This Months Forecast

This is it--It’s game time! I have approached my last full month of Sydney, Uni and work; my last full month to complete everything I have come to Australia for. I have final assessments due and the closing to another chapter in my life and the beginning of another one.

In the last year, as most know, I have become increasingly more interested in astrology. I have studied the sun, moon and ascending signs and have practiced my knowledge of them on all the new people I have come to meet this year. To my surprise, it is quite remarkable how similar most are to their ‘sign.’ I have found that certain signs play out their description perfectly with the people I meet. For instance, Pisces have characteristics that I just adore-they are spontaneous and have a worry-free demeanor, they are accepting, compassionate, and will go out of their way for a friend. I love Pisces, yet I find their carefree attitude just a bit too carefree. And then there are cancer- my favorite of all. They are always dependable, and I always know I can count on a cancer to be there for me when I need them the most. Super compassionate and always positive. If I had a choice, I would make sure to marry a cancer, I think they would make the best life partner. And then there is the Gemini, I tend to be attracted to Gemini men, something about their charm, wittiness, and adventurous nature that I am just drawn to, yet Gemini men always tend to be the master of persuasion. I have to work extra hard not to let this charm influence me because I know it won’t end well. Overall, (and please no one take this personally or offensively) Aries and Sagittarius are a bit too intense for me ALL THE TIME; Libras, Aquarius, and Taurus are a bit too unreliable; Virgos play follow the leader; Capricorns don’t know how to take risks; I admire Leo’s confidence, but it can also be taken too far; and then the Scorpio—a bit too complicated. And Yes, I am a Scorpio, and yes I relate to many of the characteristics as well. Scorpios are so unstable and unforgiving. I am aware that the last several sentences may sound a bit negative, nevertheless, I do find it exceptionally interesting that people are so unique and each posses many differences. Even though Aries and Sagittarius are intense, they are the best to party with and are ever so generous; Libras, Aquarius, and Taurus are always so peaceful and grateful; Virgos always have a logical answer, they think logic not emotion, which is so helpful because my emotions seem to get the best of me majority of the time; Capricorns are drama-free; and Leos are the most loyal, caring, honest friends. They are there when you need them and extremely forgiving, and respect everyone’s differences. In general, I love all the people I have met this year and am grateful that the Universe has placed each and every one of them in my path. My year here in Australia would be insignificant without all of them.

At this point, I am going to explore what to expect this upcoming month, given that tomorrow is the first day of October. From viewing the sun and moon chart, we all should be expecting several things: Firstly, this will be a time period wherein many of us will become more clear regarding our personal needs within the context of our relationships, and be given ample opportunity to express them. If you are excited about changing the way you do things (making a living, relate to a partner, maintain health, etc.) and are open to experimenting and reaching outside your safety zone into the unfamiliar, then this will be a great month. This month as Venus, Mercury, and then the Sun move through Scorpio we are being asked to create and master new ways of “co-fulfilling” ourselves, that is to totally be there for another without giving ourselves away. There will be a need to confront and repeatedly put yourself out there –it is life testing your resolve, integrity, and maturity-continue to deal with it and don’t give up. By the end of the month with the new Moon and Venus square Mars the energy can become progressively explosive. The rising energy can contribute to amazing experiences of ultimate union.

This month I have to keep in mind that the only constant is change and the Universe is completely and utterly supporting me in ways I cannot even imagine and every experience I am having, including all the bumps in the road, are all strategically placed there for a reason, they all serve to awaken and stimulate rather than bother and irritate. I look forward to the journey that lies ahead of me and hope you all do as well.

Eleven months later

It's slightly strange to think that I have been out of the United States for close to a year now. I had wanted to get out of the country for good for a very long time. There were so many things that made me unhappy about the United States, however, now being gone for so long, I am able to have a better 'outsiders' position, and although there still are many things that upset about the politics, there are heaps of things i truly miss (and cannot live without forever):

- The most obvious: my brother, family & friends---

[I miss seeing my brother on a daily basis, I miss our lunch dates, I miss sing a-longs in the car with him, I miss macbook photo shoots, I miss late-night chats and him forcing me to watch something funny on either: comedy central or youtube, I miss being able to vent to him and cooking him dinners.

I miss my dad and his silliness. I miss beach bike rides with him & breakfast at coco's. I even miss his cleanliness--and obsession with washing my clothes for me, my car and my dirty feet, hehe.

My mom--I miss coming home to her asleep on the couch and telling her to go to bed and her telling me she was just resting her eyes--then coming back 2 hours later and her telling me the same story again. I miss my mom's cooking (especially her cornbread) and conversations with her. I miss her trying to convince me to go with her to the latest Jackson "event," and I miss her silliness as well.

Aunts, Uncles, Cousins---I miss family get-togethers!!

Friends--I miss going out or staying in--I miss lunch dates, going to shows & random roadtrips!!]

-My own ‘real’ big bed, instead of my blow-up mattress-- I miss a big comfy bed with lots of pillows and a big warm blanket

-Spontaneous trips to New Orleans

-High noon café’s vegan: Caesar dressing, beet burger & carrot cake--daily lunches!!

-Soup & Salad (all-you-can-eat) Restaurants: i.e. Souplantation & Jasons Deli

-Extremely large coffees & free refills (drip coffee)-- I have not had drip coffee in forever!

-Burritos! & Chips & salsa, corn tortillas (Mexican food, in general)

-Black beans

-Bananas and berries

-Unlimited broadband Internet

-Music stations: Pandora, last fm, etc.

-Knowing which way to look when crossing the road-- I always think I am gonna get hit since pedestrians do not come first in this country.

-Insulated homes/buildings--i am so tired of being cold

-Low priced everything: housing, food, etc.---this country is soooo expensive

-Silk Almond milk

-Good tasting drinkable tap water

-Z’s instead of ‘s & no extra u’s in color & favorite

-Not having to spell my last name: g-o-n-ZED-ale-ZED

-Boys who hold doors open for ladies-- it just doesnt exist here.

alienation from contemporary society

its official: i miss my dreads. let the dreading process begin [again].

the real reason i am going back to asia

some of you might think i am going back to asia in order to learn more, experience, sightsee, grow spiritually... but the real reason is the food (hehe): panang curry, green & red curry, tom yum soup, chili basil stir fry, pad thai, seaweed soup, rice paper rolls, tofu kaprow, glass noodles, jungle curry, black sticky rice w/mango, fresh juices, kombucha, fresh coconut (straight from the tree), green papaya salad, green tea, jasmine rice, watercress fi dang, spicy black bean eggplant, hot & sour soup, tofu satay, fat rice noodles, lemon grass noodle soup, green mango salad..... ohhhhh my goodness, i cannot wait!

bucketlist.

i have written several bucket lists in my lifetime, but recently my roommate laura has inspired me to take a look back at my old lists, check off the things i have accomplish [surprisingly, i have accomplished almost everything on my last list: visit the sistine chapel, teach english in foreign country, masters degree, climb the rock of gibraltar, scuba dive the great barrier reef, build a cob house... just to name a few] && i have created a new one--all the things i want to accomplish before turning thirty [november 18, 2015]. i have four years & a few weeks to check off the following dreams:

-Absolutely 100% loving my body/appearance: release negative emotions and limiting beliefs

-Visit the White House

-Brew my own beer

-Become a wine connoisseur

-Disney World (Florida)

-Alaska

-Fly first class

-Find a red pogo stick (like the one I had as a kid)

-Maine & Vermont: Route 100 in the autumn

-Canada (Road trip from West Coast to East Coast)

-Spend a year backpacking from Central to South America

-Carnival in Rio

-try DMT (just once)

-Eat Kiwi in New Zealand

-Cruise from Patagonia to Antarctica

-Become fluent in Spanish

-Visit Jerusalem

-Become a Reiki Master

-Spend a New Year’s Eve in Time Square

-Full Moon Party: Thailand

-Buy and restore a vintage VW bus

-Complete a triathlon

-Burning Man Festival

-Build/Keep a bee hive

-Start a soup kitchen

-Build a backyard adobe oven

-Teach yoga (Certification in India)

-Scandinavia & Iceland: Northern Lights

-Visit London & Barcelona

-Have a successful vegetable/fruit/herb garden

-Own happy (egg-laying) chickens

-Hulahooping: be able to bring the hoop from my ankles back up to my neck

-Motorbike license: Own a vespa

-Fall in Love

-See Bjork live

-Learn the banjo

-Design an Exhibition (for a well-known museum)

-Work for Habitat for Humanity

-Skydive w/Laura

-Sneak into Cuba

-Jamaica (& Islands) for the Summer

-Finish paperwork for EU Passport

-Go to a raw food party hosted by David Wolfe

-Have a one year lease on an apartment: somewhere near the sea.

Well, there is the list folks. I will post an updated list every so often till everything is checked off. Looking forward to experiencing every single one of these.

another divine saturday in ashley's life

As Saturday comes to an end, I have to smile. This WAS the perfect Saturday. Everything I love all crammed into one beautiful day: happiness, reggae, sunshine, green papaya salad, gymtime, neem mask, fresh coconut & dark chocolate.

Well, to be completely honest, it did not start out perfect. My alarm went off at seven and usually I am up before my alarm & if not, I am able to get right up & ready to start my day. This morning though, was a bit different- I woke up grumpy as. I had spent the prior two nights working on a big project and by the time I went to bed Friday night I was too exhausted to even sleep. I tossed & turned, and finally after falling asleep was woken up by a text message from my boss asking me to come in earlier Saturday morning. I usually start at 9, but she wanted me there by 8. I struggled to fall back asleep and when the alarm went off at 7, I was simply angry that it was waking me up when I was not ready. Anyways, I ate some rice porridge with dates & granola & washed it all down with an herbal chai, and made my way to work. On my stroll to work, I told myself to snap out of it. Everything was going to be ok, I would just have a long black when I got to work and I would be off by 2, so I could survive this shift. The shift went extremely well, I had convinced myself to be happy (and it worked) nothing at work was bothering me. My boss was freaking out (as usual) and I just smiled & continued doing my work. I got off at 2, went home—took a lovely nap in the yard, woke up to my reggae music streaming from my speakers, the trees swaying in the wind above me, and the sun shining vibrantly onto my skin. I felt nothing but happiness. I went to the gym & got my 3 mile run in, then thai dinner with laura—green papaya salad, yum!! Came home, took a hot shower & put a neem mask on & cracked open my coconut—goosh I love fresh coconut, I like to pour the liquid into a wine glass, it just makes it even that more enjoyable. And now, I am eating a piece of dark chocolate & writing in my blog. This day turned out to be incredible. Positive thinking, I swear it works wonders—If only more people did it daily, we would all be wondering around the streets blissed out of our minds.

life @ Oneness

I have been living in Coogee for over 6 weeks now-- I feel absolutely lucky to live so close to the sea & especially to work even closer to it. When I first applied at Oneness, I already had a job lined up at a vegan wholefood restaurant in the city, I was thrilled to start at Iku, but after wondering into Oneness (for a soy dandelion latte) & speaking with the owner of the place, I felt it was a better fit for me since it was all about Oneness and so close to home. We spoke for a bit and she asked if I had a resume & if I could start that weekend--I was stoked as!

My first shift was a busy Saturday--it was intense! I felt as if I had been dropped into a swimming pool without knowing how to swim. I had no knowledge of the menu, or how Australian cafes worked. I just went with it though, thankful that I had a job. It only took me a few more shifts to feel comfortable with the menu & the overall business. However, also within that time I discovered that the owner was not always the friendliest person in the world. She owns a business that is suppose to encourage Oneness, the idea that we are all One--We are not separate from anything or anyone in the Universe. It's quite a beautiful concept & one that I fully embrace. The place is blissed out with buddhas and inspirational cards, free natural health magazines, etc. We have the best organic coffee & teas on Earth as well. Actually, everything in the place I love--the decor & the customers, the food!! the coffee! & my co-workers are soooooooo beautiful. Yet, there is one person that changes the energy of the place--and that is the owner. She is rude, unfriendly, materialistic, fake, & so on. She makes me feel so uncomfortable on a daily basis. I actually have to meditate before & after work in order to make it through a shift. At first thought, I just wanted to quit. But I knew that was the incorrect thing to do. I could not just give up that easy. I knew this was just another lesson to be learned, I could survive one unfriendly person. I decided to make a list of the reasons why she was so angry all the time, first she is barely making a profit, if not just breaking even. The business has only been open for a year now, and things are still growing and changing all the time. She has had bad luck with employees, so now she trusts no one. She works every single day, without any breaks and once again does not trust anyone enough to take a day off from the store. She is overworked and underpaid. Yet, I still do not think these are valid reasons to be rude to your co-workers. I have decided to take a different approach to this uncomfortable situation. I will just send her daily love and light. I will do my best to be positive every shift and to start and leave just as positive. It is difficult though when every other person I works with despises her as well, and when she puts you down every hour on the hour. In spite of this, the sun, mercury and venus are moving through the sign of virgo, this is the perfect time to renew, rejuvenate and strengthen our individual ability to remain calm, centered, and in a personal space of gratitude and appreciation. These feelings, when cultivated and practiced on a regular, daily basis, will create an opening in our heart space, a lifting of our spirit awareness & a counter with the negativity I am experiencing in the workplace. I AM strong enough for this, I CAN make a difference (just by keeping positive) & I WILL survive this. This job is important to me-it pays the bills, allows me to enjoy extra little things for myself & helps me save travel money; Along with learning and challenging my ego. I only have a few more weeks then I am off to Asia, it's such a short time in the long span of life. Once again, I really am lucky to be living and working at the beach, all while eating beautiful foods & drinking lovely coffees.

Each one of them is Jesus in disguise

What is going to save the human race?

Please.
 Thank you.

Three words that will totally change this planet. 
More than solar power. More than recycling. More than wind energy.

Why?

Because if we all started treating the people and things that we interact with every day with respect and compassion, the effects would ripple through every aspect of our lives, transforming society.

Our parents taught us the manners “rule-sets” that we use every day, and as a result, we feel that we have (through years of introspection) begun walking the path towards enlightenment. Our manners dictate the way we treat the external world, the Environment. We feel that it is primarily our manners that dictate our success as humans.

Folks talk about wanting to save the “Environment”, and that conjures up images of bubbling brooks and unspoiled forests. But “the Environment” isn’t just greenery and pretty scenery. It’s our slums, our airports, our houses, our supermarkets.
The Environment is everything that disappears when you close your eyes.

If you want to improve it, you must begin with what you see and encounter every single day of your life.

Before we can set about elevating our present society from a carbon-based one to a solar-electric one, knowing full well that solar-electric decentralized power means a higher quality of life for all, we must first pause and ask ourselves: Why? What is worth saving?

Human Consciousness.

Our gift and curse as humans is our incredible consciousness. We are aware, and that is the greatest and worst thing we’ve got going for us. Because we can clearly see how well we could be living, how politely we could be treating one another, how incredible life could be; we feel it is our duty to delight and inform our fellow humans in the hopes of creating a better world.

There is no reason every human on Earth could not have access to:


Clean Water


Nutritious Un-modified Food


Shelter


Education


Open Source Communication


Freedom from Oppression and Fascism

But, as is painfully obvious, most humans don’t have those things. 
Most humans don’t have two of the six!

They could, but they don’t.

Why?

Bad Manners.

Nearly every religion this planet has yet produced has as one of its tenets the idea that to be happy, you must treat others as you yourself would hope to be treated.
 A failure in this respect is simply bad form.

When a company decides to dump its waste into a river that others downstream use for drinking water, that is bad manners.

When a society chooses to isolate its citizenry in prisons and not offer any chance at rehabilitation, that is bad manners.

When a person decides to walk into a school and open fire on their classmates, that is extremely bad manners.

That is why we MUST START NOW.

All new generations must be schooled in the art of good manners if we are to survive, let alone flourish, as a species.

Try your hardest to treat others as you hope they would treat you, and actively look for ways to help the people around you. Do this from a pure place within you and watch the effects ripple outward!

Why?

Because so few are doing it.

Good manners make you stand out like a struck match in a dark room.

Three Essentials:

Make eye contact with anyone you interact with. Smiling is optional but highly encouraged.
 Use the words “Please” and “Thank You” as often as you can.
 Seek out ways to improve the lives of others. This can be as small as carrying someones bag up a flight of stairs, or holding a door open.

Do these three things and your life will change immeasurably. And you will begin to change the lives of those who come into contact with you in a measurable and positive way.

ashley DOES have a fear.

ashley+dating=unattainable

what is wrong with me?

a boy shows interest & i run away (& never look back).

i have just been made aware of my fear-- of dating!?! & commitment.

if someone shows any interest at all (even the tiniest bit) i avoid them at every cost possible. what the heck? i need to figure out why i am so afraid.

i slightly think it's my free spirit at the moment & knowing that if i start to fall for someone it wont end so nicely, just knowing that i am on the quest of spirituality & finding myself at the moment, and someone else would just get in the way of this (to say it bluntly). ugh, maybe i just need to take the risk & get over this fear.

Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans

Its been a few months since I wrote in my blog, so I felt it was time. I keep a personal journal which I write in every other day or so, but I am terrible at remembering to update this blog. But since I am doing everything possible to avoid writing a paper for uni, now is the perfect time.

I never realized how much I do not like commitment until I am committed to something && then I remember once again how much I cannot be tied down. For example, Uni. uhhhhhhh, i absolutely love it, i really do, but geeez it takes up so much time && i am so eager to travel again. I really need to remind myself every day that this is it. This will be the only time I get a master's degree in art history in Sydney, Australia ever, so I need to really make the most of it. Enjoy every moment, because it is actually almost over, and the next 8 weeks are going to fly by! I can already feel it. So with that, my job--Oneness, will be over soon as well. I only planned to work there during Uni and then by the last week of October I will quit and be on my way. I really do love living in Coogee though, best decision I could have made for my last couple months living in Australia (wow, now I am being reminded that these are my last couple months). ahhhh, i am such a girl & can not make up my mind about moving on or staying.

Well, I have come up with a very rough itinerary for the next several months (its subject to change) but it is all things I would really love to accomplish before my return to the states next year.

From now till Nov 4th-- I will continue to enjoy the days: working at Oneness, hulahooping group, working out & yoga, Uni, eating healthy & living at the beach.

Nov 5-6th- Buddhist festival in Melbourne

November--job position in Melbourne at a holistic vegan resort (With daily vegan/nutrition cooking courses--that I will be in charge of).

Dec 4-Reiki Master course in ChaingMai, Thailand, followed by a month long internship in a hospital.

Jan 7-Yoga teacher certification/ayurvedic studies in Dehli, India for one month

Feb- Environmental program in Kathmandu, Nepal for 3-4 weeks

March--I really want to experience: Laos, Vietnam & Cambodia (but I am just not sure about time), Also would like to spend a month in New Zealand, with a stop over in Fiji.

April--back to Australia for graduation ceremony/visit & meet Belinda & Owen's baby.

May--Hawaii/California

June-New Orleans/Jackson

So much to do, so little time!

I know what I want, its just fitting it all in & making the most of it.

ahhh, I love my life. I am so blessed.

I will try my best to update the blog more often...