Path of the Integral Mind

2006-09-03T07:55:00.000-05:00

News

2006-08-30T10:49:00.000-05:00

Path of the Integral Mind is my first blog. I am working on others and plan to use this blog as my catch-all for everything that interests me that I want to write about. In the coming days there will be much more content and a ton of great links.

Feel free to use these articles as inspiration when you are out of topics and are trying to get a few more posts written for the day. My latest find is Qumana - a great FREE Blog editor and content manager that allows you to work off-line, drag and drop content between blogs, and it works with most of the blog hosts I've come across. I am currently using Qumana for my WordPress and Blogger sites and in the next few weeks I am planning to expand to BlogHarbor and a few other so I can let people know the pros and cons of each.

If you have any questions about various blog editors, hosts, or tools let me know. I have tried many of the free and shareware options. Is there some freeware you want to know more about? Are you looking for tools to enhance productivity or make life a little more fun and user friendly? I'm your girl. You can email me or catch me on Google Talk, AIM, and Yahoo. I will post links to all of the above shortly. If I don't answer go ahead and IM me and I will add you to my buddy list to catch up later when my 2 yr old isn't sitting on my head or attempting to flush my PDA down the toilet!

Powered by Qumana

2006-08-30T10:24:00.000-05:00

<a href="http://www.technorati.com/claim/vbgvjjjbzf" rel="me">Technorati Profile</a>

Food for the spiders!

2006-08-30T10:18:00.000-05:00

<a href="http://www.technorati.com/claim/vbgvjjjbzf" rel="me">Technorati Profile</a>

Random Post to my Technorati Profile and below there is a list of Blog Hosts that work with a great blog/content manager called Qumana. It works with most blog hosts and is an incredible tool for working on content for multiple blogs! I can copy and paste text between posts for multiple blogs and work on content offline. They also have a great drag and drop tool for adding links, pics, and more to your posts.

Qumana blog editor and blogging tools

The $100 Laptop Project

2006-08-18T20:27:00.000-05:00

The article below has great information about the One Laptop Per Child Project. The idea of the $100 laptop has been around for a long time. Some companies have even offered rewards to those who create a viable product. Please read the article and let me know what you think!

WorldChanging: Tools, Models and Ideas for Building a Bright Green Future: It’s cute. It’s orange. It’s got bunny ears -- An update on the One Laptop Per Child project

USATODAY.com - A blogger shines when news media get it wrong

2006-08-09T20:49:00.000-05:00

USATODAY.com - A blogger shines when news media get it wrong

How can Reuters be complaining about this guys supposed bias when, regardless of his motives, he is exposing fraud in journalism? Unless he's been lying on his site (and I'm sure those he discredits make every attempt to discredit him) what do I care what his motives are? I would prefer that he disclose them if he's writing about an issue he is passionate about, but I've rarely seen mainstream print journalists do this so why should he? Most of the news outlets today are biased - Fox News is conservative, MSNBC is more liberal. The Washington Times - conservative, the Post - liberal. I've never seen a banner or disclaimer from them!

It's interesting to watch the mainstream media fall victim to their own tactics. Maybe this will teach them to be a little more careful about the truth...well who am I kidding, they'll still be journalists working to claw their way to the top, but at least now they know someone is watching!

CNN.com - Goofy galaxy spins in wrong direction - February 11, 2002

2006-08-09T17:13:00.000-05:00

CNN.com - Goofy galaxy spins in wrong direction - February 11, 2002

I ran across this article and thought it was interesting. I enjoy anything that stumps scientists - it tends to lead to new discoveries. Anytime what we "know for sure" is challenged it helps to remind us that we aren't much different that we were at ten as far as knowledge goes; there will always be so much more that we don't know and the wiser you get, the more you realize - there isn't much anyone knows for sure!

Customize Your Computer!

2006-08-05T21:14:00.000-05:00

Freeware download categories at SnapFiles.com fully reviewed and rated

This is an incredible site for finding great programs at the best price out there - free. They also have Shareware and Retail, but why not try the freeware first? There are a number of software programs on this site that also offer a free trial - this is great for figuring out what kind of features you want or need in a program and which you can do without. So stop spending all of that money on title after title, never finding the right one. Download some freeware, see what you do and don't like about the programs and check out the user reviews. You will be a software expert in no time and have a computer that does all you want it to do!

Want to Play God?

2006-08-04T23:32:00.000-05:00

Spore Gameplay Video - Google Video

Now this is what I call Integral Art! A holistic video game! There is something for everyone in this and I imagine if you take the time to play with it a bit you will be fighting over it with your spouse, partner, and/or kids!

I really haven't been playing video games for the past couple of years. A combination of motherhood, declining health, and loftier pursuits have conspired to keep me away from the latest toys. I'm afraid age and those annoying morals & values have conspired to keep me away from those sparkly new DVDs sitting in their boxes. Purchased with the hopes of having a few moments and left to collect dust after only a few hours of play. Even Civ IV and Sims 2 didn't manage to tear me away from my child, sleep, eating, Tivo, books, writing, and the like. In my former life, the era I refer to as BB (Before Brady) all of the above would have been put on hold for hours a day as I mastered an exciting new title from Maxis, Sierra, or even [albeit relatively briefly] the latest expansion from Everquest (hey, I was under duress I didn't know the person I was dating at the time was a closet gamer - by the time we moved in together it was too late - it was either beat 'em or join 'em so I thought I would give it a shot). Anyway...

Make sure you watch the last 10 minutes of this video so you don't think I've lost my mind. This is a game, a designer, a sandbox, and a number of different games built into one. It's Sim Earth, Sim City, Black White, The Sims, Civilization, a Genetic Mutation Engine, Evolution/Creation Theory on (lots of really good) drugs, Masters of the Universe, and a control freak's dream all rolled into one. The best part is you get to play with the products of other players twisted minds without having to put up with 14 year old kids in a Massive Multi-Player Online Role Playing Game - this is also great news for the other members of your household who won't be screaming at you for hogging the bandwidth for the year or 3 I'm sure you'll be addicted to this game!

Will Wright and Maxis have done it again! They are about to blow the entire PC Gaming industry wide open! At the beginning of the video it looks like a game only a geek could love. As the game progresses past the creature shop you get into designing the morals, culture, attitude, and goals of your new race of creatures!

As you upgrade intelligence more games become available to you. All of the sudden you are creating a society and a city at the same time. You then move into trying to encourage your peeps to become more intelligent and resourceful by giving them tools, improved brains, better quality of life, etc. All the while you are trying to stay alive. You may either peacefully co-exist with the other species/cities so you will be left to your own devices or you may conquer other species to get higher on the food chain.

Eventually you end up evolving to the point that you can give your peeps a UFO. Use it to terraform a planet. Then use the SETI module to "listen" for other civilizations and drop in for a visit. Why is this cool? The civs you will visit are taken from the worlds and races other players have evolved. This is not an RPG - the civ is simply downloaded to your Universe and AI takes over.

Anyway I am off for the night! Have a good one!

Spore Gameplay Video

2006-08-04T22:34:00.000-05:00

Incredible new game that lets you be the Intelligent Designer of evolution. I would go ahead and make a few jokes at your expense regarding the probability of your design being, well, intelligent, but it's just too easy! Thi game looked boring to me at first but once you get to the point where WW is showing you the wild things that you can create it will blow your mind. I can't wait to get my hands on this game, I think my Sims 2 Expansion Pack purchasing days will be over! Check out the Maxis site and search for Spore for more info!

Will Wright talking at the 2005 Game Developer's Conference about 'Spore', which looks like it could possibly be the best video game ever.

Angry moms tell the world - Home - Times Online

2006-07-30T13:54:00.000-05:00

Angry moms tell the world - Home - Times Online - A somewhat humorous but mostly disturbing article about crazy drivers, revenge by speeding groceries, and women who see the glass as broken instead of half full!

I am amazed by what's said on this site, mob mentality maybe? I am a Stay At Home Mom (SAHM) and I've been through a short period of baby blues (PPD), exasperation with husbands that don't realize the hormonal impact of creating a life, the misery of the first month of breastfeeding, and that fierce maternal instinct that probably made the Mom in this article react the way she did. I've always been a big proponent of truth in advertising when it comes to becoming a mother, but I really don't understand the rampant hostility on this site!

It's important that new mothers know that they aren't the only women not having a Hallmark card experience, but the women at Urbanbaby.com are extreme! They need to think of the alternative - what if you hadn't been able to have that child? What if your child or husband died tomorrow? Say what's on your mind, but try to adjust your perspective a bit and view the big picture instead of focusing on petty complaints. There are plenty of people in the world that would gladly pay to trade places with you.

I don't know about any of you, but when I became a mother it was as if someone had opened my eyes and turned on my heart! The world was suddenly a bright place shining with hope, love, light and endless potential. When I began to see the world through my son's eyes - I was reborn with this sixth sense - childlike wonder!

Before Brady was born, I didn't often marvel at the purity and invigorating hues of bright green blades of grass. I never noticed how magical it is to watch an elderly woman's face transform when my son smiles at her. When you're out with a baby there is no such thing as a stranger. The world seems to celebrate with you! Pushing a baby through the store in a grocery cart brings a smile to the face of everyone who has ever held a newborn baby and inhaled that heavenly baby smell. Until I became a mother I had been living in a dark world with void of the best colors nature has to offer. The sense of community is amazing - you've joined the oldest club in the world - motherhood. From now on there are millions of women that I share a secret language with. Anyone with children has a common understanding - they aren't strangers anymore. Before you had children, how often had you had a 15 minute discussion with a stranger in the grocery store?

Yes, Motherhood is an impossible task. Never completed and rarely can one be sure she's succeeded , but would any of us choose to give it up no matter how great the tribulations? Just remember the first time your child gazed into your eyes and you realized he knew you were his mother! Try to hear that first "Mama" and "I love you." Picture those first smiles and the way his eyes lit up when you came to take him out of his crib each morning. Listen for the echoes of his infant coos, toddler giggles, and curious little boy's questions. Never forget the feeling you got when a rough and tumble little boy looked up at you with complete trust and placed his tiny, soft hand in yours with complete trust that you would protect him. Feel that sweet sleepy head rest on your shoulder and that warm little body curled up with you after a bad dream.

Would we trade it for anything? Only the chance to experience it all, all over again.

Green Business & Cradle to Cradle Industry

2006-07-28T15:37:00.000-05:00

Green Business

Thursday, July 27, 2006

I'm so excited about making people aware of these issues that I'm posting very rough drafts of my first articles on these subjects. Please keep in mind that most of what you are about to read was posted as-is with no editing or rewrites. It's train of thought writing and brainstorming so I'll apologize in advance for my tendency to jump around a bit. I'll be sure to post the finished product when I complete my research and write a more professional version; as I learn more about these issues my opinions are bound to change a bit and I'll be able to add more depth.

In the next few posts, you will find excerpts from my upcoming articles on eco-friendly business and living. Remember, these aren't even drafts yet! They are stream-of-consciousness works inspired by skimming through old notes. After watching a documentary on Discovery Times, "Addicted to Oil: Thomas L. Friedman Reports," my research that had grown dull and dusty in my Outlook archives sprang to life! One hour of television breathed new life into ideas and projects that had been sitting in quiet repose in the far reaches of my mind and hard drive. My research took off in exciting new directions!

I'll be trying to get more topics of interest up and running on this blog and my Zaadz page. I'm currently working on a number of different projects that are loosely tied together. The first has the working title "A Guide to Changing The World - Finding Your Calling and Taking Action." The second is more of a life project that has been instrumental in expanding my mind and motivating me to "Be the change you want to see in the world." (Gandhi). This of course is my plunge into all things Integral. Look up Ken Wilber if you want to change your life! The Integral Institute (I-I) led me to www.zaadz.com where I am now an Ambassador for Change! I am working on getting the Integral Psychology, Integral Parenting, and Virginia Beach Zaadz pods up and running.

Don't just read it and forget it, DO SOMETHING in your community!

The Mundane

2006-07-26T18:01:00.000-05:00

Well, yet again another day has passed and I haven't had time to get my links list, book list, favorite philosophers, authors, quotes, etc. posted on this blog or on my zaadz.com Pods! It's been another crazy couple of weeks! It's been years since I managed to have this many doctors appointments, family crisis (my extended family is nuts), friends calling with various meltdowns, and my 2 yr old has discovered temper tantrums, pretending to cry, and has realized that he really doesn't HAVE to listen. This is all in the midst of beginning the joyous experience of Potty Training! ACK! The good news is Brady is now using the potty without prompting 4 times + per day and we've just begun - bribery works so well!

I am working on finding more to post for you guys! My computer has been acting up so many posts and emails I have attempted to write are lost! We've gotten some new software and as our computer network expands we seem to have more problems!

In the Beginning There Was...

2006-07-15T10:13:00.000-05:00

I was going to write most of this in a private journal, but I figured I might help others discover Ken Wilber, Integral Theory, Integral Institute, Buddhism, Eastern Thought, Integral Parenting, Meditation, you get the idea, if I blogged it instead! So here goes - this is my journey to becomming more evolved and learning how to change the world!

I've been a "seeker" for as long as I can remember. I've never needed to cling to one religion as they all seemed to say the same basic thing: be compassionate, love others no matter how different or dislikable, try to be the change you want to see, and be a positive force in the world! I was raised a Catholic-Protestant-Jew - a Caprashew of course :) - so you can see where being open minded about the Godhead would come pretty easily. Luckily my parents never tried to give me impression that one was more right or better. We weren't big into the dogma either. My Mom just raised us to help others, be good people, and accept people from all walks of life! We're still trying to get her to stop picking up hitchhikers - she really believes that people are inherently good and she won't get hurt. I believe most people are inherently good but if you give the less evolved ones too many opportunities to take advantage of you they will! We're hoping she'll just start giving bus or cab fare!

As a teenager I got into Taoism, read Confucious, the Dhammapadda, some Vedic writings, pagan myths and neopagan beliefs, Wicca, existentialism, Kerouac and the Beats, Burroughs, Vonnegut, etc. Richard Bach and Tom Robins got me thinking outside the box, and though I was never into the drug scene The Electric Koolaid Acid Test blew my mind and sent me on a journey to seeking raised conciousness, peak experiences, and new ways of being and expanding my mind. The journey began in earnest when a couple of college kids opened the Dharma Coffeehouse in Fairfax, VA. I would say this was my first real education! There were hippies (it was the 90's but trust me they're still around), greenies, philosophers, freaks, geeks, wiccans, pagans, gnostic Christians, seekers, teachers, artists, and just an all around great mix of people!

It blew my mind! I went from being a cheerleader and Youth 2 Youth peer counselor to Dharma Bum over night! I was totally On the Road! If you don't get these references rush to the library or a book store and for goddess sake read some Kerouac! It will blow your mind. Another good one to get you thinking differently is Richard Bach - Illusions. This is for beginners - sort of Philosophy-Light - it encourages you (through a great story) to define your own reality and open your mind.

Anyway - check out http://www.zaadz.com and http://www.integralinstitute.org/public/static/default.html - Don't worry once you start listening to more, reading more, and getting on the discussion boards and multiplex all of this "All Quadrants, all lines, all levels" (AQAL) stuff will be easier to understand! It really does give you a whole new approach to the world and the people at I-I are always there to help newbies.

Love & Light,

Stephanie