there was a frenzy throughout the land as all the weary shoppers tried to prevent things from getting out of hand! i have made a few forays into the malls, but have been trying to avoid the worst places at the busiest times. Our local shopping centre isn't nearly as busy, so i have picked up a few things there, a great bonus!
For Christmas we are having a big family gathering of both my brothers and their families and my dad, plus of course (at another meal) my mum, her husband and a few other inlaw types! It will be full on and I am thinking that collapsing in a heap is going to be looking mighty appealing when the most intense parts are over lol.
If i don't get a chance to post here again before Christmas, I hope anyone reading here has a lovely time, enjoys the company of friends and family and sees in the New Year with hope for all good things ahead.
Love to you all - I am looking forward to a much improved year in 2008!
xx
Friday, December 14, 2007
Thursday, November 1, 2007
well now its November!
unbelievable!
i promised to post again ... and i am, although it is not exactly "soon" after my last one! wow, so much has been happening too.
my boss has been overseas for 5 weeks, and got back 3 weeks ago. while she was away i was sole charge, and also managing a brand new client who i did 50 hours for that first month and is now on a 30 hour per month retainer. we could really do with another team member, altho now the boss is back on deck, hopefully she will tackle part of the workload. we seem to be experiencing that last minute frenzy of clients wanting work sorted before everything slows right down in December and January.
in other news ... my dad has moved back to my city to live. currently he is renting a room in a fairly dodgy flat, with half his wordly possessions in there with him, and the rest in a storage unit. he moved from a three bedroom house into one largish room, so it has been a challenge!
the good news is that he has been offered a council unit, and i think he will take it ... so at least he will have his own space and a little more room to move than he currently does. and with luck, he will be able to get rid of some of the excess stuff and make a little cash from it.
what else, well my younger brother went to the states for 3 weeks with his girlfriend and they got married in Vegas - much to everyone' s surprise :)
that was cool, so i have a new sister in law ... and we get on well :)
my oldest son will be finishing school soon, and has already picked up his first part time programming job with a company called Telogis.
the women's circle has been going well, working through the goddess book, and we will probably take a bit of a break for December and January ... we had a great weekend away together focusing on Lilith, and a night time ritual up in a cave on the hills which was very cool. On wednesday night this week, which was Beltane here, we did another ritual on the beach and then made a shell encrusted mirror so we could look at our goddess selves. nice.
and since the return of my boss, i have started an hour later at work every day, and gone to the gym before work. have also started eating much healthier, lots of raw and salads and juices - all good!
and right now i am feeling hungry so a smoothie might be in the offing!
see you again soon .... and thanks for your comments darlings!
xxx
i promised to post again ... and i am, although it is not exactly "soon" after my last one! wow, so much has been happening too.
my boss has been overseas for 5 weeks, and got back 3 weeks ago. while she was away i was sole charge, and also managing a brand new client who i did 50 hours for that first month and is now on a 30 hour per month retainer. we could really do with another team member, altho now the boss is back on deck, hopefully she will tackle part of the workload. we seem to be experiencing that last minute frenzy of clients wanting work sorted before everything slows right down in December and January.
in other news ... my dad has moved back to my city to live. currently he is renting a room in a fairly dodgy flat, with half his wordly possessions in there with him, and the rest in a storage unit. he moved from a three bedroom house into one largish room, so it has been a challenge!
the good news is that he has been offered a council unit, and i think he will take it ... so at least he will have his own space and a little more room to move than he currently does. and with luck, he will be able to get rid of some of the excess stuff and make a little cash from it.
what else, well my younger brother went to the states for 3 weeks with his girlfriend and they got married in Vegas - much to everyone' s surprise :)
that was cool, so i have a new sister in law ... and we get on well :)
my oldest son will be finishing school soon, and has already picked up his first part time programming job with a company called Telogis.
the women's circle has been going well, working through the goddess book, and we will probably take a bit of a break for December and January ... we had a great weekend away together focusing on Lilith, and a night time ritual up in a cave on the hills which was very cool. On wednesday night this week, which was Beltane here, we did another ritual on the beach and then made a shell encrusted mirror so we could look at our goddess selves. nice.
and since the return of my boss, i have started an hour later at work every day, and gone to the gym before work. have also started eating much healthier, lots of raw and salads and juices - all good!
and right now i am feeling hungry so a smoothie might be in the offing!
see you again soon .... and thanks for your comments darlings!
xxx
Sunday, August 12, 2007
springiness
life has been incredibly full of late ... weekends have rushed by with hardly a spare moment, whether it be working on an event i am helping to pull together in my spare time, or going away for a long weekend to the snow with my husband, organising activities around my mother's 70th birthday and my older son's 17th, keeping track of work and preparing to work full weeks for a month and a half becos my boss is going on an overseas trip (which i found out today will be delayed by a couple of weeks becos her partner injured himself today!!) ... and sooo much more!
We have been socialising a bit lately with my husband's work colleagues (well some of them) which has involved dancing, loud music, clubs, and much alcohol - quite a change of pace from evenings in front of the tv!
and my women's circle has also committed to working through a 7 month Inner Goddess Makeover based on a fabulous book by a woman called Tanishka, who is originally a kiwi, but now lives in Melbourne. I am anxiously awaiting a package from her in the mail with a copy for each of us, hopefully in time for this coming weekend when we will be gathering out of town for a couple of nights. Looking forward to it!
OK now, you can gather yourselves up off the ground now (having fallen over in shock at seeing a new post on my blog!)
Promise to write again soon!
We have been socialising a bit lately with my husband's work colleagues (well some of them) which has involved dancing, loud music, clubs, and much alcohol - quite a change of pace from evenings in front of the tv!
and my women's circle has also committed to working through a 7 month Inner Goddess Makeover based on a fabulous book by a woman called Tanishka, who is originally a kiwi, but now lives in Melbourne. I am anxiously awaiting a package from her in the mail with a copy for each of us, hopefully in time for this coming weekend when we will be gathering out of town for a couple of nights. Looking forward to it!
OK now, you can gather yourselves up off the ground now (having fallen over in shock at seeing a new post on my blog!)
Promise to write again soon!
Sunday, June 3, 2007
so its been a while ...
sorry guys if you are checking here regularly, life has somewhat overtaken me in the last month or so. big time personal drama, but i won't go into that here, because i have something new to share with you.
today i had an epiphany of sorts :) for some time now i have been wondering about the message i have to share with the world ... i am a speaker without a topic - but one who can speak about anything, i am a writer without a book - but one who can write about anything.
and today, i had a realization that i want to write and speak about women's lives and women's wisdom. and that part of this has come to me because i am struggling to find my own wisdom and my own path forward just now. but i want to create something that women will give to their daughters, perhaps when they are as young as 8 or 9, or perhaps on their first menstruation - their initiation into womanhood.
a book that will also be shared with women having their first child, getting married or divorced, going through menopause, discovering their life purpose. a book of wisdom that draws from all women of all ages, from all around the world.
ahhhhhh.
it feels right to me. it feels like i have a purpose, to begin to research, collect, collate, edit and draw together the strands from women like those reading this blog .... and those who are not. from those who are legends in cyberspace and those who have never even seen, let alone turned on a computer. i want to collect their words, oral or written and put them in a place where every woman can read them.
so a book, or perhaps a series of books ... a platform on which to speak and share and encourage others to share ... a website/forum for women to voice their experiences and share and support each other, and potentially so much more!
i would love to read your comments and thoughts in response to this idea - what would you like to see or read or share in such a book?
today i had an epiphany of sorts :) for some time now i have been wondering about the message i have to share with the world ... i am a speaker without a topic - but one who can speak about anything, i am a writer without a book - but one who can write about anything.
and today, i had a realization that i want to write and speak about women's lives and women's wisdom. and that part of this has come to me because i am struggling to find my own wisdom and my own path forward just now. but i want to create something that women will give to their daughters, perhaps when they are as young as 8 or 9, or perhaps on their first menstruation - their initiation into womanhood.
a book that will also be shared with women having their first child, getting married or divorced, going through menopause, discovering their life purpose. a book of wisdom that draws from all women of all ages, from all around the world.
ahhhhhh.
it feels right to me. it feels like i have a purpose, to begin to research, collect, collate, edit and draw together the strands from women like those reading this blog .... and those who are not. from those who are legends in cyberspace and those who have never even seen, let alone turned on a computer. i want to collect their words, oral or written and put them in a place where every woman can read them.
so a book, or perhaps a series of books ... a platform on which to speak and share and encourage others to share ... a website/forum for women to voice their experiences and share and support each other, and potentially so much more!
i would love to read your comments and thoughts in response to this idea - what would you like to see or read or share in such a book?
Thursday, May 3, 2007
he is home and safe
and things are reverting pretty much to normal. almost in sync with his arrival, the weather turned cold and wet this week, and the autumn leaves that have been stubbornly clinging on are now mostly scattered across the lawns and filling the gutters.
his trip was an eventful one ... with snippets now trickling through as he remembers them. like yesterday morning when he came out and said " did i tell you how i got approached for a modelling job in singapore?" of course, he hadn't, so i pressed him for details :) apparently some guy had approached him in the street and told him they were looking for young guys for a modelling shoot the following week and would he be interested. gave him a business card and everything. my boy said - somewhat incredulously, that he was only in singapore for a day, and the scout looked most upset and asked him if he would be back in singapore any time soon. "not very likely" said my boy (who btw hated singapore). and the scout went on his way. joey went on to tell me the guy looked a bit dodgy, and apparently joey's girlfriend (who had been with him at the time the man approached) had run off as soon as he started talking to joey. lol.
anyway, he wasn't kidnapped for the white slave trade, and also hasn't started on the road to international modelling stardom!
he has struggled a bit this week with understandable tiredness and some asthma, but would go back to France in a heartbeat (and yes, me with him!!!)
had to stop for a minute and sort out a computer emergency ... all good now, thanks to the joey helpdesk (yes he is at school and i rang him on his mobile!)
his trip was an eventful one ... with snippets now trickling through as he remembers them. like yesterday morning when he came out and said " did i tell you how i got approached for a modelling job in singapore?" of course, he hadn't, so i pressed him for details :) apparently some guy had approached him in the street and told him they were looking for young guys for a modelling shoot the following week and would he be interested. gave him a business card and everything. my boy said - somewhat incredulously, that he was only in singapore for a day, and the scout looked most upset and asked him if he would be back in singapore any time soon. "not very likely" said my boy (who btw hated singapore). and the scout went on his way. joey went on to tell me the guy looked a bit dodgy, and apparently joey's girlfriend (who had been with him at the time the man approached) had run off as soon as he started talking to joey. lol.
anyway, he wasn't kidnapped for the white slave trade, and also hasn't started on the road to international modelling stardom!
he has struggled a bit this week with understandable tiredness and some asthma, but would go back to France in a heartbeat (and yes, me with him!!!)
had to stop for a minute and sort out a computer emergency ... all good now, thanks to the joey helpdesk (yes he is at school and i rang him on his mobile!)
Friday, April 27, 2007
the traveller returns!
tomorrow morning at 9.30am we go to the airport to pick up joey from his trip to France. i am looking forward to seeing him and hearing all the stories and seeing all the photos from his trip. i am excited about how much he will have learned about the world, and watching changes unfold in him as he processes it all and gets used to being back home again.
the three weeks has gone so quickly - for him and for us I am sure. I would so love to travel back there with him and share some of his memories and experiences.
the three weeks has gone so quickly - for him and for us I am sure. I would so love to travel back there with him and share some of his memories and experiences.
Saturday, April 21, 2007
love and respect
so i was reading in another blog about the possibility that what men most want in a relationship is respect, and what women want is love.
and i am wondering if your experience of life and relationships suggests that to be true ... or otherwise.
i can see some truth in it for certain ... i know that other things, material things, are not the priority in relationships for me - just the windowdressing of the comfort zone, for me having the assurance of love is most important as the foundation for adventuring into the world.
respect is something i feel needs to be earned - it is not automatically conveyed. in my family, physical affection and words of love were not casual daily events. they were reserved for special occasions, birthdays, events, celebrations of achievement.
so i have grown up to distrust those who throw out words of love too easily. to me, that wasn't real or true unless the other person actually knew me enough to really choose to love me or not.
i did make sure, though, in bringing up my own children, that words of love flowed more easily and they were never in doubt of how we felt about them. And we have encouraged them to hug and be hugged, or to ask for a hug when they feel the need for comfort. All things that never happened for me and my brothers as children.
in more recent years, i have developed a different idea about love and sharing love with others .... as an infinite resource, that can be dipped into at will and never runs dry. i have real concern and love for my friends who i have only met online, as well as those i have also had the privilege of meeting in the flesh.
and of course for the friends i meet and talk with daily or weekly.
amongst my women friends i find it easy to share an unconditional form of affection, and find it puzzling when in some cases, their male partners find the same women threatening, undermining of their masculinity, and who knows what else.
is it simply their own insecurities they are projecting, or is there something more? are they seeking respect from their partner?
i don't really have the answers, but i feel like i am swimming in the soup of these questions at the moment, perhaps because i am heading towards my mid forties, and around me, mid-life crises are burgeoning like many headed hydrangeas!
with love
and i am wondering if your experience of life and relationships suggests that to be true ... or otherwise.
i can see some truth in it for certain ... i know that other things, material things, are not the priority in relationships for me - just the windowdressing of the comfort zone, for me having the assurance of love is most important as the foundation for adventuring into the world.
respect is something i feel needs to be earned - it is not automatically conveyed. in my family, physical affection and words of love were not casual daily events. they were reserved for special occasions, birthdays, events, celebrations of achievement.
so i have grown up to distrust those who throw out words of love too easily. to me, that wasn't real or true unless the other person actually knew me enough to really choose to love me or not.
i did make sure, though, in bringing up my own children, that words of love flowed more easily and they were never in doubt of how we felt about them. And we have encouraged them to hug and be hugged, or to ask for a hug when they feel the need for comfort. All things that never happened for me and my brothers as children.
in more recent years, i have developed a different idea about love and sharing love with others .... as an infinite resource, that can be dipped into at will and never runs dry. i have real concern and love for my friends who i have only met online, as well as those i have also had the privilege of meeting in the flesh.
and of course for the friends i meet and talk with daily or weekly.
amongst my women friends i find it easy to share an unconditional form of affection, and find it puzzling when in some cases, their male partners find the same women threatening, undermining of their masculinity, and who knows what else.
is it simply their own insecurities they are projecting, or is there something more? are they seeking respect from their partner?
i don't really have the answers, but i feel like i am swimming in the soup of these questions at the moment, perhaps because i am heading towards my mid forties, and around me, mid-life crises are burgeoning like many headed hydrangeas!
with love
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Moving on and wondering ...
what is in the air at the moment?!! seems that there are lots of people experiencing dramatic life changes around me ... most of them painful. I don't know what is behind it all, or if they are simply coincidental, but i sure hope it all stops soon!
over the weekend i took part in an ashes scattering ceremony ... the weather turned out much better than expected so we were able to do it on the water at one of my stepmother's favourite childhood locations. it was very emotional and quite hard for many of those present, but provided a degree of closure - and the ability to begin to move on with life.
I loved connecting with the men of my family again - my brother and my father, who i see too seldom. One day I will persuade them all back to live somewhere near me!
I also had an insight into appreciating something that we all too often (we meaning I) take for granted - having a reliable memory. Surrounded by older family members and hearing the same stories repeatedly, i truly understood just how valuable it is to have good recall of not only what is going on right now, or who we have just told a certain story to, but also of our more distant past.
I love that older people (in their 70s or more) have such a wonderful recall and so many stories of their own childhood experiences. Not for the first time i have a desire to record those memories before it is too late.
over the weekend i took part in an ashes scattering ceremony ... the weather turned out much better than expected so we were able to do it on the water at one of my stepmother's favourite childhood locations. it was very emotional and quite hard for many of those present, but provided a degree of closure - and the ability to begin to move on with life.
I loved connecting with the men of my family again - my brother and my father, who i see too seldom. One day I will persuade them all back to live somewhere near me!
I also had an insight into appreciating something that we all too often (we meaning I) take for granted - having a reliable memory. Surrounded by older family members and hearing the same stories repeatedly, i truly understood just how valuable it is to have good recall of not only what is going on right now, or who we have just told a certain story to, but also of our more distant past.
I love that older people (in their 70s or more) have such a wonderful recall and so many stories of their own childhood experiences. Not for the first time i have a desire to record those memories before it is too late.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
podcast, swicki and video!
so there they all are now!
if you want to hear my voice (sounding as my son said like a public service announcement - i used my " radio" voice) click on the top link where it says Karen's test podcast and have a listen!
might record a more fun one at some point and add it in for my friends to listen to :)
play with clicking on the phrases in the swicki "cloud" and see what comes up for your searches - they can be quite interesting.
that's all for now, I have some other missions to take care of today ... spot you later.
if you want to hear my voice (sounding as my son said like a public service announcement - i used my " radio" voice) click on the top link where it says Karen's test podcast and have a listen!
might record a more fun one at some point and add it in for my friends to listen to :)
play with clicking on the phrases in the swicki "cloud" and see what comes up for your searches - they can be quite interesting.
that's all for now, I have some other missions to take care of today ... spot you later.
Monday, April 9, 2007
Sunday, April 8, 2007
video widget
so i put in the video widget thingamybob as you can see ... but i am not sure how to put in the video clips from YouTube that I want you to see - there is no obvious way to edit and change what is there at present. however i shall continue to investigate .... and i posted this largely because you are no doubt wondering why i have racing clips on my blog!
xxx
xxx
Thursday, April 5, 2007
sunshine day
today is a gorgeous early autumn day, still and very warm. we are preparing to send my oldest son overseas to France for three weeks ... exciting stuff!
It is of course, Easter weekend, but we don't have any real plans, especially since he leaves on Sunday morning. But i do have a presentation to prepare for National Speakers meeting on Tuesday night that I am organising and mc-ing. It will take a bit of work - one of the things i am talking about is blogging, and how easy it is to set up a blog and get an online presence without the cost of setting up a website.
so you might see a few experiments here in the next few days ... i am going to have a go at recording a podcast and posting it here, plus will probably put up a YouTube link of some kind.
have a wonderful Easter ...
It is of course, Easter weekend, but we don't have any real plans, especially since he leaves on Sunday morning. But i do have a presentation to prepare for National Speakers meeting on Tuesday night that I am organising and mc-ing. It will take a bit of work - one of the things i am talking about is blogging, and how easy it is to set up a blog and get an online presence without the cost of setting up a website.
so you might see a few experiments here in the next few days ... i am going to have a go at recording a podcast and posting it here, plus will probably put up a YouTube link of some kind.
have a wonderful Easter ...
Sunday, April 1, 2007
Welcome to April!
In this part of the world, that means Autumn is underway and we are starting the countdown to winter ... while the rest of the world welcomes the first daffodils and blossom on the trees. Today the sun is shining, but my husband scattered grass seed the other day, which seems to immediately bring on the rains (happened last time he made a lawn) ... so we got three days of fairly gentle rain, while the North of the country suffered a deluge spun off from a cyclone passing by (oops, sorry guys!)
newsflash on the blogging front ... apparently the celebs are deserting their blogs in droves - Lindsay Lohan apparently hasn't been online with anything worth saying since promoting Freaky Friday! I am determined NOT to go the same way ... rest assured you will be updated as soon as my next movie comes out :)
right now, my computer is telling me i need to take a WorkPace Break ... i have breaks and exercise software on my PC since the creators of the software are a client - so very shortly it will prevent me from doing any more work until i do some stretches. Which is a good thing - but doesn't always pop up at the most convenient moments!
promise to write again very soon!
newsflash on the blogging front ... apparently the celebs are deserting their blogs in droves - Lindsay Lohan apparently hasn't been online with anything worth saying since promoting Freaky Friday! I am determined NOT to go the same way ... rest assured you will be updated as soon as my next movie comes out :)
right now, my computer is telling me i need to take a WorkPace Break ... i have breaks and exercise software on my PC since the creators of the software are a client - so very shortly it will prevent me from doing any more work until i do some stretches. Which is a good thing - but doesn't always pop up at the most convenient moments!
promise to write again very soon!
Saturday, March 24, 2007
peace begins inside
just came home from a meeting/gathering of like minds to discuss ideas for a short film about peace, inspired by a speech one of the women present had written.
firstly, thank you Barbara for writing those words and sharing them with us. our discussions brought many things to the surface ... here in NZ there is heated debate occurring about a soon to be passed amendment to legislation that will make it illegal for parents to smack or hit their children and defend it as being "reasonable force". i fully support that change and the suggestion behind it that we all have a think about why it is "ok" to smack our children for punishment or "prevention of greater harm" ... when it is NOT ok for us to hit anyone else to punish them or save them from harm.
and why is it ok for us to only hit the youngest, most vulnerable children and then resort to other strategies once they are big enough to hit us back.
that was a tiny part of our conversation .... but we also brought up issues about war - how it relies on dehumanising the other side - and on stereotypes of evil. it is not natural for us to try and kill or destroy total strangers without creating an image in our minds of evil and "wrongness" on behalf of those who are "other" to us. When human minds are trained that way, they are apparently able to forget the humanity of their opponent ... that the opponent was once a small child, loved by their parents ... a child learning about the world, making mistakes, discovering new and exciting things ... learning how to be independent and venture into the world - to be blown to bits by someone who sees them only as an enemy, not as a fellow human making his or her way in the same world.
we also talked about the peace that lies within us - or the potential for it ... and how essential it is that peace begins with each of us as individuals. i commented that many women in particular, who are highly sensitive to our world, suffer from over-empathising and that can bring us into a place of mental and emotional dis-ease ... which all too often is suppressed and controlled by medication. i suggest it is actually more normal to have dis-ease in the world we live in right now, than not to have dis-ease.
more on this later. peace out.
firstly, thank you Barbara for writing those words and sharing them with us. our discussions brought many things to the surface ... here in NZ there is heated debate occurring about a soon to be passed amendment to legislation that will make it illegal for parents to smack or hit their children and defend it as being "reasonable force". i fully support that change and the suggestion behind it that we all have a think about why it is "ok" to smack our children for punishment or "prevention of greater harm" ... when it is NOT ok for us to hit anyone else to punish them or save them from harm.
and why is it ok for us to only hit the youngest, most vulnerable children and then resort to other strategies once they are big enough to hit us back.
that was a tiny part of our conversation .... but we also brought up issues about war - how it relies on dehumanising the other side - and on stereotypes of evil. it is not natural for us to try and kill or destroy total strangers without creating an image in our minds of evil and "wrongness" on behalf of those who are "other" to us. When human minds are trained that way, they are apparently able to forget the humanity of their opponent ... that the opponent was once a small child, loved by their parents ... a child learning about the world, making mistakes, discovering new and exciting things ... learning how to be independent and venture into the world - to be blown to bits by someone who sees them only as an enemy, not as a fellow human making his or her way in the same world.
we also talked about the peace that lies within us - or the potential for it ... and how essential it is that peace begins with each of us as individuals. i commented that many women in particular, who are highly sensitive to our world, suffer from over-empathising and that can bring us into a place of mental and emotional dis-ease ... which all too often is suppressed and controlled by medication. i suggest it is actually more normal to have dis-ease in the world we live in right now, than not to have dis-ease.
more on this later. peace out.
Friday, March 23, 2007
focus!
on doing some more posting that is!! hopefully today i will spend some more time processing photos and video from the trip to Melbourne. It is quickly coming up to four weeks since we were there - unbelievable!
life has been trickling along with moments of drama sprinkled throughout over the last few weeks. We are transitioning into Autumn here i guess, with the return of non-daylight saving making darkness fall earlier - about 7pm at the moment. We had a hot gorgeous day last weekend, 30 deg celsius, and i spent the afternoon at the beach with my hubby ... we paddled in the water, made sculptures in the sand, got sunburnt (!) and had a lovely cafe lunch ... went home and napped for a bit then went to see Wild Hogs at the movies and laughed from start to finish - i highly recommend, specially if you have a present or former Harley owning partner!
i am pleased to be out of Mercury retrograde again ... things seem to be proceeding smoothly on different fronts ... new business coming into work, weirdly, three approaches in recent times that our outside our normal focus on technology companies. A reminder that it is time to broaden our scope to more general PR as had been originally intended.
i have not been productive at all on the art front or playing with my paints and canvases rather, but i did have an idea yesterday for a series of goddess works on canvas .... maybe small ones, not sure yet.
oh and i visited my friend Nicky with her beautiful new baby Bronte ... perhaps a pic of this delicious newborn when i get my photos sorted.
life has been trickling along with moments of drama sprinkled throughout over the last few weeks. We are transitioning into Autumn here i guess, with the return of non-daylight saving making darkness fall earlier - about 7pm at the moment. We had a hot gorgeous day last weekend, 30 deg celsius, and i spent the afternoon at the beach with my hubby ... we paddled in the water, made sculptures in the sand, got sunburnt (!) and had a lovely cafe lunch ... went home and napped for a bit then went to see Wild Hogs at the movies and laughed from start to finish - i highly recommend, specially if you have a present or former Harley owning partner!
i am pleased to be out of Mercury retrograde again ... things seem to be proceeding smoothly on different fronts ... new business coming into work, weirdly, three approaches in recent times that our outside our normal focus on technology companies. A reminder that it is time to broaden our scope to more general PR as had been originally intended.
i have not been productive at all on the art front or playing with my paints and canvases rather, but i did have an idea yesterday for a series of goddess works on canvas .... maybe small ones, not sure yet.
oh and i visited my friend Nicky with her beautiful new baby Bronte ... perhaps a pic of this delicious newborn when i get my photos sorted.
Friday, March 9, 2007
some video ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJDZQ_jjzWo
(the gentleman appearing at the end was installing the portaloo/bathroom ... the two heroines of the piece are praxis and purple goddesses, hostesses of the event)
(the gentleman appearing at the end was installing the portaloo/bathroom ... the two heroines of the piece are praxis and purple goddesses, hostesses of the event)
bad bad bad!
blogger me that is!!!
it has been nearly a month since my last confession! lol ..... weeeelll i have been a little preoccupied with something called Wenchfest, that was held over last weekend in a place called Dromana, south of Melbourne.
this incredible event was a gathering of wonderful women from around australia, nz, US and Canada ... preceded by a visit to my house of the Canadian one ... then a flight to sydney, 12 hour train trip with 6 wenches south to Melbourne ... and three days of hijinks and ritual and other stuff.
it was awesome, once again ... we did it for the first time about a year ago. i have photos, so i will put up a few here (there is also video taken with my nifty new camera, so i might give you a very funny You Tube link if you are very good).
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
a week can be forever
so today is valentine's day - yep in NZ it already is. and it's a week since my last confession ... lol.
a week of lots of work stuff in my head, some personal stuff, plus a visit to the destination for our women's summit in October this year and confirmation with the team that this is definitely where we want to be. Beautiful alpine resort with thermal pools ... Hanmer Springs.
i am looking forward to welcoming women from around the world to join with us there - it is going to be awesome.
tomorrow i will tell you about my valentine's day. wherever you are, wishing you much love (for every day of the year).
a week of lots of work stuff in my head, some personal stuff, plus a visit to the destination for our women's summit in October this year and confirmation with the team that this is definitely where we want to be. Beautiful alpine resort with thermal pools ... Hanmer Springs.
i am looking forward to welcoming women from around the world to join with us there - it is going to be awesome.
tomorrow i will tell you about my valentine's day. wherever you are, wishing you much love (for every day of the year).
Wednesday, February 7, 2007
one heart
i am feeling my heart tonight. my man is going through a healing experience and i feel like i am travelling the path with him.listening to the incandescent voice and lyrics of Brooke Fraser, from her new CD albertine ... her music is so fully from the heart, it makes me cry.
http://www.brookefraser.com/
definitely listen to "deciphering me" - i adore this song.
with love
Sunday, February 4, 2007
so i got tagged!
by ms stacy ... to write down 6 of my idiosyncrasies!
hmmmm food for thought.
1. I am pretty much a grammar/spelling freak. I pick up stuff all the time and it drives me a little batty when people spell badly, or bad spelling and/or grammar makes it into print, particularly in reputable newspapers or magazines. (In my job, this is a good thing, since I write articles and media releases for a living, and have to proof my own work).
2. For health related reasons, we don't own a microwave - which my children's friends (and their parents) seem to think is quite strange, and for most of their lives, we didn't consume milk or dairy products. Currently we have milk in the fridge, but i can't guarantee it is fresh, since i don't buy it every week (pretty much it only gets used in hot chocolate or occasionally in baking). My children grew up having fruit juice on their cereal instead of milk and they still prefer it that way.
3. I have only just allowed my sons to own cellphones - they are 16.5 and 14 going on 15. They have been hassling me for cellphones for probably about two years and virtually every child in their classes had one except them. My resistance was again partly for health reasons, but also because I think it is completely unnecessary to be constantly texting friends who you could walk over and talk to, or call on the phone. My older son now drives me (slightly) nutty by having a multi media "conversation" with his friends with up to five MSN messenger windows open and text messaging at the same time. That is one of his primary methods of socialising ... and all with the same people he spends all day with at school!
4. Not sure if this counts, but one of my close friends channels a Native American Indian called Black Elk - and i think it is very cool! :)
5. I hang out online with friends from around the world, and have made two trips overseas to meet some of them and stay in their houses - some think this is risky behaviour, but i love the connections i have made through the internet and see the travel as a natural extension of that! (and plan to do much more of it!!)
6. I am outrageously behind on my business tax returns and have been sacked by three accountants, so i currently don't have one! My powers of avoidance work overtime when it comes to this area of my life, even though i fully know that i need to get it sorted!
There!!!
That will do from me!
hmmmm food for thought.
1. I am pretty much a grammar/spelling freak. I pick up stuff all the time and it drives me a little batty when people spell badly, or bad spelling and/or grammar makes it into print, particularly in reputable newspapers or magazines. (In my job, this is a good thing, since I write articles and media releases for a living, and have to proof my own work).
2. For health related reasons, we don't own a microwave - which my children's friends (and their parents) seem to think is quite strange, and for most of their lives, we didn't consume milk or dairy products. Currently we have milk in the fridge, but i can't guarantee it is fresh, since i don't buy it every week (pretty much it only gets used in hot chocolate or occasionally in baking). My children grew up having fruit juice on their cereal instead of milk and they still prefer it that way.
3. I have only just allowed my sons to own cellphones - they are 16.5 and 14 going on 15. They have been hassling me for cellphones for probably about two years and virtually every child in their classes had one except them. My resistance was again partly for health reasons, but also because I think it is completely unnecessary to be constantly texting friends who you could walk over and talk to, or call on the phone. My older son now drives me (slightly) nutty by having a multi media "conversation" with his friends with up to five MSN messenger windows open and text messaging at the same time. That is one of his primary methods of socialising ... and all with the same people he spends all day with at school!
4. Not sure if this counts, but one of my close friends channels a Native American Indian called Black Elk - and i think it is very cool! :)
5. I hang out online with friends from around the world, and have made two trips overseas to meet some of them and stay in their houses - some think this is risky behaviour, but i love the connections i have made through the internet and see the travel as a natural extension of that! (and plan to do much more of it!!)
6. I am outrageously behind on my business tax returns and have been sacked by three accountants, so i currently don't have one! My powers of avoidance work overtime when it comes to this area of my life, even though i fully know that i need to get it sorted!
There!!!
That will do from me!
Friday, February 2, 2007
angel wings and floating candles
well the angel wings ... becos my good friends cailin and leigh seem to agree i have them, which brought to mind a certain photograph from many years ago.
anyway, to the floating candles. Last night we had a gathering of our women's circle at cailin's house and we finished the evening by floating lit candles off a jetty on the estuary near where she lives. Since it is summer here, darkness doesn't come till well after 9pm at night, and it was a cloudy rainy night when we gathered at 7pm. So we decided to wait for the candle part till after it was dark. We shared a lovely meditation then a meal, then stories ... until at 11.30pm (!) someone asked if we were still going to do the candles! by this time the sky had cleared, the rain had stopped, and we piled into the van to go find the water.
A little adventure ensued ... involving darkness (no torch to light our path to the water, but dark adjusted eyes worked ok) .... finding the jetty, then seeing the tide was very low. So clambering down the steps, clinging to the pole at the bottom and gently lowering our candles into the water with the precious intention we were sending out into the world.
Walking back my adventure concluded with a short trip over a chain i didn't see until i fell over it! There is nothing like a little fall to bring us right back down to earth!!!
this was a memorable and beautiful night in many ways ... and i value the memories we are creating as a group of women, connected.
Thursday, February 1, 2007
i want these now
mmmmmmmmmmmmm cupcakes. Found the site with these on it today. Unfortunately they only deliver them in London.
But i want them. You can get vanilla or chocolate, with different decorations on the top.
Gorgeous!
(today was definitely a chocolate cupcake kinda day, but i didn't have any so it was chocolate brownie for lunch instead).
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
absent
for a few days i have had my attention focused elsewhere. mainly in the direction of my family, my dad in particular. spending some serious quality time with him over the weekend, i marvel at how much he and my brother (both of them actually) and I have in common ... not the least of which was how much our partners all complain about how much time we spend either online or in front of the computer! lol. and it definitely comes from his side of the family that we are all problem solvers, solution finders, creative types who like to ask universal questions and ponder the answers that come to us. my brother and i spent about 10 hours all together in the process of driving there and back again, more time talking face to face than we have in many years (since before our respective offspring were born). as a partial explanation, he lives in a different country from me, so the opportunities to get together are fewer than we would like.
but i was so stronly reminded of how powerful the ties of blood are within our family ... a family that is definitely not in each other's faces all the time, yet is still there when we need it.
i am blessed to have such intelligent, caring, loving men as my father and brothers in my life. i celebrate them all for the contribution they make to my life and to the world. i am in awe of the work my father has done over the years for the communities he lives in, and would love to see him receive some form of acknowledgement for his efforts, which have truly changed lives. he has never sought fame or attention, but has truly aimed to find better ways to get things done, and to ensure that people receive the assistance they are entitled to.
i wish for him that he discovers over the coming days and months, that his circle of friends and family is larger, stronger and more available than he has dreamed. that he discovers the value of connections made over the years, and the impact he has had.
i thank the universe for gifting me into my family - i love them all.
Thursday, January 18, 2007
an brief explanation
you might be interested in something i put into my blog yesterday ... there is a little video done by a guy on the Barbara Sher board, all about bringing the law of attraction stuff into action in our lives.
he developed this technique himself to make sense of it all .... basically it is about writing down our top three priorities that we want to see happen in our lives, then EACH DAY, write an A-Z list with a word or sentence that relates to each of those priorities starting with each letter. Make sense?
what he says happens (which makes sense) is that you start to see alphabet letters all around you as you go about your day, and every time you do, it reminds you of something on your list ... which helps keep you focused and keep all the good stuff top of mind. Plus of course, the repetition each day helps cement things in our minds and keeps us aware.
he says that for the hard letters he often writes something like "youthful zeal" for Y etc .... which is ok, you can fill in the really hard ones with something that is generally helpful.
he gives examples on the clip.
go have a look!
he developed this technique himself to make sense of it all .... basically it is about writing down our top three priorities that we want to see happen in our lives, then EACH DAY, write an A-Z list with a word or sentence that relates to each of those priorities starting with each letter. Make sense?
what he says happens (which makes sense) is that you start to see alphabet letters all around you as you go about your day, and every time you do, it reminds you of something on your list ... which helps keep you focused and keep all the good stuff top of mind. Plus of course, the repetition each day helps cement things in our minds and keeps us aware.
he says that for the hard letters he often writes something like "youthful zeal" for Y etc .... which is ok, you can fill in the really hard ones with something that is generally helpful.
he gives examples on the clip.
go have a look!
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
sad news
well i guess that is the cycle of life - one life begins, another ends.
this morning my brother rang to tell my that my stepmother had passed away in hospital. i am grieving for her, but also for my dad. he lives 6 hours drive from where we are, but i am waiting to hear more news re funeral arrangements etc, once he is able to organise such things. my stepmother has five children and any number of grandchildren, and several live in the area, so no doubt there will be much happening from their side of things.
i have always felt that my dad is kinda dwarfed by the huge size of her family, and i want to be there for him. perhaps even get him to come back home with us. i have no idea what the future holds or what he will want, but i am open to changes that are likely to follow.
so many people have sent love and support today and i am truly grateful.
this morning my brother rang to tell my that my stepmother had passed away in hospital. i am grieving for her, but also for my dad. he lives 6 hours drive from where we are, but i am waiting to hear more news re funeral arrangements etc, once he is able to organise such things. my stepmother has five children and any number of grandchildren, and several live in the area, so no doubt there will be much happening from their side of things.
i have always felt that my dad is kinda dwarfed by the huge size of her family, and i want to be there for him. perhaps even get him to come back home with us. i have no idea what the future holds or what he will want, but i am open to changes that are likely to follow.
so many people have sent love and support today and i am truly grateful.
Saturday, January 13, 2007
sun shine on a sunday
We have been having a summer that so far has only been remarkable for the lack of sunshine hours. The powers that be who know about the weather are promising us lots of sun come February, so I am holding on to that thought! Unfortunately for the kids, they will all be back at school by then, but hey, it is beyond our control, right?
Today the forecast was for 25 deg celsius, fine in the morning, then showers in the afternoon. But we woke again to greyness - not cold, just grey skies.
But right now as i type, not far from midday, the sun is trying hard to peep through the clouds. So here is to wishing and hoping and manifesting some sunshine ... at which point i may well pay tribute to the mighty sun by going for a walk in the gardens. (pic to come on that one!)
Am also sending thoughts for healing and courage in the direction of my own family, and the families of people i love and respect - manifesting health and wellbeing, a serious dollop, all round, thank you universe!
Today the forecast was for 25 deg celsius, fine in the morning, then showers in the afternoon. But we woke again to greyness - not cold, just grey skies.
But right now as i type, not far from midday, the sun is trying hard to peep through the clouds. So here is to wishing and hoping and manifesting some sunshine ... at which point i may well pay tribute to the mighty sun by going for a walk in the gardens. (pic to come on that one!)
Am also sending thoughts for healing and courage in the direction of my own family, and the families of people i love and respect - manifesting health and wellbeing, a serious dollop, all round, thank you universe!
Friday, January 12, 2007
adventure abounds
One of the things i really want to start talking about in this blog is the awesome event that we are creating for October 2007 - an International Women's Summit.
Things are in the earlyish planning stages as yet, but we are 99% confirmed on the location for this event, which will be Hanmer Springs, in the South Island of New Zealand.
For those of you who have always had a visit to NZ on your wish list, this is the perfect excuse! Hanmer is a stunningly beautiful alpine village that will be just gorgeous in spring - clear blue skies, the occasional frosty morning ... enhanced by the wonderful thermal pools and spa complex that is the heart of the town.
The theme for the summit is Adventure, and this is truly a location where adventures abound ... from the very accessible walking or biking of forest trails, to heart stopping bungy jumping, jet boat riding down the river, quad biking over spectacular hillsides and so much more.
The process of drawing the threads of this event together is already an exciting one. The originators of this event are the women's institute - lead by the most fabulous Deb Barnes and her team based in Spokane, Washington state.
Please do keep checking my blog, and the I will be site for updates not only on the women's summit, but also on the other weekends and workshops being organised by the institute.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
i saw him!
well the top of his head as he was happily feeding at least! little rohan is a gift, and his mother is already showing signs of early sleep deprivation! but it is all good - takes me back. i went to visit her in the hospital today and i have a feeling she may even be in the same room i was in 16 plus years ago, having my first son (also by caesarian section).
i took her a bunch of bright beautiful flowers to liven up the room, which was all good. it is amazing how the arrival of such a tiny, perfect being can turn our lives upside down!
the week has suddenly disappeared on me, with tomorrow being my "day off", yet actually full of events to be done while i have the chance. i really love being able to spend 4 days of my week in paid work, and 3 for me, but nearly tripped myself up this week , my first week back after the holidays. I forgot i don't work on Fridays and nearly had a photo shoot set up for tomorrow. Fortunately that got sorted, but Monday is going to be a full on day!
xxx
Monday, January 8, 2007
welcome to the world!
Today is an exciting day - a new little boy human being arrived - my boss has a son! Welcome R V, may your life be long and happy, and the days ahead be filled with joy.
It is really cool to see this unfold, talk about a year of adventure - what is more of an adventure than becoming a parent for the first time!
I am looking forward to seeing this new arrival in person, perhaps tomorrow - the circle of life continues.
Today was also a day of a new client walking in the door, funnily enough, one who specialised in creating educational music and movement for children from birth to age 6. He and his business partner are about to release a new dvd teaching teachers how to use some of their songs with children. www.tessarose.co.nz - awesome product - they have sold more than 250,000 copies of their tapes and cds over the years, equivalent to multiple gold records!
I am looking forward to helping them come up with some creative marketing approaches and really ramping up their products in the market. They send their CDs all over the world, so if anyone is looking for music for pre-schoolers, check them out.
Sunday, January 7, 2007
Arrivals and expectations
so today was my first day back at work for 2007. All went well, there is much to be done in the coming weeks, not least of which involves managing around the arrival of my boss's first child - due tomorrow.
So there is excitement and anticipation in the air, as this event is only hours away, and once it happens, nothing will be the same again.
The year looks to be a good one on the business front, with many challenges in the pipeline.
September/october could well be the time of events, multiple, with two and possibly three on my agenda, only one of which would be organised during work hours. Overburdened you say? Of course not - there is oodles of daylight between now and then!!
That's all for now ... more gems later perhaps.
Oh and the pic in this post?? the spectacular place my women's circle (and partners) visited in the weekend to carry out a blessing ritual for the birth of a child to one of our members. Cool, huh!?
Saturday, January 6, 2007
Welcome to 2007!
First off, i must give credit to Deb, since i have stolen the theme of this blog from hers :) but we are at least partly involved in adventure together this year - be it bungy jumping, quad biking or simply enticing some sensational women from around the world to join us in New Zealand in October this year.
In addition to co-creating this spectacular-to-be event, my focii for the year are on art (my own and my husband's); cooking luscious and loving food for my family and friends; learning the language of love (Italian) and moving my body in new and mysterious ways participating in the dance form known as Ceroc.
there is much excitement and fun to be had in the year ahead, and i look forward with great anticipation to the adventures yet to unfold.
more soon.
In addition to co-creating this spectacular-to-be event, my focii for the year are on art (my own and my husband's); cooking luscious and loving food for my family and friends; learning the language of love (Italian) and moving my body in new and mysterious ways participating in the dance form known as Ceroc.
there is much excitement and fun to be had in the year ahead, and i look forward with great anticipation to the adventures yet to unfold.
more soon.
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