Molly Blue Dawn's List of Events for November 2012 and beyond - Mark Your Calendars!

Molly Blue Dawn's List of Events for November 2012 and beyond - Mark Your Calendars!

Mark your calendars for:
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Movember
throughout the month of November
between your nose and your mouth
http://us.movember.com/about
http://www.pcf.org
http://www.livestrong.org

“During November each year, Movember is responsible for the sprouting of moustaches on thousands of men’s faces, in the US and around the world. With their Mo’s, these men raise vital funds and awareness for men’s health, specifically prostate cancer and other cancers that affect men.

Once registered at www.movember.com, men start Movember 1st clean shaven. For the rest of the month, these selfless and generous men, known as Mo Bros, groom, trim and wax their way into the annals of fine moustachery. Supported by the women in their lives, Mo Sistas, Movember Mo Bros raise funds by seeking out sponsorship for their Mo-growing efforts.

Mo Bros effectively become walking, talking billboards for the 30 days of November. Through their actions and words they raise awareness by prompting private and public conversation around the often ignored issue of men’s health.

At the end of the month, Mo Bros and Mo Sistas celebrate their gallantry and valor by either throwing their own Movember party or attending one of the infamous Gala Partés held around the world by Movember, for Movember.”  

You don’t have to grow one - you can make one!
http://www.robives.com/blog/movember_download_tache
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Wise Traditions Conference: Nutrition and Behavior
Thursday-Monday, November 8-12
Santa Clara Convention Center, 5001 Great America Parkway, Santa Clara
see website for registration and schedule details
http://www.westonaprice.org/images/pdfs/santaclaraconf.pdf
http://www.santaclara.org/conventioncenter/

“America’s Premier Nutrition Conference

Life-changing Lectures
Cooking Lessons
Networking
Traditional Nutrient-Dense Meals
WAPF-Friendly Vendors
Wise Kids Child Care

For anyone interested in health, nutrition and food, including parents, health professionals, seniors and students.”
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Tantric Land Healing Retreat
with Sang Ngak and School of Healing Cho  
November 10-11, 9:00AM-5:00PM
NeXus, 1414 Harbour Way South, Suite 1010, Richmond
for registration details, please e-mail  info@tibetanlandhealing.com
http://www.tibetanlandhealing.com
http://www.facebook.com/events/382315591836616
“Heal the Earth, its spirits, your home, family and all sentient beings
with the great Dzokchen Master Tsewong Sitar Rinpoche, Lama Pema, and Lama Jinpa

What You Will Learn
In these two days, you will learn how to heal your home, place of work, of teaching, your community or city - and profoundly help those that dwell there.

Creating Sacred Space
While we go about our busy daily lives, filled with material objects, activities, goals and projects, there are many unseen forces that strongly determine our success, fulfillment and future happiness. These include internal causes, such as karma patterns, the fruition of our past actions, as well as the outer energetic forces. The effects of the earth and land, stellar forces, emotional imprints and the intersection of numerous spiritual influences, have a tremendous impact on our lives. Traditionally, Tibetan lamas were called upon to perform special rituals, a kind of ‘technology of the sacred’, including land healing, in order to eliminate negative conditions and enrich and purify the environment and its inhabitants with positive forces. Such rituals can enhance our health, wealth, relationships and all aspects of our personal path and life journey of development and transformation. In this context, these practices are a blend of practical shamanic practice and traditional tantric Buddhist practice, originating in ancient India.
Below is the spectrum of rites that are used in sequence to heal, energize and sanctify one’s environment and one’s mindstream.

Blessing: Fire offering
The Sang offering is a Tibetan core ritual of shamanic land healing that uses fire and smoke to create and transmit vast spiritualized offerings into the invisible worlds. The smoke of sacred aromatic mixtures carries our mind-generated offerings to enlightened beings, local deities, land guardians and all beings in creation. The effects are:
This process clears away obstacles in general, improving health, success, happiness and spiritual development.
Healing the environment from all kinds of disturbances and negative energies.
Connecting with local non-human entities, creating stability and security.
Pacifying any home or business, creative a positive flow of energy.
Gathering vast positive karma is gathered and old karmic debts are repaid.

Enriching: Hooking wealth
Rich or poor, money and security are a source of stress and worry. The land healing practice of Yang Guk (drawing in of prosperity) is a specific Tibetan practice that allows wealth energy to flow naturally to the person, their home, workplace, relationships and projects.
Ritual effects include:
Increasing the forces that bring wealth and prosperity.
Nourished and strengthening the body.
Psychological and spiritual life is richer and fuller.
Consecrated precious Wealth Vases containing amplify the process.

Energizing: Windhorse
Windhorse is an important part of Tibetan shamanic land healing. Lungta is about the vibrancy and life force that is associated with our health, charisma, careers, relationships, spiritual life and so on. When this basic energy becomes dampened or diminished, we are unable to succeed or follow through. Lungta rituals have the effect of:
Raising up good fortune, opportunity and timing.
Increasing vitality, strength and exhaustion of modern living.
Eliminating stagnation, blockages in all aspects of life.
Prayer flags help puts the wind back under our physical and mental sails.

Purifying: Cleansing karma
Negative actions, whether intentional or perpetuated out of habit or lack of knowledge, can leave disruptive traces or “stains” that pollute our lives. Tibetan land healing rituals for purification of the individual and their home are performed to:
Clear non-productive, negative energies.
Inviting powerful healing forces.
Recognize and resolve whatever faulty actions or misunderstandings one has been involved with.
Purify the mental, physical and environmental effects of wrong choices, actions, verbal statements, etc.

Clearing: Cutting obstacles
Chod is a powerful sacred method for cutting through very deep obstacles, including negative entities, harmful spirits, or the disruptive effects of a personal tragedy, death of a close relation, and sickness of all kinds. As a land healing practice, it is essential to:
Subdue and befriends all local energies, demons and negative forces.
Promote healing of difficult, intractable physical problems, where regular methods have failed.
Clear the massive karmic debts that have resulted in our difficulties.
Tibetan Land Healing is an essential practice for the environmental degradation and climatic chaos that is engulfing our world.”
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San Francisco Green Festival
Saturday-Sunday, November 10-11
SF Concourse Exhibition Center, 635 8th Street, San Francisco
http://www.greenfestivals.org/coming-soon#sanfrancisco

“This is the first and original ‘Party with a Purpose’; don't miss the celebration, education and rejuvenation, all yours for the taking at San Francisco Green Festival 2012. As a city winning awards for inspiring green living and alternative power programs, it's no surprise that San Francisco is the home of the original Green Festival. Celebrated in San Francisco since 2002, it is the largest Green Festival of the five cities. The San Francisco Green Festival captures the mood and festivities as a ‘Party with a Purpose.’ Expect both inspiring and pragmatic programming reflecting the Bay Area’s diversity of interests with over 125 informative workshops, sessions, demonstrations and talks. Great live music, all-weekend film installation, a fun and engaging Green Kids' Zone, mouthwatering vegan, raw and vegetarian food vendors, top local organic beer makers and wine vintners and the best responsible shopping found anywhere.”
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The Great Dickens Christmas Fair!
Friday-Sunday, November 23-25, and every weekend through December 23, 11:00AM-7:00PM
Cow Palace Exhibition Halls, 2600 Geneva Avenue, Daly City
$25.00 - various discounts may apply, and season tickets are available - see website for details
Parking fees are $10.00 per car charged by the Cow Palace
Free shuttle available from Glen Park BART Station
http://dickensfair.com
https://www.facebook.com/DickensFair
http://www.youtube.com/user/DickensFair
http://www.cowpalace.com

"Celebrate the Holiday Season in Victorian London!

The Great Dickens Christmas Fair 2011 garnered splendid reviews! New guests, as well as regular patrons, flocked to the Fair in record numbers. The spirit and good feeling in the streets of our Victorian London was inspiring! We look forward to an even more spectacular Fair this year.

2012 marks the 200th Anniversary of the birth of our progenitor Charles Dickens. Our celebration at the 34th annual Great Dickens Christmas Fair is part of a world-wide recognition of his life and works. Join the party each and every day of this year's Fair! Begin your preparations here.

The bustling streets of London, immortalized for all time by the mighty pen of Charles Dickens, form the living backdrop of your excursion into Christmas Past. You are a living part of a Victorian Christmas card come to life!

A Bay Area tradition since 1970, the Great Dickens Christmas Fair returns to the San Francisco Cow Palace Exhibition Halls for five weekends in 2012, including the Friday after Thanksgiving, from Friday, November 23 through Sunday, December 23, from 10 am 'til 7 pm.

Created by Ron and Phyllis Patterson, the fair is now produced by Kevin and Leslie Patterson and Red Barn Productions, who continue the family tradition of theatrical excellence through authenticity, participation, and playfulness.

Come wander the lanes of Victorian London, as the glow of twilight settles upon the city, with the scent of pine boughs and freshly baked scones floating in the air and the sound of carolers and holiday merrymakers accompanying your stroll.

London is larger - over 120,000 square feet to explore!
Visit shops bedecked with Christmastime finery and filled with unique treasures.
Stop in for a hot toddy or a pint of Lagunitas at Mad Sal's Dockside Ale House, where the low-life hang out and the high-born drop in.
Raise a champagne toast to the holidays at Fezziwig's Warehouse, the most cheerful spot in London.
Enjoy rollicking entertainments on six stages and in the streets.
Feast on fine foods from the British Empire and beyond.
Rest a spell in Cuthbert's Tea House, for a sip of hot tea and cucumber sandwiches or scones.

Experience the joys of Christmas past at the Great Dickens Christmas Fair!”
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Elder Gathering and Celebration
December 18-23
Sacred sites in Guatemala
For more information, please e-mail HeddiL@gmail.com or call 530-459-3471

“We would like to cordially invite you to a great celebration in the heart of the Maya: A pilgrimage to Guatemala in December, a spiritual event that many of the Maya and other indigenous nations are hosting to celebrate a galactic and planetary alignment written and spoken in the Mayan oral tradition as a time of prophecy.  Our peoples of the land of the Feathered Serpent have been preparing for this transition for many generations, and our people the Maya are preparing to connect to this spiritual and cosmic vibration of this universe and to send a message to the peoples of the world that it is time for the great transition of our times- a transition that invites all peoples of all colors, all religions, and all backgrounds to come to a spiritual unifying vision of the 6th Sun, a New Era of Life. It is a galactic and a planetary new season with the vibrations and the frequencies to give humanity an opportunity to once again realign ourselves with the natural and spiritual vibrations of our world.

Through this gathering we are enacting prophecies given to us thousands of years ago of the setting sun of the old world, taking with it humanity’s dysfunctions. Then the new era and the new dawn arise of the Oxlajuj Baktun.

We will be at one of the last Mayan cities that was inhabited at the time of contact, a sacred site. We will be on the pyramid of one of the AjPops or great leaders, of the Maya, and will be in ceremonies from the mid day on the 20th to the next day at noon, letting go of the last sunset of the era and being in an all-night long vigil in to the new dawn and the new era of the 13 Baktun. We will make spiritual offerings and prayers, share our chanupas, our dances, our ceremonies to all our relations the Mother Earth and our universe. Through our fire ceremonies we will be realigning and focusing our prayers so that we can all create a communiqué to the world so that we can help it evolve from the dark ages from which it lives.

These ceremonies are being shared by the many nations and people that have kept the sacred fire alive. They have kept the direct connection through their medicines and their ceremonies to the natural, spiritual, and supernatural worlds. And through their sacred ways, they will be guiding us on the new path of realigning ourselves will all the natural ways.

This is a ceremony that is gathering humanity’s spiritual beings and leaders. For all of us who are participating in these ceremonies, we will bring natural spiritual offerings, songs, dances and ceremonies.  Please refer to http://2012mayansummit.com  for more in-depth information about the Oxlajuj Baktun.”

Thanks to Gina for letting me know about this event!
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Nature and Soul Retreat for Winter Solstice
with Jan Edl Stein, MFT
Friday, December 21, 9:30AM-4:00PM
Green Gulch Farm and Zen Center, 1601 Shoreline Highway, Muir Beach, 415-383-3134
$118 early registration up to two weeks before the event, $140 within two weeks of the event
http://www.holosinstitute.net/nature-soul-day-retreat.htm
http://www.holosinstitute.net/people/Jan.htm
http://www.sfzc.org/ggf

“Nature and Soul: A day of retreat where nature mirrors our inner landscape

This seasonally offered retreat is a day of renewal and rediscovery, as we open ourselves to the land around us in addition to the landscapes within us.  This is a deeply experiential daylong retreat for restoration of health, psyche and spirit, offering a renewal of the soul's intention and a re-connection with the elements of nature that support us.  We will slow down and take in the beauty that surrounds us and let nature reflect the shapes and patterns that are held in the psyche.

The day is a combination of indoor experiences that involves guided meditation and inner journey process and outdoor, land-based contemplative practices. The experience as a whole is an embodied example of eco-therapy.  Each retreat day reflects themes of the season in the meditations, journeys and our approach to the elements we discover in nature.
No previous experience is necessary.

The retreat takes place in the beautiful setting of Green Gulch Farm and Zen Center, with its splendid coastal range flora, meandering gardens, Japanese architecture, and easy walk to the beach.  An organic, vegetarian lunch (included in registration fee)  is offered to the group in the dining hall.  Retreat fees include lunch and refreshments.

Details on how to prepare for the day an a confirmation of registration will be sent one week before the event.

Retreat leader, Jan Edl Stein MFT, is the director of Holos Institute and a licensed psychotherapist with many years of experience in guiding people into deep explorations in their own psyche as they open to deeper levels of perception in the natural world.

Winter Solstice: Honoring the still point within and finding ease with darkness. In this darkest day of the year, we will seek out a place of wisdom that resides in stillness and shadow.”
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Women's Visioning Circle
Two Days of Visioning and Manifesting
with Evalena Rose and Afia Walking Tree
Saturday-Sunday, January 12-13, Saturday 10:00AM-9:30PM, Sunday 10:30AM-5:30PM
$255 if paid by January 2, $295 thereafter
Saturday only: $160 if paid by January 2, $185 thereafter
$75 Deposit due by January 2 to hold your space
Non-refundable after January 2
Sebastopol - RSVP for exact location
http://www.tantraforwomen.com/visioning.html
http://evalenarose.com
http://www.spiritdrumz.org

“Join us for enchanting rituals designed to manifest new realities in your life, using the magic inherent in a circle of powerful women to call them into being.

Women's Visioning Circle
Saturday, 10:00AM-9:30PM
Inspiring, delightful, and empowering, our first day of ritual creates a safe and sacred space in which we:
Dive deep to discover what blocks treasured goals from coming true.  Drum and chant as each woman releases her blocks to the fire.  Explore life purpose.  Share the pleasures of creating colorful Treasure Maps as you develop goals in nine areas of your life.  Experience the depth and awe of a circle in which peers and colleagues witness each woman breathing life and power into her fondest visions.  Co-create magic for ourselves and for the planet in sacred celebration.
Women report dreams coming true all year from this empowerment ritual!  Many return year after year, telling us the miracles of goals being realized in their lives. Some laminate their goals and post them to bring the visions into every day.

Moving Visions Into Reality
Sunday, 10:30AM-5:30PM
Building on Saturday's goals, Sunday focuses on:
Utilizing practical strategies and planning tools to move treasured goals toward effective action plans and time lines.  Translating goals into accomplishments through the use of mind maps and flow charts.  Releasing old patterns and fears of success.  Discovering tools to ground your plans in time and space so they truly support achievement of your fondest visions.  Energizing new ways of being as you enjoy the compassionate support of this powerful circle of women affirming your new steps with you.
This day deepens our commitment to letting our goals guide our actions.”
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Edwardian World's Faire and Edwardian Ball
The Doubtful Guest
Friday-Saturday, January 18-19, 8:00PM-2:00AM,
The Regency Ballroom, 1300 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco
and
Edwardian Vendor Bazaar Daytime Shopping
Saturday, January 19, 12:00-5:00PM
The Regency Sutter Room, 1270 Sutter Street, San Francisco
http://edwardianball.com

Friday, January 18 - The Edwardian World’s Faire
“A little more rambunctious, a little more casual and certainly colorful, Friday night’s World’s Faire presents an interactive night of gaming, inventions, exploration, circus, cabaret, and even a bit of swaggering rock n’ roll, Edwardian style!

Saturday, January 19 - The Edwardian Ball
“This is the night of The Ball itself, a slightly more formal affair where the games, rides, cabaret acts, and steam machinery are cleared away to make room for a costumed floor of ballroom dance, roaming performances, and the tales and characters of Edward Gorey brought to life on stage and throughout.
Each year, in the depths of the night, Edwardian Ball founders Rosin Coven and their co-hosts Vau de Vire Society bring a featured Gorey story to life onstage with original music, choreography, narration, circus acts, and many surprises. This year’s feature is The Doubtful Guest.

“The Vendor Bazaar is of course open this night as well, saunter down and peruse the delights, enjoy a hand of cards at the Gaming Parlour, sip an absinthe cocktail, and dance the night away…”

Edwardian period costumes!  Edward Gorey themed costumes!  The kind of stuff you expect from people who are into Edward Gorey and like to dress up!

Article about who the heck Edward Gorey was: http://archive.salon.com/people/bc/2000/02/15/gorey
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Winter’s Flame
Friday-Sunday, January 25-27
see website for detailed schedule
Humanist Hall, 390 27th Street, Oakland
sliding scale $96-$166 - $66 if paid by January 6
http://wintersflame.org
http://wintersflame.org/schedule

“Winter’s Flame - light up the night!
Drum!  Dance!  Sing!  Celebrate!

Winter’s Flame is a new event in an old tradition. People have been dancing and drumming in the dark of night since the dawn of time. In recent years, there’s been a revival of this practice that consciously directs the experience toward personal transformation.

Light up the night and enliven your spirit. Build community and travel deep inside yourself. Come celebrate life at the darkest time of the year.

With a series of magical workshops, delightful rituals, communal meals, and a sweet, sweet slumber party, Winter’s Flame is an entire weekend of awesome. The event is committed to being affordable and accessible, so it will be held right here in Oakland - and the sliding scale allows people of different means to attend. Come dance with the Flame!”

Thanks to Heather King for letting me know about this event!
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PantheaCon
Friday-Monday, February 15-18 (President's Day Weekend)
Doubletree Hotel, 2050 Gateway Place, San Jose
$75 for the whole weekend,  $35 for a single day, $20 for an evening only (after 5:00PM)
$65 if registered by January 15
http://www.pantheacon.com

An enormous, magical, festive and reverent gathering of Pagans from all over the world!
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Conference on Ecopoetics
Friday-Sunday, February 22-24
see website for detailed schedule
Wheeler Hall, University of California, Berkeley
for more information, e-mail ecopoetics.conference@gmail.com
http://ecopoeticsconference.blogspot.ca/search/label/About

“The term ecopoetics has become increasingly important to scholars and poets alike. It is certainly a critical moment for the field and practice. Please join us in February for a three-day conference that will focus specifically on exploring ecopoetics, taking up such questions as: What is ecopoetics? What representational strategies and sociopolitical commitments might characterize this practice? How might we periodize ecopoetics and situate its modes of cultural production? It is our hope that the conference will bring scholars, poets, and creative artists into sustained dialogue on the historical and contemporary practices of ecopoetics.

The Conference on Ecopoetics will feature scholarly and creative panels, seminars, poetry readings, multimedia presentations, outings and excursions, and a group service project. The conference will bring together scholars and artists, both inside and outside of the academy.”
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