I Can Change Myself…REALLY!

I’m of a mind that nothing stands between me and what I want except for the fear it may not work or change things so drastically that I’ll be “sorry”…so I decided to change my perception.  I realized that the experience of trying and dealing with anything that could happen sure beats the feeling of never going for it and wishing that I did.  So now when I feel less than worthy, feel nervous, feel unsure, I transmute that energy and thinking to…What can I do to make this an opportunity for something I REALLY want!    This has gotten me through many things that I (and others) have perceived as devastating or situations that were hurtful at the time.  Another thing, for me that is important, is to give myself time to process these devastating, hurtful, unexpected changes (which come to everyone).  I changed myself and perceive the best outcome for everyone (myself included), this has never let me down.

Hope that makes sense and that in some way it can help you too!

I AM

I AM AS I UNDERSTAND.

Competition – How to know

Competition is competing against oneself whether the ego will let self see it or not…therefore, bad sportsmanship exemplifies the ego against itself and all its faults…good sportsmanship accepts that for today the best was the best….center reflects enjoyment/thankfulness of the competition for all that it is.

A Proposal

Let’s do away with the phrase:

GO F* Yourself

And all it’s glorious versions.

I propose we say:

Go Fulfill Yourself!

It sounds much nicer and is really much tougher to do.

😉

Shh

Ringin IN 2010!

I’m looking forward to a great 2010! 

I’ve heard that from nearly everyone I’ve gotten email from, talked to and seen on FB.  The excitement in the air about 2010 is palpable. 

I can’t remember when …well, yes I can, I think many people were so worried about Y2K and working their butts off in 1999 to prevent “the unspeakable horrors” the clock turning to 2000 could bring that everyone was looking forward to the “end” of what nightmares COULD happen. 

Maybe that was the start of all this doom and end of the world talk that seems to dominate everything these days.  It is (of course) at the movies, in the news, on all my favorite channels, History, Discovery, Science; whether they are talking about Nostradamus, the Holy Bible, the Mayan calendar or other forseers they want to use to prove the “disaster looming” point. 

The positive lesson to take from all this is … MAYBE…  all we have is today.

Today is the PRESENT so maybe we should treat it like a GIFT and ENJOY!

Bah Hum Bird!

So let me get this straight…I have to get up at 1am Thursday morning to start the big bird, go back to bed at 2am and then wake up on the hour to baste until 5am and then start preparing 20 side dishes, 2 pies, 2 cakes…all between one oven and a small microwave, set the table to look like something from Martha Stewart’s Living, look like I stepped out of Vogue as I serve it…then do two loads in the dishwasher whilst washing all the big stuff which puts me at about 1am Friday morning and then I’m supposed to get up at 4am and stand in line to shop in over crowded stores for bargains whilst everyone else watches football games and marathon TVLand episodes????

BAH HUM BIRD!!!!!!!!!!!

What I REALLY want is my own reality show just to get this documented!

Escape and Release Your Gifts!

Please don’t be so hard on yourself, others aren’t (at least people that really matter)!

Most of us struggle with self-consciousness issues. We can’t let that stop us!

I could name several people (who aren’t so nice) that are successful and put themselves out there all the time on TV and film. And then there are really nice people who give uplifting information and try to help (aka Oprah, if that end of the spectrum helps).

Those who know us know what we look like and still like or love us for the people we ARE!

Look at everyone around you that speaks well of you. bending over backwards to do so at times.  There is a large positive ripple effect there, why not be the stone that causes the ripple.

If all anyone cared about was what a person looked like then yikes, we’d all be like Hollywood…ick…what a depressing world that would be.  Picking each other apart instead of building each other up or working together.

Focus and capitalize on your strengths and forget about (what you perceive as) weaknesses…everyone wins that way! Why? You win and the people around you win because you share with them your gifts instead of coddling them in self-consciousness.

Sending love and good thoughts, Debi

Grief in the words of Dr. Suess…

Dad.

Had.

Sad.

Bad.

Mad.

Glad?

Hey Media, what does this mean…exactly?

It seems we’ve been upgrading computers and machines and downgrading our humanity and individuality for so long it is hard to spot until the finger is pointed at us.

Could any of us take the scrutiny that so many take in the media these days? 

From a mother disciplining her child in what she thought was private; to whether a FEMALE candidate should have her young family with her; to a mother so divided between so many duties, wife, mother, housekeeper, executive that she would forget her own newborn, these are ordinary people thrust into the limelight.  Being judged as if there was no humanity and that they should have never made a mistake or done that, shame on them.

Have you compared them with the Hollywood elite that all the media root for to do better, Brittany, Paris, Lindsey?  Seems they can make repeated mistakes, vowing to do something better with their lives and…well, you know the rest…they are rubber and we are glue.

Feel left out as an ordinary person?  What if it happened to you?  Which category would you fall into? 

It makes one wonder if “us worker bees” are being set up to work as computers with nary a mistake to be made and those that are deemed by the media as “queen bees” get passes for being “human.” 

Makes a difference as to how the media depits it all, doesn’t it?  Bias in the media?  Oh come on…they are all fair and balanced.

So which island will you land on?   THE ISLAND

Have you snorted lately?

 Click here to snort.

 

Okay, maybe you didn’t snort….but did you crack one? 

Instincts

 

AND NOW…FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT!

It puzzles me that so many great minds of the last century (and many now) think we can decode the cosmos and laws of nature.  They seem to think, if it can’t be defined by physics or the “sciences” then by jingies it just CAN’T be.  NOOOO, we sure can’t disect those touchie, feelie things.  We’ve got to hold those things back with a ten foot pole because that can’t possibly be where our evolution is taking us. 

***LONG PAUSE***  😉

Such smart, unopened minds that won’t allow room for God, spirit or being “in tune” with one another…call me a flake, I think they aren’t as smart as they think they are!  We are connected by God, instincts, our souls, mystical awareness or what ever one would call it.  I believe it is real and can be found by anyone seeking to connect.  After all we still except the deep rooted, “fight or flight” instinct, few would dispute we have survival instincts, however many doubt and nullify our spirit, unconditional love, telepathy or psychic ability altogether.  

It is as if we all must first experience something to believe or fully understand. 

Learning to have faith, learning to trust God and our “instincts” and the patience to withstand the wait of when we get to know the answers takes real faith.  To me, real faith means doing something that you believe God wants you to do or you are supposed to do even when you are scared, tired, lazy, depressed, lack funds, are doubtful,  are distracted, afraid it looks/sounds strange to others, worried about how others judge you, when it is difficult.

*******************************

Hope you all know I write these for myself, sorry to be so selfish but I’m sharing hoping it will help you.  Many times this is how God “talks” to me.  Even if I can’t understand it right now, maybe I will when He needs me to do so. 

Note to blogger buddies:  I ask you to say a prayer for my Dad.  I know you will so thanks.   Several things are pressing down hard and my time is little of late.  I’ll check in as I can with you all and hope to be back to finish our Difference story soon.  Peace and love from me to you, Debi

 

photo by bonnieanddan

Ignorance is bliss to those who profit by it!

The title of this post has been my mantra for awhile.  I’ve decided to change it and wanted to share some thoughts on what I’ve learned from my old mantra.  It is my desire to keep you from stumbling on some of these like I did.

My take on the infomercial people:  they are hoping that a few million people will purchase their product, gadget, book, etc. and at $19.99 to $39.99 a pop, they will become at least a millionaire.  Forget the money back guarantee or the life time guarantee…got a Ginsu Knife you want to get replaced?  Good luck!  The refund/warranty is only as good as long as the company stays in business.  The sellers are betting (with good odds) that your item will collect dust before you’d go to the trouble of sending it back for a refund/use a warranty.

Beware of half-truths, for instance one of the infomercials running of late has a woman selling her method/book on property something or other.  The paid interviewer states something about her best selling book…cough, gasp, wheeze…emphasis should be on HER because it is the only book she’s ever sold, of course it is HER best seller. 

Even when the company/person you think you’d like to deal with has a great reputation…CHECK IT OUT FOR YOURSELF!  Deal with people your friends and neighbors have dealt with AFTER you’ve ALSO read the fine print, checked with the Better Business Bureau (and read the next paragraph).  I’d also check the internet and watch out for multi-level marketing, there are tons of them and more starting everyday.  Nothing wrong with offering a product but when you are supposed to get more people to sell it than purchase it from you…BEWARE!

Watch out for the bait and switch.  It has become very popular, even among people of “reputation.”   We were baited and switched by a friend of a friend AND THE “FRIEND” KNEW; she didn’t want to say anything/be involved in the transaction between us.  HUH?  Note to self: don’t confuse the word acquaintance with the word friend, no matter how friendly.  

Actions will always speak louder than words.  Start looking for the actions that are in direct conflict of the words.  Words must be backed up by past and/or present action or the words are only a promise/dream.  Notice how the media tell you not to put yourself in any danger but if you can get video or a picture of that tornado passing over your head, send ‘er in!  Then they play the video over and over and over at nausea with a small credit at the bottom of the screen.  Yep, THEY are looking out for YOU!

Now more than ever it is BUYER BEWARE!

Rhetoric Pushers, Hate Mongers, Spinmiesters…

yes and a happy day after Easter to you too!  😉

But then when is there a good time to bring up difficult dialogue, difficult questions or just thinking about what comes next… 

Recently I received an email entitled:  CAN MUSLIMS BE GOOD AMERICANS? 

Along with a message:

I have several Muslim friends, and they are calm, peaceful, rational people with good values and good hearts, and yes they are good citizens of the USA. The tone of this email that is getting passed around reminds me of the type of ignorant hate speech that was spread about Jewish people in Nazi Germany. To try and judge an entire society of people and say they are not worthy to be Americans is insane, and I cannot be quiet about that fact. People should be treated as individuals. A small percentage of Muslims are violent criminals just as a small percentage of Christians are violent criminals. That is not reason to throw out the baby with the bathwater. Thanks for reading.

and:I agree with you 100%! Actions speak louder than words. Good people do good things MOST of the time, evil people do evil things MOST of the time and those that do nothing are indifferent. Those of us with minds to think, ears to hear and eyes to see know what truth is and one should not be judged by all and all should not be judged by one. What if the tables were turned and because one person that looked like you did harm to many, would that also make you the same as that person? Timothy McVey ring a bell? Love is the answer, my friend and we will keep fighting for it till the end (to quote a song). Good people together in a good country doing the best we can together!  I am a champion of LOVE! Some people who “don’t look like me” took EXCELLENT care of me last year during my hospital stay.

I cannot nor will I judge others by what someone else does ……

unless they align themselves with that person and support harm to others….uh oh!!!!

Does this mean that the majority of Americans are evil because they voted Bush into office for a second term?  Did he have all the information about Iraq?  Where WE mislead?  Did “we the people” make a mistake and re-elect Bush for a second term?  Can we forgive ourselves because we didn’t have all the information? 

Are we REALLY informed or just guessing about what really runs “the world order”? 

Are we really the horrible people that THE MEDIA says that the rest of the WORLD says we are?  Why do they do business with us if we are so terrible?  Why do all these countries accept loans, grants, monies from us on a government, corporate and individual levels?

Even after all this thinking I am still left to finish a puzzle with the last piece… how does one defend against evil people (singular or multiple)?

clip from lastraindance04

The Truth about Women in Despair

I’ve come across another blog via Angie’s blog  named WomanHonorThyself.  Today, she made excellent observations about how downtrodden and depressed so many women are these days.   

As it fizzled in my brain I thought and commented:

It is hard to admit that we women don’t honor ourselves.  But is it easy to see when the evidence is pointed out so clearly.

I remember a commercial that defined/predicted the onslaught of depression in women:

“I can bring home the bacon, fry it up in a pan, and never let you forget you’re a man.  Cause I’m a woman!”

This is expected of us.  Latch-key kids weren’t included in that song…who the heck is raising the kids? 

Our society has been hypnotised by commercial personas that led/lead us to believe/desire what is dangled out in front of us as the “carrot” of life.  The essense of life is to have what the commercials tell us to have because it makes everyone so happy to have it. 

We can turn just about anything from one perspective to another making it sound so terrible or so great.  But the truth is the truth. 

NO ONE… NO ONE… NO ONE has it ALL.  There are some who would argue that statement.  But deep down we all know the TRUTH. 

The Teacher still teaches…

Many of you have seen or heard about Randy Pausch (A Teacheris the link on my blogroll) and his profound final lecture.  I like to keep up on his activities as I am lead to pray for he and his family and all those that suffer from “difficult” diagnoses.  His most recent update proves he is still teaching, God bless him. 

If you or someone you know is facing a difficult diagnoses this is something to read and rejoice:

http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~pausch/news/medianNotMessage.html

He also has a new lecture about time management that I just discovered.  I think he wrote it for me…I’m in DESPERATE need.  I’ll be watching it soon! 

Photo by krisopherallen

 

File Your Taxes Free Online IF…

I went to the IRS website and found this information (link:  http://www.irs.gov)  

This is the direct link: http://www.irs.gov/efile/article/0,,id=118986,00.html  

Be sure you read all the information because some of the links through the IRS have different stipulations for use of their free service.  So if you qualify you can save $$$!  It is worth checking it out! 

Junk the SOLs…find a different way to test our youth!

A friend and fellow blogger, Fighting Windmills, talked about IQ on her blog the awhile back and got me to thinking and we know how dangerous that is!!!  HA!

Junk the SOLs, they are touted as the equal to SATs, ACTs and pass/fail tests.  Too much emphasis on the test and NOT what kids are actually learning…they are learning to memorize answers.  The pressure on the teachers, schools, kids is UNBELIEVABLE.  If you have school aged kids you’d know what I’m talking about.  Walk the halls the weeks before and during testing and you can cut the tension with a knife.

Check out the clip from The Colbert Report featuring a chat with Malcolm Gladwell who explains why IQ tests don’t really tell us about intelligent.  Gladwell said that IQ tests may show that Abe Lincoln wasn’t too bright.  So there is one point for dumping tests, in my book!  I wish this segment was longer.  Gladwell has captured my interest in his thought process and I want to know more…I know, I’m a brainiac!!!
 
I think there are different type of IQ/brain types.  I think EVERYONE has a place and a talent/IQ for something…even if it is teaching us how to understand them.  Everyone has something to contribute, everyone has a gift or special purpose, it takes us all to make the world go round!  How boring would it be if we were all the same, liked the same things, wanted the same things, discussed the same things, constantly fought with everyone that was different…what a waste of our most valuable commodities…time and energy!

Tests never tell the whole story nor is everyone great at expressing themselves through tests.  Tests don’t tell the whole story about the capabilities, capacity or quality of learning, it is a snapshot of who can remember something and regurgitate in under pressure.  It’s proven that those that didn’t get good sleep, feel well or eat well before a test perform lower than a “good” day.  Testing isn’t a true representation of the TOTAL picture. 

The SOLs should be removed because the pressure on everyone isn’t worth the false sense of “No Child Left Behind” (I do like the thought…not the process designed to promote the thought).

I’m done now!  😉

2008 is going to be so GREAT!

Life is God’s gift to you. What you do with your life is your gift to God.

The end of something marks the start of something new!

Don’t worry BE HAPPY!
 

The financial strain of the holidays

I’m usually about appreciation and thanksgiving especially during this time of year but I had a realization yesterday that I just had to share and wondered if others where feeling the financial strain of the holidays.  Here’s my thoughts toned down quite a bit from yesterday:

The more life I live … the more I wonder about all this dream peddling… the money grubbing… the almighty dollar… the set up of buying stuff for Christmas.  The “black” Friday where everyone is to rise up and FINALLY make money for the merchants who’ve been operating all year at a loss (WHAT?).  Everyone open your wallets and spend, spend, spend so that everyone everywhere will have all the STUFF they want on Christmas morn (or for each day of Hanukkah). 

I guess you could say I’m feeling the financial strain of Christmas as I do every year around this time.  But that is mitigating what is going on deep down underneath everything, isn’t it?   What is going on?

Living without a nest egg or knowing that retirement may not be an option is one thing but when a person has to decide between taking a sick child to the doctor versus paying $200 out of pocket (and that is with insurance folks) what the heck are you supposed to do? 

Am I mad?  YES!  Frustrated?  YES!  Upset?  YES!  It was at this point I could imagine how people beg, borrow or steal to keep life going…really, I saw the OTHER side!  I glimpsed it, felt it and then quickly pushed it aside.

Of course you take the child to the doctor and figure out how to pay the bill when it comes…but I thought I was paying insurance premiums so I wouldn’t have to fork out this kind of money.  What the heck happened to health care/insurance and what the heck am I paying for?

I’ve suddenly had an awakening and have to ask myself, am I going to continue paying the cash cow?  And who exactly is the cash cow, the doctor, the hospital, the insurance company?  The person who runs to the doctor for every sniffle but has plenty of extra cash to pay whatever premium AND the $200 bill are they to blame? 

Then I got to thinking about how quickly things have gone up in price.  Shall I get started on the price of gasoline from 2004 to present?  Milk has gone from $2.50 to almost $5, bread from $1.29 to $2.07 (update 12/12/07, just got home from the store, same bread is now $2.54 a loaf…what the heck is going on?)  in just the last TWO years!  WHAT?  Did your wages increase that much?  Cause I don’t know ANYONE who got that type of windfall in wages.

If Christmas spending is another record breaking year then more than just a few people are piling up debt they may never get paid.  This year we will do with much less so tomorrow we can have what we need, like bread and milk; and some of what we want like electric and gasoline.

 I’m done now.  😉

Supporting the troops!

Why not take a minute and send an uplifting message to the troops?  Some troops are here keeping us safe.  Others are abroad doing the same but away from family and loved ones.  Send a thought, prayer or a word or two their way today.