Is it just me, or...

[in_the_blue]

...shouldn't every week be blog against racism week? Don't get me wrong: I think all the things you guys have posted are fascinating and insightful. But personally, I'm finding it hard for myself to stand up and say hey, I have to make a stand against racism in my blog this week! Because as far as I'm concerned, every day is stand up against racism day, and not only online.

This is just something that's been percolating for me over the past week and a bit.

My laptop battery has served me well for a whole year, but it's starting to fail. I used to be able to get about 4 hours out of it. Now if I can get an hour and a half or two, that's a small victory. I don't mind being plugged in -- I'm not running around being portable with my laptop all that much -- but the concept of having to replace a battery after just a year is starting to rankle me. So, Dell, thanks! I love my laptop! I love that you sent me new screws for the bottom! I'm not quite as in love with the battery life.

I went for a Reiki session on Friday. For those of you who are curious, I'm a second-degree Reiki and have been since... um... 1999, I think. I use it a lot in my massage practice, but this was a different type of session. I'd like to say it was nice and illuminating, but it's serving to point out to me just what a natural skeptic I am... even against things I know work. So, of course, I'm going back next week for more. Hey, I'm an energy work whore. I'll take all I can get. There are other things percolating about this, but I may or may not discuss them later under friends lock.

Beck was on SNL last night. A repeat from 2006; Hugh Laurie hosted. Yeah. Clap Hands was very cool.

In the meantime, I'm off to the bead store. Yeah, I'm going to drive over there on a Sunday just for the hell of it, because it's been a long time and I've been aching to do some beadwork again. I'll see how it goes... or not, because I have to be back pretty soon so we can go see Stardust.

Catch you later.

Comments

[shati.livejournal.com]

Sure, but in practice -- for 95% of the people on my flist, myself included -- every week hasn't been blog against racism week. So I figure it's more useful as a kick in the pants/an excuse to start than it is limiting; there's not much out there to limit.

And urgh, laptop batteries. My battery's been at about 1.5 hours for years. Somebody told me once that the more you leave your computer plugged in when it's already fully charged, the worse the battery gets. I hope she was wrong.

[in-the-blue.livejournal.com]

The batteries like to charge and discharge and they last a little longer that way. I try to balance out plugged in versus unplugged. I guess it all just depends on the battery and on usage.

And like I said, more power to those folks who posted about racism this week. As long as it gets people thinking it's a good thing. I sincerely hope it doesn't end because the week is up, you know what I mean? We should all treat our fellow humans with respect every day. If writing about it helps keep that pertinent, it's a good thing.

[sff-corgi.livejournal.com]

Mine's decided to start getting shorter on me since I was using it more that way this past... fortnight or so. Now I think I'm not even getting an hour out of it. Frustrating, especially since the systray icon is misleading.

MY contribution is the PRETTIEST.

[kali921.livejournal.com]

My contribution to IBARW?

Is the PRETTIEST. (http://kali921.livejournal.com/153349.html)

Seriously.

Re: MY contribution is the PRETTIEST.

[in-the-blue.livejournal.com]

It's hugely pretty. You missed one of my favorite pretty men (http://www.nativecelebs.com/casting/images/billy1.jpg), though.

Re: MY contribution is the PRETTIEST.

[sff-corgi.livejournal.com]

Hmmm, if I had more energy to look, I could think of some OLD GUYS (whippersnappers) not-of-my-ethnic-group to throw pics of into that mix.

I think she's right about Senegalese women, though - that's Imam's native country, right? And Afghanis have incredible eyes, that girl who was on the cover of National Geographic is only a sample, not an exemplar.

[uses icon of Hawaiian boy 'cause you don't get too much more blended than that]

Re: MY contribution is the PRETTIEST.

[sff-corgi.livejournal.com]

Sorry, my brain got stuck on the 'S'! I was thinking of the Somali.

Re: MY contribution is the PRETTIEST.

[prplhez8.livejournal.com]

*sigh*

*enjoys teh eye candy*

[acusa-dora.livejournal.com]

I don't know anything about the blog against racism, but we as a family had a long talk about the history of prejudice and race relations just today. I think it's not a bad idea to raise consciousness. Much of the prejudices we have are not evil, many are just subconscious. (eg, you tend to want to be around people who are just like you--in making decisions who to have as friends or even employees)

Yes, we should do it all the time!

[in-the-blue.livejournal.com]

I'm a firm believer in raising consciousness wherever it can be raised, honestly. I don't go around every day doing it, but I do it when and where I can. My daughter's Chinese, and so we have had some interesting experiences as I bet you can imagine. So even in our family, we can be around people who are like us but not necessarily families who look like us... if that makes sense.

[skygiants]

You are definitely not wrong as re: IBARW.

But I know for myself, at least - what Shati said. It was a kick in the pants to post something, and maybe to start overcoming the "but what if what I say is DUMB?" blockage. And hopefully will help for more posting of things in the future.

[in-the-blue.livejournal.com]

Well, as I said to Yo up there, we have a little bit of a rainbow family ourselves. Sometimes the racism is subtle and sometimes it's overt. Sometimes it's not evident at all, but we get it. We get it especially when we travel together. "Are you sure that's your daughter?" Me: "Why, no! I've only been feeding and clothing and taking care of her for twelve years. Maybe I'm wrong."

It's interesting.

If I only had money for every time I've heard that can't be your kid: she looks nothing like you.

Yeah.

[skygiants]

*nods* Yeah.

And my cousin's half-Chinese, so I've had the same experience a few times. Which also leads to - I spent a lot of my life, teen years at least, basically thinking, "well, I know I couldn't ever subscribe to racist modes of that, I love my aunt and my cousin and I don't think of them as different from me" - but of course it's not that simple.

And now I know a lot more about the topic, but kind of . . . in some ways just enough to know, really, how little I do know.

[in-the-blue.livejournal.com]

Heh, I firmly believe that even the most enlightened person still has a lot to learn, and accepting that is part of the path to enlightenment.

Whatever. I'm starting to sound like Spike's thoughts.

[erised1810.livejournal.com]

i'm never takig naprt in 'national soandsodays' or thisandthat weeks. it soudsn so weird to jstu spenda whoel week doig nawareness adn wathc it toe ndown right after that.

[prplhez8.livejournal.com]

Wish I had something articulate to contribute...

alas, not so much.

Just bopping thru to let you know that I do read your journal.

:)

[in-the-blue.livejournal.com]

I am so excited for you. Tomorrow's going to be one heck of a day!

[heather916.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I grow a little weary of all this "blog against" stuff. I'm all for raising awareness of issues that need the attention, but I'm fairly certain that "racism is a very bad thing" is a well-known fact that should, indeed, be part of day-to-day life (and blog posting). So, I'm with ya on that.

Reiki, huh? One of my Tastefully Simple clients has been trying to convince me to try a Reiki session. She tells me it'll help with my back aches and pains. I'm a skeptic, I admit. You think it might be worth it?

[in-the-blue.livejournal.com]

Personally, I love Reiki. It's a beautiful, easy, comforting type of energy work. It's incredibly noninvasive and the very worst that will happen is you'll have a passably relaxed hour.

But... as a Reiki practitioner, I would never trying convince anyone to try it. We come to it because it's the kind of thing we need. We never push it on anybody. Now, I have no idea if she's pushing it on you, and we can never make any promises about helping with specific aches and pains. Without knowing her, I wouldn't say anything bad about the approach; it's just not the approach I'd take.

Since you're a skeptic, I'll tell you a little bit about Reiki because research always helps us skeptical types (and trust me, I am one). This is a very spiritual form of energy work. We know that laying on of hands is an ancient practice and goes back to biblical times; some people have the innate gift. In fact, in Reiki, we say that everybody has the gift. It's just that in some people it needs to be awakened, and that's why there's training in it. So it really is the ancient and very intuitive art of laying on of hands, layered in a more eastern philosophy.

The Reiki practitioner simply becomes a sort of conduit for universal healing energy and, through the hands, helps direct it to wherever in the body it needs to go. The session is done with the client fully clothed.

I liken a good Reiki session to a soak in the most relaxing possible hot tub: it's nurturing and blue in color and lets you simply float. A "bad" Reiki session (and by "bad" I mean less effective) is still an hour of nurturing, and we could all use that. There are other types of energy work that are more intense and electric, but to me, Reiki is like being protected in a little womb for the duration. It's very lovely.

So if you can be a relaxed skeptic for the duration, I think it might be worth it. At its core, Reiki is something given from the heart and that's never a bad thing. Also, I'm all in favor of whatever type of bodywork I can get. I used to trade for massages and that was lovely. I trade for Reiki. I'd love to trade for Polarity Therapy, which is my favorite but a bit too intense for some people. If you can find a massage practitioner who incorporates Reiki, then you might get the best of both worlds with the soft tissue manipulation (which probably will help with back aches and pains) and the nurturing healing of Reiki (which is nothing if not relaxing).

Did that help?

[heather916.livejournal.com]

That does help, definitely! Thank you so much! This gal has been slightly on the pushy side, which has contributed to my skepticism, and I honestly probably wouldn't go to her for service as a result. Your explanation, however, makes me want to go and call for an appointment somewhere right now. My usual salon/spa just started offering Reiki, actually. Gracious knows I could use some relaxation and nurturing, at the very least. I appreciate your explanation. :)

[in-the-blue.livejournal.com]

See, if you like it, now you can thank her for suggesting it and if it suits you, you can tell her that you have firm boundaries and never mix business with personal healing pursuits. :) That way she'll know she's done something useful and that you're not going to go to your own clients for that sort of thing either.

I'm personally big on things not interfering with established relationships. Whether or not you enjoy the Reiki, it still won't reflect on the naturue of your existing relationship.