1. I am grateful that I woke up today, because it's a brand new day, full of oppurtunities to help me achieve my goals in life.
2. I'm very happy and grateful that I was born into this life, because I feel that life has had many lessons to teach me, both good and bad, and I know that life has many more things to teach me.
3. I am truly grateful because I have a roof over my head, because that is something that many other people do not have.
4. I am truly grateful for all the things I've recieved in my life, because even though I don't have as much as many other people do, I do have much more than many others.
5. I am truly happy and blessed to have the free time to shop in the downtown L.A. Fashion District today, so I don't have to deal with the crowds.
6. I'm truly grateful to be able to practice my silat, and come closer to my goals to mastery of this martial art.
7. I am grateful to be of able body and sound mind, so I can continue my silat practice, or any physical endeavor I may want to try in the future.
8. I am grateful to have caught that mouse this morning, and to have put it in a better place.
9. I am so grateful and happy to be able to continue on my 1000 burpee challenge! I am now up to 32 burpees.
10. I am truly grateful, to be able to sit here, and type these things to all of you, because I hope it gets everyone out there to count their blessings as well...
Life is like a rope, twined in all its complexities and yet weaved into one marvelous stream that you have the chance to use something amazing from.So grab hold of it.It’s really really hard to accept, but you can’t change the past. You can’t go back and manipulate things to the way you wanted them to happen because life would be meaningless and boring and just not worth living. But you can change the future and that’s a beautiful thing about life. Yes, you will make mistakes and yes, you will have bad days, but was long as you let the past go, you’ll have such a gorgeous and bright future ahead of you. Knowing that things were meant to happen. Knowing that each day you will learn something so that you keep growing to be a better person...
Now as I said last Monday, in celebration of Danni El's return to L.A., all this week, I gonna be posting videos of Danni performing her songs.
I was gonna post another video today, but I found this and just HAD to post it up... Anyway, today's video is simply called C Will and Danni El. Before she left for Miami, Danni El did a few shows, one of which was in North Hollywood, at an event called VENUS AND MIC. Now I had tried to go to this event, but North Hollywood is not an area I am familiar with, so I got lost on the way there, and missed the show. But that's all right, I got to see her 2 days later at her farewell jam at O'brien's in Santa Monica.
Anyway, I think this video was Danni performing at the Venus and Mic event... The poet performing with her is an amazing guy named Chuck Williams, and the percussionist with her is another amazing guy named Nick Ware. I first heard the song they're singing at the Down n Out bar in Downtown L.A. Danni was on stage with Nick and a guy named Christopher I beleive, when she called chuck up from the audience and they performed that song. It was so cool...
1. A smile makes us attractive. We pay attention to people who smile. There is a factor of attraction. We want to know a smiling person and figure out what nice happened with them. Gloom and making faces get people away, and a smile draws them.
2. Smiling changes our mood. The next time you feel overwhelmed, try to put on a smile. This is a great way to change the mood for the better.
3. A smile is contagious. When someone smiles, he infects with smile other people. Smiling person brings happiness.
4. A smile relieves stress. Smiling helps to prevent us from fatigueand congestion. When you’re under stress, take time to put on a smile. The voltage should be reduced, and you will have more opportunities to take action.
5. A smile helps produce endorphins, natural painkillers and serotonin. Togetherthese three components help us to feel good.
6. Smiling helps to look younger.
7. A smile makes you more successful. Smiling people appear more confident. Put a smile on meetings and appointments and people will react to you differently.
8. Smiling helps you to stay positive. Try this: Smile. Now try to think of something bad, without losing the smile. It’s hard. When we smile our body is sending a message to the brain: “Life is beautiful!” Stay away from depression, stress and anxiety with a smile! :-)
In celebration of Danni El's return to L.A., all this week, I gonna be posting videos of Danni performing her songs.
In today's video, Danni El is recording her song "Brighter Together", with her students from the Motivational Edge program. The Motivational Edge Inc is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that specializes in creating and implementing enhanced academic, music and physical education programs for underprivileged and at-risk youth, foster youth and disabled youth.
If you want more information about this organization, please check out their website at www.themotivationaledge.org
Instead of looking to other humans for love, we need to align with our own love, because it's not the love of other humans that will make us happy. What will make us happy is the love we feel for every human, the love we feel for God, for all creation. ~don Miguel Ruiz
Instead of listing 10 things I'm grateful for, today I thought I'd put up this list about being human. I've adopted them for myself, and try to live by them. I am very grateful to be able to post these rules... may you learn from them, as I have, and continue to.
The Rules For Being Human
1. You will receive a body. You may like it or hate it, but it will be yours for the entire period this time around.
2. You will learn lessons. You are enrolled in a full-time, informal school called life. Each day in this school you will have the opportunity to learn lessons. You may like the lessons or think them irrelevant and stupid.
3. There are no mistakes, only lessons. Growth is a process of trial and error, experimentation. The “failed” experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiment that ultimately “works”.
4. A lesson is repeated until it is learned. A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. Then you can go on to the next lesson.
5. Learning lessons does not end. There is no part of life that does not contain its lessons. If you are alive, there are lessons to be learned.
6. “There” is no better than “here”. When your “there” has become a “here”, you will simply obtain another “there” that again, looks better than “here”.
7. Others are merely mirrors of you. You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects to you something you love or hate about yourself.
8. What you make of your life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need; what you do with them is up to you. The choice is yours.
9. The answers lie inside you. The answers to life’s questions lie inside you. All you need to do is look, listen and trust.
The Parable of the Coffee
A young girl comes to the father and says: – Father, I’m tired, I had such a hard life, so many difficulties and problems, I always swim against the tide, I have no more power … What should I do? The father, instead of answering set on fire three identical pots with water. He threw a carrot in one, an egg in another, and third sprinkled chopped coffee beans. After a while he pulled out of the water the carrots and eggs and poured a cup of coffee. – What has changed? – He asked his daughter. – Carrot and egg got cooked, and coffee beans were dissolved in water. – She replied. – No, my daughter, this is only a superficial view of things. Look hard carrots, having been in boiling water, become soft and pliable. Fragile and liquid egg became hard. Outwardly, they have not changed. They just changed their structure under the influence of the same adversity – boiling water. So people – strong externally can paste up and become weaklings where fragile and delicate people get harden and stronger… – And coffee? – She asked. – Oh! This is the fun part! Coffee beans is completely dissolved in the new hostile environment and changed it – transformed into a magnificent flavored drink. There are special people that do not change because of the circumstances – they change the very circumstances and turn them into something new and wonderful, and benefiting from the knowledge of the situation.
Now as I said last Monday, in celebration of Danni El's return to L.A., all this week, I gonna be posting videos of Danni performing her songs.
Today's video is actually 2 videos. In both videos, Danni is performing her song, "Little Heart", a song she wrote for her son.
The first video is actually a little promo for the Downtown L.A. Artwalk. I actually learned of this artwalk because Danni had announced on her facebook page that she was performing there. In fact, the day they took that video of her, I was there. I gave her a cheap little bracelet as a gift, and I met Christopher Bear, who was her percussionist that day.
The second video was actually a week before the Artwalk, when Danni and Chris had performed at the Mezz Bar in Downtown L.A. In the video, they were rehearsing, getting ready for the show.
Like a Butterfly, I have been Reborn
with Bold Colors and Strong Wings. ~Jonathan-Lockwood Huie
GOOD MORNING, EVERYONE!!!
BURNOUT. Each of us has at least once in life was in a state when you want peace, quiet, dont want to be responsible, to answer anyone. When nothing is pleasing and everything annoying. Mental and physical fatigue leads to chronic fatigue, which is the scientific name – a syndrome of emotional burnout. How to protect yourself from burnout:
1. Define your own priorities in life, what is more important: life in the fun with close friends or a sense of self worth and indispensability.
2. Planning will highlight the important and urgent matter, and will also help to get rid of those things that you can not do.
3. Learn to say no. Allow others to solve their problems. It is necessary to distinguish your case from others.
4. Do not forget to celebrate your small victories on the road to the big goal.
5. Let the inspiration to become the most essential part of your life.
6. Do not forget about the positive, developmental and inspiring environment.
7. Take care of yourself, find time to relax, lots of fun, staying alone with nature, sports. 8. Rejoice in each day, admire the beautiful: the music, the rhythm of the rain, flying butterflies, laughing child.
In celebration of Danni El's return to L.A., all this week, I gonna be posting videos of Danni performing her songs.
Today's video is of Danni singing at a music gathering she had at her house last april, a couple of days before she left for florida.
When the love comes from somebody else, we can feel it and it's nice, but when we feel our own love, it is the best thing that can happen to us. We live in heaven; we live in bliss. ~don Miguel Ruiz
GOOD MORNING, EVERYONE!!! So, what am I grateful for today? Well...
1. I am grateful for this brand new day, because it's another day full of oppurtunities for me to get closer to my goals in life.
2. I'm truly happy and blessed that todayis Thursday, which means, Bacon-Wrapped Hot Dog at Sausage Masters!
3. I'm grateful for all the true friends I've ever made, past and present, because without them, life would have been so boring!
4. I'm Truly grateful to have my bike, with I have been able to go around town.
5. I'm grateful for the fact that I may have an opportunity to try something that I haven't been able to because I couldn't afford it, because I've wanted to try it for over 10 years now
6. I'm glad and happy that I am still strong and healthy enough to start this new thing, because I'm gonna need all the strength I can get.
7. I am very grateful to be able to continue my silat practice.
8. I'm happy and grateful to still be able to keep up my 100 Burpee Challenge! I'm now up to 33 burpees.
9. I'm grateful for this coming weekend... I feel it's gonna be a great one!
10. I'm very grateful to be able to sit here and type these word to you, because I hope it will encourage you guys out there to start counting the blessings in your own lives...
I asked for strength … But life gave me difficulties to make me strong. I asked for Wisdom … And life gave me problems to solve. I asked for riches … And life gave me brain and muscles, so I can work. I asked for the ability to fly … And life gave me the obstacles that I overcame them. I asked for Love … And life gave me the people I could help with their problems. I asked for blessings … And life gave me the opportunity. I did not get anything i asked for. But I got everything I needed.
Now as I said last Monday, in celebration of Danni El's return to L.A., all this week, I gonna be posting videos of Danni performing her songs.
Today's video is of Danni Performing a song called RAINDROPS. She was performing at O'Brien's Irish Pub in Santa Monica, at an event called Music, libations and foot stomping at O'briens. The necklace of a buddha that she's wearing in the video was a gift that I gave her at a small pre-concert party at Vardo before the show.
DEAR DIARY: I give thanks for a brand new day, because it's another chance for me to make everything around me better. It looks like "June Gloom has come early this year, but that's pretty common.
Each time you discover and clear an old emotional injury you can welcome more light consciousness within your physical form. Each time some part of your body releases what it has been storing for you, it takes on new, revitalized life-promoting energy. Each time you use your imagination to defuse and dissolve old emotional memories you are allowing more of your true multidimensional gifts to come forward.
We also invite you to find a quiet place where you will not be disturbed and again, using your imagination, see or sense or imagine healing energy entering your physical body. Make this experience as real for yourself as possible. Allow the energy vibrations to fill you with life sustaining well-being. Imagine that this strengthens your energy body as well as your physical body. Make an agreement with self that you will offer this kind of conscious energy connection each day.
You can also use the power of color vibrations. Imagine your body filled with the color red; now invite any aspect of your physical body that needs this red vibration to absorb all that it might need and any aspect of your physical body that has too much red vibration to release it. Then allow the color red to dissipate and repeat the process using all the colors of your earthly rainbow. We invite you to incorporate this exercise into your practices of well-being.
You can simply imagine that you are drinking in the energy of the new dawn, allowing your body, your life, to be renewed in ways that are astonishing. Imagine that the vibrations of trees and all green and growing things can be taken in as energy nourishment. Imagine you can breathe in the energy of the night sky, the stars and the galaxies. Imagine allowing energy to flow into your pineal, heart and solar plexus chakras filling you with renewed life and expanded awareness strengthening your energy body as well as your physical body.
Do not underestimate the power of these processes. Remember that energy follows thought so when you focus your imagination on some aspect of your physical body and imagine beautiful energizing vibrations bathing the cells and tissues, it is occurring and is very beneficial. When this is practiced consistently you will begin to experience the results.
--Imagination to Clear Emotions by Peggy Black and the ‘team’
Cada vez que descubres y despejas una vieja herida emocional, puedes dar la bienvenida a más conciencia luminosa en tu forma fÃsica. Cada vez que alguna parte de tu cuerpo libera lo que ha estado guardando para ti, adquiere una nueva y revitalizada energÃa promovedora de vida. Cada vez que usas tu imaginación para neutralizar y disolver viejos recuerdos emocionales estás permitiendo que se presenten más de tus verdaderos dones multidimensionales.
Now I haven't posted a video of "SHOTS OF AWE" in a while... but I saw this episode a couple of days ago, and I HAD to share it. Check it out:
Published on Jan 28, 2014
"Beauty is a dynamic event that occurs between you and something else. Beauty is thus an altered state of consciousness, an extraordinary moment of poetry and grace." -Imaginary Foundation
Join Jason Silva every week as he freestyles his way into the complex systems of society, technology and human existence and discusses the truth and beauty of science in a form of existential jazz. New episodes every Tuesday
TRANSFIXED BY BEAUTY... Yes, THAT'S the feeling I get, that's what happens to me EVERYTIME I hear this song:
Now, I told this story about how I first heard that song many times before on this blog, and I'll tell it many more times...
I was walking down Hollywood Blvd. Close to Highland station, when I heard a very beautiful sound. I turned around on my heels, ans I saw THIS WOMAN playing the sweetest music you ever heard.
Her voice was sweet, rich, textured. The song was poetry, original, from the heart. She was reserved, yet passionate at the same time. She was beautiful.
I remember standing there, stunned, literally stunned. It was like walking out from some dark, fetid storm drain and finding yourself in a sunlit meadow full of sweet grass. I had never dreamed that there was so much talent, so much beauty in this world.
I think it was in the last third part of her song that I fell in love... with the song.
And I became a big fan.
So big in fact, that I went home, TRACKED this woman down on facebook, You Tube, and Twitter, and took the 23 mile trip to Hollywood & Highland a few times a week, EVERY WEEK for about a month in the hope of hearing her play again.
HI Guys.
The name of the song is called "COLORES", and it was written and performed by an AMAZING Singer/Songwriter, DANNI EL.
Danni El is from Tampa, Florida.
Developing a style from her Peruvian roots, as well as her time spent in Brazil, Danni El shares her enriching and enchanting heart songs in Spanish, English, and Portuguese.
In her own words: " I believe in the healing powers of music, and I try to always channel that vibration to share with everyone. My goal is to travel the world, and bring healing sounds to the children, and plant love seeds within them, because they are the future."
I post the above description about Danni all the time in my blogs, but that description doesn't really describe just exactly what a ABSOLUTE ANGEL she is.
If you are fortunate enough to get a chance to see her perform, I STRONGLY suggest you take it.
Anyway, when I hear COLORES, or any one of Danni's other songs, I remember that first time in Hollywood, and I'm back in that feeling, that state of rapture. I can only describe it, as being surrounded by beauty.
And THAT'S WHY I close all my daily posts with this song.
If you want to know more about DANNI EL, check out her links in my sidebar, in the music section.
“Sometimes people are beautiful.
Not in looks.
Not in what they say.
Just in what they are. ”
― Markus Zusak, I Am the Messenger
Yep, THAT'S DANNI, ALL RIGHT.
And now, I'm going to break with tradition today. Since I already posted about COLORES, I'm gonna close this blog with another of Danni's songs. She usually ends her performances with this song, and while she's playing, I love to look around and check out the people's reactions when they first hear it.
Life, the force of transformation that creates and transforms the stars, is the same force that creates and transforms the atoms in our physical body. ~don Miguel Ruiz
You know, I've been posting about things in my life I've been grateful about for about a week and a half now, and I noticed one thing. I HAVE A HUGE AMOUNT OF THINGS TO BE GRATEFUL FOR!!! I had no idea that if I just really examined my life, I'd find so many things to be happy about. I have many more things to be grateful about, and I'll tell you about them tomorrow.
But today, I'm only Grateful for one thing. That my friend Danni El has come back to L.A.!!!
Last April, she went back to FLORIDA, or to be more precise, Miami, where she stayed for a few months. But now, recently (I don't know when), she came back to L.A. I posted her a welcome back message last friday (click here if you want to see it), but I admit, I don't know how long she'll be in L.A. What I mean is, I don't know if it's for a short time, or if she's here to stay.
But she is in L.A. RIGHT NOW, so for this week, I'm gonna post her songs here. First up is the first song I ever heard her play, and my favorite song in the whole world, COLORES.
A woman of substance is a woman of power, a woman of positive influence and a woman of meaning. To be branded a woman of substance is one of the greatest compliments one can give a woman.
All human suffering is the result of believing in lies. To become aware of this is the first thing we must do. ~don Miguel Ruiz
If you've been reading my blog, especially this week, then the woman below needs no introduction. But for those who haven't, this is DANNI EL.
Danni El is an amazing Singer/Songwriter from Tampa, Florida.
Developing a style from her Peruvian roots, as well as her time spent in Brazil, Danni El shares her enriching and enchanting heart songs in Spanish, English, and Portuguese.
In her own words: " I believe in the healing powers of music, and I try to always channel that vibration to share with everyone. My goal is to travel the world, and bring healing sounds to the children, and plant love seeds within them, because they are the future."
I've been posting the above description about Danni all week in the music corner of my daily blogs, but that description doesn't really describe just exactly what a loving, giving, caring person she really is.
I've been racking my brain trying to find a way to describe to you what she's like. And then, this little story came up on my Facebook Newsfeed, and I thought, "If Danni was a tree, she'd be EXACTLY like this!"
Anyway, I think this story describes danni's personality pretty acccurately, and so, I'm sharing it with you.
The Giving Tree
by Shel Silverstein
Once there was a tree....
and she loved a little boy.
And everyday the boy would come
and he would gather her leaves
and make them into crowns
and play king of the forest.
He would climb up her trunk
and swing from her branches
and eat apples.
And they would play hide-and-go-seek.
And when he was tired,
he would sleep in her shade.
And the boy loved the tree....
very much.
And the tree was happy.
But time went by.
And the boy grew older.
And the tree was often alone.
Then one day the boy came to the tree
and the tree said, "Come, Boy, come and
climb up my trunk and swing from my
branches and eat apples and play in my
shade and be happy."
"I am too big to climb and play" said
the boy.
"I want to buy things and have fun.
I want some money?"
"I'm sorry," said the tree, "but I
have no money.
I have only leaves and apples.
Take my apples, Boy, and sell them in
the city. Then you will have money and
you will be happy."
And so the boy climbed up the
tree and gathered her apples
and carried them away.
And the tree was happy.
But the boy stayed away for a long time....
and the tree was sad.
And then one day the boy came back
and the tree shook with joy
and she said, "Come, Boy, climb up my trunk
and swing from my branches and be happy."
"I am too busy to climb trees," said the boy.
"I want a house to keep me warm," he said.
"I want a wife and I want children,
and so I need a house.
Can you give me a house ?"
" I have no house," said the tree.
"The forest is my house,
but you may cut off
my branches and build a
house. Then you will be happy."
And so the boy cut off her branches
and carried them away
to build his house.
And the tree was happy.
But the boy stayed away for a long time.
And when he came back,
the tree was so happy
she could hardly speak.
"Come, Boy," she whispered,
"come and play."
"I am too old and sad to play,"
said the boy.
"I want a boat that will
take me far away from here.
Can you give me a boat?"
"Cut down my trunk
and make a boat," said the tree.
"Then you can sail away...
and be happy."
And so the boy cut down her trunk
and made a boat and sailed away.
And the tree was happy
... but not really.
And after a long time
the boy came back again.
"I am sorry, Boy,"
said the tree," but I have nothing
left to give you -
My apples are gone."
"My teeth are too weak
for apples," said the boy.
"My branches are gone,"
said the tree. " You
cannot swing on them - "
"I am too old to swing
on branches," said the boy.
"My trunk is gone, " said the tree.
"You cannot climb - "
"I am too tired to climb" said the boy.
"I am sorry," sighed the tree.
"I wish that I could give you something....
but I have nothing left.
I am just an old stump.
I am sorry...."
"I don't need very much now," said the boy.
"just a quiet place to sit and rest.
I am very tired."
"Well," said the tree, straightening
herself up as much as she could,
"well, an old stump is good for sitting and resting
Come, Boy, sit down. Sit down and rest."
And the boy did.
And the tree was happy.
Yep, that's danni in a nutshell... At least I think so.
Anyway, here's a video of Danni El being who she is, and doing what she loves... Hey, what were those words again? Oh yeah:
" I believe in the healing powers of music, and I try to always channel that vibration to share with everyone. My goal is to travel the world, and bring healing sounds to the children, and plant love seeds within them, because they are the future."
In this video, Danni and her students from The Motivational Edge are recording her song, "Brighter Together" last year.
The Motivational Edge is a 501(c)(3) organization that utilizes culturally relevant arts as a motivational platform to inspire youth towards academic achievement, increased self-confidence and the building of essential life skills.
If you are interested knowing more about this organization, check out their website: TheMotivationalEdge.org
And now, as always, I'm gonna end this post with the most beautiful song in this whole, entire world.
But it didn't start out that way... In fact, it was a little boring. I got out there a little early, so I had to kill some time... so I walked around the venice boardwalk, went up to the 3rd street promenade in Santa Monica, walked around Main St. for a little bit, and had a light (yet heavenly) dinner at Vardo and then, I walked up to O'brien's. And that is when the fun began...
Well, not yet. When I got to O'brien's and went to the back where the stage was at, I saw Big Joe Hurt, and his lovely wife, and greeted them. But, nobody else was there. about a minute later, Danni El showed up, but she had a problem. She accidentaly locked her car with her keys, along with her guitar and all her stuff inside. However, one quick call to A&A from Joe's wife, and that problem was solved in a few minutes. Anyway, I Gave Danni some cookies, helped her with her guitar, and went back inside. And then the fun started...
As a side note, I also met this great poet named Chuck Williams, whom I had the pleasure of watching perform with Danni at the Down n Out bar in Downtown Los Angeles, and later that night he performed that same song with Danni... Anyway, On Thursdays, he hosts an Poetry/Spoken Word Open Mic called "Freedom of Speech Thursdays" at the "Sabor y Cultura" cafe in Hollywood. It's free, if anybody out there likes to listen to poetry, and you happen to be in the area, you should definetly check it out.
O.K., back to the jam...
First up was Alejandro Wood, who sang a couple of great songs, although his set was a little short. But it was during this time that I met Jessica Bell, another of the amazing performers who played that night. In fact, I met a lot of performers that night. Some of them I knew, like Nick Ware, Geoffery Martin and Lacey Cowden, and some I didn't know like this amazing guittarist named Mylo, and interesting enough, a guy named Ashton. And there was this guy, I think his name was andrew, who had this small guitar. I didn't get to hear him play, though. Anyway, after Alejandro, Big Joe Hurt came up with his band, and rocked the house.
Now mind you, I want you to know that I made videos and pictures of everybody who came up to perform, with the intention of putting them up on this post. But, I'm not going to do that. And I'm not going to do that for a simple reason. That reason is, all the videos and pictures I took are utter crap. My Mother, God rest her soul, used to tell me to never buy the cheapest product, whether it be clothes, electronics, food, etc., because that product will ALWAYS turn out to be a piece of shit. Well, the ONE TIME I didn't listen to her, and she turns out to be right.
Anyway, After Joe, a couple of other people performed, I think Lacey and Geoffery did a song, and Mylo did a few solos on the guitar... and then came the big finale: Jessica Bell, and Danni El. But before Danni went on, I gave her a little Tiger's Eye stone. It's believed to give it's wearer protection. And I figured, if Danni was going to be traveling over 2 continents, she's going to need all the protection she can get. Anyway, she liked it.
Now, on to the finale. Danni and Jessica came onstage with a full band of thier friends, and proceeded to rock the house for about an hour with some awesome tunes... Danni did a few songs, and Jessica did a few songs, back and forth. And the amazing thing was, I think it was the very first time Danni, or everybody else played together, but they were jamming up there like they were all playing together for years.
Well, at least I think so.
But, then came the sad part. Danni and Jessica ended their set, which signaled an end to the jam. And my bus was coming, and as much as I like Venice and Santa Monica, there was NO FUCKING WAY I was going to get stuck out there all night. So, after saying good night to Danni, and promising I'd call her the minute I got home(which I did), I headed home.
All in all, I have to say it turned out to be a magickal night.
FLORIDA is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. Florida is the 22nd most extensive, the 4th most populous, and the 8th most densely populated of the 50 United States. The state capital is Tallahassee, its largest city is Jacksonville, and the South Florida metropolitan area is the largest metropolitan area in the southeastern U.S.
When you think of florida, you might think of cities like Miami, Orlando, Panama City, Tampa, Fort lauderdale, Key West, etc.
Or, you might think of attractions and theme parks like Disney World, Universal Orlando, Busch Gardens, Calle Ocho, etc.
Yes, these are great places to visit, and are just a few of the many reasons that florida has a well-deserved nickname of "The Sunshine State".
Well, as good a place florida is, It's about to become a BETTER place to go to. Why do I say this, especially since I've never been there? I say this because in about 2 weeks, this woman is moving over there:
My friends, I present to you, Danni El.
Now if you read this blog before, you will have noticed that I blogged about her before. (In case you don't, click HERE). She's one of those rare people who can light up a room with her smile, and who can actually have a very positive impact on everyone she meets.
Danni El is, in my humble opinion, an angel. An absolute angel.
And, As you can see below, she is an awesome musician:
Anyway, she's going back to florida (which is where she's from) for awhile before going to Peru (where her family's from), and her friends Joe Hurt and Jessica Bell are having a Going Away Jam for Danni El tomorrow night at O'Brien's 2941 Main Street, Santa Monica, CA 90405, Around 9:00 p.m. And (especially since I know which way I'm going this time) I'll be there to wish her well, and dance and sing the night away with all her friends!
Danni, Whether here in Cali, or in Miami, or Lima, Brazil, or wherever you may find yourself, I hope you keep on making beautiful music. And I don't know many of your friends here in Cali, but I do know that I can speak for all of them when I say,
DANNI EL, WE'RE ALL GOING TO MISS YOU!!!
AND DANNI, WE ALL LOVE YOU VERY MUCH.
P.S. I just thought I'd show everybody what kind of sunrise you'll be looking at in a couple of weeks...
Well like I said before, My Saturday was a recipie for disaster. Let me tell you why. Last Saturday in Santa Monica, there was a quarterly Sale and Gathering at a place called the KATHMANDU BOUTIQUE in Santa Monica.
It's that wonderful time again where we come together as a community to celebrate LIFE, FRIENDSHIP, FOOD and MUSIC at our quarterly open house gathering! Saturday June 15th we will be serving up delicious home cooked NEPALESE vegan food, extra special NEPALESE chia (tea) hot cider, amazing music from local artists, healing massage and henna tattoos just in time for Summer! As you know this is a great place to meet many like minded, conscious soulful beings like yourself!
SO BRING YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY. WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU THERE!
15% to 50% OFF EVERYTHING STORE WIDE!
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WE WILL ONCE AGAIN BE COLLECTING LOVE DONATIONS FOR SELP HELP GROUP FOR CEREBRAL PALSY NEPAL, NON PROFIT FOUNDAITON WHICH I CO-FOUNDED IN 1987 TO HELP AND EDUCATE TO MORE THEN 1500 HUNDRED CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILIES!
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KATHMANDU BOUTIQUE WOULD LOVE LOVE LOVE TO GO GREEN WITH YOUR HELP TO REDUCE, REUSE AND RECYCLE DURING THIS GATHERING THEREFORE I REQUEST EACH ONE OF YOU TO PLEASE PLEASE BRING YOUR OWN WATER CONTAINER PLATES AND UTENSILS IF POSSIBLE, ALSO WE WOULD BE COLLECTING YOUR USED T-SHIRTS TO MAKE INTO SHOPPING BAGS. THAT WOULD BE A GREATEST GIFT THAT YOU ALL COULD GIVE IT TO ME AND I WOULD BE THE MOST HAPPIEST PERSON ~ LOVE PEACE JOY ~
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DAYTIME ENTERTAINMENT INCLUDES:
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Govindacharya Ramanuja Dasan - 11:30am - 12:30 Graciouspujari Vaishnava priest or priest to Vishnu.Govindacharya has been meditating and doing puja for more than twenty years and studying the Vedas, Upanishads and Yoga sutra for 17 years. He has been assisting the Head Priests at the Malibu temple for six year. He is the head priest and regular priest at the rose temple. He goes to Hrishikesh India to do Sadhana or daily spiritual practices and Tapasya or austerities once a year and performs Vedantic meditation and the higher aspects of Ashtanga yoga
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Henna Tattoo ~ by very talented artists PAWAN TULACHAN (Artist accepts LOVE donations)
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Carlos Pamplona ~ (Love donations)
H2o Massage Pros will be providing massages. https://www.facebook.com/H2oMassagePros
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Manohar Gurung ~ multi talented Himalayan drummer percussionist Manohar will perform suffi hindusthani fusion to get your inner beat thumping. Please bring your talents and instrument of your choice to jam and be part of the fun all day long. www.soundcloud.com/manohargurung
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EVENING ENTERTAINMENT INCLUDES:
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Stephanie Lallouz ~ 4:00pm ~ 5:00pm
Stephanie plays percussion, guitar and sings in French, Spanish, Portuguese, Hebrew, Arabic, and English. Born in Montreal, Canada with a compelling musical and artistic upbringing. Stephanie is performing, writing music, and poetry since her youth. Shares the stage with many accomplished & great talents and now resides in California. She was nick-named “HunnyBunch” by a San Francisco Radio Personality. http://www.StephanieLallouz.com/
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Hubie Vine ~ 5:00pm ~ 6:00pm
Hubie Vine is a multi-instrumentalist who has mastered such instruments as the piano, vibraphone, flute, tablas, and various other percussion's in a variety of different styles, including Jazz, Reggae, Pop, Rock, Indian, and others. Hubie has worked extensively in Europe as a studio musician, songwriter, and composer and has made frequent appearances on French and Swiss television, as well as worked on four albums with Graeme Alright, a notable rock musician and lyricist of Europe. http://www.hubieyou.com/bio.html
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Jacqueline Angelica ~ 6:00pm ~ 7:00pm
Beautiful Jacqueline Fuentes is a singer songwriter. Her musical creation has South American roots, containing colors and structures that come from classical music as well as a combination of folkloric and popular music. Her inspirations have been Mercedes Sosa, Victor Jara, Violeta Parra, Milton Nascimento, Silvio Rodriguez and Joni Mitchell.
http://jacquelinefuentes.tumblr.com/
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Andres Salcedo ~ 7:00pm - 8:00pm
Join our brother Andres and his friend's magical adventure into the bliss of Kirtan! Be prepared to open your heart and free your mind with an amazing David Harbol and Emily!! www.powersoulyoga.com
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Danni El - 8:00pm ~ 9:00pm
Singer/Songwriter Danni El was born in Tampa, Florida, a
Developing style from her Peruvian roots, as well as her time spent in Brazil, Danni El shares her enriching and enchanting heart songs in Spanish, English, and Portuguese. She has a deeply soulful, bluesy voice, with hints of Native Peruvian influence that that will have your hair standing on end, and your soul swaying along in rhythm!
In her own words: " I believe in the healing powers of music, and I try to always channel that vibration to share with everyone. My goal is to travel the world, and bring healing sounds to the children, and plant love seeds within them, because they are the future." http://Youtube.com/DanniElmusic
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Stephen Day ~ 9:00pm ~ 10:00pm
Born in California and brought up in Canada and France, Stephen Day has enjoyed varied life as a composer, songwriter, instrumentalist, vocalist and teacher.
After studying sarod with world-renowned sarod player Ustad Amjad Ali Khan in India for three years, Stephen embarked on concert tours throughout Europe, Asia and North America. He recorded two albums with the Global music firm Boosey and Hawkes in London before moving to Los Angeles. Stephen works in multiple genres including Western classical, Indian classical, jazz, folk, and rock music. His credit range from scoring portion of the film formula 51, staring Samuel L. Jackson, to founding the non-profit organization Ombience, which supports artistic ventures that explore the creative connection between art and spiritually. Stephen has played in major concerts venues including Town Hall, United Nations Headquarters, Kodak Theater and Wiltern Theater in LA. His music has been played on major networks (MTV, NBC, DISCOVERY CHANNEL, BBC) and has been features in various shows including America's Top Model, Animal Planet and Rich Girls.
http://stephendaymusic.com/Bio.html
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DHANYABAAD (THANK YOU)
With Love, Reena Gauchan
reena@kathmanduboutique.com
Tweeter @kathmandu2005
Now I admit, I was going only going there because DANNI EL was performing there, but I wanted to see the rest of the event as well, as it was my first time there. So, the plan was to go out to Santa Monica, have breakfast at the NOVEL CAFE on Lincoln blvd., and then go to the Kathmandu Boutique and spend the day there, possibly buying some items, and enjoying the festivities. this was what I was planing for about 2 weeks.
But then, 2 days before the event, I was called in to do a temp job. When I got there, I was informed that I was to work 10 hours, on that Thursday, Friday, and Saturday!!! And then, on Firday, I learned that we would be working 11 hours that day, and on Saturday too!!!
That's right, my Saturday, which I'd been planning for 2 weeks, was ruined. Needless to say, I did NOT wake up a happy man that Saturday morning.
But, I'm happy to say, my day turned out better than I expected it to be... and I'l tell you why in a little bit.
You are just entering the Spring Time of Life. This is when the Garden of Your Life is beginning. Flowers of life are going to bloom. The Fruit of Life is about to ripen. All hands on Earth will join. All hearts will join. This is coming to your senses. This is more than believing what can be. This is grasping it.
--True Vision by Heavens Letters
FROM HUMANITY'S TEAM
Well, Today is MONDAY, which means another episode of AWARENESS with ANTHONY DE MELLO.
Uploaded on Jan 7, 2009
Anthony de Mello - Awareness pt.50 assorted images.
see all videos in order at http://awareness.tk
Category
Education
License
Standard YouTube License
“People mistakenly assume that their thinking is done by their head; it is actually done by the heart which first dictates the conclusion, then commands the head to provide the reasoning that will defend it.”
― Anthony de Mello
Now, back to my Saturday. I went to work pissed off, but I realized something around my first break. I learned that if I don't make this day positive somehow, then it was only going to be a living hell for myself and everyone around me. So I chilled, hung out with my fellow coworkers during breaks, danced to some radio music (when the supervisor wasn't watching), and well, basically forced myself to have fun. And I became determined thrugout the day to GET MY ASS TO SANTA MONICA, to at least see DANNI EL perform, if even I only got to see part of it.
So after work, that's what I did. I got a ride to the Blue Line, and went out there. On the way, I helped a chinese tourist get to the airport, a man from New York get to north hollywood, and a group of Italian tourists get to the Santa Monica Promenade.
Now, when I got to the boutique, the first thing I did was look for Danni El. I went all through that store, then I went to the outside area where there was a performance going on. And then, I saw her:
It was the 1st time I've seen her in over a year. It was kind of like, seeing the bright light at the end of a dark tunnel.
I also couldn't believe that I got there just in time to see her perform! I felt like I did something RIGHT in a previous life...
But anyway, we hugged, exchanged pleasantries, then after a little while, she went to perform. While she was singing, I forgot that I just worked an 11 hour shift and was very, very tired. Hell, EVERYTHING I was worried about disappeared. What can I say, , when you see Danni perform, You WILL be in for a wonderful experience that you will never forget.
Anyway, after her set, I had some presents for her, so I went over to her, gave her my gifts, (I think she liked them), and, she gave me some gifts (which I'll show you later). And then, I had to go home, so I gave her another hug, said good bye, and off I went.
Now on the way back, I saw a friend of mine who works at a Trader Joe's in Santa Monica named Sydney. And as always, we had a nice conversation.
She has a really good blog called PEACOCK BRIDE, and I encourage all of you out there to go check it out.
And now, I'm gonna end this blog post with the most beautiful song in this whole, entire world, a song of PURE LOVE.
This beautiful song is named "COLORES", and it's wriiten and performed by the amazing DANNI EL. She's an amazing Musician, singer/Songwriter, and an amazing person. You can find links to her Facebook, You Tube, and Twitter pages in the sidebar, under the music section. And Yes, she did perform it at the gathering last saturday.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH
Imagine living your life without being afraid to take a risk and to explore life. You are not afraid to lose anything. You are not afraid to be alive in the world, and you are not afraid to die. ~don Miguel Ruiz
Autumn is my least favorite season, but has always been the time of year when the best things seem to happen, things that make Autumn a special season.
From my birthday, which is on the official last day of summer, to Halloween, to el Dia de los Muertos, Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and the Holiday season, (which starts off the winter season, actually).
And now this year, An amazing thing has happened, Another reason to make Autumn a special time of season, has taken place. Well, for me anyway. So, What Happened? Well, a woman has come back to L.A. A very, special woman.
This beautiful woman is Danni El.
If you read this blog, then you know who she is. If not, use the search engine on this blog.
Anyway, last April, She went to Florida, where she's from and stayed there for a few months, doing what she loves, and being the special, beautiful soul that she is.
Anyway, now she's back in L.A., and now that she's back, I have a little message for her. Well, here it is.
My Dearest Danni,
like I wrote above, Autumn is my least favorite season, but has always been the time of year when the best things happen.
Welcome back to L.A., Danni!!!
I didn't post anything about the last 2 nights I saw you, because frankly, I couldn't bring myself to.
But I should have. Those were magickal nights, weren't they? I still remember them like they happened last night.
I remember your going away party. I remember the food, the dancing, the songs that you, Alejandro, JD, and others played:
And of course, the highlight of the night for me was when I chanted with your group. Now that your back, I want to chant with you guys again. And yes Danni, I'm still keeping my promise...
And, let's not forget the next night over at Radiance Movement:
There was so much talent, so much great energy flowing over there from you, and everyone else who performed there that night... But there was also the realization that that was going to be the last time I was going to see you, in person that is...
You know Danni, when you first told me you were moving to Miami, I didn't like that one bit. I really was NOT looking forward to you leaving.
But I knew that wherever you were going, you were going to do you. You were going to be the wonderful woman that you are, spreading peace and love among everyone around you, along with your music. I wish I was over there to see some of the shows you did over there...
And when I heard about your work teaching the children at The Motivational Edge, I was so proud of you! And I still am.
It's like what I always tell you, Danni:
Wherever you are, that place is a much better place to be, because you are over there.
And I mean that every time I say it.
I think about you all the time. I think of your smiles, your laughter, your songs, and of course, your hugs. I love you very much, Danni. You, and your strong spirit and energy, will be with me, Para Siempre.
And Danni, I take a part of you with me, wherever I go.
You know, I've been posting about things in my life I've been grateful about for about a week and a half now, and I noticed one thing. I HAVE A HUGE AMOUNT OF THINGS TO BE GRATEFUL FOR!!! I had no idea that if I just really examined my life, I'd find so many things to be happy about. So, What am I grateful about today??? Well...
1. I'm grateful that I've awaken to a brand new day, because it's full of possibilities...
2. Even though I didn't get to work, I'm grateful that they called me in, because I know that I'll be called in sometime soon.
3. I'm very grateful that I didn't go out yesterday, or I would have missed that call.
4. I'm really grateful to have all this free time on my hands, because I can catch up on my silat training.
5. Speaking of silat training, I'm truly grateful to have a healthy body, because with it, I am capable of putting myself through Silat training, and almost any kind of training.
6. I'm truly grateful for the fitness level I've acheived so far, because although I'm not where I want to be yet, wit each day, I know I'm improving, and will get there in no time.
7. I'm truly grateful to be able to take the time to go and study other martial arts in this day and age, because not too long ago, you weren't able to.
8. I'm truly grateful to have a place where I can train and improve everyday in all aspects of my silat training.
9. I'm so excited and happy to be able to continue my Burpee Challenge! I'm up to 31 burpees a day now, and by the end of the year, I'm gonna be doing 100!!!
10. I'm truly grateful to be sitting here and typing this to you. I hope that it encourages you all to count your blessings. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!
I saw this on Facebook, and I thought I would post it here. Diffuse the Ego-Recognize the True You!
How The Ego Operates
You, me and everyone else has something in us called an “ego” that diverts us from the genuine, true and authentic self that lies within. We so easily confuse the little voice in our head with the real us, and the ego’s constant stream of thought makes it very difficult to observe it from a different perspective. The illusion of ego is unfortunate because the entity behind it, the authentic you, holds all the cards to living a fulfilling, happy and successful life.
On Sunday night during the Oscars, they showed a short clip of 100 year old George Burns in which he said “when you get to be old enough, you get to be you again”. What George meant is that with age comes perspective, and towards the end of our physical lives the ego comes to accept its demise. The ‘becoming you again’ is a reference to becoming aware of the authentic self, and you will find many older people speak like this.
My question is: Why not work hard NOW to become ‘you again’ while you are still young, active and vibrant?!
Once you start becoming an observer to your ego, you begin to realize how insane it is. It is full of fear, anger, and sadness and creates conflict, uncertainty and doubt. My goal during my vacation was simply to become me again, and I did this by paying close attention to the madness of my thoughts. Once the ‘observer’ within me became clear, the anxiety and stress melted away and my authentic self was given space to manifest!
Awareness is the Universal Answer
The only way to diffuse the ego (or ‘kill’ it) is to shed awareness on the constant stream of thoughts it produces. I can tell you I have been practicing this for years, and it is hard work. Friends and clients constantly say to me: “why should I go through all the difficulty and anguish of becoming aware of my thoughts…I like my life, and I accept the illusion if that’s what it is. I am perfectly content the way I am”!
There are two reasons it is necessary to do the work of separating ego from the real you. One, you must realize that you will never find true contentment and fulfillment in your life if you are run by the thoughts in your head. If the ego is in charge you will be in a constant state of searching, comparing and desiring as opposed to being, accepting and doing.
Second, you must understand that your individual ego contributes greatly to the world around you. Humanity is in a state of relative emergency, if you haven’t noticed. Many of our established “systems” are proving to be unsustainable. This is the result of the collective ego.
Gandhi said “you must be the change you want to see in the world” and what he meant was that each of us must work individually to rid ourselves of self-polluting thoughts if we are to rid the world of war, starvation and slaughter. The underlying meaning here is that our personal growth is a contributing factor to the more global environment.
Intellectual Understanding Verses Experience
If you are reading this article then you are probably familiar with a variety of self-improvement and spiritual guides. Chances are you have a basic understanding of the ego, and how it operates. But one point I will say over and over again on this blog is this: there is a difference in having an intellectual understanding of the way the ego works and actually experiencing it.
Perhaps for this first time in human history, this type of conversation is taking place in the mainstream. Almost everyone I know can speak intelligently about something to do with the ego or global awareness. But how many people actually take the information and use it?
How many of you reading this article are actively increasing your consciousness, and using the books, articles, movies that are out there and doing the necessary work to improve yourself? The number is certainly growing, but if things are to really change on a global scale I believe we need more and more people making the shift from intellectual understanding to experience.
The Results
Once you effectively become an observer to your thoughts, you allow the real you to manifest. What is amazing is that once this happens all of the productive and creative ideas you were searching flow naturally. In my case, more than 20 wonderful ideas “came to me” over the course of 7 days I was on vacation through practicing the art of being present.
Some of them were article ideas for this blog, some were fresh ideas that can help me move forward, and others were general insights about the way I view my businesses. All of the things I would have been stressing about were virtually solved by being present. [Of course it is extremely helpful to carry around a notebook or voice recorder to capture the moments when ideas strike, and I highly recommend doing this].
I also feel as though I enjoyed my vacation more than I have vacations in the past. Being present, and purposefully creating the separation between your thoughts and authentic self, is very gratifying.
Remember, focusing on being present allows you to become aware of your typical patterns of thought in a very profound way. “Get off the couch” and make the shift from being an understander to an experiencer…it may be the very thing that saves humanity!
Now as I said yesterday, in celebration of Danni El's return to L.A., all this week, I gonna be posting videos of Danni performing her songs.
Today's song is a song she always ends her performances with, called DRAIN.
All this week, I've been sending messages about Thanksgiving, which if you haven't guessed already, is my favorite holiday. But now, I wanna send a Thanksgiving message to a special person.
Ladies and Gentelmen, This is Danni El.
She is a musician. A very talented musician. I made a post a while back about how I met her, but now I want to go into a bit more detail.
It was April 16th, 2011. It was an ordinary enough day, or so I thought. But I was about to learn, as the author Dan Millman discovered on a large rock one day, that there are no ordinary moments. I was out in Hollywood doing something very important (Which I'll tell you about someday). I had finished my buisness and was hurrying back to the Hollywood - Highland Red Line Station. But just before I got there, I heard a sound, a very beautiful, angelic sound that was calling to me, so I turned around...
And THIS is what I heard:
I stood there, watching this woman perform that beautiful song, which I found out later that day was named Colores, totally mesmerized. When she finished, she took a brief break, and I got a couple of dollars out to tip her and go, but then, she sat down on a stool, stood her guitar up, and started playing it like a drum, as she started to perform this song:
I didn't stay long enough for her to finish the song, because the time left on my Bus transfer was about to run out and I had to get going... but in her guitar case, she had a cardboard sign that had her name, her facebook page, her You Tube page, and her twitter. So, I borrowed a pen, wrote down her information, and when I got home, I tracked her down on FB(so to speak), sent her a message introducing myself, and added her as a friend.
I also added links to her FB page, her YouTube Channel, and her Twitter to this blog (you can find them in the Side Bar) And when she was doing live shows, I posted announcements about them on my FB page and on this blog.
Well anyway, now that I told you all a little bit about who she is, here's my message to her. I'm not much of a poet, so I'm just gonna send this straight out.
Thank You, Danni.
Thank you Danni, for coming out here to show the world your music,
Thank You Danni, for teaching me that we are the ones who can make the difference....
Thank You Danni, for teaching me to have peace and love in my heart where ever I go.
Thank You Danni, for showing me that VEGAN FOOD ROCKS!!! (Even though I would still prefer a steak, burger, or fried chicken any day)
Thank You Danni, for teaching me how to do THIS
And last, but certainly not least,
Thank You Danni, for all the love - filled hugs!!!
Well Danni, I don't know exactly where you are right now, but I know that wherever it is, it's a better place to be right now, because you're over there.
And I hope you come back soon.
But Anyway Danni, Wherever you are, Whatever you're doing,
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