*Hey - how about we start with that little guy on the edge of the Milky Way? Earth!
For those of you in Los Angeles, don’t forget to recycle your Christmas trees this year. Dial 3-1-1 to schedule a delivery! I believe they turn your trees into mulch.
Another option for next year’s tree: if you have space to plant a tree outside, buy one with the roots tied into a ball and plant it after Christmas is over! Hopefully, Jonathan and I will be able to take advantage of this next year….
I’ve mentioned my friend Tom in a previous entry. Tom’s not only a most excellent astrologer, but he’s also an amazing healer. He’s offering up meditations in his home on certain Sunday evenings, including this Sunday - October 19th, from 6 - 7:30 p.m. Details are here on his website (which was designed by yours truly!). While you’re on his site, be sure to peek around at all that he has to offer… (He’s a gifted reiki practitioner - I’ve made it a point to see him regularly.)
Tom has a lot to say about 2012 and is doing some great work in helping people open their hearts in preparation for this exciting time. This meditation is dedicated to that. This is what he says, in his words:
”This heart-centered evening will begin with a meditation to ground, open to Spirit, open the heart, and cleanse the aura. We’ll continue from within that space with a discussion on living a heart-centered life: what it means, how to do it, and how to continue to do it in the face of the opposite, including offering attendees the chance to gain clarity on an issue in their lives that affects their ability or willingness to live in this way. You will also learn techniques to access that space of knowing whenever you desire to.
Consider this evening a satsang from and for the heart, a great chance to ground and center yourself as you prepare for the coming week.”
I won’t be attending this weeks’ meditation, unfortunately, as I have relatives in town. However, you can count on me to attend a later one! I think it’s going to be amazing…what a great way to begin the week! I’ve been led through meditation with Tom before, and afterwards experienced extreme clarity and groundedness.
I found out recently that a co-worker of mine has a business called Smart Business Recycling (http://www.sbrecycling.com or http://www.smartbusinessrecycling.com).
If you’re a non-profit or a business in LA and have a hard time getting the city to collect your recyclables, Smart Business Recycling will come to your business for free and collect them for you! Sounds like a good deal to me… They even do a preliminary consultation to determine your exact needs. Cool!
Okay. So Jonathan and I are finally ready for a new car. Our 11 year old Saab is dying. I’m sure I’ll cry a few tears when it comes time to actually part with the green monster, but for now, I’m caught up in the hype and promises of new car smells.
After much online research, I’ve learned some very interesting things. I was super set on getting a Prius, until I worked out the monthly payment calculations…wowza. And then I found an interesting article on Actual Costs at Edmunds.com. Can’t find the direct link now…sorry! Anyway, it used current gas prices and then gas prices at $5/gallon to calculate which cars are actually cheaper for the consumer. Turns out the Prius is really low on the list, once you calculate actual price of car, maintenance, etc. The Chevy Aveo is number 1, and the car that we’re considering - the Honda Fit is number 3.
Fuel efficiency is very, very important, and it seems that this car does the trick, at 35mpg highway. And I hear that over 40 can be reached with hypermiling . The price is about right too, at just under $18K for the top-o-the-line Sport trim. Apparently, it’s a very popular car and sells quickly, so it may be a trick to get just the one we want…if indeed, it’s what we want after the test drive.
One thing that’s become so clear to me throughout the research process is that Americans are clamoring for more fuel efficiency, and the automakers can’t give it to us fast enough - nor at the efficiency rate that we’re wanting! Laws put into place tie the hands of automakers to take off the lid of fuel efficiency and really have it go to work for us. So, while 35mpg seems pretty cool (especially compared to what we’re getting now!), I yearn for a day when we’re no longer using gas at all to fuel our rides. Hopefully, the demand of the public creates that day sooner rather than later.
I’m reading another interesting book on the subject of 2012 called “The Mayan Code” by Barbara Hand Clow. It’s pretty technical and goes into great detail about the mechanics of the Mayan calendar, but the over-arching themes are pretty clear. I’d like to do several posts covering various topics that come up in this book.
One very important thing that I’m getting from this book is the need for balance. We Americans tend to spend a lot of time in front of the computer, or in our heads, analyzing this and analyzing that. The importance of exercising our right brain, opening our hearts, and getting back to nature is becoming super clear to me. There’s a consciousness shift afoot - I’m sure you’ve noticed! - and it’s requiring us to live from our bodies instead of our heads.
I’m starting a new job at UCLA after Labor Day (yay!). It will involve a lot of programming and design, which is fun for me, but it most certainly keeps me in my head, especially the left brain side. I spend most of my days there as it is with my web programming work, and I’m noticing an intense pressure behind my eyes by end of day, despite glasses.
As I embark on this new phase of my life, I have to wonder what it is that I can do to bring back balance. It seems to be a question that many of us are asking. I asked my friend Tom; he gave me a meditation that he created to ground myself to the planet. He may be posting it on his website soon (I’m building him a new site - be sure to check it out!), so check there for it.
Other than that, I suppose trying out healing modalities that resonate to us as individuals is the way to go. Some that come to mind for myself: kundalini yoga, any kind of yoga, camping, hiking, swimming, meditation, bodywork, singing and dancing, going to the spa, spiritual journeys to sacred sites, Pleidian activation, Native American ceremonies, communing with friends.
Please let me know of what it is that YOU are doing to gain balance in your life. We can all learn from each other.
I’ve been reading a wonderful book (thank you Tom!) called “Serpent of Light: Beyond 2012″ by Drunvalo Melchizedek.
It’s fascinating reading for anyone out there interested in the topic. What I’ve been getting personally is the importance of embracing my feminine and taking it to the next level.
We’re embarking on a new period in Earth’s history where the feminine will be in “power” (so to speak) and we’ll return to heart energy. Not sure what will happen physically to help this along (will there be natural disasters? Pole shifts? Earthquakes? Floods? Will the West Coast sink into the ocean?)… but I’m knowing that it’s important now to do “the work.”
Kundalini yoga, body work, coaching, therapy…whatever it is that has you able to take responsibility for your life and for your part in taking care of this planet - that’s what you’re being called to do.
It’s an exciting time to be alive!
A cool thing I recently learned…
You can compost in the green bins! For those of us who live in Los Angeles on streets that have at least some houses (as opposed to streets where there are only mainly apartment buildings), we have those big green bins out front. I know ours mostly gets used by the gardeners and their trimmings.
But I recently learned that one can throw their vegetable matter away in the green bins! It makes sense, but I had never thought of it.
Now - to be clear - it’s not exactly like a traditional compost, in that you can’t throw egg shells into it. But if it can be grown in a garden, then it can go in the green bin.
We’ve been taking our coffee grounds, carrot peelings, and cucumber ends and have been storing them in a large tupperware in the freezer (where it won’t smell!). When the tupperware is full, we just take it down to the green bin and toss it.
It really saves on garbage space, and I love knowing that it’s going to rot much faster in the bin than it would in a plastic garbage bag.
Yay for the green bin!
My friend Tom is an incredible evolutionary astrologer. Please check out his blog (it’s on my bloglist). His focus is now on Lilith, Lucifer, and one other body that I can’t remember…
If you don’t know anything about Lilith (and most of you probably don’t - I didn’t!), she was Adam’s first wife before Eve. Her story is pretty crazy. I won’t go into it, because Tom does a much better job of explaining it both in his Lilith report (which you can order from him) and in his upcoming talk on Lilith (see below!).
I will say that wherever Lilith is in your astrological chart is a key to unlocking the wild side in yourself. That part of you that is instinctual, animal, maybe dark - she is Lilith. And she’s rad. Tom’s Lilith report begins with an explanation of the mythology of Lilith - which is incredibly interesting - and continues on with a personalized report just for you, which goes into which house and sign your Lilith is in, as well as how other planets are aspected to Lilith and what it all means for you and your life. Well worth the $27 or so that it costs.
For anyone interested in attending a talk that Tom’s giving on the subject at the Bodhi Tree, here is the info:
A Rad & Radical Workshop on Lilith
“Healing the Wild” is the title of a workshop I’ll do at the Bodhi Tree on Thursday, August 7th from 7-9 PM. I’ll separate the destructive, life-negating myths of Lilith we’ve inherited from the archetype as we actually live it, which is about the life-affirming experience of honoring who we really are. I’ll work with attendees’ charts (all who RSVP) to illustrate the difference. Afterward, you’ll understand how to approach this part of you with open eyes and step into a deeper experience of wholeness.Even if you’ve read my site’s article and blog posts on Lilith, heard the recent podcast, and have your own natal Lilith report from me, you’ll still be learning new things. I’ve been spending quality time inside the Adam, Eve, Lilith & Samael (the Hebrew fallen angel - we know him better as Lucifer) myths, and this workshop will include highlights of that work to contextualize the stories of Lilith we’ve inherited, and to aid in separating the real human stories from the social-religious instruction we’ve received. An important thread of this work is what men and women are supposed to be in cultures shaped by monotheistic religions, and I vote that it’s time to acknowledge and accept who we really are. As you’ll read below, there are also greater implications for learning about and connecting to Lilith.
The official line from the Bodhi Tree’s promo materials:
“Healing the Wild: The Astrological Lilith”
Workshop: $15 donation (no one will be turned away). RSVP to Tom with your birth data to have your chart discussed as an illustration.
Join evolutionary astrologer and intuitive Tom Jacobs for an exploration of the astrological true Black Moon Lilith. We’ve been taught to fear our instincts, yet we’re at a juncture in our evolution as inhabitants of Earth when reconnecting with them is critical. A person’s natal Lilith placement shows where he or she has experienced a suppression of instinct, and after beginning to heal this wounding, can bring first-hand knowledge of the wild into the world to assist the evolution of a more conscious relationship to Earth and all of its inhabitants. Tom’s original approach to Lilith emphasizes conscious recognition and integration of what Lilith’s primal, instinctive wisdom offers.I’ll also let you know when the CD is available in a few months, if you can’t attend but would like to hear it.
Jonathan and I will be there; hope you can make it!
When I heard the Mayan shaman’s prediction/interpretation of what’s to come in 2012 (see previous post), I was struck by how many people I know (I think almost everyone I know!) who are taking themselves on by taking responsibility for their lives. And I thought of Jonathan, whose calling is to be a life coach. And what a pertinent time to be a life coach!
His clients are all amazing people who are up to huge things in their life. And I’m clear that whoever comes his way to coach with him, they are ready to take on their lives and prepare for this shift. I’m very proud of the work that he does and of his talent. Jonathan is hard-wired to serve as a mirror for people around him. I jokingly call him a “confrontation junkie.”
I look forward to seeing his business flourish and grow as time progresses. And with the universe’s support, it’s only a matter of time. Perfect time.
Check out his website at http://www.guidancewithin.com. Oh- and a new one is coming. I think I’m going to do a re-design, possibly in flash so I can learn some action scripting. woo hoo! 
My husband Jonathan is a life coach… no, wait - let me go back and say that he’s an AMAZING life coach. It’s his calling from the Universe. But more on that in the next post. Anyway, he has clients that are mother-daughter (a few like that, actually.)
One mother and daughter recently returned from a trip to the Yucatan, where they were guided through Mayan ruins by an actual Mayan shaman. The mother said the to the shaman, “We hear all of this stuff about 2012 and the Mayan calendar, and here we are, talking to a Mayan shaman. What’s the deal with 2012?”
His answer was brilliant. He essentially told her that there’s going to be a huge shift in human consciousness; one which will leave us with the capability to see auras. We’ll be able to see the auras of everyone around us, as well as the auras of all other living things. We’ll be intimately related to the fact that we’re one with each other as well as with the planet. This makes us aware of the responsibility we each have. He said that some people will not be able to handle this kind of information. Those that cannot won’t “make it.” (what does this mean??!)
But he acknowledged that right now, it seems as though everyone around us is working on themselves, taking responsibility for their own lives, taking on raising their own consciousness. This is in preparation for this shift.
I was very excited by this, and also left with many questions. Who will not make it? How will they move on? And of course - will I make it? My heart says yes. And I know that my children will be part of the change. I have to wonder what life on our planet will be like in the next 10 years.