Month: October 2025

My Halloween celebration began with stressful air travel issues. With breath and spine intact, I got all the help I needed to proceed to my destination. Arriving in my rental care to my girlfriend’s warm smile made it all worthwhile.

As we walked and talked, the stress was replaced by joy. Opening gifts and making use of them in our evening together with her husband and my brother reminded me that I prepared well for all this trip requires. Today I drive to continue this celebration with another girlfriend, with more preparations in place for some safe festivities.

How well have you prepared for today? Can you let go of the stress in order to enjoy this Halloween? Ki to Happiness wishes everyone a safe and stress free Hallowed Eve.

I started looking for my email alerting me to check in for my upcoming flight yesterday. It never came. I attempted to check in through the website but ran into the Alaskan Airlines software snag.

At first, I felt tense about it until I realized that this is not personal. Lots of other travelers are also running into similar issues as we have seen in the news. My morning practice will help me keep that attitude as I go through the process today of getting a boarding pass at the airport like everyone else.

How readily can you depersonalize issues? As you do so, can you still take responsibility for your part? Ki to Happiness depersonalizes issues while taking responsibility for her reaction. 

Now that we know that the fragrant candles are toxic to our environments, I’ve been experimenting with other ways of bringing in the seasonal scents. Most often I use essential oils or incense, and recently I received the lovely gift of an essential oil candle. Last night students commented on how good the studio smells.

I placed a cinnamon infused broom outside our entryway and a vanilla infused broom on the inside. On the stove, I’ve been burning lemon peels with water, affording its fragrance to freshen the mix. Altogether the combination is warming, clearing, and uplifting.

How keen is your sense of smell? What are your favorite scents of the season? Ki to Happiness chooses healthy ways to enjoy each season.

After the wind storm, we had a few sun breaks yesterday afternoon. The light illuminated the freshly pruned trees in our neighborhood. Lots of branches and leaves are down now.

Bob celebrated it in class with extra sun salutations in our sunny studio. Spectacular light shone through the red maple in front and bounced off the mirrors. It created an invitation to practice yoga as a dance of light.

Can you take a moment and delight in beauty? How does it affect your practice? Ki to Happiness delights in nature’s beauty which inspires beautiful practices.

At 9 AM, Bob put a note on the door canceling class as it wasn’t safe since without power our studio was too cold and dark. After he turned away several students with apologies, we set up a nest in the entryway by the glass door so we had enough light to read and enough blankets for warmth. Just then the power returned!

We shifted to prepare for the 1030 class. With lights and heat and music on, we broke down our little nest and returned the space to normal. Students arrived, and we started on time, grateful for the Seattle city light workers.

Have you ever noticed that when you accept things you cannot change, sometimes they change? How grateful are you for your “normal”? Ki to Happiness is especially thankful for all the little things that are really big: heat, light, warmth, shelter, plumbing and the infrastructure that supports us.

After teaching my morning classes, I checked the weather forecast. The Wind advisory in effect made me check our signage on the curbs. We needed to secure them already, which got me alerted to the likely need to prepare for power outage.

Heating the warning, I got out flashlights with good batteries, powered up our devices and thermosed plenty of hot water just in case. This morning, the generator kicked in next-door, alerting the cats to get me up to check on the strange sound. In the dark, I reached for the flashlight and proceeded to feed the cats as I got into my yoga practice with hot water and candles ready on my altar.

What do you need to be prepared for power outages? Do you heed the warnings? Ki to Happiness is preparation.

This morning as I made offerings at my altar, I spilled the tea as ai placed it by my statuary. I cleaned it up and used the damp towel to wash my face, then wiped down the rest of the surfaces. I remembered the expression of “spilling the tea” as a metaphor for deep sharing, like occurs in the private sessions I offer as a holistic counselor.

In the safe container of the therapeutic hour, clients divulge secrets and shadows otherwise held within. It can get messy, and yet the clean up offers an opportunity for further improvements beyond the freedom of expression. One’s face and space may also be freshened.

What secrets and shadows would like to express? What safety would such expression require? Ki to Happiness holds the space for spilling the tea and cleaning up after, privately in sessions and publicly in classes.

Our healthy Halloween treats arrived. I ordered them from Tricked by the Treats. Free from artificial coloring, sugar, gluten, soy, they are full of natural goodness.

Last night’s students enjoyed some, and took some to share with others. Spreading the good vibes to their sphere of influence, our offering will reach a wider audience. We have plenty for our whole community this week.

How healthy are your treats? Can you switch them up to benefit your tricksters? Ki to Happiness shares from her bounty of blessings.

I found discounted kohlrabi at our local grocery store. I never tried it before so I asked one of their team members about it. It sounded pretty good and at $1.75 for 4 worth a try.

After googling vegan recipes, I settled on a basic roast. I ate it with a little vegan sour cream and Bragg’s liquid aminos. Turnipy potato satisfaction rewarded my culinary and gustatory curiosity.

Are you open to trying new foods? Can you experiment in your kitchen? Ki to Happiness is rewarded for safe experimentation.

With help from Angel and the Archangels, I successfully enrolled in Medicare. While I hope to never need the coverage, I’m glad to have it. I appreciate the many opinions I received along the way.

As a Social Worker, I have been educated in these services. Even so, the gauntlet of emotions the digital maze stimulated took all my tools to manage. Deb, Jill, Ruby, Greg, Angel, Tracy, Paula, as well as Ray and Mom all assisted in their way while I moved through the process and continued with all my responsibilities.

What tools help you deal with frustrating processes? Who do you turn to for assistance? Ki to Happiness breathes and hold her head high as helpers seen and unseen respond to my call for aid.