Philosophical wonder woman

10 Rules for Being Human. by Cherie Carter-Scott 1.  You will receive a body. You may like it or hate it, but it’s yours to keep for the entire period. 2.  You will learn lessons. You are enrolled in a full-time informal school called, “life.” 3.  There are no mistakes, only lessons. Growth is a process of trial, error, and experimentation. The “failed” experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiments that ultimately “work.” 4.  Lessons are repeated until they are learned. A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. When you have learned it, you can go on to the next lesson. 5.  Learning lessons does not end. There’s no part of life that doesn’t contain its lessons. If you’re alive, that means there are still lessons to be learned. 6.  “There” is no better a place than “here.” When your “there” has become a “here”, you will simply obtain another “there” that will again look better than “here.” 7.  Other people are merely mirrors of you....

An article from Mashable related to OKCupid poses the question, is OK Cupid shallow because they match people by attractiveness? The answer is yes - but all online dating is shallow, it can't help but be that way. Sure there are measures designed to match us differently but let's face it, if we're not attracted to the face in the picture we don't really care that we're 100% match do we? How often are we even willing to give a person a chance if we don't find their picture attractive? I was especially guilty of being shallow and hypocritical online more so than I ever would in real life... face to face. Online dating is SO difficult... you have to sort through jerks, random dumb-assery, and be able to separate them from the people who simply don't come across well online. Because we all have different mediums we prefer. Some people are phone people, I like email... some people's personalities can't express all their nuances through email, howev...

I finally saw the original Time Machine from the 60s and liked it very much (what true geek COULDN'T appreciate such a significant sci-fi movie from our history?). Kind of ashamed to say I hadn't seen it yet... I loved that even though it was made in 1960, it still kept true to the timeline of being set in the year 1900. Needless to say after major references from The Big Bang Theory I figured it was time to give it a viewing. Considering the time period it was made, the time-lapse photographic effects and costuming, props, etc were all so terrific that it didn't have that campy-old-movie feel. But what I loved most were all the thought provoking questions... too many Sci-Fi movies made currently just go straight for the effects and really miss the mark on screenplay, dialogue and message (*cough* star wars eps I-III *cough*). This is why I love Joss Whedon so much because in addition to great effects and action, you get humor, you get characters wrestling with complex...

It was pointed out to me recently that one of the characters in the story I'm writing is a cyborg... I hadn't actually associated that term with the character because I thought of her more as the bride of frankenstein mixed with supernatural elements. But after reading this article, Cyborgs - How Science Fiction Failed Us , the author pointed out that really Mary Shelley's creation was like the first cyborg, Frankenstein existing solely because of the science involved. I haven't worked on my story in a long while and I think perhaps because a large plot element was missing, possibly with this character. Thinking of her as a cyborg changes my perception of her and could also completely change her importance in the story... I already had her revealing a crucial piece of information in my mind at the end but I think I need to completely re-think who parts of her were and how it could affect her actions. So of course I'm geeking out having just finished the entire Batt...

I came across an interesting theory and I want to put it into practice to see if it can work... any frame of mind you're in, generally it's imagined. whatever it is that you're thinking about that has you in a bad mood is already in the past, you're not actually experiencing it right that minute - you're imagining it and re-living it. so why not re-live the times that you felt most inspired, most dynamic, excited, happy and energetic? tap into those memories and feel that way any time you want to... that's the theory anyway. the suggestion is to write down three instances in which you recall feeling that state and for each, do something distinctive with your body while recalling each. for example, recall the event that made you feel powerful and excited and then breathe out with your lips puckered (or whatever you choose). then your mind-body creates that muscle memory to access that connection. then when you get good at that, trying doing it in the middle ...

I find in my life I've said "I don't know" a lot. I thought surrendering to the fact that the mysteries of life are beyond my understanding was the ultimate wisdom. But in reading this blog post from Louise Hay, perhaps by taking this approach I have been limiting myself... Magnify Your Vision of Life by Louise L. Hay Within each of us is a center of wisdom far deeper and greater than we’re aware of. Meditation is designed to help us connect with this center and magnify our understanding of life. When we’re willing to open our consciousness to new ideas and new ways of thinking about difficult issues, then our lives change for the better. The only goal I have is to continually grow to understand more about life and how it works. What do I need to know, believe, say, and do to make my life flow as smoothly as possible? Within each of us is the capability to connect with our source, and therein lies the peace we’re all seeking—the inner knowledge that gives us strengt...

This is a phrase I keep seeing on dating profiles... to me, "no drama" has begun to be code for, "no feelings"... or "please God NO FALLING IN LOVE." I realize we all view this phrase differently. So I posed the question to the twitter-verse and here are some answers I got: 1. No drama = no unwanted display of emotions and no undesired unpredictability. It's a major red flag if you want a giving partner. 2. I'd say it has more to do with no craziness, undue jealousy, possessiveness... And women say it too. 3. answer: No, it's code for: when we fall in love and you get issues, please solve them yourself and don't burden me with them :P. 4. I have found that "no drama" usually means they bring plenty of their own drama and resent the competition. 5. "no drama" = red flag. Either he wants a girl with no opinions or he has crazy exes (& is probably a bit crazy too) 6. I think it means no dating at all. Like, "Le...

My alter ego in the group of awesome friends I call the Johnny Snows , is known as Hips of Fury (naturally, since I'm a bellydancer ). (Side note to the potentially confused - Johnny Snow is a reference from Dr. Horrible which is an awesome story we all adore. We are the Snows b/c we ski in CO. Dr. Horrible is plotting to be an evil mastermind in the ELOE, Evil League of Evil. Our group hasn't determined yet if we are good or evil ;-) ) The Johnny Snows are a creative group and Colleen has decided to write a script for a video so we can really have fun with the character names we made up at our holiday party. I already enjoy writing, so I quickly came up with a fictitious character: Hips of Fury – Alise Ardent (Ardent is a play on words being a synonym for passionate) Good or Bad? – Ambiguous / Struggles with it / Helps women, sometimes enjoys punishing men Powers – shimmies that create weather patterns & sonic booms, has power of hypnosis with slow movements and can...

Reposted from Heal Your Life Website Published: March 10, 2010 By Dr. Wayne W. Dyer Be a loving person and you’ll find a loving partner. You must be that which you desire. There’s no point whatsoever in an unloving man or woman bemoaning their inability to find a partner. They’re doomed to endless frustration because they don’t recognize the perfect match when it appears. That loving person could be right there, right now, and their resistance doesn’t allow them to see it. The unloving person continues to blame bad luck or a series of external factors for their not having a loving relationship. Love can only be attracted by and returned by love. The best advice I can give for attracting and maintaining spiritual partnerships, is to be what it is that you are seeking. Most relationships that fail to sustain themselves are based on one or both of the partners feeling as if their freedom has been compromised in some way. Spiritual partnerships, on the other hand, are never about making an...

today's source comes from: http://www.viewonbuddhism.org/attachment.html I am continually struggling with this and sometimes I wonder if I'll ever really learn or get it right. Once you start dating someone, the fires of desire are sparked and it's wonderful. It's so easy to get wrapped up in that and want more. It feels so good and we are so happy, we just want to exist in that state for as long as possible. "Grasping at things can only yield one of two results: Either the thing you are grasping at disappears, or you yourself disappear. It is only a matter of which occurs first." Goenka I've come to realize that becoming attached to someone happens so quietly and subtly that sometimes we don't really even realize it's happened, until the object of our attachment is suddenly gone. It happens in my mind ever so slowly... at first it feels under control and at some point, the idea of that someone you're attached to takes on a life of its own. ...

this can more commonly be referred to as the "Tuck and Push" - a tip I gleaned from Jeela (aka Annette Mason) , a lovely dancer from Arizona. Just like a tennis player has a "ready" stance, so they can easily reach the ball in any position, also a bellydancer has a neutral ready position to easily enable their body to get back to a stance for the next move. Here's how to do get the tuck and push working for you (from Jeela's website): What is this Tuck & Push?? It is the balancing of the front and back of the torso creating a foundation for good posture and power in your dance. It also makes you look great in pictures! How To: 1. Stand with feet hip distance apart, knees soft, weight centered over the arches of your feet. 2. Roll shoulders up, back and down. 3. Use your lower abdominal muscles to pull your belly button in towards your spine: this is your Tuck 4. Use your upper back muscles to draw shoulder blades together and Push rib cage straight for...

some days i just can't express in concrete thought the abstract flow of my mind, so i let a poet like e.e. cummings do it for me: since feeling is first who pays any attention to the syntax of things will never wholly kiss you; wholly to be a fool while Spring is in the world my blood approves, and kisses are a better fate than wisdom lady i swear by all flowers. Don't cry --the best gesture of my brain is less than your eyelids' flutter which says we are for each other: then laugh, leaning back in my arms for life's not a paragraph And death i think is no parenthesis ~ e.e. cummings

In short, because it makes us feel beautiful! I asked a lot of fellow shimmy sisters to chime in on why they love bellydance and here are some answers I got... "it makes me feel fantastically beautiful and great about myself! :-)" "I am not a dowdy female." "it helped me discover a part of myself that was dormant!" "it empowers women to be more self accepting and celebrates joy of femininity, as we meditate with movement." The truth is, we all need to accept ourselves and feel comfortable in our skin and bellydance helps us do just that. It's a fact that someone is more attractive when they are confident and also when they let their inner inspiration and beauty shine through (see Owning Your Sexiness ). Bellydance teaches you to isolate and control every muscle in your body and with that comes an enormous sense of empowerment and freedom. Once the muscle memory takes over and the movements begin to click for you, I promise it will be in you...

By Lama Surya Das (reposted from the Dzogchen Center Newsletter) May we realize true sincerity and integrity, Inner purity of mind, Dispassionate equanimity towards all we see, Right understanding of this dreamlike world and the next, Loving compassion towards others and the genuine intention to be helpful In alleviating suffering and confusion. May we directly perceive the truths of impermanence, mortality and Interconnectedness, Relinquish wandering thoughts and rampant desires, Accomplish freedom of mind and clarity of spirit, Remember with gratitude those who have gone before And shown the way, And vow to reach together full and complete enlightenment. This prayer was written by the wandering hermit Surya Das at Pao Lin Monastery atop the Buddha Mountain on Lantau Island, Hong Kong, after reading an ancient collection of Chinese prayers to Amitabha Buddha. September 1975

This was a concept started by a great Colorado lady I follow on Twitter: http://hipmountainmamablog.com/one-small-change/ The idea is to make one small change each month leading up to earth day in the hope that with each of us doing one more thing to help the earth we will make a positive impact, follow through and encourage others to do the same. I already recycle and considerably cut down on how many paper towels I use. My next change is to buy more LED / CFL bulbs, turn the thermostat down a little more and purchase a few more canvas bags to keep in the car to ensure I always have some on hand when I run into the store unplanned. But I'd like to take this small change movement a little bit further. Not only do we need to change our habits in how we treat our earth but I think we also should strive to make an effort in how we treat each other. I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who's noticed that common courtesy really isn't as common as it used to be. I real...

It's the time of year when people start making resolutions, looking back at the year and noting accomplishments and also things they wish they had done or maybe done differently. Perhaps you also look forward and make plans about things you want to accomplish in the coming year... I'm a big believer in setting goals, however, anyone that knows me also knows I don't always finish what I start. Therefore I'm also a big believer in forgiving yourself what you don't accomplish and when you forgive yourself, start over and begin again in each new day. I never really make resolutions per say because I think we set ourselves up for failure that way (read my friend Tali's blog: Is Resolution a Dirty Word? ). Here is the best advice I can give to myself and anyone else: "Be gentle, kind and patient with yourself and relax ~ The best peacemakers are those who are at peace with themselves." It's important to set intentions for our lives, to set goals and to...

This is a site that I love - especially her artistic cat note cards that I purchase all the time to stay in touch with people back home. So it's worth a shot! Here are her rules for the contest and link back to the Creative Goddess site: 1. Post this as a separate entry on your blog by Thursday, Dec 3rd at 3p (EST). (You may borrow the graphic above.) 2. Once you do, post a comment here with your link. 3. Contest ends Thursday evening, Dec 3rd at 6p(EST). 4. Winning name announced Thursday evening, 5. You can’t be related to me -even thru marriage. Besides, you get all kinds of cool stuff from me anyway, right? 6. You must be reachable so that we can contact you. If I cannot verify your ID or reach you via email, learn that you’ve come from a ‘Sweeps’ forum, I will disqualify your posts. 7. Not redeemable for cash

Apparently you write dating profiles really well. I've been told by a couple fellas that they wished they could write about themselves as well as I write about myself --- of course that doesn't necessarily mean they want to date me. I offer up suggestions to them that it's all about just being honest and expressing what really inspires them and throwing in a little of their personality. I think someday I might write a book on this stuff, however I don't think anyone would read it unless I'm actually in a successful relationship. It's important to me to converse for a while first before meeting so it's not so awkward upon first meeting and I feel like if it's too much effort for them to do that, then why waste the time? Some men see it the opposite way, they want to meet in person right away and see each other and they think that is the best, instant way to know if "it's there." I disagree - but if we see that differently, then that probab...

Six questions to ask yourself about your dancing before a Bellydance performance. By Nielle McCammon (to appear in the Jan/Feb issue of Shimmy in the Spirit of Bellydance magazine) Over the summer I participated in a bellydance show in which the performers ranged from first-time beginner to seasoned professional. And what struck me was that the technically best performer was not necessarily the favorite performer for all the audience. It also occurred to me that one or two of the performances were too experimental and strange for a show to an audience comprised of people who had never seen bellydancing before. I was prompted to ask the guests I invited who their favorite performers were and why --- and I was extremely surprised at the answers. Their favorites were not the seasoned professionals who showed off their technique mastery but the performers who were all about connecting with the audience and sharing the love of the dance from their heart. They liked the dancers who were...

I took a zill workshop with Jasmin once and really enjoyed her knowledge and enjoyment of the dance. Last night I was doing more Isis research for my fiction story and came across an article she wrote on Isis. It really is historical and has nothing to do with bellydance but very interesting nonetheless. I link to one article from her on my dance website but she has a wealth of information she's written on MANY topics that I plan on sharing with my students :) http://www.bestbellydancechicago.com/Newsletter/article_archives.html