Moving On

Well, I did it! I sold my house about a week ago! I thought for sure I’d be sad, remorseful…but, no! I was giddy with excitement. This is really a new chapter in my life…new business, new place to live…! Don’t get me wrong, it’s definitely stressful as well, but the excitement overpowers the stress.

So, everything is packed up and in storage with the moving company. I was supposed to go this week and look for a place to live, but got thwarted by the blizzard in the northeast. So I rescheduled my flight for next week. Me and my dog are living out of boxes in my mom’s house – not fun!

I am looking at Annapolis, thinking that it was fairly close to DC, but I keep hearing rumors to the contrary. Does anyone out there know what the commute from Annapolis to DC is like? I have a company that has interviewed me twice now and are wanting a third interview in DC.

Also, today is the last day for me to work on the project from hell that I’ve been on since summer – I’ve been doing the happy dance over that one! I can’t believe how free I feel!!! Woo! Hoo!

I think now is the time for me to get my schedule in order – there is so much to be done! Two businesses, seminary, plus a full-time job and moving on top of it! I also really want to keep blogging, so I’ve decided I will do it first thing in the morning before anything can take its place.

OK, then, bye for now!

I’m Back!!

Well, I really didn’t intend for so much time to pass before I started this up again, but, there it is. I have been to emotional hell and back since I left you. Basically, at the end of May, I was sent by my company to work at the customer-from-hell. As if that weren’t bad enough, I had to travel to get there (something I really don’t want to do anymore) and, oh…yes….I WASN’T GETTING PAID FOR IT!!!!!! I actually had to pay to get there on my own credit card!!

My company started having cash flow problems and paychecks became not just later and later (that had started in January), but now they were non-existent. This lasted until they were bought by a larger company in September. I had several meltdowns during that time and gained 20 pounds!!!!

One thing this situation did for me was to make me realize that I can no longer wait for my dream of being self-employed. My business partner and I have launched our business AND I have stepped up my coaching practice. The goal is June 2010 for me take this job and shove it!

I am now getting paid regularly and have received my backpay – but I am done! Freedom, here I come!!!

Happy Mother’s Day

Here is a song that gives me a chuckle every time I hear it.

I’ll be spending my mother’s day with my mom, my aunt and my cousin. We will have lunch together at my aunt’s home. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to spend it with my daighter since she and her husband just moved to Austin. We’ll just have our own special day in a few weeks.

I hope all you mother’s out there have a great day!!

Friday Favorite – Cirque de Soleil “O”

While I was in Las Vegas I had the immense pleasure of being able to attend Cirque de Soleil’s performance of “O”.

I had never attended any of the Cirque de Soleils, but had always wanted to. I knew that this was a good opportunity to see one especially since “O” is not a traveling show. It is permanently situated in Las Vegas. This is because part of the show is done in the water and so a special stage has been created for it.

This show was like being transported into a dream world of theater. The music has an afro-cuban world beat sound to it and the costumes were colorful and gorgeous. Apparently each one costs about $10,000 and they last for about 20 shows. All of the entertainers are SCUBA certified.

There were flying ships and amazing dives, synchronized swimming and gymnastics. It was truly a breathtaking spectacle. I sat on the front row and actually received a flower from one of the characters in the show. How Cool! However, I think I would recommend sitting a little bit higher so that you can get a better view of the synchronized swimming. I was on their level, so I could only see heads, feet and hands poking up.

All in all, it was an amazing show full of colors, sound and incredible talent – next time you are in Vegas be sure to see this one!

Experience the Reality of Success

Wow! What an experience this was. The week of March 23rd I attended David Neagle’s seminar entitled Experience the Reality of Success, or ERS for short. It took place in Las Vegas at Caesar’s Palace.

This seminar was like being in a massive session of intense group therapy for four very full days. We were stretched to our emotional, physical and spiritual limits. David’s information comes mostly from Wallace Wattles, Thomas Troward, A Course in Miracles , and his own life experience thrown in.

If you are familiar with any of these you will have some idea of the content – basically a lot of stuff about changing your thoughts and beliefs in order to change your reality. The difference with this seminar and most is the focus on EXPERIENCE. Hence, the name “Experience the Reality of Success”. There were a lot of exercises that we had to do that really challenged some of our belief systems.

I also met some very cool people there and due to the intenseness of the seminar, really felt like I bonded with some of them. I think that I have probably made some life-long friends there. I also met my next business partner there. I won’t say too much about this except that we met “by chance” (I don’t believe it was chance at all, but the hand of the Divine was definitely involved). We connected and discovered we both had the same Vision and idea for a potential business. Since then we have started working together on it. I will tell you more when there’s more to tell.

One thing I took away from the seminar that I will pass on to you is that the difference between success and failure is very slim. Basically if you can see the negative of something, that means that the opposite of it is right there. David used a piece of paper as an example of this. If one side is the result you don’t want, the other side represents what you do want – just turn it over! Of course, it is our belief systems that sometimes prevent us from doing that.

Cosmic Trigger – Moody Garden Pyramids

So, the weekend of March 20th – 22nd I was in Galveston, TX attending the “Return of the Dove” Cosmic trigger event at the Moody Garden Pyramid complex. Now this stuff we were doing is probably a little bit “woo-woo” and “out-there” for some of you.

Basically, most of you may be familiar with Sedona, AZ and the idea that there is vortex of energy at that site. There are also several other “sacred” sites all over the world in which the energy vibrations there are stronger so to speak. Many of these site are being triggered and vibrating at higher rates as we get closer to the year 2012 – the end of the Mayan calendar. I will not get into the nitty-gritty of all of this stuff right now because it could take books to get it all out – and there are plenty of those available. Just go to Amazon and search for 2012 or Mayan calendar and you will find all sorts of things there.

I am really oversimplifying this, but as it turns out, Galveston is one of these energy sites and it happens to be on the same latitude as the pyramids in Giza – we were doing a meditation to activate the energy there and its connection with Giza. Whether or not you believe all this stuff doesn’t really matter. For me it was a really cool experience and I got to meet some wonderful people in the metaphysical community. People traveled from all over the world to be here for this event. We got to do the meditation in the Blue Pyramid and it was a wonderful energy and feeling that evening. That is the pyramid that contains the aquarium.

If you are interested in reading more about this event you can click here (Earth-Keeper) and read all about it.

The idea behind the meditations is that we as residents of the earth need to also raise our vibrations to be ready for the “new earth” – the consciousness is rising rapidly. For those of us who keep up with it, the world will be a place where the lower energies of fear, envy, hate, etc. don’t affect us. Sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?

Missing In Action

I am so sorry that I haven’t been posting in a while. The last few weeks have truly been crazy. I have been traveling a lot and attending some interesting seminars that I will be telling you about over the next few blog posts. I was in Galveston for a earth-shift meditation, Las Vegas for a self-improvement seminar called Experience the Reality of Success (ERS), Los Angeles for Ali Brown’s Platinum Mastermind group session and New York for my seminary class over the last three weeks.

I am now back home and trying to get caught up at work. Someone else subbed for me while I was gone, and then the customer’s mother died and she is not there this week. So, getting updated and figuring out where we are and what we need to be doing next is a bit challenging to say the least!

So, start checking back here every day for the updates of what I’ve been up to! Lots of stuff is going on! I will also have some book reviews in there since that’s what I was doing on all those flights back and forth across the country!

God is Great!

This past Saturday, a miracle occurred. I am sure that is what it was – there was definitely the hand of the Divine involved.

My daughter and son-in-law were traveling west on Highway 290 on their way from Houston to Austin. They were driving my 2004 Honda Civic coupe. It was raining and as they neared the top of a hill, they realized too late that the car two cars in front of them was stopped. The car in front of them slammed on his brakes and swerved to avoid hitting it. But, my daughter tried to swerve to avoid hitting both of them and lost control. They ended up flipping over several times until the car finally stopped in a ravine.

They were able to walk away, shaken and a bit bruised and sore – but intact! I am so grateful! According to the sheriff and the tow truck driver, they shouldn’t have lived or should at least have had major injuries. The sheriff speculated that the fact that it was raining actually helped because it made the ground softer and therefore, softened the crash.

The interesting thing is that exactly at the moment of the crash I was attending a Sikh Miracle Blessing.

The blessing was done by Satya Shepherd of the Spectrum Center in Houston. We put our requests in envelopes on an altar she had set up. Then she chanted the chant that is in the above link for about 15 minutes. Here is a beautiful handout she gave us as well:

The heart that surrenders to the Higher Power within
is the raft to cross over the unfathomable world-ocean
The cycle of birth and death in the world is ended for those who have this
faith in their hearts
Those humble beings who have this faith in their hearts are awarded
peace within
They forsake Maya, emotional attachment and greed;
they are rid of the frustrations of possessiveness, lust and anger.
They are blessed with the Inner Vision to see God,
the Cause of causes, and all their doubts are dispelled.
So serve the Divine, in the way that is right for you;
These ways and means are subtle and yet powerful
This Sacred Grace is the Boat to carry us across.

I don’t know if this had anything to do with it, but it’s a beautiful thought toknow that God is with us always, protecting us.

Friday Favorite – World’s Softest Socks

These are the softest socks ever. I first discovered them in the Madison, WI airport and bought several as gifts. I love wearing them around the house. They are very cozy. They are called “Spa socks” but I have bought them for both men and women and both love wearing them at home with their jammies. I wear them all the time at home. Click here to get to the link.

They are perfect for cold, snowy or rainy nights and curling up with a good book. If you sleep in your socks, of course, these are simply made for that – personally, I don’t because I hate the way they twist around your feet as you’re sleeping! Now these socks are a bit thick for wearing with shoes, but at $6.99 a pair, you can’t find a more affordable indulgence!

90 Days to a New Me

Well, I have taken stock of my current situation and find myself in a surprising place. My house is completely cluttered. This resulted when I was spending most of my time in Minneapolis and my daughter, son-in-law and ex-stepson were all living in my house. I had to rearrange all my things to make room for them. When I came back, I had additional household items that I had purchased in the Twin Cities. However, there is no room for them here because I really need to clean out other unwanted stuff first. So almost every room has to be cleaned out and reorganized. My garage is still holding items that belong to my former houseguests!

Second, I am the fattest I have ever been in my entire life. I am 39 pounds OVER the weight I was when I delivered my daughter (that’s 39 pounds over 9-months pregnant weight!) My skin is broken out in a rash on my chest and one calf – I am sure this is entirely a result of stress. I am stressed because I am working a full-time job and trying to start up a small business. I am also attending seminary to become and ordained interfaith minister – all of these things take up time and I am spread thin amongst them all.

Third, the company I work for has been having cash flow problems and the last three months they have pushed back our paydate. This along with a 25% paycut at the beginning of this year has put me in a position I never thought I’d see again. I had been spending without really thinking much about it and unfortunately continued to do so after the paycut. I now realize I have gotten back into debt and have made a huge dent in savings. This is also adding to my stress!

However, like Scarlett O’Hara, I will not let myself get down about this – tomorrow is another day. Actually, I am quite excited because I am starting a 90 day program of my own design to get me from here to where I want to be. I think this program could eventually become a product/service I can deliver in my coaching business. As Film Producer Mike Todd said, “I’ve never been poor, but I have been broke.” Broke is a temporary situation; poor is a state of mind. I am definitely not poor! It’s all in your attitude no matter your situation.

So, yesterday was Day 1 – I took stock of my checking and savings balances and debt balances. I also created a vision of the life I would love. I then created a spending plan. I am now working on a project plan to get me from the current situation to a new situation in 90 days which will be a step on the road to my ultimate dream life. I looked at my outflow and cut back on some expenses. I also called in some money that was owed to me. I even found 7 bucks and some change in a wallet I haven’t used in a while! It just goes to show that with the right intention and positive thought, God provides what you need to you.

So, today I didn’t change my financial situation much and I definitely didn’t change my stress – I worked on work stuff for 14 hours and didn’t exercise. But I am getting some of the clutter under control so that should help me get my mind clearer as well to determine the best time to schedule some of the things I need to do daily. The plan is to make small improvements daily – I’ll let you know how it goes!