Squirrels and other curious things

Food that delivers

2008-01-14T13:22:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I am a workaholic - I also love to eat. I love to eat at my desk in fact.
This means I order a lot of delivery lunches.

We have our office favorites and stand-bys.

All time Fav for Price, Flavor, Relialbility and Service:

Dagwoods in Santa Monica
On Saturdays the bookkeeper is in and she whines if we do not order from Dagwoods.

Hearing her talk about the toasted turkey sandwich with cheese (no onions no mayo), is reminiscent of the scene in "When Harry met Sally" - makes ya want to say "I'll have what she is having".

Personally I favor the Toasted Tuna (No mayo no dressing).

We all agree though - Dagwoods has the best toasted sesame bun on earth. Really - I have never had a better bun - ever! It is fresh and super crunchy on the outside - (but the crust does not make your gums bleed).

I also recommend the Mandarin Chicken Salad.

OH and really great - Alfredo with chicken - YUM comes with Garlic bread. My only complaint - sometimes the garlic bread is on a bun with no sesame seeds - I LOVE the bun with sesame seeds and wish I could specify garlic bread with sesame seeds - I will do that next time.

The staff at Dagwoods is cheery and friendly and the delivery time is great. Inside eating is sort of subway-esque. They win for our favorite lunch at desk!

Dagwoods:
Santa Monica: 310) 899-3030
Venice: 310) 392-1450

Over the years someone here has had everything on the menu at one time or another.
Pizza favorite: Woody's Combo
Dessert pick: Sicilian Cannolis

The Law of Attraction

2007-01-28T15:11:00.000-08:00

I have been having a wonderful fall down the rabbit hole of the Law of attraction since right before Thanksgiving.

It started out with someone telling me about "The Secret".

I recommend both that DVD and "What The Bleep... down the rabbit hole" for anyone looking to get the magic back in your life!

Staying In Light Traffic

2007-01-03T17:08:00.000-08:00

This is an intention for driving in a bubble of positive intention.

The Law of Attraction
The book by Esther and Jerry Hicks is amazing!

I had a little bit of a hard time with the idea of Esther Hicks having dialogs with a group of spiritual teachers who call themselves Abraham, but the content and message is so inspirational that I got past that right away!

Suddenly I have many people in my circle of close friends and family who are re-learning who they are and the power of the law of attraction and positive intentions.

One exercise we have developed off of this theory and have found very fun is managing traffic in Los Angeles.

Say you are getting ready to leave for an appointment:
1) I want to arrive on time and with my mind clearly focused.
2) I want to drive safely and without effort or concern.

Then as you are driving -(or if you forgot to do the above)
Say you run into traffic.

1) See the traffic opening up
2) See yourself traveling in a bubble of safety
3 Feel the joy and let the giggle rise from you as the congestion clears and you move safely and with perfect ease on your way.

Sounds too simple right?

READ the book!

Million Dollar Experiment

2007-01-02T12:05:00.000-08:00

In an easy and relaxed manner, in a healthy and positive way, in its own perfect time, for the highest good of all, I intend $1,000,000 to come into my life and into the lives of everyone who holds this intention.

Today I joined the million dollar experiment.

Click here for information:

I joined the experiment to celebrate a run of synchronicity.

My Personal Path

About 10 years ago I painted a mural for a guy named Nat. The day I showed up at his house to discuss his needs he was reading "Conversations with God". I picked up a copy of the book on my way home and his wall mural was an expression of his vision that I was fortunate enough to hold the brush for.

About a month ago he called because he was moving and his Realtor asked for the number of the artist and he wanted to check and see if I was still around.

As I took the call I was remembering the magic of his mural. I held the thought: "what magic will Nat share today?" as we spoke. As the call was reaching a close I spoke my thought, and asked if he had something special to share. He laughed and asked if I had heard of "The Secret" and said it was available on dvd. I was on Amazon before he finished the sentence.

Awhile back another friend Vicki had told me about "What The Bleep" I had not reacted as swiftly on that recommendation and laugh now about the delay. They are both amazing!

I am so filled with joy at the shift in thinking these works of wonder have begun in me!

If you are looking to expand your horizons. If you want to have more joy in your life. If you want to wake up with excitement at every new day.

You might want to jump in a rabbit hole here!

How far down the rabbit hole do you want to go?

Do you want your dream house? The perfect job? A relationship filled with joy?

Verizon - problems

2006-12-02T10:04:00.000-08:00

"LA 6 Not created"

I have been having a problem for months with a very close friend not being able to call me at times because she gets a recording saying "LA 6 not created". She lives in Pasadena (AT&T) I live in Santa Monica (Verizon)

I have called Verizon and she has called AT&T - we have both reported the problem more than once. Both phone companies blame the problem as probably a problem with the other company.

Today I placed a call to my son - he lives not 2 miles away...
ARGHHHH - I get this recording: "LA 4 Not Created".

So I called 611. The Virtual Verizon Lady answers. I went through the electronic voice help - the list and trouble reports of course are so limited that I could confirm any of them - so "she" reluctantly passes me off to a human system - where I get a BUSY SIGNAL! So I hung up and tried again... (busy) and again... (busy)

Give me a break - these folks have enough money to have the kick-ass of ALL phone systms - and they don't have a load balancing system to manage call volume?

OR - is it that they are so lame the volume of calls just truly can not manage them?

AND/OR is the voice system so simplistic and inflexible that too high a volume of calls gets passed to human assistance?

Once in touch with a human (4th try) - she was very nice but a bit clueless...
She felt pretty certain that someone would need to come here and test the line, after trying to explain to her that this was really not a line problem from a few different approaches I stopped trying to get the pig to fly and said "sure sure sure Fine" and she made an appointment.

After my fun with Verizon's Virtual Help Lady and the sweet but silly girl who made the appointment for a service call I was able to get through to my son. (Of course) So I told him that he might be getting a call from Verizon - and why. While we were talking he got a call from Verizon. Shortly after that I got one.

I am impressed with the speed on this I must say!

All of this in under an hour!

The technician calls:

Another very nice and compassionate woman who seem very bright. Of course she can not duplicate the error, and also said what everyone else has said - "This is so odd. That is not one of our error messages".

I gave her the history and suggested that they allow folks to leave a brief message on the "Help" line for a technician to clarify problems.

I asked that she both document this error code - and check to see that the last records of similar problems were still documented in my account - they are.

RESOLUTION

All I want here is resolution...

I seem to recall learning years ago, when my brother worked for "the phone company", about how calls get from one place to the other.

[**cool link : http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/telephone-image.htm]
[***cooler link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telephone_exchange]

An overview:

I dial a number the information is carried over the telephone line from my phone to the pole.
A local exchange is used to connect people in a small geographic are.
With cell phone the difference is that the call travels to a cell tower.
The local exchange routes the call to the main exchange.
The main exchange routes the call on - either to another main exchange or - if need be to an international exchange.

What I remember from my brother is that sometimes your call gets routed really far away because a switch is overloaded. So of course tracking it may be very difficult.

That is why I put this on my blog!

Please leave a comment if this has ever happened to you.

Leave the area code and the first 3 digits of you number are calling from and the number you are calling as well as your phone company.

I do not know that this will solve anything - but it seems like a less futile waste of time than playing 20 questions with The Virtual Verizon Lady.

: )

You've got Spam!

2006-11-29T09:21:00.000-08:00

First let me say that I am blessed by having a really good spam system in place that removes 90% of the spam from my "Inbox". Right now I have over 4,000 peices of junk in a temp folder automatically created for me on the mail server that I don't have to look at unless I want to see what I am missing. And that is not counting the thousands of emails that are so horriffic they don't even get that far. As I say I am blessed.

Okay but I still get spam and it makes me angry because those few stupid time wasters are now annoying little gnats! So I have this morning revenge tactic. I don't just get mad - I get active.

So I thought I should blog a primer!

SPAM Boot Camp!
Throughout this page the links are to additional resources.
Many are to wikipedia an excellent resource!

First Rule:
Know Your Email Headers!

What are email headers?

Email headers are the bits that carry the routing information of emails required to get it from a works station - to a mail server - to another mail server, and then on to the recipient.

How to view headers:
Each flavor of email software is different - so use the help files! Do a search in help for "headers" and if that comes up black do a search for "view details".

What do email headers look like?

Here is an example of an email complete with headers:

The notes in GREEN are my notes to explain what things mean!

X-Persona:  (Only means is it coming to that organization)
Return-Path:  ("suppossedly" the sender - 
they are lying - this is forged)

Received: from 206.117.168.17 ([202.104.235.68])(FORGED IP address of the sender)

From sfxdbyzh@kendrakessel.com  Tue Nov 28 22:32:12 2006

("suppossedly" who it is from - but they are lying - this is forged) 
Return-Path:  
(this is forged too) 
X-Spam-Flag: YES (My SPAM filters add all the stuff in BLUE)
X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.1.0 (2005-09-13) on (I removed my mail server info here) 
X-Spam-Level: SSSSSSSSSSSSSSS (Oh yes - this is really SPAM see all those S's) 
X-Spam-Status: Yes, score=15.3 required=6.0 tests=BAYES_99,  (Above a score of 6 I don't see it in my INBOX)
(Next are the first tests that caught this bad boy)
     DATE_IN_FUTURE_12_24,EXTRA_MPART_TYPE,HTML_MESSAGE,RCVD_IN_DSBL, 
(About the tests above:
DATE_IN_FUTURE_12_24 means:
When spammers put the date in the future it stays at the top of you email folder until the date passes
EXTRA_MPART_TYPE means it had extra servings of crap in the headers
HTML_MESSAGE means - SPAMMERS like to hide behind bold and big fonts to try and get your attention fast before you hit the trash button
RCVD_IN_DSBL means  - well go here to see specifics on this email: http://dsbl.org/listing?59.92.60.221  OR go here to see the explaination of why this got flagged: http://dsbl.org/sender
)
     RCVD_IN_NJABL_PROXY,RCVD_IN_XBL autolearn=no version=3.1.0 
(Above means the sender machine is an open proxy  - either by design or a machine without a firewall that got hacked allowing it to spew this garbage - and the spam learning system is making notes or something)

The next report below is more of the same test and score information
X-Spam-Report:  
     *  1.1 EXTRA_MPART_TYPE Header has extraneous Content-type:...type= entry 
     *  2.8 DATE_IN_FUTURE_12_24 Date: is 12 to 24 hours after Received: date 
     *  0.5 HTML_MESSAGE BODY: HTML included in message 
     *  4.0 BAYES_99 BODY: Bayesian spam probability is 99 to 100% 
     *      [score: 1.0000] 
     *  1.0 RCVD_IN_DSBL RBL: Received via a relay in list.dsbl.org 
     *      [<http://dsbl.org/listing?59.92.60.221>] 

     *  2.0 RCVD_IN_NJABL_PROXY RBL: NJABL: sender is an open proxy 
     *      [59.92.60.221 listed in combined.njabl.org] 
     *  3.9 RCVD_IN_XBL RBL: Received via a relay in Spamhaus XBL 
     *      [59.92.60.221 listed in sbl-xbl.spamhaus.org] 

Received: from Media1 ([59.92.60.221]) (***** WOO HOO AN IP ADDRESS! ***** )

  (I removed my mail server & ISP information here) with ESMTP id kAT6W2OY007001

  for <my_email@my_domian.com>; Tue, 28 Nov 2006 22:32:06 -0800

Message-ID: <000b01c713f2$93378090$0e01a8c0@media1>

From: "vas" 

To: "ellen" 

Subject: ****SPAM**** Re: i think it is finally time

Date: Wed, 29 Nov 2006 12:11:37 -0800

MIME-Version: 1.0

Content-Type: multipart/related;

  type="multipart/alternative";

  boundary="----=_NextPart_000_0007_01C713F2.93378090"

X-Priority: 3

X-MSMail-Priority: Normal

X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.50.4522.1200

X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.50.4522.1200

X-Scanned-By: MIMEDefang 2.54 on 207.151.82.18

X-Spam-Prev-Subject: Re: i think it is finally time 

Content-Type: text/plain;

Low Cost Prescription Drugs - Without a Prescription

Vicodix, Sona, Hydroxodine, Levitna, Valtrix & more


http://www.megodsdepotes.biz/pharmexopexplace

OKAY LETS SLUETH!

59.92.60.221 
That is the ip address above that made me say  (***** WOO HOO AN IP ADDRESS! ***** ) 
Let's find out who owns that machine!

Go to: http://www.arin.net/whois/ 

copy and paste the number in the little search window and click the "Search WHOIS" button.

hmmm:

  Search results for: 59.92.60.221


OrgName:    Asia Pacific Network Information Centre
OrgID:      APNIC
Address:    PO Box 2131
City:       Milton
StateProv:  QLD
PostalCode: 4064
Country:    AU

ReferralServer: whois://whois.apnic.net

NetRange:   59.0.0.0 - 59.255.255.255
CIDR:       59.0.0.0/8
NetName:    APNIC-59
NetHandle:  NET-59-0-0-0-1
Parent: 
NetType:    Allocated to APNIC
NameServer: NS1.APNIC.NET
NameServer: NS3.APNIC.NET
NameServer: NS4.APNIC.NET
NameServer: TINNIE.ARIN.NET
NameServer: NS.LACNIC.NET
NameServer: NS-SEC.RIPE.NET
Comment:    This IP address range is not registered in the ARIN database.
Comment:    For details, refer to the APNIC Whois Database via
Comment:    WHOIS.APNIC.NET or http://www.apnic.net/apnic-bin/whois2.pl
Comment:    ** IMPORTANT NOTE: APNIC is the Regional Internet Registry
Comment:    for the Asia Pacific region. APNIC does not operate networks
Comment:    using this IP address range and is not able to investigate
Comment:    spam or abuse reports relating to these addresses. For more
Comment:    help, refer to http://www.apnic.net/info/faq/abuse
RegDate:    2004-05-04
Updated:    2005-05-20

OrgTechHandle: AWC12-ARIN
OrgTechName:   APNIC Whois Contact
OrgTechPhone:  +61 7 3858 3100
OrgTechEmail:  search-apnic-not-arin@apnic.net

# ARIN WHOIS database, last updated 2006-11-28 19:10
# Enter ? for additional hints on searching ARIN's WHOIS database.

Okay - so we need to go to the next whois:
http://www.apnic.net/apnic-bin/whois.pl

And when we do the look-up here we get:

inetnum:      59.88.0.0 - 59.99.255.255
netname:      BSNLNET
descr:        NIB (National Internet Backbone)
descr:        Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited
descr:        Sanchar Bhawan,20, Ashoka Road, New Delhi-110001
country:      IN
admin-c:      NC83-AP
tech-c:       CDN1-AP
status:       ALLOCATED PORTABLE
remarks:      Request for additional IP Addresses for NIB Phase-2
mnt-by:       APNIC-HM
mnt-lower:    MAINT-IN-DOT
mnt-routes:   MAINT-IN-DOT
remarks:      -+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-++-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
remarks:      This object can only be updated by APNIC hostmasters.
remarks:      To update this object, please contact APNIC
remarks:      hostmasters and include your organisation's account
remarks:      name in the subject line.
remarks:      -+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-++-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
changed:      hm-changed@apnic.net 20040906
changed:      hm-changed@apnic.net 20040906
source:       APNIC

route:        59.92.48.0/20
descr:        BSNL Internet
country:      IN
origin:       AS9829
mnt-lower:    MAINT-IN-DOT
mnt-routes:   MAINT-IN-DOT
mnt-by:       MAINT-IN-AS9829
changed:      routemaster@sancharnet.in 20060404
source:       APNIC

role:         NS Cell
address:      Internet Cell
address:      Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited
address:      8th Floor,148-B Statesman House
address:      Barakhamba Road, New Delhi - 110 001
country:      IN
phone:        +91-11-23734057
phone:        +91-11-23710183
fax-no:       +91-11-23372252
e-mail:       cgmdnw@sancharnet.in
e-mail:       nib_abuse@sancharnet.in  (**** THIS IS THE ABUSE EMAIL ADDRESS ****)
admin-c:      CGMD1-AP
tech-c:       DT197-AP
nic-hdl:      NC83-AP
mnt-by:       MAINT-IN-DOT
changed:      dnwplg@sancharnet.in 20030120
source:       APNIC

role:         CGM Data Networks
address:      Lobby 1 , 4th Floor
address:      Mahanagar Doorsanchar Sadan
address:      9 CGO Complex , Lodhi Road , New Delhi
country:      IN
phone:        +91-11-24326781
phone:        +91-11-23737571
fax-no:       +91-11-24326783
fax-no:       +91-11-23737573
e-mail:       cgmdnw@sancharnet.in
e-mail:       dnwplg@sancharnet.in
e-mail:       nib_abuse@sancharnet.in
admin-c:      CGMD1-AP
tech-c:       DT197-AP
tech-c:       BH155-AP
nic-hdl:      CDN1-AP
mnt-by:       MAINT-IN-DOT
changed:      dnwplg@sancharnet.in 20030120
source:       APNIC
**********************************************************

SO WHAT NOW?

The Good NEWS:
We got some email addresses:

e-mail:       cgmdnw@sancharnet.in
e-mail:       dnwplg@sancharnet.in
e-mail:       nib_abuse@sancharnet.in

So I send them email and get back:
Date: Thu, 30 Nov 2006 00:06:52 +0530 (IST)
From: Internet Mail Delivery
Subject: Delivery Notification: Delivery has failed
Your message cannot be delivered to the following recipients:

Recipient address: @nppa.sancharnet.in:cgmdnw@sancharnet.in
Original address: cgmdnw@sancharnet.in
Reason: "Possible Virus Detected HMlfCrQg6L.gif"
Recipient address: @nppa.sancharnet.in:dnwplg@sancharnet.in
Original address: dnwplg@sancharnet.in
Reason: "Possible Virus Detected HMlfCrQg6L.gif"
Recipient address: @nppa.sancharnet.in:nib_abuse@sancharnet.in
Original address: nib_abuse@sancharnet.in
Reason: "Possible Virus Detected HMlfCrQg6L.gif"

Message rejected: Conversion failure.

The BAD NEWS:
We got some email addresses IN INDIA - dang!
OKAY - I have friends from India and they are wonderful people, and mean no disrepect in my sorry exclamation.

The economic reality is that the people there are scrambling to make a living. Providing internet services as well as lame-ass call centers has provided jobs that pay well for those employed.
I can not blame them for this - but I do not have to like it!

Useful Terms (humor)

2006-05-31T10:32:00.000-07:00

I love smart people!

Just last night my wonderful intelligent partner used this term!

He was tossing “Bad Ice” from the freezer and said it had sublimated.

Uh… what?

So he defines the term! "
Sublimation is the change from solid - gas or gas - solid without passing the liquid state."

Did I say I love smart people?

So it occurs to me that I can use this term the net time I hear a barking spider!

“ Excuse me – but did you just sublimate?”

: )

But wait - there is more!

The shrinks use it too!

So are they talking about turning crappy emotions to brain farts?

eh eh... sometimes I feel like I am 9 years old... and I like it.

This is almost as Useful as a term I came with:
Excusplanation

This is when you try very hard to make up an explanation regarding an undocumented feature.

It is almost an onomatopoeia because you can not say it without spitting and sputtering.

Sublimation

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sublimation has three separate meanings:

Sublimation (physics) is the change from solid - gas or gas - solid without passing the liquid state, also known as deposition (meteorology)

Sublimation (psychology) is the transformation of emotions

Dye sublimation is the transference of printed images to a synthetic substrate by the application of heat.

a little background mind-whitenoise

my mind wandered....

The pro's and cons of new words...
I think I have a new word
If "conundrum" is
1.a puzzle or problem with a difficult or impossible solution.
Crossref. Syn. knot

then a
Pronundrum
1.a puzzle or problem with a realistic solution.
Crossref. Syn. known

Which raises the problem:
if Problem is
Definition1.a question or circumstance that involves difficulty or uncertainty

Then there should also be a Conblem
Definition1.a question or circumstance that involves ease and certainty

Here is where it gets confusing... the pros solve problems and the cons create them...

pro
Part of Speech adverb
Definition1.in favor of some proposal, decision, person, or the like.
Example They argued the subject pro and con. (Cf. con1.)
Crossref. Syn. in favor of

Part of Speech noun
Inflected Forms pros
Definition1.a factor, argument, vote, or the like in favor of something. (Cf. con1.)
Definition2.one who takes a position in favor of something, such as the affirmative side in a debate. (Cf. con1.)

con:

con opposing; against.
Part of Speech transitive verb

Inflected Forms conned, conning, cons
Definition1.to memorize.
Definition2.to study or examine with care.
Related Words coerce , canvass

adjective

Definition1.(informal) pertaining to trickery or deception that involves an abuse of confidence. Example a con game. Return to top of entryPart of Speech transitive verb Inflected Forms conned, conning, cons Definition1.(informal) to cheat by trickery; swindle.

noun
Definition1.(informal) a confidence game; swindle. Crossref. Syn. fraud , swindle Related Words gyp , cheat , trick , humbug , ploy , fake

By now you have to look confounded:
Part of Speech adjective View pronunciation guide Pronunciation
Definition1.confused; bewildered; befuddled. Definition2.(informal) damned (used as a mild expletive). Example The man is a confounded liar! Related Words disconcerted , lost Derived Forms confoundedly, adv. ; confoundedness, n.

whereas Profound
Part of Speech adjective
Definition 1.located at, reaching to, or coming from a great depth; deep.
2.having intellectual insight and depth. Example a profound thought.
3.going to, or as though to, a great depth; penetrating; intense.
Example profound anxieties;

Professor
1.a university or college teacher in the highest academic rank.
confessor
Definition1.one who makes a confession. Crossref. Syn. penitent
Definition2.a priest who hears the confessions of penitents.
Definition3.a person who confesses faith in and adherence to Christianity in the face of persecution.
confession
Definition1.one who makes a confession. Crossref. Syn. penitent
Definition2.a priest who hears the confessions of penitents.
Definition3.a person who confesses faith in and adherence to Christianity in the face of persecution.

profession
Definition1.an occupation or career requiring advanced training or study.

Now - isn't it interesting that the Christians corner the market on Cons-fessing?

Which takes us to prostitute
1.one who earns money by engaging in sexual relations with others for a fee.
Definition2.one who uses his or her abilities, reputation, or the like for unworthy purposes, usu. in exchange for money.
Part of Speech transitive verb
Definition1.to offer the sexual services of (oneself or another) for money.
Definition2.to sell or use (oneself, one's abilities, or the like) for an unworthy purpose.
and constitute
Definition1 .to form or compose. Example Seven days constitute a week.
Definition2. to establish; found. Example Her inheritance constituted a fund for her education.
Definition3. to nominate or appoint to a function or office.

Ah... now we get to the heart of pros and cons...

Cons are put in office and Pro's get fucked?
: ) Contemplate that!

Now and Then

2005-08-26T12:57:00.000-07:00

So what happened to the good old days?

Well - when I was growing up in Joliet Illinois, a father could earn a living that allowed him to support a family of five. Mom went to work when I was in fourth or fifth grade.

My parents told me the rule of thumb was that your rent should be no more than 1/4 of what you earned in a month.

Here are some of the shifts I see...

Most people kept automobiles until they wore out.
Most people wore shoes until they wore out, they had dress shoes for more than one season and same with everyday shoes.
Most people wore clothes until they wore out - and the "good stuff" shoes, clothes, purses and coats - were mended and repaired.
Most people washed their own cars, cleaned their own houses and did their own laundry.
Friday and Saturday night were spent with family and friends more often than "going out".
Fast food was a rare treat - not the norm.
Coffee shops were places that served breakfast 24 hours.
"bottled water" ? That was when people drove to the well at the park and got bottles of the stuff that smelled like eggs to drink for health reasons.
Breakfast was cereal and juice, lunch was a Bologna sandwich - maybe with lettuce and tomato in the summer. And dinner was a meat, a vegetable and potatoes. Except on Friday.
The only time someone went to a "specialist" was if they say broke their arm in a bad way- then the saw an orthopedic... Maybe.
Most people who wore glasses had one pair.
Most people went to the dentist once a year - got fillings and extractions all in the same chair - by the same Doctor.
Women did not attend classes to learn how to give birth.
Hair products were: Shampoo, creme rinse, hairspray, VO5 and brillcreme, a brush and a comb.
The "Gym" was the YMCA.
A bike was a reasonable form of transportation and cost about $25 - you did not need special clothes or shoes to ride it. An high end one had hand brakes and three speeds.
Phones were found in most homes - and most had two jacks - one line.
If you were away from home you used a pay phone. These were found in phone booths that had phone books and doors that closed to block out the street noise.
When you went to the grocery store you found fruits and vegetables that were in season in the produce department.
The contents of most medicine cabinets were: Iodine (or merthiolate), aspirin, pepto bismol, tums, rubbing alcohol, deodorant, hand cream, vasoline, vicks vaporub, witchhazel and a thermometer, maybe athletes foot powder. Prescription drugs? Only if you were sick - and only for a week to 10 days.
People had picnics in parks - brought food they made at home.
We played more sports than we watched on TV.
We got most of our books at the library.
Everyone did their own yardwork.

Feel free to add to the list!

So have we become happier, wealthier, and more joyous?

I want to live more abundantly and with deeper appreciation for everything.

My parents and their generation seemed to have a profound appreciation for the abundance after the depression. They made things last and sought more out of life. They had a deep appreciation for quality and things that lasted and were well made.

They had a vision of prosperity for us that they held fast to and we became the baby boomers - the free spirited joy filled children of abundance that they dreamt us into being. Oh they had the fears that we might become too wild and we obliged and manifested that too!

I believe in collective consciousness. I believe that thoughts become things. I believe that what we fear comes at us with the same velocity as all other things we focus intently on.

I also believe that as humans we can and do fall a sleep at the wheel of our dreams.

My intention is to live more intentionally. To have great visions for my next manifestions today and tomorrow, next year and next month and in the coming year.

Please join in the thoughts of goodness and prosperity with me!

Take a moment here and think purely of what you really want.

Let the thoughts flow until you find yourself grinning.

Follow the thoughts that bubble joy from within.

To write a though - a dream, or a vision is a powerful commitment.

Leave a comment - of what you want - share your dreams!

Pay attention to appreciating everything you love and spend a few minutes very day revisiting what you want - the things that bring you joy.

Enjoy!

The Art of Showing Up

2005-06-24T10:18:00.000-07:00

The Art of Showing Up

We are born into undeveloped bodies we must learn to control.
With minds that are thirsty - and somewhere a unique "I Am".

We spend years learning the language and maintenance of the vehicles we are born into. We make assumptions of our surroundings when the ability to process the details gets overwhelming. So much to take in - so much to process - so much to learn, to absorb into who "I am".

We begin to organize our framework from the morsels of truths we assimilate from our experience. We set a foundation on input from all around us - a gentle voice, a warm hand on our tiny back, safe arms holding us.

Our world develops before us like a tapestry on a loom. We add colors from our feelings and mark off lines and add images and begin to fill in the fabric of our life story.

There can be small breaks in the threads - a death of someone close - an experience that all but tears the fabric from the loom. There can be times of intensity and times of imprint - falling in love, orgasm, laughing till your face hurts, deep sorrow at a great loss.

The continuity is the "I AM"

Every moment in every day - you are at the center of your own universe. You are providing the interpretation of every existence you encounter. You alone experience the pain, the pleasure, the fear, the joy of your moment. You can not do so for any of the others that you observe in your encounters.

Empathy is an Assumption
"I feel bad for you" or "I know what you you are feeling". Each phrase is understood for the intention, but there is an assumption of accuracy in interpretation.

Because you are in the unique time space placement of being you - no other person will ever have the exact interpretation that you have. For no other person will have had the exact stimulation and environmental exposure that you have had in your life.

Who you are at this moment is a culmination of every experience you have had up to this this moment. Your own records have been defined by your interpretations and your own chemical responses to every moment along the way leading up to this moment.

Perhaps it is the nature of our uniqueness that brings us joy when we find others with whom we resonate. When we read words that are arranged in accordance with the way we think, we read them with ease. When we meet others who think like us we feel "at home".

When we read something that states the way we feel or think in arrangements of words that say it more clearly we sometimes feel joy. Perhaps we feel validation.

If you don't show-up nobody can resonate with you.

If you only show what you think will be well received,
you are making assumptions.

Showing up is your gift

Answer with honesty
Offer your opinion
Express your view
Celebrate your uniqueness

If you know yourself then show yourself.

Sometimes...

2005-04-02T14:11:00.000-08:00

The only thing that keeps my chin above the cesspool line are the concepts of hope I cling to:

This too shall pass

There but for the grace of God go I

There is no lack - only the appearance of lack, notice the abundance

Appreciation

This too shall pass

This too shall pass comes from years of experience with running into situations where I have know idea how I am going to make it... usually through the month... sometimes through the week and at others (thankfully less frequently still) through the day.

In the passing of those times I realize that while I experienced a range of discomfort from pain, to loss, to shame, to panic, to being frozen in darkness with no idea of the way out. And yet... I always survive... I live through it and later look back to the moment as the valley before the next hill... all a part of the process.

There but for the grace of God go I

When in the darkness I see others whose loss is greater and whose pain is deeper and whose circumstances are more dire - and yet they find the will to persevere... that sometimes helps to instill in me a sense of perspective. Although - there are times when this one can start me back down on a spiral into hopelessness about life having too much pain and struggle to be worth much...
That is when I call in the bigger guns of my soul...

There is no lack - only the appearance of lack, notice the abundance

This one holds the premise that what we perceive is our reality and our emotions are how we feel about it. Wether we perceive the glass as half full or half empty is emotions - reality says that there is a half there and half not there. Our emotions do not control the quantity. Nor do they impact the quality of what the glass contains. But if we focus only on the loss and only on the pain we can fill ourselves with it.

Appreciation

Which brings me to the thread of appreciation. One of the truths in life for me is "appreciate it or it goes away" This does not really have to do with the losses that get me in the swamp in the first place - the ones like the loss of a friend or loved one or the loss of a job or a client - but the part that is still there while all of that is happening. My health... if I have my health I need to appreciate that and nurture that. If there are people who are supporting me through my darkness I need to appreciate them and nurture them.

This thinking seems to bring all the other thoughts to a blending... and while the process kneads my soul into a sore and sensitive place I start to feel the next rise of hope. A place where the tears are bittersweet and the emotions and ability to feel so deeply are embraced as now... not bad not good - no judgment... I am.

I am this pain.
I am this joy at having cared enough to feel any of it in the first place.
I am still here.

Do blogs get found... and why?

2005-03-31T14:34:00.000-08:00

I wonder how long it will take this to be found - do Blogs just get discovered - how - by whom?

What were you looking for that brought you here?

Welcome

2005-03-29T10:57:00.000-08:00

This is My Blog Space

This is my first Blog so I probably will start off slow and work myself up to being profound.

Well, I have yet to get to the profound part...
But I am working on it.