Critter Companions

When I was growing up, we had all sorts of critter companions, or furry family, in our home. We had gerbils, dogs, cats, and finches, not always at the same time. I did spend some time without animals in my home and they were sorely missed.

I'd Like to Lose this Baggage at the Airport

When I was deep in the trenches of working on my PTSD* I really felt I was dragging around a ton of extra baggage everywhere I went. I've always had a sense of humor that matched my pragmatism, so I'd occasionally quip about it. Now when I work with people who have PTSD I'll walk them through a visualization exercise of losing their baggage at the airport. It's fun, it's funny. It's vivid. It helps.

Dealing with Loss

It's a shame -- this is such an important show. I can't really justify the ~$480 it would take to upgrade to BlogTalkRadio's (BTR) pro level. So they only allow 3 shows a month on their free account level. I've been holding Let's Heal the World Together calls for almost a year now (August 17th 2009), but since it's not a money-making venture, and there's not a huge following yet, and since this is such a new venue for me, I'm just not ready to fund that type of commitment yet.

Differently-Abled

On the show this week I want to address "Equal Ability" from the point of view of those of us who are differently-abled from others. I am a "disability" advocate. I don't even like the word "disability".

Independence vs. Interdependence

Independence is great! It's tempered with the fact that to have the lives we lead we are also interdependent. Some people are entirely self-sufficient, breeding their own sheep, creating thread and yarn, weaving cloth, making clothes, planting crops, etc. Most of us, especially those of us Internet enabled, do not lead entirely self-sufficient lives. We need others for reasons of money, resources, companionship, and more.

Responsibility

Dr. Viktor Frankl, father of Logotherapy (a specific school of psychology), said the Statue of Liberty should be balanced by the Statue of Responsibility.

I create, therefore I am

Inspiration informs creativity. Creativity informs creation.

I have been a creative person all my life, a dabbler in many arts, fine or otherwise. I've sculpted in clay, I've created jewelry with saws and sandpaper, I've built wood projects, I currently crochet, I write.

Our "Father"

Tomorrow is Father's Day, and I'm calling the day after our Other Fathers' Day. There's so many ways to honor our collective and individual "other Fathers".

Food and Spirit

The power of the sun feeds the plant helpers, the algae, moss and fern, that in turn feeds the fish and animals, birds and all of these, every creature and creation on earth that can be consumed whether for fuel, supplies, or for food, is at times consumed by humans.

The holistic concept

When I was studying herbalism, 20 years ago, my teachers Robin Rose Bennett and Susun S. Weed would point out the roots of the word "holistic" as being "whole" and "holy".

Remembering

Memorial Day is a time of remembering, so I thought I would write about memory itself.

I have a particular psychological disorder that affects perception and memory. On the spectrum of this disorder, I am for all intents and purposes minimally impacted, but there are ways that my peculiar way of storing memories impacts my daily existence.

Inner Voice or Outer Voice

In meditation we get quiet with ourselves.

When we are quiet, we can access messages that are not usually accessible. Some may call it our "conscience" or our "intuition", some may simply think it's another layer of our own thoughts.

It's all in the Mind

In the normal modern consciousness, we are often caught up in the next moment, the next day, the next week. We’re always planning and preparing, thinking through the future, criticizing our past, reminiscing, acting in habit while our mind wanders elsewhere. A mindfulness meditation is the opposite and cure for the act of living outside the moment. A mindfulness meditation involves being completely in the current moment, acting with deliberation and clear consciousness, bringing the mind back time and again to the present and what is actually going on. This is a tool we should all have in our consciousness arsenal. There are times to plan, and times to focus on the present moment. It is possible to find a place in every moment where you are completely aware of your surroundings and your place within them, and of nothing else. We should each take some daily action without being focused on what we’re about to do, or going over what we’ve already done. The act of being fully present to what you’re doing helps relax us and calm the mind. This quiet time for our mind can bring us to profound peace with the world and with whatever is going on right now in our lives. Please join us this Monday evening at 5pm EST for Let’s Heal the World Together and we’ll discuss our experiences with mindfulness meditations.

Taking care of our Mother

On Mother's Day we celebrate our individual mothers, the beautiful wonderful women who perhaps brought us or our parents or grandparents into theworld, who scrubbed the crayons off our childhood bedroom walls, who soaked the gum out of our hair and who cried as we walked down the aisle -- whether for kindergarten graduation, college graduation, as the bride or bride's maid, or carrying the casket of a friend who went off to war and didn't come home. Perhaps we were celebrating the beautiful woman who brought our child into the world or nurtures our children. With the weight of life's roller coaster on each of our shoulders, there's one Mother to us all who bears the weight of every one of us, both in resource and in spirit. Our Mother Earth. I know we have "Earth Day" but that's a planetary garbage awareness day, a day for reusable shopping bags and ecopreneur shows, and quickly being commoditized. We need a day to honor our spiritual global Mother, and by extension the connection we share with each other, regardless of our species. And it would be nice if that day didn't require reusable bags and trade shows. Do something simple to give back to Our Mother. A simple healing or prayer, as her blood is spilling into the Gulf of Mexico, sending her love, giving her a giant hug, welcoming and loving all her creatures, donating to the World Wildlife Fund, thinking peaceful thoughts, walking barefoot, or whatever you can think of and join us on Let's Heal the World Together on Monday evening at 5pm EST to talk about our connection through Mother Earth.

Heads of State

I try to read the Hudson Valley Business Journal, but for the last couple years I’ve mostly been breezing past titles of doom & gloom. The March 3rd front page: “County execs want to change the way the state does business” however the article turns out a quick skim shows leaders in my state (New York) playing games with people’s money and security. Inside we have stories about Restaurant Week (which is promising for tourism in the county) and for the shutting down of state parks, which is REALLY BAD for local tourism and taxpayer morale. A true sign of state-wide panic in a state that is absolutely gorgeous and truly worth seeing and desperately needs tourist’s money. I could teach government something about panic vs. peace vs. passion. Panic is putting us where we are now, panic is keeping us there, and since panic is contagious it’s no wonder that the panic of our leadership is filtering down to the personal household and individual level. Stop making decisions out of panic. If government is panicked about money, of course individuals are going to panic about money. Then the economy tanks -- how many times did the HVBJ cite falling tax and sales tax revenues? I saw several and I didn’t finish reading any of the articles I started reading except the upbeat one about Restaurant Week. Lessons from running great businesses come into play here. Let’s just take the idea of what makes a great leader -- whether it’s business or government. Leaders can be afraid inside, but a great leader leads with passion, not with panic. Democrat or republican, I am not saying who should have the Chief Executive position in our federal government. Changing the head of our nation won’t get us anywhere if the leader can’t inspire those under him (and a lot of the decision about who is under the president is out of his hands and instead it’s in our hands as voters!). The lay of the land in the United States sets up a very odd dynamic. Each state is, in true Constitutional terms, a sovereign entity. These states are governed under a central body of rules that provide ties between the states and lowers the barriers to inter-state commerce & travel, similar to what the European Union is now attempting to do. So on a state-wide level, this calm passionate and inspiring leadership must be seen in our governors and legislators. I’m afraid these qualities aren't why we vote people into office. We vote people in based on their campaign promises, so-called experience and their track records. It’s made a circus out of our political scene. I’d rather have someone I didn’t agree with 100% who isn’t a tyrant, had a calm & cool head on their shoulders and a vision to live into of what I can at least generally agree is a better future than someone who knows which corporate or lobbying interests to brownnose, how to hide his fooling around from the media and his wife and plays a great political game flipping their opinions at a moment’s notice and no idea or goal for what the future might be like other than increasing his own salary whether or not at the expense of others. A terrific business has a vision, a mission and a clear idea of whom they serve. Our country has none of that to my knowledge at this time. With so much divisiveness about who we are, what to do and where we’re heading, it’s no wonder our politics are corrupted and sick. Who are these pitiful individuals in our government trying to represent? They’re a reflection of us. The divisiveness and selfishness runs right down to you, me and our neighbors. The Constitution had some very clear missions, clear ideas of whom to serve, and we’ve padded it with so much political nonsense that it’s lost almost all of its meaning. The keys are in the preamble. To paraphrase: Who are we? We are the people of the United States. What is our mission? Providing justice and ensuring domestic peace while providing for the common defense and promoting general welfare and liberty for ourselves and our every generation of our children. Wow. Compare this with what’s going on now? We treat our own citizens as enemies. As individuals, we treat our neighbors as enemies. We take care of ourselves today and to hell with our children’s children. Instead of defending our own nation, we’re being presumptuous and babysitting the entire world with or without the blessings of the United Nations (and often without the blessings of the voting population either). We’ve forgotten the meaning of Liberty as a country, and happily enforce our ideas of what is right on others without giving them the freedom to define their own idea of liberty. I think we should have liberty to do as we please until the point at which it is infringing on the idea of domestic tranquility. So yeah, speed limits are a pretty good thing, but gays should be able to get married. In any case, the passion with which our forefathers crafted this brilliant document has been lost in a sea of selfishness and panic. If we get back to passion, compassion, love, neighborliness, and get our collective act together it would help a lot. Top-down change needed: Passion and calm directed reassurance. Bottom-up change needed: Security and peace. If the leaders can get passionate about providing for individual’s safety and security, calm and peace will follow, spending will increase, businesses will hire, taxes will increase. The more you panic and shut down spending the worse this situation will get. That’s not saying to spend what you don’t have but to choose what not to fund with a PLAN for a future that’s sustainable and with compassion for the people you serve. Cutting medicaid and closing parks won’t do it. WHY is medicaid costing so much? WHY are the parks costing so much? I want to see one leader stand up and say “Money is tight in our budget. I have some money socked away, so I’m voluntarily reducing my salary because I can’t stand asking everyone else to tighten their belts unless I’m willing to do it too.” Fear. Is. Contagious. Namasté, Rev. Criss

Awakenings

It’s always around this time of year that I really can feel the world awakening around me. Even though there’s still snow on the ground, there’s buds on the trees, the birds are back, and the world is ready to bring forth fruit again. Many people also start to wake up -- in the spiritual sense -- around this time. Like, “Helloooooo! Life here....what’cha been doing lately?” Aerosoles sent me a “Spring Awakening” discount code. I’m making plans for more events, even ones out of my house! I’m going to have not one, but 3(!) new (shared) offices to have client meetings and hold workshops and group coaching in. And I’m starting a new networking group for the holistic community. It’s Spring Cleaning time -- I haven’t really touched the house, though. I’ve been cleaning up my business. All sorts of new behind-the-scenes technology fiddling going on, planting seeds for a year of growing and harvesting the fruits of my labor. And the people I’ve been working with for years are bearing fruit -- like fine fruit trees take years to come to harvest, these ladies have been digging deep deep roots, but WOW the changes, the new excitement of spring, the plans coming to fruition, the ability to reach out and give such enormous value to others that it is a pleasure to exchange money for it. Many of us are hitting 5 years in business, the very start of “adulthood” for most of our little babies. The real trick is not to pour every ounce of your energy into it, but to choose wisely how to give to your projects without losing focus on yourself. A certain amount of moderation is in order, as is knowing what energy to put into your projects. That’s what I’ve been teaching in my teleseminars. Namasté, Rev. Criss

Udon with Spicy Ginger Sauce

Ok, this is for my SCA friends who helped us cook for that Medieval event I mentioned. They might remember this one....

3 tbsp oil
3 tbsp rice vinegar
1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce (low sodium)
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 tsp ginger (fresh, peeled & minced)
2 cloves garlic (fresh, minced)
1 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cucumber (peeled, seeded & chopped)
1/4 c parsley (fresh, chopped)

Whisk all ingredients to blend in a large bowl. Refrigerate. Serve cold with chilled Japanese noodles, such as Udon (cook as directed). Original recipe called for 1 carrot shredded, omitted for Medieval event.

Creamed Cheese Spinach

Another recipe requested by my ex-roommate....


LOADS of baby spinach, without stems. The more the merrier, it really reduces when cooked. (20 oz of spinach approximates 2 cups of packed spinach and when it reduces you'll be disappointed)

Steam & strain spinach, then chop and squeeze out liquid.

5 tbs butter, softened
1/4 c flour
1/4 tsp salt (optional)
1 c half & half
4 oz cream cheese
2 tbs minced onion (or fresh)
1 tbs minced garlic (or fresh)
1/4 c parmesan

In a medium saucepan:
-melt 3tbs butter over low heat
-stir in flour & salt until creamed (smooth)
-slowly add half & half, then cream cheese & increase heat to medium
-whisk together until thick & smooth, set aside
-sauté onion & garlic in remaining butter until transparent
-add spinach to pan on low heat, stir
-add cheese sauce and parmesan cheese, stir until blended.

Balsamic Roasted Vegetables

By popular demand by my recently removed roommate: A Russian roasted vegetable recipe adapted for Medieval ingredients. For a New World version substitute potatoes for turnips, carrots for parsnips. This is one of the recipes served a zillion years ago at a Medieval event thrown by a proposed Brooklyn, NY canton in the SCA.


3 medium turnips (or one rutabaga) peeled and cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
1 medium red onion cut into wedges
6 small parsnips (or carrots) peeled and sliced into 1 1/2 inch pieces (or 2 cups peeled winter squash, 1-inch pieces)
2 fennel bulbs cut into wedges (or 6 celery stalks but much better with fennel!)
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
3 tbs olive oil
1 tsp fennel seed, crushed (or dried rosemary crushed)
fresh rosemary (garnish, optional)

Lightly grease a 15 1/2 x 10 1/2 inch, 2 inch deep roasting pan. In the pan combine turnips, parsnips, fennel and onion. In a mixing bowl stir together balsamic vinegar, olive oil, sugar, crushed fennel seed, salt & pepper. Drizzle over vegetables.

Bake uncovered in 450-degree oven for 45-50 minutes or til turnips and onions are tender, stirring twice (or more) during baking. To serve transfer to a serving bowl... if desired garnish with fresh rosemary.

Importance of Language

I've changed my website branding, the subtitle of my upcoming book (now Healer in the Hotseat: Rekindling energy for your burning desires), my seminar & workshop titles to talk about "energy management" rather than "burnout". I realized that people aren't able to "get it" when I'm talking about "burnout". Whether out of self-defense, denial, or misunderstanding the language, they don't relate to the term burnout. The people who needed the workshop haven't changed. Their problems haven't changed. In fact, my workshops haven't changed. I'm just changing the package the workshop is wrapped in so that people have a better chance of "getting it". It should have been obvious to me: I had no idea that I was on the road to burnout until I was reading the literature. That's not what I would have called it. I have people coming to my workshop on Friday (now called 9 Keys to Energy Management) because they have been listening to me and realize they're on that road. It's like I'm the pied piper or something. But just like the pied piper, there's a danger of falling off the cliff when calling it "burnout" too. It sounds too absolute, too final, too pessimistic, although I transform not only the symptoms of burnout but the term burnout itself into a positive in my workshops. Before my workshop in that space where people acknowledge that they need my classes, I don't want them to depress themselves or feel fear of what they're going through. Exhaustion and overwhelm are enough, I'm not trying to cause people to prematurely hit rock bottom. Changing the title means I don't have to work against days or weeks of suffering with the notion that one is at the end of their proverbial rope. My SURRENDER™ system isn't just about burnout; it's about managing your energy. Every day we transact energy with the universe. Those of us in most balance may be sourcing some of our energy outside ourselves. Others are trying to get water from sand in a desert and are too depleted to go on much longer. So on this note, for a limited time you can sign up on my mailing list and get "Transforming Burnout into a Burning Desire" -- the recording of a conference call on October 6th that includes some exercises from my book. Last night I had a teleseminar titled "Introduction to Energy Management" which is a 1 hour version without exercises. Once it's ready I'll be swapping the Introduction to Energy Management audio in the place of the burnout audio.