Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Evolutionary Astrology

My guest on Jupiter's Girl at outoftimeradio.com tomorrow night at 7pm CDT is the Chair of the Advisory Council for Keppler College, Steven Forrest of www.stevenforrest.com. He and Jeff Greene (of Pluto book fame) have written a book together, and teach classes for astrologers wanting to delve into evolutionary astrology. The first of 7 core perceptions are:

1. An acceptance of the fact that human beings incarnate in a succession of lifetimes.

Mr. Forrest and Jeff Greene contend that the birthchart, and the methodologies they teach for interpreting that, measure the growth of the soul from life to life. They also say that evolutionary astrology is characterized less by a technical approach than by a set of philosophical principles defined by natural law.

And if that weren't enough, next week's guest, July 5th, Stephen Sakellarios, has filmed a documentary on reincarnation. Stephen wrote to me, and I paraphrased...

"An acceptance of reinarnation would blow this society wide open in many respects.

Now, imagine that the country, as a whole, embraced these realities. Suddenly, a great portion of the professors, and their books; preachers, and their churches; doctors, and their hospitals; geneticists, and their funded research; and many more holders of legitimacy in this society would be seen as being not only wrong, but fundamentally and seriously wrong about their respective fields. It would turn the pattern of legitimacy in this society upside down. The people who were seen as nuts would suddenly appear sane; and the people who were looked up to as the bastions of sanity would suddenly appear insane.

Reincarnation is the loose brick in the foundation of materialism. It has been scientifically proven; but so far the scientific mainstream and the religious mainstream have succeeded in holding it in obscurity by ridicule and sophistry. If it ever breaks out, it will render both of them obsolete in one stroke. So, this is why I am focusing all my energy on that one brick. Because materialism must go to make way for what Meher Baba calls the "New Humanity," the coming era when intellect will be enlivened by intuition and deeply guided by true spiritual understanding."

Should be an interesting next couple of broadcasts. They will be accessible for two weeks after they air. If most of us know there is no death, then wouldn't we act like it and recognize that we are all made of the same stuff? Karma, and the saying "what goes around comes around," should have us behaving better towards each other. I love that sitcom "My Name is Earl." The concept is great, and most of all - laughable.

Saturday, June 24, 2006

That wasn't so bad

My first day on the job at the New Orleans Bistro in Lacombe was a good day. The lunch hustle went by fast and then I was offered an Eggplant Pirogue. It was a breaded, hollowed out eggplant half, stuffed with shrimp and crawfish (and yucky mushrooms), topped with parmesan and broiled for a minute. It was so delicious. I can serve the food with pride, in an establishment that is designed with finesse. The co-owner I worked with yesterday calls himself a perfectionist and though he has two degrees, one in horticulture - the other one isn't being used either, but I forget what it was - he prefers what he is doing. It shows.

I can only do this with a good attitude if I take some college classes and work towards a degree I will be using.

I wonder if waiterrant.blogspot.com is still producing. I'm going to go look. He made waiting tables sound so noble.

I just checked. He still has a post there that I read with sheer delight, and made a note of his new site at www.waiterrant.net. His writing will go a long way to making me feel okay about what I am doing. I am not alone.

Thursday, June 22, 2006

My new job

I got a flat tire in front of a restaurant last week, which has now become my employer. I just knew it had to be synchronicity putting me there, doing that. I am backtracking into a profession where I can go in to work cash-poor and come out with money in my pocket. It is one of the finer restaurants in town - menu items with to-die-for sauces and decent prices - which will heighten the tip factor. Let's face it, I will only be doing this for the money, and not because I feel called to serve, though that is what I will be doing, and also what I believe I am here on this Earth for.

I had a different kind of service in mind, but things could definitely be worse. My imagination shows pictures of what is worse. So, I will count my blessings and try to do a good job, make some money, and maybe write a book, or go back to school to get a degree in the mental health field. That would take immense effort and I don't know if I am up for that. I can't make myself stay up to read or study. As usual, whenever I have taken the dozen or more jobs in the f&b industry, I am always trying to figure a way out.

I'll keep on with the radio program, Jupiter's Girl, on outoftimeradio.com (hit the 'eclectic link'), interviewing some of the finest minds in the metaphysical fields, mostly from an astrological perspective, but definitely enhanced by astrology, and not limited to just that. Next week, June 28th show (which is available for two weeks after it airs), my guest is the Chair of the Advisory Council for Keppler College. He is a witty astrologer, who has written a handful of books - Steven Forrest, www.stevenforrest.com. I am mainly interested in his take on evolutionary astrology.

My daughter tells me not to drink on the job. I don't know where she got the idea I would drink. I am such a sober Mom, though I love beer. I have been abstaining from that pleasure because, though I love a cold brew, I don't love the fat gathering at my mid-section. I would rather not look pregnant when I am not pregnant.

Sunday, June 18, 2006

Me and my good attitude

I am Jupiter's Girl, which means I don't let upsetting things get me down for long. Jupiter is the Lord of Grace, and as such, confers an abundance of faith and optimism. I have philosophy to fall back on. I often panic before finding that faith.

Of course, I have not been challenged as much as others have. I have not experienced the death of a child, nor lost my house in a storm or because I couldn't pay the note; my husband is still alive and helpful. Oh yeah, there are many circumstances that I'd have difficulty rising above if I think about it.

The stress I experience has to do with my thinking that whatever I am doing for a living is totally different to what I should be doing for soul-fulfillment.

I floundered in high school until my senior year when I boldly auditioned and got a part in a play. Then another and another. I found my niche. I am a thespian. The high school counselor tried to discourage me from majoring in theatre in college; so did my Mom. She told me 'those people' aren't happy. I did it anyway. My mother advised I get a minor to fall back on - psychology was it.

Flunked out of college afer 3 semesters - stabbed at it again a year later. Hated college enough to burn my bridges and didn't formally withdraw that second time, which gave me 0's in all of those classes. Stayed away from the theatre for 17 years. Tried to put it behind me. That was child's Play.

Jobs in between college and vo-tech - cocktail waitressing, bartending, became a bit of a social alcoholic for a while and then sobered up, worked the front office at a hotel, night summary (accounting), software sales, and then more cocktail waitressing, worked banquets, temped as receptionist and administrative assistant.

Graduated from the vo-tech with a computer programming certificate. Computer programming caused me to become narcoleptic. As soon as I stopped programming, I could keep my eyes open. No amount of caffeine or rest before could keep me from nodding off as soon as it came to coding in Cobol.

Became a WANG computer operator for a big corporation for years before my job as at-home mom for years. All the while, my husband worked a full-time job and a part time job and I did many things to supplement his income.

So, I read "Conversations With God". There is an exercise in it that has one pretending to have a conversation with an unseen force sitting with you and this force wants to know what you would do if there were no obstacles. By then, I had a million and one reasons why theatre was a thing of the past, but I took a shot and told the force that "I'd be an actress." And then one thing led to another, I was on stage singing and dancing and cavorting with people at rehearsals. I was back in my element. No doubts. I am a thespian. That was in 1997.

Jobs in between 1997 and the infamous 9/11 incident: babysat, cleaned houses, administrative assistant, booked movies, produced an improv show, ran a movie theater.

After 9/11, I hung out my shingle as an astrologer, wrote a solar forecast column for an entertainment guide that went under, then ran and subsequently bought Synchronicity - a retail store.

Hurricane Katrina changed my direction again when it smashed Synchronicity to smithereens one month after making it mine. There really has been no settlement in my life. At 46, one should be counting the days till retirement with a predictable notion of how to live out the next half. It is just not to be.

I have to get a job, again. There is no denying that I need money, though I have am sometimes careless and frivolous with it.

I have had four jobs, not counting my stint as an extra, nor my occasional astrological client, in the past 6 months. One of those jobs only lasted an afternoon, one was 3 half-days, one was 3 and a half days.

The last one, at the coffee house, was 7 days (or 40 hours). It would have been fine if there was business that I could have made tips off of, and if the owner wasn't a bonafide ass. My good attitude could have made it work for me.

I don't know what will become of me. I am a very good actress. I have great timing, learn lines quick, am disciplined and focussed, and take direction well. I will do it for free. I have done plays at local theatres once a year for the past several years.

I am also a very good astrologer. I have gotten excellent feedback from former clients. I have beefed up my toolbox and offer Tarot readings too. I am quite intuitive now since becoming a Reiki Master. I was always perceptive (Mercury in Pisces), but now the pictures come in very clear. Where to go with that?

Square peg seeks round hole. My good attitude will round me out, but do I want to be round again? What else is there to do? "Buck up," I tell myself. It could all be worse. I can't keep telling those wolves knocking at the door, "in a minute." They are on to me and know I won't ever open the door. I'll have to get the machete.

Tuesday, June 13, 2006

My dog kills snakes


"Stay away from them," I told him when we passed these two halves of a king snake he killed last night. "Leave the snakes alone", I fussed.

He got bit by one last week during our walk to the pond, though I didn't witness it. I did see that he killed a speckled king snake during our walk, but his symptoms of being bitten by a poisonous one came on way before that. I recognized them because he was bitten by a copperhead (my husband saw it) last year, and was rushed to the vet where we were relieved of $90 and got useless pills for him. He was fine the next day, both of those times.

I have no doubt my woods are full of snakes, but I don't encounter them often. When I come upon some fallen trees that I have to walk over, I announce to the unseen that I come in peace. Sometimes I clap and walk hard too, so we won't surprise each other and cause them to have to bite me. We have copperheads and water moccasins in these parts. My son swears he and my nephews came upon a rattle snake out on the road. To this day, he tells me about it if he is walking with me and we reach the point where he saw it. It has been at least 4 years since that happened.

Chip won't leave the snakes alone. He chases after them senselessly. King snakes are good for us here. They keep the rodent and venomous snake populations down.

Sunday, June 11, 2006

a different location, same trench.

I did a stint as an "extra" yesterday; a 12.5 hour day of long stretches of reading my book, Stephen Arroyo's "Exploring Jupiter, the Astrological Key to Progress, Prosperity & Potential" and sometimes acting like I was exiting my car and walking towards the dome. It is a Lifetime movie of Fantasia's timeline to celebrity-hood via American Idol. She seems like a very nice person, and we were treated to her audition reprisal. Debbie Allen is directing it and we background actors, as we were called by the assistant director, watched her play an auditioner in a scene. It was very funny. She did it in one take - so did Fantasia. Oh sure, they needed us to walk from our cars a bunch of times, but they only had to sing their songs once.

I also met some people. There was first a Jim O'Connell from Duluth, Minnesota. I am sure that it is just a coincidence that he looked a lot like my cousins, Jeff and Tom and Steve, in Minnetonka, MN, and that his last name is the same as my Grandmother, and Jeff and Tom and Steve's too, from Minnesota's maiden name. Jim accompanied me out of the car and towards the building over and over for at least a couple of hours. The sun was shining brightly. It was hot, but bearable. I drank down a lot of little bottles of water. The guys with megaphones told us to linger at the car before heading towards the bldg. We'd pop the trunk and go back there where I have three bags of goodwill. I had to tell him part of the story each time we pretended there was something in the trunk that we had to get out or store, that there are no centers accepting stuff anymore except for the Hammond Goodwill, and sometimes I am in that neighborhood. Those stuffed bags had to get out of my space. It was clogging my closet chi.

I also met a medicated, religious, bipolar girl who had her first manic episode after dabbling in Wiccan. She first wanted to talk to me and tell me a lot, and then after about 30 minutes or so, she very casually distanced herself. She is looking for a new religion. She is part bohemian, and part fundamentalist with guilt about having premarital sex and other choices that go against the grain of her programming. I saw her later in the throng of extras who had to do a lot of walking back and forth across a part of the stadium we were shooting in. I am glad I didn't have to do that. I didn't mind at all being in the bleachers, reading my book and making friends. At least, that part was air-conditioned.

I also talked with Julia on my cell phone a bunch. Thank goodness for unlimited weekend minutes; too bad for batteries that don't keep on going.

There was a man there who never filled out a sheet to get paid for the long day, which I never stopped complaining about to myself, and sometimes out loud. He was just giving his son a ride and followed the crowd. They live in Lafayette which is two hours away. He didn't care about doing it for money or attention. We, his neighbors, thought he was a good sport. His son was tagged to play some feature extra role; I never knew who, down on the field, was his son.

That was really working in the trenches. I don't know why, or how, I can make a living doing that. I was tired enough to sleep in till 8:41 a.m. The last time I did a gig as a background actor, it was a 16 hour day, pretending to part of the backdrop of a lesbian cop tv pilot. They were fighting crime by day, and bumping and grinding on Bourbon St. by night. That was two years ago. I am still waiting for it to come on so I can see if they have me on tape. Oh the joy that would be.

Friday, June 09, 2006

June 2006 Full Moon in Sagittarius 6/11

I seem to find myself in the trenches all the time, working with common folk that have such severe issues. Today, I called social services on the owner of the coffee house I am working at because he is abusive towards his 11 year old (5 planets in Scorpio) great nephew whom he has custody of. He orders that boy around like a slave and calls him by the name "knucklehead". I have told him something about his name-calling many times. When I got to work today, the boy, who is a very stoic soul that does anything he is told to do, had a black eye. My young friend has had more troubles than you can shake a stick at. He said he wants me to help him get out of his situation. His whole family is troubled. My husband yells at me to not get involved. You can't tell someone with Pisces rising that. What if that 11 year old boy were me? Or one of mine? I fear the boy will say something to the uncle. I need to find a new way to make money immediately. That didn't pay enough anyway. What will happen to my friend that I have sort of bonded with? He is very adorable.

I tried to get out of the day of being an "extra" tomorrow. It is more hoop-jumping for sure. Maybe I can pass out my Jupiter's Girl business cards. I will try not to bring my negativity with me.

It will be a full moon weekend. Check out the latest broadcast of Jupiter's Girl on www.outoftimeradio.com. Cayelin Castell of www.shamanicastrology.com had the best information about the upcoming planetary events surrounding the next two full Moons (june and July) and also the solstices for the rest of the year. Auspicious occasions with evolutionary energies.

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

My latest headshot

This picture got me two days of "extra" work on a film. The first day was to be last week, but I missed it. They were asking for us extras to bring 6-9 church outfits - dresses with hats and gloves, matching purses and shoes; no red, black, or white. I wonder what hoop they'll ask us to jump through this weekend when I am scheduled to be an "extra" again. To hell with it. Hollywood needs me more than I need them

Thursday, June 01, 2006

New job


I started a new job today; my 4th one this year, not counting that I still do Astrological consults (one of my two passions besides mothering - the other passion is acting) I finally figured out that my frequent job changes has to do with natal Uranus in my 6th house, trining my MC. That placement of Uranus will not let me settle into a job for long. Actually, I think it is built in protection from becoming stagnant in the work place. I don't know where my road is leading me to this time, but I am sure it will be interesting. I have never made cappucino before. My trainer is the 11 year old nephew of the owner. It was mostly just he and I entertaining each other today; watching "Valiant" (it was cute), playing crazy 8's, and I showed him a card trick he can now perform. He made up concoctions of frozen coffee drinks and made up games and pretended they weren't made up. I called him on yanking my chain more than once. I want to adopt him.

The above picture is Polina, aged 4. She spent the night at my house this past Friday. I took her for a walk in my woods - beating off mosquitoes from her arm, though she was sprayed with repellent. She's a sweet potato of a girl.