Carnival is a State of Mind

Getting Back on Subject for a while: 

Carnival in Brazil.  During Carnival it is very similar to Mardi Gras if you have ever been to New Orleans.  It is very much the same here, but there the party is only in New Orleans.  Here in Brazil it is a State of Mind for everyone in the country. 
The biggest Carnival Parade is in Rio de Janiero.  There are different schools of samba.  Whoever is competing (like 14? Schools), the are all given 1 song.  The school then creates a story made out of costumes and floats.  Whomever tells the best story, with the best costumes and float design, etc. wins.   It is just beautiful to watch on TV.  The ticket to Rio's Street Party/Parade I heard was around $200/person.
It is great to go to Rio but if you cant, you want to find a city with a street party or just enjoy life where ever you are.  No matter where you are in Brasil someone is celebrating carnival somewhere.  We took the kids to a party during the day and then went out for dinner and drinks later that night. 
To all Brazilians Carnival means something different.  The majority of Brazilians see Carnival as a grand 5 day Vaccation.  You dont have to be in Rio or Sao Paulo or dancing in the streets to enjoy carnival, most people enjoy it in their homes with their families and friends.  Oh... and the beach. 

Whats in Your FOOD???

This next topic is serious and to some, it may be far out there.  I was recently sent a link by my Aunt to this Youtube Video.  I just watched it and wanted to post it for you to see, like it or not it's time to think. 

I also want you to read my blog from 11-23-2010 called Soapbox & A Bunch of Stuff.  I heard it first hand as Monsanto has a factory here in Brazil.  The Brazilian Government dosen't allow for the use of these seeds here nor High Fructose Corn Syrup.....

Here is the link that was sent to me:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSpkLk0vYmk
After you watch it there  is a part 2 as well to watch.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=iv&annotation_id=annotation_416806&v=-B9MeO3SRxU

In-San-I-T-Y

There is no doubt that we can toot our horns for the things that we have done to help other countries and you also can’t turn your head and pretend that we haven’t caused harm at times either.  I have lived long enough to know that everything has a price and we are a strategic government, correct me if I am wrong but don’t we still have a military presence in every country that we have “helped”?

Jen said something in her Facebook comment that I loved.  She said “we are not perfect, the world is not perfect…but it is time to start new forward thinking and practicing peace on individual levels.  Be the change that you wish to see.” 

Tonight, while talking with a good friend, I was led to a post by DanO.

The Dalai Lama, when asked what surprised him most about humanity, answered “Man…Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money.  Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health.  And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future, he lives as if he is never going to die, and then dies having never really lived.”

I have read it over and over again and it seems different to me each time.  The one thing that I am completely sure of other than death is that I don’t want to die not having really lived or feeling that I am always missing something. 

I have already sacrificed my health in the name of money and then spent 6 years trying to de-stress my lifestyle in order to correct a health problem.  I know I worried about money too much to live in the present and always thought about the future but I would default to my past looking for help as I experienced new situations as a completely different person than I was years ago.  What is it when you do the same thing over and over and expect a different result?   Insanity!

One last thing about money… I used to run this over in my head when I owned my own business.  My husband used to say this to me all of the time.  “You shouldn’t worry about money when you don’t have any money, worry about it when you have it.”