Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Two strange things I saw today

I saw my first menorah of the season! On top of a car! I couldn't believe it! I know that Judaism is a Lifestyle for many but this is really taking it to the streets! I laughed so hard I cried!




This 1 of 2 or 3 huge gray clouds hanging over the rush hour traffic. Definitely not a funnel cloud. Didn't see any UFOs. Wondering if anybody else noticed or cared.. So I checked all the weather dot coms and local news stations. Couldn't find one mention of these clouds. Strange..huh?

I'm Dreaming of a Black Christmas

I don't care how dismal things may seem, the economy Grinch cannot interfere with my holiday spirit. The days of easy credit are a distant memory.. And if I had better credit right now, would I use it on gifts? I'll just be creative and pray that the cost of supplies doesn't leave me in despair.

My daughter worked on Black Friday weekend, I don't think her store made $10k the entire time.

Retailers in the red, and buyers with black and blue bruises on their feet from bargain shopping. Nothing is worth getting up at zero dark thirty for - anymore!

Oh! And stay out of Walmart. It's a trap! I went in there with one of those hand held shopping baskets today and rolled out with a 4-wheeler full of stuff! Groceries.. But still!

My brother sent this photo from Iowa today. Texted me and said... "It's colder than a well digger's ass up here!" Iowa!? Is that Heaven? His new job transferred him there. It was that or remain unemployed in Dallas. Up there, they don't call what Texans refer to as snow.. "Snow." It's "drifts" and "flurries." To them, snow is 8 inches or more of the White Stuff. What ever!

Speaking of White Stuff... I'm in the mood for me some Aaron Neville.. No. He's not white, but one of my faves that he sings is "White Christmas." Don't you just love it?




I'm making myself a promise. NEXT CHRISTMAS I'm gonna be in the Black! This recession crap is just plain nuts!

There is a fun side to teaching your teen to drive

It was a laugh out loud moment for me and my teen driver this morning.. I had an early errand but it was raining, so I drove. An opportunity for me to give her pointers and her opportunity to discuss my screaming. Surely, you jest! I'm no screamer! "Yes, mom, you are!"


Her- mocking me: "What are you doing?!" "Why are you slowing down?!" "Get back in your own lane!" "Stop!" "Stop!" I told her.. I don't mean to scream, but if I do.. Well, it goes with the territory. Get over it. She and other parent taught friends swap screaming parents horror stories, too..
"When I say STOP! I! Mean! STOP!"
It's the common mantra. For some reason this offered a ring of truth and we laughed 'til we cried... all the way to her school.

My brother, a former State Trooper taught her the basics...

... But he also TAUGHT ME A THING OR TWO.
Let go and trust her.
It's soooo hard to do. I've been trying! By letting go of the driver seat, the keys, control of the car. It's not that I don't trust my Indigo Child... It's those other fools on the road I'm worried about!

As long as she's a teen driver, I'll be nervous and my cravings for chocolate and wine will persist.

Hope it's not raining after school. It's time for some more high fives and hugs! And I need a hug.



Here's the answer to why men cheat. A: WHY NOT?

Have you seen this rat poison commercial? Watch then read on...



I say, if you love being married to the person you're married to: Prove it.

A month before my brother & ex sister in law split up, she cried on my shoulder that she loved her husband.. wanted to keep her husband... I told her what my other brother told me to tell her.. "Do what you did to get him; to keep him."

This is a repost of my Yeah, but ... Why? post of 12/02/09..
Just changed the title for impact. Just watched The VIEW. They further discussed the Tiger Woods baby mama's drama and panorama. Hmmmm.. That's catchy.

Yeah, but ... Why?

That was my question after learning the truth.

"TIGER WOODS CONFESSES" scrolled across the streaming marquee on CNN. So I Googled...
"Tiger Woods confesses to what?"
Quite frankly, I am shocked!

Two days ago I felt there was too much made out of nothing.. Agreeing with a facebook friend..when he said ""How many black men can tell the police "Come back tomorrow, I do not feel like talking at this time." It was a small car accident. No one was hurt except Tiger. LEAVE TIGER ALONE!!!!"

But for the life of me, I just don't don't get it.

I agree that cheaters want their cake and to eat it too. But in a mature marriage/relationship?

I'm just baffled that a man or a woman would rather cheat than just move out. They can't possible think that the cheating is ok with the person being cheated on.


Read: Why cheat on someone who will be hurt by it?



I've never been married and I don't think I've ever been cheated on. I look forward to marriage someday, but I'd go into with my eyes wide open.

I think.

Does that mean I won't trust my husband to be faithful 'til the end? I'm not sure if a lack of trust would be involved, but I do think that unless he expressly says to me.. "I will not cheat on you," then I won't expect that he will not cheat on me.












Read: What's going on in the mind of a cheating spouse?




"UNHAPPY MARRIAGES are not caused solely by cheating, but by neglect of each other's feelings and needs. A man needs to be desired and appreciated. Men, either through nature, nurture or both, express themselves sexually. It's a primal need and if it is not satisfied, a marriage is in deep trouble."




AND THIS JUST IN:

I did not make this up:

" No Surprise: Negro Ministers are Horny and Cheat on their Wives!

This lady just confirms what we've known for years: Negro buck ministers are just as randy and horny as rappers and gang bangers. Surely you wouldn't hear any scandalous tales of adultery in any pulpit in Landover Baptist Church! All our men are Godly and resist temptation. And, if I may say so, I am the epitome of faithfulness. Despite preaching to beautiful prostitutes, gorgeous young girls, and other seductive harlots, I do not cheat on my wife.

I also think that maybe Jesus was punishing this woman because she claims to be a reverend! Somehow I think she forgot that Corinthians quote about women keeping silence in churches...
LANDOVERBAPTISTCHURCH.NET"


Okie! Dokie!

Monday, December 7, 2009

Celebrate Me Home

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Good cheap pizza and Good cheap wine

I've noticed that my 16 yr old wouldn't care if we had fast food every single night. She'd especially love it if we'd just spend all our food cash on franchised Chicken Tikka Masala. Gosh. I've tried to replicate that sauce so she can get off my back about spending eight bucks on a Weight Watchers portion of chicken and sauce & rice!

Yesterday, we were betwixt & between going places and doing things, and starving.. big time! And no time to spare for Take-Out or Delivery.

Hunger problem solved. What ever's in the freezer. DiGIORNO. That stuff is good! Have you tried it? I mean, it's moaning out loud, yummy lip smacking finger lickin' good! And.. because this was an emergency, I broke out my only bottle of Boone's Farm Sangria. I discovered that stuff when we walked to the corner mart the night I had severe chocolate cravings. I'm finding I need to sip daily, now that I'm fully engaged in parent taught driving lessons.. Daily. The Sangria? Well. It's hardly "authentic." And it's yucky if you drink it cold. But it's just $2.99 a bottle. WT@#$!? Great price! And it's great with DiGIORNO! I'm stocking up. On both. Seriously. It's getting cold outside. LOL

I miss being a wine snob.

BORED? Have some Christmas Fun Online!

Happy Holidays Blogger Friends!

First.. you must know I'm a nutty Buddy the Elf fan! Just in case you miss that in this post..

Second. The holidays are officially here when it snows in Texas! And it did that a couple of days ago. I just want to encourage everyone to consider the Source, when it comes to experiencing what this season is all about. I do believe we're all children of the same universe, but we don't all eat fruit cake. Get it? There's just something about the magic of the Christmas tradition and Santa Claus and reindeer and all that. So.. here's a present from me to you. My collection of links to just about everything I could find relating to Santa Claus and Christmas.

Check back, I WILL be adding more here...





Fun things to do and see ONline:


Elf Yourself. I did... It's hilarious and fun. You can create dancing elves out of virtually anyone you have a photograph of on your computer.

Send your own ElfYourself eCards




"...And that's what Christmas is all about Charlie Brown.."






How cool is this?

Scientists create the world's smallest 'snowman'

Worlds smallest snowman: Scientists create the world's smallest 'snowman'

The snowman is made of two tiny beads, normally used to calibrate electron microscope lenses which are welded together with platinum. Photo by Dr. Cox / National Physical Laboratory


Experts at the National Physical Laboratory in West London made the miniature figure which is just 0.01mm across.

However, far from the thrill of rolling balls of snow around a field to build their masterpiece, it was assembled using tools designed for manipulating nanoparticles. Read more..





"The best way to spread Christmas cheer, is singing loud for all to hear!"
~ Buddy the Elf


Buddy The Elf | Facebook

Check out the official Facebook Page of Buddy The Elf. Get exclusive content and interact with Buddy The Elf right from Facebook.









To spread Christmas Cheer on your website or blog,
get this Christmas Countdown Flash Banner:







Then click here on Christmas Eve to track the man!
NORAD Santa Tracker




... In the mean time, find out which shop in North Pole village is busiest today. When you do, click on that shop to discover a fun activity inside!!!

Click here to go to the North Pole.




This is my daughter's favorite Christmas movie since early childhood, and there's a song here that makes her do hand gestures and break into cute dimply smiles... Yes. Even as a teen! This is a 22 minute movie, but you can fast forward to the song.. "EVEN A MIRACLE NEEDS A HAND." Go to the 11:49 minute mark to hear this cherished Happy Holiday song!

So glad it's Christmas!




Even a Miracle Needs a Hand
You hope- and I'll hurry.
You pray- and I'll plan.
We'll do what's necessary, cause
Even a miracle needs a hand!





Click here for the North Pole Christmas Station








Putumayo World Music Presents: A Family Christmas

View the e-card and listen to the music!

Other languages : Español | Français | Deutsch

These e-cards will launch in a new window and requires the Flash player.



Watch this e-card

Other languages : Español | Français | Deutsch






God Bless this authentic, real bearded, professional Santa! I'm sure he's not the only dedicated descendant of St. Nicholas..





NO! WAIT! HERE is the real Santa Claus! God Bless this Authentic real bearded, Santa from the Mother Land!







Who hasn't gotten this in an email?



Santa's Jigsaw animated flash ecard by Jacquie Lawson

Just put the pieces together and then a cool animation awaits!




Northpole.com celebrates the holidays with dozens of activities for children and families. A child-safe, award-winning holiday site, i>northpole.com promotes a traditional look at Santa’s Secret Village at the North Pole, but with high-tech, creative features to keep children and adults entertained—all for free.




Here's something fun to do OFFline:

I dare you to do the Buddy the Elf Santa Scream...

Go into a mall where Santa is and yell, "SANTA!!!, OH MY GOD, I Know Him!" LOL



Buddy knows an imposter when he sees one. I'm the saaaame way when it comes to Santa!!





If you know of any FUN Christmas sites, links, videos and games please add it here in the comments.

Another way

Recently I asked my teen, "Have you noticed how nice and clean your bathroom smells, how well behaved Oliver is, and how food is ready to eat when you get home from school, work and rehearsals?" She said, "Yes, mom, I have." I said.. In the hours before you get home, things are transformed from ashes to beauty. I pick up after you, make your bed, wipe things down in your bathroom, clean out the litter box, feed the cat and play with him, too. I dust, vacuum, mop and cook.. transforming our house into a home for me and, for you who doesn't live here most of the time during the day, 9-5, Mon-Fri, and sometimes one evening a week 'til 10, and usually on Friday evenings, Saturday and Sunday afternoons.


But are you available to help just a tad, with this transformation sometimes at least 10 - 15 minutes a day, when you are here? I mean, I know you have tons of homework, and you definitely need to decompress and all from your long day at school and your part time gig. Doing house work certainly goes a lot smoother with additional hands and there's always need for a little help. If you could remember this golden chore rule - "Don't touch it twice." If it's already in your hand, do what you need to do with it, then put it away or throw it away, right away.. That would be really nice! And you'll feel good knowing you make a contribution to the peace & harmony around here.. Like you do at school, on your job at the mall, and with your theater crew. It's not a whole lot to ask, you think?

This approach works wonders!

In the back of my mind though.. I'm wondering if she believes I'll revoke her driving privileges, or just not clean out the litter box, or not make dinner.. or yell (like I used to do) as a consequence to not helping. She has taught me to ask nicely, I'm teaching her to do her part. And we'd both rather have peace and harmony.


Art: Just Ask by Susan Cornelis

Friday, December 4, 2009

Were you raised by a single mom? Do you know a single mom?

Donate
Gifts For Moms Logo

Gifts for Single Moms Gift Countdown Begins in Dallas!

  • NOT IN DALLAS? You can donate from any city in the world!

  • Click the DONATE button to support us!

Were you raised by a single mom? Then we know you understand!

Do you know a single mom who barely makes ends meet, who may or may not be in the "system," but doesn't complain much or ask for help? You know she will make sure her kids get gifts and are fed and happy, but she may feel alone and forgotten during the holidays? We want to help her and we need YOU to help US make a difference!

Please send us names of moms in need and please join us in our mission to eradicate the loneliness of being a single mom. We want to remind these mothers that they are appreciated and are special to their children and the community at large. I love what Co-Founder of Gifts For Moms Projects, Hazel Alterman likes to say....

"When we help mothers, we help their children

When we help children, we help heal the world"

We are collecting gifts, gift wrap, food donations for our party, and we're looking for volunteers, too! Visit us at Gifts4Moms.org or call 214-774-2194.

We are in great need of food donations for our Christmas Party just for our single moms - we will provide activities and babysitting for the kids. If you can help, or if you know anyone who can, we offer lots of good publicity in return.

We need 500 gifts but we are currently at 200 gifts and Christmas is only 3 weeks away!

Watch this video clip for last years gift drive:




Famous Folks Raised by Single Moms:

Kim Fields
Tom Cruise
Julia Roberts
Demi Moore
Ray Charles
Christina Aguilera
Alicia Keys
Bill Clinton
Michael Phelps
Alexander Haig, Jr.
Sonia Sotomayor

... to name a few

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

A message in the snow

There's something about the way snow falls and covers everything that brings out the joy in us. My 16 yr old dashed into my room this morning and giggly announced, "Mom, it's snowing." We knew it was imminent and I wondered why the heat was blowing steady throughout the night. But actually seeing it is believing it. Like magic! Especially in Dallas.

Born and raised here, I remember a childhood of many winter snow days. My child will usually enjoy a day or two of snowman making snow days -in February and or March, as we shut down schools and don't go to work, leaving the rest of the country to wonder What the !@#$! are they doing? But it's kinda neat waking up on December 2nd to snow fall. I hope it happens some more!

We'd plan to break out the Christmas decor this evening, too! We have about 5 trees now, and I am hoping to be able to add a couple more. (My secret dream is to someday own a Christmas Tree farm.) The snow makes it perfect for doing this tonight! Unless. Unless! By 4:30pm, it's 90 degrees and sunny and bright out side. Which ain't an impossibility around here!

After I took my daughter to school, I stopped by the grocery store and bought a couple pounds of stew meat. Yep. That's for dinner! The cashier rang me up and asked me how I was getting along with this weather. All I could say is.. "I'm having fun!"

My inner child not only admires the beauty of snow, I love what it does for my spiritual sensibilities as well. Just the sight of it softens my judgments and attachments giving me a glimpse of a personal harmony that I can expect to last this entire day.

I read somewhere that the Hebrew meaning of the words 'as snow'.. as referred to in Isaiah 1:18.. "Your sins shall be as white as snow.."translates to -forgetting my own imperfections and letting go of judgments so my true inner beauty can be revealed. That's the path I'm on!

I like that! Don't you?

And I remember this morning, while removing the snow from the windshield and windows of my mother's Kia Rio parked outside, observing the sound of the snow fall. Amazingly I could hear the muted drifts of fluffy rain carrying a quiet message from God. "Slow down, Jackie. Be as quiet as you can today." But I have things to do today, God! People to see and talk to!

As I drove away from the grocery store parking lot, I began to sense the needs of the day filling up my plate. I got a little scared. I said out loud. "I'm good. It's snowing! It's Christmas! I want more than I have! Where is my change, God? And everything I ever desired to do, flashed before my mind. And I said out loud again, "Please God, open me up to be all that I can be, see what I need to see, speak when I should, and always speak good." I spoke out loud exactly what I wanted to accomplish in the area of my finances. And a sense of calm came over me. I can only believe that God will make the way right.

I come home to my email in-box of the Snow Day pictures from my daughter's cell phone. She sent them on the car ride to school. They're not like winter wonderland photos, but it's all I got!

If you're reading this from the Big D, Have a blessed SNOW DAY! Enjoy it while it lasts!

And the rest of you guys have a BLESSED WINTER SEASON! I know I will.

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

My Ego - My Miracle

"A Course in Miracles isn’t a course in the positive (joy). It is a course in undoing the negative."

I am a ten year student of A Course in Miracles. I have renewed my conviction to undo the negative. It's not me but the "Miracle" that is doing the work for me. I am unlearning every negative thing that I've been taught. I reflect on Heaven by allowing the Miracle to undo the negative. I sit quietly and I do nothing. I look and I wait and I do not judge any more. I won't work at it. I won't fight it. I won't try. I allow myself to be sickened by my choices. Sickened by how I treat others and judge others. I am sickened by how I treat myself. I am sickened by how angry and annoyed I can get with the Baptists and how I loathe the religious zealous folks, and the Church, and sickened by how much I judge. I really do now at this point in my life have JUDGMENT FATIGUE. I have chosen against all of the negative! I can be me again. Finally, I have returned to my Miracle Mind and refuse to give any energy to any apparent problem or it's attending fears. I'm finally back to affirming Who and What I really am.

Thank you, God, for the Miracle. Amen.



THE EGO -- THE MIRACLE

From A Course in Miracles, Clarification of Terms, Chapter 2.

1. Illusions will not last. 2 Their death is sure and this alone is certain in their world. 3 It is the ego's world because of this. 4 What is the ego ? 5 But a dream of what you really are. 6 A thought you are apart from your Creator and a wish to be what He created not. 7 It is a thing of madness, not reality at all. 8 A name for namelessness is all it is. 9 A symbol of impossibility; a choice for options that do not exist. 10 We name it but to help us understand that it is nothing but an ancient thought that what is made has immortality. 11 But what could come of this except a dream which, like all dreams, can only end in death?

2. What is the ego? 2 Nothingness, but in a form that seems like something. 3 In a world of form the ego cannot be denied for it alone seems real. 4 Yet could God's Son as He created him abide in form or in a world of form? 5 Who asks you to define the ego and explain how it arose can be but he who thinks it real, and seeks by definition to ensure that its illusive nature is concealed behind the words that seem to make it so.

3. There is no definition for a lie that serves to make it true. 2 Nor can there be a truth that lies conceal effectively. 3 The ego's unreality is not denied by words nor is its meaning clear because its nature seems to have a form. 4 Who can define the undefinable? 5 And yet there is an answer even here.

4. We cannot really make a definition for what the ego is, but we can say what it is not. 2 And this is shown to us with perfect clarity. 3 It is from this that we deduce all that the ego is. 4 Look at its opposite and you can see the only answer that is meaningful.

5. The ego's opposite in every way,--in origin, effect and consequence--we call a miracle. 2 And here we find all that is not the ego in this world. 3 Here is the ego's opposite and here alone we look on what the ego was, for here we see all that it seemed to do, and cause and its effects must still be one.

6. Where there was darkness now we see the light. 2 What is the ego? 3 What the darkness was. 4 Where is the ego? 5 Where the darkness was. 6 What is it now and where can it be found? 7 Nothing and nowhere. 8 Now the light has come: Its opposite has gone without a trace. 9 Where evil was there now is holiness. 10 What is the ego? 11 What the evil was. 12 Where is the ego? 13 In an evil dream that but seemed real while you were dreaming it. 14 Where there was crucifixion stands God's Son. 15 What is the ego? 16 Who has need to ask? 17 Where is the ego? 18 Who has need to seek for an illusion now that dreams are gone?

7. What is a miracle ? 2 A dream as well. 3 But look at all the aspects of this dream and you will never question any more. 4 Look at the kindly world you see extend before you as you walk in gentleness. 5 Look at the helpers all along the way you travel, happy in the certainty of Heaven and the surety of peace. 6 And look an instant, too, on what you left behind at last and finally passed by.

8. This was the ego--all the cruel hate, the need for vengeance and the cries of pain, the fear of dying and the urge to kill, the brotherless illusion and the self that seemed alone in all the universe. 2 This terrible mistake about yourself the miracle corrects as gently as a loving mother sings her child to rest. 3 Is not a song like this what you would hear? 4 Would it not answer all you thought to ask, and even make the question meaningless?

9. Your questions have no answer, being made to still God's Voice, which asks of everyone one question only: "Are you ready yet to help Me save the world?" 2 Ask this instead of what the ego is, and you will see a sudden brightness cover up the world the ego made. 3 No miracle is now withheld from anyone. 4 The world is saved from what you thought it was. 5 And what it is, is wholly uncondemned and wholly pure.

10. The miracle forgives; the ego damns. 2 Neither need be defined except by this. 3 Yet could a definition be more sure, or more in line with what salvation is? 4 Problem and answer lie together here, and having met at last the choice is clear. 5 Who chooses hell when it is recognized? 6 And who would not go on a little while when it is given him to understand the way is short and Heaven is his goal?

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Thanks to Jennifer @

SisterlySavings.net

for the reminder!

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You can read more about the FTC new guidelines here. Hopefully, with the new rules, there won’t be many problems for bloggers!


Thanks to Jennifer @

SisterlySavings.net

for the reminder!

It was just a nap. I didn't want to dream.

Had some post-op pain earlier so I took a pill and took a nap.

I woke up after an hour and a half, hungry for a bowl of Capn Crunch. So I eat and type and remember my dream(s). One dream or two? I'm not sure.

This is what happened whilst I slept. I beat up my grandmother and I killed the cat. My grandmother was visiting my house and an argument ensued. I won. The cat scratched me and I threw it against the wall and it started crying like crazy and passed away. I woke up calling out my daughter's name. Feeling trepidation about telling her I mishandled her kitten. Whew! It was only a dream.

What pill did you take? You ask.

It was just an 800mg ibuprofen. I've taken these before. These usually only make me sleepy. It's hydrocodone that gives me nightmares.

Then what's going on with you and your grandmother and Oliver? You ask.

That's a couple other blog posts. Stay tuned.


Art: The Scream by Edvard Munch, 1893

Monday, November 30, 2009

Turn it off, already!

Soap Box

Being who I am and partially what this blog is about, I can't help but to bring up religious (aka ego) zealots because there are a couple of people that I love and want to keep in my life but I'm afraid their views only serve to alienate me further from them. My big bold ego feels these guys go above and beyond the call of duty with their constant religious expressions and beliefs and opinions. Arrrrgh!

I was reminded this evening that my problem is not really with them. The problem is with me.

I personally believe that God is Spirit and divine energy, one power, all good, all wisdom, everywhere present and the loving source of all that is. And I know Jesus as my Way Shower, and that every person has the potential to express the perfection of Christ by being more Christlike in everyday life.

And so it is, these people have the same take on God and Jesus, only they use different words and study from a different book and attend a different type of church and speak on it constantly, as if nobody else has a thought about the matter. Good. Bad. Or different. Or as if, everybody else has the exact same thought about the matter. And for some reason I have felt personally offended and more often attacked because they come at me and others with such passion that it feels accusatory and belligerent!

I know how to interpret and use their words and views metaphysically, but I am trying so hard NOT to loathe their constant expressions. If only they would just breathe... and enjoy what they believe for themselves and leave me out of it. There's this saying that I whole heartedly endorse...
The world is not so much interested in what you believe, but what your belief does for you.
I am making an effort to not see a difference because there actually isn't any difference. We ARE all children of the same Universe.. the same God. One Love.

So instead of me getting rid of passionate friends, I have decided to shut off my own annoyance with their fervor, and allow them to just.. be.

I was starting to feel way over my head with sadness even anger about the state of Christianity. That it seems to have become this catch all phrase for religious and spiritual "right." I've been so afraid to refer to myself as a Christian because I didn't want to be put into 'that' box. And I dare not say I go to 'church.' I just say I'm a Unity student.

It has really sucked to befriend and even be among a family of fundamentalists. But in reality.. to me, being a Believer or Christian is just a label, and it doesn't make the wearer better than followers of Buddha, Shiva, Krishna, Mohammad, etc.. (But Christians generally think they are better than others. That they've cornered the market on God and Jesus.. And here I go again!)

Thanks to all my fellow students and friends of Unity's Monday Night A Course In Miracles study group, Dave and especially T. OMG. What a relief! What a relief. To finally let this go.

Does it mean I can give up my own stance on the Baptists and organized religion? I'll find a loop hole for wonderfully and fully expressing my love and joy when I'm among the spiritually different!

And I'm hopeful that the energy at my home when my mother visits at Christmas will be much better because I've had a total change of heart.

And so it is.


Saabism

Ok.. So my other car is a Saab.

And it would have been completely paid off by now, had I not been laid off over a year ago.

Right now, it's sitting in my garage waiting for me to do something about the obvious electrical problem that's keeping it from starting. My mother drove up for the holiday in her Kia Rio and she's letting me drive it for the time being.

Question: How does a Saab driver drive a Kia Rio fast?
Answer: It's the little engine that just can't, my friend.

Getting used to the functionings of a Kia is funnest of all. There's NOT A THING automatic about this one. Not the windows, not the lights, not even the locks. Please pray that we don't leave the headlights on and drain the battery, or lock the key inside. Or leave the doors unlocked. Yikes. I figure, by the time I get used to this car, the Saab will be fixed or I will have called the bank to just come and get it! It is in repo mode.


So while I gratefully scoot on down the road in my mother's Kia, I barely remember that I'm NOT driving what's Born from Jets!

No wonder people are laughing and pointing all around me. If I saw someone trying to make a Kia do what a Saab does, I'd laugh and point, too!

OMG!!! I just had a vision of that pop into my head!

It's not that I'm a snob, but I do have Saabism. And they say there's no known cure for it.

So just pray. Please?

Thank you.

And it was such a nice day today. I reeeeeeeally needed to put the top down and drive fast!

Oh well.

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Thanksgiving Inside and Out

Thanksgiving Inside

The other day, I asked the question What Does Thanksgiving Look Like? So go ahead and laugh.. I am. This is what my Thanksgiving looked like:


Thanksgiving Outside

"Precious"

Not the movie. But Life.

The Thanksgiving weekend with my little family of four: me, my mom, my 7 year old niece and my 16 yr old daughter.. with it's precious moments and trivialities is now in the past. And I'm so glad!

My "Precious" niece really is on ritalin and 2 other pills, and she came with an inhaler for her "asthma," too. My brother thinks his ex and child are hypochondriacs. I witnessed first hand the difference in her personality with & without meds when I forgot to give her a dose on Friday. Her mom truly is nuts, and it's sad that I agreed to medicate this baby just so she could visit with me for the holiday. And my own "Precious" mom, bless her heart, really did put her foot in that pecan pie. I wish she'd made two! Her level of pain was high though, and it seemed we all (unintentionally) did everything within our power to annoy her. And my "Precious" daughter worked her new job at the mall on Black Friday & Saturday. I'm proud that she made the request of her boss to not schedule her 'til closing on weekdays. Even though it's just 1 day a week, working 5 hrs vs. 3 really does cut into her homework load. He vowed to honor her request in the future.

This Thanksgiving holiday reminded me of what's really most "Precious" to me. My relationship with my own daughter. She graduates in 2012 and I want to spend my time supporting and doing the needful for her now and for my own future. I'm about to be an empty nester, you know! And there's no time to waste on unnecessaries! Especially other peoples unnecessaries!

We bought two new books this weekend. I got my daughter "Plagues and Peoples" for a reading assignment, and she bought me "Getting to Heaven on a Harley." For some reason that title caught my eye, and I made a big deal about in the Unity book store. At least 4 others encouraged me to go ahead and get it.. "It's calling you" they said. I thumbed through the pages and got a little scared. One woman said, "All the more reason to get it." Then my daughter announced.. "I'll buy it for you, mom." Isn't she precious?

Now that everybody has gone back to their respective homes, and my girl is in school and working late today, I've put in my job search and networking hours for the day, this is what I'm going to do with the rest of my "Precious" time today..

  1. Read my new book. At least the 1st half. The 2nd half is a workbook.
  2. Update a couple of spreadsheets for the Gifts4Moms.org charity that I support.
  3. Do some in person and online banking. Time to pay rent.
  4. Choose my new carpet from swatches. I renewed my lease for another year!
  5. Attend my A Course in Miracles study group this evening.
  6. Put away all the laundry I washed and folded over the weekend.
  7. Google this nice attractive man I met in the book store and be on the look out for him next Sunday. Or maybe I'll say the prayer that invites him to be on the look out for me. I'd love to share my "Karmic" truth (as discovered from my book) with him over wine.
  8. Watch "It's a Wonderful Life!" I have it on VHS.. Gotta dig out & dust off the player.
  9. Meditate to ensure I remain in this "Precious" mode. I like it.

How Precious is Life?


ANSWER:

Based on immediacy:

Stop breathing as much as you can. You will realize.




Art: Life is Precious Wood Statue Produced by independent artisans in Aburi, Ghana

Sunday, November 29, 2009

...I'm not the only one

Listen to John Lennon sing.. "Imagine" Click the image

“True virtue is life under the direction of reason.”
-- Benedict Spinoza, Ethics, 1677


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I can't believe I ate the whole thing...


I usually only eat a slice or two of holiday pie. Lately she's (my mother) been slacking.. forgetting some lesser ingredient.. Rendering me reluctant to even sample any more. This year she really put her foot in it! And hallelujah! It wasn't a deep crust, so I could enjoy the true flavor of the filling and those Texas pecans and that flaky buttery crust in every bite! Oh my. Magnifique!

I guess it's time for me to learn to make this for myself.

Saturday, November 28, 2009

Make that change....

Thursday, November 26, 2009

What Does Thanksgiving Look Like?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v197/Yamilia/Holidays/happy_family.gif
It's amazing the love of this season. Never before have I felt it so deeply and sincerely blessed and loved. Everybody is going through something good & transformational. Whether you believe we're living in the end times and or you're just grateful you have a job - because so many others don't.. This season feels different. Wouldn't you say?

Throughout my house I've got
good smelling candles burning.. Cinnamony and spicey & pine scents. In a couple of hours, that'll be replaced by the aroma of my delicious hickory smoked turkey.. (bought already cooked) .. And when my mom gets here, we're gonna throw down on some authentic soul food and desserts.. as previously discussed.. So, the smells of Thanksgiving are loud & clear!

The living room t.v. is on Super Nanny, and there's
music & singing vaguely blasting from my daughter's room. She sings when she's happy, and when she's mad. Right now she's happy. And then there are the sounds is this keyboard clacking since a couple of hours ago. Responding to holiday greetings from friends. When my niece gets here.. I know what I'll be hearing lots of... the sounds of Sponge Bob and the like! And Oh, yeah... The multiple voices shouting "NO! Oliver!"


But I wonder..
What does Thanksgiving LOOK like? So I'm taking pictures and sharing them here. Why don't you take some pictures of YOUR Thanksgiving and post them on your blog. Then post a comment here with a link to what your Thanksgiving looked like!

Well. Gotta go!


Interested in a conversation about What Thanksgiving Day looks like to foreigners? Click here.


AND Read: "Turkey, Lurky Do" over @ Life on Laurel. Cute. I love her blog. She has a gift for saying lots with very few words.. and with pictures!

Gobble gobble!

SINGLE MOMS OF DALLAS! Put this number in your cell phone: DFW 24 Hour Roadside Assistance


I was ready to do my Thanksgiving shopping & my car wouldn't start. It was shocking because just the night before my less than 6 month old battery was replaced under warranty with a brand new one! I Googled "Roadside assistance Plano tx" - I had things to do!

That's how I found Matt's Roadside Assistance.

His fee is $40 just to jump start a car. OMG! I'm spoiled! I'd been getting it free for years. Family friends own a towing service. I called those 'friends' and they couldn't say when they'd show up and I asked what they charge for this, anyway. They told me $65. Sixty five dollars just to come and jump start a car? What's a single mother to do?

So I played my Single Mom card with Matt, and asked him to cut me and other single moms a deal.. In exchange for me pulling some strings with Gifts For Moms to market and promote his company on our websites and blogs and word of mouth. He offered us a a generous 50% discount on their services. I think that's fabulous!

DFW 24 HR Roadside Assistance helps single moms with
  • lockouts
  • tire changes
  • jump starts
  • and gas deliveries

Tell your friends it's 50% off if they know the coupon code.

DFWRoadSideAssist.com
CALL OR TEXT 214-440-6867

Single Moms of Dallas, Join or Support or Contact Gifts4Moms.org or Facebook friend us, and ask for the Code - for the 50% discount.


50% off Roadside Assistance
for Dallas / Ft. Worth Single Moms


They accept these:

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Thank you!


Thanksgiving Day traditionally is a time for families and friends to get together to overeat and overdose on football. But for many, it is a day of service to others through food banks, feed the hungry programs, visits and calls. My daughter and I tried to keep a low profile this year, but we've gotten an invitation to eat at a friend's. So the only serving we are doing today is each other's plates. LOL

This Thanks-giving is also my opportunity to consciously, and with purpose, to say thanks to YOU. My blogger friends. I am totally happy to know each of you in the small way that I do. Thank you for your comments, your love and real presence in my life. Keep coming back, and continue to share my blog with others. This place, the blogosphere, is fascinating... To say the least.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

What I'm lovin' right now!

...This video clip... and being at home with that hard headed cat and my sweet 16 y o daughter.. (aka my very own blessed & beloved life & family).


Sunday, November 22, 2009

Celebrities I would totally ambush at the grocery store..

Being a celebrity can't be easy. Red carpets. Fashion. Makeup. Long hours. Then there's TMZ and fans like me lurking about. For glimpses into their icon-ity. Their realistic and true celebrity. Not just what they show us on t.v. You know? But the real deal they learned from their mamas and daddies.

Whatever the appeal, I find a select few are absolutely fabulous at entertaining me! I'm the last person you'd wanna be in the grocery store with. I would lose my mind and totally embarrass you should we happen upon any one of these guys:







LOVE me some Grissom!












George Stephanopoulos
Nice hair..







*(Gone...

... but not forgotten)


Kissin' Kate Barlow &
Allison DuBois

Detective Lee Scanlon.
Luv it when he works nites
on Medium. Sexy. LOL


Pete Delkus the realest coolest weather man I've ever seen. He wears nice shirts, too. **** My daughter says... "He's not a celebrity!" I say he is! LOL





The Keno Twins! OMG! Tall, blond and engagingly sexy & hyperactive about antiques & other stuff! If I spied them together I would go ABSOLUTELY nuts! Mildly nuts if I just ran into one of 'em. And yes.. I'd ask.. "Which one are you?" LOL





She has figured out how to DO stunning. I'd be a dignified fool in her presence, though. And ask her to autograph my skin "MJB"..








I know I mentioned him already.. but this is to make a point...

Andy Garcia..
Just because.



* I know, I know. They're dead.

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Meditation and Beauty Basics


I'm in the process of creating a small information website and or blog about the fruits of the spirit, metaphysical and otherwise.. Meditation, tips on Spiritual and physical self care & beauty, intimacy, personal image and even empowerment. It's really for absolute amateurs but I'm hoping to write some indepth articles for it soon. I am also moving in a higher direction with a beloved online FRIEND for another awesome online project as well! Don't expect any of this to launch before January 1st, but why not swing back by and take a look for updates. I won't abandon JackiesMagic!

Feel free to email me with articles that you would like to see written there. I'm hoping to turn it into a large resource center for meditation and beautification.

In the mean time.. Enjoy this poem I found over at Wildmind.org

In Beauty May I Walk

In beauty may I walk.
All day long may I walk.
Through the returning seasons may I walk.

Beautifully will I possess again.
Beautifully birds . . .
Beautifully joyful birds

On the trail marked with pollen may I walk.
With grasshoppers about my feet may I walk.
With dew about my feet may I walk.

With beauty may I walk.
With beauty before me, may I walk.
With beauty behind me, may I walk.
With beauty above me, may I walk.
With beauty below me, may I walk.
With beauty all around me, may I walk.

In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, lively, may I walk.
In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, living again, may I walk.

It is finished in beauty.
It is finished in beauty.

A Navajo Indian Prayer of the Second Day of the Night Chant (anonymous)

Dear Gail...

I love you so much. I so appreciate your comments and your perspective.. Not just because they match so closely with mine.. :o) But because there is balance and maturity in your words. From life experience, perhaps. Or some innate wisdom! But I just had the privilege of approving a comment you made to a post I made last December called Don't Forget the Children. I cried as I read about my own experience again.. And I love your response:

1 comments:

Gail said...

Hi Jackie-

Good story. And, another way to look at giving is . once the gift is given - the random act of kindness done - it is out of our hands as to how the receiver accepts and uses the gift. That has nothing to do with me - my involvement ends once the giving is completed.

Enjoy the moments
Love Gail
peace and hope

I love your blog, KNOW YOUR IT'S.. Your stories are loving and inspiring. They quiet my spirit. I hope you are not feeling sad. After reading your recent post. I have a feeling you might be. Are you? I hope this love note cheers you up!

Friday, November 20, 2009

Christmas Countdown...

If you don't have any children, someone you know does. Or perhaps someone you don't know does.. Ask around and you'll discover who has a need. It could be very gratifying personally helping a family. I recommend, not doing it at work, though. Read why..

Click the sound button on the image & get in the
Christmas spirit for the children
!




Here's a cool site with tons of info on Christmas (and other) Traditions from around the world!

I'm not Mikey, I'm not eatin' that!

Let me convey a cute story about the wife baking a ham. Every time she bakes a ham she would cut off the ends of the ham before she put it in the oven. Her husband asked her why she did that, and she responded "because my mother did it," and he left the subject alone. Months later at a family gathering, his wife's mother did the cooking, and low and behold she was baking a ham and cut off the ends before putting it in the oven.

When asked why she cut off the ends of the ham she said, "because my mother did it." He left the subject alone. Months later at the family reunion, his wife's grandmother was present, so he thought he'd ask her the question. "Grandma, when you bake a ham, why do you cut off the ends before you put it in the oven?" He was shocked by her response. "So it would fit in the pan."

My family has a kitchen tradition.. passed down from my grandmother to my mother to me, and I've taught my daughter to do it. When we crack open eggs to cook.. we always crack them open into a separate bowl, and remove the white rope like membrane from the egg white. I even take the time to remove them when I boil eggs for salads, etc.. If you use a slicer you can find them in the cooked yoke.

My daughter and I were in the kitchen the other day, and I was cracking several eggs for the dish I was preparing.. I mentioned that I wish there was a better way to remove those thingies from the egg. It's time consuming, to say the least. And I even said to my daughter, It's weird that I can eat other peoples eggs and foods prepared with eggs and not give this any thought.

My daughter mentioned that in her science class, the day before.. they were discussing eggs for some reason, and she brought up our family tradition, if you will.. of removing that part of the egg before we cook it. Students and the teacher were amused and curious.. asking her why we do that? She said she told them, "Because my grandmother does it."

I went.. Are you serious? You really don't know why we do that? She said.."No mom, I guess I don't." I said.. It's because we don't want to eat that! That's why!!!




WHAT WON'T I EAT? Numbers 4 & 13: CHALAZAE - Opaque ropes of egg white, the chalazae hold the yolk in the center of the egg. Like little anchors, they attach the yolk’s casing to the membrane lining the eggshell. >>The more prominent they are, the fresher the egg!
 

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