Where Did Spring Go?

I used to have really bad Spring-time allergies. Watery, itchy, swollen eyes. Stuffy / runny nose. Constant sneezing. If you’ve got allergies, you know what I’m talking about.

Strangely, I have not suffered from the itchy eyes recently. Although, I have been sneezing a good amount and blowing my nose constantly. So I have some symptoms of the pollen-driven reactions, but not all of those I’m used to experiencing.

I narrowed it down to 4 possible reasons.

1. After LASIK eye surgery, the laser must have burned off the ability to sense irritation in my eyes. 
   
2. I have spent so much time outdoors and being exposed to different environments that my body, eyes specifically, has developed an immunity to the irritants. 
   
   
   
3. My mostly organic diet has improved my resistance to pollen allergies. Specifically, my consistent daily intake of carrots has strengthened my eyes in more ways than one. 
   
4. Climate change is real. Spring no longer exists or has been severely curtailed. Pollen is not as abundant in the environment, leading to less plant life that would normally absorb the CO2, in effect allowing greenhouse gases to grow in the atmosphere, leading to global warming. 

Or maybe all of the above.

What do you think?

Climbing The Sand Dunes of My Mind

I need a mental break. My mind is so tired of thinking about all the negative things in my life currently. My brain is stressed from learning / re-learning information for the CPA exam. My thoughts are clouded by the if / then situations regarding (un)employment, potential interviews, or even just applications. And then I get the occasional detours to consider the new home, moving, rising interest rates, and new home expenses. Last, but certainly not least, I continue to consider my parents situation regarding retirement, finances, selling their current home, and moving to a new home. I’m exhausted.

My only reprieve is the reading I do daily. Non-fiction to educate myself. Fiction to take me away mentally, however, only temporary.

I feel as if I’ve sacrificed myself for nearly a year with nothing to show for all the efforts yet. When will I attain what I've struggled for? 

Substance Over Form

For the past 2 weeks, I have not been buying my usual loaf of whole wheat Italian bread from my local grocery store. That's $3.99 that I've been saving. But it's not because I'm trying to save money. It's because I watched a docuseries on Netflix called "Cooked", and it inspired me to bake my own bread.

Check out the trailer here:

There are so many positives to baking my own bread. I know exactly what's going into it. There are no artificial ingredients. It's as simple as flour, salt, water, and yeast. The process is not labor intensive nor does it take too much time. And it's fresh.

For me, bread is life. It's sustenance in the very simplest form. It's science at work in the processing and in the consumption. I love bread so much that it's the one thing that I try no matter where in the world I am. I must try the local baker's bread.

And I've tried it everywhere, in different ways. They've had different textures, moisture levels, shapes, sizes, flavors, colors, consistency, and even accompaniments. The forms are literally endless. It only matters where you are that determines what you get. And what one considers bread, another may not. But here, like in accounting, it's the substance over the form that matters.

This week's loaf didn't turn out as great as the first week, but I learned from it. I learned that it matters how much effort you put into it. You can't just half-ass the baking process. It's a science, and like all scientific processes, it's exact. And the slightest deviation will change the outcome.

Baking my own bread is something that I will continue to do going forward. I think it will give me discipline, grow my patience, and allow me to reap the benefits of my work. I know that I'll appreciate it more than just going out to the store and paying the nominal $3.99 for ease.

Other things I've been watching: 

Something I'm looking forward to watching: 

Before the Flood

What if there were other planets that were once like ours? Abundant, full of life, and intelligence. What if they lived the same life path as we have for thousands of years? What if they too destroyed their own being through poor politics, greed, and ill paid attention to climate change and global warming? Maybe they wouldn’t be the deserted, barren, lifeless planets they are currently with only traces of a life once lived before the gases choked the atmosphere and caused a chain of events that might have been stopped if it weren’t for politics. Maybe Earth’s future is in the stars…

These thoughts came after I watched a documentary produced by Leonardo DiCaprio called “Before The Flood” on Netflix. It was another documentary on Climate Change and the harmful effects. I think this was just as good as "The Inconvenient Truth" and it’s sequel.

Here, check out the trailer:

Down, Read, Laugh, Up, Repeat

Just a random thought that cross my mind today.

I was so free and unrestricted while traveling the world for those 6 months. Now, I am imprisoned in my home without a job, studying for an exam that doesn’t guarantee anything with a passing grade, cost cutting to make myself feel better, and continuing to be depressed about my situation. I was given the opportunity of a lifetime, temporary happiness, everlasting memories and in return, karma has reared its ugly head in the form of depression.



Good thing I read this after that thought...

“You can work hard. You can be talented. You can know all the right people. You can follow all the right lessons. You can be smart, rich, beautiful, everything - and still, life can deal you a bad hand.

So what are you to do in the face of a reality that can be indifferent, cold, even cruel? All you can do is play the odds. If you choose to give up, you can be fairly certain that life will pass you by. But if you choose to try your best, you can at least tip the balance significantly in your favor.”

I Can’t Make This Up by Kevin Hart

Thanks @KevinHart4Real