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mermaidcamp

Keeping current in wellness, in and out of the water

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In Tucson and around the country damage from mold is a serious issue.  This health hazard can be dangerous to humans and pets.  It is most devastating to real estate value because insurance companies rightly treat it like the plague.  Mold that is rampant must be treated and removed to avoid spread and contamination of the entire area.  Since the property with an adjoining wall has been used to collect donations for a decade, the water has been leaking profusely for months, and everything points to heavy duty mold damage I have repeatedly asked the HOA board that collects the donations from the public to hire Rocky the Mold Dog, who appears on TV.  He is a beagle with a nose for mold. He sniffs the property and helps the humans identify problems so they can be treated.  All health department code has been violated in this building for more than a decade.  The unsupervised food collection, storage, and preparation in a leaky environment is a very likely contributor to the growth of mold.  There is probable cause to believe the building is completely infested with mold which is damaging my home every day.

There is much more than a conflict of interest between the HOA board members who run the charity scam collecting donations, and the property owners in this neighborhood.  I had some work done on my home recently and was informed by the contractor who did the work about the level of danger to my structural integrity posed by the neglect of my next door neighbor.  He took some pictures of the rotting roof piled with debris, and explained that the load of all that garbage was a serious threat to my home.  He taught me a lot that I did not know about the dangers and damage that mold represents.  I read my insurance policy and spoke to my agent who explained the complex and very depressing details of mold, what it does, and what happens to your insurance policy once it is discovered.  I am officially freaked out about the physical damage the charity scam has done to my home.  The donation traffic has slowed to nothing, the water leak was repaired a couple of days ago after leaking for at least 6 months.  I need the people who took advantage of all their neighbors to begin to acknowledge reality and the neighborhood by getting a mold test to confirm or deny the presence of a very hazardous material. Their behavior suggests that they do no believe in cause and effect.  Believe it or not, every action will continue to have an equal and opposite reaction.

Mold and Your Health

June 28, 2013 — 5 Comments

The Spies Who Love Us

June 24, 2013 — 1 Comment

Garbo Mata Hari

Garbo Mata Hari

Does it sound like a compliment to you to be called a traitor by Dick Cheney? Do you wonder what espionage is?  Do Julian Assange, Bradley Manning, and Edward Snowden appear to be more or less trustworthy than the United States government? Do you trust the military to police itself? My personal theory is that leaking is the new journalism.  More high profile leaks will be celebrated with caviar and vodka faster than you can say Vlad’s your uncle.  Shortly a woman will join the ranks of leaky whistle blowers, and the balance will shift.  You do not need any psychic abilities to predict this. You simply need to wake up and smell the data.

Cancer and the Lymphatic System

June 15, 2013 — 3 Comments

People who undergo cancer treatments or surgery often suffer from permanent damage to the lymphatic system. There is a process they can use, combined with movement, to restore the flow of lymph by sending it through new pathways. Justine Robbins has many years of experience working with cancer patients as a lymphatic drainage therapist. She wishes more people had more knowledge, especially those who have cancer and lymphoma. It is very common to overlook this gentle treatment while the patient suffers great pain from swelling. Justine explains why this simple technique can provide relief and healing for many who do not know it exists.  Supportive Care for Healing at the U of A Cancer Center offers this treatment at a very reasonable price.

Lymph and Your Health

June 14, 2013 — 2 Comments

I go regularly to Justine Robbins for lymph drainage treatments. I look at it as boosting my immune system. This little known activity in the body is essential for good health. Understanding how the lymph nodes are connected and what they do might illustrate why this treatment can make a big difference in overall your wellbeing and resiliency. In Europe it is more common to find this kind of therapy because there is generally more knowledge available on the benefits. I am so lucky and happy to have access to supportive care for healing and Justine.

James Sweet of Warwick, Kent, RI

June 13, 2013 — 5 Comments

While studying my tree I noticed that one of the branches had some discrepancies.  The Sweet family of Rhode Island is a favorite of mine now that I have visited the state.  Consulting family written documents, my suspicions were confirmed that I had the wrong Sweet in the wrong spot.  I was sad because I had become attached to these people who would no longer be related to me, which itself is a ridiculous thought.  Now I have spent time to repair the error, and with a bit of luck I did get back to the correct ancestor in just 3 generations. I had listed his brother John in this generation, an erroneous idea I found in other profiles on ancestry.com.  Lucky for me, I do have family written references on this part of my fam.   My new, revised 8th great grandfather is from a Sweet family of famous physicians known as the bonesetters.  They carried on for generations in this capacity. I am now just as happy with the doctors as I was with the fancy politicians I gave up in the process. I have also been informed about Rhode Island history, which is fascinating.

James Sweet (1622 – 1695)
is my 8th great-grandfather
Benoni Sweet (1663 – 1751)
son of James Sweet
Dr. James Sweet (1686 – 1751)
son of Benoni Sweet
Thomas Sweet (1732 – 1813)
son of Dr. James Sweet
Thomas Sweet (1759 – 1844)
son of Thomas Sweet
Valentine Sweet (1791 – 1858)
son of Thomas Sweet
Sarah LaVina Sweet (1840 – 1923)
daughter of Valentine Sweet
Jason A Morse (1862 – 1932)
son of Sarah LaVina Sweet
Ernest Abner Morse (1890 – 1965)
son of Jason A Morse
Richard Arden Morse (1920 – 2004)
son of Ernest Abner Morse
Pamela Morse
I am the daughter of Richard Arden Morse

The second son of JOHN & MARY SWEET, James Sweet came with his parents to America in 1632. He worked at a grist mill with his step-father, Ezekiel Holliman. He was an inhabitant of Warwick in 1648, Commissioner in 1653/1658/1659, freeman in 1655, juryman in 1656 and lived at the estate of the late William Congdon at the foot of Ridge Hill. He married MARY GREENE, daughter of JOHN GREENE & JOANE (TATTERSOL) GREENE, about 1654 in Providence, RI. On Sept. 30, 1660, he sold to Thomas Greene, the lot he had received from the town of Warwick along with meadow land. Later, the family moved to Prudence Island in Portsmouth Twp. about four miles soutwest of Bristol in 1664 being one of the first families to live on the island from 1664 to about 1685. Several family members are buried in the old family burying ground in the center of the island.On November 8, 1686, he deeded his land in Providence that he had inherited from his father to eldlest son, Philip of Prudence Island. On the same date, he deeded to son, Benoni, certain land in Mashiantatack, and to son, James of Prudence Island, Valentine of Kingstown, and Samuel & Mary Sweet living with their parents, land in Mashiantatack. In 1695, James deposed and gave his age as 73. He died at age 93 years.All the “bone-setter” family lines originate with James Sweet and his wife, Mary, who learned the art of bone-setting from her surgeon father, JOHN GREENE. James Sweet & his brother, John Sweet were interpreters to the Indians for first settlers and their names can be found on early Indian deeds. James Sweet signed with his mark.

Spying with Servers

June 8, 2013 — 4 Comments

When we receive the news that servers are being used to analyze our communication there is no reason to be shocked. A wire tap by any other name would smell as foul.  The purpose of big data is big analysis.  If you think technology is virtuous, or if you think it is inherently evil you are missing the point. Every advance in technology has been tried and often improved by spies.  Think of all the magic of James Bond and his low tech super powers.  Does espionage happen because honorable people want to learn more about the activities of their neighbors?  Certainly not.  Defense includes what is classified as intelligence.  If the US declares a war on anything ( drugs, terror, etc) they ride the interstate commerce laws right up into everyone’s business. Our government protects Monsanto and their ilk without batting an eye, because that is the power that is reigning at the moment.

In the spy game everyone wants the coolest and most able spies, but that can’t be possible for every country.  Some will have current tech, and others will rely on ancient systems of corruption to procure data.  Propaganda supports spying as protection of the population.  It is more likely to be protection of a certain status quo. Politics, cartoons, and reality do overlap, gentle readers.

Thomas Armer and the Confederate Conscription

June 7, 2013 — 1 Comment

During the Civil War Thomas Armer was conscripted to serve in the Iron Works at Shelby, Alabama to make arms for the Confederacy.   After the war his entire family moved to Texas with Lucinda Jane and her husband, William Taylor, a veteran who was wounded in the war.  His widow applied for a Confederate pension, just as her daughter, Lucinda, did.  The state of Texas granted both widows pensions to help them survive at the end of their lives.  Thomas donated the land for the cemetery where they are now buried.

Thomas Armer (1825 – 1900)
is my 2nd great grandfather
Lucinda Jane Armer (1847 – 1939)
daughter of Thomas Armer
George Harvey Taylor (1884 – 1941)
son of Lucinda Jane Armer
Ruby Lee Taylor (1922 – 2008)
daughter of George Harvey Taylor
Pamela Morse
I am the daughter of Ruby Lee Taylor

Coniunctio Oppositorum

June 7, 2013 — 3 Comments

The reunification of opposites in alchemy is called Coniunctio Oppositorum. The material is separated in the distillation process.  In the collective consciousness imagery and music exist as powerful actors.  The opposites can be soul and spirit, Republican and Democrat, or just black and white.  Our individual dreams and psyches are influenced by all the opposites in the universe.  It is an act of magic to distill your thoughts and ethical boundaries. It is an act of wisdom to recognize that we are each as magical as the other.

Esther Williams, Feminist

June 7, 2013 — 5 Comments

This woman not only put the roof over the swimming pool, she branded swimming as a sport.  She stood for healthy, powerful female business ethics.  She had some deep understanding of the flow of commerce.  She is my idol.  Thanks, Esther, for all that you did.

Ladders in Dreams

June 6, 2013 — 7 Comments

I have had dreams lately in which ladders and levels have been featured heavily. I have climbed them, but I watch others doing it and taking big risks in most cases.  There is an MC Escher kind of set with stairs/ladders/ split levels leading in all directions.  There is a need to escape the mesh of levels in order to find daylight or reality or some better circumstance.  The dreams have a matter of fact nature, nothing scary or odd. There are different sets and casts of characters, all featuring ladder and or stair climbing.  In the dreams ladders become stairs and vice versa.

Once I noticed the dreams with steps leading up as a theme I brought this into my daytime reality to see where and when I use proverbial ladders.  I do not and did not climb any corporate ladder.  I just had no interest. I own a home with a second floor, where my yoga room and bedroom are private from the rest of the world.  Only two people regularly go upstairs. We need very big ladders to paint or repair our ceiling because of an atrium entry/living room.  I have had repairs done lately and have been contemplating other upgrades to my home that all require ladders.  I went to study soul and spirit and found that spirit is basically always upwardly mobile.  Soul lives in this horizontal earthy plane, while spirit soars or climbs the stairway to heaven. With all this in mind I believe the ladders are an emblem of both care of my path, and a Jack in the Beanstalk style note to self.  Knowing when where and why to go up a ladder is important information.

Climbing for climbing sake has not been my style in this life.  Serving as I go along is my modus operandi.  There are many paths to nowhere and stairways to nothing.  This is only part of the risk one takes when deciding to climb or not to climb.  Often I notice in these dream characters, who do not remind me of real people, the mindless will to climb is related to envy and pity.  They solicit pity for working so hard, taking abuse along the way, then alternately solicit envy for the position they have won.  I know folks who do this in real life without noticing that the ladder is two dimensional. I have unlocked no big secret here, gentle reader.  Working with dreams is a technique anyone can use.  Keeping a diary and writing the details will lead to more insight.  There is no need to analyze deeply or search for big meaning.  Dreams speak softly in very faint language.  They sink into the consciousness over time.