12 March 2008

Conquering Abbey's Country

Well folks, great excitement in the world of Amanda Jean. Monday I got myself a job in Moab and as soon as I find a place to live I will be taking up permanent residence (as permanent as any residence could be for my little gypsie soul) in Moab, Utah. I just decided it was time to stop trying to make the most cerebral decision and just follow my heart, and as soon as I did things just started falling into place. I got a job on the spot at the first place I applied (I start Friday!) and from what I hear the tips are great (I can make a couple hundred bucks a night); I have a couple of leads on some reasonably priced (as far as Moab goes) places to stay; and I have a totally cool friend (and fellow TTW fan) to hang out with. As TTW's Rowandian son would say, God is sitting on my head.

10 March 2008

Mind Readers

Dear Dixie Chicks,
Why are you reading my journal and writing a song about the thoughts of my soul?

The Long Way Around
My friends from high school
Married their high school boyfriends
Moved into houses in the same ZIP codes
Where their parents live

But I, I could never follow

No I, I could never follow

I hit the highway in a [Mariokart] with [hot dog antenna]
Lived like a gypsy
Six strong hands on the steering wheel

I've been a long time gone now

Maybe someday, someday I'm gonna settle down
But I've always found my way somehow
By taking the long way
Taking the long way around

I met the queen of whatever

Drank with the Irish and smoked with the hippies
Moved with the shakers
Wouldn't kiss all the asses that they told me to

No I, I could never follow

No I, I could never follow

It's been two long years now

Since the top of the world came crashing down
And I'm getting' it back on the road now

But I'm taking the long way

Taking the long way around

Well, I fought with a stranger and I met myself

I opened my mouth and I heard myself
It can get pretty lonely when you're sure of yourself
Guess I could have made it easier on myself

But I, I could never follow

No I, I could never follow

Well, I never seem to do it like anybody else

Maybe someday, someday I'm gonna settle down
If you ever want to find me I can still be found

Takin' the long way

Takin' the long way around
Takin' the long way
Takin' the long way around


P.S. Thought of the Day- My car is older than my brother's fiancee'. It is 9 months away from antique status (the car not the fiancee'). Poor, age-ed Mariokart.

06 March 2008

AWESOME

Simple things make me smile: http://www.henningscake.com/Mystical_Unicorn.jpg. Thank you, Lobsterita!

04 March 2008

Shock me, Shock me, Chakras

This week I am working quite a few graveyard shifts, and so I will have lots of time for blogging. I figure this can give me an opportunity to explore some the heavier topics I have been contemplating recently. Reader Beware: The later it gets, the more existential I become.
One area I have been doing some research into is the Hindu Chakra system. Scoff, if you must, but for me, it seems to hold some truth. I guess what really attracts me to this philosophy is the way it explores the connections between the body, the mind and the spirit.
What really got me looking into all of this is my own search for reprieve from the physical pain I have been dealing with for many years. I have been working in the psychology field for a couple of years, and knew I had some emotional work to do as well. At work there was this woman, Pam Robinson, who was doing this "process" with the students at the center where I worked, and it was really helping them. I checked into it, and was processed for myself and I read her book. I really felt the process helped and so I started to do research (because I am a total information junkie, especially when it comes to psychology) and part of her work involves clearing charkras.
Each of the seven sacred chakra centers is connected to different body structures and organ systems as well as being tied into developmental stages and our hierarchy of needs. So, when we experience trauma or don't get our basic needs met the chakra connected with that developmental stage or need will become blocked. As a way to let us know that we have emotional work that needs to be addressed our body will alert us through physical pain or dis-ease in the associated physical structures of that chakra.
It is so easy for us to ignore emotional or psychological injuries that we have sustained, but when we continue to ignore them our bodies force us to acknowledge these problems by presenting them as physical ailments. We are not as likely to ignore bodily discomfort even though we will live with emotional discomfort for decades.
When I started to look up all of my physical complaits they were all tied into my first, or root chakra. The more I read about the root chakra, the more I see how unbalanced mine is. And what does it say is often the developmental period and need crisis tied to the root chakra- feeding problems from birth to 6 months.
I was born with a cleft lip and feeding was a real challenge for me during those first few months of life. For awhile my mother had to feed me with an eye dropper, and I am betting that didn't get me very full. Isn't it interesting how it all ties together?
The reason I am discussing this is not that I think that everyone should convert to Hinduism (is that even a religion you can convert to?), or that I think we should all give up doctors and sit around talking about our feelings. What I do think is that there is so much more out there we could learn from and explore. I also think maybe we could all benefit from looking a little deeper at what is true seat of our dis-ease.

Some links I likes:
http://www.sacredcenters.com/chakras.html
http://www.reiki-for-holistic-health.com/chakra-diagram.html
http://www.meaningoflife.i12.com/chakras.htm
http://www.instituteofhealingarts.info/

03 March 2008

The Power of the Mind

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=2752381
http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=541777
Check out this story. Porter Ellett is from my hometown, and I was friends with his sister in high school. It is so amazing the things we can do when we set our minds to it and engage our hearts in the battle. It really makes me think. Here he is playing baseball and basketball with only one arm, and then there's me- I've got all the working appendages a girl could ask for, and what am I doing with them?

Sweet Tunes