Smorgasbord A Collection of Thoughts Experiences and Stories is now in the Cover Design stage of the publication process. I was hoping this book would be available for purchase by Thanksgiving, but at this point I’m thinking closer to Christmas.
Here’s a little sneak peak. 😄✍🔥💯
There are a lot of people who call bullshit on the topic of self-awareness especially when it has to do with meditation and things of that nature, but in all seriousness, I can’t stress the importance of having self-control.
Would you like to know where I’m going with this? Emotions. We’re living during some strange times, and the older you get, the weirder things become. No one is immune to emotions-you might be pretty good at identifying triggers, but no one is totally immune to emotions. If you were you wouldn’t be human right? Exactly.
Something happens, you feel the emotion it causes, and then boom! Your body responds. The whole point of having self-control and finding ways to center and ground yourself in the moment is so you don’t have a complete and total meltdown. You must be able to maintain attention, awareness, and focus.
Two days ago I was sitting in the back of a Lyft ride. We were at a red light. I was so excited because I was on my way to purchase a new car, which meant for the first time in seven years, I wouldn’t have to walk. All of a sudden, we were rear-ended-smashed from the back by another driver. When I asked the girl driving the other car what happened, her response was, “The guy behind me was honking his horn.”
So because the driver behind you gets impatient and beeps his horn at you you smash into me?
If you follow my blog then you know how I feel about this whole COVID situation, but I must say, if we learned anything from COVID, it’s to be more self-conscious and aware of what we’re doing. For example; you’re standing in line at the store paying at the register, and the person behind you is so close they can read the numbers off your debit card.
Social distancing has reminded us to respect people’s space. It has also given a reason to stop, slow down, and think for for a moment.
We can’t control the actions of other people nor should we try, but we can have more self-awareness. We can become master’s of ourselves, our emotions, and how we respond when we get knocked off center.
There’s a lot of craziness in this world today, and our patience is tested constantly. How we react in certain situations can be the difference between a really good or a really bad day. Thank God I’m all alright because we were hit really hard.
You should be striving to get yourself to a point where you’re making conscious decisions; the choices you make and the actions you take should be of your discretion. Sometimes we just react-I know, but when you find yourself in a position where you’re around other people who can be impacted by your decisions, take a moment and then decide. Don’t let anyone rush you.
I’m in a really unique situation right now because I just purchased a new car after walking for the last seven years. Just like our response to COVID has reawakened us to rules and practices regarding self-care, health, cleanliness, and personal space, driving again has reawakened me to some things people who’ve been driving for last seven years have either taken for granted or forgotten. So, let me remind you.
Driving is definitely a privilege. You won’t realize how necessary a vehicle is until you’re without one. Walking everywhere sucks, and doing it for seven years will have you hating life. There’s always the bus, but then you have to deal with strangers, however, that’s not so bad, but you’re at the mercy of the bus schedule.
Being at the mercy of the bus schedule brings me to my next point, convenience. When you have a car you have the freedom to come and go as you please. I used to sit in my room trying to get a Lyft ride at 5:45 in the morning, and then I would go to work and work a ten-hour day. After work, I would have to wait an hour sometimes for my Lyft application to connect to a driver. That sucked! Now I get up in the morning, go through my routine, and off I go. When work is over I’m out. No more waiting around.
I can go anywhere anytime, and so can you, and that’s something we grow accustomed to and forget the value of. I would also like to mention something else about Lyft. There are pros and cons to just about everything, and whenever I talk about Lyft, I have nothing but good things to say because Lyft was there for me when I really needed their service. I was able to get around and get to work without having my own car, which is how I ended up getting a car of my own, but after three years there were certain things that were starting to bother me.
Since COVID, connecting to rides has been hit and miss. The wait time is much longer; I guess people are afraid to drive during the pandemic, which is understandable, but I was getting tired of riding in a car with strangers. I consider myself to be a morning person, but I like my mornings. I don’t always want to start my day off having a conversation with someone I don’t know, but hey, we do what we need to do sometimes. Also, this accident I was just involved in was the second time I was rear ended in a Lyft ride. So now my safety was becoming a concern.
As a new driver once again I would like to remind everyone to stay alert and pay attention while driving. Stay off the cell phone, and make all your adjustments and settings before the ride begins. There was a time when we lived without cell phones. Let it ring until you get to your destination because no call is that important. It’s life and death. Yes, it’s that serious. 3,700 people die each day in automobile accidents.
By
Francis Joseph LaManna
Sometimes things happen during our lives and a light switch gets flipped. The deeper and more focused you are, the greater the event. When the new millennium began in 2000 and 2001, I was head down and shoulder pads deep in football. It was my third year at William Paterson University in Wayne, New Jersey, and we were preparing for our third game when 911 brought the country to a screeching halt.
Football was my life, I loved it, but a new reality was on the horizon. Of course, I was upset. My sacred space had been infiltrated, and I was forced to look up and around at the new world before me. Never, in all my years of playing had a football game been cancelled. It took some time, but eventually I accepted the facts. Football was just a game, and all games end, but with every ending, there’s a bright new beginning.
We are living through amazing times, we truly are. If part of our mission here is to wake up, you couldn’t ask for anything more. In March of this year the school district I was teaching in was shutdown immediately on the 12th because of COVID-19. Soon after, the entire country was shut down. In April, we saw Americans out protesting the “stay-at-home-order.” Citizens all over the country were occupying their state capitals and local town centers.
In May, first amendment supporters were pushed aside as peaceful protests and public assemblies gave way to violence and looting as we experienced the backlash of the George Floyd murder. Here we are now; November is right around the corner and as a country, we’re still dealing with the COVID crisis. I know there are people all over the world who are upset, and I know there are a lot of young men and women who feel like their private sanctuaries have been infiltrated-just like I did, and that’s a good thing. If you’re upset and frustrated it means you’re being woken up for a higher calling. Consciousness is kicking the door in, and it’s screaming. It’s telling you that you have a real purpose. You might be young, and your generation may not be running the word at the moment, but you need to embrace the change.
As we look around at the new world before us, we can see the turmoil in political, religious, educational, economic, and ecological systems, but remember, there’s a bright new beginning after every ending. The energies are powerful, and something special is going to come out of all this, but in the meantime, we must figure out a way to navigate through this new and changing reality. Go with the flow.
I always wanted to be a writer. I was a communication major in college with concentration studies in journalism, but after graduating, I pursued teaching. I pursued teaching in New Jersey, and again in Pennsylvania. When 2020 began, I was enrolled in a teacher certification program at a local college and I was substitute teaching. For me, COVID-19 was the new 911. The country came to a screeching halt, I couldn’t teach, and I couldn’t go to school. I was upset and frustrated, and once again, my sacred space had been infiltrated, but I learned. I didn’t spend time dwelling on what was. Events beyond my control were pushing me in a direction. When I stopped resisting, I realized the position was one I always wanted to be in.
When the economy shut down, and I was at home, I didn’t complain about being out of work; I didn’t complain about school closing. I wrote a book, and I sent the manuscript to several publishers. A month later, I received a call from Fulton Books in Meadville Pennsylvania, who eventually would become the publisher. The book is titled, Smorgasbord A Collection of Thoughts, Experiences, and Stories, and it should be available for purchase before the end of this year.
Consciousness is something within all of us, but it’s something that must be activated. It must be sparked or lit. It must be stoked. The switch must be flipped, and it’s not the good things you enjoy doing that’s going to do it for you. It’s the turmoil. All the things we’re experiencing right now in 2020 that’s disrupting our way of life will. The roadblocks, the setbacks, and all the things beyond your control that frustrates and angers you will. Yes, we’re living through amazing times so don’t spend too much time dwelling on what was. You’re being pushed towards something greater. Go with the flow.
You know, every once in a while you come across someone who’s behavior just shocks you. I’m not going to mention this scumbags full name or the online publication he claims to be the publisher of because he’s not worth the publicity or the free advertising.
What’s my problem with this guy? I’ve officially been in the “spiritual” field for the last thirteen years, and when I say the spiritual field, I mean New Age Practices, Metaphysical, and Holistic Living.
The other night I was on the computer trying to find magazines, both hard copy and online publications that I could freelance or submit articles for, and I came across a good list of about 20 sources.
To make a long story short, I’ve never, in thirteen years in this field of peace, beauty, and spiritual living ever met a mean or nasty person. The people who are in this field are usually very sincere, patient and looking for help- but this guy…
You were nasty and rude to me.
This scumbag claims his online magazine is serving the health and wellness of his local community, and his magazine is Midwest’s foremost metaphysical and holistic magazine. This piece of trash claims his magazine focuses on medicine, fitness, spiritual and personal growth.
Well, I don’t know how any of those claims could be true of anything you’re the publisher of.
All I wanted to do was tell you that I liked your magazine, and I wanted to ask you if I could submit an article, but forget it.
You’re rag mag ain’t worth wiping my ass with.
Have a good day everyone.
Good Evening.
I hope everyone is having a spirited and fun-filled Halloween. I heard or read the other day (I don’t remember) the property where the Vatican is was a 2nd century cemetery housing all the men and women who died in the name of faith. Saint Peter’s Basilica was built to honor them.
I wanted to mention something that has absolutely nothing to do with Halloween, the Vatican, or people dying for faith. Last summer I bought a bathing suit. It was turquoise-solid turquoise. I wore it several times during the summer, and it always looked turquoise. Just plain old solid turquoise. Two weeks ago I wore it to the gym; don’t ask. Anyway, while I was working out I looked down at my bathing suit, and I noticed clear as day, a hula girl print on them. I couldn’t believe it. It felt like I had a different pair of shorts on, and when I got back home I took another look at the shorts, but the print disappeared. Now it looks like a turquoise bathing suit again. Just plain turquoise. I guess it must’ve been the lighting, but I’m wondering, would I have bought that bathing if the hula girl print was visible when I picked them off the rack. Maybe.
Listen to this. I just looked at the bathing suit to see if I could see the hula girls under the light in my bedroom, and I couldn’t, but I looked inside at the tag and it said Magic Print Bathing Suit. There you go. It’s magic. It’s interesting how this bathing suit story just came to me. I’m sitting here trying to figure out why I decided to write about the bathing suit, and I’m just now realizing-the answer is subconscious guidance. Yes, two paragraphs, which on the surface present two different topics, but when you dig..
I swear I did not plan this.
The Holy See! The Holy See is also called the See of Rome, and it’s the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Rome, which includes Vatican City! I can’t believe it. I now believe the purchase of that bathing suit was divinely inspired.
Is there a connection between turquoise, hula girls, and the Vatican? I’ll let you know when I return from the rabbit hole.
You know, with all the hoopla surrounding mischief night and Halloween, we forget about 11.1. Let me just tell you that 11, 111, and 1111 is very powerful. 1111 is a cosmic gateway, and an entrance leading you to a brand-new start; but November 1st or 11/1 is All Saints Day. It’s a celebration to honor all the saints both known and unknown.
I was just watching the Celestine Prophecy again for the fifth time, and there’s a scene in that movie when they’re talking about the energy we transfer. Some people can see it. Yes, it’s beyond our reality, but there are special people who can see auras and energy fields. In the movie the woman said to her friend; Do you notice the halo of light surrounding the heads of the saints in all the old photos? Do you think the artist just made that up.
Amazing.
Have a wonderful night, and enjoy the rest of your Halloween. Oh yeah, don’t forget to visit our merchandise page. Get yourself a Nooz Buffet t-shirt.
Last night while I was laying in bed trying to sleep, I received a text message from 315.273.1209. The text contained personal information about myself and family, and the scammers are threatening to send people to my house and chop me up and kill me unless I send them $2,500. They sent some pretty gruesome pictures of people with blood on their faces, and they were missing body parts.
I googled the number and found a message board with a bunch of people who received similar messages from the same number. Please, write in if you received any calls or texts from this number. I’d like to know how you dealt with it.
It might be worth mentioning that a day before I received this text, a woman called my phone asking for Father Don. I don’t know if the two are related but it seems coincidental.
It was in the morning sometime before noon when I found this really cool looking rock sitting at the base of a lamppost. I looked at it closely because it definitely wasn’t something you see everyday, and I noticed that someone painted it with light shades of green and blue and a little purple around the sides at the bottom.
When I turned the rock over there was some writing on the bottom, but it was really small, and I didn’t have time to figure out what it said. I laughed to myself and put the rock in the side pocket of my vest. I think almost two weeks passed since that day, and I completely forgot about the rock.
Until….I wore the vest again a few days ago. As I was walking, I put my hand in the pocket and said to myself, “what the hell is this?” It was the rock! To make a long story short, I turned the rock over, and on the bottom it said “post on FB Quakertown Rocks.”
When I finally realized whoever painted it wanted me to take a picture of it and post it on the Quakertown Rocks Facebook page, I just started laughing; I was really excited too-like way more excited than I probably should’ve been, but I’m into stuff like this.
It’s been about a week since I posted the pictures of the rock I found, and I’m already getting responses from warm and friendly members. As it turns out, the Quakertown Rocks Facebook page has been in existence for quite some time, and this amazing fun-loving hobby of painting, hiding, finding, and posting is what’s happening.
I joined, and yes, I’m officially a member now, but I still can’t believe what I stumbled upon. The Quakertown Rocks Facebook page has brought together over two-thousand people who are creative and passionate about their rocks. The energy is contagious!
I don’t know if you’re familiar with Quakertown Rocks, but I definitely suggest taking a look at their Facebook page. Happy Hunting!
❤💯🤣🌞❤🎨
What’s up everyone? I hope you’re all having a wonderful week. Today is Wednesday, October 14, 2020, and it’s a gorgeous day. When I woke up this morning, I was freezing; the thermostat said 62 degrees, and so I assumed it had to be cold outside.
Nope. Warm and sunny all day!
📕If you’ve been following my blog Table Seven here at https://noozbuffet.com then you know my new book Smorgasbord is in the page design and illustration phase.
I don’t know how many people know this, but we all should; our government is not a democracy it’s a Constitutional Republic. Voting is not mandatory. I don’t remember the exact year, but early in our country’s history we decided presidents couldn’t run for office unless they were running against effective opposition. George Washington had no party affiliation, and he might’ve been the first and last. As a matter of fact, Thomas Jefferson was a Democratic Republican and John Adams was a Federalist. Many people think that decision was a mistake that eventually led to problems. Let’s think about that for a second because those people do have a point. Creating a two-party system did what? It divided the country. Wouldn’t it be better if we had like five candidates running for the office of president? One by one they come to podium with their personal credentials, qualifications, and achievements. They step up and face the public and promise to uphold, defend, and protect the United States Constitution, and then, they give their speech and present their case for they’re the right person for the job. (More to come on this)
The issues between Greece and Turkey are escalating in the Mediterranean. According to Newsweek online, Athens, without a clear site of resolution, seeks United States intervention. Both countries are members of NATO and war between them could disrupt the alliance.
☠ Conchata Ferrell, co-star on the show Two and a Half Men died. She was 77.
🌙Currently, the moon is the astrological sign of Virgo. Tomorrow, the moon will enter libra, where it will remain until Friday the 16th.
🌞The sun is in the astrological sign of Libra.
💥During WWII, Britain dropped a bomb on Poland. The bomb was called Tallboy, and it landed in a canal in Poland but it never exploded. Recently, someone discovered it, and approximately 850 residents had to be evacuated from the area, while experts detonated it before removal.
🚽Philadelphia, Harrisburg, and Reading, three places believed to be Pennsylvania shitholes, are actually all ranked on the list of best places to live in the United States.
Alright everyone; have a wonderful night and a blessed week. I love you all.
💕💯🔥🗽🚀
Hello everyone! I hope you are having a wonderful weekend. It has been a while since the last update concerning my new book Smorgasbord A Collection of Thoughts, Experiences, and Stories, but we’ve made some progress.
Fulton Books in Meadville, Pennsylvania is the Publishing Company, and for approximately the last three months Smorgasbord has been going through the rigorous editing process.
Until Friday…
Yes, I’m excited to share we’re now moving into illustration and page design. I do not have a release date yet, but Smorgasbord should be complete and available for purchase sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Look for it on: Amazon Kindle, Apple iTunes, Barnes & Noble Nook, Google Play, and Paperback.
Coming in 2021– Smorgasbord 2 Catchup and Relish
If someone keeps telling you you’re wrong, eventually, you’re going to believe you’re wrong. If someone keeps telling you you have an attitude problem, you’re going to believe you have an attitude problem. If someone keeps telling you things about you that aren’t true, you’re going to believe them even if they’re not true. It’s conditioning, and the sad part about “conditioning” of this type is that you might not believe what these people are saying about you or to you at the moment, but overtime, these comments will wear you down. Over time, they’ll break you down. Over time you’ll lose confidence in yourself, and you’ll become a timid-hesitant person.
Why?
No one wants to be wrong. No one wants to be known as the person with the attitude. You don’t want to be perceived as the trouble maker, the bully, or the person who’s always arguing.
So you change yourself to compensate for people that are really the problem.
It’s like the husband or wife who hits their partner and says, “See, look what you made me do.”
People need to take responsibility for their own actions.
Today I walked into a store to purchase a few items. I had earbuds in and a hood on. The cashier rang up my items, and then when it was time to pay, I inserted my card into the reader. Well, he made a mistake and needed me to take my card out so he could start the transaction over. During that process, he got an attitude with me and was kind of rude. He was upset because he couldn’t get my attention immediately, and I told him he needed to talk to his customers with a little more respect.
My mother, who drove me there, tells me in the car I have a problem, and I’m always arguing. She continues to tell me that if I didn’t have a hood on or earbuds in that that wouldn’t have happened.
It doesn’t matter if I had a hood on, sunglasses on, a hat on, earbuds in, and a scarf around my face, if the cashier couldn’t get my attention immediately he should’ve been patient. Eventually, probably within seconds, I would’ve taken my earbud out and looked up wondering why the transaction didn’t go through
There’s right and wrong behavior, and we all know when we’re in the right, and when we’re in the wrong. Don’t let people tell you you’re the problem because chances are it’s the person who’s telling you that that really has the problem.
How do we break patterns that break us down? By becoming aware of them, and learning from the situations in which they occur.
Eventually, you’ll learn not to go to those people who are always putting you down or telling you have a problem. Eventually, you’ll realize that you’re behavior is 99% justified because your behavior is the response to people who are either mistreating you, or abusing you.
Now, check this out. Certain people command respect. It’s their personality. It’s the energy they put out. Even if you’re having a bad day, you’ll still treat these people with respect.
Why are you different? Because somewhere along the line you’ve become timid and hesitant. At some point, you lost your confidence and you no longer put the energy out there that commands respect. You’ve become a pushover, and that’s how people treat you.
The road back to confidence starts with you complaining a lot. Every time you encounter a situation where you’re mistreated, you’ll complain, and eventually, people will say you have a problem. You’ll learn though. You’ll learn how to swiftly respond to someone who mistreats you for no other reason than they’re having a bad day. When you reach that point you’ll stop complaining.
