tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19478195737122491102024-03-05T06:53:22.148-05:00Doran's PathThe Divine Mysteries of the Waking World...ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.comBlogger119125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-8004017323666742992010-10-14T23:25:00.002-04:002010-10-14T23:30:45.588-04:00Gearing up for SamhainSo Samhain is less than a month away (YIKES!). The Fellowship has a great overnight ritual planned - and instead of tenting it (which could be rather chilly), we're renting a cabin which is AWESOME. Perhaps even...dare I hope...warm water???<div><br /></div><div>Samhain is going to be a VERY busy weekend. Friday night is the Fellowship ritual, and Saturday morning we are going to do the induction for the council and myself as steward. I am very excited about taking a more active leadership role in the Fellowship, but I will definitely only be a part of our leadership structure with the council - not the person 'in charge'. Unless, of course, my will is defied!! ;-) J/K</div><div><br /></div><div>There's a bunch of great classes going on right now - Jason Miller's Financial Sorcer, and Maggi Setti's excellent classes (my top picks are Green Magick and Initiation), not to mention Autumn Magick with the Assembly of the Sacred Wheel and the beginning of the Shamanic 2-year program being run by Denise Sarraco.</div><div><br /></div><div>So in other words - VERY busy fall. But very productive! I'm really looking forward to all the opportunities that have presented themselves - and hopefully will do right by them!</div>ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-71101148088926781762010-06-27T21:59:00.002-04:002010-06-27T22:09:24.397-04:00Summer Solstice - Gone & Done with LOTS of changes!<div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>So, a lot has happened since the summer solstice this past Monday. A lot has happened in the past year, actually, but I am excited about where all paths are leading. And I am VERY excited about many of the lessons I have been learning.<div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>Having to juggle so many different priorities at once is really starting to take its toll on my over-achieving need to constantly commit myself to things. I have learned that I would rather not offer to help, than offer to help and be unable to fulfill what is asked of me. I want to strip some things away and really focus on the core of what I am trying to accomplish over the next year.</div><div><br /></div><div>With the solstice I made a dedication to move towards more in-depth study, and more time spent on meditation and learning the nature of deity and my place within it. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>So far, I've managed to plant an indoor garden of medicinal herbs, and have started going more in-depth with my studies of Qabalah. Looking forward to where we go from here, but I'm glad to at least be making some forward progress!</div><div><br /></div><div>As to what has happened this week - poor Sonny (my handsome hubby) got sick for the first time in forever, his great friends came to visit (unfortunately coinciding, but we managed to have fun I think!), and I started my MBA program up again. I'm really excited about studying with the University of Ph</div><div>oenix - it's a great school and I'm really enjoying my time there.</div><div><br /></div><div>The last thing that happened is the biggest and the saddest. My poor little rabbit, Pan, passed away on Friday. It was very sudden and we miss him ter</div><div>ribly. The house is so empty and quiet without him - I never realized how much his presence really filled up our home. We're thinking of you, Pan. You will always be a part of our family.</div><div><br /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMaEy8NHVsO72ltkv5TTp1ZkEODVCWFA9wxWbtXIlnXHiK-XfFGrPS6uPvErEwnmFDI_xgGM88LoNkssGxbVut5ZxstryPmb2b27QxAz-TyiIbAcbhB8Lv4NcxpPqF4CmSLDE_1_4M23DS/s320/101_0008.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487640676118006482" /></div>ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-32842849877048461462010-05-19T14:50:00.002-04:002010-05-19T15:06:42.985-04:00Been a while...The past few months have been such a whirlwind, and I haven't taken the time to write about them. It's only 11 days now until the wedding (MAJOR SQUEE!!!), and almost everything is buttoned up. Sonny and I need to finalize the ceremony details, put the finishing touches on seating charts, and in general sweep everything together for the big day.<div><br /></div><div>When I say "Sonny and I", I actually mean mostly Mom and Amanda, since they have both been really running the show (in a GREAT way), helping us get organized. If we'd been left to our own devices, we'd be having a reception in the backyard with hamburgers and hot dogs. And while there's nothing inherently wrong with that, I'm definitely excited about the "Crab Cake Action Station" that will be at the reception, not to mention the inch-thick prime rib our guests will be enjoying.</div><div><br /></div><div>Let's see...outside of wedding-type things, I've decided to switch schools from Walden University to Phoenix. I had originally avoided going with the University of Phoenix because I thought I'd get much more in the way of indidivual attention - well, it turns out that wasn't really true at all. The application process with Phoenix has been really great, and I'm confident that my overall experience will be a lot more positive.</div><div><br /></div><div>Other than that, I have made the decision to suspend my studies of Dutch for a while (apparently my accent is very German, which I want to work on later), and I will be focusing primarily on my Irish studies. Also, I'll be working on improving my musical ability with the bodhran, the pennywhistle, and a basic harp.</div><div><br /></div><div>More to come...</div>ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-62486880158072216932010-02-21T10:49:00.002-05:002010-02-21T10:56:27.919-05:00New Language-Learning MethodSo, most people know I love languages. I'm not terribly good at them, but I've studied a bunch over the years and hope to continue that as I get older. So far I've dabbled a respectable amount in Spanish, French, Japanese, Gaelic, Swedish, and Dutch.<br /><br />Right now, I'm trying to learn Dutch. I'm not sure why I've never really tried it before - my awesome grandmother speaks Dutch and it's an excellent opportunity to not only bond with her, but also to converse with a native speaker.<br /><br />However, my main problem is that, in learning any language, I tend to get terribly bored with basic grammatical exercises and vocabulary memorization. So with Dutch (or Nederlands), I'm trying something different.<br /><br />I'm using one of those 'Teach Yourself' books, along with an excellent FREE linguistic program called <a href="http://www.byki.com/">Byki</a>, all topped off with a healthy dose of 'het laatste nieuws' courtesy of <a href="http://www.nu.nl/">nu.nl</a>. I study vocabulary and grammatical structure with 'Teach Yourself', use Byki for vocabulary building, and spend a lot of time translating full articles from Dutch into English. It's teaching me a lot about syntax and actual usage, both of which you can kind of miss living only in the world of language books.<br /><br />So far, it's going well - I'm engaged, interested, and am learning all sorts of interesting things (like, apparently, they have designed a shoe in Holland that responds directly to the hormonal and menstrual cycle of women, raising and lowering the arch because, apparently, we need more support on our period!)ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-14402130981910693452010-01-18T10:23:00.002-05:002010-01-18T11:21:50.510-05:00The New Children's Story: Coraline vs. The GrimmsI had an interesting conversation with a friend of mine before the holidays regarding the nature of modern children's entertainment. Children's literature is an extremely large field today, with a variety of sub-genres and an almost endless supply of authors and silly titles. However, this conversation centered more around an (unfortunately) more common form of stimulation for today's kids: movies.<br /><br />The discussion arose when we were discussing Avatar (which had just been released). I was extremely enthused about my experience with it, and recommended it to her - I also threw in that her nine-year-old son would probably enjoy it as well. To this she shook her head and replied that it would be too much for him - she'd rather not expose him to it.<br /><br />For a second, I was utterly dumbfounded - tall, blue-skinned aliens with mostly suggestive and not direct occasional violence was not what I would view as 'too much' for a boy his age. However, I thought about it - I am constantly overstimulated and overexposed to violence simply because I am a part of American culture. (If I were European, it would be sexuality that I would probably be overexposed to). Avatar, while relatively tame to me, would probably be an enormous challenge for a child under the age of 12 to process.<br /><br />This got me to thinking about other 'made-for-kids' movies that I probably would NOT show to my kids until they were old enough to get it - and Coraline, an excellent stop-animation film, would be one of them.<br /><br />I recently watched this movie and was absolutely captivated both by the excellent medium of creation and the wonderfully inventive storyline. However, I was MAJORLY creeped out at several different points of the movie, and can only imagine what my child-self would have had to do to process all the very complex themes and elements contained within that movie.<br /><br />However, in comparison, Grimm's Fairy Tales are hardly more upbeat. Replace the weird child-killing needle witch with the evil gingerbread-house kid-EATING witch in Hansel and Gretel, (not to mention the abandonment of the children by their own parents), and I think we're on pretty much even keel. However, I clearly remember hearing that story as a child and, while being 'scared', was not terrified or overwhelmed by the themes it presented.<br /><br />For a long time, I mulled over what made Coraline different from Hansel and Gretel - why do I plan on reading the latter to my children in their cribs, but won't show the movie to them until they're old enough to be bringing home schoolwork I can't help them with? That's when I realized - the factor of imagination.<br /><br />Grimm's Fairy Tales are extremely complex as well, with a great deal of deep themes that you can spend hours and days and weeks (etc etc) considering. However, they are short, quick-to-tell stories. Few are longer than 5 pages, and most vastly shorter than that. While tales like BlueBeard and The Brave Cobbler have a lot of depth, their descriptions are relatively short. They are put down quickly, with a great deal of 'wiggle room' for a child to imagine what the enemy looks like, how the hero comports himself, and what the princess is wearing. It's not like Coraline, where you can SEE the needles that make the witch's fingers - you have to imagine what a sugared glass window looks like.<br /><br />And here is where the very important difference between 'children's' movies like Coraline and stories like Grimm's Fairy Tales diverge very distinctly - Coraline tells you, in every detail, what the story is and how it unfolds. The Grimm brothers allow children to fill in the blanks themselves - and if something is too much, they simply can skip over it.<br /><br />It's very similar to the argument I have with children's toys today - they don't leave a lot of room for imagination. They dolls are fully articulated, fully featured, and completely out of room for a child's imagination. Castles are laden with nifty nooks and crannies that are already full of the creations of its makers - children don't have room to put down their own roots there.<br /><br />What the Brothers Grimm did (whether or not intentionally) with their often incredibly dark children's stories was to leave kids room to imagine the story for themselves - they gave a relatively blank canvas with a lot of good structure for them to paint their own pictures with. Modern children's movies don't do that - and often actually shy away from leaving room for interpretation.<br /><br />I will revisit this topic later, but the thought has been percolating for some time and I wanted to get it out. I'm interested to hear thoughts from others, though!ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-80758947297738403602009-12-16T23:06:00.002-05:002009-12-16T23:10:59.753-05:00Awesome EsbatsTonight was the first Fellowship Esbat. The Esbats are a series of classes where we work on more advanced rituals together. We were mostly laying the groundwork at this session - going over the goals and objectives of the class.<br /><br />Point 1: Gwaeron has an absolutely AMAZING collection of books. I am trying really hard to remember all the titles now - needless to say I will be dedicating a portion of Xmas money towards amassing them (in used condition, of course).<br /><br />Point 2: It's going to be great working with the group that's forming now - we have a great range of talents and interests, which should definitely keep things lively and fresh but nice and functional.<br /><br />Point 3: I think this is really just what I am looking for in terms of honing my skills and continuing to develop. A lot of good stuff is going on right now, and I feel like this is one of the big waves that will bring me closer to the shore.<br /><br />More to come...ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-8648410132160758752009-12-04T13:20:00.003-05:002009-12-05T22:03:20.946-05:00A Study of Fairy Tales: Part 1 Follow-UpI did not properly cite Ms. Kready's book in my last post, so here is the citation now for your future reference. This text is available as an e-book at a variety of locations all over the web - you can just search for the title and author name.<br /><blockquote>Kready, L. A Study of Fairy Tales. Houghton Mifflin Company. 1916.</blockquote>I was very engaged by the concepts laid out in Ms. Kready's first chapter and introduction. The overall goal of this study is to learn more about the nature, structure, and telling of fairy tales, but her focus on using the same in early childhood education was really fascinating. I took some time to look through the Walden University database of articles, and found a few relating to the same topic.<br /><br />I would like to point out, however, that since 1916 not much progress has been made in terms of using fairy tales to build up a strong foundation for future interest in literature - a lot of the articles I was finding focused on sexism and bias prevalent in fairy tales. While of course these are important issues that should be addressed, I think it is throwing the baby out with the bathwater to dismiss the value of these literary pieces to focus only on these negative aspects.<br /><br />In that vein, I actually uncovered an article entitled "First Graders and Fairy Tales: One Teacher's Action Research of Critical Literacy" by Ryan Bourke. Not only did this offer a case study of the use of fairy tales to develop literary criticism, it also dealt with some of the negative issues above, as Mr. Bourke discovered when presenting the stories to his class, all of whom were not of European descent.<br /><br />Bourke offers a good definition of critical literacy, actually quoted from another article entitled "Girls, Social Class, and Literacy".<br /><blockquote>Critical literacy...is the act of approaching texts wearing a set of eyeglasses through which the reader examines and questions the familiar and comfortable.</blockquote>Especially in its application to fairy tales, I find this definition to be most appropriate. There is very little more comforting than familiar stories from our childhood - but their inherent value comes not only from the 'mug of hot cocoa' response that is very superficial, but from an actual in-depth analysis not only of the story's message, but it's place in the readers time, in the authors time, the influence of the characters and their potentialities, and a number of other factors.<br /><br />Another article, written by Maryellen Grebin, outlines suggestions for helping kids actively play out fairy tales. Bourke's work focuses mainly on discussion an analysis, but I feel strongly that Ms. Grebin's work also has an important role to play in helping children synthesize the information contained within the stories.<br /><br />Her suggestions include a "Fairy Tale Museum", where the children are curators of props they bring in themselves to represent the different stories. She also read different versions of fairy tales, from countries all over the world. Many of her students had never before heard the different versions. She also had them grow actual bean seeds as a tool for discussion about Jack and the Beanstalk. They covered topics such as why a lot of fairy tales seem to revolve around girls, and introduced other stories with more of a balanced focus.<br /><br />However, while this innovative approach is certainly fun and engaging, the addition of Bourke's critical analysis techniques are essential to fostering a truly deeper understanding of the material.<br /><br />I highly recommend reading Bourke's article, as it includes several conversations amongst his students that really reflect the intensity of the impact that critical analysis of these stories can have on children and their ability to synthesize literature.<br /><br />Resources:<br />Bourke, R. "First Graders and Fairy Tales: One Teacher's action Research of Critical Literacy". The Reading TEacher, 62(4) pp. 304-312<br /><br />Grebin, M. "Fairy Tales Get Real". Teaching Pre K-8. Nov/Dec 2002, Vol. 33 Issue 3, p58ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-67174490888614390852009-12-02T13:28:00.004-05:002009-12-02T13:54:54.081-05:00A Study of Fairy Tales (Laura F. Kready): Part 1I would first like to introduce this section by lamenting the lack of information available about Ms. Laura Kready, author of the book I recently downloaded to read: A Study of Fairy Tales. I had hope to introduce her to you, but I have no information regarding her, aside from the fact that she had this book published by Houghton Mifflen in 1916.<br /><br />A Study of Fairy Tales is a fascinating book that both analyzes fairy tales, and provides very motivating evidence to prove the worth of the fairy tale's presence in early education (kindergarten - 1st grade). The introduction and first chapter of the book are devoted entirely towards establishing the worth of the fairy tale in traditional early educational curriculums, by both providing evidence of their worth in developing character traits and also providing information regarding their value as an art form separate from traditional literature.<br /><br />One of my favorite quotes from this portion of the book actually is from the Introduction, written by Henry Suzzallo, Ph.D. (then President of the University of Washington):<br /><blockquote>"The diet of babes cannot be determined by the needs of grown-ups. A spiritual malnutrition which starves would soon set in if adult wisdom were imposed on children for their sustenance. The truth is amply illustrated by those pathetic objects of our acquaintance, the men and women who have never been boys and girls."</blockquote>We all know someone who has suffered from a severe lack of proper stimulation as children - and I fear that many of the kids I know now will also suffer from this. Not from an overabundance of grown-up wisdom forced upon them, but because of the absolute dearth of worthless shows, books, and other falsely stimulating products of our media-driven culture. While there is, of course, inherent value in the (occasional) mindless episode of a NickToon or Cartoon Network feature, they shouldn't be the primary diet of childhood - I think the next 10 years (if not the past 5) will quickly convince us of the lack of moral structure or guidance offered by these empty shells.<br /><br />By contrast, literature such as traditional fairy tales, and enriching stories not built on easily-merchandisable characters offer kids both the escape they need to keep them stimulated (after all, even us adults can barely stay tuned into the real world anymore), but also gives them a real and unmovable foothold in what is right and wrong, what is worth pursuing and what is worthless, and so on.<br /><br />::set soap box aside::<br /><br />Now that I've vented properly, on to Ms. Kready's work.<br /><br />In the first chapter, she outlines the qualities of fairy tales that make them essential for any child's education. They are:<br /><br /><ol><li>Fairy tales bring joy into child life.</li><li>Fairy tales satisfy the play spirit of childhood.</li><li>Fairy tales are play forms.</li><li>Fairy tales give the child a power of accurate observation.</li><li>Fairy tales strengthen the power of emotion, develop the power of imagination, train the memory, and exercise the reason.</li><li>Fairy tales extend and intensify the child's social relations.</li><li>The fairy tale as one form of the story is one part of the largest means to unify the entire work or play of the child.</li><li>Fairy tales employ leisure hours in a way that builds character.</li><li>Fairy tales afford a vital basis for language training and thereby take on a new importance in the child's English.</li></ol>And most importantly to me, Ms. Kready's greatest point is made in the final paragraph of this first chapter.<br /><blockquote>"Then [after being acquainted with reading through fairy tales] reading will take purpose for him, and be accomplished almost without drill and practically without effort.</blockquote>How better to keep our children interested in real, hearty literature that actually feeds the soul and fuels the heart, than to bring them up on the sweeter and kinder versions of the same?ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-58136309125630793062009-12-01T11:13:00.004-05:002009-12-01T11:21:35.039-05:00Appeal to FreyjaLast night I had a very interesting experience. I wrapped up my evening (of AWESOME fun with the Fellowship stuffing envelopes for the <a href="http://www.tenaflynaturecenter.org/">Tenafly Nature Center</a>) by lighting a candle to Brighid and then another to Freyja, a little reflection and then a lot of hitting the hay.<br /><br />At 12:30AM, my work cellphone rang (which never happens). I picked up the line, and there was a very distressed sounding woman on the other end. Now, my employer provides security and investigative services to corporations, but we do not do work for individuals. It can be a bit awkward, especially when I want to help people, but know that our policy restricts us and I have to protect the company by not offering my own brand of sage advice.<br /><br />Without going into detail, her boyfriend was going ballistic over some calls in her call history. We couldn't provide services to her because she is an individual. However, after all my years of experience on various hotlines for women, I know when a situation is bad. Or at least I have a pretty good inkling.<br /><br />So after having to tell this woman that we couldn't help her, I advised her to call law enforcement immediately. I told her that if she was scared and felt endangered, she needed to call someone right away, which she agreed to do. Then I had to do that hardest thing - hang up and hope for the best.<br /><br />Instead of going back to bed and stewing incessantly about this woman's fate (my traditional coping method), I went right to my altar for Freyja. I told her what had happened and lit some incense as an offering to her, asking her to help guide this woman out of harms way and protect her from any danger. I let the smoke waft around my room for a while, then went to sleep feeling very calm, and very like I didn't need to be in control of the situation (a BIG thing for me).<br /><br />It was wonderful to give up those worries and concerns and know that I had done all I could, and had asked for help outside of myself. I could rest in the knowledge that it was being given. It was a good night. And I'm grateful for her help. :-) Hail Freyja!ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-58629158824526059752009-11-15T19:40:00.003-05:002009-11-15T19:51:20.583-05:00Something Worth Writing AboutIt has been an awfully, awfully long time since I've productively blogged these past few seasons. I was a little lost in what I would be writing about - there aren't many people who would be actively interested in the comings and goings of my life, and I wouldn't want to subject anybody to that anyway.<br /><br />After I stopped looking into the Irish Travelers (upon a sensible request from my father - when research starts requiring contacting law enforcement, it's probably good to back off), I suffered from a major lack of inspiration. I have a lot of education going on in my life right now - between the MBA program (looking to top off in November 2010!), various stops-and-starts in linguistic pursuits, and all the research I'm doing for spiritual stuff, I was surprised not to feel more inspired blog-wise. But I think I finally came up with something that will keep both me happy and engaged, and everybody else actually interested.<br /><br />Fairytales! Not the Disney nonsense - while I like the animated mice in Cinderella as much as the next over-stimulated American, don't mistake those for anything other than watered-down versions of the real stories. I am talking about the real folklore, legends, and bed-time stories where not every ending was a happy one, and the good guys and bad guys were often not terribly easy to tell apart. I've always loved the Grimm fairy tales - and I became especially enamoured of even modern spinners of fairy-tales like George MacDonald. But the stories collected by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, and Iona and Peter Opie, those are what are truly worth study.<br /><br />The Grimms and the Opies had a dedication to keeping to the truth of oral storytelling that few others during their time had an interest in. I find the Grimms particularly interesting, since the fairy tales they collected were a by-product of their real research. The brothers were linguists, and their dedication to tracking down the true patterns and origins of their language (German) were what enabled them to keep a clear focus on writing down the stories exactly as they were told.<br /><br />Oral traditions are an extremely important part of every society's culture - the European folk stories that give us Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood (told to the Grimms by Wilhelm's own wife and chilhood friend), and countless others tell us an enormous amount about the cultures, mythology, traditions and beliefs of our forefathers.<br /><br />I'll start my research focusing on the stories gathered by the Brothers Grimm. I'll try to keep up with one meaty post per week - it ought to be fun!ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-19133176463993550052009-08-10T23:41:00.002-04:002009-08-10T23:45:11.596-04:00BUSY BUSY BUSYIt has been a VERY exciting few days! Last week I was cleared of any more bladder tumors (three months before I have to get tested again, woo-hoo!), and I started setting out on some pretty fun ventures. Not to mention all the stuff (good stuff!) that's going on at work.<br /><br />Right now I'm managing several large projects around the office, ranging from an upgrade of our accounting system to launching a graphics and standards manual for use of our logo. There's definitely enough going on to keep me busy, and it has been a fun time. I've been really lucky in how understanding everyone has been regarding my multiple medical absences - hopefully they have come to an end!<br /><br />On top of that, there are lots of things going on at the shelter and I'm gearing up for school again in the fall - and that's on top of studyiing for my certification for a paralegal and as a certified associate in project management. I''m going to be drowning in certificates by the time I'm through!<br /><br />I'm also launching some other exciting projects right now - more to come on those later. But for now, after almost killing myself with smoke inhalation from putting too much incense on my new charcoal burner (lesson learned), it's off to bed to get ready for another full day!!!ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-83791755779280222212009-08-02T22:10:00.003-04:002009-08-02T22:14:57.248-04:00LammasToday was the Fellowship's Lammas celebration. It was really wonderful - the Craft Night we held on Friday yielded some great bread, and I made a bit extra to 'fill in the gaps'. Jen, (one of the awesomest people ever) made a fantastic Lugh out of bread, and let's just say he was 'anatomically correct' :-D.<br /><br />The ritual went fabulously - it was our first Open, and considering the TORRENTIAL DOWNPOUR we experienced this morning, we had a great turnout. I got to see a few group members I haven't seen in a while, and there also a bunch of new faces. I'm hoping to see some of them at the Craft Night we have coming up in September, when we're making masks and costumes for Samhain.<br /><br />The <a href="http://www.meetup.com/Northern-New-Jersey-Pagan-Fellowship/">Fellowship</a> has been really wonderful - I'm glad to be part of such an excellent group. They've really opened up my horizons spiritually, and I'm constantly challenged to stretch myself and exercise all my faith-muscles. It really is a great experience.<br /><br />Last Saturday, I got to be a part of a really special ritual with the <a href="http://www.sacredwheel.org/">Assembly of the Sacred Wheel</a>, down near Dover DE. It was a beautiful and intense ritual (and private, so no details), and I was honored to be a part of it. I'm hoping to have many more opportunities to work with them in the future.<br /><br />Anywhoodles, that's all for now. Here's hoping I get to posting more regularly.ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-17342217864526999142009-07-28T22:51:00.003-04:002009-07-28T22:57:04.011-04:00Offensive, or Good Fun?Ever since that ridiculous news story "News of the Weird" that covered pagans who blessed President Obama's inauguration this year, I've been a bit on edge in terms of how the media treats witches. On CNN today there is an article called: <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/07/28/england.witches.audition/index.html">Calling All Witches: Cave In Need Of New Hag</a>. I honestly can't tell if I'm just being overly sensitive, but GOODNESS.<br /><br />Apparently some small town in England has a folk story about a witch who terrorized the village, blighting crops and causing all sorts of mischief. She was defeated when a cleric threw holy water on her, and was turned into stone. Since then, the town has built an amusement park and tourist trap around this myth. And apparently, part of the parcel is a full-time, live-in "witch" who lives in the cave that was supposedly the original witch's haunt.<br /><br />So, okay. It's an old folk story and has value as a myth - albeit one that (as usual) portrays a woman being struck down by a representative of the patriarchal religion-in-charge. There are always going to be warty Halloween masks and Evil Witches of the West, but do we really need to have auditions for a live-in 'witch'?<br /><br />I guess I'm probably drawing this out a bit further than it needs to be - 'all in good fun' and the whole bit. But it's an interesting question: how do we delineate between modern Witches, practitioners of paganism and the caricatured 'witches' of the past? Just some musings.ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-65022047456879086582009-07-12T18:11:00.001-04:002009-07-12T18:12:49.661-04:00DnDI have to say, DnD is not nearly what I thought I would be. It is quite entertaining. More to come!ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-20641211799683386532009-06-22T00:01:00.002-04:002009-06-22T00:04:31.719-04:00The Worthing Saga<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHuwjwV-G-qFsUOOl_v1JRrPuFbSEPJfDznuaO6iv5ZFFv-ngtYRW_kgjKz92Qt49LN8EREdArH-gGiYpWhdXplk3Q6cVwZ00PzGecXkttZEzXd2f8vbP5dMMII4S-rQEIz0xSbvO-rHgT/s1600-h/Worthing+Saga.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 194px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHuwjwV-G-qFsUOOl_v1JRrPuFbSEPJfDznuaO6iv5ZFFv-ngtYRW_kgjKz92Qt49LN8EREdArH-gGiYpWhdXplk3Q6cVwZ00PzGecXkttZEzXd2f8vbP5dMMII4S-rQEIz0xSbvO-rHgT/s320/Worthing+Saga.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5349997884772881170" border="0" /></a><br />It has been a long time since I've been drawn into a fiction book, unable to put it down. However, I started reading "The Worthing Saga" on Friday, and it has absolutely sucked me in. I'm not even knitting in deference of reading, which is a big deal. I highly recommend it. I wouldn't have enjoyed it as much had I been able to find the synopsis I looked for online before I really got into it - I'm glad I couldn't find one. I won't publish one either, suffice to say you should read this book.ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-11012396005808088862009-06-19T10:33:00.002-04:002009-06-19T10:40:41.745-04:00Radio SilenceFor the past month, things have been a little haywire. I haven't been able to write because of that, but I'm hoping that things are now calm enough to get back at least to 'relative' normal.<br /><br />On May 7th, I had a tumor removed from my bladder, and it turned out to be a transitional cell carcinoma. At 24, with no history of smoking, drinking, or any other form of body abuse (aside from an excess of chocolate), I had cancer.<br /><br />The good news is that of all the cancers out there, this is probably the easiest one to deal with. As long as you catch it early (which we did), you can just cut it out. The most difficult part of it is that I have to have cystoscopies regularly now, every three months for the first one or two years and then every six months after that, because this cancer has a recurrence rate of around 70%.<br /><br />It's been eye opening. At first I was so upset, (I found out accidentally when my gynecologist shared a letter my urologist had sent to her regarding the tumor), but after I had time to calm down and actually talk to my doctor, I understood the diagnosis a lot better. It's apparently extremely rare in young, non-smoking women, but it happens. And the good news is, that as long as we're diligent and keep checking for recurrence, it shouldn't have any effect on my lifespan.<br /><br />Thinking about anything having an effect on my lifespan at my age is a little sad. I'm turning 25 in less than 2 weeks, and I've already had two surgeries and forced menopause to treat my endometriosis, and now I've also had surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from my bladder. I think I deserve nothing but colds for a little while.<br /><br />I debated a long time about posting anything regarding this, because I didn't want to elicit the sympathy, angsty thing. However, I think it's important that anyone who reads this (I know there are a few of you) knows that it's always important to listen to your body and follow your doctor's advice.<br /><br />If I had ignored the UTIs that kept cropping up and passing them off as nothing more than new evidence of a weak immune system, the cancer could have gotten much worse. I'm so glad I took action to find out what was wrong with me - and I always encourage anybody else to do the same. There's never a time that's too inconvenient or too difficult to protect your health and your body.<br /><br />PS - We named the tumor Buford. May he rest in peace and stay beneath his fucking gravestone. No zombie tumors rising from the dead to plague me again, please.ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-50337794627735007492009-05-05T09:49:00.001-04:002009-05-05T09:54:26.757-04:00Thank YouI just wanted to take a moment to say "THANKS!!!" to everyone who was so sweet and supportive during Norn's illness. She's doing so much better - better enough to fight me (rather successfully) when I try to give her her antibiotics. :-)<br /><br />She is definitely on the mend, and with a spleen that will (hopefully) continue to shrink, she'll be back to normal in no time.<br /><br />And while I of course would never wish illness on her, I must say that this sickness has caused an enormous change in her personality. Even with Sonny staying with me, she spent Sunday night on the bed, and actually stands still and lets me pet her when she's walking around the apartment. She and Freyja have been playing a lot, and she is more assertive when Frigga invades her space.<br /><br />At least we have our silver lining - and I know what to do in case of nasty kitty pneumonia!!!<br /><br />Thank you again, everyone.ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-41007629587709391852009-04-29T09:37:00.002-04:002009-04-29T09:40:06.784-04:00Norn Watch: Day 3After two days of recuperation from the apparent onset of her symptoms, Norn seems to be doing a lot better. She's breathing much more easily, and seems to be much more relaxed. She doesn't growl when I pick her up anymore, which tells me that her gas pain (from swallowing air while she was trying to breathe) has gone away, and hopefully her spleen may be going down.<br /><br />She even seems to understand that the enormous dose of liquid antibiotics I give her every morning is a necessary (if unpleasant) thing - she isn't spitting them out anymore.<br /><br />The other two kitties, Frigga and Freyja, have been very respectful of Norn's space during this time - they're starting to close in again, which tells me that they know she's feeling better too.<br /><br />::BIG SIGH OF RELIEF::<br /><br />We have a follow-up appointment next Monday, so by then we should know more about what's going on. Thanks!ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-26653696283533799102009-04-28T14:36:00.002-04:002009-04-28T14:45:07.563-04:00When it rains...I came home from work yesterday, pretty drained about everything that had happened with Taz. My comfort is that he was 16, and had a pretty darn-tootin' amazing life - every summer getting to while away the hours running free on the family island, being spoiled absolutely rotten by our family, having a big wooded backyard to run around in at his leisure. He had a pretty awesome life, and we were very lucky to have him be a part of our family.<br /><br />So after reeling from his loss (despite being expected, it still hurt), I came home to spend some time with my little animals. I fed the cats, and took Pan out for a quick 'walk' in the backyard. When I came back inside, I could hear Norn yowling - not unusual, she goes through yowling phases on and off.<br /><br />But when I realized that she was yowling TO me, calling me, I realized something was wrong. Norn is a 'recovering feral', and while she is an amazing and loving cat, she is not big into the cuddles. So when she begs me to come pet her and rub her ears, cries out when I get up to leave, I know something is up. That coupled with odd panting (it was hot yesterday, but not THAT hot), had me whisk her to the vet's.<br /><br />I was fully expecting that Dr. Morris would give me a pat on the head and a 'try not to be a hypochondriac FOR your cat' speech. Instead, she came out and told me she was very concerned - Norn's breathing was extremely labored, and her stomach was distended.<br /><br />At first we thought it might be FIP or some other horrendous disease, so I stood in Petsmart bawling like a child, thinking that yesterday would see me say a long-distance goodbye to Taz and a way-too-soon goodbye to Norn. But after waiting at the vet clinic for hours, an X-Ray and an Ultrasound (not to mention a toe-curling vet bill), we discovered that Norn has acute pnemonia, coupled with an extremely swollen spleen.<br /><br />Goddam spleens. They always get in the f*cking way. So, we know for sure she has a bacterial infection - either it's standalone (which is pretty unlikely given her spleen), or is secondary to a virus or cancer. A virus can't be treated, so we're just treating the bacterial infection and riding out the virus (if there is one). If it's cancer, her symptoms would indicate that it's very advanced, and there's nothing much we can do.<br /><br />I'm trying to keep her comfortable. Last night I stayed up the whole night, lying beside her on the floor for hours, petting her and trying not to fall asleep. A couple times I gave up and tried to climb into bed, but she would cry and cry for me, and I ended up piling some pillows on the floor and just sleeping next to her. I felt bad leaving her alone, and was worried that letting her cry would hurt her lungs.<br /><br />Today she seems more comfortable - the gas pain she was experiencing from swallowing air while trying to breath seems to have abated, and she's resting. She's still crying a lot, but it's not as insistent as it was yesterday. I hated leaving her alone today, but I had to go to work. After checking up on her at lunch, I'm pretty confident that she's at least okay for now, and more comfortable than she was yesterday.<br /><br />We won't know what the ultimate outcome of this will be until it happens - either she'll be better, or she won't be. Only one thing is for sure - when it rains, it really pours, doesn't it?ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-41253857398760262202009-04-27T14:26:00.002-04:002009-04-27T14:35:55.656-04:00The Passing of a TitanWhen I was about 14, my family adopted a 2 year old dog named Taz. He was amazing, and we got him from the local shelter. When he came to us, it was obvious that he had not been in a good home - he shied away from our hands like we were going to hit him, was deathly afraid of water, and was EXTREMELY skinny.<br /><br />14 years later, he was a happy watermelon of a dog that absolutely adored everyone. He was so sweet and gentle and just the perfect pup - one of the most 'grateful' animals I have <span style="font-style: italic;">ever</span> met. Taz would be content to have his hand shook for hours, and grew very adept at flipping dangling hands up over his neck to be petted.<br /><br />Today, Taz passed away from kidney failure. I know exactly where he is right now - running at top speed all over the family island up in Canada, just like he did when he was younger. It's always going to be summer for him there, and there will be no end of smelly messes to investigate, squirrels to chase, water to stand in and pontificate, and daylilies to crush by lying on them. We'll be petting him with our hearts from now on - we miss you, Taz.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix4aJ6b0itY58WAXg41kzYTg6siCIhfb58q3Uz5hREGDjB1SPrWqiOyWwFNtBk15Ji38grerk-C4CykfgtG2uFJnLsQhM2j0D_QdzKxJaU3oYKjYkFQQL29OpHDxZWYg7yhxSBCiCY9bqa/s1600-h/Taz.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix4aJ6b0itY58WAXg41kzYTg6siCIhfb58q3Uz5hREGDjB1SPrWqiOyWwFNtBk15Ji38grerk-C4CykfgtG2uFJnLsQhM2j0D_QdzKxJaU3oYKjYkFQQL29OpHDxZWYg7yhxSBCiCY9bqa/s320/Taz.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5329441698460109554" border="0" /></a>ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-39358284718772321512009-04-07T12:43:00.006-04:002009-04-08T16:53:38.845-04:00Pagan Crafts! (Ostara)With Ostara well behind us and Beltane creeping up (well, SPRINTING more than creeping, but whatever...), it's hard to believe the year is passing by so quickly. I guess as you get older, your frame of reference for the passage of time continues to increase, which (inversely) causes your actual experience of the days going by to decrease. EXPONENTIALLY.<br /><br />I've had several wonderful opportunities to get more involved with the Fellowship up here in Northern New Jersey. I got to be the 'Kitchen Witch' for Ostara, and helped organize the Craft Night for the ritual. I wasn't able to attend because of an illness, (which has yet to go away, but that's another story), but I was able to organize and get everything together. A sweet woman from the Fellowship actually opened her home and ran the event, which was the hard part (she gets the glory for this one!).<br /><br />Since it was our first foray into Pagan Craft Night, we made it pretty simple - just Ostara Eggs decorated with various spring-y symbols. The woman I mentioned earlier actually got the PAAS egg decorating kit that comes with gold leaf to rub onto your eggs (they were gorgeous!).<br /><br />Check out the finished product:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRfZc8J0PCr-SEf3tTNVNPKbn2nSI9pxwgxNTLo0E0JCsLEry_9aWgdZ1-8WW63ht4VAf4K81S9y3k4YWL4kySevx_eGFshMRRQvT4qz4lRTx_gufVv4QaMhYgiQ1VQnnaauKbiSxr-LQ-/s1600-h/Ostara+4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 183px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRfZc8J0PCr-SEf3tTNVNPKbn2nSI9pxwgxNTLo0E0JCsLEry_9aWgdZ1-8WW63ht4VAf4K81S9y3k4YWL4kySevx_eGFshMRRQvT4qz4lRTx_gufVv4QaMhYgiQ1VQnnaauKbiSxr-LQ-/s320/Ostara+4.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321993810733157554" border="0" /></a>I made up a 'craft instruction sheet' for the eggs, but we were unfortunately unable to use them as we had intended - they were left unrefridgerated and could not be eaten! You can check out the Ostara Eggs Instruction Sheet in PDF below, though.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjBT_P1OPzlbRIELsvwKylp18NXbl8WCZS7hl3L0oDeC-ldPKKEoMi8aSR8Y9UFGOk4xvrrV1qsbO3QYU0pa02Tv5FLYYtcn7FV9__C4csGD8qkV97bFfKAqBfMruicIDqTj4S4iuPPcj0/s1600-h/Instructions-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 246px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjBT_P1OPzlbRIELsvwKylp18NXbl8WCZS7hl3L0oDeC-ldPKKEoMi8aSR8Y9UFGOk4xvrrV1qsbO3QYU0pa02Tv5FLYYtcn7FV9__C4csGD8qkV97bFfKAqBfMruicIDqTj4S4iuPPcj0/s320/Instructions-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322426397996935170" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIF1N3mYoEDS_TWXUmH1HTKXuDPLa_C_nC-dQG2oTPOi5-cWcHKRdgODxLbCUcTyEZf6zd71szN6vIXvjIyaEIizL6WMh4GYqj1Asn9w8snLpXRos03m7SbNKIiF0jwew_vyUz2E13sEQ-/s1600-h/Instructions-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 242px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIF1N3mYoEDS_TWXUmH1HTKXuDPLa_C_nC-dQG2oTPOi5-cWcHKRdgODxLbCUcTyEZf6zd71szN6vIXvjIyaEIizL6WMh4GYqj1Asn9w8snLpXRos03m7SbNKIiF0jwew_vyUz2E13sEQ-/s320/Instructions-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322426111759783394" border="0" /></a></div>ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-67816059018171790472009-03-26T22:59:00.004-04:002009-03-26T23:13:14.229-04:00Qabal-tastic!!!Well, we had another great Roundtable with the Fellowship, studying the "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Chicken-Qabalah-Rabbi-Lamed-Clifford/dp/1578632153/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1238122832&sr=8-1">Chicken Qabalah</a>" (which I highly recommend). I absolutely adore this book - it dives into the Qabalah with the reverent yet carefree curiosity and joy of the Fool.<br /><br />We had a lot of great insights tonight, and I found myself sharing something that I didn't even know I truly felt. We were discussing the Star trump in the Tarot deck, which is Tzaddi, the 28th path. This is the path between the Sephiroth Netzach (Victory) and Yesod (Foundation). It relates to words like <span style="font-style: italic;">hunt</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">capture</span>, and <span style="font-style: italic;">adversary</span>.<br /><br />I'll be honest - I'm not terribly good with Tarot. I'm trying to learn, and honestly the Qabalah has taught me more in a month and a half than I have picked up in years of ardent (well, relatively ardent...okay, sort of ardent) study. But looking at Tzaddi in relation to the Star trump really brought up this fountain of understanding I didn't even know I had.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7RCkaQY7CFhnhu-yZjvmRD267kGTfcbAL-vwpQ1CKg7T3KnsEjkZfNTpgpsnlPTzRgVntGV-YzpkGp4GFYQpX8q7xedHUWVuh_A8Uz7ILBiriyS7v5MTFFJpZkjtXyhSstjCScz2mVMsb/s1600-h/The+Star.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 186px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7RCkaQY7CFhnhu-yZjvmRD267kGTfcbAL-vwpQ1CKg7T3KnsEjkZfNTpgpsnlPTzRgVntGV-YzpkGp4GFYQpX8q7xedHUWVuh_A8Uz7ILBiriyS7v5MTFFJpZkjtXyhSstjCScz2mVMsb/s320/The+Star.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317700211625844770" border="0" /></a><br />In the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Radiant-Rider-Waite-Tarot-Games-Systems/dp/1572814136/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1238123230&sr=1-3">Rider-Waite</a> tarot deck, The Star is the image of a young woman kneeling, half on land and half in a pond. She is pouring out two vessels of water, one into the water and one onto the earth. I have seen other decks where she is a white-skinned huntress, with a quiver strung across her back. She is leaping across a stream, with one foot on each side. To me, this card represents the singular and independent strength of femininity - she needs no sun to light her, and no other celestial influences cross her path. She hunts alone, and is terrible and beautiful in her solitude. Her strength is built on a foundation of the most primal intuition, the rawest form of a woman's sense.<br /><br />Though she embodies the powers of woman, she is not a nurturing character. Nor is she actively cruel - she represents an independence that is awesome and lonely, the pinnacle of feminine power. But she is lesser than her other feminine counterparts, because no part of the universe can exist apart from all the other parts - her solitude, to me, is her only weakness, but also her greatest strength.ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-80174635847594742572009-03-23T11:17:00.004-04:002009-03-23T11:22:55.319-04:00So much for neutral ground...<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/africa/03/23/south.africa.dalai.lama.visa/index.html">An article</a> on CNN today shared that South Africa just refused a visa to the Dalai Lama, a visa that was requested to facilitate his attendance at an international peace conference in Johannesburg.<br /><br />The archbishop Demond Tutu and F. W. DeKlerk are now boycotting the event, and I encourage all other leaders attending the conference to do the same.<br /><br />Productive peace discussions can only take place on neutral ground, and South Africa has blatantly demonstrated that they do not intend to provide such a field for discussions. By bowing to China, (with whom they have profitable trade negotiations), and disallowing this visit by a nobel laureate, they hearken back to the days of Nelson Mandela's imprisonment.<br /><br />They thinly veiled their refusal by saying it would take away from their hosting of the 2010 World Cup (HUH?!?) in a ridiculous attempt to save face.<br /><br />I am ashamed of South Africa's actions, and hope that others see this ridiculous power-play for what it is.ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-86202621785961225552009-03-19T18:11:00.003-04:002009-03-19T18:15:39.643-04:00Interesting WitchVox discussionThere's a fascinating discussion currently playing out on one of the <a href="http://www.witchvox.com/">Witchvox</a> boards, relating to <a href="http://www.witchvox.com/wren/wn_detail.html?id=20461">this article</a> written by Kathryn Joyce comparing the "Extreme Motherhood" of Nadya Suleman and the 18+ Duggar Family. There are a lot of great comments and input from the community there - check it out and chip in your two cents.<br /><br />Here was my response to the article, and the comments preceding mine...<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><b></b></span><blockquote><span style="font-size:85%;"><b>ArachneDefiant</b> (Whippany, New Jersey)<br /><br />First of all, it is so awesome to be a part of such an active and idea-prolific pagan community. It's great to see so many people free to voice their opinions.<br /><br />That said - here here to Snow Phoenix and the others who are holding back from wholesale ideology-bashing. I completely understand where a lot of you are coming from, but I think we need to take a quick step back in regards to how we view cases like the Suleman's vs. the Duggars.<br /><br />I do not agree with Quiverfull's tenets, and find some of them to be a little out there. The same can be said of Mormonism, or basically any other religious tradition of which I am not a part. However, I don't think it makes sense to say that just because I'm not floating with their tide, doesn't mean that they aren't happy.<br /><br />Cults like the FLDS take clear and blatant advantage of the women and children in their care - isolationism is frighteningly pervasive, and their marriage practices are proven to force young women and girls into the marriage bed.<br /><br />However, if a Mormon woman (not FLDS, mind you, but normal Mormon) , is happy and fulfilled and content with the life she leads, who on earth am I to tell her that she's wrong? I would be perfectly happy to carry on a discourse regarding her religious choices versus mine, but it's up to her and only her to decide what makes her happy.<br /><br />If she's a healthy, intellectually sound woman who is a happy camper staying at home with the kiddlies and doing her husband's bidding, then who on earth am I to say different? She could just as easily cry out in horror at my lifestyle, at my concept of god (or gods :-D) , and my choices regarding childrearing.<br /><br />Let's take a moment to compare the Suleman mother and the Duggar family. Nadya Suleman is a woman who has made a series of decisions that are bad for herself and her family, and not simply because we don't ideologically agree. She can't feed the children she has, takes our tax dollars to take care of kids who don't seem to be getting the attention they need anyway, and still seems to find time (and money) to have beautifully manicured nails and professionally styled hair.<br /><br />On the other hand, we have the Duggars. Who, most definitely, are a little out there in their beliefs. However, their kids are well fed, relatively well adjusted, and seem to be a lot more capable of taking on responsibilities than some of the 2 or 3 kid families I run into regularly.<br /><br />Honestly, I have watched the Duggar's programs and have seen, in particular, Mrs. Duggar during interviews. She absolutely glows. She smiles, she looks lovingly to her husband and children, and holds herself proudly.<br /><br />I see no signs in her that would indicate abuse, brainwashing, or any other forms of degradation. I would hope that her children, daughters in particular, would be free to choose the lifestyle they want for themselves. Not all of them will probably grow up to be like their mother. But some of them probably will.<br /><br />And you know what? If they are happy, more power to them. There are lots of people who oppose gay marriage who use a lot of the same arguments I see on this board today - "how could they think this is right", "obviously they are fundamentally out of their minds", etc. etc.<br /><br />If you're happy and you're not hurting anyone, have as many babies as you want. If you have the means and the desire to be home with your 18 youngins, go for it. Who am I to say otherwise?</span></blockquote>ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1947819573712249110.post-71222617233237009052009-03-17T18:47:00.002-04:002009-03-17T18:51:51.697-04:00Gardening - Getting Out There!I absolutely love gardening. Right now, I'm actually recovering from a rather nasty illness, so fantasizing about spending time outdoors is a great way to pass the time in bed. And the great authors over at <a href="http://2witches.com/blog/">2 Witches</a> actually put up <a href="http://2witches.com/blog/wicca-paganism/pagan-video-tues/goddess-gardens-and-victory-gardens/comment-page-1/#comment-2318">this post</a> today specifically about the value of gardening!<br /><br />With Ostara looming right around the corner (how did it get to be the middle of March?!?), it's the perfect time to start planning out how to work with the earth to create a beautiful outdoor sacred space, that can nourish our bodies with fruits and vegetables, nourish our spirits with good ol' fashioned outdoor work, and nourish our spirituality by connecting us with the Goddess.<br /><br />I'm looking forward to planning out my garden this year - I want some morning glories and other climbing plants to adorn the otherwise blank exterior of my apartment. I'd also like to put down some marigolds and other 'sunny' plants to celebrate the beauty of the sun. And of course, I'm putting in some herbs and veggies to keep my tummy happy.<br /><br />More to come - but for now, it's a fun fantasy. Indulge yourself in some pre-planting imaginations!ArachneDefianthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02847857714076182613noreply@blogger.com2