Limestone Fabrication

According to evolutionary theory, carnivore gut structure is more primitive than herbivorous adaptations. Thus, an omnivore might be expected to be a carnivore which shows some gastrointestinal tract adaptations to an herbivorous diet. This is exactly the situation we find in the Bear, Raccoon and certain members of the Canine families. (This discussion will be limited to bears because they are, in general, representative of the anatomical omnivores.) Bears are classified as carnivores but are classic anatomical omnivores. Although they eat some animal foods, bears are primarily herbivorous with 70-80% of their diet comprised of plant foods. (The one exception is the Polar bear which lives in the frozen, vegetation poor arctic and feeds primarily on seal blubber.) Bears cannot digest fibrous vegetation well, and therefore, are highly selective feeders. Their diet is dominated by primarily succulent lent herbage, tubers and berries. Many scientists believe the reason bears hibernate is because their chief food (succulent vegetation) not available in the cold northern winters. (Interestingly, Polar bears hibernate during the summer months when seals are unavailable.) In general, bears exhibit anatomical features consistent with a carnivorous diet. The jaw joint of bears is in the same plane as the molar teeth. The temporalis muscle is massive, and the angle of the mandible is small corresponding to the limited role the pterygoid and masseter muscles play in operating the jaw. The small intestine is short ( less than five times body length) like that of the pure carnivores, and the colon is simple, smooth and short.

The most prominent adaptation to an herbivorous diet in bears (and other "anatomical" omnivores) is the modification of their dentition. Bears retain the peg-like incisors, large canines and shearing premolars of a carnivore; but the molars have become squared with rounded cusps for crushing and grinding. Bears have not, however, adopted the flattened, blunt nails seen in most herbivores and retain the elongated, pointed claws of a carnivore. An animal which captures, kills and eats prey must have the physical equipment which makes predation practical and efficient. Since bears include significant amounts of meat in their diet, they must retain the anatomical features that permit them to capture and kill prey animals. Hence, bears have a jaw structure, musculature and dentition which enable them to develop and apply the forces necessary to kill and dismember prey even though the majority of their diet is comprised of plant foods. Although an herbivore-style jaw joint (above the plane of the teeth) is a far more efficient joint for crushing and grinding vegetation and would potentially allow bears to exploit a wider range of plant foods in their diet, it is a much weaker joint than the hinge-style carnivore joint. The herbivore-style jaw joint is relatively easily dislocated and would not hold up well under the stresses of subduing struggling prey and/or crushing bones (nor would it allow the wide gape carnivores need). In the wild, an animal with a dislocated jaw would either soon starve to death or be eaten by something else and would, therefore, be selected against. A given species cannot adopt the weaker but more mobile and efficient herbivore-style joint until it has committed to an essentially plant-food diet test it risk jaw dislocation, death and ultimately, extinction. What About Me? The human gastrointestinal tract features the anatomical modifications consistent with an herbivorous diet. Humans have muscular lips and a small opening into the oral cavity. Many of the so-called "muscles of expression" are actually the muscles used in chewing. The muscular and agile tongue essential for eating, has adapted to use in speech and other things.

The mandibular joint is flattened by a cartilaginous plate and is located well above the plane of the teeth. The temporalis muscle is reduced. The characteristic "square jaw" of adult males reflects the expanded angular process of the mandible and the enlarged masseter/pterygoid muscle group. The human mandible can move forward to engage the incisors, and side-to-side to crush and grind. Human teeth are also similar to those found in other herbivores with the exception of the canines (the canines of some of the apes are elongated and are thought to be used for display and/or defense). Our teeth are rather large and usually abut against one another. The incisors are flat and spade-like, useful for peeling, snipping and biting relatively soft materials. The canines are neither serrated nor conical, but are flattened, blunt and small and function Like incisors. The premolars and molars are squarish, flattened and nodular, and used for crushing, grinding and pulping noncoarse foods. Human saliva contains the carbohydrate-digesting enzyme, salivary amylase. This enzyme is responsible for the majority of starch digestion. The esophagus is narrow and suited to small, soft balls of thoroughly chewed food. Eating quickly, attempting to swallow a large amount of food or swallowing fibrous and/or poorly chewed food (meat is the most frequent culprit) often results in choking in humans. Man's stomach is single-chambered, but only moderately acidic. (Clinically, a person presenting with a gastric pH less than 4-5 when there is food in the stomach is cause for concern.) The stomach volume represents about 21-27% of the total volume of the human GI tract. The stomach serves as a mixing and storage chamber, mixing and liquefying ingested foodstuffs and regulating their entry into the small intestine. The human small intestine is long, averaging from 10 to 11 times the body length. (Our small intestine averages 22 to 30 feet in length. Human body size is measured from the top of the head to end of the spine and averages between two to three feet in length in normal-sized individuals.) The human colon demonstrates the pouched structure peculiar to herbivores.

The distensible large intestine is larger in cross-section than the small intestine, and is relatively long. Man's colon is responsible for water and electrolyte absorption and vitamin production and absorption. There is also extensive bacterial fermentation of fibrous plant materials, with the production and absorption of significant amounts of food energy (volatile short-chain fatty acids) depending upon the fiber content of the diet.

The extent to which the fermentation and absorption of metabolites takes place in the human colon has only recently begun to be investigated. In conclusion, we see that human beings have the gastrointestinal tract structure of a "committed" herbivore. Humankind does not show the mixed structural features one expects and finds in anatomical omnivores such as bears and raccoons.

Predictably, human suffering would be compounded by economic losses and expenses, including loss of productivity. Cognitive impairment, in which those affected cannot think clearly, is one common-and widespread effect. Schools, institutions, offices and general workplaces can readily suffer from this effect and others.  This public health issue deserves serious consideration and study, which we propose to undertake. It is not possible to properly assess the environmental impact of this project fully, nor can one responsibly release this proposed project, without fully and completely investigating this issue. AEHA-NS and our partners are uniquely suited and positioned to carry out this job due to the expertise of our members and of our connections within the field of environmental medicine. We invite all to be creative in finding ways to assist our effort.  Our concerns are shared in the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's publication The Clean Air Guide: How to Identify and Correct Indoor Air Problems in Your Home (NHA 6695, 1993) which lists under "Chemical Contaminats" the "combustion gases generated by the burning of fossil fuels in gas furnaces, fireplaces, hot water heaters, woodstoves and oil furnaces" (p.1). +

Four of their first six chemical contaminants listed concern gas (pp. 12 - 15). In every case the best or the only solution given is to stop using gas and convert to electric. "Combustion gases and unburned fuel (including the additives) from fossil fuel appliances can be a major source of contaminants in the home. Sufficient evidence has accumulated on the negative impact on health of using open flame gas stoves" (p. 18).   The Lancet, the British medical journal, recently published research findings further supporting this finding, and linking use of natural gas appliances to asthma and other respiratory health problems (The Lancet, Vol. 347, February 17, 1996, pp. 412, 426-431.) Increased risk was documented for asthma attacks, waking with shortness of breath, reduced lung function and increased airway obstruction.   T. Randolph, M.D., and R. Moss, Ph.D., in their book An Alternative Approach to Allergies (NY: Bantam, 1980), devote many pages to the problems with natural gas. ".... for the chemically susceptible individual this (natural) gas may be the worst form of fuel" (p. 86). "The gas stove must be completely removed from the premises" (p. 87). "If a chemically susceptible person has a gas-fired heating system, he has to consider changing it, or changing houses, regardless of the immediate cost. The reason is that it is difficult for a susceptible person to remain in anything resembling good health if he is subjected to the fumes of such a system." (p. 242).  

AEHA-NS and our coalition partners will table evidence in support of our position for consideration in this environmental assessment. The problem is significant and astonishingly poorly known.  AEHA-NS and our coalition partners represent persons with the greatest likelihood of harm through adverse environmental health effects. We are a highly motivated group with specific expertise, access to information and resources in this field not commonly available. Nova Scotia is a pioneer in environmental medicine, partly because of our unfortunate history of far greater than average occurrence of this condition. Nova Scotia hosts the first government-funded Environmental Health Clinic in North America. We understand this field and can help direct this investigation to those areas most likely to prove relevant and useful.   It is reasonable to expect the Nova Scotia and New Brunswick experience to be much more severe than previously reported elsewhere, in part because we already have such substantially higher rates than are generally found elsewhere of environmentally induced illness/chemical sensitivity, asthma and allergies. Thus, we would tend to be much more susceptable to any new stresses to our immune systems. Additionally, now the exobiological chemicals in our environments have increased in both variety and quantity, and more persons are reacting to these than was previously the case (or at least than was previously reported). This all tends to make less relevant earlier studies from elsewhere that attempt to dismiss the adverse health effects of gas and its by-products (Gas Combustion Details).   The token Intervenor funding received by AEHA-NS is completely inadequate to the task at hand. It is especially inadequate to determine which uses of natural gas are unlikely to contribute to environmentally induced illness and chemical sensitivity, asthma or allergies. Specifically, in order for us to be confident that any uses of natural gas are of proven benefit in our case, we  need the help and cooperation of everyone who holds a stake in undertaking this research project.   In the spirit of the Canadian National Round Table on Environment and Economy's (NRTEE) Building Consensus for a Sustainable Future: Guiding Principles (1993), we propose the NRTEE system be used as a superior method to the current biased environmental assessment process. In the NRTEE process all stakeholders cooperate to "advance issues related to environmental, social and economic sustainability" and together, as equals, find sustainable, affordable , and appropriate solutions to complex challenges. Only thus can we and other stakeholders fully share our creativity, knowledge and dedication in researching all perspectives of this situation and building consensus for a sustainable future.   The published advice of the leading medical practitioners treating environmental illness is that  combustion sources, particularly natural gas, are a significant contributor to illness when piped where people live and work. We need to document the mechanisms of this, when it does and does not occur, why some are affected and not others, the full extent of the harmful effects and how to protect against those effects. We need to determine the risk/benefit ratio of the various aspects of this project and their logical outcomes. A cleaner, less toxic environment would be of great benefit to all of us.   Please help in any way you can. We need assistance from professionals in the health, environmental, legal, economic and other fields. We need related documents, reports and other evidence. We need leads to those who might be of help. We need case histories and anecdotes of exposures and effects. We could definitely use money, office equipment and supplies. In whatever way you can, please assist us in protecting our common future and the health and wellbeing of ourselves and our children!  If you like this site, if you have any questions, or if you would like us to add a link to your site on our links page, please fill out our comments form or send us mail at aeha-ns@oocities.com   Site Map, Return to Top, More Information on AEHA, How can I help?        

Hi, this is a true story!  The day 25 of September 1993 a 50 feet yacht named Flying Shamal furrowing the waters of Mediterranean Sea in a violent storm shipwrecked.  At the helm a 35 years-old Mariano Aprile, also well known as a solitary sailor. The navigator's body was looked for by two months and one day appeared as a cadaver in the Island of Caprera. Two years later the shipwreck a journalist of the magazine "Panorama" (Mondadori Editions) published two articles in those she affirmed of having found the solitary sailor in a island of the South Pacific Sea...  to be continued...  Post scriptum: in the last five years more than 360 articles have been published about it in magazines and newspapers. The most important italian and german Tv stations have devoted hours of emissions to the case: Rai uno, Rai due, Rai tre, Canale cinque, Italia uno, RTF, RTL, Telecupole, Retequattro etc... The italian magazine "Oggi" (Rizzoli Editions) devoted severals articles to "the misterious shipwreck" signed by Rita Cenni (May-July 1997). A book containing the true story of "the shipwrecked" will be published soon, we are looking for some publisher interested to publish it in U.S.A.and Japan, if you need more informations please stay in touch with us!  

Singing the Shaman's Song At that moment when the shaman song emerges, when the sacred breath rises up from the depths of the heart, the center is found, and the source of all that is divine has been tapped.  from Joan Halifax, Shamanic Voices    Song can be a salve, a celebration, a lamentation, a bridge to other worlds. From the earliest times, humans have known that song, and its accompanying poetry, could take us out of our ego selves and transport us into the hidden, magical realms where spirits dwell. Along with the drum and the rattle, the shaman's song allows us to transcend this physical world and re-member again our connection to the source, to experience again the unity of the universe. This page is in honor of  the shamanic tradition which I believe underlies all human religions and belief systems, as shamanism has been practiced on every inhabited continent in the world since paleolithic times.  Since antiquity, shamans have been those individuals gifted with the ability to access the hidden realities and to dialogue with spiritual representatives of the universe for the purposes of healing and divination. Shamans also believe strongly in the interconnectedness of all things; therefore, everything that exists--including rocks, tree, animals, the elements--is alive and imbued with spirit and is capable of being communicated with; even their songs can be learned and sung. In tribal cultures, shamans are the healers, the medicine people, or simply, "those who know," those who learn from both the natural and the spiritual worlds.  Remarkably, there are techniques that are known and practiced in common in very diverse cultures around the globe. How is it that cultures that anciently had no physical contact and dramatically different lanugages and art forms indeed had common shamanic practices?

Welcome  to OrchidSafari, "The Friendly Orchid Chat" When it is 8:00 p.m. (Central) , that's OrchidSafari time on Wednesday and Saturday nights at TTR (ICS)...

Not sure of your time difference? For your convenience, here's a time hack showing  Central time in Shreveport LA.   Friends, you and me,  you brought another friend... and then there were three. We started our group ~

Our Circle of Friends ~ and like the circle,  there's no beginning... there is no end. OrchidSafari CREDO WoW! THE BEST OF OrchidSafari (...a work in progress)   OrchidSafari badge, designed by Susan Lindstedt    HOW TO JOIN UPCOMING TOPICS/ORCHID EVENTS BROWSE ARCHIVES BIOGRAPHIES OF ORCHID PERSONAGES MEMBER LOCATOR ORCHIDSAFARI SCRAPBOOK -

WHEN ORCHID CHATTERS MEET... PRESS CLIPPINGS MEMBERS' GROWING AREAS BIOGRAPHIES OF MEMBERS MEMBERS' HOMEPAGES  HISTORY  

The members of OrchidSafari wish to share with you orchid material amassed during OrchidSafari sessions. Included are synopses of pre-announced topics plus orchid, photography, and computer tips. It is a permanent record of the thoughts and ideas exchanged at OrchidSafari sessions.

"WHERE'S MY CIGARETTE??" The Wolf's main source of communication comes from the facial expressions.  

This wolf is showing aggression by curling it's lips back,  exposing the fangs and holding the ears erect.   MIRROR MIRROR in the water.....

Wolves don't avoid water (unless it is too turbulent). In fact some wolves have been seen  swimming for no particular reason but perhaps just to have fun.   Look! I signed up for the Angel Patrol Staff Spirit Contest! *G* Please click the banner above and give my site a vote. *batting wolfie lashes*      Here is a great site to see if you have an interest in wolves!!! It has many wonderful pictures as well as some helpful tips for chatters.Check it out... Click on the picture button!    

A SPECIAL NOTE OF THANKS: This page would not be possible without the dedicated help of my love, my dear WOLF, for which I would like to publicly say THANK YOU!!! *S*   fuzzywolf@sympatico.ca   MY OTHER PAGES  OUR CATALOG PAGE! EAGLE PAGE HTML Help Page! MEMBERS LIST! Photo Gallery 1 My Adoption Agency Friendship   My home away from home!! Lots of different stuff to see. Nothing repeated Click the picture to see our wolfpups' page     Please sign my NEW guest book (since my old one had a fatal crash and I couldn't read it!!) and tell me what you think of my page.....thank you....*S*                  Join the Web Brawls Web Ring today!  This Web Brawls Web Ring site is owned by Devil Wolf     Previous 5 Sites Skip Previous Previous Next Next 5 Sites Random Site List Sites      

The new archaeological Park of Côa Valley has been officially opened on August, 10 (+351-79-764317) Two reception centers has been prepared at Vila Nova de Foz Côa and Castelo Melhor Tourist can visit most important sites by guided tours For the first time a Rock Art area encourages the institution of an economical development plan (called “Pro-Côa”), actually funded by Portuguese Government and European Union. The Palaeolithic style of many scratched figures has been confirmed by the first tracings of Vermelhosa site, with many animal and the great discovery of two noticeable female figures (Gravado no Tempo - Etched in Time  International project). A poster will be presented at UISSP meeting at Forli' (I) September 9-15 The entire question continues having many effects on Portuguese Archaeology. Recording methods (washing - cleaning - digging) at Canada do Inferno, Penascosa and Barca will be examined by an IFRAO commission

ONE EARTH ONE HUMAN FAMILY ONE PLANETARY HOME    On one side is the  desert.Dry and cold,with a wheezy thin atmosphere and a perpetual rain of dust,the desert once had water.With that water there may have been life. Now the water is gone. Now there are only red rocks,red dust, and the dry cold.    On the other side is hell.A runaway greenhouse effect sends temperatures high enough to melt lead.Clouds of corrosive sulfuric acid block the sun. The pressure is so high even the mountains are deformed.

There may have been life here once,but now there is only the heat and the suffocating blanket of an atmosphere out of balance.    In the middle is the garden.

Welcome to the site that addresses all environmental, ecological, endangered species, animal rights & earth related issues. It not only encourages, but allows you to become involved and do something about them. Information on how to contact your lawmakers, how to become involved & lists of other environmental organizations are within these pages.

We are not spokespersons for any environmental group (though we do support a lot of them!), so we haven't created this page for the purpose of personal gain. We, very simply, want to be able to say that we've made a difference, no matter how large or small. This site is constantly being updated, so come back often!!!

Well-being means to be fully born to become what one potentially is; it means to have the full capacity for joy and for sadness or, to put it still differently, to awake from the half- slumber the average man lives in, and to be fully awake." Erich Fromm Welcome! Ahlan Wa Sahlan! Namaste! Vitajte! Bienvenu! Wilkommen! Bem-vindo! Shalom! Yasos! Benvenuto! Salve! Boasvindas! Fáilte! Y'gas Dynergh! Bienvenedos! Välkommen! Jambo! Tervetuloa! Selamat Datang! Croeso!     Badge of Knight of the Grand Cross  "Since the house is on fire, let us warm ourselves." Italian Proverb Greetings!! You have stumbled upon the Homepage of The Priory of Arianrhod and The Green Man. The Priory is a local 'chapter' of The Noble Order of Tara (an order of chivalry based on Irish nobility), which is a sister society of The Fellowship of Isis . We are dedicated to local ecological activity towards the conservation / restoration of Nature and Our Mother Earth. We hope this site will be informative, educative and often entertaining to all. Come on in and see just what we're up to. After you've checked out my page, come back here and check some of these links to people and places I like.

Commercial painters with the experience and know how to properly handle the industrial and large scale painting projects lag behind the expertise of a painting company from Lawrenceville Ga called Layton Painting Co. Parinting water towers, petroleum tank farms, factory floors, office buildings and shopping centers are regular fare for this Painting Contractor serviing the Southeastern United States.

Layton Painting Company is also doing large houses in Lawrencceville and Suwanee, especially when both exterior and interior painting is involved. Commercial painters for a large victorian home, McMansion or antebellum Atlanta home are a good idea to assure the finest workmanship in restoration and to create a long lasting paint job. Layton Painting Company takes on these sort of jobs also in Dacula and Bufgord Georgia.

Also serving the industrial painting needs of Gainesville Georgia, Layton painting paints factory floors and entire shopping centers as well as shopping centers and office building remodeling projects. Property managers and building owners rely on us to handle all their commercial real estate refinishing and polishing needs. Commercial property managers use Atlanta Commercial Painters Layton Painting for all their commercial and industrial painting needs.

This is your true, unchanging, eternal identity.   67. On seeing inner nothingness You see it's great beyond compare Though many find it curious That you would even care I have three treasures that I keep The first is friendliness The second is to stay behind The third is wanting less For if you're friendly and you care You can dare to do what's needed And if you always stay behind The lead will surely be conceded And if you're satisfied with less You have everything to give Keep these treasures in your heart Then you will truly live  Here are Lao Tzu's famous Three Treasures. These treasures are values that arise naturally from abiding in your inner nothingness. They certainly aren't the values that most people cherish.  

The first treasure is love, compassion, or friendliness. Being nothing, you are open. You embrace all creation by your very nature.  The second treasure is humility, staying behind. Seeing that you are nothing, you allow all others to go ahead. You do not struggle for superiority.  The third treasure is frugality, wanting less, wanting only the void of awareness. Wanting nothing above all else, you can be generous and giving. You do not need to contend.  68. Violence is not the way The greatest warriors know That treachery and anger Will not defeat the foe You only win if you don't strive And gain if you do not oppose This is the certain victory Simplicity bestows  Lao Tzu is concerned with the values that arise naturally from abiding in inner nothingness. He is also concerned about the values that arise from ignoring this inner void. He warns us that we cannot push ourselves on the world. Victory does not mean opposing and overcoming others. True victory is receiving others into your own simplicity, into the clarity at the center of our being.  69. In conflict just be cautious And always on your guard Rather than advance an inch Instead retreat a yard In this way you go along And make your gain without advancing You deal with the rival As your position is enhancing Remember that it's possible Your rival just may yield So don't advance on such a foe Let differences be healed  Notice that, as Tao, you are the source and substance of the world out there. You are in no way separate from the myriad things and events of the world. You contain these things and events. They are really not out there at all. They occur within you. You can't ignore them. So you must deal with them. Lao Tzu tells us to go easy and gently. Be cautious. Don't push and force your way. Allow time for problems to resolve. Wholeness comes in its own time. And the more you see the wholeness of being, the more quickly it comes to all experience. Seeing wholeness is seeing the clarity that contains all existence. Look within for the Tao.   What is the Tao? Who am I? I am pure presence, and I am all that is present in that presence. I am pure awareness, and I am all that exists in that awareness.

I am nothing and everything. It's all me. Everything is me and exists in my light. Everyone is me. There are no others. I am the one alone. I am the Seer.  I am the Seer, and I am the Seen. And these are not two. I am the vacuity at center, and I am all that occupies this vacuity. And these are not two. Only This is. Only I am. Nothing exists apart from me, and I am not divided into parts. All exists in me and as me. And This is the Tao of the gone-head.   70. Embarrassingly obvious And always near at hand It is this nothingness you see But never understand Though truth within is ageless Very few will ever see My face is what I give to you The jewel within is me  Lao Tzu's teaching is based on the ageless Tao within each of us, the gone-head. Though this truth is glaringly obvious, few can see it. Few even bother to look, to attend to attention, to be aware of awareness. We imagine a head where there is only awareness. We imagine a face where there is only absence. We imagine a limited thing where there is only the jewel of absolute eternity.   Douglas Harding says that headlessness is embarrassingly obvious. I have freely used Douglas's expressions when they coincide with Lao Tzu's meanings. In this verse Lao Tzu is saying that his words are very easy to follow. His words are pointing to the Tao, the jewel, the absolutely obvious absence within.   71. You cannot understand the truth Claim to know and show you're ill Just see that you are missing That truth is bare and nil Unknowing is the final cure When knowledge takes its heavy toll Pure presence is totality And absence makes you whole  Tao is not a thing or an object to be known or understood. Tao is naked awareness. Let go of knowing. Unknowing is the cure of the disease of understanding. The Tao, the truth, is not to be understood but to be seen, and to be seen as an absence at that. It is our real identity.

The absence of a head is the presence of pure awareness. Within this awareness is all that occurs moment by moment. Nothing is missing!  72. When the sense of wonder goes Disaster is not far behind Don't intrude in people's lives And they won't think you are unkind The seer sees both this and that But doesn't ask for praise Finding this immensity With just a simple inward gaze  Here is Lao Tzu's principle of reversal one more time. Disaster follows when you interfere in the lives of others. People resent meddling. Your intentions may be unassailable, but your reward is rebellion. You cannot impose your will. It would be far better to adopt the seer's stance. See that your own inner immensity is room for the will of totality, for what is actually happening each moment.  73. The way is very easy Its purposes prevail When all is done in silence Intention cannot fail Its net is vast and over all With meshes large and wide Yet it loses nothing Holds everything inside  What is the intention of the way, of the whole? Just what is happening right now! You are made to contain everything, not to pick and choose. Nothing can be lost or rejected or abandoned. Resistance is futile. You are pure open awareness, made for acceptance. What a relief to realize this. All that happens is meant to happen by the Tao, by totality, by you in reality. All is as it should be.  74. You truly are what isn't born You need not be afraid to die Just live your life and know that you Will never lose the inner eye You can't control what is to be In using tools you don't command Unlike the master carpenter You're bound to cut your hand  You are the one who was never born. You are the witness of what is born and eventually perishes. Remain the witness. Let things take care of things. Everything happens on its own, spontaneously. Does this mean you are not free to choose and decide? No, it means that even your own decisions occur spontaneously. You can't interfere in the world of things, because that world occurs within your being.  75. The people starve when taxes take The bulk of what they earn When leaders interfere too much They get rebellion in return The people do not fear to die If leaders rob them of their lives But taking no more than you need You see that everybody thrives  Very little is needed for a happy and abundant life. No-thing is needed for bliss. Allow others to have what they need. You don't need to accumulate things. You are totality, nothing and everything, nothing containing everything. You are the absence that is pure presence.

More is not possible. More things and more control over others means more trouble! Let go of excess. Accept totality.  76. We're soft and supple when we're born Hard and rigid when we die Living plants are pliable Deadwood is brittle and dry This way life befriends the weak But death draws near the strong The hard and stiff are bound to break The supple bends and goes along  Lao Tzu contrasts the softness and receptivity of our true nature as awareness with the hardness and severity of our false identity as a name, a person in a world of persons. As a person, we are hard and impenetrable. As awareness, we are open and clear, receptive and flexible. We accept whatever comes to us. We don't resist. Those who resist are broken. Those who accept are whole.  77. Nature's way of doing Is like the bending of a bow For pulling on a bow you see The low go high and the high go low Nature takes from those who have And gives to those who lack When nature takes from human beings They fight to get it back But if you see you have it all You're not afraid to give away Expecting nothing in return It all comes back with no delay  Here's a revealing statistic for the year 2000. Earth's population is 6,000,000,000. The 200 richest people in the world have more wealth that the poorest 2,000,000,000 combined. Has anything changed since Lao Tzu's day?  Everyone is entitled to life's necessities. Where is your wealth? Do you see that you have all that you need and more? You have the Tao, total awareness. Allowing nature to have its way, you don't claim more than you can use. You claim your real riches instead. You see that you are totality, and Tao takes care of the rest. All are equal in this regard.   Have you noticed that all of the definitions of the Tao and the Seer are identical? The Seer is the Tao. The Tao is the Seer. The Tao is the presence of awareness that is seen as the absence of a head. The Seer is the same!  You, as the Seer, are in no way separate from the world. You are all that is. And what a joy it is to see how all is given - here and now and forever. See the Tao. See the Seer. See the Truth.   78. Water is so very soft It overcomes because it yields By wearing down the hardest rock It shows what power weakness wields The weak can overcome the strong The soft can overcome the hard Everybody knows it's true So hold the low in high regard The seer sees serenity Where others see affliction The seer sees the inner truth Where others only see a fiction  Water flows as life should flow. It goes around all obstacles, and, doing so, wears them down by its persistence. Water does not oppose. Water merely goes the way of its own nature. It remains calm and serene. Can you do the same? All power lies in such a course. Your victory lies in not distorting your true and original nature.  And what is this nature? What is your inner truth? It is the serene and open presence at the center of your being. Can you see this? Can you see the creative emptiness where others see your face?  79. There's little good in making peace If resentment lingers You'll never see an end to blame If everyone is pointing fingers It's better to be pointing At the peaceful and creative place Where you see naught but emptiness And others say they see your face  Let's point a finger one more time at the empty face, the gone-head. Point here rather than there. Notice the arrangement. See how existence is presented in non-existence, how everything appears in nothing. Existence emerges from this no-thing at your center. All peace is here at center. All opposition is out there in the world of heads and faces. Where do you prefer to live?  80. If a land is small and the people few And the rulers recognize what's needed The simple ways of courtesy Are happily and gladly heeded For people need so little To live their lives aright Are food and home and clothing Not enough for pure delight?

Limestone fabrication is a modern technique for producing architectural grade finishing pieces for limestone facades, walls and garden effects. The Fieldstone Center in Covington Georgia has a modern limestone fabrication facility in Newton County with limestone fabrication capabilities accessible to Atlanta, and the Fieldstone Center has an additional showroom on Johns Island in Charleston South Carolina. With three decades of limestone fabrication experience and natural stone fabrication, Fieldstone Center specializes in restoration projects and new construction and produces sustainable, finished product such as veener paneling, profiling arches, columns, capitals and garden effects like benchs and decorative pieces.

The Fieldstone Center produces large runs of edgework such as bullnose, demi, rounded, ogee, waterfall and bevel. Fieldstone Center also produces limestone countertops for unique outdoor kitchen finishes, and the Fieldstone Center Atlanta Showroom in Newton County offers a complete line of outdoor kitchen equipment and on display outdoor kitchens in our outdoor outdoor kitchen showroom. Fieldstone Center has a nine acre yard near Conyers and Covington Georgia with architectural stone, landscaping stone and stone boulders in stock.

The South Carolina climate is perfect for outdoor living, and fall is the perfect time for looking at outdoor kitchen projects. Outdoor fireplaces keep away the bugs in outdoor kitchen formats that blend perfectly with a stone deck and patio outdoor entertaining format with deluxe fabrication capabilities from The Fieldstone Center for limestone countertaps and limestone fabrication.