Christy's Five Questions for April 2023

gopher://sdf.org/0/users/christyotwisty/phlog/2023-April-Five-Questions.txt

 1. What is your most memorable recent dream?

Regrettably, I haven't really been dreaming for months now.  And the
few times it happens (well, the few times I remember it at least), I
can't recall them clearly.  I think it has to do with the desordered
rhythm I've been having lately.  Hopefully it will get better now that
I am starting to have a more stable life routine.

 2. What instantly improves a sub-par day?

Lately?  Alcohol.  Yeah, I know.  But I stopped.  And I feel fine,
thank you.

 3. Is there an uncommon, little-known, wellness or beauty hack you
    use?  For example, I feel about under my rib cage for 'hot spots',
    and tap or massage them until either the sore feeling is gone, or
    I forcibly exhale through the mouth.

When I was about 12 yo, I had an Atelectasis (a complete or partial
collapse of the entire lung or area (lobe) of the lung; a common
breathing (respiratory) complications).  Later, during my frenshman
year of college, I started having anxiety attacks, the first symptom
of which was breathing difficulties; in other words, asthma (some
psychosomatic reminiscence of my Atelectasis).

Over time (and from the memories I had of my kinesitherapy sessions),
I developed breathing techniques to relive stress, reduce intercostal
pain, while helping to clear the congestion in my lungs.

One of these techniques involves being upside down (in fact the idea
is to have your lungs upside down to gravity).  In practice, I am
standing, folded in half, legs slightly apart, with my head between my
feet.  While coughing slightly and exhaling forcefully the air from
the lungs (thanks to a rapid and strong contraction of the abdominal
muscles).  I look a bit stupid, but it's very effective.

 4. What is something that feels embarrassing but shouldn't?

Well, talking frankly and publicly about some of my weaknesses (see
questions 1 to 3).

 5. If you live in a small space, how do you responsibly discard or
    recycle excess items?

I lived for a long time during my college years in an apartment of 9
m2 (approximately 100 ft2) with the bathroom and toilet on the
landing.  It was at the university residence on my campus.  It was
great because I made a lot of friends at that time.  Most of all I
learned to live with the minimum.  The key for me was not to have too
many possessions, and to stick to the essentials (a plate, a fork, a
knife, a table, a chair, etc.).  And on the rare occasions I had to
part with items, I gave them away to others on campus.  There was even
a storage facility where you could leave to others, or pick up what
former residents had left before they departed.

I've kept this habit of sticking to the basics.  Unfortunately (?) I
don't live alone anymore and my SO doesn't have this good habit... But
fortunately, there are local groups here in Toulouse (like everywhere
else, right?) where you can donate the stuff you want to get rid of.


                                            f6k, 2o23/o4/o8