The day after the Dome Rock hike, I had a lovely Green Drinks “meeting” up in Crystal Hills. For some reason, I thought we were to bring food, so I baked some Bean Project gluten-free corn bread and added diced green chilies. I surprised the hostess with this, but it was perfect, as she had prepared vegetarian chili. Not a crumb was left. And I was able to hand off the dozens of plastic pots that I had gathered from under my porch and yard to a gardener after the dinner.

Next day, besides my business, worked on Sharing Inner Health’s web tasks. She has gotten back the School of Inner Health and needed many changes to incorporate that info onto her web site, not wanting to put up another web site for the School right now.

Saturday, even though I was feeling really tired, I felt compelled to go to the Sustainability Conference to see the vendors. Met up with a woman who we chatted about many things and found connections we had no idea we had. Future marketing and working together will come from this meeting. And another person there was a great connection for web tasks and concepts, including video.

Had a couple of meetings up at the Commonwheel storage area, but still don’t have everything back. A community member died in a car accident right after Manifest and that has shaken many people to the core. Very sad.

Also had to do showings of the apartment. Some very unlikely candidates and a couple possible. But the best candidates were the young couple from the Midwest. So I called them and asked if I was to settle upon them, could they send the deposit by Paypal and a copy of the signed lease. They said yes to both, and within an hour, I had both items. I have never rented to someone without meeting face to face and having them climb the metal stairs a few times, so this is a new experience. I do feel it was the right choice and look forward to meeting them on October 23rd.

I am giving up doing the Facebook and Tweets for the gallery for pay to someone who wants to do it as her committee job. She has a daughter that needs to be at 3 different schools and that makes it difficult for her to do other committee jobs. So I met with her and gave her insights of what I do and will let her take the reins for that, except for the Festival Facebook page that she doesn’t want to work on for this committee work. Will see if I can still get a small payment for doing posts about the Gallery there . . .

The Aine phone healing circle gathering was really beautiful. Talked about our guardian angels. I shared it with a few friends.

Started off October Art Month with a party called “Artini” where made some new and reconnected with other friends. Jerry my camera salesman friend was there and we talked a bit waiting for the drawing of the Las Vegas giveaway. He is allergic to my rose oil that I wear at public gatherings, but told me it wasn’t bothering him in this venue. One woman friend wanted to create a peacock feather bustle and we made a date for her to come and make sure what I had was what we would need to order for her. And I do need to order feathers also. That turned out as a lovely meeting with her and another friend, but I was shocked when I put in the order of the price and a possible delay in shipping as Michael, the owner got on the phone and told me that  at M. Schwartz they were very busy and might not be able to ship that week. I did a little plead, but will see when they get here . . . I really need pheasant skins for the blueish feathers I use around the eyes.

In the last month, I have sold two wild and large masks that I made years ago. I had almost taken them out when I brought some other masks in, but decided they made the space look more full. So glad I left them there! One had two really tall red Macaw feathers and the other was my full Aztec mask with curled pheasant tails. So glad they get to go play.

On Thursday, my hiking friend and I were going to just go to Lovell Gulch, but she said she would drive if we wanted to go to the Crags. I was up for that as I hadn’t been there in many years. Not since my nephew had visited. We did not find the trail head parking that I normally used. Not sure why we couldn’t find it, but headed off on the trail head for Devil’s Playground and the Crags. Not as many aspen as she had hoped, but it was a really lovely hike. Lots of fun driftwood roots and rocks to photograph. And we did make it to the wonderful 360 view.  It was hard to head back down, but we did. Another longer than planned hike, but oh, so inspiring and uplifting of spirit.

Really, really need to catch up on my hikes on my hiking blog. Just been too much going on and lucky to keep up with this one.

Meanwhile, back at the computer . . . I have gotten my “How To Plan A Sustainable Event” on CreateSpace. It should be showing up there tomorrow. I ordered a physical proof and immediately saw some things that needed correcting. Now I need to add those corrections to my Kindle version, then do a launch to my personal email list and perhaps do a Free day or two for the Kindle version.

I began my next project of creating some journals. The first one is a Dream Journal and has some pages created. Been distracted since I started that last Sunday, but it is in the works.

Monday I tried to get as much done for Commonwheel as possible. I also had to supply the Pizza and all the food for the Festival’s “thank-you” meal for the membership at that night’s meeting. Some day I will pass this job off to another committee member, but not this year. Hell’s Kitchen gave me a great deal on the pizzas and I found some gluten-free cookies and other items at King Soopers. Did not get as much done for the Sponsor thanks as I had hoped. I did take the posters to get laminated at Office Depot, and they had a much better price than at Kinko’s, so will return there for future Art Festival lamination needs. And easier to park too!

The meeting that night was interesting as always. We have had a turnover of about a third of our membership in the last 48 months and so many other things have changed. I looked out and realized I have many new members to get to know and connect with over the next few months.

At the Chamber Marketing meeting on Tuesday, I strongly suggested they include advertising in the newish art magazine called “Colorado Journeys” and they agreed. The next day, I learned that Maria Battista will have one of the bronzes that is in the Commonwheel Gallery show on next year’s cover. Very exciting. And Commonwheel has an page ad split with two other galleries in Manitou Springs. Looking forward to seeing that next May.

Expert Media was canceled that night due to Tony travel schedule. So I worked on getting “Galloping Wind” that is already on Kindle ready to upload to CreateSpace. That version is being reviewed and ready for us to perhaps order a physical copy to look at for proofing. 

Marketing and better web sites are in my plan for the next few weeks, besides creating journals. I really wish Tony would respond to my coaching email, but he had some really big projects the last month, so hopefully when he returns from his trip, he will respond to the email that I plan on resending this coming week.

So that takes me to last Wednesday, when my hiking partner and I set out to go to Catamount and I was driving. The aspens still looked really inviting and as we drove up the pass, we talked about where else we could go. My hiking partner suggested the other trail at Dome Rock that we had never taken. So I kept on driving past the Catamount road and up to Dome Rock. This trail followed a river and we got to a point where it spread out in a long pond with an incredible view. The aspens and sun were absolutely perfect! The rocks had many faces in them that I tried to capture also.

Just as we finished our lunch on our rocky perch overlooking the pond, a couple came up the path leading two horses. My friend really loves getting to see horses and asked if she could pet one on the head. We got to talking and she asked where the young girl was from. It turned out she had grown up, many years after my friend, just a few blocks from her home back in New York. Small world #1 moment. She raises and trains horses in the Gaucho style of riding and her horse was a winner in competitions. Small world in that “Gallop0ing Wind” talks about Gauchos as the first real cowboys.

I chatted with the gentleman and discovered he had an eco-tourism business in Alaska. Small world #3. I gave him both of my cards-yes, I have them with me even on hikes. I really hope he does email me and we can connect in some way about sustainability. We parted ways and headed back to the car. I had been worried that since this hike started going downhill, that it would be difficult going back, but it wasn’t at all. The downhills had been gentler than I realized and we were out in no time at all. Well, we did stop for many more photos again, as the sun was shining even more brightly and the aspens looked even more glowing than our inward journey.

On the way home, decided it was still sunny and drove up the road to Catamount just to see the aspens. On the way back out, we spied a group of deer. I turned around and drove down that lane. They hung out with us and I took some photos. One worked better for my “Sustainable Event” book than the scruffy deer picture I had in it. So that was a bonus for the day’s trip.

Thursday I focused on books again and tried to listen to a training and caught up with some emails and wrote up some bills for HieroGraphics for Z and Sharing Inner Health. I had created a flyer for myself for KM to take to the Holistic Fair along with my Essential Oils books also. A very computer day. 

Friday as I was getting ready to pack up a mask sold on Etsy, I felt compelled to check my email to see if another one had sold. There was a conversation from someone wanting to know if I could get a mask to her by next Friday. No problem, I assured her. So she ordered it and I then packed both masks.

So that was yesterday-yeah! almost caught up! And yesterday I was scheduled for a tune-up of my body at Sharing Inner Health. She was a bit behind schedule, so suggested I do a reading by Darlene first. That was very interesting and went longer than planned. When she began and asked for my Guides to come in, she was surprised by a very dark energy that came instead. I immediately knew who it was. She described the energy and actions of asking for forgiveness and a few other things so there was no mistaking the spirit’s earthly connection. It is time for him to “cross over” and leave all of us alone that he messed with when alive and still in the Spirit world. This is one of the stories I really need to write out, but when?

Although he never totally left the room, she was able to actually give me a reading relating to my question that I had come in with to receive some direction about. Very interesting and affirming that I am on the right path with my writing and publishing ideas.

I usually can let go of this dark spirit energy, but he was very determined to be part of this session, so we went back and discussed how to help him “cross over” willingly or not. But I can’t talk about it with my roommate and maybe no one else until after a Shaman steps in to help with this challenge. A shiver went up my spine as I write this, as much as I try to not let his presence come into my world, it is hard to ignore, as I am using the computer and monitor he gave me and sitting in a chair that was in his office. The chair may need to leave, but have to just keep doing clearings for the equipment. Feels like a sage clearing is in the plans for tomorrow.

I created some masks and have sold some on Etsy and at the Commonwheel. I do hope Halloween season keeps sending me some more mask sales both places to have a really good month and I can afford tires in November from those sales!

So today, I got up and photographed the masks, put two on Etsy. (I keep getting hints that I need to use some of the head shots with masks for books or journals or something.) Took 3 to Commonwheel and got them in there. Went to the Farmer’s Market. No roasted chilies, dang. I had a breakfast burrito instead of the sweet treat I had thought I would eat. Then up to the Holistic Fair, got lost trying to find it. Had some treatments. Connected with people about writing books and a possible new business opportunity relating to both sustainable practices and healing. Made a date to go up to one of my Essential Oils down-line to come to her home and maybe get some extra garden items and talk about what she is learning and wants to write about tomorrow. Stopped at Costco for 2 items, as that was all the cash I had on me. Enjoyed the beauty of autumn colors without my camera-yikes, I forgot that again. But it was alright, I just enjoyed what I saw.

 I need to decide if I am going to purchase the Thrive Themes and get more serious about using web sites for commercial purposes. This current theme doesn’t easily work for me that way. And I emailed the responses about old books and magazines with offers to purchase for what I could afford. Will be interesting to see if either or perhaps both accept my offers.

And once again for about the fourth time this week, I will not get to bed until about midnight. Gotta quit that. Makes the day too short by not being able to get up by 8:00 am. Not that I don’t work many hours, just would be better for connecting with others and going to meetings if I could start my day earlier.