The Cancer Full Moon
It's a magical life!
Alas, there is a flu of some sort going around and I've fallen to it which means I have to spend Midsummer and my birthday in bed! But I'll be better soon. I'm working on various projects in bed with the laptop and the first podcast is in post-production.
My Anthropology geekness is all a-twitter over the discovery and analysis of an intact witches bottle in London. Cool stuff!
Hellenismos and history geeks alike may be interested to hear that Greece is opening a new Acropolis Museum and hopes that it will encourage public support for the Parthenon marbles currently held by the British Museum being returned to Greece. In the meantime, plaster casts of the figures will be displayed in the Acropolis Museum in Greece.
Lunar & Solar Events this Cycle
The New Moon in Cancer is Monday, June 22 at 3:36pm EST
This is a great time to do a house cleansing ritual and for healing of the stomach and breast areas.
The Moon goes void of course at 7:24am Wednesday, June 24th.
One Wednesday, June 24th at 12:51 pm the Moon will enter Leo
This is a good time for auditions and interviews. If you can't do either today due to scheduling conflicts, do some spell work to support your future efforts. Also, healing to the heart and back.
The Moon goes void of Course at 8:28am EST on Friday, June 26th
The Moon enters Virgo at 1:47 pm EST on Friday, June 26th
This is a good day for a detox fast or to start a new diet program. Also, healing to the abdominal area.
On Sunday, June 28th at 11:25am EST the moon will go void of course.
The moon enters Libra on Sunday, June 28th at 5:25pm EST.
A good time for a romantic getaway or a cross-my-path spell. Good time also for business trips. Healing to the lower back & kidneys.
The moon will go void of course on Tuesday June 30th at 5:59pm EST
The moon enters Scorpio on Wednesday, July 1 at 12:19am EST
This is a good time for business pursuits that will consume much of your time, especially if they affect your lifestyle completely. Also for healing of the sexual organs, pelvis, colon and urinary tract
The moon will go void of course on Friday, July 3 at 6:03am EST
At 10:11am on Friday, July 3rd the moon will enter Sagittarius
If you've made a promise you feel you may have difficulty keeping, now is a good time for spell work to help you in your resolve. This is also a good time to plan your vacation and for healing to the hips and thighs
On Sunday, July 5 at 3:17 am, the moon will go void of course.
On Sunday, July 5th at 10:08 am, the moon will enter Capricorn
A good time for spells related to fatherhood and male fertility.
The full moon in Capricorn will occur on Tuesday, July 7th at 5:22am
A good day to begin training your pets and home improvement projects. Also, jobhunting.
If you have an iphone, check out this ap to keep track of the lunar cycles.
Witch in the Garden
Some more interesting volunteers are showing up, like nettles, purslane and goosefoot but nothing I've planted is ready to harvest yet! My neighbor has some very promising looking raspberries though!
Witch in the Kitchen
I have managed to lose 6 pounds, while quitting smoking and never going hungry. What is this magical method? Am I trying to sell you something? No. Just check out oilpulling and check out hwww.earthclinic.com, the website that introduced me to it. It makes the tastes of cigarettes repulsive and fatty foods unappetizing.
Of course, I love food. So here's a taste of my midsummer feast! (Prepared at home and shared only with the family because of a mysterious virus that is NOT the swine flu.)
Roasted potato and cheese pierogies with red onions, steamed asparagus, strawberries, cantaloupe and feta and spinach chicken sausage (I only serve meat on special occasions).
It's also my birthday and I got this food dehydrator from my kids/mom. My husband's gift is still pending delivery. The food dehydrator was a surprise as I've been dropping heavy hits for both a juicer and a pasta maker since before Christmas so I really am not sure what to do with it. I looked in the book and found a whole bunch of nifty and inspiring recipes only to find out that the majority of them required me to buy extra parts. My kids suggested that I try making raisins out of a batch of grapes I recently bought that weren't too exciting in the flavor department so that's going to be my experiment- and it may have been the inspiration for the dehydrator. So I washed the grapes, dried them, spread them on the trays- they don't fit on the trays very well, too plump, but they are light so they don't get smushed- and I plugged it in. It's loud. It sounds like a vacuum. Actually, it sounds like the popcorn popper. I keep thinking my popcorn is done and I better go get it before it burns. The book says it's going to take 10 to 32 hours. Well, it's white noise and it drowns out the traffic- almost. Stay tuned for more dehydrator experiments. I'm ordering more parts.
From Dawn's Reading List
Today's selection is Growing Up Pagan: A Workbook for Wiccan Families by Raine Hill. This is a visually attractive book with illustrations by Gillian Pearce. It is well laid out and a great deal of thought and love obviously went into it. But it confuses me. It begins with an explanation of the Goddess and God, the latter is described as originally being Cernunnos, later shortened to Herne and I'm not sure that's accurate- but I am not a Wiccan so I can't speak to their mythos and I'm not sure that historical accuracy matters when one is discussing mythos. After this explanation we find several Pagan stories, none of which a purist will appreciate involving Gods from 3 different cultures (I think) leaving me to wonder which of these are The Goddess and The God and how they relate, but I'm a hard polytheist and these sorts of things always confuse me and make me the subjects of friendly mockery. One of the stories I have never heard of, though I am familiari with all the characters, one is an adaptation of a well-known Celtic tale and the other a well-known Greek tale. The illustrations and explanations of symbols are really neat and there is space to practice drawing. Likewise after each section there is a word search and a crossword puzzle. I think this book will appeal to a broad age range, but perhaps not all at the same time. It's a book that parents and kids can come back to and look at again a few months or years later and find something new to appreciate. It's not a book to give a kid and leave alone though. We are, after all, Pagan and there are things in this book that caused me to raise my eyebrows as I know some Wiccans that would heartily disagree. But it wasn't meant to be used alone but as a learning and discussion tool for families. An extra nifty feature is that if you visit Ms Hill's website, at www.rainehill.com, you'll find more stuff to play with there.
Would I get this book for my kids? No. We're Hellenic hard polytheists. My kids would take one look at the retelling of the Greek myth and spend the rest of the day pointing out the inaccuracies because they cut their teeth on Homer. Besides, they're too old for it. I would, however, give this book to my girlfriend's kids. She is much more eclectic than I and she has kids ranging in age from 5 to 12. They will enjoy this book and I will take great pleasure in presenting them with it.
If you have a book you'd like me to review, contact me at dawn.black@gmail.com and we'll make it happen.
The Strawberry Moon
It's a magical life!
Coming soon... The Kitchen Witch Corner Pagan Podcast.
You know you want to listen. Stay tuned. I hope to be able to announce our first podcast by the start of the next lunar cycle.
In the News...
Alot of bloggers are commenting on the tragic murder of Doctor George Tiller who was one of the few health care practitioners in this country who still provided late term abortions.
Jason at the The Wild Hunt seems unwillingly drawn to discuss how abortion fits into the Pagan ethos and Starhawk calls the murder an act of terror against all women on On Faith while Crysalis feels moved to ponder the many twists and turns of sacred sexuality.
This is fitting and timely as June is Pagan Values Blogging Month. You should check out Witchmoot.com to see my own contributions and those of my partners, which may include some ponderings on abortion and Dr. Tiller in the future, but I don't think I'm ready yet.
On a more personal note...
I'm on Twitter and Facebook now. Not that I really understand the point of Twitter, but Facebook is fun.
And... my husband's band is competing for a spot on the Rothbury lineup. I really want to go to Rothbury, so vote for them! Please!
Lunar & Solar Events this Cycle
The Full Strawberry Moon in Sagittarius is Sunday, June 7th at 2:12pm
This is the time to connect to your higher purpose, the sun in Gemini supports communication of our wishes, dreams and goals to reach that purpose. Now is the time to reveal your plan for your life. To make spiritual and life reparations clear. That dream you've always had of doing that thing you never dared? Now is the time to sit down with everyone involved and make a plan- even if those people are just you and the Gods.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Monday, June 8th at 09:50am EST
The Moon enters Capricorn on Monday, June 8th at 4:00pm EST
Today's energy supports any sort of work to benefit your career success or improve male fertility.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Wednesday, June 10th at 11:30pm EST
The Moon enters Aquarius at 4:53am EST on Thursday, June 11th
This is a good time for dream work and to do work to remove any obstacles that may be interfering with the goals of any groups you support or are involved with.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Saturday, June 13th at 5:04pm EST
The Moon enters Pisces at 5:33pm EST on Saturday, June 13th
This is a good time for dream work, astral travel and journey work and also a good time to do work to support any endeavor that might take you outside your comfort zone.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Monday, June 15th at 9:17pm EST
The Moon enters Aries on Tuesday, June 16th at 352am EST
This is a good time to do any work related to breaking bad habits.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Thursday, June 18th at 5:35am EST
The Moon enters Taurus at 10:22am EST on Thursday, June 18th
This is a good time to do a spell to protect your home and cherished objects from theft.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Saturday June 20th at 8:02am EST
The Moon enters Gemini at 1:01pm EST on Saturday, June 20th
This is a good time to banish any obstacles to successful communication.
Summer Solstice 2009 is on June 21st at 1:45am EST
The Moon Goes Void of Course on Monday, June 22 at 8:20am EST
The Moon enters Cancer on Monday, June 22 at 1:13pm EST
The New Moon in Cancer is June 22, at 3:36pm EST
This is a great time to cast a spell to encourage family harmony and to bless your hearth.
Want to know where I get this information? Check out the article Magical Days for Spellcasting and consider getting yourself a magical almanac
Witch in the Garden
I'm celebrating the Strawberry Moon with a trip to my local U-pick berry farm. (Or I would, if they hadn't informed me when I called that there are no berries for me yet.) Find one near you at pickyourown.org and be sure to call them before you head out to make sure there are actually ripe strawberries to be picked.
In my garden? My perennial herbs are doing great. My thyme, chives and sage are blooming quite prettily. "They" tell me I'm supposed to clip off the blooms to keep the flavor, but I like them... and when I clip off leaves to go in the stew, I clip off flowers too. When adding flowers to your cooking, add them right at the end for best effect.
Witch in the Kitchen
The flavors of the season are delicious! There are so many uses for the strawberries that are so plentiful this time of year and no other and there's also nothing like fresh basil. I think pesto pasta salad tastes great with a side of brie-stuffed or yogurt-dipped strawberries and some smoked salmon. And strawberry rhubarb pie is a great take-along choice for summer picnics and Midsummer gatherings.
From Dawn's Reading List
I'm afraid I haven't been reading anything that would be of interest to the average Kitchen Witchi of late. I've been studying canine behavior for work and also for a possible book project I have brewing in the back of my mind. I am really enjoying the work of Stanly Coren. If you love dogs, check him out. I will get back in the swing of reading Pagan titles soon.
The Gemini Moon
It's a magical life!
So last episode I posted that the New Moon in Gemini occurred on Sunday, May 25th at 8:12am. That was wrong! It's Sunday, May 24th. Nobody called me on it but it wouldn't hurt my feelings if they did. I do enjoy comments, so please, comment!
Nothing exciting is going on around here, so onto the news!
Much ado about a harmless prank
As a Greek Orthodox church prepared to plant a community garden earlier this month they were "shocked" to discover their 1-acre plot had been vandalized. A pentagram had been cut into the lawn with a lawn mower. As far as vandalism goes, pretty harmless but boy what a hullabaloo over nothing! However, they will continue undaunted, as if a Pagan fertility symbol would daunt their efforts to plant a garden, and purify the land and carry on.
Vesuvius gives view of preChristian Rome
I am obsessed with Anthropology and Archaeology and I just love sites like Vesuvius. I had the opportunity to visit once and let me tell you, it cannot be described. You must go there. Unfortunately, a lot of what was there is no longer there. As this article points out, much of the site was stripped of anything valuable by collectors before the scientists got to it.
Obama ends Abstinence only Funding
Has pragmatism really come to Washington? Obama has done stuff I don't like, and stuff I like. I am not dancing with joy over his budget (I don't know that he is either) but I am glad that it seeks to end annoying and harmful programs like abstinence only sex education. In related news, his invitation to deliver the commencement speech at Notre Dame sent the Catholic pro-Life folks into a tizzy leading them to decide it was appropriate to interfere with one of the great milestones in the lives of thousands of students to show off pictures of aborted fetuses and otherwise display their complete lack of respect for everyone present. I'm all about free speech. But there is a time and a place. But I also get that I don't get it.
Another Council Ruckus
Dorchester County Council in South Carolina had a disagreement over whether to characterize America as a Christian Nation.
Faith and Healing
Here's a heartwarming story about a young cancer survivor and her family who is working to bring healing to others. Why am I including this in a Pagan blog? Because they happen to be Wiccan and use energetic and holistic healing methods.
Archaeologists Uncover Oldest Human Image
Archaeologists in Germany believe they have found the oldest man-made human figure. Of course she's a woman.
Gay Pagans?
A Q&A column out of Jacksonville, Florida asks the question, "Do Pagans think it's Okay to be Gay?" See what people had to say about it.
Lunar & Solar Events this Cycle
The New Moon in Gemini is on Sunday, May 24th at 8:12am EST
The new moon in Gemini reminds us of the power of words. All words are words of power, to heal and to harm. Today create a word of power or a mantra to repeat for the rest of this cycle to help manifest your dreams or write a letter to the editor or to your representatives in government expressing your opinions about a matter of importance to you.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Monday, May 25th at 9:17pm EST
The Moon enters Cancer at 2:59am EST on Tuesday, May 26th
This is a good time for home blessing and protection spells and for spells for healing hurts associated with family relationships.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Wednesday, May 27th at 11:06pm EST
The Moon enters Leo at 3:45am EST on Thursday, May 28th
This is a good time for any spells related to pets, livestock and familiars. Also spells to assure a good reception for a speech, theatrical performance or presentation.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Saturday, May 30th at 4:18am EST
The Moon enters Virgo at 6:18am EST on Saturday, May 30th
This is a great time to purchase, make, cleanse, bless and dedicate altars and altar tools. Any work related to health and ensuring that things are running smoothly at work and home is also supported during this period.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Monday, June 1st at 4:32am EST
The Moon enters Libra at 11:18am EST on June 1st
This is a good time for any activities related to legal matters, contracts (including marriages, leases, mortgages, etc.) and ensuring that justice is served.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Wednesday, June 3rd at 2:00pm EST
The Moon enters Scorpio at 6:44pm EST on Wednesday, June 3rd
This is a good time to cast spells related to courage and self-confidence, especially in relation to activities and decisions that will bring about major change in your life.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Friday, June 5th at 10:18pm EST
The Moon enters Sagittarius at 4:24am EST on Saturday, June 6th
This period supports work that relates to higher education, research and seeking spiritual truths.
The full Strawberry moon in Sagittarius is at 2:12pm on Sunday, June 7th
Witch in the Garden
If you're starting potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, onions, beets or other root crops this year, May 24th is the best day to get them started. Above ground crops can be started on the 27th or 28th of May or the 3rd or 5th of June. Leafy greens will get their best start on June 6th or 7th and this is also a good time for root vegetables, transplants and flower beds.
Visit my Garden by the Moon article for more information about selecting planting dates according to lunar considerations or make your life simple and get a copy of the The Old Farmer's Almanac 2009
Witch in the Kitchen
Spring colds have my kids coughing, sniffling and sneezing. Half my office is out with upper respiratory infections. It could be allergies, or the odious swine flu I keep hearing so much about. Who knows, who cares. I say just feed it. What to feed it? Chicken soup is good, but I'm a vegetarian. I feed it mushroom soup. Mushrooms are high in protein and minerals and stimulate the immune system. Portobella are easy to get and will do in a pinch, but shiitake and reishi are also readily available and pack a bigger healing punch.
From Dawn's Reading List
With the new movie Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince due to be released in July, we've been re-reading the book as well as re-viewing the movies in preparation.
I also read the book The Memory-Keeper's Daughter. It's about motherhood and Down Syndrome and the plight of the 60s housewife, civil rights and rights for the disabled. I liked it so much I recommended it to my husband, but even as I said it I realized he probably wouldn't get it. It's not so much well-written as touching in that way that any story about women overcoming nonsense thrown in their path is, even it it's corny. It's kind of like those mushy, heartwarming stories people forward in emails. But I liked it. I'm mushy.
I will eventually get back to reading Pagan and Occult themed books. You see, my recent move forced me to go through a ton of old books, some that were given to me in big boxes when other people moved, and I have discovered books I never knew I had and I must now read them through before I move on!
Welcoming the Flower Moon
It's a magical life!
Beltane was a hugely different affair this year now that I'm in a smaller house and don't have as much room to entertain. I think I am going to have to start taking advantage of others' hospitality and actually leaving my house on occasion. This will be a new adventure on my magical journey.
Of course my journey isn't as noteworthy as some other folks's.
Arthur Pendragon (Not the roundtable guy, the British Druid guy) has been sitting in at Stonehenge for the last 10 months protesting, among other things, the removal of remains buried there but now he's been ordered to pack up and leave. He says hell no, he won't go. He's a Pagan archaologist's nightmare but you have to admire his gumption.
In Mexico Santa Muerte has been getting a lot of hassle from the government who links her to drug trafficking. I'm not in Mexico, so I can't comment too much but I will say that I don't agree with any government crack down on any religious group. It can only bring trouble, besides being fundamentally wrong. There has been some speculation on the message boards that the swine flu and Mexico's earth quake might have been Santa Muerta's response to this. I'm not speculating, just saying that it's being done.
Awhile ago I took note of the demise of the First Church of Wicca. But it's not over, oh no. Apparently these folks can't get enough publicity and are in the news again. Nothing exciting. Just talking about how great it is to be all converted and stuff.
Midwestern US Pagans have something new to take note of. Balefire Magazine just released their first quarterly issue (for Beltane). The magazine is targeted specifically toward the Midwest Pagan audience.
Heathen members of the military and their families should take note of a new Asatru military family support program called the Hammer Project. One of their primary goals is to get Thor's Hammer (Mjolnir) approved for use on government provided headstones for Asatru veterans.
Lunar & Solar Events this Cycle
Saturday May 9th at 12:02 am is the Full Flower Moon in Scorpio
This is a great time to transplant your starts outdoors for strong root growth. Check your last frost date to be sure!
Try spells for transformation, healing trust issues in relationships, play a game of truth or dare with lovers or close friends. If you've got a secret that's been hidden away for too long, now is the time to come out with it. Feel free to perform spell work to have it be well received by those you reveal it to.
The moon goes Void of Course at 2:48pm EST today
The moon enters Sagittarius at 9:50pm
Break down barriers to academic success. Confirm your intention to succeed.
Sunday May 10th: Mother's Day
Celebrate your mother, or celebrate Mother Earth
The moon goes Void of Course at 1:55am EST on Tuesday May 12
The moon enters Capricorn at 9:10am EST on Tuesday, May 12
Banish barriers to reaching your career goals.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Thursday, May 14th at 8:58pm
The Moon enters Aquarius at 10:02pm EST
Dream work. Practice lucid dreaming.
The Moon goes Void of Course on Sunday, May 17th at 6:40am EST
The Moon enters Pisces at 10:18 am on Sunday, May 17th
A good time to Journey.
The moon goes Void of Course on Tuesday May 19th at 5;43pm
The Moon enters Ares at 7:31pm EST
This is a good time to break bad habits.
The Sun Enters Gemini on Wednesday May 20th at 5:51pm
The Moon goes Void of Course on Thursday, May 21st at 6:36pm
The Moon enters Taurus on Friday, May 22 at 12:41pm
This is a good time to work on building new habits, such as starting a new diet/exercise program.
The Moon goes Void of course on Saturday, May 23rd at 8:48pm EST
The Moon enters Gemini on Sunday May 25th at 2:35am
Now's the time to increase the buzz about your company or project.
The New Moon in Gemini is at 8:12am EST
The new moon in Gemini reminds us of the power of words. All words are words of power, to heal and to harm. Today create a word of power or a mantra to repeat for the rest of this cycle to help manifest your dreams or write a letter to the editor or to your representatives in government expressing your opinions about a matter of importance to you.
Witch in the Garden
I've spent a good deal of time weeding over the past few weeks as lots of uninvited volunteers are living in the flowerbeds at the new house. Most of these offenders are dandelions, of course. Those cheerful yellow balls of sunshine that irk gardener and lawn lover alike aren't completely useless. In fact, their tender green leaves taste great in salads this time of year and make a great spring tonic food. You should be gathering their yellow flower heads as soon as they spring into action for dandelion punch and dandelion wine.
For more tasty and magical surprises in your back yard by visiting my herb page.
When you're gathering wild food, it's best to gather from areas at least 50 feet from roadways to ensure you're not eating road pollution!
Witch in the Kitchen
For the flower moon the kitchen and the garden are overlapping and it won't be the first time or the last! Why not take some time to explore edible flowers. Pansies and violets are blooming now and they make delightful additions to your springtime recipes. Consider candying them and using them to decorate cakes, cookies and cupcakes. I used candied pansies to decorate my wedding cake and they were a big hit! Tasted great too.
Some more edible flowers worth exploring are nasturtium, borage, roses, chive blossoms, daylilies, lavender, and squash blossoms.
From Dawn's Reading List
I haven't got much for you right now. Oh I've been reading, but mostly about dog training. If you'd like to check out a dry, scientific look at dog training (which absolutely fascinates me) check out How to Behave So Your Dog Behaves
My husband and I took the kids to the movies this weekend and saw Coraline based on the book Coraline
Spring is Really Here!
It's a magical life!
So many changes going on at my house! I have been accepted as the Metro Detroit Dog Examiner (different name, don't be confused, still me!). This marks my first official paid writing gig. Since my move I feel ready to make even bigger changes in my life and I'm searching for a new job. I'm ready to get out of the office and starti doing more meaningful, hands-on work. Please send energy to help me with this goal!
Now that we're settled into our new home, I plan to put more focus into my various online endeavors. I have several. If you like this one, check out the others:
http://www.witchmoot.com
http://www.motorcitypagans.net
http://www.witchipedia.com
Lunar & Solar Events this Cycle
New Moon in Taurus occurs at 11:24pm EST on Friday April 24th
This is good time to prepare your garden for planting with a garden blessing ritual or to set up or rededicate your garden altar. It is also, a great time to begin a new business venture or start a new job! You may also wish to use this energy for protection spells or those related to strengthening that you hope to grow in the future.
The moon goes void of course at 11:41am EST on Sunday April 26th
The moon enters Gemini at 5:02pm EST on Sunday April 26th
Today's energy supports communication, artistic and intellectual pursuits. Apply to colleges, auditions, spells to increase awareness of business. Website traffic spell. Study for finals or write that term paper and cast a spell to have it be well-received. If you are an author sending out manuscripts, you can work magic today to have those be well received.
Good time for planting beans, corn, tomatoes, peppers and other above ground crops.
The moon goes void of course at 12:22pm on Tuesday, April 28th.
The Moon enters Cancer at 5:39pm EST on Tuesday, April 28th
This is a good time for psychic work, cleansing, purification spells, dedication and protection of the home and also pets. Also creative pursuits, breaking hexes, and banishing negativity from the home.
Plant!
The moon goes void of course at 12:45pm on Thursday, April 30th
The moon enters Leo at 8:57pm EST on Thursday, April 30th
This is a good time for magical work related to leadership, strength, and binding spells. Consider casting a spell to encourage your boss to give you a promotion.
Plant above ground crops and flower beds.
Beltane May first
Plant above ground crops, okra, beans, peppers, eggplant, tomatoes and flowers.
The moon goes void of course at 6:08pm EST on Saturday, May 2nd.
The moon enters Virgo on Sunday, May 3rd at 12:37am EST.
Another good sign for doing spell work to support your job search, get a raise or promotion and improve financial situation. Spell work to support self-improvement, such as starting a diet or exercise program or developing a good habit, such as being more organized.
A good time to get rid of weeds and pests. I will be washing to scale off my poor cherry tree!
The moon goes void of course at 9:30pm EST on Monday, May 4th
The moon enters Libra at 5:52am EST on Tuesday, May 5th.
This is a good time to do magic together as a couple. Also to enter contracts and to do spells relating to legal issues and court cases.
The moon goes void of course at 6:00am EST on Thursday, May 7th
The moon enters Scorpio at 12:49pm on Thursday, May 7th
This is a good time for psychic and dream work and protection spells as well as a good time to plant above ground crops, grains and flowers.
Full Flower Moon in Scorpio, Saturday, May 9th at 12:02am EST
To see how I make these determinations, please visit my article Magical Days for Spellcasting.
Witch in the Garden
I started my seeds (late!) in homemade containers made of egg cartons. I hope this works out well. It will be my first foray into container gardening and I'm pretty good at killing houseplants. I got my seeds from Seed Savers. Some seeds that need to be started early are tomatoes, tomatilloes, eggplant, okra, peppers and birdhouse gourds. I just happen to have written articles about most of those in the herblore section.
I've also joined The Mulch which looks like it wants to be a social networking site for gardeners. The tools there will serve as my gardening diary and it should be educational and interesting anyway. It seems like a great idea though they're a little slow and clumsy now, but they're new so I forgive them. If you'd like to join too, you should be my friend. I go by Morningbird.
Witch in the Kitchen
Check out this great recipe for Beltane Bannocks from A Kitchen Witch's Cookbook by Patricia Telesco. (pg 55)
Ingredients
2 cups hot milk
1 1/2 cups instant oatmeal
1 egg
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp grated orangei peel
1 tbsp chopped almonds
Directions
Pour the milk over the oatmeal in a large bowl and let it sit for 10 minutes to soften.
Beat in the egg, baking soda, orange peel and almonds until the consistancy is like a thick pancake batter. Heat a griddle over a moderate flame and grease it. Pour a bit of the batter onto the griddle and cook. Flip after bubbles form and cook the other side. Serve with butter and honey.
From Dawn's Reading List
What am I reading? Don't Know Much About History: Everything You Need to Know About American History but Never Learned . I highly recommend it to the home schoolers, not so much as a textbook but as a sort of curriculum guide. It makes me sad to realize that America has always been screwed up and corrupt so it makes me feel kind of hopeless. My husband on the other hand says it makes him feel better to know we've just been keeping with the status quo as long as the two of us have been around to pay attention. It's nice to think about that utopian past though, isn't it? Well, this book will crush that to bits. He recommends I read A People's History of the United States: 1492 to Present next. He says it'll make me feel better. We'll see.
Much nicer things can be found over at my friend Heather's Barefoot Books site. Check it out if you've got little ones.
