When I beckon joy, it follows me around wherever I go.

It dances and plays and calls me friend, pausing only long enough to kiss me on the forehead.

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Craving joy?

Read Happy for No Reason: 7 Steps to Being Happy from the Inside Out by Marci Shimoff. Brilliant exercises and insights.

Listen to Musings for the Soul to Remember by Petey Silveira. Inspiration to sooth your mind.

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“Joy Dancing” painting is from an illustration I created for the book cover of 365 Days of Gratitude by Sherrie Austin. Sherrie is a delightful, ebullient soul who absolutely radiates fun and joy.

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Guest post by Laina Orlando
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You can’t change a man but you can change a green smoothie.

My first green smoothie … not the first I’d ever HAD but the first I’d ever MADE … was very phhfft plffht phhlffft. (That is the sound of spitting it out.)

I actually got half way through it, only because I knew it was “good for me” … and then never wanted to ever venture anywhere near another one for the rest of my natural born life.

As I write this I sit happily sipping my TENTH green smoothie … not because I’m a changed woman (becoming happy with gagging down a miserable mess in a cup) but because my smoothie is a changed smoothie.

Out of this experience were borne …

Green-Smoothie-Luvin’ Tips

1. Texture, texture, texture: bananas.

   A smoothie which is not, well, smooth … can be a real bummer.

   Choking down gritty slime is not my idea of a good time. My first smoothie was this way. See, I like using the whole fruit or vegetable … because the “good for you stuff” is found in abundance in the peel.

   First timers may want to peel their apples if it’s really an issue but I found that I can leave my peels in if I add a banana to the mix.

   The first time I ever made a smoothie I didn’t use banana because I didn’t feel I needed that flavor. But the awesome thing about a banana is that it blends up ultra smooth. Try tossing one or two in there if you’re having texture issues.

2. Broccoli is not for the faint of heart.

   If you’re a first timer or easing yourself into this thing, do not, I say do NOT, add veggies which have pungent or strong flavors to your smoothie. Unless you just love, love, LOVE that flavor.

   Pineapple chunks are strong-in-a-good-way. Vegetables with strong flavors like broccoli, cabbage, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, kale and chard may be best saved for later.

   One thing which may surprise you is …

3. Spinach is your friend.

   The cool thing about spinach is that it’s jam packed with good stuff —folate, vitamins A, C, E, and K, and several anti-oxidants­—and better yet, it blends down pretty nicely into a relatively smooth consistency. And the flavor is pretty easily masked with other things.

   Such as …

4. Flavoriffic additions: ginger, lemon, mint.

   A little punch of flavor can be added by tossing in a hunk of fresh ginger, half a lemon or even some mint.

   Ginger is the one which surprised me most because when I’m at a sushi restaurant I only eat a tiny bit of the ginger and it’s not my absolute favorite. But when I’m drinking a smoothie and taste that little hint of ginger, it’s really delicious.

   Go figure.

5. Get good tools.

   Years ago, before my hard-core green smoothie experiment, I used to try making smoothies with my blender. Not good.

   I had to chop down my ingredients into small, small pieces … blending took forever … some things just didn’t want to blend at all … and the end result wasn’t even all that smooth.

   Tools like my HealthMaster really go a long way in determining whether or not you will actually MAKE these things more than once.

   The HealthMastersucks ingredients in effortlessly, makes your smoothie super-smooth and eliminates the need for wasting lots of time chopping. You can have a nice delicious and healthy smoothie on its way to your belly in minutes.

   And that’s the whole point, right?

And here it is now …
my new boyfriend, um, I mean, my green-smoothie-maker!

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For me, Santa Clause represents the beautiful
childlike magic of believing in things you cannot see.
How perfect!

Two of my most beloved friends, Rant and Sly, are giving away a special holiday treat … free digital download of The Vehicle’s entire album DigiTales … 10 catchy pop songs. They’ve been compared to Weezer, The Killers, and Jet. Download for free before January 1st.

Love and hugs to everyone who comes to visit and read my posts here.

Have a magical holiday!

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Download DigiTales. Thank you Rant & Sly, for the gift of your music. You two have the biggest hearts in the world and I’m so blessed to be your friend … plus there’s the talent thing! Wow, what a combo! :: Photograph by Rodica Nelson Purple Gift Box

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Pain can be a good thing.

Yes, you heard me right. A good thing.

To soften the impact of the word, I made it a character and began calling him “Mr. Payne”  … sounds harmless, right? “Mr. Payne just pulled up in his purple Maserati.”

This week I was going-going-going. Nothing bad really. Actually pretty wonderful things were unfolding.

I was following inspiration and creating … painting pictures for clients … birthing logos, building books, creating web pages … conspiring from afar with my teammate Steve, superman developer, able to leap tall computer towers in a single … well, you get the picture.

Where was I?

Ah yes.

Going going going.

When I say “going” I do mean “going” … the type of going where you forget to do the self-care thing.

Little things like, well … eating … sleeping …

My friends think I’m nuts when I get into this space. They don’t believe it’s humanly possible to be painting and creating and building and conspiring with superman developers all day and all night and not sleeping.

But any artist will tell you: It is possible. It is so possible!

And when you do that … and your body really needs that self-care … trust me, Mr. Payne will come knockin’ to make sure you remember.

And if you continue not to listen, he knocks HARD.

Last night he busted the door down.

At one point, I typed to Steve, “Ouch!”  By morning I couldn’t even type straight, I was forced to lie down. Literally forced. Mr. Payne was comin’ at me from all directions.

I took the cell phone into my bed and called mom, “I’m totally sick!” After all, if I were to die over here, somebody should know, right? 

My body took over and I passed out. Didn’t wake up til 9:30 pm.

9:30, people!

I woke to a note on my door (and food in my fridge!)

Not a note on the door to my house but a note on the door to my bedroom.

Not a note on the outside of the door to my bedroom but a note on the inside of the door to my bedroom.

Someone had come into my house, into my bedroom, and I didn’t even know it! That is sooo unlike me, the chick who wakes up when the sprinkler goes on outside. I must’ve really needed that rest.

In fact, I know that I did.

I woke up thinking, “My body is *SO* smart! Thank you, body!” (Give credit where credit is due: Mr. Payne is so smart. He gave me no other option but to lie down and get some rest.)

You see, Mr. Payne doesn’t just visit randomly. He stops by to say, “Hey!” with a message to share and he comes bearing gifts. Mostly the message is, “Stop!” Usually it’s that.

And how smart he is when he says that, right? Have you ever noticed when you get sick, it comes at a time when a break and a rest would really serve you well?

I have.

• Have you ever received the gift of forced-rest, right when you could use it most?
• How about the gift of support and deeper appreciation of the people in your world who really care?
• What gifts have you received from Mr. Payne?

Next time he comes knockin’, stop and say, “Well, hello Mr. Payne! What are you here to share with me?”

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Sleeping Soundly Art Print :: Visit We Are THAT Family for more Works-For-Me-Wednesday ideas! :: Special thanks goes out to Mr. Payne for his cameo appearance, momma ‘n dad for the gift of their love and support, superman Steve for saving the world with me (or at least the world’s web sites) and to YOU for reading this for sharing a bit of your time with me here. I so love receiving your comments!

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Save/Share to ...]]> http://www.gigablonde.com/blog/the-gift-of-pain/feed/ 0 http://www.gigablonde.com/blog/i-create-my-day/ http://www.gigablonde.com/blog/i-create-my-day/#comments Thu, 15 Oct 2009 11:16:25 +0000 Col http://www.gigablonde.com/blog/?p=1079

From the film What the Bleep Do We Know!?

“I wake up in the morning and I consciously create my day the way I want it to happen. Now sometimes, because my mind is examining all the things that I need to get done, it takes me a little bit to settle down and get to the point of where I’m actually intentionally creating my day. But here’s the thing: When I create my day and out of nowhere little things happen that are so unexplainable, I know that they are the process or the result of my creation. And the more I do that, the more I build a neural net in my brain that I accept that that’s possible. (This) gives me the power and the incentive to do it the next day.

“So if we’re consciously designing our destiny, and if we’re consciously from a spiritual standpoint throwing in with the idea that our thoughts can affect our reality or affect our life — because reality equals life — then I have this little pact that I have when I create my day. I say, ‘I’m taking this time to create my day and I’m infecting the quantum field. Now if (it) is in fact the observer’s watching me the whole time that I’m doing this and there is a spiritual aspect to myself, then show me a sign today that you paid attention to any one of these things that I created, and bring them in a way that I won’t expect, so I’m as surprised at my ability to be able to experience these things. And make it so that I have no doubt that it’s come from you,’ and so I live my life, in a sense, all day long thinking about being a genius or thinking about being the glory and the power of God or thinking about being unconditional love.

“I’ll use living as a genius, for example. And as I do that during parts of the day, I’ll have thoughts that are so amazing, that cause a chill in my physical body, that have come from nowhere. But then I remember that that thought has an associated energy that’s produced an effect in my physical body. Now that’s a subjective experience, but the truth is is that I don’t think that unless I was creating my day to have unlimited thought, that that thought would come.”

(Dr. Joe Dispenza in What the Bleep Do We Know!?)

Clink! The shaving gel hits porcelain. I pick it up, turn ‘round and … Dink! Wide-tooth comb at 1:00, knocked down off its perch. I laugh, “I’m such a spazz!”

Pause, review, remove.

Because … What was that? Did I hear a label being tossed around? I hate the word “hate” but I apologize in advance, I really must use it here:

I hate labels.

They don’t feel good. Plus when you get right down to it, they’re verbal post-it notes. They never stick.

Think about it:

Guy’s supposed to come fix your cable. Doesn’t show. What a jerk! “Jerk?” Maybe.

Or maybe he’s a cable guy. A cable guy who didn’t come.

Same guy brings home a puppy to his daughter. Sweet! Sweet guy. He now has two post-it’s stuck to his forehead:

Sweet.

Jerk.

What a sweet jerk!

And about a million other things.

Y’see, with labels it’s all or nothin’. Either we acknowledge that he’s everything from dark to light … or we remove his dark label and talk about the action, not the person.  I prefer label removal. Observe:

“I’m such a spazz.”

Or

“I knocked the over the shaving gel. I knocked over the comb.”

Hmm. Feels better already.

Here’s the technique:

Pause: “Hang on a sec, I notice I just labeled somebody.” (Self or other, same rules apply). Not to worry, happens all the time with us humans.

Review: Rewind and look back. What was your misperception? Or what was your over-generalization? What did you think or say that was only a half-truth? Labels usually involve one of these.

Remove: Get real and super-truthful. Talk about the exact action instead of the exaggerated name or adjective.

“I’m an idiot” becomes “I forgot my keys.”

“He’s a player” becomes “He dates lots of girls.”

“She’s a snob” becomes “She didn’t say hi to me.”

It may take a bit of practice but label-removal is both freeing and simple. Like pullin’ off a bandaid, but without the sting. It only hurts if you leave it *ON*.

Look at the action, don’t label the person. Try a week of this and see how you feel. And don’t worry if you come home one day to find yourself covered with post-it’s … We’re all human. It happens. Just go back to the simple instructions:

Pause, review, remove.

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Down here is where I usually “give credit where credit is due” but guess what? Label removal is my own idea so if you tell your peeps, this time YOU’re gonna have to give ME credit, how ’bout that? :: The image you see is a card from the Power Thought Card Deck by Louse Hay :: Visit We Are THAT Family for more Works-For-Me-Wednesday ideas! :: Share on Facebook

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Pollyanna gets a bad rap.

The world at large may snarkily label the eternal optimist “Pollyanna.” But y’know what? There’s a big difference … I might even venture to say a bi-hi-HIG difference … between

• calling the gray sky blue

and taking the time to remember that

• the rain sounds nice on the roof
• watering the plants today was already taken care of for me
• the birds look so cute splashing around
• it was hot and sticky before and now it’s not

I’m just sayin’.

We all know (you know this, right?) that what we focus on expands. You think, “I’d really love to drive a VW Bug” and suddenly they are popping up all over the highway. I mean, everywhere, right?

So I say take advantage of that principle and bring some good stuff in. What do you dig about here and now? What floats your boat?

“What we ask you to do is practice moving your gaze. Practice changing your perspective. Practice talking to different people. Practice going to new places. Practice sifting through the data for the things that feel like you want to feel and using those things to cause you to feel a familiar place. In other words, we want you to feel familiar in your joy. Familiar in your positive expectation, familiar in your knowing that all is well, because this Universe will knock itself out giving you evidence of that Well-being once you find that place.”

— Abraham-Hicks

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What a fun picture, right? It’s called Tejados II and you can click HERE to pick one up for yourself! :: The beautiful quote is from Abraham-Hicks. If you like that, you’ll LOVE their book The Law of Attraction :: Visit We Are THAT Family for more Works-For-Me-Wednesday ideas! :: Share on Facebook

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When you’re making choices based on joy and high vibrations, everything else sorta falls into place. You don’t need to figure it all out. You don’t need to toil away or try-try-try.

I’ve been making videos for a year now (happy anniversary! ) and more recently, leading teleclasses.

Why? Um … cuz I like it.

That’s really it. I’m just following inspired action and picking up a trail of joy breadcrumbs and boy has it been an awesome ride!

I love to travel and following this trail has brought me on 8 trips this year. Just this month, with no pushing of any sort, I’ve been asked to do a bunch of really awesome joint ventures with people. Next week I’m flying out to California to record and edit video promos for one of my favorite clients in the whole, wide world. I’ve met people I used to watch and admire, have been to their houses and hung out with their families and have come to call them some of my dearest friends.

Inspired action is like that. You may not know why you are doing it, you may not know the end result, but what you do know is that what you are doing feels good. And that’s all that matters.

Drop the thought, “I need to know.”

Drop the thought, “I should only do things that make money.”

Drop the thought, “Where is this leading?”

Drop the focus on what you do not know and begin focusing on what you do know. “This feels good.” That’s all you need to know. Just follow your own particular joy breadcrumbs and your life will unfold in surprising and fascinating and delightful ways. Promise.

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Special thanks so Sonia Miller for pointing me to this joy-filled video. “We attract what we feel about, not what we think about.” :: Visit We Are THAT Family for more Works-For-Me-Wednesday ideas! :: Share on Facebook

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