I am seriously unimpressed by The Secret and it’s accompanying kerfuffle.  It’s just regurgitated, for-the-masses crap.  It’s the McDonald’s drive through of spirituality.

There is enough greed in the world - we don’t need more ’stuff’.  The way they use the example of wanting to manifest that sportscar is pathetic.  There are people starving needlessly and dying of preventable diseases every day.  Our western culture of ‘give me more’ has created a divided society of haves and have-nots.

The ‘have-nots’ work in factories and sweatshops to make the products that you can buy more of, if only you apply the pinciples of The Secret.

The only secret I can see here is that they are a bunch of greedy individuals out to make a quick buck. 

But “ssssh!”

Don’t tell anyone because it’s a secret!

I found this cute site - www.fliptrack.com.  My freind J used it to create a filmstrip about his trip to Egypt last year.

You can create a filmstrip and put your videos and photos to music!  They have a song library so you can legally use the music you want to put to your photos.  You can even add effects.

Once you’re done, you can embed it in most blog platforms or email the URL to your friends.

 Have a look at some of the videos other people have made here.

Well it’s been an interesting week.  My whole life has been turned upside down again.  I thought the Universe was guiding me to be self-employed, but the rug has been pulled from under me in that area.  Looks like I need to go back to a full time day job.

I wonder if the lesson here is about non-attachment and letting go of my need for security?

I have a 2nd interview on Monday morning for a job I would really like to get, so please send good vibes that I get the job at the money I am asking.

 All I can really do is go with the flow and see what happens next.

I also need to move - my housemates are lovely, lovely girls but I don’t think they are good for my self-esteem.  I seem to feel worse about myself and be less motivated wrt exercise, diet etc since living with them.  I wish I could just settle in somewhere and be happy, but I just get so restless!

This is great!  Some modern street-side writers in Bangladesh.  I’m trying to work out ’when’ and if you take a look at the clothing, it’s probably 90’s! 

This is probably around 1930.  The thing that strikes me most about this photo is that all those women would be unmarried. 

Women got the the right to vote in the USA in May 1919.  Unfortunately they didn’t get the right to work as they liked.  Most women would be expected to stop working once they got married, and certainly once they had children.  Until the women’s liberation movement surged forward in the 60’s, the only real career optionss for women were as teachers, nurses or secretaries.

My aunt was a scientist in the 70’s and battled against discrimination and sexual harassment until the number of women in the industry grew to significant numbers and anti-sexual harassment laws were enforced.

Hard to imagine, huh?

Check out these ladies in the typing pool - it must be the 60’s!

I’ve been a ’secretary’ of one kind or another for my entire working career.  The image people have of us would make me laugh if it didn’t annoy me so much.  They think we file our nails and take messages.  If only I had time for the first and technology has put paid to the second.

Most people have no clue what we do, but I’d like to see them function without us.

I found some fun photos while I was looking for a pic for my last entry.

I’ve been a bit worried lately that I might lose my day job so I spent about a week applying for other jobs. 

I work 3 days a week in an office and there hasn’t been a lot of work since December, which is probably normal for the Holiday season, but it’s been a concern to me.

 Today they asked me if I could work more hours.  I was pretty relieved.  My other part time job, where i have been for more than 10 years, will be ending some time in March when the company closes.  I don’t mind picking up more hours at my day job in that case.

I’m quite good at finding jobs and I actually got offered a couple of jobs in the week I was looking.  It’s good to know that if I need one in a hurry, I can get one.

My gut feeling was that it would be okay, that I wouldn’t need to find something else.  It looks like I was right!

I really believe our thoughts are powerful and they help to shape the experiences we have every day. I bet you know someone who has the worst luck - it’s not just a bad day, it’s a bad life!  And I bet they can’t wait to tell everyone about it.

Negative people attract negative events.  It’s like the Universe wants to prove them right, or that like really does attract like.

I’m careful to express things in the positive, to talk about what I want, not what I DON’T want.  Life seems to work better that way.

I have a lot of arguments with people who think punctuation isn’t important.  In my writing group tonight, we discussed how the following should be punctuated:

a woman without her man is nothing

Everyone else said it only needed a full stop.  

A woman without her man is nothing.

I laughed my head off and suggested the following:

A woman.  Without her, man is nothing.

Punctuation is important, people! 

I share an office with two other people, one of whom I have never met.  We are each there on different days. Today I locked myself out. I couldn’t believe it. The bathrooms are external and have their own key. I locked the office door after myself because anyone can come right in off the street, plus if my clients are early, I’d rather they wait outside than go right in.

So I come back from the ladies room and realize I didn’t take the office key with me. I just stood there and stared at the door. My cell was inside, my car keys, everything. I don’t even know any of my friend’s cell numbers to call them. The phone number I had for the others who use the office was for the phone that was locked inside.

I figured I would need to call a locksmith and that would pretty much cost me my income for the day, as it’s an emergency weekend call out. That’s if I could get someone to answer the phone.

I noticed that there were a few business cards in a rack outside our office and one of them had a cell number. I went to office next door to ask to use their phone. The ladies didn’t speak much English so communicating was fun, but one of them let me use her cell.

The cell number was the other office sharer I had never met. The phone range and rang. I’m thinking “What if she is not answering her phone? I can’t tell you how panicked I was. My next client was due in 15 minutes.

She answered. Turns out she was just having lunch in a restaurant a few doors away from the office. Thank you Universe! I ran down and got the keys from her and let myself back in. I left them on the shelf by the door and she came and picked them up while I was with my client

The last time I locked myself out was when I was 15. I was on a date with a guy a bit older than me and we went clubbing and then went parking by the beach. I got home at 5am and realized I didn’t have my key. I tapped on my brother’s window. My date was one of his friends, so I figured it was his fault so he should wake up and let me in. He didn’t budge. I tapped louder. Nope. I bashed on the damn window so hard I nearly broke it. He didn’t even turn over.

In the end, I rang the doorbell. My dad answered. I have never forgotten my keys again.

Have you ever locked yourself out or lost your keys?