The weather has finally turned, the winds have died down. Hopefully that will give the firemen a chance to get these fires under control. Last night I heard that 15,000 homes had been burnt down in Southern California from these fires. I can't remember a worse disaster here.

I found out last night that some of my friends who are Scientology Volunteer Ministers have been helping at the crisis center in San Diego, giving Scientology Assists to firemen and people who have been evacuated to the shelters. I'm really proud of them, and wish I could join them.

Worst fires in southern California history. I probably live at least 60 miles away from any of the fires, and can hardly imagine the ordeal the fire fighters are facing. Even here it felt like dusk most of the day with all the smoke in the air. The firemen are real heros. We're very lucky to have them.

This past weekend was the celebration of the 19th anniversary of the International Association of Scientologists,(IAS), held in Sussex, England. A video of the event will be shown this weekend at the Shrine Auditorium. This is on of a dozen or so occasions that are celebrated by Scientologists around the world. What is particularly special about the IAS aniversary is that it acknowledges the human rights activities of the Church of Scientologyand its members. I always find it such an inspiration, to see how much one person can do, to help others on a grand scale.

The Way to Happiness Foundation updated their site with photos of the grand opening event. Brings back fond memories of a great day.

I love the Way to Happiness book. L. Ron Hubbard wrote it when he realized the extent to which morality had declined in our society, and he saw the urgent need to do something to reverse that trend.

You can read more about the book here.

Here's a group I really admire.:Doctors Without Borders. Here's a group of true humanitarians who are there to help.

Unseasonally hot in Los Angeles this year. I went to my favorite open-air market today, California Farmers' Market and it felt like mid-summer. It was pretty clear from how everyone else was addressed they agreed with me.

Not only is the produce the best, but they have great restaurant stalls and terrific music.

Two good sources of information about Scientology are the Open Directory Project- Church of Scientology results, and Yahoo! Scientology category.

There's also a pretty good article on Beliefnet - not completely accurate, but very fair.

The American Ballet Theater and Alvin Ailey dance company were among the best things about growing up in New York, along with The Cloisters museum. (Just to set the record straight about what I miss the most about New York.)

Just found an article on yet another example of inadequate educational technology in our public schools - this time plummeting scores in New York State.

Bush has his No Child Left Behind strategy. It's a fine idea, but without a way to accomplish it, it is meaningless.

However these is a technology of study and education which is effective, is easy to learn and can be implemented with no additional resources than we currently have in our schools. This is L. Ron Hubbard: Study Technology. There is also a teacher training campus called Applied Scholastics International where any teacher, mentor, tutor or parent can learn enough of the basics of this technology in a matter of a few days to be able to help their kids considerably.

It's actually really exciting, because when there are simple solutions to serious problems, something can be done about it!

Here's an interesting article on a detox program in New York that firefighters who were at the World Trade Center on and after 9/11 are participating in. I've done this same detox, and although I had nowhere near the level of toxicity of these rescue workers, I still have a lot to handle (isn't anyone on planet Earth in the 21st century being bombarded by toxins?). It's a very intense program, but for all the effort you put into it you get out 10 times more.

Read a bit more about the Scientology Purification Program here.

And, while you're at it, check out the Church of Scientology Official Site. Lot's to read and learn about here:)

Look what I found. I blog about Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health!

Dianetics was the first book I read, when I was finding out about Scientology (oh so long ago). A good friend of mine lent me his copy of the book. I read three chapters and realized I had my hands on something I'd been looking for. I'd been studying eastern religions, meditation, yoga, astrology... anything I could get my hands on that could shed some light on who I really was, what life was really about and why I felt and reacted the way I did.

It wasn't long after that I visited a Scientology Mission in the town where I was living. I took a Communication Course and got some Scientology Auditing ( Spiritual Counseling) and I've never looked back.

Today's election day in California. As much as I'm embarassed to be part of all this hoohah, I did my patriotic duty, and voted.

It's a gorgeous Southern California day, and I hear it's going to be a record turn out.

Had a great time this weekend at the grand opening of the new headquarters for The Way to Happiness Foundation. They had terrific speakers who told how much the Way to Happiness had helped calm down their areas. It was very inspirational. Check out this Chapter from The Way to Happiness . Very simple and makes so much sense.