Cesium Chloride: Cancer and High pH

http://www.essense-of-life.com/moreinfo/minerals/cesium.htm

FW: [Visionary Woman] Why I believe in you

-----Original Message-----
From: visionarywoman@aweber.com [mailto:visionarywoman@aweber.com] On Behalf
Of Visionary Woman
Sent: Monday, March 09, 2009 10:49 PM
To: Holly Smith
Subject: [Visionary Woman] Why I believe in you

Dearest Holly,

Your heart yearns to give all of
your love in this short life.

And you will not settle for a life
not fully lived.

You will not settle for anything less
than a life of lived with courageous love.

But in so many ways your love has
been rejected, criticized and pushed
away.

You've been made to feel wrong for the
depth of your love, and the depth of your
desire to express your love in the world.

No longer.

As you connect deeply to the love
in your heart over the next few
weeks, you will feel and see ever
more clearly your power to make a
profound difference in this life.

You will feel the call of your heart
more deeply than ever before.

You will come to know yourself more and
more deeply as a Visionary Woman
whose quiet, calm power cannot be
denied, whose passion cannot be calmed,
and whose voice cannot be quieted.

Are you ready?

VISIONARY WOMAN - KNOW THYSELF

This coming Tuesday at 2pm Eastern,
I will be conducting a free, private
conference call to walk you through
a 'Vision Exercise.'

Mark it on your calendar!

DATE: Tuesday, March 10th, 2pm Eastern
NUMBER: (512) 501-4531

I invite you to dive into this exercise
in advance of the call, and you can
do that by going here:

http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=IC0yt&m=1pxEJYGl5p70XH&b=UrEptEce4X7p_51uvc
00Dg

You can print out the worksheet and
even listen to a recording of a past
tele-seminar right now.

Dive in!

Until tomorrow,

Here's to you, and women everywhere
rising in the fullness of your love,
wisdom, courage and vision.

Standing with you and for you,

Michael Skye
VisionForce

P.S. This May, 30 visionary women
from around the globe will be uniting
in Austin, Texas this May to face everything,
and avoid nothing as they stand in
the fullness of their wisdom and power
to give their gifts to the world.

http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=IC0yt&m=1pxEJYGl5p70XH&b=83s3pjre7fJnEERL8O
pn3w

P.P.S. Remember, if you're competing
for one of the 3 early, discounted
registrations to the May retreat for
visionary women, then I'll need your
vision emailed to me be midnight,
May 12th!

VisonForce, 1616 W. 6th St. #214, Austin, TX 78759, USA

To unsubscribe or change subscriber options visit:
http://www.aweber.com/z/r/?bOysnAxMtCzs7GwcnKzMtGa0zEyMbKxMjA==

How to Make Bismuth Crystals at Home

How to make Bismuth crystals

 AmazingRust.com

Bismuth Crystals

Bismuth (element #83 on the periodic table) forms beautifully colored and geometrically intricate hopper crystals, shown in the image to the left, as it slowly cools and solidifies from its molten state.

The distinctive, 'hoppered', shape of a Bismuth crystal results from a higher growth rate around its outer edges than on its inside face. The higher rate of growth on the edges forms a crystal which appears to be partially hollowed out in a rectangular-spiral stair step design.

The crystal's eye-catching array of colors results from the formation of a thin oxide layer on its surface. The colors on Bismuth crystals arise in a similar fashion to those on a soap bubble or thin film of oil on water in which light reflecting off the top and bottom of the film produce interference maxima of a particular color depending on the film’s thickness. A thin layer of Bismuth Oxide on the otherwise pure Bismuth crystal causes light of certain wavelengths to interfere constructively upon reflection giving rise to the color seen on the surface. Due to variations in the thickness of the oxide layer, the crystal is not one solid color but rather is a rainbow of colors corresponding to the wavelengths (and colors) of light which interfere constructively at each location.
For a more thorough explanation of this phenomenon research the topic of thin film interference.

Growing Bismuth Crystals

In order to grow high quality crystals, very pure Bismuth metal must be used. A purity of 99.99% Bismuth, or better, is preferred for growing high quality crystals.

Another important factor which affects the quality and size of Bismuth crystals is the cooling time. Larger crystals may be produced by allowing the Bismuth to cool and solidify slowly from its molten state.

The melting point of Bismuth is relatively low compared to other metals at only 271 °C (520 °F), which is low enough to easily melt using a small propane torch or even a laboratory hot plate. Do not forget, however, that you are still dealing with very hot molten metal, which can flow and splatter just like any liquid and can cause painful burns.

Depending on the volume of Bismuth used, a variety of containers are suitable to hold the Bismuth while it melts. A small to medium sized, steel, measuring cup has been show to work well for preparing Bismuth crystals.

Step 1: Melting the Bismuth Steel cup containing molten Bismuth Place pieces of Bismuth into a steel measuring cup and melt on a hot plate at high heat. As the Bismuth melts, the exposed surface of the liquid will oxidize readily due to the high temperature and presence of Oxygen in the ambient air resulting in the formation of a gray ‘skin’ on the top surface; this is normal.

Step 2: Pouring the molten Bismuth Molten Bismuth with a thick layer of oxidation on it before pouring After the Bismuth has melted, slowly and carefully pour the liquid Bismuth into another clean, preheated, steel measuring cup. By transferring the Bismuth into a new container one can remove the thick skin of oxide which has formed on the surface of the Bismuth that can negatively affect crystal growth. One can slowly pour out the clean, silvery, liquid Bismuth from underneath the gray oxide layer which remains behind in the original container.

Step 3: Allowing the Bismuth to cool Bismuth immediately before the first pour to remove oxidization layer Set the Bismuth, in its new container, on a well-insulated and heat resistant surface to cool and begin to solidify. Placing the Bismuth back onto the hot plate (with the power turned off) will allow the Bismuth to cool very slowly as it returns to room temperature. Not long after pouring the Bismuth into its new container will a new oxide layer become visible. The new oxide layer will not be as thick as the previous layer. As the new oxide layer growths thicker it will gradually change color as different wavelengths of light constructively interfere after reflecting off its surface (for the same reason why the Bismuth crystals themselves are colored).

Step 4: Pouring out extra Bismuth Immediately after pouring off excess liquid Bismuth. Newly formed crystals exposed. Before the Bismuth fully solidifies, pour out the excess liquid Bismuth into another container. Do not allow the Bismuth to fully solidify; if one does not pour out the excess liquid in time the crystals will become trapped inside the resulting metal lump. The crystals will form and grow progressively larger as the Bismuth freezes. Longer growth times usually result in larger crystals. But if one waits too long, the excess Bismuth which has not yet gone into forming the crystal will solidify and trap the crystals which have formed. There is no set amount of time one must wait before pouring out the excess Bismuth since it will vary depending on the conditions of the experiment. One can test the state of the Bismuth by lighting tapping on the container. If ripples are seen traveling across the surface then most of the Bismuth is still liquid. As more of the Bismuth freezes, the ripples will have less space to travel and the areas where crystals are forming become visible. Take care not to disturb the cooling Bismuth too much since it may trigger new crystal formation; instead of producing just one (or few) large crystals, many much smaller crystals may form. It may take several tries in order to get the hang of when to pour out the excess liquid Bismuth. If one waits too long and the crystals become trapped just re-melt the Bismuth and try again. One can even try to use the excess Bismuth which is poured off to form additional crystals in secondary containers.

Step 5: Removing Crystals Close up of newly formed crystals before breaking them free from the non-crystalline Bismuth which remains behind in the cup. The colorful and geometrically interesting portion of the crystal is facing down toward the bottom of the cup; the visible portion is coated with thick gray oxide layer. After pouring off the excess liquid Bismuth one should be able to see the Bismuth crystals which have grown inside the container. The crystals' color should develop within seconds upon exposure to air as a thin layer of oxidization forms on their surface. The crystals will likely be stuck to the bottom and sides of the container; they are also likely to be partially fused with non-crystalline Bismuth. After they cool one can gently break off the crystals from the non-crystalline Bismuth inside the container. Allowing the crystals to form on the inside surfaces of the container causes inherent imperfections in the crystals' shape, since there will always be a point on the crystal where it was previously attached to that surface. One can avoid this imperfection by using a small seed Bismuth crystal suspended in the molten Bismuth to act as a point of nucleation during crystal growth. Afterward, one can then merely lift the crystal out of the liquid Bismuth rather than having to pour the excess Bismuth out into a separate container (as in Step 4). Take care not to leave the seed crystal suspended too long as the Bismuth may solidify around it and make it impossible to extract. Additionally, the crystal may grow so large it may fuse with other crystals surrounding it, thus also trapping it inside.   Like water / ice, Bismuth has the interesting property of expanding as it solidifies, thus causing unattached, solid, Bismuth crystals to float in their more dense, liquid, surroundings.

Pictures of large Bismuth crystals

Bellow is a series of images of three large Bismuth crystals ranging in size from about 1 inch to 3 inches wide. It is certainly possible to grow much larger crystals than these.

Crystal 1

 

Crystal 2

 

Crystal 3

Powered by ScribeFire.

New Worlds Are Opening Up

I can't believe that I've spent all these years making jewelry and being so totally ignorant of the number of arts festivals going on. Zapp is an amazing site and quite a nice service.

I'll be checking out:

The Forum on Peachtree Art Fair
The Decatur Arts Festival

NOtoMORE

Affluenza - Watch a funny movie here

Theatre Decatur

I have recently received the honor of inclusion on the Board of Directors for Theatre Decatur, a local neighborhood theater in Decatur, Georgia. It's been a community landmark since the 1970's, and a new Board is stepping in to help revitalize this local treasure.

As part of my duties on the Board, I'm functioning as their promotional materials person. These show announcements are the work of this past weekend. If you live near Decatur, please make sure to come see the show. It's going to be a fantastic show!



By the way, we will also be one of the sites honored with the display of the Traveling AIDS Quilt. There will be a benefit performance on December 3rd to raise money for the AIDS Quilt and the P.A.L.S. - Pets Are Loving Support organization. P.A.L.S. offers assistance for those people living with AIDS who may have difficulty caring for their animal companions.

The Woman Who Was Too Big For God

She was big. No question about it. Size 12 feet. Broad hips. Big belly. Generous breasts. Wide shoulders. Big smile too. Even her voice was big, her laughter full and rich, capable of filling an auditorium. Some things fit, most didn't. She searched for chairs without arms, hard to find in most places where the chairs cut into her back and sides. She eyed every couch before she sat down, gauging its worthiness and her ability to rise gracefully from it. She asked for seat belt extensions and the window seat when she flew so her bulk wouldn't intrude too much on her neighbor. Once, when she traveled to Europe, she was stuck in the middle of five seats in the middle section of the plane. The whole long trip, she sat with her arms folded across her stomach and tried not to take up too much room. She woke up, every now and then, and from the looks of the people around her, she knew her snore was big enough to drown out the sound of the movie. She took up space. Lots of it. She was too big for most rooms, she thought, and so she found ways to be on the edges, not in the center, as if people wouldn't notice.

She was big. Too big for most clothes, especially the pretty ones with sparkles and beads and ribbons. She hadn't worn regular shoes for years, and the thought of her feet in dancing shoes left her laughing.

She was big. Bigger than almost anyone she knew. Her hug was huge, two strong arms that could wrap around and hold a person close and be warm, safe, whole. She was a great big pillow to cry into, one that held all the tears until you were done crying. Her friends would tell you she had a heart as big as the prairies.

She told big stories. Outrageous stories about old ladies who ran away from home and went to summer camp or sent postcards from their travels around the country. She told jokes, funny ones and stupid ones and ones that made you think for a whole day before you laughed.

There was a secret the big woman knew, something she didn't tell anyone. She didn't even tell herself very often because it hurt to hear the words. "I'm too big," she'd whisper, "too big for God. Even God doesn't have arms big enough to hold me." And then that great and big and gentle woman would cry. And her tears were just like her- big and gentle and they washed over her face and splashed down into her lap.

A giant hole in her heart opened one day. Nothing filled it. Nothing healed it. It just ached. And there wasn't much she could do about it. She thought for a long time that it didn't matter. It was really okay that God was too small. But lately it wasn't okay. Lately she was no longer satisfied to let God off the hook. Either God was God, and capable of being big enough for her, or they could just call it quits right here and now.

"You're not too much for me," God said. "Where did you ever get that idea?"

"I don't fit," the woman said. "It's not just my body size. I just don't seem to fit into the picture."

"Tell me more," God coaxed.

"Haven't you ever noticed," she asked, "that in all the pictures I'm the one just out of camera reach. My body doesn't all make it into the picture."

God nodded.

"But my life doesn't fit either. It's not like the lives of my friends. I don't fit inside a marriage. I don't fit into my work. I'm too big for people who want to follow all the rules."

"And what's wrong with that?" God asked. "Who told you that you had to fit those pictures?"

"But you said---" she started to say.

"I did no such thing. Never. Now, granted, some significant people in your life may have claimed I demanded that, but I'm here to tell you that I never did."

"So why don't I fit?" the woman asked.

"Oh but you do!" laughed God. "Oh, my dear, you do!"

The woman folded her arms across her chest and frowned. "You're not taking this very seriously," she complained. "You have no idea how it feels."

"Oh, don't I?" God chided. "You, my love, are as grand and glorious as all the Rocky Mountains, as huge and wide as the oceans. You are as big as a house-rattling storm that shakes the teeth of the people inside. You are like a giant earthquake and as dazzling as fields swamped by flowers. You are the embodiment of outrageous, silly, lavish grace. You, of all people, you are not puny."

She studied God, puzzled. "So, what you're saying is..."

"What I'm saying, dear heart, is that with you I do things in a big way." And God chuckled.

The woman chewed her lip. "It's not enough," she said finally.

"Only because you've been hiding outside the frame of the picture," said God. "Look, people pack up their cars and travel for miles to see real mountains, not those puny little hills on the East Coast that they pretend are mountains. No, I'm talking about the big ones! The Rockies. The Sierras. Big mountains like Rainier and Shasta. These people drag along their cameras and their video recorders and they spend all their time taking pictures. And you know what?"

"What?"

"They go home. They drop off the pictures to be developed and they do the laundry. A week or two later, they remember to pick up the pictures. They shuffle through them, try to remember where they were the day that picture was taken, and who took this strange shot? They complain about the color. And the flatness of the picture is nothing like what they saw those few weeks ago. Then they toss the envelope of pictures into a drawer and forget about them."

"So?" she prompted.

"So, they never saw the mountains, all those vast giant beauties I created. They settle for puny reproductions and wonder why everything else in their lives is so flat and stale. You are like those mountains, huge and grand and glorious. People who see you only through the camera's lens will not know your beauty. How could they? They have forgotten how to see."

God raised an eyebrow and looked at her. "Now you, you in your body, can you forget how big you are?" God asked.

She looked impatient. "No, you know that! How could I forget? It's always there, always a part of how I move around in the world."

"Do you ever feel small? Flat? Puny?" God was grinning at her.

She stuck out her tongue. "Hell, no!"

"Then you're seeing the real beauty, not some camera's reproduction. And there are no edges to the picture. You always fit."

"Yeah, but, . . ." her voice trailed off.

"I'll tell you a secret. I like doing things in a big way, so people will notice, pay attention, wake up. You're one of my best surprises." God reached for her and spun her around and danced a wicked tango with her.

"You know," the woman said when the dance was over and a huge moon hung over the horizon, "you're a lot taller than I thought you were."

---------------

You can email the author of this lovely story by clicking her name: Shannon O'Donnell