Moved

I'm moved into the new house with my Mom and brother. Reggie and Donnie are here eating hot dogs and talking to Mom.  They are supposed to move more stuff and put some stuff up on the walls for Mom.  I'm kinda stressed, but not as bad as I was.  I've been taking naps every day and getting good sleep at night.  Except the cats got me up at 4:30am one morning and 5:30am today. They are going to be in the house for awhile before we let them outside. My room is a disaster.  I brought up a lot of clothes.  I've been sorting them out.  I got to call Jean Jeanie soon and see if she will come over tomorrow.  I have an extension on my homework, thank goodness!  All for now.

Deer in the Snow

I finished up Prehistory and got an A for the course!  It's on to finishing up New Testament class after the move.  I've been keeping up with my homework OK.  Next week is gonna be tough.  I'm switching to cable from DSL, as Qwest doesn't have fiber-optic cables to the south end of town.  I should be running mucho errands today, but it is 26 F out, so I may run just a few of them.  Mom and my brother are coming over for chicken salad sandwiches and homemade chicken noodle soup at noon.  I've had the heat running a lot lately.  My last electric bill here is going to be a big one.  There were a couple deer sitting in the snow (just a little of that) in the backyard this morning, but they scampered off.  They seem quite contented.  Thanksgiving is this week.  I'm making deviled eggs for dinner that day.  I'll be offline next week for at least 2 days, maybe longer.  C'est la vie!

Cherries on Top

I'm roasting a chicken.  I can smell it.  Not done yet.  I'm gonna make mashed potatoes, gravy and stuffing to go with it.  Things are going pretty good.  I don't think I have enough boxes for the move.  I can get more on Saturday night at the liquor store.  I might buy a couple more of those plastic totes too.  Just depends.  I'm gonna watch Fringe tonight.  Love that show!  I made a really good cake, fudge cake with fudge frosting, cherry pie filling mixed in and on top.  Here's a picture:

Made one for my family as well.  All for now!

Deer in the Backyard

Doe a deer, a female deer!  There were three does in my backyard this morning.  And I got pictures!  Mom is coming over for lunch today.  I hope she is in a better mood.  I'm in a great mood!  We are definitely moving.  I packed up some clothes and movies last night.  I will work on my bedroom some more today.  The post office is closed for Veteran's Day, I'm sure.  I am taking my car in next Wednesday for a transmission service.  I gotta get my Runes stuff back from Star.  She was going to help me write up stuff for my Rune poetry book, but fell in love instead.  C'est la vie!  Runes 5 starts a week late, next week, so that's OK.  Went to Bible Study last night and prayed for my stubborn family.  It's raining today.  I wonder if we'll get deer in the middle part of town.  Probably.  They are everywhere!

Progress

I'm almost finished with Prehistory class!!!  I've just got to finish the poem I wrote last night and finish my process notes.  I turn those in with the photos of the Stonehenge model I built yesterday and voila!  I'm done!  Yay!!  The model didn't turn out quite the way I envisioned it, but what does? 

Watched Iron Man 2 with Reggie last night.  Pretty good movie.  I'll give it to my brother to watch today. 

My family is moving into a rented house together.  Mom is really stressing about it.  Me not so much.  We had a spaghetti feed at church on Saturday night.  It went pretty well considering the weather.


What's next?  Four craft and writing projects for the New Testament class.  Hmmmmmm....!  I'll have to do some studying about that.

"reality continues to ruin my life"

I found that cross-stitched on one of my Flickr groups.  I figured out tonight I have to take 10 more classes plus do a Master's Thesis to get my Master's Degree in Interfaith.  Four of those are creative approaches to traditional religions, the rest are regular classes, all general electives except for one.  I'm finishing up one class right now or it'd be 11 classes.  I'm closest to getting my Divination Certificate, but even that will be awhile.  Almost 3 more years for Ancient Rites, Shamanism.  I haven't made any progress on Modern Rituals, Shamanism, for months now.  And here I am gleefully considering getting my MFA. :) I don't think I'll be applying for that until I finish something!  I feel kind of pathetic.  People are always asking when I'm going to get my degree or what am I gonna do with it. When is anybody's guess. Frame it and hang it on the wall!  This is all happening, or not happening, depending on your POV, because I take whatever I'm interested in.  Actually, I take "degree" programs in what I'm interested in.  And also because I pace myself and don't take 5 classes at once.  Well, I sorta am taking 5 classes at once, but not really...  Ancient Rites, I Ching, Runes, Prehistory, (Modern Rituals).  More like 4.  I must be nuts!  Oh yeah...

Play Month

I don't want to jinx myself, but I've been posting every week for the 52 Weeks of Creative on Flickr.  That's 10 weeks in a row!  I gave up goal-setting awhile ago and am working on a Happiness Project.  I started in July with Energy, August was Spirituality, September was School and October's was Writing. Well, I tried to do all the activities for each month and it finally piled up on me in October.  So the Writing month was pretty much a bust.  November's subject is Play and so far is much easier, as you can probably guess!  I'm already in a much better mood so maybe this project is finally working.  I'm just going to do one subject a month and not try to do all of them. 

On a more somber note, I will probably be moving with my family or getting an apartment soon.  I'm not really sure what's going to happen.  I already went through this once when my mobile home was up for sale, but nothing happened. We'll see!

Spooky Weekend

What to talk about?  School I guess.  I'm having a hard time getting motivated to do my schoolwork.  I may be a little depressed.  Plus things are piling up on me.  Halloween!  Our adult youth group is going to have a pumpkin bowling booth at the convention center for the kids on Halloween.  I'm going to watch a scary movie tonight and a slightly less scary one on Halloween night.  Still not getting along with Star.  I hope she's OK.  I'm listening to AC/DC and blogging.  Hee hee!  A missionary had a presentation at church last night.  It was pretty interesting and not the usual message.  All for today.

Anne

Fun computer programs...

I haven't posted here for a long time I guess.  I had a really good time tonight just playing with a couple new programs and investigating others.  One is called simply Stickies and puts Stickies either on webpages which I haven't tried out yet or just on your desktop.  So much fun!  The other is a free chat program called Chatzy, also fun.  A few of my friends have played on it with me.  I finally figured it out and created a chat program for my Divination group.  Other than that, life is going pretty good all the way round.  Except I've been awake for a long time today, since 4:45am Saturday am.  I have to go to bed by 4.  I don't want to stay awake for 24 hours, I'll just get myself in trouble.  I got up early to go to a church conference in the southern part of the state.  It was a pretty OK time for our group.  I'm glad I went.  Also my poetry group might be just that much closer to publication.  That's all I'm gonna say for now.  Have a good Sunday!

Anne

Call Me Irritable

OK, I'm kinda pissed off tonight for a couple reasons.  I did my friends, Donnie and Reggie a favor by putting some of their stuff (with pictures!) on Craigslist.  Now it's just one computer favor after another.  I told Reggie that if Donnie doesn't thank me for selling his damn boat motor, then no more Craigslist.  So nothing today.  Maybe tomorrow will be different.  Hmmmm!  How hard is it to say "Thank you"?  It must be as painful as passing a kidney stone... or having a baby.  Since I've done neither I can only imagine.

And then there's I Ching 1 and the case of the missing homework.  No one, but me, has turned in their homework for the week.  I turned in mine a day late!  So I have nothing to respond to.  So, in fact, I can't finish my tasks for the week until the other students, all 3 of them, wake up and post homework.  OK, so I realize I sound like an anal Virgo who would like the world to be polite, at least a few people, and others to complete their assignments.  The second is so I don't get too lazy and fall behind. I need the peer pressure.

I mostly embroidered today and played on the computer.  I did study for awhile and watched LOTR 1, the first half.  I had dinner at Mom's.  She is depressed, so I gave her some hugs.  I guess I did other stuff too.  It just seems kind of unimportant right now.  Don't you love it when people have the bass turned way up, at midnight, driving through a residential neighborhood. 

Birthdays

I haven't written on this blog for awhile.  Reggie has a bad cold, the one that's been going around, so I won't be seeing much of him.  Star's computer is in the shop, hopefully she will get it back today.  Jed is coming over later today to play on the computer.  I'm making my brother a decoupaged photo on wood for his birthday in October.  The kitties will be 10 years old, Oct.1st.  That's Reggie's birthday too.  He is vain about his age, but I found out how old he is anyway.  Hee hee! 

I have homework today for I Ching 1.  I'm avoiding doing it by blogging.  And starting new craft projects. *sigh*  I may have to drop the Counseling class because of the workload for I Ching.  We'll see.  That class doesn't start for a couple weeks anyway.  I have a lot of energy today.  That's good because the night before last I didn't sleep at all.  And I got sick. :(   I only got about 5 hours sleep yesterday.  But I slept good last night.  These are a few of my favorite things:  printers, social networking sites, grad school, crafts, birthdays.  Just thought I'd let you know!

September News

I've been seeing quite a bit of Reggie lately.  That's all I'm gonna say about that for now.  Star and her boyfriend, Yeti are really cute together. I can call him that because his nickname is Sasquatch, but that's someone else's nickname too.  Not here, in real life. I think I want an excuse to get a new computer.  Miss Thing is great, but I'd love a faster, more powerful one.  She's running great so I have nothing to complain about. :)

My Happiness Project is going great!  This doing homework every day is really helping me keep up with stuff.  I finished the Uffington Horse craft/writing project and got some positive feedback on that.  Tonight I turned in the proposal for the last project, based on Stonehenge.  Cool!  That one will take some planning.  We are finishing up the first year of Ancient Rites.  I have one more paper due on Thursday so will work on that tomorrow.  Dean Dharma is going to mail each of us certificates for the first year.  My Mom will be happy about that, proof that all this work is good for something. 

I'm starting I Ching 1 next week and Foundations in Counseling in early October.  I've been so bored, stressed out and confused this summer.  It will be nice having that structure back in my life with deadlines too. No one understands that, I swear.  I'm a Virgo.  Indy is sleeping on the fuzzy blanket Star made me for my birthday.  I'm listening to George Michael videos.  I watched them for awhile while I was working on an afghan to match my furniture, crochet.  For someone who's sick I got a lot done today.  I'm getting over, hopefully for the last time, this dang cold.  My cough has mostly gone away, thanks to large doses of Vitamin C. 

I'm actually going to set foot in church tomorrow.  I'm definitely going to Bible Study. I finally feel good enough to go.  I watched The Book of Eli the other night, very good.  I'm getting The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo tomorrow, the Swedish one with subtitles, and will probably watch it on Thursday night.  Netflix, of course.

Getting Older

I had a birthday and a birthday party since I last wrote.  It went well.  I'm having another party tomorrow night minus the guests of honor who can't make it.  *sigh*  I feel at loose ends lately.  You ever have the feeling that nothing is going your way.  When it actually is?  Like I got invited to go to a rock concert and I keep thinking, "what a hassle!"  I must be getting old.  Like I said I had a birthday. 

Doing homework is part of my Happiness Project for the month of September.  School doesn't officially start for awhile, but I wanted to get in the groove.  My productivity has gone up, since I started that. For the month of September the subject is School.  Last month it was Spirituality, before that it was Energy. Not real sure if I'm happier.  Well, I was sick with a cold for a couple weeks in August.  That would take the wind out of anyone's sails. I guess I'm not real happy today.  I'm waiting for a phone call.  I'm wondering if the party tomorrow will even happen.  Maybe it will be just me and the spaghetti, salad, and cheesy bread.  Hee hee!  I'm not doing goal-setting anymore, just the Happiness Project. 

Jean Jeanie gave me a crystal rock candleholder thingy and Star gave me a bunch of stuff, one of which is a homemade blanket.  So pretty and soft and snuggly!  The candle is on the kitchen table, lit. My kitties are inside, it's raining today.  I'm hungry!  I might have dinner early.  All for now.

Creativity and Flexibility

I finally started working on the short story inspired by the Uffington Horse for Prehistory class.  I had an idea and took notes on it awhile ago.  It's shaping up OK.  I only have the first half or so written, longhand.  Still not sure how exactly the rest of the story will go.  School, officially, doesn't start for awhile.  I still have stuff to do for Ancient Rites before the start of school.

I'm "seeing" a guy, but not much (nothing) has happened yet.  I think he is really shy, even though he talks a lot.  I'm really shy too. Hmmmmm...!

I haven't been feeling very good physically lately.  I'm pretty much over my cold.  Yesterday, I went for a walk.  Today it poured.  Maybe I just need to get more exercise.  Tomorrow I'm going to town with my mom, to see my job counselor and do a little shopping.  Oh and me and Lucky are starting an I Ching discussion tomorrow. I might go to Bible Study and I have to back up my docs and pics too.  Busy day tomorrow!

Disconnect

I Ching and Runes 5 are definite.  That is so cool!  I'm starting an I Ching discussion with a friend, Lucky, on my Divination group.  That should be fun!  I'm already prepared for when it starts.  I can't believe summer is almost over.  It seems like we haven't even had one, it's been so cool here. 

I've been feeling really disconnected lately.  Maybe it's just Mercury Retrograde.  I don't know.  I guess I'm tired of waiting to find out if I'm getting that job.  I already know I'm not, not until they start making some money.  Time to take matters into my own hands.  I'm not doing the Peer Counseling Training at the end of August.  No money, no transportation, one minute to decide.  Don't you love it when people call you and ask you to make big decisions?  So I think I'll go to training in the spring, if they still have it.  And hopefully on this side of the mountains.  I've been thinking that I don't really want to be a counselor anyway.  What do I know about solving problems?  Very little, it seems.  I'm better at creating them. 

I'm still kinda down, I guess.  A couple days ago it was really bad.  Couldn't think straight.  Nothing new there! :) 

Lines in the Sand

Last Wednesday I went down to the jetty to do the first part of my 3rd Prehistory project.  I still have to write a short story, luckily I already have an outline of that.  I made a geoglyph on the wet sand, a horse.  This was patterned after the Uffington Horse geoglyph in Wales, but a lot smaller. The tides have already erased it.

No one paid me any mind.

It was my mom's birthday on the same day.  I came down with a cold that day too.  On Friday me and my brother took Mom to the airport.  She is visiting relatives for a week.  My Uncle is having his 80th birthday party tomorrow.  Sounds like the whole county is invited!  I still have a cold.  I was planning a party for my NAMI friends, but I think I will postpone it 'til next week.

I pretty much worked out what I have to do for my Interfaith degree.  Alternative coursework (creative) for the rest of my classes, some electives, and a Master's Thesis, also creative.  Every time I think of applying to a new program of study I slap my hand because I just can't handle the coursework.  I may have a job one of these days.  Anything is possible!  I finally registered for Runes 5 and the year-long I-Ching class. That should take care of most of Divination, except for one class and the practicum.  If the I-Ching class is not a go I'm going to unregister from it. I can only do so much at my own pace.  I need deadlines!

Summertime is Social Time

I spent the weekend on the hot side of the state.  I went to a NAMI conference with my friends Jean Jeanie, Donnie and Reggie.  Luckily we had air-conditioning.  The classes were cool and we met some cool people.  It was the girls vs. the guys though when it came time to leave.  Guess who won?  The girls!  My car and Jean Jeanie was driving.  I've been feeling under the weather since I got back.  Must've wore myself out. 

My mom's birthday is coming up this week and my birthday is coming up pretty soon too.  Luckily, I already have Mom's present.  Just have to wrap it and get a card out.  I've been making plans for my birthday too.  I'm trying to figure out what we're gonna eat.  Pizza maybe?  If I have a bunch of people it will have to be at my house.  I'd like to have a group of friends over beforehand, but I don't know if that will work out in any real fashion.  In other words, I'm not so good at planning.  I love parties!  I love going to them and throwing them.  My inner hostess comes out to play...

Nothing is ever shut permanently.

I was stressing out because the car I got in June (her name is Cherry, she's a red car), well her trunk wouldn't open.  I had problems with the trunk, but it would eventually open.  Not tonight.  I went out and tested it because I'm going to a NAMI conference with three friends in my car and we need a place to store our stuff.  The auto open in the car and the key fob wouldn't open it, the key wouldn't turn in the trunk lock.  I looked online for ideas (my go-to for problem solving).  I got the idea to bang on the trunk.  So I did with the key in the lock.  It worked!  Then I shut the trunk and opened it with the key fob.  Worked again!  So I called my brother for his take.  He said I probably didn't have it shut good the first time.  So it was halfway shut and wouldn't work.  I'm so relieved I got it open.  I will play with it some more tomorrow. 

I went to the Body & Soul Convention this weekend.  It used to be called the Psychic Fair. Really cool!  Me and Star went together.  We took an aromatherapy class and an acupuncture class.  Kari got a Rune reading and reiki.  Star was upset about life and started crying, so I started too.  We are probably known as the Weepy Women now!  It was good for both of us.  You don't know how closed-minded you are until someone takes a crowbar to your mind. 

So I sort of had a date on Sunday.  We watched a movie at my house.  Nothing happened.  But I had a date!  :) 

Oh Deer!

This month's Happiness Project is much easier.  For August I'm doing Spirituality.  Literally taking action if you want to call it that.  The four things I'm trying to do every day are:  have some quiet time, do a reading, pray and read a self-help book.  I have a few self-help books so I don't think I'll run out for awhile.  I'm currently reading Earth Magic by Steven D. Farmer.  It's pretty good if a little bit out there. I know, I know, I'm the one taking Shamanism!  A friend of mine once said "If you keep an open mind, people will throw junk in it."  I don't subscribe to that attitude. I took some pictures of the deer in my front yard yesterday.  Here is one:

Class registration is starting.  I'm going to take the I-Ching year-long course if its offered and Runes 5.  I haven't yet registered.  I'm going to wait a little bit.  I know, I should be taking proper classes, not just Divination, but with my independent study Interfaith and the Shamanism stuff, there's no way. Of course the degrees offered at Nature U. are a little different than when they were first offered!  Dean Dharma has added credits needed and a Master's Thesis to all the programs.  Still not sure how all that will effect my degree progress. Low tide is at 3:56pm tomorrow.  Now, why is that relevant?  You'll see!

The Parable of the Busy Student

I just spent a week going to Vacation Bible School for adults at my church.  We did some creative stuff and learned about the Parables.  I even wrote one of my own! I went with my mom and sat next to Reggie.  Some of the stuff we did was really stupid.  We sang songs.

I saw Snow Dogs on Friday, that was a silly and funny movie. I made brownies yesterday with walnuts and chocolate chips. 

As far as school goes I turned in my 3rd craft/writing proposal for Prehistory. Ancient Rites will have me busy this month and the next as we are finishing up our first year.  Papers to write, journeys to take! :)

I just finished my first month of my personal Happiness Project.  July's focus was Energy.  I don't know if I have more energy, but I'm a little more happy.  The four things I did and will continue with were: Getting to bed before midnight, taking a nap, exercising, and tackling a nagging task.  Not that I did all four every day! For August I'm doing Spirituality.  We'll see how that goes...

Looking Forward

I just read the new catalog for Nature U.  Dean Dharma has completely redone my major, so I'm not sure if I'm going to have to take all different classes or not.  She added credits to almost every major.  I'll be going to school forever at this rate. Well, I was going to go to school forever anyway, now it'll be forever and a day!  It looks really serious, with big words and the same rules.  I reread them anyway.  I have good news!  Good for me at least.  I turned in the paper for this unit of Ancient Rites.  I didn't wait until the deadline, July 31st, but got it in early.  Must be a fluke or the lingering effects of the Full Moon or something like that. 

I went to a dinner party tonight with my NAMI friends.  Jean Jeanie brought her fiance/boyfriend.  That was kind of a shock.  I didn't realize they planned on getting married.  It seems like she just met him, but they have known each other for many years, actually.  I'm friends with Star again, yay!  We've been best friends for so long, it's rough when one of us "goes off the reservation" and writes something stupid.  Email is not the best way to communicate. I've been kind of lax with my blogging this summer.  I'm supposed to go to town tomorrow with my mom.  We'll see. I'm not sleepy and it's what, 3:20am.  I will have to order yarrow sticks for I-Ching class in the Fall.  The class runs all school year.  64 Hexagrams, that's a lot to learn about.  I wonder if I get to write poetic responses to each one.  We'll see!

Emotions, thick and heavy as salt water

I've been pretty upset lately.  I screwed things up with my best buddy, Star.  She helped on her end, but it was mostly my fault.  :(  I'm praying for her whole family at this time, as her brothers are in the hospital today.

This weekend the motorcycles come to town.  I wonder if any of the bike riders will be at church on Sunday.  I'm telling my Faith Story that day.  It should be interesting as my story is quite different from any I've heard so far.  It doesn't help that I'm the youngest person in church.

I've posted some questions for Ancient Rites, but that's about it.  My mind has been on other things this summer than school. What an understatement!  I've been listening to this body-image conference for the past 5 days or so.  You can check it out at:   http://thebodyimagerevolution.com/

Just checking in!

The Man or the Monster

I screwed up my life recently.  I don't even know why I did it.  There was a lot of miscommunication going on, but half of that was mine.  It takes two to tango...  Tonight I had dinner at Mom's and afterwards my brother came over and we watched The Wolfman, the new one.  A classic tale told well.  Plus there were some really great transformation scenes.  I went to bible study last night and it was pretty OK.  I helped Reggie order some business cards on the internet.  He doesn't have a computer.  I'm going to a NAMI conference on the East Side in August.  Reggie and Donnie are going with me and Jean Jeanie.  She is going to drive my car as I'm not up to interstate highways yet.  Maybe someday!  It is going to be really hot there.  I'll bring my credit card in case we end up in a hotel (with A/C).  I signed up for Adult Bible School during the last week in July.  Hopefully I can go.  I also signed up for a tele-seminar for 12 days in July on body image issues.  That should be interesting.  The recordings are available for 24 hours after.  I've only made two posts (now three) in July.  This month is kinda messed up.  I hope things return to normal soon or improve.  "Any improvement is an improvement." - Denver, one of my chat buddies. 

Gratitude

I feel like a few things are finally moving forward in my life, although that may be an illusion. This might sound dumb, but I like a guy and I think he likes me.  I'm getting trained for a new job tomorrow, although I probably won't start working until August.  I have some of my bookmarks for sale.  I'm being optimistic, although I could be wildly wrong.  I even went to church today and had a good time.  I might start bible study on Wednesday.  I've been going to this church on and off for years and finally starting to feel comfortable there.  I'm not the most social person.  I would say my social skills are a bit rusty, if I had any in the first place!  Not much is happening on the school front.  I've been appreciating my unemployed lifestyle and having fun, doing my own thing, etc.  If there's anything I've learned about this year, it's gratitude.  I'm so grateful for my home, my kitties, my friends (on or offline), my family, my computer, just being alive.  I had a two and a half hour nap tonight after walking on the beach.  I feel pretty good!

The Day After the Party

I had an Independence Day party yesterday.  My brother and Donnie were both sick so it was just me, Jean Jeanie, my mom and Reggie. (it's kind of fun making up names for people!) Star didn't call or show up.  She just called and had to cat-sit, as her cat, Speed, was going nuts because of the fireworks going off.  The party was a success!  We all talked for hours.  There was grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, macaroni and potato salad, baked beans, watermelon, 4th of July Cake and pop, lemonade, and ice tea.  Mom and I did a little decorating too, plus she helped me clean up beforehand.  I have to play catch-up today.  I started a Happiness project and I haven't been doing much with that.  I have four things to do every day for the month of July, which is the Energy month.  1. Go to sleep earlier. 2. Walk, swim or bike today. 3. Tackle a nagging task. 4. Take a nap.  Needless to say, I haven't done #2 yet. One day at a time. :)  I picked a life category for every month for a year.  Seems kind of a crazy thing to do, huh?  Oh, Star and me started a self-help book club.  Last month it was The Happiness Project.  This month it's Life Makeovers.

Anne the Conquerer

Well I drove to town today and drove around a little bit before handing the steering wheel to Star.  My Mom was along for the ride too.  I got stressed out after a bit.  I haven't had a car for about three years.  Before that I had my Dad's truck and only drove around my little town.  I was in a bad car wreck many years ago and developed a driving phobia.  I'm making great strides in getting over my phobia though.  The main reason I wanted to go to town was to have the guys at Les Schwab check the air pressure in my tires.  The guy put air in one of the tires and said the rest were OK.  Now, I used to check tires myself and all that.  It's just easier this way.  I'm totally happy with myself that I drove the 20 miles or so there and back.  I know, I know, what's the big deal?  Conquering your fears is HUGE.  Just think if there's something you've been avoiding, maybe not for years, but for awhile.  What if you actually did it?  This feels amazing.  Didn't get a whole hell of a lot of other stuff done today.  I didn't even do much shopping.  I'm listening to Dance Pop on Pandora radio. Salt n' Pepa. "Push it"  My cat wants to go outside really bad, Indy was inside all afternoon.  She's sitting on the dinner table.

A Few Poems

Here are three of my poems.  These have already been published on Poetbay, the poetry website I belong to.  They aren't the ones for the April PAD 2010 challenge, which are on Google Docs.  Once a poem is on a public webpage it's considered published and it's harder to get it published somewhere else after that.  Comments appreciated!

Ink (haiku challenge)

It’s always night here
Dark at four, this November
Even in my heart.


November 15, 2008

"Rest Stop" is an older poem of mine, from the 90s.

Rest Stop

Short, sharp, shocked.
I dyed my hair yellow again.
Not much choice.
Running out of choices.
Free form verse.
You verses me.
Down in the Columbia Gorge.
Among the shadows and sunlight.
Vomit at a rest stop.
Roman vomitarium.

A Painting

You let your guard down
Didn’t see the hunter’s orange vest
Or didn’t care
Can the mute speak?
Still you run through the woods
You should be dead
A stag with the face of a woman
countenance as mysterious as the Mona Lisa’s
Run, deer, run
As if the plague were after you
As if followed by Roman soldiers
Aching to martyr.

April 8, 2008

Happiness

I finally turned in my paper for Ancient Rites.  That unit hasn't been graded yet.  I'm just hanging out tonight.  I've been reading a book all day, "The Happiness Project".  It's really good and really interesting.  Don't know if I'll start one of those myself or not.  Seems pretty ambitious.  I talked to Jean Jeanie for an hour on the phone today.  Tomorrow we are going to one of the beach festivals.  Star might be coming out tonight, she was going to go to her parent's first.  Did a little writing today.  More reading than writing.  Got all my poems up on Google Docs for the April PAD 2010.  I'm so happy I got that done!  I try to type up all my poems, no matter how crappy they are.  I think there were 2 or 3 good ones in the bunch.  All for now.  Bye!

My Weekend

I had a vacation weekend.  I drove out to Star's apartment and we had a Smallville-a-thon.  She crocheted and I embroidered.  Then we spent Sunday with her folks, for Father's Day and her mom's birthday.  She spent the night and stayed part of Monday.  I had a NAMI meeting last night, it was uncomfortable for me.  You have to realize the dynamic of NAMI is mostly parents and their wayward (mental) kids.  That creates all sorts of communication problems.  So guess who acts out?  It's not the ones with mental illness. :)  So I didn't get much done all weekend.  I'm trying to play catch-up today.  That includes blogging.  I'm always so tired in the mornings.  I realize it's after 1pm now.  Gonna try to get a handle on that. 

bye!

Mai Poina 'Oe la'u (Not To Be Forgotten)

Butter Pecan Haagen-Dazs is so good!  Noshing on some right now.  I finished Jean Jeanie's musical themed tote bag today.  It turned out pretty good, black embroidery on a blue bag.  As far as school goes, we are all behind in Ancient Rites.  I don't feel so bad, at least I'm not the only one.  I'm turning in my meditations tonight, but still have to write the final paper for this unit.  Not much happening in Prehistory or Modern Rituals.  Nothing really.  I've been distracted lately.  A few worries.  Nothing too bad, just hard for me to concentrate. I invited my brother, Jed, to come over and play on my computer, but I'm not sure if he will or not.  He missed a Papa Murphy's pizza last night.  Ice cream's gone!  My best bud, Star, is at her niece's graduation all day today.  She had to go up north, quite a drive, with her parents.  I'm sure I'll hear about it later. I'm listening Hawaiian music from the library.  Not too bad really.  All for now!  bye

Strawberries

I'm drinking a strawberry milkshake made with fresh strawberries.  Mmmmm!  I did some embroidery tonight and finished a section of the apron I'm making.  Visited with my family today.  Just realized I forgot my Diabetes med.  Should probably take my pills as well.  In a little while.  Don't you hate it when people stop communicating with you?  You want to just shake them.  That is the situation I'm in now.  I guess I'll have to be more direct.  The funny thing is, I'm so used to it.  Different person, different situation, but still...  A typical Virgo, I practically live and breathe communication.  I don't have a lot to say tonight I guess.  I didn't do much today.  Very unmotivated.  I guess I'm just worrying about things I can't control. I did walk to the Post Office and back today.  And I got a new pair of walking shoes!  Plus two embroidery books, in the mail.  Maybe not such a bad day after all. :)  bye!

The Willendorf Venus

Here are the Goddess figurines I made for Prehistory.  I sent one to Dean Dharma and one to Coraline, a friend at school.   I kept the small red one.

Possibilities

Today I embroidered and visited with my brother. He comes over and uses my computer. Not usually a problem. I didn't do anything school-oriented today. Tomorrow I'm going into town with my mom. I'm going to check in with my doctor about the new Diabetes drug I'm taking. And go grocery shopping. And maybe go to the mall. Not much is going on this week, for once. I'm thinking of starting an embroidery blog/challenge. What should the challenge be? A certain number of embroidery pieces? I just don't know. I don't have much to write about tonight I guess. Lots to think about, just not much to write about. All for now! bye

In the Cards

I'm heating up some chicken noodle soup I made today, in the micro. I'm hungry! Mmmmmmmm! Now I can type. I finally did my overdue homework for Ancient Rites and turned it in. We had a busy day today, Star, Jed and I went to town to pick up a tent and do some grocery shopping. We also stopped for burgers. I had a caramel sundae. It was OK. I scanned a bunch of Tarot cards today to post on a friend's Tarot discussions. Am pretty tired. I hope I get tomorrow off to do absolutely nothing, but it never works out that way, does it? I think I'll trot off to bed pretty soon. All for now! bye

Some Kind of Monster

Well I deleted my NING Divination network tonight. All it took was 3 clicks and a password. Sigh. I've been listening and watching loud Metallica tonight. I've got their collected videos, really cool! I recommend Metallica The Videos 1989 - 2004. Indy was really cuddly tonight, she sat on me three times. Still haven't done my homework. Not much to say about that. It was Memorial Day yesterday. To celebrate my family barked at each other and ate fried chicken and potato salad. Dear old Dad would be proud. That's sarcasm for you. I'm a peace lover at heart. I guess I'll just leave it at that. This isn't a political blog. My politics are all over the map anyway. I'm pursuing my own spiritual path, but my politics is positively heretical. I don't fit into any camp there. A half-breed, half Conservative, half Liberal. I'm used to it though. I even vote sometimes. I haven't been doing so hot lately, but today was better. Like I told my cat, "If today's flavor doesn't suit you, just wait til tomorrow. Hopefully you'll get something you like better." All for now! bye

Another Day in Paradise

I'm tired, cranky, and my head hurts. Another day in paradise! I just took a shower. I'm working on designing some new Dutch Embroidery bookmarks, coffee themed. I already picked out the colors of thread and paper. I'm going to cut the paper out first, instead of embroidering first. That should make things easier. I have a bunch of homework to do too. I'm waiting for my hair to dry, then I'm going to drive to the PO and the quilt shop to pick up more DMC floss. That's for another project. Mom is coming over for bulgogi burgers tonight. I don't think my brother is coming over, hockey playoffs. In May! I had a really frustrating day yesterday, doing research. I think I took two naps. My tummy was upset too. Isn't it great when you feel better, but not that better? Rar! Dinosaur noises. All for now! bye

Zombieland

I didn't do a whole lot today. Didn't feel good and no energy. Made chili dogs for dinner, my brother came over and we watched Zombieland. Entertaining, but unrealistic, even for a zombie movie. I did some embroidery on a tote bag, a drum kit. Didn't finish it though. About 11pm I got a surge of energy, Moon in Scorpio?, anyway I started organizing and planning. It doesn't matter if my planning doesn't work out quite the way I envision, it makes me feel better. A certain friend is being more unreliable than usual. Amazing! I'm probably going to be pretty busy tomorrow if I have any energy at all. This is the last week for Runes 4. I also have a paper due for Ancient Rites, on Friday. I need to write the next proposal for Prehistory. Why aren't I tired? It's almost 12:30am. Well, I'm a little tired, but not enough to go to bed. Big sigh! bye

Classic Coral Creme

I'm painting my nails and not doing my homework. I've had two naps today. I think I'm burned out on all the extra stuff I've been doing, emotionally. I feel bad, but I think I'll have to turn in my work tomorrow. We'll see. Why do they call this nail polish a creme when it has all these sparkles in it? I've been baking. I made a lemon cake that is not as lemony as I thought it would be. Gonna bake some more tomorrow. I went swimming today, not laps or anything, just splashing around and then sitting in the hot tub. I love that hot tub! Not much else going on. I drove my car down to the jetty yesterday and played with the lights and the wipers and things. I even went through the roundabout. Easy peasy lemon squeasy! Star did not come out this weekend. Don't know if I'll see her on Saturday or Sunday or not. Big sigh... I finished another embroidery project the other day. I'll be sending off my goddess figurines. Won't that be something to get in the mail? Hee hee! bye

Charming Rose Creme

I took a long nap after dinner so I'm up. Waiting for brownies to cool off enough to eat. Made spaghetti sauce last night and had the family over for dinner. I'm doing pretty good this morning. Waiting on insurance for the car. I plan to go swimming much more than I have been. Kind of stressed out lately. Lots of changes afoot. Not sure how I feel about that. Need to pay bills and get the mail today too. Got a manicure today, but just changed the polish. Light blue is OK, but... Painted my toes too. I hope I can see U2 this summer, but that's unlikely. Sigh. I have a lot to be grateful for. I know that much. Meandering blog today. :) bye

Car

I got a car! I'm so thrilled! I can't sleep, too excited. :)

bye

OMG

Well, I've had a busy week. I finished my goddess sculptures and poem for Prehistory and turned that in. Yay! I did a paper for Ancient Rites and am still working on Runes 4. I am doing publicity for a lady. Mostly research, looking up addresses on the internet. I think I am hired for the summer to do baking, decorating cookies and possibly barista(ing). I need to get some good shoes! That just occurred to me. I also need to get a car. I haven't driven in a long time. I'm going a little crazy right now. This is a lot of stress for me. And I haven't even started yet. OMG. What have I gotten myself into? All for now! bye

Mother's Day

Another busy week. I managed to reschedule my job counseling appt.s to the same day the Employment Support Group is on. I also have my dentist appt. next week on the same day. That's going to be one long day. I wonder if bad luck is catching. I wonder about stuff like that. Or good luck too. I turned in the Runes 4 homework today. I go deep when I do readings. I mean, I really have to concentrate to do these readings. I'm still learning. Mother's Day is Sunday. I didn't really get my mom anything, just some chocolate. Me and my brother are going to make her lemon bars too. I'm on a new schedule, still getting used to it. Star's computer is screwing up, so she's upset about that. Don't blame her for that. I finished writing my poems for the April PAD, just have to type them up. OK, so I'm a little late! :) Got my Divination group moved to Google Groups. It's different, you get emails when someone posts a comment. But it's not as confusing as Yahoo Groups. I could never get the hang of that one. Listening to Bob Seger on Last.FM, "Turn the Page". I like the Metallica version better, like both of them actually. I'm so glad I got my appt.s on the same day. Two days in town was really messing with me. All for today! bye

For Now

Well, I decided to tackle the Windows Media Player problem(s). One is that now it rips CDs very very slowly, about a minute per track. So that's about 20 minutes per CD. Haven't figured out how to fix that. The major problem is that I can't burn CDs. No CD Drive detected. Well, supposedly I went into the registry and fixed that. Tell Microsoft! It used to work nicely. I think that was in December. I'm ripping my copy of Material Issue's "International Pop Overthrow". Before that it was "Absolutely ABC".

The Horror!

I'm looking up newspaper addresses, actually taking a break from that. I'm helping my mom do publicity for a friend who has a beach house she rents out. Really tedious work, but then I'm easily bored. There is an online writer's conference starting in a couple days. It's called Coyote Con. If I can figure out what I'm doing there it should be pretty interesting and informative. When will Mercury Retrograde end? I better go look it up. May 11th, Mercury goes direct. Communications should be much clearer then. I'm doing pretty good today, taking it easy. I was in town Tuesday and Wednesday. Saw two horror movies recently, "Drag Me to Hell" and "The Ruins". The first one was really great, The Ruins just so-so. My life seems boring to me. Oh well. The side effects went away from that new Diabetes drug. Happy about that. Gotta make a phone call. bye

Fleas

Went to adult youth group tonight at my church. We talked about Evil. Kinda interesting, I guess. Not many people showed up tonight. Pastor is pretty cool. What else is going on? Not a whole hell of a lot. I'm really behind in writing those poems for the April PAD. I spent the morning typing up half a chapter of a book we're going through on one of my creativity websites. I posted a "baby" group for the Divination group on a creativity site. I should do the Moon sign changes, but I may wait til tomorrow when I'm more awake. General sense of unease. Where does that feeling come from? Who knows. I really liked "Let the Right One In", Swedish Vampire movie. Not too much action, but very atmospheric, cool movie. Will watch the other movie possibly tomorrow night. I deflead the cats today. They don't like it, but then they don't like scratching all the time either. Still on the fence about how I'm getting around next week and if I'm spending the night at Star's. I probably will. We'll see. All for now! bye

Grumpy

I'm in a grumpy mood today. This is funny because physically I'm feeling a lot better. I guess my emotions are a little behind. Not a whole lot happening, which I always say is a good thing. Jed, my brother, and me are going to watch horror movies tonight. I'll tell you if they are any good. Turned in my principle homework for Runes 4 this morning. Me and Glenda (another student) both did a reading for my question. The question or query was whether I should start a new free divination network or just delete the NING site. For both of us it came up that I should start a new network. I'm thinking a private network where people might feel freer about opening up. So maybe Yahoo Groups. I know they have a private option. I'm listening to an ABC CD, a best of compilation. The remixes are a little off, but I like "The Look of Love" and "When Smoky Sings". It's cold and rainy today. I guess I'll do a little reading before we get Subway sandwiches for dinner. Bye

Unwell

So I'm not going to my employment counselor appt. or the Employment Support Group meeting this week. This new drug kicking my ass, up one side of the street and down the other. Mostly nausea, but a couple other side effects as well. I'm not good with stomach pain. I already have acid reflux so this is in addition to that. Take pills for that too. Well, enough about that.

I still have to finish my application for Peer Counselor Training. Will probably get to it sometime today and mail it off tomorrow. Went to a NAMI meeting last night. Lots of personal politics. I guess people without mental problems still like drama in their lives. Kind of disillusioning. The parents outweighed the consumers last night.

Indy wants her treats. I usually give her some kitty treats around noontime. As far as Nature U. goes, Runes 4 has started. We get to do readings for others and ourselves too, with Runes. That should be a good time. The only other person who's posted a question/query is another student, Glenda. I wonder what happens if no one does a reading for you. I guess you just do your own reading and call it good. I haven't done many Rune readings so this is all pretty new to me.

Not making much progress on Prehistory. I guess feeling like shit isn't conducive to getting things done. I was gonna write about something else... Oh well! All for now! Bye

NING!

I don't know what I'm going to do yet about my NING site. This is my divination site, The Divine Life. It's not very active. I might just delete it. Or I might find a new home for it... Still not sure. I guess I don't have to decide today. Another site, a creativity site that I belong to, needs a new leader or co-leader. I might do that. I'll have to see.

The new drug I'm on is making me nauseous. Not a good feeling. I'm still going to the art/photography show and touring the new fire station today with Mom and Jean Jeanie. I'm supposed to make dinner tonight. I'll see how I feel.

My class didn't get cancelled! Yay! I start Runes 4 tomorrow. I did a meditation last night for Ancient Rites, but I haven't typed it up yet. I have all these poems for the April PAD challenge I have to type up. And a million other things to do. Sigh. Well, that's it for today! bye

My Whacky Week

What a week I've had! I spent most of Tuesday and Wednesday in town. I hadn't taken the bus for a long time, but that was OK. The S-curves got to me though. I'm listening to a French Pop DVD that a guy in the Employment Support Group gave me. It's not bad! The singer in the first videos is called Priscilla. I just learned that free NING networks may be a thing of the past. We'll see. With over a million social networks, I wouldn't want the whole web to be mad at me. My little network isn't active right now, but I'm not worried about it. When I have time I'll develop it more. Hmmmmm.

I have injected myself twice now with my new Diabetes drug. It didn't even hurt, just a sting. Kind of complicated process, but I'm sure I'll get used to it. Supposed to help my blood sugars, A1c levels, and maybe lose weight too. It's not insulin.

My "give a damn" button is broken. I don't care much about anything right now. I guess I'll get it together one of these days. I got some dishes done today, that's about it. I guess I'll type up some poems for the April PAD challenge. I'm getting back into writing from 9 to 10pm. So I wrote three random poems last night, not for the challenge.

I ordered some more embroidery supplies, so I can embroider on dark fabrics and a couple books too last night. I got a commission to embroider a baseball hat, so I'll be working on that in May. Shouldn't take too long. I've been working on Mom's tote bag today, keep getting distracted. Mom came by and visited for awhile today. I guess my brother has the flu. I'm making clam chowder tomorrow and chicken cacciatore on Sunday. That's all for now! Bye

To-Do List

I did my meditations and paper for Ancient Rites this weekend. Funny how you avoid homework for days and then it turns out to be not so difficult after all. I've been considering applying for another program. I decided to ask the cards about it. The Tarot cards came out with a resounding no, at least for now. I mean I drew the Moon in the Covers position. So if I'm not clear how can I make a good decision? It's a matter of enthusiasm. There's something about beginnings that's just so exciting.

I had a really frustrating day with the embroidery today. I started a gardening design on a lime green tote bag for my mom. I'm using only white thread. Well, one of the little flower pots didn't iron-on very well. I decided to do the hardest bit first, the little flower pot. So I had to keep checking with the transfer to see where to embroider the leaves and flowers. This iron-on is more detailed than any I've done so far too. Uggh! Well, I rushed it, but I got the little flower pot done anyway. I'm faster than I used to be. I make myself do one motif at a time now. It may take a couple hours, but I make progress that way. I wonder if wanting to embroider a lot is normal. I doubt it. And do other crafts too. Hmmmmm... I'm certainly not lacking in inspiration. Probably just a phase.

What else? I've got a million things to do tomorrow. Like write poems for the April Poem-a-day challenge. Attend the poetry critique group chat and reread all our poems and read our fearless leader's epic poem and provide feedback. Plus I have a Swaptree package to mail at the PO. There are some things I've been putting off too, posting on the F&F board and posting excerpts from a chapter of Refuse to Choose. I should make my bed and empty the dishwasher too. Plus, and this is really important, I want to type up my application for peer counselor training. And I have Netflix to watch, Fringe and Cirque du Freak. I'm tired already. Hee hee!

Is this who I am? Someone who's usually happy even while complaining. Good prescription drugs I guess. Well, I'll just enjoy it for now. Who knows? Tomorrow I could be depressed out of my gourd. Anything is possible! Bye for now

Friends

I haven't posted here for awhile. I ordered a new sleeping bag from Amazon. I plan to go car camping this summer with my friends and possibly my family. I heard from my friend, Penelope, yesterday. She and her hubby decided to move onto a farm. She is going to raise her own food, veggies and eggs, stuff like that. I finished a pink baseball hat with embroidered roses for Star. Jean Jeanie came over and got an extra embroidery hoop for cross-stitch and borrowed a couple crocheting books.

I've been pretty overwhelmed lately. I'm trying to figure out my new schedule, how to best approach going to town twice a week. And then today was all about my poetry group and posting the April PAD poems. I'm really tired tonight. Just thought I'd check in. bye

Happy Easter!

I'm eating my dinner in front of the computer, beans and weenies. It's really good, but I may have put too much brown sugar in it. Oh well! I saw two good movies this week, Up in the Air and Precious. I didn't like how Up in the Air ended, they left us "up in the air". Hee hee! I cried in the middle of Precious. What a powerful movie. Understatement.

Went to Olympia yesterday. Bought a nice skirt and dress pants. Still need comfy flats and maybe a jacket. This is so we don't look like total slobs when we go around to different companies. I'm talking about the Employment Support Group I'm in. Plus they are possible interview clothes.

I also went craft shopping at Joann's. Maybe I'm involved in too many crafts now. Seems like it. My life feels unbalanced. Well, not today, nothing like doing a lot of housework to make you feel balanced. Just maybe too much on the creative side of things. I even got a keyboard! It's a used Yamaha keyboard from 1993. It's really big, Jean Jeanie gave it to me. Not that I know how to play, but I can learn.

I started the April Poem a Day challenge on the 1st. I wrote my first three so far. I'm posting them to my poetry critique group's Google Document page. I had the idea to make merit badges, like in Girl Scouts for our group. We'll see if I get that done. Sometimes I type before thinking. Often.

Not a lot going on for school. I think I'll do a meditation tonight for Ancient Rites. Forgot to put meditation days on the April calendar. I've got more laundry to do. Back to it! Happy Easter everyone!

bye

Edie

This blog post is dedicated to a friend of mine. We never met or even talked on the phone. She passed away recently from a blood clot. She was ten years younger than me and died way way way too young. We emailed each other weekly for about 3 years, maybe longer. I met her on one of those dating/friendship sites where you don't expect to meet anyone, much less make a friend. I was wrong about that. She inspired me to start up with a job counselor and to start a blog. I don't use people's real names on this blog, but she will certainly be missed. I'll just call her Edie.

bye

The Road More Traveled

Still crafting like mad. I am embroidering a geometric flower pattern onto a $2 tote bag. Embroidery is an inexpensive hobby compared to crochet. Well, actually I used the transfer twice and one of the smaller versions of the flower on it too. It's turning out to be more work than I thought it would be. I had a crafternoon today, just doing the outline for most of the afternoon.

I'm under some stress. I realized I want to be a counselor. I'll have to start as a peer counselor, if I can get into that program. I will talk to my job counselor this week. I printed out salary lists by city from the department of labor for the Employment Support Group, here, Olympia, Seattle area, Tri-Cities. I thought at first I'd work 20 hours a week and ease into working full-time. Now I'm wondering if I could have an actual career. I've only worked sporadically since college because of my mental illness, which I've had loads of trouble with. The past 10 years have been OK, and recently I've been doing a lot better mood-wise. A lot better!

So that's what I've been mulling over. I know working will affect my schoolwork, but we'll cross that bridge later. I mean, I haven't been doing much classwork lately anyway. My radio is telling me the news, on the hour. Not that I'm interested. It's mostly bad news. I'm not into the news, it just angers me. Lies, more lies, and the liars who tell them. Geez! Tomorrow I'm going to church and then we have our adult youth group that evening. I'm bringing sandwich fixings. I have to call everyone and tell them there's a meeting. Well, all for now! bye

Alice in Wonderland

Star and I went to see Alice in Wonderland in 3-D. It was an experimental approach to the book, not linear or traditional at all. Still, it was pretty good; didn't take advantage of the 3-D effects though. Our visit was cut short when she got sick just after lunch. Got a ride home with Bean.

I really like Star's keyboard, it's a Logitech light up one. I have the same brand, a Wave keyboard, and like mine too. And I love my little red mouse, also Logitech. Free computer accessories tips!

I slept most of the afternoon away today. Stayed up late last night and got up early to go to the Employment Support Group. It was nice meeting people in the same boat as me. I think that will be a worthwhile group and a good use of my time. When I think of doing interviews I get stressed out. I guess I'm not alone in those feelings.

I did a little embroidery tonight on a beige baseball hat. I used a mushroom iron-on on it. I'm not using a hoop, but the fabric is heavy enough that it's working out OK. I'm almost done with the fourth floursack towel, just have to finish the border. Haven't touched my punch needle kit since the first time I worked on it. Guess I need more patience for that than I have right now. That's all for tonight! bye

Attitude Adjustment

I found a great graduate school site on About.com. They even had a project planner which I downloaded and used already. I have a Rune poetry book project and an upcoming Prehistory project that I planned out. I decided to just work on the content of the poetry book and do the self-publishing as a separate project. I take graduate school seriously, but I can't say the same about my family and friends. One reason is that I don't talk about it much. Another is that the studying and writing I do for classes is not visible to them. I do it mostly on my own time. I'm not so sure all the students at my online seminary take it that seriously either. I'm not pointing fingers, I'm readjusting my attitude so that I'll get a degree eventually, finally, hopefully. :)

I realize I've been piling a lot of commitments on, whether actual commitments or just things that take a lot of time, like crafts. Plus I'm seeing a job counselor so I can get a part-time job. I'm just so much happier when I'm busy. When I get a job, there will have to be an adjustment in my scheduling. Understatement.

I've started taking down the travel picture wall in my bedroom, for when the house sells. I just rip off pictures every day. I think I'll leave the butterfly decorations up in the bathroom. They are such an improvement.

I'm waiting for my mom to come by. I need a lemon to go with the salmon I'm going to bake in the oven for dinner. We are going to walk to the post office if it's not raining. It's been raining off and on today, with some sunshine breaks. That's all for now! bye

Lemon Cake with Lemon Frosting

I haven't posted for awhile. I've been busy! I had two appointments this week, plus shopping after. Today was Jean Jeanie's birthday party. Prepped for that by making Irish Soda Bread and the frosting for the lemon cake my brother baked. Mom made corned beef and veggies for dinner. And then I had to smell the bread, cake and corned beef all afternoon. :) Then we played cards and watched 2012. I really liked the disaster sequences, but the rest of the movie was just so-so.

In my convoluted way I got two friends to give me their opinion on my first short story for Prehistory. I should have just went with it, but here it is a week later and I have editing to do before I turn it in. Writing is just not a priority for me right now. I want to kick myself and get my butt in gear. It won't work though. I guess I need to find another way to motivate myself.

What I have been doing in my spare time: finished the orange and brown afghan/throw for my mom, including weaving in the ends, so totally done. Yay! I embroidered the other peaches on the fruit-themed floursack towels. Now all I have to do is the green border on that one, then the first four are all done.

Any excuse will do for me to throw a party. I'm an inveterate hostess extraordinaire. No doubt about that! I have Ancient Rites homework to do tomorrow as well, the final for this section. Well, that's all for now! Bye

The Fool

I had a great day today! I got up early and saw the sunrise over the tops of the houses and trees. I went to church with my mom and a friend. Took a long nap with one of my cats. And had dinner with my family. Plus, we all planned a birthday party for Jean Jeanie. I got to talk to my best friend on the phone, happily she is only 20 miles away, not 300. Sometimes it's nice to think about the sunny side of life, those little moments that arrive unexpectedly.

I've been thinking about Tarot recently. How we're all The Fool, on the brink of a new adventure, not knowing the path that lies before us. I don't really have much to talk about tonight. I'm almost caught up with things, but not quite. That's better than being way behind, with no end in sight. LOL. It rhymes! St.Patrick's Day is coming up on Wednesday. I'm not even remotely Irish. Must wear green! I hope everyone has a great week! bye

Kicking Ass

Well, I've been kicking ass creatively today. I finished a scarf that I made with two different yarns and my biggest crochet hook, from a pattern. I finished the afghan I've been working on since October. I still have to weave in the ends. I was just so sick of making the thing, I thought to myself, "I can just quit". I did just that. It's a cross between a throw and an afghan. I picked up the Rune bookmarks I started last summer or fall, don't remember, and finished the stitching on them. I don't know why I was such a perfectionist about the stitching, it's really very simple, just lines. Now I have to cut them out, back them, and laminate them. The hard part is over though.

I organized my embroidery and crochet supplies tonight too. I'm giving Star my extra orange and brown yarn as I am truly sick of those colors. I have a lot of blank stuff I could embroider. Some of it should be dyed first. Really trying to finish my current embroidery project before I start another one. Mom dyed some dinner napkins for me, a soft green. We were hoping for a spring green, it turned out more of a fall green. She says that Rit liquid dye is easier to work with than the powder and the color is more even.

I had an attack of low self-esteem today and yesterday. This surrounding my creative writing. I just don't have a lot of confidence in that area right now. Hopefully my recent successes with crafting will spill over into the writing arena. Seems like they are two different things though. I did get my notes typed up for Prehistory, but I still have to rewrite the story. I wonder if I could get a friend or family member to either set up imaginary deadlines for me or nag me about schoolwork or both. Would that work? I could try it. Seems like I shouldn't be roping people into this.

Mars is direct! It's been retrograde for almost 3 months. I know I'm starting to feel more energized. Lots of creativity and thinking about creativity for me. That's been the main effect of Mars in Leo in my chart. I did a load of dishes and a load of laundry today too. And made French Toast for dinner. Was in my jammies or sweats all day. Well, that's all for now! bye

Mornings

Oscar Night went well. It's a long show and I woke up sore today from sitting so long. I've been so tired today. I took a long nap and am still in a low energy phase. Roasted a chicken tonight, that turned out good. I like to make chicken salad and chicken noodle soup with the leftovers. Mmmmmmmm!

I went to see my job counselor today, Mary Jane. We talked about my employment history, education and skills and she typed it out on the computer. We didn't finish it. Plenty more appointments scheduled. She is also going to have an employment support group for four of us. She sees me as a leader, which was nice to hear. It's best to get to know people before leading them, they may not follow! And that group is going to be meeting in the mornings, once a week. This will be difficult for me, I'm a night person. To put it mildly. The high energy time of day for me is 9pm. I usually schedule writing at that time if I'm doing regular writing. I will be taking the bus in the mornings, starting? The group isn't set up yet.

I'm starting to get excited. My best bud, Star, is coming home on Saturday. I don't know if I'll see her this weekend or next week. I'm sure she'll be glad to get her freedom back!

OK, I did all the stuff for Prehistory except I have to rewrite and type my story and notes. Then I'm done with the first assignment out of four. I'm so glad I found an angle/hook/story for my short story.

I am just bushed today. I did clean off the table, which was really bothering me. And I worked on my Top Secret craft project a little bit today. Also watched a Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals DVD. It's really quiet in here. I think I'm also dealing with some side effects from my new medication for Diabetes. Either that or it's just allergies. Cold and windy here today, a real Winter day, plus hail. We are studying Tarot on one of my creativity websites. I didn't start it either, but I am contributing. Not much happening on my Divination website. Oh well! I suppose I should care more. Well, that's all for today! bye

Top Secret

I have a new craft project, a Top Secret one. I'm not used to hiding my projects. I'm used to sharing them, taking pictures of them "in progress". When I do finish it, I'll have to hide it until Christmas. I'm not that great at keeping secrets. Oh well.

We saw Inglorious Basterds last night. Talk about frustrating! Constant speedy subtitles, and not much action. I did like some of it. Brad Pitt was funny.

I'm not getting much done lately. Unproductive Virgo here. It's been like this for the past couple months. Totally unlike myself. Usually, I actually do the stuff on my lists, well some of it. Now it's just crafty stuff, movies, and appointments. Weird. Unmotivated, I guess. It will be nice when things get back to normal, whatever that is. :)

My computer is still screwed up. Explorer and Yahoo Messenger aren't working. That's all for now! bye

Short Blog

Still having some computer problems. Went to town today, exhausted. Doctor is putting me on a new drug for Diabetes. Saw Julie and Julia again last night, cute movie. Will write more another day. bye

Appliances

The rain is pattering on my roof. The dryer wasn't working, but I think it might be working now. The dishwasher repair guy didn't get the switches on the breaker box all pushed back correctly. Will go check. Yay! It's working again! At least I didn't tell Mom the dryer was broken, she would've had a cow. I get along pretty well with my landlord. :)

I had a creative breakthrough today. This is for my Prehistory class. I think I may actually get my homework done this weekend! Another victory, I finished the St.Patrick's Day coasters for Star. All I have to do is get them laminated and put feet on them. I'll probably do that on Tuesday. I also did my meditations for Ancient Rites, just have to type them up.

Saw The Hurt Locker and Up last night. Jean Jeanie came over and watched the movies with me and my brother. The Hurt Locker was really intense, grim. Up was OK. I recommend the first movie. We are going to watch more Oscar movies next week.

I've been in my jammies all day. I didn't feel so hot today. Achy and tired. The neighbors moved out at the end of January. They've been doing some work on the mobile home next door today. I hope I get good neighbors. We share a fence. That should make good neighbors, but doesn't always.

That's all for now! bye

Punchy

I just finished watching Wimbledon, the movie. It was a nice light romance. I used to watch a lot of tennis on TV. Nice! I get most of my movies from Netflix, a few from the library. The Oscars are coming up so I put a few Oscar nominated movies in my queue.

I had a really nice day all around. It started early when the dishwasher repair guy came and fixed the dishwasher. Then Mom was over for awhile. We had apple cinnamon rolls and coffee together. I got two packages at the PO, a book I traded for, The Anatomy of Motive, all about why people kill and commit violent crimes, from Paperbackswap.com. The other an order from Joann's containing a kitty crosstitch that I mostly bought for the 3-inch embroidery hoop, some more transfers, a booklet of embroidery stitches, and a punch embroidery kit and punch tool. This leads into my next paragraph.

So this afternoon I did some embroidery for awhile, just boring stitching around a border. Then I opened the punch tool and punch embroidery kit. The kit is a flower in a vase with a backround, all in pink, cream, and green colors. I've never punch embroidered before. I figured it out, but I spent about half the time threading the punch needle. I may have done about a quarter of the pattern, if that, in 3 hours! Fast and easy, hmmmm. I'm not really into kits, but I wanted to learn how to do this. Then tonight I crocheted on the afgan for my mom during the movie.

I think it's the stress, really. If I'm learning something new or crafting I don't have to think about things so much. I saw my job counselor, Mary Jane, I'll call her, yesterday. We just did paperwork. So that is not so stressful except I'll have appointments once a week for awhile and maybe a job search support group to go to, once a week. I miss my best friend. I will go visit her cat tomorrow, he is staying with my family for a few days. I'm really scattered right now. I'll probably be up late since my sleep schedule is so off the charts lately. I'm seeing my doctor on Friday. I'm wondering if I have the balls to say No to someone if they ask me for a big favor. We shall see. Star always said I was good at saying No.

It's still Winter Vacation at Nature U. Until the beginning of March when a few classes start. My class doesn't start until Mid-April. Yes, Runes 4 is happening! I'm looking forward to it. The thought of no classes 'til next Fall was really weighing on me. Like a big empty space. I thought the class wasn't offered since it wasn't on the final list. Someone must have registered for it late. This class is supposed to be about doing Rune spreads and learning how to read them. Sweet! I'm kind of lost when it comes to the Runes.

I'm listening to U2 videos, The Best of 1990 to 2000. The 90s pretty much sucked for me, but some of the music was good. :) That's all for tonight!
bye

Mantra

My computer is running sweetly. Went to church today, still don't feel entirely comfortable there. Not many people my age, although I do agree with the church's basic social philosophy. That's actually more important to me than agreeing with the whole Christian thing. Not sure if I buy all 9 yards of that, more like 2 and a half. :) I'm beginning to realize that someone can be a good person, but still be a bitch. That's a hard dichotomy for me to wrap my head around. You see that a lot at church, bitchy women who would do almost anything for a stranger, much less a friend. Weird! I still don't like them. The only other problem I have with church is it's too early in the morning, and all the singing, not real fond of singing hymns. Although I do like to sing. I bring water, my mouth gets dry.

Star finally called me. She doesn't sound too happy. Guitar Hero, notwithstanding. Hospitals are not my thing. Spent way too much time there, including a whole day of waiting for my dad to die. Unpleasant associations. Our mutual horoscopes said she might be having money issues with me. If that's true, I'll find out soon enough.

My brother watched District 9 with me. We both loved it. It was entirely believable once you bought into the premise. A great sci-fi movie, highly recommended! Listening to Phil Collins.

I took pictures of my house today and of my works in progress, the craft projects I'm actually working on. I love my Canon camera now that I got the battery issue worked out. I use long life lithium batteries now. One reason I took the pictures of the house is to remember my house the way it is now, the way I have it set up. I hope I like my next place as much or more. "Home, home, home, home, home..."

bye

Lone Ranger to the Rescue?

The Lone Ranger, I'll call him that, came and fixed my computer today, sort of. I still can't burn CDs, but my searches hit more than they are hijacked, by a long shot. He wants to take Miss Thing and work on her at home this weekend, but I think not. I found him to be really abrasive if knowledgable. The Lone Ranger didn't like my wireless mouse (it's red, it doesn't eat batteries, I love it), hates Facebook and Firefox. Well, he deleted a bunch of programs, even Firefox without saving my bookmarks. Needless to say I reinstalled Firefox and imported my bookmarks, I saved them in November and was able to do that. But I will use Explorer for awhile, although I'm not convinced it's safer. I guess I'm just a rebel. I don't like Facebook either, so can give that up easily. And chatting is the Devil! LOL! All in all, a pretty crappy day. He was here for four hours! It was painful watching him uninstall anti-spyware programs I paid good money for. AVG is supposed to be good though, according to the LR, now you know!

I talked to Jean Jeanie on the phone today for awhile. We talked about supplements for better health and energy. I'm not an expert on that by any means. I guess she's gonna look on the interwebs for info. Star was supposed to call me back but she was playing Guitar Hero, maybe tomorrow.

It's so hard for me to ask for help, even with my computer. Resistance may be useless, but I feel it anyway. Out of my comfort zone I guess. (don't have Yahoo for a homepage either, sigh, now my homepage is coachcreativespace) Oh well, I'm getting hungry. That's all for tonight! bye

A Going to Town Day

I make so many decisions according to how I feel, from what I wear to what I do. I haven't been wearing makeup lately or zip-up pants. Well, I did today because I had an appointment. I guess normal changes from year to year or season to season. I know since I've gained some weight I haven't felt as good about myself. I have all these jeans in my closet that are too small. Lame! I'm actually feeling better today, probably because I got out of the house for more than going to the PO and put on makeup and jeans, etc. I've been thinking way too much about my situation. I'm gonna have to move one of these days and find an apartment that takes kitties, not in that order. :) My dishwasher is broken too. So I actually washed some dishes by hand today. I'm kind of spoiled. I like to be as comfortable as possible on my fixed income. Maybe it's my Mars in the 4th house, but I tend to do a lot of stuff at home, plus decorating. Not into housework though, that gene didn't get passed along, the cleanfreak gene.

Today was a going to town, shopping and appointment type day. My mom always has to go like 8 places, only 6 today. Still, when I got home I took a nap. Muy exhausted. I live in the boonies, so the nearest "big" town is 20 miles away. It's always a trek, whenever we head for civilization. I live in a town without even one stoplight. We have a roundabout now though. Oh my! Lots of wildlife though. One of my cats killed a baby mole the other day. Poor little thing. It was left at the bottom of the steps by one of the kitties. The thing about days like today is I have no energy for anything else. I did do a little embroidery. My brother, Jed, was here for a couple hours using my computer. He mostly just reads news stories, weird news, or watches kitty videos. We visit. I do housework. It's nice having him over, most of the time.

I suppose I should say something about school. Mmmmmm... I think I'm too serious about school. It's one of the ways I motivate myself, like it's life or death if I turn my homework in on time. I need new ways to motivate myself, I guess. Have to work on that. All for now! bye

News from Sparta

I had a good Valentine's Day. There was even a little romance involved. I got a Valentine and a phone call from one of my online friends, Leonidas, I'll call him just for fun. That was really sweet. :) He lives a ways away, but hopefully we'll get to meet someday.

I decided to take Runes 4 instead of the Goddess class. Unless no one signs up for it, then hopefully the Goddess class will be open. I registered!

The post office was closed today because of the holiday. Kind of a bummer. I'm expecting some packages and I have stuff to mail. Tomorrow, tomorrow, there's always tomorrow...

I made a couple St.Pat's coasters today, they turned out pretty good. 4-leaf clovers. I have nothing to write about. My head is empty. This is not a new thing for me. I used to think all the time, think, think, think. Then I tried meditating which involves emptying your head. I think it worked! That's all for today! Bye

Coloring Pages

I made a mistake in my last blog. I enjoy the chat classes the best. Now you know. Not that we are having any this spring, but that may change. I haven't registered for a class yet, still on the fence.

I'm not myself lately. It really sucks. I haven't gotten much done that I want to do and even less that I don't want to do. Very un-Virgo of me. I'm a little hypomanic tonight. I've been looking up coloring pages to eventually trace and turn into embroidery. They are in black and white and line drawings which is why they are good for that purpose. I say eventually, because I'm not ready for all those lines yet. I found some really awesome ones though, the Cheshire Cat, Wizard of Oz ones, a flying monkey even! I even found stuff that is delightful to me if no one else, a tank, a lobster, and Eloise drawings. :) I guess I'm trying to maintain my enthusiasm for crafts. I have so many unfinished projects. Well, only 4, but that's too many. I'm about in the middle of most of those. Crafts, not writing, that's another story.

I'm really having a hard time, not sleeping enough and all. I need a vacation. I just want to spend money too, which is an impulse I'm trying to control. I discovered punch needle embroidery and I want to try that too. I will have to get a kit for that. I'm not really into kits, but I've never tried that so would need some instructions. I watched a video on it on youtube and it looks really fun and easy. Here I just said I had all these unfinished craft projects, the irony! See, the thing is, I'm having a hard time concentrating so surfing the web is OK, but sitting down and doing something is harder.

My computer, Miss Thing, was acting up again today. I tried to burn a CD. Not happening. Usually I try to figure out how to fix things, but I tried to do that for hours today, get WMP to work properly. I think I may have to call the computer guy. Maybe tomorrow or Monday, not sure yet. My level of frustration is pretty high. I synced to my friend's MP3 player though, so it's working somewhat. Well, that's all for tonight! Bye

Crafts are keeping me sane.

Crafts are keeping me sane. I'm not kidding. I haven't been sleeping well. It seems like I'm getting all the bad side effects of anti-depressants without the good effects. Well, usually I'm OK and not depressed, on this one at least. But then there's the weight gain and the sleep disturbances. Might have to change...

Nature U. has 3 kinds of classes. The chats, which aren't offered very often, and are a fun and easy way to get credit, then there's my favorite, even if nerve-wracking at times, regular classes, which have deadlines, which I love. Deadlines are very motivating for me. Then there are the classes for those who have inner drive and motivation, the self-study, go at your own pace classes. Excuse me! I don't do well in those. It's too easy for me to put stuff off. I guess I'm actually "taking" a fourth kind of class, creative self-study classes. I put taking in quotations because I'm putting that off, for this week at least. I'm not as strong as the stress monster. I admit it!

Astrological digression. Mars is in Leo, retrograde. All this has done for me is make me very creative, almost to the point of obsession. I spent last night finding and looking for hand embroidery patterns, cool ones. Now, my embroidery skills are at a very basic level, so this is an exercise in frustration on the one hand. On the other hand, I love possibilities. Possibilities are like oxygen to me. The more possibilities there are, the happier I am. I put some of my ideas down in my Scanner Daybook, so I can save them for later. Mars in Leo is transiting my 12th house. I'm not sure what that means; maybe I should work in isolation. Something along those lines.

I'm listening to the Beatles on WMP. Tomorrow, Jean Jeanie is coming over and I'm going to help her put music on her new 2G MP3 player. She is bringing over some of her favorite CDs, which I'll rip and synch to her player. If all goes according to plan. :) Mom invited her to our Italian Valentine's Day dinner on Sunday. I think we might play Spite & Malice afterwards. Fun!

I got the class schedule for Spring Semester today. I'll either register for a Goddess class or Runes, both short classes. Haven't decided yet. I keep straying off the path. "Not all who wander are lost". Some exciting stuff is coming up Fall Semester. That seems so far away. It will be here before I know it. That's how time works. You think you are in today, then all of a sudden 5 years have passed and your in a totally different today, even if the sets are the same. Wow, I'm downright philosophical tonight! That's all for now! Bye

Miss Thing

One thing I have learned about using computers--simpler is better. I was having problems with Windows Media Player, it wouldn't recognize the CD I wanted to rip, so I started looking at all the help information. When I got to the part about changing registry values, I thought "maybe not". Instead I restarted the computer, I'll call her Miss Thing, because she's quite temperamental, and that worked. Often, if I'm having problems I just log off or restart and that works. I'm kinda mad at myself for taking an hour of fiddling with WMP and searching help menus before figuring that out.

Decisions have been made. I'm helping out my mom financially. She is in dire straits or this wouldn't happen. I finally got Star's number so I can call her if I want. It's unlikely that I'll get to Olympia this month, so visiting her is out of the question. Not sure if she can have visitors once she gets on the chemical dependency unit.

I've been extremely stressed out lately. I haven't been able to read. This has settled down some tonight. I read a chapter in Refuse to Choose by Barbara Sher, an excellent book. I summarize each chapter on one of my creativity websites. Maybe I can get Chapter 4 done tomorrow. I made chocolate chip cookies today, from a 2 pound tub of cookie dough. They turned out really good. I gave most of them to my family.

I have 3 craft projects going for my mom and best friend. Coasters, floursack towels, and an afghan are all in the works. I need to do a project for myself. I have these rune bookmarks started, just simple lines, but I'm hankering for a new project. Have to think about that.

I'm wondering if I should announce this blog on Facebook, my creativity and divination websites, and the Nature U. website. It might be nice to get some comments. On the other hand, maybe I should wait til the current crisis(plural) blow over. Sigh. What to do, what to do? That's all for now! Bye!

Computer Hell--Another Level

Still having computer problems, but I'm seeing the light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. Tip: if you are having computer problems but can still do a search, search for the problem. You can get some good results that way.

Had Chinese with Mom today, this spicy chow mein. Pretty good. I still have leftovers. Talked to Star a little today, but I had to pee, so was kinda short with her. She is into her own transformation right now, like a former caterpillar, now looking for her wings. I miss her. I can't call her up or even email her. Weird! I made a couple Valentines today and mailed one off. Mom made about 8. They were so cute! She loves holidays. I'm partial to them too. All of them. We are having a nice dinner next Sunday and even invited a guest. A party of special magnificence. :)

My online college is now offering an MFA. You don't know how tempting that is. But I am signed up for 4 programs already. Maybe someday. I'm kind of worried about Dean Dharma, she is having some health issues. I guess they are more chronic than critical, but still. I've learned tons already. I'm not kidding. I'm listening to Erasure videos. I was watching them and crocheting, but then I decided to tackle the computer again. The kitties are being really quiet. They are both napping. I guess that's it for tonight. Bye!

Computer Hell

I have been in computer hell for the last couple days. I figured out that my Zonealarm wasn't working, bad install. I chatted with the customer service rep and reinstalled it. Already found about 8 viruses on my computer. My Google and Yahoo search results have been getting hijacked. Haven't tried searching today. Couldn't access my Word docs for awhile. Had to do a cold boot at one point. But things appear to be working better. Don't have to call my computer guy, yet.

Have been catching up with housework and laundry for the past couple of days. It seems endless. I finished another floursack towel. Have to take pictures of it and post it. Talked to my friend, Jean Jeanie, for a long time yesterday. Her ex-husband is dying. She gets along good with him, so this is a blow.

I'm still in some kind of fog. I hope things take a turn for the better soon. I told my teacher what's happening in my life and she understood. I will be taking a break from most schoolwork for awhile, except for Ancient Rites. All for now!

Update

Well, my best friend is in rehab. I miss her. She will be gone for awhile. She is probably going through computer and kitty withdrawals on top of everything else. *sigh*

My mom called me almost hysterical about her financial situation. I can't help her there, any more than I have. I rent from her, so this impacts me too. I hope she doesn't lose the mobile home. She is trying to sell it. It's no use worrying about the future, but I do anyway. I shed a few tears yesterday.

I emailed Dean Dharma about all the crisis going on in my life. I just can't concentrate on schoolwork right now, literally. I don't know if I have ADD or not. I think it is just part of my mental health status. It just gets worse when I'm stressed out. I'm not going to try reading right now. Well, that's all for now!

Crafts

Well, I haven't been getting any homework done for school and I'm tired of blaming other people for that. I'm over it. Over and done with! I think tonight I will at least do a meditation. I've been stressing, but there's no easy way out. Of my life that is. :)

I went to the Quilt Shop today and bought some embroidery floss to make coasters with. These are St.Pat's coasters for Star. It should be a lot of fun making them. I finished my first floursack towel a few days ago, the lemon one, fruit-themed. They are for my mom, but the lady in the shop said no one hardly ever showed her anything they made with what they bought there, so I'm gonna bring in the towels when I'm done. I didn't work on either of those projects today, but I did crochet a little today. The crocheting is on a afghan in fall colors, orange and brown. I think I'm over making jewelry, but I will probably pick it up again later.

I took two naps today, but every time I was about to drop off it was time to go somewhere. So I'm pretty tired today. The housework is piling up. At least I got a load of dishes in the dishwasher tonight. The kitties are both sleeping on the couch. They look so sweet! Little devils, they are sometimes. LOL! Tomorrow, me and Mom and Star are going grocery shopping. All for now!

Friend-Sitting

I haven't been doing any studying or anything like that for the last two days. I've been friend-sitting Star. She is going to AA and I'm very proud of her. I'm also exhausted! She was talking about drinking and feelings and remembering stuff. Then we went and visited Bean and Stubby, and they talked about God. Plus Star was angry about stuff and I could feel the anger coming off of her. Luckily, we had some chuckles and I was glad to be there for her. I don't know how much help I was, but she said I was being a good friend so that's OK.

I got my new couch and Indy, my cat, really likes it. My other cat, Smoky, doesn't seem too impressed. This is kind of fun! I'm even changing my cats names. They are incognito, so their cat friends don't know what they're up to. They don't really have any other kitty friends. Smoky, especially, hates the neighbor kitty.

I guess I should say something about Nature U. I'm on vacation for another month. But I'm still working on stuff, or at least I should get around to it pretty soon. I'm really tired. Bye for now!

Revelation, Meditation and the News

I made chicken noodle soup for dinner tonight, homemade. No one's sick, exactly. I'm still in shock over my friend, Star, and her revelation. I'm just glad she's getting help for her addiction problem. That shows real spirit and courage, which she has in spades. I guess I'm not handling it too well, though. I worry about her enough as it is. I worry about the people I love, I can't help it. Especially the ones with health problems.

Today I did a chanting meditation for Ancient Rites. We were supposed to chant a word like, "OM", except related to Norse Mythology. That was a real eye-opener. Instead of thinking about the past or the future or things I couldn't control I was pulled right into the present moment. I realized that instead of waiting for the perfect moment, to do anything, the moment is now. In other words if I want to do something or share something or say something, the moment is now. It is so good for me to stop and just smell the incense. LOL! Like smelling the roses! Then I wrote it up and submitted it to the boards.

My brother, Jed, came over and we talked and ate veggies. He mostly just played on the computer, looking at news sites. I get enough news just with Yahoo news and reading the occasional article. I'm glad I don't have TV. TV news is horrible, all negativity. I don't need that in my life. I'm really trying to be a more positive person. I look through faintly rose-colored glasses. Literally! That's all for now. Have a good night anyone who's reading this.

Good Forecast!

I just did my Divination for the week. I look up my Transits (Astrology) on my handy-dandy wall calendar that I calculated myself and look them up. Then I draw one Rune and meditate on its meaning. After that I throw my coins and do an I Ching hexagram. Finally, I do a short Tarot spread and look up the meanings of the cards. I got exceptionally good forecasts this week, although the Tarot spread indicated a lot of people involved in my life this week (court cards). I'm not sure if I'm looking for revelation or just a confirmation of what I already know. A friend of mine, Bean, told another friend of mine she was going to Hell for reading Tarot cards. Well, that's the end of that friendship! Bean told me the same thing about a year ago, but we remained friends, sort of. I will do a lot to patch up a friendship, even with a Conservative Christian. But I'm wondering if I compromised myself instead...

I took classes at an online writing school for awhile, I'll just call it Peer Review Writing School because that's what it was. No teachers to speak of. Well, you can learn from your peers, but it would have been nice to have more than just a book and some information for each class. Some classes I was the only one there. I guess I just need more guidance than some. See I said I might bitch a little bit. I don't know how I feel about this blogging. Star wants me to blog on a diet and exercise website. I might do that. But I would blog there about food, exercise and stuff like that. Well, that's it for tonight!