My Bill Phillips Challenge

I am a writer.  I've written a screenplay.  I'm writing a book.  I went to a Mark Victor Hansen Mega Book Marketing Seminar and learned a ton about being a writer and getting published.

That's where I heard Bill Phillips, author of Body For Life, whose vision is to see "The Great American Transformation Experience (GATE)" become a reality (www.transformation.com).  He has dedicated his life to helping people transform not only their bodies, but their entire lives, by helping them get healthy through a 12 week program he designed.  He's already helped multiple thousands of people.  Bill says "Imagine a nation of truly healthy, happy, energetic and bright people.  Inspired to live life to the fullest; creating value for one another and giving great care to themselves as well."

The challenge, which started yesterday, March 24th, and will conclude on June 15th, is for the writers who attended the Mark Victor Hansen conference.  We are to write about our transformation and submit it to Bill as a book.  The top 10 winners will each receive $10,000 in cash for themselves, and $10,000 to donate in their name to the charity of their choice.  

My transformation started yesterday.  Yes, I took a picture and no, I'm not going to post it!!!  

Physically, I've always been fit.  As a child, I was in gymnastics.  I played soccer with the boys in Jr. High.  I was on the high school ski team.  I was a cheerleader.  I love to rollerblade, escape on my bicycle, do stairs in the hilly part of town (Silverlake and Los Feliz has lots of hidden stairways).  But I have to be honest.  I've gained about 5 solid pounds of "extra" within the last year, and I've experience a serious lack of energy in the past 5 months.  So even though I've been going to the gym, the pizazz to sweat has not accompanied me.  

And that is what I think the transformation book will be about - for me.  My book will be about finding that pizazz, that vitality of life force that moves a person forward, gives them the passion and zest - the MOTIVATION to move and life life to the fullest.  

I am excited to get back into that fantastic shape that I love so well.  I am even more excited to find myself again.  That's truly living.

Thanks Bill, for the challenge!

What's next?  Spinach, ginger, apple and carrot...juiced in a juicer and consumed in a straight shot with a bottle of water for a chaser.  Yummy!!  

                     

I love livin' in Los Angeles!!!!!!!!

I'm from Portland, Oregon.  I grew up there.  You'd think I'd be okay with the rain.  It's absolutely beautiful there.  Green.  

I went to college at Oregon State University.  Corvallis, Oregon.  Beautiful.  Cow town. Literally, if the wind was in a certain direction...ug!!  My favorite escape from college studies was a bike ride down the highway into the lush countryside toward the ocean.  Beautiful. Unless the wind was blowin'... 

I spent two years after college in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.  I recommend all Americans get out of "dodge" and stay out of the states for a year or more.  It really gives one a broader perspective on our world.  My favorite newspaper was the Herald Tribune.  My favorite food was patates with mayonaise.  I LOVED Amsterdam. The old world feel, the coblestone streets.  I didn't have a car for two years!!  I rode my bike everyday and the Metro.  It was awesome.  

During my two years in A'dam, I traveled to awesome places like Sofia, Bulgaria, and a mountain village in Albania where a group of dutch young people and myself helped  the locals rebuild their school.  It was during the summer, and besides all the wonderful times of helping people and discovering the world, I discovered how much I loved the warm weather.  We're talking 90 degree heaven!  I couldn't get enough of it!  I remember waking up at 6 am in Sofia, Bulgaria.  Red dawns.  The sunrise was just incredible.  We were staying at an old olympic dormatory.  I would get up and go running (jogging) (trotting) and I was just in heaven.  I loved being warm.

I moved back to Oregon after Amsterdam.  After those trips to Hungary, Bulgaria, Albania, Greece...  What a wonderful time that was.  

I spent two years in Oregon, finding myself.  Life after Europe.  Is there such a thing?  I ended up moving down to Los Angeles.  I had experience working as a crew member on commercials and I decided to move to LA and find more work.  I lived in LA for 8.5 years.  Then a crazy thing happened.  I moved back to Portland.  WHY??????!!!!!!!!!!!

I loved it here.  Why did I move back to cow town?  To P'town, as they call it up in Seattle.  To Stumptown, as they called it 100 years ago, because they cut down all the trees to make room for the growing city.  

It's rainy most of the time.  It's grey with clouds.  Aw shucks, okay, I'll admit it.  It's BEAUTIFUL when it's sunny and lovely.  And they have great beer, and fabulous restaurants, and...oh, the skiiing is great too.  And mom and dad are there.  And my brother and my sister.

But the sunshine...I love the sunshine.  The WARM wind, the WARM sunshine bathing my body in WARMTH.  It was 87 degrees today.  Granted, a little warm for March.  It will be in the 70's this next week.  I like it best at 85 degrees.  

I moved to LA last November.  I'm back in the land of Sunshine and Action and Energy and Happenings, and Oppportunity, and a ton of awesome restaurants and when you have money, there is so much to do and see and play and.........

I'm back in Los Angeles and I am so happy.  

On The Move

Today I read "One The Move" by Bono.  Powerful, intriguing, effective.  I went to www.one.org and signed up.  Bono described the aids pandemic as the leprosy of our generation.  Colin Powell, a 5 star general, called it the greatest W.M.D. (weapon of mass destruction) of them all.

"The One campaign, a growing movement of more than two million Americans...left and right together, united in the belief that where you live should no longer determine whether you live."

We live busy lives.  So often we are so busy maintaining our own existence, we feel we do not have time for anything else.  There are little things we can do - baby step things - that can and do make a difference.  One drop in a bucket by itself is one drop.  However, if a whole bunch of people add their one drop, the bucket will overflow.  

Jesus is quoted as saying "Give and it will be given to  you, a good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and flowing over into your lap.  For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."  Luke 6:38

So today, you can do a drop - visit www.one.org and sign up.  Bono gives lots of great ideas about how you can help - little drops that add up!  I did.  I signed up today, I sent an email to friends inviting them to join, and I'm writing about it in my blog - all ideas Bono gave me. :)

Have a splashin' great day!

2008 Rising Star Awards

This is what it's all about!

I did what I said I would do...

I journaled this morning about my two years in Portland and wow, what a great exercise that was! I was looking at negative aspects of my life in Portland, and consequently forgot all the great times I had. And I had tons of great times, great experiences, lots of travel, new friends, discovering new places, etc. Portland has seasons!! I hiked, spent time with family, I loved watching the snow fall, walking through the beautiful leaves on the ground in the fall, the crisp, cold air on my face, the coffee shops, the art galleries. NW Portland's Pearl District has "First Thursdays" - the first Thursday of every month all the art galleries have open houses, music, free snacks, wine bars, and there is one street where they close it to traffic and it becomes a walking street where budding artists show their works, sing their songs, and make merry. Thousands of people flock to the area to partake. It's a wonderful community event and I enjoyed many of these nights!

Ever since I joined Liberty League International and started using the Beyond Freedom home study course on personal transformation, my life has become better and better. Because of the community I am attached to through LLI, I am doing new things to improve my life. This idea to focus on the great things I did and experienced during my two years in Portland came to me in the middle of the night. I wrote the idea down, and took action. The tool of paying attention to these ideas and writing them down was taught to me in LLI. I am soooooo grateful to LLI for the wonderful transformation of my life. Every day in every way, I am getting better and better!!

For more information about Liberty League International, just call me directly! 503-724-9490 PST
Have an awesome day - you deserve it!!

Movin' On

I spent two years in Portland, Oregon, my home town, after having lived in Los Angeles for 8.5 years. I went back for a few reasons - see about a relationship (which didn't work out), live in an area of Portland I'd always wanted to (NW area) and I did and loved it, and be closer to my family. Portland is a great town. It's not a huge city like NY, Chicago, or LA, but it has fantastic restaurants (one of my friends is 3x Iron Chef of Oregon and owns the newest, hottest restaurant in town - Sel Gris) and tons of places to hang out. I miss that aspect of it actually. Great beer, great pubs, great coffee houses to hang out (it rains a lot so that's a good thing to have), plus it's so green and beautiful (when it's not grey and rainy). I'm rambling.  

Thing is, I've been thinking to myself that I sort of regret having spent those two years there - and away from LA where I can make my dreams come true. (Film maker). I love the sunshine. What was I thinking? I sort of got stuck there. I got in a rut there. The grey skies, the cold temperatures (I thrive in 80 degree weather)- it all wore me down. My business suffered big time...I had to get back to LA.

But I cannot regret my time in Portland. I cannot look at it as a mistake. And last night, I woke up with a realization. Perhaps by continuing to have those "I made a mistake" thoughts, I was holding myself back somehow. Here as I write this I am finding it hard to describe... Does everything happen for a reason?

So as I was waking up, a thought crossed my mind and I wrote it down (I have learned to keep a notepad by my bed because I think a lot of wisdom bubbles to the surface when I'm asleep...anyway...I wrote down that I should journal about all the great things I did and the great times I had and the wonderful things I enjoyed during my two years there. That way I could celebrate the good things, forget the negatives, and MOVE ON!