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Preserving and canning your own food, Leems http://youtu.be/hANtxayH13s

 

Learning how to preserve food for future consumption is a nearly lost skill that we should get back to in this changing age. My dehydrator is an invaluable tool for this, and yes, it is by Mr coffee. You can dehydrate many types of meat into jerky, such as venison, lamb, buffalo, turkey, pheasant, pork, gator, frog, possum, raccoon, turtle, snake, elk, fish, and even squid make good jerky with the right seasonings. I have heard of dried octopus and conch before as well.

Dried, shredded beef is a great addition to trail soups and entrees as well as Asian cuisine or additive to ramen noodles. Shrimp and crab dries as well for longevity.

Leems- These Moroccan treats, also called 'preserved lemons' or 'pickled lemons' are a tart, salty jewel of exotic food and a way to store and preserve citrus for a long period. If you've ever tasted salt and lime, you know it's a thing made in heaven. Leems are added to soups and meats, tagine dishes and several Moroccan staples.

Sterilize your jars, cross-hatch the lemons and pack with salt, insert into the jar. Then add coriander, whole cloves, cinnamon stick, bay leaf and begin packing down lemon after lemon until they are covered in their own juice. Squeeze one more lemon juice till it covers the lemons completely and comes up to the jar's mouth, add a little more kosher salt and let cool tightly sealed. Wait for 4 weeks and add more lemons as needed as they shrink a bit, use washed hands or tools to mash at this point. periodic pressing is suggested. lasts up to 5-6 years, a little goes a long way. Rind and all is edible.

Easy guides to canning your own foods

and more Americans are returning in record numbers to the days of canning to preserve food. Canning jars and supplies have been disappearing from store shelves and families across the country are rediscovering the satisfaction of preserving their own healthy foods.

However, just as many people are standing on the sidelines, wanting to jump in but confused about where to start. Sharon over at Simply Canning has an easy-to-navigate website with dozens of helpful articles related to canning. She also has an inexpensive e-book you can download in seconds to begin your own venture into the world of canning. Here are some articles you may want to check out:

Canning equipment
Canning chicken or poultry
Canning homemade soups

Kendra, over at New Life on a Homestead, is also into canning and gave her permission for me to post this video explaining the use of a pressure canner.

 

How to Use a Pressure Canner http://youtu.be/A-fFAlldDKM

 

You can also find directions from Kendra for canning summer squash and zucchini and chicken broth.

Finally, my friend Lori in Oregon recently decided to begin blogging about her own canning adventures. You can check out her colorful blog, Lori’s Latest – and other tales from the homestead. I can’t wait to try her recipe for Indian Relish.

One item you will definitely want to have on hand is the book known as the canning Bible, Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving. It will almost certainly be in your library but you’ll soon be wanting a copy of your own. Barbara, a family friend who has been canning for decades, still pulls out her worn copy from twenty years ago.

Look for canning jars and other equipment at garage and estate sales, second-hand stores, eBay, Craigslist, Backpage, and even placing requests for free supplies at Freecycle. With the weather definitely hitting autumn and, in some places, winter temperatures, a cozy, warm kitchen is just the place to be spending some time…over a water bath filled with jars of tomato preserves!

© 2011, thesurvivalmom. All rights reserved.

http://thesurvivalmom.com/2011/10/26/easy-guides-to-canning-your-own-foods/

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The Story of Prince Rama as a Traditional Animation Film

Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama (ラーマヤーナ ラーマ王子伝説 Rāmayāna: Rāma-Ōji Densetsu?) is a 1992 Indo-Japanese traditional animation feature film directed by Yugo Sako and Ram Mohan,[1] produced by Sako and Krishna Shah[2] and based on the Indian epic the Ramayana. An English-dubbed version with Hindi songs and narration by James Earl Jones has been screened and released on home video under various names including Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama and Warrior Prince.

  The Legend of Prince Rama pt1 (eng)
"">http://youtu.be/-Zxf6jJxi9w

 

  The Legend of Prince Rama pt2 (eng)
http://youtu.be/i4u5jJC6OVQ

 

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disturbing testimony from a former satanist part 2 of 2

disturbing testimony from a former satanist part 1 of 2
http://youtu.be/6bOfsapYNZU


 

 
disturbing testimony from a former satanist part 2 of 2
http://youtu.be/jRnYglApAKM

 

2012: A Psychic's Prediction
http://youtu.be/1x8osRy6W8Q

 

"in the last days..I will pour out my spirit upon ALL flesh..your sons and daughters will prophecy, old men will see visions, and young men will dream dreams"..If Jesus is not Lord of your life, you can't be ready..and people who dabble in psychic phenomenon, or any other demonic activity obviously don't know Jesus.. no matter how much we want to be "self sustaining"..or fantasize about a so-called "evolution of consciousness", the fact still remains, Without Christ, we are doomed....eternally

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16 youths from a slum in India

 

16 youth from a slum in India, 1 renowned dance academy, and 1 inspiring NGO from the Gandhi Ashram come together to bring a message of "Ekatva" - "Oneness."

 

At a time when the world is more accustomed to messages of war than peace, this is, perhaps, the best antidote to our troubled times. It is a story that can open minds and hearts. These youth are touring India, the US, and the UK as ambassadors of Oneness.

 

A film by Kunal Gopujkar. More at Mam Movies.

 

Video from KarmaTube

http://www.karmatube.org/videos.php?id=3085

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'Iceman Oetzi' lived for a while after arrow wound

 

Oetzi, the 5,300-year-old "Iceman" mummy of the Alps, lived for some time after being shot in the back by an arrow, scientists said on Tuesday after using forensic technology to analyse his preserved blood.

Contrary to a leading theory, Oetzi did not expire immediately from his wounds, they reported in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface, published by Britain's academy of sciences.

 

 

The mummy of an iceman named Oetzi, discovered on 1991 in the Italian Schnal Valley glacier, displayed at the Archeological Museum of Bolzano in 2011. Oetzi, the 5,300-year-old "Iceman" mummy of the Alps, lived for some time after being shot in the back by an arrow, scientists said on Tuesday after using forensic technology to analyse his preserved blood

 

Scientists led by Albert Zink of the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, southern Germany used nano-scale methods to probe the oldest blood known to modern science, preserved by thousands of years of alpine chill.

 

Using a so-called atomic force microscope able to resolve images just a few nanometers (billionths of a metre) across, they identified corpuscles with the classic doughtnut shape of healthy blood cells.

 

"To be absolutely sure that we were not dealing with pollen, bacteria or even a negative imprint of a blood cell, but indeed with actual blood cells, we used a second analytical method," Zink said.

 

They deployed Raman spectroscopy, in which refracted light from a laser beam gives chemical clues about a sample.

This showed the presence of haemoglobin and fibrin, which are key components in blood clotting, at the arrow wound on Oetzi's back.

 

"Because fibrin is present in fresh wounds and then degrades, the theory that Oetzi died straight after he had been injured by the arrow, as had once been mooted, and not some days after, can no longer be upheld," Zink said.

 

Oetzi's remains were discovered by two German hikers in September 1991 in the Oetztal Alps in South Tyrol, northern Italy, 3,210 metres (10,500 feet) above sea level.

 

Scientists have used high-tech, non-invasive diagnostics and genomic sequencing to penetrate his mysterious past.

 

These efforts have determined Oetzi died around the age of 45, was about 1.60 metres (five foot, three inches) tall and weighed 50 kilos (110 pounds).

 

He suffered a violent death, with an arrow severing a major blood vessel between the rib cage and the left scapula, as well as a laceration on the hand.

 

According to DNA analysis presented in February, Oetzi had brown eyes and hair and was allergic to milk products.

 

This supports the theory that despite the increasing spread of agriculture and dairying at the time, lactose intolerance was still common.

 

According to a theory aired in 2010 by an Italian archaeologist, based on seasonal pollen found in his stomach contents and at the burial site, Oetzi did not die at the spot where his remains were found. Instead, he was only ceremonially interred there.

 

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"I recently ran into an inspiring story of a man who goes by Suelo. One day, he left all his money in a phone booth and walked away to live like a monk. On his website, he wrote, "I've been living without a cent to my name since the autumn of 2000. I don't use or accept money or conscious barter, and I don't take food stamps or other government dole.

Why? I simply got tired of acknowledging as real this most common world-wide belief called money! I simply got tired of being unreal." -- Rev. Heng Sure

http://www.helpothers.org/store.php?pg=share_story

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Everything Is a Present

Everything Is a Present

At age 108, Holocaust survivor Alice Herz Sommer still practices piano for 3 hours every day. At age 104, she had a book written about her life: "A Garden Of Eden In Hell." At age 83, she had cancer. Alice survived the concentration camps through her music, her optimism and her gratitude for the small things that came her way - a smile, a kind word, the sun. When asked about the secret of her longevity, Alice says: "I look where it is good."

See Video: http://www.karmatube.org/videos.php?id=3008

 

Be The Change

Learn more about the incredible life of Alice Herz Sommer, the oldest living Holocaust survivor

 

Alice Herz-Sommer

For the pacifist who immolated herself, see Alice Herz.

Alice Herz-Sommer, also known as Alice Sommer-Hertz and Alice Sommer, (born 26 November 1903) is a Czech pianist, music teacher and survivor of the Theresienstadt concentration camp. Herz-Sommer has lived in North London, United Kingdom since 1986, and is the world’s oldest known Holocaust survivor.

 

Background

Herz-Sommer was born in Prague, Austria-Hungary, along with her twin sister Mariana, to Friedrich and Sofie Herz; he was a merchant and her mother was highly educated and moved in circles of well-known writers. Herz-Sommer's older sister Irma taught her how to play piano, which she studied diligently. She also studied under Vaclav Stepan, and at the Prague German Conservatory of Music. She had begun giving concerts and making a name for herself before the Germans took over her city.

She married businessman and amateur musician Leopold Sommer in 1931 and they had a son, Raphael ("Rafi") (1937-2001).[2] After the invasion of Czechoslovakia, most of her family and friends emigrated to Palestine via Romania, including Max Brod and brother-in-law Felix Weltsch, but Herz-Sommer stayed in Prague to care for her ill mother, who was one of the first to be sent to Theresienstadt concentration camp.

In July 1943, Herz-Sommer, her husband Leopold, and their six-year-old son were sent to Theresienstadt concentration camp. Herz-Sommer played at over 100 concerts in the camp along with other musicians. Leopold was later sent to Auschwitz and though he survived the camp, died at Dachau in 1944. After the Soviet liberation of Theresienstadt in 1945, Herz-Sommer and Rafi returned to Prague and in March 1949 emigrated to Israel to be reunited with her family. She lived in Israel and worked as a music teacher in Jerusalem until emigrating to London, United Kingdom with her son, an accomplished cellist, in 1986.

Herz-Sommer was the subject of a bestselling book A Garden of Eden in Hell recalling the events of the concentration camps. In 2010, a television programme was aired on BBC4 to recognise her life story. Herz-Sommer attributes her longevity to her optimism. "A Century of Wisdom: Lessons from the Life of Alice Herz-Sommer, the World's Oldest Living Holocaust Survivor" by Caroline Stoessinger, was published March 2012. The book has a foreword by Vaclav Havel, Czech's first free president and a friend of both the author and Herz-Sommer.

 

I don't think of all the misery but of the beauty that still remains.

- Anne Frank –

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Stunning Nasa video shows how the Moon evolved from a flaming ball of fire

The evolution of the Moon from a ball of fire 4.5 billion years ago into the satellite we see at night has been turned into a video by Nasa.

The video was created at its Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland and shows in 2.41min the changes from its early molten beginnings to the rugged silver-grey piece of rock that Neil Armstrong first set foot on in 1969.

 

 


http://youtu.be/u3EttrlaGgk

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The government has just announced a plan to spy on us all, to be pushed through “as soon as Parliamentary time allows”.

[1] They want to see details of who we call, text and email, and which websites we visit - without any kind of warrant or reason.

They want to force phone and internet companies to install special devices to provide all this data on each and every one of us.

[2] Experts are lining up to condemn this idea as intrusive, expensive and ineffective.

[3] But we know that when the Labour government announced similar plans a few years ago, a huge outcry was needed to make them to back down.

[4] So let's build a massive petition right away, to show David Cameron that British citizens simply won’t put up with the government spying on their every move.

Please click here to add your name now:
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/stop-the-snooping-plan

 

A final version of the plan is due to be announced in just one month's time.

[5] We need to move fast if we're to get this scrapped before then. A big petition right now could persuade David Cameron to rethink before he commits too deeply. His officials will report the rising number of signatures to him. And they will warn him that he can expect voters to challenge him every step of the way.

MPs from different political parties are already expressing unease.

 

[6] One prominent Conservative MP, former shadow Home Secretary David Davis, has been in touch with the 38 Degrees office to say: "These plans would give the state huge new powers to snoop on ordinary people. They'd be expensive, unnecessary, and a huge invasion of everybody's privacy. If they are to be stopped, public pressure will be critical – including from 38 Degrees members".

 

Add your name to the petition today:
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/stop-the-snooping-plan

 

David Cameron claims this will make us safer. But this is about spying on all of us, not serious criminals. It's already perfectly possible for the government to monitor people suspected of serious crimes, with proper permission and oversight.

 

[7] And serious criminals will inevitably find ways to hide their online identities.

Most importantly, this isn’t the kind of Britain we want to live in. We shouldn’t respond to criminals by abandoning our principles and scrapping basic civil liberties. We shouldn’t treat every citizen like a potential criminal who needs to be monitored. Help stand up for our right to privacy when we browse the internet or phone our friends - please sign the petition and spread the word now:

https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/stop-the-snooping-plan

 

Thanks for using your voice,

Marie, Cian, David, Hannah, Becky, James and the 38 Degrees

PS: This plan would be like demanding the Royal Mail keep a copy of every single letter it handles. It's exactly the kind of thing this government announced with a fanfare that they wouldn't do. If we let them get away with this, what comes next? ID cards? Long-term detention without trial? Sign the petition to put a stop to the government’s snooping plans now:

https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/stop-the-snooping-plan

 

PPS: 38 Degrees members have been voting on whether to continue our campaign to protect the NHS. 96% voted yes to continuing to campaign! You can read an update on what will happen next, here:
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/nhs-yes-vote-blog

 

 

NOTES

[1] Telegraph: Internet activity 'to be monitored' under new laws http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/9179087/Internet-activity-to-be-monitored-under-new-laws.html

 

[2] Telegraph: New powers to record every phone call and email makes surveillance '60m times worse' http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/9180191/New-powers-to-record-every-phone-call-and-email-makes-surveillance-60m-times-worse.html

 

[3] Independent: Backlash over plans to monitor all internet use http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/backlash-over-plans-to-monitor-all-internet-use-7609010.html and Times: Internet law will be a ‘honeypot’ for snoopers

 

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/politics/article3372450.ece

 

[4] BBC: Warning over need for safeguards in email and web monitoring plan http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-17580906

 

[5] The plans are currently expected to be confirmed in the Queen's Speech on 9 May. The Queen's Speech is the formal occasion where the government outlines its plans for the coming session of parliament.

 

[6] Guardian: Email surveillance plans face Lib Dem rebellion http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/apr/02/email-surveillance-lib-dem-rebellion

 

[7] Telegraph: Web survelliance: Q&A http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/9180277/Web-surveillance-QandA.html

 

CLICK HERE TO SIGN PETITION
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/page/s/stop-government-snooping#petition

 

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How to wash a toilet

How to wash a toilet

 

This was simply too much of a time saver not to share it with you.

 

1. Put both lids of the toilet up and add 1/8 cup of pet shampoo to the water in the bowl.

2. Pick up the cat and soothe him while you carry him towards the bathroom.

3. In one smooth movement, put the cat in the toilet and close the lid. You may need to stand on the lid.

4. The cat will self agitate and make ample suds.. Never mind the noises that come from the toilet, the cat is actually enjoying this.

5. Flush the toilet three or four times This provides a 'power-wash' and rinse'.

6. Have someone open the front door of your home. Be sure that there are no people between the bathroom and the front door.

7. Stand behind the toilet as far as you can, and quickly lift the lid.

8. The cat will rocket out of the toilet, streak through the bathroom, and run outside where he will dry himself off.

 

9. Both the commode and the cat will be sparkling clean.

 

Yours Sincerely,

The Dog

 

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From Steve Beckow's newsletter
Sent From Misha

 

It’s Not a Fairytale: Seattle to Build Nation’s First Food Forest

 

Thanks to Casey and Andrea, It’s Not a Fairytale: Seattle to Build Nation’s First Food Forest

Forget meadows. The city’s new park will be filled with edible plants,
and everything from pears to herbs will be free for the taking.

 

By Clare Leschin-Hoar February 21, 2012

 

http://www.takepart.com/article/2012/02/21/its-not-fairytale-seattle-build-nations-first-food-forest

 

 

Seattle’s vision of an urban food oasis is going forward. A seven-acre
plot of land in the city’s Beacon Hill neighborhood will be planted
with hundreds of different kinds of edibles: walnut and chestnut
trees; blueberry and raspberry bushes; fruit trees, including apples
and pears; exotics like pineapple, yuzu citrus, guava, persimmons,
honeyberries, and lingonberries; herbs; and more. All will be
available for public plucking to anyone who wanders into the city’s
first food forest.

“This is totally innovative, and has never been done before in a
public park,” Margarett Harrison, lead landscape architect for the
Beacon Food Forest project, tells TakePart. Harrison is working on
construction and permit drawings now and expects to break ground this
summer.

The concept of a food forest certainly pushes the envelope on urban
agriculture and is grounded in the concept of permaculture, which
means it will be perennial and self-sustaining, like a forest is in
the wild. Not only is this forest Seattle’s first large-scale
permaculture project, but it’s also believed to be the first of its
kind in the nation.

“The concept means we consider the soils, companion plants, insects,
bugs—everything will be mutually beneficial to each other,” says
Harrison.

That the plan came together at all is remarkable on its own. What
started as a group project for a permaculture design course ended up
as a textbook example of community outreach gone right.

“Friends of the Food Forest undertook heroic outreach efforts to
secure neighborhood support. The team mailed over 6,000 postcards in
five different languages, tabled at events and fairs, and posted
fliers,” writes Robert Mellinger for Crosscut.

Neighborhood input was so valued by the organizers, they even used
translators to help Chinese residents have a voice in the planning.

So just who gets to harvest all that low-hanging fruit when the time comes?

“Anyone and everyone,” says Harrison. “There was major discussion
about it. People worried, ‘What if someone comes and takes all the
blueberries?’ That could very well happen, but maybe someone needed
those blueberries. We look at it this way—if we have none at the end
of blueberry season, then it means we’re successful.”
[Like on Facebook]

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May Profile of a Goddess: Boann-Goddess of Water

Boann: Goddess of Water

Translation: She of the White Cow

Religion: Celtic, approximately 12th century

AKA: Boand, Boannan, Buan

AKA in other mythologies: Approximately 46 water goddesses correspond to Boann, ranging from Nyai Loro Kidul (Javanese) to Atanea (Polynesian). Half of them appear in only four traditions-10 Celtic (Abnoba, Adsullata, Ancamna, Boann, Clota, Danu, Nantosuelta, Sequana, Nabia, Tamesis) , five Inuit (Arnakuagsak, Arnapkapfaaluk, Aulanerk, Nerrivik, Sedna), five Greek (Ceto, Harpina, Praxithea, Leucothea, Naiad) and four Aztec (Atlacamani, Atlatonin, Chalchiuhtlicue, Huixtocihuatl). While these goddesses represent different aspects of water such as rivers, oceans, lakes, hot springs, rain, wells, creative and destructive aspects of water, the womb, birthing, and so on, they are all one element. Why do these particular mythologies have so many goddesses associated with water?

 

Symbolism: A white cow. (Cows are sacred to Celts and the color 'white' is associated with illumination.) Hazelnuts, salmon and water all represent wisdom.

 

Mythology and interpretation: Long ago, in the time of the Tuatha de Danaan, there existed a sacred well, named Segais, which was the source of wisdom. The well stood hidden in the shade of nine hazelnut trees, its magical waters inhabited by salmon who ate of the nuts as they fell into the water, providing them with the knowledge of the universe. The keeper of this well was Nechtan, god of water. Because this was a sacred place, only he and his three cupbearers were allowed to approach the well. They were the guardians who kept anyone from entering these sacred grounds and possibly obtaining knowledge no mortal or other god should understand.

 

But curious Boann, the goddess wife of Nechtan, challenged this law by approaching the well to partake of its wisdom. She walked counter-clockwise around the well, causing the waters to rise up and rush after her in response to the violation of this sacred place. The raging waters chased her through the land toward the ocean. As Boann was swept along, she lost an arm, a leg, an eye and ultimately her life to the churning waters that consumed her. At once the water became Boann, Boann became the water, and their merging created the river Boyne. Boann realized her quest for knowledge and she was from that moment on universal wisdom, inspiration to poets.

 

Boann's thirst for knowledge was her downfall because she lost her life, but ultimately it was her (and our) blessing because she received, and thereafter provided, illumination. Her story is reminiscent of the biblical Eve who rebelled against God's word in her quest for knowledge.

 

Disregard for the law exacts a great price; Eve was expelled from the garden, and Boann suffers significant losses as she tumbles in the raging waters. She essentially loses half her body (an arm, a leg and an eye), a symbolic image suggesting that she is half of this world, half of the other. Is there a moment where nature and divine being merge, each giving up half in order to accept the other? This sentiment runs deeply in Celtic belief; that the land, or more precisely, the genius loci (spirit of the place) and its people are one and the same, much as in Australian aboriginal belief; there is no separating the two.

 

The term Tuatha de Danaan (where Boann is), means "land" and also "people." The people of this land were considered a divine race of poets, seers, and warriors incarnated in this world to ready the earth and its inhabitants for an awakening. They were called the "Salmon of Wisdom;" those who had been exposed to the sacred salmon in Segais well and who then beheld the wisdom of the universe. Boann is of this race; and as goddess of water, what other fate would be hers but to completely enter the spiritual realm of the Tuatha de Danaan and reach us through water so that she may inspire us? In doing so, she embodies all the purposes of this sacred people/place. She becomes the vessel where we may swim and absorb all that she has to offer: awakening of the mind, inspiration, illumination, courage, creative power, knowledge, poetry, wisdom.

 

Meditation: Goddess Boann is here to invoke creative inspiration and to give you courage to go beyond what is comfortable in order to gain knowledge. Go to her when you need to access this energy. Remember that Boann does not borrow illumination from some outside source, rather, she brings what you already have within yourself to light. The best atmosphere to meditate on Boann is near a stream or river. Find a peaceful, comfortable spot close to the bank where you may be alone and without distraction. As you sit with eyes closed, inhale deeply and smell the breeze that follows the water's current, allowing Boann's breath to flow into your body and become part of you. Imagine her swimming like a water nymph through your external and internal rivers. See her darting in and out of light and shadow, attaching to the greater aspects of both and showing all to you. Hear her flowing toward you, through you, past you. Boann enters you through all senses and flows in the currents of your body, awakening the creative powers that reside there.

 

If you are unable to access a stream or river, you may supplement your meditation by listening to Boann's Clan (a musical group) which offers an entire album dedicated to Boann's story called "Dance of the Water Gods." You may listen to/purchase it through iTunes.com or Rhapsody.com. The following songs in particular may inspire you: Morning Mist on the Boyne, Ebb and Flow, Whitewater, Death of a Goddess, and Song of Boann.

 

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Every Sunrise a Painting: Brain-tumor survivor's daily ritual--by Laura T. Coffey , Original Story, Feb 6, 2012

 

Strangers seek out Debbie Wagner’s artwork to mark key milestones, memorialize loved ones
No two sunrises are ever the same. Each day’s spectacle in the sky is altered by particles in the atmosphere, the tilt of the Earth, the lengths of different waves of light.

 

Debbie Wagner knows this better than almost anyone else. With earnest devotion, she has risen in the darkness more than 2,200 times so she could observe and paint the sunrise. She’s rarely missed a morning since December 2005; for Wagner, the daily ritual is sustaining.

 

“As a brain-tumor survivor, I lost so many of the loves I had, like reading and writing and mathematics,” said Wagner, 56, who had two cancerous, pear-sized tumors removed from her brain in separate surgeries in 2002. “My visual journal became essential to my attitude for the day.

 

“When I look at a sunrise, it represents a new beginning. I’m just so happy to be here another day and see my kids do different things and go to dinner with my husband. I suppose that’s the addiction of it — it puts me in a state of mind focused on gratitude.”

 

Increasingly, Wagner’s artwork is taking on personal significance for others as well. People moved by her story have started requesting sunrise paintings for their own milestones: the day of a wedding or a baby’s birth; the day a loved one came home safely from Iraq or Afghanistan; the day a person finally overpowered a stubborn addiction.

Three weeks ago, the family of Justin Tyler Berry reached out to Wagner for an altogether different reason. Wagner learned why in a concise email from Berry’s uncle, Cody Cox.

 

“My 24-year-old nephew was killed in a car accident December 12th, 2011 — the day of his last sunrise here with us,” Cox wrote. “I would like to purchase that day’s painting, if it is available, and also December 13th, 2011. Both unframed please.”

 

Berry had been an outgoing student working toward a degree in agriculture marketing at Pittsburg State University in Kansas. He died instantly outside Miami, Okla., when an oncoming driver swerved into his lane and collided into his truck head on. He had been on his way to an evening basketball game where he planned to help younger kids improve their techniques.

 

“His last day was beautiful just like his whole life was,” Cox, 33, said in an interview. Cox smiled when he recalled the “typical” way Dec. 12 began for his perpetually carefree nephew: Berry had locked his keys in his truck, so he had to run to class so he wouldn’t miss a final exam.

 

Once he got the exam and the key mishap behind him, Berry spent the rest of his day with almost every member of his large and close-knit family. That evening he headed out to play his favorite sport.
“He was just a delightful person,” his uncle said. “He made friends so easily because he was so sincere and so genuine. ... He made everyone in his life feel as though they were his favorite person.”

 

‘You have to redefine’

Courtesy of the Berry and Cox families; Debbie Wagner

 
Justin Tyler Berry is pictured along with Debbie Wagner’s painting of the sunrise on Dec. 12, 2011, the day the 24-year-old died.

 

When Wagner learned that Berry’s family wanted to memorialize him with her sunrise paintings, she sat down and cried. She then made arrangements to deliver the paintings to Cox in person in Oklahoma City on Feb. 4.

 

Wagner is always astonished by the encounters she has with families who seek out paintings and share their stories with her. The Bennington, Kan., resident never imagined such connections could be possible — in part because she never imagined she’d become an artist.

 

She had been a healthy and fit mother of three when doctors discovered her two large brain tumors a decade ago. Before her surgeries, doctors warned her she likely was mere weeks away from a major stroke; after her surgeries, doctors likened her experience to being shot through the head.

 

Wagner had long been a foodie who loved to prepare complex recipes. She also savored long novels, managed her family’s finances and made it a priority to get at least nine hours of sleep a night.
Post-surgery, all of that changed. Multitasking became nearly impossible, and she found she could no longer follow recipes, balance a checkbook or keep a novel’s plot straight in her mind. She also lost her cherished ability to sleep through the night.

 

“You go through this mourning-type period of sadness, and then you realize that you’re a different person and you have to redefine,” Wagner said. “My husband jokes, ‘Well, I’ve gotten to be married to two different women without having to get divorced!’ ”

 

Her brain tumors and surgeries may have robbed Wagner of much, but they also gave in unexpected ways: She said she wound up experiencing a heightened visual perceptiveness and an irresistible pull toward art.

 

A personal journal

Wagner painted for about three years before attempting her first sunrise. She felt compelled to try it one winter morning when she awoke early from a fitful sleep. She still remembers how vibrant and spectacular the big-sky Kansas sunrise looked that day.

 

“I thought to myself, ‘I wonder if I can paint that?’ And I did!” Wagner said. “It was so exhilarating that I did it again the next day, and the next day. ... Now the devotion to it is effortless for me because I get such a rush from it.”

 

It takes Wagner about 30 to 45 minutes to complete a 5-by-14-inch pastel creation from a darkened second-story perch in her home. She skips her morning routine on days that are completely overcast, but her ritual is so ingrained that she brings her painting equipment with her on vacations. Her sunrise paintings gradually began to grow in popularity through word of mouth after a gallery in Salina, Kan., invited her to exhibit a sunrise show.

 

“I’m not a great painter. I’m not trying to ask for a compliment or anything — I’m just telling you the truth,” Wagner said. “I think people are drawn to the honesty of what I’m doing, and the pureness of it. It’s not calculated and it’s not planned, and it was never meant to be commercial. It’s my journal and it’s very personal.”

 

As was the case with Justin Tyler Berry’s family, another Midwestern family felt drawn to Wagner’s paintings after experiencing a devastating loss. A beloved 30-year-old Kansas school teacher died unexpectedly one night from a mysterious and sudden illness. His wife was three months pregnant when she attended his standing-room-only funeral.

 

A friend requested Wagner’s sunrise painting from the day of the teacher’s death and gave it to his family. Family members were so moved by the gift that they contacted Wagner about five months later to place an upcoming sunrise painting on hold: the date the teacher’s wife was due to give birth by Cesarean section.

 

“On the day of the baby’s birth, the sunrise was incredible,” Wagner recalled. “I had a very difficult time painting this sunrise because of the significance to the family. I didn’t feel like I was fully capturing how beautiful it was. And I realized at that time, I never really capture the beauty of the real thing — I can only show my reaction to the beauty I’m seeing.

 

“There is no substitute for the real thing.”

 

Be The Change
Renew your perception of beauty within the familiar -- and share what you discover with someone today.

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The Core Message - The Divine Completion (Earth is Becoming a Star)
http://youtu.be/59J7DPlKwLU
(The Core Message - The Divine Completion)

 

Contains:- Role Venus and Mercury Explained


- The New Earth Theory Exposed!
- David Wilcock Explains deep scientific Data of the Coming transformation
- Pane Andov Shares his Experiences and Coming Transformation
- Proof given that our Sun will become a Red Giant on 21 Dec
- Its a Fact that all plantary bodies are experiencing exposure to this energy which is heating them up and bringing a rapid expansion of their surface's and inner core's.

 

People who still deny this fact, this divine process that is now so close to take place, you are going to be shaken soon and hopefuly you'll wake up, as there is nothing more beautiful then to realise whats about to happen.

I haven't included the information on the beings because to my feeling it says its best for you to search for this yourself, i hope you understand.

Once again thanks to those who played a major role in my life and in the past lifes and on galactic levels aswell so i thank you all that are present on this Planet

Be Well

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The Tale What She Saw Today’s video is truly amazing as it literally offers portraits of Heaven from a child divinely inspired here on Earth.What’s most amazing about this incredible young artist artist isn’t justher talent, it’s that her faith and gift were received at birth- a time when both her parents were atheists.
Girl Goes To Hell And Lives To Tell and paint The Tale What She Saw
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Every hug carries a powerful “punch”.

Over 100 Cities around took part in the Hugs for Peace campaign our friend Vince coordinated that took place on September 21.

Such a little thing -- a hug -- everyone can do it -- it takes no special training -- no “skill” -- no age, race, religion, or sex can do it any better then another…

It is freely available to everyone -- pretty much anytime (technically we can hug our teddy bears, our dogs, even ourselves if another person isn’t immediately available)

and every hug carries a powerful “punch”. A study by University of North Carolina researchers found that hugs increase the “bonding” hormone oxytocin and decrease the risk of heart disease.

This should be every day in the world.


FREE HUGS for WORLD PEACE - Salt of the Earth - International Day of Peace - Sept. 21
http://youtu.be/dt1r8gizEGg
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Christmas cupcakes in a jar

Christmas cupcakes in a jar

Want to give cupcakes as Christmas food gifts? Try this new craze for cupcakes in a jar. Once cooked, cut and layer your cake in individual jars for cute festive treats

• Makes: 8-10
• Prep time: 20 mins
• Cooking time: 25 mins
• Total time: 50 mins

Ingredients

Tie each with a ribbon before serving to give the jars that extra festive feel.
For the cupcake:

• 300g plain flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 175g butter
• 150g light soft brown sugar
• Finely grated rind of 1 orange
• 2 eggs
• 150ml soured cream
• 150ml mulled wine, room temperature

For the Irish whiskey and chestnut frosting:

• 200g butter
• 100g chestnut puree
• 450g golden icing sugar
• 2-3 tbsp Irish whiskey

You will also need:

• 8-10 small jars with lids
• Round plain pastry cutter

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4. Lightly grease and base line a shallow rectangular baking tin approximately 35 cm x 25cm. Sift the flour, baking powder and cinnamon together into a bowl.

2. Using an electric whisk beat the butter, sugar and orange rind together in a bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and soured cream. Once completed fold in the flour mixture and mulled wine gradually.

3. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 25 minutes until golden and cooked through. Cool for 5 minutes in the tin before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

4. To make the frosting, beat the butter and chestnut puree together in a bowl using an electric whisk. Gradually beat in the sugar then the whiskey.

5. Using a plain pastry cutter, slightly smaller than the top of the jars, cut out circles from the cooled cake. Carefully fit a layer of cake in the base of each jar. Fill a piping bag fitted with a small star nozzle with the frosting and pipe a layer over the cake. Top with another circle of cake, pushing down to fit snugly.

Pipe a rosette of frosting on top of each cake and secure the lid to the jar.

By Kerrygold butter

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Christmas 2011 -- Birth of a New Tradition

Christmas 2011 -- Birth of a New Tradition

As the holidays approach, the giant Asian factories are kicking into high
gear to provide Americans with monstrous piles of cheaply produced goods --
merchandise that has been produced at the expense of American labor. This
year will be different. This year Americans will give the gift of genuine
concern for other Americans. There is no longer an excuse that, at gift
giving time, nothing can be found that is produced by American hands.

Yes there is!

It's time to think outside the box, people. Who says a gift needs to fit in
a shirt box, wrapped in Chinese produced wrapping paper?

Everyone -- yes EVERYONE gets their hair cut. How about gift certificates
from your local American hair salon or barber?

Gym membership? It's appropriate for all ages who are thinking about some
health improvement.

Who wouldn't appreciate getting their car detailed? Small, American owned
detail shops and car washes would love to sell you a gift certificate or a
book of gift certificates.

Are you one of those extravagant givers who think nothing of plunking down
the Benjamins on a Chinese made flat-screen? Perhaps that grateful gift
receiver would like his driveway sealed, or lawn mowed for the summer, or
driveway plowed all winter, or games at the local golf course.

There are a bazillion owner-run restaurants -- all offering gift
certificates. And, if your intended isn't the fancy eatery sort, what about
a half dozen breakfasts at the local breakfast joint.

Remember, folks this isn't about big National chains -- this is about supporting your home town Americans with their financial lives on the line to keep their doors open.

How many people couldn't use an oil change for their car, truck or
motorcycle, done at a shop run by the American working guy?

Thinking about a heartfelt gift for mom? Mom would LOVE the services of a
local cleaning lady for a day.

My computer could use a tune-up, and I KNOW I can find some young guy who is
struggling to get his repair business up and running.

OK, you were looking for something more personal. Local crafts people spin
their own wool and knit them into scarves. They make jewelry, and pottery
and beautiful wooden boxes.

Plan your holiday outings at local, owner operated restaurants and leave
your server a nice tip. And, how about going out to see a play or ballet at
your hometown theatre.

Musicians need love too, so find a venue showcasing local bands.

Honestly, people, do you REALLY need to buy another ten thousand Chinese
lights for the house? When you buy a five dollar string of light, about
fifty cents stays in the community. If you have those kinds of bucks to
burn, leave the mailman, trash guy or babysitter a nice BIG tip.

You see, Christmas is no longer about draining American pockets so that
China can build another glittering city. Christmas is now about caring about
US, encouraging American small businesses to keep plugging away to follow
their dreams. And, when we care about other Americans, we care about our
communities, and the benefits come back to us in ways we couldn't imagine.

THIS is the new American Christmas tradition.

Forward this to people on your mailing list -- post it to discussion
groups -- throw up a post on Craigslist in the Rants and Raves section in
your city -- send it to the editor of your local paper and radio stations,
and TV news departments. This is a revolution of caring about each other,
and isn't that what Christmas is about?

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Please adopt a senior dog

Please adopt a senior dog

One by one, they pass my cage,
Too old, too worn, too broken, no way.
Way past his time, he can’t run and play.
They shake their heads slowly and go on their way.
A little old man, arthritic and sore,
It seems I am not wanted anymore
I once had a home, I once had a bed,
A place that was warm, and where I was fed.
Now my muzzle is grey, and my eyes slowly fail.
Who wants a dog so old and so frail?
My family decided I didn’t belong,
I got in their way, my attitude was wrong.
Whatever excuse they made in their head,
Can’t justify how they left me for dead.
Now I sit in this cage, where day after day,
Those younger dogs get adopted away.
When I had almost come to the end of my rope,
You saw my face, and I finally had hope.
You saw thru the grey, and the legs bent with age,
And felt I still had life beyond the cage
You took me home, gave me food and a bed.
And shared your own pillow with my poor tired head.
We snuggle and play, and you talk to me low,
You love me so dearly, you want me to know.
I may have lived most of my life with another,
But you outshine them with a love so much stronger.
And I promise to return all the love I can give,
To You, my dear person, as long as I live.
I may be with you for a week or for years,
We will share many smiles, you will no doubt shed tears.
And when the time comes that God deems I must leave,
I know you will cry and your heart, it will grieve.
And when I arrive at the Bridge, all brand new,
My thoughts and my heart will still be with you.
And I will brag to all who will hear,
Of the angel who made my last days so dear.

Photo: A Senior Dog's Christmas Prayer

http://www.causes.com/media/1134429?template=bulletin_mailer%2Fposting&causes_ref=email

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