Pepsi Refresh Project

This has been a dream of mine for the past several years. I was with a friend one night, talking about jobs, kids, etc., and she asked me what I would do if I could do anything I wanted. Out of the blue (but probably not really), I said "I want to have a massage therapy school." I had been involved with another school and went to the owner and asked her if I was crazy and she said probably, but it was definitely doable. After several discussions, she offered me an opportunity to create my own class at her school and gave me the freedom to incorporate new and innovative ideas. I thrived on it and had never been happier doing anything else. Unfortunately there was a difference of views and our collaboration (and sadly, our friendship) ended abruptly and hurtfully. But the idea of having my own school has always been in the back of my mind. God is always on time and I pray that this is my time! Hi, Maribeth! Your $5,000 Grant proposal "Open a massage therapy school" has been approved and will be viewable online after 6:00 am EST. Check out your profile to track your idea while votes are cast. Start spreading the news to your friends & family and tell them to vote. There's no time to lose, voting ends July 31st, 2010. Please note that as of June 1, 2010 rules for the Pepsi Refresh Project have been updated to expressly prohibit proxy voting. To ensure a fair, accurate count of votes, the site is monitored by an outside company. Any idea that uses proxy voting, which includes but is not limited to creating multiple or dummy accounts and voting on behalf of other users, may be disqualified. Any questions? Please consult the FAQ's (Frequently Asked Questions) or feel free to call our customer service line at 1-800-768-2784.

The Biggest Basket in the World!!

If you've never seen the largest basket in the world, it's in Dresden, Ohio and is the home of the Longenberger Basket Company.

One of my friends asked me if I'd like to take a day trip to the Big Basket and give foot and leg massages on the trip back. Being a new massage student, one of our assignments was to do 15 massage sessions outside of class...it could be a foot massage, neck and shoulders, hand massage, anything but a full-body massage.
After shopping all day, she thought her friends would enjoy a relaxing foot massage, and I was thinking that I could knock out all my outside sessions in one day!

We met at Cracker Barrel at the crack of dawn (I think it was about a 4-hour bus ride). As soon as I stepped on the bus, one woman yelled "Oh, goody! sit next to me, sit next to me!" (First of all, I don't like yelling, and I especially don't like yelling at 6am). Of course I HAD to sit with her and during the entire trip she told me about her difficult pregnancy (she was 3-1/2 months pregnant, so WHY would you take a day-long bus ride?) She told me how nauseous she was and that she felt she might throw up any minute...(oh, goody!) she told me about her scoliosis and what a risk she was taking by having a baby, etc., etc., etc....no, wait! etc., etc., etc.!!

When we arrived at the Big Basket, I tried my best to distance myself from her without being rude, but she followed me around the tour, talking incessantly and buzzing around me like a gnat!

One of the things we were taught in massage class was to prepare ourselves, or "ground" ourselves before we began a massage. It could be just a simple act, for example, visualizing ourselves as a tree rooted into the ground. My "grounding" has been and still is to simply say "give me clarity and clear intent." This is just to protect ourselves from picking up a client's negative energy, and to protect the client from picking up anything we might have affecting us negatively as well.

When we boarded the bus to come home from Basketland, the little gnat buzzed, "I want to be first. I want neck and shoulders, though, not a foot massage." My thought was to get this over with as quickly as possible so I could move on to the other shoppers on the bus. WARNING! I was so anxious to shut her up that I forgot to ground myself first. As soon as I laid my hands on her, a wave of nausea ran through my entire body. I excused myself, went directly to the back of the bus and threw up! She made me physically ill! I slept the entire way home and didn't get any of my sessions done :(

I'm sure there are many of you out there that have had an encounter with someone that you physically felt either negative or (hopefully) positive energy. Sometimes it can be immediate and profound. Again, trust your instincts...they never fail you.

Trust Your Instincts

This is my first blog, and unfortunately I have to talk about an incident that happened two nights ago when I first received a text from an unknown number. The message I received was "Hey so u give massages?" to which I replied "Yes...who is this?"
"I'm dan. What do u charge Hun?"
Okay, let me stop right here. Who calls someone they have never even met, Hun?? (First clue).
Conversation continues:
Me: $65;
Dan: "Cool. So tell me about your massage and types u do?"
At this point, I'm still trying to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Me: Who referred you?
Dan: "Internet"
I'm trying to determine where this guy is calling from, since the number is from the Fort Wayne area.
Me: "You up north?"
Dan: "By Castleton area."
Me: "I do basic Swedish and therapeutic."
Dan: "Ok I would like a softer massage FULL body."
(The emphasis on "FULL" raised another red flag.)
Me: "U might want to go someplace like felipe's."
Dan: "What's that?"
Me: "A spa in Castleton."
Dan: "They good? Why not come to u?"
(Trying to think of an excuse to ditch this guy.)
Me: "My massages might be too deep for you...they have several therapists there to choose from."
Dan: "I'd like to try u."
Me: "Ok...when? Want to make sure u understand my massages are strictly NON SEXUAL."
Dan: "I understand the other place do handjobs? Lol"
(I'm not LOL-ing!)
Me: "Uh.....no... :("
Dan: "Why sad face babe"
(Dan, you don't even know me and don't have the right to call me "babe." EWWW!)
Me: "Ok, I'm not comfortable with this conversation."
Dan: "I'm not sure what I said wrong. Sorry. Have a good night sorry I bothered u."
To all the "Dans" of the world listen up! If you want to hire a prostitute, call it like it is. You're the people that give legitimate massage therapists a bad rep.
Most of us are trying to run a practice that enables clients to de-stress, relax and be nurtured in a safe, loving environment. If not, then it's PROSTITUTION people!