Evading The Devil

I was given a sign earlier today while I was out shopping in Pavilions. A very peculiar one that rang loud and clear.

I decided to do some shopping for dinner later but the first errand on my list was to close out a storage account at Public Storage. My family had the account for a year and never made use of it. I helped to orchestrate getting the account earlier on so the account was created in my name. It was a complete waste of money and we needed to stop the automatic monthly payments.

It was rather simple to close the account. I had been procrastinating on closing it for some time. I notoriously hate red tape although I know that the sooner things are dealt with, the better. They are out of your way!

Once going in, I expected to wait around and fill out paperwork but all I had to do was take off my lock and head back to the rental office to get a closed account receipt. Easy as pie and as a result, my day started off on a good note. I just love mentally checking things off on a to-do list. …when I get around to doing this.

Anyway, as I drove off the lot, I immediately developed a strong craving for low or non-fat frozen yogurt, but I didn't know of any places nearby that sold it and I certainly didn't feel like driving around aimlessly trying to find such a place. But on the way to the supermarket, I passed by an El Pollo Loco. I remembered that most of the franchises offered Fosters Freeze frozen desserts on a side menu, so I assumed that they sold frozen yogurt. I discovered that they didn't.

The options were limited to ice cream servings loaded with options of rich sugary toppings and condiments, in either a cone or a cup. I knew I had to pass. Yesterday at Mrs. Fields (aka The Crack House), after picking up my reserved copy of Grand Theft Auto IV, I indulged on a white chocolate macadamia nut cookie topped with a generous amount of pink buttercream icing, I must say that as a bonafide food addict and foodie, I am learning how to balance and not let my obsessions take over. I promptly left the place and dashed back out onto the road.

However, my craving was still nagging me. I felt quite guilty about it because again, I didn't want to fall back into bad habits. But I also knew that moving into a healthier lifestyle wasn't about hanging onto guilt-ridden feelings about food. I had to realize that, outside completely inedible and toxic-riddled foods, no foods were bad. Choices and attitudes about them were.

I saw a mini-mall section as I got closer to my next destination. I spotted a large sign therein entitled LAX Boba and Yogurt. Now anyone who knows me knows how much of a fanatic I am about boba drinks aka tapioca drinks or bubble tea. It caught my attention immediately to see a place that sold two things that I highly enjoy. Of course, I had to make a stop.

I also noticed that there was a sushi place in the section. I took note for future places to get sushi. A guy was yelling out loud in the parking lot, throwing his hands up in the air to a passenger as I continued to drive through the lot. The passenger was a woman. As she completely drove past me, I saw, upon a good look, that she was an attractive woman. Regardless, I thought about turning back out and continuing on to the supermarket. I realized that I was stereotyping this man for his obnoxious behavior. He was just being flirtatious to this woman. So why this so bothersome for me? I knew that I had to stop generalizing about his behavior. It was silly. I also thought that, as a person of color myself, I should know better about jumping to conclusions. On further thought, I realized that part of my thinking was greatly influenced by being somewhat of an introverted person. Sometimes I like quiet and peace and an unsettling environment can be unpleasant and annoying even if it involves non-threatening clamor.

I drove further into the parking lot and found a nice cozy place to park. I entered the store and saw that the menu had a large selection of flavored drinks served with boba. I noticed that the yogurt they offered seemed very similar to what Pinkberry served.

Pinkberry is the hot stuff right now, especially around LA. but it has been under a wave of criticism lately by some media groups for claiming that their frozen dessert is real frozen yogurt when it’s not. I've been to Pinkberry's and I can appreciate the distinctive flavor but I agree that it's not traditional frozen yogurt.

Anyhow, the place I was in offered two frozen yogurt flavors; original and green tea. I decided to pass on the yogurt since it was so similar to Pinkberry's stuff and get a boba drink instead. I hadn't had one in a very good while. I got a Thai iced tea with boba. The drink turned out to be sweeter than I cared for but I didn't want to waste my money by only drinking half of it.

I finally arrived at Pavilions and realized that I still had that damned craving for something sweet. I was a bit disappointed with myself. I mean shouldn’t the Thai iced tea have taken care of my craving?

This craving led me to the pastry section of the store. There were cakes, pies, donuts and baked goodies. You name it, it was there. At this point, I considered myself sold. I looked meticulously among the individually packaged cake slices that were arranged in a center stand. My eye stopped on a large slice of chocolate cake blanketed with white buttercream icing and white chocolate shavings. As I was grabbed a slice to place it in my shopping basket, an old lady came around looking at the slices. She suddenly said, "The devil is here.” I looked over at her a little puzzled torn away from being under a mesmerizing pastry spell.

She continued on and muttered, “Look at all of these temptations. I shouldn't be here at all, but I am looking for a pecan pie. They are so good!"

I was caught off guard with not only the woman addressing her random uncanny chatter toward me, but also by the odd sensation that accompanied the situation. As a response, I gave a sincere but nervous laugh and agreed that the cake slices were indeed temptations and that I should be elsewhere as well. I took her sudden appearance as a sign that I should walk away and make a better decision about something sweet to eat. With my goals for eating healthier and balancing my desire for sweets, I knew that this was surely a reminder that I had to respect.

I instantly moved away from the area and as I did, I quickly came up with the idea of making homemade fruit parfait cups. I love fruit immensely, especially mixed berries, so I thought it would be wonderful to make a dessert using fresh fruit.

What did I need to make these delectable and healthier treats? I needed:

1. fresh baked plain pound cake from their deli section or sponge cake


2. selections of packaged raspberries, blueberries, strawberries and blackberries


3. a generous supply of plastic cups


4. saran wrap


5. low-fat Cool Whip

These are very simple and reasonably cheap to make and a much better dessert idea than gorging on a refined sugary slice of cake. I realize that the pound cake was still a richer indulgence but in little amounts, it was not going to hurt.

I paid for all of my grocery items and headed out. I couldn’t wait to get home to make these treats. The first thing I did when I got back home was put away most of the groceries, wash my hands thoroughly and start making my fruit parfait cups. I had never made them before, but I had eaten them, prepared in many different ways, from Whole Foods Market in the deli section and at other places. I knew it was going to be pretty effortless (and fun) to prepare these cups.

I gathered all of my ingredients and prepared my layers in the plastic cups. You can use any type of fruit you want and you can layer your fruit parfait cup any way you please, but this is how I layered my cups from bottom to top:

1. Cool Whip (very bottom layer)


2. Few slices of strawberries


3. Small slice of pound cake


4. Berry of your choice


5. Berry of your choice


6. Cool Whip


7. Pound cake


8. Cool Whip (tops the parfait cup off)

If you aren't allergic to nuts, you can sprinkle the top layer with crushed or sliced nuts of your choice. Sliced almonds would make a good choice. They are lower in fat, offer more calcium and fiber than a lot of nuts and provide a good source of vitamin E, magnesium, folic acid and phosphorous.

Each fruit parfait cup should be firmly covered and wrapped with saran wrap and stored in the refrigerator. These make great healthy snacks either at home or at work. I personally would not store them longer than a week in the refrigerator. Instead of using pound cake for the cake filler, you can use sponge cake or get even more festive and make your own cake filler from scratch. You also make your whipped cream from scratch and experiment with many other selections of fruit for different flavors. Be creative and be explorative! Have fun.

I will be talking more about healthy treats that you can prepare at home in the future as a way of making and maintaining healthier eating choices.

You Are My Everything

Should we look to fulfill all or most of our needs in a romantic partner? I've thought about this intermittently over the years and I think it's healthy to develop at least a few friendships to satisfy different bonding needs.

I think of my relationship with my fiancé and I realize that although we have a lot of uncanny things in common and there are some differences which balance us out, there are things we just won't ever really relate to the same way.

For example, I am a very spiritual non-religious person and my fiancé is what you would call an agnostic-atheist. He generally is of the mindset that if something can't be seen or proven, then it probably doesn't exist in a metaphysical context or it doesn't exist at all. With that being said, he still remains open to ideas and other realities which makes him willing to explore to some degree. Just not to the degree I naturally wish to and do often explore.

Should I hold this against my fiancé and consider our otherwise strong level of compatibility a wash? Of course not. It's not like he's a radical hardcore atheist and I a fundamentalist religious person. I know we often hear the term opposites attractive but I don't take this too literally and I think it's taken out of context quite often. Opposites attract when partners bring different inclinations and traits to the table that balance one another.

The aforementioned pairing would not work because both people are too set in their ways and would naturally try to proselytize to the other. The relationship would cease to grow. In my relationship with my fiancé, we do have a lot of ground to work with but I think it would be healthy for me to be open to cultivating friendships with people who can relate to my brand and level of spiritualism more strongly.

These friendships would only add more enrichment to my life and I'd continue to appreciate the bond I have with my partner rather than expecting him to literally and unrealistically be a duplicate of myself. No one could ever satisfy such expectations.

You are fortunate if you've truly found your partner in crime, but don't forget to come up for air and explore the waiting and rewarding connections in the world around you. Opening yourself up to other energies outside of your relationship once in awhile is what can truly make you see your partner as "your everything".

Cashew Milk

Since this is a writing journal, I can't leave my love of food and drink out of the mix. Once and awhile, I will post various recipes for reference as well as reviews and links to different restaurants, sites, shops and eateries.

I've always had a fascination with making milks and butters out of nuts and with trying as many varieties as I can.

I will start off by introducing cashew milk. You can make it yourself or you can look for it in stores.

Cashew milk can also be found in some health food stores although it is more common to see almond milk right next to rice and soy milk brands instead. Some are my favorite places to shop at are:

1. Whole Foods Market, Wild Oats Market (now owned by Whole Foods)
   
2. Co-Opportunity (store in Santa Monica)
   
3. Gelson's Market
   
4. Rainbow Bridge Market in Ojai, when I get a chance to go as I haven't been in some time,
   

Here is a tasty recipe to try if you haven't had cashew milk before:

Sweet Cashew Milk

• 1 + 1/2 cups raw cashews


• 4 - 4.5 cups water


• 1/4 cup of honey, agave nectar or maple syrup


• 1 Tablespoon of coconut oil
  
• 2 Teaspoons of vanilla extract


• 1/4 Teaspoon of sea salt
  

1. Combine cashews with water in blender and blend on high for 1-3 minutes until you get a smooth or a thick cream texture. Strain afterwards, if necessary.

2. Add remaining ingredients and continue to blend on high for 2 - 5 minutes until the texture is very creamy and rich.


You can drink cashew milk straight or you can use it as a cream or sauce for various recipes...or as an addition to cookie and cake recipes.

Instead of using raw cashews, you can use organic and pure cashew butter for an even creamier texture.

If you use cashew butter, the recipe will change and everything should be blended at once on high in a blender for 2-3 minutes:

2 1/2 cups of water

4 Tablespoons of cashew butter

2 Tablespoons of honey, agave nectar or maple syrup

1 Teaspoon of vanilla extract

1/8 Teaspoons of sea salt

Great drink for breakfast or before a workout with a large bowl of fresh mixed berries. Feel free to experiment using different types of ingredients as substitutes or additions.

Cashew milk can be stored in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks, but should be consumed within a week of storage for the best flavor experience.

Food Shortages and Rationing

Wow. Are we just overreacting or do we, as a society, really need to start stocking up on food supplies because the economy is getting that bad? I’ve read that some stores are also starting to accept haggling and bargaining from customers for better product prices.

LINK

Interestingly enough, I just came back from Costco about an hour ago. I've been buying several cases of strawberries from them for the last few weeks and today I added some blackberries to my cart. I am currently enjoying a large bowl of mixed berries; sweet and tangy. I so love fruit.

But fruits and everything else are becoming more expensive. That's one of the reasons why I've been getting my berries from Costco...the strawberries are just 4.99 a case whereas at regular supermarkets, the cases are half the size, cost twice as much and the berries are usually tasteless and sour.

Rice prices are definitely out of control. I actually prefer the jasmine rice and that's what I usually by. The taste and aroma of the rice slightly reminds me of popcorn. I purchased a large bag of it few days ago from Pavilions. I like the flavor over plain steamed white rice. That's too bad that supplies are being cut short for so many items and prices are surging.

I can imagine how this will affect the cost of food at various eateries that prepare and offer meals using a lot of rice. I bet a lot of people will be eating out less in the next fear years as our economy continues to struggle.

I came across an article the other day which stated that the slow food lifestyle is coming back around due to all of these changes. Not just in the U.S. but also in various parts of Asia. I love dining out and I don't think there's anything wrong with doing it once in awhile, but I've always appreciated and loved preparing a home-cooked meal. I think a lot of people should either learn how to cook or cook more than they do and not rely so much on eating out. The closer we are to preparing our meals, the more we can appreciate and feel rewarded by what we eat.

On The Definition of Cheating

Cheating...well everyone certainly has their own definition of what cheating is to them. I've heard some crazy ones though.

I am pretty direct and to the point about cheating. I've never experienced this and I'd certainly never cheat (I can say that confidently). I have no tolerance for it. I figure there are -always- better ways to handle a situation if my partner feels disconnected, wants to step outside of the relationship or has other desires. They can communicate to me and let me know what is going on. That's not an easy thing to hear or to express, but it is always a better alternative to cheating.

Cheating to me is when:

1. my partner sleeps with someone else


2. my partner kisses someone else in a romantic or sexual manner or -lets- someone else do this to them


3. my partner fondles or gropes someone else or -lets- someone do these things to them


4. my partner makes efforts to get involved emotionally with someone else (love letters, phone calls, meetings, etc)


5. my partner is in love with someone else and encourages the associated feelings and connection


6. my partner goes online and uses dating sites or matchmaking services

Any of these things would fit into my definition of cheating. I can respect the decision of others to have an open relationship or one that is polyamorous in nature. There's no "cheating" going on in those kinds of relationships if both people have an understanding from the beginning. I have a strong curiosity with learning about the relationship styles of others because it's different from what I prefer or desire. However, I know relationships like that aren't for me because I am wired differently. I prefer monogamy and my desire to be so has nothing to do with morals or ethics. Ethics only comes into play if a breach of trust is broken and there's a lack of integrity involved.

I think if someone feels that they can't commit to a relationship, then they need to be honest about and live according to those desires. Let people know from the jump if you aren't looking for anything serious. Don't string people along. Don't play games or manipulate for ego-gratifying purposes. Set boundaries in casual connections. Get involved with people who are looking for the same thing. Explore other types of relationships that allow you to be with more than one person. Stay single and figure out what you want ultimately. Whatever it is...figure it out and be honest and direct.

I think cheating is most likely to happen when communication is dead or severely limited between two people...or if one or both people are "stuffers" or "internalizers". Emotions get swept under the rug and there's no desire a person's part to find out what they or their partner feels because it's awkward, perceived as weak and vulnerable, something they've never been used to or there's a fear with laying things out on the table (used to avoiding conflict and directness).

I also think a lack of mutual vulnerability (openness) is damaging and threatening and it must be nipped in the bud early on. Being able to be vulnerable or open with a partner...or feeling like you CAN be...facilitates a desire to communicate and be a relationship team. Lack of vulnerability creates power struggles, resentment, manipulation games and posturing.

If you feel like you can't open up to your partner, then you both start to conspire against one another. Both people feel suspicious about the other closing up and "hiding" information or their feelings. Both partners (or one person feel) feel like they are misunderstood and not listened to, which creates posturing. Posturing is when the person puts up a front to pretend that they are stronger or more secure than they are feeling inside. Anger replaces expressions of hurt because to cry or to show sadness is to appear weak to the "enemy" (the mistrusted one).

So with all of this toxic stuff happening...the relationship becomes a strong breeding ground for cheating/affairs although none of that will solve anything even if one or both people go on to other relationships. Not unless there's some learning going on.

These are very common dramas in relationships and most people lack the courage to address these things head on. Relationships certainly present growth challenges and mirror dynamics.

Some people cheat for the thrill and the pursuit...to see what they can get away with...to establish a world within a world that only they and their lover(s) know about when they meet at their secret times and places. So it's not always about an emotional connection or to get away from a mess in cowardice. Of course, if a person who craved this didn't do it in the confines of a relationship, the affairs wouldn't have mystery or a sense of adventure to it. They get off on daring liaisons. I think the only remedy here is for the other person to always pay attention to the person they are committing too. Study their personality and character closely.

Rarely does a person like this neglect dropping hints or revealing him/herself in some manner over time. No one is that good of an actor. There's always a clue.

Innovative Meditation

Living day to day with the responsibilities and obligations of finances, family, career and self can be very overwhelming and anxiety-inducing. All of these life facets can bring us great joy if there’s mutual respect, harmony and progress present, but as adults who are obliged to manage our lives in such complexity of interpersonal relations, we can often lose sight of and the ability to develop ourselves or to find meaning and direction in our lives. Instilling the practice of mediation into our daily living can do wonders and there are many personalized and creative ways an individual can meditate in order to restore inner peace, solve problems and gain balance and self-assurance.

Innovation is what one must use when coming up with beneficial ways to bring mediation into frequent practice. This innovation will require a person to look at themselves honestly and to think openly. It’s rather easy to walk into a bookstore to select a book or type in a url online to follow a generic one-way-suits-all manner of meditating but each person much meditate with purpose and in a way they can relate to which will be dependent on the type of clarity and release one specifically needs. This further requires one to look at the basic set of emotions that are plaguing them. These might be questions you ask yourself before you begin choosing a meditation method:

1. Do I feel anger?


2. Am I experiencing sadness?


3. Am I overwhelmed with frustration?


4. Am I blocked by Indecisiveness?


5. Am I burdened with fear?


6. Is there something I need to tell someone but don’t know how?


7. Do I just need time to myself away from distractions?


8. Am I unsure about what I am feeling and need some clarity?


9. Do I need to become more comfortable with myself in isolation?

All of these and more are great starter questions to ask yourself. You will find that you will not use one form of meditation all of the time since each kind of meditation works best for certain emotional needs. I will introduce some forms of meditation that I use and that I’ve have creatively developed over the years.

If you are a rather kinesthetic person, you will find that using meditation that involves movement is best. Some types of meditation might be choosing to safely go for long and vigorous walks in a peaceful, scenic neighborhood setting, a local park or a hiking trail or walking path along a beach or mountain road with or without a music player. Other types of meditations might include hypnotic dance, punching bag boxing and Tai Chi.

Walking for me has always been a very therapeutic process and it’s one of my favorite meditative activities to indulge in. The activity makes me feel restored and centered and most of the time I prefer taking my iPod with me. I can listen to audio books, my favorite bands and artists or even downloaded podcasts shows. If I am just walking around the neighborhood or in a setting that allows dogs, I will take my dog with me because she makes a great walking companion and it’s the perfect way for her to get exercise.

On form of meditation that I do from time to time is something I call hypnotic dance. It is a form of meditation that involves dancing to very energetic and invigorating music non-stop for at least 30 minutes to an hour. In this activity, the objective must be to connect solely with the music and how your body moves thus paying no attention to being proper in form, technique or style but to dance excessively until you reach a state of acute euphoria. After the dance is over, you will most likely feel refreshed, purged and rejuvenated and will crave this form of release the more you do it. There is an intrinsic state of freedom that comes with this meditation and you’ll get to appreciate and know yourself more kinesthetically. There’s no need to worry about being a great dancer or anything of the sort. Again the goal is to use constant and natural body movement and rhythm to reach a state of exhilaration.

Practicing boxing on a punching bag works much the same way. You’ll need to have access to a punching bag and related equipment either at home or at a gym where there are no classes in session at the time. This type of meditation is best for working out aggressive feelings or frustration. The body will be worked into a combative frenzy on an inanimate object and all of the stifled and blocked emotions will have a place and channel to be fully released and exorcised. Boxing as a meditation can help to facilitate better communication afterwards so that the system is less tense and charged. Most people lose the ability to communicate and direct their thoughts outwardly in a clear and concise manner when their systems are under stress from anger, frustration or irritation.

If you are a person who wants to excite the imagination, clear the mind or control certain emotions or states in a very artful way, then you will find the techniques of audio and image-guided visualization, developing, what I call, an imaginary sponsor and working on zoned creative projects very conducive. Some of these techniques will seem very esoteric and unusual but that’s the nature of being innovative in order to get the fulfillment you need out of meditation.

Audio and image- guided visualization is a very helpful process and it’s really nothing new but there are many distinctive ways that you can develop a specific technique in this brand of meditation. As a person with synesthesia, I enjoy the using music to trigger imagery. Music has the ability to excite the imagination and redirect our focus away from the outside world. It’s very similar to the process of lucid dreaming, where you consciously control what happens in your dream and gain some leverage of the events that will take place to further seek meaning.

You can start by choosing a selection of music that is very rhythmic, detailed, instrumental, inspiring or cinematic; music that, for you, engenders ideas and visions. You must choose a place where you can comfortably play the music loud enough to become fully immersed in it. If not, then headphones will suffice if the sound quality is good, where all of the instrumentation can be crisply experienced. In this place of meditation, you must make sure that you are not going to be disturbed and that you have at least 30 minutes to an hour to spare. If you can lock your door and be away from phones, this is even better. If you live with others, make sure that beforehand, they know of and can respect your time for this meditation session by leaving you alone.

Once you have gotten yourself situated in a reliable and relaxed context, turn on the music and recline on a chair, couch or floor, take a few deep breaths, close your eyes and begin truly listening to the music. Allow your mind to visualize a place, world, setting, theme of patterns or shapes, event or person based on the sound of the music. Give these visions a story, a purpose or a premise if necessary. For example, you can associate certain images with bacteria, cells or viruses if you are ill. You can associate some visions with desires if you wish to accomplish a goal or make certain events in your life happen. Most likely, the first response to this method of meditation will be difficult if you’ve never done it before. You will find yourself trying to keep concentration, take it seriously and to stay focused internally, but continue to reconnect and flow with whatever visions materialize and throw yourself completely into your images and/or associations. At some point, you won’t realize how much time has gone by and your body’s systems will slow down. As you practice this brand of meditation more often, you’ll feel a greater degree of control, motivation and confidence in some areas of your life that you’ve chosen to focus on. You’ll also find that your ability to turn inward is much stronger and reactive. You can time your meditation sessions by how long your music selections last as a whole, or you can set an alarm.

Several years ago, I came up with the term imaginary sponsor and decided that this concept would be great in developing a new form of meditation and self-therapy. There’s a long story behind the motivation of the invention and I’ll eventually talk about this in another article. Imaginary sponsors are very much like imaginary friends; however they are imaginary people who take the place of real people in your life. They are intangible but animate representations of unsent letters who help you to cope or to express. If you are dealing with troubling or conflicting emotions that relate to someone in your life but you are having a hard time confronting this person for whatever reason, you can create an imaginary sponsor.

This sponsor will become the target of your confessions and feelings. This is a rather personal and sensitive form of meditation because it requires a spot of isolation and secrecy where you can act in freedom, confidentiality and comfort. If you can find a place like this, begin by pretending that your imaginary sponsor is in the room with you. Imagine what they are doing and what they look like. They can look like the person in your life or they can look totally different. Are they sitting down next to you facing you? Are they standing across the room waiting for you to say something to them? Whatever you imagine them doing, make sure you can see them in your mind’s eye in a projected manner. Once this is done, begin talking to this sponsor, openly and out loud, as if they were a real person. Eradicate all feelings of shyness and silliness and seriously interact with your sponsor. You might find it better to even imagine what the sponsor is saying to you so that you can respond back. You’ll begin to see this meditation as not only a form of writing an unsent letter but also as a style of acting. This type of meditation will allow you to learn how to express yourself better, work out your emotions that involve feelings about or for other people and to even confront them at some point in confidence and preparedness. You can always include more than one imaginary sponsor in your sessions, thereby creating a group to interact with.


Engaging in creative projects is a great and productive way to channel your mind and energy. Many people might not consider this as a form of meditation but I do place it in this category because it is a self-therapy method which can easily be used as a way to balance energy. Obviously the project that you engage in will involve something that you enjoy doing. It can be an hour of drawing, free-form writing, working on pottery, sculpting, coloring or cooking a recipe out of a cookbook. The way in which you interact with these activities must not be intermittent which is typical of the workflow in casual creative projects. You must completely center yourself in the activity and focus thoroughly on it and let the creative process of the activity soothe you. This is what distinguishes this process as a form of meditation because it clears the mind and takes you away from stress-related concerns. You learn how to compartmentalize and pour the emotions into something progressive rather than destructive. Essentially your coping mechanisms turn into healthy outlets.

A lot of people really struggle with toxic thoughts and fail to find ways to release their mind from negative energy. Toxic thoughts can literally become an obsession if we train our minds to stay tuned into them through long-term habituation. This requires a cleansing and purging process so the choice of meditation must be something that helps to facilitate these actions. There are a number of ways to cleanse and refresh the mind symbolically. You can choose a form of cleansing meditation that is relaxing or intellectual. Some relaxing forms of purging meditation that I use are taking baths to candlelight and incense, going for a swim, focusing on koans and riddles, cleaning the house or the environment, creating and using circle labyrinths and doing activities that are very repetitive in motion but stimulating. In each of these activities, the goal is to empty out the mind either through mindlessness (in a benign sense) or thinking (intellectualizing). For those who are interested in Buddhism, you’ll find some of these activities to be similar to Zen meditation practices, particularly when utilizing koans.

A koan is a story or riddle that one focuses on to seek an intuitive rather than rational answer. An excerpt from the book, Translating the Zen Phrase Book, describes the process succinctly by referring to a very popular koan:
Two hands clap and there is a sound. What is the sound of one hand?
— Hakuin Ekaku

"...in the beginning a monk first thinks a kōan is an inert object upon which to focus attention; after a long period of consecutive repetition, one realizes that the kōan is also a dynamic activity, the very activity of seeking an answer to the kōan. The kōan is both the object being sought and the relentless seeking itself. In a kōan, the self sees the self not directly but under the guise of the kōan...When one realizes ("makes real") this identity, then two hands have become one. The practitioner becomes the kōan that he or she is trying to understand. That is the sound of one hand." - G. Victor Sogen Hori, Translating the Zen Phrase Book

You can purchase a book of koans from any bookstore to help you get started. Gateless Gate: The Classic Book of Zen Koans by Koun Yamada is a good selection. Focusing on koans works best in a meditation session that involves sitting down in a quiet area and concentrating. You might also want to look into Zen Buddhism and start exploring some of the meditative methods. Two books that I recommend are The Path to Zen: A Path to Inner Peace by Eric Chaline and An Introduction to Zen Buddhism by D.T. Suzuki.

I love to take baths and take these more often over showers because in a bath I get to truly relax and sit with myself in thought. Water is very symbolic for me as well as the act of washing. I imagine the water being a symbol of fluidity and purification of mind and body. The act of washing further enhances the purifying association and I prefer taking a bath in dim relaxing natural light rather than to artificial light so I use high-quality, long-burning, scented candles and I sometimes additionally use short sticks of high-quality incense to burn. This sets the environment for me. During a meditative bath, I think about any thoughts that have been troubling me or that I feel conflicted about and I seek to answer and think about them deeply. I end the bath by washing up, extinguishing the candles and incense and then drying off. For the duration of the bath, I don’t concern myself with washing off with soap right away because I want to be comfortable sitting for awhile, feeling the water against my skin and immersing fully into its warmth. After that I apply some natural oils, creams or lotions to my skin all over my body to further pamper and nurture myself. You can get more creative with your choice of colors and scents of candles, incense and even soaps. I prefer natural handmade soaps and these can be purchased from various beauty shops or health food stores. The bars are usually thicker and large in size, richer for the skin due to the natural ingredients and come in all sorts of alluring scents, colors and textures. Certain hues and fragrances of candles might stimulate you in specific ways sensorially.

If you do not have a bathtub or would like another way to use water as a form of meditation, then you can try swimming. If you use a public swimming pool, you might now have as much privacy as you desire but in most cases, public swimming pools aren’t usually too highly populated depending on the time of day you use them.

Cleaning your immediate environment which might be your bedroom or the entire house is a great way to clear your mind. A clean and orderly environment can definitely facilitate clear thinking and refreshed emotions. It’s as symbolic as water is when taking meditative baths or swims. The state that our environment often reflects the state of our minds so if you have a very junky and disordered looking room, then you can be that your mind might share that same context. Cleaning up is also a repetitive and physical activity. You allow the mind to clean out its thoughts through constant movement and arrangement. The act itself can almost be seen as a type of magical ritual that involves visual and physical guidance that revamps your mind.

Circle labyrinths or walk circles are rather obscure to the knowledge of most people. The history of labyrinths can be traced back to ancient times in various European, Asian and Native American, and Northern African cultures. Labyrinths were used as maps for city-state structures as well as the construction of certain religious and governmental buildings.

Circle labyrinths can be symbols of art and were/are often used as creative motifs for ceramic work but labyrinths today are referenced more as physical structures created on ground for personal meditation and group rituals and ceremonies. A map of a labyrinth is drawn and carefully constructed on ground. The labyrinth can be painted, drawn in chalk, carved as pathways or segments onto grass or illustrated on sand at a beach. The most accessible way to draw a labyrinth for most people is at a local beach. You can use nearby stones to further enhance the pattern and use a long stick or stick-like figure as your drawing tool. There are many illustration references for circle labyrinths online and in books.

Labyrinths are said to enhance right brain activity when they are walked. In a circle labyrinth the goal is to enter the labyrinth through the mouth, which is both the starting and end point, and walk the path within the walls until you reach the center. Once you’ve reached the center of the labyrinth, you must complete the walk by walking back out and exiting through the mouth. Focusing on the path throughout the walk is said to help the mind clear and restructure itself. For others the ritualistic and meditative walk can help to stimulate thoughts. Two great online resource websites containing a wealth of information and patterns for labyrinths are The Labyrinth Society and Awakenings: Tools for Psychological and Spiritual Growth. The first link is extremely informative and intriguing. The second link contains a large section on Labyrinths. Click on that area and explore the information that this site offers to gain more knowledge.

The most direct way to meditate is to just sit with the pain. This is very difficult to do because the body and mind immediately goes into self-protective mode. Self-protective mode is a self-preservation mode which gives way to our established patterns of coping mechanisms. The less aware we are of what our naturally inclined self-preservation reactions are, the more likely they are to be destructive. The mind has no value when it comes to choosing a way to help us deal with and function the world. As long as something makes us feel good or turns us off from any discomfort, then it becomes a way for the mind to establish a coping mechanism. If you can become aware of how you respond to situations, then you can control the ways in which you develop coping mechanisms so that they can be healthy and progressive. Sometimes, well need to train ourselves to just sit and feel discomfort rather trying to finds ways to numb it. By sitting with pain or discomfort, we can better understand the intricacies of our emotions and hear what’s going on inside. We also, more importantly, learn to develop higher tolerance levels to emotional discomfort so that the sensations don’t become so easily distracting to us and we can think more rationally while we are in discomfort. Sitting-with-pain meditation requires stillness and lack of movement. Find a place to sit or recline quietly and focus on what you feel. Let it runs its course. Let yourself bleed and let your instincts become more sensitive to the sensations of emotional pain and discomfort. Also pay attention to any sudden desires that you feel. Recognizing these desires will help you to identify what your natural coping mechanisms are and once you are aware of them, you can analyze whether or not they are healthy.

Overall, there are many creative and original ways in which you can meditate. It’s all up to you and there’s a world of ideas out just in your mind waiting to be explored. You can also seek inspiration for ideas through online resources, books and other people you know that might practice meditation. Meditation should not be seen as a daunting, intimidating, exclusive or mysterious practice. It’s multi-faceted and very easy to implement into your life. Be creative, open and innovative and you’ll start to see the benefits of meditation in no time.

Contact

He walked into the Chinese restaurant and waited to be greeted and seated. He was led to a dimly lit seating booth and given a menu to browse.

He maintained a pleasant and modest smile throughout his exploration and eventually decided upon a blended cocktail drink and a sirloin steak dinner.

The waiter came to take his order and politely left the table.

The man surveyed the restaurant and took notice of the various shapes, colors and beings placed around him. It was all very stimulating...and catalytic.

The waiter made his way back with the man's cocktail drink along with a clear glass of cold iced water. The man's eyes became wider and wetter around the edges as the cocktail drink was placed on his table. The alcoholic drink contained a bright red maraschino cherry impaled by a decorative transparent pick.

The waiter asked if the man would like anything else and the man gave a firm motion of his hand to indicate no. The waiter announced that his dinner would arrive soon and left the table.

As the man looked around again to glance about the room, he noticed that shapes, hues and sounds were all one and this was a sign. The feeling and the message were very intense to him, but he had to wait until the right moment. The right moment would be the defining point and purpose.

He slowly rocked back and forth in his seat and licked his lips continuously to keep them wet and sensitive. He intermittently placed his middle finger straight down in the cold glass of water and sucked on it until the skin was irritated and taut.

Soon the waiter arrived with the man's steak dinner. He greeted the man with an obligatory and hospitable grin and placed his plate on the table warning the man that the plate was hot. The man moved his cocktail drink in front of himself and casually plucked off the cherry impaled on the pick. He held the pick between his right thumb and index finger in a precise manner and as the waiter begin to question if the man desired anything more, the man then dramatically shoved the pick into his left eye until only a point was visible.

Contact had been made and the moment was gloriously defined...

So Close and Far Away

A bucket full of bruised baby hearts was found alongside a twisted gray road. A worn traveler made the discovery and felt compelled to bring the keepsakes home. He had heartless bodies waiting in the ground in his backyard and finally, it seemed as if they could serve a purpose and fulfill their destinies.

The bodies were dug up after the traveler finished a hearty meal of clam chowder and cornmeal biscuits. His temples were sore and tight from vigorous chewing.

Bodies were placed side by side on the cynical grass, like sardines resting in a tin can, as the earth was disturbed. Each body had been preserved well in plastic casings filled and submerged with curious and strangely aromatic oils, salts and resins. The traveler looked over all of the bodies as they were uncovered and placed his hand over his heart in sacred sentimentality. He felt a vibration underneath his hand and yearned for something very promising and unspeakable. He suddenly imagined a sky full of luminous stars bleeding brightly with softly jagged and hazy light auras.

He pulled the bucket of injured baby hearts near and began to fondle them in his hands to feel their texture, moistness and power. He knew that these would do very well. They had history but they also had a future. The very nature of their condition established this fact and the traveler was the magician. The traveler now imagined a universe completely packed with infinitude of bodies each possessing a center with radiating life orbs.

He took a pocket knife and slashed open one of the body casings and complicated liquid gushed out all over the grass and onto the traveler's steel-toed boots. He began to whistle peacefully and proceeded to cut open the other body casings. Invisible lives were being murdered and replaced with tangibility.

Once all of the casings were completely opened, he gathered a baby heart in his hand from the bucket and placed one directly into the withered but well preserved and black blood-crusted hole of the chest cavity of one of the bodies. The traveler's whistling got a little louder and sharp and he continued embedding hearts into each body. Thirteen bodies total were invaded.

The traveler began to feel weak and the initial vibrating in his chest became more tremulous. His vision also began to darken and blur and his mouth and throat locked up and became arid. His whistling turned into fierce and desperate expulsions of air; a violent zephyr-kissed melody.

The traveler tried to stand up but instead collapsed theatrically onto ground. The bodies on the grass began to transform and shape-shift. All of the traveler's clothing articles disappeared into the secrets of air. The traveler's body unfolded out on the grass in stark nakedness with steady trembling and shaking.

The mouths of the corpses each formed into the shape of a small circle and staccato puffs of air came out of all of them. The spurts of air eventually took on the familiar sound of the traveler's smooth and elegant whistling that he previously was able to express. The casings fell away and the torsos of the bodies rose slowly until they reached upright and erect sitting positions.

Each face on the body slowly took on the features of the traveler's face as the mouths continued to churn out haunting whistles. The bodies eventually began to stand up and gather great strength and vitality. Each turned out to be complete duplicates of the traveler's physical disposition.

They all drew near the traveler's lifeless corpse and stood over him in a tight gathering while staring down at his body with wide and penetrating bloodshot sets of eyes. The live facsimiles joined hands and walked around the traveler's body in a clockwise path. As they circled around continuously, his body began to dry out, shrink and erode and in his place, a startling pile of clothing garments and many pairs of steel-toed boots materialized. The circling slowed down to a halt and each entity grabbed a piece of clothing to get dressed in.

There was much to be done. They cleared out and cleaned up the yard and the casings were thrown away completely. Each of the entities needed to get some rest and prepare for the next day's mission, which was to gather enough food and clothing, set out onto town roads, hitchhike and make homes in new areas.

Once the entities were settled into their new abodes, their silent killing sprees would begin in local areas and pristine backyards would soon be filled with fresh, dehearted and mercurially preserved vessels.

Blogging Through Word

I had no idea that I could blog through word by connecting to a online blogging account. That's so cool. I'll definitely be utilized this way of blogging. I can easily format and review my writing through Word before posting.

I'll be posting a number of articles at this blog in the -very- near future, which means SOON as well as references to my writing projects. I think the writing flow has definitely started and I am glad for this.