Want to Get Something Done ? Get Some Old Broads to Do It!
“GREAT OLD BROADS FOR WILDERNESS”,
I had to check it out.
And I was totally hooked when saw their quote:
“Time & trouble can tame an young woman but an advanced old woman is a uncontrollable by any earthly force”.
And having come from a long line of “uncontrollable women ”
I knew exactly what they meant…and maybe you do too.And maybe you are one,I hope
so!
is a national grassroots organization that uses the voices and activisim of “elders” & others to protect & preserve wilderness.They work to preserve roadless public lands & other areas.
In Oct. they helped to create a new wilderness area in the Cherokee National Forest & avocated passing the first expansion of the Tenn. Wilderess Act in 24 years.They have been active in land preservation in almost every state by hosting “BroadWalks” camps where they eat great food, laugh a lot and
support the preservation of local wilderness areas.
They really know how to poke fun at politics and have some too.
Check out their antics in D.C.
Having Fun + Making a Difference
After all, places to have wonderful experiences is about all we can we can truly leave to those that come after us.
Susan’s Super Suggestions for Small Steps
“Small steps make grand adventures!”
~ Winnie the Pooh
Today we have the incredible advantage of having the amazing knowledge of traditional “western” medical science and the also amazing knowledge of other wellness traditions to learn from.
Each one has much to offer and to enable us to be more healthy & more productive lives.
Sometimes the “holistic or alternative ” therapies are seem as strange and unproven…but really, many of them have been around for thousands of years & have keep people well long before ” modern medicine.”
So as we open up to a multi-cultural world, we can also open up to a “multi- medical ” world.
So glad you are on this journey with me!
Welcome Guest Writers for Whole Health Series
Over the next few weeks I have the pleasure of bringing you guest columnists who have the best of both wellness worlds. They are great examples of learning and using a “both sides of the brain” approach.
Today’s columnist is Susan Thomasson,who has an extensive background in both traditional medicine as well as complementary therapies.
SUSAN’S SUPER SUGGESTIONS FOR SMALL STEPS
When Jeannie asked me to write for this blog, I didn’t have any idea where to start. My personal and professional interests are all over the map. I do, however, have a passion for sharing the possibilities of integrative medicine (complementary therapies) as an approach to health and wellness. So let’s start there.
Some Girls Buy Shoes…
Do you enjoy learning new techniques, exploring ideas, searching for answers? I have always loved to learn new things…have been back to school a few times over the years, enjoy continuing education classes, and love reading, reading and more reading to figure things out for myself. (Some girls buy shoes—I buy books!) My recent reading has included Dean Ornish’s Love and Survival, Lynn McTaggart’s The Intention Experiment, and Crowley and Lodge’s Younger Next Year. All three are amazing…and lead me more and more in the direction of “we have a lot more control over our health and well-being that we may even begin to imagine!”
What you can control…
What do you want for the New Year? What do you want to have control over or change in this new decade? Have your considered a holistic approach? I use an integrative approach and find that many of these ideas can address many issues. For instance, a monthly massage therapy or Reiki session will help decrease the effects of stress, improve your circulation, decrease tense muscles, relieve pain, and improve sleep. Or a weekly yoga class can help you focus while helping improve flexibility and strength…..Or regular prayer or meditation practices can help you feel calm and less stressed ….Or volunteering at your favorite charitable organization can help you feel connected and whole….Even sitting down to dinner with your family can provide many healthy benefits…and a sense of belonging.
Take some time for you & your health.
The main idea here is just to take time for you. Honor and nurture the wonderful person that you are. Work to take care of your WHOLE being, mind-body-spirit! I’m trying…so you can, too! Happy New Year!
…………………..And enjoy the journey.
Susan is a Board Certified Medical Laboratory Scientist & Instructor at Carolinas College of Health Sciences. In addition, Susan is Director of Continuing Education there and has created an innovative seminar on “Integrative Medicine” to introduce CMC students & the public to that information.(for more info on this seminar, email Susan at the address below). I have been honored to be a part of that for several years. She is also a licensed massage therapist & Reiki master.
• Susan B. Thomasson, M.Ed., MT(ASCP)SH, LMBT
Director, Continuing Education Department
Carolinas College of Health Sciences
Email: susan.thomasson@carolinashealthcare.org
Money Multiplier
Been Stressed about Holiday gifts? Have you been complaining about the state of the economy?? The Malls Madness? The lack of good customer service?
I know I have done that a lot and felt unable to do much about it but I think I have found some help for all of that …& it can be fun & rewarding besides…what a great deal!
The solution? Multiply your money locally!
The solution is to shop locally with independent (not chain store) merchants in your ‘Hood. Shopping locally can generate huge dividends in improving your community & your pocketbook.
You can help contribute directly to your own well-being and someone else’s. The monetary amounts from such spending are are huge:
- If 3 people spend $50.00 a month locally it would generate over $42.6
- BILLION annually….which would be spent locally.
- For every $100.00 spent in an independently owned business, $68.00
- comes back to us.
- If you spend that in a national chain, only $43.00 comes back & if you spend it on line, your community & your business gets ZERO!
I am really fortunate to live in an in-town neighborhood where there are lots of diverse shops and great gifts to chose from. But wherever you are, I know there are places to go where you will have a wonderful selection as well as doing your part to support folks working hard just like you. It can save you money and time.
Every community has locally owned restaurants, art galleries, gift shops, bakeries and other businesses that will really appreciate you and your business. And the parking is easy.
Gotta love the 3/50 Project
The wonderful 3/50 PROJECT is all about this. It encourages people to buy & support local businesses. This is such an important idea because these businesses contribute so much to, our local economy and our community. We really do like to do business with people we know and trust. And personally, I liked to be called by my name and greeted like a valued customer, not an account number.
Social media is great but nothing takes the place of a person who is happy to see you and wants to help you. So check out this out how you get known and appreciated in your “village.”.. You will never get that from a chain store. To find out more at the 3/50 website.
- Pick 3 locally owned independent businesses to check out and stop in & say Hello. Buy something that makes you smile.
- Find time to talk the owner of a local business about their business and yours. You may be able to support each other and will have made a friend…and they will be sure to remember you next time you come in.
- Eat in a neighborhood restaurant, ask to meet the owner and thank them for improving your quality of life. McDonalds will never do that.
- Hold your “meet- up” in a local coffee shop or resturant,they will be happy to have you and give you special service.
- If you need a product or service but can’t find it, ask the local merchant if they can recommend someone. Chances are they will give you a good recommendation and will say “Tell them I sent you “; always a great way to get good service.
- Subscribe to your neighborhood association’s newsletter & get on the email list for the local merchant’s newsletter. Great way to find inexpensive deals and events.
- If you already have some favorite local businesses, stop by and thank them or send them a referral. They will remember!
LOOK AT ME. I’M DRIVING A FERRARI!
Well I finally did it. I‘ve moved from a regular website to a blogsite and it has certainly stirred me up.
When my colleague, brilliant writer, & Soulo member Tamela Rich did the same thing some time ago she commented that she felt like an Amish woman who had just been given a Ferrari. And wow, she was so right. I feel like I have gone from a quiet comfortable place to live (a regular website) into an alternative universe – blogging– and I am not sure I can fit in here. I’m sure for many people this would be a ho hum experience but for a “technologically disadvantaged’ person like me, it is a big step.
Lessons Learned
I learned a lot about myself during this move, most of which gives me more empathy for what my clients in transition face. Like many clients who want to make a shift in their lives, I both loved and feared the move to a blogsite. I loved the idea of the possibilities of blogging but when confronted with the reality of what I need to do, all my fears and insecurities come swirling up like ghosts at Halloween.
Can I really learn how to do this? Will it be worth the time & money? Will anyone read it anyway? On and on and on. I scare myself with old fears and made up monsters. By the time I am finished with my “haunted house” I want to hide under the bed & never come out.
But of course, I finally have to emerge and look around.
How ironic that I teach others how to calm their fears but let the monsters get to me. I am just like everyone else…I scare myself with “what ifs”. It certainly gives me more insight into what fear can do and how energy sucking it can be. I know that this is not a life-threatening situation but it is amazing how invasive it becomes.
When I get a little perspective on it, I realize that these “fear ghosts” are what we all feel when we take a risk or move away from our comfort zones.
Since we often teach what we need to learn, I realized I need to apply that to myself. So I talk to myself just like I do my clients (glad no one can hear me!) to remember that I have learned many other things in my life, that I have what I tell others they need — a great support team in Tamela & Andy Ciordia (the blog tech guru) of Nuance Labs Consulting and that I will love getting comments from people. When I focus on these things, it really helps. I’m not driving much yet but I am in the car.
And I think I really look good in a Ferrari.
