Even though Vedic astrology, or Jyotish, has been practiced in the West for over twenty years many people still know very little about it and see it as an unfamiliar and/or confusing system of knowledge. Adding to the confusion is the common perception that Western astrology is more psychological and Vedic Astrology is more spiritual.
I personally believe that a great deal of insight can be derived from either system. In order to grow spiritually we must have an understanding of our psychological blocks as well as our greater spiritual identity. In competent hands, Western astrology is extremely useful in understanding family of origin issues, core negative imprinting, and blocks to full self-expression.
As we start to get perspective on the past and heal some of the wounds of the personality there is a natural desire to understand the true meaning of our individual existence. In other words we start to askwhat am I here for? What is my life purpose? What is my mission on Earth this lifetime? These questions, of course, are at the heart of each persons quest..to realize our timeless, eternal nature and to see how to express that self-knowledge fully in the world.
Depending on whether the Vedic astrologer actually practices what they preach, Vedic astrology can take the quest for understanding of our life purpose or dharma to a whole other level. If, however, the Vedic astrologer is not deeply immersed in their own spiritual path (sadhana), then what you get from a Vedic astrologer will not be any better than what youd get from a Western astrologer, and actually could be much worse!
Using Vedic Astrology from a higher level of consciousness, the Vedic astrologer can help clients understand their highest dharma in this lifetime. The beauty of Vedic Astrology is that it is part of an integrated 5,000 year old tradition that includes yoga and ayurveda. Drawing from the wisdom of the ancient Vedic knowledge received through rishis (seers), Vedic Astrology not only reveals the individual dharma (svadharma) but reveals how to deal with karmas created in the past that are unfolding in the present.
Used consciously, both systems of Astrology can be used for the highest levels of understanding and healing. At the essential level, Western astrology and Vedic astrology have the same purpose..to eliminate suffering through understanding and to reveal our true purpose and eternal identity.
James Jarvis, M.A. is a transpersonal counselor, master astrologer, and LifeQwest Coach who specializes in helping you "Design the Life of Your Dreams." Sign up for James' bi-monthly LifeQwest E-zine and receive a free 12-page report, "Keys to Right Livelihood" plus Monthly Horoscope, Articles, Tips & Discounts on his services.
¶ 9:11 PM 0 comments
Fantasy Fest's origin date back almost 30 years ago - the first annual event was held in 1979 and started out as a gay theme event to sort of perk up the lazy Key West days of late October. After a few local business men and women got the idea that turning it into an annual event would be good for tourism and business - well - the beginnings of what we now now as Fantasy Fest was born!
Fantasy Fest has since evolved into a 10 day continuous gala of parades, pets, pomp, circumstance, and devilish debauchery. Only in Key West would such an outrageous display make for a comfortable backdrop to our eclectic and iconoclastic way of daily life. Bodacious Costumes, Body paint and barrels of booze are the order of the day - and week..:-) A continuous stream of sights you won't see anywhere this side of the most raucous Mardi Gras are on non - stop neon, illuminating the already otherwise magical and mystical Key West streets cape.
Key West and Fantasy Fest Characters
Key West is already internationally known for it's famous and infamous blend of interesting and unusual characters - from Harry Truman to Ernest Hemingway, from Captain Tony to Edgar Allen Poe, if the walls of these watering holes on this small island could speak, well, the stories they would tell would be mighty entertaining.
Fantasy Fest pays homage to this character - Galas, Costume Competitions, Parties, Fund raisers and the ever popular drag queen dramas and pampered pet parades make the last week in October an embarrassment of riches for the photographer, the voyeur and just the plain curious! wow - the things you see during the 10 days of Fantasy Fest you just can't see anywhere else in the world - and maybe - just maybe - that's a good thing.;-) We like having it that way - and frankly 10 days of this kind of decadence is enough for the year for me!
Fantasy Fest Finale
The final, fantastic finish to Fantasy Fest each year is the Goombay parade, celebrating everything that is rich, diverse and wonderfully wacky about both the festival, as well as Key West herself. Drag Queens and floats, and tens of thousands of curious onlookers, revelers, party people and locals look on as the parade unfolds in her wonderful and eccentric glory. One particular float, carrying it's prized cargo - the newly elected "Conch" (Key West residents refer to themselves as Conchs) King and Queen, gets particular attention from the masses, and the transcendent luminosity and lunacy of this great annual event continues well throughout the night into the morning hours...
And in the days following Fantasy Fest - the spirit of her presence lingers on the Island - as people make their way home to their families, real jobs and real life - looking forward to returning for the next year - and leaving those who call "paradise" home time to bask in the reflection of another great Festival full of all of the things that make Key West the most wonderful place to call home!
Fantasy Fest Events include:
Goombay - a street party held in Key West's Bahama Village neighborhood.
The Royal Coronation Ball- where the Conch King and Queen are crowned.
The Pet Masquerade - a costume contest for pets.
Pretenders in Paradise - an annual costume contest.
The Masquerade March - a daytime procession through the streets of Key West.
The Fantasy Fest parade - the culmination of the festival.
All in all Fantasy Fest is a party to remember. And don't forget, Fantasy Fest 2007 is right around the corner! Hope to see you there.:-)
Everything you want to know about key west Florida in one place!
¶ 4:11 PM 0 comments
My Alien Penfriend by Faiz Kermani is a fun and unique science fiction fantasy book about a young boy on earth and his pen-pal on another planet. After joining a youth group that connects people across the universe, the boys write letters to each other and send them through spacemail, a futuristic version of email. These letters are used for a majority of the story telling technique employed by Mr. Kermani.
Life on the planet Bartoch is about to undergo huge changes. Governments refusing the advice of a controversial scientist pay for this mistake with many lives and utter destruction of communities. Worry for his friend sets in during a communication shutdown with the planet and the depth of their friendship takes on a whole new meaning for both boys.
My Alien Penfriend is an interesting tale of two boys ranging in age from 11-15 who learn from each other by comparing differences and similarities of each others planets and in the process, they develop a strong intergalactic friendship that will last a lifetime.
Author Faiz Kermani is a scientist by trade, and My Alien Penfriend is his first childrens book. A fan of Roald Dahl, George Orwell and John Steinbeck, his style certainly reflects a love for space and children. This illustrated childrens book is tidy package at 94 pages and retails for under $12 (US).
Many parents may find themselves reminiscing about their own childhood pen-pals and the excitement they felt waiting for each letter. Educators can use the book to encourage pen-pal writing with youth in other countries and improve creative writing skills.
Author: Faiz Kermani
Publisher: Author House
ISBN: 1-4208-5860-2
~ Book Reviewer: Lillian Brummet - Co-author of the book Trash Talk, a guide for anyone concerned about his or her impact on the environment Author of Towards Understanding, a collection of poetry. (http://www.sunshinecable.com/~drumit)
~ Book Reviewer: Lillian Brummet - Co-author of the book Trash Talk, a guide for anyone concerned about his or her impact on the environment Author of Towards Understanding, a collection of poetry. (http://www.sunshinecable.com/~drumit)
¶ 11:36 AM 0 comments
There is a great debate going on in Hollywood and everywhere else U.S.A. Celebrities are being scrutinized more than ever. Make that female celebrities:) And in this ever growing fish bowl is the new celebrity target - Nicole Richie.
In every celebrity magazine, every week, is a picture of Richie - looking quite thin - and bouncing about town in a new designer outfit and handbag that seems to be a bit bigger than she is:)
It was even rumored that her dramatic weight loss and refusal to get help for it was the source of the tragic:) break-up between her and her longtime friend Paris HIlton.
But to be fair - Nicole Richie has seriously transformed her life. She is the adopted daughter of a very public and tumultuous divorced couple - Lionel and Brenda Richie. Probably the initial source of many of her emotional troubles.
She battled her way back from a very tough alcohol and drug addiction through rehab and lots of family and individual therapy.
She landed a great reality television gig as Paris Hilton's partner in crime on The Simple Life, and is the author of a fiction title: The Truth About Diamonds. She also is getting married to fiance DJ AM, and appears to be very happy in that relationship.
Okay that sounds great - but isn't she just too skinny?
While it is true that Nicole Richie looked unhealthy early on in The Simple LIfe and in other celebrity pictures around that time - I wouldn't necessarily have called her chubby. Instead I would say, she looked bloated. Unhealthy from all of the poisons she was ingesting, Richie has said in the past (such as on the Oprah show) that she had been on an escalating path of alcohol and drug abuse since the age of 13.
When coming clean - it is very possible that Richie began an extremely disciplined exercise and diet regime to reclaim her health and control her life. And then went - overboard.
Many times people who suffer from an addiction of some kind - alcohol, drugs, overeating, gambling etc., will substitute that vice for another intense activity, addiction, or obsession. That is why it is not recommended for people who are in a 12-step program to begin dating each other. Instead of dealing with themselves, they just substitute the energy spent on getting drunk or high on the new relationship. Then the relationship becomes too intense, too fast, and fizzles out quickly because there was no real foundation.
Nicole Richie may have simply substituted years of addiction with the compulsion to control her life and feelings in other ways, and controlling her intake of food is one way she may have chosen to take charge of her life.
Of course this behavior can easily manifest itself into a full-blown eating disorder, because it is based on the principle of "control" where these disorders usually begin.
The Bottom Line?
Well, the bottom line is that although she may have her reasons - Nicole Richie is way too thin - too skinny - much too petite. Hopefully, in spite of all the media attention to her weight - she will get the "real" kind of help and attention she needs from her friends and family, as well as direction from a mental health professional who can help her redirect her energy into more positive avenues.
Good luck Nicole!
Lisa Angelettie, M.S.W., is a psychotherapist, author, and an online advice authority. She has been helping people make smarter life choices since 1998. Visit her for Advice & Counseling, or take a free Depression Screening today at http://www.Girlshrink.com You can also Subscribe to the site's popular self-help ezine: "Better Choices".
Contact info: info@GirlShrink.com
GirlShrink Inc. The author grants reprint permission to opt-in publications and websites so long as the copyright and by-line are included intact and the article is not used in spam. A courtesy copy of your publication would be appreciated.
¶ 6:54 AM 0 comments
Recent industry research suggests that $14,000 worth of productivity is lost per worker per year due to the inability to find the data/documents they need to do their job (IDC Canada). Assuming an organization with 50 employees, that's $700,000 annually.
There are a lot of things to consider as you begin evaluating scanning, document management, data capture and archiving/records management related projects. It can be an overwhelming process which more often then not ends in apathy and ultimately no decision. Somehow it seems easier to hire more clerical staff to file hard copies. It seems easier to clear out an old office and buy 6 new filing cabinets from Office Depot and start filling them up. Im here to tell you this is irrational and document imaging projects are easy to justify if you ask the right questions and work with the right partners.
A well thought out imaging implementation helps your operation flourish while decreasing head count and increasing data integrity and operational efficiency. You are also ensuring compliance for all those nasty HIPPA, Sarbanes Oxley type regulations.
The best way to begin is to assemble a project team and sit down in front of a huge whiteboard to map out the project drivers. Begin asking questions and do some brainstorming. Are people actually losing documents? How do we search for documents today? What would happen internally if there was a lost purchase order or legal contract? Can you identify bottlenecks in specific departments or lines of business where workers are constantly shuffling paper and sharing of information is non-existent? During this process create a vision for your organization. Determine if you simply want to digitize your business information, or if the goal is generate departmental collaboration and standardized business processes. What is my business going to look like and how will it operate when this is rolled out to every user and every department?
You should also choose a logical starting point. Its next to impossible to tackle an Enterprise Content Management project by addressing the needs of an entire organization and slamming it in. In your evaluation you need to consider every need, but have a place to start. Find the department that will have the most to gain, and is willing to be the pilot. Accounts payable or customer service are logical choices given the paper trail and potential impact on the business.
Now youve done your homework, have defined the need and require a business case to justify the cost of the application you think is the best fit. At this point, youll find out what kind of vendors youre working with. Will they provide reference accounts using the application in a similar setting? Are they willing to help you with return on investment analysis? Did they provide your organization with value in the beginning stages of the project or do you have a feeling you may never see or hear from this salesperson again?
Imaging, data capture and scanning solutions give your organization a competitive advantage by maximizing efficiency and ensures that your employees always have quick and easy access to the critical business information they need to do their jobs. No decision is always the easiest choice, but is not the correct one.
Matt Sundberg is Director of Sales for Dynamic Solutions Group, a software systems integrator focused on providing end to end solutions for organizations in need of standardized and automated business processes. Matt has been in software sales for 6+ years and provides clients with direction to customize integrated document management solutions to fit their business need. You can contact him directly at matt@dsgi.net or visit the DSG website at http://www.dsgi.net for more information on industry solutions.
¶ 2:46 AM 0 comments
