10/27/01

HALLOWEEN

The original purpose of getting into costume is similar to why people hire a Feng Shui consultant. ?Think of All Hallow's Eve as a big wish day. And what you dress up as is symbolic of your wish. Let's say you want more humor in your life. On Halloween you'd dress up as a clown. If you want more wealth, you might dress as a King or Queen. I've heard that military gear will be all the rage this Halloween. Now that's a scary thought! Now transfer the concept to Feng Shui. If you want more peace of mind, start "dressing up" your home with more blue things, Buddhas, and crystals. If it's love you want, ?start arranging things in pairs. We can all get the things we want. It's simply a matter of imprinting that "want" on the subconscious brain. The subconscious is a powerful "go getter". So before you make or rent that special costume this year, give some thought to what you want. And when the Halloween parties are done, look to your home. It's a year round manifesting tool.

10/20/01

A MAD RUSH

Energy, or Ch'i, isn't good or bad. The way we experience it can be either good or bad. It can come in a mad rush or a gentle flow. Or it can simply stagnate. As Fend Shui consultants, we are very concerned with how Ch'i is received. The classic "bad Feng Shui" house is the one where the back door or picture window can be seen upon entering the front door. Because of this alignment, Ch'i will come in the front and go directly out the back. A simple cure for this is to interrupt the straight shot flow with arrangement of furniture, rugs, plants, and the like, in order to make ch'i go around things. In this way you will force Ch'i to meander and thus nurture more of your home. With a window across from the front door, it is important to put plants, wind chimes, drapes, or anything that will keep your eye from going out the window too quickly. Long halls tend to make us race to the other end visually. At Canyon Ranch where I work there are halls that are several hundreds of feet long. In order to keep the guest from shooting down these tunnels, the decorators have slowed them down with careful placement of artwork, benches, and plants. But what I like the most are the carpets. All of them break up the flow with a repeating pattern of ten foot long rectangles. Since many times our eyes go downward as we walk, this is perhaps the most important place to attack the problem. Our front walks are another place where fast-paced Americans tend to rush. So that straight-to-the-point front walk brings Ch'i charging to your front door. A better path would meander. If this isn't possible, a simple planting of low growing flowers like rock phlox or alyssum will gently encroach on the straightens of your walk. So take a tour through your yard, courtyard, and your home. If you find yourself rushing through, think about how you can slow things to less of a mad rush.

10/15/01

A WORD ON HEALING

As some of you already know, Gayle and our son were in a serious car accident on June 3rd. While Devin is pretty much all better, his mom remains hospitalized. It has been a bit of a trick getting these tips out to you not to mention on time. So as Gayle gets closer to coming home, last week got pretty hectic. Thus the lateness of your tip. And so let me share with some of the Feng Shui I was able to do in a hospital room. Every card I taped on the walls was grouped according to color and/or graphic. All the "prayer" and blue cards went on the near left wall in Wisdom, the green ones on the middle left in Family, the bears and cats and elephants went to the far middle Fame wall, and on. With each room change, the compass came with me. At times I was able to angle her bed to a slightly better facing for her. One of my cousins wanted to make a quilt and asked what colors she would like. I told her that yellow squares were the best things for Health and red and pointy things were supportive. Her creation was a square lap quilt with yellow and red squares. Inside each square was a star. One day a card came from this same cousin filled with all shades of yellow squares, paint samples compliments of Ralph Lauren and Home Depot. While Gayle slept, I giggled quietly as I taped one each to the bottom of her foot splints. Of course I stuck another to the underside of her air bed as close to the center as I could get it. The center one-ninth of any space is the Health sector. In my hotel room, I made a small altar in the Love sector (far right), placing a favorite picture of her and a red square box with my handwritten wish for her recovery in it. On my first trip home, I took a yellow throw rug from upstairs and put it in the middle of the house downstairs. At the end of July when Gayle was well enough to move to a rehab center closer to home, I was exceedingly pleased to see that her new room was yellow. And I continue to activate with cards, flowers, fruit, stuffed animals, and any other reasonable tool of transformation that is allowed into her room. And her downstairs bedroom in the center of our home is being painted yellow and orange in anticipation of her return. How could she NOT get well!

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10/6/01

BANK TELLER WEEK

That was all this week, so I hope you didn't miss it. So now that you're at the bank, let's talk about your money. There are two money sectors to look to when dealing with money issues. The handy thing is that they're next door to one another. Since the weather's still warm, let's work in the yard. The mouth of ch'i or entrance to your yard is the front walk to the front door. Some books will say that it's the driveway but sometimes the driveway and the walk are not parallel to one another. Now stand at the beginning of your front walk. If you don't have one, just stand at the edge of your property and look at your front door. Now peruse your land/yard. The middle left section of it influences the ebb and flow of the money it takes to meet your basic needs. This is the Family sector and is energized by trees, tall woody shrubs, tall perennials (a good investment) like hibiscus and hollyhock. Water is a fine assist here, so it's a good place for the pond of swimming pool; but avoid a lot of white flowers, metal sculptures, and low round bushes here. These elements from the Metal sector "chop" wood and will invite money problems. The far left is the Wealth sector. This is where you want to load up on the purple flowers, the red and reddish purple fruit trees. Any of the Wood and Fire elements will encourage the extra money for champagne and caviar and trips to sunny France. The Wealth sector is a great place to bury a wish box. A silver box is best, but as Karen points out in I've, you can always wrap it in tin foil. Write down what you wish for and place it in the box with a power tool. I've used quartz crystals, pieces from old ?Monopoly game. Sometimes I've even use a gold pen on purple paper. So whether it's a new car or a titanium laptop that you want, give this a try. ?And e-mail us with your results.

9/29/01

COMPASS BASICS

While we practice mostly Form and Black Hat Schools of Feng Shui, we try never to overlook the influence of the Compass School. Although we have not found that orienting the nine square grid on the compass directions is quite as powerful as orienting it on the "mouth of ch'i", or grand entrance, there are some simple ways to apply compass directions to your environment. Where we find the Compass School invaluable is sleeping and sitting directions as well as front door facing. Think first about the metaphor of directions. The sun rises in the East and sets in the West. The South is sunny and bright, while the North is colder and darker. Imagine a hyperactive two-year old sleeping with his head pointing towards the enervating South. Holy Cow! Put on your running shoes! Better to put his head temporarily in the North to calm things down a little, then later an East facing for such a young child would be appropriate. The average teenager will do better with his/her heads facing West. But what if you want to retire and become more sedate after a busy life. Sleeping with your head in the North would be perfect. And as for the direction your front door faces, remember that this is the grand entrance of energy. That energy entering from a particular direction sets the tone for the whole house or building. Let's say you're looking for a location for your new business and you want a lot of quick recognition and Fame. Look for a building with a South-facing front entrance. A Southeast facing would encourage Wealth, while a Northwest facing would invite a lot of help from others. Now imagine if you will, the jockeying for seating at a business meeting where the participants revere the Compass School. No! No! I must sit there! East for my new project! There are even auspicious directions according to your birthday. But that's a topic for another week.

9/22/01

STARTING OVER

In the aftermath of the tragedies in New York and Washington, it is important to look to rebuilding. Whether a national tragedy or a very private one like your apartment getting flooded, it is important to get to the place where you feel you can start fresh. Much will need to be discarded. Then the area needs a thorough cleansing. In Bali, the residents sweep their porches, their sidewalks, even their streets with each rising sun. And they do it as much for spiritual purposes as for cleanliness. The metaphor of starting fresh makes a powerful statement. The Native Americans use the smoke from burning sage to rid a person or space of negative energies. Once the cleaning is complete, the healing begins. Many believe that even the worst tragedies hold within them the seed of new life, new perspectives. A Japanese philosopher once said, "My barn having burned, I can see the mountains." We pray that the rebuilding of lives as well as buildings can be done not with anger or hate but hope and compassion.

9/15/01

ROSH HASHANAH

There will be more solemnity than festivity when the New Year starts this week for those of the Jewish faith. The tragedies of Tuesday have left us all little to celebrate save the indomitable spirit of our nation. Prayer is what is needed now. Whether you have already established sacred space, an altar, or a meditation room, remember that the Wisdom sector is always the most powerful place in your home or office to reflect. This near left one-ninth of any space should be free of clutter with a minimum of furnishings. Anything blue, watery, and anything that is representative of spirituality to you is essential here. Obviously prayer can be done anywhere, but when you seek solace in your own space, the Wisdom sector is a nice haven. If you don't have the luxury of a separate room, try to avoid putting your altar in the bedroom as it already has two functions, love and healing your body while you sleep. A quiet hall or window seat would work just fine. And your sacred space can be in the near left of a single room. It does not have to reside in that sector of the whole home. If that little nook in the Wisdom sector of your study is where you like to be, it does not matter if the study is in the Wealth sector of the whole home. Take your seat and pray for us all.

9/8/01

LOCATION! LOCATION! LOCATION!

This holiday is right up there with National Truck Driver's Week. On the 16th, according to Blue Mountain Internet Cards, it's National Stay Away From Seattle Week! So if you're planning a move then, I guess Seattle's out of the question. Where we live is indeed an issue. Sure we may be looking to be near family, work, looking for a healthy environment, and many other considerations. But did you know you can Feng Shui a town? Of course! Anything can be divided into nine equal sectors. The trick is deciding what is the Mouth of Ch'i. From there you simply overlay the grid on your city or town. For instance, most agree that the entrance to the US is New York City. I live in Pittsfield, MA so the entrance to MA is Boston, and to Berkshire County is the MA Pike through Becket then Lee. Following the flow of Ch'i from Boston, the main entrance to Pittsfield is Route 7 up from Lee and Lenox. Think of the whole state. You have to turn MA on it's side to see it properly. The Cape ends up being an extension in Wisdom, putting the Berkshires in the Love sector of the whole state. Pittsfield ends up in the Fame sector of Berkshire County, while our house is in the Health sector of Pittsfield. So that's how it's done. Look from the macrocosm to the microcosm, or in lay terms, from big to small. See if you can figure out the sector your town is in; and remember! Don't move to Seattle next week.

9/1/01

FENG SHUI 101

Activating with Feng Shui means to use "cures" to invite a part of your life to change. In order to do this, you have to know what parts of your yard/home/room are related to what life issues. You can download and print the nine-sector grid from our website. It is then placed over the space with the entrance, or "mouth of ch'i", determining where all other sectors fall. I often talk about the sectors as if you know exactly what I mean, but once in a while it's good to go back to basics. The secret to remembering the layout is ?that as you enter any space, LOVE will always be the far right one-ninth. The life issues that correspond to the nine sectors are: Health, Creativity & Children, Helpful People & Travel, Career & Skills, Wisdom, Family & Basic Money, Wealth, Fame & Reputation. Using "cures" means working with the five elements (Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, Wood), appropriate colors, shapes, and metaphors. Other traditional cures would involve proper use of light, moving objects, mirrors, refracting crystals, sound, fragrance, and living things. Sometimes the weight of things can make a difference. Heavy objects can ground a sector or oppress it. When thinking of cures, always look to balance. The proper balance of Yin and Yang is of major importance.

8/25/01

BACK TO SCHOOL

A great Feng Shui teacher, R.D. Chin, says: The clutter of our life is intrinsically connected to the clutter or our soul. Remember that as you start to amass new belongings for your children at places like Staples and Bed, Bath & Beyond. These new items for backpacks, desks, and dorm rooms will help define their lives. We thread to everything we own. More stuff creates more responsibility. If the computer or the little refrigerator or the battery operated pencil sharpener goes on the fritz, we have to fix or replace it or decide to live without it. Those little shoulders are going to suffer from the burden of so many books. Why add to the that? And if you walk the streets of city colleges in May, you'll be amazed at what those kids leave behind. If those possessions had really been essential, they wouldn't be left on the street for the taking. So think twice when your kid says, "But Mom! Dad! I just gotta have that hot pink microwave. It'll match my computer!" A walk to the cafeteria might do your child some good. And I1ll bet hot pink nail polish will work just as well.

8/18/01

BAD POETRY WEEK

There once was a thing called ch'i

from China to you and me

We use it to change our luck

By placing coins and frogs and an occasional duck!

Well, I don't know if that qualifies me for Bad Poetry Week, but it does address a problem of Feng Shui. Some times we find people buying all kinds of new items for their home in hopes of "activating" all good luck in every sector of the bagua, whether there are problems in their lives or not. Soon their home begins to resemble a Chinese tag sale. And the end result is very bad Feng Shui. Just because the items are new doesn't mean they aren't clutter. And clutter entangles and enmeshes us rather than setting us free. Remember that Feng Shui can bring power as well as tranquility. So don't overdo a good thing. Too many "cures" is very BAD Feng Shui.

8/11/01

TRUCK DRIVER'S WEEK

Wow! This is a big one! Don't forget to celebrate all those HELPFUL PEOPLE who bring you your food, clothes, and everything else you need! Did you know that your car/truck can be Feng Shui'd? Of course! You can use Feng Shui principles anywhere. If you look at your car, the "mouth of ch'i" is the driver's door, so depending on the vehicles proportion many cars are entered a little left of center between Career and Wisdom. A truck's entrance is definitely in Wisdom with all the cab that comes after the driver's door. Tweaking WISDOM each time a truck driver gets in to drive is a wonderful thing. It spells fewer accidents. So if you're looking to activate a part of your life while you're on the road, orient the nine-sector grid on the driver's door. That means, you sedan owners, that if you want to work on getting more help, creativity, or love, you're going to have to clean out the trunk. Have fun!

8/4/01

JESS'S BIRTHDAY

Okay, so it's my birthday. So what! Any of you feel that way? Too bad. Maybe it's because I1m a Leo that I love a good party. Maybe it's because there's enough sadness and misfortune in the world not to find any good reason to celebrate. Maybe it's because I have enough ego and self worth that I want one day out of three-hundred-and-sixty-five to be about ME, even if it's only for an hour or two! It's your one day to be FAMOUS!!! Oh, hey! The Fame sector. So maybe you don't want to be famous like Julia Roberts, but maybe once in while you'd like to be singled out. Aha! Single! That's the number of this far middle one-ninth of any space. So if you were forgotten on YOUR birthday, or people are spreading ugly rumors, look to the Fame/Fire sector. This is where you don't want everything in pairs. That's for the Love sector. Fame is where you want that big beautiful statue of Quan Yin, or that outrageous red and green piece of modern art that broke the bank last month. This is where the lava lamp goes. And Fame is the best place for animals. We put our dog's food bowl here. It's green, which supports this sector, and sits up on a little pedestal. We put her water bowl on the other side of the room so it wouldn't put out the Fire here. Fame is where you put that faux fur recliner, the elephant collection, and perhaps you pet's bed. Go ahead. This is the place where it's appropriate to go a little WILD!

7/27/01

FRIENDSHIP DAY 8/2

Friends are our Helpful People as we are Helpful People to our friends. So in preparation for Friendship Day on the second, take a look at the near right one-ninth of you yard, your apartment building, your home, every room in your home, even your office away from home. Try to see like a stranger. And ask yourself what these places say about your Helpful People. Is it an unused room? Is it trashed? Or is it gracious and welcoming? Then think about how you are doing in the "friends" department. If you're satisfied, leave things alone. If you're not, change what you see day in and day out. Remove clutter and anything that is broken, anything that reminds you of past hurts, and all the red, pointy, and fiery things. Yes! You may want to get rid of that bank of candles. Helpful People draws from Creativity/Metal and is melted by Fire. If you wish to add anything here, add white, gray and silver things, round things, and things that good friends have given you. Then sit back and watch your friendships shift effortlessly. Oh yeah! If there's only one chair, bring in another. After all, where will they sit?

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SO MANY WEEDS/SO LITTLE TIME

This is the time of year when the Queen Anne's Lace and Brown Eyed Susans are having their way with our gardens. Those of us with killer schedules must decide where the pretty little weeds look intentional and where they just look like they're invading the Sedum patch. When you think about it, weeds are clutter. And clutter's gotta go! Even in the garden, our stressed brains can look out hoping to see beauty and see only what we haven't done yet. Botanical chaos can be no less overwhelming than a home strewn with clothes, toys, half opened mail, and dust bunnies. If you can't find the time to keep things somewhat orderly, it might be time to make the garden smaller and the lawn bigger. Or can you afford to hire a gardener?

7/14/01

COW APPRECIATION DAY!

So what can I say on such a momentous holiday as this? Cows? Got milk? Okay, I got it. Milk goes in the refrigerator, right? So the refrigerator is a Water element. I1m on a roll here. Don't stop me. The sink is a water element, too. Now the stove and the microwave are Fire elements. That means that the refrigerator and the sink have the potential to put out the Fire of the stove. That may not seem like a big deal, but it is! Think of the stove as a symbol of the cooker-upper of wealth in your life. Would you want to water down your financial opportunities? If not, you need to be cautious as to the positioning of the appliances in your kitchen. If the sink and/or the refrigerator is right next to ?a "cooker2" put a barrier between the two. Anything from the Wood element will tend to soak up the Water so it won't be so harmful to the Fire. Think green things, wood cutting boards, plants, columnar things. Then, too, the Wood things will "feed" the Fire. Of course, the best thing is to rearrange your kitchen so that Water and Fire are not conflicting.

7/7/01

WACKY DOORS

When doors are not aligned with one another, the brain experiences a moment of chaos. Lets say you are coming out of your office and the next door going to the living room is jig jogged a foot and a half to the right. Your brain will get a little wacky every time you see this misalignment. This won't happen if the next door is aligned or even if it is jogged a full door width to one side of the first door. The "cure" for this misalignment is to trick the brain by placing a mirror on the left hand side of that next door. It should be the height of the door and the width of the discrepancy. The mirror will deceive your eye into thinking there is no wall there thus extending the opening visually. Of course, when you go from the living room to your office, the same thing will happen, so you'll want to do likewise to the left of that door. Once I was in a restaurant that had three huge arched openings. After sitting a while, however, I noticed that my eyes had been tricked. One of the openings was actually a huge mirror the exact same size and shape of the two arched openings. And that's only one of the reasons why mirrors are called the aspirin of Feng Shui.

6/30/01

FIRE CRACKERS & OTHER ACTIVATORS!

Some key activators of ch'i, or energy, are sound, smell, lights, and movement. Well, that's the Fourth of July in a nutshell. Activating is something to do AFTER you get rid of clutter. When you're ready to activate, doing it in all the right places depends on what you want in life. We ask our clients, What do you want to gain, maintain, or even play down. So before you fire up the grill or light those firecrackers and sparklers, ask yourself the same questions. Do you want to spark more passion? Do you want your name in lights? Mo money? Once you figure that out, position the launch pad for your fireworks in the appropriate sector. Then let 'em rip!

6/23/01

SUMMER'S BLOOMIN'

Fresh cut flowers have a strong Yang energy and are best in the bedroom where potted plants are undesirable. Unlike a living plants, flowers will not "steal" oxygen at night while you're sleeping. Fragrant flowers activate ch'i more powerfully. Peonies are called the "king of flowers" and are associated with love, honor, and wealth. Geraniums and marigolds lift the spirits, while day lilies are said to be flirtatious. If you're looking for gardening books, try anything by Gill (pronounced Jill) Hale. And remember that the nine-sector bagua is laid over your yard just like your home. Orient it on the front walk to the front door. Water features and ponds are best anywhere in the front third of your yard and in the middle left sector. Try to keep the water from putting out the fire of the back middle sector. Perhaps the gas grill or chiminea should go there instead. Bird feeders, flags, mobiles, et al are wonderful activators, but remember! Your yard can get cluttered as easily as your home! Aim for beauty and balance.

6/16/01

FATHER'S DAY!

Yo! Papa! It's time to celebrate Yang energy, the daylight image of Father Sun! Your Chinese equivalent is Ch'ien which means heaven, and in I Ching the symbol is three solid lines. According to Compass School dad's direction is Northwest, while the Black Hat folks celebrate you in the Helpful People sector, or the near right one-ninth of any yard, home, office, or room. In picking appropriate gifts, look for anything round, metal, white, gray or silver. Sounds like golf balls and clubs would be perfect Feng Shui! And doesn't beer come in a round metal can sometimes?

6/9/01

FLAG DAY!

Waving flags and banners at your front door may be a good idea, or not! If your front door is in the middle of your home, that flag fluttering in the breeze is activating ch'i in your Career sector. That's great if you still have a kid in college and one in private school. But if you're ready to retire, it may be time to take it down. If your door is on the left in Wisdom, or on the right in Helpful People/Travel, can anyone have too much of either? But then, if you're an I-Can-Do-Everything-Myself/Stay-At-Home, a flag on the right might bring in the wrong energy. Get the idea?

6/2/01

ADOPT A CAT MONTH!

Your cat can tell you where not to position your bed, desk, or Lazy Boy chair. Disruptive forces emanate from within the earth from gaseous rivers and converging energy pathways. The name for this is geopathic stress. Many dowsers have known about this phenomenon over the ages, but now it's being more scientifically researched. Cats are attracted to these emanations, while dogs will avoid it. So, take notice of where your Fluffy "chooses" to snooze and don't settle there yourself. Bowser's got a better idea.

5/26/01

PARTY HARDY!

Having a party is wonderful ch'i. Bringing people into your home/yard/office is a terrific way to activate things in your life. The stuck artist may want to position the buffet table in the Children/Creativity sector. If you've been under the weather, set up the badminton net in the middle, or Health sector, of your yard. And remember what your intent is in having the party, invite only those who will support your intent, and clean up the mess/clutter quickly afterwards. Oh, yeah! Have FUN!!!

5/19/01

THAT DAMNED LID!

Okay! So you know that ch'i escapes like crazy when you flush the toilet, but you still can't get motivated to put the lid down before you flush! This little environmental tidbit should do the trick. When a toilet flushes, a fine mist can rise from the bowl into the air. Now do you want to put the lid down? ?And while we're at it, shut the door when you leave. Think of the bathroom as the water "closet" that used to be outdoors and far from the home.

5/12/01

MOTHER'S PLACE IN THE HOME! (Our very first TIP!)

In Feng Shui, every family member has a places in the home. Is it any surprise that Mom's place is the love sector? For you who are still learning the nine-gua divisions, that is the back right one-ninth of your home from the main entrance. Although this part of the home is often associated with romantic love, it supports love of any kind! So head to the back right of your home, even if it's in the bathroom, and feel the love!!

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