Mental*IllnessAltruisticThoughts&CRYSYALS!!!
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Posted:Sep 2, 2023 7:48 am
Last Updated:Sep 8, 2023 12:09 pm 66136 Views
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Last month, I saw a play at the local Theater. The play was "Almost Normal" which deals with mental illness and the impact that it has on the family. The play hit close to home because this was the scenario that I grew up with.
I later realized that my mother and I had some of the same challenges. She did the Thorazine trudge and got shock treatment. I figured out at a young age that I can't safely consume alcohol and sought 12 Step help.
Mother Dearest was Number #1 on my resentment list for several years. I later realized that mental illness does not define who my mother was anymore than my alcoholism defines me. Healing happens on both sides of the veil. Mum is on the other side while I managed to find 12 Step Solutions on this side.
A few years ago, a woman that I've known for years wanted to move to West Virginia. I connected her with my landlord and she ended up moving next door to me. I know both her parents through the 12 Step Community and she lived with us for a while when she was going through a very difficult time in her life.
I quickly introduced her to my Quaker friends at a book club outing on a boat at Bluestone Lake. Afterwards, she advised me that she was afraid of water and my friends were too uppity for her. They are an intellectual bunch which is why I like them but not everyone has the same prospective.
She also announced that she was no longer attending 12 Step Meetings and registered for the Mountaineer Party which is essentially a "Do Nothing" bunch of folks just in my not so humble opinion. It soon became apparent that I have absolutely nothing in common with this woman since most of my friends are Quakers, political activists , opera lovers, or in the 12 Step Community.
Her answer to life is mental health professionals and psychotropics. I tried being a friend but it was impossible. As a , I was often the scapegoat and punching bag for my mother's mental health issues. It seemed like this woman was trying to push me in that role once again.
My solution, I moved and left her on her own. I learned that the previous tenant in my current abode was problematic. The folks in the building called her "Sidewinder." The apartment had to be completely refurbished.
I was praying that Sidewinder would move into my previous apartment. I later found out that the new tenant likes to have very loud parties. I also found out that the neighbor on the other side has relocated to another side. Sidewinder may be on the horizon for the problematic ex-neighbor after all.
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BrusselSproutsEqaulsH*teSpeechPerSFF POlice?!!!
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Posted:Jul 3, 2023 3:32 am
Last Updated:Sep 2, 2023 7:04 am 59970 Views
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I have to really laugh. I got a love letter from the SFF POlice stating that my previous blog regarding the adventures of cooking brussels sprouts was booted off the site due to h*te speech. Did somebody's mother make them eat brussels sprouts when they were a youngster and they REALLY hated brussels sprouts.
I remember when Former President Bush Senior remarked that he didn't like broccoli. When he was a young boy, his mother made him eat broccoli but now that he's President, he doesn't have to eat broccoli.
I don't blame him. I don't like broccoli either unless it's chopped up real fine into a soup.
Meanwhile, I recently moved into a retirement community where there is a community lounge. I was listening to a group of women fat shame a man who was sitting nearby. Folks frequently bring dishes to share and now this man is afraid to eat in front of anyone.
I told the man that it was not right for these women to treat him like that and they need to go FiretrUCK themselves. Most of the dishes are not very healthy. Lots of white flour. Bleeck!
Now that I actually have a working stove and oven, I think I can provide different options. We are having a 4th of July cookout . I am bringing brussels sprouts.
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y0uTube, gOOgle, Alexa, What is the Recipe for .............
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Posted:May 31, 2023 9:00 am
Last Updated:Jul 3, 2023 3:04 am 58432 Views
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A gentleman mentioned orange glazed Brussel sprouts that he savored in a restaurant some time ago. I have been trying to duplicate them. I researched potential recipes via gOOgle any YouTube. I recently move into a retirement community and I actually have a working stove and an oven that actually works. That didn't happen at my previous abode.
It's a brand new flat top stove and I have been having a whole lot of fun with culinary experiments. I made a quiche for our book club courtesy of Y0uTube. We had a cookout this Monday so I decided to create the orange glazed Brussel Sprouts. I checked out YouTube and gOOgle, finding recipes but I didn't have the ingredients on hand.
I finally asked Alexa, she told me to preheat the oven at 450. I improvised everything else while Alexa told me the history of Belgium. The Brussel Sprouts were a hit at the cook out so all was well.
It was brought to my attention that I can give Alexa a male voice. That could be interesting. I would give it a New Jersey accent and call it Steve. It might fun to hav ea male to boss. Steve!!! What is your favorite aphrodisiac?
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FotoFridayMemorialDay&OldBoyfriends
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Posted:May 26, 2023 10:54 pm
Last Updated:May 31, 2023 8:37 am 61990 Views
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I came from a military family. My dad worked to support his siblings during WWII. After High School, he enlisted in the Navy and reenlisted in the Army. He served in Korea and Vietnam. Veterans Day is his day because he made it back home. Memorial Day is for those who did not make it back home.
There is a gentleman friend that I would occasionally run into at the local theater. We would sit together and watch the live plays. He told me about his cousin Jackie who died in Vietnam. Memorial Day is Cousin Jackie's day because he didn't make it make home. His mortal remains reside in Arlington Cemetary.
Today I was at a cook-out and ran into my theater buddy. We sat across from each other and I mentioned that I had a photo of his cousin Jackie. I pulled out my cell phone and showed him the photo of his cousin's tombstone.
I had gone to Arlington Cemetary in 2017 along with the 's of the American Revolution headquarters. My ancestors were the original United States veterans.
I also found the tombstone of an boyfriend. I later discovered that my older 's father resides in a Veteran's Cemetary in Riverside, California. He must not have been in the military very long. He was only a 3rd Class Private when he left. I suspect that he either got demoted or booted out early.
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Book Club and Culinary Adventures
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Posted:May 25, 2023 9:38 pm
Last Updated:Jun 21, 2023 11:30 am 62268 Views
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I have gotten into the habit of posting quotes from the books that I read, tagging them thus able to give a better critique at our book club meetings.
One book written by a Polish Woman involved a murder mystery and astrology.
It inspired me to get back into a forensic astrology group.
I have a Scorpio Book Buddy who often recommends books for me to read. When he comes into town, he commented that he gets tired of buying sandwiches at subway. I offered to make him a homes cooked meal. I told him not to worry that his virtue would be safe with me. He suggested that I include aphrodisiacs in the meal.
That could be interesting. I could turn my book buddy into a **** buddy. I suggested a picnic in the confederate graveyard. Perhaps a Persian Quiche with rose petals, pistachios, saffron, ad infinitum.
I did make a spinach quiche for our book club pot luck. Thank God for You Tube. I can find all kinds of cuisine exotic or otherwise on that site.
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Opera and Retail Therapy
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Posted:May 20, 2023 11:04 pm
Last Updated:May 24, 2023 6:43 pm 28936 Views
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It was a delightful day. I love living near all the places that I love. The Metropoliton was livestreaming the Opera "Don Giovanni" courtesy of Mozart to the local Greenbrier Valley Theater. I purchased the ticket and walked over to the Wild Bean Java House. I encountered a group of Opera Lovers with a gentleman explaining the particulars of the Opera. They meet regularly on Opera days and now I am part of the group.
Don Giovanni was a womanizing male hoe who gets his comeuppance in the end. We discussed the malady of saints versus sinners who go to confession and get a pass.
I am sure that I have some practices that very conservative religious folks might find questionable. I don't worry about them too much. I only concern myself with love the creator above all and love the neighbors as self. Although "Bless Her Heart" is the best that I can do for one particular former neighbor.
I figure that my Higher Power will sort it out in the end.
During intermission, I walked a few doors down to a shop that sells vintage items. I found awesome vases made with fine china in the dollar box. The store owner invited me to go through the store. I told her that I would love to but I heading to the Opera. She knew exactly what I was talking about.
I observed folks at the Met very formally dressed in seats that didn't look too comfortable and paying top dollars to see the Opera. It's on my bucket list to go the Metropolitan but seeing it livestreamed is also awesome. The price is affordable, I can wear my blue jeans. I am in my hometown and I am able to do some retail therapy during intermission. How awesome is that.
During the second half of Don Giovanni, the villain is confronted by a ghost with the suggestion that he repent. He refused and off to hell he went. Better him than me. Fortunately, I have no great sins in my life especially now that I have gotten older.
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Ode to the Old Abode?! Actually...........Good Riddance!!!
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Posted:May 19, 2023 8:05 pm
Last Updated:May 23, 2023 12:58 pm 25061 Views
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My husband went to the other side of the veil 10 years ago. I could not afford to maintain the house on Wal-Mart wages so I put the house on the market. I thought it would be cool to build a tiny house and even went to Texas to learn how to build a Dome House. I soon realized that zoning laws, building codes and financial realities rendered a dome house not very practical.
Wal-Mart and I parted company. A friend who founded and managed a recovery house called me and asked to help her out temporarily. The women in the recovery house told a new employee about a ghost in the house. The new employee immediately quit. My friend needed help fast. The women who had recently been released from prison were training in culinary skills. I drove them to the site and picked them up.
When we returned, there were women who were smudging the place with sage wands and ringing bells. The women in recovery were amused. One declared that they were having a seance in the house. Actually it's a Native American ritual for clearing away negativity and apparently ghosts. I am not particularly afraid of ghosts but I would have handled it in a similar way. Maybe sit down and have a conversation with the ghost.
When my friend resigned from her position, I really didn't want to stay but temporary jobs don't always work out to be so temporary. Especially when my house sold with a two week escrow. Oh what fun.
I started looking for an apartment. I answered an ad for a nearby apartment. I mentioned to the landlord where I worked. I worked at a recovery house for female addicts who just got out of jail. The landlord blurts out "Are you an addict?" Frequently recovered addicts do work in these type of places but my history is alcoholism. I told him that I have been sober way longer than I was in active alcoholism. When I arrived to the office for the apartment building, he asked "Have you ever relapsed?" Dah! What alcoholic hasn't relapsed. Yeah! 37 years ago. Next he asked about my criminal record. Indeed, I have a 1982 Disturbing the Peace conviction. He concluded that it must have been a protest. Nope, I was an exotic dancer and pleaded it down. Flustering, "Oh, That's Cool!"
I wasn't sure that I was going to get the apartment but I did. The apartments below was an old Hospital for Confederate Soldiers during the Civil War. My apartment building resided on a Confederate Encampment. I have certainly sensed residual energy or maybe a ghost or two hanging around the building.
They certainly don't scare me but I am sure glad that they didn't follow me to the new home front .
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The New Abode
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Posted:May 18, 2023 10:36 pm
Last Updated:May 19, 2023 7:05 pm 24534 Views
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Between dealing with a problematic neighbor and a toxic landlord, I finally gave two months notice and started looking for a new home. I finally got the word of being approved at a new place a few days before I was required to leave.
I spent a little over a month-between residents. I do have a tent in the back of Casper the Chevy Spark but fortunately I have a few good girlfriends that didn't make me sleep in that tent.
Both the toxic landlord and the problematic neighbor are blocked on my phone and other media sites. I am done with them. They are ancient history.
It is ironic how these individuals did their best to drive me out. They succeeded but I landed in a much better place so ultimately I was the real winner.
The reason that it took so long to get into the new abode is because, the place was being painted, the flooring redone, new cabinets, ad infinitum. The Refrigerator and Stove are brand new. A Libra's style of Spring Cleaning - MOVE!!!!
I am closer to the main town near the Theatre. This Saturday, it's Opera livestreamed from the Met. There is also the Aquatic Center, the Liberty, the fancy Java Shop, Art Galleries and all the exciting adventures on the horizon.
My Scorpio Barrister Gentleman is coming over for a homecooked meal. I am loading it with aphrodisiacs and suggesting a romantic picnic in the historical graveyard. It will be fun.
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Early European versus NA Culture & CRYSTALS
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Posted:Apr 7, 2023 3:43 pm
Last Updated:May 18, 2023 10:07 pm 29580 Views
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My heritage is Western European/Celtic American with some NA ancestry. Thus my spiritual practices are very eclectic with mostly European with some NA influences. I am not a fan of PA but I do have concerns about cultural appropriation.
When I first moved to West Virginia, there were city ordinances against doing readings for a fee. I started making dream catchers and selling them with complimentary readings. I extended this practice to my on-line business.
I recently started making Haunted Shields definitely inspired by the dream-catcher but with more of a European influence. My ex-problematic neighbor did a post declaring that I am disrespectful toward Native Americans and that Karma was going to GET me.
Her arguments – Indians don’t make haunted things, no tobacco in the prayer ties, I don’t have the training to make them and Gadzooks! Purple and the Tree of Life incorporated into them.
I am not even pretending to make authentic NA dream-catchers. Our circle considers the term crone respect for older women while the clueless society uses the term to ridicule older woman. Haunted has a whole different meaning in my frame of reference. Tobacco was responsible for my husband’s health issues and eventually death. Why would I use it in prayer ties? I use herbs purchased at the local Natural Health Shop or those grown by me. Anyone can learn to make a dream-catcher by watching YouTube. I actually learned to make them from the women in a NA community by exchanging readings for them teaching me how to make one.
The Tree of Life, and the Color Purple incorporated into my Haunted Shields. My artwork and my creation. Disrespect to NA?! The only Karma is the Problematic Ex-Neighbor with her selective rage doing time in Facebook Jail.
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PiDay8KNightRunInTheRain&CRYSTALS!!!
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Posted:Mar 12, 2023 9:20 pm
Last Updated:Mar 16, 2023 8:37 pm 33528 Views
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Events cause intense emotions and I wasn't sure what to do with them. I went to a 12 Step Meeting but really didn't feel like talking about it.
After the meeting, I started to walk home and thought "What the heck! I am schedule for a Pi Day 8K. It's a virtual run. I choose the route and the time when I want to start. It's dark and raining. It matched my mood completely.
There is no time like the presence to start the run so I headed for the Trail and found a different branch in the trail with wetlands. Rain and Darkness was a good time to cry, scream and rant. My Higher Power and I had a serious conversation.
I started at 7:30 PM and made it home at 9:40 PM.
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