If any of you are interested in attending an seminar that I am doing in New York, you are more than welcome. The decription and details are below:

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Something that should be the easiest thing in the world is actually one of the most difficult. Do you find it hard to “act natural”, “be true to yourself”, “accept yourself” in daily situations? Do you ever feel like you are being influenced by external circumstances? Maybe at your job, or with your friends, or in your relationships, you may not always say and do what you really want to? Why do we stop ourselves from expressing how we truly feel so often?

Do you ever get so caught up in doing, doing, doing that you forget to just BE?

In a world chock-full of obligations, sometimes it’s hard to find the time and space to be ourselves– even though this would seem to be the most simple thing possible.

Join Carol Haggerty and David Richeson for an entertaining, instructive, and interactive seminar in which we will explore this topic and learn practical techniques to help us to connect with ourselves on a deeper level and be ourselves around others much more often.

Time: Saturday April 26th, 9:45am-12:30pm
Place: 127 West 25th Street (3rd Floor), Manhattan, NY
Fee: $20
RSVP: (866) 452-3965, or write seminars@ihpny.org

Presented by the Institute for Hermetic Philosophy (www.ihpusa.org)

Some of you may have read my previous post on Beginning My Detox from Toxic Mercury Dental Amalgam Fillings, and you may be wondering how it’s going.

I am pleased to report that I just did a Heavy Metal Screen Test, which I highly recommend for all, and my levels of heavy metals (including mercury) went from High to Low in two months. That is a great result, and I feel much, much better.

The combination of the Bentonite Baths and the Bio-Chelat was amazing. And I believe that the Oriental Detox Foot Pads helped as well.

The foot pads are a big subject of controversy on the web, with many people claiming that they are a hoax. I can just say that I always got a great night’s sleep when I had them on, and I did see a change in the amount of “gunk” on the pad in the mornings after I had used the for a while. I’m a believer.

Mercury is really bad for you. Test yourself soon, and do a Mercury Detox if your levels are high. You’ll be glad you did.

I have a friend who cannot change. She knows that certain things in her life are really bad for her, and she says that she really wants to change those things. But year after year, nothing changes. She finds herself in the same situations over and over again.

What’s even harder, is that she often convinces herself that she is changing, and that things are different. Even though they really aren’t. It’s quite hard for me to watch, as someone who really cares about her.

Do you know anyone like that? Do you see some of those same traits in yourself?

Perhaps there is some habit or life circumstance that you say you want to change, but find it staying the same year after year. Why is it so hard to change?

Change is scary
Let’s face it, in order to change, you have to CHANGE. And change means that you have to face the unknown— the unfamiliar. And that’s scary for a lot of people. Who knows what is on the other side of change? Being different.

Change requires effort
It’s hard to change because we need to put in the effort to override the inertia of our mechanical habits. The law of inertia states that “an object in motion tends to stay in motion and an object at rest tends to stay at rest, unless another force acts upon the object.” Well, the “object” in this case is the habit you want to change, and the “force” has to come from your will-power and desire. But, as you’ll see below, most people’s desire to change is not genuine.

We actually don’t want to change
Most of the time, people don’t really want to change. They just like to say that they want to change. Our difficult situations and bad habits serve a purpose, even if it may be a subconscious purpose. For example, smoking can help bury our hidden anxieties. Eating whatever we want can help to comfort our inner sadness, and being overweight can justifies why we haven’t been able find a relationship. Although these are just hypothetical examples, you can see how our habits serve a purpose for us. So the first thing we should think about is why we WANT to be the way we are, since we are choosing to be that way. What benefit are we getting from our current behavior? We have to be willing to give up the short-term “benefit” if we want long-term change.

Change can be much easier
My teacher, Dr. Dario Salas Sommer, always says that people will only really change when they comprehend the affects of the habit they want to alter. For example, if someone really comprehended to the core that “cigarette smoking causes cancer,” he would never smoke another cigarette again. That person keeps smoking because he doesn’t really comprehend what he is doing to himself. Similarly, when someone comprehends the deeper “benefits” of their mechanical habits, and consciously desires to give up that benefit for a higher purpose, that person can change much more easily.

The key is to stop fooling ourselves. Most of us want to be exactly the way we are—even if we say that we do not. A part of us does. A part of us feels comfortable living life exactly the way we do. If we felt really uncomfortable, we would do whatever it takes to change.

One last note, be careful of the “reprogramming” and “hypnosis” methods that promise easy change. If you do not get to the underlying roots of your behavior— the reasons you desire the “benefit”— then the habit may just be replaced by another one. Nothing is for free in this world.

I wish you the best in your desire for change. Check out the website of the Institute for Hermetic Philosophy at www.ihpusa.org for more information on practical ways to overcome mechanical behaviors.

MSN Green had a wonderful post today, that I thought I’d share, just in case you missed it. The Dirty Dozen: The Top 12 Foods to Eat Organic.

It is very interesting, as the article reveals a lot about how many pesticides get into our food, and how washing does little to prevent us from ingesting the pesticides in many cases.

Take a look here.

The “Perfect Economic Storm” is Coming. Are you ready?

The signs are all around us. It seems like every day we hear more news telling us about the hard economic times we have ahead of us. As The Nation magazine & CBS News correctly report, “The skies are darkening, and ominous new considerations are intruding on the politics of 2008. The softening economy, accumulating foreclosures for homeowners, more multibillion-dollar write-offs by major banks, the swooning dollar and stock market, oil prices approaching $100 a barrel - the list goes on, inviting a trendy cliché: the “perfect storm” stalking American prosperity.”

It’s all happening at once. We have a:

• Softening economy
• Home foreclosures
• Bank write-offs and failures
• Falling dollar
• Falling stock-market
• Skyrocketing oil prices

Yes, we have tough times ahead of us. Recently, the Associated Press quoted Bill Gross, Chief Investment Officer of PIMCO, the world’s biggest bond fund, as saying “We haven’t faced a downturn like this since the Depression.”

The Depression? Is he serious? This is the CIO of the largest bond fund in the world. He must have some idea of what he is talking about.

If you saw how Bear Stearns, one of the largest Investment Banks in the US, basically went bankrupt and was sold for pennies on the dollar, you know how serious this crisis is.

Okay, What do we Do?

When people find out that a major storm is coming their way, what do they normally do? They usually stock up on basic resources and “batten down the hatches” at home. That’s exactly what you should do first to prepare for the “perfect economic storm”. Before you do anything else, you should:

• Stock up on basic resources (by saving as much money as possible), and
• Batten down the hatches (by securing your current financial assets and resources as much as possible).

Here are some tips to help you prepare for the Big Storm.
Save Money Now

Save money as if you were hoarding water, groceries and duct tape before a big hurricane. The average savings rate in the United States is actually negative, meaning that most of us borrow more than we make, but those who prosper in the tough economic times ahead will be the savers.

This is easily accomplished now with direct-deposit for paychecks and automatic debiting of specified percentages of your paycheck into savings and investment accounts. (Consult your banking institution if you need assistance with this).

If you can, set yourself up to save 20% or more of your income, even if this means that you have to tighten your belt a bit. This will allow you to build a nice financial cushion if you don’t have one already. And even if you already have a financial cushion, who knows how long the lean times will be? Save as much as you possibly can.

Lower Your Debt Burden

The worst thing that can happen during difficult economic times is that something can happen to your income and you can no longer make the payments on your debt (mortgage, credit cards, etc.). Remember, history has shown us that large numbers of layoffs are common during a recession (and even more during a strong depression), so working to get yourself out of debt can be one of the best preventative measures you could take.

Put Your Money Somewhere Safe

Make sure that wherever you decide to keep your money is safe and secure. We are already seeing bank failures (e.g., NetBank and Bear Stearns), so make sure that your bank is properly solvent and insured.

During the Great Depression, many banks closed their doors and did not allow people to take out their funds. Why was that? Well, it’s a little known fact that the banks do not actually have all of your money. For every dollar you deposit, the banks are allowed to lend out ten dollars using a legal practice known as fractional reserve banking. If you or I did this, it would be called fraud, but the banks are actually legally allowed to do this.

This means that if even 10 – 20% of the people who held bank accounts actually wanted their money, the banks would have to close, for fear of revealing that they just don’t have the money. It happened during the Great Depression, and the same dynamics are at play today. If there was a serious run on the banks, and most people wanted their money, the banks would have to close down.

But remember, all banks aren’t the same. Some are safer than others. To get a good understanding of the relative safety of your bank, visit www.veribanc.com.

Invest in Gold or Silver

If you are interested in protecting your money against inflation and currency risk, you might want to investigate investing in gold or silver. In periods of high inflation, when the US Dollar has lost value, hard assets like gold and silver actually tend to increase in value.

Having some actual gold and silver coins on hand at home (in a safe) may be a secure way to make sure that you and your family are able to buy groceries and necessities even in the case of hyperinflation and runs on the banks.

Cultivate Additional Streams of Income

We never know what’s going to happen during tough economic times. But we can prepare ourselves for any eventuality. No matter how great you may be at your job, if your company runs into hard times, it may be forced to make some tough decisions and lay off employees. If you have additional streams of income, you never have to fear. Don’t let your only source of income be your job. It makes you too dependent on outside events.

For more detailed information on how to survive and prosper in the current recession (and possible depression) visit www.SurviveRecession.com.

I wrote about the amazing results I was getting from the Metronom device in a previous article, called Health and Vibration, but I had to give you an update.

My grandmother was close to death in October last year. She was rushed to the hospital with congestive heart failure. Her kidney function had been deteriorating for several years, she was experiencing terrible pain in her legs, and now, the doctors told her that her heart was not functioning properly either. She had a leaky valve, but she couldn’t have an operation to repair it because her heart was too weak.

Now my grandmother was 86 at the time, and seeing her suffering so much was hard for me to handle. I grew up with her, and I love her more than words could ever say. So I gave her my Metronom, to see if it would help her. I told her to use it every day.

Now, my grandmother had been a Medical Technologist all her life. She had worked in hospitals and medical labs for almost all of her professional career, and she usually stuck with the hard line of the medical establishment on these types of things. She had been against vitamins and organic foods, and now I was asking her to try some wacko energetic healing device.

But, as she lay in her hospital bed, weak from all of the stress her body had been through, she agreed to try the Metronom—promising to use it everyday. This was in mid-October. I called my sister at the time, telling her she should immediately visit my grandmother, because we weren’t sure she was going to be with us for Thanksgiving, much less for Christmas.

Boy, did I underestimate that Metronom. It was amazing. My grandmother has used it every day since I gave it to her, and she is reporting the following results:

• Improved heart functioning (proven by medical tests)
• Improved kidney functioning (again, proven by medical tests)
• Relief from chronic leg pain (terrible pain and swelling that she had in her legs is now completely gone)
• Relief from other pains in the body
• Better energy and quality of life
• And more…

I can’t believe the incredible results my grandmother is getting myself! I never thought that the Metronom could be so powerful.

On February 21st, she celebrated her 87th birthday—she made it well past Christmas, and is going just as strong as ever.

I just want to say thank you to the inventor of the Metronom, for giving me more quality time with my grandmother, who I love so much.