.Years ago I was obsessed with a book called 'The Tightwad Gazette'. I was a new mom and had to figure out how to live well while supporting two humans on my single person salary. The Gazette was loaded with tips and tricks to save money. It changed my life...I became 'frugal' and started to save money and really chose where my money went. In fact I now have a youtube channel called The Practical Magic of Frugal Living
One of my favorite articles was called 'The Snowball Effect'. It portrayed the trajectory of two people who each received a $100 dollar bonus every new year. After 5 years one person had invested the money into various projects, each one re-investing in the next, and ended up earning and extra $20,000+ dollars after 5 years, while the other person just spent it on dinner and clothes every time they got the bonus. I just found this fascinating.
This act of building upon what you have, little by little, until it hits critical mass , falls into the category I call 'Practical Magic".  Yes, we all wish we were born rich or could actually win the lottery, but these aren't the only two options for dream creation. We can all start where we are at. (And by the way this is not excusing the disaster that is end times capitalism in the USA...things must change) Read my last blog post on creating abundance out of almost nothing.
The snowball effect comes into play when we create and committ to daily rituals. If we get in steps, eat healthy , and invest in our relationships the cummulative effect is greater than the small actions. We are our habits.
Just some food for thought!

October
Keywords: Confident Forward Motion
October starts with the planet Mercury finally going direct. YaY! ✨ Now is the time for forward movement and the cards are supporting this. This month is powerful and it's all about cutting through the BS to get to the core of the matter. This will be a time of being a visionary in your own life and also engaging your willpower to try and make real what it is that you're seeing in your mind's eye. We have both the Ace of  swords and the Magician in October helping us get to a new level on our life path.
In General, it will be easier to access objectivity around a murky situation this month. And even in matters of the heart, the Ace of Swords will help you get real.
In relationships truth is going to be shared whether we are ready or not and if you've been in a limbo land situation, that will probably resolve itself one way or another.  Don't be afraid, be brave! You have the magician on your side. She is a master manifest-or and I love this card  because it also has a sprinkling of magic in it. So the dream big in October and believe that anything is possible.''because usually it is.
Ace of Swords x Magician

November.
Keyword: Intense
Commitment is the topic of the month. What we are willing and able to commit to really influences what our life  looks like. Where are you at with commitment? What is easy for you to commit to.? What seems impossible for you to commit to? I think commitment is mysterious and very powerful. ⋆ . ˚ ✩ ✭ ⋆☆ﾟ
The Lovers card asks us to choose. Sometimes the choice we are asked to make means we can't choose something else. You can't be married and single at the same time (although people try...really hard☻)  or be vegan and eat meat.
Relationships this month will want to ground into more serious territory, so that means some of you will be getting in deeper and some of you will be breaking up. It's not a casual time for love There's another energy rolling in with this card in November to help us out. The Ace of swords cuts through static and brings  clarity. I consider it one of the cards of revolution. The image I envision.... is rolling into some battle with your sword drawn to bring in the new day. One of the ways to do that in your own personal life is to draw a line in the sand with that sword and commit to the path you want to be on. You can do it! And the energy of November will help.
Lovers x Ace of Swords

 December
Keyword: Flow
The last month of the year is here! December is more mellow than Oct. and Nov. and is all about balance and equilibrium and that should be fairly easy  to accomplish. The tarot cards indicate that it should be easier than usual to not let yourself get dragged into other people's dramas and to avoid getting triggered.
Self-imposed limitation is the name of the game and will have lots of benefits! (No wearing the lampshade at the Xmas party for you!)
The strength card is here telling us to let go of perfectionism  because we are just wonderful the way we are! Being Perfect is unattainable and is a great weapon to use against ourselves .
In relationships, harmony will flow in any way it can, over any situation that comes up. Only someone really trying hard, like  (Insert preferred asshole here) could interrupt it.
The visualization I see for December... is floating down a lazy cosmic river. You're going with the flow but you're also effortlessly guiding yourself away any boulders on your path.
Temperance x Strength

WOW! Climate change is really on my mind, and weighing on my heart right now. This past summer Mother Earth was yelling to get our attention. 🔥I still have some hope that we can turn it around and I want to share some really wonderful , hopeful things happening around the world that make my heart sing. Humans are amazing...we can adapt to anything and we can innovate. My hope is that this past summer has been a wake up call and the humans of the world (and their governments) unite to save our planet and ourselves. At the end of this list I also am going to list some of the ways that I live to do my small part. We can all pitch in!

Inspiration #1:
The Greening of Ethiopia. Ethiopia has been earnestly planting trees for years now.
According to the UNEP " Under the country’s National Green Development Program—launched in May 2019 in a bid to combat climate change and environmental degradation—Ethiopia plans to plant 4 billion trees on 1.5 million hectares across the country: 40 trees per person."
The country set a world record of planting over 300 million trees on one day in May 2019. They are also working to restore water and greenery in parched land. Here is a video https://youtu.be/D9Ntr6ns44U.

Inspiration #2:
Restoring water to India. A  movement is happening in many parts of India  that uses a combination of traditional technologies and permaculture techniques to restore water to dried up wells, crops and forests.Here are a couple of videos:

 https://youtu.be/-8nqnOcoLqE

https://youtu.be/9hmkgn0nBgk

Inspiration #3
Isreal now creates a water surplus. They recycle 90% of their tap water and use it for agriculture and planting forests! They are actually exporting water to other countries.
Here is a video: https://youtu.be/KYhZwcwtN4k

Inspiration #4
Brad Lancaster is helping turn Tuscon, AZ into a water harvesting Mecca:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUSm5ng2Hdk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8HR2EZPiLk

Do you know of any inspirational projects happening right now to help mother earth? I would love to hear about them. Please leave a comment below!

Are you wondering what your carbon footprint is? Here is a calculator.

https://www.nature.org/en-us/get-involved/how-to-help/carbon-footprint-calculator/

I have been attempting a zero waste lifestyle for years...but it is really hard.Have you ever tried to go plastic free, even for one day? It is almost impossible. I really hope we get it together and come up with a plastic alternative soon. But I was excited to see that I had a negative carbon footprint.  It is mostly because I have an urban lifestyle (i live in an apartment and have no car) and I am a plant-based eater. Also the city I live in uses hydro power, not fossil fuel. Ironically , the number one worst thing you can do for the planet is....have a kid!😄