Mood:  sad

The days of November are here. Gloomy, dismal days... some. Today is cold, gray and blustery, reminding us that winter is not far away.

I know the time is not long now when I must say goodbye to my Special One. I have been letting go for many months now, and we are not afraid to talk about it, or even joke at times about it.

Only God knows how much time is left. I don't want to guess or speculate, based on any observation or feeling. Things could change, after all. It is not up to us to decide these things.

My feelings right now are on hold. I can't feel sad... yet, because he is still here with me, and I treasure each day with him, even those that are rough getting through.

It's hard to understanding what he must be going through. I grow impatient at times. I feel resentment, and then I chastise myself for being so selfish as to dwell upon my own woes.

It is difficult not to think about what lies ahead, however. I don't want to think about how I am going to get along without him. I've depended on him for almost 18 years now. I can't bear to think of him not being here... no longer feeling his warm body beside me in bed... or the sound of his voice... it will be so final.

Has it been selfish of me to keep him from leaving? Was it wrong to make him promise to stay with me as long as he possibly could, when I'm sure he is more than ready to move on, without the encumbrance of a body that no longer serves him as it once did?

Gloomy days of November... nostalgic, oppressive days and nights... yet the sun will shine again. Spring will arrive one fine day.

Posted by earthstar at 4:09 PM EST

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Mood:  celebratory

Rainbow Majesty is a suspenseful mystery novel about a young woman's search for life's meaning, after experiencing the death of both parents and her fiance.

A letter, followed by a phone call, from an aunt she didn't know existed, beckons Juniper Sutton to come to a destination resort in a remote part of Colorado. Hoping to seek answers to her father's death 22 years prior, and wanting to escape feeling cornered by a relationship she doesn't want, Juniper accepts the invitation and leaves Kansas for the Rocky Mountains.

Upon arrival in Colorado Springs, Juniper is befriended by two of the men employed by her aunt at the lodge. Wes Andrews, with his good looks and sensitivity, draws her with his charm, while Drake Phillips, more of the mountain man type, leaves her confused, yet fascinated, by his brash manner.

Aunt Rosalee Sutton's down home acceptance touches Juniper's heart, even while she is thrust into a new way of thinking and encounters far-out people and ideas at the Rainbow Majestic Lodge, a healing and light center.

Having been converted from a successful hunting resort, the Rainbow Majestic now caters to light workers and is preparing for its semi-annual wholistic fair as Juniper agrees to set up and manage the lodge's new gift shop. At the same time, she absorbs a huge dose of metaphysical philosophy through books and interaction with various characters in the novel.

From the somewhat promiscuous massage therapist, Clover Wolff, to the energetic, overzealous handwriting analyst, Taffi Kincaid, Juniper piles up new friendships that also include the Goth-leaning eccentric awakener, Starla Streber, and the elderly couple, Cyril Jorgensen and Celeste Birdwell, the former of whom is an outspoken writer and teacher of all things spiritual.

Then there is Lance Leachfield, the Majestic's bookkeeper, and his look-alike wife, Nadine, who works in the kitchen. Their home-schooled nine-year-old son, Max, is pertinent in showing Juniper all the secret passageways that lead into the old, forbidden, burnt section of the lodge, where a ghost is rumored to haunt the damaged auditorium.

Aunt Rosalee's stepdaughter, Gena Sutton Howard, is Juniper's first cousin, and sets herself up from the beginning to challenge Juniper every step of the way. However, Gena's psychic ability uncovers something she'd rather not know about the young woman from Kansas, and the lodge's dark secrets begin to overpower her.

Will Juniper ever discover who really killed her father, and at what price? Will Wes ever be bold enough to love her, or any woman, for that matter? Why is it that Gena wants her so badly to leave? And what about her suppressed feelings toward Drake? What will happen to the Rainbow Majestic Lodge if Aunt Rosalee files for bankruptcy?

******************

Rainbow Majesty is my new suspense novel awaiting publication. I can't wait for you to read it!      (Ann Carol Ulrich)

Posted by earthstar at 8:40 AM EDT

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Mood:  not sure

This e-mail crossed my computer screen and I felt it was worthy of passing on, in the unlikely event that something may actually happen on Aug. 28.

Better to be forewarned.

Cross of Blood Alignment Sparks Fear of Horrific August 28, 2007 Cataclysm

Sorcha Faal, and as reported to her Western Subscr - August 23, 2007
 
Though I rarely, if ever, publicly comment upon the research of our Sisters, I felt that a recent report by Sister Adriana-Maria from Belgium is worthy of your attention.
 
Sister Adriana-Maria is a theoretical linguist who for the past three years has been researching the works of the 19th Century Russian Seer Helena Petrovna Hahn, or as better known to the Western World as Madame Blavatsky, and who was the Co-Founder of the Theosophical Society which is accorded the status as creating the schism between Christianity and what is termed as ‘New Age’ thought in today’s Western World.
 
In her report titled "Astrological Algorithms Contained In Isis Unveiled", Sister Adriana-Maria states her discovery of a poly-alphabetic cipher contained in Madame Blavatsky’s 1877 book, Isis Unveiled, that seemingly points to an horrific cataclysmic event occurring during this weekends Triple Conjunction of the Sun, Venus and Saturn.
 
According to Sister Adriana-Maria, Madame Blavatsky in 1877 foresaw the catastrophic volcanic explosion of the Island of Krakatoa, and which exploded with such force that it is believed to have been the loudest sound in recorded history, and which occurred on August 27, 1883.
 
But, not only did Madame Blavatsky forsee the 1883 Krakatoa event, she 'looked' further into the future, 130 years to be exact, to the year of 2007, and the date of August 27th, and which she ‘foresaw’ an even greater event which in her decoded cipher described as ‘…never before have these [humans] seen such horror and destruction’.
 
Of astronomical events to occurring during the time period that Madame Blavatsky indicates, between the dates of August 26-28, 2007, it is interesting to find the following:
 
1. As previously mentioned, this time period finds the Sun, Venus and Saturn in a Triple Conjunction.

2. At 0800 UT (3:00 AM US Eastern Seaboard) on August 27th the Planet Mars will rise in the Eastern sky alongside Aldebaran, the giant red star located in the constellation Taurus, and resembling ‘two eerie, unblinking eyes’.

3. During the early morning hours of August 28th one of the longest lunar eclipses in recorded history will occur with our Moon becoming completely immersed for nearly 90 minutes, and which will be visible to the entire World.
 
It is more than interesting to note, according to Sister Adriana-Maria, the association of Aldebaran in both Madame Blavatsky’s cipher prophecy and its upcoming paring with Mars as the kabalistic symbol for this ancient star of the Persians, known as the Bulls Eye, for its being located in the head of Taurus the Bull, in that all pasts associations of Aldebaran and Mars have seen great destruction and turmoil upon our Planet.
 
Greatly accentuating the conjoining of Aldebaran and Mars, in what the ancient kabbalists termed the “Cross of Blood”, as evidenced by their symbol, is the nearly simultaneous Lunar occultation of almost historic time length, and which many researchers attribute to being the cause of great earthquakes.
 
Though firm scientific research on the linking of Lunar eclipses and earthquake activity is sorely lacking, their does remain abundant anecdotal evidence of an association as great earthquakes are known to occur within a short time period either immediately prior to, or immediately following, total Lunar eclipses, to include:
 
     January 9, 2001 Total Lunar Eclipse: 7.6 magnitude earthquake in India killing nearly 20,000
     May 16, 2003 Total Lunar Eclipse: 6.4 magnitude earthquake in Turkey killing nearly 200/ 6.8 magnitude earthquake in Algeria killing nearly 2,500/ 7.0 magnitude earthquake in Japan with no deaths
     November 9, 2003 Total Lunar Eclipse: 6.1 magnitude earthquake in China destroying over 10,000 homes and killing 9
     May 4, 2004 Total Lunar Eclipse: Yellowstone Caldron earthquake swarm lasting 3 days and causing over 400 small quakes
     October 28, 2004 Total Lunar Eclipse: 6.7 magnitude earthquake in Japan killing nearly 30
     August 18, 2007 Total Lunar Eclipse: 8.0 magnitude earthquake in Peru killing nearly 600
 
Sister Adriana-Maria cautions in her report that though earthquake activity, or other such catastrophic natural disasters, does seem to be indicated in her research of Madame Blavatsky’s ciphers, it by no means rules out other types of disasters, including those caused by war.
 
http://www.fourwinds10.com/NewsServer/ArticleFunctions/ArticleDetails.php?ArticleID=16895

Posted by earthstar at 7:47 AM EDT

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Mood:  mischievious

Jessica has been with us for almost three weeks now. She has captured our hearts and continues to delight us with her playful antics, and her mischievous attacks on people and things.

She's a three-month-old all black cat, brought to us one Saturday evening by my husband's niece and family, who had taken in a stray mama cat that had kittens. Since we'd been wanting to adopt a cat since our move, we agreed to take one of the kittens. Amy saved us the best one in the litter.

Our dog, Ranger, was looking forward to getting a kitty. He was used to cats back in Colorado, when we had the two old cats, Mu and Jasmine, who had to be put to sleep last year on account of ailments and old age. We kept telling Ranger his kitty was coming... and the dog seemed to be eagerly anticipating a playmate.

So, when Jessica first arrived, she hunched her back and hissed at him... the classic Halloween cat stance. Poor Ranger's eager grin turned immediately into deep hurt. The dog laid down on the floor with his paws under his head, those big brown eyes so sad, as if to say, "She doesn't like me." This is a dog who can't understand why anyone would not like him, and he is gentle toward the feline species.

Well, it took close to two weeks before Jessie softened. Her curiosity about the dog would cause her to sneak peeks at him when he wasn't paying attention. Finally, one day they touched noses. Now they are pretty tolerant of each other, although the kitten still hunches and hisses at times, when he startles her.

Jessica's favorite hangout is the back bedroom (guest room) and the bathrooms, particularly the garden tubs. She also has a sleeping niche in the corner, behind my laser printer, and a perch on top of the piano. She seems to be fond of music because when I've sat down to play the piano or the guitar, she lingers, soaking it in.

One night, I was lying in bed, reading, when I was startled by a huge SPLASH! I sat up in bed and a moment later out ran Jessica from our bathroom... all wet! She had discovered the commode.

I recently discovered she could be the reincarnation of our old cat, Mu, who was my beloved companion for many years, whom we put down last fall because she was both deaf and blind at 19+ years. Since I realized this, I've seen a lot of Mu in Jessica, and I welcome her back in my life, hoping she'll be as good a hunter as Mu was.

The house often looks like there's a toddler living here. Jessica gets into everything and knocks over knick-knacks, pictures and whatnots in her clumsy explorations of every nook and corner. But it's a hard to get mad at her, because she has the most beautiful purr and settles into your lap at just the right moment for a bit of affection.

Posted by earthstar at 8:14 AM EDT

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Mood:  special

Tuesday (July 17) was my birthday, and I've noticed as I grow older, the day comes around and it doesn't seem to matter that it's special to me any more. It's just another day of the year.

Of course, it is nice to get phone calls from my boys and a few cards come in from friends. It's nice to be remembered. And my husband remembers. He took me out to breakfast and presented me with a card and a small cake with one candle.

The nicest thing that happened on my birthday this year was a surprise package from a special woman in Taiwan. Peggy is my adopted daughter, and she sent me a little picture frame that she had made herself. How very special! The card was addressed to "Mom," which was even more special.

I'm 55 now, halfway between 50 and 60. It seems weird. It used to be that I'd look upon this age as "old." But I don't feel old at all! It's also kind of weird that a lot of establishments consider you to be a "senior" when you turn 55. I look in the mirror, but can't accept it.

Oh well... what difference does it make, really? I've ordered off the senior menu since my 40s, and no one objected.

Life is wonderful, and each day is special... and a gift we need to acknowledge.

Posted by earthstar at 8:56 AM EDT

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Mood:  not sure

Some insist May is the best month of the year. There's no doubt it is one of the prettiest, and it holds the promise of warm days ahead, at least in this hemisphere where I live.

Spring arrived late in southeastern Ohio this year, and the trees are just now leafing out. Blossoming fruit trees and shrubs are a delight to the eye, and the discovery of lilacs in our front yard pleases me.

Neighbors came and plowed a garden spot for us. That was so very nice of them... and now it is disc-ed and ready to be planted. After more than a decade living in the arid West and not being able to maintain a garden (due to lack of water), we are going to grow things this year.

I've got tomato plants started, and yesterday we purchased seeds for many other kinds of vegetables and herbs. Last evening was the perfect temperature for planting my first raspberry bush in the backyard. As daylight drew to an end, the frogs began serenading and the wood thrushes filled the hollow with their echoing melodies.

Life is beautiful. So why is it that I've been experiencing periodic melancholy? At a time when I should be thrilled, surrounded by all these eastern songbirds, and the beauty of spring, there are days when I feel dangerously close to being depressed.

It's a new feeling for me, or at least something I've not experienced in a long time. It's not that I'm bored. There is always plenty to do, and I have projects I am excited about. But... some days there is this sense of hopelessness in my life... something missing. I haven't been able to put my finger on it yet.

I can overlook it, because my husband is happy here. We did the right thing moving to a lower altitude, and he is content. He knows that I am not, even when I deny it. I miss Colorado, and I miss the West, strange as it may sound when I was so looking forward to getting reacquainted with these eastern songbirds and enjoying the green-ness of life.

I left a good job, good friends, halfway decent pay, and a home I loved. I miss it all. I have no one here except my husband and the dog. But that is what I wanted, after all. You sometims get what you ask for. Months ago all I could long for was being alone in a place like this and working on my writing. So, now that I've got it... it doesn't seem as appealing as it did then.

Looking back at the stress, the debt, the obligations in my life... I really don't miss those. It's the simple pleasures that I took for granted. Maybe it's the feeling of being valued that I miss. The day-to-day drudgery of an underpaid job that at least made me a functioning member of society.

My Higher Self reminds me that this is all illusion. One day I will have a job again, be working among people again, and then I will look back at these carefree days and remember how lucky I was. How strange it is that when we are working and involved in life, we want our freedom and leisure time. And then, when we finally get it, we wish we were back where we were!

When I look to the future, these days, I don't know what is ahead anymore. Too much is uncertain. Things could change quickly. The best thing to do is to take one day at a time. Right now I will enjoy May, with its flowers and birdsong and blue moon. The Now is all we really have, after all.

Posted by earthstar at 8:49 AM EDT

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Mood:  a-ok

She's not your average Miss Marple. Alma's short-term memory fails her more often than not.

Even so, she's learned a thing or two in her 91 years. She knows that nothing is as important as one's reputation in the community. Furthermore, it's clear that the bad stuff always comes in threes.

Could she really be expected to remember to tell her son that she had to work her way around an annoying dead body to find her club gift? After all, the fact that Alma remembered the gift at all should keep her friends from thinking she is getting old.

As they probe this community of respectable but water-reliant individuals, can mellow Sheriff Pat Garrett and his firecracker deputy McCracken discover the killer of the low-life water thief found in Alma's shed?

You'll love this cozy mystery written by Crawford, Colorado resident Karen Weinant Gallob, published by Earth Star in October 2006. The characters are a riot — and particularly so if you know this neck of the woods in western Colorado.

Betsy Marston, editor of High Country News' Writers on the Range, says this: "Karen Gallob knows rural Crawford in western Colorado right down to her toenails, and the result is this rollicking read about ladies and their deliciously gossipy neighborhood clubs, competition over water, clueless newcomers and, of course, the little problem of murder."

Nathan Sponseller of the North Fork Merchant Herald in Hotchkiss, Colorado, says this: "Karen Weinant Gallob is truly an extraordinary storyteller. While a good storyteller is able to describe a scene and develop characters that one can imagine is real, Gallob cultivates characters that are so well defined, so down to earth, so much like the people we all know in everyday life, that it becomes a challenge to remember that this is only a fictional tale."

You can order All the Bad Stuff Comes in Threes, by Karen Weinant Gallob, at Amazon.com, or through Earth Star Publications by going to this page: https://earthstar.tripod.com/BadStuff.html

If you're looking for something FUN and EXCITING to read, this is it!

Posted by earthstar at 8:42 AM EDT

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Mood:  not sure

OK... I hear reports of springtime in the Rockies. So where is it here in the East?

So far we've had rain, gray days, snow, gray days, more rain, cold temperatures, rain and gray days... the sun is an infrequent visitor.

It's two days before the Equinox, and I've seen no flowers coming up, nor buds on the trees, and only occasional robins.

Winter insists on hanging on and not letting go. I'm trying to be patient, though. I know that before long everyone will be complaining about the heat, and all the mowing they have to do.

We just purchased a riding lawn mower, so we'll be ready for those days ahead. A green lawn is something new to us, and the possibility of a garden, instead of grow boxes, is something we're looking forward to now that we no longer reside in the drought-ridden West.

But, alas, I do miss Springtime in the Rockies, with the endless blue skies, the illusion of green lawn as the cheatgrass comes up... and the arrival of bluebirds scouting out places to take up residence.

In due time spring will be here. I'm learning to be patient. At least with the colder weather, I can walk in the woods without worrying about seeing a snake. There's always a bright side.

Posted by earthstar at 7:58 AM EDT

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Mood:  bright

For months I looked forward to this time when I no longer had to work and would have plenty of time to do all those things I longed to do, mostly to stay at home and write... putter around the house with various projects... and go for those nature walks with the dog.

It has been more than a month now since we moved into our new home in Ohio, and now that we are settled, I am feeling a bit disconnected from the rest of the world... the work world, that is. Why can't I just relax and enjoy it? Because I'm used to being productive and a multi tasker.

The "vacation" has been nice, but I am naturally a driven individual who needs motivation and tasks to perform to feel valued. Suddenly I'm in this situation where I have skills I am not utilizing, and I miss the contact in everyday life with the public and close friends.

Of course, there's this blog. I could commit to doing it on a daily basis instead of every couple of months... and the Web site always could use some revamping. There's my writing... I'm currently keying in an old manuscript that I've decided to re-work. There are several other projects of the fiction kind awaiting my attention.

My reading pile actually disappears! I never used to have time to read all the stuff that came to me, and now... I even take time to sit down and do nothing but read. So, time to get out some book reviews for the Beacon.

Part of this restlessness, I'm sure, is due to Winter's End. It's still too cold to get out and work outside. There will be plenty of grass to mow here in Ohio, where that task was not a priority in Colorado. And we can even plant a garden here and have things actually grow!

I am eager for the songbirds to arrive. The loyal cardinal has been serenading us already, along with the song sparrow. I spend time listening to my bird tapes, sharpening up my ears after these neglected years away from the Eastern deciduous forests.

"Get over it, girl," I tell myself. You're living the lifestyle you always wanted to live... staying at home, doing what your heart desires, being CREATIVE. Hubby wants me here and is grateful for my companionship and care. So I'll work at getting used to it... even though I know it is temporary. I feel it in my bones. I'm not old enough, and I haven't done enough yet in the world to be... RETIRED.

Let's call it instead a SABBATICAL. Time out. That's better... the gift of time in which to concentrate on my more creative attributes. In an hour I'll put on the Jazzercise video. After that, lunch, then a half hour with a good book. Maybe after that I'll play the piano for an hour... then back to the computer for a typing session.

One thing I can count on: Things always change. So I might as well enjoy it while I have it.

Posted by earthstar at 7:59 AM EST

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Mood:  a-ok

Over a month has passed now since I found out one of my children was arrested. A mother's shock and disappointment possessed me, and my thoughts turned to the worst... possible imprisonment for this young man, who has so much to live for, so much talent and a greater understanding of what life is all about... more than most, anyway. I could not bear the thought of him living as an inmate.

His crime was a federal offense, and yet something that many people have been getting away with for years. His crime should not have been a crime at all. Over the last decade several states in this great nation of ours have been passing laws to legalize marijuana for medical purposes. Even though many states have passed this, the federal law still dominates over the states.

My view is that our government is unwilling to bend because if pot is legalized, even just for medical purposes, they cannot profit from it. The way I see it, pharmaceutical companies have more control over what goes on than we want to believe. Just take a look around at how many people you know have medical prescriptions from their traditional doctors.

Cannabis is an herb, a God-given plant put upon this earth to help heal us, like so many other plants. It has done more good for people than harm, as long as it is not abused. Abuse anything and you have problems.

There are many more benefits to wisely using this plant than negatives. It has brought relief to suffering chemo patients, increased appetite in AIDS patients, and soothed those who are unable to get a good night's sleep. It is the most effective alternative to Viagra that nature has ever provided... and without the side effects. Yet you only hear about its negatives because that is what the authorities want to do... program you into believing it is a dangerous substance.

It seems to me more people are killed because of drunk drivers, and more lives destroyed by abuse of alcohol and hard drugs such as meth, than from occasional use of Cannabis. Alcohol and cigarette commercials were banned from TV advertising years ago. But why are pharmaceutical companies allowed to bombard prime time with their solicitations of dangerous prescription drugs? Why doesn't the media report the many deaths from abuse and misuse of these substances that have side effects that are often worse than the original condition for which they are made?

My son broke the law. Period. As the justice system stands now, he must pay for his crime. He recognizes this fact and he is facing it with a positive attitude. He has cooperated with authorities and, because of circumstances not entirely his fault, he will probably face a lighter sentence than being stuffed into another crowded correctional institution. This has given him a new perspective on life, and how precious freedom is. At 26 he has his whole life ahead of him, and enough lessons learned in the past 8 years to fill a lifetime.

Until the public wakes up, until the laws are changed, how many more lives will be affected? How many more mothers will mourn when they get that devastating phone call that breaks your heart? Check it out. Laws won't change until greed and control end.

Posted by earthstar at 9:06 AM EST

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