UpBeat Living: Beating Boredom

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Bored, Boredom, Effective living, Enjoying life, Feeling energized, positivity, Self help, The life you want

© 2013 Kebba Buckley Button.  World Rights Reserved.

Photo by Fotolia

If you are even thinking about boredom, you’re bored.  Do these words resonate for you:  listless, dull, unmotivated?  Yup, you’re bored.  But wait!

Let’s sort this out a little. Is this a common feeling for you?  Do you need change?  What are you really experiencing?  Do you feel bored on the job, bored at home, or only bored when you’re with certain friends?  Then that’s Life’s way of telling you that you need change, in your job or at home.  Or you need new friends.

Boredom can actually be a physical malaise. So get your journal out, or your iPad, and start making lists.  Try answering these questions about physical stressors:

1. Am I tired?
2. Are my clothes too tight?
3. Am I frustrated about some large thing, like needing to get a project done, and it seems to go on forever?
4. Do I need a snack/beverage/meal?
5. Is the air polluted today, or is the weather changing?
6. Do I have a comfortable chair or couch on which to relax?  Do I need to get one?
7. Have I exercised 20 minutes or more today?

Boredom can be Flat Brain Syndrome, either from working too much or being under-challenged.  In either case, a novelty break will do wonders for you.  Go for a scenic drive.  Go to a movie and then walk around the mall.  Visit the zoo or hike the Botanical Garden; take pictures of tiny things and of panoramas.  Three hours of change will do wonders for your brain and your attitude.

If you only have a half-hour to work on your boredom, try just taking a hot shower and styling your hair a fresh way.

Boredom is a sure signal that you need something.  Or several somethings.  Consult with yourself and bring help to your inner Bored Person.  Soon your mood, your energy, and your interest in life will be back.  You’ll thank yourself later!  And please comment on how you have conquered your boredom.

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● Kebba Buckley Button is a Master’s Degree scientist, a minister, and the award-winning author of  the 2012 book, Peace Within:  Your Peaceful Inner Core (http://tinyurl.com/abd47jr), and also Discover The Secret Energized You (http://tinyurl.com/b44v3br).  She also has a natural healing and stress management practice and is a celebrated public speaker.

 

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● Reach the writer at kebba@kebba.com .

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UpBeat Living: Two Thumbs Up, Roger Ebert!

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Celebrating the good, enjoy, living beyond, positivity, Roger Ebert, The life you want, UpBeat Living

© 2013 Kebba Buckley Button.  World Rights Reserved.

 

Photo by Microsoft

This column, UpBeat Living,  is about celebrating life.   It’s about accentuating the positive in our words and attitudes, in our choices of friends, colleagues and projects.  It’s about turning any negativity into constructive response.  It’s about converting “stress” into worthy choices and forward motion, turning problems into projects.

Today, UpBeat Living celebrates a man who robustly lived a life in forward motion: Roger Ebert. This famous film critic helped define that profession and set standards many are still trying to meet.  With his authenticity and ability to make his points clearly and succinctly, Roger Ebert stood alone.

It’s hard for me to remember a time in movie history when Siskel and Ebert were not on the air.  I’m sure, during the Silent Movie Days, they were there already, with closed captioning or hand-held signs, giving us their honest and well-considered opinions.  Picture them on the silent screen, sitting opposite each other, and holding a sign up with one hand, holding a thumb up or down with the other hand.  A piano would be playing in the background, urgently if they were arguing, and lyrically, if the two were in agreement.  Today, it’s silence only, for the two great movie critics.

Gene Siskel died in 1999, and Roger Ebert died on April 4th.  The two began working together, hosting a PBS TV show, reviewing movies, in 1975– a bit after the days of silent movies–  taking it to syndication in 1982.  Siskel stayed until 3 weeks before his death.  Ebert wept on air in the next episode, as he saluted Siskel and their partnership, then continued forging his creative path.

Whatever stage of life Roger Ebert was in, he went at it with gusto.  He began life as a movie critic with the Chicago Sun-Times in 1967 and still wrote for them until his death.  He would eventually author 20 books and hundreds of columns, co-create countless television episodes for film reviews, visit Sesame Street a few times, author screenplays, and give a TED talk. Even after he was diagnosed with thyroid and salivary cancer in 2002, he lived with the condition with grace.  He kept smiling, and his eyes were bright with passion.  After surgery in 2006, he finally lost his jaw, his ability to speak and his ability to eat.  Unrecognizable from the square-faced man we had seen for many years, he still seemed to smile all the time, and his eyes danced with joy.

Roger Ebert celebrated his life with his wife, attorney Chaz Hammelsmith Ebert, whom he married in 1992.  She has said their life was better than any movie.  In recent years, Roger Ebert spoke through his blog, his 800,000-follower Twitter account, and a voice-synthesizing computer.  He exuded enthusiasm, wonder, and happiness.  Once he lost his physical voice, he wrote and presented a Ted talk about the importance of “voice” on different levels of life (www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNXOVpN8Wgg).  So the man who made his name using his voice to talk about films had created his most important work, a film, without using his voice.

My review of his film:  Excellent!  Two thumbs up.  You will long inspire us, Roger!

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● Kebba Buckley Button is a corporate stress management trainer and the author of the award-winning book, Discover The Secret Energized You (on Amazon.com at (http://tinyurl.com/b44v3br) , and the 2012 book, Peace Within:  Your Peaceful Inner Core (on Amazon.com at http://tinyurl.com/abd47jr).  She also has a natural healing practice and is an ordained minister.

● Your comments are welcome!

● Get these articles by email– just click the Subscribe Free option in the right column.

● Reach the writer at kebba@kebba.com .

UpBeat Living: Small Kindnesses Pay Everyone

Tags

Effective living, enjoy, kindness, Share the journey, The life you want

© 2013 Kebba Buckley Button.  World Rights Reserved.

Desert Mission Food Bank Herb Garden
Photo by Kebba Buckley Button

Kindness to others doesn’t have to be expensive or time-consuming.  You don’t have to make huge cash donations, although that’s fantastic if you can.  You don’t have to start your own nonprofit.  You can generously be of service in a few moments or hours here and there, without any heavy lifting or expense.  And kindness radiates in every direction.

Today I had many chances to experience kindness.  It began with a morning ministry forum.  All of the forum members are gentle, caring people.  They support each other with generous listening and soft inquiry.  My heart was filled with their kindness, as I hurried to my next meeting, a business network.

Once a month, I pick up food bank donations from this business network.  After I damaged my spine lifting too much at Habitat for Humanity, I decided to find no-lifting ways to serve.  A food bank team urgently needed plastic bags and egg cartons, so the clients could take the eggs and groceries home; I adopted the job of gathering those bags and cartons.  Gradually, colleagues and friends have learned that wherever I am, they can give me their plastic bags and egg cartons for food ministry.  This costs them nothing, requires no heavy lifting for any of us, and it allows the community to participate in food ministry in a small way.  If they are moved to send food with me, that’s great also.  Today, the business network gave me a PT Cruiser load of bags, egg cartons, food, and clothing.  These business owners are thinking of others and sending their caring in the items they helped carry to my car.  Even our favorite waiter helped carry items out, plus he had brought a box of food.  My heart was filled with their lovingkindness, as I hurried to my next stop, the food bank.

At the food bank loading dock, I began unloading the car, and five kind people apparated from nowhere, unloading for me and sorting the donations.  We put all the clothing in the back of the Cruiser.  I noticed a new creation by the food bank staff:  an herb garden (see photo)!  New crates full of oranges also graced the dock, brought by caring homeowners with surplus from their trees.  My heart was filled with their kindness, as I hurried to my next stop, St. Vincent de Paul.

At the St. Vincent donation dock, I was blessed to be helped by the man I knew to be the easygoing and radiant manager.  He called me “darlin’” several times as he easily hefted the heavy clothing bags and wished me a beautiful day.  My heart was filled with warmth and kindness, as I hurried to my next stop, a Target store, for a prescription.

In that parking lot, a couple of years ago, on a breezy day, I got out of my car and saw a balloon flying quickly past me.  It was just several feet away.  Well off to my left was a distressed small child and his anxious father.  They were too far away and the balloon was moving fast and rising.  In my skirted suit and high heels, I took off after that balloon like someone’s life depended on it.  After a sprint, I caught it and shouted, “YESSSS!”  I was handing the balloon back to the astonished child before I realized what I had done.  Sometimes we are simply called.  The father gave me a grave look that said the moment was very important to him, as he said, “Tink yo leddy.”  The crazy blond woman in the business suit had touched that immigrant’s heart.

So today, I went to get out of my car in that parking lot, thinking of the balloon story and smiling.  My heart was full.  And walking next to me was a middle-eastern looking man with a small son, who was carrying a balloon, securely held.  I had the feeling Heaven was grinning at me.  My heart was full as I slowed down to marvel and enjoy the beautiful day.

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● Kebba Buckley Button is a corporate stress management trainer and the author of the award-winning book, Discover The Secret Energized You (on Amazon.com >Books>Buckley), and the 2012 book, Peace Within:  Your Peaceful Inner Core (on Amazon.com >Books>Button).  She also has a natural healing practice and is an ordained minister.

● Your comments are welcome!

● Get these articles by email– just click the Subscribe Free option in the right column.

● Reach the writer at kebba@kebba.com .

UpBeat Living: What I Learned From The Golden Globe ® Awards

Tags

at choice, choices, Effective living, Enjoy the journey, happy, joy, Share the journey

© 2013 Kebba Buckley Button.  World Rights Reserved.

 

It was an unusually cold night in Los Angeles, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.  Twenty million viewers sat at home, riveted to their TV sets, enthralled as the stars made their way slowly along the red carpet.  It was the 2013 Golden Globe® Awards. The men were in elegant suits.  The women wore stunning, graceful designer gowns, many reminiscent of eras past.  News teams dotted the length of the red carpet, interviewing and photographing the stars, the directors, and key industry icons.  Despite the 40 degree air, the stars walked slowly, apparently relaxed, in joyful expectancy of a delightful evening.

The Awards ceremony itself was a good-natured gathering of the entertainment industry, brought together by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA).  Informal humor abounded, as colleagues kidded colleagues.  When Jennifer Garner stood to present an award, she apologized, laughing, saying her husband, Ben Affleck, had forgotten to thank two people.  She thanked them on Affleck’s behalf, then went on to present the award as scheduled.  There were a number of takeaways from the evening.

• Year-round maintenance of your skin and figure are vital.  You may need to be at an important event any time.  The stars all looked fantastic.
• Smiling is paramount, regardless of the cold, and the fact that your unspeakably beautiful designer gown would be comfortable at 80 degrees.  The stars all looked pleasant and happy.
• People are always watching your act and noticing your expression. Try to be aware of where the cameras are.  An impression may last a lifetime.  The stars all looked joyful, expectant, welcoming, friendly.
• “Of course, the best journeys are shared.” Damian Lewis said it, and I’ll quote him many times.  With whom are you sharing your journey?  Would more sharing feel good and be more satisfying?
• An evening of sharing and laughing with and celebrating your friends is one of life’s greatest experiences.  So finish your workout, get your smile on, and share that journey.

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● Kebba Buckley Button is a corporate stress management trainer and the author of the award-winning book, Discover The Secret Energized You, and the 2012 book, Peace Within:  Your Peaceful Inner Core.  She also has a natural healing practice and is an ordained minister.

● Your comments are welcome!

● Get these articles by email– just click the Subscribe Free option in the right column.

● Reach the writer at kebba@kebba.com .