Happy Dog Days

Annie points out this morning that the strange occurence with the link that didn't want to change seems to have righted itself overnight. Just last night, we had noted that 3 additional links had mysteriously turned back to charcoal. Google News, World Soul KIN Notes, and Pete Townshend's link! hm. Annie feverishly studied the html codes and could find absolutely nothing out of place. And yep .. this morning all links are looking beautiful in their new coats of periwinkle. Annie has now changed her password "just in case." :o) Odd, odd, and odder!

So! On to HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!



Welcome to the Chinese Lunar Year of The Dog

Annie and Company enjoy reading the Eastern birth pattern philosophies. Annie is born in the Year of the Fire Monkey and her personality and habits are influenced by a Rabbit ascendant. [similar in theory to the Western astrological ascendant.] Some traditions call the Rabbit a Cat. Master Rao has a very comprehensive website wherein you may discover your Chinese birth sign and if you know your time of birth, there is a calculator to find your Ascendant sign [very influential in personality development.] Annie loves the design of the plate pictured to the left. It has a very time clock quality to it. Time of Years. Yep!

Master Rao has formulated depth articles that discuss the signs and ascendants and has even provided them specifically for men and women. An important distinction because, after all, our brains are very different. Oh yes they are.

Annie found the articles on women there hilarious as Master Rao based his interpretations on the assumption that all women are feminists - not so - but also failed to recognize that many men embrace that ideology. lol

[Personal to MR if you still read here --- you are a Water Snake. Ha! We'll point it out because we know you won't go look or if you do ... you'll never tell.] lol

The children are Fire Ox, Earth Tiger, and Earth Rabbit.

Son Orion made note that this coming Year [2006] is the one in which the "curse of 2005" will be broken. He couldn't delineate further exactly which curse he felt was present. But, pointed out that we should pay attention to this Chinese New Year and the Dog Days. He said "I'm taking on dog DNA" [to help.] lol My children. Gotta love 'em. ;o)

We found a recent article that was of interest.

Fri Jan 27, 7:41 AM ET
yahoo news

SHANGHAI, China - In a new twist on the phrase "working like a dog," a company in northern China says it will only hire candidates born in the Asian zodiac's year of the canine.

A personnel manager for Jilin Jiangshan Human Resources Development Co. Ltd., who gave his name only as Mr. Dong, said his company believes people born in dog years are simply more suited to its corporate culture.

[Annie is having immature fits and giggles about the name ... ]

"We believe that people born in dog years are born with some good characteristics such as loyalty and honesty," Dong, himself a dog, told The Associated Press.

Although Chinese law forbids discrimination in hiring, it doesn't say what constitutes an offense and job ads often come with a list of conditions including gender, age, height and even place of birth.

Dong said those critics are barking up the wrong tree.

"I think we have the right to choose our employees by our own rule and I don't see this rule could hurt anybody," he said.

Maybe Mr. Dong is born in a Dragon Year. Young Shanghai college graduates apparently face intense competition and scrutiny due to very limited suitable jobs. Annie believes that when all candidates have equal qualifications there must be a fair way for an employer to sort through the maze of people. Maybe Mr. Dong has the right idea. At least he's honest in that he is looking for those who fit into "corporate culture."

From Master Rao:

Any Chinese year invariably begins with the second new-moon day after the winter solstice. The Chinese New Year's day, therefore, is movable — just as Easter Day, which is also tributary of the moon — and takes place somewhere between January 21 and February 20 according to astronomic circumstances.

The Chinese zodiac is a cycle of twelve Chinese years placed under the signs of the twelve following symbolic animals: Rat, Buffalo (or Ox), Tiger, Cat (or Rabbit or Hare), Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat (or Sheep or Ram), Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig (or Boar).

Chinese years also evolve in cycles of ten years each. Every set of two consecutive years is governed by a Chinese cosmic element. There are five elements in all: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water.

What's Yer Sign - by Master RAO




Chinese character symbol for the loyal "DOG" [left]














[right - Sarah's 2004 watercolor called "Mommy"]
[at age 4, Sarah wondered what "loyalty" meant]
[she painted that in response. I cried for hours]