Career guidance by Chinese Zodiac Sign,

Career guidance by Chinese Zodiac Sign, check out this article. http://ow.ly/8Bgdu #fengshui

The Story of the Kitchen God

If, for some reason, you missed New Year’s you have one more chance to celebrate. Chinese New Year falls each year on the New Moon between January 19th and February 23rd and this year it’s happening on January 23rd. It’s a great day for clearing out the clutter of the last year, setting your intentions for the new year and doing activities to bring luck, love, fortune and good health.

There’s a story connected to one of the Chinese New Year’s traditions. It’s said that a rich farmer named Zhang left his devoted wife for a young and greedy mistress. Soon the excessive indulgences of Zhang and the mistress exhausted all his wealth. Seeing he had no more money the mistress left him and Zhang became a homeless begger. He wandered through his village so weak from starvation that one day he collapsed in front of a small house. When he awoke hours later in the garden there was a feast before him. He ate and days passed and every morning he woke to the most wonderful food in front of him. Now feeling nourished and healthy again and feeling such gratitude he wanted to thank his benefactor and so he snuck into the kitchen of the small house. There he recognized his wife and he was so ashamed he jumped into the hearth and fire. His wife tried in vain to douse the flames but Zhang’s ashes flew up to the heavens.

It is said that this tale was told to the Jade Emperor who declared that Zhang would be “the kitchen god”. Many Chinese families have a paper image of the kitchen god in their kitchen. A week or so before Chinese New Year they smear honey on the lips of the kitchen god so he will give a good report of them. They burn the image to send his spirit to heaven. And then on New Year’s eve they hang a new image of the kitchen god to watch over the cooking and household budget for the year.

If you would like to read about what 2012 Year of the Water Dragon has in store for you my eBook is on Amazon.

What does the 2012 Year of the Water Dragon mean for you?

Dragons are formidable creatures, not to be taken for granted. In Dragon years we want to set high standards, focus on our most elevated goals. Dragons are magnetic and can attract anything they want, so lets plan and dream as we discover and explore the power being unleashed to swirl around us and our lives in 2012!

Donna Stellhorn, Author and Feng Shui Expert, reveals many secrets in her new ebook, 2012 – Year of the Water Dragon, including insightful predictions for the world as well as for each sign of the Chinese Zodiac. Whether you were born in the Year of the Rat, or the Year of the Rooster, discover powerful ways to enhance your luck and good fortune this year!

Benefit from Donna’s clear explanation of how the Five Elements or 2012′s Flying Star impact our personal lives. She shares her comprehensive knowledge about Feng Shui cures as she offers useful tips and ideas to offset negative energy and bring you opportunities for love, wealth and success in the coming year. An excellent compatibility outlook for each sign is included, as well as a listing of signs and elements by year, from 1901 to 2020.

Happy New Year: Traditions from Around the World

There are a lot of ancient traditions for predicting the luck of the new year. Since there are already so many with dire predictions for 2012 I thought you might want to do some predicting of your own. Here are some options from around the world.

The druids celebrated the New Year’s on December 21st but you can still do this on January 1st. The tradition was to sit at a crossroads and meditated on the direction to take with your life. The crossroads symbolized how different choices would cause completely different destinations and outcomes.

Another early European tradtion was to toss a shoe over your left shoulder and it if landed upright the outlook for the year is favorable. For this you might do better with your Air Jordan’s than your Manolo Blahnik’s. Anything with a 4 inch heel is not going to land upright.

A Swedish tradition is to serve a white porridge or rice pudding where a single almond or raisin is hidden inside. The servings are dished up and whoever gets the almond or raisin is destined to be married within a year.

An Austrian tradition says that if you serve pork on New Year’s day you’ll have good luck all year. And to make sure often the table will be decorated wtih little minature pigs made of sugar or chocolate.

In Brazil the lentil is considered lucky and a sign of wealth. For New Year’s they will serve a lentil soup or lentils with rice to bring prosperity to the family in the coming year.

Chinese New Year falls on January 23rd this year but you can still follow some of the traditions for bringing in luck. It’s said that evil spirits don’t like loud noises so fireworks are set off to frighten away the bad energy. Also it’s a tradition to wear new clothes on New Year’s day to signify the prosperity you want to attract. (For more information about the Year of the Water Dragon coming in 2012 check out my eBook).

In India the New Year falls in late October but it’s traditions are great ideas for all of us. To mark the end of the year businesses pay all their debts and get new account books to start the year off fresh. People make amends with neighbors and friends so that no quarrel is carried into the new year.

And there’s the Greek tradition of celebrating both the New Year and St Basil’s day on January 1st. A cake is baked with a gold coin inside. Then the slices are passed out in strict order. The first goes to St Basil, the second to the house, the third to the most senior member of the household followed by the next and the next down to the youngest. And the final piece goes to the poor. Whoever finds the coin in their slice will be lucky and blessed in the coming year.

11-11-11: How to Tap into the Energy

11/11/11. We haven’t had a day with all elevens in a thousand years. So is it special? Every day has a certain energy. Saturdays, even if you work on Saturdays, feel different than Mondays. And a few days, like Christmas or Halloween, have a stronger energy because so many people recognize the day as being special or significant. So when a day like 11/11/11 comes along we wonder if it has a special energy?

The strongest energy for a specific day would be a national or religious holiday. Chinese New Year might come and go and you may not notice it, but a billion+plus Chinese people do. If you’re in the United States or countries with a Christian foundation in the West, Christmas is pretty hard to ignor. As we grow older we might even find ourselves comparing how special Christmas felt in the past versus now in the present. Christmas is a day with lots of “Christmas” energy (giving, sharing, eating, opening gifts) because so many people in the world have set aside this day and called it Christmas. The belief people hold and express infuse the day with energy.

Your birthday is special to you, but it’s probably not a national holiday. And so, while it has special energy, that energy is only supported by you, your family and your friends. It’s not felt outside your circle, and so the energy of your birthday is not as strong in the Universe as that of a holiday, for instance.

The days of the week each have a different energy. Originally the days of the week were named for the five known planets and the two luminaries. So Sunday is named for the Sun, Monday for the Moon (which you will recognize even more in Spanish, Lunes). Tuesday is Mars’ day (the Spanish is Martes), Wednesday is Mercury’s day (Miercoles), Thursday is Jupiter’s day (Jueves) and Friday is Venus’ day (Viernes). Each of the planets has a specific energy and their days do, too.

So when we look at a day with numerological significance, such as 11/11/11, we ask if it has special energy? The answer is…it may have. But it won’t have the strong energy of a holiday or the personal energy of a birthday. There are fewer people in the world who understand the energy of the number 11 and so they don’t access it. But you can learn about this energy and activate it. It’s up to you to use this energy to your benefit, or you can just let it pass you by.

In Renee Maas’ book, “Your Personality Code” (ETC Publishing, Carlsbad, California) she breaks down the significance of the number 11 for each sun sign. While the book talks about combining your birth number with your Astrological sign, you can use this information to activate the new energy starting on 11/11/11. Here are some ideas I have adapted from her book:

Aries: “Your greatest desire is to live according to your ideals – and to do that, you are willing to risk everything”. Are you not living the life you want? Are you spending time with cautious individuals who are not giving you the freedom to create and develop? Are you having trouble believing in yourself and your abilties? Here’s your day to start living your life the way you wish, no matter what others may say or think.

Taurus: “You are very powerful; you have lots of vitality and are unwavering in your determination to see things through”. Are you experiencing career success? Do you do work that is absorbing, meaningful, and financially beneficial? Does the world recognize your talents and reward you for them? Here’s your day to reset your aims and goals, to allow yourself to achieve what you are truly capable of.

Gemini: “You are a skilled communicator, and can exemplify all the character traits in which Gemini’s excel”. Do the people around you realize how talented you are? Do you know that you radiate kindness along with strength of character? Do you know that you give truly insightful advice? Here’s your day to push yourself past your blocks and start journaling your creative genius.

Cancer: “You have original ideas, come up with creative solutions – and, one way or another, find the courage to step forward and present your findings to others”. Do you have a solid home base to return to after a long day at work? Do you have people in your life you feel comfortable sharing your feelings? Do you want to play a more active role in the world? Here’s your day to start being seen as the powerful, rational, logical person you really are, by taking the time to nuture and care for yourself.

Leo: “You have the power to inspire others and you can make a determined effort to build a world based on your ideals”. Are you surrounding yourself with people who are as dedicated as you are? Are you finding the balance between your professional life and your personal life? Are you taking on more stress than you need to? Here’s your day to start embracing your idealism and to find others to follow your great ideas.

Virgo: “You are goal oriented, you think highly of efficiency and you may come up with very resourceful and original solutions to tough problems”. Are you wanting to strike out on your own for your career? Are you holding yourself back because of financial security concerns? Are you unsatisfied because your daily life is not challenging or stimulating? Here’s your day to start working the way that feels good to you and find that brings you much more material success.

Libra: “You are capable of becoming anything you can imagine you want to be and there are many worthwhile and nice things you could do or be part of”. Are you unable to decide on a direction for your life? Do you show enthusiasm and conviction for the goals of others but waiver on your own goals? Are you afraid that you’ll look back on your life and regret not making the right choices? Here’s your day to start creating a satisfying life by picturing all the possibilities.

Scorpio: “You are ready to take on responsibilities and willling to work with great dedication on anything you consider important”. Do you have brilliant ideas for others but are plagued by personal insecurity? Are others intimadated by your power? Do you see into the hearts of other people and yet feel separated and cut off from others? Here’s your day to start nourishing your inner self by recognizing that you are powerful and safe.

Sagittarius: “You have the ability to startle the world with your visionary qualities”. Do you feel isolated from people because they don’t listen? Do you feel you spend most of your day doing things that don’t support your great ideas? Do you have dreams of the future, but don’t have the people around you to help you make it happen? Here’s your day to get back in touch with your vision and send messages to the Universe for help and opportunities.

Capricorn: “The word “honor” means a lot to you, and you always strive to do the honorable thing”. Do you keep making sacrifices yet still are not seeing results in your standing in the world? Do you sometimes lack confidence in your abilities? Are you faced with risks you need to take in order to achieve the status you want? Here’s your day to start accessing the power within you by taking bold actions, promoting yourself and taking charge.

Aquarius: “You will exercise enormous personal power and forcefullness, and this can apply to your whole life experience in many ways”. Do you need to destroy something that exists to bring in something new? Do you need to fight for your convictions and commit yourself to a cause? Do you need to test the boundaries in your life? Here’s your day to expand your life by breaking down the old barriers and clearing room to create a new life.

Pisces: “Among all of your dreams and visions are truly impressive achievements that are ready to become part of reality”. Are you unsure about your life path? Are you bored or depressed and often find yourself dreaming of worlds that don’t exist? Do you spend a lot of time escaping from the mundane world through televisions, video games, or mind altering substances? Here’s your day to begin to find your real purpose in life by asking yourself what you are truly dreaming about.

What’s in Your Prosperity Playbook work

What’s in Your Prosperity Playbook workshop this Monday in Dana Point. http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=222058757844787

“Hitting Your Target” Free Marketing F

“Hitting Your Target” Free Marketing Forum in Dana Point, http://patch.com/E-gRC6 I’ll be speaking on the Feng Shui of Copywriting.

#MercuryRetrograde new article and tips

#MercuryRetrograde new article and tips for dealing. #Astrology http://ow.ly/5XXm1

Free Mini-Workshop Feng Shui your busine

Free Mini-Workshop Feng Shui your business card and more., Aug 9th in Dana Point, CA. #fengshui http://patch.com/E-gR7V

AZ to CA: You have to unpack if you want to pack.

This is going to sound quite counterintuitive. Whether you rent or own your home, I am a big believer that if you want to move, you need to first unpack.  Yes, I said unpack.  So many people move into a place they think will be temporary, and so they don’t unpack. Then a decade later they are still there, no pictures on the walls, loads of boxes in the basement or garage.  I see a lot of renters who are so hesitant about fully moving in; hanging family pictures or artwork . But unless you’re in an 18th century farmhouse with horsehair plaster walls, nail holes are easy to patch.  So, the first step is to get completely unpacked and moved in. This includes me. I had two boxes left over from my move two years ago that I finally unpacked…and then packed them right up for Goodwill. If I haven’t needed the stuff for the last two years, I won’t need it in California either.