Pet Psychic

I followed my intuition when I heard that Marla was going to be in Copperfields Bookstore offering readings.  Taking my little Lulu in hand, we entered the dark cavern of the unknown, and experienced a remarkable lady with insight, suggestions and a surprising response from Lulu.  Often frightened of strangers, she sat next to Marla, sniffed her and licked her fingers as Marla held them down to her.

Having gotten Lulu out of a kill shelter because of her "fear aggression"- barking and nipping at strangers, it has been frustrating to find ways to help her build trust.  I really like the "new to me" training perspective that ignores behavior that doesn't support connection and offering kindness and treats for behavior that creates more harmony in the home. However, it has only gone so far.  Marla suggested continuing to socialize her in additional settings.  She also indicated that Lulu has a vision issue that may have to do with something coming at her that could have history from her past.  This makes sense as she is often ok with strangers until they reach to pet her, especially over her head.  The surprise was when Marla said, "I don't know if you two are involved or go to church, but Lulu keeps saying... I want to go to church."  My partner and I laughed as I work at a church and sometimes take her along when we are doing set up work.  She loves to run around the hallways and explore.

We also received an audio CD and will listen to its soothing meditations and affirmations.  I'll keep you posted on my progress.

So Many Marketing Tools

Wow, every day I get a new invite to another teleseminar that promises me ways to get the most out of twitter, sitter and don't be bitter or maketing penetration or ..... Now, I am not a nay sayer by any stretch... however, it is overwhelming and just when I learn how to blog then they want me to tweet or use some other new techie tool. I do love all these modern technologies, but hey I am only one gal with one keyboard and only so much time.... Oh by the way, I did just discover Spider Solitare. So rather than sign up for yet another educational class... I think I'll see if I can better my Spider score. Anyone else have this dilemma?

NVC Practice Group

The purpose of a practice group seems obvious - to practice in order to become proficient. The tricky part, for me, about NVC is that we are using English words, but we are speaking a foreign language. Foreign because it is not the norm or the habitual, so it takes conscious choice to change our habit to the new way, with which we are not yet comfortable. There may be stumbling and hesitancy, but for me, it is well worth the effort. I feel comfortable in my own skin and I am able to contribute right where I am by choosing to translate my own judgments (Marshall Rosenberg, the Founder of NVC, calls it "the Jackal show". I also call it "the story". Ever been aware that you have this inner dialog going on and you are going round and round in circles? I have and usually it is not fun. The way to interrupt the story is to look inward to see what is behind the story. What am I feeling? Usually my body can clue me in - tightness in my shoulders, restriction in my chest - some form of contraction. After I get in touch there, I move to asking myself - "what is important here to me?" "What is it I am yearning for?" For me, I am surprised the number of times it is trust - sometimes self trust, sometimes trust in others, but often just trusting in God or the Universe. I am grateful for the relief I often feel in this understanding. I also have a sense of peace and more willingness to trust in that moment just having named the need (or value). If you want to know more about Practice Groups and where you might find one in your area, send me an e-mail.

Telementoring

My co-facilitator, Mair, came up with the title Telementoring Course to describe a six month course we want to offer through teleconference calls. I think it is just dandy to imagine sitting at home in my jamies and speaking with folks all over the world and offering instruction in my passion, Nonviolent Communication. The mentoring part is that we want to mentor folks who either want to teach NVC or want to bring it to a community or group and are committed to supporting like minded folks. Along with the calls, there are one-on-one coaching sessions and buddy calls. We will also be setting up a ning for opportunities of discussions, posts and sharing of events, ideas and training. This also is meaningful to me because I am interested in building community. I also believe it is helpful for the folks in the community to have similar values. You can contact me at revdupcc@juno.com for more details of the program which starts January 11th 6-9 p.m. (PT). We are offering two FREE sample calls on January 4 and January 11th from noon to 1 p.m. This is an invitation to join FREE SAMPLE CALLS .Click to register at this link: http://bit.ly/SampleCall

Here's the surprise tree we got at Costco. Surprise because we brought it home still wrapped up in the original cords. We did this to make it easier to transport and were delighted with our baby tree. It was ours and we didn't care what it looked like.

Christmas Tree Surprise

Finding Relief

I've been listening to a teleconference site that had 80 illuminaries giving talks on various subjects. One is this fellow offering "The Sedona Method", which I had never heard of before. Anyone else? It's a pretty simple method about letting go - letting go of old beliefs that are no longer serving us. I was a little skeptical, but hey, anything that helps bring some internal peace or relief of stress is worth exploring to me.
My favorite way, of course, to find relief is to play tennis every day. Looking out my office window I notice dark blue clouds dotting the sky in between the tree branches - quite beautiful. The impending possibility of rain however is a conflict. We need the rain, but I wish it could somehow miss the tennis courts. They seem to take forever to dry off. I seem fortunate to live in an area that stays relatively dry. Looking forward to my tennis game tomorrow....