Counselors and The New Field of Energy Psychology

Posted on April 15, 2013 by Susan Landa

Thank goodness for counselors! An effective one can be such a blessing. We all go through situations and issues in our lives that can be greatly helped by seeing a counselor. It must not be an easy job listening to people’s problems all day. I wouldn’t want to do it, so I’m grateful others do!
I am fascinated by the new counseling field of “energy psychology.” Here’s a definition I found in an article by John Freedom, on a website called www.noetic.org.
“The term energy psychology describes a new field of innovative interventions that balance, restore, and enhance human functioning by stimulating the human subtle energy system. These techniques have spread throughout the world—largely via the Internet—and have been observed to catalyze rapid, dramatic, and lasting changes in feelings, beliefs, mental states, and behaviors. Just as we have a physical anatomy—consisting of our skeleton, organs and glands, muscles and connective tissue—we also have an energetic anatomy—consisting of the acupuncture meridian system, chakras and nadis (energy centers and channels), and the human biofield/s. The common denominator underlying EP techniques involves stimulating energy, whether by tapping, touching, or intention.”
Doesn’t this make sense? There’s so much more going on that we need to address than what traditional counseling can do. After all, we now know that only 10-15% of our thoughts are conscious. With the rest of our thoughts subconscious and the different ways we run or block energy, we have to find ways to access the subconscious and make lasting changes on those levels.
There are various tools and practices used in this new modality. John lists some of them in his article such as “Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), Thought Field Therapy (TFT), Tapas Acupressure Technique (TAT), Advanced Integrative Therapy (AIT), Neuro Emotional Technique (NET), Heart-Assisted Therapy (HAT), and Healing from the Body Level Up (HBLU). Beneath this panoply of theories and techniques, EP modalities combine intentionality with imaginal exposure and energetic stimulation, energetic balancing, or both. Seemingly simple in technique, the results can be rapid and surprising.”
A nice complement to these practices can be the use of healing stones, with the awareness that certain stones have particular properties that interact with our energy fields to bring desired results. To expedite the search for the appropriate corresponding stones, we’ve put together various “healing pouches” to address the most common concerns. Here is a list of some of our healing pouches (you can see our full assortment by clicking here): Balance, Cancer Recovery, Confidence, Creativity, Energy, Focus, Grief, Grounding, Love, Healing Emotional Wounds, Nurture The Nurturer, PMS, Prosperity, Protection, Quit Smoking, Transformation, Stress Relief, and Fertility, Pregnancy and Childbirth.
You don’t even need to see a counselor to try some of these modalities yourself. For instance, there are many people who teach things like EFT. You can even try meditating with healing stones and see what enfolds! It’s a whole new world and it’s exciting to see the transformation taking place on the planet!

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Druse – God’s Bling

Posted on March 14, 2013 by Susan Landa

We love the sparkly rocks! Druse rocks stand out and draw us in as they reflect light like millions of tiny mirrors. Druse is a coating of microscopic crystals on a rock or mineral. These are truly special rocks. We consider them our precious jewels.
At The Fossil Cartel we have probably our best collection of druse minerals ever right now. We found some really nice specimens at the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show this year, with a nice variety in a full spectrum of colors. For the very first time we saw and brought back some druse hematite (dark silver) from Morocco and rosasite (teal) from Mexico. Some other druse minerals we have not had in a while: adamite from Mexico (greenish), and gorgeous pieces of chrysocolla (turquoise). We also have druse agate (warm tones), aura quartz (rainbow), chalcedony (white or silver-grayish), cobaltoan calcite (deep pink), rainbow pyrite (gold with rainbows), and wavellite (green).
In the past few decades, a new rainbow-druse look has developed from a process applied to druse on chalcedony or quartz. This process changes the stone’s original color, making it look metallic with a rainbow spectrum. The stones are placed in a vacuum chamber where a metal vapor is introduced, and the magic of transformation takes place. The molecules of the vapor adhere to the surface of the stone and alter its color and iridescence. Different metals create different colors on the mineral: platinum turns it white/rainbow, and titanium turns it purple/rainbow, among other metals. It all started with aqua-colored quartz in the 1980’s named Aqua Aura, which comes from gold. The process of chemical vapor deposition is also used in other industries such as semiconductors to produce thin films.
You can find druse stones at The Fossil Cartel in jewelry and in specimens large and small. Unfortunately, the dazzling beauty of druse is difficult to photograph, so you’ll just have to come into the store to see the bling!

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Amethyst Cathedrals

Posted on January 17, 2013 by Susan Landa

Here at The Fossil Cartel, we love to come to work every day and be surrounded by God’s love – gems. Gems are like a crystallized essence of the God Force to me, gifts from and representations of the divine, charged with high vibrations. When we come across a very different specimen in the store, we always take extra special interest in it and marvel at its uniqueness. One such piece came in last month: a small amethyst cathedral from Brazil. What makes it special is a bunch of perfect, white, dog tooth calcite crystals jutting out from inside.
People often ask, “How do these wonders of nature form?” Amethyst cathedrals are basically geodes that formed around a gas bubble in lava flow. You can read more about geodes in our blog on How to Crack a Geode. Amethyst is purple quartz, usually obtaining its color from manganese and iron. Amethyst doesn’t always form in a geode, an example being the gorgeous transparent amethyst crystals from Veracruz, Mexico. Amethyst cathedrals — or “churches,” as they’re sometimes called — are usually a lot bigger than regular agate geodes and cannot be cracked by hand. It takes some serious heavy duty lapidary equipment to cut open some cathedrals as they are often tall – as much as 12 feet!
The majority of these kinds of amethyst pieces come from mines in Southern Brazil. I had the privilege to visit the mines years ago. It was quite fascinating. There are various families that own amethyst mines and the families sell their findings to a big wholesaler. The main wholesaling company is also a family business that is made up of several brothers who have been doing business for many years. The mines themselves are actually in hillsides. Miners did tunnels and chisel away at the rock bed wall in search of treasure. When they find something that seems a little more rounded and separate from the rest of the wall, they’ll drill a whole and peer inside with a flashlight to see if there is any amethyst. If there is, they dig and dig until they are able to take the complete piece out. Their goal is to take it out in one piece. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. They’ve become quite adept at artistically piecing them back together and probably half or more of the specimens have been repaired.
After excavation, they are taken to the warehouse where they are hosed down with pressure washers and cut open. From there workers will sometimes polish the edges where there is agate and do whatever repair work necessary, including leveling out the base. Some of the pieces are heated up in an oven that turns them into citrine. Citrine is a yellow quartz, but isn’t as common as amethyst and almost never forms in large cathedrals.
Our special amethyst cathedral is uncommon because of its dog tooth calcite crystals. We’ll sometimes see other calcite formations inside amethyst churches, but to see dogtooth calcite and for the crystals to be perfect and not broken renders this piece unique. A specimen is more valuable to a collector when there is another mineral present. It speaks of an “association” between minerals in the gem kingdom. Plus it is also more visually interesting. Come by and visit our special friend. Or perhaps you can take it home with you!

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The Compelling Shape of Spheres

Posted on November 14, 2012 by Susan Landa

Spheres are one of our most popular sellers. Carved out of chunks of raw material, the first step in creating a sphere is to cut a perfect cube. The corners are lopped off in equal increments on all sides. Those corners are cut off, and so on, until you have a multi-faceted shape resembling a sphere. I’ve seen machines that perform this function with cup-like holders that spin and grind down the stone’s corners, until it finally becomes a perfect ball. Lastly, the surface of the ball is polished and — voila!
One has to wonder what it is about the shape of a sphere that is so compelling. What is the first thing you think of when you contemplate this shape? For me, it is the earth – our home. Why is our home in the shape of an orb? It all has to do with gravity. When there is enough gravity, material pulls itself into a sphere. Astronomers say that gravity creates hydrostatic equilibrium, and that’s why the Earth is round. Hydrostatic means: of or relating to fluids at rest or under pressure. Equilibrium is a state of balance.
This leads me to contemplate gravity itself. What is gravity, symbolically? Why do we have it? Without gravity, we can see now that Earth wouldn’t be Earth as we know it. We wouldn’t be here in this form. Gravity is a key factor in our existence. Combine this idea with the Law of Attraction and what do you have? Gravity pulls things towards itself and the Law of Attraction teaches us that our thoughts and vibrations draw things to us that resonate with those thoughts and energies. There is a mass consciousness or “energy collective” wanting to physically manifest itself and gravity makes this all possible, pulling everything together in towards itself. Gravity is the physical equivalent to the Law of Attraction.
Perhaps spheres help us call in what we need to draw to ourselves. Perhaps they remind us or can help us with our own hydrostatic equilibrium. Maybe it helps us reflect on why we’re all here – because we want to be. We created this swirling mass of wonder and adventure for our own enjoyment and growth. What are your thoughts on why people are drawn to spheres?
We have spheres of all sizes and prices, from $2.50 to $725. Come see our extensive selection. Choose a favorite to help you manifest your desires and find equilibrium.

Ocean Jasper Sphere

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It’s Raining Meteorites!

Posted on July 29, 2012 by Susan Landa

Space debris or meteorites hold a fundamental fascination: heavy objects falling out of the sky from way beyond the reaches of our very own planet. What energy do these strange objects from outer space hold? Infused with the “fire” of spirit burning through our atmosphere to deliver a message, perhaps they represent what is possible beyond imagination. The message is solid, dense, and heavy with a touch of whimsy. In other words: no foolin’! For realz! Whatever it is that’s “going on out there,” there is much more to it than we know.

The whimsical thing about meteorites is that they are the “shooting stars” we witness on a clear, dark evening. What is that light feeling we get when we see a shooting star, motivating us to make a wish? Is it because it gives us a little jolt reminding us that things aren’t always static like the non-moving stars? We are reminded there is another whole world happening outside of our own little lives and that things don’t remain the same. Perhaps it gives our lives more levity and possibility.

Some factual info: did you know that before it hits the earth it’s called a meteor? There are three kinds of meteorites: stony meteorites, iron meteorites and stony-iron meteorites. Stony meteorites are mostly composed of silicate based minerals. Iron meteorites are mostly composed of metallic iron-nickel, and stony-iron meteorites contain both.

You might not be aware of this, but meteorites are coming down all the time. The earth is so big and mostly composed of oceans that people rarely witness them hitting. Wikipedia says, “As of February 2010, there are approximately 1,086 witnessed falls having specimens in the world’s collections. In contrast, there are over 38,660 well-documented meteorite finds.” Meteorites that are recovered after witnessing their fall are called “falls.” All other meteorites are called “finds.”

Did you know we have our very own meteorite laboratory in Portland?! Cascadia Meteorite Laboratory is working with Portland State University to:
• promote meteorite research
• provide formal education about meteorites (classes at PSU)
• increase public awareness about meteorites (lectures and demonstrations, provide specimen identification service to the public)
• maintain and increase the Portland State meteorite collection

We are proud to offer the largest selection of meteorites we’ve ever had in 23 years! Come by the store and hold one to feel its energy. Can you feel a buzz? We have all sizes from little nugget meteorites to our largest yet – a whopping 120 pounder! We also have some sweet jewelry with cute little meteorites: earrings, pendants and bracelets. From the lyrics of one of my favorite songs: “Don’t you know that you are a shooting star?”

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Magnetic Hematite

Posted on June 30, 2012 by Susan Landa

You’ve likely seen these crazy things before. Known variously as Zippers or Rattlesnake Eggs, they are a pair of long ovals of magnetic hematite. You separate the pair, throw
them up so they hit mid air, and clack strangely as they meet magnetically. Their electric-like staccato hissing reminds me of cicadas.

Interestingly enough, natural hematite cannot be permanently magnetized.
“Magnetized Hematite” is a composite of ground natural hematite (iron oxide) and
small amounts of other natural minerals such as aluminum, nickel and copper. Most
polished hematite sold commercially, whether it is magnetized or not, is
also known as “Hematine.” This composite material is much easier to form into
detailed shapes such as beads, eggs, pyramids, etc.

Many people find that magnets carry healing benefits including pain relief, increased
energy, improved sleep and a better immune system.

I love to turn the pair of magnetic hematite so that the same poles are facing each
other. It’s astounding how strong the repelling energy is – I mean, you can literally
“feel” a force of nature. Our universe has certain physical properties that are metaphors for our lives. In relationships, we can be drawn magnetically to another person, or we can be repelled. Of course there are numerous shades of gray in between.

In astrology this effect is keenly represented with squares and oppositions and the degree of severity. Besides the regular personal transits and all the configurations of our own birth chart, there’s the juxtaposition of chart against chart. Have you ever noticed how with some people you just click and with others, even after a lifetime of knowing them, there’s an omnipresent, indefinable dis-ease? Our work here as individuals sometimes is to spin that pair of magnetic hematite around and make the opposite poles meet, rising up out of our comfort zones, flexing, reaching to join as one, even in the face of adversity.

We carry those magnetic hematite pairs, along with tumbled magnetic hematite, and, of course, magnetic hematite jewelry: rings, earrings and bracelets/necklaces with a variety of colors.

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Tiger Eye: Balancing Solar and Earth Energies

Posted on March 31, 2012 by Susan Landa

I was inspired today by pulling the Tiger Eye Crystal Ally Card. It’s all about balance and strength. Most tiger eye is found in South Africa. It’s composed of quartz and asbestos, but not to worry – it won’t hurt you. Tiger eye naturally comes in brown and blue (Hawk’s Eye) with black striations. Tiger eye is also sometimes heated to color it red.
I have found the more balance I have, in every sense of the word, the more strength I have. And conversely, the more strength I have, the more I feel in balance. How do we develop strength and balance? Here are two basic, fundamental ways I have found to successfully keep myself in balance.
Physical core strength and flexibility gives you balance – keeps your back strong, keeps you from falling, makes you more coordinated, feels empowering. Whether you develop it through a gym class, yoga, or a sport, core strength and flexibility are essential elements in balance. I see this as representing the physical earth energies.
Connection with Spirit is a strength that gives you emotional balance – keeps you from totally losing it or being neurotic, provides for meaningful relationships, fulfilling life, feels empowering. To know that “the only source of my supply is the Spirit of God within,” is the strongest place to operate from. If you’re buff but lack connection with Spirit, how balanced can you be? Conversely, if you’re very spiritual, but neglect the body, how can you be truly balanced? If you can work on both physical and emotional strength, I’d say you’ve got it made.
For a quick Spirit connect: imagine a white light shooting down from the heavens and straight through your body. It enters the crown chakra traveling down through the rest of the chakras, into the earth, down through all the layers, ricocheting off the core and all the way back up in a continuous circuit. You are connected to Spirit and Earth. You are charged like a battery with the most powerful energy in the Universe: “The only source of my supply is the Spirit of God within.” What exercises or affirmations do you do to keep yourself in emotional balance?
When I work on my physical body, it reminds me of the vessel I’ve been given to carry my Spirit. I am grateful I can take care of it and keep it in good shape. The physicality of the workout grounds the “higher energetic systems….” To me, people who don’t work on both their physical core strength and their spiritual strength are missing essential core elements in the complete gift of life. Things seem to flow better when we’re in balance. Tiger eye is here to help facilitate this.
We have tiger eye available in tumbled stones, eggs, spheres, carvings, gem trees and jewelry.

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Is it Bornite or Chalcopyrite?

Posted on October 25, 2011 by Susan Landa

We have been selling “Peacock Ore” at The Fossil Cartel since day one. It’s a very colorful, attractive yet inexpensive stone. When we first bought it, the mineral name for it was Bornite. Over the years, vendors started calling it Chalcopyrite. I was confused! What do we call it? Which one is it?
This September, I was at the Denver Gem & Mineral show when an old colleague finally gave me the low down:
It starts out as chalcopyrite, but an acidic chemical solution oxidizes the chalcopyrite and turns it into bornite! I had always been aware that it is a treated rock, but I had no idea that it changed from one rock into another! It got even more interesting:
Chalcopyrite contains several metal elements. The more precious metal elements in the stone (gold, platinum, silver, etc.,) the more colorful the stone turns out. Each color represents a different metal element. Also, the more metal elements, the longer the stone will retain its color! These are all the various metal elements chalcopyrite contains: cobalt (Co), Nickel (Ni), Manganese (Mn), Zinc (Zn) and Tin (Sn) substitutr for Copper (Cu) and Iron (Fe). Selenium (Se), Iron (Fe) and Arsenic (As) substitute for sulfur (S), and trace amounts of Silver (Ag), Gold (Au), Platinum (Pt), Palladium (Pd), Lead (Pb), Vanadium (V), Chromium (Cr), Indium (In), Aluminum (Al) and Antimony (Sb). Wow! That’s a lot of metal elements in one stone!
The healing energies of bornite provide feelings of joy in the moment, with ‘everything is as it should be’, and allows one to separate the positive from the negative. The properties of chalcopyrite enable the bearer to access wisdom from ancient cultures, remove blockages, treat disorders of the lungs and reduce inflammation.
At the same show, I had a very bizarre experience when I purchased the new batch of bornite! There are several vendors that sell bornite and I found one I had purchased other things from in the past. They were one vendor out of hundreds upon hundreds at the show. I picked out three boxes and took a few moments deciding on the last box. It was a box of very large and pretty bornite pieces. I had never seen such large pieces before. Finally I decided to purchase the box (I’m glad I did – they’re very cool!). The vendor began to write up my invoice. She looked down at the last box, looked back up at me, straight in the eyes and said, “You’re not going to believe this!” “What?!” I said. “Your store’s name is already written on the box!!!” “What? How is that possible?” She was dumbfounded, too. The only explanation she could come up with was that a man from the store called them last January to order the box. They brought it to the Tucson show, but the man never came to pick it up. The only man it could have been would have been my husband and he doesn’t place orders, so I knew that couldn’t be it.
The Universe works in mysterious ways. There might have been a rational explanation, like when we were at the last Tucson show purchasing from them, they switched boxes for something we had purchased after writing our name on the box. Even with a rational explanation, the fact that I picked out that one box out of all the millions of possibilities goes to show you: everything is as it should be — which is the lesson in bornite.

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Airport Security and Rocks

Posted on October 24, 2011 by Susan Landa

When you do something a lot, you often take those things for granted. I’ve been in this business for over 22 years. When I go through security at the airport, I come to expect the scanners to question what’s in my bag. However, it’s a different story when you’re not used to it. Here’s a little story by a customer who had one such experience:

Several years ago I bought a fossil cave bear claw (1.8 million years old) at The Fossil Cartel. When I packed to return to New York I decided that it would be safer wrapped in bubble wrap in my backpack than in my suitcase. Accordingly, I wrapped it up, put it in the backpack and then promptly forgot about it. Going through security I took my backpack off, placed it on the conveyer belt and then walked through the metal detector gate. All of a sudden I noticed the man looking at the security X-ray screen waving frantically to his superior. When the superior arrived, the man at the screen started pointing at it with a look that was both concerned and puzzled. The superior stared and then he waved at other security guards in the area to come over and look. As the crowd of security personnel staring at the screen became larger and larger, the superior looked up at me and smiled. While I had seen the commotion, I had not realized until that point that it had anything to do with me. The smile told me everything. When I walked over, he asked what it was. I explained what it was and where I bought it. He seemed genuinely curious about the claw and thought that the whole situation was hilarious. The security guard at the screen was amply relieved.

Thank you J.B. from New York!
Do you have any good stories about going through airport security with rocks, fossils or meteorites? Please share! Send them to info@fossilcartel.com.

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Petrified Wood: Beginnings

Posted on September 27, 2011 by Susan Landa

In my last blog entry, I was going to write about fulgerites to compliment the amethyst entry about connecting to Spirit. I later realized I had already written about fulgerites in 2009: http://www.fossilcartel.com/blog/2009/06/struck-by-lightening-fulgerites/.
I love the Crystal Ally Cards so much I decided to continue blogging about them in this series. This time I picked ‘Petrified Wood’ as a key to an issue I’ve been having.
Trees are such amazing beings. Many have been around for a long, long, long time. They seem to embody a special, silent wisdom. If you’ve ever been in an ancient forest, I think you know what I mean. To have wood fossilize and turn into stone takes this ancient wisdom even further.
Trees are all about the cycle of life and especially beginnings. From tiny saplings they mature into trees giving protection and habitat to many other beings. Eventually they pass, only to be reborn again from their seeds, using their own decomposing matter as fertilizer. The knowledge and experience of this process is forever embodied in petrified wood.
We too have “roots” or beginnings. Our DNA is programmed with the wisdom and experiences of our ancestors, just as petrified wood is programmed. Petrified wood allows us to access that information so we can draw strength and knowledge from our lineage. “Delving into these ancient cellular memories allows us to move forward as well. We are the forefront of a new civilization on Earth. By utilizing the memories of our peoples, we can integrate the lessons that they learned and avoid the mistakes that were made in the past”.
I just now did a meditation with a piece of petrified wood. I’ve been getting these intense muscle spasms in my abdominal region from stress. I wanted to know where they were coming from. I’ve noticed when I have a physical ailment (luckily rare in my life), they go away more readily if I know their root connection. It’s the mind, body, spirit method of healing. In my meditation, I got the image of a young woman in the late 1800’s whose organs were being squished, or “stressed” by a tight corset! Wow! I’m going to have to ponder that one for a while.
I would love to hear your experiences with petrified wood and accessing ancient wisdom. Please write and let us know if you’ve had any epiphanies or messages from the past.

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