9.09.09 I'm Back!

It’s now been 18 months since my open heart surgery and 11 months since my 7th and last ankle surgery and I’m doing great!

It was a bit weird going through the Labor Day weekend celebrating milestones for friends birthdays while the memory lingers of the loss of my dear friend Peter Baez on this weekend 2 years ago and my little schnauzer Athena only one year ago. I miss them both dearly. But I was also reminded of how lucky I am to have had them in my life and how grateful I am that all of you are in my life still.

Recap-

The beginning of January I started studying to become a certified personal trainer through the NASM, National Association of Sports Medicine, with a exam date of late April.

The end of February I went to Australia with my dear friends Steven, Graham and Marc and had a great time. It was my all paid invitation for a vacation from last year that had to be canceled because I had to get new heart parts put into my chest. What a great change from last years birthday celebration to be able to go “Down Under” not having to be “put under”.

After Australia I came back for 5 days and then I was off to Lyon, France to visit and work with Brett and the cast of Alonzo King’s Lines Ballet. It was amazing! The dancers were all so grateful to have me working on them as their massage therapist and I was in awe of their incredible talent and art form. Alonzo was an inspiration to watch as he created a new dance piece while these dancers were also performing nightly shows to sold out audiences. I never had cried so intensely watching a dance performance. It still touches my heart to recall those days this past spring.

I was studying as much as possible while in France to make sure that I passed my exam for NASM slated to be taken the end of April so I could start my Personal Training Buisness, tightandfit.com.

Needless to say, I was pushing the envelope a bit too far. I was exhausted by all the travels around the globe, but also because somewhere along the way I had ingested a parasite from food that totally kicked my ass, literally. I had lost 10 pounds from diarrhea by the time I returned to San Francisco. I was a little freaked out because I had planned to compete in the summer. I had no energy and had lost a lot of muscle mass. Not from a narcissistic point of view but from a general health standpoint. People were commenting on how “thin” I looked. Not a good thing to tell someone who really tries to just keep weight on for health sake! So then I started to feel like I wasn’t going to do what I had told myself I wanted to do. I had a business to start I couldn't slow down now.

I passed my NASM exam and started working at Diakadi Personal Training gym and wellness center mid May.

I entered my first bodybuilding competition less than 2 weeks ago on August 30, 15 pounds lighter than the weight I usually compete at, but I felt that I was in as good as shape as ever. I went into the competition with the goal of just getting up the courage to be back onstage, challenging myself to stay on top of my health, and to share with anyone who is struggling with weight issues or health issues or general self worth issues, that anything is possible if you put your mind to it. Do the work and focus your energy in a positive manner.

I was so honored to have had many of my family members and friends in the audience in Pittsburg, CA for the Contra Costa Bodybuilding Championships, that it was difficult for me not to get emotional. Two of my uncle, both of whom had major bypass surgeries, and their wives were in the audience. I could see their faces in the stage lights reflection out glistening their smiles as I flexed and posed. Their teeth shining brighter and brighter as each passing moment of my posing routine to music played on. I could especially see my aunt Jenny holding here breath, maybe out of hope that I wouldn’t fall on my ass, but maybe more so because she couldn’t believe that she was watching her nephew, who carried her wedding rings down the aisle when he was 5 years old, strutting around in his brief attire after having had his chest cut open wide from collar bone to sternum to fix a faulty valve caused by a genetic disposition. Is that possible to have a genetic disposition and look like an anatomy chart for great symmetry and proportion? I guess that’s where the hard work comes in! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsP9UG46DFo

I know it’s been awhile since I’ve updated my blog but I intend to try to keep things updated at least a couple times a month since there are still quite a lot of news to report. I’m planning on going to Germany again to compete in the Mr. Universe competition in Hamburg the first week of December. My dear friend Angie Pacaldo is sponsoring me to go. She has been a shinning star in my life, and the life of my friends and family over the past year, and if anyone hasn’t had the chance to meet her, well, you’ll never forget her once you do! And that’s a good thing!

I need to acknowledge Brett Conway. He’s been so encouraging and supportive and watchful in helping me to do all the things I need to and want to do. He wants me to succeed and to be the best I can be. Thank you Brett!

Another person I want everyone to know about and acknowledge is John. John Ferrare. He’s an amazing man, an amazing human being. He’s gone through some tremendous growth this past year and it’s all good. He read Eckert Tolle’s, “A New Earth”. It’s opened up his heart to the life that he and I have shared over the past 8 years and his appreciation of it. We are the best of friends and we are glad to still be a big part of each other’s life. He has embraced my relationship with Brett whole heartedly as have all my friends and family who have met him.

It’s not been an easy road to take dealing with surprise after surprise in my life’s challenges but if it wasn’t for all my friends and family (whom I love and love me in return) I couldn’t have done it so easily. “You” are my prize! “You” are my strength. “You” are my inspirations for living and for striving to always be the best Jesse that I can be. Put your faith in God and His plan. With encouragement from and to one another we can all help to make this world a better place one step, one moment and one day at a time.

Love and Light, Jesse Garcia

My New Business Website

Hi all,

I trust life is treating you well and that
you're living life to the fullest!

All is well in my world and life is definitely spiraling upward.

I wanted to share my new Personal Training website with you, www.tightandfit.com. Please check it out and share you input with me.

I have also taken out an ad in Google Ads and listed my business in Yelp, the following link will get you to my ad space on Yelp. Feel free to write a review or testimonial etc. This will help add interest for my services!

http://www.yelp.com/e;AREABQ;lPH7I-N1gyqKHNtORJl1fA

I'll update you all to let you know how things are coming along!

Love and Light and best in health for everyone!

XOXO, Jesse

Untimely Death

This is my New Business Card I hope you like it

It has nothing to do with Untimely Death! :-)





I received the attached message in a forwarded email to me.

It's entitled

"UNTIMELY DEATH!!!!!!!!"
I made correctioins or comments in (RED)

.... BE SURE YOU SCROLL WAY DOWN TO SEE WHAT THIS MESSAGE HOLDS FOR YOU!!!! YOU JUST MIGHT BE SURPRISED!!! I WAS TOLD!!!


DID YOU KNOW THESE FACTS?

I SURE DIDNT TILL NOW




Death is certain but the Bible speaks about untimely death!



Make a personal reflection about this.....



Very interesting, read until the end.....




It is written in the Bible (Galatians 6:7):




'Be not deceived; God is not mocked:

for whatsoever a man sow,




that shall he also reap..






Here are some men and women who mocked God :


John Lennon (Singer):




Some years before, during his interview with an American Magazine, he said:



'Christianity will end, it will disappear.




I do not have to argue about


that. I am certain.


Jesus was ok, but his subjects were too simple, today we are more famous than Him' (1966).


Lennon, after saying that the Beatles were more famous than Jesus Christ, was shot six times. ( But not in 1966)





Tancredo Neves (President of Brazil ):


During the Presidential campaign, he said if he got 500,000 votes from his party, not even God would remove him from Presidency.( No such Quote found)


Sure he got the votes, but he got sick a day before being made President, then he died.



Cazuza (Bi-sexual Brazilian composer, singer and poet):


During A show in Canecio ( Rio de Janeiro ),


while smoking his cigarette, he puffed out some smoke into the air and said:'God, that's for you.'


He died at the age of 32 of LUNG CANCER in a horrible manner.(He really Died of AIDS complications not Lung Cancer)


The man who built the Titanic

After the construction of Titanic, a reporter asked him how safe the Titanic would be.





With an ironic tone he said:



'Not even God can sink it'



The result: I think you all know what happened to the Titanic (It wasn't God it was an Iceberg in the northern seas for crying out loud!)




Marilyn Monroe (Actress)



She was visited by Billy Graham during a presentation of a show.



He said the Spirit of God had sent him to preach to her.



After hearing what the Preacher had to say, she said:



'I don't need your Jesus'.



A week later, she was found dead in her apartment ( What do you think Billy said to her that made her take her life?)



Bon Scott (Singer




The ex-vocalist of the AC/DC. On one of his 1979 songs he sang:


'Don't stop me; I'm going down all the way, down the highway to hell'.


On the 19th of February 1980, Bon Scott was found dead, he had been choked by his own vomit. ( We now this one is for the books. Not a pretty way to die but I don't think that God would choke a man but maybe he was trying to get something horrible out of his belly so that he'd have a chance to live)

Campinas (IN 2005)

In Campinas , Brazil a group of friends, drunk, went to pick up a friend.....



The mother accompanied her to the car and was so worried about the drunkenness of her friends and she said to the daughter holding her hand, who was already seated in the car:


'My Daughter, Go With God And May He Protect You.'


She responded: 'Only If He (God) Travels In The Trunk, Cause Inside Here.....It's Already Full '


Hours later, news came by that they had been involved in a fatal accident, everyone had died,



the car could not be recognized what type of car it had been, but surprisingly, the trunk was intact..


The police said there was no way the trunk could have remained intact. To their surprise, inside the trunk was a crate of eggs, none was broken
(There are NO confirmed reports of the communitcation between the mother and the deceased daughter)

(This is my favorite story to bring home the fact that at least inviting him in would be the LOVING thing to do)



Christine Hewitt (Jamaican Journalist and entertainer)
said the Bible (Word of God) was the worst book ever written.



In June 2006 she was found burnt beyond recognition in her motor vehicle. (She was found burnt beyond recognition in her car after being attacked by an unknown number of assailants. Many claim she was "working on something big," and may have been murdered to prevent her news from reaching the public.)

(I don't believe is needed to tell us what the "Word" of God is. A word does not need to take up so many pages in a book. when that word is "LOVE".)


Many more important people have forgotten that there is no other name that was given so much authority as the name of Jesus.





Many have died, but only Jesus died and rose again, and he is still alive.


'Jesus'



PS: If it was a joke, you would have sent it to everyone.
So are you going to have courage to send this?.


I have done my part, Jesus said


'If you are embarrassed about me,


I will also be embarrassed about you before my father.'


You are my 8 in 8 seconds. I am not breaking this. No way! (Well I figured I would send it out on my blog which reaches about 130+ people directly and who knows how many more just from HITS to the blog)


I'M TOLD THIS WORKS!!!!! Bishop T.D. Jakes '8 Second Prayer.' Just repeat this prayer and see how God moves!!

'Lord, I love you and I need you, come into my heart, and bless me, my family, my home, and my friends, in Jesus' name. Amen.' (Hey, I say Prayers all the time. It brings me some peace of mind that I'm letting God, the Universe know that in a far off place someone who needs comforting has an extra heart, mind and soul sending them gestures of LOVE and Peace)

Pass this message to 8 people {EXCEPT YOU AND ME}..You will receive a miracle tomorrow. I Hope that you don't ignore and
let God bless you.


Origin unknown...

From Jesse
I love the scope of the message indeed, but as always there seems to be grandiose and sensationalized misinterpretations to make things look ugly and painted as evil as bad as they were there’s no need to make it worse than what they were. The message will still stand!

I checked out what "The Facts" were on some of these and they methods of death were not as reported in the text. But as I see it God does work his miracles. This I know since I'm still here 12 years later. For that Matter that I’m still here 15 months after my open-heart surgery. (I was truly blessed that the study I had agreed t participate in gave the doctors the opportunity to have found out I had an aneurysm and repaired it before it was too late)
We all know in our hearts of hearts what it is we need to do to bring peace into our lives and to support in the lives and souls of our loved ones.
Love is the key however that is shared on this planet is our journey to be sure. Yes, we don't know how long we have until we're called to the place where it all begins and I will go as gracefully and gratefully as I can muster. This doesn't mean that I won't be mad. It doesn't mean that I won't be sad. It doesn't mean that I won't fight until the bitter end, but I will know that I have made peace with my life and what God has offered through me in helping to bring LOVE to all that I do, and with everyone that I encounter with the best of my ability.
I am not perfect. I have down days. I have off days. But what brings me solace and comfort is the knowing that there are people who love me and care for me. And the One that I have always been able to count on is God. LOVE is His name.
Love as defined in the Dictionary: the mercy, grace, and charity shown by God to humanity


Love and Light, Jesse

A year come and gone

Thanks everyone for being such a great support system.

My heart surgery was 1 year ago February 27th, I celebrated my 48th birthday on March 4, I've just returned from a trip to Australia on March 10th, and I am getting ready to go to France for a short work trip March 18-29th, so I guess my heart surgery was a success.

The only thing that I am having difficulty with at present is finding a dog sitter to watch my little Rudy. He's been doing great too. The only thing that is a must in watching him is that he take his pills twice a day religiously. That's what is needed to keep his system working properly. If any of you are able to help me out with taking care of him for 12 days please call me as soon as you can. I don't want to put him in a kennel if I don't need to.

Life has been good. Lots of changes. Work has been slow. Been getting in touch with lots of old friends from High School. Seeing some new parts of the world and some that I've already seen before.

Getting re-certified as a personal trainer sometime in April and still working as a massage therapist. I'll be traveling to France to work on the Alonzo King's Lines Ballet dancers.

I'll post photos on my next update.

I hope everyone is ready for Spring to have sprung and that the change of seasons continue to change our attitudes in a positive manner.

Love and Light to all and let me know if you can help me with taking care of my little Rudy while I'm away.

XOXO, Jesse

Happy New Year

Wow what a year this has been, but I have to say that I am very blessed indeed! If not for all the love that I have in my life from family and friends I would not be here writing to you all.

After having been diagnosed last December with a faulty aortic valve and an aortic root aneurysm February's open heart surgery went by in a blink of an eye. It's mid boggling to think of all the out pouring of love from so many friends to help me heal back to living a active life.

After a weeks stay at the hospital I celebrated being alive with a birthday gathering on March 4th. I vaguely remember it through the fog of anesthesia and pain medication but I do remember being overwhelmed with love.

Only a few weeks after that we had to put our beloved yellow Labrador, Cody, to sleep. He had a full life but his aging body was giving out and John's baby left for the dog park in the sky. That same month our little angel Athena was diagnosed with malignant melanoma cancer. She had to have one of her toes amputated. We were lucky to have her back at home after losing Cody.

I was lucky enough to have my dear friend David Browning invite me to hawaii to recouperate. It was a blessing to be on a beach and in the ocean surrounded by natures healing powers and Life progressed as I recovered from open heart surgery and got back to work doing massage.

In May I went to Palm springs to stay with, a now former friend, who decided that we couldn't remain friends. It was his choice and I was fine with that. I don't want to be a burden to anyone or be in the way of anyones progress in life. But I was fortunate enough that the Universe was working in it's mysterious ways and my best friend Kent was house sitting that same weekend. We decided to go look at houses. Kent was looking at the possibility of buying in Palm Springs. The housing market was crashing and the prices were amazing.

Where I returned to San Francisco I told John about the housing opportunties and we decided to go down to Palm Springs to look at what our options were. We started bidding on that first outing. And after the second trip the beginning of July we found the house that would prove to be a gathering point this Holiday season and will be for many more celebrations to come.

This summer was a great opening to forge some lasting friendships. I met some wonderful new clients that fast became friends. I have gotten to know Brett Conway, a very talented ballet dancer with Alonzo King's Ballet here in San Francisco. Joe Pacetti from Dallas who is an amazing and generous man with a heart of Gold.

Another opening that has happened this year was sharing the reading of Eckhart Tolle's "A New Earth". This book has made an amazing impact on so many people including John as well as a dear man Ross Hurston and a slew of other friends. If you haven't read this book I recommend it to everyone along with the web class on Oprah.com. The classes are a MUST to more fully enhance the books message!

I went to London in July and August with my friend David Browning. He is so generous this man is. I love him dearly and I want everyone to know how special a friend he has been. That trip was amazing. I met a new friend Andy Gawthorpe and had the chance to see my dear friend James Wilcox. A true gentle-man! He is so peaceful to be around. I have to thank Gloria and Richard again for letting David and I stay at their flat while in London.

The end of August was a busy time Mom turned 73 and John's brother mark got marriend in Denver. Lots of amazing times and memories that will last forever.
Once I returned I was off again to New York to the Hamptons but that trip was brought to a quick halt when our "Little Princess" Athena became extremely ill as her cancer began to ravish her little furry body and we had to put her to sleep. It was such a heart wrenching experience to let her go but the episodes that led up to that point were so profound that it was uplifiting as it was difficult. When spirit talks we have to listen and the messages were LOUD AND CLEAR. You can relive this experience by reading the August post in this blog. And I have to once again refer you to read this excerpt from "Conversations with Jerry...." It is truely an amazing read! Email me if you want to read the book and I'll email youa the pdf file.

Over the labor day weekend it was an emotional filled weekend. Having just put Athena down and a new household was being set up in Palm Springs and the sad event that John and I had decided to set in motion that he and I would end our relationship as it was. We tried out best over the past few years to make out relationship mesh as life partners as traditionally described, but we just were not happy with ourselves in that "traditional" sense. We have decided to stay together as roommates and best friends but our "Partners/lover/ boyfriends" has evolved into something that we both are able to live happily with. Many of you may not understand how we can continue to live together and often times sleep in the same bed, but it's not important that you fully understand it. All we ask is that you accept it and be supportive and happy that we still want to play an important part within each others lives. True friendship will endure. And this is what I have with John. I love him and his family and will forever be filled with them in my heart and soul!

John and I were planning a trip to Italy in October but I had to have the 7th and final ankle surgery to repair a broken ankle that happend 7 year prior on my and John's first summer vacation together on Fire Island NY. I had another bone graph and sub-talor fusion on October 10th and It seems to have worked so far. The pain is definitely better but still on the mend. John was home for the operation and I urged him to take the trip to Italy to share with his friends.

My friends Kathy Clayton, Gigi, Mark Haberman, Angie Placado as well as my sister and Joe Pacetti helped take care of me. I had a tough time keeping still but I wasn't about to mess up this last chance to heal from ankle surgery. I did manage to make a trip to Las Vegas with Kent and David Browning to see Madonna in concert and to visit with my friends Steven and Rick from NYC, who are touring with Madonna, and an impromptu reunion with my long time friend Quinton Jenkins from Tuscon. I had a lot of heling on a whole lot of levels this past fall.

The end of first week of December I went to Palm Springs to take a week and had another reunion with so many of my showboy dancer friends and just good friends with lots of water under the bridge. Kevin Smith, Kent Blackford, David Oliphant, Chris Childers, Paul Thorpe, Robby Loose, Brett Conway, and a slough of new friends gathered for a fun filled week of laughter and dancing and prancing and sharing of memories long past. It renergized me and again made me realize how blessed I am and how lucky it was that John and I found the house in Palm Springs to help make more memories!

Okay so now The year is about to close but the new Year looks brighter than ever.

I want to thank all of you for making my life so full and wonderful. I may not always stay in touch but I love the fact that we can pick up where we left off and the love continues to grow.

In the meantime I'm finally getting my "Spiritual Bodybuilding" video finished and hope to have it out on YouTube by late winter. I'll keep you posted.

I thank God for you and I thank the Universal love that binds us all as one. You ARE my family and I love you and with you all the prosperity and happiness that is inherant in all of us!

XOXO Love and Light Always, Jesse

Everything is Rosey

Hi tlo all of my loving and accepting friends and family,

Sorry for the delay in this post. All turned out well with my the levels of coumadin and my blood levels are withing the necessary range for keeping my blood thinned.

I waited all day to hear back from my doctors office on Friday and when I finally got the "okay" I rushed to pull my things together to take a road trip down to Palm Springs for the weekend. I was getting so stir crazy staying at home in San Francisco and the stairs were 'driving me mad'! It had been a challenge to get Rudy out of the house on a regular basis to have him pee and to keep him comfortable and not having to clean up a piddle puddle in the house.

So I picked up my friend Brett after he got off work and off we went with Rudy in tow to drive down to Palm Spring where the weather has been in the low 90's. Sorry rain soaked and matted feathered friends. But I send lots of sunny, warm, and thoughts to keep you dry.

I'll be home on Tuesday in time to cast my vote for Obama and the many other propositions and measures that will bring about a much need boost in morale and positive change and human stability that we all deserve to continue to evolve into a world of LOVE and inclusiveness and not hate and separation!

A Special thanks for Angie Placado for he help in setting me up for the weekend drive, Brett for taking the time to drive me and Rudy down, and to John for having this special place down in Palm Springs available for the get away for "pick me ups"! And as always to all of you who call, send me food (Don and Jorge!), and those who send me emails and text messages of love, support, encouragement, and concern! You fill me up!

Love and Light, Jesse

Happy Halloween!

Hello everyone,

Well it's all Hallows' eve and it's raining and gloomy here in SF. Elections are upon us and love is needed to heal the world. Fortunately for me I am constantly surrounded by love, light and positive healing energy from all of my family and friends. And the healing is going great but there are a few glitches.

I went to see my cardiologist on Monday as a follow up to my open heart surgery and as a post op from my ankle surgery. My heart is fine. My ankle is healing rather miraculously fast and I feel great! But, she put a little scare in my when she said that my coumadin levels were not in the range that they need to be for the safe working of my new mechanical valve.

Coumadin is a medication that I have to take to thin my blood. My blood has to be within a certain level to keep the blood flowing freely and smoothly through the new valve. If the blood isn't thin enough there is a risk of getting a clot or of too much pressure pushing against the platstic parts of the valve and could cause the valve to break and, well it would be the end of Jesse and we know him.

My Cardiologist said that I should not have been released from the hospital without my blood levels in the acceptable range. But I was and that the normal protocol is Hospitalization for at least 2 days until the levels are normalized for the valve function.

I don't want to go back into the hospital and I told her so and wanted to know what my options were. She said that uping the dosages of my medication should do the trick along with twice daily under the skin shots. And we'll check the levels again Friday (Tomorrow) and if they are in renge great but if not I will have to be admitted into the hospital to have IV administered medication for 2 days or however long it takes to get my blood thinned.

I'll do whatever my doctors need me to do but I am so tired of being in the hospital and I am so looking forward to getting back to my massage work as well as getting back into the gym and, well just being able to take care of my self!

Again it's been such a challege to get through this ankle operation but adding another level of obstacles of my new heart parts is doubly so. But it's been made much more managible with the help of my loving friends and family.

I am looking forward to getting back on my feet and getting onward through the Holidays and bringing in a new and amazing new year full of positive creations of love, light, and happiness with new and old friends and family.

There are so many friends that have projects brewing all around me which I know will be so successful, and that are being manifested in such a way that helps to nurture and embrace all who come into contact with them with postiveness and light and appreciation for their creations.

One such friend is Tony Cero who has a business called Cake creations in San Jose click on this link to see him in a televised segment with Jan Whal on KRON channel 4. Tony has over the years blessed me and my friends and family with delicious baked hugs that warm the soul.

http://www.kron.com/global/Category.asp?C=144663 "My Big Fat Fabulous Wedding" part 5

Another great amazing soul is my friend Gigi. I work with he occassionally with Greg Angelo's Velocity Circus. She's a face and body paint artist. She won 1st prize last year at the international face and body painting competition in Amsterdam. Here is her website...

http://www.supergigi.net/

Gigi is always a breath of fresh air and always lifts my spirits with her loving energy. She is an exraordiary woman and I hope that all of you can meet her if you haven't already.

There are many many more friends to acknowledge and honor here and I will continue to update you all on all of life's wonderful opportunities that bring us all closer together.

Love and Light, Jesse