Sweden for the new year

Well, we're off!

Tomorrow morning we fly to Goteberg, Sweden, to visit an old friend of mine and spend the New Year there with her family.

I've been informed that there's a nice Viking museum there, so I'm dragging hubby. Woot!

Have a nice one, and talk to you on Tuesday!

Making your own reality

Ah, holiday. Doncha love it?

We've decided that I move to DH in March. This is considerably earlier than we planned. My little witch's heart is thumping madly.

I've been working up to a total freelance status since a year ago. I started out in Jan 2006 contacting, got my first big job in May, quit the old job to go parttime in October, and now, in March, will quit the parttime job and go freelance.

I'm terrified. ;)

I think I'm doing okay...I'm calling, and emailing, and making as many contacts as I can. I have a plan for 2007, I've got goals, and I'm looking into how I can integrate my witchyness in.

I've empowered a nice power candle with a rune, surrounded it with stones that bring luck and money, and have used my "intent" to get ready.

I realize it's all about intention, and will, in anything you do, and that you yourself make your own reality.

I also realize right now I'm rambling, but it's just 'cause I'm terrified. I want it to work so badly, and Leipzig isn't the sort of place that needs a lot of English speaker/writers, if I flub up.

Such a big step! We just decided yesterday, and I've been all a-flutter since.

Be still, my heart.

(What have I gotten myself into? PANIC!!)

Have you ever??

I had a weird experience last night I've just got to say something about, but first, let me give a little backstory.

I've always seen things out of the corner of my eye. I've asked the doctor about it (trying to get that rational explanation B.H. - Before Heathen) but he just went into a Cones/Rods discussion while rolling *his* eyes the whole time. So I just gave up on the whole thing and let the things continue shadowing in and out.

The past two years its been getting stronger and stronger. Always going very fast, but sometimes I can make out shapes, and it eats at me. Why can't I see the full thing?

A.H. (After Heathen) I've been looking into it, and discovered the faery clause...that those little slips are faeries living in your house, or visiting you. There are entire websites out there specifically advising how to contact faeries, if you're the type to want to do that.

I wondered if this might have something to do with it, so I decided to run a test. I set up a little saucer on the windowsill with brown sugar on it. I also put a candle by it (out of beeswax strips I had purchased at the Weihnachtsmarkt and made myself-they smell wonderful and are very cheery and bright looking. It seemed like a good idea). The windowsill in the kitchen is the one place that the Cat never goes (as it's rather cold in the kitchen and his food is on the table, so why bother with the windowsill?) so I decided to put it there.

A good neutral place for an attempted faery-contact, so to say. I set it up about a week ago, and left it be.

Last night I was preparing for the parents in law Christmas celebration (they don't mind me being what I am, but Christmas still goes down) and was in the bathroom talking to the Cat. He has a seat in there, and was meowing back at me, when I saw the darndest thing out of the corner of my eye...

Some little thing sauntered very casually across the doorway, heading from the living room to the kitchen. I have the distinct feeling he was a he, and he was a little nut-brown thing, two legs, and he was naked (I didn't see any clothes or any gross bits). At least a foot tall. Totally sauntering, no other word would describe it.

But so slowly! It was so SLOW! I looked down at the cat, and he had whipped his head to look at the doorway, although he didn't get up and go towards it. (They must have some sort of agreement).

I was so excited. I let him have some time (until I had finished getting ready) and then the Cat and I went into the kitchen. Of course this little man wasn't there, but the SUGAR was moved all around and some was missing.

I had always made the sugar very smooth in the mornings, and while sometimes the candle was knocked over this week, the sugar hadn't been moved around. Until last night. It wasn't the Cat, it wasn't me, and it wasn't the DH (he wouldn't mess with me about something like that). Certainly wasn't the boy-dog.

I'm convinced it was my little faery. Man, we've got faeries in the building! I'm going to keep his sugar in there (these people recommend changing the little gift every day, who am I to argue) and see how much farther I can get. Maybe I can talk to him, too! Who knows?

What do you think? I'd love to know...

This site (I have more) advise you to set up something that the faery would like and how to go about contacting them on your own. (FYI they advise against alcohol, which I wouldn't do anyway).

This site explains the Cones/Rods thing.

Even the Germans are doing it

I was wished a happy holidays today: "Schöne Feiertagen", instead of Merry Christmas. I about fell over, but it was cool! Nice calm holiday wishes are vastly preferable to hyperventilating randomness.

I also saw at Little Heathen Fox a great (so sad yet so true) well-wish for the holidays. Go check it out, it's absolutely fabulous. But sad, that we've all come to this.

Weihnachtsmarkts and Yule tide

Hoping you all had a nice yule, or winter solstice.

Last night I met a friend at the weihnachtsmarkt, or christmas market. I thought it was a good way to begin my Yule evening, as the Cat didn't want to go outside and the DH was out of town.

Every year, most all cities in germany have a weihnachtsmarkt, which is typically located in the city center. It's an old tradition; the Dresden weihnachtsmarkt started in 1434; nuerenberg in the early 1600s. Everybody gets together and has weihnachtsmarkt goodies, including:

- glühwein - a hot, mulled wine with herbs, sugar, and orange juice added. For those extra alcoholic types, a slug of brandy or amaretto can be added, but be warned - it kicks hard. (Personal experience)
- mandeln - absolute bliss, and my personal favourite. sugar and cinnamon coated almonds, roasted until the coating is hard, and purchased by the 100, 200 or 500 gm sack. Bliss.
- crepes - although french, the crepe is a german favourite. the cinnamon and sugar one is the basic, but always a goodie; the husband goes for the nutella (a chocolate spread here) and banana inside.

and other things, including dried eels (quite the specialty but UGH how gross), candy, and lebkuchen (gingerbread to wear, not eat).

The interesting thing I noticed last night about the Weihnachtsmarkt was almost the complete absence of any Christmas-related articles. Most every stall (each dolled up, about the size of a garden house, for those wondering) contained crafts. Like carved wooden things, paintings, etc. However, rock stalls (my personal favourite), paranormal stalls and country-specific stalls reigned (like Tibet stalls, we had a couple of those).

It was perfectly logical for a Heathen and a Shinto to walk around, gobbling up Holland french fries with toppings (called Pommes here) and drinking hot chocolate with slugs of amaretto (yummmmy). We haunted all the rock stalls and I found two good-sized hunks of rose quartz, one for me and one for the DH. I found some others, too, that I'll get tonight.

I wanted my first Yule evening to be filled with darkness, laughter, and fun. We had a great time. It was a fitting start, I think. I then came home and lit my little "Yule log" - with the help of the Cat - and was content. Tonight I cook my after-Yule potato soup for everyone - the dogs, the Cat, the parents in law, and me. We'll all eat by candlelight, and enjoy the shorter night.

The Witch's Cat

The Cat started out purely as a friend for the dog. We live in Germany, and multiple dog ownership is quite expensive over here, complete with taxes and insurancs and stuff. The DH (darling husband) is allergic to cat hair, but really, a cat would be the only other thing the boy-dog might interact with.

We have a sighthound that has followed me around world-wide...he's now seven. A sighthound likes to hunt normally, but I figured as he's so easy-going that he'd accept a cat in the house.

So I looked at the hairless cats. It was quite a struggle, getting the husband to agree to it (he's not so animal-bound as I, and he thought they looked like aliens) but I got it done. The Cat came to join us in October of this year.

Shortly after he came, we moved back to the city of the parents, as the husband works in another city during the week. I wanted some humans around that I knew, they had a flat available, so we moved me, the boy-dog, the Cat and all our stuff there. What is the result of my little interspecies experiment?

1. the boy-dog spends all day downstairs with his son and plays exclusively with that dog (grr)

2. the Cat and boy-dog(s) play together grudgingly, if at all,

3. the DH is enamoured with the cat (going so far as to give him kisses in between his ears when he holds him -- KISSES!)

and

4. the Cat is mine, body and soul.

This wasn't the original plan...I had wanted him for my husband, as I thought he would really like to have an animal around that came in our house as "our" animal (the boy-dog was with me before) that he could really bond to. He's (DH) totally bonded, but for some reason, the cat didn't bond back.

He is where I'm at, all the time, sleeps on my neck at night, wakes me up in the mornings for his breakfast, helps me cook, helps me clean (help being used quite loosely here), tells me his opinion on everything I do, goes for walks with me, sleeps in his bed on the computer table when I'm writing, works with the charms I do (is *quite* the interested bystander there, I must say) and is just generally all. my. boy.

For my part, I've had dogs my entire life (with one cat in there that died of Fel Luk) and have never experienced this kind of connection to an animal. When I say with me all the time, I mean it. It's absolutely bizarre. The dog acts like a cat (he can sleep all day, and doesn't bother to come by and say hi, he knows he's getting his food) but the cat is different.

He hangs out with me -- he seems genuinely interested in what I'm doing. Like I said, crazy. I realize part of it is that he's a Sphynx. They are some kind of totally outgoing cat, but man, he's STILL a cat! Everyone forgot to tell him that.

My husband cemented the relationship when he called him my "witch's cat". Then a seer I consulted said the Cat was a guide for me in this life. Iiiiinteresting. The Cat also helped cement a certain issue I'd been having...the fact of coming out and admitting I was a pagan-type to myself, in earnest, instead of letting it sit on the back burner. He was somewhat of a catalyst, so to say.

As I write this now, he sleeps under his cover right by the monitor, passed out.

My little witch's cat.


(Helping me cook recently, sleeping under the kitchen towel).

My chart

Inspired by **, I went to Cafe Astrology.com and did my natal chart. Must say, I've never done that before. Generally, TW tend to frown upon chakras, astrology, etc., but hey, I'm a little eclectic.

It's bizarre... Here is my dealy:

Zodiac in degrees 0.00				Placidus Orb:0
Sun	Taurus	29.33		Ascendant	Scorpio	2.31
Moon	Taurus	17.50		II	Sagittarius	1.12
Mercury	Gemini	17.06		III	Capricorn	3.10
Venus	Aries	18.09		IV	Aquarius	7.12
Mars	Cancer	18.24		V	Pisces	9.59
Jupiter	Pisces	14.26		VI	Aries	8.38
Saturn	Cancer	3.15		VII	Taurus	2.31
Uranus	Libra	24.22 R		VIII	Gemini	1.12
Neptune	Sagittarius	8.29 R		IX	Cancer	3.10
Pluto	Libra	4.14 R		Midheaven	Leo	7.12
Lilith	Aquarius	1.00		XI	Virgo	9.59
Asc node	Sagittarius	19.27		XII	Libra	8.38

Evidently I'm a Scorpio rising, which sounds quite deadly. Although some interesting aspects did jump out and hit me on the kopf, so to say:

You either love or hate Scorpio rising people— they are rarely people who go through life unnoticed. In fact, some of them are confused when faced with the fact that they get such strong reactions from others.

*** I must say, growing up as I did, people were not a part of my daily interactions. (I grew up on a farm with extremely distant and disapproving parent figures). So I now (that I'm back in the human fold, so to say) sometimes find humans absolutely baffling. I just don't get them. Compound the fact that I'm relearning human interaction in Germany (land of the nutters) and you see why I'm always stumbling in this regard.

They seem to look right through people, seeing through superficiality. Scorpio rising people, in their dealings with others, look for answers by reading between the lines.

*** For a long time, I looked the other way with any human I encountered. Meeting the DH (Darling Husband) forced me to open myself out to the world again, and I have learned to trust my instincts now to determine whether I want to deal with a person or not. It's pretty instantaneous, but I'm still learning how to do it.

Scorpio rising people value their privacy so much, it can border on paranoia.

*** This is perhaps the most truthful and "me" of all the statements under this house...I am an intensely private person, bordering on painfully private, you might say.

So why the blog? LOL Well I don't know you, you don't know me, and this is just a lurvely way to get things out in the open!

Inspired

A random mix, but my first blog! Woot!

I've long been considering keeping a blog, something of myself, and decided to finally do it after I had finally committed (and admitted) myself as a traditional/green witch.

Not wicca, for those of you wondering. More Druidic, but a traditional/green witch is someone completely different.

So, without further ado, we go on.