Not to turn this blog into an outlet for ranting or all my baby-wanting pre-pregnancy research I did want to post this to try and get it off my chest as it still is bugging me after hearing about it almost a week ago.
My cousin, who is like my little sister as we were raised together in the same house, has recently started going to a Christian academy in her city. I have no issue with this as I went to a Christian (Baptist) Academy and the education was excellent even though I disagree with some of their teaching techniques (specifically paddling).
When I asked why they were moving her to the academy I was given 2 reasons by my grandmother
1 her public school was teaching homosexuality in sex ed classes - I rolled my eyes at this but decided not to cause an argument with my fundamentalist Christian family so I said nothing about it
2 the schools are overstepping their boundries in raising children
The example I was given was one of my cousin's classmates brought a lunch from home, which consisted of a turkey sandwich, a fruit cup and some juice. The school took her lunch away because it didn't have all the food groups represented, gave her a school lunch and tried to make her mother pay for the school lunch given.
When asked what of the school lunch she ate, the little girl said she had a couple of chicken nuggets but didn't like them or anything else on her tray...so she went hungry.
I was in shock.
I knew things were getting crazy in the schools today after reading an article about a teacher cutting off one girl's hair in front of the class because she kept playing with her braids, another teacher having her students write Christmas cards to her imprisoned boyfriend (who was charged with child pornography), and more.
But I had assumed that these were isolated incidents and I had never imagined they'd hit so close to home as the school decided to the letter how a parent should feed or even raise their children.
As I look into my pre-pregnancy planning I cant help but look ahead to when my child or children are of age to be placed into the school system...and the more I learn about that school system the more I feel that I don't want my offspring in it.
So there's my rant...sorry I know it has nothing to do with witchcraft at all but now that its off my chest maybe I can put it off my mind as well.
Witchcraft on the Road
We're on vacation but this witch's work is never done. My husband has commissioned me to make a fisherman's mojo bag for him to bring him luck while catching fish. I told him I'll make it tomorrow but for tonight I'll give him a "lucky kiss" and hope he catches me something yummy.
Well before that I had said that I had never tried shark and would like to...so what would you know...
He just ran up from the dock where he's fishing in an ocean inlet and brough me my shark!
Its a little sand shark and I'll post pictures once I get the pics off of my camera.
So yes, I will still be making a mojo and giving lucky kisses and hoping for more yummies in the day to come...and I will also be tossing that nasty "lucky" fishing hat he has that is falling apart and smells terrible.
Any suggestions on a lucky fisherman's mojo?
Well before that I had said that I had never tried shark and would like to...so what would you know...
He just ran up from the dock where he's fishing in an ocean inlet and brough me my shark!
Its a little sand shark and I'll post pictures once I get the pics off of my camera.
So yes, I will still be making a mojo and giving lucky kisses and hoping for more yummies in the day to come...and I will also be tossing that nasty "lucky" fishing hat he has that is falling apart and smells terrible.
Any suggestions on a lucky fisherman's mojo?
Johannes de Castua, Danse Macabre
John of Kastav (Latin: Johannes de Castua; Slovene: Janez iz Kastva) was a 15th-century Istrian artist, a native of Kastav (Croatia).
He painted the frescoes in the Church of the Holy Trinity, Hrastovlje, which included a famous Danse Macabre. According to the inscription, which identifies the artist as magister Johannes de Castua, the frescoes were commissioned in 1482, and completed in 1490.
Source
G is for Gris-Gris
As I'm quite the amateur at hoodoo I'll be referring to Moma Sarah's blog and her well-written and informative post about gris-gris.
I will say that from what I've read, gris-gris is considered by many to be the same thing as a mojo bag and I must say I'm not sure if there's a difference. The only thing I can see is that a gris-gris can be made in regards to a specific deity and I have not seen that a mojo is made for that reason.
While you're looking at Moma Sarah's blog, be sure to check out her shop - ConjuredCardea !
I will say that from what I've read, gris-gris is considered by many to be the same thing as a mojo bag and I must say I'm not sure if there's a difference. The only thing I can see is that a gris-gris can be made in regards to a specific deity and I have not seen that a mojo is made for that reason.
While you're looking at Moma Sarah's blog, be sure to check out her shop - ConjuredCardea !
At the Beach
I'm on vacation at the beach in Jacksonville, NC!
We're going to be here 3 weeks before we move to Alaska and I'm sooooooo excited about the break. This should help relieve all the stress we've been suffering from this past 3-5 months.
During this time, in between walking along to sand, picking up shells and sharks teeth and sea glass, I'll be working on 2 e-books that I hope to have available on here and my Fairy blog. Its going to be a slow process though since both books require some research - not to mention that my capacity for working during vacation is low ^_^
In the mean time I'll be posting pictures and of course keeping up with Pagan Blog Project and Pagan Blog Prompts (though the recent one about spring cleanign doesn't pertain to me right now as we have no house to spring clean anymore lol).
We're going to be here 3 weeks before we move to Alaska and I'm sooooooo excited about the break. This should help relieve all the stress we've been suffering from this past 3-5 months.
During this time, in between walking along to sand, picking up shells and sharks teeth and sea glass, I'll be working on 2 e-books that I hope to have available on here and my Fairy blog. Its going to be a slow process though since both books require some research - not to mention that my capacity for working during vacation is low ^_^
In the mean time I'll be posting pictures and of course keeping up with Pagan Blog Project and Pagan Blog Prompts (though the recent one about spring cleanign doesn't pertain to me right now as we have no house to spring clean anymore lol).
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| Normally in bathrooms the graffiti is lewd rude and crude but this one at the book store had messages of inspiration! |
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| Mushrooms! Took this pic before we left TN |
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| Beautiful Atlantic - in the distance is some sort of ship called the Iwo Jima |
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| We Caught Crabs >.< Too bad I'm allergic to shell fish |
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| Holey "Holy" Stone I found on the beach - how auspicious! |
Cosmè Tura, St George and the Princess
Museo del Duomo, Ferrara
Date: 1469
Technique: Tempera on canvas, 349 x 305 cm
In 1469 the cover of the organ of the Cathedral in Ferrara was painted by Tura. The Annunciation was visible in the closed state of the organ, while in the open state the panel representing St George and the Dragon was shown. The cover of the organ was transferred to the Museum in 1735.
The organ frontal for the Cathedral must serve as an introduction to the painter, although he was about thirty-nine years old when it was finished and obviously a fully formed painter. The shutters were painted with tempera, although Tura seems frequently to have employed oils as well. They are emotionally charged, full of movement and intense expressionism. In the St George the frightened princess, placed close to the picture plane, moves swiftly to the left of the single canvas she occupies. Her fluttering, irregular draperies with decisive hills and valleys are carefully studied, but they do not follow the structure of her body or even her pose, becoming instead alive and rebelliously independent of the forms they hide.
Light is effectively rendered as an expressive device without becoming a particularly naturalistic component, striking here and there, helter-skelter, although a certain concentration on the left may be isolated. Highlights are also found on the right-hand edges of forms, especially in the canvas showing St George impaling the dragon. Color is equally antinaturalistic. The tight-fitting leather costume of the saint is outlined, pale maroon against a golden sky. His gray horse, ferociously participating in the confrontation, is accentuated by a calligraphic arrangement of thin red straps. There are strong echoes of Mantegna, perhaps in part filtered through Squarcione, in motives like the rendering of the winding trail with figures on the hill behind the princess and a tight application of paint, which permits abundant minuscule detail. Critics have called attention to connections with later Donatello, especially with his reliefs made for nearby Padua. These are difficult to isolate within the personal expressive idiom of the St George, except for the shared intensity in treating sacred figures and narratives.
Source
Adolf Hirémy-Hirschl, Ahasuerus at the End of the World
Private collection
Date: 1888
Technique: Oil on canvas, 55 x 90 in.
The bearded man is Ahasuerus, the legendary wanderer at the end of the world. He is the last man in the polar wilderness, caught between the angel of hope and the specter of death. Before him lies a fallen female figure, the personification of dead humanity, as crows circle ominously. (From Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter by James Gurney)
Source
Roast Master Cafe Baakens
Last Thursday (March 22) two of our Coffee Crawlers celebrated their birthday. What are the chances of THAT happening? Rhetorical question or not, I got answers from both Lou and Keith... no surprise there! Well, it just so happens that, with 23 people in our Crawl group on Thursday at Roast Master Cafe, the chance of two people sharing a birthday is just over 50%. Lou showed me the whole statistical formula that determines this percentage, painfully reminding me of all that I forgot from that one stats class I took in college! Anyway, yes, there were 23 of us there to help celebrate Margaret's and Fran's birthdays. Those enjoying the Sumatran single origin Guatemalan coffee (and other beverages) were birthday girls, Margaret Zoetmulder and Fran de Beer along with Dale Mitchell, Sandy Venter and her granddaughters, Sarah and Rachel, Keith de Beer, Gail Darne, Stella and Beryl Dawson, June Nash, Marie Nash, Leanne Waller, Sylvia Mynhardt, Colleen Le Roux, Antoinette Rose, Elaine Watson, Nomusa Nkomo, Les Baldwin, Fr. Dominic Griego, Matthew Nazer, and Beth Vieira.
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| This Week's Crawlers |
Roast Master Cafe Baakens is located at 1 Bridge Street, on the corner of Upper Valley Road and Brickmakerskloof in South End. The cafe opened its doors to the public on Oct 5, 2011 and has quickly become a popular PE spot to have breakfast/lunch seven days a week. The shop's hours are weekdays, 8-5 and weekends, 8-3. It was no problem for manager, Sarah Ward, and the Roast Master staff to accommodate our unexpected group as the cafe seats about 100 patrons inside and on the patio outside. Our barista, Veliswa, has had a number of years of barista experience so easily kept up with our first, second, third rounds of coffee orders. During the course of Thursday's Crawl I had two excellent double shot cappuccinos. I ended up having to run a 5K when I got home so as to work off the jitters!
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| Meet the Manager Sarah Ward |
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| Meet the Barista Veliswa |
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| Sarah busy roasting the beans |
At first glance, Roast Master Cafe looks like your typical coffee shop but after a few minutes to look around and a couple of questions posed to the staff, we discovered two unique features of the cafe: 1. they roast their coffee beans daily on site, 2. they offer the following courses through their on site Coffee Academy: Coffee Appreciation, Barista 101, Intermediate Barista, Advanced Barista, Roasting 101. The two-hour Coffee Appreciation course looks like a lot of fun for the average coffee lover, and it is also a great idea for a corporate or team event or a private party. For info re: the Roast Master Coffee Academy visit their website at http://www.roastmaster.co.za/ or send email enquiries to: baakenscafe@roastmaster.co.za or call 041 581 1682.
Now with a group the size of Thursday's Crawl it's hard to keep track of the conversations at the tables so I gave up trying early on and just sat back, munched on a bagel and talked tennis and parenting with those around me. Of course, at one point, we all joined in a rousing chorus of "Happy Birthday" for our two guests of honor. Happy Birthday, Margaret and Fran! As the morning waned a bunch of us needed to get up and move around so we took a stroll next door to check out the micro brewery which opens daily at about 10 for coffee, drinks and light snacks. Perhaps a Crawl at the brewery lies somewhere in the future!
~Thank you to Sarah and the Roast Master staff - tremendous service for our large group with no notice!
~Thank you to Linga Fan for your recent comment on the Linga Longa post. It's good to get updates as the
Linga Longa Cafe goes through its renovations.
~Happy Birthday to my nephew, Brenden (March 28)
~A tip from the "How to Win Money in Bar Bets" website - ... in a group of 50 random people there is a
97% chance that two people will share a birthday. Now, go out a win some cash with that info!!!
Until next week,
Ellen
Helen May Sullivan, Pedigree
Helen May Sullivan's pedigree chart takes her ancestry back to the early 1800s. All of her known ancestors were born in Ireland. They came from counties Cavan, Limerick and Wexford to the U.S., specifically Chicago and Evanston, Illinois. Her ancestors immigrated in the mid-1850s, shortly after the Great Irish Famine.
Click on pedigree image to enlarge.
Source: The Master Genealogy database, Elaine McIntyre Beaudoin, printed February 19, 2012.
Click on pedigree image to enlarge.
Source: The Master Genealogy database, Elaine McIntyre Beaudoin, printed February 19, 2012.
Viktor Alexandrovich Hartmann, Paris Catacombs (Парижские катакомбы)
Russian Museum, Saint Petersburg (Государственный Русский музей)
Date: 1864-67
Technique: Watercolor, 12.9 x 17 cm
People pictured are Hartmann, Vasily Kenel, and a guide holding the lantern.
Source
G is for Ganesh
I'm 5 days early as far as the Pagan Blog Project prompting is concerned but I'm in the middle of a big move so I'd rather be early than super late...
Ganesh (aka Ganesha or Ganesa, Ganapati, Vinayaka, Pillaiyar) is one of my Patron deities and is one I go to whenever I have a goal I want to achieve of a change that I desire in my life. He is known as the Lord of Beginnings or Lord of Obstacles.
Ganesh is the son of Shiva and Parvati. He is depicted as having the head of an elephant, which sets him apart from the other Hindu gods. How he obtained the elephant head is up for debate as it seems each story of his conception has a different way of explaining it. Some say he was born with it, some say he was born with a human head that disintegrated due to the evil eye or was cut off. Some stories and depictions even show him with multiple elephant heads. Either way, he obtained the elephant head and it, along with his big belly are very distinctive.
Ganesh is shown in many poses. Sometimes he is with his family, other times alone. He is shown standing, dancing, fighting demons, reclining, playing, sitting, elevated, holding a number of objects to show his many aspects, etc. So many depictions and views reflect the fact that Ganesh is one of the most recognizable and widely worshiped deities in the world.
I was first introduced to Ganesh by my dear friend Edward. He suggested I do a mantra to Ganesh 108 times a day for 108 days with a specific goal in mind. I did so and counted the days. To aid my mantra I used a string of rose beads I had bought at an antique store months before that had 110 beads exactly on it. These became my prayer beads.
108 days later of continuous mantras - my goal came through. Not only did it work automatically, Ganesh became an important symbol and figure in my life and I now go to him for any goal and new path I want to take.
I later had a dream of Ganesh. He was truly so large I could not comprehend him. His size was not all that was large about him, his very presence would bowl you over. It was one of the most intense and realistic dreams I ever had. He was golden in color and such a happy, mellow vibe came off of him. I'll remember the dream for as long as I live.
Ganesh Mantra Videos
Traditional Ganesh mantra with beautiful video by Sonu Nigam
Techno mantra (my favorite)
Ganesh (aka Ganesha or Ganesa, Ganapati, Vinayaka, Pillaiyar) is one of my Patron deities and is one I go to whenever I have a goal I want to achieve of a change that I desire in my life. He is known as the Lord of Beginnings or Lord of Obstacles.
Ganesh is shown in many poses. Sometimes he is with his family, other times alone. He is shown standing, dancing, fighting demons, reclining, playing, sitting, elevated, holding a number of objects to show his many aspects, etc. So many depictions and views reflect the fact that Ganesh is one of the most recognizable and widely worshiped deities in the world.
108 days later of continuous mantras - my goal came through. Not only did it work automatically, Ganesh became an important symbol and figure in my life and I now go to him for any goal and new path I want to take.
I later had a dream of Ganesh. He was truly so large I could not comprehend him. His size was not all that was large about him, his very presence would bowl you over. It was one of the most intense and realistic dreams I ever had. He was golden in color and such a happy, mellow vibe came off of him. I'll remember the dream for as long as I live.
Ganesh Mantra Videos
Traditional Ganesh mantra with beautiful video by Sonu Nigam
Techno mantra (my favorite)
Separation of Church and State
I normally don't get political on my blog but I am gonna rant a wee bit for now...
There's a church at the end of our little area of the country and other than some light traffic on Sundays and Wednesdays, I've had no problems with them at all. Lately, the area of woods across the street from the church has been cut down, burned and uprooted. It looks like a wasteland now and it makes me sad every time we pass because it was once very pretty.
Today I found out why it's been destroyed.
The church owns the land on both sides of the road and they were apparently tired of the road going through it...so now they're using County tax dollars to re-route the road and expand their parking lot (which isn't needed from what I've seen by their turn out). I can't help but be saddened by this whole issue. What was once a pretty little woods and pasture is now mud and charred wood - and all this was paid with the tax dollars of the rest of us living here - I would certainly not have wanted my money to go to this. Doesn't the church take up offerings? Tithing and what not being very important from what I remember of church growing up.
The whole situation makes me agitated.
Sorry to be all ranty lately, probably the stress of moving doing this to me.
I'll be sure to post something pleasant soon.
Love and light,
Dawn
There's a church at the end of our little area of the country and other than some light traffic on Sundays and Wednesdays, I've had no problems with them at all. Lately, the area of woods across the street from the church has been cut down, burned and uprooted. It looks like a wasteland now and it makes me sad every time we pass because it was once very pretty.
Today I found out why it's been destroyed.
The church owns the land on both sides of the road and they were apparently tired of the road going through it...so now they're using County tax dollars to re-route the road and expand their parking lot (which isn't needed from what I've seen by their turn out). I can't help but be saddened by this whole issue. What was once a pretty little woods and pasture is now mud and charred wood - and all this was paid with the tax dollars of the rest of us living here - I would certainly not have wanted my money to go to this. Doesn't the church take up offerings? Tithing and what not being very important from what I remember of church growing up.
The whole situation makes me agitated.
Sorry to be all ranty lately, probably the stress of moving doing this to me.
I'll be sure to post something pleasant soon.
Love and light,
Dawn
AVMA Presidents: Dr. Jack O. Walther 2003-04
Posted March 24, 2012
by Donald F. Smith, Cornell University
This historical blog is in recognition of the 150th anniversary
of the American Veterinary Medical Association (1863-2013).
See Dr. Walther's complete biography and interview with audio at http://ecommons.library.cornell.edu/bitstream/1813/28642/2/Walther,%20Jack%20).%201963%20UC%20Davis,%20BioInt.pdf
See Dr. Walther's complete biography and interview with audio at http://ecommons.library.cornell.edu/bitstream/1813/28642/2/Walther,%20Jack%20).%201963%20UC%20Davis,%20BioInt.pdf
Dr. Walther was heavily involved in activities of the Nevada Veterinary Medical Association starting in the 1970s and in 1992 was selected as Nevada’s delegate to the AVMA. From there, he was elected to the AVMA's executive board representing his region of the country.
During a trip to Cornell University in September 2001 while AVMA vice president, he received an unanticipated call from a colleague encouraging him to run for the position of president-elect. Though no previous vice president had used that position as a springboard to the presidency for almost 100 years, Dr. Walther entered the race and in July 2003 was installed as the AVMA's 140th president.
Dr. Walther was president in a year in which serious diseases of food-producing animals, notably, highly pathogenic avian influenza and bovine spongiform encephalopathy emerged as threats to the nation’s food animals and international trade.
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| Dr. Walther testifying before Congress in 2004, encouraging improved surveillance for Chronic Wasting Disease that threatened deer and elk populations. AVMA photo provided by Dr. Walther |
In what he considers one of his most important initiatives, Dr. Walther energized and expanded the public relations programs of the AVMA, transforming that department in ways that were long overdue. He also fundamentally improved the way in which legislative issues in various states were monitored by the AVMA so that relevant and timely information could be shared among veterinary associations in other states. Dr. Walther also facilitated the establishment of a privately-managed testing service for veterinary graduates of foreign and non-accredited colleges that helped reduce a two-to-three year backlog of new veterinarians awaiting examination for licensure to practice.
Throughout his professional career, Dr. Walther has been involved in community activities. Dr. Walther promoted major expansion of passenger and commercial air service in the Reno/Sparks area while a leader of the Washoe County Airport Authority. He was also chair of the board of the National Championship Air Races in the 1990s. An avid cowboy himself, Dr. Walther served as chairman of the small and financially-fragile Reno Rodeo and saw it become one of the top rodeos in North America.
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Dr. Walther plays his role as working cowboy on his ranch in Lamoille, NV in 2010. Photo provided by Dr. Walther. |
Dr. Walther continues to be an active leader in veterinary medicine, serving on several veterinary boards, in particular the Western Veterinary Conference. His various roles with the conference were so distinguished that the program for the 2013 annual meeting will be named in his honor (only the sixth time this has occurred in the past three decades).
Dr. Smith invites comments at dfs6@cornell.edu
I'm Leaving Witchbook
I'm leaving Witchbook.net
You might have noticed, if you read my blog often, that I was super excited about joining Witchbook as I love being part of a community of like minded people. I even posted a banner for them at the bottom of my blog when I joined so as to promote them.
I'm now leaving because as my husband was reading a post about Human Spammers by Digital Magick I read something that disturbed me somewhat:
"I have access to the database, and it's a rather obvious spike in one (rather 3) of my spam-catcher graphs, when a single user sends out 100 messages in under an hour. (Legit members fear not! If I do suspect something with your mail, I'll peek at a couple of messages, and if they don't look spammy, I stop looking, forget what I read, delete it from my brain, and get drunk to ensure the deletion took. Your privacy is safe with me)."
Sorry Digi but I don't care how drunk you get, my personal messages are not for your perusal because you think I MIGHT be spamming. How lame of an excuse. I totally understand if someone reports an email for the so-called "lead geek" to look at the reported e-mail but not to go through anyone's e-mail for what I consider illegitimate reasons. Whats to keep Digital Magick or any of the admins of looking at the personal messages of anyone and posting them somewhere just for shits and giggles?
His excuse is lame, the statement of getting drunk to forget the pm is lame...so I'm leaving rather than ignore something as irritating and ridiculous as this.
Perhaps I should just stick with Witchvox...
You might have noticed, if you read my blog often, that I was super excited about joining Witchbook as I love being part of a community of like minded people. I even posted a banner for them at the bottom of my blog when I joined so as to promote them.
I'm now leaving because as my husband was reading a post about Human Spammers by Digital Magick I read something that disturbed me somewhat:
"I have access to the database, and it's a rather obvious spike in one (rather 3) of my spam-catcher graphs, when a single user sends out 100 messages in under an hour. (Legit members fear not! If I do suspect something with your mail, I'll peek at a couple of messages, and if they don't look spammy, I stop looking, forget what I read, delete it from my brain, and get drunk to ensure the deletion took. Your privacy is safe with me)."
Sorry Digi but I don't care how drunk you get, my personal messages are not for your perusal because you think I MIGHT be spamming. How lame of an excuse. I totally understand if someone reports an email for the so-called "lead geek" to look at the reported e-mail but not to go through anyone's e-mail for what I consider illegitimate reasons. Whats to keep Digital Magick or any of the admins of looking at the personal messages of anyone and posting them somewhere just for shits and giggles?
His excuse is lame, the statement of getting drunk to forget the pm is lame...so I'm leaving rather than ignore something as irritating and ridiculous as this.
Perhaps I should just stick with Witchvox...
Campus Read Program presents Dr. Paul J. Eastvold M.D.
Dr. Paul J. Eastvold, M.D., board certified in Clinical Pathology, Blood Banking and Transfusion Medicine, will appear at Boise State on April 4. He will discuss his career in pathology, how health care science uses HeLa cells and the ongoing contribution of Henrietta Lacks.
Wednesday, April 4
5:00pm
Special Events Center
5:00pm
Special Events Center
The Campus Read program is designed to encourage students and other members of the University community to engage in learning both in and out of the classroom setting.
Bubble Bubble Boil and...
This witch is cooking up some trouble...in the bathroom?
I'm getting ready for th ebig move from TN to Alaska next week (Tuesday to be precise) and today I'm making all the organic hygeine products I will need for 1-2 months.
My shampoo. I'm actually making it in a plastic container, this pic is from the last batch I made and I'm using it because the bottle is prettier, lol.
My shampoo consists of 1/2 castille soap and 1/2 other liquid ingredients that consist of freshly brewed herbal tisane (usually a blend of chamomile, lavender and other calming scents as I love a good calming cleansing bath or shower), a few drops of tea tree essential oil, 1 capsule of Vitamin E oil and maybe a few drops of lavender eo...if I can find where I put it.
I'm making enough for me and some extra for Lady and a friend of mine...so sad to be leaving them for such a long times :(
This is my witch hazel and tea tree oil blend that I use for everything from bug bites to acne to piercings to...everything skin related excepting sun burns or burns (for that I use aloe and lavender eo).
I also prepared some unrefined organic coconut oil that I use instead of lotion form its HUGE gallon tub to a smaller container (and gave the rest to Lady as I can't take it over the boarder as it is a food product).
I will also be making a couple of bars of soap - I'm actually almost completely out of my organic soap base so...I'll prolly have to give it up for a lil while and use something like Dove - ew I know but cheaper than my base and something my mom-in-law is willing to buy for me without a fit about my 'hippy ways'. LOL
-takes a deeep breath-
So I'm packing like mad and having to step back now and then to relax and remind myself that this is an adventure. no one is making me do this. i am happy.
I've also been burning up as we keep hitting record highs right now and I've yet to prepare summer clothes to wear. So...I found a great way to relax and refresh
Spearmint tisane!
My husband's grandmother planted spearmint in her garden 4-5 years ago and every year it comes back with a vengeance to take over her flower beds (she didn't know that it did this when she bought it) so she says come and get it or I'm just gonna mow it down.
I of course grabbed a handful yesterday and thanked the Goddess for her bounty in my time of need ^_^
I hope everyone is having a blessed spring day!
Love and Light
Dawn
I'm getting ready for th ebig move from TN to Alaska next week (Tuesday to be precise) and today I'm making all the organic hygeine products I will need for 1-2 months.
My shampoo consists of 1/2 castille soap and 1/2 other liquid ingredients that consist of freshly brewed herbal tisane (usually a blend of chamomile, lavender and other calming scents as I love a good calming cleansing bath or shower), a few drops of tea tree essential oil, 1 capsule of Vitamin E oil and maybe a few drops of lavender eo...if I can find where I put it.
I'm making enough for me and some extra for Lady and a friend of mine...so sad to be leaving them for such a long times :(
I also prepared some unrefined organic coconut oil that I use instead of lotion form its HUGE gallon tub to a smaller container (and gave the rest to Lady as I can't take it over the boarder as it is a food product).
I will also be making a couple of bars of soap - I'm actually almost completely out of my organic soap base so...I'll prolly have to give it up for a lil while and use something like Dove - ew I know but cheaper than my base and something my mom-in-law is willing to buy for me without a fit about my 'hippy ways'. LOL
-takes a deeep breath-
So I'm packing like mad and having to step back now and then to relax and remind myself that this is an adventure. no one is making me do this. i am happy.
I've also been burning up as we keep hitting record highs right now and I've yet to prepare summer clothes to wear. So...I found a great way to relax and refresh
Spearmint tisane!
My husband's grandmother planted spearmint in her garden 4-5 years ago and every year it comes back with a vengeance to take over her flower beds (she didn't know that it did this when she bought it) so she says come and get it or I'm just gonna mow it down.
I of course grabbed a handful yesterday and thanked the Goddess for her bounty in my time of need ^_^
I hope everyone is having a blessed spring day!
Love and Light
Dawn
John Everett Millais, Ferdinand Lured by Ariel
Private collection
Date: 1850
Technique: Oil on canvas, 65 x 51 cm
Ferdinand Lured by Ariel is a painting by John Everett Millais which depicts an episode from Act I, Scene II of Shakespeare's play The Tempest. It illustrates Ferdinand's lines "Where should this music be? i' the air or the earth?". He is listening to Ariel singing the lyric "Full fathom five thy father lies". Ariel is tipping Ferdinand's hat from his head, while Ferdinand holds on to its string and strains to hear the song. Ferdinand looks straight at Ariel, but the latter is invisible to him.
The painting was Millais' first attempt at the plein air Pre-Raphaelite style, which he did at Shotover Park near Oxford. He wrote to his close friend and Pre-Raphaelite colleague Holman Hunt that he had painted a "ridiculously elaborate" landscape. Referring to Hunt's belief in devotion to detail he wrote that "you will find it very minute, yet not near enough for nature. To paint it as it ought to be would take me a month a weed — as it is, I have done every blade of grass and leaf distinct." He painted the face of Ferdinand from another Pre-Raphaelite, Frederic George Stephens. The clothing and the pose are derived from plate 6 of Camille Bonnard's Costumes Historiques, which represents the costume of a "young Italian" of the fifteenth century.
The supernatural green bats were the last additions to the composition. Their grotesque poses put off the patron who had originally undertaken to buy it, since they were a radical departure from the standard sylph-like fairy figures of the day. They adopt the poses of "see, hear, speak no evil."
The invisibility of Ariel and the bats is suggested by their semi-merger with the green background. The connection with natural camouflage is implied by the presence of the green lizards hiding in front of the clump in the right foreground.
Source
Manifestation vs Preparedness
Ok, I have a BIG question for you my readers so I hope you'll give me your answers...please?
Damon and I and our girlfriend, who I will call Lady here, are talking about having a baby once we're settled down in Alaska.
Wow! right?
I'll be the one who has the baby physically - the preggers mama I mean - since Lady is sterile due to health concerns.
I've been looking at ALL KINDS of cute adorable natural organic poly-friendly pagan-friendly adorable BABY STUFF! And books and videos and articles on how to prepare and natural parenting and natural birth etc etc etc
But I got to wondering.
We're not moving to Alaska for another 3 weeks or so and even then we wont have our new home right away and Even Then, Lady wont be moving up until September!
So I don't want to be pregnant YET, I'd like to wait until we're all together and all settled at least even if that doesn't mean we feel financially ready (because I'm told we never really will be).
My question is, does my reading and looking at all this baby stuff and thinking about it excitedly manifest my pregnancy sooner? I'm a lil worried it does.
I'm not on chemical birth control - we plan around my periods and ovulation and whatnot since I'm allergic to most condoms and we're all three STI free and so on and so forth. So...there's always a chance I could accidentally get pregnant...
But the question here is about manifestation not birth control.
If you believe in manifestation, do you think I could actually manifest a sooner pregnancy than id like? do you think there's a way to manifest it later...like...say October or November or December...?
What is your opinion?
While you're answering or after, check out this amazing video from the Raw Food World owner Matt Monarch and his beautiful wife - they had a completely unassisted birth!
Damon and I and our girlfriend, who I will call Lady here, are talking about having a baby once we're settled down in Alaska.
Wow! right?
I'll be the one who has the baby physically - the preggers mama I mean - since Lady is sterile due to health concerns.
I've been looking at ALL KINDS of cute adorable natural organic poly-friendly pagan-friendly adorable BABY STUFF! And books and videos and articles on how to prepare and natural parenting and natural birth etc etc etc
But I got to wondering.
We're not moving to Alaska for another 3 weeks or so and even then we wont have our new home right away and Even Then, Lady wont be moving up until September!
So I don't want to be pregnant YET, I'd like to wait until we're all together and all settled at least even if that doesn't mean we feel financially ready (because I'm told we never really will be).
My question is, does my reading and looking at all this baby stuff and thinking about it excitedly manifest my pregnancy sooner? I'm a lil worried it does.
I'm not on chemical birth control - we plan around my periods and ovulation and whatnot since I'm allergic to most condoms and we're all three STI free and so on and so forth. So...there's always a chance I could accidentally get pregnant...
But the question here is about manifestation not birth control.
If you believe in manifestation, do you think I could actually manifest a sooner pregnancy than id like? do you think there's a way to manifest it later...like...say October or November or December...?
What is your opinion?
While you're answering or after, check out this amazing video from the Raw Food World owner Matt Monarch and his beautiful wife - they had a completely unassisted birth!
World Down Syndrome Day
Today, 3/21, is World Down Syndrome Day. The date was chosen to represent the third copy of the twenty-first chromosome that causes Down Syndrome, or Trisomy 21.
People with Down Syndrome most often experience learning disabilities that create difficulties in advocating for themselves. In part it is up to us, the church, to advocate for such people. Unfortunately, the church doesn't do much of this--at least not yet. There is, however, a growing awareness both in the church and the academy related to people with disabilities, their sacred worth before God, and steps able-bodied and able-minded Christians can take to be in ministry with them. See, for example, Amos Yong's recent book, The Bible, Disability, and the Church (Eerdmans, 2011).
To learn more about World Down Syndrome Day, click here.
Wilhelm List, Daylight and Twilight (Tag und Dämmerung)
Private collection
Date: 1904
Technique: Oil on canvas
The present work is one of List’s most accomplished secessionist paintings. In Tag und Dämmerung, List describes night turning to day, a brief moment which according to Greek mythology was at Tartarus where Atlas held up the Heavens. List's lyrical interpretation shows Night with wings up-lifted, her face in shade and her head illuminated by a crown of stars, casting her gaze heavenward to the encroaching dawn sky heralded by the gilded male figure of Day who clasps an arc of golden light and moves into the Heavens, infusing the sky with a brilliant glow. The work certainly compares in conception and execution with Gustav Klimt's work of the period. This is evident in the strong vertical format of the composition, the allegorical subject matter and the distinctive hatching of the parallel brush strokes which both Klimt and List employed and which was a distinctive feature of secessionist painters of the time.
Source 1
Source 2
Psalms Correspondences
Psalms used in folk magic - here is a list of each one and what it is used for - list was taken from AIRR links for psychics, readers and conjurers.
- Psalms 1: For removal of the ungodly from a group; for a safe pregnancy.
- Psalms 2: To aid in disbanding and breaking up enemy conspiracies.
- Psalms 3: For relief from a severe headache or from back pain.
- Psalms 4: For restful and peaceful sleep; to change one's luck from bad to good.
- Psalms 5: For finding favor with authorities or superiors in business.
- Psalms 6: For healing diseases of the eye; for protection in the dark.
- Psalms 7: To stop conspiracies, enemy pursuit, for court cases.
- Psalms 8: Success in business through the good will of associates.
- Psalms 9: To punish enemies; yo restore good health to male children.
- Psalms 10: To cleanse off an unclean, restless, or intranquil spirit.
- Psalms 11: To cast off fear; for righteous retribution against your foes.
- Psalms 12: For protection against severe persecution or oppression.
- Psalms 13: For safety from unnatural death; for curing painful eye diseases.
- Psalms 14: To stop libel and slander from tarnishing the trust others have in you.
- Psalms 15: To exorcise evil spirits and devils from a person; for mental peace.
- Psalms 16: To identify a thief; to change sorrow to joy and heal to pain.
- Psalms 17: For safe travel abroad and to help bring a loved one safely home.
- Psalms 18: To drive off approaching robbers; for anointing the sick to cure them.
- Psalms 19: For help in childbirth, for release from jail, to remove evil spirits.
- Psalms 20: Protection from danger for a day; to be justified in a court case.
- Psalms 21: To both calm a storm and to offer protection for seafarers and sailors.
- Psalms 22: For travel protection from dangerous storms, pirates, beasts, and men.
- Psalms 23: For prosperity, love, protection, wisdom, and guidance.
- Psalms 24: For protection from floods and escape from rising waters.
- Psalms 25: Forgiveness of the sins of youth; protection from capture.
- Psalms 26: For the release of someone from confinement or from jail.
- Psalms 27: For protection and hospitality while one is travelling abroad.
- Psalms 28: To bring back estranged friends who have become hostile to you.
- Psalms 29: To drive out devils and restore peace and tranquility to the home.
- Psalms 30: For protection from enemies; for recovery from severe illnesses.
- Psalms 31: For protection from conspiracies, back-biting, and gossip.
- Psalms 32: To gain respect, love, grace, and blessings from Heaven.
- Psalms 33: To protect, unite, and bless all of the members of a family.
- Psalms 34: To destroy and reverse back evil; for protection while travelling.
- Psalms 35: For justice to prevail in court cases and legal matters.
- Psalms 36: For protection from slander and gossip and to to expose liars.
- Psalms 37: For protection against slander, gossip, lies, and evil-doers.
- Psalms 38: To help in court cases where slander fouled up the proceedings.
- Psalms 39: To turn around a court case when false testimony has been given.
- Psalms 40: For protection against evil spirits and to cast them out.
- Psalms 41: To restore a good name if slander and gossip have ruined a reputation.
- Psalms 42: For guidance from the Lord; for discovering answers in dreams.
- Psalms 43: To work against slander and wicked people; to turn back evil.
- Psalms 44: To guard and protect against enemies, invading armies, or war.
- Psalms 45: For peace between husband and wife; to calm an angry spouse
- Psalms 46: To help a struggling marriage; to soothe marital tensions.
- Psalms 47: To gain favour from those in power; for mastery over people.
- Psalms 48: To destroy hateful and envious enemies; to seize them with terror.
- Psalms 49: To help heal and ease serious illnesses, diseases, and fevers.
- Psalms 50: For healing; to overcome fevers and other forms of sickness.
- Psalms 51: For cleansing and removing sin, especially after acts of revenge.
- Psalms 52: To end all manner of gossip and calumny by poison-tongued people.
- Psalms 53: To protect from enemies whose names are known or unknown.
- Psalms 54: To give protection by reversing works of evil and malice.
- Psalms 55: To call upon the Lord to bring down retribution against attackers.
- Psalms 56: For intercession by the Almighty to remove temptation and bad habits.
- Psalms 57: To turn around one's luck, changing bad luck into good luck.
- Psalms 58: For warding off snakes and wild beasts; to reverse evil unto enemies.
- Psalms 59: To bring down the vengeance of the Lord against one's enemies.
- Psalms 60: For the Lord to march into battle and protect His soldiers.
- Psalms 61: For a new home to be fixed with good fortune, happiness, and peace.
- Psalms 62: For forgiveness of sins and to gain the blessing of the Lord.
- Psalms 63: To protect from being victimized by business partners and investors.
- Psalms 64: For protection, especially while at sea, and for a safe return.
- Psalms 65: For road opening that breaks through barriers and leads to success.
- Psalms 66: To remove and exorcise evil spirits; to cleanse a possessed person.
- Psalms 67: To help release those who has been imprisoned or otherwise bound.
- Psalms 68: Recited while preparing baths that are used to exorcise evil spirits.
- Psalms 69: To free one from slavery to addictions and unhealthy habits.
- Psalms 70: To cast down and reverse the wickedness wrought by enemies.
- Psalms 71: To release clients from prison, for acquittals in court cases.
- Psalms 72: To craft charms and talismans that bring a client favour and grace.
- Psalms 73: To protect travellers against religious persecution in foreign lands.
- Psalms 74: For an end to persecution and to destroy oppressors and persecutors.
- Psalms 75: Used along with specially prepared baths for the cleansing of sins.
- Psalms 76: For the Lord's intercession, to provide protection from all attacks.
- Psalms 77: Used against danger, poverty, chronic illness, drought, and famine.
- Psalms 78: To gain favors from kings, princes, and other government officials.
- Psalms 79: To utterly destroy the wicked and also to cast fatal curses.
- Psalms 80: To end spiritual doubts and to prevent people falling into unbelief.
- Psalms 81: To save people from error and mistakes, for safety from accidents.
- Psalms 82: To facilitate business deals and assist those making investments.
- Psalms 83: To keep clients safe during times of war, persecution, and captivity.
- Psalms 84: For healing, especially when the body has contracted unusual odors.
- Psalms 85: To soften hearts and restore peace to friends who have become enemies.
- Psalms 86: To bring goodness, spiritual peace, and happiness to the community.
- Psalms 87: To cleanse the community before starting healing and blessing work.
- Psalms 88: To remove evil and bring blessings; used with baths and talismans.
- Psalms 89: Prayed over oil to anoint the sick or secure a release from prison.
- Psalms 90: Used with Psalms 91 to protect from danger and exorcise evil spirits.
- Psalms 91: For protection from distress and harm; to remove evil spirits.
- Psalms 92: Prayed over herbal baths used to bring good fortune and high honors.
- Psalms 93: Against prosecution by unjust and oppressive men; to win in court.
- Psalms 94: For protection and to turn all evil back onto your enemies.
- Psalms 95: To cleanse sins; to pray for guidance and forgiveness for enemies.
- Psalms 96: To bless a family and bring happiness, peace, and joy to them.
- Psalms 97: Used with Psalms 96 for healing, blessing, and cleansing a family.
- Psalms 98: To restore peace between two hostile families; to bless a home.
- Psalms 99: For praise and devotion to God; to gain conversation with God.
- Psalms 100: To bring victory against enemies by uplifting the client.
- Psalms 101: For protection against enemies and to be rid of evil spirits.
- Psalms 102: For assistance in matters of fertility and to be granted grace.
- Psalms 103: For help in conceiving of a child and for the forgiveness of sins.
- Psalms 104: Repeated frequently to destroy and cleanse away harm, evil, and sin.
- Psalms 105: For healing illnesses, especially recurrent or periodic fevers.
- Psalms 106: For healing and to restore one to health, especially from fevers.
- Psalms 107: For remission or healing from periodic or recurrent fevers.
- Psalms 108: Utilized in a spell for financial success in your place of business.
- Psalms 109: Used in a powerful curse against oppressive, slanderous enemies.
- Psalms 110: For victory; to cause enemies to bow before you and beg for mercy.
- Psalms 111: Recited to acquire many friends, as well as respect, and admiration.
- Psalms 112: To increase in might and power, for success, abundance, and blessings.
- Psalms 113: Prayers and blessings for those in need; to stop infidelity and heresy.
- Psalms 114: Used in a spell for success in matters of finance, business, and money.
- Psalms 115: To foster truth-telling, for victory in debate over scoffers and mockers.
- Psalms 116: Recited daily for protection from violent or sudden death or injury.
- Psalms 117: For forgiveness of a failure to keep a vow or promise that you made.
- Psalms 118: For protection against those who try to misguide or lead you astray.
- Psalms 119: The longest Psalm, its 22 alphabetic divisions cover all human problems.
- Psalms 120: For success in court and for protection against snakes and scorpions.
- Psalms 121: For safety at night, both during sleep and while travelling in darkness.
- Psalms 122: For peace within a city, and to gain the favour of those in high station.
- Psalms 123: Employed in a spell to cause a servant, trainee, or employee to return.
- Psalms 124: Cleansing of the soul, protection at sea and from being wronged.
- Psalms 125: For protection in foreign lands and against those who work iniquity.
- Psalms 126: After miscarriage or the death of a child; for the next child to live.
- Psalms 127: Placed in a mojo for the protection and blessing of a newborn baby.
- Psalms 128: For a fortunate, accident-free pregnancy; for uncomplicated childbirth.
- Psalms 129: Recited daily to prepare one for a long life of virtue and good works.
- Psalms 130: Recited to the four quarters when passing by sentries in a war zone.
- Psalms 131: Recited three times a day to reduce one's sin of pride and scornfulness.
- Psalms 132: To remediate one's unpunctuality and failure to perform duties on time.
- Psalms 133: To retain the love and respect of friends and to gain many more friends.
- Psalms 134: For altar work in matters of higher education and for success in school.
- Psalms 135: For repentance, spirituality, and rededication of one's life to God.
- Psalms 136: Recited on behalf of those who wish to confess and be cleansed of sins.
- Psalms 137: For cleansing of the heart and soul from hate, envy, evil, and vice.
- Psalms 138: Recited daily to bring love and friendship from the Lord.
- Psalms 139: To nurture and maintain love, especially within the context of marriage.
- Psalms 140: To restore tranquility and to perserve and maintain relationships.
- Psalms 141: To ward off against terror and fear and against looming oppression.
- Psalms 142: To heal the body, restore health, and alleviate pain and suffering.
- Psalms 143: To heal bodily limbs, especially the arms and to alleviate pain.
- Psalms 144: To speed up healing and to ensure the perfect mend of a broken arm.
- Psalms 145: To cleanse and purify clients who are beset by ghosts or evil spirits.
- Psalms 146: Used with altar work for healing and recovery after being wounded.
- Psalms 147: For healing wounds and bites from snakes, insects, and other animals.
- Psalms 148: Used with Psalms 149 to keep clients safe from accidents by fire.
- Psalms 149: Used with altar work to protect against fire-related accidents.
- Psalms 150: For the glory of the Lord and to give thanks for His intervention.
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