Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Teaching at Raffa Yoga this Saturday
Thursday, November 23, 2006
Happy Thanksgiving
There is so much that takes place in all of our lives that we simply just take for granted. We woke up this morning! Do you know what a big deal that is. And in truth, many did not wake up this morning. Or some, even in the USA, woke up hungry and not knowing where their next meal was coming from. It's a truth, yet so far from our awareness unless attention is drawn to it. We have computers to read such blogs! Some are without homes, jobs, enough money to even buy a single Holiday gift for a their child. Yet we don't necessarily think about that every day. Many of you know I love the Keep A Child Alive organization that gives needed HIV/AIDS meds to children and their families in Africa. I wonder as I sit down to a wonderfully healthy, tasty and over abundant meal today, what will that child have for dinner or worse yet, will they have even ONE meal today.
I don't find any of us wrong for not holding such thoughts and awarenesses in our minds throughout the day. We are "very busy" after all. But once the awareness is there, then we can't act as if we don't know. Of course then we are confronted with a sense of overwhelming inadequacy - "I'm just one person - what can I do"? Or "I already gave" (somehow absolving ourselves from a need to be present to what continues to occur today)!
Some of you have heard me speak of the wonderful story about the little boy walking along the beach at low tide when all he could see for miles were starfish washed up upon the beach, destined to dry out in the sun or be eaten by the sea gulls. Being of kind heart and unlimited potential, he began walking down the beach picking up starfish one at a time and tossing them back into the water, back into life. Now an elder man was walking down the beach and saw the boy and say "hey sonny, what do you think you're doing". The boy replied "I'm saving the starfish". The older man laughed and said "you can't do that. Look, down the beach there are thousands of starfish, you will never be able to save them and make a difference". With that the little boy bent down. Picked up a starfish. Looked at in inquisitively. And tossed it back into the water. The boy looked at the older man and said "I made a difference in that one's life".
We are all on this earth for a reason. It is no accident. It is no surprise that you are reading this sharing now, nor that I am thinking of this today on this day of Thanks. It's time to roll up our sleeves EVERYONE and look out into the world, beyond the boundary of our own being and experience. It's time to begin to think about what difference can we make, be it for a starfish, a homeless person, someone living with HIV, wild and domestic animals without a voice, or the middle aged neighbor or old friend who is home lonely today. Who have you not called for a while?
How dare we not use our lives to make a difference in this world. Who are we to allow our talents, skills, love and ability to go to waste. On this day of thanks, lets pause together for a moment and appreciate what we have.............................................................(no really... pause!!!)
And now think about the difference that you can make today in the life of another or the world.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Poz.com poll results on HIV disclosure
Results:
Yes - 45%
No - 55%
As you can see it is nearly half of the folks living with HIV who are not sharing their HIV status. Did neither partner talk about HIV and safer sex before their experience with each other? Whose responsibility is it? Just the person living with HIV? In the end, each person is responsible for their own sexual health, safety and behavior. Care enough about yourself to ask the important questions within a relationship of trust.
Whether two or more people agreed that a sexual encounter is simply a casual one time 'hook-up', designed to be playful, fun or in celebration of your sexuality or an experience of emotional connection and deeper meaning, be sure to consider the value and worth of yourself as a man or woman and take responsibility for your sexual health! You are worth it!
Your comments and feedback are always welcome. This could be an interesting discussion thread.
Anonymous Gifting for no reason! Make a difference in someones life today!
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The answer to one of the happiest mysteries in the Kansas City area is being revealed this year.
A man who has given away millions of dollars and become known as Secret Santa for handing out Christmas cash to the needy is allowing his name to be publicized after 26 years.
But the reason for the revelation is an unhappy one. Secret Santa has cancer. He wants to start speaking to community groups about his belief in random acts of kindness, but he can't do that without telling people who he is.
The man who has spread cheer for 26 years is Larry Stewart, 58, of Lee's Summit, who made his millions in cable television and long-distance telephone service.
Stewart told The Kansas City Star that he was the man who would walk up to complete strangers, hand them $100 bills, wish them "Merry Christmas" and walk away, leaving astonished and grateful people in his wake. He handed out money throughout the year, but he said it was the Christmas giving that gave him the most joy.
Devoted life to returning favors
Now, he wants to inspire others to do the same. He said he thinks that people should know that he was born poor, was briefly homeless, dropped out of college, has been fired from jobs, and once even considered robbery.
But he said every time he hit a low point in his life, someone gave him money, food and hope, and that's why he has devoted his life to returning the favors.
Stewart grew up in Bruce, Miss., reared by his elderly grandparents, who survived on $33 a month and welfare staples. They heated water on the stove for baths and used an outhouse.
After he left home and college, he found himself out of work in 1971. After sleeping in his car for eight nights and not eating for two days, Stewart went to the Dixie Diner in Houston, Miss., and ordered breakfast. When the bill came, he acted as if he'd lost his wallet.
The diner owner came to him.
"You must have dropped this," the owner said, slipping a $20 bill into the young man's hand.
He paid, pushed his car to the gas station, and left town. But he vowed to remember the stranger's kindness, and to help others, when he could.
Triple failure
He arrived in Kansas City because he had a cousin here. He got married and started his own company, with money from his father-in-law.
But the company failed in 1977 and he couldn't pay the bills. It was the lowest point in his life.
"I was a failure in business. I was a failure as a husband. I was a failure as a father," he remembers thinking.
He got into his car with a handgun and thought about robbing a store. But he stopped and went home — and got a call from his brother-in-law, offering him money to tide him over.
After being fired from two jobs on two successive Christmases, Stewart stopped at a drive-in. Although he had little money himself, Stewart gave a cold and miserable carhop the change from a $20, much to her delight.
That's when Stewart's mission to secretly give away money at the holidays began.
Eventually, Stewart became a success and started Network Communications in 2002. The firm used independent sales agents to enroll customers for Sprint long-distance service.
In 1996, an arbitration panel ordered Sprint to pay Network and its sales agents $60.9 million in commissions it owed. Stewart got $5.2 million.
The poor boy from Mississippi now had a family, lived in a nice house and drove nice cars.
So, he started giving away more money, to dozens of causes. The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. The Salvation Army. The National Paralysis Foundation. The ALS Foundation. He supports the Metropolitan Crime Commission's Surviving Spouse and Family Endowment program.
And, all along, he gave away money to needy strangers.
But Christmas was special. He'd distribute thousands of dollars during visits to coin laundries, thrift stores, barbershops and diners.
People shouted with joy, cried, praised the Lord, and thanked Stewart repeatedly.
But Secret Santa moved on quickly to avoid attention.
Reporters sworn to secrecy
He did sometimes invite newspaper and TV reporters along, if they promised not to reveal his identity. It was reporters who dubbed him "Secret Santa."
In 1989, after some people chased his car when they saw the cash he carried, he decided he needed protection. He called Jackson County Sheriff's Capt. Tom Phillips.
"I thought, 'OK, this guy's nuts,'" recalls Phillips, now the Jackson County sheriff. "But at the end of the day, I was in tears — literally — just seeing what he did to people."
Eventually, Secret Santa took his sleigh ride to other places.
In 2001, after the terrorist attacks, he went to New York. The New York cop who accompanied him said he'd never forget the experience.
In 2002, Secret Santa was in Washington, D.C., victimized by the serial snipers. In 2003, it was San Diego neighborhoods devastated by wildfires. And in 2004, he was in Florida, helping thousands left homeless by three hurricanes.
Last Christmas, Secret Santa went back to Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina battered the Gulf Coast.
He stopped in Houston, Miss., where the diner owner had helped him so many years ago. On a previous visit he had surprised the owner, Ted Horn, with $10,000. This time, they stamped $100 bills with the name "Ted Horn," and gave Horn money to distribute. And Horn took money from his own bank account to give away, too.
Secret Santa’s ‘elves’
Stewart has enlisted "elves" for years — George Brett, the late Buck O'Neil, Dick Butkus. He's already inspired copycats.
Four other Secret Santas plan to distribute a total of $70,000 of their own cash this year.
And Secret Santa plans to give away $100,000 this year. Since he started, he estimates he's given out more than $1.3 million in Christmas cash.
But this will likely be the last Christmas for Stewart's tradition. In April, doctors told Stewart that he had cancer of the esophagus. It had spread to his liver. He needed treatment, fast.
With help from Brett, he got into a clinical trial at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Texas. Doctors tell him the tumors have shrunk, but they can't say whether the cancer is in remission.
"I pray for that man every single day," former Kansas City Chiefs star Deron Cherry — one of Stewart's elves — says. "There's a lot of people praying for him."
Thursday, November 16, 2006
George Carlin's Views on Aging
"How old are you?" "I'm four and a half!" You're never thirty-six and a half. You're four and a half, going on five! That's the key.
You get into your teens, now they can't hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead.
"How old are you?" "I'm gonna be 16!" You could be 13, but hey, you're gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life . . . you become 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony . . YOU BECOME 21. YESSSS!!!
But then you turn 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There's no fun now, you're Just a sour-dumpling. What's wrong? What's changed?
You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you're PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it's all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH 50 and your dreams are gone.
But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn't think you would!
So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60.
You've built up so much speed that you HIT 70! After that it's a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday!
You get into your 80s and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30; you REACH bedtime. And it doesn't end there. Into the 90s, you start going
backwards; "I Was JUST 92."
Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. "I'm 100 and a half!" May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!
HOW TO STAY YOUNG:
Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay "them."
Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.
Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. "An idle mind is the devil's workshop." And the devil's name is Alzheimer's.
Enjoy the simple things.
Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.
The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.
Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your sanctuary.
Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.
AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.
Immune Booster Soup
1 small yellow onion, chopped
4-10 cloves garlic, to taste, crushed and chopped
2 carrots, grated
4-8 shitake mushrooms, sliced
3 tablespoons grated gingerroot, to taste
1 fresh lemon, juiced
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1. Bring the broth, onion, garlic, carrots, mushrooms and gingerroot to a slow boil. Reduce heat and simmer on low, covered for 15 minutes or until the vegetables are soft.
2. Remove from heat; add the lemon juice and parsley. Cover and steep for 5 minutes.
Recipe adapted from Yoga Journal. Provided by Debra Brammer, N.D.
This soup is easy to make and delicious. The freshness is evident from first taste. The fresh lemon juice makes a difference. There is a near immediate warming feeling inside after eating. I love it!
Monday, November 13, 2006
LOGO channel coming to RI? I think so!
This update is the most promising I have heard to date.
"It's going to happen" I was told. They are in contractual agreement talks right now with MTV/LOGO. It's an issue of bandwidth and trying to balance the cost/bandwidth issue without raising cost of cable to the viewers. Serious negotiation has been going on for the past 2 months!
I was told the response has been "huge" and that the channel has been "highly requested".
So a special thank you to all of you who have worked so hard by calling, emailing, and sending letters to bring LOGO to RI. Well done!!!!
So get excited! And see what's coming! LOGO website
Sunday, November 12, 2006
Presenting 'Keep A Child Alive' at Raffa Yoga Today
Here are some of the highlights I want to present this morning:
In South Africa there are an estimated 5.5-6.5 million people infected with HIV
Largest number infected in the entire world
Of those, there are an estimated 230,000 children living with AIDS in South Africa
The reality is without medication 50% of these HIV infected kids die before the age of 2. And unfortunately, 80% die before the age of 8.
In South Africa there are over 1 million children are orphaned as a direct result of parents dying from AIDS related causes. 200,000 children are orphaned every year. This leaves children literally raising children. Entire generation is being wiped out. Grandmothers are also helping raise these kids.
Keep A Child Alive works to get life sustaining antiretrovirals (ARVs) to these children and their families and can do so for under $1.00 a day.
Join such celebrities as Alicia Keyes, Bono, Elton John, Cher, Nelly, Dave Matthews Coldplay, and others.
Saturday, November 11, 2006
Fall is in the Air: Autumn Apple Streusel Recipe
Autumn Apple Streusel
Streusel
1/2 cup soy margarine
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup rolled oats
1 cup flour
1. Combine margarine and sugar until mixture appears fluffy.
2. Add remaining streusel ingredients and mix well.
Set aside.
Filling
6 apples, peeled and sliced
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons apple cider
1. Combine apples with sugar, cornstarch and cider.
2. Pour apple mixture into a greased baking dish.
3. Crumble streusel dough over the apple mixture and
bake at 375 ° for 40 minutes, or until streusel
is golden brown.
Friday, November 10, 2006
Whale Rescue Emergency Help Needed Now
"As I write this, and just as the humpback population is headed south, dozens of critically endangered right whales are on their migration path back towards Cape Cod Bay for the winter. It is more than likely that at least one or two of them will show up encumbered by fishing gear, requiring an all-out rescue attempt by our team.
As the only organization authorized by the National Marine Fisheries Service to perform this difficult task, we are always at work developing new techniques and equipment, so that the next rescue event is just as likely to save the lives of those individual right whales, which in turn are crucial to the survival of the species itself. Remember that we have a pretty good track record; the network has a success rate of about 75 percent once rescue team members have reached a whale in distress.
It is your commitment and support that helps us toward success. To donate click here.
Monday, November 06, 2006
Charity Yoga Class for KEEP A CHILD ALIVE December 3, 2006
Join me as I present my signature Freestyle Vinyasa Class as an offering devoted to KEEP A CHILD ALIVE. Know that 100% of ALL money received for and during this class will be donated to KCA. This worthy organization, supported by such artists as Alicia Keyes, Bono, Rod Stewart, Nelly, Dave Matthews, Coldplay and so many more, is dedicated to the provision and delivery of needed HIV/AIDS medications to children in Africa. Just $1.00 a day gives needed HIV meds to these children. That's just $30 a month. How much are you spending at Starbucks each month? Consider giving a 'month's worth of medications' as your donation for this special class designed around the theme of love and service.
With your donation you will receive a raffel ticket and at the end of class we will raffel off such items as 60 minute stress relieving massages, gift cards to Starbucks and more. This is truly is a win-win event.
Date: Sunday, December 3, 2006
Time: 3:00pm - 5:00pm
Location: Raffa Yoga in Cranston, RI.
Minimum donation $20.00. Encouraged donation of $30.00. (Make check payable to "Keep A Child Alive" - this way you also win by being able to deduct this on your taxes as a charitable donation).
Look forward to you showing up on your mats and using your life, body and spirit to make a difference, not just in the life of a child in Africa, but in the world! Our thoughts, intentions, and actions are all vibrational and can work toward healing this planet. Email me with any questions. This will be an all levels class.
A tremendous thanks to Christine Raffa and Raffa Yoga for donating the space for this charity event. Be sure to check out the variety of classes offered by Raffa Yoga and the National Yoga Workshops up and coming!
Special thanks also to the following businesses for donation of gifts for raffle:
Henry Przybylowicz LMT, Donation of a One Hour Massage, 120 Wayland Ave., Providence, 401.434.9080
Phil Matos LMT, Donation of a One Hour Massage, 120 Wayland Ave., Providence, 508.951.9329
Christine Raffa LMT, Donation of a One Hour Massage, 1145 Reservoir Avenue, Cranston, 401.943.2500
Matt Fontaine, ACE Certfied Personal Trainer, Donation of (2) separate Personal Training Sessions, Matt's Email or 401.663.7585
Raffa Yoga, Gift Certificate for one FREE yoga class @ Raffa Yoga.
Sunday, November 05, 2006
Oprah Show - HIV/AIDS in America
It was amazing to me to see that the number one cause of death for African American women aged 18-35 is HIV/AIDS. And the CDC suggests that there are a quarter of a million (250,000) people who are infected with the virus and unaware. For this reason in the last few weeks the CDC has made a recommendation that EVERYONE aged 13-65 be tested at least once for HIV, regardless of believed risk.
POZ magazine (September 2006)shared information regarding a poll they ran on poz.com in July 2006. The question asked of those living with HIV was - "Have you ever withheld your [HIV] status in order to have sex with someone?" 45% responded YES and 55% responded NO. So basically nearly half of those living with HIV have not shared their HIV status with a sexual partner at some time. This is particularly troubling and scary information, especially for our younger gay men or anyone for that matter.
Contributing risk issues for may gay men include: A poor sense of self (lower self esteem) so often seen in any marginalized group; A desire for emotional and physical connection with another, often times at a cost of giving up important aspects of themselves in order to be connected to another; alcohol and or other recreational drug use; and the perception that 'this cannot happen to me' or a misperception of risk with a novel partner.
We can all spread the word to our friends and in particular take on the responsibility of educating younger gay men we may meet along the way. If you are with a sexual partner and the issue of safer sex or condom use has not come up, rest assured it has not come up in his past sexual experiences either, leaving you potentially at risk.
You are worthy, deserving and a valuable human being. Take responsibility to raise the bar for self-love and self-care. When we care enough about ourself we take action to care for our bodies, relationships and life. For more information check out my website on this topic - HIV Resources and Testing Locations in RI
Your comments always welcome.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
My New Blog
In this space what I plan to do is share my thoughts on topics of interest and issues I find particularly important to bring awareness to. I will always own these thoughts as my own, and not THE thoughts on a topic. Issues of ideas and philosophy will always be up for debate which is fine and to be expected.
As most of you know I am committed to each of us finding our voice, sharing the fullness of our experience with each other and making a difference in the world.
I look forward to hearing back from you in the comment post section below. (Please know that due to the number of responses I will not be able to respond to each one individually, but this does not mean that your comments are not important, valued and welcome).
So thanks for checking in and showing up!