The Daily G.I.F.T. from The GratiDude

You can float your boat, I’m just going to use my ass.

www.grateful4.org

Gratitude

Intention

First

Things

The G.I.F.T. Today

Grateful-for remembering that nobody gets out of here alive, so don’t take yourself so seriously

Intention-water the flowers that are want to bloom

First-a few cards

Things-Mike on NC schedule

Morning Platitude from The GratiDude

There is no substitute for getting up and getting out of the house to change your perspective and shift your energy. It can be as little as walking around the block and feeling the Earth underneath your feet for even a few hundred steps that alone can be a game changer and can turn your entire day around.

The shifts and the opportunities to learn and grow just become greater in a lot of cases with the greater distance that you create between your home, which is a comfort zone and whatever distant land you end up in.

Here in the United States, the cultural differences in different parts of the country are still vast if you actually get on the ground and walk around and talk to people. However, if you’re just zooming on the streets going from hotels to airports to events and things like that America looks like it’s gotten pretty homogenized.

What I mean by that is that you have chain businesses everywhere, interstates all look the same and the signage and the colors are even similar, so you really need natural clues, like terrain or bodies of water and things of that nature to differentiate in different parts of the country because the urban landscape has become so consistent.

When I moved to California in 1988, it’s hard to overemphasize how different it looked and felt from where I grew up in Michigan. There was no way to really get a feel for what the land look like the smell the air, the plants, trees, but more than anything, the difference between the people and the culture on the ground was vastly different.

One of the first things that struck me was that half the people in California were Mexican when I landed.

I know that statistic isn’t exactly right, but to this day, when I look back on my memories, it looks like half the people were straight from Mexico or the California was really an extension of Mexico. I didn’t know Jack shit about the history of Mexico or the history of California to know enough that California was fucking Mexico for a long time and that to Mexicans they considered the second largest city in Mexico to be Los Angeles right behind Mexico City. This is real talk.

The political border from an immigration standpoint has only been enforced for the last 30 years and up until then Mexicans could come and go freely because of how critical they were to the economy, especially in agriculture in the western United States. It was an open-door policy of immigration and I just had no idea that that was the case when I arrived back in the late 80s.

Conversely, when I drove across the country a couple of years later with my friends Jake and Deva in the red VW van on the “Lucky Pees across America tour”(Lucky was the name of Jake’s dog a pound mutt golden retriever looking lab mix of some sort that wait about 60 pounds and was the coolest fucking dog ever). Jake and Deva both grew up in Northern California one in the woods four hours north of San Francisco and the other on the streets of Berkeley and they were both smart, well read and educated.

But they had never seen other states in the country like this, and they were blown away at the differences.

When we got all the way to my hometown of Ann Arbor, Michigan and hung out for a few days, they kept talking about all sorts of things that they were noticing that were different and then they also would point out similarities, and it was really eye-opening for me to look at where I grew up with fresh eyes.

Going to Latin America, Europe, Asia, and seeing all the diverse ways that people live is an incredible way to experience cultural relativity in real time and in true form.

Ignorance has a tough time surviving when it’s put to the test of having to accept differences and operate in an open-minded situation which is what happens when you experience new in unfamiliar cultures otherwise you just freak out.

Yes, visiting new places can be good for your heart. Studies suggest that traveling, even on a regular basis, can reduce the risk of heart disease and other cardiovascular issues. This is partly due to the increased physical activity and reduced stress associated with travel, which can have positive effects on cardiovascular health.

Here’s a more detailed explanation:

Increased Physical Activity:

Traveling often involves walking, exploring, and engaging in new activities, which can boost physical activity levels.

The American Heart Association highlights that physical activity, including walking, is beneficial for heart health and reduces the risk of heart attack.

Even simple activities like walking around a new city can contribute to improved cardiovascular fitness.

Reduced Stress:

Travel can offer a break from daily routines and stressors, which can have a positive impact on mental and physical well-being.

Stress reduction is linked to lower blood pressure and a reduced risk of heart disease.

A study published in Nature Neuroscience found that people who spent time in a variety of places reported more positive emotions, suggesting that travel can help manage anxiety and stress.

Other Potential Benefits:

Social interaction:

Traveling often involves interacting with new people, which can improve social well-being and mental health.

Healthy eating:

Vacations can encourage people to eat healthier meals and try new foods, which can further support heart health.

Improved cognitive function:

Engaging in new experiences and learning about different cultures through travel can enhance cognitive abilities and mental well-being.

Important Note: While travel can offer numerous health benefits, it’s essential to prioritize healthy travel habits, such as staying active, eating well, and managing stress, to maximize the positive impact on your heart health.

I wrote a few weeks back about the latest survey on happiness and how the US continues to plummet in the ratings as our culture gets dominated by fear and the divisions socially continue to grow as everyone consumes so much scarcity-mindset media and hyper-consumer culture imagery.