Yesterday was rainy on and off all day and I stayed inside and worked most of the day.  My yard is loving the rain and all the flowering plants are blooming.  I just cut the grass a few days ago and it can use it again already.  While I always water at the base of my trees and bushes, I don’t water my lawn, I let it kind of fend for itself.  The half of the back yard that gets full sun all day was mostly browning grass, but it’s now green and getting lush.  The other half of the backyard is under the high shade of several big oaks and pines, and I have St. Augustine grass growing there.  Little by little, each year it creeps out just a little farther into the sunny part of the yard.  Which wasn’t always the sunny part.  It was actually where an oak was growing, which came down in the storms of 2004.  It left me with a view of the big open expanse of north sky, which I had not had before.  I really enjoyed having a new view and being able to see so much at one time.

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Wednesday, May 20, 2009.  I  wrote the wrong date on everything yesterday. I don’t think I wrote 5-19-09 on anything but my blog post of the morning.  All day long, as I do phone calls and go through paperwork, I make notes about who I spoke to, what we said, what I need to do next. I date each note.  And apparently yesterday I decided it was still the day before.  Probably because I didn’t turn the desk calendar page yet, or mark it off on the wall calendar.  I do that sometimes to prolong the day and give me more time to finish something.  Just one of the funny little mind tricks I play with myself, now that I know it’s all about my perception.  I figured out a few years ago that if I can get myself in a state of tizzy and overwhelment by imagining I have more responsibilities that are more urgent than they are, then I can also talk myself into a state of recognizing that things are under control and being done in divine order.  Even when I’m plowing through the paperwork and stuck on some particular detail, or can’t suss out a design problem, or need to reboot the computer, I can remind myself that all I need to do is reboot my internal system as well. Reboot my perception, so I can see more of the forest and less of just the one tree I imagine to be blocking my path. Continue reading →

I assumed everyone knew this, but apparently not.  The ones who die from swine flu or the H1N1 virus all have other medical issues going on as well.  If you’re relatively healthy and strong, it’s just another flu and the bug will pass through you in 5-7 days.  Don’t be freaked out thinking “OMG they are closing schools near me, I am in danger”.  It’s just a flu.  Even if you’re diagnosed with it. It’s just a flu.  It will pass.  Get medical attention but don’t freak out.

Then when it’s over, start eating healthier and you’ll build your immune system so it’s easier in case there’s ever a next time.

I finally got the June Horizons Magazine done and it will go to the printer on time.  This is the first time I’ve finished it so close to the wire.  I layout most of the articles and the ads 4-5 months ahead of time.  Advertisers pay up to a year in advance, so I know to include them.  My final layout week each month is – more than graphic layout – mostly me taking care of the bookkeeping end of it, making sure everyone who is going in is paid.  That’s probably the smartest thing I do, business-wise: is to not let clients owe me.  If they want the discount price, they pay in advance.  That way, no one has bad feelings because someone else didn’t do what they said they were going to do.  Especially when dollars are involved.  That way, relationships are saved and honest people are kept honest.  So this past week has been a lot of hours at the computer each day, with a flurry of last minute ads and phone calls.  I skipped church on Sunday to work as well, and finally by the end of Sunday I knew I’d have the magazine done on time.  Whew! Continue reading →

I’m coming to the end of final layout on the June Horizons. I’ve never cut it this close before, and I got slammed with last minute ads.  About 10pm last night I got to a place where I know I can finish on time.  It means working 10-14 hours today, but it will be an easy and fun part of the job. All day, I go back and forth between my desktop and laptop computers, and some of my programs show up differently on each one.  Whether it’s the difference between Windows XP and Windows Vista, the capacity of the computer itself, or some internal settings I am unaware of, I view different screens with different options. Continue reading →

Remember the old question: If someone offered you a million dollars to push a button which would kill someone else, and no one would know you did it, would you do it?Would you still do it if you knew by doing so, that would add your name to the list of those willing to play that game, which means you might be the next one to be destroyed by someone else upon their decision to choose the million dollars. What games are you signed up for? Do any of these sound familiar?

The Game of Lying
Your entry into this game is by telling small fibs, exaggerating, distorting and/or censoring, and telling outright lies to anyone for any reason. Once you’ve joined this game, you can expect to attract fibs, lies, exaggerations, distortion and censorship at any time, from any one. Continue reading →

Friday, May 15, 2009.   Final layout is almost done on the June Horizons Magazine. Wow, I am late finishing it this month.  I woke up this morning at 3:30 am, did my meditation and now, just 2 hours later, I am going to go back to bed for a few hours. After my little tummy bug bout on Monday, I’ve skipped my evening yoga this week to conserve my energy.  That sounds funny as I type it – skip my yoga to conserve energy??  I do some stretches here and there all throughout the day, but I’m not doing anything inverted or taxing.  I know that simple yoga stretches can really work your muscles, and I’m all for daily yoga.  It keeps my muscles long and limber, and keeps me sane.  So it’s essential for me to do some form of it off and on throughout the day, to keep the energy lines open inside my body.

I started back yesterday eating every few hours and am now fully hydrated and feel fairly fueled.  Yesterday for lunch I made an onion, carrot and celery soup, sauteing the vegetables to a caramel before adding fresh basil, rosemary and tomato from the garden.  Then I added some vegetable broth and a few butter peas; forty minutes later it was delicious.   When I am feeling low energy, an intense veggie and greens soup fixes me right up.  I drank the broth on and off throughout the day, and had some watermelon and a slice of Ezekiel toast with tomato.  I’m glad now that I made enough soup to have some for today as well.

Now, for me, time to go back to bed for a couple of hours and then get up to finish the mag.  I’ve got just 186 emails left to go, only about 30 of them are ads for the June magazine.  The rest are just awaiting response or action after I get my job to the printer.  I usually run about 100 emails a day behind, but I get through them pretty quickly.

Life is good!

Thursday, May 14, 2009.  I woke up this morning feeling rested and revived after my little tummy bug or whatever it was earlier this week.  So now I just have to get right to work finishing the June Horizons so I can get it to the printer on time.   Since I have to give that project my first fruits this morning, I will just here include my Facebook posts for the past couple of days. Continue reading →