SUPER BLOOD MOON!!! & President Trump

Maybe I'm just jaded, but I'm getting sick of the "THIS WON'T HAPPEN AGAIN UNTIL______!!!!"  Why do we need everything to be bigger, better and super special and if you Don't See It NOW, you'll Regret It For The Rest Of Your LIFE YOU LOSER!!!

If yelling "fire" in a crowded theater is illegal and dangerous, why are we not reeling in the sensationalism of just about everything else? I understand not causing a dangerous stampede, but isn't inducing random bits of panic just as bad? Isn't the correlation between stress and health problems well documented? Phrases and tones meant to draw you in to watching this specific news program, read this specific article, listen to this specific candidate are getting louder and more threatening with each announcement. I'm sure most of us ignore it, but what about the unconscious effect?  I don't know the current statistic but aren't a good number of us on antidepressants and sedatives, or should be?  I live a suburban, upper middle class life. Why should I be depressed or anxious? It's not the fault of the Eyewitness News urgent story on why kale may not be the superfood experts thought it was and how it can actually harm you.  (But News At Eleven!!!!) I have other issues I'm working on. However, I'm fairly certain these micro-controversies reinforce a tiny unconscious notion that everything will kill us, everyone is lying, and no one can tell the difference.  Eventually we either don't believe anything at all or are convinced that drinking specially formulated salt water is the key to lasting health.

It seems like water drip torture. One tap in the same spot over and over will either drive you insane or become excruciatingly painful. Sensationalism is our very own long term Shock and Awe campaign. Yes, I know Shock and Awe is also called "rapid dominance" so labeling it long term is essentially a contradiction. The desired effect is the same: "paralyze the enemy's perception of the battlefield and destroy its will to fight." The battlefield is our attention and the will to fight is our sense of truth. The best case scenario is we waste two hours watching Geraldo open up Capone's vault.  What a worst case? President Trump.

Donald Trump's current claim to fame is that he "tells it like it is" and it's getting him enough attention to cause some of us to seriously explore expatriation after November 8, 2016.  Whether or not a person agrees with The Donald's opinions is secondary to how much that person will support him because he "tells the truth." Many people forget that his "it" and "truth" is really only his opinion and not fact.  (Side note: I'm generally in favor of unapologetic bluntness for serious issues. I am strongly opposed to unsupported generalizations being passed off as fact to play on a person's fears.) Our sense of truth has been so derailed that this guy actually looks a good choice to some people.

I've gotten completely off topic again.  Usually at this point I'd either shelve the post or pull out the tangent for another post. I'm leaving it because of the tangent makes sense to me and it's what's on my mind.

This is the strangest post about the lunar eclipse, isn't it?  That's how it started.  I was reading piece after piece about how we'll never have another "Super Blood Moon Eclipse" until TWO THOUSAND THIRTY THREE!!!!! 

Folks.

That's in 18 years.

It's a significant amount of time but unless you're in poor health or getting close to a traditional age of decline, you'll probably be around for the next one. And that's all I really wanted to say.

Regardless, if your skies are clear, go take a look.  If you're on the East Coast of the Americas, eclipse will peak at 10:47pm--- which is a treat considering I remember most peaks being in the wee hours of the morning. 

On a spiritual level, we get to experience a full lunar cycle in one evening and a fantastic time for Moon Magic.

Balancing Falling Backwards

Here in the Northern Hemisphere, Autumn has begun.  We crudely call it Fall.  Probably because the leaves fall. Or perhaps because it makes for a handy way to remember which way we turn our clocks to end Daylight Saving Time. National Geographic has a nice write up on the Equinox here.  It's an interesting day that is devoted to Balance.  The Sun enters Libra and her Scales of Justice. We're to remember that we live in a dual world with Good and Evil.  We can't have one without the other, no matter how much we'd like to tip that scale to Good.

This year is also a bit interesting because Mercury is in retrograde and also in Libra.   The Cliff's Notes version of this means that all communications may seem to go well but will eventually reveal to be all messed up.  Astrologists warn against starting anything during this phase.

But there's another way to look at this.

Mercury governs Communication. Retrograde means to move backward.  (No, Mercury doesn't actually travel backward but it will appear to do so in the night sky.) Libra symbolizes Balance.  Drawing on my last post, we are constantly evolving, We are influenced by our experiences.  Perhaps now is the best time to evaluate where our beliefs come from and what we could learn from our past.

The other day I had an imaginary conversation.  This happens often with OCD.  I also think that if you claim to never go over a possible conversation with someone in your own head, you're a liar.  OCD brings me to a new level of imaginary conversations. This particular one brought me to tears. I have a vague notion that I've hurt someone's feelings--- with OCD and Anxiety together, I can't be sure that I have. I thought of this person accusing me of not caring if I hurt them.  While I know this is something they would never actually say because they know it isn't true, I could fully believe they'd feel this reaction.  Reactions are emotional and not rational. Insight is when you realize you're reacting to something from your past rather than what's really going on.  I realized at the moment that I care so much about what this person thinks and feels that it's landed me in therapy to sort out.  There's nothing this person needs to do to change this; it's all on me.  It's my perception that needs to change. I need to go back to my past to improve my present. Astrologically, this is the perfect time.

Maybe that's all the excuse my scrambled brain needs.

Walk This Way

One of the side effects of therapy is I see more than just my issues in a new light. It's not always a great experience. Whether or not these new discoveries are more accurate than my previous position, they can never been fully dismissed again.  Maybe that's also a side effect of having OCD.  Either way, the kaleidoscope spins and the pattern is never the same.

Of course therapy is only one way to change your thinking. The positive part of this is that it's voluntary.  You have to do the work in your sessions to get insight. Insight has been explained to me as the understanding reasons you've been intellectualizing-- the difference between "knowing" something and "feeling" it. Insight is the goal in therapy; once you've gained it in relation to your problems, you can learn to deal with them better.  It's not a cure. It's the step necessary to loosen the vise grip your mind has on your issues.

Life in general changes your perception but this is a much more gradual and unconscious method that is usually based on emotion rather than fact. We let our emotions twist what we see into what we want to believe. It's dangerous because we are entirely too susceptible to manipulation and none of us wants to believe that.

Society shrieks at the thought of manipulation without seeing the subtle influence of just about everything around us. Once we start to see it, we push it away with all our strength because we've been conditioned to believe Being Wrong is a Fate Worse Than DEATH. It all starts with that confident response we all have: "I'm not being manipulated."

Sad truth:  we all are. I'm not sure how to find the balance between healthy awareness and paranoia. I seem to always take things to extremes. (Cue Billy Joel...)

 I rolled my eyes at all the hot topics that would obviously lead to the end of the world. Video games are too violent!! Explicit lyrics!! Sex on TV!!  BARBIE!!!!  Honestly? I never gave a conscious thought to Barbie's measurements. At 5 years old I was singing Roxanne without understanding a word of it and at 12 I was rapping along with Run DMC's cover of Walk This Way still completely oblivious.  I listen to the lyrics now and wonder why my pre-teen self wasn't chewing on a bar of Ivory soap. Did this cause me harm?  I don't think so, but I can't be sure because there isn't a control group for my life. Surely we were taking it all too seriously and if we just raise our kids right then what they watch/listen/play/see/read wouldn't have a negative effect. There's truth to that... except parents are just as venerable to desensitization as the kids are. What we watch, listen to, and read all plays a role in who we are, whether we realize it or not. I don't advocate for stricter control over the media we consume-- though I'm a big fan of Content Warnings--- but I do think we need to be sure to discuss both the positive and negative influences. Why is the cast mostly white?  Male?  Females are only thin, gorgeous and rarely in charge? People of Color are the criminals?  POC who are not criminals had to overcome a rough youth?  Is it really ok to torture a suspect?  Do the ends really justify the means? If you think that's overboard or think that's political correctness gone mad, these discussions are how to raise your kids right.

Yes, this can all be taken too far.  There aren't government conspiracies hidden on a chewing gum wrapper, though I'm sure some conspiracies are true.  The person following you in the parking lot probably is just parked nearby, but be ready to defend yourself anyway.  And, more often than not, a homemade clock is just a clock.