Fish can Fly – SleepyOne Ayurveda Beach Resort Day 5

fish can fly - blog post in the SleepyOne Ayurveda Beach Resort series by Chris Remspecher in 2017.SleepyOne Ayurveda Beach Resort Day 5 ”“ fish can fly

Fish can fly!! Imagine you sit totally chillaxed on the veranda after two hours of Ayurveda treatment. The world is good. Out of nowhere, a fish falls from the sky and lands in front of you with a big, fat”™n”™wet SPLAT!!! The near to realtime Big Data analysis of this unstructured data revealed the obvious: the fish did not survive the rough landing.
Since the cosmos sometimes is very funny, it did wait a few seconds more to present his miracle. A bunch of crows were showing up and debating who owns the fish. For a moment they seemed to be unsure, if the fish now belongs to me. A quick check of the poor fish made it clear – definitely for the crows.
Half an hour later, their fast food was still in the entrance area enriching the flavour of pure Indian air. Picked up the phone, pressed #9 and I talked to the guy at the reception:

Guy: ”¦”¦ ??? ”¦. (did not understand) ”¦ how can I help you?
Me: Hello, this is room #201. First of all, this is NO joke! There is a fish on the veranda.
Guy: (WTF)??? A WHAT?
Me: A fish.
Guy: A fish.
Me: Yes, a fish. Some crows dropped it.
Guy: Aaaaaaah! Housekeeping will remove it.
Me: Thank you.

Hey! I warned him, that its no joke. Oh well.

Today I noticed a strange looking mark on my left ankle.

It looked like a mini vampire bite. Or a snake bite (not the drink). My 10-fingers Ayurveda doctor examined it in detail. Brave me asks “is it a snake bite?” Doctor “no, they look different”. And then comes the strange part: Doctor “did you see an ANIMAL?” A what?
Finally I got a detoxicating Ayurveda medicine. So far, I feel OK. Knock, knock, knock. On wood.

Alaa from Kuwait proposed it might have been a tiny dragon. Maybe. It”™s India and coming back from dinner, a crab crossed my path. A crab.

Today I got my slimming water in a pink (?) thermos can. The waiter had this invisible smirk in his face. Hm. Since my diet doctor “proposed” me to drink slimming water, I eat two plates for lunch. And maybe dinner. Ayurveda is about balance, right?

Talking about food – in Ayurveda the general rule for a meal is:

  • 2/4 solid food (potatoes, rice, ”¦)
  • 1/4 fluid food (soup, warm tea, ”¦)
  • 1/4 empty (space, nothing, nada, ”¦)

If you ate too much, like me in the past, you feel like a balloon after the meals. In addition BE with the meal. Look at it, chew slowly. Why? Your stomach has NO idea what you fill in unless you scan your food/ meal. At least half of your eating time.

To help your body system, it would be great if you can implement 3 eating time windows. For example:

  • 6-9am: breakfast
  • 11am-2pm: lunch
  • 6-8pm: dinner

No snacking in between. It was, and still is, hard for me. Depending on what time you get up in the morning, try to finish dinner early like before 8pm. Hi to all the French and Spanish guys! 🙂

So why? Because your stomach needs some time to digest and then needs rest. If you eat too late, digestion and sleep will overlap. Often resulting in low quality sleep. Reminds me of somebody”¦
Let”™s say digestion is done by 10pm, the body can rest, or fast, until 6am. Time to break the fasting with”¦ breakfast! When you wake up, can you immediately hold your best presentation of the year? Maybe not. Same for the stomach. A slow start with, e.g. an oatmeal and an apple would be delightful. Oh, I forgot, start breakfast with a glas of warm water. Yes, I did laugh, too. In the past.

Breaking up with Someone

Picture for the blog post "breaking up with someone" by Chris Remspecher in 2015.Breaking up with someone, most times is not easy, but healthy.

In 2015 among the most horrible weapons for breaking up with someone, number #1 still is: words.
Words may cut deep into your soul, leave you behind wounded and it’s very hard for others to see the marks. In times of short messages, social media and all, people tend to type thoughts which they would never say out loud standing in front of you. I guess our brains do not make much difference if the input came from our audio interface (ears) or our video googles (eyes).

More than often, I recognize an “undo-mentality-trend” recently. People blow out thoughts in (public) communications with a fire-and-forget mind-set. If the comment did damage to a company or hurt the feelings of an individual, responses are like “if you don’t like the comment, delete it” or “I thought we were friends and friends forgive”.

Of course, forgiving is balm to our own souls. Forgetting everything is (at least for me) not possible and unhealthy. In ZEN we learn a lot from easy comparisons. Imagine a cup of tea. The cup – you. The tea – your soul/ happiness/ spirit…
A solid cup can hold a very hot amount of tea for a long time. A broken cup, well, … sure you can fix it again and glue the parts together. Maybe some parts even got lost in the process; in short, the cup will never be the same. Even if you forgive gravity a million times…

“For everything you have missed you have gained something.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

 Learn, forgive and move on – you are not a tree.

How to make Ginger Tea

How to make Ginger Tea with a garlic press. Pictures by Chris Remspecher in 2015.

How to make Ginger Tea with a garlic press!?

During the transition from winter to spring, your body is under a lot of stress. Late christmas snow in April, the sun hides behind the moon (or clouds) and your work mates cough and sniff all the time. Why not help it with a fine ginger medicinal tea?

Since Paula asked me over at Instagram, here’s how to make ginger tea, ZEN style: cut, peel (with a spoon!), chop little pieces, squeeze. Pour boiled water into a (big) cup, feel fancy to add honey, a little bourbon vanilla and coconut milk. Et voilà!

Travelling to Paris

Picture for Travelling to Paris by Chris Remspecher in 2014.What happens if you are travelling to Paris?

1. You leave your comfort zone.
Yes, my couch loves and understands me too. But your sofa will not kick you up the Montmartre to the most loveliest view over Paris.

2. You have to move your butt.
When you made it up to the top at Sacre Coeur, you will most probably miss your couch already”¦ but(t) remember(s), that our body was made for exploring, walking around, dancing , or running in the rain!

3. You have to adapt to unforeseen situations.
The sign might clearly tell you, the train will leave from the left track, but there”™s already a train to the right of the platform. In Germany, we would expect the train to leave precisely from the left side. In France it”™s possible that, for no understandable reason, the train on the left, today, leaves from the right side. Open your mind”¦ 😉

4. You might see things you don”™t like.
In the area of the 18th arrondissement and generally in Paris, you might see homeless, beggars, guys who want to give you stuff for ”žfree“ (never-ever take something in your hand, unless you really want to buy it) and others might sell you ”žtop-new“ mobile phones. Without a receipt for sure. If you feel like you want to help, focus and do it in an organized way, for example via mycharitywater. And from the ZEN side, it might sound harsh but it”™s not your business.

5. You might see things that make you smile bright.
You can”™t plan or buy to meet a very old French couple in the streets of Montmartre giving you tips and insider info you”™ll find nowhere else. Unforgettable are their smiles when you *listen* to them and just be thankful and give them a smile and a ”žMerci!“ for goodbye.

6. You could visit friends or find new ones.
Life is a journey. It”™s up to you, who you let go or keep by your side. Yes, you can travel all alone, but it”™s more fun to make another face smile and have enlightening conversations along the way 🙂 In my case: merci, Klaus! Hope to meet you soon again – here or there”¦

7. You might find inner peace.
I”™m writing this on the TGV on my way back home. You never get again, again this life. Traveling can help you to re-evaluate your life from a distance. Are all those things you have to do really that important to you, really? Even the shortest trip, 1-2 days, can bring you back on the right (or left) track.

Happy travelling to Paris!

Lessons learned in 2013

Picture for lessons learned in 2013. Picture and blog post by Chris Remspecher in 2013.Wow, here we go! Hello 2014, thank you 2013 – what a ride.

So what were the lessons learned in 2013?

  • Relax or die trying.
  • Focus or get lost.
  • Smile, even when no one is watching.
  • Calm your mind or monkeys will be your boss.
  • Hug a friend. And then do it again. Repeat.

Since I lose track of my own lessons learned in 2013 from time to time, I made a desktop wallpaper for you and me. Download the picture in full size (2048 x 1365 px) if you like. I hope it is useful for you, too. Namaste 🙂

Lessons learned in 2013, iPhone iOS7 parallax wallpaper by Chris Remspecher in 2014.

/edit: By public (an my own) request, I made an iPhone iOS7 parallax wallpaper. Yes, looks great on Android, too 😉 Click it for full size and download it for your daily reminder..

Namaste in Waikiki

Namaste in WaikikiNamaste in Waikiki.

One of the greatest things on this planet is having awesome friends. They don’t have to be around you all the time. Maybe some are thousand miles away. What counts in the end, is if they think of you from time to time. Tom sent me this pic with the following line:

I’m in Waikiki and when I saw this graffiti I thought of you ;-). Very nice here.  More pics later, cheers

Thanks Tom, namaste!

 

Blocked Paths

Picture for the blog post "Blocked Paths" by Chris Remspecher.

You have a plan. You have a map. And sometimes blocked paths are a gift.

In most cases, you get something like a pre-warning, a sign, a phone call, a bad feeling in your stomach. Since many of us are busy and stressed, we tend to overlook those hints and suddenly we are totally surprised by blocked paths.

What can you do now?

  • You can wait. Meditate and hope the barrier disappears.
  • You can turn back. And go back the same path that brought you here…
  • You can look around. Use all your senses, maybe you overlooked a tiny new path that navigates you into a new direction.
  • You can ask: yourself, your true friends and your family. You might not like the answers at first.
  • You can do something. Change some mosaic pieces of the picture. If impossible right now in the outer world, start with your inner world. Start with a smile.

Remember: blocked paths can also be a gift. They force you to stop, recalculate your life, change. Namaste

Lift your self

Logo of Lift.doThe past is gone, the future is uncertain – what will you do with your remaining time? Lift your-self!

Thankfully the guys at Lift.do did create an app (currently for iPhone only) to help you to track and improve your habits.

“The mind is everything. What you think you become.” Buddha

Thoughts form actions, repeated actions create habits and habits build your character. Are you happy with your current state of mind?

Since you might not be the only one with some not-yet designed future potential, have a look at the uplifting community over at Lift. Improving your habits is much more fun and effective with your pals around!

Make your life lighter

Picture for the blog post "Make your life lighter" by Chris Remspecher in 2012.Make your life lighter – suggestions:

  1. Only carry stuff, you care for; e.g. replace your old and too heavy notebook, dump useless thoughts and pseudo feelings, wear things that make you happy.
  2. Surround your-self with stuff, that makes you smile; declutter your desk, closet, loft and ‘friends’.
  3. Stay curious; undust your brain cells, try something new in your life, rearrange your kitchen setup, start new habits, read great books, exchange your thoughts, travel!
  4. Stay awesome; eat and drink healthy, get some fine tea, move your temple aka body around, dance, jump, sing and smile!
  5. Be you.