Nootropics + Doodling + FBM = My Life

So for this past week, I splurged and bought some Nootropics. I've been trying to track the progress (or even any effects) that I felt through the week. I really haven't felt anything way different except that when I go outside, I could honestly just sit/stand and be totally amazed by nature. I used to do this before, but not to the extent of where I do now. It's actually creeping me out a little. Just because the fact that I'm in awe of how everything just works together and fits together almost perfectly. It's weird, almost I can't explain it to the full extent.

Another thing I've noticed is that math and problem solving has really improved. I could always do math in my head but it would take me a little while to do multi-digit multiplication. Now it's like being able to see the numbers written out in my imagination and then just quickly solve it as I would if it was on a piece of paper. For some reason, I'm able to apply imagination with math and problem solving (mostly work situations)

The last thing I've really noticed is that, my guitar playing ability has really picked up. I saved this one for last, since I do not know if it's really helped me out here, or that the fact it been almost been 4 years of playing and that I am finally reaching a point of where I'm comfortable with it and am able to create something. Whatever it may be, musical creativity has definitely improved.

I've been taking 5-HTP for the past month or so. This is also another nootropic. From my knowledge, it helps produce serotonin. I usually take one pill an hour or so before I go to sleep. Why you ask? because I just blast off into a whole new world when I dream. I've had so many vivid and lucid dreams, where I can acknowledge that I'm dreaming, keep the dream alive (without waking up) and keep rolling. Just as an example, the past two most vivid dreams I've had the past couple days involved, being pushed out of a helicopter (Scared of heights? I definitely am!), plunging into the ocean, swimming, and being able to breathe underwater. The other one I was full emotion ups and downs, trying to fend of a pride of female lions from overtaking my family farm. It was intense from almost getting attacked, being saved, to saving a person. It was an insane dream.

The one thing that I do remember about 5HTP is that for the first few days I tried taking it, I slept awful. After awhile though, best sleep ever. Completely knocked out until my alarm goes off (usually I fully wake up a minute or two before the alarm) and usually have crazy dreams that I remember for the entire day or even a couple days. (I've been writing them down lately, keeping a notebook on my bed stand.)

I stumbled upon this great little mini presentation by Sunni Brown ß Check it out! She talks about how being a doodler may be related with creative thinking and comprehension. I think it's great because I am definitely a doodler where I'm always creating little designs and shapes with multiple colors.

My usual doodles

This is what most of all my homework, notebooks, or pretty much anything school related looks like. Ranging back to early high school, I remember always just doodling during classes. Maybe that's why I could keep good grades during my entire academic career. Doodling is as easy as this! (ViHart might be one of my many dream girls... Who doesn't like a math nerd!?)

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So I forgot to submit this blog from last night, so I'll compact this little segment along with it.

I've been on that nootropic for almost a week. Today I finally felt just amazing, it was one of those feelings of "being on a roll, and nothing can stop you". It was a crazy feeling, since, well I don't really do much... ha! But.. I did get a Full Body Massage this morning. Hands down the greatest thing ever. I think everyone needs to get one of these things. To be honest, I can barely remember anything from the hour. I went to this weird zen-state, I was thinking about what I was going to do for the future, playing what-if games with different situations in my life, and just trying to play out my life if I followed a certain path. All of a sudden, they were like, "Alright Nate, I'll meet you down stairs." I was like it's over, it's been an hour?! It was probably the best way to start out any day. I'm finding somehow to get my healthcare to pay for me to get one massage a month. I honestly think EVERYONE needs to get one of these now, soon, or in the near-near future. Worth every single penny.

Hopefully all this will get me ready for a Golf Tournament this weekend. We'll see if these nootropics can help my game... I heard it was all mental

Cheerio,


Alastar Swift

To All My 40 Hour Friends

So I've been fortunate enough to join many of my good friends in this game we call "Real World". You know the great 8 hour days + anything else we may have to do outside of work to help us be efficient and successful at our job.

Last week, was the first time I had put in 40 hours of work in probably almost a year and after it, I felt drained but happy. Happy that I found a job to pay my bills, and that I survived not just 40 hours of work, but also the first week of having a gym membership. There was nothing else I did NOT want to do after 8 hours of work than go to the local gym. It sucked. It left me dead almost every single night. I think I even went to sleep at 9:30 pm a couple nights in there. But when that Friday rolled around it felt amazing. From being active, accomplishing multiple things from getting a job, working out, and changing my entire diet.

Even though it was one of the hardest weeks, physically and mentally, it was well worth it. I kept riding this Accomplishment Wave that I started up and rode it well into the weekend. I woke up at 7am Saturday morning... Yes, 7am Saturday morning. I went out and had breakfast with my dear ole' Mother and Grandma. I spent the rest of the day cleaning my room, throwing numerous amounts of junk that had accumulated over the 23 years of my life, and donating a majority of my clothes to the local thrift store.

I have this fear of being owned by the products and articles of clothing that I buy. I know this sounds crazy. And I guarantee I think it's as crazy as you do. But I just have this feeling that the more stuff I buy, The more things start to own me. 

And to try and explain myself, I'll use my xbox or a favorite TV show. Now I love to spend time playing video games with my friends and to talk about TV shows with friends, espec HIMYM. 

But... 

At the same time, both things (in my mind) take up my time, where I could be pursuing different things that I really want to become good at, such as: Guitar Playing, Playing Piano, Writing (Books, Blogs, and Songs/Poems), Speaking 2nd Language, and becoming a "Life Coach". 

(I put life coach in parentheses because I know some people take advantage of this, and make money. I'd rather do it just to help my friends pursue their dreams, give them confidence and help them along their journey, and help random strangers too)

On that same Saturday, I started to write a story with my friend. Currently we are planning on it being a movie script... But I'm feeling that it may progress into my first book. I'd love to share it, but at the moment it's not copyrighted nor do I have a lot of structure to it. (It stands at 25-30 minutes of film time, So I guess there is a good amount)

And not to go into too much detail but Sunday was the most productive day since I've been back in the States. 

I guess I left out a big factor from all of this. I actually know why I have been trying to be more productive and be less of a procrastinator. I visited one of my best friends a couple weekends ago and we were talking about a video that I told him that I watched every morning. (Refer to "The One That Fell Through" and click on the link Inspiration) After that, he showed me an even better video. That hands down has changed my life. Changing by making it easier for me to get off that couch, turn off the TV, grab the guitar, grab the writing pad or grab the Chinese book. 

How Bad Do You Want It?

I hope that, it inspires you as much as it has inspired me. I hope it takes you to follow whatever it is that you want to do, whether it is to be the best accountant/finance rep or to being able to wrestle an alligator. I mean, I just finally, after 23 years, baked a batch of homemade brownies (which were LE-GIT!). I always wanted to be a Profess Cook back in High School and I've started to write again. I actually have a published poem. (Surprising, I know) 

I guess what I want to say is. Go find what inspires you. Everyone is different and we all pull different experiences/emotions the same situation. We just have to find what we are drawn to and how to keep ourselves inspired to follow that path, even if we have to venture the beginning alone. 

Much Love,

Alastar Swift

The One That Fell Through

All I can think about is. the future. life. And the craziness that falls between.

I've been wrapped into this terrible preface of, making sure that I don't make all the wrong choices. That everything I will be doing has some greater impact on my life and how I want to mold my future. I think I've been handling that area of expertise way to much. There no possible way for anyone to do that.

I've been trying to plan. plan everything. Which is the very opposite of what I enjoy doing. I rarely like planning things. I'm much more of a.. designer? Maybe I can explain, since I really can't find a word that works.

I've learned through the easy and the difficult things in life that everything can change in a heartbeat. And that planning (for me, anyways) does NOT work. I always seem to have these epic plans. Awesome plans that I'm so stoked about, that would make everything awesome and sweet. But to my surprise (every time, I think it'll work) it falls apart miserably.

So I'm trying this new thing called.. Life Designing. From my twenty-odd years of experience, I've learned that life is nothing I can plan for, all I can do is hope that I've remembered all the lessons from the dumb mistakes (I've made) and apply them to the events that come to me as I travel on this flying-rock of a planet.

I can't really prepare for the unexpected, but I can hope that I've learned enough to be able to make the right choices when the time comes. I have a few major events in my life where they had left me totally-and-utterly shocked because it all came out of nowhere. I only bring this up as there was no way I could have either 1) seen it coming or 2) even planned for something of that nature.

The only things that I could fall back on were the things I had learned up to that point, my Amazing Friends, and the basketball court.

I lost touch with myself as these few months have gone by with my awesome unemployment time. It has been the best bitter-sweet moment of time I've ever enjoyed. I've had more time to think... ignore... loathe... and love what my life has the potential to be.

I've been listening to this video almost every morning since a great friend of mine told me about it. Inspiration! Sometimes we have to leave everything behind, to go get what we really want in life. I've spent a lot of time in the local Barnes&Nobles looking through novels... and my new favorite, personal improvement section. I try to make sure most of them have something to do with Business, or something that I'm extremely interested in, but it's literally like a bunch of people explaining the crazy situations and events that have happened to them and they explain what they pulled from it. (What I usually like to do, is figure out what I would do in that situation... Is it 100% opposite or is it quite similar to what they had done?)

I scanned through this one autobiography which I randomly opened to a page and zoomed to a paragraph. I can't remember verbatim what he had wrote, but it was on the lines of...

Sometimes we have to realize the bad "friends" in our lives... the ones that aren't helping us improve. The ones that aren't there trying to help you reach your full potential. Sometimes you think you can just move to a new location and everything will change. Nothing will change unless you realize the type of people that are bringing you farther away from your dreams. You have to have the strength to want to improve your life, even if it means that everything you know, is such a awful environment for you to grow in this life. You only have one, why waste it.

That one got to me. I'm not sure why. But it really hit deep. I've yet to shake those thoughts my my brain. It's always funny to find what sticks and what doesn't. This quick glance of a paragraph, sticks yet... I spent countless of hours trying to get random business facts to stick in my head for test day... weird

I'll leave on this note. Listen to this song. 

Until next time... Much Love

Alastar Swift