Halloween 2011:

 BE SAFE
         AND
      HAVE FUN
          AND
              

STOP SCARING YOURSELF!

Halloween 2011:

WHOOOOO said it's a bit breezy, ehh?
 Heck, it could actually snow this year.
 Dress warm enough. 


DON'T GO INTO ANY HOUSES EVEN IF YOU KNOW THEM.

STAY SAFE!

I did lose my head! Oh, no.
 I'm supposed to pay
attention. My mom said...
Be safe this Halloween and take a buddy
to trick or treat with you.
THEN LET US CHECK YOUR CANDY!

There's no bones about it, I'm batty over YOU!
(okay, this sounds more like a valentine!)

Starbucks:

If you check out the center of this pumpkin you will see the Starbucks logo.

 Question #1

 What would your logo be if you had one and

 #2 -

 What soundtrack  fits your lifestyle or character and

#3

Has it changed over the years or are you still that original "hit tune"?


***
Have a nice, safe, fun Halloween weekend and a good cup of coffee!

Select a Monster:

 Monster #1
There is something about this character that makes me smile...
I know he is supposed to scare me but instead, he evokes compassion.
How can someone smile with all these problems?  There are people who also are able to smile no matter what. They find
the beauty in life and focus on the positive.

                                          VS
Monster #2
Then there is the other one here who is more than likely talking
under his breath. He cusses the day he was born and hates every
living minute.  That's the scary one...who damns everything and the focus in his life is on the negative. That's hard to be around. You know that whatever you rub up next to,  rubs off on you...

So what kind of a monster are you going to be this Halloween???

What to Do About Child sexual abuse:

It is so difficult to wrap our brains around the subject of child sexual abuse. Think about it...1 out of 3 girls and 1 out of 6 boys. Even though we hear about it every day in the media or know someone...hey, don't lose your head when it comes to this subject. Wake up, smell the problem and talk about it to other people. What do you do when the subject is mentioned? Change it? No-No-No!

Nicknames:

A man who came to the clinic frequently for lab
work called me "string bean" but that was like 100 years ago!

Do you have a nickname?
Does it say a lot about your character?
Are you proud of it?
Has it followed you into adulthood?
Do your friends and children have them?
Were you called names in school?
What kind of label follows you?
Do you have a secret?
*

What's the story on the creepy guy in the picture?
Tell me what you think.
*
A man went into a small town and asked each person he met to tell him something
they had never told anyone else and they did...yes, he wrote a book.
*
 Please take a minute and answer the poll
I do not know who answers these so it's still  anonymous 

 

Spooked: A Writing Prompt

SOOOOOOOOOOOOO,
Are you  frightened?
Who  first spooked you?
Tell us now  the
What... when... where ... and why*
*
Some things will
never be discovered unless they are discussed
or written about or even drawn down.
*
Did you ever sit in a circle around
a campfire with your friends and tell ghost stories?
*
When I was a kid, I told scary stories to my friend
Marilyn who believed me but when I tried the same thing
with my sister...she tattled to mom!
*
Keep your children SAFE and
Watch out for your brothers and sisters.

Watch a Sunset:

            Early this evening I watched a most gorgeous sunset.  Near me I observed sweet, well mannered and well dressed children of different races yell, "good-bye Sun," as the bright yellow ball sunk! They  were joyful and hummed the Sesame Street song as they were leaving. But in my experience...
     The setting sun with a muted darkness spread across the freeway and into my neighborhood conjuring up a level of grief and the anticipation of sadness, parting and the end of a day. I say good-bye to my adult child today and am filled with both gratitude and grief.  So, is this what you'd call good grief, Charlie Brown?

Boundaries:

Learn how to make a  physical boundary and
 keep a safe space between you and another person.

Someone should always know where you are and
who is with you at that location.

Do you carry mad money with you?
Have the battery charged on your cell phone.

Let's keep our children SAFE.
Please...
don't become a statistic!

One Way to Celebrate Yourself: ummmm

It's the wonderful lemon curd and fresh clotted cream 

that turns this yummy warm vanilla scone and the lavender

white chocolate scone into a terrific taste bud celebration.

The Bloomsbury Tea Room and Cafe in Capitola is a non-profit.

While the proceeds help programs in the community,

the volunteers provide an absolute delightful experience.

  And the last time you had fun with a friend, drank tea, tried on vintage hats, laughed?

I don't mean laughed so hard something came out your nose.

I mean the polite kind of laughter, lady like... You know.

Writing Prompt:

I was intrigued with the eyes of this doll.
I saw her in a store window in Carmel this evening.
What memories or thoughts come to mind...
Spend 10 minutes writing and give her a name!

How to Survive Lost Luggage:

     I know someone who "lost" their suitcase or at least didn't have it
arrive on the plane at the same time they did.  She simply made a report and  viewed her experience both as an opportunity and an adventure.


 You know our days are kind of like having identical suitcases where we all share the same size but some of us can pack more into them than others which certainly includes an attitude.


     When I had the "lost" suitcase experience earlier this year, it was  annoying and inconvenient because I thought I needed my things. I slept on the top of the covers fully dressed until 2am when it was delivered to my room.  And yes, I was grateful and appreciative after it arrived.
 
    Being grateful and appreciative before a solution is taking yourself out of the problem. Like the song says, Give Peace a Chance!

How Can Someone Avoid Friction:

Ninety percent of the friction of daily life is caused by the wrong tone of voice   so... imagine  or try it if you dare...singing your requests. Just a silly thought but somehow it would lighten things up a bit, wouldn't it?

Retake:

Happy New Year 2014

I make these on New Years Eve in my kitchen. It's fun. It's a good way to begin the year and making a Mary Box is a prayer in itself. YOU are in one of them if you ever asked for prayer. Hope you do this at your home too.
Much love to all my followers.
Hope to see change in 2014. EK

 Today I am showing you my "Mary Boxes" because so many people have asked about them.

When someone asked me to pray for them I'd say I would but then I'd either forget and/or didn't know what or how to do it.

I discovered the solution at a Care-giver's Retreat. I am very visual and this is what I did:  I took a little scrap of paper, wrote their prayer intention, folded it  carefully like a ritual, stood in front of my Mary Box and asked for the intervention of the Blessed Mother to her Son, Jesus for whatever this person desired. (healing, a job, pain relief, diagnosis, return of lost pet, safe journey,  etc, etc.) followed by a Hail Mary and then I placed it into the slot in the box!

 You can use a shoe box, a Kleenex box or whatever you have around the house. Glue pictures of the Blessed Mother on it. I find appropriate words from magazines and add those to my box and put the year on it. Then put a slot in the top like a bank and drop in a pray.

When the box is full I seal it. I never look at any request that I have written again. I have on occasion taken my Mary Boxes with me to Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and placed them near the Altar asking for blessings for all those who are in the boxes.

 So now when someone asks me to pray for them I say, "I will put  you in my Mary Box!"

Writing Prompt:

America Needs Fatima Rally: Santa Cruz, CA

Hail Mary, full of Grace,
the Lord is with thee
Blessed art thou among women
And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death, Amen.

Praying the Rosary for America 

A Saturday Invitation To YOU: Pray for Peace

Staurday at 12 noon at the Town Clock in Santa Cruz, California 

Catholics are gathering for a Rosary Rally for peace. We will be one of 

 7, 515 groups  holding a prayer circle around the country...for our country. Come join us.

~ Peace Be With You ~

Report Abuse: check out these resources

Don't fall for it...

Tis the season of change

If you  think something is wrong, Mama...

Something is wrong!

Act now and make a difference 

Suspicious of neighbors? 

Notice inappropriate behavior of a parent?

Are you or someone else being abused?

This is National Domestic Violence month

Report...Report...Report     >>>


If you are a mother of a survivor and need to talk to someone contact the Survivor's Healing Center.

Grief: Stages for Parents of Sexually Abused Children

Most parents feel that what their child and family have gone through is so traumatic that they will never get over it. However ,  although it will be difficult for them and they will always have unhappy memories about the events, healing and adjustment will begin to take place when they have successfully dealt with the stages of grief:


     SHOCK
       DENIAL
         ANGER
           GUILT AND SELF-BLAME
             INAPPROPRIATE BLAME
               SHAME AND ANXIETY
                 DEPRESSION AND SADNESS
                   HEALING AND ADJUSTMENT

Support Programs for Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse:

Every day I meet a survivor. I am overwhelmed by the enormous numbers of
women who have been molested and have never told anyone. The most upsetting
part is the perpetrator got away with it, at least for now but...
Did you think he stopped?  

No one wants to talk about child sexual abuse but once you start it's hard to stop the conversation.
 Please Help Stop this Violence.Talking, calling, writing, drawing, telling... Just DON'T keep it to yourself!
No more secrets


The proceeds from the sale of the eBook memoir, "Under My Roof ~ A Mother's Story of the Heinous Crime of Incest"
will be used to support programs that deal with survivors and family members.
Thank You for your support
Emalou

Discernment: Adult Time Out

Sometimes it's best for adults to take a time out...
We all need breaks from our routines.
Often it can give us a different perspective about what happened...
Or maybe its a fresh look on a newly developed plan.

So how long should your time out be?  Well, lets use the same formula
that we use on children. One minute for every year of age.  Don't do anything.
No cell phone, no computer, no television, nada.  There you are!
You have to sit with yourself  and listen to your brain talk which is... thinking.

World Mental Health Day 2011: Suggestions

                                                                 

Be kind to your family first, then to your neighbors and others in the neighborhood. It can be simple like a smile, nod of the head, open the door.
Be kind to the person who takes your order and the Barista who serves you your coffee.
Be kind to the parking attendant or the car in front of you that's driving too slow.
Be kind to your boss and your colleagues and your customers and your case load.
Be kind to the person on the other end of the line on the telephone.
Be kind to yourself!  That just might be the hardest one to accomplish today.

And that is the big question today...HOW are you  going to be kind to yourself?
And maybe... pray for everybody in the whole wide word!

*** BALANCE ***

Open My Eyes, Lord:

It is upsetting to read about molestation in the papers.
It is upsetting to talk about molestation in our community.
It is upsetting to think about such an act perpetrated on a child.
It is upsetting to live among those people who do such things.
It is upsetting to know someone who does this to another.
It is upsetting to be associated in any way with a perpetrator.
It is upsetting to have this happen to anyone you know.
It is upsetting to have it happen to someone you don't know.

We are all upset...1 in 3 girls and 1 in 6 boys are molested! Let's open our eyes, pay more attention.


capitola-soquelpatch.com

Whooooooo : Are You Going To Be This Year???

This one's probably related to Casper the Ghost!

Lets try to keep to one month at a time. It's October...the pumpkins are in the patch on several street corners, the costume shops are stirring with activity. Here is Santa Cruz, California  it's the biggest holiday of the year.I don't like seeing the Christmas decorations out already! Time goes by fast enough and one day at a time is a challenge!

One of the best parties I ever attended was a clean and sober party in the Midwest where I wore a man's suit and a Ronald Reagan mask. I never said a word the entire evening, danced with my friend who was Lady Di and had the best time ever. No one ever figured out who we were and it was fun hearing about these two characters later.

 Behavior changes behind a mask...or when we are unknown. Isn't it said that true character is how one acts when no one is watching. I think most of us like being someone else for a day and I dare say the victim of child abuse.No matter what, respect for one another, for each other is vitally important and you might just learn something about yourself.  Did you?

And your most memorable costume on Halloween  ...

Mother Teresa of Calcutta:

This is written on the wall in  Mother Teresa's home for children in Calcutta: Perhaps it should also be under your roof and on your fridge! 

People are often unreasonable, irrational and self centered. Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. Succeed anyway.


If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway.
What you spend years creating, others would destroy overnight. Create anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, will often be forgotten. Do good anyway.


Give the best you have , and it will never be enough. Give your best anyway.

In the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.

                                                           Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta
                                                                1910-1997
                                                          Foundress -  Missionaries of Charity

This was also read at my grandson's graduation ceremony - 2011

Rainbows: VIBGYOR

Writing Prompt...We are all storytellers. When you see a rainbow what thoughts come to mind?  Start by sharing little things.

When I see a rainbow I always say the word, Vibgyor!   I learned the colors of the rainbow from Mr.Leon Olson in a class at WHS. He was a wonderful man...a rainbow to our school and the students.

Violet
Indigo
Blue
Green
Yellow
Orange
Red

Its been a funny day with rain and sun alternating. Did you see a rainbow today?
My contribution today is teaching the colors of the rainbow in order!
     Happy Anniversary to a very special couple today!