Stranger things have happened

I am doing something slightly out of character, I am planning a head...really! I am writing blog entries for next year! yes, I am going to do 52 entries devoted to books, my favorite books and books of friends! I have January and February written! I did write earlier this year about blogging more, well if I have a blog entry a week already completed I'm hoping it will inspire me even more! That may not make sense to anyone but me and this is my space so for right now that's all that matters!

Zen

Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism. The Japanese word Zen is derived from the Chinese word Chán, which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which means "meditation" or "meditative state".


Ok, that’s what most of the definitions about Zen say, it’s all about attaining enlightenment, a process of rediscovery, introspection, a step backwards, being calm within yourself. I discovered Zen in college as part of a humanities class and a discussion on religions of the world and found it in practice for myself on a vacation in southern Mexico at a wonderful Club Med in Huatulco (It is located on the Pacific coast in the state of Oaxaca.) while learning all about archery; the most Zen sport I know of!

I try to meditate whenever I get frazzled or am feeling snarky; which means I should be living in a constant state of Zen!!

Tonight I rediscovered a book called Instant Zen, a do it yourself guide to awareness and discovery, I’m going to do as the book suggests, go with the flow, open myself to new ideas and get in touch with “the eye of the soul”.

The book is divided in half, like a flip book, mix and match, each page with a phrase when joined they create a zen thought to, well, think about!

Here are some I created and plan on thinking about...


It is not necessary to try

-just be

Seeing is beyond form-

Hearing is beyond sound



We can only know

That we know nothing

Scoop up water,

The moon is in your hands



Everything becomes its opposite

No cold spot

In a boiling cauldron



Enter into your inner self

And behold the eye of your soul

In the midst of all good and evil,

Not a thought is aroused in the mind

 
 
I'll have to see what happens when I open up my mind and just go with the flow. This has definite possibilities.

back to blogging

Every time I realize I need to get back to “blogging” I go out and buy “writing” stuff! Yesterday was no exception. I had no intention of buying anything; I was merely accompanying my mother on her mission to decorate her front door for Halloween, which led to her picking out Halloween cards, Halloween candy and eventually a tombstone and two Jack O Lanterns. As I pushed the cart down the aisle she stopped at the row with office supplies, pens, markers and paper. My eyes casually wandered to daily reminder books, date books, blank books; then I saw it, and Eco-Friendly, Tree-Free, Certified Organic notebook with pocket; actually with 2 pockets! The treeless paper is made in Costa Rica from post-consumer waste and banana fibers! Well, I’ll be a monkey’s uncle, aunt. I opened the spiral bound wonder and it set up like a calendar/journal with the months on the top and numbers 1 to 31 below then the rest of the sheet is lines, each page is slightly different I am assuming due to the “consumer waste” used to create it. Needless to say I’m a happy girl armed with my newly acquired note book and purple pens, yeah I like purple pens, ready to blog…wait, there I go again, rambling when I should stop and think, blogging is writing but on the internet, should I be crestfallen? I really don’t need a notebook or purple pens if I have my faithful laptop. Heavy sigh, then again contrary to popular belief I am not attached to my laptop 24/7. Oh joy and rapture, my purchase was not a complete waste of $3.49.




Watch this space, (actually the space above this one) more to come, I promise!

It's not easy being green

I love Kermit and being green is the "IN" thing, green as in being responsible to Mother Earth and the environment, that is ok but some things green are not.

I woke up this morning curious if other “athletes” were as superstitious as some NASCAR drivers; ie-peanuts in the garage, no $50 bills and for certain drivers no green cars!

I don’t really care about other “athletes” or even other NASCAR drivers and their superstitions; to be honest I only care about one driver and his superstitions and how I tried to warn his “People” that the car that looked like it had a watermelon rind on its roof spilling on to the hood was a definite NO-NO. I mean seriously didn’t they remember what happened at the first race in Phoenix this year, the car was Green (although I do have another theory on that race and why he finished 23rd, which I might tell some friends if they ask!) and don’t they know his past history before his number changed to 14. There was one race that during practice he noticed the roof number was green and by race time that number was no longer green. Yes, I realize he won Talladega in a car with green on it, but the hideous predominate color was, she shuddered as she typed, Yellow. And while his driving was superior I had a hand in that win, yes, little me! The Thursday before the Talladega race I gave him my favorite Tigger pin for good luck; Tigger kept that bad luck green in its place. No such luck last night, I told friends it was the green car and don’t you know that his final words before his radio was shut off were, “It was the M#$@&* F@#$ing GREEN RACE CAR”. Lovely, just lovely for the deserting sponsor, not a chance in H E double toothpicks I’ll ever buy that product or subscribe to the cable network that adorned the offensive Green car. I’d have said it was all in his mind but he got hit from behind before lap 3! From there he battled with the car the rest of the night…

So, please dear sponsors, learn this lesson and learn it well…a certain pooh shaped NASCAR owner/driver does not like, hates, abhors, is no f-ing good driving a M#$@&* F@#$ing GREEN RACE CAR. Let me say this again…Green car is bad luck.

yes, it happened again

i haven't blogged since July...i could blame it on work; that is when things got a bit crazy...new things to learn, teaching others how do to my old job, people retiring-some wanting to others not so much.

much has happened and i'll attempt to catch up and expound on my views and life...lol, if only for myself!