Category Archives: Musings

Our Little Secret

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One afternoon while walking along, minding our own business, something registered in my peripheral vision. Willa and I stopped. Looked. And what do you suppose we saw?

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Much to our surprise and delight, hidden in a hedgerow we saw a sun-dappled faerie village. And while we haven’t spotted any of its occupants—yet!—I’m confident that with a little patience, one of these up-and-coming dusks we will.

This village brought to mind the gnomes my mom used to have. No more than ring-finger height—including their pointy red hats—you’d turn around in the kitchen and find a rosy-cheeked fellow peeking at you from behind a cookbook; or look over your shoulder in the living room and see the beard and belly of one who hasn’t fully pulled himself behind a collectable on mom’s display hutch.

What’s your most recent encounter with whimsy?

© lauriebuchanan.com

Beauty Knows No Pain

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I remember sitting on the floor between my mom’s knees as she brushed through the tight curls on my head. I yelped in pain when the bristles encountered snags and she’d counter with, “Beauty knows no pain.”

Two decades later mom used “No Tweeze” on me to remove stray eyebrows. I yelped in pain when she yanked the hot wax and calmly said, “Beauty knows no pain.”

Liar, liar, pants on fire! 

Recently I learned a pain-free beauty tip…

Hold frozen spoons—straight from the freezer—on closed eyes to eliminate under-eye puffiness. The person who showed me this trick placed the spoons directly on her skin, moving them slowly in a circular motion.

When Len said, “You’re going to get frostbite,” I discovered that placing an old washcloth between my skin and the spoons allows me to keep the spoons there much longer, yielding even better results.

He also said, “Laurie, you’re scaring Willa, you look like an alien!”

spoon eyes 2

What’s your best pain-free beauty or grooming tip?

© lauriebuchanan.com

The Magical Faerie Whisk

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Last year at this time we had a house full of guests, among them an elementary-school aged girl. Helping in the kitchen—apron clad—she was fascinated with our faerie whisk. Busy with the tasks at hand, “Are there really such things as faeries?” she asked in wide-eyed fascination.

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Carefully sprinkling colored sugar and a wee bit of pixie dust on the cookie tops, I smiled at her thinking, “Who am I to deny their existence, especially at this magical time of year?”

Rather than the Americanized spelling fairy, I prefer the Gaelic spelling faerie, meaning from the realm of fae—those who know. And yes, there’s a difference between faeries, sprites, and pixies:

  • Faeries are woodland dwellers.
  • Sprites live near water.
  • Pixies—highly mischievous!—oversee moorlands, underground dwellings, and stone circles.

What do you find magical this holiday season?

Wishing you health, peace, and joy!

Laurie Buchanan

“Whatever you are not changing, you are choosing.”
— Laurie Buchanan

The Book—Discovering the Seven Selves
The Experience—Life Harmony

© Laurie Buchanan 2013

Find me on Twitter @HolEssence
Find me on Facebook

Sinew, Bone, and a Dash of Stardust

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Not limited to NASA, astronomers, astrologers, or sailors, stars have played significant roles in science, astrophysics, metaphysics, and many spiritual traditions since mankind first glimpsed the night sky and saw them strewn like winking diamonds across a black velvet canopy.

I took this photo from the upper level in Shakti — one of my favorite stores on State St. in Madison, WI. © Laurie Buchanan 2013

Physics tells us that every element in the periodic table—aside from hydrogen—is essentially stardust. Pivoting off that information, if we know how many hydrogen atoms are in the human body — 4.2×10 (to the 27th power) — then we can say the rest of the atoms —  2.8×10 (to the 27th power) — are stardust. Hence, the amount of stardust atoms in our body is 40%.

Star light, star bright,
First star I see tonight,
I wish I may, I wish I might,
Have the wish I wish tonight.

If you could have three wishes granted—other than for yourself—what would they be?

Caveat: none of the wishes can be to have unlimited wishes…

Laurie Buchanan

“Whatever you are not changing, you are choosing.”
— Laurie Buchanan

The Book—Discovering the Seven Selves
The Experience—Life Harmony

© Laurie Buchanan 2013

Find me on Twitter @HolEssence
Find me on Facebook

The Makings of Home Sweet Home

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A robin feathering her nest
has very little time to rest
while gathering her bits of twine and twig…

A few weeks ago when the branches were still bare, we saw the makings of an impressive nest in our back yard. Having recently trimmed Willa’s coat, it’s clear that birds find her wiry hair to be prime building material!

It might be a person, a feeling, a specific structure, or a tangible item—what makes a house a home has as many different answers as there are people. Whether you’re:

  • Gil in South Africa
  • Kevin in Scotland
  • Sandi in the southern US
  • Terrill or Leanne in Canada
  • Sam near the Big Apple
  • Ted in New Zealand
  • Kathy in a her little house in the big woods

What is it to you that makes a house a home?

Laurie Buchanan

“Whatever you are not changing, you are choosing.”
— Laurie Buchanan

The Book—Discovering the Seven Selves
The Experience—Life Harmony

© 2013 Laurie Buchanan – All Rights Reserved

Find me on Twitter @HolEssence

Rod Stewart and Déjà Vu

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A couple of weeks ago I drove an hour and a half north to Janesville, Wisconsin. I didn’t go alone, I took my road companion of many years — Rod Stewart.

We jammed along Route 14, passing farmhouses on both sides of the frozen trek as the sun pierced the early morning sky. Crossing the border he asked, Do you think I’m sexy? Well, of course I do!

Arriving early for my appointment, I was shown to a waiting area. The ambience had a distinctly cool, futuristic feel to it that triggered an immediate sense of Déjà Vu — the sensation that what’s currently happening has been experienced in the past.

This, however, was like Colette Baron Reid’s book, Remembering the Future. This experience hadn’t happened in the past, it happened in the future, yet I was remembering it…

This is an untouched photo, straight from my iPhone. Eerie, isn’t it?

Mouth dry, heart accelerating, my now-clammy hands eased earbuds in as Rod’s stony-throated voice assured, I’ll stand by you, won’t let nobody hurt you, I’ll stand by you. I hit the “repeat album” button just before I was asked to remain perfectly still and a contrast agent was injected into a vein in my left arm.

As Rod and I drove home together we both wondered out loud, Have you ever seen the rain coming down on a sunny day? And came to the conclusion that, An old raincoat won’t ever let you down.

What was your last sense of Déjà Vu?

Laurie Buchanan

“Whatever you are not changing, you are choosing.”
— Laurie Buchanan

Discovering the Seven Selves     Life Harmony

© 2013 Laurie Buchanan – All Rights Reserved

Vastly Different from being Freshly Pressed

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In the twenty years we’ve lived in our home, we’ve never had air conditioning. Instead, we open all of the windows, strategically place fans throughout the house, and use heavy antique irons to keep the doors from slamming shut.

Vastly different from being Freshly Pressed, “Ironing wrinkles out of the fabric” is a phrase I use to convey straightening, or smoothing out a situation.

At day’s end, Len may ask, “What did you do today?” If I respond, “I ironed wrinkles out of fabric” he knows full well I spent no time at the ironing board.

Instead, I may have defused an argument, helped someone down-shift accelerated emotions, or assisted a student in their quest for obtaining scholarship funds.

When was the last time you ironed wrinkles out of fabric?

© TuesdaysWithLaurie.com

Wait Loss

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Different from weight loss (the shedding of pounds), wait loss (the shedding of patience) is less attractive on any figure.

I try not to do battle with time; clearly, it’s a losing proposition. Yet recently I found myself sitting in a waiting room swarming with other people who—like me—were becoming impatient. Fast!

Breathe yourself through this Laurie…

  • Inhale to the count of four.
  • Hold to the count of seven.
  • Exhale to the count of eight.
  • Repeat until your name is called.
  • You can do this.

Time—yours, mine, and ours—is irreplaceable. None of us knows how much of it we have left. Not to be squandered, every moment of this precious commodity should be enjoyed to the fullest.

Are you gaining or losing wait?

Listen with your heart,

Laurie Buchanan

“Whatever you are not changing, you are choosing.”
— Laurie Buchanan

Discovering the Seven Selves     Life Harmony     Facebook

© 2012 Laurie Buchanan– All Rights Reserved

Daylight’s Burnin’!

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This week I celebrate Double Nickels — my 55th birthday.

In reaching this milestone it seems reasonable to suggest that I’ve got more time behind me than I do in front of me. In fact, daily I can hear John Wayne’s voice, “Slap some bacon on a biscuit and let’s go, we’re burning daylight!”

And while the package I reside in has changed considerably over the years, I still feel the same on the inside—bright and sassy!

How do you feel on the inside?

Listen with your heart,

Laurie Buchanan

“Whatever you are not changing, you are choosing.”
— Laurie Buchanan

Discovering the Seven Selves     Life Harmony     Facebook

© 2012 Laurie Buchanan– All Rights Reserved

Mind Your Own Business

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Do you remember Gladys Kravitz—the nosey neighbor who lived next door to Samantha and Darrin Stephens—on the television show Bewitched? She was always curious about what other people were up to:

Samantha Stephens: Oh, hi, Mrs. Kravitz. What a surprise (not!).
Gladys Kravitz: I came over for a snoop of, uh, a scoop of sugar. I hope I’m not disturbing you.

Our dog Willa—aka Mrs. Kravitz—is a snoop in the first degree. When our neighbors are in their back yard, she peeks through the fence!

Willa would do well to heed Hank Williams’ song, Mind Your Own Business!

I have more than a dash and a dollop of curiosity. When I was a young girl, my hero was Harriet the Spy.

Have you ever stuck your nose where it didn’t belong?

Listen with your heart,

Laurie Buchanan

“Whatever you are not changing, you are choosing.”
— Laurie Buchanan

Discovering the Seven Selves     Life Harmony     Facebook

© 2012 Laurie Buchanan– All Rights Reserved