Better Homes and Chi
In case you are one of the eight or 10 people left in North America who doesn’t know about feng shui, it’s not a menu item. The ancient Chinese philosophy (pronounced fung shway) is all about creating harmony through your surroundings. And although a relatively new concept in the United States, it is becoming more mainstream. It’s also about your vital energy, or chi (pronounced chee).
You can read about it in “The Western Guide to Feng Shui” and “Home Design With Feng Shui A--Z,” by Terah Kathryn Collins, who defines it as a holistic art and science that addresses both your inner and outer domain.
You can also hear more about it today at Borders in Thousand Oaks, when Westlake resident and feng shui consultant Barbara Green tells you how to enhance your health, happiness and prosperity with feng shui. Green is a graduate of the Western School of Feng Shui, co-founded by Collins in Solano Beach, and does consultations in homes and business in the practical application of feng shui.
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You may be tempted to gut your home and start over after checking out this philosophy, especially if sharp corners and passive chaos have messed up your chi. But it’s better to take it one step at a time.
Green suggests that you begin with the idea of your home as your personal paradise or sacred space.
“If you start looking at things in a different light, you may not be happy with anything,” Green said. “We have to face reality, so take one thing in each room that you love and make that the start of your paradise.”
And don’t add anything to the room unless you absolutely love it, she said. Don’t settle, even if it’s on sale.
Then there is the matter of active and passive chaos. Active is good, passive is another no-no. Collins describes active chaos as something you create when painting, writing or fixing a meal, for example. When you finish, you tidy up--otherwise it becomes passive chaos, or clutter.
“Passive chaos is all that stuff that doesn’t have a home, so it just sits there and clutters up your head,” Green said. “Subconsciously, you know it needs to be dealt with and it just drags your chi.”
Collins’ book offers a cornucopia of information. For example, protruding sharp angles and corners are taboo--they produce “cutting chi” that makes people irritable or uncomfortable.
Water, on the other hand, invigorates chi flow. Other chi enhancers are candles, crystals, wind chimes and bells.
But better tuck the toilet behind an alcove and keep the lid down.
And so it goes with the philosophy that suggests that every person, place and thing is alive with chi, that it’s all connected and that the chi in everything is changing. Meanwhile, if this all seems overwhelming, take heart from that ancient philosopher who said every journey begins with the first step--or something like that.
HAPPENINGS
* Today, 4 p.m. Consultant Barbara Green discusses feng shui. Borders, 125 W. Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks, 497-8159.
* Today, 6:30 p.m. A reading of award-winning poetry from a juried show pairing art and poetry, presented by the Conejo Valley Poetry Society and the Arts Council of the Conejo Valley. Borders, 497-8159.
* Tuesday, 4:30 p.m. A biography program for school-age kids will feature Clara Barton. Barnes & Noble, 160 S. Westlake Blvd., Thousand Oaks, 446-2820.
* Tuesday, 7 p.m. Monthly poetry workshop with Michael Collings of Pepperdine University. Borders, 497-8159.
* Tuesday, 7 p.m. Monthly Caldecott story time features 1964 winner “Make Way for Ducklings” by Robert McCloskey. Ventura Barnes & Noble, 4360 E. Main St., 339-9170.
* Tuesday, 7:30 p.m. Acting coach and author J.P. Pierce presents a 90-minute seminar based on his book, “Killer Monologues.” Thousand Oaks Barnes & Noble, 446-2820.
* Wednesday, 9:30 a.m. Story time features “Will I Have a Friend?” by Miriam Cohen. Ventura Barnes & Noble, 339-9170.
* Wednesday, 4 p.m. The Moorpark Zoo will bring a kinkajou to Wildlife Camp. Borders, 497-8159.
* Wednesday, 7 p.m. Sci-fi discussion group will focus on “Wild Seed” by Octavia E. Butler. Borders, 497-8159.
* Wednesday, 7 p.m. American Girls Club Meeting will feature Josefina, a Latina who grew up in New Mexico in 1824. Ventura Barnes & Noble, 339-9170.
* Saturday, 10:30 a.m. Story time will feature a visit from Corduroy. Thousand Oaks Barnes & Noble, 446-2820.
* Saturday, 7 p.m. Delta’s Corner for Kids celebrates African American children’s literature at Pajamamania. Borders, 497-8159.
* Saturday, 8 p.m. Book signing and discussion will feature “The Elvis and Marilyn Affair” by Robert S. Levinson. Calabasas Barnes & Noble, 4735 Commons Way, 1-818-222-0542.
TIP OF THE WEEK
It’s the seventh annual Library Support Month at Adventures for Kids, 3457 Telegraph Road, Ventura, 650-9688. Ten percent of all purchases can be designated as credit at your favorite school or public library during August.
Information about book signings, writers groups or publishing events can be e-mailed to anns40@aol.com or faxed to 647-5649.