Benefits of using Essential Oils in Clay Diffusers

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Essential Oil Diffuser and Lavender Essential Oil Gift Combo

Benefits of Using a Clay Diffuser

Benefits of Using Essential Oils in Clay Diffusers by Cristin McDonnell Using a soapstone or clay diffuser has many health benefits over using an electrical diffuser.  Chemical air fresheners that plug-in to electrical circuits or that are sprayed are reported to have these four basic ingredients: formaldehyde, petroleum distillates, aerosol propellants, and p-dichlorobenzene.   All four can… Read more »

Music, Liminality, and Hope

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Hoodoos: Earth Changes at Bryce Canyon

Hoodoos: Earth Changes at Bryce Canyon

Music, Liminality, and Hope On Saturday, December 5, 2015, the C.G. Jung Institute of San Francisco will hold an event in Berkeley, Inscape and Landscape: From the Canyons to the Stars, to celebrate the upcoming January performance of Olivier Messiaen’s Des Canyons aux Etoiles, Cal Performances, Zellerbach Auditorium.    I will be speaking about the Alchemy of Catastrophe: Climate Change, Spirit,… Read more »

New: Essential Oil Diffuser Package

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Debra Manfree, Atlas Peak Pottery, designing diffuser for Harms Vineyards and Lavender Fields

Debra Manfree, Atlas Peak Pottery, designing diffuser for Harms Vineyards and Lavender Fields

New: Essential Oil Diffuser Package Your can never anticipate the circuitous paths that take you where you are going! I first met Debra Manfree at one of our Open Houses here at the ranch. I remember the incident (and it was an incident!). Each Open House we do a number of tours in which we… Read more »

Preparing for Seasonal Change: Essential Oils and Ayurveda

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Preparing for Seasonal Change: Essential Oils and Ayurveda

Preparing for Seasonal Change: Essential Oils and Ayurveda By: Cristin McDonnell Colds, allergies, and seasonal influences seem to present themselves predominantly around December 21st , the winter solstice, and  March 21st, during the spring equinox in the northern hemisphere.  How often have you look forward to spending the holidays with family or finally having time off from work… Read more »

Messiaen’s Music, the Psyche, and Climate Change

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Photograph by Deborah O'Grady

Photograph by Deborah O'Grady

Messiaen’s Music, the Psyche, and Climate Change Inscape and Landscape: From the Canyons to the Stars: In Celebration: A Day Long Event at the David Brower Center in Berkeley, CA. 9 am to 5 pm. What do an esoteric symphonic piece composed by French composer Olivier Messiaen and the gathering this week in Paris of our earth’s… Read more »

Lavender Focaccia

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Lavender focaccia

Lavender Focaccia Lavender focaccia bread is great served as an hors d’oeuvres.  If you are looking for a fun addition to your holiday meal, this is it.  It can be served plain and dipped into olive oil or if you have made a chicken or a turkey, it turns that bird into an incredible sandwich! Besides incredible… Read more »

Protect the Common Good

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Decisions: Consequence to oak savanna of rural tourism

Decisions: Consequence to oak savanna of rural tourism

Protect the Common Good Statement to Planning Commission, County of Napa, November 19, 2015 Thank you for this time of public comment. Not all counties allow this kind of participation by the public. I think it is only through processes which include the public that we are going to come to agreements which protect the… Read more »

Diluting Essential Oils for Faster Healing

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lavender engenders trust

Biodynamic Lavender Essential Oil, 30 ml

Diluting Essential Oils for Faster Healing by Cristin McDonnell I am originally from Virginia.  While living in Virginia I have had minimal issues with my skin breaking out.  When I moved to California for four months, my skin did not fair well and I was continually broken out on my face.  I tried applying lavender… Read more »

Lavender Engenders Trust

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Do goats exposed to lavender butt less? I am not sure, but I know they love to have the stems in their stalls.

Lavender Engenders Trust In a Leiden University study out of the Netherlands, lavender aroma was shown to engender a state of trust. The research reported  in Frontiers in Psychology, “A question of Scent: Lavender Aroma Promotes Interpersonal Trust,” found that individuals under the calming influence of lavender were more trusting in interpersonal relationships than individuals presented with  scents which are more stimulating,… Read more »

When People and Land Lose Each Other

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Terraced fields in the Pyrenees.

When People and Land Lose Each Other These days we in the Napa Valley are spending a great deal of time on the politics of land use. I am running some previous blogs on the relationship of people and land and what happens when they are separated. Migration has torn our relationship to land, leaving deep wounds in the… Read more »