Astrology - September 30 - October 6

NorthPoint Astrology Journal: Your Guide to Planetary Energies for September 30 – October 6, 2013, by Pam Younghans

 

Today’s photo: Auroras over Harstad, Troms, Norway on September 24, 2013 (photo by Rune Engebø, posted on SpaceWeather.com)

WE HAVE an action-packed week — and month — ahead of us.  As I ponder the list of highlighted planetary aspects for the coming week, I find it hard to know exactly where to start, or which aspects to focus most attention on … a sure indicator that the energies on the horizon are both varied and complex.
Finding a physical analogy often helps me find a bit of order and understanding amidst chaos. If we look at this week’s array of planetary influences as dishes at a meal, we can start to define things a bit more clearly.

THE MAIN COURSE is usually the focal point of the meal. In our case, the main course is the Pluto-Uranus square. And yes, we’ve seen that item on the menu for over a year now. Sometimes it’s the featured dish, and sometimes it plays a less prominent role, but it will continue to be on the menu through early 2015.
This week is one in which the Pluto-Uranus dish is highlighted on our cosmic menu. In fact, we will be working with the energies of a Cardinal Grand Cross that involves Pluto, Uranus, the Sun and Moon, and Jupiter.

A GRAND CROSS pulls our attention in four different directions, creating conflict and requiring us to make decisions. We are often literally at a crossroads in our lives as we work with this type of configuration.
Internally, we may be aware of a heightened desire for autonomy and independence (Uranus in Aries), a strong instinctual reaction to anything that appears to challenge our authority (Pluto in Capricorn), exaggerated feelings of emotional vulnerability and protectiveness (Jupiter in Cancer), and an enhanced awareness of the need for greater harmony and fairness (New Moon in Libra).

No doubt this is why the incoming energies feel a bit chaotic! It’s a lot to juggle all at once — but we have the capacity to handle it, and our successful navigation of these energies is vital to our advancement.
TO HELP US in that regard, I quote one of my favorite astrological authors, Bil Tierney, in his book Dynamics of Aspect Analysis:

“Although feeling frustrated by obstacles that block direct action, we can learn to apply our enterprising, headstrong temperament with greater persistence toward tackling one major objective at a time. Important lessons denoted by the Cardinal Grand Cross are developing patience, inner composure, endurance, steadfastness, and learning to better organize time and energy. If we act too prematurely or with an unnecessary sense of urgency, our actions fail to bear satisfying results.”

In other words, if we remember that “slow and steady wins the race,” what at first appears chaotic energy may be actually exactly what we need to make the progress we’ve been longing for.
ALL NEW MOONS mark the beginning of a new lunar cycle, and therefore hold important information about the cosmic intentions of the next two weeks. Our New Moon this Friday is especially important, since it leads to a Lunar Eclipse/Full Moon on October 18.

The Sabian symbol for the New Moon tells us that we would benefit from coming to a deeper understanding of our own motivations and inner strengths now. This theme is echoed by the alignment between Saturn, Mercury, and the North Node in Scorpio at the time of the lunation:

“Miners are surfacing from a deep coal mine: The need to carry on at ever deeper levels the quest for knowledge which keeps burning the fires of the collective mind of a society.”

GREAT POWER lies within us — power that may lay hidden, unnoticed, or undiscovered, perhaps obscured by fear or a lack of self-confidence. It is the job of any planets as they transit Scorpio to help us become more self-aware, so that we can tap into the power of “negative” emotions and convert them into positive, useful expression in our lives.

It takes courage to go deeply into our own psyches, to explore those realms that resonate with intense emotions such as fear, resentment, jealousy and suspicion. But, just like the miners, who seek a fuel source in the darkness of the coal mine, our willingness to face and transform our fears can yield rewards, and can provide us with the energy we need to go forward.

Blessings,

Pam

Trailing

Giann was working less in the evenings. The gossip was quieting about him.  Jabba and Porky were getting ready to move to their trailer park.  Their move to the trailer park was more symbolic than anyone cared to admit.

It is always sad to see people without a peaceful constitution.  Maybe sad because we see in others some of the same traits we have ourselves.  But neither Giann, Jabba or Porky had lives which turned out the way they had hoped. Giann wanted more money.  Jabba could never get enough food to satisfy his nearly four hundred pound frame.  Porky was married to Jabba and fat herself.  She and her husband were involved in everyone's business.  They watched their neighbors like spies.  That they were all destructive in their individual methologies is tragic. They did not understand that what we do to one part, we do to the whole.

Everyone felt that Beth, one of their quiet, distant neighbors had a kind of wisdom, grounding that they admired.  Once in a while, someone would try to leech off of her.  She had a short learning curve and ended whatever relationship that was about to form in that regard.  She wasn't about to let anyone have a free ride. They needed to do their own work. This was part of her core belief.

Byron Katie wrote about The Work.  That no one gets out of this life alive. That there are storylines we addict ourselves to ~ worse than the bottle.  The storyline keeps us in the hamster wheel until we have the courage to walk out. To walk toward an experience of our own doing.

Cheryl Strayed, in her book, "Wild," had the courage to share her steps not just on the Pacific Crest Trail but in her life. That she changed her name to 'strayed' reveals much about her writing style. Freshening.

Then there are a series of steps which must be mastered (Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs) if one is to attain any kind of inner peace and generativity.  We don't use 'happiness' or 'satisfaction' because they are ephemeral.  We do use 'peace.'  It is less of an emotion and more of a constant. 

But this is a year of revelations. Some people will continue to join Beth on the trail, some have completed their allowed distance with her. It is all about using one's resources well.

Walking one's trail is everything. It is in the walk that we answer our own questions.

Yogurt, Blueberries and Cinnamon

I love early mornings!  The sun streaming through my bedroom, my dogs sound asleep beside me.  They don't awaken as easily in their senior years now. I imagine the cool, crisp fall air outside.  But the bed is warm and I don't want to leave it.  Even to open the window for that luscious fresh air.  The bed beckons me back and I comply.

The clock turns a quarter of an hour.  The dogs sound asleep.  The windows creak and I am not used to it.  They remind me this is not home. Eventually I am up to toilet the dogs and get ready for this glorious day.  It is an easy morning with no place to go. A latte and texts from a friend.  Then the morning ritual of yogurt, blueberries and cinnamon. 

I sit in my temporary desk, a beautiful small table made by my talented son.  More light sheets into the room while I continue to catch up on correspondence. It is one of the best times of the day.  My current book is beside me and I can't wait to read it.  Maybe this time, I'll read in the den which doubles as a guest room. 

I think about my fun new neighbor who says she moves often.  Even in her sixties.  She loves an adventure.  This time she likes the convenience. She traded lack of privacy for a garage as she tells me about her former busy body landlords. We walked our dogs together last evening. Her reddish golden and my reddish buff cockers.  Hers is a young dog and full of energy.  We laugh a lot as the wind forces our hair over our collective faces.

It's fall in New England.  Soon we will be wearing coats.  I'll switch off yogurt for warm quinoa, blueberries and cinnamon as I continue to use all my resources wisely.  Discernment is key.  Everywhere.

Earth is quieting.   Slowing.  Reflective. The clock turns as another year moves toward completion.  The visions continue. The yogurt won't.

Busy Bodies

In the building where I temporarily live, there are a bunch of older folks.  Some are more than delightful.  Some are bored, frustrated and jealous.  Observing behavior in the latter provides some interesting characterizations for writing.

One such couple are both busy bodies.  He suffers from post traumatic stress disorder, morbid obesity.  She is frustrated with him, fat herself and when he says JUMP, she says, "how high?"

Both seem to enjoy commenting on the lives of others.  They confer with other 'undeclared' busy bodies and caucus on the way to best HANDLE THE SITUATION at hand. At the given moment.  There are always situations.

Today he started commenting on another busy body neighbor who wasn't present.

"Do you know why I am leaving?" the man said.

The woman sitting there clearly couldn't care less.  She was trying to read her newspapers.

"It's because of Sylvia," he said.

"She is such a busy body and I can't stand it!"

The woman dropped her shoulders looking in the direction of the man with absolute kindness and compassion.  It was obvious she felt his pain.

Then he turned to the woman.

"You seem unsatisfied," the man said.

She put her paper down folding it neatly on the table. 

"Excuse me, that is a rather arrogant comment.  How do you label people and make suppositions about them when you don't know a thing about them?

"You're twisting my words."

"No, you are making value judgments and I don't much care for that.  Look at your own life before you comment on mine," she said picking her paper up.


The woman, who was reading a newspapers, turned to the man and queried about his life.  She commented that he was suggesting everyone else wasn't happy and she wondered about his life.  He got mad, threw up his arms and left the room.

"Have a good life!" he stormed.

"I always do," she smiled.

Both he and the busy body wife are moving out soon.  I'll have to find more interesting characters to include in my writings.  No doubt, we will have them.  At least while I temporarily live here.

Stand Up!

Do we have the courage to open our hearts, to walk the other way, to create a life without the need for corporate government?  Our history shows that one way or another, we have given it over to them.  We allow them to pollute our water, air and land.  We know the strip-mining that has taken place and the people who are sick and dying because of it.  We remember Love Canal in the 70s.  

Imagine.  We decide what the rules will be, we write the laws , we stay vigilante.  We police ourselves.  We are accountable and we stay that way.  We have freedom of speech and we use it.

UFOs are here because we are poisoning the planet.  Many have evolved to unimaginable states.  They send us messages.  Those of us who have been honored to see them receive regular downloads.  It is a lot to bear.  It is physically, emotionally exhausting but we are the change artists.  Selected to spread the word of a better way.  To stand up.

When are you going to do the same.  Stand up?

Purging

It's that time of year.   Sorting through closets, papers,cleaning out the car -  getting one's life in order.  How did it become so confusing.  The full moon - the Harvest Moon has something to do with it.Whatever has not been working is coming up for reflection.  It is a good thing.

Are you having epiphanies, too?  I appreciate your notes and I work to incorporate what you are thinking, what you feel into the blog.  What happens to one part, happens to the rest. People are our mirrors.  The things that annoy us about them, annoy us about ourselves.  Instead of being upset with them, it is helpful to welcome the epiphanies they bring.  If it was not familiar, we would not recognize it.  Funny, isn't it?

My mailbox, which includes e-mails, messages, IMs, PCs and phone calls has been ringing off the hook. I am just about caught up answering them.  I've written about hit and run relationships.  You know the ones who text, e-mail or Facebook you.  They aren't interested enough to make an actual phone call.  Truth is, they are just too self-involved. Needy.  They call, text you five minutes later because they need something from you.  Pay attention, I suspect they haven't called in some time.  Sound familiar?  Well, you wrote it and I heard you.

Let the dust settle.  Focus on the breath.  Enjoy the beautiful fall weather.  Fall is about releasing that which no longer serves your highest good. Often in this hit and run world, relationships end as fast as they came.  That tells you something.  Plenty.  Mostly about yourself.

Many of my readers say they are going quiet now. I'll try to post here and there but this is my inner time of reflection, too.

Be good to yourself.  Til we meet again.

Rossetti Spring Violets

I'm selling twelve (12) place settings of the Rossetti Spring Violets. There are also other dishes.  Please see the inventory below:

Rossetti Spring Violets

Made In

Dish                                 Japan                     Occupied Japan

Place setting of five 

at $74 a place setting

includes:

13 saucers                             9                                  4

12 footed cups  

          2 7/8”                         11                                  1

12 bread/butter

         6” w/rim                       2                                  10

13 salad plate  7 7/8” w/rim  9                                   3  

12 dinner plates  

            10 l/8”  w/rim            7                                   5

 Serving dishes:

12  small bowls  5” w/rim     8                                    4                                  $15 each

12 soup bowls

                   7  l/2” w/ rim      5                                    7                                   34 each

4 vegetable bowls      

                    11” w/rim            1                                   3                                  56 each

2 oval serving platters 

              12” w/rim                 1                                   1                                   70 each

1 gravy boat  w/attached                                                                                   65

                  underplate            1

creamer                                  1                                                                        40       

sugar bowl   w/lid                                                       1                                    50

egg                                       1

(3) candy dishes                   2                                     1

1 compote                                                                  1

The three candy dishes and one compote have no price but I have an idea what they sell for.  Make me an offer for the whole set.

To Every Season

 Fall is upon us.  The seacoast temperature went down to 39 tonight.  This is one of my favorite seasons.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHvf20Y6eoM

It is a time to go within.  To be, to reframe, to rest.  It has been a busy and insightful year.  If we are quiet, if we take the time, we observe what is really going on.  Not only within ourselves, but with the collective energy as well.

I think about the hit and run 'relationships.'  Facebook comes to mind immediately.  Recently after a few postings, friends wrote me.  They could have called, could have put effort out, but they chose to 'hit and run.'  They chose that because that is how they live their lives.  They don't get involved with people.  They get involved with their technology.  And they are the ones who are missing out.

Over the weekend I got together with a new galpal.   She is from the same area as I - the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. We traveled ninety minutes to visit the Monadnock Region of New Hampshire (the southwestern part of the state).  It is one of my favorite areas to visit.  More mountainous, artsy, my kind of place.

If you'd like more information, visit this site:

http://www.visitnh.gov/itineraries/kids-corner-of-nh/index.html 

Going Home

For the past fourteen months, I have wrestled with living in an apartment.  I came to this area to be closer to family.  But the fact is, family has their own life.  And mine, from what I can tell, isn't here.  In the back of my mind, I suspected this.  It made my children's lives easier.  It made mine harder.

Without going into private details, I need to live on my own.  In a place that feels like home.  While I love the openness of New Hampshire, the Smokies felt more like home than any place I have ever lived.  I don't miss my specific house.  I do miss privacy. The land.  The people.

The work at my house had become too difficult.  I needed to hire out more.  For the difference in what I pay to live in NH, I could live like a king in North Carolina.  Or queen.  I'll still see my children.  But I will see myself in a whole new light.

It doesn't have to be the same house.  It could be Asheville.  I do love the whole area.  So for now, I will sit with things as they are.  Let them gel a bit.  See how I feel. Watch my back.

Things haven't changed much at the 'home.'  The maintenance man sexually harasses, snoops and G-d knows what else.  The property manager sits in her office, skirting to the patio to smoke intensely a dozen times a day.  Then it is back into her office. She shakes and it is just plain sad.


The universe brought me here for a reason.  I suspect it was to test the waters.  I don't know if I am done here in NH or in the 'home.'  There is something about to happen and I will get direction soon enough.  Until then, I am having a plain New York bagel. Maybe a bit of butter on it. Then I am going for a vanilla latte when the sun comes up and enjoying the fall weather.  I may be in North Carolina sooner that I think.

On Guard

The dogs were conspicuously standing by me the last few months. More and more.  At first I thought it odd. Wherever I was, they were watching.  I didn't think I was at risk.  But animals know.  They were protecting me.  Even the other dog, the clueless one, suspected something.  She kept breaking out of her enclosure in the other room.  That began a few months ago.  I didn't understand. Either.

A few night's ago, I began to let the dogs sleep in the room with me. One slept in the doorway to my bedroom, the other near the front door.  I didn't get it at first.  Either.

Then I remembered when I encountered Giann coming out my neighbor's apartment.  He had no tools with him.  He walked out eating food.  Then he saw the apartment renter coming down the hall, carefully hid the food and asked if he could borrow sugar.

"Sure,"  the neighbor said.

I didn't suspect anything. He did go back inside the apartment.  Then.

This morning, a psychic friend called telling me I was in danger.  He gets it.  Always does.  He said I martial arted the voyager in his dream.  It made me feel a bit better.  Others are seeing this.  Well, I don't know that I REALLY feel better.  I am scared.  I appreciate that he could share this with me.

I need to get out. Now. But where?

Glassy Eyes

Beth remembered the profound emptiness in her marriage.  He was like his father.  But it didn't start out that way. At least she didn't see it in 1969. She gets the idea of balance today. Maturity does that. Maybe that  is why Giann frightens her so much. She wondered why he needs so much money.  Could it be his recent glassy eyed,  unshaven, unkempt appearance?  Or drug dependence. Lack of balance?

As she left her apartment, Beth heard a familiar sound coming down the hall.  A familiar bark.  Then a white haired woman rounded the corner with her show dog.  She said Giann tried to open her door that Saturday afternoon, just a few hours ago.  He had the wrong one, he told the eighty year old Mainer.  Said he wanted the next door.  He did that to Beth on at least one occasion.  He knew better. The Mainer was glad her husband was there.  But Beth was alone in her apartment.  

Beth mentioned the delivery of the small amount of paint the night before.  Way after his 3:30 p.m. work day ended.  Supposedly.


"Did he stand waiting?"

"Waiting for what?"

"A tip, that is what he wants.  He always wants money," the Mainer said.

"He didn't get a cent from me.  He ripped me off last fall.  I have a short learning curve," Beth laughed.

"How is he he works sixty-to eight hours a week here?  It wasn't that way the summer of 2012.Overtime maybe," Beth said. 

Beth and the woman returned to their respective apartments. 

"I'm keeping my door double latched," she said.

Painting The Picture

Beth calmed herself down.  Then the knock came at the door.  She checked to see who was there.  It was Giann with something in his hand.  Paint.

Two weeks before, she had requested some paint the color of the molding.  China White.  Carefully, she opened the door as she didn't want her dogs to get out, forcing her to run down the hall after them. She also didn't want to be near the maintenance man.  Any more.

"Wonders never cease," Beth said taking the Duncan Donuts plastic cup of paint in her hands.

"I'm on the phone.  Thank you," she said.

She couldn't close the door fast enough.  He knew something.  She had no idea what and frankly, Beth couldn't care less.  She was done.

The following day, a friend and she took off for the mountains for the day.  She had just arrived when a relative called.  She was having IVF.  Beth promised to help her out financially. 

"I'm asking my Dad for half of this amount.  Could you give me the same amount?"

Beth was more than angry.  Her lazy, rich, uninvolved father could well afford to pay for everything.  Beth was the parent always there to help.  She was fed up.  It was time for Beth to care for herself.  She had spent a lifetime of service, financial and otherwise for her family. 

So Beth was giving half.  It should have been one third.  Or a small portion but her father ended his responsibility with the divorce. None of this was new.  She was not about to put her family in the middle.  She was going to step back a lot this time.

The Clearing Fog

Giann cast his web on her immediately.  A new face. He had the physique of a bodybuilder, the brain of a spider.  She wouldn't know his motive. She thought he was just being nice. At first. Until others told their stories. 

It wasn't that he filled her sparse apartment with furnishings.  It was that he was frequently near her door.  She thought it odd then.  She is frightened now.

She wondered if he had a surveillance camera on her because he always knew where she was.  In the hall, on the elevator, going to the garage to her car.  He paced her everywhere.  He wasn't the only one. But he was jealous of what he thought his competitor was. Another single neighbor in the building who had eyes for her.  She rebuffed him, too.

Giann even asked her about it. That day in the garage. She had her black boots on and was meeting a friend for lunch.  Her first friend here.  But her friend suddenly moved.  Her friend still won't talk about it. She got out in time.

Giann spotted her and moved in. Close.  Fast.

"Craig likes you."

"Now how on earth would you know?"

"I know."

"More like he is stalking me.  Creepy"

She walked to her car and looked inside.  It felt safe enough.

He watched her leave the garage.

Later that day, when she was home inside her apartment, she looked for her level to straight some new paintings she had completed the week before.  It was no where to be found.  She even noticed a few twenties missing from her purse.  She charges everything.

The cash in the safe was intact.  She began to lock the file cabinet.  Shut down her computer. Worried.

A few weeks passed. It was just after one a.m. She heard her front door open.  Bolting out of bed, she could hardly contain her heart. The door closed as quickly as it opened.  Almost soundless.  She ran to the peephole.  Didn't dare open the door.  Her whole body was shaking.  She wished she had a gun but knew she couldn't, wouldn't use it. She went back into the fog.

The following morning, Giovanni was in the hall.

"Getting rid of the hutch, or the table.  I'd sure like it."

She didn't know that he was selling her discards.  Never even mentioned it to her. So much for truth.  But she wasn't going to put up with this bullsh** for long.  That is how she was.  She would take so much.  Often, waiting too long.  Karma was with her.  She found herself.  Her voice.  Her esteem.

"We're watching you," she said as he passed her in the hall.

His eyes pierced hers.  He laughed, more out of embarrassment.  She laughed because he was on notice.  Just where she wanted him. She'd been down this road before and lived to tell about it.  She wouldn't back down. She had come too far.  Now.

The police were notified, though clearly disinterested.  They usually are with crimes to females.  Says a lot about their mentality.  Not all of them.  But enough.

She wrote a note to the property manager about the safety in the building. A carefully written note. Put everything on record. There was no response.

Beth had a plan.

                                                           to be continued...

Coming Home. Again.

I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, 

to front only the essential facts of life, 

and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, 

when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.

Henry David Thoreau

Then I went to New Hampshire to use what I learned.  I've been back pedaling since.  No more. You'll note some changes in my blog.  For starters:

"Words" is now blue. Although I am still playing with the background (geeze, can't someone make this easier.  I just want to change the pink to a white or softer shade of blue). Like everything else, in time I shall figure this out.

Things are changing fast.  Are you feeling the momentum? Old ways open the view to new ways.  The blinders come off.  We see things as they are, not as we wish them to be. Isn't it great?

Thoreau would be proud. This isn't the wilds of Massachusetts, it is the seacoast of New Hampsha.  In the vein of changing things, I will be on the computer less.  It served its purpose.  I'm not much for hit and run.  Had that a few weeks ago.  No thanks.  Cost me $500.  I've learned my lesson.  Front end, too.  What was I thinking?

They're been lots of front end encounters lately. They aren't a problem.  They are reality.  And that is what we need.  To do otherwise just perpetuates the fog.  And you know where they keeps us.

I went to the woods

and lived deliberately

Thoreau brought me home 

Where

I've been living in a world I created most of my life.  Always thinking the best of everyone, liking most people instantly.  Until.  Eventually, they show who they are.  I do walk the fine line of this quote:

"It's not what happened to you, it's your thoughts about what happened."

Would this apply to someone raped, violated, unnecessary wars, people who do not defend you because they are wimps?

Fine line? 

Do you stand up for violence, war, pollution?  Do you stand up for everything for everyone else but yourself?  Do friends stand with you?  Do you stand alone? Do you allow others to mooch off  you.  Sponge? 

A fine line. No way.

The line is erased.  I've let too many things continue for way too long.  It isn't their issue.  It is all mine.  I am moving on.  Soon, I will tell you where.

Piecing The Crime

It is raining again today.  Ominous.  Is the air clearing?  Cleansing?  I have had enough.

A trip to the Hampton Police Department today to file a police report was a joke.  The officer wasn't interested in my story.  He kept asking me what I wanted.  He wouldn't even close the door to the room I was in.  I felt exposed.  He said a camera was on behind me.  I didn't bother to look.  The writing was on the wall.  This officer has issues with women? Maybe he doesn't like his job?

"It's job security," he said.

I wondered why I bothered to speak to him after that.  But I did.  I have been violated.  Someone will care.  I hope he put it on record.

"Why don't the police ever believe you?" 

This is more about them than us.  Definitely than me.

I recounted the oddities.

1.  Over friendliness on the part of the maintenance man at first.
2.  Always neat and tidy when he came to my apartment.
3.  Then the questions about money.  My money.  Was I weathy?
4.  Did I have a boyfriend?
5.  Am I dating anyone in the apartment?
6.  He seemed to watch me as I left in the evening.
7.  Conveniently in the same elevator, by my car, outside.
8.  My apartment door would be unlocked.  I locked it.
9.  My level disappears.
10. Money disappears. $20s at first. 
11. Gets mad at me then over-charges me.
12. Leaves the garage door open all day, sometimes into the night.
13. Is here all day and into the night.
14. He is glassy-eyed more and more.
15.Neighbor finds a cigarette lighter in her room.
16. Dirty underwear (not hers) in the washer.
17. Bed ruffled when she returns to her apt. with her husband.
18. He calls me.  No message.
19. Dumps stuff in my parking space and despite asking him to remove it, he never does.
20. Asks me if I think he does a good job here.
21. I come home and the apt. is unlocked.
22. Someone comes into my apt. at night and leaves fast.  I awaken and rush to the door.  They are gone.
23. Apt. is unlocked again.
24. There are knocks at my door happening again. 

That list is just for starters. If something happens to me, at least you know.  The Hampton Police couldn't care less.  I guess they don't like women, either.

Now you have the the story and the record, too. Like my friend said, karma resolves a lot. It is time to move to a safe place.

Danger

When I first moved here, I had no furniture for nearly three weeks. The first day I moved here, there were flowers inside my apartment.  They were sent by a good friend.  I wondered how someone got in to put them on the counter.

Then after the first week or so, I came into the apartment to find a table and chairs and a tv on the floor.  There was no note.

Things progressed like that for a while.  Then there were comments he made.

"Are you rich?" he said.

I blew it off.

There were more comments.

"You are hot," he said.

Again, I ignored it.

My three foot level disappeared from my closet.  He rarely came prepared when he came to my apartment to fix things.  I asked if he borrowed the level.  He denied it.

Over time the comments increased.  He wanted to know if I would date him.  I laughed it off.

Then neighbors began telling me someone was knocking on their door at night.  Things were missing from their apartment.  Beds were ruffled up.  Dirty underwear appeared in their washing machine.  And more things. He was here all the time.  Supposedly working.

He began to know when I was out.  He would meet me in the hall, the garage, the elevator.  I began to wonder more.  I felt alienated.

One night, someone entered my apartment.  I panicked.

Then the urine stains appeared on the dogs' beds.  On my sofa.  My dogs do not urinate in the house.

Tomorrow I will go to the police.  I think he is a voyeur. The maintenance man. I am in danger.    

True Colors

Have you noticed how things are coming to a head now?  Fast.  People reveal who they are.  Recently, I was in a group when an individual made a sexual comment.  Not one person in the room, save me and another spoke up.  Even individuals who normally 'patrol' things like that went silent.  It said a lot to me.

Another group with which I have long been affiliated doesn't see the changes in the political structure of the group.  They adhere to party lines of thirty some years ago.  They don't get it. 

An apartment complex which boasts "active 55 plus community" instead is a docile 75 plus community.  The owners, who live two hours away prefer that. It ensures a steady stream of folks. They are afraid to complain about management as they are just a step from a nursing home.  They do complain about each other and petty things. The property manager is said to drink heavily as is the maintenance man. All are heavy smokers, especially, the maintenance man whose body odor from the smoke makes permeates the air. If you pay him extra, he takes care of your maintenance problems right away.

To the apartment complex's credit, it is the nicest place around, if you don't mind the fact the street lights are not always on; senior citizens have been injured in the dark, that the carpets are soiled and rarely vacuumed;  you wouldn't want to walk barefoot on them. Negligence and safety issues abound.

But what I love with all of this is that all the players are showing themselves. Friends speak about other so-called 'friends' who leech off of them - frankly put, they use them. Good people are refusing to play victim anymore as they move to higher grounds going solo.

More lies from Obama's speech the other night. He was patently who he is. Eventually, I found a delightful music channel and this nonsense faded away.

True colors are emerging. Isn't it fun?!

The 5 most ludicrous war claims in Obama’s Syria speech

Wed Sep 11, 2013 6:4PM GMT

Matthew Rothschild, The Progressive

1. “I possess the authority to order military strikes.”

No you don’t, Mr. President. Only Congress has the authority to declare war, and ordering military strikes would be a clear act of war, thus violating the Constitution. It would also violate the War Powers Act, which says that the President can’t engage in hostilities without a declaration of war or specific Congressional authorization unless there is “a national emergency created by attack upon the United States, its territories or possessions, or its armed forces.” And Syria has done no such thing.

2. Syria’s use of chemical weapons is “a danger to our security.”

Note that four paragraphs later, he said it wasn’t “a direct or imminent threat to our security.” So what kind of a threat is it? Well, a rather tenuous one. “Other tyrants will have no reason to think twice about acquiring poison gas and using them. Over time, our troops would again face the prospect of chemical warfare on the battlefield.” Really? It is very unlikely that some dictator would do this because he would know that if he did, the US would drop a nuke on his head. That was the warning that Saddam Hussein got from the US in January of 1991, and he didn’t use his chemical weapons even as the US was destroying most of his army. If that threat was enough to stop Saddam, it’s likely good enough to stop other dictators.
Obama also acknowledged that “the Assad regime does not have the ability to seriously threaten our military.”

3. “If fighting spills beyond Syria’s borders, these weapons could threaten allies like Turkey, Jordan, and Israel.”

Let’s just look at Israel. Obama contradicted himself just a few minutes later when he said, “Neither Assad nor his allies have any interest in escalation that would lead to his demise, and our ally, Israel, can defend itself with overwhelming force, as well as the unshakable support of the United States of America.”

4. “It’s true that some of Assad’s opponents are extremists. But al-Qaeda will only draw strength in a more chaotic Syria if people there see the world doing nothing to prevent innocent civilians from being gassed.”
Only?

If US missile strikes seriously degrade Assad’s military, they would certainly help the extremists who are allied with al-Qaeda in Syria.

5. “For nearly seven decades, the United States has been the anchor of global security. This has meant doing more than forging international agreements; it has meant enforcing them. The burdens of leadership are often heavy, but the world’s a better place because we have borne them.”

Was the US an anchor of global security and an enforcer of international agreements when it overthrew the Mossadegh government in Iran in 1953, or the Arbenz government in Guatemala in 1954?

Is the world a better place because the US helped overthrow Salvador Allende’s democratically elected government in Chile almost exactly 40 years ago?

Is the world a better place because the United States killed 3 million people in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia and because we dropped 20 million gallons of napalm (waging our own version of chemical warfare) on those countries?

Is the world a better place because the United States supported brutal governments in El Salvador and Guatemala in the 1980s, which killed tens of thousands of their own people?

Is the world a better place because George Bush waged an illegal war against Iraq and killed between 100,000 and a million civilians?

And what international agreements was the United States enforcing when it tortured people after 9/11?

Source:   http://jhaines6.wordpress.com/

Tell Me It Is So

5 Big Signs The Global Engine of Deceit, Lies and Control Are Coming To End

September 9, 2013 | By WakingTimes | 3 Replies

Wiki Image

Marco Torres, Prevent Disease
Waking Times
If you don’t see it coming, you may have been hiding in a very dark place for the last decade. The lies, deceit, fear-mongering and illusions portrayed by elite controlling entities of the world are slowly crumbling right in front of their eyes as the world is awakening. Here are 5 signs that the era of deception and duplicity is coming to an end.

1. Pharmaceutical Industrial Complex Has Been Exposed

Perhaps one of the biggest controlling entities of the world is the pharmaceutical industrial complex who has deceived billions for almost two centuries. Their corruption, fabrications and outright deceit has enveloped almost every nation on Earth. In the last decade alone, millions have outcasted drugs and vaccines from their circle of trust. More people are coming to discover that this powerful group of criminals will stop at nothing to sell their snake oil to the public. Over the last several years, Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, and Novartis — and all other pharmaceutical giants, which once seemed unassailable are slowly drowning. Drug discovery jobs have disappeared by the thousands in the United States and by the hundreds in Europe as the industry has cut costs in order to adjust to what is widely perceived as the end of the blockbuster-drug era.

People are getting it. From the H1N1 scandal to HPV….from Lipitor toVioxx, the public is catching on that most modern day diseases are man-made to sell us more poison in a vicious cycle which perpetuates until our death. Research is now showing that natural health products are as effective as man-made drugs and for the first time in history, the natural health industry is aiming to amend legislation to allow physicians to include natural health products in their practice–a change that could revolutionize the allopathic treatment model. 

2. The Media Is No Longer Capable of Instilling Trust

Recent polls now show that an overwhelming 80% of the population no longer trusts mainstream newscasts. From the lies and promotion of wars to our health, the mainstream media is incapable of generating any unbiased newsworthy content without corporate or government propaganda. Conan O’Brien easily revealed how mainstream media’s scripted taking points are just a farce. This happens almost everyday on any issue you can imagine, across all networks at any time. The media, as they say “is a joke” branded to program the minds of millions though manipulation and deception. But their dominion and monopoly has been thwarted by the alternative media who are now fully engaged in exposing every lie one at a time….and we are achieving great success.
3. The Conventional Food Industry is Collapsing

By observing the chess match between anti-GMO camps and Monsanto (and their lobbyists), we see a clear indication that big agriculture, biotech and the entire food industry is in turmoil. Trade agreements currently being drafted in developed nations are attempting to secure legislation dictating all GMO labeling as illegal. Resistance against GMOs are being defined as “anti-free trade practices” that governments are attempting to enforce in the form of economic sanctions against nations that attempt to ban GMOs. Labeling initiatives spawned by various groups are being exposed as controlled opposition and the true intentions and transparency of these organizations is inevitable. Food giants are being held accountable for their manufacturing processes, toxic ingredients and lack of credibility.

 

 4. The Freedom Movement Is Gaining Momentum
De facto foreign administrations of unelected industrialists, financiers, academics, military leaders along with representatives from our elected government officials have been very busy the past century implementing changes into nations who were once sovereign and free. However, they have no real authority to restrict public mobility, free trade or limit access to anything. That means that everybody is free to drive without insurance, driver’s license, license plates, free to trade any articles of exchange including vitamins, supplements, healing modalities and free to consume and ingest anything they wish without restriction. This is a right of all people born on any land, and the movement to educate millions on these issues is rising across the globe. Mass populations are starting to see the reality that there is no longer sovereignty within nations. The people of these nations have lost their ability to write their own laws, avoid arrest, injury and damage from corporations which seek to remove all the freedoms from the people.
The elite societies of the world are now petrified of the awakening of these fundamental human rights. This is the fear of every official who deems their opinion can be enforced over others through artificial laws that don’t hold any weight in the highest courts. We are now declaring those rights more than ever and every beneficiary of the corrupt system is sending the police to insist that we are in wrong and they are right. It is about knowing what absolute sovereignty truly is and embracing the power to express that right regardless of anybody else’s interpretation. Police are being held accountable for these injustices and their homes and possessions are being taken from them in the highest courts as the people fight for their rights to be free and will accept no damage by illegal enforcement (the police) in the interim.

5. The Liberation of Nature and Abolishment of All Things Toxic Is Now Inevitable

More than a dozen U.S. states have now completely decriminalized the act of possessing marijuana and both Colorado and Washington have made it legal to possess, sell, transport and cultivate the plant. But soon it may be legalized across the entire country. That is quite the 180 from the federal government’s tune in 2011 when they decreed that marijuana had no accepted medical use and should remain classified as a highly dangerous drug like heroin. Nobody has the right to criminalize or restrict anybody from possessing a plant or smoking it for that matter. The rights of people to interact with nature are being recognized on all levels and cannabis liberation is a amazing step forward.

The restoration of clean drinking water through the removal of toxic fluoride is another example of how governments can no longer contain their lies, in this case the 60-year old deception of fluoride. Almost the entire world is now coming full circle to the health consequences of poisoning the water supply with fluoride. Most developed nations, including all of Japan and 97% of western Europe, do not fluoridate their water. Israel was recently added to that list. Many communities, over the last few years, stopped fluoridation in the US, Canada, New Zealandand Australia. Recently, both Wichita, Kansas and Portland, Oregonrejected fluoridation 60% to 40%. Hamilton, NZ, councilors voted 7-1 to stop 50 years of fluoridation after councilors listened to several days of testimony from those for and against fluoridation. Windsor, Ontario, stopped 51 years of fluoridation. Sixteen regional councils have halted or rejected fluoridation in Queensland since mandatory fluoridation was dropped there in Nov. 2012.

The news is spreading and a renaissance is blooming worldwide. There is no stopping it. The potential war in Syria which has no support from the American public, is a beautiful reminder that people are tuning into their own hearts and wisdom as they come to understand that war will never accomplish anything but create more war.

Get ready my friends because we are headed for an incredible ride as we pave the way for a new consciousness as we rebuild the Earth, take back our power as united and free citizens of this wonderful planet.

About the Author

Marco Torres is a research specialist, writer and consumer advocate for healthy lifestyles. He holds degrees in Public Health and Environmental Science and is a professional speaker on topics such as disease prevention, environmental toxins and health policy. 

Source:  http://www.wakingtimes.com/2013/09/09/5-big-signs-global-engine-deceit-lies-control-coming-end/

Getting Comfy

It's fall and I am snuggling in for a while.  Getting comfy.  I'm redoing my living room.  First it began by moving a few things around.  The guest room/office works better now: 

The living room is cleared out and a few things will go.  The sofa, probably the blanket chest upon which the tv sits and the tall end table holding the twigs. 

The old living room:

Here is the new plan for the living room:

Comfy, here I come!

Memory Lane

Somehow I have been really lucky to connect with the ole Baltimore crowd.  We grew up in the Woodlawn section near Gwynn Oak Amusement Park.  It was an eight minute walk to the park.  I spent nearly every day there as a child.  Riding the horses until my allowance ran out.

                                                  NY World's Fair 1964-65

Recently, friends created a site for my neighborhood and school friends. I've been lucky to catch up on their collective lives.  And I have missed them greatly.

After seventh grade, the school district was split in half. But we get caught up in our own lives.  Over my life, I have thought about the special ones; people who touch your heart.

I loved being part of a community. Families were involved and my family especially.  At least my Dad was. Because of him, I got involved in communities after that.  I love being part of one.  But moving away provided different opportunities and some wonderful communities.

Some people live in one area their entire lives.  That was not to be the case for me.  After twenty-one years, I moved out of my family home and relocated to the D.C. suburbs.  After that I moved to upstate New York, then central New Jersey, western North Carolina and now to seacoast New Hampshire.  I've been more than lucky to meet so many varied people with their varied cultural backgrounds.  All tolled, I have lived eleven places.

11.  A sacred number.  Here are a few truths about the number one.

Aim for a career that lets you be your own boss. You're better working alone than with a group and you don't take orders well.

Avoid getting lazy just because you're frequently quicker than other people. Use that energy to explore and achieve further on your own.

Take charge, step out and risk it all on a new venture.

The adventure continues.

I'm So Bored!

This notion of boredom, feeling out of sorts, frustration has been on my mind a lot lately.  Sometimes these particular themes come up over and over again for us.  I try to remind myself, what I resist will persist.

We get caught up in these emotions because we haven't found a comfy landing spot.  In pondering this, I wonder if we have these feelings out of a longing for an unhealthy  ATTACHMENT to friends, or we distance those that annoy us, or are we just indifferent to those who just bore us? Maybe all of the above?

In some ways, if we are not in a state of attachment or aversion and things appear just neutral, boredom may be our kind of natural default! We feel unengaged, indifferent and distanced from the things we find neutral. At the same time, we paradoxically feel more hemmed in because everything seems more solid and real. What do you think?! In the mind-training book Universal Compassion, Geshe Kelsang says that for ordinary beings:

Attractive objects cause desirous attachment to arise, unattractive objects cause anger, and neutral objects cause ignorance… Those with special interest in training the mind, however, should try to change this and develop the three virtuous minds instead of the three poisons.

We become bored by supposed predictability and unavoidable and unchanging circumstances that seem beyond our control – not understanding that our own minds are the creators of our ever-changing and indeed unpredictable circumstances, and that we can take control of our minds. In terms of the inappropriate attention that accompanies all delusions, I would think that we are exaggerating the apparent solidity, permanence, and inherent existence of our situation whenever we are bored.

 It could be that in this age of instant ever-shifting entertainment in our pockets it is harder in general to stay interested and absorbed, and boredom is likelier to crop up. But I think that the lack of excitement or pleasure itself comes from an ignorance grasping strongly at an inherently existent world outside the mind and thus feeling alienated from it, adrift, unconnected, unable to enjoy.

The stronger we grasp at the world existing outside of ourselves, the more isolated, alienated, impotent, bored, and yes, ignored, we are going to feel. Then we are naturally going to start craving anything that will excite us and become impatient when nothing exciting enough seems to be forthcoming to relieve the monotony and feeling of being hemmed in.

For the complete unaltered article:  http://kadampalife.org/2011/08/13/a-buddhist-solution-to-boredom/

For The Children

 About Us

It began in love. They were executed by The United States Government in 1953.

The Rosenberg Fund for Children was started by Robert Meeropol, who was orphaned at age six when his parents, Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, were executed at the height of the McCarthy Era.

In 1990 Robert figured out how he could repay the progressive community that helped him survive.  He founded the RFC to help children of targeted activists in the U.S. today- children who are experiencing the same nightmare he and his brother endured as youngsters.

Since then, the RFC has awarded nearly $5 million to benefit close to a thousand children in the U.S. whose parents have been targeted because of their involvement in progressive movements including the struggles to preserve civil liberties, wage peace, safeguard the environment, combat racism and homophobia, and organize on behalf of workers, prisoners, immigrants and others whose human rights are under threat.
 
For more information, please contact:

http://www.rfc.org/

 The music says it all:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQfB_ynug9o&feature=player_embedded#t=47

You can follow the lyrics ~

Your Daughters And Your Sons, by Tommy Sands

 

They wouldn't hear your music and your paintings they pulled down,
they wouldn't read your writings and they banned you from town.
But they couldn't stop you thinking and a victory you've won,
for you've sowed the seed of freedom in your daughters and your sons.

Chorus:

In your daughters and your sons, in your daughters and your sons,
sowed the seeds of freedom in your daughters and your sons.

Your weary smile it proudly hides the chain marks on your hands,
as you bravely strive to realize the rights of every man.
Though your bodys bent and low, a victory you've won,
for you've sowed the seed of justice in your daughters and your sons.

Chorus

I don't know your religion gut one day I heard you pray,
for a world where everyone could work and children they could play.
Though you never realized a victory you've won,
for you've sowed the seed of equality in your daughters and your sons.

Chorus

They tortured you in Belfast and they taunted you in Spain
and in that Warsaw ghetto they tied you up in chains.
In Vietnam and Chile they came with tanks and guns,
It's there you sowed the seed of Peace in your daughters and your sons.

Chorus

Now your music's playing and the writing's on the wall
and all the dreams you've painted can be seen by one and all.
Now you've got them thinking and a victory you've won,
for you've sowed the seed of freedom in your daughters and your sons. 

Laughing All The Way

We're in serious times.  We always are.   Most of the time, we are too involved with our own personal needs to be aware of the greater world.  The greater world - a.k.a. media keeps us just where they want us.  Let's take the Miley Cyrus incident.  This is redirection at its best.  A ploy to shift the pea brain into smut.  I couldn't care less about the incident.  Or wardrobe malfunctions.  Or Anthony Weiner.  Kate Middleton's weight.

I care about our world.  Who dominates, who retreats.  Who allows.  I care about you. The collective quality of life for all living things. The corrupt corporate government. Popular culture?  Don't waste my time.

It's a new day.  Another opportunity to care about one another.  It starts with you.  And me.  Together there is nothing we can't do.

Go get 'em!

Old People's Home

Things come in two's.  Noah's Ark did.  Two by two.

At the end of two years, a year from now, I will be moving on.  Destination - who knows?  I won't be in the old people's home. Nope.  I am not old.  Old is a state of mind.

The sign out front says this is an 'active community.'  I am not sure what part of the marketing meets the criteria of 'active' but these white haired folks are sedentary.  Lots of nursing assistants, home care aides, oxygen companies are here each day.So does the ambulance. It is old.  Everything about it is as well. It smells old.

A dear friend reminded me of the double infinity. It is the unity of two things coming full circle. A perfect balance between partners.  Shoulder to shoulder. Inter-dependent.  Intertwined.

Nope, not doing an old people's home next fall.  I'm doing a double infinity.  Somewhere. It's part of the journey home.

perfect balance between the partners where they can be together side by side, independently as well as intertwined. - See more at: http://infinitytattoodesigns.com/infinity-symbol/#sthash.PBlpa2MQ.dpuf

perfect balance between the partners where they can be together side by side, independently as well as intertwined. - See more at: http://infinitytattoodesigns.com/infinity-symbol/#sthash.PBlpa2MQ.dpuf

perfect balance between the partners where they can be together side by side, independently as well as intertwined. - See more at: http://infinitytattoodesigns.com/infinity-symbol/#sthash.PBlpa2MQ.dpuf