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the sky was storming

the clouds covered the sky like a sheet of cobblestone paper

and the dim shadey factories

belched out their grey smoke, hazy vapour

I remember you once told me

that grey was your favourite colour

when I asked why

you gave this inspiring poetic answer

and I try to remember

but I just can't remember

because all I can see

is the colour of ordinary

I think and reflect

on my sarcastic negativity

but I guess that's what you do

when you've lost all creativity

fuck it

I just dropped the bucket

filled to the brim of with my hopes and dreams

my wasted time and my insucurities

I guess I've been carrying them too long anyway

I'm only looking for happiness that's here to stay

some trick of time

leads me to think

maybe I could just rewind

to a time of innocence

when I was so oblivious to everything beyond my four walls

protected from harm, protected from any falls

but we're all waiting now

for the big push to come

just like we all wait

for the rising of the sun

clinging to the hope

that fate might make a sudden turn

otherwise we might crash and burn

If you love someone, set them free.
If they come back they’re yours;
If they don’t they never were.
However, in today’s world, this quote finds its own MODERN VERSIONS depending on the kind of people you are:

Pessimist:
If you love someone,
Set her free …
If she ever comes back, she’s yours,
If she doesn’t, as expected, she never was

Optimist:
If you love someone,
Set her free …
Don’t worry, she will come back .
Suspicious:
If you love someone,
Set her free …
If she ever comes back, ask her why.

Impatient:
If you love someone,
Set her free …
If she doesn’t come back within some time forget her.

Patient:
If you love someone, set her free ..
If she doesn’t come back,
continue to wait until she comes back …

Playful
If you love someone,
Set her free …
If she comes back, and if you love her still,
set her free again, repeat …

C++ Programmer:
if(you-love(m_she))
m_she.free()
if(m_she == NULL)
m_she = new CShe;
Animal-Rights Activist:
If you love someone,
Set her free,
In fact, all living creatures deserve to be free!!

Lawyers:
If you love someone,
Set her free,
Clause 1a of Paragraph 13a-1 in the Second
Amendment of the Matrimonial Freedom

Biologist :
If you love someone,
Set her free,
She’ll evolve.

Statisticians :
If you love someone,
Set her free,
If she loves you, the probability of her coming
back is high
If she doesn’t, your relation was improbable
anyway.

Schwarzenegger’s fans:
If you love someone,
Set her free,
SHE’LL BE BACK!

Over possessive person :
If you love someone
don’t set her free.

MBA :
If you love someone set her free instantaneously
and look for others simultaneously

Psychologist :
If you love someone
set her free
If she comes back her super ego is dominant
If she doesn’t come back her id is supreme
If she doesn’t go, she must be crazy.

Somnambulist :
If you love someone
set her free
If she comes back it’s a nightmare
If she doesn’t, you must be dreaming

So people which category do you belong to?? Me am a romantic at heart so I still believe in the original quote!!!

The Lord is worthy to be Praised and Adored.

- Napoleon

Jack Nicklaus

To the Mormon Church,

Your efforts in garnering both financial support and utilizing your religious institutional influence to galvanized your membership (both inside and outside the state of California) to support the passage of Proposition 8, has revealed the Church’s intent to force its agenda on to the political landscape.

You have been vocal and have proclaimed to the world in no uncertain terms that your beliefs center on the family built on the foundation of marriage between husband and wife – a man and woman only.  This is driven by your eternal concept of marriage between a man and woman (in your eternal theology a man and women) as the highest possible existence of eternal happiness and exaltation in your Heaven.  Well, you are entitled to your beliefs. It is America, after all.

However, to launch an institutional campaign along with the fundamental Christian groups into our government election process is not right. No matter what legal loop holes or precedence is cited, organized religion should stay out of government and the politics.

Ironically, some of the vicious attacks against the early Mormon Church or more correctly, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, were by fundamental Christian groups working the machinations of government to destroy it. I guess the Church has taken some lessons from its former enemies.

Of course, there is a bigger picture to this than simply fighting the gays. You, The Mormon Church or Latter Day Saint Church believe you are the literal restoration of the Church of Jesus Christ on earth with His full authority.  In fact, when your prophet Joseph Smith had his First Vision, he was reportedly told by God the Father and Jesus Christ that none of the Churches on the earth (including every Christian Church) was true and that they were an abomination in their sight.

18 My object in going to inquire of the Lord was to know which of all the sects was right, that I might know which to join. No sooner, therefore, did I get possession of myself, so as to be able to speak, than I asked the Personages who stood above me in the light, which of all the sects was right (for at this time it had never entered into my heart that all were wrong)—and which I should join.

  19 I was answered that I must join none of them, for they were all wrong; and the Personage who addressed me said that all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those professors were all corrupt; that: “they draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me, they teach for doctrines the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof.”

  20 He again forbade me to join with any of them; (Joseph Smith History Chapter 1:18-20)

With your belief  that you are Jesus Christ’s only true Church on earth, and the only one authorized to act on his behalf as far as the affairs of men, I am sure your actions, as far as Proposition 8 are seen by you as divinely inspired.  Pouring all the millions of dollars into advertising and calling up your members to action in the spirit of that mission, you see as part of God’s plan.

I am sure that was his plan back in June of 1978, when you finally allowed black men to hold the Priesthood in the Church. Somehow before that  date,  your Jesus felt all Black men were not worthy to hold it.  Some of your former leaders over the pulpit have mentioned that it had to do with what they did in their pre-existent spirit state and that while on this earth they would not be able to exercise leadership in the church until 1978. Then all of sudden, in a revelation to your prophet, the Lord said it was time. I also know that the Church was growing into a lot of Black nations and you needed leaders. The Lord is practical after all, I guess.

Oh yes, Utah was also one of the last states to make interracial marriage legal. Also, one of your books of scripture speaks of a dark and light skin people.  The dark skin people were prophesied to become “white” and delightsome when they heard the gospel and accept it.  Oh yea, you later changed the word “white” to pure.  You felt that would help clarify the meaning of it. That clarification took a while didn’t it?  You Mormons sure have an obsession about the color of people’s skin.

Your Jesus was also practical back in 1890, when the Church discontinued polygamy, which was an eternal law.  However the U.S. Congress forbade it. I think the Church still believes in it for heaven but not practicing it for the time being on earth.  Of course, there are those pesky splinter groups in Southern Utah, Arizona and Texas. This is because your prophet at the time saw a revelation where he said,

 “The Lord showed me by vision and revelation exactly what would take place if we did not stop this practice. If we had not stopped it, you would have had no use for . . . any of the men in this temple at Logan; for all ordinances would be stopped throughout the land of Zion. Confusion would reign throughout Israel, and many men would be made prisoners. This trouble would have come upon the whole Church, and we should have been compelled to stop the practice.” (EXCERPTS FROM THREE ADDRESSES BYPRESIDENT WILFORD WOODRUFF REGARDING THE MANIFESTO, Doctrine and Covenants, Official Declaration 1)

Now, back in the 1970’s you were one of the most outspoken and politically active groups against the Equal Rights Amendment for women.  You used the same argument that you are using in the current debate that the passage of that amendment would have also undermine the family and that it will actually work against women.  

Of course this viewpoint was coming from a church leadership of entirely white men (at the very top of priesthood leadership). Sure Utah women got the right to vote first; sure you have an active lay leadership of women in women organizations; leadership over youth organizations; women in missionary organizations; and in children’s organizations.  They just can’t hold the priesthood and be prophets over the whole church.

 Apparently motherhood is their calling. Not to downplay motherhood, because I agree that  is a noble endeavor, but I have a hard time seeing that women would not make good priesthood holders since there are now many examples of great women ministers and leaders across other churches. Jesus only knows, I guess.

With your spotted history in dealing with minority group rights within and without the church, your current political campaign with Proposition 8 is of great concern.  The polished All American image that the Mormons have carefully crafted into the consciousness of America over the decades is simply a veneer to an antiquated pioneer, patriarchal, bigoted religious system that is holding on to a power base for its purposes. 

You do not know the wonderful gay and lesbian couples who have loving and caring relationships. They do not deserve to be marginalized by you through the lens of your religious beliefs that I frankly find rooted in bigotry and not remotely Christ-like.

You are doing more to spread hatred and to plant the seedlings that cause more violence and discrimination.

You have no business trying to influence the political debate according to Mormon beliefs no matter how divinely inspired you think you have been appointed to act on this measure. Organized Religion has to be separated from Government.

Sincerely,

A California Voter

There is more at stake here then gay rights.   There is the growing influence of a politically powerful, despotic Church riding on the coat tails of an ignorant fundamental right wing tide.

It is time we close our door to the Mormon Church to our political business and our doors to their gospel of exclusion. 

Vote No to Proposition 8!

Blogger, Radio Personality. Podcaster, Drag Personality Sister Dottie Dixon brings both humor and poignant political commentary from her Spanish Fork, Utah home. She brings a voice of reason to an otherwise conservative and somewhat bigoted,  predominant Utah LDS " Mormon" culture mind set. 

One of her lastest posts (and podcasts) is on the Church of Jesus Chirst of Latter Day Saints' ( Mormon Church) political and monetary campaign in support of Proposition 8 in California to ban Same Sex Marriage. The church is marshaling its nearly 3/4 of a million members in the state as well as its millions of out of state members to contribute, to blog,  and to support the measure in any way they can do it. It is one of the most outright blatant moves of organized religion in the United States to influence public policy.

Sister Dottie expresses her disgust as shown in a copy of her post below.

I've had a really lousy week so far so I decided to cheer myself up with some lemon and orange slices. No, not the fruit and no, not the candy that looks like the fruit but the polymer clay cane variety. I've been thinking of making a fring-y bracelet for awhile now, using lemon, orange, lime and pink grapefruit cane slices, and today was the perfect day to start that project!

I took a break around mid-day and went for a nice long walk. What a beautiful warm fall day. It was so peaceful and quiet except for the swishing sound of my sneakers on the newly fallen golden leaves. I love their sweet dry smell. The sky was so blue and the trees were ablaze in orange, red, gold and maroon. As I looked up at the trees, I could see the leaves falling down like a soft rain whenever the breeze kicked up. A perfect moment...

I frequent several different groups and activities that have their own small villages of people. It's relatively easy for me to talk to most people as I am very outgoing. I only seem to have difficulty chatting with people I am interested in dating, but I'm working on that, too. In these groups, there are people who I've met who I felt did not like me at all. I am very intuitive, and these people are abrupt. They send out subtle signals that tell me to go away---they don't want to talk. I am not too concerned with this, because I realize you can't be friends with everyone.

In talking to others, and in getting to know these particular people better, I've recently realized that these people had been sending "go-away" signals because they are shy. In most cases, it had nothing at all to do with me. These people act the same way towards others, too. These shy people are not as comfortable as I am with social interaction, and so they limited it. This is a revelation to me. Since I'm not shy, I'd never considered that possibility when making assumptions about why they kept to themselves. It's a great reminder that assumptions are not useful---people are unique and wonderful creatures and often cannot be understood at a glance. This is a joyful thing, because it's so much fun getting to know each individual. I am constantly surprised by the brilliance of the universe and the people in it!

Your assignment, should you choose to accept it:

191. What assumptions have you been making in your social interactions with others? What else might explain the behaviors you've been experiencing? Try to come to each person you know with a fresh perspective, without putting in so much interpretation of subtle signals which may or may not be there. How did this make you feel?

From Wikipedia:
"Ordinary World" is the first single from Duran Duran's self-titled 1993 album, better known as the Wedding Album. The song peaked No. 3 in the American charts and No. 6 in the British charts. Simon LeBon, the vocalist, later sang this song with Luciano Pavarotti, to help children affected by war in Bosnia & Herzegovina.

By the early 90s, Duran Duran's popularity had faded. Their album Liberty had proved a commercial failure, its two singles failing to make a significant showing on British or American charts.

It wasn't until Capitol leaked "Ordinary World" to a radio station in Florida in the autumn of 1992 that it looked like Duran Duran mania might yet hit again. The single proved so popular that Capitol had to push the US release date up, ultimately releasing it in December. In the UK, the original January release date stood. The song can be credited as introducing Duran Duran to a new generation of fans.

The strings in the song were arranged and performed by Nick Rhodes, using a Kurzweil K2000, a digital synthesizer that was highly advanced for its time.

The song won an Ivor Novello Award in May 1994 and later featured in the soundtrack to the film Layer Cake in 2005.

Came in from a rainy Thursday
on the avenue
thought I heard you talking softly

I turned on the lights, the TV
and the radio
still I can't escape the ghost of you

What has happened to it all?
Crazy, some'd say
Where is the life that I recognize?
gone away

But I won't cry for yesterday
there's an ordinary world
Somehow I have to find
and as I try to make my way
to the ordinary world
I will learn to survive

Passion or coincidence
once prompted you to say
"Pride will tear us both apart"
Well now pride's gone out the window
cross the rooftops
run away
left me in the vacuum of my heart

What is happening to me?
Crazy, some'd say
Where is my friend when I need you most?
Gone away

but I won't cry for yesterday
there's an ordinary world
somehow I have to find
and as I try to make my way
to the ordinary world
I will learn to survive

Papers in the roadside
tell of suffering and greed
here today, forgot tomorrow
ooh, here besides the news
of holy war and holy need
ours is just a little sorrowed talk

And I don't cry for yesterday
there's an ordinary world
Somehow I have to find
and as I try to make my way
to the ordinary world
I will learn to survive

every one
is my world, I will learn to survive
any one
is my world, I will learn to survive
any one
is my world
every one
is my world

In the last post, I talked about needing to work through the issues of the first 3 chakras in order to gain autonomy, individuation, an internal sense of security, to connect with others, have relationships, offer your creativity and receive material rewards for it. All of that must happen in order to gain clarity about your desire and your purpose.

The chakra system is the spiritual link between purpose and profit. You'll conquer your issues and your obstacles, make decisions, offer your gifts, take responsibility to get your gifts to as many people as possible.

The 4th chakra is about following your bliss- this will lead you to your purpose. Do what you love and combine it with a sound business plan. Passion + Purpose + Plan = Profit. Having done the work on issues around the first 3 chakras, you can really get behind yourself, be effective, balanced and creative and do the work you love while getting paid for it.

The 5th chakra is about knowing your core message and getting it out to a wide audience. The money is in your message so get it out as widely as possible. Many entrepreneurs' success is hampered by their aversion or resistance to marketing. When it's the message linked to your purpose, it becomes sharing and offering rather than marketing or selling.

The 6th chakra is about the decision-making and evolution-causing part of the brain. The transformational power of decisions leads to unstoppable wealth. Make the decision to be hugely successful, wealthy, philanthropic, or all 3. Pareto's Principle applies here too: 80% of decisions are made in the moment. 20% require deliberation or research.

The 7th chakra connects you with the divine. When you get yourself aligned with this energy, you become a channel for energy and it bypasses the ego! How cool is that?! I LOVE this. Get connected; stay connected. Life and work are soooo much easier this way; more fun too. Helpful hint: stop multi-tasking; it interferes with this connection. Inspiration = spirit comes in.

Our souls have a non-negotiable desire for life purpose. Your auric field holds your life purpose. Success is an inside job; BE the person you are meant to be. Now is a good time to begin. How well you're doing with each of the chakras determines how bright your energy is and how immediate your manifesting will be. We emit a very clear frequency when we clear out the baggage and people and opportunities are then attracted to us. Re-write your story, dump the heavy baggage, cultivate bright new energy. Theta ,NLP, Coaching and Hypnosis are great tools for this. When you are BEING your purpose, everything will happen!

That's what I get for signing up one hour before the class closed and then discovering there were 4 preclass assignments. I should get detention for this. I should have to stay up late to complete all work before Week 3's assignments are emailed tomorrow. Sounds like a plan!

Well, I promised to share my assignments, so here is my first LO. I know, I know. Enough with the flowers and the bling already. But the assignment was to create a LO using the stuff you love just to get it out of your system before she whips you into shape. So deal!

I also found this picture that I took last week of the LO in progress. It reminded me of Cathy's class at CKC over the weekend where she asked what does scrapbooking mean to me. This was the same thing I was thinking when I was trying to find words to include on the layout. I ended up with this pile. About the only thing missing is the word "witness." To me, scrapbooking is a way of recognizing, or witnessing, our own lives as well as our family's. What does it mean to you?

Libraries are also a sacred place to me. It's almost as if all the words and knowledge of the books murmur in the walls. Maybe it is because libraries are such quiet places, but you can almost hear the whispers of past poets and historians.

I had one of those days recently, when time was on my side. I had the whole morning to myself. Doing what I do best.

Wandering. Wondering.

I found a little second hand book shop behind St George's cathedral. I bought a little inspirational book about a woman with MS Multiple Sclerosis. It's called "Get out of my way. I'm dancing". Like that, I knew I would love it.

I went to lie in the green grass of Company's Garden to read. I had a delicious sandwich (of which I gave half to a home less person - that's Cape Town right there) I made some marks in my book, on chapters or phrases that were particularly valuable to me. I felt the warmth of the morning sun in my face. I saw the signs of spring in the trees and people's faces. And I thought about how great of a gift communication is.

When words, thoughts and feelings blend together with all the beauty around, the message is unmistakable.

I always have a few books on the roll at the same time. That way I can choose the right book for the state I'm in. Or maybe, I become the state of which the books I read...

At the moment, I can tell you. I am in deep...

I see a girl. Myself.

I am holding a camera, filming the girl. Me.

She is running up a hill, eager to get to the top, to the cliff as fast as she can and watch the dramatic waves create a gray pattern in the landscape. As far as she can see there will be shades of gray; almost white, almost black. Also a shade right in between almost white and almost black.

She is running like crazy, looking back once in a while, smiling. And as her long, white dress gets in the way she lifts it up and uncovers her pale legs. The wind penetrates her skin like thousands of needles.

She runs faster. And faster. And I keep up with her, looking straight in her eyes through the camera every time she turns around. She doesn’t even slow down. She is soaked in rain and appears to be thankful. Her hair is all messed up, her cheeks blossoming red and in her eyes, there is a gaze, a hint of a story she is dying to tell.

We reach the top. She looks back. At me. At the green, intensely green hill. Smiles. Awaits. Lets the green and gray get mixed up in her sight before she close her eyes and lets herself fall down the cliff. Smiling like I’ve never seen her smile before.

…like I’ve never seen myself smile before.

Smiling like she wants to live in the ocean.

------------------------------------------------------

This is what I see when I listen to this song:

Las Vecinas -variacion - Banda sonora de ALBERTO IGLESIAS

It is absolutely the most beautiful day here.  The weather is perfect in every sense of the word.  Not a cloud in the sky.  The air is warm with just a soft kiss of a breeze.  The lake in front of me shines and shimmers in the sunlight.

I sit here in my garden breathing in the peace of this moment, sipping iced tea, letting my thoughts float on the breeze.  As usual, they drift to loved ones far away.

My attention is captured by dragonflies dancing before me.  Bright red and bright blue colored beauties, dancing and enjoying the sunshine too.  They seem happy to dance and chase each other around.  For some reason my garden is filled with more dragonflies than I have ever seen in my entire life.

Appropriately, my ipod is playing "I'll take you there" by The Staple Singers.  Seems to fit the mood and the flow of today.  

The dragonflies don't care who will win this election.  They don't care about the petty things in life or about tomorrow.  They only care about right now, the sunshine, and living in the moment.  So they dance.

Here I sit, watching them, the sun warming my skin with a smile on my face.  Its a good day.

All the photos are off here website: lizwolfe.com

Theres tones more of her work on her website, these photographs are mainly of the latest work so be sure to look at her earlier ones.

http://www.thesmallstakes.com/

Your life can be what you want it to be
Take it one day at a time.

Count your blessings, not your troubles,
and you'll make it through what comes along.

Within you are so many answers,
understand, have courage, be strong.

Don't put limits on yourself,
your dreams are waiting to be realized.

Don't leave your important decisions to chance
Reach for your peak, your goal, and your prize.

Nothing wastes more energy than worrying,
the longer a problem is carried, the heavier it gets.

Don't take things too seriously
Live a life of serenity, not a life of regrets.

Remember that a little love goes a long way
Remember that a lot goes forever.

Remember that friendship is a wise investment,
life's treasures are people ... together.

Have health and hope and happiness,
take the time to wish on a star.

And don't ever forget for even a day ...
How very special YOU are!

With all my love,

Lea Yekutiel

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I try to mix it up a bit and provide snippets of The Sinclair Family gong show, along with the life of a start up Mompreneur, some www.raspberrykids.com plugs and a bunch of hodge podge in between.

I sincerely enjoy blogging although my sister and several friends who shall remain nameless are mortified that I put "everything out there" for the world to read.  To me it is an outlet, a coping mechanism and a sounding board (even if noone is listening it still feels good to get it off my ample chest).

I have always been a writer.  I used to be the kid that put my name on EVERYTHING ... much to my mother's chagrin.  I wrote on books, toys, the wall, pretty much anything that would accept lead, ball point or crayon.  I would sign my signature over and over and over again on a piece of paper, I would make lists, I would take fake drive in orders just because I liked writing "FF" for french fries on the paper.

When I moved away from home 13 years ago I wrote countless letters to my great Aunts, my family & my friends and yes this was old school correspondence before email was invented.  I still write letters to a couple of great Aunts who are still with us and I miss buying cards and writing letters to my mom and dad more than I can explain.  There is just something about putting pen to paper that works for me and allows me to express myself more eloquently and truthfully than I can sometimes verbalize.

OK, so now that we've established that I enjoy writing/blogging so much, I suppose the bigger question is "Does anyone actually enjoy reading my blog?".  I would love to hear any comments you may have.
Blogger Sue (Funny those initials are BS and yes, as those of you who know me can attest, I'm full of it)