I've been incommunicado for quite a long while, and this is what I've been doing.... a gagillion blogs! I am going to try to put an short snippet from each one here, in hopes that I can keep this blog updated and current, without making too much work for myself.

So here goes:
From my picture blog, Way Cool Pictures, here is a sample of what I put up today.


And now for the rest of the story about what I have been getting into over at blogger, this is what I've been up to:

On the Prosperity Project, we are currently working on Gratitude, this is today's post:

Two things I can say "thank you" for are:

And then on the Question of the Day, today, I posted this question:


Your body communicates with you all the time. If you were to take the time right now to really listen, what do you think your body would be saying?

Hmmm...

And I think that right now, my body has got to be saying "Shirley, for crying out loud, shut up and go to bed!" and I'm saying, "But wait... there's more!"

Continuing with the "body" theme, the current quote from my Way Cool Quotes blog is:

I don't know about you guys, but sometimes my body isn't very silent when speaking. Some times she yells!

And then there's Mandala Madness, todays post is about Madhubani yantra paintings, this is the first part of the post:



LOL
And on that note, I'll just say "goodnight"

So today, I have been working on the labels for Way Cool Quotes. There are so many that it's just out of control. I wish I could find a way to tag the posts in 3 different ways, and have the option of posting each one.

With Quotes you've got first of all, the author. If I'm looking for Abraham Lincoln quotes, I want to be able to click on "Abraham Lincoln" and pull them all up. And then you have the more general categories such as "humor" and "motivational". If I am just looking for an inspirational quote, I need to be able to click on "living large" and then pick and choose from there. On the other hand, I might also be looking for a quote about something really specific, likc for example "fog". I would then want to look at all the quotes with the word "fog" in it.

If anyone has any suggestions for me that would be great! I can use all the help I can get!

Speaking of help, here's a "teaser" from the post at Way cool Pictures. It's a test of a fire fighting foam system at Ellsworth AFB. but something went hilariously and terribly wrong...

There are about 10 pictures in the post, too many to put up here, so go see it. It's really funny!

Speaking of pictures, On Way Cool Pics I posted several incredible images of the awesome surreal art by Vladimir Kush. Here's one of them:



If you visit the site, just be aware that some of the images previously posted might be a little "over the top". No porn, nothing too offensive, but if you are sensitive, you might want to approach this site with caution. I call it the "dark side" of Shirley.

On a more uplifting note, I was going to post desktop wallpaper at the Mandala Madness blog, but I ran out of time, and didn't get one found or created. If any of you out there reading this have, or know of, great Mandala Art wallpapers for the desktop that are free to use and distribute, please let me know. If you want to contribute something you've made yourself, it would be greatly appreciated, and I'll be happy to plug you, your art, and your site on the blog.

Let me see... what else... On the Prosperity Project we are saying "thank you" for unusual things. If you'd like to contribute your own thank you's that would be great!

So that's it for me today!
Blessings to all my readers and supporters.
I love you and appreciate you more than you know!

posted today at Way Cool Quotes

After the 2006 Chelsea Flower Show closed, this figure was bought by Olivia Harrison, the widow of George Harrison. She has been continuing to restore the large Victorian garden at their house in Henley-on-Thames, UK.

Beautiful isn't she?

And then as I was surfing for pictures for my picture blogs, I came across this one, and decided to post it as today's Question of the Day.

And so I started thinking about peace vs war, and I was able to come up with a desktop wallpaper for Mandala Madness. I think it came out pretty cool, here it is:

Today, I thought I'd put up one of the posts from our "God First" series over at The Prosperity Project. This series was life changing for me, not only that, but the images and quotes are just outstanding.

So, here it is:

All that matters is to be at one with the living God
to be a creature in the house of the God of Life.


Like a cat asleep on a chair
at peace, in peace
and at one with the master of the house, with the mistress,
at home, at home in the house of the living,
sleeping on the hearth, and yawning before the fire.

Sleeping on the hearth of the living world
yawning at home before the fire of life
feeling the presence of the living God
like a great reassurance
a deep calm in the heart
a presence
as of the master sitting at the board
in his own and greater being,
in the house of life.

~D H Lawrence, "Pax"

This is what's new in my world today: At Mandala Madness we have two new posts, art and poetry:

~

Designed by Oliver Blackwell, the “WashDryIron” is an all-in-one machine that can handle up to 16 items at once. All the washing, drying, and ironing take place in seperate compartments with each piece on hangers to prevent creases. Mr. Blackwell expects his machine to sell for $1,389 - $1,562 when it’s released. Cool huh?

Today, I thought I'd share a slide show. We used it as a meditation tool when we were working on the Ganesh Mantra for our Prosperity Project several months ago.

I really enjoyed it, and continue to use it whenever I feel stressed out or need a spiritual lift. There are a lot of images, so be patient, it takes a while to load, but is well worth the wait.

While it's loading, you can practice patience and mindfulness, and as the images present themselves, you can repeat a mantra. The one we used was this one for removing obstacles:

Om Gum Gana Patayeh Namaha

  Well, shoot... the slide show won't load for me here on this post. I don't know if it's my slow dial up, or my browser or what. If you really want to see it, you can visit this page at the Prosperity Project .

On Way Cool Pictures today, it's a Morning Glory day, with some beautiful pictures of the morning glory pool at Yellowstone, here's one of them:



If I didn't know how hot it was, and how deep, and how potentially deadly, I'd think I might want to jump into it. It's so beautiful! I love how it goes from that orangy yellow to that deep brilliant blue. WOW!

And then I spent several hours working on creating an aStore for the Mandala Madness. This is the ad I created for the blog:

We have created a small store at Amazon.com, where we have gathered together a wide variety of gift items for the mandala lovers in your life. We would love it if you would check it out at Mandala Madness at Amazon

I would really appreciate some feedback on the store (and the ad) and am open to any and all suggestions for improving it.

And then, feeling positive about the aStore, it seemed appropriate to put this up at The Prosperity Project, where we are currently exploring Gratitude:




I know, the graphic is kind of ... over the top, but I like how energetic it looks. As for my answer... as I took a good look around, I determined that this is a day that I find myself rich in dog hair. And I really am grateful for all that dog hair because it means that my part time dog boarding business is doing fine (I've had quite a few little boarders recently), and it means that my own dogs are alive and well, plus it will give my little granddaughter a lot of pleasure when she comes to visit, because vacuuming is one of her most favorite things to do.

And then, last but certainly not least, here is a really great quote:

Everything is dual; everything has poles; everything has it's pair of opposites; like and unlike are the same; opposites are identical in nature, but different in degree; extremes meet; all truths are but half-truths; all paradoxes may be reconciled. ~The Kybalion

The Kybalion is a really cool little book that someone at work let me look at. It is part of the teachings of the Hermetica, from the Egyptian tradition, thousands of years ago. I wish I would have written down more about it so that I could share it here... but I didn't... so the quote will have to suffice.

And that's about all I've got for today.
Blessings,
shirley

Then I got this in an email from my sister:

"Every once in a while, a woman will wake up with no ambition save for a wish to creep around quietly in her socks. And it must be a rule of the universe that this is a day when she will be required to go out into the world and act, interact, and be acted upon, in spite of - perhaps even because of - her extreme vulnerability. May I add then, this delicacy will be likely be expressed in a violence of temper over some inconsequential hurt, with feelings so raw as to be immediately exposed by virtue of the fact they are so terribly tender. Be kind then, to this raging woman, be she you or some other miserable creature - she is wide open and utterly naked, a state no man could imagine or endure."

If you are interested, I have several blogs:

The Prosperity Project
Question of the Day
Way Cool Quotes
Way Cool Pictures
Mandala Madness

and a website:
Green Dolphin Studio

Today I'm sharing desktop wallpaper from Mandala Madness.

Enjoy!

Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, wine in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOO HOO what a ride!" 

~unknown

GOD SPEAK TO ME

The man whispered, "God speak to me." And a meadowlark sang, but the man did not hear.

Then the man yelled, "God speak to me." And thunder rolled across the
sky, but the man did not listen.

The man looked around and said, "God let me see you." And the stars
shined brightly, but the man did not notice.

And the man shouted, "God show me a miracle!" And a life was
born, but the man did not know.

So the man cried out in despair, "Touch me God and let me know you are
here." Whereupon, God reached down and touched the man. but the man brushed the butterfly away and walked on.

So remember, don't miss out on a blessing just because it isn't packaged the way you expect. Take notice of the things around you.

This beautiful photo is by Don Paulson, I found it at Webshots.