Nine Fire Monkey Games

Nine. 

The number seems simple enough. 

Numerologists are fascinated by Nine because "when you multiply any number by 9, then add the resulting digits and reduce them to a single digit, it always becomes a 9." (Hans Decoz)

And here is another strange thing about Nine: "when you add (rather than multiply) it to any other number, then reduce that number to a single digit, it always comes back to itself, as if nothing was added at all." (Hans Decoz)

Some say it is a holy number - a trilogy of the almighty sacred trilogy. Others say it is a number of balance, harmony, stability and strength, even the magic of creation. Still others claim it is a finishing number representing endings and completions. In ordinary numerology, everything happens in cycles and Nine marks the ending of a cycle.

And get this: energetically, Nine suggests compassion at a worldly scale, i.e., global consciousness, calling forth traits like humanitarianism, non-judgement, tolerance, patience and unconditional love...all "sound good" kinds of things.

Did you know the year 2016 is a number nine? As in: 2+0+1+6=9. 

You might be thinking, "What's the big deal? That doesn't sound so bad."  

And you might be right...except enter the Chinese Calendar (which kicked off on February 8th). According to it, 2016 is the year of the Fire Monkey. This particular element-animal combination only occurs every 60 years.

Monkeys are cute, inquisitive, creative little critters. They have soulful eyes and human-like hands. How bad can they be?

But we are not just talking about a Monkey; we are talking about a Fire Monkey. Let's see...what energy comes through a Fire Monkey? 

In a word, chaos. Monkey energy is disruptive. True, they are cute; but they are cute little rascals that like to mess with things. Rascals can be fun or they can be a pain in your ass. A Fire Monkey might just turn your whole world upside down.

Consider this: when you take BIG energy of the sort stirred up by Nine and put it in the hands of a crazy (cute) little Monkey and then light a Fire under its feet...well, you get the picture.

You may have already noticed big waves of movement in the lives of people around you, or in your own life. Things are happening quickly - BIG things - and people are scrambling to find balance. It seems everywhere I turn, relationships are shifting or ending, addictions and other patterns are changing, people are moving closer or farther away (physically and emotionally), quitting or getting jobs, having life-shaking experiences...and it's only February.

I imagine we can anticipate this kind of radical shifting on a larger scale as well, as in things like the global economy, world relations, the environment, perhaps even social mores and paradigms. As fate would have it, this is an election year. Argueably the most important of all elections in our country takes place this year, that of our President. I wonder what funny little Nine Fire Monkey games we will see play out in that arena. Oh yeah, I forgot...Trump is running for President.

All the more reason to remember that Nine has a dark side just as everything else does. Nine can fall into the unforgiving, malicious and vindictive side of things as easily as not. Take a Fire Monkey and clothe it in the dark side of Nine and poof! You've got hell...

So here is a thought: when making your Presidential vote, consider who may bring more of Nine's higher qualities of consciousness, compassion, tolerance and patience to the table rather than slipping into its lower egotistical qualities that are arrogant, cruel and perhaps even immoral. Your conscious vote may just turn out to be the single most important decision you make this year for your long-term quality of life.

Nine offers an opportunity to re-balance what is out of balance...both personally and on a larger scale. In the long run, this is a positive thing, yet in the short term, it can be quite challenging, disruptive, daunting and chaotic, perhaps even hellish. Change brings challenge and creates (temporary) chaos, even when for the better. But it does not have to lead you (or the world) into a  long-term hell if you pay attention and make aware, conscious choices.

So prepare yourself for some mighty winds to blow this year. Nine Fire Monkey years are not for the faint of heart. Focus your energy on things that stabilize, harmonize and balance you like time in nature, yoga, meditation, dance, art, music...

Choose your words and actions with high awareness and clarity. Unplug more often to give your physical, mental, emotional, spiritual and energetic bodies a break from technological chaos and distortion. Eat healthier (choose organic, non-GMO, low processed, sustainable, humanely-managed foods). Sleep longer. Participate in activities and workshops that inspire you. Put love above your ego drives to be right, safe or significant. Hold compassion in your heart.

Yep. 2016 is a live one, alright. Hold on to your hats...

Ain't this a great country?

In the United States, gasoline prices are lower than they have been in many, many years. The media attributes it to lower oil prices, which seem to rise and fall in a random, not-for-any-particular-reason fashion (other than, I suppose, political maneuvering). 

For me, going to the pump and paying $1.57/gallon reminds me of my old high school and college days some 30+ years ago (hard to believe, but true) when life seemed simpler. But that is a whole different story...

When gasoline prices drop, economists expect a rise in consumer spending, assuming consumers will spend the savings they are pocketing at the pump on other things. But this time, the media is reporting that the anticipated rise in consumer spending has not happened, unlike similar years when gasoline prices were lowered.

Gee, I wonder why??

Have they not figured out that the cost of living has risen so high in recent years (while salaries seem to stagnate) that people actually may need that "extra" cash for important things like bills, taxes, mortgages, saving for emergencies, etc...? 

When you squeeze the turnip dry year after year, the "savings" from lower gasoline prices does not amount to bonus cash. It amounts to a more livable wage and an opportunity to play catch-up with all the necessities you've had to put off for lack of funds.

And here's the real kick in the butt: I remember several years ago when oil and gasoline prices first skyrocketed in this country, the cost of everything else skyrocketed too. People said, "Well, clothes are shipped on trucks. The trucks use oil and gasoline. They cost more, so we pay more for our clothes." And, "Well, airplanes use gasoline and it costs more, so we pay more for our airplane tickets." And, "Well, produce is transported on trucks. The trucks use oil and gasoline. They cost more, so we pay more for our food." 

Basically, they said the trucking companies and airlines (for example) were paying more for the oil and gasoline (fuel) used to ship the goods or fly the planes, so we had to pay more for the goods, products and services they offered. Back then, everyone's reason for the big leaps in our cost of living (without comparable leaps in salaries, mind you) were attributed to the higher prices of fuel. 

But if that were true, now that the price of fuel is low, the cost of our clothes, plane tickets, food and other goods, services and products would also be low...right? Because the cost of shipping them around on trucks and fueling airplanes is lower...?

Only we haven't seen a decrease in our cost of living that reflects the lower fuel prices today. Why not? Who is pocketing our hard earned cash...all those savings on fuel costs? And what excuse are they using to do so?

In the end, we are paying for higher fuel costs regardless of whether or not the fuel costs are actually high and despite what the pumps say.

These are the kinds of things I contemplate while sitting at my parent's kitchen table in the morning, watching the horny male ducks on the lake torment the disinterested female one. She is so sick and tired of their forceful advances that she slips into the gated pool area where they can't get to her, but where she can't enjoy her life much.

And I realize that I feel a lot like her sometimes: imprisoned by the bastards that have overrun this joint.

New Year's Evolution

 Happy New Year! You have now journeyed through another 365-day cycle of your life. How does it feel?

The new year of 2016 has potential for positive evolution. It is a number 9. Just google "numerology number 9" and read what comes up...powerful stuff. Whether you believe in that or not, the energy and opportunity are here for you to embrace your personal evolution.

Plus, January is a great time to reflect upon the trajectory of your life. Introspection is a key energetic of Winter. Here are some guiding questions to ponder:

• Overall, is my life moving forward, backward or stagnant? Celebrate the places moving forward, and also notice the places that feel backward or stagnant.

 

• What obstacles are in my way? Identify them.

 

• Which obstacle(s) do I feel ready to address? Prioritize them based on your readiness and pick one to focus on.

 

• What will it take for me to address them? Come up with steps that create a doable plan; then begin, one step at a time.

I am not talking about a "New Year's Resolution" but a New Year's Evolution.

Imagine it: you have 365 days to do anything you want with your life, something different. Take this opportunity to do it. Follow through and you will be amazed when a year from now you reflect back and see the life changes you created.

All you have to do is start.

You must get a clear vision of where you are, where you want to go, what is in your way, and how to change it. Then the fun begins.

When you change, your life changes.

But change doesn't have to happen all at once. Take baby steps. Doable steps. Steady as a Bull steps. Steps that inspire you to keep going. Steps that will sustain you through the long haul to completion.

This time last year when I reflected back, I was disappointed in myself for something. In May, I set goals and began taking action (yep, it took me until May to begin). Now, I am more than half way to my goal and have completely embraced it. I wonder what I will see when I look back next year?

What are you ready to change in your life? What goal(s) are you ready to embrace? What will you be excited to witness in yourself and your life when you look back in 2017?

Go ahead...dream it, see it, feel it, do it. And most of all, have fun! I dare ya.

Food Fight

I was talking with friends recently at a camp out and they told me Niman Ranch was bought by another company, Natural Food Holdings. This interested me because I have come to trust meats that are associated with Niman Ranch for their quality and humanity. Having heard other stories of natural companies being "sold" to conventional ones (such as Burt's Bees sale to the Clorox Company years ago), I decided to do some research.

It turns out the turnover took place in 2006 when Natural Food Holdings took a controlling stake of Niman stock. Bill Niman left the company, disappointed at how they changed the way the cattle were handled.

In his own words: "I left Niman Ranch because it fell into the hands of conventional meat and marketing guys as opposed to ranching guys," Niman said. "You can't really ferret out how [the cattle] are being raised [now]."(from Business Insider)

This kind of event troubles me. When someone can infiltrate a company that values sustainable, humane food practices and then buy and sell their stocks in such a way as to put conventional producers at the helm, forcing out the original creator of the company, that is a scary thing for all of us. It means our food sources are at great risk of becoming monopolized by those in a position to undermine the organic, humane and sustainable practices that keep us all healthfully fed.

Be aware that all food is not healthy food. It may fill your belly, but the question is, "With what?" 

I'm not just talking about processed grains and sugars, but produce, meats, eggs and dairy products. Depending on the source, you can buy food that is organically, sustainably and humanely grown and manufactured or food that is not organic (i.e., full of GMOs and pesticide toxins), not sustainable (i.e., depletes the soils and poisons the environment), and not humane (i.e., the animals are tortured and treated worse than concentration camp prisoners). 

Many people I know choose less expensive food over food that is more expensive because it is organic, sustainable and humane. But seriously, folks, money is the least of your concerns in the long run. All food is not the same, even if it looks the same. And you are ingesting it into your body. It is meant to nourish you, but food that is poisoned with pesticides it has absorbed, or riddled with excess hormones and other drugs, or genetically modified, or vibrationally toxic to your life force energy does not nourish you. 

Again, it may fill your belly but the question is, "With what?" Toxic food causes innumerable health problems in our culture. This is not an opinion; it is a fact. 

I personally choose not to eat conventionally produced food whenever possible. I don't like how it tastes, feels or what it represents. I want nothing to do with non-sustainable, environmentally-destructive, inhumane foods. I don't want to eat a vegetable or fruit that is full of poison. I don't want to eat a piece of meat from an animal who suffered its whole life and was in distress and fear before being inhumanely murdered to produce it. 

I heard a story from a friend of mine about a hunter friend of hers who suddenly stopped hunting after doing it his whole life. When asked why, he said, "I looked down the barrel of my rifle and the buck looked back at me with fear in its eyes. I don't want to eat that fear." Exactly... 

I know such foods will eventually make me too sick to recover. Our bodies cannot detox all the shit that comes from such conventional food today, especially on top of all the other stressors it deals with - constant EMFs, chemically-saturated water, air pollution, toxic body products, and the list is endless. Yet beyond that, it's a vibrational thing. They make my body feel...heavy.

They probably make your body feel heavy too, if you pay close attention. But if you have not eaten "clean" meats regularly - meats from happy animals who are honored and treated to a good, comfortable life before being humanely slaughtered, and if you have not eaten organic produce regularly - grown without toxic chemicals, you may not recognize the difference. Subtle or not, it is significant.

Many of the chemicals in our foods settle into our soft tissues and organs where they continue to poison our bodies and cause health issues until we get them out. The nervous system is particularly vulnerable. The body cannot simply flush these toxins out of its own accord. They have to be chelated, or pulled, out using a binding agent. Mercury is such a chemical. I learned all about it when I had my old mercury fillings removed years ago at the start of my own health journey.

The way I see it, when our food system in the United States was turned into an industrialized market, everything changed. To sustain such a market, things must be done to keep production excessively high, to keep food transportable and to give it a longer than natural shelf-life. This means the conventional foods you eat are more artificial than natural. 

The body does not know what to do with them. It expends extra energy trying to sort through what it can digest for its functional benefit from the toxins and excessive chemicals that harm it. That leaves you with less energy to live by, and probably results in unnecessary sluggishness, stress and tension in your body...that is, if you are not already sick from it.

There is a bigger picture here worth paying attention to, besides just how much food costs. In the long run, pricing is the least of your worries, for there are far greater costs to eating toxic food and continuing to support the conventional, industrialized food system that perpetuates it.

Now go eat something organic and yummy. Your body will appreciate you for it.