If you’re having a hard time getting going/motivated in the morning, don’t think, ACT!

Priming the Pump can help us seize the day. Here are some methods I used this morning to jump start my day:

1. Cold shower – start off warm and fade into cold-cold, 30-60 seconds
2. Routine change – instead of sitting down on the couch after making my kids breakfast, made preparations for the day.
3. Set of push-ups.

“He who hesitates is lost.” Cato

Here’s a pretty cool article about why we might be smelly, but can remain somewhat oblivious to it.

Essentially, the nerve endings for smell up high in your nostrils (olfactory nerves, cranial nerve I) become bored with the way you smell and are looking instead, for new input, fresher scents perhaps.

So it’s important to help a brother/sister out, letting them know if their smell is offensive.

http://www.businessinsider.com/human-beings-smell-blind-why-2017-5

Above is your bone architecture. People often think of bones as rocks or sticks or some shit – supportive structures but otherwise lifeless. This could not be farther from the truth.

Bone is an incredibly dynamic (always changing) tissue. Bones are malleable and are capable of change, dependent upon our activity levels. If we sit on our asses, bones and muscles which attach to them grow weak. And if we train hard and are constantly on the move, as the body prefers, bones will strengthen in response to that stress.

Bone functions include:
– Framework and support
-Locomotion, when muscles pull on them
– Protection: rib cage, pelvis, spine, skull and face
– Immune system: all formed elements of the blood are born and raised within your bone marrow!
– Mineral storage: calcium and phosphorous
– Energy storage: fats are a concentrated form of energy. If you were a cave-person, looking for something to eat, and you found a carcass, you would smash the bones with a rock and scrape out the marrow (primarily fat).

Other things about bones:

– Dude named Dr. LeFort studied facial fractures by dropping cannon balls onto the heads of cadavers. He found that the skull and face had hollow areas -the sinuses – which served as a cushion for blows to the noggin. By analogy, we would call these crumple zones, like a car’s bumper, which is designed to take the impact, saving the driver. I actually watched a surgical procedure one time, after a Marine’s face had been stomped after being caught fooling around with another devildog’s wife. The surgeons reassembled the man’s facial bones using tiny screws and clips, while Metallica’s Enter Sandman played in the background. True story!

– All bones are first formed from cartilage. This is why babies are so limber and have the “soft spot” in their head; this is called a fontanelle. As the infant’s brain develops fully, the cartilage is replaced with bone.

– “Boner” is a name given to an erect male genitalia, e.g. “Man, I almost popped a boner during squats!” Some mammals actually have a bone in their penis, it’s called a baculum – hence, the term is ironic and accurate.

Hey, I know my bones…it’s the business I’m in. Chiropractors are doctors who find and fix problems having to do with nerve-muscle-BONE. So if you have any questions please ask, because I live for this shit.

Immediate action for strong bones: Take your nasty ass outside and perform lots of weight bearing exercise = DDIP!

Healthy skin is of the utmost importance. So with the warm weather upon us, it’s extremely important that we safeguard our largest, most protective organ.

Some extra intel on skin:

– Vitmin D is actually produced through a reaction on the surface of your skin

– Melanin is a pigment produced by a cell within the skin. This pigment is like a sunshade, shielding your cells from excessive UV radiation. It is also what makes your skin dark or light.

My skin color is Marine Corps Green! HUH!

Went out camping with the Cub Scouts this past weekend. After a busy week punctuated by inclement weather, a camp-out was not so appealing. But everything turned out very well. Nature and the roar of the campfire have a way of calming the mind and working things out.

We did some geocaching, hiked around, fished down the Unami Creek and cooked over open flames. Everyone worked together to make it a great event.

My favorite part of the trip, though, had to be watching the kids just running around and being kids. There was none of the usual sitting on the couch, playing video games – begging your children to go outside to get some fresh air. Beyond the planned activities, which served as an an excellent framework, the children just PLAYED! There was a lot of pick-up football and frisby, running around getting dirty. Everyone got along so well and at the end of the day, let me tell you – we were beat! We slept to the sound of owl hoots and coyote howls.

As I sat talking with parents or cooking at the fire, I saw the kids out beyond the campsite; they were definitely up to something! Later, a few of them approached the adults with much excitement. They wanted to show us what they were doing:

They led us out to a stone sculpture they had constructed. It was an intricate piling of rocks with a hole in the middle – a toilet! I complimented them on their fine work and went over to an adjacent wooden structure they created. It was a gully which they had stacked dead logs over, making a small shelter. One of the boys explained that a wolf spider, named Jeffie, lived in there now.

After issuing the Scouts some more accolades for their creativity, they became more excited yet and there was a lot of exploration and running around the wood with sticks, yelling. Reminded me of days gone by, when I was a lad, running through the Pine Barrens of NJ.

In this clip, the Scouts are leading us to a tower they found in the woods. It reminds me of a scene from Lord of the Flies, with all these little characters running about the wilderness, fending for themselves – of course, under the careful supervision of Scout leaders. It made me ponder the importance – FOR ALL OF US – to get out in nature and tap into our most creative inner explorer.