If I Could Only Keep 10 Decks

I simultaneously love and hate questions like this. On one hand, it makes you evaluate everything and look at what’s really important to you. On the other hand, thinking of letting things go sucks. But when I looked at my decks, I found that the choices were easier than I thought they would be. I…

Orchid Magick

Orchids are named after the Greek word Orchis, meaning testicles. That’s because the bulb is twinned and resembles, well, testicles. As such, it’s been known as a potent love and potency charm throughout the ages. The Romans thought it grew where satyrs copulated. Huzzah! Orchid is associated with Venus, which should come as no suprise…

Winter musings

So today I went to church for the first time in a very,  very long time.   The husbear was playing guitar for a choir started by some friends,  and it was great to see them all perform.   Everyone at the Methodist Church was incredibly sweet and welcoming,  and they were so appreciative of…

Mabon, balance, and bipolar

Mabon is normally one of my favorite sabbats.  It signifies a turning toward the dark half of the year, which I love.   The weather is slightly cooler, and it’s thrilling to think of the beautiful Autumn and Winter to come.  I start thinking about apples and grapes and all the soups and chili I’ll…

Where I’m going and where I’ve been. (Holiday debriefing)

The holidays were strange this year. That’s relatively typical. It seems there’s always something going on during the holidays that keep me from being able to relax into them. The past 2 years, I worked retail, and I was stressed, overworked, undersleeping, and in a lot of pain. This year seemed to be a little…

I used to do this sort of thing..

I love writing.  I feel really comfortable writing.  But I was SO good with visual art too. I actually participated in several collaborative art projects, and even had a piece displayed in an exhibition.  It was called ‘Do not fold, spindle, or mutilate’, and all the participants were sent an old-timey punch card, which we…

Apple butter from the food goat’s test kitchen

So what screams Autumn more than apples?  Nothing.  Nothing whatsoever. Every year, the bear and I drive to Ellijay, GA and hit up a few of the apple orchards there.  Usually we just come home with some cider to ferment, but this year, I had an idea.  I wanted to make apple butter.  And holy…

Our poly is not like your poly

I’ve hinted at some of our dating activities in this blog before.  Anyone who knows us well knows that Bear and I love each other like crazy.  Anyone who knows us REALLY well knows that some of that love spills over onto other people on occasion. Polyamory, for those who haven’t heard the term, is…

Health issues and the drive to have fun, dammit!

So, we recently went through another bout of health scares here in the Ravenson household.  What a great way to pull my head out of my ass and put everything RIGHT back into perspective. Long story long: I went to the ER for chest pains and trouble breathing.  It’s not really new, I’ve been having…

Liam’s playlist

Liam is a minor character in my books so far, though I intend for him to have a larger role at some time in the future.  I find myself fascinated with him lately, possibly because his patron deity is Cernunnos, and I’m feeling very drawn to Cernunnos right now too.  (Maybe because it’s nearing Autumn,…

DragonCon debriefing

DragonCon is really my favorite holiday of the year for various reasons.  First, I get to see friends that I don’t see at any other time of year.  And it’s always so familiar and lovely, and I can’t hug them enough when I do see them.  Second, there are amazing writing panels there that really…

Finished Altar of Change- what’s next?

So I finally finished my novel about 2 weeks ago. I kept having to psych myself up to write a really tough scene, but when I sat down to write it, it wasn’t that difficult after all.  And I had planned to get to 125K words, but when I finished the tough scene, I realized…

Spiritual purification bath

Several drops of purification oil A tablespoon of sage (crumbled) A few tablespoons of pink himalayan salt Ravi Shankar Sage and cedar incense

Things to let go of.

I’m working on a ritual that I’ll be doing on the new moon on June 8th.  I’m feeling bogged down in everything lately, and I need to let go.  I need to clear my brain so that I can move onto bigger and better.  I’ve internalized a lot of anger and sadness about a lot…

5/13

Today was my first day off in a while.. The fibro has been screaming for the past few days due to stress, long hours, and virtually no sleep. I woke up today already hurty and weak. So I decided to keep my goals easy for today: burritos, henna, and kyphi. What I ACTUALLY did was…

Places to go

… Because sometimes I’m obsessive about making lists. San Francisco -> Vancouver  (rent a car and drive North, stopping at all the pretty forests and tree landmarks) Scotland -> England -> Wales (rent a car and visit standing stones, ruins, and cemeteries, staying in small B&Bs) Acadia National Park Yellowstone Yosemite Canadian Rockies (by train)…

Wicca/Paganism 201

The world is flooded with Wicca 101, whether that’s in books, videos, websites, or even movies.  That’s one of the main reasons why I get bored with my faith and lose interest for long stretches of time, because I keep seeing the same information over and over and over again, just regurgitated and repackaged. That’s…

Relationship spread, 4/16/13

Preface: Bear and I have been seeing someone since roughly December.  She’s very limited as far as the time she can spend with us, but we usually manage to see each other once/week.  I’ve been fine with that.  I know that a relationship isn’t measured in time, but in emotions.  Bear and I had a…

Ways to be nicer to myself

Lately I’ve been feeling some pain.  I’m not sure exactly what it is, and I don’t have insurance so finding out will be tough.  I need to get to one of the community clinics here near home, but there are so many hoops to jump through, that the idea just stresses me out. And I…

Woodpecker

Yesterday we had breakfast with some friends that Bear had made through his voice-acting volunteer work.  They were lovely.  We shot the shit about random things, and just generally had a great time.  They were very welcoming and fun to hang out with. After we had enjoyed our breakfast, (bacon and pancakes- ALWAYS a winning…

Tarot spread 3/22/13

I’ve been at a major crossroads lately.  Our finances are just completely out of control (NOT in a good way), and so I asked for a general reading as far as what was coming up this year, and with our finances specifically. First Impressions: there are a LOT of Earth/Disc cards in this spread.  So…

Unguarded.

That’s how you make me feel. Recently, I’ve been spending time with my family.  They most certainly make me feel guarded.  I have to watch everything I say, I have to omit, I have to protect myself and you from their judgment and their spite.  I get tense, I stop smiling so much, I throw…

Imbolc, Pando, and the Korean sauna

I haven’t been very active here or anywhere else lately.  You see, January is very tough for me.  In addition to the usual seasonal depression that I think we all feel around this time of year, I have a lot of birthday issues/family issues/bad memories from Januaries past that pretty much put me in a…

2013- goals and better luck

In my last post, I vented about all the things that went horribly, horribly wrong last year.  And there was a lot.  It seemed neverending at times. However, I truly am an optimist.  I tend towards stupid optimism, even.  Even when I get truly depressed and feel victimized, I usually come back around and start…

2012 in review

2012 has been a rough year.  I have been broken and rebuilt in ways that have stunned me, and I feel like I need to record it all here.  Maybe that will make it all seem less surreal, less like a movie of someone else’s life. January: Lost my job.  I trained throughout November and…