Archive for February, 2010

Part 1: May I have clarity (lots and lots of clarity).

Part 2: May I have the balls to act on aforementioned clarity with congruence and integrity.

Congruence is my word for this year, I reckon. This year’s theme.

What’s yours?

My friend Emma “Healthy” Jones, the naturopathic nutritionist, is running a 5-day raw food retreat in Brecon around the Spring Equinox, from 19th -23rd March.

The retreat will start with a happiness workshop (run by me!) on the Friday evening, to ease the whole group into a space of fun, relaxation, lightheartedness and joy… The rest of the retreat will include: naturopathic workshops, food demos, one to one health coaching with Emma, raw food and mind detox expert guest speakers, and fantastic yummy raw food (lots of raw chocolate too!) which will boost your energy levels and make your tummy happy. There will also be yoga and hula hooping! Relaxation, healing and bodywork treatments (including with myself) will also be available as add-ons. All this is happening on the best weekend of the year for creating positive lasting changes. Come along!

The cost is £395 and includes accomodation, all meals, and all classes for the entire stay. Optional treatments are in addition. Please contact Emma by email or on 07854 425 930 for further information and to book. Feel free to pass this on!

You know the Westboro Baptist Church, the Phelps family in Kansas that goes around demonstrating (including picketing funerals – that which gets to me THE MOST out of all their objectionable activities) with signs saying “god hates fags” and suchlike?

Well, check this out. They were scheduled to protest outside the Twitter office in San Francisco recently and a bunch of counter-protesters turned up with an assortment of surreal signs and attacted more attention than the WBC. (“I have a sign” “I was promised donuts” “God hates retweets”).  What an inspirational, fun, creative way of dealing with bigoted hate-mongerers!  The WBC failed to turn up at their next scheduled protest later on that day (funny, that) and so for round 2 there was just an absurd crowd of mischievious sign holders in their place (“God hates signs”).

The full article is at Laughing Squid. Enjoy. It gives me hope for the world.

My friend Carl Chapple is exhibiting his paintings at the Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay, until February 22nd. His work is on the walls upstairs, on levels 1 and 2. I went to the private view last night and was blown away, as ever, by his work, which is incredibly diverse. His oil sketches are decisive and lively, his pencil/charcoal work is just magical (check out the study of hands. Wow.) But most of all I love the muted tones of blue and grey he uses in his oils – his paintings have a serenity and stillness that I completely connect with. They make you stop, and stare, and just be in a suspended moment in time.

Go see them. It’s a mini meditation.