Just a little personal note this morning...

A break from the affirmations to give you a big "Hi!" from Sacramento.  Things are going very well for James and I as we're happy and healthy...except that James is getting over a bout of strep throat right now.  Otherwise, life is good.

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The puppies are doing well.  We had to put Odie on meds for hypothyroidism, but it's made a big difference for him.  His energy level is up and it seems he is more focused.  He doesn't stay in bed sleeping all day anymore.  He follows us around the house and is more involved with the rest of the family.

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The job is going extremely well right now.  I have been a bit on the busy side, but it's all been good.  I am also working with 3 real estate clients at the moment trying to get them each in a new home.  It's hard in this market because the competition is stiff for the less expensive homes.  But, we're pushing ahead and hopefully they will be in their own homes by the end of the year.

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Hard to believe that summer is almost over.  I'm glad that we didn't have such a hot summer here in the valley this year.  I'm predicting a very mild temperature winter, but with a lot of precipitation.  I think we'll see more rain here in Northern California than we've seen in about 10 years or so.

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So, that's my little status update.  Not much happening right now except I will remind you that I'm directing The True Story of the Big Bad Wolf at Runaway Stage Production.  We open on September 12th and it should be a decent production.  Hope you can come out and see it!

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Blessings and Light!

"When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change."

A great quote from Dr. Wayne Dyer.  I have personally been struggling with this for a while.  I want to improve my attitude and focus on my spiritual development, but doing so is re-focusing my attention away from things that used to seem important.

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I am a recovering news junkie.  I just can't get enough of reading news on a daily basis...especially politics.  But, I'm finding the more I meditate and focus on my daily affirmations, this "addiction" is changing dramatically.  I don't care what "what's his name" is doing in the White House.  I don't care who is the "Worst Person in the World" on the countdown any longer.  Politics is a hateful game.  It's not about doing the work of the people.  It's about power.  Those who are in power want to keep it and those who are out of power try to destroy those who are in power.  There is no compromise and members of each party are in attack mode or defense mode.  There is no middle ground.

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So, as I meditate and do this work to become a more loving, peaceful person, I find that I don't really care who has won the election.  I will do my duty by voting my conscience, but then I need to let the universe unfold as it is meant to.  The negativity generated by political theater makes us cynical, combative, and unhappy individuals.  The tide will always turn...this country seems to swing back and forth between liberal and conservative.  The Democrats have their time in the sun for a while and then the Republicans will take over for a while.  And until they learn to work together for the common good, the only thing they will accomplish is partisan bickering and each party will try to undo what the previous party in power put in place.  It's a nasty game and has nothing to do with what's important in our lives.

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I now choose to focus on the gifts I have received from God such as my family, friends, my hubby, my career...these are the things that are important in our lives.  As I work to raise my spiritual vibration to higher levels, I'm leaving this negative political energy behind.  CNN and MSNBC are getting less and less air time in my home because it leads to distrust for other human beings.

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I choose love.  This is the most important thing.

“I have everything I need in abundance – physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.”

“I have everything I need in abundance – physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.”
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We must have faith that God, the universal power, or whatever you believe in, will provide for us. The universe is filled with over-abundance. Our job is to focus on what we want or need and know that it is ours. Have faith that the universe will move people, events, or resources into place to manifest your desires.
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The key here is to remain positive...if you are constantly sending the message out that “I’m broke” then the universe gets that message and sends you more of the same. If you are telling your co-workers, “I have a crappy job,” then guess what…the universe thinks you want a crappy job and will continue to shovel the crap to you because you are expending SO much energy focusing on that crappy job. And where attention goes, energy flows.
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Use this affirmation. Modify it to fit your needs…I like to change it up occasionally such as, “I have everything I need in abundance. I have the perfect job, a loving relationship, and abundant health. I am perfectly happy and attract loving energy from those around me.”
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If I need money, I might add “I have unlimited financial resources and have $500 for x.” X might be a car repair, new clothes, or a trip to Disneyland. Be specific!! This may sound silly, but I’ve personally used it, and suddenly out of the blue I’ll have a check for $500 from an unexpected source. There was once I used it and got a surprise tax refund because I made a mistake on my taxes when filing them the month before. I have used it and got an unexpected call to play piano in an orchestra for the exact amount of money I need or a real estate client will suddenly be referred to me.
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If you’re looking for a new job or a career, try “My dream job already exists. I am attracting the right contacts and resources to transition into that job now.”
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You will be amazed how things will fall into place if you keep a positive attitude, an open mind, and a loving heart.

We are here to love, not to judge!

This is one of my favorite affirmations for many reasons...mainly because it's one of the most difficult things to master as I journey through my daily routine at work, school, rehearsal, etc.  It's hard to look at people and not make some kind of judgement in my mind such as, "Why did he wear that tie today?" or "What was she thinking with that hairstyle?" or "If I had legs like that, I'd never wear those shorts!"
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Of course, there are worse judgements such as hating someone because of race or religion or sexual orientation, etc.
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I think the majority of us judge because we need to feel in control...we have a set way that we feel people should behave, or dress, or live their lives...and if they deviate from that expectation, our mind is quick to criticize.  We also have expectations set by society that only people with the right hairstyle or clothes or boob size or waist size are acceptable or attractive or worthy of love and respect.
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What we neglect to remember is that human beings are given free will by our creator.  What's the point of having divine free will if we're forced to live up to the unrealistic expectations of other human beings?  How many lives have been ruined or destroyed because they couldn't live up to some unreasonable standard set by the "in crowd" clique or an unshared religious belief; or something as simple as a child not following in a parent's footsteps?
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So, today...take a moment to breathe each time you feel a judgement coming on about someone else.  Let other people live their lives as they please and just love them.  And don't love someone in spite of their differences...love him or her because of their differences.
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Have a blessed day!

A week of gifts and challenges...

It’s been a week, folks. Work has been its usual circus of deadlines, change requests, and competing priorities—basically a juggling act where someone keeps tossing in flaming bowling pins just for fun. It’s busy in a good way, but nothing kills your momentum like a client casually dropping a change request that blows up your entire timeline. Ah yes… the glamorous life of project work.

On the brighter side, one of my real estate clients had an offer accepted this week. It’s a short sale, so now we’re in that fun “hurry up and wait” phase while the seller’s lender decides whether to bless us with their approval. The listing agent swears it won’t take long. I’m choosing to believe them because optimism is cheaper than therapy.

Speaking of new developments—we added a new family member! Tilly the Turtle joined us on Monday after a glamorous pickup from Petco. She’s settling into the pond nicely. At first she was skittish, darting into the water like we were tax collectors, but now she sunbathes on the rocks every morning like she owns the place. The second we open the back door, though? Splash. Gone. She’s basically the introvert I aspire to be.

I also started a new certification class for my hypnosis credentials. I already have two—one in basic hypnosis and one in past life regression therapy—and now I’m working on smoking cessation. I’ve really enjoyed these classes and have been using self‑hypnosis to make some positive changes in my own life. I’m not sure what I’ll ultimately do with all these certifications, but friends have already started lining up with “issues” they want me to help them with. Apparently, I’m becoming the neighborhood hypnotist.

I’ve also been planning a spiritual retreat to Santa Monica in October. I’ll be gone the weekend of the 16th for three days. I hesitated because of the cost, but James and I have been blessed with extra income from real estate referrals this year. We’re working hard to become completely debt‑free in the next few years—including paying off the mortgage. Thanks to a cash‑out refinance during the housing boom, we’re underwater now, but we can make the payments. After all the layoffs I’ve lived through, we’ve realized we need to live within our means and stop borrowing for anything. So yes, I’ve been working 12–14 hour days lately trying to pay things down and build a safety net big enough to cushion another layoff if it comes.

Spiritually, I’m trying to stay on a healthier path this year. I spent too long letting negativity and cynicism pull me into petty drama. And yes, Prop 8 still ticks me off, but I’m at peace with it for now. I know in my heart it’ll be overturned eventually, and James and I weren’t personally affected. What matters is that we’re together and grateful for how much progress has been made in our lifetime.

So here I am on a Sunday morning, blogging while petting Willow and nursing a slight wine headache. I watched Push last night—Chris Evans and Dakota Fanning. Not great, not terrible. But somehow the entire bottle of wine disappeared. And since James doesn’t drink, I can’t even pretend he helped.

Hope your day is filled with blessings, love, and fewer deadlines than mine

A beautiful morning...

I am sitting here on the couch with my chihuahua-mix, Willow...the doors and windows are open and a refreshing cool breeze is blowing through the house. Everything feels crisp and new this morning. There's a bird chirping in one of the trees in my front yard and a humming bird just came to the feeder and then zoomed off. It's a perfect morning. Peaceful, quiet, serene...James had a cup of coffee and I made some green tea. He's meditating in the back room now and will be heading off to the Dharma center soon.
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I'm thoroughly content to sit here on the couch with Willow. No TV or phones are on. I just had the urge to blog, so I picked up the laptop to document these thoughts. I'm going to do my own meditation when James leaves. I hope to get in a good 30-45 minutes this morning. Some of those meditations are intense...I feel tingly and like my spirit is vibrating so fast it's rising out of my body. The pure joy of those sessions and the emotional high afterward are so addicting...but it's the best kind of addiction. I feel a closeness to God, the universe, and to every other human being. It's just hard to explain, but it's incredible. There is this tingling sensation like a surge of energy rushes through my body and I see lights and hear sounds. And there is an overwhelming feeling of love and gratitude and sometimes I swear I can feel the presence of loved ones who have crossed over...it is something I wish everyone would experience.
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Yesterday, James and I had Quanna and her family over. It was wonderful to see my god son and his god brother, Harold. Both of them are going on 15 and they are great kids. I really enjoyed seeing them and watching movies on the big screen together as a family.
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I haven't really blogged here about it, but I was diagnosed with Type II diabetes about a month ago. I'm doing okay with it...it's harder to watch my diet than I thought it would be, but I am making progress. I have brought my cholesterol down from 226 to 202 this last round of testing. And I'll be honest...I would not have these health issues if I would learn to manage my diet and get motivated to exercise more. If I were to lose 50 or 60 pounds, I wouldn't have to be on blood pressure or diabetic meds. I'm going to try and use hypnosis to make some positive changes on these issues.
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We need prayers for a very close family member who is battling cancer. The chemo is overwhelming her right now as she is on a very high dose of these chemicals to help eradicate the disease from her body. It's taking a huge toll and it's a humbling experience for those around her watching her bravely battle this illness. Please send prayers, love, and positive energy her way.
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I'm sending out prayers, love and positive energy as well today. Not only to our sick friend, but to all of you. God has made today a special day for some reason. Any day is special, but today seems even more so for some reason. Keep love in your heart for all people...even those who hold different beliefs than you. Regardlesss of whether you disagree with their politics, their lifestyle, their religion...we are all doing the best we can based on our individual experiences and life lessons. I believe in the basic goodness of most people...but we let the actions of the minority sculpt our opinion of the majority. We have become a superficial, skeptical, and distrusting society...and we blame everyone else for society's ills when the truth is we could fix it all today if everyone would learn to love thy neighbors instead of judging them.
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I'm sounding like an old hippie today...sending out blessings to you all!!

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Ray