Ok fine you enjoy commercialism and buying everything you need and don't need. I like high tech toys too. I don't garden because everything I touch wilts, and I am always on my Mac. BUT I still love to bake bread. I get my flour from local Amish markets and I knead the heck out of it by hand. I think its good stress relief. Baking isn't hipster. I consider "Hipster" to be a dirty word used for people who don't know how to be original so they decide to be fake. There is nothing fake about making food. You either do it from a box, from scratch, or somewhere in between. All the best baked goods are homemade. Even better if they are home grown as well, which why farmers markets are awesome. Why do you think when people visit Amish Country they are obsessed with the food? Because its homegrown and homemade from scratch. It tastes better than anything you can buy from Sara Lee or Paula Dean. And none of the preservative crap. Do I still eat Sara Lee or Paula Dean baked goods? Yup, because it's convenient. But I know that it would be better if I made it myself!

Occupy Wall Street

This is an article that everyone must read immediately!! Spread the truth before it is too late!

The Shocking Truth of OWS

Sabbats: Samhain Planning

Autumn Leaves in Ohio

The leaves have changed color and begun to fall to the ground. The wind blows with a chill in the air. It is the season of huddling around bon fires with hot cocoa and telling scary stories. Thousands of children are picking out costumes while their parents decorate their houses with spider webs and pumpkins. To many this is the season of Halloween, when all the ghouls and goblins come out to play. It is a good excuse to watch scary movies, put on a mask and get free candy. To most people it is a secular holiday rooted in superstition, but to many others it is an important holy day.
Halloween can be traced back to the Celts and the festival of Samhain. October 31^st was celebrated as the last night of the year. It is said that the veil between the worlds is at its thinnest. During this time those who had died over the past year were said to return for one last night on earth before moving on to the Otherworld (the afterlife). Like Dia de los Muertes and All Hallows Eve, Samhain is the time to reflect on the lives that have passed and to also celebrate life. The world is growing cold and dark for winter and plants are wilting. It only seems natural that many cultures have associated this time of year with death.

In my family we celebrate Halloween a lot. My children love to dress up as their favorite super heroes and go trick or treating. Carving pumpkins into jack-o-lanterns is both a Halloween and Samhain tradition. The jack-o-lanterns help light the darkness for both the living and the dead.

I have never really spent the time to plan out Sabbats and actually put them into action. Well today I finally took the time. Here is what I would like to do to celebrate Samhain:

We would spend the week leading up to Samhain in preparation. The first thing we would do is make an altar. On it we would place seasonal items like fallen leaves, small pumpkins and gourds. Then we would place photographs of loved ones who have passed and tell a fond memory of each one. In this way the kids would learn of family members that they may not have had enough time to get to know and we can find some closure in their passing.

If we can we would also visit the cemetery together and talk about what happens when someone dies. It would be a difficult conversation to have, but I find it much easier to answer the questions now, rather than wait for a beloved pet or family member to pass on. This way they would have a little bit of understanding ahead of time. I would also like to visit the graves of family members and make sure they have been cleared of leaves and wilted flowers.

For dinner that evening I would love to have a meal similar to that of Thanksgiving, though on a much smaller scale, and we would set a place at the table for those who could not join us. If the weather is good we would also have a bonfire, cook marshmallows and have hot chocolate and enjoy each others company outside before it is too cold. Of course if it is a school night we would save the bonfire for the weekend.

In lots of ways, my version of Samhain would be a combination of Halloween and the Mexican celebration of Dias de los Muertes. We would honor the dead and we would have lots of silly fun dressing up and decorating the house. Maybe when I get more serious about things we could add in a family ritual to thank the Gods. 

Hmm, well I haven't missed my opportunity to do some of this yet. Maybe I should get working on it? 

East Central Ohio Broom & Brew

Living in a small conservative town can be so boring and lonely as a Pagan. When the town has more churches then restaurants and gas stations combined it can be daunting. Nearly everyone is in the broom closet here in fear of repercussions. I would love to be able to change that.

It is really easy to feel like their aren't any Pagans around. I thought for sure there weren't any in my town. The numbers are small but they are there! I have found a dozen myself and those dozen know others.

I recently discovered something called Broom & Brew. It is a low key gathering of Pagans of all paths for coffee and community. I thought it would be a great idea to start one here as well. So I informed my contacts, started a Facebook page and a witchvox listing. Hopefully I can make something solid here that can grow into more. We'll start off with Pagan rights and the ACLU and how to deal with your evangelical neighbors.

The local BB is East Central Ohio Broom & Brew. Everyone 18 years and older is welcome. Though for the first couple meetings I would like to keep it narrowed down to the county. If you would like more information please email the group at eastcentral_oh_broomandbrew@yahoo.com

Think of the Children!!

This season of Dancing With the Stars will feature openly transgender Chaz Bono. I don't watch DWTS, so had there not been a recent uproar about Chaz's appearence I probably would not even known he was on the show. By the way, totally awesome Carson Kressley will be on too.

The uproar, as you may have figured out, is from a bunch of Christian Fundies. One such group is One Million Moms (which I will not link, but feel free to google). They are outraged that such a person is allowed to be on the show. "Think about the children! What will we tell the children!" Well, how about "He's Cher's son" and leave it at that.

Shoudn't these moms be more concerned about the outfits the women wear on the show? I mean, whats more obvious? Clothing or sexuality? Or in this case a sex change? Well, Chaz looks like man to me! Had I not known about his past I would never have guessed it. So how could kids? Nancy Grace even agrees with me.

Also, they have a Facebook page of the same name and everytime someone calls them out on their close-minded insanity they quote Bible passages at them, and then (after giving their fans a chance to read it I'm sure) delete all evidence of the opposition.

One awesome blogger, Sabrina of One Witch's Wonderland, quickly posted about this subject and it was shared with One Million Moms. One fan gave the obvious response and I'll quote for you:

"Well it's coming from a witch's website. Exodus 22:18 - "Do not allow a sorceress to live." If this were biblical days she'd be dead by now."

Of course, after being allowed up for about an hour, the entire thread was deleted. Cowards and Jerks.

And to top the whole thing off they have close ties, or are big fans of American Family Radio.

Well that explains it!

An Epic night time conversation turns hilarious.

What started out as an innocent complaint about someone making up information about a celeb, quickly turns into a discussion on breakfast pantheons. It was all down hill from there.... and hilarious.

Things become a little R rated from here on out.

The Power of Dreams

I have always taken dreams seriously. Well at least the ones that have some sense to them. Symbolism is like the subconscious's way of bringing things to the front of your mind. Maybe there is something in your life that you are ignoring and it needs dealt with or maybe there is an answer to a problem you have been having and the answer has been there all along.

Lately I have been having some very vivid dreams. It's been awhile since I have had a dream that had any depth to it. More than just vivid I have been dreaming about real people, places and times. For my dreams to be so real has sent me for a loop.

I have dreamed about meeting people who I have only spoken to online and having a ritual. I had that dream and a variation of it 3 nights in a row. I am not sure what to think of this one. The craziest part of my dream was the people. I recognized them though they looked different from their profile photos. I think this dream was about sharing ideas and information and friendships. I actually learned  alot about paganism from these dreams.

Sometimes I dream of snow and it is usually because I am cold while sleeping. Now that it is late into summer here I have had less snow dreams on chilly nights.

Last night I dreamed that it was almost Imbolc. For those who know Imbolc is a sabbat that takes place the beginning of February in the Northern Hemisphere. In many ways it is like the USAs Groundhogs Day with the same kind of lore attached, minus the groundhog. It is also known as St Brigid's Day.

Now I don't remember all the details of the dream. I only remember thinking or saying that it was almost Imbolc. This is strange because here in Ohio it is almost Lammas or Lughnasadh  which is directly opposite on the Wheel of the Year. So I wonder: Was I astral traveling to the Southern Hemisphere? Was I just chilly? Or does this have to do with subconscious knowledge that Imboc and Brigid are tied together and is simply because I read about Brigid shortly before bed? I can tell you I don't recall knowing the connection between the two before this morning when I began unraveling the meaning of this dream and looked up Imbolc.

I have yet to see where this dream takes me. A little research and another dream or two should lead me to where I must go. If anyone would like to share with me what Imbolc or Brigid means to them I would welcome it.

Blessed Be!