Archive for year: 2021

I guess that anyone following UK politics over the last couple of years could not fail to notice the interesting difference between what comes out of our politicians moths and their actions. It is as though there are two scripts running side by side one for us and one for them. In reality the same thing happens in all areas of society from schools and hospital to businesses and institutions. It does make me wonder about Cop26 and whether the action will match up with the pledges being made?

There is a psychological phenomenon known as ‘attitude alignment’, the idea that we, below our awareness, take on the prevailing attitudes of whichever group we are with or we are listening to. When the government decides it is going to the country in a general election the seduction begins. It is for me a fabulous opportunity to watch attitude alignment in action as the various spin doctors and attitude manipulators doing their best to sway us voters to embrace their attitudes. Are we actually being seduced? Well if enough of us are then the spinners get their way. Brexit is the perfect example.

I see both the advantages and disadvantages of capitalism and both the advantages and disadvantages of socialism. Though I am not seduced by either. Ed describes himself as a ‘centralist’ and I guess I join him in that. The centre ground is where most people are. In any election the attitude aligners will attempt to sway the centre ground to either the left or the right. So, here we go again, when there is another election. Prepare to be swayed ot seduced.

Both Ed and I are not really politically motivated though we do have the shared attitude alignment in the belief that human beings are best served by coming together as groups in common interest rather than breaking down in ever smaller factions. because of that we were and are both ‘remainers’ though not ‘remoaners’.

For me I know see the real issues of Brexit are now manifesting economically, socially and illegal immigration. The biggest issues I see is breakdown in the development of human consciousness which I see as the reality of evolution. The process of evolution that took single celled organisms to the primates and homo-sapiens of today is not only the evolution of biology, physiology, sociology and psychology, it is also that of evolving consciousness.

Evolution is not something that did happen and then stopped, it is happening right now in you and me and all around us. Evolution continues and ever will do so. The key to understanding evolution will always be the investigating evolution of consciousness. Evolution is the increasing awareness and awake-ness of mind that is expressed in physical form. In many senses evolution is the increasing ability of consciousness to become aware of itself.
Looking back at social history we can show that behaviours and practices that were acceptable a few hundred years ago are now considered difficult, wrong and unacceptable. After all it was only in the 1960’s that women in Britain ceased to be the property or chattels of their husbands or fathers and homosexuals could be imprisoned. In many countries women still suffer inequality with their men folk. I suspect that many women in Britain would, even now, feel that they do not have full equality.

As our human consciousness evolves people’s behaviour gradually develops to be less damaging and more helpful to itself and to all other beings and even the environment and the planet as a whole. With greater awareness we learn to attend to the needs of each other. As I often say my simple life philosophy is that…

…if we all look after each other we will all be ok

Without going over old ground too much social history shows us that the division of countries across Europe and across the world led to the two great world wars. Following the creation of the League of Nations, the United Nations and the European community, NATO and the multi-various trade agreements have all be the expression of the natural desire of consciousness to envelope. That is human beings growing in awareness, coming together and working together.

Division and separation, in the end, serves no one and creates more problems for human being and all sentient beings and the environment on the planet.

As we look at the environmental crisis of global warming, pollution and plastics look out for the aligners.

Look out for the aligners
Who is attempting to align your attitudes with theirs. Each party and each group will be attempting to get your vote. One thing that we need to consider is what people are telling us the truth. Vaccination Vs non vaccination, climate change Vs a weather event, I could go on. Each side have aligners seeking to convince us that they are right. Many aligners are psychopaths in that they act without either insight or empathy and are only concerned in their own point of view and their own importance.

Psychopathic behaviour when applied to politicians is the ability to appear genuine and sincere and then go and do something completely different. When someone will tell us anything at anytime to get the response that they really want we need to be mindful and listen for the sound behind their words, what is it that they really mean? What are they really saying?

If you recall that vast amount of money that was advertised on the side if the UKIP bus that would be put into the NHS which was then denied by Farage when he was directly questioned in an interview. The NHS could really do with all that money right now.

Being seduced can be fun
When I go to replace my car I love that process of the salesperson doing whatever they can to secure the sale. It is seduction in action. There is nothing wrong with being seduced as long as we are mindful of what is going on and that we are seduced with both our knowledge and consent.

So, through this period as we come through Covid and Brexit enjoy the seduction that you are subjected to by friends, family and the media. Be mindful of what is happening and simply ask your self ‘Why are they saying that, what do the really mean, what is the true sound behind their words?’

Take care and be happy

Sean

How do you feel about getting on plane right now and jetting away? The people I am talking to are split both ways. There are those that would grab a bag right now and rush to the airport while others are saying to me that they don’t expect to be going abroad until at least 2023. 

So, one client said to me, just as an aside, “why is it that we go on holiday to get away from where we live and the people who live where we go on holiday are going some where else for theirs? Can’t we all just stay where we are have a good time?”

The idea of needing to get away would suggest that where we are is never really good enough. I get it that the act of taking a break, of doing something different, is stimulating and often relaxing but the question got me thinking about do we really appreciate where are and what we have? Are we able to enjoy the space that we live in.

I am reminded of the amount of the amount of times when we have been driving around europe and have been spellbound by views and vistas. Yet there are many times when we have noted that we have views like this where we live on the Wirral. There is a beach on an island in the Florida Quays that people go to every evening to watch and marvel at the sunset. It does have lovely sunsets. But, when I watch the sun going down over Hilbre Island and the Welsh coast I am stunned on a daily basis just down the road from my house.

The peninsula named Wirral is know as the insular peninsula mainly because people, once they arrive, never leave. I know many people that were born on the Wirral that have never travelled anywhere else, not even for holiday. I note that those that do manage to leave often return after a few years as though they have been drawn back by some invisible elastic umbilicus that will not them truly leave.

Wirral sticks out into the sea with estuaries either side. There is the river Mersey between Wirral and Liverpool and the river Dee between Wirral and Wales. Both estuaries empty into Liverpool Bay and eventually the Irish Sea. At the top end of Wirral there are beaches, and all the fun of the holiday trade. There seems to be a balance here of industry, residential and holiday occupation and accommodation.

Where do you live?

How well do you know your own area? What do you know about it’s history?  Maybe this would  be a good time to get to know where you live? Especially if you are not holidaying abroad fro a couple of years.

I have lived all over the world and only came to Wirral with work and stayed and now I cant think of a better place to live. Like most of the British I feel that the weather could be warmer and that the sun could shine some more but taken over all I live in heaven. In ten minutes I can stroll down to the beach. In twenty minutes I can be in the centre of Liverpool. In twenty five minutes I can be in Chester and in forty minutes into the mountains of Wales. The motorway system that runs through the middle of Wirral connects us to the rest of the UK and on through to Europe.

Once I became interested in the Wirral and began to look around it I found places that are gems. There are areas of richness and poverty, areas of beauty and the not so beautiful. I discovered that Paul Hollywood’s dad has a bakers not far away, that Lillie Savage was brought up here and Wirral has been home to Ian Astbury, Ian Botham, Fiona Bruce,Ellis Costello, Daniel Craig, Chris Farrell, Austin Healey, Paul Hollywood, Eric Idle, Paul O’Grady, John Peel, Patricia Routledge, Harold Wilson, the list goes on forever. And there was a Viking parliament in a place called Thingwall apparently a corruption on Ing meaning assembly and Voll meaning field- Amazing.

Anyway, I digress. My advice to you is to get to know where you are. Don’t become blind to what is around you and certainly enjoy your holidays in foreign parts, once we can safely do them again, but maybe begin to understand why people from other parts of the world might like to come to where you live for their annual holiday.

Take care and be happy

Sean x

Have you noticed that people are getting bigger? The joke was ‘are you doing the covid 5k?’, no not the run, the 5k that we put on during lockdown. Most of us will gain weight in the dark months of winter due to increased calories and a reduction in exercise. My fear is that with covid lockdown and winter we could be looking at 10K not 5.

So here we are again the winter is starting. Officially it starts on December 21^st but from the point of view of our body the change mainly begins when the clocks go back. The disruptions this causes in your body clock can have an impact on our appetite and here comes that winter weight. We do get the extra hour in bed but we also get an extra hour to eat. The first night we get and extra hour of sleep but the habit in our brain tends to make us wake up at our usual time effectively an hour earlier than normal. It will take a few days and sometimes weeks for our internal body clocks to adjust to the new time. There are several effects that this can have on our bodies, mind and emotions.

Emotion and well being

Serotonin in the brain is both a hormone and a neurotransmitter, it is responsible for our wellbeing. It is effected by daylight. Once the clocks go back and it gets darker the levels of serotonin start to reduce and with it can reduce our sense of well being. Or we might just feel flat and listless though for some this will mean full blown depression.

Carbohydrates and Serotonin and comfort food

In the winter our intake of carbs increases quite naturally. In response to the digestion of carbs our brain secretes more serotonin. In effect we eat more carbs in the winter months to makes us feel better. We self medicate with carbohydrates. Sticky puddings, cakes, biscuits, crisps, bread, pasta and so on. It is comfort food and that is real. More carbs, more serotonin, more wellbeing but also…more weight.

Sleep disturbance

Sleep is therapeutic it is the time when our body and mind regulate and rebalance  chemically and physically and also emotionally. With the change in time the disturbance created by the change in our sleep pattern also changes our hormones. Sleep deficiency can lead to a rise in the hormone Ghrelin which is produced in the stomach and is responsible for making us feel hungry. There is also a disturbance in the hormone Leptin. Leptin is responsible for making us feel full so that we stop eating. Once we continually feel more hungry, but have no sensation of feeling full, the weight can just pile on. In general obesity can be a result of the imbalance of these two hormones but at this time of year we are all susceptible to weight gain. 

Comfort and inactivity

The change is in both in our hormones and neurotransmitters that will effect our feelings, thoughts and behaviours including our energy levels. This is why sitting in front of a fire and eating carbs while watching the telly can feel very comforting. However, there are things that we can do to avoid over eating, gaining weight and losing our mood. This is to do with what we eat and when we eat.

Opt for filling foods

Some foods are light and even if they are nutritious can leave us feeling hungry. Foods that make us feel fuller for longer will limit bathe effects of needing to eat more. Pulses such as chickpeas, lentils, and beans are great at keeping you full for longer, as they are high in both fibre and protein. Other filling, high-fibre foods include oats, whole wheat bread, carrots, broccoli, and bananas.

Getting as much sunlight as possible

Even on an overcast day, or in the dark of winter, exposure to natural light is beneficial for your sleep schedule as it sends signals to the rest of your body telling you that it’s daytime and you should be awake. It also gives your body the distinction between day time and night time and when we should be sleeping. If we stay indoor for the majority of time of if we go to work in the dark and come home in the dark we lose the daylight effect. Try to get outside in the morning and at lunch time to help wake you up and to regulate your body clock. Sit near a window if you are stuck inside and, if needed, use some daylight bulbs. 

Get off your butt

Although that sofa by the fire looks very tempting this is really the time when you need to get moving. Raising your heart rate for as little as twenty minutes will make your brain release all the feel good endorphins. It will raise your mood, give you energy and make you feel less sluggish. It may take a bit of will power to get moving but the benefits are huge. Least of all you will be less tempted to eat comfort food and you will also burn any extra pounds that you have gained. I try to run a 5k Monday, Wednesday and Friday and restrict my calories on a Tuesday and a Thursday. I am not persistent every week but as long as I do enough it works. This means that I can then have a nice hot chocolate or a mulled wine and not feel too guilty.

Check you weight, not obsessively, be aware of what you put on and what you lose. Be fit, be healthy, be happy

Take care 

Sean x

When George Harrison sang “here comes the sun” it was all about the end of winter and the joy that comes as things becomes both brighter and warmer in the spring and summer. It now seems that we have too much of a good thing?

With a global climate that is getting increasingly hotter year on year we might indeed end up with it being too much of a good thing. The question of the day, indeed a question of vital importance to us all, is “is global warming real”? What do you think? I would say yes.

As far back as 1824 scientist were registering their concerns about the effects of fossil fuels and the effects that carbon dioxide was having and would have on planet Earth.  At that time no one seemed to listen to the science. Scientific research increased during the1970s and 80s. Most scientists were then predicting that our use of fossil fuels will lead to a warming of the surface of the planet and create global warming that could, in the end, become devastating for the planet and for all of human kind and every other living being on the planet. The weather events this year would suggest it is happening right now.

Well, most people seem to agree except for apparent “experts” such as Donal Trump, that well known scientist and climate expert, shouting them down calling them ‘gloom mongers’. 

The one thing that was promised to Britain with global warming and a warmer earth, was cool dry summers and warm wet winters. My experience is that is what we now have. The scorching summers of the 60s and 70s have disappeared as did the British holiday makers as they chased the sun on various package deals to Spain. The cold winters with real Christmas Day snow, often several feet thick, has become an occasional sprinkling of white. This year the staycation meant that most people stayed at home. Perhaps this could be the reinvention of the UK summer holiday. 

The fact that it is getting warmer would seem to to be beyond dispute. The question is why?, is the USA and Australia wanting to re-energise the coal industry suggesting that global warming is nothing to do with human intervention and simply one of the many cycles on Earth’s planetary activity. Just another weather event.

As I understand it we are carbon based organisms living in a carbon based world. Where we are all subject to the carbon cycle. Carbon is used to construct living matter and then when it breaks down it is released back into the atmosphere to be recycled into new growth.  

Everything is on fire

When the pages of an old book are turning yellow they are, actually burning but very slowly. The pages are slowly turning back into carbon, this is the carbon cycle. The carbon was captured in the trees that created the wood pulp that made the paper. Fire is a catalyst that increases the rate of the carbon cycle that is going on any way. Fire releases carbon and energy, in the form of heat, into the atmosphere.

The carbon based system that we live in stores carbon into the growth of vegetation or carbon is held in the natural storage of the seas. This has been, throughout creation, a natural process of living and dying. Plants and trees, that need CO2 to grow, soak it up and turn it into vegetation that is either eaten by animals and turned back CO2 when the animals die, or as leaves fall to the ground carbon is released as the leaves rot down to provide nutrients for further vegetation growth. 

Coal is the fossilised deposit of the forests of the past. As they died and were buried they were compressed into what we now call coal. The coal, just like the forest is full of carbon. This is what is released into the atmosphere when we burn it.

The natural process of growth and decay, birth and death, of carbon storage and release, has been in balance on the planet throughout time. Then the humans arrived and it all changed.  

If the carbon released into the atmosphere is greater than the planets ability to store it the system goes out of balance. The atmosphere of the earth, apart from providing the oxygen that we all breath filters out the effects of the sun. The CO2 creates a blanket in the atmosphere that increases the heat at ground level.

We human beings are having three main effects, I can see, that are contributing to global warming. The first is this issues of putting more and more CO2 into the atmosphere. The second is deforestation that has removed the planets ability to store carbon in vegetation. It is said that the forests are the lungs of the world. Right now the world if suffocating. The third effect is methane.

Methane

Described as the ‘Greenhouse gas’ is said to be more dangerous than CO2, though once in the atmosphere methane does react with oxygen to create even more CO2. The majority of methane in the atmosphere is said to come from ruminants. That is, animals that ferment vegetation as food in their gut and then both fart and burp methane. It is estimated that the 1.5 billion cows and bulls currently on farms account for 18% of all harmful greenhouse gases. That is more than the entire negative CO2 effect of the entire US economy. Apparently a vegan male can produce seven times more methane than a meat eater.

So, number one we have deforested the planet. The forests have been burned to heat humans and fuel industry. And number two, the land that has been cleared of tress is now used to raise cattle for human food consumption. Both actions become a recipe for a warmer planet. I have not even included the effects of burning oils and gas and the love affair that we have with the motor car. As I write this I have stopped doing my monthly plane flight to Qatar mainly due to Covid. When I was flying the planes were often only half full of passengers. I do not have a clue about how much fuel it takes to fly us all there, I do not know what my own carbon footprint has been on these journeys. Though I have discovered that I can do virtually everything that I did face to face thanks to Zoom and Teams etc.

There are things that we can all do to reduce our individual effect on the carbon cycle and collectively reduce global warming. Now, many people will say ‘what is the point of me doing anything, I am only one person, I can’t have much of an effect?’ And yet a lot of people doing the same thing can have a big effect.

The two biggest things that we can do immediately that will have a huge effect on global warming. The first is use less fuel. Walk rather than taking the car and cycle to work and the shops if you can. If you are going to drive try and go electric as a bike or a car. The second is stop eating meat, especially beef, and stop consuming all dairy products. Becoming veggie or, if you can, vegan has an enormous effect of your carbon footprint. The last things is recycle all that you can and where possible buy things that are not in packaging that requires recycling in the first place. Only time will tell what effect we are really having on the climate. The trouble is that by the time that we realise it, it might just be too late. 

I am veggie considering becoming vegan. I have my electric bikes. By cycling with a bit of electric support, I have reduced my carbon footprint without being sweaty at my destination and at the same time getting fitter. Sounds like a win, win. What can you do?

Take care and check your footprint

Sean x