Happy New Year!

This is the last day of 2007, man, a lot of revolutionary things have happened for me. And I want 2008 to be a year of transformation. I started a project with my sister/friend Joy called Creative Change, where we are both on a new journey. We will encourage, support, and share information, we both needs this. I am committed to it. I’m off to spend New Year’s with my family… Happy New Year!

Books

I made my wish list for books I want to get and read in the future. I get the One Spirit catalogue and these looked the most interesting to me.

The Chocolate Cake Sutra: By Geri Larkin

How Not To Be Afraid Of Your Own Life: Susan Piver

Mind In Comfort And Ease: Dalai Lama

The Joy Of Living: Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche

Earth Spirit Living: Ann Marie Holmes

The Intention Experiment: Lynne McTaggart

Life’s Companion: Christina Baldwin

Finding Water: Julia Cameron

When The Drummers Were Women: Layne Redmond

The Emotional Lives Of Animals: Marc Bekoff

The Secret Language Of Birds: Adele Nozedar

Riding Into Your Mythic Life: Patricia Broersma

The Miracle Of Water: Dr. Marasu Emoto

Beyond Knowing: Janis Amatuzio

The Science Of Leonardo: Fritjof Capra

The Museum Of Lost Wonder: Jeff Hoke

Tea Bliss: Theresa Cheung

Whispers From The Woods: Sandra Kynes

Epiphanies: Anne Jauregui

A picture of poles in the water, I think they are what the boats tie to. The Red Lion Inn is located just the right of these poles. Different boats park and let passengers off, cruise ships, etc. I worked on a boat that docked their and it is gorgeous. It would be even beautiful in the spring and summer, but it is cold winter and it is still gorgeous. It is a pretty area to walk.



I don't know why I am so fascinated with this bridge, but I am. It could be that I've been crossing it for so long to get to my brother Rob's house and to Portland, and I've never seen it from this angle. Tomorrow I'll talk pictures where I am actually underneath it. It is so cool. Everytime we walk underneath, Amber and I joke that if a car decided to flip off of it, we are goners. LOL



I think this is a dredger, but I am not positive. I've never seen one before. No one was operating it. It sat there today in the water and it wasn't there before. I thought it was a cool piece of equipment.


This is what I am walking. It is pretty brick and I like the shape of them. It looked like a puzzle to me.



I never heard or read anything about a captain Vancouver, I decided to go exploring while I waited for Amber and I read the plaque telling about Captain Vancouver. He sailed the Columbia River. I thought it was fascinating, this skeletan statue of a boat.

Thich Nhat Hanh

I am currently reading “The Art Of Power” by Thich Nhat Hanh. This book, wow, it is so insightful and full of great wisdom, that I recommend it to anyone. I’m not finish with it yet, what I have read, so far, is inspiring and encouraging. I believe in what he calls the 5 mindfulness trainings and I can’t wait to read the rest of the book.
I have several books that I am wanting to read that I bought from One Spirit. I don't know why, but I decided with Thich Nhat Hanh's. I think it was spirit tellings me that I needed to read this book. That my soul was ready to listen. Anyway, if you get a chance, read it. I also posted a web page about him too, check it out. He is an inspirational soul.

Walking With A Friend

I went walking down by the water front in Vancouver this afternoon with my friend Amber this afternoon. It felt great. A lot of wonderful things are happening in my life and I feel change is coming. I decided not to fight it anymore. I am enjoying my new camera too. I took more, but I am teasing you with a few and maybe later on I'll post more. Enjoy...


My friend Amber...



The birds on top of the electric wires. I have always found it interesting that they can land on the wires and not get electracuted. Seeing them landing, reminded me of the old Alfred Hitchock movie starring Tippi Hendren, The Birds...

Whats On My Mind

I didn't feel like writing today, so I found this survey/meme thing on Myspace to do. Today, is a quiet day and I'm in pain. I woke up with my back hurting. I have no reason or explaination to why. It happens. I have had a lot on my mind lately and things are changing. I'm not sure exactly how I feel about it. Though, some of the changes have been great, some I'm not sure how to feel about. My mood may have something to do with all this rain and snow that we are experiencing here, or maybe it is having to do with a period in my life where I know that things must change. I have some choices to make. I feel like my feet are stuck in mud. I'm not sure how to get unstuck, all I know is that I will figure it out. It is a transition in my life...

WRITE EXACTLY WHATS ON YOUR MIND, AND DON'T CHANGE IT

1. Your ex and You = glad it is dead and gone.

2. I am listening to = the keyboard, my thoughts in my head, and the wind.

3. Maybe I should = read my Thich Nhat Book, go to bed, and drink lots of water.

4. I love = my home, family, and friends.

5. My best friend(s) = I consider them family.

6. I don't understand = a lot of things, but I'm a student of life.

7. I have lost my respect for = many things.

8. I last ate = rice

9. The meaning of my display name is = it is my given name

10. God = I think of the Tori Amos song, she sums it up in her lyrics.

11. Someday = why even bother saying that, you are making excuses for not getting it done.

12. I will always be = learning.

13. Love seems = unconditional.

14. I never ever want to lose = car keys or my teeth.

15. My LiveJournal is = non existat.

17. I get annoyed when = people can't make up their minds and take forever.

18. Parties = can be fun.

20. Simple kisses = are nice.

21. Today I = watched tv and became a piece of broccoli. lol

22. I wish = that everyone knew how loved and valuable they were, including me.

Creating Mandala's.

I thought I’d give a progress report on the Mandala project that I started in October. I’ve created 6 so far. I’ve never imagined that I could be creative in this way. I surprised myself. I am actually enjoying creating Mandala’s. It is a good way to meditate and clear your mind of the garbage you pick up during the day. Like my friend Amber says “When I am being creative, I feel alive inside.” I agree with her statement. I feel alive inside and I feel a lot of the good qualities that I am wanting to gain coming out of my body, soul, and spirit. Here is a sample of four of my Mandala’s…

The sixth one I made.



The fifth one I made.


The fourth one I made.


The third one I made.

Christmas Eve

It's snowing outside. It isn't sticking yet, but the flakes are flying threw the air. I've been having a pleasant Holiday season this year. I went to my brother Rob's house for Christmas Eve, they don't celebrate Christmas, not many holidays to be exact. I got the invitation a couple of days ago by my sister Carri and I thought it would be a great opportunity to get some pictures of my family. I got a new toy and I'm excited, can you tell?



This is my brother Rob, he is wearing his work shirt. If you knew him you would know why. He is a mechanical person, always fixing something in the house and for other people. They don't call him the mystic marvel for nothing. Today, he was working the wiring in their bedroom downstairs. Here he is fishing for cats, lol... They have this fishing reel that has a mouse on the end, and they fling it and the cats get the mouse and you reel it back... It is fun to watch the kittens and even Petunia the dog go after it.




This is Kris, my sister in law, Robs wife and my mom. We just finished eating a fabulous dinner and even played a round of taboo, and then later on we played monopoly. It was fun.



This is a picture of me with Carri, my sister.



This is my mom with a few of her grandkids and even a furry friend, Periwinkle. One grandchild is in Iraq... We miss you Jesse.




This is Levi, he is shy...





This is my nephew Joshua and his dog Petunia. He is trainging her for a blind or disabled person... He already trained one, Elle, now he is doing it again.




My mom and I...



Nichole and her million dollar smile. Carri, was making a joke about picking her nose and I snapped it at the right moment. lol




This cat has so much charachter. He is the cutest fur ball ever. I want him...




My niece Nichole and her bundles of joy... She is taking care of them for the Human Society....




Of course, Sarah my other niece with the kitties...



Here they all are snuggled away together.



All the kitties.




This is my mom.


Nichole and Grandma Raccoon.

Sunday Serenity #17

What brings me peace is nature, water, and being out in the open. Here are some pictures I took of my walk down by the Columbia River....

The Columbia River

My friend couldn't meet me to go for a walk down by the Columbia River. So, I went by myself and I walked by the water and I feel so alive. Here are some pictures I took on my mini adventure... Enjoy!







The birds migrating south...

3 Months

The last three months have been one adventure after another. I got a job, one that I love. I enjoy working with Edna and Julius and the boys. They all keep me busy. It seems that when one thing ends, all these new and exciting things happen. Some have been emotional roller coaster rides, and some have been inspirational. They just pop out of nowhere. Today, while I was talking to a friend of mine and my big sister. They helped me realize that I’ve come a long way since October, where basically, the shit hit the fan. I didn’t break, I didn’t die, I didn’t fall off the face of the earth, down a barren canyon of nothing. I put up my stiff upper lip and kept on living. A lot of big blessings happened during this time period. I got some things that I needed from the money I earn. I finally got a new digital camera that I’ve been wanting. And I still haven’t bitten my nails. It’s been a year since November. Yes, Amber, I got a garbage can for my kitchen. LOL I know, hard to believe. I am a bit confused about some issues, but I am well on the path that I know I must follow. The path to fulfillment and true happiness. I’m not perfect, but I’m learning to be mindful in the pursuit of my true destiny. Perfection is an illusion, that self discovery is propelling me to pursue my dreams.

My sister Joy visited and I got to spend on evening with her, showing her my apartment. Her first time here. I've lived here for 2 years. I got to go on a spectacular, unplanned, spur of the moment road trip with two sisters and my 17 year old niece, to Phoenix Oregon. Joy lives there and we were taking her home. Where we chatted, giggled, talked about all sorts of subjects. The age range is 50 to 17, so can you imagine all these women in one 2007 van, talking about ex boyfriends, current boyfriends, parents, things we see on the road, one that struck us all funny was a restaurant called Dung. We couldn’t believe it. And man, the things that women talk about in rest area bathrooms. We didn’t get home until 2:30 am, at least I didn’t. I’m liking these new experiences that are happening. It seems like you go down this dark tunnel, and then all of a sudden you see light. Something hit me, I’m realizing some things and valuing what I do have and most importantly, the many blessings in my life. There is one area that is still confusing, but it will eventually clear up. I’m just going to continue to walk down this same road and loving, valuing my true family and friends.

New Camera Joys

I got my new Kodak camera in the mail today. It is a Christmas present to myself. My old one died on me in July. I've been missing the thrill of taking pictures of the things around me and now I can. I'm so excited. My friend Amber and I are going walking down by the water front tomorrow afternoon, so be prepared. Here are some pictures that I took tonight. They are of me.

The Joys Of Children

I am busy babysitting my friend Ambers' two wonderful children, Cullen and Duncan. They are easy going and well behaved rugrats. We played football on the play station. I don't do video games, but Duncan wanted me to, so I gave in. I have to say, I can see the fascination. Cullen, who is autistic, behaved well. I was nervous, but he knows me. I got to cuddle on the couch, cook dinner for two wonderful boys, read two chapters in "The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer" by Mark Twain, and basically be a kid. Oh yeah, I almost forgot, watch the Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix. I want to get married and be a mom someday!
I know, I know, I thought I'd never say this, but watching Duncan and Cullen gave me my internal mothering instincts and also, yes, me a true committed relationship with a man. Gasp!!! You can close your jaw now. I'm not running out my door, yelling I need a man in the streets, nope, I have much growing and changing before I am ready for my Mr. Somebody just right for me and I become just right for that person. Today, just brought a little perspective of what it is I truly want in my life. Amber is probably on her way home from work and so is her lovely companion in life Russ, so I should post this and get going.

Sunday Serenity #16

I chose nature for what brings me at peace. I am excited because I am getting my new digital camera and I'll soon be able to go out into the world and take pictures of the beautiful things I see around me.

Reclaiming My Eve

I found I Goddess yesterday and so I went exploring, because after the video there was a bunch of you tube things to watch, so I went a watching. I saw Zsuzsanna Budapest, I liked how she talked, I liked what she has to say. I've been afraid of Wiccan, Goddess movements, I've read on them and I liked what I read and their teachings, but being brought up Christian. It frightened me. One thing that resonated in my heart and soul was her comments about EVe. That is where she gained some respect from me. I've always felt that in religions I was brought up in, Southern Baptist and the non denominational religions always protrayed women as evil, malicious, unworthy, distrsutful. I like what Budapest said in video three and four about Eve, the Genesis story, she called it a lying story. I have always thought this of many of the stories in the bible. The only parts that I didn't feel that way about was the Gospels, because Jesus portrayed women as healers, providers, and worthy of love and respect by men. Budapest has a ceremony that concerns Eve, and I liked it. I watched it mesmerized by the ritual and thinking hell yeah, it is about time that we realize that we are not evil, not worthy of love and we are not at fault for the sins of the world. That we are creators of life and we are capable of much more than we were ever told we were. Some people might think she is bashing men, but I don't feel that way about what she has to say. What she is saying to me is we need to value ourselves and take care of ourselves for our children and for our partners in life. We need to respect ourselves and everyone else in our lives.
The last one number 6 is the self blessing, I like it and I am going to incorperate it into my normal routine on Fridays. I ask you to watch all 6 of them, you will be enlightened by them.

I Goddess

I am learning that when one door closes, another one opens. The last couple of months have been a maze of steps. I've been stumbling, longer than the two month, more like 3 years. I'm awake, fully awake. I feel like the fool in the tarot deck, the one who is about to start on a new adventure, but then I just went through the death and the tower too. So, today, in my email this you tube video showed up, then some other magical occurances started happening. I got to talk to a couple of friends and it helped me put a lot of things into perspective. I have felt inspired or hopeful in a long time. I've been mindlessly going, taking care of someone else's needs and I know in my heart that it isn't right. That has to change somehow. I like this meditative movie from I Goddess, found below, that popped into my email this afternoon. Enjoy... To all the Goddess out there...

Sunday Serenity #15

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Sunday Serenity #14