Dream … Maker

This is my reality  - for the moment. 

It’s 7:23am.  I’m sitting in my favorite chair, at my favorite place (my porch) with my favorite mug (creamy white) filled with my favorite beverage (cream & French roast coffee).  Next to me on my little stone table is a plate of fruit (strawberries, bananas, pineapple) and cheese (white cheddar) on my favorite plate (Tuscan red). 

The birds are singing and it’s about 70º.  I have my favorite throw (amber chenille) over my legs and feet with this computer on my lap.  I’m planning to write about another topic straight from my dreams (and it’s a very strange subject for a dream!)

Illusion is the topic, but I’m going to give it a twist.  It’s not about illusion and magic, but illusion in regards to reality.  In fact I’m thinking of these titles - “illusional reality” or “the reality of illusion”.  Let’s see which wins - if either. 

One of the ways I write is to just write and edit later - that way is comes from my heart.  Ok … I’m ready to tackle this … let’s see where it’ll take us. 

When I woke up the other morning - about 3:00am - I wrote down these words … “Illusion - what’s up is down, what’s down is up, what’s here is there, what’s there is here, what’s fast is slow, etc….”  I’ve written about this before - questioning what really IS truth.  And I think (I’m not checking to confirm this) I left it that truth had to do with perspective.  Whether it’s mine, yours, theirs, or other-worldlies. 

For now, let me use an example of Illusion from my World of Furniture - a real place, with a real punishment/reward system — sell furniture (get money to pay my bills - a great reward!) or don’t sell furniture (make no money … work very hard for nothing - a dreary punishment!).   Anyway, more to the point … I must consistently behave a certain way towards my customers, which is to be conversational, friendly, caring, questioning and solutions-oriented - in other words, it’s my JOB to form a relationship with a stranger.  I have to do it well so that they are comfortable with who I am when they leave (so that they will remember me if they return). 

Oh friends, so much of that behavior is simply learned and programmed - it’s the “illusion” or “hat” I put on when I enter the furniture store.  It’s so hard at times, too, because I would love just to be me (really me).  Rather than give a summary of me, just know that what I write in my posts and in my books is really me. 

Here is the application, though.  We all live a public life, a private life and let’s just say an “inner/spiritual life”.  Whatever we choose to reveal in our public and private lives - in other words, whatever reality we put out there there is a choice.  We can choose to be ourselves or not.  That’s the freedom we have that no one can rob us of.  But there’s one place that I suggest that we be true to ourselves - and that’s in our “inner life”.  This is where we make things real anyway - from the Spirit part of us - which (or who) is the Real Us! 

That’s what my books are about - “makeovers for you and your home” have to do with getting in touch with your Real Self so that you can live your dreams, and also be able to live in the home of your dreams. 

For most of the Non-Dreamers in the world … dreams are simply an illusion.  The here and now is the reality.  But to those of use who have relearned, or are in the process of learning, how to embrace our true selves and our dreams - it’s our dreams that we believe will eventually replace the here and now of today, and will one day become our NEW reality. 

Ok which title will win … how interesting, neither wins.  I realized that throughout this post, my  subject is more about believing and dreaming.  That’s reality.  And as we dream it, hopefully we’ll experience it “for real”.   

So … That’s all Folks … Talk to you soon and Love to you all …

Greening … It

This was a happy morning. After 3 week of very hard work, I sent the last of my “Page by Page” files to Duncan. This was a very difficult exercise for me. The purpose of it was to take each page of the website and document which pictures, text, links to put on each page. Not only was it meant to give directions to Duncan, but it was also a work in progress for the website because I had to write all the text, and create all the graphics and slide shows, etc. But the hardest part of all of it was the thinking part. It was tortuous and tedious. Thankfully, Duncan said this was the “fun” part for him.

Definitely this was an exercise using the right and left side of the brain. I loved the creative part of this - the writing and creating of the graphics. But the technical, organizational part of it just about blew my mind.

Blew my mind - think about it - thinking so hard you felt your head explode? Don’t you admire people who think deeply like this all the time? I know I do, I know a few, and they fascinate me.

What’s the point of that “TMI” (too much information)? Well, I’m not sure, except I’m really celebrating this morning. I’m on my porch - the crickets are singing to me (certainly they know I’m listening to them), drinking my favorite morning beverage (coffee and cream), listening to a few birds, Maxwell (my black cat) is sitting right at my feet, , and it’s GREEEEEEEN everywhere.

Talking about green, the other day I had a really cool application between this beautiful tree and my Photoshop brushes. When I use certain brushes, I can paint all over the page - flowers, stars, leaves, swirls, etc. Take a look at my book cover, “Celebrity Makeover”. That was made using brushes to paint layer upon layer of sparkles and stars. The painting was just a matter of using the mouse to “flick?? the brush” here and there.

So when I look at how the leaves and branches “decorate” the tree trunk, it’s like they were painted with “leaf brushes”. Creation is like someone with millions of different brushes using millions of different colors, with millions of ideas about what to do with them. Amazing. Another Photoshop View of life for me.

I have exactly 1 hour before I have to stop Phase 1 of my morning and go into Phase II, which is get ready for work. Phase 3 is to Work. Phase 4 is to come back home. What Phase of your day is your favorite? I think Phase 1 is mine. That’s because I get to be in, and be comforted by my Dream Home.

Have a great day… really mean it, friends!

Your Hairdresser REALLY Knows For Sure!

The other day was my hair day.  As usual, I came up with another plan for my hair.  “Lisa, I want you to make it darker so that my highlights will stand out.  I want to go back to being a “winter” instead of this false “autumn” look.”  I want you to do this, I want you to do that”.  She said - “Wow, you waited too long to get your hair done, that’s what’s wrong with you”.    Well after about an hour of explanation why she STRONGLY disagreed with me about going darker, I finally got it, and can again equate it to Photoshop. 

Here is the truth about aging from a Hairdresser’s view.  No amount of makeup, hair dye or clothes is going to recapture the ”vibrancy” of youth.  That’s because we are FADING with age.  I finally understood this because she said my skin is fading and that’s why she wouldn’t go darker for my hair - she insisted that it would look “witchy” even though not 10 years ago that was my natural color.

I get it now.  It’s like taking a layer of digital beauty (a photograph) and making it more transparent.  Each little bit of decrease in the opacity takes away the intensity of the color.  Well I guess that’s a good view of aging.  A more transparent picture is the same picture - it’s just a softer, paler version of it. 

Eventually, when it’s so transparent that it’s barely there, it kind of becomes “ethereal”.  If you have “The Ugly Duck Makeover” then look how I made the very back page - I faded it out quite a bit.  The more “opaque” (darker) version was just too harsh and sent the wrong message. 

So, friends, this is meant as encouragement for those of us who are NOT into aging (or as Arbonne says - looking younger, longer.)  There is just as much beauty in getting older as being younger.  We’re the same picture, just less opaque and more transparent. 

She (my hairdresser) knows for sure - she promotes beauty no matter what the age - “Black hair like your 28 year old daughter???? Come on, Diane, you’re 55, so be proud of it and quit fighting it.”  “Ok, Lisa … thanks, I guess?”