Preview My Book?

Hey everybody, man have I been busy. Tuesday is my surgery day, so I figured I would get on here and at least offer an update on what's been cooking lately.

As I mentioned in earlier post I am currently final editing one of my books and half of the book is now uploaded and available for welcome review and input:)
It is a really cool site, run by Harper Row, A very major publishing house. You would need to go to
http://www.authonomy.com/books/27150/your-cancer-diagnosis-today-life-before-during-and-beyond-cancer/

From here you will be able to view my book, as well as a whole bunch of others if you want to register. It's free. What the hey feel like you have a book inside you waiting to come out? Have time to read and really like reading? It's a great site:)

I would of course very much appreciate it if my friends would all BACK my book on the Authonomy site... please> Top 5 each month are reviewed by editors of 6 different publishing imprints.

Sarah Palin's Alaska: Changing Opinions?

I must say I am very skeptical of government and mega corporations (They go hand in hand you know), and at the time that Sarah Palin was "sprung" on the American public, as John McCain's running mate it felt like this woman was just one more thing being crammed down our throats. Ya Know what I mean?

The way the whole thing went, the hype, the drama,  just really immediately turned me off to the idea of her in the capacity of Vice-President of the United States, and quite frankly as an individual.

Now, I do realize Sarah Palin's Alaska, being a reality show, is of course somewhat contrived as well, but I have actually watched a couple of episodes now and a strange thing is happening.

As I watch and see her in the elements and nature it is clear that she really is an outdoorsy woman, and her love and ability to be comfortable in the natural elements cannot be faked. She really has fished and hunted, she really does love family and nature. That goes a long way in my book. Too many people have become disconnected with mother nature today, living within sheltered cities.  I know I would not, could not, live within a city, even a small one, not for all the conveniences in the world.

Sarah Palin, I may not be ready to consider you as a serious Presidential possibility, yet...but, I do think that if you and I met in a different life, a different world, one without so much division, mistrust and hate, that I would consider you high quality friend material, as we have a bit more in common than I thought at first.

I want my President to be someone I can look up to and trust that they are doing right for the people, who are the heartbeat of America, someone who knows what the right thing to do is and is not afraid to do it. Someone who refuses to be another puppet with strings attached to corporations and secret societies and secret agreements. That person will be free spirited, compassionate, wise and brave.

I will be watching Sarah Palin a little more, with a little less pre-conceived sarcasm.

Where Does The Time Go?

Goodness gracious I am sure by now many of you thought I had dropped off the face of the planet , lol, it has been so long.

Well I have not disappeared, nor have I met with any worrisome fate, I have simply been Very busy. The days of preparation and anticipation awaiting Thanksgiving culminated in a grand feast yesterday. Well to be honest the meal was not the culmination of the days feasting.
I could gross you out haha ,and since it is not a feast day for another few weeks, I think I will, because I am after all just writing what comes to mind here....
We all enjoyed a cup of my BBB   after our meal, and this morning when I stood up after taking my morning dump, for lack of a more pleasant way to say it, I had one of the best laughs I have had since I saw this girl here.  I am talking I laughed so hard I cried, and I am still suffering from random outbursts. I did a poop (Laughing again) that was , without exaggeration, over a foot and a half long! OMG!
Yes, it was a good meal.

Anyway.... Yes I have been Very busy lately. I have been working on a number of papers, as well as organizing and editing one of my books for review, as well as preparing for company that arrives next week, and doctors appointments here and there, as the day of my shoulder surgery draws nearer, and of course filling orders for Mother Nature Herbal Green Teas. But all of this busy-ness has been in a positive manner, so it's all good:)

I hope to soon make time to get a few opinion pieces up here, as well as continue work developing my little mom and pop webstore, but in the meantime....
Peace Out to All>
And I will try to get back here on a regular schedule soon.LOL Most likely this will be while I am recuperating from my surgery, scheduled for December 7th.

Many Religions But Only One God

Ever think  how many wars and divisions have flourished because of our religious differences? Too Many.
One of the strangest divides I do not understand at all is the wall between Christianity and Islam. Between The Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths there is the clearest evidence that all 3 of these religions (A Triune so to speak) Clearly refer to the same God, and  aside from the western Christians rejection of the Quran, all three faiths share scriptures, Prophets, Angels, etc... Abraham, Noah, Moses, Gabriel, Jesus, John the Baptist, Mary, ALL are named in these 3 faiths, so clearly all 3 speak to the same God. How have we formed such intense differences then? If God is the same, and his word is always true, then the fault must lie with us. The words, the message  doesn't not change, it's how humans interpret the word of God.

Even among just the Christian faith we see division. Catholic, Baptist, Protestants, and Methodists, etc... Were you baptized? Were you sprinkled? Or were you totally submersed ? OOH if you were not submersed you are going to burn in hell. When was your last confession? How much do you tythe? Do you attend  church regularly? If you do not go to church and worship on Sunday your bad. I don't know about anyone else but I can talk to my Lord whenever I want, and I worship him and am grateful everyday.  I enjoy a good church service when I make it:)

In many ways we are selfish to think there is no way anyone else could have had a communication , a relationship with GOD, except the way we are told in The Bible. To say that there are other paths that lead to the same God, does not detract in any way from the accuracy or authenticity of the Holy Bible. Quite the contrary often the more we examine differences between faiths the more we find similarities. In a scientific sense this means they would be corroborating evidence, actually supporting each other.
For example there are many parallels to be found between the  teachings of Buddha and Christ. Here are a few excerpts from the book Jesus and Buddha, the Parallel Teachings by Marcus Borg, Jesus scholar and Buddhist writer, Jack Kornfield. The Buddha sayings are taken from the Dhammapada and the sutras of the Buddha. The Jesus sayings are taken from the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Buddha: One is the way to gain, the other is the way to Nirvana, knowing this fact, students of the Buddha should not take pleasure in being honored, but, should practice detachment.
Jesus: No slave can serve two masters For a slave will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.

Buddha: Just as a mother would protect her only child at the risk of her own life, even so, cultivate a boundless heart towards all beings. Let your thoughts of boundless love pervade the whole world.
Jesus: This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends.

Buddha: If you do not tend to one another then who is there to tend to you? Whoever who would tend me, he should tend the sick.
Jesus: Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these, so you have done it unto me.

Buddha: Consider others as yourself.
Jesus: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Buddha: One who acts on truth is happy, in this world and beyond.
Jesus: You will know the truth and the truth will make you free.

Buddha: Hatred do not ever cease in this world by hating, but by love; this is an eternal truth... Overcome anger by love, Overcome evil by good. overcome the miser by giving, overcome the liar by truth.
Jesus: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. From anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again.

Buddha: With the relinquishing of all thought and egotism, the enlightened one is liberated through not clinging.
Jesus: Those who want to save their life will loose it. Those who loose their live for my sake will save it.

This is only one example, but truly  we must stop being selfish and condemning , judgmental, of each other because we know God in different ways. I personally have always been interested in this finding similarities. You would be amazed at how far back in time we can see these obvious clues. Who were the others in Genesis that after he slew his brother, and was sent out from Eden that Cain had to receive a mark on his forehead so they would not kill him? Western culture sees Noah and his immediate family as the only survivors of the flood, yet there are Flood stories in a number of cultures on different continents. This ongoing phenomenon of forced diversity is confounding to an open mind willing to look at the facts and follow their heart. When I say My God is the creator of EVERYTHING and EVERYONE.... I mean it.
How do people continue to  create boxes that one must fit into? Why do humans argue amongst themselves and continue to insist my God is Better than your God, or berate someone else's beliefs when He is ONE God?  
For example who is anyone to judge the  relationship between the Native American Indian Tribes and God? You think they were not speaking with the Father our Creator before the white man arrived? Of course they were. Just not in the same way as a Christian. In ancient Chinese texts, thousands of years old, Sumerian tablets also thousands of years old, we find similarities.

This is actually a very deep topic, that I am actually working on coherently explaining in much greater detail in a book that I have tentatively named My God Does Not Fit In That Box, I must close here for now it is getting late.
Seek and ye shall find:)

Flu Has Caught Up With Me

Damn all these nasty nasal aerosol mist flu clinics !! ! In the grocery stores, in the pharmacies, no one can avoid them... Now I have the flu. Who in the world thunk up the brilliant idea of willy nilly spraying flu germs into the air all over public places? I mean seriously. I think this is just the lead up to creating the scenario needed to enact "Mandatory vaccinations" . Under the guise of admitting and apologizing that the government made a mistake, that the nasal flu vaccines were a bad idea, we will most likely soon be hearing more about the controversial mandatory vaccination program.

Numerous articles have been written on the topic, especially over the past three years. In his article  Coming Soon: Dangerous Mandatory Vaccination Scam, Prepared by STEPHEN LENDMAN a GLOBAL RESEARCHER (June 10, 2009) Lendman states that "At least three US federal laws should concern all Americans and suggest what may be coming - mandatory vaccinations for hyped, non-existant threats, like H1N1 (Swine Flu). Vaccines and drugs like Tamiflu endanger human health but are hugely profitable to drug company manufacturers"(Lendman.2010).  One of his largest concerns noted regards The Project BioShield Act of 2004 (S. 15). This act was passed into law on July 21, 2004 "to provide protections and countermeasures against chemical, radiological, or nuclear agents that may be used in a terrorist attack against the United States by giving the National Institutes of Health contracting flexibility, infrastructure improvements, and expediting the scientific peer review process, and streamlining the Food and Drug Administration approval process of countermeasures." (Lendman.2010). In effect what they are saying is they have streamlined the process and at any time now if they say  you "MUST" be vaccinated it will be you must or else. What is the or else? Forced inoculation? Quarantine camps to hold you in? Who Knows.

Think about it a minute.... It does not make you just a wee bit uncomfortable that the DoD, the Department of Defense Federal Docket Management system 1160 Defense Pentagon Wash. DC 20301-1160, is running the show as far as your local pharmacy and telling you what vaccines you must get?

RE: DoD 2009-HA-0151;32 CFR Part 199 Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS)/ TRICARE: Inclusion of retail Network Pharmacies as Authorized TRICARE providers for the administration of TRICARE covered vaccines; Interim Final Rule.

CHAMPUS might want to look it up dears:)
Oh what an interesting, twisted world we inhabit today. Corruption and greed and the need for power and control at every turn.

Your local pharmacists all have until January 21 to comply and get certified or cease operations.

Goodness Gracious I Need To Update Here

Yes I have been quite busy of late, working on a number of projects at once. As if my days are not busy enough with 2x a day feeding of the horses and chickens and the rest of my animal menagerie, I am also filling herbal green tea orders for Mother Nature To You Herbal Green Teas (business has picked up with the onset of cool weather and repeat satisfied customers placing 2nd and 3rd Orders. Not only that, but I am concentrating on prepping one of my books for proofreading. Getting it completely clean and flowing you know?  Which in my case is often a major rewrite, because I am so fussy. I need to hurry up, gosh I must be related to William Wordsworth somewhere along the way. His now infamous Prelude was written and rewritten for years and years. He never considered it "right". One of his most famous works, and it ended up not being published until after his death. I don't want to do that lol:)

So as if this is not enough to keep anyone busy, on top of recovering my life post cancer, I am now faced with another decision that is consuming brain power.  I must consider whether or not to proceed with treatment for my shoulder problem. Right now at this point I am scheduled for the MRI Wednesday, and the orthopedic surgeon the following Wednesday. It is kind of a forgone conclusion between the docs that surgery will be required to fix it, how extensive we will know after the MRI. This is outside the realm of my cancer issues, and as far as we know so far, not related to radiation treatment damage. I was having trouble with the left shoulder well before cancer diagnosis, but it has worsened to the point range of motion has become very painful and limited, and it is now affecting my quality of life. I would be happy to hear comments from anyone else that has had rotator cuff surgery:) Was it easy? Was recovery quick? Did it feel better and improve your range of motion after? lol, not looking forward to ANY surgery. Boo.

But anyway, yes that's where I'm at, I'm still here truckin' along :)

Low Quality Fast Track Education Will Soon Become More Evident in Performance

Okay now I'm all for people getting an education, don't get me wrong, but.... Nowadays we are seeing all these offers for fast track degrees that leave one scratching their head thinking wait a minute I have that same degree and it took me four years of hard work and effort to get mine. I learned about the field completely. Within it's context of operation. Yet we began seeing advertisements about these "fast track" degree programs that began at guaranteeing that you could get that 4 year degree in just over two years. Then the ads started saying within two years. Today we can see claims of 18 months to a degree! How do they do it?

It's like the production line theory. You don't need to know how to build the whole car, you do not need to understand the combustion processes that make the motor produce power to turn the gears that make the wheels move, or how the braking system stops the vehicle. All you need to know is one small part of the  complete process of putting the car together.

This production line mentality has also taken hold within the agricultural industry. A chicken farmer may now know how to raise chickens that will grow to have a specific breast fillet size in a certain allotted time period, using specified food and medicine and limiting sunlight etc... but that same chicken farmer will have no clue on how to raise egg laying chickens for example, or how to hatch out baby chicks for that matter, because they all arrive hatched and ready to grow for this farmer. 

TPTB, for lack of a more accurate description, have now approached education in the same manner. That's why if anyone noticed these classes often offer very specific certifications. Kind of a degree, for a pert of a field within a field, within a field. This is especially prevalent in the medical, business and criminal justice careers. You know the same ones we continue to hear are booming? Insert sarcasm here> Yes they're booming, as far as hiring, because record numbers have been layed off or offered retirement packages in lieu of being laid off .

Now the companies and industries have regrouped, in some cases renamed themselves or in other manners reorganized, and sure they are looking to hire many new people. They will hire cheaper skilled employees, and it is my understanding that they will get a handsome government bonus as well. I believe there is currently a $3,000.00 credit for each new employee hired that last a year.

Okay so what makes this topic important enough to take the time and make the effort to write about this and try to increase awareness? Was there something in particular that set off my rant today?  Yes and Yes.

Number one we need to be aware of how we are being used and how it will effect us in the long term. If we willingly go along with the flow when we see things that just are not right they profit, and even worse they have no incentive to stop using us to make these huge windfall profits. If quality of service within the medical or legal profession at point of service decreases who suffers? Us.

You want to talk about the dumbing down of America? I'm not saying you need to be able to build that whole car, but, if you are going to be responsible for prepping an operating room for surgery, assisting a doctor, or be responsible for the care of invalid patients... If you are going be responsible for representing or advocating individuals in the due process of law... If you are going to be balancing the books of major corporations (may want to get a chef degree too), etc... You need to know the processes and procedures, the ins and outs, the legalities of, and the safety measures in place to be efficient. If the person before you has not performed their job correctly how will you know if it is not part of what you learned? If you receive and education that is so limited, so streamlined, that does not challenge or keep you on your toes, if it does not take into account variables that can make you say okay that works that way, but what if? Are you really prepared for your field? Who is it going to effect? You? Or the people you are taking care of?

It is not like today was the first time I was amazed at a lack of performance, competence,  or intelligence levels evident in the course of my daily interactions in various industries, whether it be medical, legal, or business related, but today was just such a dumb example I had to write how incredulous I was.  It's really not even a good example, because this involved only a bank teller, and it was more of a customer service type of issue, but when the bank manager failed to see and solve the VERY Obvious problem, I had to wonder at where this world is heading.

My husband had a check that had been sent for my birthday. It was from a Paulsen, to a Paulsen, and of course he's a Paulsen. He went on his lunch break to the bank branch near his job, which is the same one he has used for over a decade now. The poor man Never runs out on his lunch break, he packs lunch from home, so that he can relax and eat at lunch, and save money. But, he had had this check in his wallet a few weeks now, and decided to go cash it. It was made out to me, and I had already signed it, and put his account number on it. He gets to the bank drive up, sends the check in the tube. After waiting and waiting they finally send the check back to him in the tube, and tell the man sorry they can't cash it, there's no account for that name.

Now mind you Kev had a headache, he gets migraines occassionally, and I realize sometimes it does affect how quick he thinks, but what I do not understand is what affected the teller and the manager? This is the account his payroll  deposits into. We do have a few accounts, this particular one is in his name.and they said there is no account to  match the name? His account number was right there on the check? So now he parks and goes in mind you, thinking his account is messed up with the very recent Wachovia to Wells Fargo merge. He tells the inside teller, hands her the check, then the manager is called over, and there is discussion between the manager, the teller and Kevin. Result is they tell him again There's no account to match the name, they can't cash the check. In frustration, I mean for crying out loud it was only fifty dollars, Kev was like, the heck with this, I'll let my wife cash it, and takes the check back, puts it in his wallet again and leaves. He called me when he got back to work.

Now upon listening at first I am thinking like him oh crap, must be something wrong with the account! Oh no what about bills paid out, you know? We talked a little more, and I mean I was pretty incredulous. What do you mean they said no account? The account number is on the check. He says again repeating what he remembered them telling him " There is no account to match the name" . Now mind you I did not think I would be right, but I asked him " Honey did you sign the check?". He rustles a minute, gets back on and as he looks at the back, he says "no". Well you know what I was relieved on the one hand, okay account is probably fine, but seriously, how dumb are these people running the bank?

Now at this point you're no doubt thinking what's the big deal here? OK, Well now I get it, he needed to sign the check. I mean hello, any one walks in with a check in hand, the person cashing has to sign, even if it was or was not made out to me, or even if my name was on that account, he would have had to sign. If man comes in with a check with a woman's name on it I would think should raise questions of identity right? I asked him "did they ask who you were?" And he says " yeah they asked if I was your husband, and I said yes". So then I was like, " well hun why didn't you just sign the check when they asked you?"  They never asked him to sign it. Just said they couldn't cash it. Not a single person in the combined group thought uh... wait a minute, account number matches Kevin Paulsen,  oh okay Mr. Kevin Paulsen could you sign the check? I mean I just don't get it, wouldn't you have asked him to sign the check anyway? Didn't he NEED to sign the check anyway?

I did call the bank after I spoke with Kevin. I spoke with a manager, and I explained the whole thing. I was very nice, told her the situation and how I didn't understand why someone did not just tell Kevin to sign the check... he was Kevin Paulsen. I even said to the lady, it was so dumb it was actually funny, and definitely not lawsuit material. I was told a higher manager will be calling me back. Well I had to come back and edit this in because I did not get the call back until later in the afternoon after publishing. The lady introduced herself very professionally by title and said she wanted to discuss the "situation" with me, and how she had been "working" on it all day (i'm laughing again as I am writing  this in). I tried to stop her because she sounded like this was a big deal, when really I had just been wondering why someone didn't just tell the man to sign the check. She was telling me about all these legal battles Wachovia had about cashing checks when they weren't joint accounts and telling me that it was an  evolutionary process for Wachovia and Wells Fargo to reach the standard procedures in place today, and how she "finally" has on her desk in black and white the ruling in place now, and she starts reading off about the last signer of the check was the one that had to have the account, and finally I stopped her. I said yes, he would have been the last signer if someone had told him he still needed to endorse the check. It sounded like she had gone through quite a bit of effort researching and trying to figure out the bank's protocols for check cashing policies. All in all I still say it was so dumb it was funny, but sad that in the process of moving through three levels of customer service no one got it. He just needed to sign the check.

I know it's a dumb example. But that's my whole point. It was such a dumb example of business management, as well as customer service.


Oh and a PS aside to anyone that is thinking to correct me on the fact that you need to have sufficient funds in your account to cash a check from another bank, trust me, there are multiples of the sum of $50.00 in the account in question. It was a simple matter of no one asking him to sign the check. His name is the one that matches the account number for the account at that bank.

A better example could be found in the story of the paralyzed man who suffered severe brain damage because of an undertrained nursing care specialist. Not only did she accidentally turn off the poor man's respirator, but in the video admits to training limitations. She tried to ventilate through his nose and mouth because she did not know she needed to hook the ventilation bag to the port hole in the side of his neck. This patient went a total of 21 minutes w/out being able to draw in oxygen because of this "mistake". A mistake that was simple lack of proper teaching. She did not know what to do in the event of emergency.

Why was video running at the time? As you read in the story, the man had been concerned about the quality of his care and lack of medical skills and knowledge for quite some time. He had the video surveillance installed so that if he died, people would know why.

We are going to be hearing more and more stories in the future about improper training causing major problems in the future, no doubt. The really sad part are the people making these mistakes guilty, in some cases should they be charged? Is it their fault that the education they invested in to better their future was not up to par or incomplete? Is it their fault the degree given to them allows them to enter job positions of responsibility that they are not really capable of handling? This will be an interesting topic to follow in the near future. It reminds me of a movie that was so dumb, can't recall the name, but this scenario is what it was based on. Everyone was dumbed down.