Fur Baby with his Grandpa

For a man who claims to hate animals, animals sure love him!  Sorry Dad!

Frankie loves his Grandpa!  My father's face clearly expresses his feelings towards his grandson . . .

Wandering Around House Shopping

The hubby and I looked at 8 houses around Long Island today and both of our heads are spinning.  I'm hoping to be out of my parent's house by my birthday in November.  We saw some houses that have potential and then some that just needed a bulldozer.  Part of me feels like I'm going to be stuck with my parents forever and I'm growing more and more resentful of their meddling nature. 

Here's my main issue: I hate the town I grew up in.  I'm tolerating this place while I live with my parents and the hubby and I save for our own home.  I'm grateful that my parents are doing us this huge favor.  I know I have it real easy right now, especially since we do not have to pay any rent.  However, my parents don't understand my utter loathing of this town and my need to escape it as fast as possible.  It's caused quite a few fights in the past few days and now my father and I are not even speaking.  They've basically backed my husband and I into a corner and are pushing this, excuse my French, shithole house onto us.  It's a great deal but you need another $150K to fix it up and make it liveable.  Let's just say animals have dug through the roof and there is black mold in the upstairs.  It's awful.  But they keep repeating over and over, "It's a great deal.  It's going for $100-200K less than other houses in the town. Blah blah blah."  No matter how many times I tell them, "I hate it here and I never want to live here/raise a family here," they keep pushing.  I understand the great school district (my husband works for them).  I understand.  I get it.  It's not what I want.  It's everything I don't want. 

But in other news, I'm getting a lot of great feedback/comments about the giveaway!  However, I wanted everyone to know that The Fairy Apothecary is not my shop!  I wish it were but I cannot take credit for the wonderful work my friend Kristin does.  I do help her out from time to time at craft shows but all of the work is done in her Fairy Den in Upstate New York.  Also, if I could make your screens scratch and sniff I would!  All of her soaps smell amazing!  My personal favorite is Love Spell.  I've used all of her products, so feel free to ask me about any of them.  Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

Oryx and Crake

It's been a long road that I've travelled this week.  My husband's grandmother passed - don't be sorry though - I'd spoken to the women three times in my life and she was nasty and bitter.  My husband wasn't too close to her either.  We went to the funeral in New Jersey on Friday and that was that. 

In other, less depressing news, I'm more than halfway through my next book for my Graduate class, Writing After the End.  All of the literature in this course is Post-Apocalypse/Post-Collapse themed.  It's a bit depressing but still eye opening.  For this unit we were able to choose from three novels The Road by Cormac McCarthy, Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler and Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood.  I chose the last novel and boy is it frightening.  I've even made a liner note for myself: "If this is our future, I want out now!" If anyone needs a good summer read or inspiraton to be green, please read this book.  There is a sequel that came out last year, The Year of the Flood, which I plan on reading once I'm done with this book.  It's dark, but I'm realling enjoying it.  

Flower Moon

Tonight is the Flower Moon or the Planting Moon.  The wildlife comes to full awakening in the month of May.  The late spring heat drives life forward and brings forth the early crops of the season.  Many people will enjoy the 3-day holiday weekend picnicing, going to the beach, enjoying parades and (hopefully) remember those who honorably served in the military and all its branches. 

The Flower Moon is a time for expanding and growing, metaphorically and in your garden.  For those of you that planted at the last full moon, it's time to move those plants to larger pots.  For those of you who have grown weary in your mundane lives, it's time to move yourself to another "pot."  Perhaps you need to quit the job that you dread going to every morning or just build up the courage to put in for that promotion.  If you've been out of work, maybe it's time to get back out there with your resumè. 

If you're going to be performing a ritual tonight and you're lucky enough to have nice weather (unlike those of us in the Northeast - thundershowers - whoo!) you may want to draw on that spring energy.  Light a few candles, grab those drums and head outside.  Dance around under the light and power of the full moon.  If you practice with your family, read or act out some spring themed myths from the pantheon you and/or your family feels closest with.


This myth is one of my favorites.  It's not a spring myth, but a moon myth.  Even though my mother's ancestors were Comanche Indians, I still love to read other American Indian myths.  This one is from the Pueblo tribes:

Why the Moon Has One Eye

Long ago, Moon and Sun were made to always keep watch over all of the children of the earth.  They kept their bright eyes on the earth all the time.  

Sun looked down from the sky during the days.  Under his bright light, the flowers and trees and other plants grew.  The birds flew and sang, and the animals went about their way.  The people also worked and played all throughout the day.  And that was good.

Moon looked down from the sky during the nights.  Her eyes were just as bright as those of her husband, the sun.  So it was that there was never any darkness.  Just as it was during the days, the flowers and trees and other plants grew.  The birds flew and sang, and the animals went about their way.  All throughout the night, the people worked and played.  And for a while, that was also good.

But because there was no darkness, it was hard for all the children of the earth to rest.  The flowers and trees and other plants grew without stopping, and they began to grow tired.  The branches of the trees hung down in weariness, and the corn found it hard to stand tall.  The flowers could barely lift their heads.  Because they were always flying and singing, the birds grew hoarse and their songs were no longer so beautiful.  The animals became so tired that it was hard for them to get food.  The people were so worn out from alwas working and playing that they no longer laughed and smiled.  They just walked about as if they were carrying great weights on their shoulders.

The moon and the sun saw that things upon the earth were no longer good for their children.

"We must do something so that our children can rest," the Moon said.

"I will give up one of my eyes," Sun said.  "Then it will no longer be as bright during the daytime."

"No," Moon said.  "It should be bright during the days.  There must be light so that our children can go about their way.  I am the one who must give up one of my eyes.  Then there will be darkness in the nights and things will be good again."

So it was that Moon gave up one of her eyes.  Now the night was no longer so bright as it had been.  All of the children of the earth - the plants, the birds and animals, and the people - could rest during that time of darkness.

Even though her light was less than before, Moon's one eye was still quite bright.  So it was that she decided to close her eye a little bit at a time throughout each month until it was all dark.  Then she would begin to open her eye again.

Although Moon has only one eye, the Pueblo people say that she is even more beautiful than she was before.  The sun is also beautiful, but his yes are so bright that no one can gaze directly at him without feeling pain.  Moon's light, though, is so gentle that even when she is at her brightest, the people can gaze up at her to give thanks for the gift of darkness that she gave through her sacrifice.  

- from The Girl Who Helped Thunder and Other Native American Folktales by James Bruchac and Joseph Bruchac, PhD. 

Happy Easter!

Even though I'm no longer Catholic, I still celebrate Easter with my family.  I hope everyone has a wonderful day today.  It is beautiful outside today in New York and there is good food cooking downstairs that I'm very excited to eat.

This will be a short post, but I am very happy to report that I basically came "out of the broom closet" to my mother today.  She knew I was a witch, but I never outright said it to her.  We had a very open and honest conversation today about how Catholics and Pagans are essentially celebrating similar things at this time of the year and how unfortunate it is that the religions shut one another out.  Let's hope her positive attitude towards my faith continues.  She tends to flip-flop on the issue a bit, but I'm happy I said it to her finally.


Happy Easter everyone!  Enjoy the spring transformations around you.

I will post again tonight for the start of my weekly tarot readings.

Marty finds a friend

My husband and I have been living with my parents for a little over a year now with our two cats, Frankie and Marty.  My mother has two pets of her own, Belle (a Shetland Sheepdog) and Tommy (a HUGE, orange cat).  My Siamese, Frankie, does not particularly care for Tommy or Belle, but Marty loves the two of them.  Marty is also a very shy kitty, so catching a picture of him for my Friday postings has been a bit of a challenge.  However, Marty and Belle had a snuggle-fest a few days ago and I was able to snap a picture of the two of them.

I'm hoping that one day, all four of them will be sleeping together on the couch.  Knowing my Siamese, it will have to be a blue moon or some other rare cosmic occasion before that happens.

More Slut Cat

I know I haven't been posting much of Marty lately, but Frankie (aka Slut Cat) has really been hamming it up for the camera.  The hubby caught Slut Cat like this early one morning and snapped the picture before he left for work:

This cat really needs to get a job!

Fur Baby Fridays!

It's Friday and I think the fur children knew it because last night Frankie was being extra adorable.  I'll post a few pictures because he's done this a few times.

My father was getting ready a buisness trip and Frankie felt it would be appropriate if he adorned the bag with himself.  I must also explain that my father is not a fan of animals.  He merely tolerates them living in his home.  Frankie is very lucky that my Dad was at a meeting and didn't see him laying on his freshly packed bag.

Frankie was not pleased that I was taking his photo.  Look at those demon blue eyes!

This is not the first time he's tried to pack himself either:

No suitcase is safe when Frankie is around!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Wishing you a rainbow
For sunlight after showers—
Miles and miles of Irish smiles
For golden happy hours—
Shamrocks at your doorway
For luck and laughter too,
And a host of friends that never ends
Each day your whole life through!
- Irish Friend Blessing

St. Patrick's Day is the day Catholics celebrate St. Patrick "sweeping the snakes (*cough*paganism*cough*) from Ireland." Anyone of Irish decent and perhaps a pagan should still be extra proud that they are Irish today.  I tend to look towards the modern celebration of the day because of it's haunting anti-pagan past.  If you look to how the holiday is celebrated now, it gives you a bit of a brighter image.

I am not Irish by birth; I am Irish by marriage.  Most people look at me funny when I tell them my last name and then they ask, "You're Irish?!"  I merely just display my wedding ring and then they understand.  I guess Native American/Italian/Spanish/French chicks can't ever really look Irish, but I will celebrate the day with my husband.  


So, throw on some green and put a clover in your lapel!  Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Fur Baby Fridays

My Siamese cat, Frankie, is what I'd like to call a slut cat.  He poses as if he were on the cover of Playgirl.  This picture has been my phone display background for a while.  I thought you'd like to see the "whore" in action:

Just look at that fuzzy belly!  It's taunting you, teasing you to pet it.  But don't do it!  You may lose a finger.

Damn you slut cat!

Winter Wonderland

 View from Outside my Window

Since another storm has hit the northeast, I can spend another day sitting inside watching the snowflakes.  I love snow.  I adore winter.  Everyone at work is constantly complaining about the weather and I'm the only one sitting in the teacher's lounge smiling.  Snow, for me at least, always meant sitting under a warm blanket and either reading a great book or watching re-runs of my favorite shows on TV.  Now that I'm married, it gives me the added bonus of snuggling under that warm blanket with the hubby.  I can light the fireplace and stare into the flames or I can sit on the windowseat and watch the snow fall. 

I've never really seen snow as a negative.  Even shoveling it isn't terrible.  I see it as a chance to get outside and be part of the storm, not to mention some great exercise.  All of our neighbors are outside, shoveling their driveways, we wave at one another and throw up our hands as if to say, "here we go again!"  We actually smile at the sight of our neighbors.  Some of us even help those without snowblowers.  We're nice to one another.  Snow brings us together, even if it is to shovel it away.  Then, we sit inside and make a warm meal or a warm drink and sit.  We enjoy the company of one another.  Heck, we might even break out that dusty, old Monopoly box and fight over who can and cannot be the banker.

Relax everyone.  Think of all the good things that snow brings you.  Spend time with loved ones, even if is just yourself and a furry companion.  Talk to the Lord and the Lady.  Light a candle.  Do some crafts.  Perform some spell work.  This is one that I will often use.  It is an adapted version of Ann Mouira's "Five Fold Blessing":

Blessed be my feet that bring me on my path.

Blessed be my knees that support me before the Lady and the Lord.

Blessed be my heart that holds me true to my path.

Blessed be my eyes that see the beauty of Nature.

Blessed be my mind that seeks the wisdom and knowledge of the Lord and Lady.

I think Marty loves my purse too much

I didn't get the picture in time, but he was rubbing his face on my bag. 

It's ok if my male cat loves my purse.  I mean, I love my purse.  I just don't drool (literally) on it or get hair in every crevasse of it!

Finding the path . . .

Yesterday, I started my story of my journey into the craft.  After my Confirmation, I stepped away from the church.  I was offended by their outright hatred of what I felt in my heart was moral and just.  It did not make sense to me that I would be damned for eternity to hell because I myself was bisexual.  It further didn't make sense that my own family members who were gay would burn.  These were people who worked to help others and were good, moral people.  Nothing about Catholicism clicked correctly in my brain anymore.  Sundays were now mine again.

I guess, for the majority of high school and college, I was what could be labeled as an agnostic.  I knew there was something out there greater than I was, but I couldn't put a finger on what.  I began to research my own family history.  My maternal grandmother was almost 100% Native American.  I didn't grow up knowing all of this; I actually found out around the time my grandfather died.  In my heart, there was something very beloved and treasured about this part of my genetics.

The more reading I did on my tribal history, the more of a sense of home and peace I was getting in my heart.  Of course, I didn't do much about it religiously.  I was still hurting and wrestling with that good ol' Catholic guilt.  The God and Goddess were waiting patiently for me to find them.  I know now that they led me to pick up the books on my family history and that eventually I'd come to seek them as well.