I've been thinking about wants and wishes, and the technology of intention.

In ancient days, people would kill a goat and pray for rain. This rain would insure that crops were bountiful, and prosperity would ring. Today, people still pray, but much of the technology of concretizing our desires and wishes has been lost. I believe that materializing a wish takes five steps. These are focus of intention, sacrifice, invocation, journaling, and thankfulness. More specifically:

Focus of intention - this is a meditative process of clearly stating your intention or wish, and making that intention more concrete... like if you wish you could start a new business, you have to write a business plan for it
Sacrifice - to empower a wish, you have to give up something, so this might be giving up a comfort or vice, like smoking, sex, whatever, or donating to some charity
Invocation - this entails the reduction of our ego, to let in the divine universal consciousness that surrounds us, and to become one with it through the wish or prayer
Journaling - we often forget our wishes once they're granted, so it's important to write down an accounting of all wishes and how they've been realized
Thankfulness - to be in a state of divine grace, we need to look at all the gifts we are constantly being given, and this is part of the journaling process

Anyway, for over twenty years, I've kept a Want List journal as a device for freeing myself of desires. I just write them down, and it helps me from constantly thinking about them. I've noted that I usually get over 80% of the things, experiences, skills, etc that I wish for... with many instances of miracles. My primary intention these days is to raise a $500 million venture fund, with which we can create many jobs, insure health and happiness for my circle of friends and family, and potentially change the world in a positive manner. Fortunately, we're getting traction, and this MAJOR MIRACLE is slowly happening.

As long as I'm writing this, here is some stuff I want, in no particular order, so I can let it go into the Universe...

1) I want to "summer" in Europe, sometimes in France and sometimes in Italy, and be surrounded by friends, artists, family... and enjoy fine food, wine, and witty conversations around the table, just like they do in those really cool European films.

2) I want to retire from high tech and make beautiful and brilliant movies for the rest of my life.

3) I want to teach Tai Chi and Taoist meditation well into my 90s.

4) I want that cute little new Mercedes 500 SL.

5) I want my family and friends to enjoy health and happiness forever.

6) I want to take a trip around the world with Nina next year.

7) I want to own a Picasso.

8) I want a house with an interior courtyard in San Francisco, that I can convert into a martial arts studio.

9) I want to be able to telekinetically move objects with my ch'i, like my teacher's teacher was able to do.

10) I want to achieve a state of Nirvikalpa Samadhi in deep meditation, before I die.

Okay, pretty wacky wishes, huh?