We're talking about Scrapbooking!

Scrapbooking Organization

BLOG SESSION

August 1st, 2017

"We're talking about Scrapbooking!"

Good Afternoon Blog Readers, Followers & Visitors!

In today's Blog Session we are going to be talking about "Scrapbooking".

If you are an Artist or a creative & crafty person, then Scrapbooking may interest you.  If you are a Journal Writer, or a World Traveler, you may also be interested in trying your hand at Scrapbooking.

What is Scrapbooking?

Scrapbooking is a method of artistic preservation, presentation, and arrangement of personal items, family history, or any other specific area of your choice personal to you ~ in the form of a book, album, box, or large card.  For your information, Scrapbooking is a hobby that is commonly practiced in many parts of the world.  It is the extensive global nature if Scrapbooking that makes it a very interesting hobby for those of you who like to Travel! 

The typical memorabilia that a Scrapbooker would include is photographs, printed media, and artwork.

Scrapbook Albums are often decorated and frequently contain extensive journaling.  (The extensive Journaling should interest those of you who are into Journaling or enjoy keeping a Diary).

Just to give you an idea of what Scrapbooking is all about, take a look at this Scrapbook Page...

Scrapbook Page

The Scrapbook Page above is beautifully and personally designed.  At the bottom are the words, "you are the one".

Your Scrapbook Pages will be personal to you for the specific moment or timeframe when you are inspired to create them.

At the top of this Blog Page, you will see a photograph of a Scrapbooking Design Station created for the inspired Scrapbooker.

Good organization of your tools, papers, and Scrapbooking items helps when you are ready to sit down and get to work on your Scrapbooking Projects.

Having loads of storage and a nice area for your Scrapbooking Station is essential if this is a hobby that you plan to stick with.

Below is an example of a Scrapbooking Embellishment Center . . .

Scrapbooking Embellishment Center

Taking a look at the "Making Memories" Scrapbooking Embellishment Center above, you will see that it has various areas for your Scrapbooking items.  There are multiple shelves for your storage jars or tins, two dowels for ribbon organization, and the entire Scrapbooking embellishment Center shown above measures approximately 31.5" tall by 25.5" wide by 3.75" deep.  You will notice paints, and all types of items in the various jars.  The items you choose to use for your Scrapbooking Projects are entirely up to you.

There are many items and tools that Scrapbookers use, such as . . .

1)    Paints

2)    Stickles

3)    Flowers

4)    Buttons

5)    Spooled Ribbon

6)    Various tags and embellishments

7)    Glitter

8)    Embossing Powder

9)    Markers

10)  Stamps ~ Acrylic Stamping Blocks

11)   Pens

12)   Gelatos

13)   Universal Page Protectors

14)   Hole Punchers

15)   Adhesive

16)   Finger Daubers

17)   Paper Trays

18)   Paper Cutter

19)   Scissors

20)   Ink

21)   Classic Albums

22)   Scrapbooks

23)   Patterned Paper

24)   Stickers

25)   Construction Paper

26)   Card Stock

The possibilities are endless!  If you are interested in taking up Scrapbooking as a hobby, my suggestion to you is to research on the internet to find out more information, and visit craft stores to take a look at all of the various items available to you to have fun Scrapbooking!

BACKGROUND HISTORY ON SCRAPBOOKING:

Scrapbooking is rooted in the history of printed images and also in the long history of personal Storytelling.  It is the merging of these two progressions that we come to the modern Scrapbook in all of its current forms.

College women around the turn of the century used Scrapbooks extensively to construct representations of their everyday life as students.  Without photograph albums to provide images of these life events, students created unique representations through Scrapbooks in order to illustrate their lives using ephemera and memorabilia.  A Guest List or group of visitation cards might represent a young woman's visit to a party.  A Playbill and ticket stub might serve as reminders of a trip to New York to see a Broadway Show.  Solid objects such as plants, silverware, or small trinkets were also used when further visual representation was needed.

Journal Notes & Notations

PLEASE MAKE A NOTE IN YOUR JOURNAL FOR TODAY ABOUT OUR SCRAPBOOKING TOPIC:

Early Diaries and Journals played a role

Where did Scrapbooking originate?  We have to go way, way back to early Diaries and Journals.  As early as the Middle Ages, it was quite common for well-educated people to keep personal diaries or journals that recorded their thoughts on their life’s activities and events around them. Perhaps the earliest known surviving Journal is known today as Journal d'un bourgeois de Paris, The Diary of a Bourgeois from Paris.  Written in Paris between 1409 and 1449 by an anonymous French Priest, the Journal’s personal accounts of 15th-century life in the French capital is a treasure trove for historians.

Commonplace Books

During the Renaissance period (the 14th to 17th centuries), it became popular for noble and educated Europeans to keep what were called "Commonplace Books".  As the printing press wasn’t invented until the later half of that period, these books had a closer resemblance to what today we would call “bullet journals” – a bound journal of blank pages that contains assemblages of notes from various sources on various topics, rather than a book that is filled with glued-in paper items.

Commonplace Book

[Photo of Commonplace Book featuring English Poetry (CC 2.0).

The owner of this original commonplace book is unknown.] 

Enjoy your day today Friends, and make it a creative one.

See you in our next Blog Session!

Peace, Love & Light,

René

© Copyright - René Allen - AUGUST 2017 - All Rights Reserved

Do you feel like you are in a Blue Haze?

Do you feel like you are in a Blue Haze?

BLOG SESSION

July 2017

Good Evening Blog Readers, Writers, Followers & Visitors ~ We're back with our Journals!

If you were here for our last Blog Session, then you already know to have your Journal in hand for our Sessions.  Just get your pen out, and get ready to take some good notes in relation to your creativity.

Journal Notes

If you feel like you are in a blue haze, and you are unable to get creative, then this is the Blog Session for you.

First, you have to think back to our last Blog Session where we talked about "Creative Journal Writing", and we discussed using Art as inspiration to create your writings in your Journal.  If you had a chance to take a look at our Artistic Minds® Collection, then you will be able to understand how inspiring Art can be, and just how inspiring Art is.

To write is to pour out the material latent within your soul.  When you actually focus on the pen in your hand, and you freely let your pen flow, then you are allowing your spirit to birth what needs to be born and seen in the light of day.

Once the words begin to flow out, then you can allow what is taking place to happen without your interruption.  Your mind is not needed.  Your soul is working with the aid of your spirit.

When you think too long and too hard about writing, you are getting in the way of the process.  If you must think, then think about relaxing your mind . . .

Relax in Nature 

Once you take the time to relax your mind, just know that you are relaxing your body at the same time.  What your mind does directs what your body shall do next.  If your mind is bogged down with lots of items to think about, your body will begin to tense up.  If you keep this up for extended periods of time, then your tension will lead to stress.  We can't let that happen now can we? ~ No.  So, remind yourself to relax.

You know that saying, "Take time to smell the flowers." ~ Let's change that to ~ "Take time to relax your mind."  Relaxation is meaningful, and especially helpful for the flow of your writing.

Just check yourself right now ~ does your body feel tense?  Do your shoulders feel tight?  Do you feel tension in your back?  Are your eyes tired?  Does your face feel tight?  Is the back of your neck tight?  Are your feet throbbing?  Are your legs tense? ~ If so, then you need to r e l a x.

This evening, take a moment to get still and relax.  If you feel like it, light a candle.  If you like incense, light some of that as well.  If you enjoy soft music, then turn your favorite selection on.  If silence is your friend, by all means, get quiet.

Whatever works for you is exactly what you need to do to get your "self" relaxed.

After you feel as if you are relaxed, then turn to your Journal and write.  Write whatever comes out.  Don't think about what you are going to write, just write.

In the morning, and not until morning ~ read what you wrote.

Man reading his Journal

If per chance the Artist in you happens to come out as you turn to your Journal to write, by all means, let the Artist in you come on out and draw!

In Our Next Blog Session:

MORE CREATIVITY!

We'll soon be leaving the month of July ~

See you before it's out!

Peace, Love & Light,

René

© Copyright - René Allen - JULY 2017 - All Rights Reserved

Creative Journal Writing

Creative Journal Writing

BLOG SESSION

July 2017

Good Afternoon Blog Readers, Writers, Followers & Visitors ~  Welcome back to another great Blog Session that will stimulate your mind!

Our Subject matter for today is "Creative Journal Writing".  Many people underestimate the power of using their Journal to create unique literary works of genius.  Once you get started using your Journal in a creative way, you will never run out of taking advantage of the many avenues and the various possibilities for innovative Journal Writing.

I have a question for you:  What do you think "Creative Journal Writing" is?

You'll need to have your Journal to really participate in this Blog Session in a beneficial way.  If you are new to the Blog, then you will need to get a nice Journal to bring to these Blog Sessions so that you may take notes that will help you with your Writings, as well as other areas of life that we explore from time to time.  We discuss Writing Tips, Novel Genres, Writing Resources, and other pertinent issues such as Mental Health Month, Camp NaNoWriMo, National Novel Writing Month,  and other areas of interest to our friends and Readers here.

Create your own Journal Cover

If you were here for our last Blog Session, then you were able to check out the link that was supplied for you to get to our connected Site on Google where Artists, Poets, Authors, Painters, Photographers, Architects, Designers, Musicians, Singers, Song Writers, Videographers, Film Makers, Short Story Writers, Novelists,  Playwrights, and other Artists of various gifted backgrounds come together to share their Artworks, comments, thoughts, and share their Friendship.  The link was supplied because Art has a way of inspiring the Writer, and sparking the literary genius in you.

Here is the link once again in case you missed checking it out in our last Blog Session:   Artistic Minds® Collection

If you are a Google+ User, you are welcome and invited to join us in our connected Artistic Minds® Community ~ where you will meet other creative Writers, Artists, and talented beautiful people like yourself.  You can join and share your Artworks, Poetry, Writings, Messages, Photography, and more!

One thing about being creative:  Just the simple act of creating energizes you, inspires you, and uplifts your spirit.

Creative Journal Writing is about doing unique and innovative things that are not typical of most Journal Writers.

Most Journal Writers who are writers of fiction, drama, or poetry, are aware that their Journal Writing builds their writing muscles and helps them to generate ideas.  The Journal can be used as a Laboratory of sorts for the Writer, Author, Novelist, Memoirist, Poet, and Creative Writer.

Song Writers, Film Makers, Playwrights, Designers, Architects, and other creative individuals can find good use for Journals by experimenting with different approaches.  You can use your Journal for the important details of your artistic creation ~ be it writing, design, or otherwise.

If you are in the habit of keeping Journals or Diaries, then you know the importance of these precious tools for the Creative Author as well as Artist.

Diary/Journal

Whenever you need a source of inspiration, you can always look back at one of your Journals from the past to inspire you to create new literary or artistic works.

Diaries help you to notate your thoughts, ideas, activities, and special happenings in your life.  Diaries also help you to smile, because when you go back to read what you have written years later ~ you'll laugh!

See you back here for more ~

Creative Journal Writing TIPS!

(Be sure to pick up a Journal for our next Blog Session!)

Until we meet again Friends ~

Peace, Love & Light,

René

© Copyright - René Allen - JULY 2017 - All Rights Reserved

Dealing with Emotional Pain

Blog Session

June 2017

We are going to discuss a tough topic today.  It is the topic of Emotional Pain.  Everyone knows of it, many have felt it personally, and most of us have had to deal with it in one way or another.

What is emotional pain?

Psychological pain or mental pain is an unpleasant feeling (a suffering) of a psychological, non-physical, origin.  A pioneer in the field of suicidology, Edwin S. Shneidman, described it as "how much you hurt as a human being.  It is mental suffering; mental torment."

Emotional Pain has no particular name on it.  It hits men, women, young adults, babies, and even animals.

Emotional Pain in babies

Emotional Pain in Young Adults

Emotional Pain in Animals

Everyone has different sensitivities.  The same incident can affect a large number of people, and each person will handle it differently.

People who lose people close to them through death may go through emotional pain.  The emotional pain can include grief, sadness, depression, and crying spells.  Depending upon the loss, it can also be stressful -- i.e., the loss of a spouse, a parent, or the loss of a child.

Emotional Pain can also lead to the blame game.  Wherein a person will blame others for their emotional pain.

For instance, a parent dies, and the brother or sister is blamed for not taking care of them properly, or the doctor is blamed because the parent died under their care.

To justify blame, we tend to magnify pain.  Attributing blame then stimulates anger to punish the perceived offender. Biologically, the association of pain/vulnerability with anger is almost irresistible; anger has survival-based analgesic and amphetamine effects - it temporarily numbs pain and provides a surge of energy and confidence to ward off the perceived threat.  But each repetition of this process reinforces perceived damage and vulnerability by making defense seem more necessary.

Over time, the blame-anger response congeals into chronic resentment, which is a generalized, automatic defensive system geared to protect an ego made fragile by the perceived need of protection.  To the resentful, painful emotions are not motivations to heal and improve but punishments inflicted by an unfair world.  They try to control what other people think by devaluing or coercing them, thereby reinforcing the vulnerability they seek to avoid.

There are things in life that we cannot control no matter how we may want to.  A devastating fire, a car accident, certain unforeseen injuries, loss of a job by way of lay-off or shut-down of a facility, and other uncontrollable situations are out of our hands.

The Illusion of Control
Consider how little control we have over the things that most profoundly influence our lives.  How many of us got to choose our parents, brothers or sisters, or other family members?  Did we decide the illnesses, accidents, medications, and substance use of our mothers during pregnancy?  Who decided where and when they were born, how much money their families would have, what early childhood sickness or accidents they would experience, which schools they would go to and what kind of teachers and friends they would find there?  Who chose whether other children would like or bully them, support or antagonize them, respect or humiliate them?

Controlling the Meaning of Your Life
You cannot control most of the major influences on your life, but you have absolute control over what they mean to you.  If you control the meaning of events in your life by creating as much value as you can, you will have a sense of purpose and personal power.  If you control it by devaluing yourself or others, you create a chronic sense of powerlessness, which is in turn characterized by roller-coaster rides of adrenalin-driven resentment that crash into depressed moods.

Do you really think that you can hide your emotional pain?

Emotional Pain

Like all other emotions, emotional pain has an effect on the people around you.  If you are in emotional pain, you are not your normal upbeat self.  No one likes being around a person who is depressed, sad, unhappy, or somber for long periods of time.  Of course, those who have empathy or compassion will care about how you feel, and may try to help you to feel better or help you to get control of your emotions.  In some cases, the people around you will try to lead you to professional help.

Another problem that is sometimes created by going through emotional pain is addiction.  Addictions to alcohol, drugs, or other unhealthy avenues is a direction that is not healthy, but will sometimes be the path that some people will trod.  Is this wise ~ No.

How can you help yourself through emotional pain?

Rather than focus on the possible causes of your pain and vulnerability, try to sort out what each hurtful incident means to you and what you can do to heal and improve.  But in order to do this important assessment, you must do so with self-compassion, not self-criticism.

Time for your Journal Writing Exercise . . .

Journal Writing Exercise

If you are going through emotional pain, first list your problem.  For example:  Your spouse or significant other cheated on you.

Then write down your feelings about the problem: i.e.,  I feel alone, isolated, and betrayed.

What does the problem mean to you?  How can you help yourself to heal?

For Example:  I can recognize that I have the strength, resilience, and value to heal this hurt over time.  I will stay true to my deepest values, focus on creating more value in my life, reach out to friends and other loved ones, recognize human frailty in my spouse and in myself, and I will evaluate my options for a better future.

Please Note:  Preoccupation with the causes of emotional pain tends to push us deeper into pain and bitterness; interpreting its meaning reveals motivation to heal and improve and moves us toward a brighter future.

Expression of negative emotions leads to exhaustion 
Expressing negative emotions, without changing the meaning you give them, merely exercises them.  Exercise sometimes produces exhaustion, but exhaustion never equals resolution or healing.  Worse, expressing emotions repeatedly habituates them.  "Crying the same blues over and over" creates more than monotony.  It causes habitual sequences of neural firing that lead to repetitive, seemingly automatic behavior, such as having the same fight with your loved one over and over.

If you find that you repeatedly make the same mistake or the same kinds of mistakes, you probably express negative emotions (or stuff them) without altering the meaning you give them, i.e., without focus on healing and improving.

Some people are fortunate enough to resist the preoccupation with blame that characterizes the age of entitlement.  But even for those lucky few, the search for causes of emotional pain has little chance of alleviating it.  The causes of distressed conditions, which are usually complex interactions of many variables, are not often the same things that maintain them.  Focus on possible causes is more likely to make you feel damaged and vulnerable than lead to corrective or beneficial action.

Knowing how you got into a hole won't do much to get you out of it, but it can help you avoid holes in the future.  Casual analysis is easier and more efficient.  Journaling is very helpful, and you will find that it will help you with healing and improving.  You'll be able to find mental resources within yourself that are available to accurately assess the causes and devise strategies for your future well being.  You'll be very surprised at the discoveries you will make by Journaling daily.  Get out of your hole first, and consider how to avoid another one later.

To understand your emotional pain, you have to ask the question HOW can I improve and heal?  Not why did this happen to me?

For your Journal:

What can I do to improve and heal my emotional pain?  How can I go about improving and healing my condition?  What steps can I take to feel better?

Here are some suggested steps you can take . . .

• Remember:
• Emotional pain can make it impossible to enjoy life and can manifest as physical disease and pain, which you do not want in your life.
• Letting go of rejection, avoiding rumination and learning from your failures can help you to heal your emotional pain.
• Keeping guilt from festering and using self affirmations to boost your self-esteem are other keys to greater emotional well-being.

We'll be back with much more!

~ See you in our next Blog Session Friends ~

Leave your emotional pain in your Journal,

and walk away with steps for improvement & healing. . . .

Peace, Love & Light,

 René

© Copyright - René Allen - JUNE 2017 - All Rights Reserved

BLOG SESSION

Tell me more about the Psychic Vampire . . .

Good Afternoon Blog Readers, Followers & Visitors ~ We're back to continue where we left off.  We were discussing a topic that caught the eye of a lot of our Readers.  Many of our Friends reading the Blog could relate to our topic of discussion because they had at one time been connected to a psychic vampire.  Others here reading said that they were currently connected to someone who they considered to be a psychic vampire, or thought that they knew someone who could possibly be a psychic vampire. We're about to dive back into the topic of Psychic Vampires.

When we were last here, we went over how you can recognize the psychic vampires in your life, and also you were given the description of the various types of psychic vampires.

In order to recognize the psychic vampires in your life, you were asked to make a list of the people in your life who you thought might fall into the category of a psychic vampire.  In addition, you were to evaluate your relationships with these specific individuals.

In your Journal you should have all of the your personal notes about this topic, as well as notes from our last very interesting Blog Session . . .

Journal Notes

As we get ready to begin our Blog Session for today, please grab your Journal and get ready for new information on Psychic Vampires.

Journal Notation:  Individuals who are psychic vampires are also referred to as psi vamps, energy drains, or energy suckers.

How a Psychic Attack Happens

When a psychic attack takes place, the psychic vampire receives an energy surge while the victim experiences fatigue.

People who suck the energy of others normally do so unwittingly.  This sucking takes place when one's energy is depleted and needs to be replenished, and as a result, sucks the energy of another person.  It is not unusual for a person who is ill or feeling inadequate emotionally to draw upon or deplete energized individuals of their life force.  These so-called suckers are not bad people, most of them are not aware on a conscious level that they are doing what they are doing.

Still, their unknowing actions can play havoc with anyone who leaves an energetic opening for this type of thievery.  It is important for us to be aware that we may be susceptible to having our energies stolen from us and we must learn ways to protect ourselves.

Where is the Harm?

The harm in a psychic attack is that there is no fair exchange of energy and therefore one person feels depleted while the other person (psychic vampire) becomes energized.

Traits of a Psychic Vampire

• 1.  experiences feelings of abandonment or rejection
• 2.  needs constant reassurance (very insecure)
• 3.  never feels satisfied (very needy)
• 4.  seeks nurturing (low self esteem)
• 5.  low energy - fatigue

Special Notes

Please make a special note in your Journal that each of us has psychic-vampire tendencies that sometimes need to be put into check.  Do you see any of the traits of a psychic vampire in yourself?

Now what comes next is the question that was asked in our last Blog Session:  Do you know whether you are a psychic vampire or not?  Write your answer in your Journal.

Many people are being attacked by psychic vampires and they do not realize it.  Check to see if you are being attacked by psychic vampires by looking at these symptoms . . .

Symptoms of a Psychic Attack by Psychic Vampires

• leaky or diminishing aura
• dizziness
• loss of energy
• muscle tension
• mental confusion
• headaches
• chronic fatigue
• sleep disturbances
• irritability
• depressed mood
• physical illness

Psychic Vampire at work

When you come up against a psychic vampire, you need to be prepared and protected.

Protection Against Psychic Attack

Awareness:  Become aware of which individuals deplete your energy and limit your contact with them.

Invoke the White Light:  Visualize a bubble of white light surrounding your auric field.

Energy Shields:  Carry protective amulets.

Prayer:  Stay prayerful.

Note:  Highly Sensitive Persons are especially at risk to being harmed by energy drains.  Being a hypersensitive person could be described as being allergic to life.  For the highly sensitive person (HSP) a seemingly ordinary day can be overwhelming.  Even the most subtle of stimulants a person encounters on a daily basis could possibly be overwhelming or over-stimulating.  Triggers for the hypersensitive will vary from individual to individual.   [We will talk more about Highly Sensitive People in our next Blog Session].

Be sure to join us in our next Blog Session where we will continue to discuss and expand upon our topic involving Psychic Vampires, protection against them, Highly Sensitive People (HSPs), and stories of cases of encounters with Psychic Vampires.

UP NEXT:

Quiz ~ Are you a Psychic Vampire?

Protection Against Psychic Vampires

Highly Sensitive People (HSPs)

Stories & Cases of encounters with Psi Vamps

(otherwise known as Psychic Vampires)

Until our next Blog Session

Remember to enjoy your week with relaxing music ~

~ Detox & De-Stress with relaxing music ~

Peace, Love & Light,

 René

© Copyright - René Allen - JUNE 2017 - All Rights Reserved