A To Z Blogging Challenge: Tea Leaf Reading Dictionary “D”

Hi, and welcome back to the A to Z Blogging Challenge – Tea Leaf Reading Symbol Dictionary! We are already at the letter D today, and I am having so much fun sharing this exciting info with you.  For some extra fun, I wanted to share with you a short list of other forms of divination, you might not have heard off. There are of course many more, but then this would become a little to long for a blog post. Enjoy!

ARITHMANCY or ARITHMOMANCY is an earlier form of NUMEROLOGY where divination is made through numbers and the number value of letters.

ASTRAGLOMANCY or ASTRAGYROMANCY is a form of divination by dice where the faces of the dice bear numbers and letters.


‘AUGURY is the general term for the art of divination and is chiefly applied to interpretations of signs and omens.

AUSTROMANCY is divination by the study of the winds.

AXIOMANCY is divination through the observation of how an ax or hatchet quivers or points when driven into post.

BELOMANCY is an ancient form of divination performed by tossing or balancing arrows.

BIBLIOMANCY involves divination by books.

BOTANOMANCY is divination from burning tree branches and leaves.

CAPNOMANCY is the study of smoke rising from a fire.

CATOPTROMANCY is an early form of crystal gazing that utilizes a mirror turned to the moon to catch moonbeams.

CAUSIMOMANCY is divination from the behavior of objects placed in a fire.

 

But now, let’s get back to our Tea Leaf Reading Symbols.

Letter D:

Dagger: this symbols has been interpreted to both mean favors from a friend as well as potential danger, with its distance from the person read for the deciding factor of how worrisome  that danger actually is. I personally find that in a reading this symbol should be considered a weapon and therefore as a warning, but not necessarily a physical danger.

Deer: a bad symbol for business ventures – the path you are taking mostly likely will lead to failure, adjustments are in order to calm the situation, or better yet a complete change in course direction

Dogs: this symbol should be read while considering what dogs mean to the person read for. If they are a dog person, this is generally a favorable sign, if they are afraid of dogs, than this speaks of their inner-most fears, fears that need to be overcome.

Dove: a lucky symbol, with a very personal message attached, comfort and hope, and for the business person this is a very fortunate omen. Look out for more guidance, maybe even from someone who has passed on, or is too far away to reach you in person. A messenger bird with a happy meaning.

Dragon: great and sudden changes with an element of disruption and possible danger

 

40 Things That Make Me Happy – And Why You Should Make a Happiness List, Too

There are times in our lives when trying to remember those little things we usually enjoy, becomes a difficult feat. May it be, because we experienced loss, are suffering from depression, going through marital problems or have financial trouble, a list of things that make us happy, can remind us of what we have, and help us for a moment to create a more hopeful state of mind to work from.

Here are 40 Things That Make Me Happy  – No Matter What

1. Hugs from my kids
2. The excitement of my dogs, when I get home
3. Coffee
4. Thumbprint cookies
5. Great, fresh bread
6. the scent of rain
7. Ducks upon a pond
8. the sound of a horse breathing
9. Drama television shows
10. a good romance novel
11. getting a text message from a friend
12. online banking
13. blog groups and link ups
14. taking pictures
15. designing/creating/working on a piece of my art
16. warm socks
17. flannel sheets
18. hibiscus tea
19. the sound of birds in the trees
20. spring time
21. black and white photography
22. inspirational quotes
23. flowers
24. the theater
25. a fresh, new notebook to fill with ideas
26. typing “The End” after a long short story, or a book
27. Jared Leto (yes, I am weird, lol)
28. being “cleaned” by my cat
29. A comfortable sofa
30. Nutella
31. a smooth-writing pen
32. Irish Dance
33. traveling
34. German chocolate
35. strawberry cheesecake
36. Happy Endings in stories
37. thick, white snow
38. trees
39. squirrels eating peanuts
40. my dog barking in her sleep

What do you have on your list? Why not create your own post and share it with us in the comment section below!

 

Check out the following journals for your gratitude and happiness lists:

Flower Power, Ivy by Sophie Gamand
from: Redbubble

Nine by fioski
from: Redbubble

Caterpiano by Jorge Lopez
from: Redbubble

Releasing Anxiety – Learning To Say No

Overwhelmed, and over-stressed, not just something must of us only suffer throughout the holiday season, but rather all year long. No matter if you are your own boss, an artists trying to create on your time off, or work in your dream job, stress catches up with everyone of us at least every once in a while.

I am not an exception. But I am thankful that I have come across a little trick to keep at least some of this stress at bay – saying no. Not just to what others want me to do. Yes, that is important, because the demands of others upon our time and energy can be draining, but I am also saying no to myself.

There are always so many things I want to do, accomplish and create, that it  can feel like I am drowning in want to do lists, and should do lists. But there is no way I could ever create EVERYTHING I have on those lists, so I learned to tell myself no.

Floral – by Claudia H. Blanton

I gratefully said no to the following items on my want-to-do list

1. Post every day on this blog (heck, I had the Flu, work almost full-time, and run my own business, there is simply not enough time in the day)
2. Participate in NaNoWriMo.
3. Bake multiple batches of cookies during the week – I limited myself to once a week baking.
4. Have all holiday shopping done by end of November. No one will care when I bought them their present.
5. Work on multiple book projects simultaneously. I am finishing up my Flash Fiction book, publish it and then work on the next project.
6… and many more

This was an important decision to make, one that kept me from re-living those anxiety-filled moments, where I constantly worried about not doing enough. Those moments stole my sleep, and any type of ability to relax, and stay focused upon the most important aspects of my life – my family. It is hard to enjoy someone’s company, I realized, when their attention is on what he or she should be doing instead, making those around us feel like they are not as important.

Taking charge, and saying no to myself allowed me to make that healthy shift from anxiety to true productivity.

Do you feel overwhelmed with responsibilities at times? Are there any items on your list you could let go off?

Christmas Cheer Postcard

One thing I do not let go off, are my gratitude lists. And because it is Friday, I am adding 5 things I am grateful for right now, to this post:

1. My thick red favorite sweater. That piece of clothing has become my best buddy over the last few weeks. I just wish I had multiples of the exact same one – warm, soft and cozy.
2. Coffee – of course. I am always cold – see above – so a hot cup of coffee is always by my side.
3. The loudest cat I have ever met, but who happens to have chosen us as his family. My goodness, I have had many cats, but never one as demanding and loud as this one. He talks. To me, the dogs and whoever is willing to listen.
4. Sleeping in – I was actually able to sleep in a little yesterday, which has been rare lately. That felt good
5. Silence – at this very moment, it is absolutely quiet in here – no barking, no talking cat – he is asleep – the kids are quietly busy, and the phone is not ringing. Ahh, this is nice!

I hope you have a lot of things to celebrate and be grateful for as well.
Today’s post is part of the following blog hops:

Friday Finds

Share With Me

What Are You Doing – Blog Hop

Inspire Me

Celebrate The Small Things

40 Hashtags Every Writer Artist and Creative Should Know And Use

The power of the hashtag is undeniable and constant. May it be to make it easier to find your projects on places like Medium and Wanelo, or the most commonly used hashtags on Twitter, which can make or break your visibility. But which hashtags are the most effective to use for a creative person to get noticed? I have compiled a list of popular, often used hashtags you should use and check out often:

For Writers:

#amwriting

#amediting

#WordCount

#AuthorLife

#writingtip

#writetip

#Ebooks

#AskAgent

#AskAuthor

#AuthorLife

For Visual Artists, Graphic Designers, and Print On Demand Folks

#GraphicDesign

#FineArt

#Design

#artwork

#illustration

#DigitalArt

For Photography 

#photography

#photog

#Foto

#picturesoftheday

#travel

#picture

#photographer

For Bloggers

#Blog

#Blogs

#Bloggers

#MondayBlogs

#Blogging

#Blogpost

#bloggingtips

#problogging

#lbloggers (lifestyle bloggers)

#Bbloggers (beauty bloggers)

#FBloggers (fashion bloggers)

Day Specific Hashtags:

#MondayBlogs

#TopTenTuesday

#WWWblogs (Women Writer’s Wednesday)

#ArchiveDay (Saturday – for sharing your older posts)

#WeekendBlogHop

#SundayBlogShare

I highly recommend that you print out this list, and utilize these hashtags in your postings, but also get actively involved in the communication around these hashtags.

Stay tuned for more tips and tricks on Marketing for Creatives.

The Path Of A Dreamer – A Haiku

Image “Kindred Spirit” by SoaringAnchor http://shrsl.com/?~7ikq

murky depths of doubt
forging a path through darkness
longing to be free

Copyright Claudia H. Blanton 2015

(Disclaimer: This image by SoaringAnchor called “Kindred Spirit” is available at RedBubble, of which I am an affiliate, supporting independent artists, and connecting them with a wider audience)

 

Gratitude And Books – A Weekly Blog Hop-Smash Up

I love blog hops, but lately everyone seems to have one on Friday! In order to participate in the blog hops I want to, I chose to combine two from now on, and will call it the “Gratitude and Books Smash Up”.

The two blog hops I am combining are the weekly “Celebrate The Small Things“, hosted by dear Lexa Cain, and the “Fast Five Friday Blog Hop”, which is book related.

Here is my gratitude list for the week:

I am always grateful for books, and this week I had a special chance of purchasing a few really good non-fiction books, I have been “dying” to get. They are three books related to symbolism and lore surrounding birds, specifically as it relates to Shamanism. I love birds, and have a special connection to them, due to my spiritual path, so I was so happy to be able to get these books.

Another book I purchased, and for which I am grateful for was talked about in a productivity web series I recently watched. It is called “Getting Things Done – The Art of Stress-Free Productivity” and I highly recommend it.

Speaking of web series, I am very grateful for Michael Sliwinski, the founder of Nozbe to have created a wonderful, useful and very inspiring series on productivity. It helped me a lot so far. Organization was never my forte, but by following through on his advice, I am actually getting better at it.

I am also thankful for the fact that the holidays are over. I love holidays, but I prefer to have a more uninterrupted schedule. 2015 feels like a  year, where I need to get things done.

Now off to the second blog hop “Fast Five Friday”!

Fast Five Friday Participant

This weeks Fast Five Friday Prompt asks us to write about the five most anticipated novels of this year. For me personally, the following five novels, are those I am looking forward to reading, some of which I am already asked to review, others I hope that I will get a chance to review before their release date. Either way, these books sound pretty great. Check them out!

Hero

Silent Scream

Hades

Crown for Cold Silver

First Frost

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

Claudia

O Is For On My “To Read And Review List”

My “To Read And Review List” has been growing since the beginning of the A to Z Challenge, so I wanted to share with you the books that I will be reviewing on this blog over the next few days/weeks (time permitting) – not necessarily in this order.

 

1. Street Fighter Origins: Akuma

Release Date: April 4th 2014

 

 

2. Don’t Let Go by Sharla Lovelace

Release Date: April 15th,2014

3. Dinotopia: First Flight

Release Date: April 23, 2014

4. The Crochet Workbook

Release Date: March 19, 2014

5. Terminated

Release Date:  August 8th, 2014

I am very much looking forward to sharing my thoughts about these books with you!