A monday in Seattle
I'm at my friend Brent's house in Seattle. While I was turtling along the 101 yesterday, he was hanging out with friends in Portland. On his way back he was approaching Seattle at about the same time I was. Many phone calls and a lot of freeway speed adjusting later, he passed me on the 5 just before downtown Seattle, got in front of me and led me to his house. It was quite an adventure, having a randon spot on the freeway be our meeting place.
This morning we went downtown to the market for some brie baguettes. We also went to the original Starbucks. Brent had a latte and I ordered a Chai. But the Chai tasted like a mocha so I returned it, and the original Starbucks gave me a coupon that said that my next Starbucks beverage was free. Then we went to Queen Anne and saw a beautiful view of the city, and then Brent dropped me off at the Fremont Coffee Company and went to work.
I had an appointment to give a psychic reading at the Fremont Coffee Company at 11. The reading went for an hour and a half. Afterwards I sat and looked at some water, walked around Fremont and then walked to Brent's place. The weather was gorgeous. Then I drove to Capitol Hill and bought a blue T-shirt that has a girl with a pet ghost on it just in time for the rain to start again.
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.: posted by Vera 
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I'm in Oregon
I got a speeding ticket and lots of thinking done during my first day of driving. It is turning out to be somewhat of a mobile meditation workshop, which is what I was hoping for.
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.: posted by Vera
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Song of the Week
Death Cab for Cutie - Marching Bands of Manhattan
I heard this on the radio last night. It is exactly the kind of music I want to listen to right now. I recently sent an email to some friends asking to let me borrow some of their CD's for my road trip next week, and I specifically asked for music like this, whatever that means. I am so sick of breaks and drum & bass. The last time I drove to Seattle I listened to nothing but breaks and drum & bass, now I am looking for music WITH LYRICS? What is going on with me? Extraterrestrials are doing it, I swear. They have taken over my being and are turning me into a happy puppet and making me change in ways I never thought possible, and I don't mind at all.
It is true what you say
that I live like a hermit in my own head
but when the sun shines again
I'll pull the curtains and blinds
to let the light in
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.: posted by Vera
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The space and time for the Moon Cycle Manifestation workshop have been set.
The psychic awareness series has manifested as well. I will be assisting Robin in teaching.
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.: posted by Vera
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Instead of Burning Man
I'm not going to Burning Man this year. I went last year, and it was my first time and it might well be my last time. Burning Man is just not for me.
I don't particularly like camping.
I don't like being hot.
I don't like being around a lot of people right now.
I don't feel like partying right now.
I like being around trees and flowers.
I sold my ticket on Friday. Instead of Burning Man, I am going on another road trip. I will be leaving this Saturday, taking my time and arriving in either Seattle or Portland on Sunday evening, where I will meet up with my good old friend Brent. [We may or may not be hanging out in Portland on Sunday, and if we do hang out in Portland, we may or may not see another good old friend from the desert, Kyle.] I will be staying with Brent and his girlfriend for three nights, and on Wednesday I will be meeting Ariel's mom, Thérese, and be spending Wednesday night at the Moon Lodge on Bainbridge Island. On Thursday morning I will be driving down to Portland and staying there for two days. On Saturday I will be driving back towards San Francisco, taking my time and arriving on Sunday.
I just don't feel like going to Burning Man. But I do feel like going on a road trip.
Oh, and: I will be offering discounted psychic readings while I'm in Seattle and Portland.
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.: posted by Vera
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Two of my favorite friends
 Vera and the twins
Originally uploaded by SFAntti.
I have never talked about these two new friends I have made this year. They are seven-month-old fraternal twin babies, who are my boyfriend's nieces. I met them when they were about a month and a half old and have seen them a couple of times a month since then.
The one with the pacifier is named Anni and the other one is Helmi. I like them very much and love being around them. They don't speak Finnish or English yet, but they understand the language that we were all born with and that I am currently trying to relearn.
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.: posted by Vera
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Interested in Orange?
I opened an Orange Savings Account at ING Direct in March. At that time the interest rate was about 2.8% which was already very high. Since then it has gone up a few times and is now at 3.3%. That's REALLY high for a savings account, higher than most CD's even. There are no fees and no required minimum balances. Pretty much, my money has just been sitting there and growing. Also, they make it really easy to transfer money back and forth to and from a checking account at another bank.
When I opened the account, I got a $25 opening credit because a friend referred me. Free money! Do you want your own Orange Savings Account? If so, let me know and I will refer you. You will get $25, I get $10. Let's roll in the orange!
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.: posted by Vera
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Egyptology
In May 2000 my then-boyfriend was visiting me from Virginia. I was living in Southern California, about to finish college and already working part-time for the company that was going to hire me full-time after graduation. Everything was good - but only on the surface.
Underneath the surface things weren't so good. At work I stared at Excel spreadsheets and crunched numbers all day. I also had to work overtime a lot.
When my boyfriend came to visit, he bought the Egyptology album by World Party. We were listening to it one day when he was driving me to work.
From Beautiful Dream:
Do what you want but you gonna have to do it now!
Say what you want but you gonna have to say it loud!
Running around with the world on your shoulder.
You look around and you're just getting older.
Once you had a beautiful dream.
From She's The One:
When you get to where you want to go
And you know the things you want to know
You're smiling.
When you said what you want to say
And you know the way you want to play it
You'll be so high you'll be flying.
Suddenly I burst into tears right there in the car. I was surprised by this myself because my boyfriend and I had a long-distance relationship, and during the scarce times that we spent together I was usually very happy. But something was amiss. Hearing these lyrics about a "beautiful dream" and getting to "where you want to go" made me realize that I wasn't getting to where I wanted to go. I didn't really know where it was I wanted to go or what my beautiful dream was, but I knew that this wasn't it. I realized later that that job was killing my soul and making me feel dead inside. And a few months later, after I had moved to Virginia, I became a computer geek and it was a beautiful dream.
But right now being a computer geek is killing my soul. I feel like I'm in a very similar position as I was five years ago, except that this time I know where I want to go and I know my beautiful dream. That is what's keeping me from being depressed and from crying in the car, not knowing why.
But the question is: Why do I keep getting myself into situations where my soul is being killed? I want to turn that off.
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.: posted by Vera
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People on the bus
I have been riding the bus. A year ago I would not have been caught dead riding public transportation but now I suddenly enjoy it. I like that I don't have to pay attention to the road. I like that I can look out the window at people, buildings and streets. I like that by riding the bus I leave certain things up to fate - you never know when exactly the bus is going to come or if it's going to come at all. I like being flexible like that.
Not only have I been riding the bus but I have been talking to people on the bus or at bus stops. It's not usually me who starts the conversation but I certainly don't stop it either. I just go with the flow and let these conversations happen. You never know what you might learn. I suppose it all started with the old man in March. Since then I have had conversations with several other people.
There was the woman from El Salvador who gave me her transfer ticket, and I got a free ride thanks to her. We ended up getting off at the same stop and I told her that it worked and thanked her. She then asked me if I knew where the Powell Street BART station was. I told her yes and that I was walking that way too. So I ended up walking her the five blocks or so to the BART station.
There was the woman who was an instructional designer with whom I had a conversation about Flash and other kinds of things I used to be heavily invested in. The bus never came so we ended up walking to a different stop together.
There was the woman who had just gotten out of jail. She had spent all day in jail because the police had raided her house looking for a suspected drug dealer. The woman told me that she thinks that the police were looking for a friend of the people that lived in the apartment before she moved in, but that she didn't know any supected drug dealers, and that it was just her, her friend and her friends' kids at the apartment, and that she was going to file a complaint against the cops that came over. I believed that she was innocent.
There was the guy I met after going to the movies by myself. He was on his way to some restaurant by himself. He had just moved to San Francisco from Florida. I was a little bit wary of his intentions for talking to me. I got especially nervous when at the last stop, he and I were the only people left on the bus. I had purposely not gotten off at my stop because I was afraid that he was going to follow me. But that was stupid of me. He had absolutely no agenda and was just being friendly. At the last stop he said good-bye and got off the bus without looking back. I ended up walking a much longer way home because I had purposely missed my stop. That's what I get for harboring a stupid fear and mistrust.
There was the DJ from Manhattan who was going to play at two different clubs that night. Something salsa-related. He told me that the people in San Francisco weren't very friendly and that I was the only person that had been friendly to him so far.
Friendly. I guess that's one way of characterizing a person who doesn't mind talking to strangers on the bus. Open is another one. I like riding the bus, and I like being friendly and open.
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.: posted by Vera
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New camera
Corner
Originally uploaded by Verabug.
I got my new camera! It's a Casio Exilim EXZ55. I have started taking some pictures around the house.
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.: posted by Vera
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Parental amazement
I had the most amazing conversation with my dad last week. I have told my friends, the girls in my women's group, the people in my psychic awareness class, and now I'm telling the internet.
My dad and I don't talk that often because my mom is usually the one who answers the phone when I call. So my dad and I don't talk unless I specifically ask for him. The last time I specifically asked for him was at the end of April. That time I told him that I was considering the impossibility of buying a condo in San Francisco. He was very pleased and told me things like "Start saving your money now" and "Be sure to make your employer happy so that you can keep your job and get raises." You know, very conservative pieces of advice.
Last week I specifically asked for him again because I wanted to tell him about my future career plans as an independent intuitive counselor. We had never talked about that part of my life before. So I started out.
Me: Has Mama told you anything about my new career plans?
Him: Yes, vaguely.
Me: What has she told you?
Him: She said something about some kind of magic class you're taking.
Me: Hahahahaha!
Him: Hahahahaha.
Me: I guess that's one way of putting it.
I then launched into a three-minute monologue about how I discovered this deeper part of myself that is very intuitive and that doesn't want to work in an office anymore and that wants to help people and that has helped me overcome my depression and that I believe can help other people find direction and purpose and transformation in life and that there is this invisible world all around us that we can't see or touch but that I have been feeling very strongly and that has unlimited amounts of power and energy.
And for three minutes my dad just said uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh, huh. I so expected him to remind me that I was trying to buy some real estate and that I needed to keep my steady job in order to do that. And I so expected him to try to convince me adamantly to please hold on to my permanent employment.
But he said no such thing. Instead he said things like:
- You know, my sister is a homeopathic. And I don't really believe in homeopathy, but I know that she is helping people. And if you believe in what you're doing and your clients believe in what you're doing, then that's all that counts.
- I'm glad you are listening to your inner voices. I was raised to listen to other people's expectations and it took me a long time to realize that that can make you sick.
- The only path there is is your own, so make sure you always stay on it.
- So you're going to work for yourself, huh? That's wonderful. And you're going to help other people? Even better!
- So does this mean you're finally going to write a book? I have always known you would write a book one day. When can I read it? Just let me know when it's ready for me to read, okay?
I could not believe this was my dad I was talking to! He was so unbelievably supportive and encouraging. And it's not that he hasn't been supportive in the past, it's just that my plans are obviously pretty crazy and ambitious and risky and supernatural and esoteric, and he is pretty rational and conservative, so I expected him to at least caution me or ask me if I had thought things through all the way. But no. His response was pretty much a resounding GO FOR IT. I'm so happy. With his positive thoughts fueling me, all of this is going to be so much easier. And I can't help but think that I have created this reality. My dad's positive attitude is only a mirror of my own.
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.: posted by Vera
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Classes in the works
The girl that is teaching the psychic awareness classes I have been taking is offering another series this fall. And she has recently asked me to be her assistant and help teach, co-create and co-facilitate the class. I am so honored and excited. I think it's inevitable that I'll eventually be teaching my own classes. But I am not very fond of public speaking right now. I think this will be a great opportunity for me to get over that.
Regardless of my reluctance to public speaking I am already scheming about my own workshop. It will be called Moon Cycle Manifestation and I am planning it for the new moons and full moons of October and November. The workshop will be about manifesting one's desires and how to use the moon cycles in combination with one's own intuition in order to extract the right things from the universe. This is a class that I would LOVE to take, which is why I am going to teach it!
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.: posted by Vera
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