The Divaliscious - The Place to Learn How to Relax, Heal, Improve's One Life With Feng Shui

How to Look After Lucky Bamboo

2009-07-12T11:39:00.001-04:00

How to Look After Lucky Bamboo

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Feng Shui for the Dining Room

2008-08-28T11:12:00.000-04:00

Feng Shui can be applied to any room of your home. Often, the dining room is one of the most neglected rooms in the house. It's either a formal space that's rarely used, or it's notoriously used for dumping papers, doing projects and accumulating clutter. According to Feng Shui principles, every room of your home should be beautiful, well-organized and clutter-free.

Ideal placement for the dining table is in the center of the room. Try to have equal space on all sides. An oval or round table with no sharp-edged corners is great Feng Shui. Round tables inspire conversation and also encourage equality. The chairs should be comfortable and also have a back. It's good to avoid oversized furniture in a small room. From a decorating standpoint, heavy, dark furniture squeezed into a small space creates a heavy, dark feeling. The host should sit facing a door to feel more comfortable.

Lighting is an important component in creating a good dining environment. A well-lit chandelier over the center of your table will help to balance chi in the room. Using candles, lower wattage bulbs or a dimmer switch will bring the energy level down for a more romantic and peaceful setting.

If your meals often feel rushed, make sure there aren't any clocks in view. You'll enjoy a calmer dining experience by doing this and it will also help lighten your mood. Who wants to focus on time while you're eating anyway?

The colors in your dining room should be appetizing. But be sure to choose colors that you love. Reds and yellows are perfect for stimulating the appetite and good for digestion. In general, light and bright colors are pleasing to the palate.

Do you use your best silverware and beautiful table linens in your dining room? If not, you should start. A fun idea would be to plan a special formal dinner with your family or partner one night a month. By making this a regular event, it reinforces how special your loved ones are to you. Rather than using placements, using a tablecloth encourages closeness among you and your family members.

Before eating remember to take a moment to give thanks for the abundance on your table and for the family and friends who are sharing the meal with you. Expressing gratitude before the meal fills the dining room with the energy of appreciation and love.

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Feng Shui for Beginners Part III - Your Bedroom and Getting Ready for the Chinese New Year

2008-08-14T11:18:00.002-04:00

SO you think you are having a good New Year? Well, luckily, the Chinese New Year starts on February 7th of this year. And after researching a variety of resources, I have come up with a list of things we all should do prior to the New Year. Some of them I found very interesting as I was unaware of certain rituals people follow and lo and behold, they do make a lot of sense in ensuring a good and prosperous year ahead.

The Chinese and other followers of Feng Shui practices do a lot to prepare for the New Year. There is so much information out there I almost didn't know where to start. In my last article, I mention the amazing properties of Sea Salt and the article prior to that talked about incense - if you are interested, here is some very affordable incense I use for purification purposes: Morning Star Sandalwood Incense (50 Sticks)

Today I will help list things one ought to do PRIOR to the Chinese New Year.

By attacking some of these chores, as they will be for some, starting this process now will help ensure you have completed them by February 7th. So do yourself a favor and get out your calendar. Mark down the calendar when the Chinese New Year will be. Oddly enough, I have found several dates for the Chinese New Year - and I know they celebrate all week, so it was confusing to me as well. I have read it starts on the 4th, the 5th, the 7th and 8th. What gives with that? Maybe they wish to start celebrating early or making sure we have all completed the tasks at hand prior to the Chinese New Year.

What I have read has consistently mentioned the importance of completing these task prior to the start of the Chinese New year since you don't wish to bring any of the "bad luck" you may have had with you forward to the New Year - so here goes anything and everything....

Use your calendar to help mark down the necessary tasks I am about to mention will help you keep on track of this project - and hey who doesn't enjoy a calm and organized living space?

Clearing up the Clutter

Yes, I know I discussed this before, but it really is the most important task of all. And why bother you may ask? But getting rid of things that are no longer needed in your home will allow for new things to come into your home this includes most importantly good chi. As of today, we really have only three more weeks along with a couple of days to get these task completed, hey please do not think I have it all together either - I too must do a lot of work. Writing this article I am sure is cathartic for me in reminding me what I actually will need to accomplish for me to also ensure good luck for the coming Chinese New Year.

While you start these tasks, remind yourself frequently you are removing any unwanted negative energies and wash your hands frequently. You will see it will get easier as you go along through the piles of debris. In fact you will be amazed as to what you have collected over time.

You are going to need the following items:

garbage bags
incense - burning
nice happy music you enjoy
lights turned on
cleaning products, to wash your windows, dust your furniture, vacuum/mop to clean the floors -especially the dust bunnies under the bed!

Bedroom:

Starting with this room might be the easiest, since when you start with the other rooms, you will have created a serene place to relax once you are finished and it will help start the process to have all the other rooms in your home clutter free. Get out garbage bags. One bag is for donating items. The other(s) for trash. Hey, you have seen enough of those TV shows that help people who are totally disorganized. And you can see what they go through, usually they never go back to their tired and disorganized ways. And hey, how many times have you bought something only to realize you had a duplicate already? It's a waste of money - and who wants that? No one.

Starting in the closet:

Donate any clothes you simply have not worn for a year.
Throw out any that are stained, torn, ripped, faded, etc. It is auspicious to only wear clothes that are clean, unstained and in good shape. Wearing torn and ripped clothes only brings in ripped and torn energy - you want that?!? Exactly what I thought, no, of course not.
Look at those shoes too. Do any need to be repaired - well get them repaired! Toss any so old, they are screaming to be let free of their burden. Are any too small, hurt your feet - off they go for donation.
Put back that you wish to keep in an organized fashion - you will now know where to find anything you need in your bedroom closet.

Windows and walls

Wash windows inside and outside (if you can) - as this will allow the light to come in more freely - it's scary to see the amount of dirt which accumulates within the year. Vacuum/sweep the walls for any cobwebs or dust bunnies and do not forget the corners and behind any doors.

Furniture and Bed

Clean thoroughly all furniture with polish, dust that TV, etc.
Organize any wires hanging around the TV and equipment.
Get under that bed and get any dust bunnies from underneath it. If you use under the bed for storage, now is a good time to look through those boxes, and remove/toss and donate any unnecessary items.
Lastly, move around the furniture just a bit. Even an inch one way or another will help stimulate chi and assist in refreshing the chi in your sacred bedroom.

Good practices for your bedroom

Do not have any mirrors facing the bed as this promotes outsides influences (infidelity) in one's relationship
Do not have the bed where your feet hang out facing the door out. This is very bad luck as it is thought to "send you to the other world"
Keep out any aquariums in your bedroom - again it soaks up any good chi.
Keeping a symbolic turtle and placing it on your dresser for example is said to being good luck this next Chinese New Year.
TV's are said to be like mirrors, and this is a tough one, since so many of us fall asleep with the TV on, but it is said, it should be covered up when one goes to sleep since it reflects - much like a mirror - see number 1 above.
Hanging crystals in the windows helps bring in good luck as the multi colors reflected from the sun help new and good chi to come into your bedroom.
Open the windows wide at least once a week, to not only allow fresh air into the room, but it also helps any stagnate chi get the heck out of your bedroom.
Selecting the right kind of art is very important to Feng Shui practitioners, make sure any art on the walls especially of your bedroom, are happy and joyful looking. In other words, a picture of a horse reared with a grimacing face of fear would not at all be auspicious nor would it bring any good luck.
If you are single - try and not make it too feminine, and by the way having room in your closet and drawers will actually help bring in the room for your new partners clothes. If they are stuffed to the gill, where the heck will you have room in your life for a partner?
And lastly remember to keep this place serene. This is your night sanctuary. A place where you should have only good things happen it.

I have already attacked most of my bedroom, though I do still need to go through the storage boxes but this have to wait for later today. As always, stay tuned, my next article will discuss the living rooms and hallways.

Feng Shui For Beginners Part II - Sea Salt

2008-08-14T11:16:00.001-04:00

Today's Subject: Sea Salt and Attracting Wealth Tips

Hello there once again! I hope you enjoyed yesterday's posting that mentioned a few ideas to help bring in prosperity and more love into your life. I actually went out yesterday and purchased sea salt to help clean my crystals and add good luck to my home. I will share more about the ideas of Sea Salt and its purifying abilities among with sharing even more ideas in bringing wealth into your life.

So what's the big deal about sea salt, and won't any kind of salt help? Nope. Sorry to inform you, but it has to be sea salt. It has to do with the negative ions from the moving sea that will help stimulate negative chi to move on and help attract the good kind of chi these exercises are determined to offer you. Table salt simply does not have these purifying properties.

So where do we start today? Let's first start with getting you some sea salt. Click here for the lowest prices I found on the web: Sea Salt, 2 lb. Sea salt is an all important tool in applying Feng Shui exercises and tasks to your rituals in help healing and clearing while cleaning chi around you and your home. You can find sea salt at your local grocery store, and do yourself a favor, do not try and get around by using table salt or even kosher salt - both of which I love using in my cooking - but this is for Feng Shui use. Of course, by all means, if you are buying the sea salt, use it freely in your cooking. I prefer to use the course sea salt as with all the types of salts I may use.

So you have now got your Sea Salt, what next? Here are a few tips on how Feng Shui practitioners recommend their clients to use in helping bring their clients luck and wealth.

Place a teaspoon of sea salt and wrap it in plastic and place in your wallet in a secret compartment. Replace every ten days to ensure its potency. This is said to bring the owner of the wallet wealth...
Place sea salt on the center and back side of your entrance door, this is said to also bring luck and wealth to all those who enter - and yes the changing it every ten days rule also applies here as well in ensuring its potency of bringing wealth luck and good chi.
Also if you really are in a jam, placing sea salt in all the corners of your house - simply use little plastic containers - say the ones you may get when you ask for salad dressing on the side at a restaurant. Place the sea salt in them, cover them if you can, then place them in every corner wherever two walls meet. You may need an extra box of sea salt for this - but since sea salt is relatively inexpensive and you are in need of attracting wealth, this really helps absorb any negative energy you house may be harboring. Again, change every ten days.

The best time to do any or all of these tasks is on the start of the new moon. Since energy grows as the new moons grows into a full moon, where as energy dies down after the full moon.

There are many other uses for sea salt besides making your dishes taste great while helping bring wealth luck to you and into your home. Remember that yesterday I discussed the importance of cleaning up and removing any and all clutter from your home just prior to the Chinese New Year. This is also the best time to take any crystals, quartz and stones you may use to bring good energy into your home.

Wash them with soap, then, place in a bowl of salted water made from sea salt. If you can, even better is to let them soak overnight under the light of the full moon. The next day, you should also allow at least four hours in the sun to finish the cleansing process. This is said to remove last year's energies and replenish to good chi in your crystals and stones you have placed in your home.

The use of sun catchers also work great as do crystals that reflect all the colors of the rainbow. By hanging these in your windows where the sun shines in, the multi-faceted colors help keep and bring good chi into your home. This is especially important in your home office and bedroom along with your kitchen areas of your home.

As of this month's new moon, I did several of the rituals I have already mentioned here. I placed a dark blue mug and filled it to the brim with sea salt and placed it in my kitchen in a dry area which is said to bring happiness to couples. I also grabbed a little sea salt and placed it in plastic and placed it in my wallet. I also marked on my calendar when the ten days will be up so that I can recall to change the sea salt. I also did a few other rituals which I have been doing for months and that is going around on Fridays with burning incense to each of the rooms in my place and blessing each room and all who enters with health, happiness and harmony along with prosperity.

Any effect so far? Well, yes! I am pleased I was finally able to purchase today some very needed domain names prior to them being picked up by others. Some of these will be very important to me in the coming months as I have several projects I am now organizing and the need for these domain names in setting up these works online is extremely important. My outlook is very good and confidence high. I also noticed that my fellow and love of my life was suggesting new and interesting dinner ideas to help spruce up our dinners at home last night. Our relationship is smoother than ever and I am more confident with every day passing that I am in a "right and good" relationship that is healthy and harmonious. And hey, who doesn't want that in their life?

As for now, I am off to prepare fo

Place a teaspoon of sea salt and wrap it in plastic and place in your wallet in a secret compartment. Replace every ten days to ensure its potency. This is said to bring the owner of the wallet wealth...
Place sea salt on the center and back side of your entrance door, this is said to also bring luck and wealth to all those who enter - and yes the changing it every ten days rule also applies here as well in ensuring its potency of bringing wealth luck and good chi.
Also if you really are in a jam, placing sea salt in all the corners of your house - simply use little plastic containers - say the ones you may get when you ask for salad dressing on the side at a restaurant. Place the sea salt in them, cover them if you can, then place them in every corner wherever two walls meet. You may need an extra box of sea salt for this - but since sea salt is relatively inexpensive and you are in need of attracting wealth, this really helps absorb any negative energy you house may be harboring. Again, change every ten days.

Feng Shui For Beginners Part I

2008-08-14T10:55:00.003-04:00

Today's comment is not a rant at all, but in fact a rave. A rave on Feng Shui practices and behaviors. I have been applying Feng Shui practices to my business and to my home and personal well being for over three years and can say it does work. It definitely does work and does wonders for one's personal spirit.

But that means you must be at one with yourself. So many of us are too tired to apply anymore energy into anything but the essential tasks at hand from getting the kids to school then running off to work, to dealing with the late report that was due a few days ago to a grumbling boss only to come home to a house that you thought you cleaned only a few days ago, and somehow a tornado has hit the inside of the house.

Well just reading and typing that last paragraph, I know I hit home with several of you, maybe you are experiencing more debt than you would like, a broken relationship, etc. I have found a variety of useful websites so that you can get your Fen Shui on the fly and not be bothered with spending the extra dollars and time that we barely have to expend ourselves with to help assist you with your Feng Shui well being.

I promise you will at least enjoy doing some of the so called exercises in and around your home, and will share where I got this information from so that you too can get the books I have found so useful and this article will probably be at least a three parter. You simply cannot begin to get all the details one needs to have a more zen-filled life that brings more harmony, health and prosperity into your life in one simple article, let alone let people understand the workings of ying and yang that I am sure people have done several dissertations on.

Some of these suggestions are going to be so obvious, you may think why bother? But everything is interconnected - and hey you learned that one in your Freshman year in college! - So here goes anything...and well everything.

Before you start - some pointers on Feng Shui

Feng Shui can be practiced by anyone and everyone. In most cases, it does not cost a thing or can cost very little investment. You can do a lot of the interesting practices to help bring a better balance to your life. I would certainly assure you that your attitude will certainly have a lot to do with the success as you practice some of these interesting 'chores'. Hey who doesn't need more health, harmony and happiness in their lives as we live in these trying times?

I will also note that some of these practices or 'rituals' is what they really are, are going to sound quite silly. But if it's to promote all things good into your life, why not give it a shot and a good try? What have you got to lose? Nothing!

1) For starters, as you start these tasks of clearing away the clutter in your home, wash your hands often, as you attack a pile of papers that need to be addressed or any other task suggested here, remind yourself you are ridding your home of stagnant chi and you are creating a harmonious energy flowing home environment. This will only help your momentum keep going.

2) I would also suggest to put on all the lights in your home while you do this. Brighten up your world. This also helps see what you are doing, to locate those dust bunnies that just have to go while literally enlightening your home environment. Isn't is amazing for whens it's raining outside how just putting on the lights makes you feel safer more lively in your home? This applies very well when you are clearing your home for a better energy of chi to flow smoothly throughout your home which is the whole point of this exercise.

3) Open your windows. Let the fresh air flow throughout your home. Use of a fan may help for those that only have windows on one side say like in an apartment. The idea here is to have the air circulate and be refreshed. This brings in fresh chi into your home, which is essential as you move things about.

4) I would also burn incense as well while doing these chores, use something like sandlewood that helps to purify the surroundings.

Chine New Year will start on February 5th of this year.
While researching this article, I learned a few things that people do and not do as the New Year approaches, and since some of us are behind in our tasks, I mention them here now in January so that we can get ahead on them slightly since some of the tasks at hand will take more time than you anticipated. But I assure you, as you start to do some of these things around your house, you will notice subtle differences in your attitude (it will become more loving and generous) the energy of your home will greatly change (happier and livelier energy creating a harmonious environment for all to enjoy) and lastly all this work will get easier as you progress.

Many people who follow Feng Shui practices, will do a complete clean up of their home from top to bottom for when the Chinese New Year hits. This includes moving even is so very slightly the furniture that hasn't been moved at all for a year. The main idea is to move the stagnant energy that might be lingering in your home from the previous year. And even moving them literally once inch one way or another will help change the energy.

Here are just a few of my fave Fen Shui Rituals to get the fen shui ball rolling for this New Year...

1) Your Entry into Your Home/Apartment:
This space should be free of clutter. This helps good chi enter the home. This means no stacked piles of papers that need to be recycled, no pile of shoes littering the floor. In fact, haven't you noticed at least in the movies how people take off their shoes when entering an Asian house. You do not wish to bring in any "bad luck" or bad chi that came from the outside into your home. So start wearing slippers and shoes that are only used inside the house. The good part of this is that your floors will stay cleaner - that I am sure of.
The other reason besides helping keep your house cleaner, having the entry way into your home being clutter free is to help the good chi roam around this area. You will see this issue being pointed out again and again when it comes to applying feng shui practices in your home and in your office areas.
Now, some of us have kids and the entry way is where we leave all sorts of things that are needed for school, do your best to create bins for them to leave their school bags in or a sitting bench that has storage, etc.

2) Creating a Loving Bedroom Space
This one is interesting and is quite simple. Mind you I will be sharing many more tips about the bedroom and for each room in your house, I simply wanted to list a few tips here to help get you started. Make sure any mirrors in your bedroom do not directly face your bed. Now what you do with watching yourself and your partner on your own time is one thing. But when you are not doing "it" in this way (which is none of my feng shui business quite frankly) make sure you face the mirrors away from looking at your bed. This helps keep matrimonial faithfulness. Or in other words, having a mirror facing your bed can actually bring outside energies into entering your relationship.

Trust me, this one works. As I have experienced the mirror issue vs. marriage faithfulness personally. Hence, why I am mentioning it here first.

Also keep the bedroom clutter free. This is to be a restful space. Sweep under that bed and get all those cobwebs out from under it and just watch the change in your love life!

3) Keeping that Kitchen Clean and Clutter Free
We spend so much time in our kitchens, this is essential place to start allowing good chi to roam free around your living space. As this will help affect everything. Attack that fridge, I do this every week actually, and I really dislike doing the dishes, but as I look at the pile, I always remind myself of its positive energies if its clutter free and clean.

Always throw out old food that has gone bad, by keeping them in your fridge you are only helping stagnant chi remain and grow like the mold on that cheese that's been sitting there on the back top shelf of your refrigerator.

Do your best to create a space where all papers go and come. This would not be in the kitchen if you could handle it, my feng shui suggestion. Its amazing how we collect paper in our world. So create a place in your home where these will stay so that you have only one place to attack your paper pile - and cleaning this pile should be done weekly if not everyday.

4) Attracting more wealth into your life and career
There are so many rituals to help bring wealth into your life, but I will only mention a few here as I will list many more in the next part of this article.

1) I love this one: Take some incense, light it, and using a figure eight or rather an infinity sign on its side, go from one room to the next letting the smoke hit every corner of every room. As you go about the rooms in a clockwise direction you are to say a mantra for the things you wish to materialize. You are to do this seven times, and yes its going to be silly, but I tell you this works. It's been amazing when I needed more clients and had a cash flow problem, I would do this ritual and literally within hours I had results, in some cases, I had results in minutes as the clients would be calling me for orders....

The mantra can be something like this, and I quote: "I bless this house with loving energy for all that enters, and who live here, including (list occupants and don't forget the pets). I bless myself, and ..... with prosperity, health and happiness. The happiness, healthiness and prosperity comes to me now."

And as I mentioned, circle the inside of every room clockwise with the lit incense while saying this mantra. Remember the mantra can be anything (positive) that you would like in your life, say a new job, a better job, a happier home environment, etc. just make sure you know its possible, have faith, yes, faith regardless of your religion or lack of in knowing all is possible if you simply ask for it with the right attitude. Help yourself and you will receive help.

2) Another is using Sea Salt filled in a black or dark navy blue ceramic mug and placing it in your kitchen. Change this every ten days and start this on the new moon. This practice is to help kill any bad luck you may be having and is said to help seriously bring happiness to couples.

3) Lastly, and I love this one, get some dirt yes earth dirt from someone who is wealthy - or a pebble could work too, and place this in a little plastic baggy and keep it in your wallet. This is said to help bring you wealth like this wealthy person has. But you must make sure you have their permission - otherwise it is like stealing - and well, that's doesn't go over well with Buddha.

Well what else can I say? But, Good Luck! And let me know if you tried any of these rituals and their workings on your life and career.

Feng Shui Your Emails

2008-08-14T09:26:00.004-04:00

With so many of us having computers and laptops both in our places of work and at home, we can easily let emails, photos and unused files and programs add 'clutter' to our life. And so many of us have more than one email due to our own preferences, work, and hobbies. And when you wish to increase your chances of bringing in more wealth into your life, your computer and laptop should not be forgotten.

The importance of having a clean and organized work area both at the office and in your home should be mandatory. One's own mind can think much easier when things are organized and neat. Personally I have more than enough email accounts due to my various websites and blogs that I can easily forget about them only to allow the emails including spam emails to pile up.

It is an amazing feeling when you actually declutter your email in-box. "You got to be kidding me right?" - You must be thinking! But when was the last time you actually had only ten emails in your in-box? Believe you me, when I opened up my email programs today, it was easy to get right to the point, answer those emails I needed to and move on to my next working task. I wasn't reminded and those deleted emails are now long forgotten.

It can take some time to go through all of them, especially if you let them pile up. To make things easier for you, you may want to create new folders for certain emails you need to save such as 'school', 'receipts', 'pets', 'friends', etc. Once these folders have been created, any read emails you need to save can be moved over to these newly created folders. I do my best to do this once a week.

The entire point of this office feng shui exercise it to have a barely empty in-box so you can see only those emails that need immediate attention from you. But do not stop there, regularly once a week empty your spam folder and trash folders to keep them clean as well.

Just last night, I went through and saved what I needed for future reference such as online receipt notices for tax purposes into my tax folder, and other web-related work emails into another folder, thereby leaving me with only a few emails for me to actually take action on. It took me only five minutes to do this, but thought how funny it was that I had been spending 'negative energy' for several weeks looking at the fact I had over 200 emails in my email box of which 70 were not read yet. Who needs that sort of anxiety facing you? Not me!

Like many of you, I too have signed up on enough sites, blogs and services that some of them email me what seem like every day. By clicking on the 'from' bar at the top of your mail program, you can easily alphabetize your list of emails, making it easier for you to select those you want to immediately remove and delete from your computer. In fact, since I did this last night, I will go back to those sites that email me most often and update how often they may email me, I might even remove them permanently since all they seem to do is fill up my in-box.

The whole point is really about creating a smooth positive energy surrounding your work area. This helps you to ensure the right channels of your universe are helping you, not hindering you. And since our email programs and constant bombardment of emails from various sources can easily get out of hand, with regular cleaning, deleting and organizing, a lot can come your way by opening up the right channels of solid work production from you and bring good Qi into your work environment.

Attracting Money Into Your Feng Shui Home

2008-08-14T09:18:00.001-04:00

I will discuss how to utilize two Feng Shui cures that will help attract more money into your home and, simultaneously, slow down the amount of money that is flowing out of your home.

In order to achieve this goal, we will take a look at two well known Feng Shui symbols: The Feng Shui frog and the Feng Shui turtle. These symbols have to do with Feng Shui wealth and are associated with the Feng Shui money aspect of your living environment.

Frogs symbolize the leaping effect of money coming into your life and, in this case, your home. Ideally, Feng Shui frogs should be placed outside of your home. A Feng Shui home will usually have frogs located somewhere in front of the house or apartment. I like to place 3 frogs on the front lawn, several feet apart.

The most important aspect to placing these powerful Feng Shui cures and Feng Shui symbols is to make sure the frogs are leaping towards the house. The backs of Feng Shui frogs should face the street and the heads of the frogs should face the front of the house. In addition, one of the three frogs should wind up facing the front door. Simply make sure the third frog has its back to the curb and its head is facing your homes' front door. The arrangement of the frogs symbolizes Feng Shui wealth leaping in through the front door and into your home. If we decide to add a water feature to our arrangement of frogs, we will multiply the Feng Shui effect and create a very positive and powerful flow of Chi towards the house.

The Feng Shui symbol of the turtle represents the slow moving energy of wealth leaving the household. Since turtles move slowly and frogs leap fast, the connection is easy to make. I know some of you are probably thinking, "Hmm... Maybe I can use frogs and turtles to get my needs met in other areas of my life, such as a Feng Shui relationship or faster or slower Feng Shui sex?" Well...at least I have you thinking about Feng Shui symbols and how they relate to your everyday life. Unfortunately, these particular symbols work best for attracting and maintaining wealth.

O.K. now that I have you back in focus and on the task at hand, let's discuss how and where to utilize Feng Shui wealth symbol number two: The Turtle.

All turtles should be placed in the rear of the house or apartment. Patios, decks or yards are totally acceptable places for your team of turtles. Try placing three turtles with their backs facing the house. The heads of the turtles should be facing away from the house the eyes should not be looking at the house, deck, patio or yard. Also, if you want to boost the effectiveness of the turtles, paint four small red dots on the back of each turtle. Red is a powerful Feng Shui wealth color.

If you go to a garden shop you will find frogs and turtles that can withstand various weather conditions in your area.

Namaste,

San Dan Yi and The Car Shui Team

Please visit http://www.carshui.com if you would like additional information regarding the ancient art of Feng Shui.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=San_Dan_Yi

Feng Shui - A Few Good Stars

2008-08-11T10:44:00.000-04:00

Feng Shui - A Few Good Stars
By Alvin Yap

In Chinese Metaphysics, there are many types of systems and formulas. One of them is known as Flying Stars systems of Feng Shui. In this system, there are nine types of stars which are given numeral of 1 - 9. These stars are actually bodies of energy (also known as Qi) that moves within a property. In Feng Shui, a property is divided into nine equal sectors based on compass direction of North, South, East, West, Northeast, Southeast, Northwest and Southwest. The sector without any compass direction is the center. The distribution of Qi over these sectors demarcates the good and bad sectors therein and formed an energy pattern within a property. The energy pattern in a property will change from month to month and year to year as the stars fly from one sector to the other.

In Flying Stars Feng Shui, a property belonged to a period of time based on its facing direction. There are altogether nine periods and each period has 20 years based on the Chinese Solar Calendar. We are currently in period 8 which started in February 2004 and will last until February 2023. In each period, the nine flying stars are categorizes into good and bad stars. The good stars are deemed timely and will bring prosperity to residents of a property whereas the bad ones are considered untimely and become portents of misfortune. For this period, the few good stars are 8, 9 and 1. Star 8 is the current prosperity star whereas star 9 and 1 are future and distant prosperity stars respectively.

Star 8 is considered very auspicious as it is the ruling star of the period. It brings wealth, financial success, career advancement and prosperity to the residents when it flies into a given sector of a property. For example, star 8 occupies the East sector in the year 2008. A house with the main entrance in the East sector or a room in the East sector will be able to tap into the positive energy of this star and the residents will enjoy good luck in their endeavors.

Star 9 is deemed auspicious as it is the ruling star for the next period which will start from Feb 2023 onwards. This star brings future prosperity to the residents. In year 2008, this star flies into the Southeast sector of a property. A door or room where this star is located will allow the residents therein to enjoy good luck such as long term investments, promotion and business opportunities.

Star 1 is also auspicious as it is the distant ruling star and belonged to period 1 which will start from Feb 2043 onwards. This star brings wisdom, academic luck, recognition and fame. In year 2008, this star flies into the center of a property. A door or room with this star residing in it will be bring scholarly luck for students or those in the literary, artistic or creative fields.

The other usable stars are star 6 and 4. Both stars are deemed to be untimely but nevertheless have their positive qualities when combined with favorable stars of the current period. Star 6 is suitable for power and status whereas star 4 can be used for romance and academic pursuits. Star 6 and star 4 resides in the North and Northeast respectively in year 2008.

For more of such articles and free Feng Shui tips, you can visit http://www.proactive-qi.com/Fengshui.html

Alvin Yap is the founder and owner of the website http://www.proactive-qi.com which offers free horoscope readings based on the Chinese Astrology known as the Four Pillars of Destiny and free consultation on the Chinese Metaphysical Science of Feng Shui. Visit us for free download of E-Books, tips, articles etc. Get Empowered, Get Energized and Get a Life!

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Feng Shui Power of Realization To Decluttering Easily

2008-08-01T10:50:00.008-04:00

Feng Shui Power of Realization To Decluttering Easily by Leah Quinn

We could always use a little more effort when it comes to realizations. What's that you ask? In this case when I refer to realizations, it is simply the act of thinking about an outcome so much that it becomes a reality. Feng Shui techniques apply this practice as well, whether through meditating or simply thinking positive thoughts through out your day and night.

Feng Shui is not simply about ensuring your home is clutter free (not all clutter is bad) but this 'good clutter' should be items you use throughout your week. I am in constant effort to declutter my home. It is super easy to allow papers to pile, new items come in without taking out old items no longer needed. I usually use Fridays and weekends to really bring back my home to being the sanctuary I want it to be. Feel free to refer to my article on Feng Shui Fridays for quick tasks you can do to get started.

But it is so easy to avoid any of the cleaning when you are so busy at work. For me, it is an extra challenge since I work from home. It is very easy to hit the 'stumble upon' button and get distracted from my own writing articles to checking out what my friends may have shared on facebook for example. I can easily use my writing and blogging as its own distraction from me cleaning up my art room. But I have several tricks that I use to get myself re-motivated and back on track.

To help one get back I share these easy tips and tricks that I use to keep myself on track with my realizations, visualizations and harmonious thoughts to assist me in empowering myself to declutter. Approaching decluttering with positive realizations seriously get the positive Qi to come into your home that much quicker which in turns has you and your family receiving its many benefits that much faster!

Gratitude:
Number one and foremost, one must be grateful for all they have, for in turn the more you are sincerely grateful, that much more you will be grateful for.

As soon as you wake up, some of your first thoughts should be to be grateful you are alive and well. Be grateful you have a new day in front of you and be grateful you are blessed with the energy and strength besides conviction to charge forward and take action.

Throughout your day, remind yourself all that you are grateful for, it may sound silly, but look around you and of your possessions, your friends and family, etc. Be thankful for all of it. Say it to yourself or out loud.

And when it comes to turning in for the night, list in your head all those things you are grateful for. Feel all the blessings you received through out your day, and be grateful for them. If you are looking for a job for example, even be grateful for that! "I am so grateful I am seeking a new job that I know will come to me immediately" - for example.

Become one with your home:
Now this may sound silly, but go around your home, room to room (or corner to corner should you live in one of those studios in NYC for example) and really look around. Feel the energy your items are 'putting out'. As you become more aware, physically, you will easily be able to tell which corners and areas need 'adjusting' and frankly reorganizing. Some may be so obvious than it can be daunting, but do check out my next suggestion.

As you look around, mark down on a pad, not just in your head, what you would like to do with that particular area of your home. You may in fact realize this a so called 'chore' will take an obvious several weekends of free time to complete, but remind yourself, really remind yourself that with every effort, more goodness will come into your life. (It really will) By removing unused items, you are making room for good energy to flow through your home and into your mind, making it easier to keep positive thoughts growing and not become stagnated.

Bread Down Decluttering Chores:
I say this time and time again. When one looks at one's office for example or the over stocked garage full of items, it is super easy to misplace important papers and items treasured by you and your family such as Granny Kay's afghans and handmade lace packed away behind the croquette set you never used but bought on a whim.

I like to use the 30 (or less) minute timer rule. Take your kitchen timer, literally take it off the fridge door and set it for 30 minutes. Once set, attack one area or one box you have decided to work on. Clean it out completely, throwing away and donating items that need to go. I suggest once a bag or box has been sorted, remove those garbage bags out of the house immediately. Said removal of the unwanted and no longer needed items really will make a difference in how you feel instantly! And within those 30 minutes, you will sense the achievement of accomplishment; of which 30 minutes before you were simply dreading doing anything to do with cleaning.

To help avoid the dreading of actually decluttering and taking action, I suggest the following: once your timer is set, think to yourself and through the thirty minutes that you are doing these things to remove stagnated Qi (chi) and replacing it with good Qi.

A room and home that has refreshed and renewed Qi is a home that is full of positive feelings, more love and happiness and in turn also brings in more growing wealth opportunities.

The other most important task is to really follow up and take those bags and now organized for donation boxes off to where they need to be. Do not let them simply sit despite them being organized into garbage bags....out they go now! Once these items are out of the actual room and house, you will immediately feel a difference of energy in the room - I promise you!

Continue to keep a vision board or list:
I often review my vision board and list every month. In fact, I have one list of things that I wished to have (a new camera, kitchen-aid mixer, etc.) that I created back in January. Now that it is August, I looked back on that list, and was happy to see that I have checked off many of the items that I wanted. These items came to me in their own good time, such as the barely used new kitchen aid mixer I purchased for $65.00 at a tag sale! I must use this item at least once if not twice in any week. And there was no way that I could afford a brand new one during those months. But still, I knew it was possible, so I put it on the list.

By having this list visually available to me when I enter certain rooms, I am sending out energies that assist me in receiving what I have asked for in a most positive manner.

I keep several lists posted to my board and walls which help to remind me what I am made up of, to what I may want out of life to come into my life and most importantly why I am constantly removing any unwanted items from my house, and here I share one saying so that you too can put this up in the room or where you may think you need reminding in helping you to keep positive while you do all this decluttering work:

"I am getting rid of no longer used items and doing all this work to create a bountiful, peaceful creative existence which is filled with true love, true friendship and true prosperity"

I have this quote placed in several areas of my home. Feel free to write this down and place it in those areas you may need to work on, such as your office. And of course tweak the words a bit to reflect that for which you may want more of in your life.

If some of these practices sound a bit like 'The Secret', it is no coincidence. First of all, it takes time, to really believe positive thinking can bring positive results. But I assure you the more faith you have and the more you practice positive and grateful thinking, you will be assaulted with good vibes and good things happening to you at every turn. It will become easier to declutter your home, so start small, and receive big rewards!

And remember to realize what your home will be like and feel like during your decluttering process. Realize how close you already are to where you want to be, realize you are more than half way there, in fact, believe you are strong enough, believe it is already here and that you are simply following up.

And in fact, if you do 30 minute tasks like this for several weeks when you can fit it in, you will find yourself starting to get on a roll, you will find yourself more energized and will be organizing things you haven't touched for years. That is neatest of the things I have found most positive about using realization techniques while decluttering my house. You will find you are more ready than ever to accept more good into your life and in fact you and your home will be open for just that to happen. And you will have an easily accomplished uncluttered beautiful home to boot!

Zen Peace to You!

Why Not Using Feng Shui in the Home to Live Your Life Happier and Comfortably?

2008-07-31T16:17:00.000-04:00

If you're in the right place facing the right direction doing the right thing at the right time, you're in tune with the universe. Are you? The basic principle of Feng Shui is to live in harmony with your environment so that the energy surrounding you works for you rather than against you. Feng Shui is all about the associations and energy flow between people and objects. Would you like to know if all the objects in your home are in perfect harmony to each other or not? When your home is balanced and comfortable, the harmonious flows of Chi (the circulating life force whose existence and properties are the basis of much Chinese philosophy and medicine) will be significant benefit to obstacles and problems will be more easily conquer.

Don't you know that your home should be planned to best possible good Feng Shui for all your family members? There are different kinds of Feng Shui general rules for positioning rooms with different functions - bedrooms, kitchens, dining rooms, and bathrooms. Also it's valuable to know that the design of doors, hallways, corners, split-levels, and staircases, and their relationship to one another.

*Main doors should open into bright, spacious rooms that stimulate happy and comfortable feelings. When you open your main door, you should be able to see as much of the interior of the house as possible. Main doors should not open into narrow space or having a low ceiling. Often it causes sickness to the residents of the home. Actually using a mirror or having overhead lights can help ease this issue.

*Spiral staircases are not really recommended but if there is one, it/s better to be located in the corner of a house because it's less harmful.

*You should not locate bathrooms in the middle of the house because it spreads bad vibrations out from the center to the building. In exchange, bathrooms should be sited along the sides of the house. And the toilet should be hidden from obvious view. Wall or some form of barrier to screen toilet from rest of room is recommended. Also you should keep the toilet seat closed.

*The entrance to the kitchen should not be blocked.

*The dried flowers in the house are causes of possible bad luck.

Is it possible to extent your good luck using Feng Shui principles? Yes! Energizing different aspects of your life, as a result of that improving your life. For instance, if wealth is what you want, there are specific corners of your home that you can activate by using Feng Shui enhancers. You can start with good lighting effects, decorative objects and healthy green plants. Energizing the parts of your home possibly increases your income, enhances your career opportunities, attracts helpful people into your life, improves your love life, enhances your marriage possibilities, or attracts romance into your life.

*If there is bright light in the southern area of your home, you will enjoy extremely good Feng Shui fortune, particularly if you are in show business or politics business.

*Silk flowers are great Feng Shui anywhere in the home. They look happy, and they never die. However you do need to keep them clean without out any dust.

*Mirrors are great to place in the dining room, but dressing mirror in bedroom should be away from the bed.

*The fish is an extremely good symbol of success. It should be placed around entrance of your home/apartment to signify achievement.

*Using water is a popular method of stimulating the wealth sector. Fish swimming in an aquarium will further give support good Chi flows.

*Crystals are excellent energizers, and they should be displayed in the northeast, southwest, or center of the home or room.

*Round tables do not give off bad Shar Chi, so they're great for your home. Round shapes symbolize the luck from heaven.

Bad luck Feng Shui is generally cause by the bad placement of doors and by the inauspicious location of rooms and doors. This results in poison arrows often creating Shar Chi (killing breath). Sharp pointed objects and threatening structures pointing at your place of work, particularly at its main entrance, can cause all kinds of misfortunes and difficulties. Feng Shui offers solutions for blocking poison arrows; as a matter of face, much of Feng Shui practice has to do with diffusing the harmful effects of poison arrows.

*The Eiffel Tower in Paris is an imposing structure, but if your home/apartment faces such a building, or if you have a large window directly facing one, the Chi created will be too strong and the Feng Shui will not be prosperous. If you have to stay, the best solution would be trying to block it off visually. If yours is an apartment facing it, try to have thick curtains or keep the windows closed. If your house is facing it, change the direction of your front door, or, having a few leafy trees to block the view. The killing breath of poison arrows always goes in a straight line. So you just need to block it before it reaches your house, and then dissolves it.

Please visit http://www.superdealsexpress.com/fengshui_inthehome/index.html to learn more about Feng Shui in the home. If you follow the guidance, you will receive a lot of fortune!

http://www.superdealsexpress.com/fengshui_inthehome/index.html

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Can Feng Shui Make You Happy?

2008-07-31T16:13:00.002-04:00

Can Feng Shui Make You Happy?
By Fay Chapple

Get Happy With Feng Shui!

Many people believe that in order to be happy the must first completely change their environment. Redecorate, renovate, buy expensive furnishings, after all Happiness is always someplace else and just around the corner.

It is often believed that happiness cannot be achieved because the house your currently in is a bad Feng Shui house.

There is no bad Feng Shui house. Generally you are in the house or home you are in at this time for a reason. When you do a complete Feng Shui Audit of your home - you often see that the most challenging part of your home is also an area in which you will benefit from learning the growth and wisdom that comes with trying to re balance that area.

Do you want to be happy in your current home?

First, look around and be grateful. No matter what shape your home is in, how it is decorated or where it is located, be grateful that their is a roof over your head that offers shelter, warmth and comfort for you and your family. Be grateful and acknowledge that their are millions of people around the world that are not as fortunate as you. Thank your home for offering you this small respite of serenity and be happy for all its wonderful qualities and its quirky challenges.

Second, much of the feelings of happiness come from a place of clarity and balance. When you don't feel rushed, pegged in, or stuck you feel happier. That feeling of lightness, space and freedom does not come from square footage , but from a place that is clean, clear, clutterfree. Your home should allow as much sun shine, lights, and air in as possible. Keep your home clutter free in order to encourage positive fresh energy which in turn will make you feel lighter and happier. Have beautiful calming scents and music fill you space and encourage joy!

Third, Feng Shui for the soul is the same as Feng Shui for your home. It is equally as important to clear your emotional space as it is to clear you physical space. What is keeping you from being happy? You may need a shift in focus. Surround yourself with positive, energetic friends that put a smile on your face and rid yourself of people that pull you down or make you feel undeserving.

Remember happiness is a choice, choose to be happy now in the moment, don't wait for happiness, it is already all around you!

©2008 Fay Chapple

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Fay Chapple is an International Feng Shui Expert, award winning Interior Decorator and Life Coach, and is Principal of the award winning Home & Life Design Firm Blue Avalon.

Blue Avalon specializes in Interior Decorating, Feng Shui and Abundant Living. Blue Avalon is the publisher of The Blue Avalon Journal, a monthly e-zine packed with ideas, tips and insider secrets! To subscribe log on to our site at http://www.blueavalon.com and you'll receive a bonus book, The Number One Feng Shui Secret That Will Transform Your Life!

Blue Avalon - "Harmony for your home... Balance for your life!" http://www.blueavalon.com

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Taking Care of You - A Feng Shui Priority

2008-07-23T14:51:00.001-04:00

Taking Care of You - A Feng Shui Priority
By Pat Heydlauff

A successful independent business person named Sue is in the field of sales and also a client. She recently told me, "Without surrounding myself with Feng Shui principles, I'd never reach the end of my day meeting my self-defined sales quotas without being totally exhausted. Fortunately the Feng Shui principle of taking care of self helps to ensure that I have enough energy left at days end to shop, go out to dinner or spend quality time with my family or friends."

It is not uncommon for people in our busy, fast paced multi-tasking world to simply run out of energy well before the end of any given normal day. Not only are we constantly multi-tasking and being bombarded with over 60,000 visual and audible images every day but our days are crammed full of things we must do, those things we do for others and things we should do for self. It seems like the last thing on our list always is "taking care of self."

Are You at the Top of Your List?

In the world of Feng Shui, "taking care of self" should be on the top of your daily "will do" list, not the very last thing you tend to and then only if there is time and energy left to do so. Only when you take care of you first will you be able to perform well at work, properly care for children, nurture a spouse, have rewarding equal relationships or be a good volunteer.

Caring for self is not the same as being selfish but rather a new way of looking at living your life. Making a priority out of "Caring for self" provides you a more energized way of living and thinking. "Caring for self" as a priority develops new positive energy habits that will reward you with productivity and efficiency during the day and with enough energy left at the end of the day to do necessary household tasks, enjoy your family and social commitments. "Caring for self" as a priority also creates an environment with much less stress.

While there are no magic cures when it comes to reducing stress in our lives and energizing self, there are a few simple steps you can follow that will help energize you while reducing some of that stress in your world.

The "energy boost" Plan

Step One is always "unclutter your world." There is no exception to this step. When Sue finds herself unmotivated or in a real selling slump - she gets busy organizing and getting rid of "stuff" which helps her clear her mind - the result - improved focus and productivity. Go through your home room by room and get rid of everything that does not fit, is broken, doesn't look right in your current home or is simply stacks of "stuff" that you really do not need.

The more uncluttering you do the simpler your life becomes and the easier it is to take care of what is left. In fact, the things that are left should be only things you really love because those are the things that provide you the best positive energy.

Do you really need dozens of magazines you will never read, stacks of books you have read and will never read again or hundreds of pictures of glowing sunsets you never look at and enjoy? Will you ever again wear half of the clothes in your closet that are either a size too small or went out of style three years ago? Get rid of all of that stuff. The rule of thumb for clothing is "if it doesn't fit, is out of style or you don't feel great in it, get rid of it."

Whether you have a home office, your work is your home or you work outside of the home, follow the same procedure for uncluttering your workplace.

Next, learn to work with daily lists of things to do. Call it a "Will Do List" since that shows action and present tense. At the very top of your list place at least one thing you will do to take better care of yourself. It can be something as simple as quietly sitting in the sun by yourself for 10 minutes just relaxing; or, listening to soothing music and allowing your mind to go completely blank for 20 minutes. Only when you allow your mind to go completely blank can you remove stressful thoughts and be filled with new positive energy and new ideas.

On the remainder of the list place the things you have to do and the things you want to do. Number them in order of importance and begin with No. 1 so you always get the most important things done first but only after you've done at least one thing for you to energize you. This step alone will remove much unnecessary stress from your life.

And third, be sure to unclutter your mind not just your external surroundings and personal environment. The mind stores forever all of the negative things that have happened to you over your lifetime unless you clean them out. Most people never remember all of the wonderful and good things that have happened to them - but always manage to hold onto a misinterpreted five word phrase someone said 10 years ago or all of the hurts un-intentional and intentional as well as painful experiences. Holding onto the negative energy of misconstrued statements, arguments, painful emotions and misspoken words only keeps you in negative energy space rather than creating uplifting caring for yourself energy.

The more negative thoughts you hold onto the more negative energy you carry with you on a daily basis. If you are holding onto all of this negative energy, this may be a big reason why you may not have enough energy left at the end of the day.

The easiest way to get rid of negative thinking it to simply say to yourself, "I no longer need to hold onto _______ (your specific negative thought); I have learned all I need to learn from that experience and now I send it away forever." The more you follow this simple procedure the more positive energy you will have left at the end of the day.

If you need an energy boost, remember to unclutter your surroundings, make a daily "Will Do List" placing "caring for self" at the top of the list and unclutter your mind - get rid of all of those negative thoughts.

These few changes in your lifestyle will lower stress, help you to be more efficient and productive and provide you lots more positive energy.

© Pat Heydlauff, all rights reserved 2008

Pat Heydlauff, President of Energy-by-Design ( http://www.energy-by-design.com) and Feng Shui expert, is a consultant, speaker, columnist and award-winning artist. She has been consulting with individuals, families, and companies since the early 1990's, with clients ranging from California to Florida. In addition, she speaks at corporate and organizational functions, and gives seminars to enhance productivity. Pat Heydlauff can be reached at [mailto:balancingenergy@energy-by-design.com]balancingenergy@energy-by-design.com

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Fantastic Feng Shui Plants

2008-07-17T10:36:00.000-04:00

Fantastic Feng Shui Plants
By Linda Binns

So you're looking into moving the concepts and principles of feng shui outside of your home and into your garden. This is a fabulous idea - after all, the energy you create outside your home directly affects the energy that is created within your home.

One of the best ways to create balanced, positive feng shui in your outdoor living space is to use plants to create positive energy. But do you choose just any plants? Are there certain plants and flowers that create better feng shui than others?

Although most all plants create positive energy for your household, there are some that clearly stand out as fine selections for generating vibrant, renewing, comfortable energy. Here are a few examples:

· Jade (Crassula Ovata) - this plant is wonderful for creating abundance and prosperity. You can use this plant near your front door (your career area) to invite abundance-producing energy into your home. You can also use this plant in your "fame" area at the rear of your home, as well as the "wealth and p[prosperity" area at the left rear section of your home, to help provide opportunities for notoriety, publicity, and personal wealth.

· Peony (Paeonia) - this flower symbolizes love and affection. If you have adequate sunlight, you can plant this flower in the right rear corner of your home (the "love and relationships" area) to promote harmonious family relationships. This is also a good choice for planting in or near the "creativity and children" section, in the central right part of your home, to help foster acceptance and approval of a child's creative endeavors.

· Chrysanthemum - this flower is associated with ease of life, happiness, and joy. Yellow chrysanthemums are particularly good for creating joyful energy around your home. This is a fantastic choice for the "love and relationships" area located at the rear right corner of your home.

· Narcissus - this flowering bulb represents good fortune. This is another good flower to place at the front of your home, to attract abundance and good career opportunities.

· Money Plant (Philodendron Scandens) - a wonderful plant for shaded areas. Make sure you keep the leaves trimmed so they do not become too large. This is ordinarily placed at the front of the home; however, if the front of your home is very sunny, you may want to skip this plant, because not having a money plant at all is better than having a money plant with dead leaves.

· Lillies - these flowers help promote positive energy and good feng shui throughout the year. They also grow easily in just about any kind of soil, so they are a low-maintenance flower that you can count on year after year.

You can see that you have many choices when selecting plants for your feng shui garden. Just remember to intersperse these plants with metal sculptures and other objects that will help break up the dominating wood element of the plants and flowers. You can easily mix these elements to create a landscape that is both visually attractive and pleasing to the remainder of your senses (including the metaphysical ones) as well.

Linda Binns shows you how to be more successful in all areas of your life by working with your environment. Get FREE Feng Shui Success Secrets. These powerful and practical secrets can help you transform your life. Go to http://www.fengshuiexplained.com now.

Linda Binns is author of Feng Shui for Your Relationships: Changing Your Environment to Create Better Relationships. She has been a Feng Shui Practitioner, Author, Speaker and teacher for over 10 years. She has appeared internationally on television and radio and in local publications. Linda is also the founder of The Feng Shui Success Institute - which teaches in-depth Feng Shui training and practitioner certification.

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To Create Good Luck - Use Feng Shui

2008-07-17T10:07:00.001-04:00

To Create Good Luck - Use Feng Shui
By Pat Heydlauff

Ancient Chinese Emperors used Feng Shui's positive energy principles to influence the good luck and good fortune not only for their lifetime but that of the next seven generations of their families." In an article appearing in Fortune Magazine, according to veteran home builder Bob Toll, "one of their (buyer's) main concerns is buying homes with facades that face east or south so that the house will have the best possible Feng Shui, or good luck brought by the spirits. One man's Feng Shui is another man's golf course. I think Feng Shui is worth a lot more."

Most people assume you are either born lucky or you must go through life doomed and have to fight for everything you need and want. Some people do indeed seem to be luckier than others ... or are they?

Is there a good fortune or good luck area in your home and office? Can the basic principles of Feng Shui be used to enhance the positive energy in those areas of your home or office so you can become one of the "lucky ones" by creating your own good fortune?

Can You Create Your Own Good Luck?

The answer is yes to all of the above. There is a specific area in your home and office that is dedicated to good luck and good fortune. And, you definitely can energize the good fortune sector of your home and office as did the ancient Chinese rulers.

If things never seem to turn out right in your life; if things always seem to go wrong at the worst possible moment; you never seem to get "the job", "get that raise or promotion", "buy the house you really wanted" or "be in the right place at the right time", it is time to take action and create a positive "good luck" energy shift in your world.

Your Good Luck Plan - Unclutter First

Find the south wall or south area of your living and/or family room, bedroom or office and begin there. Unclutter it first - make absolutely sure there is no clutter in this area or you will further energize the clutter and you will just get more clutter.

If you feel that you are often on the edge of a breakthrough with a relationship, finally feeling better after months and months of not feeling well or you are about to get a promotion but none of these ever quite happen, the odds are good that the good fortune area at home or in your office is cluttered with "stuff."

When you clear the "stuff" from this area do not simply shove it elsewhere - put it properly away or "get rid of it." Sort through it; appropriately store, hang or put it away; or file what you need to keep, take action on what needs follow up, delegate to others what you can and toss anything that is no longer relevant or important.

If you were to simply move all of this "stuff" you would create stagnant energy in some other area of your life, perhaps health, creativity or wealth. Do not transfer negative energy to some other area of your life; deal with it and remove it from your life.

Your Good Luck Plan - Step Two

The next step is to positively energize this area. Begin in your living/family room. Good fortune energy can be enhanced in a number of ways. It is symbolically represented by the color red, by fire energy, tall triangular shapes and the number 9. Some examples of "good luck" energy enhancements are:

• A wooden vase filled with a bouquet of tall red flowers like gladiolas - curly wooden willow branches or tall bamboo sticks also work well

• A variety of tall red candles in varying sizes and shapes in glass candlestick holders - 9 candles would be great if there is room - be sure to light them once to release the energy

• A picture of jagged mountains (triangles) reflecting the red of a sunrise or framed in red

• A predominantly red vertical piece of artwork

• A wooden number 9 painted red

You are limited only by your imagination when energizing the good fortune area of your life as long as you use the guidelines above. The elements not to use in the south are things made out of or that represent metal, water and earth such as a metal picture frame, artwork of the ocean or fields of barren land.

Follow this same procedure in your bedroom and in your office.

Your Good Luck Plan - Step Three

The last step is the easiest and least expensive. Change your thinking. You need to unclutter your mind just like you uncluttered your home and office. Anytime negative thinking creeps into your mind say to yourself, "I have shifted my energy to encourage good luck to enter my world; old rules and old thoughts no longer apply, be gone." The more often you do this the less your mind will remind you of negative thinking and the sooner you will change your thinking to attract good fortune to enter into your world.

Positive "good luck" energy works whether you believe in it or not. It is not simply mind over matter or a state of mind. For example air currents flow and wind blows but you cannot see this energy, only feel it. The same holds true for the heat from a campfire. You may not see the flame or even the embers glowing but you can still feel the energy of the fire.

Even though you cannot see it, "good luck" energy works the same way. Unclutter your good fortune areas, enhance them appropriately and then bring into alignment your thinking. Good fortune occurs when positive energy is focused on creating it. Actively create your own good fortune and experience the joy.

© Pat Heydlauff, all rights reserved 2008

Pat Heydlauff, President of Energy-by-Design (www.energy-by-design.com) and Feng Shui expert, is a consultant, speaker, columnist and award-winning artist. She has been consulting with individuals, families, and companies since the early 1990's, with clients ranging from California to Florida. In addition, she speaks at corporate and organizational functions, and gives seminars to enhance productivity.
Pat Heydlauff can be reached at balancingenergy@energy-by-design.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Pat_Heydlauff http://EzineArticles.com/?To-Create-Good-Luck---Use-Feng-Shui&id=1321958

Feng Shui and Symbols - What You Have in Your House Says a Lot About You

2008-07-10T13:43:00.001-04:00

Feng Shui and Symbols - What You Have in Your House Says a Lot About You
ByAmy Gray

What does a broken statue of a rooster have to do with Feng Shui? Feng Shui teaches us that everything in our house is a reflection of what is in our mind. Symbolically speaking, your house and the things in it reflects your thoughts, feelings, and spirit.

So let's get back to that rooster. One of my clients had recently separated from her husband. I noticed that a statue of a large bird was directly facing her bed, so it was probably the first thing she saw when getting up in the morning. Upon closer examination, I noticed two things; first, one of the legs had previously been broken and was wrapped in what appeared to be a cast. Second, I realized that it was not a chicken; it was a rooster. Unfortunately, the coxcomb on the top of the head had broken off, probably in the same fall that broke the leg of the statue.

I examined this unfortunate art piece for a moment and then said to my client, "Do you realize that the first thing you see in the morning is a broken cock?"

After I picked her up from the floor (she was laughing so much she just collapsed), she gasped out, "You have no idea of how perfect that observation is." Not wanting to really know much more, I suggested we send out the broken rooster for repair. We then talked about what she really wanted to see first thing in the morning; it was her flute and music and a picture of her daughter.

Another client was having a hard time keeping relationships with men going. Visiting her apartment was like seeing a shrine to her daughter. Everywhere was a mother/daughter photograph. It felt like she was already in a relationship and there was no room for any other one to grow.

Everything that you choose to surround yourself with has symbolic meaning and reflects something about your life. Whether intentional or not, all those objects, pictures, photographs, and pieces of furniture resonate with information about you. Take a look around at your house. What is the first thing you see when you enter your home? When you get up in the morning? When you sit down to eat? Do those objects support you in living your best life? Observe what you have around you and then experiment. See how you feel swapping out the images that surround you for other ones that are a better reflection of who you are and where you want to go. I've seen this simple action do amazing things to improve people's lives.

Interested in learning more about Feng Shui and ways to improve the energy in your home or office? Get great tips and motivating messages by subscribing to the Empty Your Nest newsletter at http://www.emptyyournest.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Amy_Gray http://EzineArticles.com/?Feng-Shui-and-Symbols---What-You-Have-in-Your-House-Says-a-Lot-About-You&id=1304214

Feng Shui and Animals

2008-07-06T19:30:00.001-04:00

Feng Shui and Animals
By Jiaying Lee

As we observe the animal world around us be they pets or animals in the wild we will see what becalms them and what agitates. The animal is especially open to the flow of chi in the universe because they do not use conscious thought. That is to say they do not have the ability to choose what comes to mind it is chosen for them by instinct and environment. The human on the other hand can direct thoughts they can deal with negative thoughts by choice if they are of healthy mind.

Some years ago our family had a pet cat and it was bonded particularly with my daughter. Whenever Helen was on the phone Sheba the cat would side up to her and complain in her ear. This pattern would continue until the phone was hung up. We would watch this antic of this little animal and its view of the world and in my mind I could sense that something was out of balance and out of harmony whenever this phone was answered.

Some years later Sheba was badly injured and I hurriedly took her to the vet. We had to wait for some hour because it was late at night and the vet had to make a special visit. During this time I held Sheba and began to calm the environment around us with a mantra. The little animal came becalmed and although the injuries were quite severe she recovered and lived again. For the animal the chi of the universe was being blocked by a phone call and being invoked and channelled through a mantra. This was no small event as the vet had said she could not live with such horrific injuries.

It interesting how household pets choose the high ground in the house. They get on pianos and tabletops and special places in the house where they are most comfortable. Is this not because they find the energy of chi most present in these spots. Energy, which meets their instincts and environmental needs from evolutionary times? The animal is drawn to what is beautiful and harmonious. The respond to even sacred objects, which are in the house. St Francis the patron Saint of animals is an appropriate choice of saintly shrine in the home They also love small plants and have great attraction to mirrors, which satisfy their curiosity and their sense of harmony for mirrors increase the chi in the environment.

In Friendship Jiaying Lee

Jiaying Lee uses her cultural background and her life coach training to teach practical Feng Shui. She is the author and owner of http://www.fengshuiriches.com/ site and for more free articles on Feng Shui strategies for fortune and life enrichment visit the site. Just click on the above.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jiaying_Lee http://EzineArticles.com/?Feng-Shui-and-Animals&id=1292903

Energy Clearing For Your Home

2008-06-15T09:25:00.002-04:00

Energy Clearing For Your Home

By Kristiana Jourgensen

The whole universe is made of energy. This is not some hippy ideal but a universal, scientific and metaphysical law. The interesting fact is that we usually only consider energy when we don't have it or when it is not working the way we want it to. Our electricity in our house can go out in a storm, we can get sick and loose or physical energy and then there is a less obvious form of energy that lives within spaces that can also "go bad". You may not notice this kind of energy directly but intuitively we know when we are around a person or place that doesn't sit well with our comfort level for whatever reason. Sometimes energy in a room just gets stagnant from not being used or sometimes it could be that a very negative person inhabited the space and turned the energy bad.

No matter what the reason is houses need energy cleaning just like they need vacuuming or dusting. Doing an energy cleaning or "clearing" to your home can have numerous benefits ranging from bringing physical energy back to its inhabitants, organization, a greater feeling of contentment/cheerfulness, to actually attracting good things to happen within the space. This is why people have 'housewarming parties" when they move in to instinctually create a more lived in atmosphere of a new place. This philosophy is also well documented and explored in Feng Shui, which is the more in depth philosophy that your home is a metaphor in which each room represents a certain aspect of your external life. The following practices are taken from studying energy clearing and some principles of Feng Shui. Give them a try when your home needs new life and more happiness!

1. Break The Energy Up
Use a drum, bells, whistle, or even bang on a pan with a kitchen spoon, but you must go around all the corners of your house and break up the stagnant energy that is looming. The sound waves and even the act of just walking around and doing this to parts of your house/rooms you rarely step in stirs the energy in the space. This is why pets are so great because having little kitties or a dog that does this naturally keeps energy moving.

2. Smoke Out The Bad
Sage wands (tightly wrapped together sage) are available at any health food store or incense shop and have been used since Native American times for their cleansing their properties. Smoke has been used throughout the ages to cleanse and even communicate with spirit worlds. You may also use your favorite incense. Once around go around to every corner and walk in a circle in every room spreading the cleansing smoke in every nook and cranny. Think of something that makes you happy or that you would like to happen there like friends gathering together as you are doing this.

3. Sun Charged Bowl Of Water
While you are doing your cleaning during the day take a large kitchen bowl and fill it with water and put it out in the sun to get charged by the solar energy. When you go to bed at night put the bowl of water in the center of room you are trying to clear and say out loud or imagine to yourself the bowl of water gathering up all the negative energy as you sleep. When you get up in the morning imagine all the bad energy now being captured by this sun charged bowl of water and throw the water outside somewhere. This sounds funny but some people have actually reported water being a darker color in the morning!

4. Clean Out All Closets!!!!!
There is nothing better you can do for yourself if are feeling scattered and restless than to clean out your closets! Closets are deep metaphors of the things we harbor for the better and worse in our lives. Get rid of those things you don't need anymore and discover some things you forgot you had and use them! Re-organize so you know what you own and give a way what you truly don't need. This invites new blessings to come into your life. After all the universe cannot fill a cup that it sees as already full!

5. Invite New Fresh Air In
Open all your windows for the whole day, turn your fans on and let the breeze blow out all the old stale energy. Buy some flowers or house plants to breathe new air into the room and finish off this process by buying a white candle that you burn for a good 2-3 hours. Say a prayer for your new positively energy charged room and imagine all the warm and good things that will happen in that space as you let the flame burn away any remaining negativity and welcome in the new comforting energy.

If you are interested in natural and small ways you can improve your health and wealth visit my web site: Financial Freedom= http://blessedbychocolatesuccess.com
Retail Goodies= http://blessedbychocolatesuccess.ws

Kristiana Jourgensen is a professionally certified Massage Therapist and online entrepreneur who has been practicing massage and natural/alternative health methods to heal the body since 1997. She is also a survivor of Hodgkin's Lymphoma- a cancer of the lymph nodes at only age 20, a writer and traveler. Her passion is to always be learning and sharing knowledge and ideas that help others achieve health and happiness.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kristiana_Jourgensen
http://EzineArticles.com/?Energy-Clearing-For-Your-Home&id=1239614

Art Work Guidelines and Feng Shui

2008-05-28T12:22:00.004-04:00

A lot has already be said about art work and how it effects the Feng Shui and Qi of you home. These guidelines have been used for many many years, but at times, you may not realize that some of your own art is bringing you not the right kind of energy into your home that you actually want, and hence into your life.

To ensure all is well and that you are creating the right kind of Qi (chi) in your home with certain artwork, I have created a short list of guidelines to follow which can help you achieve the growth and happiness Qi you wish to have in your home.

Here are some simple guidelines you can follow when you want to enhance good Qi to enter and be welcoming in your home, bringing you happiness, health, opportunities, good news and wealth.

Have a family photo of everyone together placed predominately in your home, make sure everyone looks happy in the photo.
For single women who seek more love in their life, make sure your art work does not show a lone woman in your art work. I recently removed a beautiful picture from my bedroom since it was a single woman, albeit a gorgeous print of a European Princess, it is not auspicious to have this in my bedroom, as since I am not married, - yet. The same goes for single men, try not to have lone figures of men. With this sort of art, you are sending out a sign to stay single. So photos of couples happily together is what you should seek to have hanging in your home.
If there is a photo, picture, painting in your home that you do not like, say it reminds you of your least favorite uncle, remove it. You will be amazed at how quickly removing said picture makes you feel better, you no longer have to look at the thing that brings you to have negative thoughts.
Any photos that seem to show negativity - I recently also removed antique prints from a children's story "The Pied Piper" And though they were incredible hand-painted illustrations from a well-known artist Kate Greenaway, since the prints showed fear on the women's faces as they ran from the mice, I knew it wasn't auspicious to have in my home. I have since sold them on E-bay for a good sum. Who knew?!
Don't keep family photos placed faced down in storage as you are 'symbolically' pushing down their energy by doing this.
Nor is it good practice to keep photos and pictures under your bed, for the same pushing and blocking of their energy by keeping the photos there.
With the age of the digital camera, we now have so many photos, many more than we can ever actually use. Good practice is to remove any unflattering photos of yourself and of others immediately. Doing this once a week in the many folders in your computer, will ensure, that you end up with only beautiful and happy looking photos of your friends, family and self. This in turns help bring only happiness to you and your family and friends.
Keep a happy looking photo of yourself on your alter, dresser and one of your mate should be placed here as well. Also include a photo of the two of you together very happy in love. This will also help keep the two of you together, and also helps keep happy energy entering into your relationship.
Have a picture of many birds - the more the merrier, especially of a phoenix bird is extremely auspicious. Have this hanging in your living room, bedroom or when you enter your home is excellent to help bring into your home many good opportunities and always good news.
A picture of mountains, with moving water is also extremely good to have behind you as you sit at your desk. It is said you can also have these sort of picture placed anywhere in your home, as the moving water is a symbol of wealth growth, and the mountains reflect stability and support from both coworkers, family and even bosses when used in the office.

Art is an excellent way to help create the symbols and images needed to help bring in good Qi to you, your family and your home. Art in particular has been used in Feng Shui practices for centuries to help the energy of a home be improved, and the subject matter in particularly, can be used to further enhance a certain corner or wall to bring in more happiness and wealth into your life.

And though there are so many symbols and interesting images once can use to enhance the Qi in the home, starting with these simple guidelines listed above, will be a good start in ensuring the current art work in your home reflects the positive Qi (chi) you want in your home.

Got 10 minutes? Get Feng Shui

2008-05-28T10:44:00.009-04:00

So you are interested in Feng Shui. One thing to note, Feng Shui is not a religion, it does not nor will not conflict in anyway with your own religious views and practices. Feng Shui is more than a way to live, but following some of the simple Feng Shui practices certainly does help one think clearer in their home and office. It helps bring a brighter attitude and overall has a calming effect when done correctly which also allows for good Qi (chi) to enhance your chances of love, happiness, wealth and health.

If you dread coming home to your home, if you look the other way and even stay away from a room in your house, then Feng Shui is for you, especially! It is easier to practice Feng Shui than one would think. Fend Shui does not cost much money, and at times will cost nothing, and in fact, if you are feeling a bit down and out, using some of these Feng Shui practices, will really help uplift your spirits and the energy in your home and office.

I started this Feng Shui thing when I got my lucky zen dog, Theo. With my first book on feng shui, which I have since lent out many times to close friends, has a cover which has been chewed by my then-puppy Theo who has since grown to a whopping 60+ pounds of a shaggy happy dog. I have since bought many books on feng shui and learned a thing or two. But as I learn more, I knew I also had to step back and review some of the simplest of feng shui practices.

As many people have overstuffed closets, rooms and homes, I knew I am not alone. And in fact with limited time, I have learned that removing clutter and donating what I can, is not a dirty four letter word, but a way of life.

So, yesterday, I did something and made an excellent Feng Shui decision, whoo hoo! Now as I work at home, it is particularly easy for me to let stuff land where it may, and clearing clutter for me is seems could be a 24/7 hours job. But since I have much better things to do with my time, like writing and bringing in income I made a simple decision to take 10 minutes out of my day to declutter, but it was more than that, actually. It was to take ten minutes out of each day, go around each of my rooms to quickly attack any area that needed it. So here I share some Feng Shui Spiritual and Spacial Secrets. I returned to some of the first Feng Shui lessons I learned.

As I learn more and more about the wonderful ancient practice of Feng Shui, I am learning more and more about compasses, which direction my house faces, how to find the correct idols and images to help balance energies in my home. I find that Feng Shui has a lot more to do than just making sure your house is clutter-free. In fact there is so much involved, I almost started getting confused. That's when I said to myself, 'Self, let me take a step back. Review and reread what I had learned before delving further into the Feng Shui Deep Sea.'

In fact, and speaking of a clutter-free environment, would you believe a house that its too sparten, and too clutter-free could also be create bad Qi (chi) and the Qi could easily pass right by as it moves too quickly around your space? Thank my lucky zen dog for that! Since, I actually live in my house. Which means, there is mail to be opened, laundry to be put away, things to fix in my house, etc. the long list could go on and on.

So if you want to begin, start small first of all. Your intention is a key factor is making Feng Shui work for you and your family. When you start doing some of the small tasks around your home, you really need to be in a good mind frame reminding yourself, all this work is necessary in creating the environment you and your family need to thrive beautifully.

One of the more important factors, is to allow your inner intuition to help guide you. As you practice Feng Shui you will notice you will become more aware when something is out of place, when your furniture needs to be moved, you will become more sensitive. I had be taught this, but have since been amazed at how sensitive I have become to my surroundings. And if I visit someone else's home, I will immediately notice if I feel comfortable or not and know why I feel the way I do in their homes.

Here is a list of feng shui tasks you can do that take only ten minutes or so that will really help the energy in your home be refreshed. Doing one item each day, you will see not only immediate changes, you will feel refreshed yourself. As you tackle any of these tasks, wash your hands before and after, as you go about actually doing them, do say to yourself, 'Self, I am removing any unwanted negative Qi and am replacing it with good healthy Qi to bring my home and my family wonderful energy'. It really works!

Open up your windows, and allow fresh air to come through your entire home.
Go around to all your plants, spritz them with water, snip off any dead leaves and water them.
Remove any clutter on the desk and table tops. If you have a lot of surfaces cluttered, choose one table, and tackle your way through it.
Go through your chest of drawers, and remove ten items that you no longer could use or wear, say like old underwear, missing socks - throw them out!
Go through your bathroom, grab all those half empty products, combine the shampoos if you can so you can use them on your dog, for example. Toss out unused lotions and potions what if you haven't used in 6 months - out they go!
Clean out your refrigerator of any bad food, including your freezer. Food gone bad, is one of the worst things to have going on in your kitchen in creating stagnating Qi which actually blocks growth Qi.
Go to your bookcase, pick ten books that you no longer need and have those books make themselves get to the library for donation.
Clean out your car of its junk.
Find one box that you haven't even touched since you moved into your place, go through it, toss and donate anything that has got to go. Then find a place for any of the remaining items from the box that you will actually use.
Clean and organize your home office desk surface. This will not only make things easier for you to work, but you will help attract good working opportunities and wealth with a clean organized working surface.
Clean your mirrors in your home.
Completely dust one room in your house.
Change any light bulbs that need changing.
Pick up any dirty laundry sitting on the floors on any bedroom or in any room. Dirty laundry hanging around on the floors and sitting on chairs in the bedroom also brings in stagnating Qi - yick.
Throw out any dried flower arrangement - yes dried flowers bring in killing Qi - one of the worst kinds. Blocks growth. I know Aunt Martha made it for you, but it's really not doing you any good.

As you go about doing these easy tasks, not only are you allowing good energy to enter your home, you really will feel and see the need to do more. And that's the point. You should look forward to getting things organized around your home. You will look forward to going to your desk and working, and coming home to a more beautiful home.

I am really quite amazed, that even after I started this Feng Shui thing over three years ago, I have since moved to a better and nicer place that I can truly call home that encourages my growth in all areas in my life. I have many more good and true friends in my life, my career has grown and I am much happier for it, including having a great love of and in my life that had been missing for many years. I know it has so much to do with following Feng Shui, that it is almost ridiculous not to share what I have learned.

So get to it, got ten minutes? Then get Feng Shui'd! You will love what it does to you, your family and for your home and office!

Energy Renovation For Your Home - What To Do When Feng Shui Fails

2008-05-22T12:28:00.001-04:00

Energy Renovation For Your Home - What To Do When Feng Shui Fails
By Sunny Yin Wang

Does your home feel like a harmonious sanctuary? Do you feel relaxed at home? This is what your home has the potential of offering you. If your home does not feel relaxing, you may think that the obvious contributing factors are things like clutter, the décor being contrary to your personal tastes, or the home being in various stages of disrepair. This is often not the case. If you have tried changing the overall appearance of your home, but still did not get the result you wanted, there may be more in the energy field that you do not know about.

Vibrational Residue

Emotions from the builder and/or past residents are recorded in the building materials. Much like music vibration that was recorded on vinyl LPs, the emotions of people as expressed in daily events are also recorded into the solid matter such as building materials, furniture, and books. Some people are more sensitive to these vibrations than others. If you are sensitive, these emotional residues can be a source of lingering distress for you.

Traumatic events that happened at any point in time can have a significant influence on the energy of the space as well. If there has been a death, robbery, violence or trauma of any kind, the energy of the space will most definitely include these vibrations until they are intentionally removed.

Ways to Remove Emotional Residue

Traditional shamanic practice uses burning sage to cleanse the energy of a space. You may find sage at Whole Foods or most metaphysical bookstores. Use a small bowl or shell to catch any embers. When you light the sage, let the flame burn for a few seconds, then gently blow it out. The leaves will continue to glow red and release smoke. As you walk around the area, wave the sage along the walls and corners. Intend to cleanse and release emotional residue and bring forth a loving and soothing energy. Coming from the heart, say any prayer of healing or protection that feels most appropriate. The most important part of the process is the intention. You can follow with opening a window to let fresh air circulate throughout.

You may also use a combination of Epsom salts and 90% rubbing alcohol. Pour the salt into a fireproof flat bottomed container at least 8"x 8" and about ½ inch deep. Use just enough alcohol to dampen the salt. Caution! The container will get hot. Keep hair and clothing out of the way. Be sure to place the container on a heat resistant surface like a stove and away from all flammable materials. Set the salt/alcohol on fire. Allow the flame to continue burning until it goes out by itself. As the fire burns, visualize an intense purifying white/violet light going out in all directions. Repeat the process as needed.

It may be necessary to hire a professional intuitive that can pinpoint the event and the vibration to remove it. Other energy interferences may include the following:

Underground elements include boulders, mineral mines, rivers, lakes, and emotional residue of historical events such as plagues, natural disasters, or burial grounds.

Energy vortexes on ground level or in mid-air, whether it be outside or inside your home, very often create energy imbalances.

Neighboring structural beam lines or those in your own house can project a laser like energy that disturbs your peace. In the city or within suburban subdivisions where houses are located very close to one another, beam line influences can be a problem.

High tension power lines or transformers carry a very strong resonance. It has been documented to influence human health.

Traffic movement adjacent to the property can have a significant impact, particularly when the traffic is directed towards the property.

Energy portals are hotspots that are accessible from multiple dimensions. They are commonly used for inter-dimensional travel by beings of other realms or by humans who have capability for mind/astral travel.

Spirits (non-physical beings) in other dimensions can co-occupy the same space with us. Depending on the kinds of beings, some may appear hostile if treated harshly, while some are actually beneficial for our well-being.

These are influences that traditional Feng Shui practices will not be able to resolve. It is very important to consult an experienced, intuitive Energy Renovation Professional for effective solutions. Doing so can bring peace and tranquility to your life, while putting a smile on your face!

About the Author:

Sunny Wang, BA, MATT, RTSM is trained in kinesiology and is a life long energy sensitive and intuitive. She has talked to "dead people" since she was very young. She also makes personalized energy jewelry. Her specialty, similar to Feng Shui, is the energetic restructuring of homes, offices, and land. Her websites are http://www.EstateOfHarmony.com and http://www.InsightfulSpirit.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sunny_Yin_Wang http://EzineArticles.com/?Energy-Renovation-For-Your-Home---What-To-Do-When-Feng-Shui-Fails&id=1181476

Clutter (of Any Kind) Will Kill A Deal

2008-05-21T14:38:00.001-04:00

Clutter (of Any Kind) Will Kill A Deal

By Ellie Marshall

Yesterday, I was doing a Feng Shui consultation in a client's home, a beautiful duplex apartment on Park Ave, in NYC. Gorgeous apartment.... except she had a clutter problem with pictures & books.
Don't get me wrong, the apartment was decorated to the nines; but on every table was a sea of pictures. On every chair, under desks, on ottomans...well, you get the picture, were books. It was a true hoarders dream come true. My client has a clutter problem.

Clutter comes in many forms. Some people who clutter, specialize in collecting only one or two category of items- i.e. books & pictures. But believe me, this is just as toxic as accumulating random items. Just because things are stocked in nice, neat piles, does not overcome the fact that it is still clutter.

The apartment had a heavy, dense feeling because it was housing so much clutter. It is a very large duplex, but the rooms that housed the endless sea of pictures and books looked smaller and felt tight. Yes, the client had bookshelves. Many custom made, beautiful bookshelves in three rooms. But the books were sprouting up in neat piles all over the floor.

As a Feng Shui practitioner, my job is to address clutter with my clients, help them work through it and move it out of their lives. When she told me she was about to put the home on the market, more of a red flag was raised in my mind. Clutter devalues a home. Clutter kills deals.

I would like to share with you some of the ways I work with my clients to successfully part with their clutter.

Start the process by helping them eliminate a little of the clutter. Then, tell them to keep up the process with a friend or housekeeper or even a professional (Feng Shui practitioner, professional organizer).

People are very attached to their items, so suggest that they should try living with less for a few months. Tell them their items are "going on a vacation". (I am not kidding) This type of wording, I have found, helps them severe the ties and is very effective to ease them into removing unused items.

Remind the client that moving with items that are no longer used will end up costing them money. The reality is: moving is expensive. The more you move, the more it will cost you.

Assure them there items will get a second life somewhere else. Explain that there are people in the world who could really use and would treasure your old items. This makes the client feel better and helps expedite the process.

Be Prepared! Have phone numbers of services that will remove the items from the client's home. This could be: The Salvation Army, A local chapter of The Boys & Girls Club of America, local library (for books), Junk Removal Companies (LIKE 1-800-got junk.com)

By understanding the attachment your seller has to his clutter, the better equipped you are in helping him clean up and clear out his home. This of course makes your listing a cleaner, lighter, brighter home that will sell.

Ellie Marshall has studied with the most respected masters in the art of Feng Shui. She blends her Feng Shui training along with her corporate background at Seventeen Magazine and American Express, which make her a truly unique, intuitive Feng Shui Practitioner. Her area of expertise is working with and teaching large corporations, such as PepsiCo, Crain's Investment News & Houlihan Lawerence. She does on site residential and commercial consultations all over the world. She lives in Westchester County,NY and has a strong client base in New York City, Westchester and Fairfield County. During her 1982 visit to China, she was honored by receiving a private tour of the Forbidden City & a rare, old Feng Shui book from a Feng Shui Grandmaster. Her love of this ancient art was then kindled.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ellie_Marshall
http://EzineArticles.com/?Clutter-(of-Any-Kind)-Will-Kill-A-Deal&id=1182010

New Moon Feng Shui Rituals for Wealth, Happiness and Health

2008-05-05T08:58:00.000-04:00

The New Moon in any given month is when the moon's energy becomes especially ying and it's the perfect time for many who follow Feng Shui when they know it's time to renew the Qi within themselves and within their homes.

The new moon is waxing into the full moon and therefore it is strengthening with each every passing day until the full moon arrives when the moon and its ying energy is at its strongest. There are other rituals to do on the full moon, but I will share those with you in another article.

With the start of the new moon, it is the perfect time to ensure you start any wealth building feng shui tricks you may already know, though I will list some of them here for your convenience. These are said to really help attract wealth luck and career luck, if done faithfully, and with the right intentions.

With a simple internet search, you can easily find when the next new moon will be. But for the next few months the dates are as follows: May 5th, June 3rd, and July 3rd for 2008. It is on these dates, when the new moon begins that you should do any and all of the following Feng Shui tasks.

renew fresh sea salt in your 'kitchen' wealth bowl. (this can be a dark blue mug placed in a dry area of your kitchen counter)
refresh the sea salt in the little container or plastic wrapping in your wallet.
refresh sea salt that you may have place into the corners of your home.
give your plants (which signify wealth growth) a fresh misting of water, turn them around so their other sides can receive the wonderful sun and light. - This is also a good time to trim and remove any unhealthy leaves that may be on your plant.
write with a red pen, a dollar sign on your right palm - place this on your left palm, if you are a lefty. It is said you should do this every morning from the start of the new moon until the full moon. This will help attract money luck and increase wealth opportunities to come your way.
make sure you are not keeping your shoes lined up by your front door, as this is said to have your 'money and opportunity luck' symbolically walk out the door.
Light incense, open your windows, turn on the lights, and walk around each of your rooms blessing each room and all occupants of your home/office for health, happiness and wealth.
Do a quick decluttering of all your table tops, remove the piled junk mail, and remove any garbage from your home.
Wash your crystals with sea salted water to cleanse them of any dust, and to refresh their chi energy. Also great is to allow them to soak up the sun, during this new moon day to re-energize their strength.
Clean out any bad food from the fridge (bad stale food equals killing Qi), add fresh fruit to your dining room table bowl - which reflects and can also attract an increased bountiful family life.
Refreshen any 'still water urns' with fresh water that you may use to calm noisy neighboring walls or near your entrance door.

As with each passing day and night as the moon grows with its energy into the full moon, you can be assured the Qi in your home can also grow. There are so many wonderful tasks one can do to keep and ensure growth in your home and life by following the various Feng Shui techniques. And so many do not require much time or money. But do following these simple techniques you will find your own self being renewed with refreshed Qi (chi) as well as the energy on your home, so that the best can be brought into your home and into your life.

With following these new moon Feng Shui techniques you will find new opportunities coming your way quite easily to help attract for wealth into your life, an increased happiness within and not only will you feel 'it', you will see the difference in your attitude within yourself and those among your family members. In turn, this refreshed Qi during the new moon phase can be a big boost in attracting more wealth, happiness and greater health to you and in your home.

Using Sea Salt to Attract Wealth into Your Life

2008-04-30T18:23:00.004-04:00

Today's Subject: Sea Salt and Attracting Wealth Tips

Hello there once again! I hope the recent postings that mentioned a few ideas to help bring in prosperity and more love into your life. I actually went out yesterday and purchased sea salt to help clean my crystals and add good luck and more wealth luck into my home. I will share more about the ideas of Sea Salt and its purifying abilities among with sharing even more ideas in bringing wealth into your life.

So what's the big deal about sea salt, and won't any kind of salt help? Nope. Sorry to inform you, but it has to be sea salt. It has to do with the negative ions from the moving sea that will help stimulate negative chi to move on and help attract the good kind of chi these exercises are determined to offer you. Table salt simply does not have these purifying properties.

So where do we start today? Let's first start with getting you some sea salt. Click here for the lowest prices I found on the web: Sea Salt, 2 lb. Sea salt is an all important tool in applying Feng Shui exercises and tasks to your rituals in help healing and clearing while cleaning chi around you and your home. You can find sea salt at your local grocery store, and do yourself a favor, do not try and get around by using table salt or even kosher salt - both of which I love using in my cooking - but this is for Feng Shui use. Of course, by all means, if you are buying the sea salt, use it freely in your cooking. I prefer to use the course sea salt as with all the types of salts I may use.

So you have now got your Sea Salt, what next? Here are a few tips on how Feng Shui practitioners recommend their clients to use in helping bring their clients luck and wealth.

Place a teaspoon of sea salt and wrap it in plastic and place in your wallet in a secret compartment. Replace every ten days to ensure its potency. This is said to bring the owner of the wallet wealth...
Place sea salt on the center and back side of your entrance door, this is said to also bring luck and wealth to all those who enter - and yes the changing it every ten days rule also applies here as well in ensuring its potency of bringing wealth luck and good chi.
Also if you really are in a jam, placing sea salt in all the corners of your house - simply use little plastic containers - say the ones you may get when you ask for salad dressing on the side at a restaurant. Place the sea salt in them, cover them if you can, then place them in every corner wherever two walls meet. You may need an extra box of sea salt for this - but since sea salt is relatively inexpensive and you are in need of attracting wealth, this really helps absorb any negative energy you house may be harboring. Again, change every ten days.

I placed a dark blue mug and filled it to the brim with sea salt and placed it in my kitchen in a dry area which is said to bring happiness to couples.
I also grabbed a little sea salt and placed it in plastic and placed it in my wallet.
I also marked on my calendar when the ten days will be up so that I can recall to change the sea salt.
I also did a few other rituals which I have been doing for months and that is going around on Fridays with burning incense to each of the rooms in my place and blessing each room and all who enters with health, happiness and harmony along with prosperity.

Any effect so far? Well, yes! I am pleased I was finally able to purchase today some very needed domain names prior to them being picked up by others. Some of these will be very important to me in the coming months as I have several projects I am now organizing and the need for these domain names in setting up these works online is extremely important. My outlook is very good and confidence high. I also noticed that my fellow and love of my life was suggesting new and interesting dinner ideas to help spruce up our dinners at home last night. Our relationship is smoother than ever and I am more confident with every day passing that I am in a "right and good" relationship that is healthy and harmonious. And hey, who doesn't want that in their life?

As for now, I am preparing a new article on things to do during the new moon periods with feng shui. So stay tuned!

We have also opened our Lucky Zen Dog Feng Shui Shop that has many great feng shui products for you to use in your home - feel free to stop by - just click on the links above!

Feng Shui Fridays - Great Day For Refreshing Qi in your Surroundings

2008-04-25T09:59:00.012-04:00

Did you know that Friday is the day for many who follow Feng Shui, believe is a great day if not the best day for renewing Qi (chi) in your home and office by ritual cleaning and de-cluttering? It is also said that Fridays are perfect days of the week to do weekly incense rituals and singing bowl cures.

Last week on a Friday morning, as I passed a local Chinese Restaurant and a Nail Salon, I witnessed employees in both places were washing the windows and cleaning. It reminded me of the importance of Friday rituals, and felt others should know how effective refreshing Qi (chi) on Fridays can be.

For some of you who are new to Feng Shui and its many uses and practical tactics in creating better health, and happier home and an abundance of riches, it follows a lot of the 'Laws of Attraction' so many of us have already heard about. And doing weekly chores and rituals on Fridays enhances their effects in refreshing the Qi in your home and office.

Applying Feng Shui to your home is not just all about de-cluttering your home, throwing out stuff you no longer need and keeping your home clean and having certain 'totems' placed in certain corners though. In fact, Feng Shui is a lot more than just about cleaning, it is about your mind set that you have while doing these tasks that ensures the success in renewing the Qi (chi) in your home.

Some people wrongly believe you have to have white walls, and a super spotless home for it to be 'feng shui', I am here to tell you they are terribly wrong. You could do all the cleaning in the world in your home, but if you are not using the right mindset as you go about your 'chores', the desired effect of good chi can be affected furthering effecting the amount of good will you wish to have happen to you and in your home.

Once you understand these simple rules, and the importance of having the correct mind set, you will find it not only easier to go about in applying the feng shui practices to your home and office, but once you start, it overflows like a domino effect, into all areas of your life. You will be amazed.

Believe you me, I did not believe this at first. But, not only do I see good changes in all areas of my life, I am finding easier week by week to 'attack' the areas of my home that need to be re-visited or cleaned. I further can tell and am a lot more sensitive now to when the Qi in any room feels a bit stagnant. I then set right away in curing and refreshing the Qi.

So to have the right mindset, it is easier than you would think. Simply the objective is to have a clear mind and while you go about doing your 'chores' to have the mind set that you are removing any bad Qi in your home and replacing it with good refreshed energy and Qi. For example, as you sweep your kitchen floor, remind yourself simply that you are removing stagnant Qi (think the dirt) and replacing it with refreshed Qi.

We all know now that it is about the balance of Ying and Yang, but when a room is leaning more towards one side, a mis-balance can occur which can help bring undesired results such as added bickering and sickness. It can also literally wipe out any good energy and make you feel extra tired. And no one wishes that for themselves! We all have enough going on in each of our lives, that adding tiring energy is simply not worth it.

Friday's Feng Shui Rituals:
Here are just some of the 'rituals' I follow every Friday to create refreshed Qi in my home. I suggest you try some of these and you too will see a difference in your home, in your energy, and in the over all Qi of your home.

I also suggest, washing your hands before and after completing the tasks below as well. As you wish to be clean yourself as you approach these tasks. It really only takes an hour of you time once you get your tasks down to a fine pattern, but the effects of refreshed Qi will last all week. So take a few deep breaths, relax and know deep down, as you start to work, empower yourself with the thoughts that you are removing any stagnant Qi and replacing it with refreshed Qi.

Now that the warmer weather is here for a lot of us, take the opportunity, to open your windows in the morning when the sun is 'young' in the sky, when it is fresh ying energy. If you do not have windows that will allow fresh air to completely go through the room and out to the outside, turn on a fan on low, the whole point is to allow fresh air and sunshine into the room.
Preferably at 6am or 6pm as it is said this is the best auspicious time, do an incense ritual to cleanse the air. Again, open your windows, light incense and walk around clockwise at least three times in each room while citing blessings and prayers for the people (and animals) that live and enter your home and office. Allow the 'smoke' to reach all areas of the corners in your rooms as well as moving the burning incense in your hand the burning incense around in a figure 'eight' or infinity sign as you cite your blessings. When blessing, cite anything that you wish to change in your life, such as 'I bless this home, all my family and all friends who enter with much prosperity, health and great happiness'. Mind you I may not be awake at 6am, but I find this 'cure' to work at any time the room needs to refreshed and on any day, not just on Fridays. - Of course this is the time to remember those 'Laws of Attraction'! They really do work!
Before you start cleaning, turn on all the lights and open windows. Put on your favorite tunes on the radio or stereo to get yourself feeling refreshed and to put yourself in the right mindset to bless your home while refreshing the Qi.
Sweep, vacuum and wash your floors. I have wood floors and use a 50/50 ratio of white vinegar and warm water with a couple dashes of sea salt. This cleanses the floors energies while also effectively cleaning the floors without harsh chemicals. The added sea salt really has an effect of the Qi of the floors. I was super amazed how the entire rooms felt after doing this for the first time, I am now hooked!
Remove all garbage from all the cans in the house, clean our your refrigerator of any gone bad food, remove all junk mail that has inevitably piled up by your front door.
Do a quick look around to see if anything can be passed on to your local Salvation Army or Goodwill, place them in a bag and get them outside your home and on their way to donation.

For some, the tasks can seem daunting, but as I have mentioned before in my articles, break down the chores at hand into smaller 15 minutes tasks so that when the 'smaller' chore is completed, you too will feel complete.

As you finish, remember to wash your hands, remove any garbage collected and remove it from your home. As you now look around your home, you will feel refreshed for your weekend. You will feel more love inside and in turn will be able to give more of yourself to others. Not only will your house look better, but you will have refreshed the Qi (chi) in your home and you too will see the effects of better health, more happiness as well as wealth and career luck being enhanced by these Friday Feng Shui Rituals.

Leah Quinn, a writer specializing on food, health, feng shui, self-improvement and entertainment is a multi-media artist living in New York. Feel free to stop by at http://divaliscious.blogspot.com to read many of her other articles and feel free to visit her food site to learn about healthy and interesting recipes at http://dinner-and-jam.blogspot.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Leah_Quinn

Book Review: 168 Feng Shui Ways to Energize Your Life by Lillian Too - by Leah Quinn

2008-04-24T12:13:00.000-04:00

Lillian Too's 168 Feng Shui Ways to Energize Your Life - Book Review by Leah Quinn

I have been a big supportive fan of Master Feng Shui Practitioner and Teacher Lillian Too's for sometime since reading several of her books a few years ago and have been hooked ever since. She continually amazes me with her books and in how much in following her instinctive Feng Shui practical tips have helped and aided me in creating the life I have always wished to lead and have.

So I just had to share which of her books have helped me the most. In her latest book "Lillian Too's 168 Feng Shui Ways to Energize Your Life", She continues to teach us to be aware of energy all around us and in our homes. She not only shows you how to become aware of the energy, bad or good, but shows you how to alter this energy into allowing all good things to come to you in your life.

As always, her style of writing is easy to read, but specifically the Feng Shui concepts described in this book are well spelled out to easily understand in simple terms. In turn, this allows anyone to apply the Feng Shui practices in their own home and for their own well being without great effort.

As I become more knowledgeable about Feng Shui, there are many additional factors that other books simply skip over. This book does not do that, but in fact addresses these more complicated Feng Shui issues with tact and great knowledge allowing the layman in all of us to easily understand, say for example what the 'Three Killings' are, or which Celestial Guardians are best for you to help ward off bad luck and how to easily address these issues.

I am currently rereading this book for a third time, only since I truly wish to digest all the information at hand and save it to be deep in my memory. I highly recommend any of her books, but it you are new to the ideas of Feng Shui, "Lillian Too's 168 Feng Shui Ways to Energize Your Life" is a great first book in understanding the concepts of Feng Shui and to learn and understand the importance of energy and how it effects everything we do to 'bring' or 'attract' goodness into our lives.

This book consists of seven chapters, each page is filled with its own Feng Shui tip to apply in your home and livelihood. I definitely liked how this book gives you information in finding out which corners in your home can bring you success. It further shows you how to use symbols, art and furniture placement to affect the best possibilities in bringing in good Qi (chi) into your life and how to balance ying when you need more yang and visa versa in each of the rooms of your home whether you live in a large house or an apartment in the city.

If you wish to easily learn how to apply Feng Shui techniques into your life and home that brings you more prosperity, family happiness, wealth and career luck, then this is the book for you! I have followed many of her tips and have seen for myself the changes in my overall life. You will be amazed at how bringing in new fresh energy as she describes has a domino effect in all areas of your life. You will feel "revitalized and recharged" by reading this great Feng Shui book by Lillian Too. And soon, you too will receive the bounties the earth has set out for you.

Let There Be A Flow Of Feng Shui In Your Bath Or Washroom

2008-04-24T11:32:00.005-04:00

Let There Be A Flow Of Feng Shui In Your Bath Or Washroom By Malav Bhatt

The main ingredients to good Feng Shui are the three C's. They are comfort, cleanliness, and convenience and our modern bathrooms/washrooms provide them all. Let's take a look at Feng Shui in the bathroom. Many financial woes stem from this area, hence Feng Shi in the bathroom or washroom holds significant importance.

Water is the main element in the bathroom. Rooms with a lot of water tend to have damp wet surfaces and more humid atmospheres than other rooms. This can lead to a heavier flow of chÃ energy, which makes it prone to stagnation.

The toilet is usually located in the bathroom, which compounds all the problems because the downward draining influence of the toilet is especially damaging. Ideally, the toilet should be as inconspicuous as possible. To minimize the draining effect of the chi energy from the toilet, position it well from away from the bathroom door.

The most favorable position for the toilet is concealed behind a half wall, screen or curtain. Keep the toilet lid closed as much as possible, but especially while it is being flushed. Keep the bathroom door closed, especially if it is in the same room as the bedroom.

Leaking pipes and dripping taps or shower heads will increase the draining effect of the bathroom. Blocked toilets are counter-productive to a favorable flow of chÃ energy, so keep all plumbing installations in good working condition. The draining effects will also be minimized if the bathroom is kept neat, clean, and dry at all times.

The main objectives in a bathroom are to keep the room bright, dry and fresh and to counteract the tendency for chi energy to stagnate in humid conditions.

Here are a few tips to help you achieve harmony and balance in this challenging room:

Lighting ~ Natural light is best. A bright sunny room creates a lively dry atmosphere and sunlight charges up the chi energy of the room and helps stimulate the flow. If natural light is limited, keep the room well lit, especially the corners. Bright lights stimulate chi energy.
Mirrors ~ Mirrors speed up the flow of chi energy, which is a positive feature in a bathroom where you are striving to avoid stagnation. Since bathrooms are often small, mirrors can also give a feeling of space. Do not have the mirrors facing each other.
Furniture ~ Keep furniture to a minimum. Too many objects in the bathroom create a damper, more stagnant atmosphere. Avoid overuse of fabrics. Surfaces should be easy to clean and dry. Hard shiny surfaces such as chrome, glazed ceramic tiles, polished marble and glass are more yang and stimulate the flow of chi energy.
Fresh Air ~ Good ventilation dispels humidity and helps to prevent stagnation. Open the window and let in plenty of fresh air every day.
Window Treatments ~ Slatted blinds are a good compromise between the need for privacy and for light. Avoid thick curtains. Keep blinds and curtains open as much as possible.
Plants ~ Plenty of leafy plants make the room feel fresh and alive and help to minimize the chÃ energy from becoming stagnant in the corners. Plants also help to absorb the extra humidity in steamy bathrooms, and generally grow well there for that reason.
Red Ribbons ~ A common Feng Shui cure to improve your finances is to tie a red string or ribbon, measuring 6, 9 or 18 inches in length, around the pipe under your sink. On very rare occasions, this can cause a back-up in the sink. If this occurs, remove the string immediately. Check for any blockages in the plumbing and repair if necessary.

Ganesha's Grace,
Malav Bhatt
The GaneshaSpeaks Team
GaneshaSpeaks.com offers free and personalized Horoscope and Astrology for career, money, business, love, romance and property.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Malav_Bhatt
http://EzineArticles.com/?Let-There-Be-A-Flow-Of-Feng-Shui-In-Your-Bath-Or-Washroom&id=1128947

Choosing Plants In Your Garden - The Feng Shui Way

2008-04-24T11:19:00.002-04:00

Choosing Plants In Your Garden - The Feng Shui Way By Ellie Marshall

The days are getting longer and gardeners are sketching out what their piece of heaven will look like this year. Adding new plants, and flowers always gives freshness and vitality to any garden space. There are a few things to consider when planting any new tree, flower, bush or plant according to Feng Shui doctrine.

- Make sure that the energy level of the plant has an upward Chi' flow and not a downward one. Most plants grow in an upward direction, this is good, energetic Chi'. But, certain specimens, i.e., a Weeping Willow, have a downward or negative Chi' flow. This is not auspicious.

- Be aware of cutting Chi' energy. Sharp, pointy, spiked specimens epitomize cutting Chi'. They also are harmful to touch. Think of roses with thorns, bougainvillea, holly trees, cactus........you get the idea.....Ouch!

- Vines that climb and overtake trees, small bushes and even houses, must be maintained. If they are not cut back, they become Sha, or negative Chi' energy. Examples of this: Ivy, Wisteria & Climbing Bittersweet.

- Plant hearty, native specimens in your garden. Unhealthy, weak dying plants or flowers are undesirable Feng Shui. They also are considered Sha energy. Not to mention the fact, that they become an eye sore and you may have to replace the weak plants. This, of course, is not cost efficient. Buy only from reliable sources; this will help to ensure beautiful plant specimens.

Feng Shui and the land are very intertwined. By following a few simple Feng Shui rules, you will ensure that the Chi' (life force energy) will flow throughout your garden. By surrounding yourself with healthy, beautiful plants your garden will not only be Feng Shui correct, it will be a joy to live with.

Know You Are More Than Enough

2008-04-10T12:07:00.001-04:00

ow You Are More Than EnoughKnow You Are More Than Enough By Tim Whiston

A lack of success, money, love, and even time is often the result of our feeling unworthy on some level. When we feel we don't have enough knowledge, that our ideas are not good enough, that we don't get enough done during a workday, or that we are unlikable for any reason, we are robbing ourselves of the abundance life has to offer. Therefore the key to massive success in any area is to accept that we are wonderful, highly capable human beings in the present moment.

With so many self-improvement books and courses available today, it's easy to lose focus of the core issue of almost every self-development scenario: our basic self esteem.

The majority of problems we create for ourselves in life, and certainly every case of lack, stems from a weak self-image. When we don't feel we measure up to our heroes, or to our own set of ideals, our results will be far below desirable.

This seems so obvious when it's in black and white. While reading this article you may be thinking "I already know this".

However the fact remains that millions of people fail to base their actions and dynamic thinking on the principle of strong self-worth as the driving force for all results. We need to remind ourselves constantly that it's crucial to acknowledge our many capabilities and overall worthiness.

What's more, we need to let go of the notion that we need "just a little more" to really become the person we strive to be. Constant learning and growth should be the aim of every human being, but not because we are somehow lacking in our present states.

Strive to better yourself, but only after you take the time to honestly love yourself as you currently are.

You don't need another technique or a new affirmation to be a better person. You are already wonderful.

You don't need more sales techniques to attract more than enough money to live the life of your dreams. You only need to appreciate the talents you already have and put them into action.

You don't need to improve your personality to find a loving mate. The world is full of people who see your beauty and goodness as you are right now.

Know that you are more than enough and you will have more than enough in your life. Refuse to focus on any perceived lack and instead be grateful for everything you have; before long you'll see even more good things heading your way.

Tim Whiston is a professional writer and entrepreneur living in the southeastern U.S. He enjoys marketing and helping others achieve their dreams of success. For more great content on Entrepreneurship and Positive Thinking be sure to check out his blog.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tim_Whiston
http://EzineArticles.com/?Know-You-Are-More-Than-Enough&id=1095459

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Feng Shui - How to attract More Love into Your Life

2008-04-08T17:43:00.001-04:00

g Shui Products to Attract LoveFeng Shui Products to Attract Love

By Jenny Lin Mei Fun

Feng Shui is both an art and science. Originated from ancient China about some three centuries ago, a part of Feng Shui, known as symbolism Feng Shui is the knowledge of placing and arranging good fortune symbols in correct and proper position or direction so as to exert concealed positive Chi powers of a setting to benefit the lives of people. Symbolism Feng Shui is very easy to apply and potent too. Feng shui enhancers consciously placed in the right Feng Shui orientation of your home can help to harness the Chi or energy which harmonizes the area of its influence, bringing about good fortune, good health, prosperity and happiness to the practitioner.

Do you feel as if love is eluding you and you feel unwanted and unloved? Would you like to invite love energies into your life? Authentic love symbols dating back from ancient China are just what you might need. There are many symbols used in Feng Shui that have been proven for centuries to enhance love luck, romance luck, relationship luck and marriage luck. Here are some of them:

Mandarin Ducks - A pair of Mandarin Ducks symbolize happiness in love and suggestive of romance, devotion, affection, conjugal fidelity, togetherness and enduring love. Mandarin ducks live in couples and mourn the loss of their mates, which is why the bird has long been regarded as the most traditional and the most potent symbol of love and married bliss in Feng Shui practice. When placed in pair nearby their owners, Mandarin Ducks becomes a powerful cure to attract or enhance love and relationships. For singles, the pair of Mandarin Ducks will enhance your chances of finding love partners; for lovers, it will bring you marriage opportunities; and for married couples, a pair of Mandarin Ducks will hold out the promise of a marriage being gloriously happy with no separation between the spouses.

Rose Quartz - Rose Quartz is the most desirable of all quartz and is associated with love, romance and relationships. Widely known as the 'Love Stone', Rose Quartz is most favored for its ability in speeding up the process for those seeking true love, mending broken relationships and jazzing up your existing romance life. Rose quartz is also reputed to help with the comprehension of love, restores the love of self as well as love for others, and heals old emotional wounds while developing self-appreciation and love.

Double Happiness Symbol - The Double Happiness symbol, composed of two Chinese characters for "happiness" arranged side by side, is another time-honored symbol of marriage and conjugal happiness and reputed to be the most famous and powerful at it. If you look carefully, the two characters are linked together by two lines, which signify the inseparable bond between the lovers. The Double Happiness symbol is a talisman used in Feng Shui to enhance spiritual and physical love between two people; ideal for men or women searching for love, already in love or maintaining a steady relationships or marriage.

Mystic Knots - The mystic knot, also known by many other names such as the lucky knot, love knot, infinity knot, never-ending knot or Endless symbol, is one of the eight auspicious signs of Buddhism that resembles the number "8" interwoven together and can be done so endlessly. The number "8" itself is an auspicious digit for the Chinese because it sounds like "fortune' and also on sideway, it is the symbol for infinity. Hence the mystic knot symbolizes a lasting togetherness, assured continuity of love and everlasting love, among other things. It signifies lasting togetherness as well as smooth passage through life for married couples.

Peonies - The Queen of all flowers and the national flower of China, the peony or 'Mou Tan' is also known as the 'Flower of Riches and Honor' in Chinese. The peony is the emblem of love and affection, feminine beauty and the amorous feelings of youth. Peonies are often referred to in romantic Chinese poetry and literature. In Feng Shui, the Peony is used to attract romance luck.

Dragon and Phoenix - The Dragon represents the ultimate 'Yang' symbol, male vigor, courage and bravery. It is magnanimous and full of vitality and strength. The phoenix, on the other hand is the queen of all the winged creatures and the ultimate symbol of feminine/Yin power. When the Dragon and the Phoenix are depicted together, they symbolize the perfect Yin and Yang symbol, a pair of lovers that are connected for all of eternity, a happy marriage that is blessed with success and prosperity as well as many filial children.

Jenny Lin is the author of Feng Shui Products for a Better Life, an online Feng Shui Store of over 2000 Feng Shui enhancers, remedies and cures.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jenny_Lin_Mei_Fun
http://EzineArticles.com/?Feng-Shui-Products-to-Attract-Love&id=1086463

Tomorrow's Article, how to set up your bedroom properly to create your own feng shui sanctuary by Divaliscious.

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An inspiring video - Live your life full with love and fun

2008-03-29T10:10:00.005-04:00

Hello my readers:

I had to share this with you all. It is but a simply message but I was so impressed with this video I found on Google. I am only giving you the link so that you may watch it. It is an except from Oprah wherein a man, whose is a father, and professor is dying of pancreatic cancer. His words left tears in my eyes, not only for his courage, but reminded me of the more important things in life.

May you to be impressed and touched my these man's last words...as spoken by him in his 'last speech'

Last Speech Link

May today you start living your life with love, fun and working towards all your dreams with great fervor!

A Quick Start Guide to De-cluttering Your Home Office in No Time Flat

2008-03-25T13:42:00.001-04:00

Home Office Clutter Equals Delayed Decisions and Delayed Prosperity and Success
Why is it seemingly easier to simply throw 'stuff' into a closet and quickly close the door than go through it and see what you actually may need from it? So many of us just pass by the 'culprit' room and over-stuffed closets ignoring them in anyway we can. What we do not realize at times and this is so important, is that we also are ignoring our chances of success not only in our personal lives, but how we interact with others. A cluttered home office will not bring us the desired success we demand. But we can change all that in no time flat with just a little diligence! Really we can and easily too!

Now I am not perfect by any means - believe you me, in fact, I must regularly attack my piles of paper, file away what actually needs to be saved and remember to dust. Not all of us are 'Marthas', that's a fact, for sure - and yes thank God we are not! But we can certainly be reminded that with just a little action, a little at a time, a lot of good can come our way in terms of good luck, prosperity and success in the way we organize our cluttered rooms and home offices.

Did you know that this clutter blocks you from progress?... and why do we continue to block ourselves with such crap = hey wait a minute - am I calling your stuff crap? Well, look at that room and see how are you treating the things you may have spent money on, if not a lot of money on? We hold on to stuff since we are trying to hold on to the past and actually are at times afraid of letting go of the past. Sometimes we may think - oh I will use this in the future, or worse, I am really going to finish this project one day, or my Sister will need these when she has kids, whatever your concept is for keeping this stuff it is not helping you to succeed.

Now what I say may seem odd to some, especially for someone who doesn't seem to live in the past, but by keeping the clutter that no longer serves us, we are holding onto our past, and that includes bad Qi, or chi. You want Chi to move freely around your home office and home surroundings so that good energy can always assist you in attracting the good luck you want out of life.

Unused space in your home is wasting your money. - What do I mean by this? It's rather a simple idea, if you are not using space that you are paying rent or a mortgage on, well then, it's money down the drain. No one wants to waste money, not when it is so hard to come by, just as it is hard to come by extra space.

Unload your past to make room for your future! It seems too hard to let go of things we are attached to, but frankly, if we only hold on to the past - what sort of future are we creating for ourselves? None! Yes, the answer is none! And who doesn't want any future? I can't think of one person. Even those people who may be depressed - they surely wish they could help themselves get up and out of their holes...these simple tricks of the trade will help you immensely and very importantly get you motivated to keep going.

All that extra stuff keeps you unfocused - your home office area simply shouldn't be a place you hide away from - but in fact be productive in. It should be everything you have always dreamed of and more, it should assist you in every way to be creative and super productive to allow your home business dreams become a reality.

How to Start to de-clutter your home office: (20 minutes max)

First of all, Grab a pen and a pad of paper. Go into your home office room or area.
Stand still in the center of the room (if you can avoid the toppling boxes of clutter).
Take a good look around, a really good look.
Write down numbers 1-20 down on every other line of the paper pad.
Next to each number, write down every little detail that is wrong with this area and what needs to be done.

Some could be, not enough storage space, need to organize papers, separate projects, throw out garbage, get a new computer, go through old emails, etc.

One another sheet of paper, write down numbers 1-5. Fill this list with things you would love to have happen in this room or area for you. These should be goal and result oriented.

Some examples could be: to have an home office that I am productive in and helps me succeed, know where everything is in this office since it's super organized, and create a home office I love to work in.

These simple first tasks can be applied to every area of your home. You may not have 20 items of 'to do's', but I am sure you will have at least five. Now that you have created your lists, you can grab a cup of coffee and start the planning process.

To start the planning process of how to de-clutter your home: (five minutes max)
Sit down at a table or desk and look at your list. While reviewing your list, take a good look of the 'to do's' and think hard on how long each task would take. Write down that time it would take to accomplish this task next to it's perspective 'to do' item. You may know which task is more important than other tasks and that it should be completed first, but sometimes it seems way too daunting or in fact way too overwhelming to be done in one afternoon.

Take the larger more daunting tasks, and simply break them down into smaller details that will take 20 minutes or less to do. Be as specific as you can so that breaking down this larger 'to do' item is more approachable and easily doable.

Believe me, highly successful people are not disorganized! We are always so busy, with family time, two jobs even for some of us, how the heck can we even have ten minutes for ourselves to clean up the home office? Try to remember the above notes that this clutter is actually blocking you from progress and getting ahead. And know that everyday you take ten minutes to attack the clutter is 20 minutes more towards you becoming even more successful.

Now, before you go to bed tonight, look again at your list and choose one item you would like to tackle tomorrow for 20 minutes of time. Yes only 20 minutes. When you go to sleep, envision yourself easily tackling this task within the 20 minute interval you have set aside. And get yourself some rest and sleep.

Next Day Task One - (20 minutes max)
Grab a couple of garbage bags - you are going to need them, label one for tossing, one for donating, and one last one for items that should not be in this room. Turn on all the lights you can on in this room, or even bring a few lights in to help you see what you need to see. Put on uplifting music, do not answer the phone during these 20 minutes, set a kitchen timer and begin.

In really bad rooms, I might just simply stay in one 3 square foot area and that's it or concentrate on one wall only. Concentrating on a small area and not the large area as a 'whole' will allow your brain to stay concentrated at the task at hand while allowing yourself to see immediate progress, something even us adults need to help keep us encouraged. This system of attacking a cluttered room really works well as you see immediate results. Trust me on this one - I have used this approach to cleaning my house too!

As you grab items, I want you to do one simple thing, touch something once, and make a decision immediately as to which designated bag it goes in. If it belongs someplace else in your home and not in this area or room, put it outside the room right now, if it is to stay in the room, designate where it is supposed to be. Remember to stay in the area you are working on. It's super easy to be distracted as you look through things, but keeping yourself to the one area will ensure the highest success of de-cluttering this area quickly within the 20 minute interval you have given yourself.

If you are having issues with letting something go, ask yourself this: Have you used this item within the past 8 months? Will you need it again in the next 4 months? If so, it's ok to keep for now. If you have not used the item for 8 months, think to yourself, can someone else need or use this more than I, if so to the donate bag it goes, no not in the closet, straight to the donate bag. Maybe you need a bag for things you could sell? If you are not planning to have a tag sale within two weeks or put it up on Ebay right away, it's better to donate and get the tax deduction right now.

Extra points to remember about what to decide to keep and not to keep:

Keep only that for which you have proper storage space for.
Keep only that which will immediately help you in your future.
Keep only those papers that must be kept such as tax papers, and no papers of piled information that can easily be found on the internet when you need it.
Do not keep items you are not using right now and haven't been actively using the past 3 months.
If it is broken, not useful and beautiful - out it goes, and that means right now!
When it comes to 'so-called' cherished items, the babies blanket, mounds of photos. Think to yourself how these could be better stored so that you actually look through them, then have them stored improperly where they can get damaged.

Remember with each of these items now put in their proper place, you are creating the home office of your dreams. So once a garbage bag is full, immediately remove it from the home office area into the hall until your 20 minutes are up when you then take it to the curb or garbage can immediately. You should already feel the room be lighter in it's 'weight'.

After your twenty minutes are up, you may feel motivated to continue for a little bit longer, but I would only work another 20 minutes max. The whole point, is to do this a little at a time. The real trick to keeping within the 20 minute task for several days for two weeks, is that you will see immediate improvement within only one day. This will help to keep you motivated.

Now when this first task has completed, and the night is coming to a close and you are in bed, look at your list, check off the items you have completed, pat yourself on your back and choose another item to do on the next day. Do the envisioning process once more and know with each task completed, you are well on the way to achieving the success you demand and dream of and know it is possible!

With a little effort a few times a week as described above, literally you will find your home office has cleaned itself with little effort. You will feel like a success, your home office and areas will represent that, and as a major added benefit, you will present yourself to others as a confident successful person which can only help immediately bring that right opportunities to you faster. So get to it! Success awaits you!

Leah Quinn is a writer specializing on food, health, self-improvement and entertainment and is a multi-media artist living in New York. Feel free to stop by her main site http://leahquinn.com, or her food site to learn many more healthy and interesting recipes at http://dinner-and-jam.blogspot.com and to find links to her many other sites and blogs such as http://divaliscious.blogspot.com.

How To Be Happy - 12 Great Tips That Teach You To Be Happy

2008-03-25T11:57:00.001-04:00

To Be Happy - 12 Great Tips That Teach You To Be Happy Written By Tri Bros Broda

People are worried all the time about every little thing in life. Come to think of it, is it really worth it? If you could change things around you would. But if you could not, the best way is to accept it and move on with life.

Try to be cheerful and happy and soon you would realize that life is not that bad at all. But how could one be happy?

Here are some great tips that teach you how to be happy. Read on but promise to pass it on to others.

Understand that simple things such as a birds song, cool air, sunshine, etc. could make you happy.

Mingle with happy people - mix with those who are merry and joyous. You could catch it on if you have an open mind and spread it around you.

Do not dwell in self-pity - wallowing in self-pity lowers your self-esteem and self-confidence. If you could take action, be quick to correct troubling situations. If it is beyond you, you may just forget it and carry on your life with a happy outlook. Who knows what is in store for you in future? Be hopeful instead of drowning yourself in self-pity.

Love yourself - if you cannot love yourself it is difficult to love others.

Laugh at adversity - who does not have problems in life? When you laugh at your difficulties, you would realize they become insignificant and you feel lighter.

Be healthy - good health is a great factor in making you happy.

Believe that you deserve happiness - believe that happiness is your birthright and you deserve to be happy. It is after all your choice and no body could take it away from you if you choose to stick on to it.

Engage in different kinds of activities than your usual routine - breaking the routine sometimes makes life interesting. Look into ways of changing your routing and you may enjoy it.

Choose to be happy - you have the ability to take positive or negative approach to your issues. If you choose a positive approach, happiness is easy to reach.

Develop a sense of gratitude - whenever you feel that you lack something in life remember all those things that you have in your life you could be thankful for such as a roof over your head, a decent family, your physical and personal strengths, etc. This should make you happy for what you have in your life.

Avoid negativism - fill yourself with positivism that would make you see life in new colors and shades. You would see life with new eyes and bubbling energy. That is happiness.

Learn to laugh at yourself - this is an excellent approach to life. Everyone makes mistakes. Your errors are only bad if you take them seriously. Just laugh at yourself if you err and your heart would lighten up.

Remember, it does not cost you a penny to be happy. Your life and your choice are at your hands. Isn't that reason enough to be happy?

If you need very practical, easy-to-follow, and appropriate tips, suggestions,and guides to reach happiness' maximum point than, please read "Howto Find TrueHappiness and Keep It Forever" guide right now and also toread more happiness articles please visit: http://www.bokca.com/about/self-help/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tri_Bros_Broda

New Job Jitters? How to handle yourself on the first day on your new job and be a Success

2008-03-16T20:06:00.001-04:00

I happened to have a first day of a new job happening tomorrow. Now we have all been lucky to have landed a job now and then and at times have been on the other side of the coin and found ourselves without a job. I have been on both sides of the coin.

But with a new job starting tomorrow, a new leaf opening up, I wish to create the best impression possible, so I decided to look up a little research and voila - an article in the making to also help others like you who may be starting a new job. What I learned surprised me, some ideas made me laugh and found funny as you will, and lastly, I thought I'd share my experience in seeing if following said tricks actually work.

A little background:
I have over 20 years of office work experience having worked for large firms as well as small firms with various titles. Due to my level of creativity and style of personality I have found much success with working at smaller-type firms. I personally was not one of those people who perfected the 'fitting in' system as many are comfortable to do and as required to live by for working with larger firms. Though due to the internet, some of these large conglomerate companies understand many factors for creating a highly successful working environment - and Bravo to that!

I have a friend for example who works for a privately owned credit card company - you know the company that say's things are priceless? - ok well, she has comfortably been able to play the role, be able to do the 'fit in', and now makes ridiculous amount of money - good for her! Though this longtime pal of mine is someone I may have never wished to become like, but I could learn a few things from her. Her resilience and ability to be flexible has certainly helped create the life she wishes to lead. Some of us though may not have her talent let alone any wish to work for a huge conglomerate.

So You Want to Create The Best Impression on Day One

Wear comfortable clothes, and be a little understated - I read somewhere where one woman wore a mini-skirt and chunky shoes on her first day, and the poor thing was known as the 'chunky shoe' 'girl' for many years. Now I am not sure what to complain about first, how this writer referred to this woman as a 'girl' or this woman's poor choice in clothing.

This doesn't mean despite a relaxed dress code you should wear jeans on the first day. But you do not wish to stick way out completely either, it's not a black tie event unless you are the waiter. But by being comfortable, you will be more relaxed with yourself and it will give you the chance to give the right impression versus someone whose shoulders might be hunched to hide a too-tight shirt for example.
So do yourself a favor, wear comfortable shoes, have a jacket that can come off and you feel comfortable in, wear slacks that fit, lay off of too much perfume or cologne - since you may be in tight quarters as people lean over you to show you their computer software, have and use tic tacs so that your mouth is always clean.
Wait at least until the third week to start decorating your cubicle or desk. You want to make sure you are staying first of all. Secondly, no one wants to see your teddy bear and think you are all washed up before you lead your first sales meeting, regardless of how lucky that teddy bear actually is for you! Also allowing this much time to pass will allow you to see and observe others in their decorating techniques and what might be appropriate.
Remember the names of your coworkers as soon as you can. When being introduced to people on the first day, do your best to remember their names, and what they do. Respecting their success and their experience with this company will assist you greatly when you need to ask questions such as how long is your lunch break to what certain work policies are. Show real appreciation for those who show you the ropes and this will help you gain the respect from your coworkers.
The first day, is not the day to share your humor! We all have funny jokes, and want to come across as likable, but telling anything political or religious could literally label you as not a serious worker, but a goof ball right from the very start. Now I know this seems obvious, but it is an important remark, especially when there will be times when undoubtedly you will be nervous on your first day, and usually some of us try to be funny to help break that nervousness. Keep mum and simply smile your nerves away.
Remember there was a history before you arrived. There may be a number of reasons why you were hired besides your expertise. It could very well be that there's a colleague or manager no one likes, hence the reason for a very high turnover (or maybe you forgot to ask why the job was available in the first place - ouch!) or hopefully it was open due to promotion and growth. Keep this in mind as you learn the ropes.

As you learn the tasks at hand, keep your nose to the grind, and your ears wide open. By not jutting in on conversations that do not include you, you will learn who you can really trust and who you might really like. What someone may appear like to you on the first day, could be the person you least would like to know or be associated with a few weeks down the road when you learn this person is up for the boot. So choose your associates closely - and remember that no one likes a brown nose either - so find that middle ground and stick with it until you know everyone and the ropes and position you are to fill.
Be yourself and do not pretend you are something you are not. Several CEO's have mentioned this trick. You were already hired, so relax. You got the job, now is the time to pay attention at dealing with the responsibilities of your new job.
Arrive a little early and stay a little late for the first week, and learn when the best times are to approach your new peeps to ask them questions. They want you to succeed as much as you do and do not expect you to be perfect from day one, but you can at least try and ask questions at the right time.

At the end of the day, clean your desk area so that is it tidy, write down any notes and tasks you might have to accomplish the very next day. Being organized from day one will only assist you in doing your job fantastically.
On the night before, set out your outfit, don't drink yourself crazy - who wants to smell your beer breath in the morning?!? Get a good night's sleep too.
Try and be as prepared as you can, check out the company's website, learn as much history about the company's doing as you can. Keep a pad handy to write down any notes during your initial meetings so you can refer to them later when you need to.
Lastly, be flexible, project confidence and really show them you are happy to be there at your new job and you will help make the transition of being the new employee to being one of the faved employees who have a bright future for themselves with the new company. Lastly enjoy the first day so that is it not your last and you will find yourself comfortable in your new shoes at your new desk in your new position.

Congrats on your new job, good luck and get going!

Happy Chinese New Year Everyone!

2008-02-07T11:54:00.000-05:00

I am happy to say that the Chinese New Year is finally here! So much to look forward to. Don't you think?

Be ready for the New Year - The Year of the Rat
If you haven't already, run and clean up your homestead as best as possible today. And definitely burn some incense. Light up your rooms, open your windows and go about each room as you bless you and your family with the burning incense to help cleanse the new year with health, prosperity, love and happiness. It will only take ten minutes. Go on now, I know some of you are sitting around just reading my blog.

By the way, you can always do this anytime when you are feeling as if your life needs a change or a chance for that matter. Sometimes when we are feeling a bit low and down, this really helps pick things up for you. I wish the person I am about to discuss briefly would have done this. It could have at least have her start to hope for changes.

Who I don't wish to discuss
I am certainly not going to chit chat about a woman who was possibly released A.M.A. (against medical advice), why bother with this - get healed, go back and get sheltered, go back home where you belong, get back with your family, they are only what you got girl, get God if that even helps you! Move on please, there's nothing to see here people -

The Morning News
O.K., now that I got that out of the way, yeesh! When I saw the news this morning, all I could think was of many important things there are in the world. When other people learn this, all will be a lot better - I did want to say well, but geeze, we all want this country to be healed.

My thoughts and prayers certainly go out to those affected recently by the horrid tornadoes! This winter has so affected many a beautiful state(s) in our lovely U.S.A. And this we still have a war going on outside our country.

I am simply asking for people to think a little extra this year in doing what is best for their family, to encourage the youth to grow with wisdom and enjoy each day to its fullest.

New News
I have created now a new blog simply for Divaliscious Music News. Here you can read news about new music releases, links to their websites, and especially my Divaliscious Music Reviews of them. I will also be checking out several bands from MySpace.com, Soundclick.com and other related band sites.

So if you want to be reviewed and you think you got what it takes to be reviewed my little old me, well then send me an email and let me know your website address and music samples or send me your electronic press kit.

The Lucky Zen Dog Ebay Store and a Divaliscious Secret Revealed

2008-01-09T10:52:00.000-05:00

For those that remember or not, I ran an online store of my Divaliscious goods which included zen candles, jewelry, fancy hair ties, sensual soaps and scarves among other items. It's been enough of time passing that I decided to bring this all back.

I chose to name the eBay store "The Lucky Zen Dog" well of course after my pet, Theo and his incredible roverlicious doggie biscuits which are also made here in what I would call the Divaliscious Factory of homemade goods.

Once the store is completely functional, I'll let you all on to the new products I will be selling, but until that time passes, you can at least relax in knowing you can get those incredible soaps again and soon along with a whole bunch of other items I have decided to either create for my online community or for my Divaliscious followers.

Why did I decide to open up the store again? I was starting to get tired of receiving too many requests for some of those prized soaps and jewelry I made as well as other items. I had taken a hiatus from being online, and chose specifically not to get back into this business of running my online store, but hey sometimes, we need a break from the online life, yes? Then enough time passed and my break is now over.

Ok, well here's a secret, I was without a computer and did not seek to use one either for two years, yes, can you imagine? I frankly can't and still to this day do not know how in the world I ever managed...then again, it was freeing, serious freeing. For example not to have to be glued to your computer for the latest news, but as time passed, it was getting very tiring having to go to the local library to use one, and you can't always have access to certain sites and every half hour, you have to go back to the Librarian to get another little slip of paper that allows you access for 30 minutes more.

Oddly enough, a few things had changed in this time. Myspace.com was created along with Facebook.com and the Vista operating system was released along with the advances in web design and development among many other incredible internet changes. It truly is amazing how quickly technology is growing, but this is not anything new - and certainly is not new news.

Hey I know I am late with my January Divascopes, I promise to get them done by the end of the week, I am also working on getting an interesting Feng Shui article up and running for all you peeps out there who wish to do something in changing their chi.

Stay Tuned...Divaliscious

A Divaliscious Thank You for Thanksgiving

2007-11-20T10:12:00.000-05:00

I thought I would simply create a list of things I am simply grateful for this year along with sharing with you some of my favorite places to go to when you might be stuck for ideas this Thanksgiving day.

First the list of good links of places you can visit to find some ideas for what to serve your family if you haven't already decided on your menu.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/- They have a complete list of their most famous and requested recipes if you are in a pinch.
How to Avoid Thanksgiving Nightmares - Here's a good look and blog to see if you can avoid having a Turkey nightmare happening at your table this year. - I know, you still need to invite those pesky relatives, but hey I'm talking about the Turkey here...
A Thanksgiving for All - great blog site to enjoy and learn about recipes and the true meaning of Thanksgiving.
A Funny Thanksgiving Poem - Need a laugh, I do...no Let me get another bite in first!
Videos on making some of those untried as of yet recipes

Good luck everyone, and have a great Thanksgiving! Divaliscious

Get on the Gravy Train – A How To

2007-11-15T13:42:00.001-05:00

So you want to learn how to make lump free gravy, huh?!? And you want to get on that ol' gravy train, right? Well you've come to the right place then. This is a simple "how to" in making Great Gravy from Pan Drippings.

Making gravy is a lot easier that people think. There are some easy tricks of the trade that can make it a wonderful experience for you the cook and for your eaters and guests in enjoying. So here goes anything. It is a lot like making a rue. And what's a rue? Well it's easier than having to deal with rules. I'd rue anytime before I'd try ruling! Go ahead look it up the word. I will discuss rues on another time. Back to the Gravy making… Depending upon what sort of roasting dish you just took out of the oven, this recipe basically calls for any sort of pan drippings for the best gravy you have ever had the pleasure in making and eating!

Get Ready, Get Set, Go
Having everything else ready (your salads, other side dishes keeping warm or almost finishing, your roast resting up a bit, this is now the perfect time to do the gravy – yes at the last minute.

Once you have taken the turkey (insert and replace "turkey" with whatever you just roasted) out of the oven – place it on the rack it roasted on top of some sort of large platter to rest. Place clean dish towels or tin foil over roasted turkey to help keep little fingers (hey yours included!) from poking and tearing off the crispy skin. Let it rest for 20 minutes for a very large bird (say 25 lbs) but let it rest will you? Please make that one promise to me. Too many people start diving in and get carving right away. Let me let you learn, that by doing it in this fashion by not allowing the roast to rest will get any meat to basically freeze up – which is an odd thing to say since it just came out of the oven. Oxymoron, no? Frozed up Roast. Doesn't sound good, right? – Yeah so don't do it. Enough said about that one!

Liquids can be from the left over potato water you may still have from doing the potatoes – this includes any left over scalded milk. I wouldn't use more than ½ cup of wine if you so choose and that should be the first liquid if you are using wine to add once you get to this stage of the gravy making.

Do's and Don'ts

Do have all ingredients ready before you start.
Don't Forget about the gravy once you start cooking it, it requires your attention.
Do know that it's not the end of the world if you still get some lumps – it's all in the technique.
Don't use already hot liquids – let them cool down a bit prior to adding.
Do know you should make the gravy at the last moment and it will become its most thickest once it's reached its boiling point and starts to cool down.

Equipment Needed:

One still warm Oven Roasting pan with leftover drippings – Most pans are stove top safe, make sure and be careful.
Whisk
One working Stove Top
Pot Holders
Spoon for tasting
Heat Safe Bowl to transfer the pan drippings
Fine Strainer (Optional) (& in case of emergency) - (Keep reading, you will soon see why)

Ingredients Required:

2 Tablespoons of drippings (fat) for each cup of gravy you want to make.
Salt & Pepper to Taste
Fresh Herbs of your Choosing
1 Cup of cold liquid per each cup of gravy

Start Skimming
Take pan and pour into a heat-safe bowl all of the drippings and large pieces you can get out of the roasting pan. Careful, it may be still hot, but that's good! Let drippings cool down just a bit – the fatty liquid may even separate a bit – and that's good. Place roasting dish on top of stove.

Use of the Whisk
Taking whisk, scrape off any browned bits from the bottom of the pan – these are the flavor enhancers, leave 'em in. Now preferably add the "darker" pan drippings (which inevitably are on the bottom of your heat safe bowl now) back into the roasting pan – remember 2 tablespoons of fat drippings for each cup of gravy you want to make.

Start your Burners
Add 2 tablespoons of flour to each two tablespoons of drippings you just added. Make sure the flame is on low. Whisk away to your heart's content at this point. You will want to cook off the flour for at least 2 to 4 minutes of cooking time. You do not want it to scorch this mixture though - hence why I did say keep the flame low, adjust yours now accordingly, thanks, we can now all continue.

Adding the Liquids
Add a ½ cup of liquid to start. Immediately start whisking. This is the imperative and most important part of the gravy making process. Let the liquid meld into the flour mixture. Add more accordingly. After each addition, let the mixture thicken at each stage of adding liquid. Once you get about three cups in, you can now add the rest all at once. It was simply important to get the first stage of the adding liquid part to have the initial part of the gravy thickened.

Preferences Please
I would not normally leave the gravy alone at this moment. I would be whisking pretty much the whole time. Slowly of course – don't tire yourself out – great time to get assistance at this stage – like a teenager with nothing else to do but text their way through the feast you worked so hard all day on – or of course then there's that too helpful relative that needs something to do to get out of your hair for just one moment! Grab them now to help "the continue to whisk till you drop" stage of the gravy making process. You can at this stage put up the heat to get your mixture to its boiling point. If you let it sit and not whisk– only the bottom liquids will thicken, and hence the beginning of your lumpy gravy disaster once you realize this. (And hence, what the strainer's for in case of emergency.)

Boiling Yet?
If a yes, put the burner way down on low at this point. You want your gravy to simmer for 5 minutes at least. Now is a good time to add your fresh herbs you wished to try, taste for need of salt and pepper. Once the gravy has met its boiling point – note that the gravy will thicken upon standing. After this, your gravy is ready – Welcome to the Gravy Train!

Have You a Too Thin Gravy Mishap?
Quick, without anyone looking, grab a teacup or other small vessel. Add 1-2 tablespoons of flour, add 2 tablespoons of cold water, stir with fork till all lumps are finito and mixture resembles Elmer's Glue – Add this into too thin gravy, whisk immediately, up the column on the burner, and whisk. Let it get to the boiling point, then return step above.

What About a Too Thick Gravy Mishap?
This can happen when you may have put too much flour in or when you return back to the kitchen to get more for seconds or thirds and the gravy has cooled down and is not a thick mess with a skin layer. You can simply add more liquid slowly at first, a little at a time, yes, get that whisk out, and stir away while allowing the gravy to reheat. It should thin out just lovely, thank you.

Mashed Potatoes & Gravy – A How To

2007-11-15T11:02:00.001-05:00

Lately, things have been pretty interesting around here in Divaliscious Town. And I started to realize I have got to get my questions and answers section up and running. Especially since that is what a lot of my old site was made up of. So what sort of questions may you ask? Well, almost anything. I will do my best to answer them. Though let's just start with food. That's an easy one. Just Ask Me, Ask Divaliscious!

Examples would be – how to you get your fudge not to crystallize, or how to make the perfect pie crust, etc. Those questions that people seek in order to be the best they can be, can be answered. Yes, there are always tricks of the trade, and just maybe I will share with you my grandmother's favorite trick to fluffy mashed potatoes or how to have lump free gravy.

Since it is nearing Turkey Day – or for some of you, Tofurkey Day well I guess I'll let you on this little secret. I have had to do the mashed potatoes and gravy basically at every Thanksgiving Dinner since I seem to be either 1) the only sucker who knows how to peel potatoes quickly or 2) have been told I get them as close to Grandma Nell's as they will every possibly be. So here goes anything and everything.

How to make lump-free fluffy and whipped Mashed Potatoes and incredible lump free Gravy – Grandma Nell Style:

A word to the wise, this is NOT a calorie free side dish, nor a recipe for the delicate at heart. It will contain milk, butter, salt and a whole lot of love, which of course you will too be a little more to love by the end of the meal, so heck go with it!

Do's and Don'ts

Need to do this in stages? You can set aside peeled potatoes in water (make sure they are all covered with water) and let it sit aside somewhere in the kitchen or safe place away from your house pets, preferably in the deep pot that they will be cooked in. They can stay in this water until you are ready – just replace with fresh water when ready to boil.
Once Potatoes are boiled and cooked correctly (a fork will easily penetrate the potato) do not let them sit in the hot water for long – they will continue to cook and bring you gooey potatoes and of course we know that Divaliscious wouldn't want that for you.
Do when straining the water from the boiled potatoes; reserve at least half of the starchy water. This is fantastic to use instead of milk for those who are lactose intolerant, and for thickening up the gravy or the soup you will inevitably make with all the side dishes and leftover turkey. And yes, I am sure you can use this water, I have used it plenty in helping both dishes – this was a Grandma Nell trick.
Know you can reheat the mashed potatoes, if you have a small oven, or it's cramped up with the turkey and other side dishes. Place potatoes either in a microwave bowl for reheating or put back in the pot you cooked the boiled potatoes in and about ½ hour before serving, place in the oven on low say 300 degrees while turkey is out resting after her hard time in the oven.
I am not a fan of the ricer that some people use to mash the potatoes, stick with the tried and true hand masher.
Once you start mashing – do the next few steps quickly, you do not want the potatoes to start to cool. This is where the gooey and sticky mashed potatoes come from.

Equipment needed:

One of those potato mashers
Mix Master or Kitchen Aid Mixer
Pot Holders
Strainer
Pot deep enough to hold all of your potatoes
A second pot for the strainer to sit over when straining the water from the boiled potatoes
One working stove and warm oven at 300 degrees
Fork
Spatula

Ingredients:

Figure 2 potatoes per person and anywhere from 15-30 minutes of boiling time depending upon the quantity of mashed potatoes you are making.
(I love the Yukon Gold for their natural buttery flavor, but good old Idaho's are great too!)
Butter – A stick – yes a whole stick (8 oz.) for 12-15 potatoes. If you must, use half margarine
Whole Milk- two cups

Peel the Potatoes
So where do we start? With the potatoes of course! Peel completely the potatoes. I am not one for dirty looking potatoes, that's for your local greasy-spoon restaurant that has those great ribs, but this is for your family – so make sure every peel is off that potato in your hands – It's easier to do this in the sink versus in some bowl.

Boil the Potatoes
Add enough water and at least two teaspoons of salt and bring to a boil. You may wish to cover the potatoes, but do watch it, once they start boiling, a slow boil is always better than a fast one, since the pot lid will probably pop off with water all over the place on top of your stove with a hard boil. Yuk!

Has Ten Minutes Gone By?
Take your milk – I like to take at least two cups for say 12 potatoes, scald the milk in a separate 2 quart pot and keep warm in the back of the stove top. Keep milk warm, very very very important, hey did I say very enough yet? - -Yes Keeping the milk warm is imperative to making great-tasting and looking mashed potatoes – yes, another one of Grandma Nell's tricks! You never want to add cold milk to the hot potatoes!

In a Rush?
If you are in a rush, say you forget at the last minute to do the potatoes, well slice them up into smaller bits say the size of a large walnut, which will cut the time it takes them to be boiled. While boiling, do stir up the potatoes around in the pot, since the ones on the bottom will cook faster than those on the top. Yes, believe me, they will.

Are Potatoes Fork Tender?
OK so the potatoes are finished being boiled, you can now bring the pot to the sink, using those potholders, using a strainer over yet another large pot, strain the potatoes so that you are able to reserve the water that the potatoes were boiled in. Set aside the "potato water" for use in a bit.

Back to the Stovetop
Take the original pot you boiled the potatoes in and put back the now cooked potatoes into the pot and place over a low flame.

Using your potholders once again, shake vigorously the pot, as if you were making popcorn. This will allow some of the steam and inevitably some of the water to be evaporated. Do this for maybe two or three minutes. You think your arms are tired now?!? Just wait. We haven't even gotten to the gravy whisking!

Now Comes the Fun Part
Invite the kids to mash up the potatoes, keep this task quick, say only five minutes. I prefer the open masher vs. the flat masher. Then get rid of the kids after the mashing is completed. Not all lumps will have been removed, but that's what your mixer is for. Now I have both types of mashers, and I tend to use the flat bottom one for when I am making bruschetta for mashing up the tomatoes - but that's another recipe, another day and another time.

Bring to Mixer
Bring pot to mixer, and though its awkward, put pot under mixer, or if you have to put potatoes into mixer bowl. Add half of the butter and add salt and pepper at this stage. Some people prefer white pepper, who cares, I know its pepper, so what if I see little flakes of pepper in my mashed potatoes, and I know at least its real ingredients!

Start Your Mixer
Add scalded and still warm milk slowly to the whipping potatoes. You can also substitute the potato water you set aside on reserve – but don't use it all up – save some for making the gravy next. You may in fact not use all of the two cups of milk depending upon your preferences of whipped mashed potatoes.

Do Not Be Afraid
Stop mixer on occasion and see how the potatoes taste and feel in a spoon. Do this within five minutes. You can also check for lumps at this stage. In other words, see if they dollop like you want them to, say like when you are whisking up egg whites. How stiff or in this case, soft do you want those taters of yours? Once you think you have added enough milk/liquid, salt, pepper, and butter, you are finished! Serve immediately with a big lump of butter on top and proudly take your potatoes to the table and banquet. Relish in the oohs and ahh's you hear. And know that Divaliscious is winking behind you somewhere out there in cyber land.

Not Ready to Serve?
At this stage, you can either put the potatoes back into the pot you boiled them in and do your best to keep them warm say in the oven on low, keep them covered too!
If they've gotten a bit cold for your taste, yes, you can reheat them in the microwave, but the oven reheating is best, since this will allow them to stay airy and fluffy.

Story of My Life on the Web

2007-11-07T08:49:00.000-05:00

So here I am looking for all the old web-related files in order in assisting me in bringing back up my Divaliscious site...and let me tell you - for the normal person - just imagine how many files that collect unnecessarily on their pc/mac? OMG one would think! - The amount of junk is incredible. Now, what if they were Divaliscious...? Yeesh!

So the Divaliscious site for those of you who do not know or recall; Divaliscious was a site for free recipes, love advice that might bite, party ideas, music news and a lot more including Divascopes. In fact if you are interested, you can get an idea of what was and what will be the new Divaliscious site. I warn you, not all links work on the recipes page, but it will give you a good idea.

So this Divaliscious one has the wonderful and arduous task of reorganizing after have several PC meltdowns. Then I have to get some of my domain names back...one I think is gone for good, but I will give it a try - hey you never know...does one....that saying always makes me think of the Fats Waller song and that great production they should put back on Broadway titled, Ain't Misbihavin' - Wow does that take me back - imagine seeing Nell Carter sing like the true songstress she is - it was amazing.

So, I'm back in cyber land, and found a lot of the files, but nothing is organized that way it was...forget about letting someone else do back up for you - my suggestion today is if you own a new computer, learn yourself how to do the back ups and copying of DVD's of information - and keep the file hierarchy. Most people wont understand your way of organizing...This is not to say I do not know how to do these things. I just let a very nice helpful person make a mess of things for me. Thanks a lot.

So let me go and be Divaliscious - and hey Donna Koran?....Be Divaliscious was a tag line LONG BEFORE your perfume Delicious came out with the tag line Be Delicious- you don't know how that fumed me, yes people, please imagine your little Divaliscious fuming away that one of her own marketing tag lines was stolen right under neath her very own perfect nose. Urgh.....But it only reminds me that Divaliscious (me) is on the something and I get to get back out there!

Getting my name back...

2007-11-06T17:13:00.000-05:00

Well, after a very long hiatus, Divaliscious is back. Don' even begin to ask me where the heck I was! I am still trying to get back my old site. For those of you not in the know...I ran for years a well populated site that had free recipes to great and fun real love advice to divascopes - You were able to Ask Divaliscious anything and she would answer you.

I will be getting the beloved divascopes back up and running, let me do some astrology research first and you all will be happy! I will also be starting up my recipe section and the ever popular Ask Divaliscious section up and running.

I have lots to design and get ready - but I am so terribly happy (sounds like an oxymoron) but you do not know! - So hey, are you Divaliscious, 100%?. We shall see.