Gaia Community: Jeannie's Blog

Soon to be proud mommy...

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 21:49:12 -0000

of a new kitten for Buster to have as a playmate! I've named him Max cause he has a big "M" on his forehead! He's so cute. Wanted to pick him up today, but thought it best to wait until I'm back from vacation in a couple of weeks. But very soon we'll have a new addition to the home!

Free Hugs!!

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 16:03:23 -0000

Horror over John Edwards' Story!

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 22:45:07 -0000

I am absolutely shocked and appaulled to hear the news about John Edwards' affair. I was an avid supporter of Edwards, for being what I felt was the one truthful and honest candidate of the highest integrity. To have had an affair is bad enough, but to have done so while his wife was fighting cancer, is dispicible and inexcusable. I am completely beside myself and disillusioned. It seems that even the ones you think are the best, the most honorable men, are no different than anyone else. Even they can turn out to be not at all who you thought they were.

My heart goes out to his wife, who in addition to her fight with incurable cancer, now has to wrestle with how the man she loved and was committed to for so many years, could have turned out to be someone she didn't know. For me personally this has been a year of being disappointed by someone I thought was a wonderful man, a true and loyal friend, someone who also turned out to be a man that I never knew. The Edwards story for me is just another lesson of the same. How disappointing.

Film Featured at Comicon!!

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 18:44:20 -0000

My sister-in-law, Jennifer Page, acted as one of the leads in a film called "The Gamers: Dorkness Rising", which was featured at Comicon this year. She and my brother got to go to Comicon for the screening! You can learn more about the film, and see a trailer here:

http://www.the-gamers.com/

If you are interested in purchasing the film, you can do so at this link:

http://paizo.com/store/dvds/deadGentlemen/v5748btpy83la&source=search

Why do kitties love bags so much?

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 17:12:22 -0000

Why is it that whenever there is a bag anywhere in sight, that a kitty needs to either be on it, in it, or under it? so cute.....

I have arrived....

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 17:15:18 -0000

I have just achieved my very first free-standing handstand in the middle of the room and I didn't flip over. I've been working on this for months in yoga, and today was the culmination! What a satisfying feeling, to work at something so hard and to finally be up there, free as a bird! And the new Coldplay album was my motivation! This album rocks!

(who said I should be working right now? ; )

Brrr... San Francisco is cold...

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 04:35:02 -0000

It's a beautiful city and I absolutely love the architecture, the views and the cute little bars and restaurants... but this city is way too cold for me. Feels like winter! I definitely picked the right city with LA!

Developing a Deep Spiritual and Psychic Awareness

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 09:16:36 -0000

I've been going thru a profound spiritual, emotional and physical transformation this entire year, one that only my grief allowed me to fully pass into. And throughout this journey I've been experiencing more and more psychic experiences. Over Memorial Day,while in Sedona, I had the most profound tarot reading of my life. One in which the reader was blown away by a series of cards that I received, cards that he had only ever seen in very old people who had lived and experienced much more than me. He said it was incredibly rare to see the combination of cards in someone as young as me, and that the cards denoted that the energy was about to forever change in my life. He said it was about to pick me up and blow me out of the street.

Now I've had many, many readings in my life, from all types of readers. I've seen my share of quacks. But this guy was truly connected to something higher and gave me the most profound reading of my life. I knew that the stuff he was telling me was coming from "somewhere else", as it was too exactly in line with all that I'd been living for the past couple of years.

Well, he said the energy was about to forever change, and he was right... It began on June 10th when I had my very FIRST out of body experience, ever. It was intensely profound and moving and left me feeling awestruck afterwards. That was then followed up today and yesterday by two more completely surprising psychic episodes that I experienced. Tonight I sat in my living room crying, tears of joy, because I know that something else is happening to me, I'm reaching a level of spiritual awareness that I never dared imagine. And I know that this is just the beginning..

I was sharing my experiences with a good friend of mine tonight and he said to me, "You know I once heard this great saying, 'the architect of the universe did not create a staircase to nowhere.'" I got goosebumps when I heard that. It is so true. We are all interconnected, everything in this universe is connected. Nothing is random and there is no such thing as coincidence. Everything is happening for a reason. Energy flows thru us and if we are open to it, it can guide us and give us messages. In the deep pain and loss that I have suffered over the past 2 years, and out of nothing less than sheer desperation, I have allowed my spirit, my soul, to open itself up to this higher energy, this higher truth. And now I am starting to receive the messages. And it is profound, humbling. I look forward to seeing what else the universe has in store for me...

Very excited about my handstand!

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 09:05:16 -0000

I've been doing yoga regularly now for about 6 months and I can really see such a difference in my body, in my strength. I've been working on my handstands (which were so easy as a kid, but are so challenging as an adult!!) for weeks now and I'm really getting close to being able to do them on my own, without the wall or a spotter. And I can feel my form getting better and better and my arms stronger and stronger.

In my yoga classes the teachers always ask one of the more experienced yogis to demonstrate different moves. Well, tonight my teacher asked ME to demonstrate my handstand! I was so excited.. and flattered! I'm truly a yogi now! Just a few more weeks and I'll be standing upside down in the middle of the room, by myself!

Love

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 06:32:38 -0000

"The people that are the hardest to love, are usually the ones who need it the most."
- Way of the Peaceful Warrior

"Broken Pieces"

Sun, 06 Jul 2008 06:44:06 -0000

"I was never one to patiently pick up broken fragments and glue them together again and tell myself that the mended whole was as good as new. What is broken is broken -- and I'd rather remember it as it was at its best than mend it and see the broken places as long as I lived."

-Margaret Mitchell

Happy Anniversary to Me!!

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 14:47:44 -0000

It was a year ago TODAY that I arrived in Los Angeles! Wow! I cannot believe I have been living here for an entire year. Crazy to look back and to see how dramatically I have changed my life. A bit over a year ago I was living and working in DC. Now here I am having lived in the City of Angels for a year, with a completely different life, different job, different friends... different me. Wow!

In Loving Memory of Bobby Pagliarulo

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 05:21:27 -0000

Today I received the very sad news that my cousin, Bobby Pagliarulo, died last night after a long battle with bone cancer. Bobby was quite young, only in his late 40's and is a husband and father of a young son. In addition to being a wonderful father, a favorite cousin, and a warm, loving soul, Bobby was also a very talented sculptor. My father still has many of his sculptures in his home. I would like to post his website here as a tribute to him:

http://www.pagliarulosculpture.com/

Very sadly, Bobby has been fighting his cancer for the last few years. He has gone through all of the stages of fighting, had the bone marrow transplant, etc., etc. A while back it looked like he was in remission, and then it took a turn for a worse. He has been suffering through a lot of pain for the past year, and so for that reason only, I am grateful that he is no longer suffering.

I pray that Bobby is at peace and that he has gone on to a better place. I am so deeply saddened by his loss and I send my thoughts, my prayers and my love to his wife and young son. I also send my love to his brother, sister and father who survive him.

A visit from Lisa...

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 19:13:02 -0000

A good friend and past colleague of mine, Lisa, came to visit Southern California a couple of weeks ago, so I was so happy to get to see her. We started working together in Boston back in 1998 and we were blown away to realize we've known each other for 10 years now. And we've stayed in touch through me moving to DC and now to LA. The good ones always stay in your life!

You've got to trust your instincts....

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 08:12:53 -0000

You've got to trust your instincts
And let go of regret
You've got to bet on yourself now star
Cause that's your best bet

Watch me now with a wicked and wild and I said
We come with the funky style that gets us known for the show
And we'll mix the hip hop reggae if we say it is so
Fuck the naysayers cause they don't mean a thing
Cause this is what style we bring

Now it's morning but last night's on my mind
There's something I need to get off my chest
And no matter what may come to shine
The dream will always be mine

All mixed up, don't know what to do
Next thing you turn around and find the person is you
Thought a freak might be the thing
But the first could be the last, so just get off of your ass

All mixed up, don't know what to do
Next thing you turn around and find the person is you
Thought a freak might be the thing
But you know this will pass
So just get off of your ass

You've got to trust your instincts
And let go of regret
You've got to bet on yourself now star
Cause that's your best bet

Watch me now with a wicked and wild and I said
Sick sick bit got to have it
Like bustin in on a session when you got to call it quits
Sick sick bit just can't quit
Fact that you don't even know makes it fully legit

Now it's morning but last night's on my mind
There's something I need to get off my chest
And no matter what will come to shine
The dream will always be mine
You keep me coming
That is a gal that'll kill them stunning

You make me nervous, throat dry
My brain is empty, don't know why
But I saw you doing something
Which is really truly nothing
And you could bust me out all day

Many moons since first I saw you
Many moons since first we did the do

And why did I try when I knew it was no and
Why did I try when I saw it was so
But save it for later we should just let it skate
Cause the waiting feel is fine

-311

Great show at The Wiltern!

Sun, 22 Jun 2008 09:14:23 -0000

My friend Kathleen is in town visiting for the weekend and learned that one of her favorite bands, The Virgins, was playing in town tonight. We went down to see them perform at the classic theater, The Wiltern, and they put on a really good show. Too bad the band that followed was sheer noise, (how can some of this stuff be called music?).. So after the Virgins performed we went out for our first Korean BBQ. We were so proud of ourselves for eating the entire meal with chopsticks!

Wonder-Twins Power!

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 23:00:21 -0000

I had so much fun playing with my twin nieces this past weekend. It's so incredible that they actually know and remember me now, and they smile at me and give me hugs and kisses. They even know my name.. Of course in baby talk, I'm actually "Jimmie".. but they know it's me, so that's all that matters!

My brother was so lucky to capture this picture when Aria decided to out of the blue jump into my lap, in the midst of "brushing" her teeth.. So cute!! More pics in the gallery!

Babies are incredible...

Sat, 14 Jun 2008 05:14:16 -0000

I'm in Seattle for my twin nieces' second birthday. I can hardly believe it's been 2 entire years already, it has gone by so fast, and they have changed so much and in so many incredible ways.

Tonight I am home babysitting the girls for my brother and his wife. The twins were fast asleep in their cribs when suddenly Aria started crying. I gave her a few minutes to see if she'd fall back to sleep. When it was apparent that she was not going to, I went into their room to see what the problem was. There was Aria sitting up in her crib, tears streaming down her face. Should I pick her up and hold her? Does she need a diaper change? Is she hungry? So many options and as the untrained mother, how to know which course of action to choose?

So I decided that I would try just rubbing her back for a little bit. She laid back down in her crib and I rubbed her back softly for several minutes. She stopped crying and fell back to sleep right there before me, as I was rubbing her back. I tip-toed out and softly closed the door, and I thought to myself, "Wow, children are so incredible. What an awesome feeling to be the protector, the safe person who they love and trust and who is able to calm them back to sleep." That was an incredible feeling.

Sad news about Tim Russert!

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 22:00:41 -0000

I was shocked when I saw the email in my inbox saying that Tim Russert had died! This is so incredibly sad and tragic. He was so young and his son had literally just graduated from college. I am sending my thoughts and prayers out to his family.

If ever there is a lesson that life is fleeting and that it can all end in any moment, this is it. It should make us all think about the ones we love, and make us realize that time is precious and that we shouldn't waste any of it. If there is someone you love, and you haven't told them, tell them.

"To love is to risk..."

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 15:05:15 -0000

"There is no way around it. If you are one to shy away from failure in life, if you are someone who plays only the games you believe you can win, then you are probably living a life that is way too small and far too boring, even for you. Taking a risk means that there is no sure way to predict whether you will win- and get what you want, or lose- and not get what you want. A risk with an assured outcome is not a risk. That is simpy you playing small in your life. Until you embrace failure, loss, disappointment as part of a life welllived, then you will most likely have a life that doesn't really light you up or inspire you very much.

Taking risks means that you are willing to take actions that are outside of your comfort zone. It means living life in a way that allows you, even challenges you, to expand yourself beyond who you know yourself to be. A certain amount of resistance is normal, but you have to remind yourself that the way you have been living is what has produced the life you now have. There is simply no way to change your life without changing how many risks you are willing to take."- Katherine Woodward Thomas