Color: What’s It To Ya?
Posted by Michelle Moquin on December 28th, 2009
Being a designer, color has always been a part of the design process. As I have transitioned into a stylist for women and men, I have found a new love interest in color that has me fascinated with color in a different way than ever before. I have begun to pay more attention to the different reactions people have towards color….what people love, hate, and are attracted to compared to what I am drawn to. A lot of it has to do with preference, but it even goes to a deeper level.
I recently took a class where we examined, very closely, the eye color of several people. When you look at eye color in good light and up close, you will see that most people have two, three and even four different colors in the eyes. It is no surprise for instance, that people tend to match their main eye color to something that they wear to enhance and feature their eyes, but I have learned that people are intuitively drawn toward colors that are actually present not only in their eyes but in their skin too.
Try this out: Have someone look closely into your eyes and describe the colors they see. You’ll not only discover that you have several colors that you may not have know about, but more than likely it will be colors that you like and/or are drawn to wearing.
Here’s an interesting article that I found that takes color to an even deeper level.
USING COLORS TO CHANGE YOUR WORLD
What’s your favorite color? It’s a question we all have very strong opinions about because colors are powerful in many ways — for changing mood, expressing emotions, even influencing action. While somewhat controversial, a whole world of modern color research has evolved to help marketers and others use color in productive ways.
One of the most recent pieces of research is from the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, that assessed how a red or blue background color on computer screens affected the work of 600 students. When the background was red, students responded with greater recall and attention to detail. When it was blue, they became more creative. According to color therapist Jill Morton of Colorcom in Honolulu, Hawaii, a possible explanation lies in the different wavelengths of the colors, causing people to perceive red objects as moving toward us and blue ones as moving away. She speculates that one reason for the finding was that students may have focused more on close detail work simply to get relief from the aggressiveness of the red background… but of course, it’s hard to know for sure.
COLOR AND HEALING THERAPIES
While modern scientists continue to debate the whys and wherefores of colors, there’s much that can be learned from ancient healing therapies, where colors have revered and established roles.
In the Ayurvedic tradition, it is believed that there are seven energy centers — the chakras — that run from the base of the spine to the top of the head. Each chakra is associated with a specific color as well as emotions and parts of the body… and also with a specific element which in turn carries a certain vibrational frequency that correlates to the visible light spectrum. For example, the Muladhara or Root Chakra (red) is governed by the earth element — red has the slowest frequency of the visual light spectrum and earth has the slowest frequency of the elements.
Diantha Harris, color therapist and author of Simply… Color, told me that color can be used to address challenges on the physical, emotional, mental or spiritual level. The individual chakras can be balanced with color to help particular issues. There are two ways to do this — you can enhance a quality by adding a color… for example, more yellow in your day may bring an increased sense of personal power (represented in the third or solar plexus chakra). You could alternatively use a dose of color to offset a problem. If you are struggling with feelings of envy, you can regain balance by adding its complementary color (red) to your environment. Harris suggests some ways to increase the presence of a chakra color in your life: bringing flowers into your home… adding foods of that color to your diet… wearing it (in socks or underclothes if it isn’t one you like)… or using sheets, towels or blankets of the color.
THE CHAKRAS
Briefly, chakras, their colors and associations are as follows:
• The Root Red Chakra — at the base of the spine, associated organs include spine, adrenal glands and others. Red therapy replenishes courage and energy. A red challenge includes anger, frustration and issues with survival including money. Complementary color: green.
• The Sacral Orange Chaka — in the lower abdomen, its organs include reproductive ones and lower intestines. Orange benefits community, connection, creativity and sexuality… it helps to create and support healthy relationships and boundaries, as well as healing shock or trauma. Negative challenges include addiction and moodiness. Complementary color: blue.
• The Solar Plexus Yellow Chakra — near the navel and under the ribcage, its organs are the pancreas and liver. Yellow is for clarity, focus, will or personal power and to help assimilate knowledge and experiences. Negative challenges include an ego that is out of balance and feelings of timidity. Complementary color: purple.
• The Heart Green Chakra — in the center of the chest, its organs are the heart, lungs and thymus gland. Green supports feelings of safety, love and expansion. Negative challenges are envy, bitterness and the need to refocus and regain energy. Complementary color: red.
• The Throat Blue Chakra — in the base of the throat, its associated organs are the thyroid, throat, mouth and neck. This is the color of communication and truth, trust, faith and peace. Negative challenges include isolation, loneliness and depression. Complementary color: orange.
• The Third Eye (the Brow) Indigo Chakra — at the center of the head, between the eyes (third eye). Associated organs are the eyes, brain and pituitary gland. Indigo has to do with higher mind functions of intuition and clairvoyance and it also can be used to enhance meditation. Negative challenges are severe depression or isolation. Complementary color: yellow.
• The Crown Violet Chakra — on the top of the head, associated with the brain and pineal gland. It is the color of healing, as well as spiritual and emotional issues and offers support during times of transition. Negative challenges include loss, grieving and suffering. Complementary color: yellow.
The colors you need at a given time will shift according to events in your life. There are a number of books and Web sites that have information on color and how to incorporate its healing influence. In addition, you can meet with a color therapist to work on using color to improve your life. Sessions generally cost in the $75 to $100 range and you can find a list of holistic healers including those practicing color therapy at The International Wheel of Colour (http://www.wheelofcolour.com/ or http://www.byregion.net/).
Source(s): ?
Jill Morton, director of Colorcom in Honolulu, Hawaii. http://www.colormatters.com.
Diantha Harris, color therapist and author of Simply… Color. She lectures and teaches about color, feng shui and the healing use of color. http://www.lifepotentials.net.
Readers: Pretty interesting huh? Did you click through the last two websites? There is some pretty interesting reads if color fascinates you as it does me. What’s your fave color? Mine’s always been green – no surprise it is also the main color of my eyes.
Gratefully your blog host,
michelle
Aka BABE: Your Bad Ass Bitch Editor
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December 28th, 2009 at 3:38 pm
Interesting Mischa, my fave colors in equal are olive green (main color in my eyes) and RED : ) next 2 are orange and yellow but rarely do I wear or pick blue though I like it. Interesting sites as well, makes my usage of red/green (commie colors a friend calls it) together actually have a sensible reason though I wouldn’t have guessed it…
Loved the PMS Pain in the ass acronym, couldn’t stop laughing. I’m not perfect but I do have very good self awareness skills and I honory emotions: the good, the bad and the ugly – internally. When I’m about to react badly and know i’ll regret it, I use self talk like ‘paging the real essence of Lily, hello – will the real me please report to the front desk – now’ tee hee yeah…even when it feels like someones trying to rip out an ovary without knocking me out first (my physical PMS symptom which has minimized via Chinese herbs) I try to acknowledge to myself, to another if appropriate and locate and defuse the trigger of a ‘not the usual me’ reaction.
Or maybe I just think I do that and I’m really a pain in the ass! Hahaha…!
Yoga is a massager of internal organs so it is very helpful. I’m always open to new info though…my book will be called – Lets take baby steps – bc changing anything about our essence is difficult for most people. Radical self acceptance takes time but is radically worth the effort involved.
Think I’ll send for it, could always use new tricks for my own teaching purposes and any side benefit to me is nice also.
Thanks Misch, both posts made me smile.
Caio, Zen Lill
December 28th, 2009 at 4:54 pm
Just another two…I would add abdominals to that list of muscle groups to maintain – without them it’s tough to have and maintain strong back muscles, they have a very symbiotic relationship. There’s research on that as well…I’m done now : ) I hope I don’t sound like a know it all bc I most certainly do not! – ZL
December 29th, 2009 at 12:07 am
I don’t know if I’m going to get in so let me wish everyone a Happy New Year first. Second I would like to know if anyone else is having trouble receiving this blog.
My, June, and I used to make it our first read in the afternoon. But lately we have had a lot of trouble receiving it.
Michelle you have been a source of good feelings between June and me, but you have also sparked a hot argument on occasion.
lIt’s all good though. We found out how much you were missed for the past 4 days . I got your blog on line this morning.
Larruy
December 29th, 2009 at 4:10 am
Larry
I haven’t been able to get Michelle’s blog either. It stopped being available about a week ago. I didn’t know that it was that way in the USA too.
Borj
December 29th, 2009 at 4:26 am
DUST MITE INVASION
It’s not just your imagination — allergies have been on the rise. Epidemiological data show that your children are likely to have more allergies than you, and their children to have more yet… and this doesn’t just include those who are allergic to peanuts. Dust mites have become a common cause of year-round allergy symptoms, with one study reporting that 51% of children tested positive for dust mite allergies, compared with just 39% of their parents.
Dust mites are common — in fact, nearly ubiquitous. These unwelcome house guests can be found everywhere, they were even detected on the Mir Space Station. Unless your furnishings are brand new, you can be fairly certain that some are living in your mattress, carpet and living room couch. To understand the implications, I consulted world-renowned expert Matthew J. Colloff, PhD, author of Dust Mites, a new book that delivers all the dirt on these nasty little creatures — including where they live, why people are allergic to them and, most important, how to get rid of them.
Dust mites cause damage way out of proportion to their microscopic size. At least 100 million people worldwide suffer from sneezing, runny noses, asthma, skin rashes and other reactions to these mighty mites. Relatives of the spider, dust mites thrive in warm, dark and humid conditions, burrowing deep into rugs, upholstered furniture, bedding, mattresses, box springs and stuffed animals. They feed on substances such as the shedded skin of humans and pets and on bacteria and molds — all common components of house dust.
DISGUSTING THINGS IN DUST
In fact, it’s not house dust that most people are allergic to, but rather what dust mites have contributed to it. Specifically, dust mite allergies are immune system reactions to the various dust mite proteins — including in their feces and in the decaying bodies of dead dust mites. Dr. Colloff explains…
For people with hay fever or allergic rhinitis, the immune reaction to dust mites is likely to present as inflammation in their nasal passages, triggering symptoms such as sneezing, congestion, a runny nose, red and watery eyes, itchy nose and roof of the mouth or throat, coughing and facial pressure or pain.
If you have asthma, exposure to the mites may produce inflammation and contraction of the airways of your lungs, leading to wheezing, shortness of breath and chest tightening.
If you are prone to skin rashes, your encounter with dust mites might bring on an inflammatory skin reaction, such as eczema.
DECLARE WAR ON DUST MITES
For people with severe allergies, drugs may be essential (especially for people with asthma), but avoiding the mite allergens can prevent symptoms from occurring in the first place. The best strategy is to declare war on house dust and the critters that feast on it. Keep your home clean and dust-free, and do whatever you can to keep humidity low. The most critical room of all is your bedroom. Specifically, focus on your bed, which — with its mattress, box spring, pillows and cozy quilt or duvet — provides an ideal nesting place for literally millions of microscopic pests.
DEBUG YOUR BEDDING
Dr. Colloff has developed a “flexible, simple, inexpensive and integrated dust mite control strategy.” Depending on how aggressive you want or need to be, Dr. Colloff advises…
Encase your bed and its components in microporous (or semipermeable) covers, which discourage dust mites from colonization. This type of bedding — allergy pillows, pillow covers, mattress covers, duvet covers, etc. — ranges widely in price (from $50 to several hundred dollars for a mattress cover, for instance) and is readily available online if you can’t find it in local stores.
A more moderate strategy is to strip your bed daily. Also helpful is to open doors and windows to thoroughly air the room.
At the very least, consider washing bedding in hot water (at least 130°F) at least once a month. Note: There are allergy-relief laundry soaps/detergents that work in cold water. It’s also great to dry items outdoors, in direct sunlight, which dehydrates and kills dust mites.
FLOORS & FURNITURE
To deal with dust mites in rugs and upholstery, Dr. Colloff recommends…
Removing carpeting and rugs from bedrooms — this is the most aggressive strategy.
Vacuuming carpets, upholstered furniture and curtains every week, using a device with a double-layered microfilter bag or a HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filter. This is a less extreme plan.
Regularly steam-cleaning rugs, upholstered furniture and mattresses with equipment that heats water to at least 212°F, to help ensure removal of dust and dust mites.
Note: These strategies were adapted from Dr. Colloff’s Dust Mites.
A NOTE OF CAUTION
Many people assume that they are allergic to dust mites, observes Dr. Colloff, but this is not always the case. Before you invest significant time and money to control dust mites, see an allergist to make sure you actually are allergic to them. If you are, then take aggressive steps to eliminate them to the greatest extent possible from your home.
Source(s):
Matthew J. Colloff, PhD, senior research scientist, CSIRO Entomology, Canberra, Australia, and author of Dust Mites (CSIRO).
December 29th, 2009 at 4:48 am
Hafa Adai
Michelle it is late here on Guam about 10:40PM, December 29, 2009. As usual I am attempting to post to your blog. I may or may not get in. But at least this time I have the blog in front of me.
I want to get in some of the issues I have been raising but have not had the benefit of your blog to disseminate to the mainland.
Many have in their misguided logic complained to me vial email as if it was my fault. If I post too many entries, I will understand if you edit them.
I would like to make my first issue, the very real possibility that we here on Guam could get screwed twice. Once by the federal for taking our land and a second time by the government of Guam for not paying us the pittance the federal government has deemed to grant us for it.
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By Michael Rudolph
GUAM – The day the federal government exercises eminent domain over land deemed necessary for government use is a reality that some land owners on Guam may soon face. While Senator Judi Guthertz engages the public on Resolution 258, which fights for ‘good faith’ negotiations between private landholders and the Defense Department, recent comments by the Office of the Attorney General of Guam raise a practical concern.
According to a statement made by the AG in a report appearing in the Pacific Daily News on Tuesday, “the government must file with the court a deposit in the amount of compensation estimated to cover the taking, as specified in the declaration. The title passes to the government immediately upon payment of compensation to the court.”
The concern is this. If the government is supposed to pay the court for a private citizen’s land, and the government receives title to the citizen’s land before that citizen is actually paid for his/her land — then how long must the land seller wait before they actually get cash in hand?
________________________________________
It seems that the citizen gets screwed every time.
Happy New Year All.
Peter
December 29th, 2009 at 5:13 am
We here in the Nederlands wonder about the needless security imposed by those who would make us believe that those measures make us more secure.
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It’s worth noting that Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was thwarted in his Christmas Day attempt to blow an airliner out of the sky, not by institutional security measures, but by an alert passenger and the cabin crew of the airplane in question. It’s also worth noting that, rather than take inspiration from Jasper Schuringa’s exercise of personal initiative, various government seatwarmers around the world plan more of sort of the sort of security measures that have long failed to do much more than make air travel an unpleasant chore.
Abdulmutallab, a 23-year-old Nigerian dubbed the “Fruit of the Loom bomber” by some wags, attempted to detonate a bomb he’d smuggled on board Northwest Airlines Flight 253 from Amsterdam to Detroit as it approached its destination. He’d been allowed to board even though he’d been placed on one of the U.S.government’s myriad lists of suspicious persons with terrorist ties after his own father, a prominent Nigerian banker, warned U.S. authorities that Abdulmutallab is dangerous.
Abdulmutallab was brought up short only when passengers on the plane noticed flames after the terrorist ignited his explosive device. They jumped the would-be-bomber and doused the fire. Dutch video director Jasper Schuringa is credited with putting Abdulmutallab in a headlock and stripping and subduing the terrorist with the assistance of flight attendants.
“We had to do something,” Schuringa told reporters. Well, yes — they did. It’s very likely that the passengers and crew escaped harm because they quickly reacted to circumstances that they couldn’t have foreseen as they happened.
It’s difficult, really, to imagine a better defense than people willing and able to take initiative. Dutch authorities have taken a lot of flack for letting Abdulmutallab slip his explosive device through security, but terrorists have had decades to adjust their techniques to ever-tightening security measures at airports. American officials have been called on the carpet to answer for allowing Abdulmutallab to board a U.S.-bound flight when he’s listed as a terrorism suspect, but the list he’s on — the Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment list — reportedly contains 550,000 names.
There comes a point of diminishing returns, when you’ve listed so many potential threats that there’s no possible way to react to them in any effective manner. I suspect that point comes somewhere before you tally up a half-million terrorism suspects.
But Abdulmutallab was stopped — on the plane, by passengers and crew. While the fact that the terrorist plot got that far is being treated as a failure in many quarters, it may have run up against the most effective security measures that there can ever be — people at the scene who take responsibility and initiative as a threat materializes.
That’s the most effective security measure there can ever be because its really the only measure that can’t be easily anticipated or evaded by plotters. After all, if they want to harm people, terrorists have to be near people. And those people have the potential to react on the spot, as needed.
That security officials appreciate the value of such flexibility is clear from the Transportation Security Administration’s announcement that it will “surge resources as needed on a daily basis” and that “[p]assengers should not expect to see the same thing at every airport.”
OK. Flexible is good.
But TSA officials aren’t the targets. They’re the people the terrorists are evading. No matter how many new checkpoints or measures they put in place — millimeter-wave scanners, extra baggage checks at gates, behavior detection, dogs, bans on putting anything on your lap or moving around the cabin — the most officials can do is create hurdles that terrorists must plan for, and that seriously inconvenience anybody who still chooses to travel through the police state that air travel has become.
That government officials know that they engage more in security theater than actual security is pretty clear. The Government Accountability Office has called the TSA on the carpet in the past for implementing procedures without ever bothering to investigate their effectiveness. In a 2007 report, the GAO recommended:
[T]he Secretary of Homeland Security should direct the Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for TSA to develop sound evaluation methods, when possible, that can be used to assist TSA in determining whether proposed procedures would achieve their intended result…
In March 2009, the GAO followed up, finding (PDF):
TSA has taken some actions but has not fully implemented a risk management approach to inform the allocation of resources across the transportation modes (aviation, mass transit, highway, freight rail, and pipeline). …
Without effectively implementing such controls, TSA cannot provide reasonable assurance that its resources are being used effectively and efficiently to achieve security priorities.
The latest measures will almost certainly be implemented with the same disregard for effectiveness, because they are and can only be primarily for show. Real security doesn’t come from lumbering institutions, uniformed snoops and high-tech scanners, it comes from people who take responsibility for themselves.
But what bureaucrat wants to admit that there’s only so much he can do? Who wants to put himself out of a job by telling scared travelers that real security comes from emulating Jasper Schuringa?
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What we need at the airports is beyond my suggestions, I only know that what we have now is not working.
Jon
December 29th, 2009 at 5:27 am
I wasn’t able to get this in on the 26th. But if I may follow Peter”s example(Hafa Adai to you too.) I would like to re post my comment since it didn’t get in.
I wanted to show how low the repugs will go. Here is Pat Buccannan using the bible to advocate killing. Another chicken hawk so very willing to send others to die for his world philosophy.
======================
Of Christmas, War and Peace
by Patrick J. Buchanan
12/25/2009
“And this shall be a sign unto you: You shall find the infant wrapped in swaddling clothes, and laid in a manger.
“And suddenly there was with the Angel a multitude of the heavenly army, praising God, and saying: Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace to men of good will.”
Here the argument begins. Is it biblical to say, “Peace on earth and good will to men,” which is inclusive but inexact? Or does that dilute and distort the meaning of “Peace on earth to men of good will,” which is restrictive?
The former, while ecumenical, seems pacifist. Do we wish good will today to al-Qaida? And is not the chorus singing out peace on earth “to men of good will” at the first Christmas a “heavenly army”?
And is not the purpose of an army to destroy enemies — in the case of the heavenly army, the army of the Devil?
“Peace on earth to men of good will” seems more consistent with the Sermon on the Mount, where the Lord says, “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.”
Surely, Christ was not here calling down blessings on the legions that had brought a Roman peace to the known world by conquering all tribes and nations through the power of the sword.
Yet, Christ did not exclude Romans soldiers from the company of men of good will. Of the centurion who implored him to heal his servant from afar, as “I am not worthy that thou shouldst come under my roof,” Christ said: “Amen, I say to you. I have not found such great faith in Israel.”
The centurion’s words have become immortal, as for centuries they have been repeated three times by the faithful before receiving communion at every Latin mass said on earth.
What the Bible seems to teach is that there are just causes worth fighting for and just men who fight in them, and “peace on earth” is not merely the absence of war, as “in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar,” but the presence of peace with justice.
To his credit, President Obama reintroduced, in his address at Oslo on accepting the Nobel Prize for Peace, the Christian concept of a just war.
“(O)ver time, as codes of law sought to control violence within groups, so did philosophers and clerics and statesmen seek to regulate the destructive power of war. The concept of a ‘just war’ emerged, suggesting that war is justified only when certain conditions were met: if it is waged as a last resort or in self-defense; if the force used is proportional; and if, whenever possible, civilians are spared from violence.”
Obama is saying that not only must the cause be just, but the means employed. He went on to ask if, even in the “Good War” against Nazism, we always observed the Christian laws of war.
“(F)or most of history, this concept of ‘just war’ was rarely observed. The capacity of human beings to think up new ways to kill one another proved inexhaustible, as did our capacity to exempt from mercy those who look different or pray to a different God. Wars between armies gave way to wars between nations — total wars in which the distinction between combatant and civilian became blurred.
“In the span of 30 years, such carnage would twice engulf this continent. And while it’s hard to conceive of a cause more just than the defeat of the Third Reich and the Axis powers, World War II was a conflict in which the total number of civilians who died exceeded the number of soldiers who perished.”
Though World War II was a just war, Obama was implying, it was not always conducted justly. Indiscriminate bombing of defenseless cities of defeated nations — Dresden, Hiroshima and Nagasaki — is difficult to reconcile with a Christian concept of jus in bello.
And today’s wars? Certainly, after Sep. 11, Afghanistan was a just war, justly fought. But as it has become Obama’s war, with his having doubled U.S. forces in combat, what is it we are fighting for?
Comes the answer: to prevent a return of the Taliban, which could lead to a return of al-Qaida and a new base camp for terrorists preparing another Sept. 11. And if the Taliban return, Afghanistan will become a sanctuary for war on Pakistan, and the capture of its nuclear weapons by Islamic fanatics who would use them.
We are hence no longer fighting a war of necessity to root out terrorists so they cannot replicate an act of mass murder. We are fighting a preventive war — to prevent their return, from Pakistan, to Afghanistan.
Is this a just, necessary and wise war? From his own hesitancy in sending more troops and his ruminations at Oslo, Obama himself seems conflicted. And understandably so.
Merry Christmas, and peace on earth to men of good will.
===================================
His idea of “men of good will” are white men who are bigots.
Mike
Happy New Year to everyone.
December 29th, 2009 at 5:37 am
Hafa Adai
It’s me again. I forgot to enter this article that got so much email. It is about the limits or perceived limits of the Guam Legislature by it Attorney General, whose mother my sister says she met in the duty-free mall the other day.
_________________________
AG Opinion Limits Legislative Powers
Guam – An opinion from the Guam Attorney General concludes that the Legislature has less power than it thought it had.
The opinion grows out of a request from the Governor’s office to examine Senator Judi Guthertz’s decision to summon 6 members of the Governor’s staff and representatives from 5 agencies to her over-sight hearing in October on the military buildup.
Guthertz, citing Guam’s Freedom of Information Act, also told them to bring copies of the Draft EIS with them and be prepared to discuss it, even though at that time, the draft EIS had not yet been publicly released. And, even though every GovGuam employee who received early copies of the Draft EIS from the U.S. military had to sign a non-disclosure form before they got it, vowing not to release any details.
The Executive Branch representatives did appear at Guthertz’s hearing, but they declined to discuss the Draft EIS until the Attorney General issued her opinion, which she now has done.
In her opinion, Attorney General Alicia Limtiaco wrote that the deliberations of the executive branch are “protected from legislative inquiry.” And she stated that the Legislature’s powers of investigation are limited “by the limits of the separation of powers doctrine expressly stated in the Organic Act of Guam.”
She states that the law that grants investigative powers to the Legislature is constitutionally “suspect” because its procedures for enforcing compliance are “vague” and the law has yet to be tested in the courts.
_____________________________________
I don’t make the news. I just report it. Call your senator, if you got issues, don’t email me.
Peter
December 29th, 2009 at 5:44 am
Hafa Adai Peter. I want to confess that I was one of those irate citizens who sent you an email. I couldn’t get Michelle’s blog signal either.
I thought for sure that you would be raving about Guam bringing itself in line with the federal seat belt laws. You know this one: – Posted at 01:47 on 28 December, 2009 UTC
From this Friday, all passengers in motor vehicles in Guam will be required to wear seat belts.
In addtion, all children below the age of 12 will be required to use booster seats or car seats.
The Pacific Daily news says the Guam Legislature passed the relevant Public Law in June, to bring local seat belt laws up to federal standards.
The previous law, passed in 1986, mandated the use of seat belts only for the driver and the front seat passenger.
News Content © Radio New Zealand International
PO Box 123, Wellington, New Zealand ——–
———————–When you didn’t comment, I emailed you.
I saw you in the Agana mall the other day buying a phone card. You are still so fine.
Tracy
December 29th, 2009 at 5:49 am
IMPORTANT RITUALS FOR THE NEW YEAR
With New Year’s Eve just a few days away, what plans have you made? I used to put a lot of pressure on myself to make December 31 the best night of the year, and more often than not this led to disappointment in the face of all those high expectations. I look at it differently now. New Year’s Eve is not just another night, nor does it have to be a great big party… it’s an ending and a new beginning and a ritual in its own right, and I like to make it meaningful and memorable.
I spoke with Barbara Fiese, PhD, a clinical and developmental psychologist and author of Family Routines and Rituals, who affirmed that it can be a good thing to choose a symbolic ritual of your own to consciously mark the transition to the new year as a way to both clear the mind and move forward.
WHAT TO DO?
Many people like to choose rituals that are cultural in nature. “If you practice a ritual that’s been passed down through family generations, it connects you to your ancestors and preserves your identity for the future,” Dr. Fiese points out. Other considerations may include whether you want to mark the end of a year that was particularly difficult… or joyous… or (as I so often find) both. You may want to focus on being “in the moment” of transition from old to new… or it may be that you want to celebrate the possibilities that lie ahead, whether you have specific hopes and dreams for the new year or just want it to be wonderful in its own, yet-to-be-revealed way.
There are rituals for all these purposes, and more. If you’re looking for a New Year’s ritual to call your own, here are a few to consider:
CLEANSING RITUALS
In the Thai culture, water represents both cleansing and renewal, and the New Year is celebrated with rituals of splashing water. Water is tossed out of doors or windows (checking first for passers-by!) or into public fountains, and, more personal, young people tenderly pour scented water over the shoulders of their elders as a sign of respect and an act of blessing.
In Japan, people spend the last day of the old year cleaning their homes to welcome the New Year’s harvest god. Clearing away clutter and creating a clean, peaceful environment can be a tangible and meaningful way to symbolize the clearing out of old energy from the current year in order to create a welcoming space for new, positive events and opportunities to move into your life.
RITUALS OF CLOSURE
A Native American tradition can easily be adapted even to urban environments. Go to a park, hiking trail, your garden or some other place in nature that’s significant to you. Dig a small hole in the ground, and place your regrets, fears or worries (represented by a slip of paper on which you have written them, a photograph or some other symbol) from the past year into the hole. Replace the dirt and cover the spot with leaves or stones so that the earth can absorb the past and leave you unburdened for the coming year.
Physically releasing something tangible into the world — such as balloons, butterflies, doves or bubbles — can represent the release of the past. An easy, elegant and environmentally correct way to do this is by blowing bubbles — perhaps even twice: First at sunrise, to release regrets, worries or cares… then at dusk to release your hopes, consciously sending out a wish to the universe each time you blow a new set of bubbles.
The Jewish New Year (which occurs in the autumn) is marked by atoning for the transgressions of the past year in order to enter the new one spiritually cleansed. You can adapt this as an end-of-year ritual by making a list of all the hurts, injustices and regrets you faced or created during 2009. Contemplate each as you write them down, bringing them to mind for one last review. Next, build a fire in a fireplace (indoors or outdoors) and burn the list. Take the ashes outside, and scatter them or sprinkle them into the wind or over moving water (a brook or the beach) to carry them away.
Another ritual of repentance is part of the annual New Year celebration in Buddhist temples in Japan, where bells are rung 108 times in order to dispel the 108 worldly desires. Consider engaging in a personal bell-ringing ceremony, with each toll representing something you wish to let go of or something you hope to call into your life in the months ahead.
RITUALS FOR NEW BEGINNINGS
Plant seeds in an indoor pot, each seed representing a particular hope or desire that you can bring into being. Nurturing the plant as it pushes through the earth and grows toward the sun can be symbolic of your dreams coming to fruition.
In many parts of South America, people take a traditional walk around the block carrying a suitcase (try a backpack if you find a suitcase awkward or uncomfortable) each New Year’s Eve, which is said to ensure that your dream journey will manifest.
A MEDITATIVE RITUAL
Some churches and communities sponsor labyrinth walks, which are a form of moving meditation that allows the walker to reflect on life while moving slowly and mindfully, one step at a time, along a prescribed path. This can represent moving away from the past and toward the future. The World-Wide Labyrinth Locator’s site at http://labyrinthlocator.com can help you find a labyrinth near you.
WHAT REALLY MATTERS
Rituals can be as simple as a moment of silence, a letter to yourself or someone else, or even a prayer, religious or otherwise. Or you may prefer to go all out, planning something elaborate, extravagant and even (if you can afford it), expensive such as a trip to a special place. A New Year’s ritual can be solitary or a celebration with your partner, family and friends, or — as is done in many cities around the world — at a party where everyone in the community is welcome. It’s the deliberation and focus on what matters to you that is most important and that ultimately gives your choice meaning, whether you do it only this year or every year going forward from now on.
Source(s):
Barbara H. Fiese, PhD, is the Pampered Chef, Ltd., endowed chair in family resiliency and professor of human development and resiliency studies and director of the Family Resiliency Center at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She previously served as chair of the department of psychology at Syracuse University. She is a clinical and developmental psychologist whose research interests focus on family factors that promote health and wellbeing in children. Her most recent book is Family Routines and Rituals ( Yale University Press).
December 29th, 2009 at 6:04 am
Michelle
I, too, lost your blog for a while. You must have some powerful enemies. I really miss it when I find a blank staring at me when I log on to “A day in the life…”
It was such a pleasure to log on and see Zen Lill commenting. Happy New Year Zen. Are you still interested in relocating?
Let me post this great find about too many drugs being prescribed by our doctors before I lose you again Michelle.
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Meds and pain bring you down
Dear Friend,
Most seniors value their independence about as much as they value their own lives. After all, what’s life without freedom, right?
And there are few threats to that freedom as big as a fall… one of the leading causes of death in seniors.
In fact, falls or their consequences are believed to be responsible for a fifth of all deaths around the world – and a third of all seniors fall at least once a year. Just as frightening: 20 percent of seniors who suffer a hip fracture – a common consequence of falling – die within a year.
You can minimize your risk instantly by paying closer attention to two details: pain and meds.
One new study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, finds that three types of commonly used drugs can dramatically increase the risks of falling: antidepressants, sedatives and hypnotics often used as sleep aids, and benzodiazepines such as Xanax, Klonopin and Valium.
These classes of meds have something in common: Almost all of them are given unnecessarily. All three types are meds that don’t cure, heal or even change an underlying issue – they just mask the symptoms.
Conditions such as anxiety, depression and sleeplessness can all be handled naturally, and in many cases it’s simply a matter of finding out what’s causing the problem. Often, poor nutrition plays a role in these issues – and you can fix that by simply eating better or adding some supplements.
Talk to your doctor – and if he’s too quick with the prescription pad and too unwilling to go over your alternatives, find another doctor.
Another new study links those frightening falls to persistent pain.
Seniors who reported chronic pain in two or more joints were 50 percent more likely to fall, according to the study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Not only that, but even mild pain was associated with an increased risk of falling.
The study was sponsored in part by Pfizer – but don’t let that make you believe that Big Pharma’s painkillers or any other meds are the answer. They’re just another route to more pain.
Remember, there are always two ways of dealing with pain: masking the symptoms through meds, or finding the cause and correcting it.
Too many seniors believe that pain is just the price of old age – and yet nothing could be further from the truth. It’s true that age can make you more vulnerable to the conditions that cause pain – but nothing says you have to let those conditions take control of your life.
You can live pain-free at 70… 80… even 90 years old and beyond – if you listen to your body’s cues and take care of problems before they become nagging and potentially deadly issues. And in just about every case, you can solve pain problems – even nagging, chronic pain – naturally.
Some pains indicate nutritional problems. Fish oil is a fantastic way to get rid of many common pains – and you can get it by simply eating more delicious fish. You won’t find a better natural anti-inflammatory than fish oil, which may also reduce your risk for heart disease and other cardiovascular problems.
If you don’t like fish, or don’t eat it often, supplements are cheap and available just about everywhere.
Other people find relief through acupuncture, chiropractic care and even exercise, especially stretching. That may sound counterintuitive – no one wants to even move, much less exercise, when they’re stiff and achy – but sometimes, your body is calling out for a little more attention.
And in other cases, you may be suffering from an undiagnosed injury that can heal with some simple care such as physical therapy.
Your pain may have a different solution – it will depend on what’s causing it, after all – so talk to your doctor, ideally one willing to help you with non-drug alternatives.
After all, those drugs could end up being another quick route to a fall.
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Happy New year
And I am looking forward to bringing it in with the girls. They are so wonderful to watch develop into the little innocent girls life should have provided them years ago.
Thanks Anon for all you do.
Ruth
December 29th, 2009 at 6:18 am
Hafa Adai
Here is my beef about the government and their concerns about OTWs. Here is the government telling the parents of the children of Guam that a little asbestos in their children’s school tiles is okay.
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Million-dollar asbestos abatement a “waste of time,” say officials
Hagatna, Guam – December 27, 2009
In the United States territory of Guam, some officials have declared that a recent asbestos removal project that cost over $1 million dollars was a waste of time, as the floor tiles that were removed did not need to be targeted.
The Department of Education ordered asbestos abatement at seven schools on Guam, with a total price tag of between $1.5 and $2 million dollars. But Department of Education Safety Administrator Bruce Williams says that the asbestos-laden floor tiles could have safely stayed where they were.
“The word asbestos scares people,” Williams said. “And people think that everyone is in danger. But no. This was not the case.” Williams argues that the asbestos removal project was basically undertaken to alleviate the fears of concerned parents.
Exposure to even a small amount of asbestos can be deadly, as asbestos is linked to the development of lung cancer and mesothelioma, a rare disease. Mesothelioma can be treated with chemotherapy and other methods, but the cancer has no cure. Sadly, mesothelioma patients may not survive more than two years after being diagnosed.
Williams said that despite the panic caused by the Guam Public School System Health and Safety Task Force, the asbestos-laden tiles were within federal government standards.
“Although (the law) does not prohibit schools from removing any asbestos materials, removal decisions should not be made lightly,” one government-issued pamphlet states. “An ill-conceived or poorly conducted removal can actually increase rather than eliminate risk.”
And according to the U.S. EPA’s National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants, “Removal is often not a school district’s or other building owner’s best course of action to reduce asbestos exposure…in fact, an improper removal can create a dangerous situation where none previously existed.”
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Image the screaming and money being spent if this were found in a white school?
Peter
December 29th, 2009 at 6:24 am
When I read this article, I asked myself Why do we need 47,000 troops in Japan. Can’t that country afford to pay for its own defense?
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The United States, which defeated Japan in World War II and then occupied the country, now has 47,000 troops stationed there, more than half of them on Okinawa, the site of one of the bloodiest battles of the war.
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Is anyone else wondering this?
Mary
December 29th, 2009 at 6:39 am
Mom
I am looking forward to seeing you for the new year. The girls wrote to ask me to bring some english pudding. I will.
When I read this article I thought about the times you complained bout be biting your tender nipples. I am glad you put up with me and continued to allow me to suckle.
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Breastfeeding helps mom too
There’s no denying it: Nothing’s better for baby than breastfeeding.
And if your baby enjoyed mother’s milk years ago, you may be enjoying a benefit right now: a lower risk for metabolic syndrome, a dangerous set of conditions that can lead to diabetes and heart disease.
You won’t get that from a bottle!
A study published in the journal Diabetes finds that women who did not suffer from gestational diabetes during pregnancy were able to lower their risk of metabolic syndrome by 39 percent by breastfeeding for one to five months, and by 56 percent by breastfeeding for longer than nine months.
Women who suffered from gestational diabetes lowered their risk by 44 percent when they breastfed for between one and five months, and by 86 percent when they breastfed for more than nine months.
Metabolic syndrome includes weight gain, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and insulin resistance. With all those risk factors attacking at once, it’s no wonder that many of the people who suffer from it also end up battling obesity, diabetes and heart disease.
No one’s quite sure yet why this simple and perfectly natural act might make such a big difference… but it may have to do with blood-sugar levels during breastfeeding. Women who breastfeed have lower insulin levels.
They also tend to have higher levels of HDL (“good”) cholesterol and less belly fat after pregnancy, which may also help reduce that risk for metabolic syndrome years down the road.
Breastfeeding can help mom in other ways, too. Research has shown that women who breastfeed have a lower risk for osteoporosis later in life. Breastfeeding may also help reduce the risk of uterine, ovarian and breast cancers. It may even help with postpartum weight loss.
In addition, many new mothers simply enjoy that special bond they feel when they’re feeding their baby.
And of course, moms and dads alike benefit when they don’t have to spend big dollars on formula.
All that, and we haven’t even touched on all the benefits breastfeeding has for the baby… research has shown the children who were breastfed tend to be smarter and healthier.
Breastfeeding has also been shown to improve skin and vision in babies, as well as promote stronger teeth and may even lower the risk for obesity, diabetes and heart disease years later.
So if you breastfed your children, congratulations – your kids got a head start and you’re enjoying a lower risk for a terrible condition.
And if any of the women in your life are pregnant, be sure to share this great news with them.
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However I would be less forthcoming if I didn’t mention that I often wonder if you are as “sensitive” when you lover(s) is sampling the goodies?
Love
Your beloved daughter
December 29th, 2009 at 7:01 am
Come on guys lets get registered for trash pick-up and join the rest of the civilized world. I for one am tire of all the smoke from trash burning in the jungles.
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Guam – The Solid Waste Management Division is rolling out its new trash cart program and will be holding a two-day registration in the village of Agat next Monday and Tuesday from 1-8pm. Current customers as well as new customers seeking residential trash services must signup.
The new carts, whose cost is included in the monthly $10 pickup fee, will help Solid Waste Management identify active, paying customers by utilizing new technology
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Okay that takes care of Agat. We have at least 17 other villages to get on board.
Hafa Adai
Anna
Oh and Michelle did you get my card? I mailed it without a return address because all the ones with it came back.
Happy New Year
December 29th, 2009 at 8:21 am
Although it’s Christmas Eve, I wanted to share some exciting news: The Senate just passed a historic health reform bill.
In all the back and forth, it’s easy to lose sight of what this incredible breakthrough really means. But consider this: This Christmas, there are millions of Americans without health insurance who risk losing everything if they get sick.
There are mothers and fathers who wonder how they’ll provide for their children because an illness has wiped out their savings. There are small business owners who worry that they’ll have to lay off a long-time employee because the cost of insurance is rapidly rising.
If we finish the job, all this can change. We will have beaten back the special interests who have for so long perpetuated the status quo. We will have enacted the most important piece of social policy since the Social Security Act in the 1930s, and the most important health reform since Medicare in the 1960s.
In Decembers to come, millions more will have access to affordable coverage. Parents will have the security and stability of knowing their insurance can’t be revoked at a moment’s notice. And the skyrocketing costs plaguing our small businesses will be brought under control.
When you make calls, write letters, organize, this is the change you’re making — a better life for your family and for men and women in every state.
There is still more to do before I can sign reform into law — a last round of negotiations and final votes in the Senate and the House — and I’m counting on your help every step of the way. But for now, I hope that as you celebrate this holiday season, you remember that the work you are doing is making our union more perfect, one step at a time. For that, I am grateful to you.
Merry Christmas and happy holidays,
President Barack Obama
P.S. — Organizing for America supporters are signing a note of appreciation to all the senators who have worked so hard to make this possible. I hope you’ll join them:
http://my.barackobama.com/SenateLetter
December 29th, 2009 at 8:23 am
Thanks Zen Lill for making my new year wonderful. I finally have the body I always wanted.
Happy new year world.
Janet
December 29th, 2009 at 10:08 am
Hi – so glad you’re all back, wasn’t sure if you weren’t receiving or unable to get in…
Mary, I’ve been asking that about Japan and other countries where we have a ‘presence’ (a large one) for years now, no one ever answers me, hopefully someone will surprise us both and give us details on why this ‘presence’ is necessary…(not!)
I love New Year’s rituals, though I have only one, putting a written wish in my red wishing jar, but I’m going to add the bubbles this year, like that…let go of certain things from 2009, send out good wishes for 2010…
Ruth, I am still interested in the right relocation opportunity, the devil is in the details so if you have any please contact me here or personally, there are other people in my life that need to know the program if I’m to move anywhere…thank you and happy new year to you also.
Evelyn, love your article re: breastfeeding and its benefits for baby and mama, but your mama’s sensitivity to a lover’s touch, hmmm, well – it made me smile bc someday, for me at least, it’d be cool to share that info with my girl if she really wants to know, hope we have that kind of communication. Sounds like you two do and it makes me look forward to our adult convos, I sure don’t have them with my own mother and that’s both our loss.
Everyone have a great New Year’s Eve if I don’t stop back in…I happen to dislike NYE, it’s amateur night out there and I’m a pro ; ) so I stay in and eat pizza and watch movies, this year I’ll also be kicking someone’s tush at Wii tennis bc I am that good ; )
Caio for now, Zen Lill
December 29th, 2009 at 10:14 am
Janet, forgot…so glad to hear from you, so women of MM blog – once you’ve gotten to the weight and exercise level you like via the ZL program (and following other advice here) isn’t it a whole lot easier to attend to things like ‘radical self acceptance’? I think I’ll add some exercises for 2010 and some info on the baby steps to achieving self empowerment…lots on my mind, calling it the twenty ten reinvention of the Lilli lately and people are curious and calling it my ‘twelve step’ program tee hee…it’s not like that though, there are just certain things I plan to stop doing, continue doing and start doing in 2010~! I guess they are wiondering which list they’re on! hahaha…
Caio, ZL