Dental high jinks

I’ve really been through it the past few years when it comes to visiting dentists and oral surgeons. For some background, here’s a list of my previous posts:

The Good-gums article was also reblogged on the Good-Gums website (and I was so honored)!

However, my relationship with this particular dentist was short-lived as she told me my tongue was too big for my mouth, and that it would cost $6,000 to fix what all was wrong with my teeth (and my husband threw a fit when I told him how she’d spoken to me and how much she wanted to charge me).

She had rushed me through all of her diagnostic tests, and even told ME to calm down because I affected HER Energy! (If she was really a holistic dentist SHE would have control over her own Energy and would not have put that upon me. I was appalled the more I thought about that. I never went back. Nor would I expend any Energy to explain my choice not to return to her.

I put those posts on my Being Wholly Vibrant site as most were product or service reviews. But I plan to wrap up that site soon and move the best posts here, to SheilaMurrey.net – as I pay WordPress for it and the other site is a free site with ads I have no control over. I’d started Being Wholly Vibrant as a test and now, it has over 130 posts on it. But I digress.

I really don’t want to tell medical professionals how to do their jobs, but I am having an issue with dentists.

Apparently, many doctors and dentists file insurance claims for their patients and when the funds come in they put them in their account. If you owe a balance they are right on it to send YOU a bill, but what happens when they owe YOU??? I’ll tell you, nothing happens! They can keep your money indefinitely!

I’ve written to the Florida State Attorney’s General office about an unscrupulous dental office in St. Pete Beach, Florida after I found out they were holding $1150. on account (of my money) for over a YEAR! Here’s what the AG’s office told me:

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody received your correspondence regarding Dental Arts in Saint Pete Beach. Attorney General Moody asked that I respond.

We appreciate that you view our office as a source of assistance and I am sorry for your difficulties. The Attorney General’s Office is concerned with all potentially deceptive and unfair trade practices. We use complaints to identify patterns of questionable business activities that may indicate the need for formal investigation or action by our office. In this respect, we have shared your information with the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division.

For help obtaining a refund or other resolution, you may file a complaint with the state’s mediation program, operated by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (DACS):

Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Division of Consumer Services
Telephone: (850) 410-3800
Toll-free within FL: (800) 435-7352
Website: https://www.fdacs.gov/Divisions-Offices/Consumer-Services

You can also find helpful information about fair debt collection practices, including instructions on disputing debts, and tips on resolving consumer problems at:

https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/debt-collection-faqs
https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/topics/resolving-consumer-problems

Finally, if you need legal guidance, please consult a private attorney. An attorney can provide the legal guidance which this office is not authorized to provide to private individuals or organizations. The Florida Bar offers a Lawyer Referral Service at (800) 342-8011 or https://www.floridabar.org/public/lrs/. If you need information about legal aid services, please visit https://www.floridabar.org/public/consumer/pamphlet022/.

Another resource for Florida residents aged 60 or older is the Florida Senior Legal Helpline, a free statewide telephone advice and referral service toll-free within Florida at (888) 895-7873 (see https://bals.org/senior-legal-helpline).

Thank you for contacting Attorney General Moody’s office.

Sincerely,

Rob Sparks
Office of Citizen Services
Florida Attorney General’s Office
The Capitol, PL-01
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1050
Telephone: (850) 414-3990
Toll-free in Florida: (866) 966-7226
Website: http://www.myfloridalegal.com

PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS E-MAIL. THIS ADDRESS IS FOR PROCESSING ONLY.

To contact this office please visit the Attorney General’s website at http://www.myfloridalegal.com and complete the on-line contact form.

Florida Attorney General’s Office

I did call Morgan and Morgan’s office over this matter but the dollar amount wasn’t high enough for anyone there to care about it. I guess they really aren’t “for the people” as they claim to be in their commercials. I also turned in this dental office to the Florida Dental Association, though I never heard back from them.

I have reached out to the Florida Bar offers a Lawyer Referral Service to see what they suggest.

And since I’m now over 60, I’ve reached out to the Florida Senior Legal Helpline.

I so appreciate this information from the Attorney General Moody’s office and am continuing to learn how I can work to educate myself and others when it comes to this egregious financial wrong doing by these people.

It just sucks that I spent all that money on the crown and it has bothered me for more than a year (plus, though numb during that work, it hurt very badly and I told them but they continued working on it). Lesson learned. I should have got up and walked out. Plus, they still owe me $1,150 that’s a credit on my account! (And yes, I have exhausted all of the various means of trying to force them to pay me but nothing has worked yet!)

As for the silver lining, I’ve found a wonderful oral surgeon across the street from where we live, who took me in within a few days and only charged me $50 out of pocket to extract one of the molars which the dentist in St. Pete Beach, not only left IN my mouth when it should have been pulled during that visit, but he put a crown on top of it, and even through all of the numbing, it hurt extremely bad while they were doing that process. I should have gotten up out of the dentist chair and left their office, but I simply told them it hurt and they kept on working on it, saying it had to be done and “knew it hurt.”

I will no longer give anyone power over me like that again.

Fractals of Omniscience

Fractal of Omniscience. “Spiral Sister”🌀Observer & Perceiver of Energy & Wisdom from Nature. Empath|Author|Connector|Speaker|Singer.❤️🦋🌀🎼〰️🙏🔥☯️

A bit about me, your Spiral Sister

I would love to speak at your bookstore, crystal shop, acupuncture / chiropractor office, or other holistic / natural fair or festival. I support healthy lifestyle businesses. For information on ALL of my books, visit my Amazon Author page.

An Amazon bestselling author of two co-authored books: Transform Your Life Book 2 Inspirational Stories and Expert AdviceEnergy of Receiving, and author of the captivating Blue Eyes: Ethereal Messages of Connection as well as the incredibly helpful 2nd edition of Have Yourself a Wholly Vibrant Life: Reversing Asthma and Other Chronic Illness Naturally.

Be the best version of who you want to be–who your soul beckons you to be. It’s important because who you are in this world affects us ALL. We Are All Connected.

Information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended to treat, diagnose or prescribe.

For more about this blog, how I create digital designs, why I wrote a holistic health book, and more, find me on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/takeonyourself/

crossroads

my buddhist/zen teacher dear Beishi Guohan wrote in his book, Tip of the Ripple “that it is easy to investigate Chan at a crossroad” this has …

crossroads

Good and Bad are LABELS

Why do we always label things good or bad?

Why do we judge so much, or at all? What a waste of time and energy. (Unless you’re a judge or sitting in a jury box, don’t each of us have enough to do without all the judging and condemning of our bother and sister humans?

Don’t we each have enough to do everyday to take care of what’s real?

Light and dark, hot and cold, wet and dry. These aspects of reality are real.

In traditions dating back millennia, the dark, wet/moist, and cool aspects were associated with the feminine. and light, heat, and dry aligned with the masculine. This is why the earth was said to be our mother and the sun our father. The dark soil of the earth accepts the light of the sun and nurtures plant life to grow.

We don’t say the earth is bad and the sun is good. Sometimes too much sunlight can burn our skin (so that could be bad). And when something is extremely cold it can feel hot, or if something is extremely hot it can feel cold. So, again, our senses can be fooled. Definitely calling something good or bad can vary depending on who’s judging what.

Let’s, for now, consider issues we view as bad, to simply be INFORMATION. Yes, even criminals. At some point we have to take a good hard look at our innards, shadow, guts, and admit that in some way, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant, we ourselves have been the criminal, even if only in our thoughts!

To walk the path of the shaman, we must dig in the dirt of ourselves and lift up the dark to clear it. Indeed, to heal ourselves.

Terence McKenna quote

Why do people need some threat (police, judge, jury, prison, or damnation), held over their heads to inspire or coerce them to live a righteous life? Why do we need a supreme Diety or Divine to live rightly?

Are we innately good? Kind? Obviously we get it if someone is hurt, abandoned, or abused they might consequently hurt other people (the whole “hurt people, hurt people” thing). But not everyone abuses others because they were abused. It is more than likely that when we’re hurt we fall out of alignment with our true selves, our Divinely guided inner being.

Some of us simply walk uprightly because it feels so good to do so! We tell the truth because it feels good (and we can’t sleep at night if we don’t).

So, I’m here to challenge and call out the whole idea of good vs. evil. The yin and yang tradition doesn’t specify a preference between them, yin is not bad while yang is good for instance. In the Asian wisdom traditions it’s all a question of Balance. Keeping things on an even keel. Working towards the middle. Staying neutral. When I practice Reiki, I am a neutral channel of pure loving Reiki Energy.

But Balance isn’t strived for in the good/evil traditions.

Let’s do this little exercise, as suggested by Nick Polizzi of the Sacred Science — here’s a link but watch it quickly as I don’t know how long it will be available: https://inneralchemy.thesacredscience.com/day-3-ist/

Write for 3 minutes of a recent “bad” situation that you’ve experienced. Not what someone else experienced as that’s none of your business.

Then write it again but use the terms light/dark or yin/yang to reframe and describe the situation to see how much emotional, spiritual, intellectual we can stretch, open, expand and change our language around the experience. This assumes it was our experience and not someone else’s we have no business in viewing/judging.

What have you learned? What new awareness has surfaced? Do you feel a bit lighter after reframing the situation and releasing the need to write bad/good judgements in the story?

For your upliftment

I hope so! Because the aim of this work is to uplift you.

We are each a bright shining fractal of Ever-Living, LIMITLESS Source Energy! Creation never ceases!

I am love-and-in my spirit and heart: I love unconditionally–that means without conditions, such as: I don’t care how much money you have or don’t have. I don’t care what ancestry you have, what skin tone, what ailments, what religion-or not, and certainly not what gender or sexual orientation you are-think you are or want to be!

Underneath the outer layer of our skin, we are all pink! Our blood is blue until exposed to oxygen and then, it’s red!

I think we care about each other because we are human. We are ALL human beings. I don’t want to exclude ANYONE. I want to be known for Inclusivity.

Because We Are ALL Connected. Because I believe each of us matter. I believe each of our voices matter. ❤️🦋🌀〰️

And, yes, I want you to yell FIRE in a theater, IF it’s on freaking FIRE!

Speaking your truth is healing!

No labels

I am all for NO LABELS!

I could care less what people do (or with whom) in the privacy of their homes, cars, RVs, motel rooms, tents, bathrooms, etc. and I don’t even mind public reasonable shows of affection (it doesn’t have to be vulgar—yes I know I am still judging). And between consenting adults, please. (My mind cannot abide with people taking advantage of children—see my previous post about that.)

Yes, I accept all for who they are. (But I don’t have to live with them.) I have had way too many experiences on different levels than to judge—more than I just did.

❤️🦋🌀〰️

Fractals of Omniscience

Fractal of Omniscience. “Spiral Sister”🌀Observer & Perceiver of Energy & Wisdom from Nature. Empath|Author|Connector|Speaker|Singer.❤️🦋🌀🎼〰️🙏🔥☯️

A bit about me, your Spiral Sister

I would love to speak at your bookstore, crystal shop, acupuncture / chiropractor office, or other holistic / natural fair or festival. I support healthy lifestyle businesses. For information on ALL of my books, visit my Amazon Author page.

An Amazon bestselling author of two co-authored books: Transform Your Life Book 2 Inspirational Stories and Expert AdviceEnergy of Receiving, and author of the captivating Blue Eyes: Ethereal Messages of Connection as well as the incredibly helpful 2nd edition of Have Yourself a Wholly Vibrant Life: Reversing Asthma and Other Chronic Illness Naturally.

Be the best version of who you want to be–who your soul beckons you to be. It’s important because who you are in this world affects us ALL. We Are All Connected.

Information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended to treat, diagnose or prescribe.

For more about this blog, how I create digital designs, why I wrote a holistic health book, and more, find me on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/takeonyourself/

Why can’t we ALL just get along? (Or, I love you, but – part 2)

Dysfunctional families.

As I ponder why some siblings don’t get along or even become estranged from one another, or why mothers and daughters can disagree and seem at odds with one another (all while feeling love for each other), it occurs to me it’s because though each love one another, or say we do, we are half the other parents DNA. And in the case of the mother and daughter, if the mother doesn’t get along with the father of course the same would hold true she would disagree with the daughter who is half the father’s DNA, attitudes, and such. It’s only logical. Siblings aren’t just 50 percent their mother’s DNA and 50 percent their father’s DNA either—each could be 49 percent of one and 51 percent the other, or some other mathematical percentage.

Too many times we get in our Ego when we could take a breath and simply be grateful we have people who love us in our lives!

I love you, but

I love you, but I am my own unique essence.
I love you, but I have been programmed and conditioned, however slightly, different than you.
I love you, but the lens by which I view life differs from the filter you look through.
I love you, but I have different needs than you.
I love you, but I got different amounts of our parent’s DNA, flaws, foibles, etc even though we are siblings.
I love you, but we each experience life differently each moment, each day!

Healing

I hope this helps anyone estranged from a sibling or a parent and teen who are having trouble communicating. Life is short. Don’t lose sight of what’s important. Nothing matters except the people who love you and whom you love.

Next time your parent or family member challenges you, ask yourself, “Is my ego hurt, or my soul?” I bet it’s your ego. And actually a lot of psychological analysts think ego is an illusion! So, you’re letting an illusion separate you from someone who really loves you but simply sees the world differently than you!

Where’s the love?

My sister, Christina, who lived less than one day in 1963, wouldn’t let me sleep last night until I wrote this article. She visits me in the ethereal and is who I wrote my new book about (which will launch soon).

Here was part 1 of this post: https://sheilamurrey.net/2021/07/10/i-love-you-but/

Fractals of Omniscience

Fractal of Omniscience. “Spiral Sister”🌀Observer & Perceiver of Energy & Wisdom from Nature. Empath|Author|Connector|Speaker|Singer.❤️🦋🌀🎼〰️🙏🔥☯️

A bit about me, your Spiral Sister

I would love to speak at your bookstore, crystal shop, acupuncture / chiropractor office, or other holistic / natural fair or festival. I support healthy lifestyle businesses. For information on ALL of my books, visit my Amazon Author page.

An Amazon bestselling author of two co-authored books: Transform Your Life Book 2 Inspirational Stories and Expert AdviceEnergy of Receiving, and author of the captivating Blue Eyes: Ethereal Messages of Connection as well as the incredibly helpful 2nd edition of Have Yourself a Wholly Vibrant Life: Reversing Asthma and Other Chronic Illness Naturally.

Be the best version of who you want to be–who your soul beckons you to be. It’s important because who you are in this world affects us ALL. We Are All Connected.

Information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended to treat, diagnose or prescribe.

For more about this blog, how I create digital designs, why I wrote a holistic health book, and more, find me on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/takeonyourself/

I have the power to overcome everything

Silver Birch was a spirit guide who spoke through Maurice Barbanell

I have the power to overcome everything

Medieval Christmas and its pagan influences!

How the Christian church transformed the pagan Winter Solstice into the medieval Christmas – through compromise and absorbing the unthinkable.

Medieval Christmas and its pagan influences!

The Twelve Spiritual Laws of the Universe #1 The Law of Divine Oneness

The 12 Spiritual Laws Of The Universe When you don’t understand the connections between the spiritual laws, you naturally encounter obstacles. You …

The Twelve Spiritual Laws of the Universe #1 The Law of Divine Oneness

Cold Weather Adaptations for Plants in the Forest

Prepared by Patrick Ryan from a list by the Royal Geographic Society (www.rgs.org/schools). As winter sets in here in the North, take a minute to …

Cold Weather Adaptations for Plants in the Forest

Let’s talk about text color CONTRAST on images

I love an art challenge

Let’s talk about CONTRAST, in particular when it comes to adding text to a digital photograph or image.

A blogger friend of mine (and no doubt soulie sister too) tried something new, for which I applaud her! She was drawn to take some photos and add a note to each of what they meant to her, how her soul resonated with what she was photographing. And that’s huge! To be the observer, and to do something different with your art! What expression! What JOY! 

And her actions sparked an observation within ME! I realized I had not written specifically about the contrast of text on photos, and how this correlates to the CONTRAST of, or within Life! 

So, here we go. I’ll show what I mean by the best way to contrast text on your photos (and yes, I have a degree in Visual Communications and specialize in 508 compliance during my day job). 

Adding text on photos and images can be tricky

Here’s one of her photos that I couldn’t see the text of very well, in fact, I missed it the first time I read her post: https://herladypinkrose.wordpress.com/2022/12/01/the-journey-2/

And here’s how I color corrected the text so I could see it. You could also just add a white glow or outline to the text as well (but I took the easy way out):

Now, just so you know I’m not picking on AmyRose, I noticed this white text on a website I viewed and how it sort of “gets lost” within the lighter areas of the Yew tree branches, making it difficult to read: 

Example 1Example 2

And this is how I fixed it: On AmyRose’s blog image, I attempted to match the font and size in a lighter color and place it over her text. If I had Photoshop on my laptop, I’d have cloned out her text and then added mine, but alas when you pay Adobe for the Creative Suite (as we do for our iMac) they don’t allow you to use it on another device. (Not so good of you, Adobe Products.) 

Anyway, similarly, on the Yew page, I matched their Times font and white color, but because of the kerning involved I couldn’t match it exactly. I wanted to simply type their “The yew tree baffles…” paragraph in a black font and lay it under the white so I could overlay their verbiage and be able to see a couple of the words better. In particular, the “is” which happens to lay on a lighter part of the yew tree image making it very difficult to see. I ended up adding a black font “is” over the white font paragraph I’d placed there, to call a bit more attention to it, though in a perfect world, and again, if I had Photoshop on my laptop, I could do an A+ pro job on this. We have to work with the tools we’re given though! LOL

Tip: Rule of contrast 

Remember this rule, light on dark or dark on light works best for text on pictures. And stay away from the red or pink tone colors as these are difficult to read for anyone who may be visually challenged (color blind).

As for my day job, I don’t have any graphic tools on the PC laptop. So, I do all my changes in Paint. I yearn for a day when I don’t have to work so hard in order to make changes to application screens. I also used to use Snag-It which was very helpful, but currently only have access to the Microsoft Snipping Tool that comes standard. 

One former place of employment used a fuchsia color for all of their image callouts. I challenged that decision based on contrast ratios but I didn’t win the argument. Sometimes, you have to follow what the company’s design guide dictates. If you have a choice however, always opt for the highest contrast you can work into your design.

If all else fails, you can reach out to me. I’m available a few hours a week for freelance side gigs and do proofreading, editing, color corrections, etc. 

Giving and receiving artsy advice

I’m so glad AmyRose understood what I was talking about when I commented on her post that I was having difficulty seeing the text on some of her photo images. Yes, initially, I’d viewed her post here: X on my phone, but even when I opened it from my laptop, full screen, I still had an issue seeing the text. And the point of her post was that she was trying something new, both by adding her comments ON her photographs, as well as sharing this part of her on her blog (the thoughts she’d had while observing nature and taking the pictures). 
 
I knew with some of our first exchanges we were “birds of a feather” mentally and emotionally, so I was sure hoping she’d take my “help” or advice with the love and intention I’d had in mind and she did. She didn’t let her ego get in the way, and that’s sooo important when one’s goal is to help and to build a bridge of communication. Many artists, unfortunately, allow their ego get in the way. 
 
You don’t always have to add a contrasting fog behind the text, outline the text, or go with an outrageous color, sometimes a highlight, double layer of the same word in a contrasting color, shadow, or such is all you need to make the text a bit easier on the eye.
 
Remember, black or darker color text font color on white / light backgrounds, and white or light text font color on darker backgrounds. It can be that easy.

Tip: Here’s a helpful color contrast ratio chart: https://contrast-grid.eightshapes.com/

A bit about us:

We’re songwriters open to placing any of our 400+ original songs in TV, film, games, etc. We’re also seeking bands to play our songs. Video content creators, filmmakers, podcasters, production companies, deejays, Vloggers, YouTubers, and more can use our original music and songs in movies, TV shows, video intros, and such.

My husband, Richard Murrey, is an award-winning illustrator, plus he’s a seasoned guitarist, bass player, and songwriter (having penned over 400 original songs). You can view his artwork and hear original songs at: https://www.youtube.com/@richardmurrey

Fractals of Omniscience

Fractal of Omniscience. “Spiral Sister”🌀Observer & Perceiver of Energy & Wisdom from Nature. Empath|Author|Connector|Speaker|Singer.❤️🦋🌀🎼〰️🙏🔥☯️

A bit about me, your Spiral Sister

I would love to speak at your bookstore, crystal shop, acupuncture / chiropractor office, or other holistic / natural fair or festival. I support healthy lifestyle businesses. For information on ALL of my books, visit my Amazon Author page.

An Amazon bestselling author of two co-authored books: Transform Your Life Book 2 Inspirational Stories and Expert AdviceEnergy of Receiving, and author of the captivating Blue Eyes: Ethereal Messages of Connection as well as the incredibly helpful 2nd edition of Have Yourself a Wholly Vibrant Life: Reversing Asthma and Other Chronic Illness Naturally.

Be the best version of who you want to be–who your soul beckons you to be. It’s important because who you are in this world affects us ALL. We Are All Connected.

Information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended to treat, diagnose or prescribe.

For more about this blog, how I create digital designs, why I wrote a holistic health book, and more, find me on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/takeonyourself/

A way to shift into Gratitude

We all get down or low at times. Feel discouraged. Irritated. Anxious. So, here’s a way we can shift our thoughts and emotions to feel better and improve our mental outlook. I love learning new tips and tricks like this!

During my Reiki training I learned of this beautiful exercise:

  • Get a few sheets of lined paper and a pen/pencil
  • Number the rows on lined paper from 1 to 100
  • Begin on line 1 and write down everything you can think of that you’re grateful for without stopping
  • If you stop for more than 10 seconds, start over.

The following are the four sheets of paper from my first attempt. I did not stop in between and my hand was tired at the end so my writing may not be all that legible. After completing, I immediately noticed a shift in my mental outlook to the positive. I felt I could have written more. I wrote this the night before Thanksgiving 2022:

The following are the four sheets of paper from my second attempt on November 26, 2022. I did not stop in between and my hand was tired at the end. However, I immediately felt very accomplished and with an eagerness to try again in a few days, making a mental note to do this exercise when I felt irritated or anxious so I could note any change in those feelings.

Have you tried this exercise yet? Let me know in the comments below. Stay tuned for my next attempt!

Fractals of Omniscience

Fractal of Omniscience. “Spiral Sister”🌀Observer & Perceiver of Energy & Wisdom from Nature. Empath|Author|Connector|Speaker|Singer.❤️🦋🌀🎼〰️🙏🔥☯️

A bit about me, your Spiral Sister

I would love to speak at your bookstore, crystal shop, acupuncture / chiropractor office, or other holistic / natural fair or festival. I support healthy lifestyle businesses. For information on ALL of my books, visit my Amazon Author page.

An Amazon bestselling author of two co-authored books: Transform Your Life Book 2 Inspirational Stories and Expert AdviceEnergy of Receiving, and author of the captivating Blue Eyes: Ethereal Messages of Connection as well as the incredibly helpful 2nd edition of Have Yourself a Wholly Vibrant Life: Reversing Asthma and Other Chronic Illness Naturally.

Be the best version of who you want to be–who your soul beckons you to be. It’s important because who you are in this world affects us ALL. We Are All Connected.

Information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended to treat, diagnose or prescribe.

For more about this blog, how I create digital designs, why I wrote a holistic health book, and more, find me on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/takeonyourself/