Snake Oil
Cold and flu season, time to get sick?
It is amazing how you can get a flu shot so easily now. During the winter months it seems nearly everywhere I go, there are places that offer flu shots. I guess, in some respects this is a good thing. If it helps anyone to avoid going through the agony of a flu, then it may be of value. I have never gotten a flu shot in my life and probably never will. I have had the flu a few times, but it has been about five years since I have been sick with a cold or influenza. The last time I had the flu it was actually more of a stomach virus. I found myself frequently vomiting and subjected to diarrhea as well. I couldn’t keep any food in my body and it seemed that I was frequently emptying out every bit of food I had ever put in it. I was visiting a friend of mine who had a one year old that was sick. While I am usually not one to carry babies around, I found myself carrying her all over the room during my visit. The next day I had the flu. From past experience, I thought that a head cold type of flu was the worst thing a person could ever experience. I painfully learned that an intestinal stomach flu is even worse.
An understandable part of me was irritated with myself for exposing myself to my friends daughter and “catching” her illness. As horrible as it was to get sick, I knew that I really didn’t “catch” her illness. Germs didn’t jump from her into me. Some part of me agreed to allow myself to get the flu. Maybe I needed the body flush, although next time I will find a skilled practitioner to give me a colonic if I feel that need. Doing an occasional detox can definitely of value and help to avoid getting sick. There are all kinds of excellent methods to clear toxins from the body. The weeks before I caught the flu were intense ones. I was juggling a lot of things, and more stressed than usual. I was tired from lack of sleep and worrying about some financial and emotional issues. The illness forced me to rest, and as shitty as the week of the flu was, I did feel really good again when it was finally over. Clearly for a number of reasons, I needed to rest and my illness made that a priority.
Colds and flu’s serve a purpose. At a physical level, when we are tired, not eating right or exercising in a healthy way, our immune systems are weakened. This makes us more susceptible to illness. Our bodies natural defenses aren’t as strong and germs and viruses are more likely to take hold in our bodies. This makes sense to most people at a physical level. As I continually remind my readers, all events have a physical as well as emotional and psychological origin. When we look at the reality of how our thoughts create our experiences, we can recognize that we create a cold or flu for other reasons that coincide with physical weak points. In the case of colds, mass suggestions from the media about “cold and flu seasons” are a huge part of this process. We are bombarded with these suggestions from television, magazines, newspapers, radio, billboards, and the internet more often at certain times of the year. When the fall ends and winter begins the amount of suggestion is multiplied tenfold. Cold and flu products need to be sold. The suggestions and mass belief that we are more likely to get sick in the winter is a profitable one. In addition, people around us at work and home get sick or sneeze on us and we begin to believe that we will probably get sick, and lo and behold we often do.
All seasons have an overall general feel and purpose. Winter is typically a time for more rest and introspection. Often a cold or flu actually forces us to slow down, rest and be more introspective. The energy pattern behind colds is often mental confusion and too much going on all at once. When we have a cold it is often difficult for us to work at all. We are tired, irritable and often need to simply sleep and rest in order to heal. Usually when you have a bad flu your primary goal is to get a tissue before mucous pours out your nose. We often have to make sure we are near a bathroom so we don’t have an “accident.” Sometimes we get so sick that we may even need to ask someone to help us, often testing our loved ones to see if they really love us. Even eating or drinking can be a chore. Our main goal is to rest and sleep so we spend more time in the Otherworld. We can’t worry about looking good, paying credit card bills, pleasing our boss, shopping for food and all the the other million responsibilities that make up our normal lives. We slip into reevaluation and simply focus on basic survival and rest. These things force us to minimize our focus with the outer world and focus inward and on ourselves, with the primary goal of simply healing.
There is another way to avoid colds and flu’s other than flu shots. I have been doing it for many years now and I have not had a cold since I started following this plan. I make some time each week to rest and recuperate. Getting enough sleep is a major priority for me. I generally eat well and exercise regularly. I take time nearly every day to meditate or even take brief naps. I take two to three day vacations every two months. When I am stressed and overloaded, I choose to rest and release even more to balance the extra energy I am spending. In the winter I carve out a little extra time for all of these things. I take baths a few times a week in the winters. Many people won’t prioritize doing these things and are convinced that they can’t spare the time. In this case you may be better off getting a flu shot. When you prioritize the health of your body and spirit you will find yourself getting more comfortable with your own natural rhythms. When you are comfortable with your unique rhythms you will find yourself more in tune with the seasons. We are not above or below nature, we are part of nature. Our individual cycles are as natural as the cycles of the seasons. If you can allow yourself to ignore the mass feed about “when you are supposed to be sick” and simply take care of yourself you won’t need illness to force you to rest. Then you can truly enjoy each season and all the gifts and challenges they offer us.
Jim Ventura
12-2010
Editors Note:
The holiday season has come to an end. I can comfortably admit that I enjoyed the decadence of all of it. I also put on 8 pounds since mid November when my “indulgence” cycle began. Now its time for healthy eating and a gradual process of losing the extra weight. As much as I love the feasting excessiveness of holiday time, I also enjoy the cleansing that comes in January as well. My cleansing period corresponds well with the “7” year energy coming in for 2014!
This month’s column originally ran in January of 2011. As we step into a New Year we also begin another Universal year as well. While our individual Numerology cycles are even more personal to our focus and energy patterns, the Universal Year does impact us all in some respects. 2014 is a “7” year in Numerology. Themes for the “7” year are:
7 - The year of reflection, adjustments, and study.
This is a year to contemplate and reflect upon your life to date. It is time to discard the things in your life that are no longer working for you. You may find yourself becoming more critical, and become more discriminative with your personal choices. There is a need to learn to let go. If you find yourself stubbornly holding onto old patterns you may find yourself dealing with illness or surgery. This is just a way for your body to express that old ways need to be discarded. The need for exercise, healthy eating patterns and eliminating addictions is at the forefront of your awareness. The need for more quiet time is essential. Meditation and spiritual studies may become more important to you. The mind and body need time to revitalize. The pace of the 7 year is slow. Utilize this time to rid yourself of old baggage. Since this year is one of reflection, you may find yourself being critical of your relationships. Take time to talk with partners about how you feel, and bring up any issues that may have been suppressed. Your mind is your strength now, and you may choose to read more or go back to school. You may find yourself doing research for future goals. The 7 year is about becoming more discerning. What you fine tune, perfect, and even eliminate this year will bring rewards, and a new sense of confidence next year.
It is a brand New year! All New Years bring new opportunities and challenges. It can be beneficial to do a New Years spread with some of the many different types of oracles I work with this January. I am running a New Year promotion for $10 off my normal rates for the month of January. More information about this later in the newsletter.
Wishing everyone a Happy New Year! Jim V
"A man should never be ashamed to own that he has been in the wrong, which is but saying, in other words, that he is wiser today than he was yesterday."
~ J Swift
Channeled corner:
“You must begin to believe that every difficulty that comes into your awareness is your mirror. YOU have called into your lives all these people and events to show you the parts of your consciousness that you have not wished to see clearly. This does not mean that if you have met a lecher, that your are one. It means that you have judgment against lechery. And be assured, if you judge against others, somewhere in your psyche, you have judged against yourself. And that is the place that you must go to and examine; that part of you that needs to feel superior and does so by judging another. Every time you judge my friends, understand what you are doing. You are stepping on somebody’s neck in order to stand up that much higher, not in the world’s estimation, but in your own. The quality of judgment is the most divisive quality that you possess, because it will, at any cost, prove itself to be better. But all you are really trying to do is make yourself feel equal. For if you truly knew yourself to be “better,” you would manifest compassion, because you would understand that judgement is not a quality that EVER heals. Judgment does not heal any one, or any thing, at any time. Judgement is the killer. So those who judge against their fellow man have to be responsible for realizing that they are desperately trying to keep their own self-judgment locked up in another area of their life. There is a part of your psyche that doesn’t want to look inward, so it tricks you into looking out there. If you have judgment, you do not have compassion, because they cannot exist together. If you have compassion you cannot judge, because you understand from the point of compassion that the person who is before you in this moment, CAN ACT NO DIFFERENTLY. And you cannot impose your rules on them because there is always some part of your consciousness that other people can look at and judge to be wrong.” From the book, I Come As a Brother by Bartholomew
January’s New year newsletter Special!
January is a good month to have a New Year overview session to look at primary themes, challenges, and opportunities for the coming year. One symbol from each of the many different oracles I work with will be pulled to highlight 2014 for you. A New Year reading is a great way to start off your New year! Your new year reading will include:
Angel cards
Viking Rune stones
Druid animal totems
Lakota Indian cards
Egyptian Cartouche
Tarot Archetypes
Your session can be a 45 minute or full 70 minute reading. Mention the January new year reading special and you get $10 off of my listed prices (normally Snake Oil subscribers get $5 off) for booking this session in January of 2014 only. Local in-office clients who pay for their session in cash get another $5 discount! Email or call to set up your appointment, Venturasag@yahoo.com
"Grudges are the perfect excuse to not fulfill creative dreams. We can blame someone or something else and never take responsibility for our own part in not living our creative dreams."
~ SARK
Spring Classes
ASTROLOGY-101 (two beginner classes)
Whether you have some astrological knowledge or if you are a beginner, this series will teach you the basics of Astrology. By the end of this class, you will be on the road to knowledgeably interpreting your own chart, as well as those of others. You will learn about the house placements, signs, symbols, angles, and a lot more! We will explore how powerful the influence of astrology is in our lives. You will not only truly understand your own life, but become even more aware of why the people around us have a different focus and perspective! If you already have your own chart, please bring it to the class. If you need your chart done, information will be given beforehand about how to get your free chart for the classes.
Sundays noon until 2:30 pm March 2, 9th. Two classes $35.00 (prepaid $30.00, $25 for current Regular clients pre-paid). Maximum of 8 students for this home class (one student may call in out-of-area on speaker phone) and minimum of 4 sign-ups to hold the classes. A $10 deposit is required to hold your space in this series.
* What is your soul age? The soul age of friends and family ? How does soul age influence us?
* How do past lifetimes influence us in the present ?
* What does karma feel like, and how does it work ?
* How does your chief negative feature impact your life, and can it be changed?
* What happens when your partner is an idealist and you are a realist ?
* What is your life goal? Is it dominance, acceptance, flow, discrimination, growth, or submission ?
*What is your essence, your soul mate’s essence ? Artisan, priest, king, server, sage, warrior or scholar ?
* What is a soul mate, task companion, heart link ?
* What do the higher centers feel like?
After this workshop you will understand all of these questions and many more, and more importantly have the answers.
There are no tests to pass, just some great information. 5 classes, 2 hours each.
The main goal of the Michael teaching is agape or unconditional love. The teaching views life as a learning game in which fragments of the Tao - that essential part of each human being - set up lessons which continue over lifetimes. These lessons are learned via the personality which Essence chooses each lifetime. Michael teaches us what the components of the personality are so that we can learn to use and see these components in ourselves and in others. In that way we can learn to understand why human beings behave as they do. Michael is composed of 1,050 individual Essences who have lived on the physical plane and now teach from another plane. One of the most basic and important principles of the teaching is that it is not a religion or a belief system. Michael encourages their students to self validate all of the information they receive. The system was originally in print in over 12 volumes of information. “My studies of this material have been extensive and now I offer what I have learned to my students” Jim Ventura (Old Scholar). The classes will help you to use and understand the material without the need to read all the out-of-print books.
Saturday mornings 10 am till noon, March 29, April 5, 12, 19, 26th. $90.00 for all five classes ($80.00 pre-paid and for current Regular clients). Maximum of 8 students for this home class (one student may call in out-of-area on speaker phone) and minimum of 4 sign-ups to hold the classes. A $20 deposit is required to hold your space in this series.
You see, we are both "servers". Recognizing that in each other, it's been so easy to put the other one's needs ahead of our own without any resentment or animosity.
It's important to me to let you know that your influence has helped to make my "golden" years so wonderful. Don't stop doing what you do.” Former Michael student.
“The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.” Gandhi
Snake Oil Radio
Thursdays at 3:30 pm (there will be three live broadcasts this month)
My next live broadcast of Snake Oil Radio will be Thursday, January 2nd, at 3:30 p.m. (MST -AZ doesn’t use daylight savings time). Almost every Thursday you can catch a new show. Each 45 minute show will expand on my current column’s subject matter. It will also offer an opportunity for you to call in live (or chat with other listeners in the chat room) with comments and your thoughts about the topic of discussion. Halfway through some of the shows you can even ask me for a free 5 minute mini reading with your personal question. If you miss the live show, you can catch any of my previously recorded shows on the web site’s archive. You can also catch Snake Oil Radio on I-tunes (download my pod-casts there)
Join me on January 16th for an interview with Michelle Lee:
Michelle Lee, CH, is the founder and owner of Athena Rising Now. A program dedicated to freeing teen girls, their mothers, and all women from ancient cultural programming to become the leaders they were born to be. As an intuitive, certified hypnotherapist, emotional freedom technique (EFT) practitioner, author and mother, Michelle has more than 12 years experience working with women, helping them to discover and release their subconscious agendas so that they may fully express their highest potential. Michelle is the author of “Women: From Power to Profit: Your Guide to Claiming YOUR Worth” and of “Fall in Love…with your Self” hypnotic journey CD. You can discover more about Michelle’s programs, services, and products at www.AthenaRisingNow.com.
To hear a live show, all you need to do is be at a computer and tuned into: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Jim-Ventura You may also access it by going to blogtalkradio.com. Type “Snake Oil” into the search option.
You can also go to the shows that are currently “On air” at that time and find me. The call in number is 646-200-3966 for questions and comments.
Here’s my contact information to make an appointment for a session, or information on current classes: Phone: (602) 957-3035 text: 602-349-0746 Email: Venturasag@yahoo.com
Information about the different sessions and types of readings and services, past Snake Oil columns, and how to order my books and audio CD’s can be found at my website: Http://JimVentura.com
“Friend” me on Facebook to get other extra offers and in between column extras! Signing up for my fan page will get you even more extras and first shot at reading specials. Simply click on “like” on the fan page and you will automatically get my weekly updates.
All sessions/readings for 2013 are: Full (70 minutes) $110.00; Shorter session (45 minutes) $80.00; Extended session (90 minutes) $130.00 (two people can split an extended session back to back for $65.00 each). Email me for information about my Regular Client Program for even bigger discounts on session prices with the added benefit of monthly or quarterly check-ins.
