Awareness – Thought Changer

The dampness seeps through my cotton joggers. I don’t realize it’s raining until I sit on the patio chair, its cushion cool and moist. It’s not rain, but a soft mist so fine it looks like fluctuating pixels on a grainy live photograph. Constantly moving, shifting, changing. There must be fifty shades of green in the thicket of woods behind my house. Those early Spring greens. Fresh, young, budding baby leaves, lapping the nourishment of the dew. Wondering if it’s the appetizer or the dessert. Finding strength in the anticipation. The wild daisies and lacy purple tansies carpet the yard’s floor nearby. They appear to stand on their tiptoes with their faces prone as they capture the tiny moist droplets in their mouths. They seem at ease like there’s enough to go around. Seems a fitting personality trait for wildflowers. The mist hits my face. I breathe it in. Best… Read more →

“I had an epiphany.” We’ve all felt that inspiring moment of realization at one time or another, the powerful insight that was going to change everything. It’s a great feeling, right? Okay, you had an epiphany. So, now what? While reading Step 2 in the Twelve Steps of Overeaters Anonymous this morning – yes, I admit I’m an overeater – I was hit by a wave of epiphany. As part of my work in this program I’ve committed to “no dieting”. Dieting, I’ve learned, for me is an aspect of the compulsive behavior that’s part of the problem and not the solution. Intellectually, makes a lot of sense. But, as a lifelong planner, my mind got to working: how was I going to shed these extra pounds if I don’t diet? Hmmm. I have to figure this out. Cut portions? Cut bread? Cut chocolate? Cut sugar? Cut carbs? Cut, cut… Read more →

“He was in his divinity.” That’s what Sheryl Crow had to say recently about watching Michael Jackson in action. She had toured with him early in her career and remarked about standing off stage and witnessing his genius at work, about how he seemed to go to a different place. “He was in his divinity.” We probably all know, or have seen, people who seem to be doing exactly what they were put on this earth to do. You know it when you see it. There’s nothing sexier or more attractive than a man or woman in his or her element. Sometimes they even appear to glow. They seem grounded, confident and things drift easily to them, whether it’s opportunity, money or circumstance. It got me thinking about purpose and mission and why-are-we-here, which I think about a lot. A lot. I believe, after studying the works of Marianne Williamson,… Read more →

There were so many amazing photos posted recently of the Blue Moon. It was awe-and-then-some! I took several moments on my patio, breathing into the seeming expansiveness in the air created by the sight of the magnificent orb. I tried to get a photo, but couldn’t capture it. The best one I found was posted by my friend John Tamerlano on his FB page, so I’m borrowing it! Thanks, JT. Just looking at it creates a sense of wonder abou t what lies beyond it. It got me thinking about the Unknown and what an impact, good and bad, it can have on our lives, and how the prospect of the Unknown can bring on excitement, anticipation, fear or terror in varying degrees or all at once. As we strive to raise the level of our playing field we will continually approach and cross the threshold to the Unknown. To… Read more →

A recent dinner with dear old friends conjured more than just catching up. Sure we did a quick rewind through the last three years since seeing each other. But, with this particular family of friends I always leave much more grounded and inspired than I was at hello. And, we echoed many stories being told around many dinner tables right now, stories of challenges faced, jobs changed and upcoming choices being made. There was a shared rekindling taking place. It’s the same theme after every encounter with my friends, the Googasians. I left them after dinn er and walked across Ocean Boulevard in Santa Monica to gaze out over the ocean. It was vast and dark and mysterious. But, stealing the scene from the ocean was the ferris wheel whirling on the Santa Monica Pier which was bustling with activity. The ferris wheel was a sight to behold. At night… Read more →

George Carlin said, “It’s called the American Dream ’cause you have to be asleep to believe it.” Funny irony, for which Mr. Carlin was the master. But, my mindset has changed around the whole concept of this shared national ideal. Or I should say former shared idealThe term “American Dream” was coined by historian James Truslow Adams in 1931. He also wrote, “It has been a dream of being able to grow to fullest development as man and woman, unhampered by the barriers which had slowly been erected in the older civilizations, unrepressed by social orders which had developed for the benefit of classes rather than for the simple human being of any and every class.” Hmmm. Now, that’s an ideal I can get behind. But, instead government, business and society redefined an American Dream that everyone bought into or was brainwashed to buy into, the belief that more is… Read more →

“I’ve been noticing lots of changes going on in your life and not enough reflection/writing on your Thought Changer blog, so I’m checking in on you!” This is what is known as a loving smack-down on Facebook! My sweet cousin Carol messaged me this week after seeing numerous posts on FB regarding my recent moving sales and upcoming move. It inspired me and got me thinking about how so often when going through a big transition or change in life we can burrow in, nose to the grindstone and eyes planted two steps in front of us, marred down in process. That can be a good thing in terms of focus, but when you write a blog about mindset and thought-provoking change, it would seem to be the most opportune time to lift my head and make note of it all. This is the good stuff! This is where the… Read more →

The albatross gets a bad rap. The oft-used reference to the bird is a metaphor for carrying a heavy burden, “This (fill in the blank) is an albatross around my neck.” Before the ancient poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge created this legend in his 1798 poem, the albatross was considered good luck by sailors when it followed their ship. However, in the poem which was inspired by a series of true stories, a mariner shoots the albatross and as punishment his companions make him wear the dead bird around his neck until his death. But, after watching the Discovery Channel’s series “Frozen Planet” I’m thinking differently about the albatross. You’d think it would be a breeze to be able to fly with an eleven-foot wingspan. But, a young albatross has an incredibly difficult time getting off the ground. In fact, it takes literally weeks for him to figure out how to… Read more →

by Cindy Yantis I recently pulled the classic film, “Pride and Prejudice,” off my shelf to watch it again. To say the story is infused with entangled connections is an understatement. In fact, in the days of Jane Austen, people’s lives were all about relationships; they were the number one rule of the time, making the right connections and nurturing those ties that bind. It got me thinking about my own relationships, which had already been on the top of my mind because I have been on the receiving end time and time again of such meaningful connections, particularly as of late. It also got me thinking about what it means to build and sustain relationships in our lives. This article could have just have easily been entitled, “Want a Friend? Be a Friend,” because in order for the connection to be true and lasting, it’s important to give as… Read more →

Day nine of the new year and so far I’ve stuck to my “new” eating plan. “New” is in parentheses because I’ve started this “new” eating plan HUNDREDS of times. But, “this time is different.” Right. But, truly I think it is. I’m sailing along in the no sugar zone, and really not thinking too much about sugar. Except for possibly in my dreams when an old woman appears, a wise old woman, and her face looks remarkably like cotton candy. I wake up when I realize I want to eat her face. Is that sick, or just the subconscious of a sugar addict? Anyhoo, this morning an email popped into my inbox from Living Social, a great discount site that offers offers enticing incentives for the odd and delectable services and treats. Todays “Deal” is from Brown Sugar, an insanely yummy cupcake place in LA, advertising a deal on… Read more →

Imagine pulling up to your house at night. As you approach, something feels odd, out of place, amiss. It’s dark as the familiar lights on your street guide you along, though you don’t notice because you’re on automatic pilot. But, something has changed and your brain can’t quite fill in the blanks, so much so that you nearly pass your house entirely until you recognize the Christmas tree in your front window. You catch yourself at the last minute, so that you’re fully alert, no longer on auto-pilot. You pull into the driveway, get out of the car and cautiously turn back toward the street. That’s when you realize that the 40-year-old California Oak Tree that graced the front of your yard has been chopped. To the ground. With barely a stump to recognize its memory. That’s exactly what happened to me recently. It was a big beautiful tree owned… Read more →