Many HAPPY Returns of The Day!

  Today is a most auspicious day in which we celebrate the birthday of THE John Morgan. Years ago, I had a chance opportunity of a phone interview for a sales position for John Morgan Seminars, and John Morgan took a chance on me. To say that he has been one the greatest of influences in my life is not hyperbole. As we are firmly planted in the middle of our second decade of knowing each other, I am forever grateful for his role in my life, as a boss, mentor and friend. 

Here's a video that gives more backstory of his illustrious career:

In honoUr of his birthday today, because birthdays are a BIG deal in the House of Morgan, I thought I'd do a retrospective of some of the many posts related to John through the years. He was a great supporter of my blog and writing, and I always pay attention when he says, "I  think you've got something there." 

This year, I made a journal for him:

It's a Booksmith journal, of course!

That's The Grasshopper on the cover. He is 

the author of GrasshopperNotes.com

Inside of the journal, which is a Traveler's Notebook:

Ferny wax seal on the envelope in keeping with the green theme.

I included 3 inserts, but there is LOTS of room to add more.

The letter inside says:

A pocket for cards, ephemera &c.:

Vintagey label from Nik The Booksmith.

Here's the first insert:

I included a lot of family photos, which I won't share here. I also included some of his birthday-related blogposts. Here are a few pages:

Photo of him and his dad.

John & his mother in a photo booth:

Looks like a Tim Holtz photo strip. That's one 

of his tiny paper clips holding it to the page.

Photo of Steve Martin that John took at one of his shows:

So I signed it a la Steve Martin.

Last page:

Magnolia May was really John's idea! So I 

had to have "her" sign his book.

The idea for this is that friends and family can sign The Birthday Book, so I included a pen loop and  (NON-fountain) pen:

Back cover of the Birthday insert:

John is wearing one of his granddaughter's 

hats, taken at her birthday party.

Second insert: I have notebooks & journals filled with notes I took over the years for John Morgan Seminars. I've often read them to him, but he's never seen them. So I included a few pages in an insert for him:

I copied the entries onto parchment paper:

The third insert is Radio-themed from his days in radio:

Inside has a pocket made with a photo of him when he was a DJ at KCMO (Kansas City). He rode a bull for some radio stunt:

Inside the pocket is one of his blog posts, Friendship,

 printed onto parchment.

Here are a few pages with quotes and stories:

John had Gary Owens (from Laugh-In) record some 

"drop-ins" for his show.

Center of insert:

Newspaper article from DJ days at KCMO.

Back of insert:

He was "Chuck Taylor" in Wilkes-Barre for 2 years and 

told a lot of corny jokes. E.g. "Today's secret word is 

PEANUT BUTTER. Spread it around." Hahahaha

Back cover of Radio insert:

I included one of his Grasshopper Notes journals:

For inspiration and a few laughs, you can subscribe to John's YouTube channel.  His podcasts are short, 2-3 minutes recordings of blogposts from his Grasshopper Notes site. Hop on over there and give a listen and be sure to wish him a HAPPY Birthday!  :-)

And now, here is a collective of a few past birthday posts over the years:

I got an email from my friend Doug O'Brien asking if I knew anyone who would be interested in working in sales for John Morgan. Can I stay home in my jammies and not go anywhere? I replied back. I was out in the wilderness with 2 aging dogs, trying to figure out what to do with my life. Enter John Morgan.

Our first conversation lasted an hour, and I felt like I'd met an old friend. I had. Over the course of almost 2 years, he has been my boss, my mentor, my coach, my cheerleader, favourite blogger, and my dearest friend. I don't know what I would have done if John hadn't come into my life. He has given me the means to support myself without having to have a soul-sucking 9-5 job. I get to stay out in nature or go out into the world if I need to. As long as I have a phone & internet access, I can pretty much go anywhere & still work. How cool is that?

Beyond teaching me about sales and radio, he has taught me a tremendous amount in the hypno-world. I would never have done Virtual Massage without his guidance. It was his idea, and we worked together over the phone. He was also a student of Dave Dobson's and has a way of simplifying complex ideas and at the same time, making it entertaining.

Reminds me of a story . . .

"Remember when Dave said you have to climb out on the skinny branches?" he asked me.

"Skinny branches? What?" I replied.

"You have to risk climbing out on the skinny branches to get the best fruit."

It's a lesson in sales, it's a lesson in life. It's an ongoing lesson for me--risking. I like to think I'm getting better at it.

Dave & John on their last visit. I love that impish look on Dave's face. John didn't know he was giving the finger until he got the photo back. I'm just impressed that John's eyes are open.

Dave was supportive of my work with John and thought it was a good match. I have to agree. Words can't express how grateful I am for our friendship. So I will end with a quote:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JOHN!

- - - - - 

I sent him a package last week. Birthdays are very special in the House of Morgan. John says that everyone's birthday is reflected on a clock twice a day. And when you notice a special date on the clock, you can say a wish for that person. So 4:16 is John's birthday. I am not often awake at 4:16 a.m. but I can notice the clock in the afternoon. I made something for John with a graphic that had "John 4:16" on it. I ended up not using one, so I cut it up and put it on the outside of John's package:

I was not prepared for the response from the gal at the post office. She said, "That's my favourite quote from the Bible. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them." And then a man standing behind me said that was one of his favourite quotes, too. Post Office Gal said, "We should put more scriptures on packages." 

I nodded. I'm not really up on bible passages. I sort of recall a wrestler with a John 3:16 tattoo, but not 4:16. I didn't have the heart to tell her it wasn't a scripture because it had such great meaning to her. So I said, "Me, too!" And now it is. 

- - - - - - - 

Today is John Morgan's birthday.  Loyal readers of this blog know all about him!  Over the course of almost 11 years, I have peppered in stories of our conversations. He is one of the funniest people I know, with a dry sense of humoUr and quick wit. It is because of him that Magnolia May was born, when we were on the phone and I got a delivery from a planner company.  

"I can NOT listen to you BLATHER ON about another planner . . . UNLESS YOU DO IT WITH AN ACCENT!"  And so I went thru the unboxing with him, ooh-ing and ah-ing with a few Southernisms thrown in. In honoUr of today, here's the first video of MM:

And as John says, ALL THE BEST!!!  :-)

- - - - - - - - - - 

I will end this special Birthday Blogpost, with a re-post of Mum. I think she was his biggest fan and used to print out his blog posts and send them to friends and family via snail mail! She used to say, "The world would be a better place is everyone read John's blog!"  One year, I made a Grasshopper Quotes book for her, which she LOVED:  

Every year, on holidays, her birthday & special occasions, Mum gives the edict: "I don't want any gifts. Only consumables."  

*SIGH*

So this year for Mother's day, I gave Mum a book I made for John Morgan for his birthday:

I did it with Picaboo, a GREAT company for creating photo books.

John has a Grasshopper quote-of-the-day thingie that you can sign up for. So I took the first 500 and put them into a book for him. Here's Mum reading:

 I think she was laughing at: "It's flattering when someone asks for your advice; it's world-changing when you take your own."

 "Life doesn't have an undo button."

When I look at these photos of Mum, I can hear her laugh: WOO-HOO-HOO-HOO-HOO!  It's a fitting way to end, as John has brought a lot of laughter to all those who know and love him. So, dear John, may today be filled with MUCH LAUGHTER and MIRTH!  HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Repost: 10 Years Later

Marlene's Birthday

My youngest niece turned 13 today.  13!!!  So in honour of her birthday, I thought I'd re-post the story of her third birthday. All the things I saw in her at the age of three, remain and have expanded in these last 10 years. She is bright and smart and innovative and funny and creative. She is sensitive and kind and compassionate. She has the same joie de vivre and enthusiasm that she had when she was riding down the stairs at age 2. It is such a delight to see her grow into more of who she is, as she has become more and more of a young lady. My brother and SIL have done a remarkable job with all their daughters, and I am so grateful to be their auntie!  

Here's the post from 10 years ago:

Last weekend, we celebrated Niece Marlene's 3rd birthday. I LOVE this girl. She's so smart and funny. A familiar refrain is, Marlene! What are you doing? She replies, Plotting and scheming. Thanks to my brother.

On the famous YouTube stairs.

SIL was v. wise to get ONE balloon colour. Noooooo! I want the red ballooooooon! All avoided. It was a smallish affair with just the extended fam of aunties & grandparents. SIL picked up a cake. As a fan of Cakewrecks, I was hoping for something with a bit more wreckiness, but we got this:

You call yourself a Cakewreck?

Cakewreck worthy? Well no. But I do appreciate the migrating border in all its ploppiness. And the squiggly writing. And the brown leaves around the Crisco roses; v. appropriate for the winter season. Cue music: All the leaves are brown . . .all-the-leaves-are-brown . . . and the sky is grey . . . and-the-sky-is-grey . . . . If only it said "Happe Brithday" or we'd had a few misplaced quote marks. Alas.

That night at dinner after the rest of the extended fam left, we were at dinner. Mum asked Marlene how she liked her birthday. It was incredible, she replied. That's right, she's 3.

To the "brithday" gril:

May you're thrid year be

as good as to.

Underneat that write

Yay U in blue 

HAPPY Birthday, Bruce!!!

Today we celebrate the celebrating biologist, Dr. Bruce Lipton. He is one of the most joyful people you will ever meet. Here's a summary I wrote a few a years ago called Bruce Lipton 101.

Some favourite quotes:

I woke up one morning and decided to live my life in nothing less than joy.

People are beginning to wake up: [they're saying] "I'm not separate from my community. I am my community!"

Mother Nature doesn't like a smart ass. 

"Cancer is a lifestyle consequence."

"Change your perception and you change the function of your cells."

"You control the genes by the way you live your life."

"You're not a victim, you're a MASTER of your biology."

"You get sick not from what you caught but from what you already have." (Re: opportunistic microorganisms).

"Your life matches your beliefs."

"Kids learn without you teaching them." (Re: subconscious programming).

"How can you find love if you can't love yourself?"

Here are some of my favourite photos that I've taken over the years:

At the 2012 I Can Do It! Conference

With Chiro-sis Ruthie. :-)

Gregg Braden, Bruce, & Joe Dispenza for the first
time together on stage at the ICPA Conference, 2014.

We were at I Can Do It! Conference in Baltimore in 2014. We were walking up the street and Wayne Dyer was coming toward us. Luckily I had my camera!

With Danni, Anita Moorjani's husband.

Here's the last time I saw Bruce, last November:

Bruce Lipton's Website

Bruce on Twitter

 

Books: 

Biology of Belief 

Spontaneous Evolution

The Honeymoon Effect  

I'll leave you with a great summary from Bruce about his work. It's especially relevant now:

HAPPY Birthday, Bruce!!!

Mum's Birthday Retrospective

It's Mum's birthday today; our first one without her. We are going to Brother Atlasta's after church for a lunch in her honour. Chiro-sis has made trifle, & I've made a BIG salad. John Morgan sent this graphic to me. The picture is from her 80th surprise birthday party:

So I thought I'd re-post all her birthday blog posts that I did for her. Here goes . . . .

2008

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MUM!!!

When I was little, she used to call me Treasure and make me soft boiled eggs with "soldiers" for dipping. I watch her with my nieces and nephews now and see the love and joy and pride in her face for another generation. She is the glue that holds our family together, the Queen. No really, and with the British accent!

There are so many things that I am grateful for: she taught me to sew and knit and cook for an army. We sibs cook giant pots and casseroles of food--even for two. I don't know how to make single servings. That is why there is a freezer.

More than the overt teachings, I learned by her modeling. Age is never an excuse to stop doing anything: she took up skiing at 41, karate at 46 (she's a black belt), took my brother bundgie jumping for his college graduation, and just for kicks, went to body guard school at 65. We had a lot of fun with that one. We created scenarios where she was security for Sean Connery and he's lying on the ground having been shot and she'd say, "Oh, get up. You're not hurt. Just a minor flesh wound!"
While my dad adjusted us for everything ( Nooooo! Not the toggle recoil!!!), anything to do with bleeding was Mum's territory: the famous butterfly stitch. We all wore a box of bandaids at one time or other. You'll be fine. And we were.

I love her laugh and she has anchors that will set her off, like... SHEPHERDS. Oooh hoo hoo hoo! She sparked in all of us a passion for lifelong learning. She says she's not creative but she sewed our clothes when we were little, does calligraphy, refinishes furniture, and most recently built a harp from scratch. I've never particularly cared for harp music, but now that I've built one I guess I'll learn how to play it. I love how she does things JUST FOR FUN and that learning is fun.

I admire her strength and sense of adventure. She met my dad in the Yukon wilderness where she was working with Eskimos. On my 7th birthday, we left our home in California: 4 kids & another on the way, to the frozen Virginia country. We lived out of our camping trailer until the dome was built and even then, that was still like camping! I had a Marine friend in college who once said, Anyone who likes camping just hasn't done it enough. Amen.

I once asked her about L.A. and the riots in the 60's and she said, "Oh, don't ask me anything about the 60's, I was busy having children." The first 4 of us were 16 months apart. Having raised only 2 children, I don't know how she did it! And that is when you really appreciate your mother: when you're faced with parenting. She gave us chores and bedtimes and limits and consequences. All those things that as a child, make a parent "mean." But really mean, the ultimate love and sacrifice. It's OK to be mad or upset or disappointed, I still love you. And you won't appreciate all this until you're a successful adult--but that's my job: to raise you to get along in this world and be able to take care of yourself. 

She had 6 children she calls her "Blessings" and said that "childbirth was just a bit of pressure." No big deal. As a midwife, she's delivered 2000+ babies, including most of the grandchildren at home. She went with me to my first Hypnobirthing lecture before I became certified, and the instructor said, "Childbirth is really just pressure." My mother wacked my arm and gave me the Mum-I-told-you-so Look. I am so grateful to have grown up with her as a calm alternative to the emergency pregnancy-as-a-disease mentality in our society. Babies come when they're ready,she always says. A lesson in patience, in trusting Nature, in trusting in your body's innate intelligence.

When people see us together, they say they can tell I'm her daughter because we look exactly alike. The funny thing is: we don't. I am my father's daughter: same eyes, bone structure, sense of humour. However, I have her smile and I like to think, her cheerful optimism. Once we were out to breakfast with a family friend, Melody. I said, "Don't they have any proper butter?" as I'm giving an Ick Face toward the fake stuff. Melody laughed and said, "You sound just like your mother!" And so I do. We appreciate proper things: butter, napkins, cleaning supplies, and anything of Quality.

Back in the '80's, it was all the rage to wear men's paisley pajama's with bangles and crucifixes. I hope you don't tell people who you are, she said as she saw me going out into the world in that get-up. I walked out onto the front porch and yelled: "Hey everyone! I'm Anne Holliday's daughter!"

THANK YOU, MUM. My heart SMILES whenever I think of you. And I can't express how much I LOVE YOU I APPRECIATE YOU and how PROUD I AM to be your daughter. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! :-) BNO

2009

It Mum's birthday today.

She is sprinkled throughout this blog with life lessons. She's been mother & wife:

She travels to faraway places & sends hilarious emails.

Hand-stitched with dental floss.

Mum is not sentimental and she loathes nick-knacks. One birthday, I gave her this hideous "What-a-mother-means"plaque:

On the back of it, I taped a Lowe's gift card; v. practical. Like Mum. Here she is with Atlasta, a.k.a. Brother D, Area Man:

She is grandmother:

Unspecified grandchild receive GranAnne smooch!

Construction worker. She really does change lives:

Queen Anne in Hungary for Habitat.

Animal Tolerator:

"Yes, you're very sweet. Now go away."

I cherish our not-meaning-to-be-funny conversations, where she ends it with, "Oh, shut up," in that v. proper Queen's English accent:

At Mum's Dinner Dance.

Blow out your candles,

Pioneer Sister's famous chocolate cake!

and Make a WISH!!!

2010

Saturday was Mum's birthday & all the sibs & kids celebrated at her house. Brother D & I picked out Taylor Swift cards together . . . 

Here's Brother D's, which he picked out right away:

When he was getting the card, he rubbed it against other sparkley cards to enhance the sparkliness. Guess you had to be there. I didn't want to take too much time, so I just grabbed this one & revised it. Here's Mum with my card:

Got the laugh I was looking for!

HAPPY Birthday, Mum!

Make a wish! (Pioneer Sister's famous chocolate cake!)

2011

I had my nieces & nephews over Friday night, so we made b-day cards. This one was the cover of a pop-up card.

This is the pop-up part. SO CUTE! 

Abstract mixed media crayon resist with water colour & crayons.

That's GranAnne in the middle of all those hearts, of course.

From the eldest; so cute-smart-funny!

Friends & fam celebrated yesterday at my house, amongst moving boxes & dogs.

Mum looking at her b-day cards.

 Cake time! With Pioneer Sister's famous chocolate truffle ganache deliciousness:

Singing Happy Birthday.

Mum conducting.

Mum's candle blowing was usurped by my niece. "Did you steal GranAnne's wish?" I asked her. No apology from said niece, just a smirk. 

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MUM!!! 

MAY ALL YOUR WISHES COME TRUE!

2012

I thought I'd do a pictorial of favourite Mum-related blog moments, in honoUr of Mum's b-day.

Grandmother

She is GranAnne to all her grandkids, except for the youngest, Rowan, who calls her Om-a. He made that up. Last summer Mum had all the grand children for a week. It was called:

Favourite foods are GranAnne's proper porridge & tuna casserole. 

Youngest baby Rowan.

Queen of Cleaning 

Cleaning out gutters; one of her favourite things to do.  She will protest, but there was one year where this is how we spent a good portion of Christmas Eve Day!

Last fall at the River House. I bet those windows are STILL clean!


 Watching Hoarders

Queen of Sewing

Mum whipped up new cushions for all my wicker in less than 5 days. AND she added piping AND zippers to all the pillows. 

Queen of Fearless

Braving the snow for my b-day last year. She parked down by the river and hoofed it up the hill. With all my presents:

Queen of Construction

Habitat build in Hungary. Mixing concrete. Digging ditches. She does it all!

Queen of World Traveling

Queen of Toleration

Birthday Queen

Shirt Ruth gave Mum for her b-day. Something muscley & gym-related.

Mother's Day cards.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MUM!  

May you

Cake(wreck) Mum made with unintentional multi-coloured sperm that SHE called "balloons."

May your day be full of rainbows.

Make a wish!

2013: 80th

Over the years, I've paid homage to Mum on birthdays & holidays. So this year I thought I'd better do something extra-special. Now you know why I absconded with your photo albums, Mum!

Nurse Mum in the centre.

Mum went into midwifery. She didn't like being around sick people, which is kind of funny being a nurse and all. I've bonded with other people whose mothers were nurses. We all share the same experience; "Get up. You're fine. Just a minor flesh wound!" We got it in doubley with the British Stiff Upper Lip. When my brother was 11, he cut his finger & Mum stitched it up at the kitchen table. When he said, "Mum it really hurts." She said, "Oh, just think of England!" I'm sure that's what she heard growing up during the war. Perhaps in the voice of Winston Churchill coming over the wireless.  30 years later, when Mum sliced her hand whilst cutting an avocado, Atlasta was there to tell her to think of England. 

I love Mum's black & white photos and newspaper clippings:

Frolicking in the water with longtime friend Gill.

Mum left England on this in 1961:

She ended up in the Yukon treating "red Indians." Here's a newspaper article:

And eventually met my dad:

I'm quite sure this was after they'd known each other a while. 

And had children:

Speaking of children, here's the photo album of my brother, #3 of 6:

Thus my brother earned the nick name, Atlasta.

See? This photo is from the same batch as the one of Mum on Dad's knee. They were well-aquainted. OBvi!

When I was 7, we left California & moved to Virginia:

January 27, 1971. Four kids across country. Actually, four & a HALF; Mum was pregnant! I once asked Mum a question about the 1960's & she said, "Oh don't ahsk me anything about the 60's. I was busy having children!" BTW, the dog in the photo, Susie, belonged to our neighbor Audie Mae. Like we would have a dog. Ha!

We lived out of our camping trailer until we built our dome, featured in the background:

Mum hanging up laundry--which was ENDLESS. One time she went on strike, and the laundry piled to the bathroom ceiling. I'm not making this up. It only took 3 days. It gave me an appreciation for all her hard work--which didn't last all that long because I was a surly teenager. But I digress . . . 

When Mum was 45, after baby #6, she took up karate:

Here she is as a white belt.

Can't tell if that's a green belt or black belt. 

But here is her black belt promotion, 9 years later:

With Arthur Drago, karate instructor & longtime family friend. 

There's much to admire about my mother. She is fearless at any task, and to tell her she can't do something, just fuels her to do it! She's not just strong when it comes to karate:

Digging ditches with longtime friend Prim:

That's right. She traveled all the way to Australia to dig ditches!

You'd think that Mum lives to dig ditches! Here she is in Hungary for Habitat for Humanity:

Actually, in this one she's mixing concrete by hand. "Well of course she is", you'd say if you know my mother.

Queen Anne. She has traveled to Poland, Hungary, the Dominican Republic to build houses. 

Perhaps this is where I got an appreciation for duct tape. Mum fixing the dome. Or perhaps sealing off the window in preparation for winter? The leaves in the background look Autumn-ish. 

"No that's all right. I LIKE the push mower!"

This photo is deceptively serene:

Anyone looking at it would think she's just resting on the steps. Well--anyone who doesn't know Mum! She spent 2 weeks refinishing that entire banister. In fact, she did a lot of work on our friend's Victorian house to restore it to it's proper glory.  

Mum in the kitchen making mince meat pies. I was excited when I first saw this photo; I thought we'd caught her making her famous jam tarts. We were not fans of the mince meat, but her pastry is the BEST!

She has even managed to master gluten free baking, with 2 of us GF. Still the BEST baker!

In 1994, 3 of us got married & she made all the cakes: 

Atlasta's cake, but this is what they all look like. 7 layers of different variations of carrot cake. The BEST! Even before being GF, I couldn't eat anyone else's carrot cake. Nothing compares--& now her GF carrot cake is the BEST!

 She also had time to be active in the Winchester Little Theatre:

In The White Sheep of the Family. Mum knitting--REALLY knitting. When I worked at Wayside Theatre, she helped create a prop of knitting for one of the actresses. She couldn't knit. It was very funny & she ruined Mum's work. When Mum went to see the play, she commented on dropped stitches & lack of technique. Other than that, I think she enjoyed the play. 

 Here's the review of The White Sheep of The Family:

She is also a world traveler. She doesn't just go on Habitat builds, sometimes she goes for fun!

In Florida. 

In Australia with Judy & Prim:

At the helm, steering the boat:

As you do.

Post card to co-workers:

Mum & Dad in Australia.

South Africa:

With longtime friend Nan.

Aloe vera!

Demonstrating that we are British. We love nature & we are NOT afraid of lions!

Mum had a couple photos of seemingly nothing:

It's not nothing!  Look!  Look there! [point-point] That black dot is a dung beetle. 

Another trip with Prim & Judy. Tasmania, perhaps?

 Speaking of Prim & Judy, Mum said, "Judy is the worst back seat driver! I finally told her, 'Oh, do shut up Judy & hold onto the Jesus handle!'"

Auntie Vera, her sister, came for a vizzie visit. The president called so they trucked off to Washington D.C.:

This was right before she conferred with the presidential cabinet on important matters. And then they had tea, after which she did a quick dry wall repair in the Oval Office. "Where's your ute-knife, Mr. President?" The president averted her gaze & stared down at his shoes in discomfort. "You should always be prepared! You can never go wrong with the PROPER tools!" she admonished him, before offering to mend his sagging hem on his jacket.

She is proud mother:

Chiro-sis at her Palmer graduation.

She is midwife:

She delivered MOST of her grandchildren. Here they are weighing #6.

And grandmother:

With Atlasta's eldest. 

And here she is with the youngest, nephew RoRo:

HAPPY Birthday, Mum!!!

Time to CELEBRATE!!!  (This is from Mum's surprise 65th b-day party)

Mum was in Scotland for her last birthday last year & I guess I got lazy for 2014 because I can't seem to find a post. Or perhaps that's when my computer crashed. In any case, today, we celebrate Mum.