So...You Want to be a Mermaid!

Since I was a little girl, I always wanted to be a Mermaid. I never told anyone. I didn't HAVE to tell anyone about my dreams to make them vivid. That's sort of the thing with dreams...when you "tell" them there is the danger of losing the magic of it all.

So, I didn't tell anyone I wanted to be a Mermaid. Just like I never told anyone that I wanted to be a Jet Pilot, a Wilderness Explorer, a Merchant Marine, a Sailor, a Private Detective, a Medicine Woman/Tribal Cheif(tess). This would be a more powerful version of the Indian Princess many of my friends probably wanted to be. Nope. Never told anyone. And I've found that all of these things have woven their way into my life in one form or another.

A few months ago I found Weeki Wachee - the home of the Mermaids. At first I thought - "No way!" But, yessiree. While I wove aspects of Mermaid metaphorically into my life, these awesome women showed us metaphor only goes so far.

Sometimes a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do!

I watched these ladies in action and it occured to me what a powerful message they send out into the world. Live your passion, even if it may not make sense to anyone around you.

Yea, Weeki Wachee can (and has) been discounted as old and kitchy. But there's something profoundly magical and powerful about thumbing your nose at "contemporary" and "politically palatable," and being sexy and frolicking (and getting a paycheck) while you're at it.

The Mermaids at Weeki Wachee send the message that your passions can materialize into a successful endeavor. And young girls can benefit from that message in today's harsh world as they are encouraged to fill roles and shoes of others simply because those roles and shoes happen to be vacant.

I don't think that's a good enough reason to live someone else's dream for you as your own, even if it seems more logical that the budding dream growing inside your own heart. Dreams need to be protected and nurtured until they have time to step into the light. They can be pretty unrecognizeable until they move beyond the fetal stage. But that's when they need to most protection.

So, to all of you girls who want to be a Mermaid, there REALLY IS a place for you!

Jiri - Blue Morpho Journals

This is my friend Jiri. I met him and many other incredible people at Blue Morpho in Iquitos, Peru during my travels there November 2007.

Many of my friends and family have asked me to describe my experience at Blue Morpho. We worked with Shamans in Ayahuasca ceremony. Each of us had different reasons for being there and undoubtedly we had very different experiences. What we did have in common was the Mesa within which we learned. The Mesa is - to the best of my ability to describe it - is a spiritual arena which is controlled and protected by the Shamans and Apprentices overseeing the ceremony.

Jiri shared the Mesa with me in Peru. He also has captured the experience very well in his journal, though I have no idea how he could even pick up a pen during some of those times.

So, I would like to thank Jiri for his thorough description of the Blue Morpho experience. I encourage anyone who is wondering what it is like to visit Blue Morpho and to navigate an Ayahuasa ceremony (and emerge on the other side) to visit Jiri's JOURNAL. He also took some beautiful PHOTOS. Jiri has multiple Blue Morpho image collections there. Explore them all!

Excellent work, Jiri.

Thank you, my friend...

Angels in the Amazon...

I've just finished editing Part I of Angels in the Amazon. It was my hope to relay my experience rather than just create a dull "slide show" of non-descript vacation pictures. So, here it...an initial attempt at videography...

Each segment will be uploaded to YouTube and be available as a streaming video from there. I also have each segment on DVD. If you're interested, just ask me for a copy.

Shooting video and photos on the Rogue...

Emily and I took to the hills with some very special ladies to enjoy our very wet spring. Here's the video we created (View video here...) - Spring on the Rogue. We took the raw footage, and still images and used Microsoft Movie Maker to create a video.

Lots of Shoes...

Of all the things I pack for my travels, I give the most thought to my shoes. Why? Because you have to by picky. You have to be prepared for the terrain but you also don't want to be dragged down by the weight of too many shoes.

These are my first pair of Danskos my daughter, Anna, gave to me as a gift. I'm so happy my daughters have more style sense than I do!

Definite packers: Chacos, Danskos & flip flops

Definite "Maybes": Running shoes

Occasionally: Hiking boots, flippers for snorkeling

Forrest Gump ~ Momma's Wisdom about shoes. (Listen)

The Empire Builder

Emily and I are going on an adventure. We're planning a cross country trip on Amtrak's Empire Builder from Portland, Oregon to Chicago, Illinois.

Em and I have traveled quite extensively in the west (California & Oregon) on short trips to visit Ken when he was working for Columbia Helicopter and before we got married and settled down in Southern Oregon. These short trips ranged from fun to miserable, depending on how full the train was, the people we were sitting near and how closely the train ran on schedule. On these shorter trips we always traveled in the seated cars, and never rented a sleeper.

We're renting a sleeper roomette on both legs for our Chicago trip. Yea!

Here's our route on the Empire Builder:

Portland, OR (PDX)

Vancouver, WA (VAN)

Pasco, WA (PSC)

Spokane, WA (SPK)

Whitefish, MT (WFH)

Shelby, MT (SBY)

Havre, MT (HAV)

Williston, ND (WTN)

Minot, ND (MOT)

Grand Forks, ND (GFK)

Fargo, ND (FAR)

St. Paul / Minneapolis, MN (MSP)

Winona, MN (WIN)

La Crosse, WI (LSE)

Columbus, WI (CBS)

Milwaukee, WI (MKE)

Chicago, IL Union Station (CHI) I'm taking my laptop and digital camera (of course) and will provide updates once we get to Chicago and then when we return to Oregon. Unfortunately, there's no internet on the train. However! I may be able to use my Blackberry to grab some airtime enroute. I'll have to check that out! I have decided that - since technology is here - I might as well use it to give myself as much geographical freedom as possible. So, I consider this one big experiment in creative communication. Exactly how far away from home can I get and STILL communicate and do "business" effectively? We'll see...

Today...I work...

Today, or actually this weekend, I've committed to trying to wrap up a Small Business Management curriculum project I've been working on since accepting a job with Rogue Community College. I was hired to teach the RCC SBM program in Josephine County Oregon, a rural, economically distressed community in Southern Oregon. Entrepreneurship is the juice that keeps a community alive, especially in times of economical and social transition.

Once I complete this curriculum project, I can turn my attention to other things...But for today, it's work, work, work...and then I can play, play, play...