Let's Get Quilted!

Quilts, Inc. will bring the International Quilt Festival to the Long Beach Convention Center on July 23 through 25. There will be classes and lectures and over 300 booths offering sewing supplies and unique quilted items for sale. Tickets are $10 per day.

Only in Long Beach

There's a whole lot of shaking going on in downtown Long Beach this weekend. Besides the TED convention and the Queen Mary Scottish Festival, the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center is hosting a rather strange pair of gatherings: the World's Greatest Hobby on Tour, a huge assortment of model trains of all sizes and shapes and the Belly Dancer of the Universe Contest under the same roof. Something for the kid and the adult, now that's a Valentine's Day to remember.

Take a peek at the future

From August 10 to August 13, Plug-In 2009, a conference focusing on plug-in hybrid and electric technology, wil take place at Long Beach Convention Center. The public can attend from 5:30 pm to 9 pm on Tuesday, August 11. Vehicles scheduled for display include the Chevy Volt, the Ford Escape Plug-In, and the Plug-In Toyota Prius. There will also be a panel discussion of how people can get the word out about the advantages of plug-ins. Tickets can be purchased at the door for $10.

Beyond Karma Queen

I didn't know what to expect at the Health Freedom Expo, and, believe me, I was not disappointed. The exhibit hall was jam-packed with crystals and negative ions and oceans of lotions and essential oils. The salespeople were sincere and low key and always gracious when I said, "Thanks but no thanks." I had some scrumptious gazpacho from Leaf Organics and then went up to the gorgeous atrium of the Long Beach Convention Center and practiced a little of my own version of mindfulness meditation as I leafed through the swag bag I got after paying the $15.00 admission fee.

The speakers offered a little more substance than the salespeople down in the exhibit hall. I had wanted to see sustainable lifestyle guru John Robbins, but he had to cancel, so I sat in on Catie Wyman's lecture instead. Wyman suffers from a rare blood disease and began to study nutrition as a way to help her and her son attain good health despite their disease. She found that many supplements intended to enhance vitamin and mineral, especially calcium, levels in the body can actually have harmful effects instead. She advocates designing your diet to include vegetables and fruits high in mineral content rather than taking synthetic supplements. She sells organic greens supplements and her book The Truth about Calcium, gives details on finding the cure in the kitchen.

My favorite speaker was Vaishali, who calls herself the spiritual wild child and handed out bumper stickers with "Beyond Karma Queen" printed on them. Draped in purple velvet and dripping with purple jewelry, she even sported purple nail polish and lavendar lipstick. This woman knows what she likes! In fact, she was just demonstrating her philosophy, based on works by Emanuel Swedenborg, which she boiled down to "You are what you love, and you love what you give your attention to." She encouraged the audience to laugh and have fun even as she explained some serious concepts about releasing toxic thoughts and feelings even as you release digestive waste. She's written two books, You are What You Love and Wisdom Rising as well as a "playbook" to explain her thoughts on living a full and rewarding life.