Thematic Photographic 125: Sepia

I'm not sure I really know what constitutes a sepia photograph. I've looked at all the beautiful images which clever people have posted in response to this theme, and they seem to range from black and white to gold. And I don't have any sepia collection, so this is my sole contribution this week:

A friend's son walks in the harsh salt desert of Uyuni, in Bolivia:

Visit Carmi's Thematic Photographic - click the button on the right.

My Christmas wish list

 
Well holidays are approaching fast and it might be time to consider my Christmas wish list. The list is shorter this time since last year I was able to cross around 80% of theme. The Canon Camera was heaven for me last year...thank you GOD.

  So no pressure on friends and family; the biggest pressure is actually on me and on my willpower to hold out on Christmas splurging! If money is out of the business and control here are my wish list.

1. Shoes are Yummy:)

Any brand will do...I love killer shoes!

2. A bag...is like a drug! I can't live without it! - A trusty bag

Every time I see this Mulberry Bag my mouth starts to salivate!

3. Haruki Murakami books

I love reading...It arouses my passion for learning

 4. Burt's Bees Lip Balm

Formulated to heal, repair and moisturize lips. Perfect for me since I smoke like hell… one thing I need to quit this year!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     


5. Love Key Chain

 

Remember this key chain? yes! You're right! from the movie Sex in the City and I'm crying out loud to have this! A good luck charm for a loveless..so perfect!

In the spirit of giving please include me in your list...lol...but whatever comes! I'm glad and happy to accept it ....have a merry Christmas!

Sunsets

The Landlady demands a monthly post about the view or the rent goes up.

Yes every single evening.

This is the view when I lift my eyes from the laptop.

the sun slips further south each evening...

All dinner reservations are "after sunset"

A few minutes after this shot the clouds went dark red, the reflection turned the fog layer on the bay light pink for just a few incredible moments. Alas my camera could not capture that light

Even the cloud cover is cool.

San Francisco open your golden gate

Need to break

Things I need to break to welcome 2010... I know this too early but better to start than end up nothing…so here it goes promises to ditch and which ones to keep:)

1. Break:  I will lose weight

 I will think and then believe that I’m already at my ideal weight. Need to stop this delusion and hallucination that beautiful people don’t eat cause I’m not! I’m a monster. Beautiful monster…lol

2. Break: I will find ONE

 Need to break this one because I already find the ONE.  It’s me, I’m the one. I should start celebrating being on my own, not all of us have been assigned a Mcdreamy in this lifetime. We just have to discover within ourselves and take our time. (“ sabi pa nga ng iba ang pagkakaroon ng BF or Beau ngayong pasko ay bonus lang..so what if I’ll be a member of SMB (samahan ng malalamig ang pasko) after all we have our loving friends and family…a true and real love.


3. Break:  I will stop spending so much time on Facebook

I admit it, I always stay late at night to check friend’s status and updates on their lives and it’s more slightly disturbing how I’ll manage to find way to log on and update my status even when I’m on vacation or from hospital bed. Facebook is so addictive, happyland and beautiful world. But let’s admit it; we only present the crème dela crème of our lives. Need to break this...I will widen my horizon and weasel out my FB addiction…little by little and it’s the World Wide Web for Pete’s sake. There are millions of other sites we can devote our time too.

4.  Break: I’m going to call my friends more

The reason why I’m on a guilt trip about not calling my friends more is probably because I have way too many friends in the first place. But I think it’s normal. We seek different friends to serve different purposes: special interest friends, convenience friends, business friends, crisis friends and intimate friends. I’m going to expand my circle of friends. But I’ll safeguard friendship that really matters. So I’ll bond with my BFF who I haven’t seen in a long time.

Obscure rock

How I wish..I could always be happy...
molecules of happiness all over my body!

I have measured out my life with coffee spoons and this
coming year I'll try it with cinnamon or Nutmeg:)

Cheese pimiento Burger and Onion ring such a heaven 
( Burger Avenue)

Love

For me, Love is the most important of all - spending time and being Present with those that I Love in my life.

I remember years ago when my life was so busy and I was always worrying or thinking about work or about relationships that weren't working out, or thinking about the past or worrying about what was out of my control.  And now, right NOW, I feel very relaxed, my mind is clear - I can be totally Present in the NOW.  It is so great to have a quiet mind - I feel that there is space - time to breathe.

I Love that I can enjoy time with My Man - enjoying time out, time at home, time together.  I loved celebrating My Man's birthday recently, it was so great being at a beautiful restaurant together, enjoying a long lunch - I am so happy that I have found Love.  To Love and Be Loved is the greatest gift - my greatest dream come true. 

And I Love spending time with my Mum and Dad.  I am blessed that they have always filled my life with Love.  Just the other day we were shopping and I was ordering lunch for Mum and Dad and I took a few moments to just look over at my Mum and I waved to my Mum - in that moment I just looked over and saw such beauty in my Mum - my Mum waved back - this was a moment of just feeling such Love for my Mum.  I captured this moment in my heart.  Since my Mum has been unwell I have been so conscious of just enjoying time with my Mum, telling my Mum how much I love her and telling my Mum she is beautiful.

And today was a wonderful day - time with the Family, enjoying my Niece's dancing concert.  I Love my Nieces - they bring such Joy and Love into my life.  It was great to just enjoy the day, without thinking about anything else, just being totally Present and also feeling the warmth of Love from being with my Family and my Nieces.   I especially loved seeing my Niece Ashley up on stage smiling and dancing and having a great time - what a great feeling to feel such Love in my heart as I watched Ashley performing her ballet and jazz.  And I Love the hugs from my Nieces and I loved when my Niece Olivia sat on my lap and relaxed into me, so comfortable, so relaxed, moments filled with Love.  Here are some of my favourite photos from today.

 

I Love taking photos and I also Love just capturing moments in my mind's eye.  Today I was sitting next to my Mum and my Niece Olivia who had been sitting on my lap most of the day came over and climbed onto my Mum's lap, her Nana - and it was a beautiful moment, Olivia cuddled into my Mum and I just enjoyed feeling this moment of Love.

For a long time I was searching for My True Love and during this search I was so Grateful to be surrounded in the Love of my Family.  And now I have so much Love in my life - so much Love that I Value above all else - this is Life's Greatest Treasure for me.

I remember at College we enjoyed a Meditation about our Purpose - it was a Meditation based on when your Soul is about to become human form, at the time of conception - and we were asked the question - what will be your Purpose in this lifetime?  The word that came up for me was... Love - so simple - so true for me.  

And with Love as the main Priority in my life, this guides me in my Life Design.  I now choose a job and a career that allows me to enjoy work-life Balance with plenty of time dedicated to the key relationships in my life.  I also ensure that I have time for Self, enjoying one of my favourite books, relaxing in the bath, a walk out in Nature - Self-Love.

My Commitment is to Love - Love of Self, Love of My Man, Love of My Family and Friends, Love of ALL - LOVE.

Penchant for Penguins

An extremely astute (and possibly OCD) reader noticed several penguin references recently, so I guess I should fess up. In the 70s & 80s I had a penguin thing. I collected penguins of all kinds but I also read a lot about them in both contemporary and scientific literature. Yes, I had a thing for Opus but mostly because Berkeley Breathed endowed him with many characteristics I could relate to, particularly the little feathered fellow's distain for all things scatological.

In the winter of 1980 I even went to Antarctica (it was summer there) saw many different species of penguins and other animals, including a single rookery of over three-quarters of a million brooding penguins. When I moved to San Francisco in 1991, I only unpacked about a quarter of my collection, ten years later when I left the City, I gave away many of my favorite artifacts to friends and shipped the remainder to another collector. It is always heart warming for me to visit friends around the country and see a single piece of my old collection gracing a mantle or acting as a door stop.

These days I collect absolutely nothing of material form or space. Words are my medium and they can exist quite easily in the vacuum of cyber-space. I will be visiting my lonely storage locker in the next several weeks, if I can easily lay my hands on the photo album I will post a thirty year old photograph of me and a gang of Antarctic penguins.

Rockers get it right

 

New Zealand is a small country. 

We don't have many underground mines, and thank God we don't often have 

disasters which kill a number of people at once.  

But this week the whole country is mourning the 29 men who died in a coal-mine calamity 

on the West Coast of the South Island. 

16 miners and 13 contractors became trapped in the mine after a large methane-fuelled 

explosion on November 19. A second bigger explosion on Wednesday of this week 

put an end to any hopes that the men had survived. 

And a third, smaller explosion rocked the mine yesterday, just five minutes 

before the time of the first explosion a week before.

 

Most of the men who died were New Zealanders, but there were also Brits, Australians, 

a South African.  And in a country as small and sparsely populated as this, everybody 

knows someone who has lost a son, a husband, a friend.

Last night, U2 were performing in Auckland, and made a moving tribute to the lost men by 

posting all of their names above the stage as they sang their song One Tree Hill, which was

written to commemorate the death of their Kiwi roadie and Bono's PA, Greg Carroll.

Rest in peace, 

and may those who are left behind find comfort 

in the love of their friends and families, 

and consolation in their memories of you.

Arohanui

Alexia

Gobble

[Addendum: my gobblefest gathering is today -- Friday, so this post remains relevant for some of us until tomorrow when I shall address a bird of a different feather. . . ]

Wedding

  You may now call yourselves by those old and respected names, husband and wife. May God bless this union. You may kiss the bride..To my friend Maysun....Masexy Congratulations! 

Two souls with but a single thought,Two hearts that beat as one. ..ughhh..wonder when will be my day? better knock it on the wood...lol

Myron, Rascal and Java

This has been a rough month on my friends who are cat lovers. Amy & Eric lost Java; Dan and his whole family said goodbye to Myron; Pat had to part with Rascal. I always tell my family and friends exactly what I want to be reminded of when I lose a long time feline companion.

Cats illuminate our lives, they bring a particular brand of love into our homes. You know you deserve it when they sleep with you undisturbed by a cough, a breath or a tear.

We allow them to have longer, healthier and we hope happier lives but we do so knowing that nature would surely have taken them sooner without our protection, so in the end our responsibility is to thank them for the joy by not letting them suffer. Sleep well my friends and thank-you Java, Rascal and Myron.

Morning Has Broken

There was a full moon visible over San Francisco Bay this morning just after dawn. Before dawn I had noticed a ever so slight glow in the cloud cover and remembered the full moon that had been completely obliterated last night would not be setting until late this morning. Then just after dawn the cloud cover opened to reveal a bright shiny orb. 

A few minutes after I snapped that shot, the clouds closed again. We shall assume the moon sank from view even without benefit of human confirmation.

I wanted to remind everyone one last time before I take a blog break that there will be a total lunar eclipse on December 21st, should make for some energetic solstice celebrations. I will be somewhere in Northern California about that time, depending on the overcast predictions I may try to position myself for a clear view of the lunar blackout.

Oh and have a big bird on Thursday or Friday or whenever you gather with your creche.

3 Things that Make me Happy on a Monday

Mondays aren't great, traditionally.  Although you're supposed to have rested up over the weekend, and be full of energy, it really seems a very long time until the next weekend.

Plus, it's been a long and busy day at school (aren't they all??).

I thought I'd do the positive thinking approach and post about 3 things that bring me joy.

#1 Lighthouses  There's just something about them: strength, pride, danger, loneliness. This one's at Castlepoint, a (normally) wild and windy place on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand.

Castlepoint Lighthouse

#2 Mosaics   I've dabbled a little in making some, and plan to do a lot more - some day, when time expands. One of the reasons I went to Turkey was to feast my eyes on the beautiful mosaic work:

 

Mosaic above door, Green Tomb, Bursa

#3 Water  Always makes me feel happy and peaceful, whether it's a lake, river or the sea.

Lake Rotorua, New Zealand

What we call the secret of happiness is no more a secret than our willingness to choose life.

~ Leo Buscaglia 

What cheers you up on a Monday?

Alexia

Manifesting My Heart's Desires

For a long time I have been reading self-development books.  I started reading these books when I was 21, I had just finished university - this is when my real education began - stepping out into the world - LIFE!  And in the last 10 years of my life I have experienced many HUGE life lessons - and I am still learning - learning everyday.

Like many people I enjoyed 'The Secret' - I read the book 4 years ago, I watched the dvd, I listened to the CDs.  I read it and thought that it sounded like a great idea - and yet it has only been in recent months that I have been a lot more focused on developing the skills of Manifesting My Heart's Desires.

A few months ago I had a wonderful conversation with a friend from the Clinic where I work - she is a Master of Manifestation.  It was around this time that I set the intention to bring my Magician Archetype onto the Stage in my life - I started this Process of learning Manifestation by Manifesting my Magician - by consciously inviting this Part of me to be more present in my life.

I started to read the great book  'Ask and It Is Given’ Esther and Jerry Hicks - this was a great book for me to read - I learnt a lot.  This book has so many wonderful words of wisdom, including:

- "... you came from a Source of love and well-being.  When you're matched up to that energy of peace and love, you then regain the power of your Source - that being the power to manifest your desires, to summon well-being, to attract abundance where scarcity previously resided, and to access Divine guidance in the form of the right people and the precisely correct circumstances."

- "there is nothing that you cannot be, do, or have"

The book talks about being in the right vibration - "The reason you have not already gotten what you desire is because you are holding yourself in a vibrational holding pattern that does not match the vibration of your desire."  Now this is a key part of what I read "Whatever you are giving your attention to causes you to emit a vibration, and the vibrations that you offer equal your asking, which equals your point of attraction.  If there is something you desire that you currently do not have, you need only put your attention upon it, and by the Law Of Attraction, it will come to you, for as you think about this thing or experience that you desire, you offer a vibration, and then, by Law, that very thing or experience must come to you.  However, if there is something that you desire that you currently do not have, and you put your attention upon your current state of not having it, then Law Of Attraction will continue to match that not having it vibration, so you will continue to not have that what you desire.  It is Law."

"Sometimes a person will say 'I'm not happy over here where I'm standing.  I would much rather be over there - over there where my body is not sick, or over there where I'm not overweight, or over there where I have more money or a better relationship'... We then explain that it is important to talk about what is believed to be 'over there' and try to find the feeling-place of what's 'over there'."

Since inviting my Magician on the Stage in my life I have been so Excited and Thankful for so many wonderful Gifts from God and the Universe.  There have been so many examples in my life recently of where I have been putting thoughts and desires out into the Universe and if by magic, so many things are appearing for me.  Recently, I had many thoughts about looking for Meditation Resources and Scripts and was Excited when one of the other girls from where I work, was talking about a great author and I looked at the books and found some great Meditation Scripts including one on building Self-Esteem, which a big area of interest for me, in terms of working with Clients.  I was also saying to My Man that we didn't have a song and it would be great to have our own song that we love - and I forgot about it (rather than searching for one) - and then one day when getting ready for work, they had a guest performance on 'Sunrise' and I loved the song - I showed My Man the 'youtube' clip - we found our song!

Just the other day I was planning to go to 'Peter Alexander' in the city (didn't have enough time in the end) and then the next day I was shopping locally and I was just about to leave and then felt Inspired to go a certain way in the Shopping Centre.  And then I was so surprised to see this new 'Peter Alexander' store - and I bought this great new pink and yellow nightie - my favourite colours, and even having yellow wattle on the nightie, I love wattle.

And a big one for me was when I put it out there that I would like to earn around $300 more per week and  I put it out there that I would be happy to take on more responsibility at work - within a few days a position was advertised at work, I applied and I was offered the job.  The great part of this job is that I will be able to bring more Coaching into the workplace.  And with some other opportunities I will be earning the extra money that I put out there to the Universe.

Also once I changed my vibration to being so Grateful and Excited about my current Clients with a trust that more Clients will continue to come to my Business, rather than focusing on the lack of a full diary of appointments, my Coaching Business has been building and I have been attracting new Clients - which I love!

Of course there is always the times when you think of someone you want to talk to or see and then you see them.  It can also work against you - I was talking at College about an ex-partner and all of the stress that it caused me - I really remembered the emotion of this chain of events - and to my surprise, I was checking my phone in the break and at the same time I received a call from this man - someone that would be unlikely to call me on a Saturday and who I hadn't spoken to in over 6 months.

I have learnt now to Consiously choose my thoughts and choose my vibration.

So how does it work - I am still learning and experiencing the power of Manifesting My Heart's Desires - I am not an expert - in fact that is why I have included so many great words of wisdom from 'Ask and It Is Given’ Esther and Jerry Hicks.  I do believe that in sending out the energy of what we desire, this connects with other energy in the Universe and draws that to us.  Likewise if someone sends something out to the Universe, this can also draw us in - like when people say "your ears must be burning" if someone is talking about you. - or just the other day I had the thought that I wanted to hear from my friend, and then realised that they had sent me an email - perhaps them sending out the energy, attracted in my thoughts.

I also believe that when we are very clear about what we want, the Universe, our Angels, God will bring opportunities into our awareness, send messages to us via our intuition.  I also love the Reticular Activating System in our brain - an example of the Reticular Activating System is when we buy a certain type of car or want a certain type of car, and then all of a sudden we see this car everywhere on the road - it has probably always been there - and now this is filtering through to our awareness.

When we are clear about what we want, and when we are totally relaxed and in the flow, we are going to notice and be drawn to that which we desire.

For me I have been practicing Manifesting My Heart's Desires by:
- being clear in what I want, consciously putting an order into the Universe
- feeling into the vibration - being positive and Grateful for all of the positive in my life and in this area of my life (a good step here is to use Visualisation and Imagination)
- letting go of the attachment to the outcome and having TRUST - I recently read about the Law of Detachment - “in order to acquire anything in the physical Universe, you have to relinquish your attachment to it” - it is all about TRUST - what is TRUST? TRUST - To Rely Unto Spirit Totally (I love this acronym - a great reminder to me).

I love this analogy that my friend shared with me about TRUST - which helps me a lot when Manifesting My Heart's Desires.  Consider you are at a restaurant with a friend and you look at the menu – there are a lot of nice things – you decide what you want – you order the fish – the trick is to TRUST that the fish is being prepared and will be delivered to you – and so you enjoy conversation and be PRESENT IN THE NOW with your friend (rather than sitting there wondering when it is going to arrive, asking the waiter when it will be here, thinking about it a lot, talking about it with your friend about when is the fish going to arrive) – the fish will come.

I love that 'Ask and It Is Given' talks about having your own unique desires and preferences and from this place, as we are unique, there is abundance for us all - once again we can just TRUST.

ANOTHER VERY IMPORTANT BELIEF FOR ME is that I am also conscious that my Magician cannot work alone - I need all Parts of me to allow my Dreams to come true - other Parts of me such as my  Destroyer (to let go of what does not serve me), my Organiser (to help me with my Priorities), my Sage (wisdom for and from my Highest Self), my Creator (Action from Intuition).  My Innocence is very important, helping me work out what I truly want, what is at the Heart for me.   It is also important that I invite in my Caregiver to listen to and look after my Innocence, and also consciously bring in the presence of my Warrior to defend my Innocence and stand up for my Truth (and overcome any fears or doubts).

I imagine all of these Parts of me dancing together in Celebration as I live my Vision.