphins needs to come up to the surface to get air to breathe. 

But how do they do this when they sleep?

The answer is that only part of their brain sleeps at a time, so that they can continue to rise to the surface for air 24/7. 

Part of their brain sleeps while the other part stays awake. 

I think that this truly happens with people too. 

If you have ever been overtired, your brain still needs to sleep. 

At some point, you can literally feel part of your brain go to sleep even as the rest is awake to do what it needs to do (even at suboptimal functioning). 

This is beyond fascinating how G-d created us to adapt and survive. ;-)

(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
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May 31, 2019

Tie Dye Hammock

Loved this tie dye hammock by Enonation (Eno) from Australia that I saw at REI. 

It's called "DoubleNest," so I guess that means it fits 2 people. 

So open, colorful, and inviting to rest and relax in. 

Sillily, the store only carries the hammock and not the stand...so good luck with that. 

Also REI clumsily filled this gorgeous hammock with Nalgene bottles--on sale 30% off!

Uh, if you make even the nicest stuff look like junk for storage, you're not gonna get the brand image you want. 

Anyway, the hammock was awesome!  ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
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March 12, 2019

Daylight Saving Time S*cks

Daylight saving time makes NO sense. 

It does NOT save us a lot of energy as designed. 

Call it the wrong assumptions or bad science.

The law requiring daylight saving--switching the clocks ("Fall Back" and "Spring Forward") is archaic and needs to be repealed. 

We're messing with people's sleep cycles and their health. 

People waking up groggy all over the country, feeling crappy during the day, and losing much needed productivity.  

How about we repeal this stupid law NOW and not waste any more time on the squabbling politics of the day?  

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
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February 23, 2019

Fire Alarm, Now What?

Please see my new article in The Times of Israel, called "Shabbat Menucha." 
Friday night–the start of the Shabbat–oh, thank G-d we made it (and TGIF). Usually such a wonderful time to catch up on some extra sleep from the whole week of work. But last night it’s different…the fire alarm suddenly comes alive and the voice over the loud speaker tells everyone to exit the building immediately. It is 1:00 AM in the morning.

Carrying a head cold, medicated, and sleepless, this is what happened to me.  ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
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March 23, 2018

Going To Bed Hungry

So lots of people like to drink tea. 

But the other day, a nice person was telling me how they drink tea all the time. 

It's not just that they like tea, but there was an important true story behind it. 

You see, they said, when they were young growing up in a foreign country, they often didn't have enough to eat. 

So instead, they had resorted to drinking lots of tea. 

They went on to say, that as children, they often had to go to sleep hungry. 

It is truly a wake-up call for those of us who, thank G-d, have what to eat and so much choice and plenty in this great country. 

Not everyone in the world is so blessed to eat heartily and go to sleep with a full and satisfied belly. 

It is especially saddening and tragic when we are talking about innocent children in this world. 

As we go from the workweek to the weekend, perhaps it is a good time to reflect on how much we have to be grateful for and to wish blessings of peace, health, and prosperity on all our fellow mankind, here and all around the world. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumethal)
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January 9, 2018

Cat Nap

What a great place to take a cat nap!

So many gorgeous cats in Israel. 

They don't run away either. 

So friendly and happy. 

Sort of got a feeling like they were old souls inhabiting these cats. 

Old souls are very often wise souls.

Cute and wise cats.  

Enjoy!

(Source Photo: Rebecca Blumenthal)
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December 29, 2017

When The Wires Get Crossed

So the flight coming back from Israel was technologically challenged. 

I'm sitting toward the front of the plane...more room, that's good.

But there are a bunch of families with small children and babies...and that ends up being bad. 

The flight attendants bring out this contraption to hook up a crib device to a front wall of the plane for the parents to put the baby in to sleep. 

But there ends up being one small problem.

The overhead lights are seriously messed up.

This passenger with the baby tries to use his button next to his seat to turn the bright reading lights off--this is like row 10 or something. 

But when he hits the lights off button--instead the lights go off in row 22. 

And they stay on in his row keeping his baby awake and crying virtually the whole flight.

The stewardesses are going crazy trying to figure out where the "wires got crossed" here. 

When they go to row 22 and ask them to turn off their lights--thinking maybe that will turn off the lights in row 10 that is keeping the baby up and crying--but instead that turns off the lights further in the back of the plane in row 30-something. 

This was a really bad comedy going on this plane.

The baby keeps crying and crying.

The stewardesses keep running around trying to figure out how to get the lights working where they are supposed to be working.

And the parents are frustrated as hell trying to calm the baby and get some rest on this lengthy, cross-ocean flight. 

Needless-to-say, all the other passengers trying to get some rest weren't thrilled at this ridiculousness going on.

The plane got us home, but the electrical system didn't inspire any confidence and kept the baby (and us) up almost the entire flight. 

When you think that this was just the lights--oh boy!  

Because what if the wires had gotten crossed between something important like the accelerator and the brake instead?  ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
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December 14, 2017

My Realness and My Dreaminess

Just a quote from the show Homeland that I wanted to share:
"My dreams have a realness...
My Reality has a dreaminess..."
This is so true!

Dreaming and reality have a definite touchpoint and carryover between them. 

In Judaism, their is a saying that:
"Sleeping is one-sixtieth of death."

Life-sleeping-death all exist along a continuum. 

The elements of our being cross all three of these domains. 

When we are alive, there are elements of dreaminess--and it often doesn't feel quite real. 

When we are asleep, our dreams can often seem so real that we actually feel them and physically react them--we may even scream and wake up an incredible fright. 

When we are dead, I believe that we live on--that our soul never ceases--that it is a part of our everlasting G-d. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
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August 31, 2016

Driving Your Organization Off A Cliff

So life is generally supposed to be a series a peaks and valleys. 

There are highs, but also lows.  

No one and nothing can perform at peak all the time. 

Like the commandment to keep the Shabbat, everyone needs a rest. 

And studies have shown that getting a healthy dose of sleep, pause, and rest in life is healthy.

When we force ourselves or others to perform past their "designed" limits, then we risk a breakdown. 

Machines break and people can break. 

The risks are either explosion or implosion: some people can frighteningly "go postal" and others end up on psychiatric medication or even sick and in the hospital. 

What is key to remember is that you can push the limits of performance so far, but then no further without a healthy, recuperative rest period and down time. 

If you want to raise the bar on yourself, others, or your organization, you need to do it strategically so there is a surge forward and then a normative recovery and energy buildup again. 

As we all know, life is a marathon and not a sprint, and the journey is as important as the destination. ;-)

(Source Photo: here with attribution to Alan Levine)
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April 30, 2016

Gopher At The Metro

This was a funny picture of a gopher's a*s.

The gopher's is climbing along the side of the Metro. 

In NYC, they have rats almost this size.

Thank G-d, in Maryland, it's more about bunnies, gophers, and deer. 

Not sure how this gopher gets any rest next to the trains zipping in and out of the station.

Maybe if you burrow further enough underground, you got a decent snooze zone. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
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April 25, 2016

To The Salt Cave

So had a new experience and went to the Salt Cave in Bethesda (a second choice if you can't get to the secret superhero crime-fighting Bat Cave).

It was a large room filled with Himalayan salt for experiencing all the spa's "healing" effects.

Supposed to be good to breath in all the minerals infused from the pink salt "micro climate" air and also for exposure to the skin.

It was fairly dark in the cave except for some recessed lighting behind some of the salt stone walls.

The chairs were these weird beach chairs that you could recline in, but it would've definitely been worth it to have some fancier cushioned seating to more fully relax in and to match the spa ambiance that they were selling. 

In the background was relaxing meditation music and we were closed in the salt cave for 45-minute to enjoy the dark quiet salt effects. 

It must've relaxed me, because when I got home, I had a Buddha face on and took a nice post-spa afternoon nap. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

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January 21, 2016

I Think I'll Just Take A Snooze--Right Over Here

This was a funny photo in the mall this weekend. 

We are passing by this mattress store. 

The sign over the bed says:

"See and feel how a Sleep Number bed adjusts to you"

This family is apparently trying out the new mattress. 

They have made themselves quite comfortable--and they sort of just continue to lay there and lay there.

The guy looks like he's watching TV and the mom and daughter are playing something. 

We take a stroll around the mall and eventually (maybe 20 minutes later) pass back by this store.

Guess what? These people are still laying on the mattress, and they haven't budged an inch. 

They don't look homeless or anything. 

Not sure if this Sleep Number is adjusting to them or they are still adjusting to the Sleep Number.

Honey, can you pass the cover. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
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December 21, 2015

Heads Down December

This was a funny photo I took on the Washington, D.C. Metro.

The guy in the center seems to be listening to some music, but everyone else is nodding off and has their heads down. 

End of the year, right before the holidays maybe people are a little burnt out and need to refresh their motivational juices. 

Anyway, this is not good for the "see something, say something" culture in the age of terrorism that we are living in--these folks are not seeing anything in this groggy state. 

To a heads up and brighter new year. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
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October 15, 2015

Dress It Up With Your Blanket?

I took this photo in Starbucks in Washington, D.C.

This woman is waiting in line for coffee wrapped in a sheik light blue blanket covered with Minions and the UK flag. 

Apparently, this is a new fashion trend that is catching on--as I saw a second young women in the street "wearing" a blanket (not a coat) and walking with what looked like her boyfriend. 

This fashion statement is a little weird in light of the homeless people around town that frequent the street when it gets cold wrapped in these horrible dirty wool grey blankets.

But the blankets these young women are wearing are not shawls, sweaters, coats, and are far from grungy, but rather they are sort of colorful and playful.  

The blankets give the impression of course, as someone still in their PJs, just getting in or out of bed or just casually lounging around because they can.  

Depending on how you look at it--cool, relaxed, and fun or lazy and time to turn yourself over and go back to sleep.  

You never know what sparks the next fashion craze--it could be like SpongeBob says, I want my blankie! ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

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October 2, 2015

Insomnia Hurts Like Hell

Insomnia is a horrible ailment that many people suffer with and they do this in the dark and in silence. 

Because when the rest of the world is sleeping, you are lying in bed like a log awake--and not sure how you going to get to sleep or stay awake the next day.

What follows are sleepless nights, sometimes groggy days, and anxiety about even going to bed at night. 

How do I know this?

I've been battling insomnia since my hip's deteriorated painfully, and I had a number of hip replacement surgeries, and a lengthy recovery process, including lots of swimming. 

Despite melatonin, warm baths, and even some sleeping meds, my nights were filled with plenty of staring at the ceiling alternating with tossing and turning in bed. 

I was almost at the point of giving up hope on being able to sleep normally again, and then something occurred to me. 

Stop the meds and just pray!

Over a few days I weaned off the sleep meds, and was feeling really crappy and headachy. 

But the real difference was when I got into bed, I remembered and recited the prayers of my youth from before bedtime. 

And I added for G-d to please help me sleep normally again.

The very first night...I slept perfectly!

Now, it's been three nights in a row--in Judaism, we call that a chazakah (something that is established). 

I am so grateful to G-d for returning me to restful sleep-filled nights--thank you Hashem!

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
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May 11, 2015

A Doll For Every Worry


Some kids put their baby teeth under their pillow for the tooth fairy.

But in Guatemala they make Worry Dolls that children can put under their pillows, so they can be released from their worries and sleep better. 

If those were my worry dolls, I wouldn't put them under my pillow and have a lumpy sleep and wake up to them once again, but rather I would throw them out the window, so hopefully they would be gone for good. 

Man, if only we could really get rid of our worries and problems that easily--I think they call it transference! ;-)

(Source Photos: Andy Blumenthal)
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