Snow Day Discoveries

I'm chilling (literally) on the Maine seacoast. Snow has been gracefully and steadily falling since 7 o'clock this morning. Though I made it to the post office to mail out a job application, I don't dare make the 1/2 hour trek to work with the responsibility of caring for my boss' beloved black lab. Instead, here I am watching startling and life-changing documentaries on Netflix.

The first documentary I viewed is by National Geographic, entitled "Stress: Portrait of a Killer," by Robert Sapolsky. Earlier in my blogs I mused about the benefits and consequences of stress. This video suggests that stress, especially chronic, has multiple consequences on us physically, even to the point that brain cells that control memory can be lost. A lot of stress to do with status or social class. Dr. Sapolsky, the researcher behind this project, studied baboons in Kenya. He found that the males in the lower end of the social spectrum had increased stress, felt less happiness, and showed beginning signs of blocked arteries. The leaders of the pack did not have these struggles. Interestingly, though, when TB became spread to throughout the troop, it was the ones on the bottom of the totem pole that survived because of their strong relationships with the others.

Sometimes, or perhaps often, we find ourselves in continually stressful situations. The studies from this video showed that to combat stress we need the support of friends and loved ones. When we can talk about the things that cause us stress, especially with others that understand us and accept us, incredible healing can occur. As far as social status goes, the film suggests that it is important to find a job, or avenue where we can feel significant, and consciously choose not to allow societies judgement of us, how we perform, or what we have to give the final "say so" of our personal value.

The second video, I'm still in the process of watching is entitled "Food, Inc.," directed by Robert Kenner. Did you know that there are only FOUR major companies who produce about 80% of the meat we consume in the US? To find out more, I suggest you watch this video for yourself. Another video I plan on seeing this afternoon is "The Future of Food" by Filmmaker Deborah Koons Garcia. Let's just say I'm thinking about buying local meat and produce and maybe starting gardening as a hobby again.