The Cauldron Farm Update

There is no "Asphodel Farm"

2008-03-28T18:44:30Z

There is no "Asphodel Farm". I understand that some people don't pay attention to the distinctions between people and entities, but I feel compelled to address the issue again since this error recently appeared in the Pomegranate, a Pagan academic-type journal. (If you have any other comments about the article, please don't post them here. Not even obliquely. Thank you.)

But just for the record...

Cauldron Farm is the name of a small hobby farm in Central MA owned by Raven Kaldera, his daughter Jess, and his wife Bella. Jess does not live here - she has moved to Philly with her new husband, but she still owns a share of the property. I am Raven's partner, Joshua, and I live at Cauldron Farm. Our friends Julie and Elizabeth also live here. Elizabeth and Raven are Northern Tradition - the rest of us are not. Sometimes people visit and stay in our guest room or camp in our back woods. Cauldron Farm hosts a variety of religious and secular camping events, retreats, and gatherings. The public events on the Cauldron Farm website are clearly marked as Asphodel events or not. There are also private events which are not associated with Asphodel and not listed on the website.

Asphodel is an eclectic Pagan church run by Raven and a church council. Its full legal name is the First Kingdom Church of Asphodel, but it is also called the Kingdom of Asphodel. Brigantia is Asphodel's educational group. Most of Asphodel's events happen at Cauldron Farm. Asphodel has about eighty members. Only five of them live at Cauldron Farm, and Raven is the only council member that lives here. Asphodel is not a Northern Tradition group. I've not done a census of this, but I'd guess no more than ten of Asphodel's members are some sort of Northern Tradition.

Iron Wood Kindred is a Northern Tradition religious group run by Elizabeth, not Raven or Galina. Elizabeth is a fine gydja in her own right. She does a great deal for her kindred members and others in the community. If Raven or Galina wanted to run a Northern Tradition kindred, they'd do it themselves and not stand behind some puppet leader. Iron Wood Kindred hosts EtinMoot at Cauldron Farm, and other occasional events.

-- Joshua

Happy Ostara!

2008-03-23T17:11:00Z

Thank you everyone who came to Asphodel's Ostara ritual. It went off beautifully. It was the first Asphodel ritual run by Elizabeth ignited_spark and she did great. (Especially considering she was mildly concussed from a pre-ritual fall - what a trooper! Yeah Elizabeth!)

Ostara is traditionally a rough time of year for people's health, and both Galina and Ruth were unable to attend due to illness. (Galina's own, Ruth's daughter's.) Christine was Ruth's understudy, and Alex was Galina's, and they both did very well. We had a brand new baby lamb who attended the ritual and participated in all the right places. ("Hail Demeter!" "baaah!" "Hail Persephone!" "baah!")

We started with the egg ritual we do every year. Why eggs? At this time of year our chickens are very excited about the longer days and warmer weather, so instead of their winter production levels of a few eggs a day, they are laying more than a dozen. We jump fairly suddenly from having to save up eggs to make a custard, to making omelettes every day and worrying about what we will do with all the extras.

So before the Ostara ritual each year, we take colored blown eggs and write wishes on them for this next segment of the year. They are hung on a tree by the road as messages to the gods. Then, continuing a new tradition started by Ruth and Cassandra, there is a short egg hunt for plastic eggs with messages and candy in them. This gives the gods the chance to send us a message in return.

We went down to the field for the main part of the ritual, where after the invocations were read, people took baskets of bread and eggs and milk to the corners of the field and buried them as offerings to the land. We planted seeds in little cups (to take home) or flats (to leave at the farm) asking that our hopes for the spring grow with these little seedlings.

The choir - despite illness - did one of the best renditions of the Ostara chant ever. (That is the "Breath warms thee"/"We are rising upwards towards the sun" chant.) We rock. Gold stars for all of us.

Potluck was glorious as always. There was much fruit and bread, and a really tasty kamut dish from Nahi. Wil brought mead. Someone brought piles of candy. Alex receives the Thematic Potluck Award for "dirt cake" - with smashed cookies and whipped cream and gummy worms - for being both a childhood favorite and wonderfully seasonal. Lyle melted chocolate which guests liberally applied to nearly every other potluck item. Ken took pictures of many people's eyes. Raven debuted his bardic divination, where people pick a tarot card and he sings them a song off a list. BC Dave sent his regards post-ritual. He wanted to attend with a friend of his, but was unable.

After ritual Elizabeth ran the first Hestia guild planning meeting. This is a group that meets to explore the "domestic arts" - baking, soapmaking, basketweaving, etc. Our first real meeting will be on Sunday April 20th at 2pm. I'll lead folks in making bread (probably a standard yeasted whole wheat bread by the Tasahara method, and perhaps a sweet Finnish coffee bread). While the bread is rising/baking, we'll make some soup and watch "Eat, Drink, Man, Woman" or some other food-related movie. Interested people should RVSP to Elizabeth. Wear clothes you don't mind getting flour all over, and bring something to put in the soup. (There is no charge for the meeting.)

After that, I held my "Remedial Astronomy for Pagans" class, which went very well.

Thank you again, everyone who attended, and I look forward to seeing you all at Beltane or sooner!

-- Joshua

We are seeking a happy couple to be our Green Man & May Queen!

2008-03-07T06:39:21Z

Asphodel's Beltane gathering is Friday May 2nd to Sunday May 4th. Every year, we ask a different couple to be our Green Man and May Queen. This is a powerful act of magic, and we place certain restrictions on who may take on these roles. Unfortunately, those restrictions exclude most of our members so every year we recruit a new Green Man and May Queen for our Maypole ritual.

The Green Man and May Queen must be:

A happy couple. You needn't have any formal or legally binding commitment between you, but you must be in a loving and mutually fulfilling romantic relationship. You do not need to be monogamous, but only one May Queen and one Green Man will be in the ritual.
Male & Female. You needn't be heterosexual, but the Green Man must be biologically male and content in the male role, and the May Queen must be biologically female and content in the female role. We love, honor and celebrate people of all gender expressions and sexual orientations, and welcome their participation in many ways, but we can not be flexible on this point.
Fertile. You needn't be trying to get pregnant, but you must have the theoretical potential of creating children between you at some point in time. Birth control (including long term hormonal birth control) is fine, but irreversible sterilization is not. The May Queen may not be infertile or past menopause. The Green Man may not be sterile or impotent. Neither may have a deep and abiding aversion to children or childbearing.
Adult. For religious reasons, both must be past puberty. For legal reasons, both must be past 18 years of age.
Willing to have sex. We ask that the Green Man and May Queen have sex with each other sometime after the ritual, in the privacy of their own tent. We'll take your word for it. There will be no audience of any kind and it need not follow any special ritual format, but it ought to include the sort of activity that has the theoretical potential for making babies. If they do not wish to get pregnant, we strongly encourage the careful use of reliable birth control, as we have found that this ritual can be strong fertility magic. If they do wish to get pregnant, we offer them the highest blessings!
Pagan. Under a fairly loose definition of Pagan. We do not care how much experience you have or what tradition you follow, or if you follow any specific tradition at all. This could well be the first public ritual you've ever attended. All we ask is that both of you have some real belief in the power of the ritual, and take the roles seriously.
In the Ritual. Sounds obvious, but the Green Man & May Queen must be able to give us a firm commitment to actually show up, on time, on Saturday May 3rd for the afternoon Maypole ritual and the preceding activities. They do not have a speaking part, unless they want one. One of them simply chases the other around the Maypole. It doesn't matter who chases who, so long as someone gets caught!
New. We try to have a new couple every year, so at this time we will not consider a couple who has already done this role at one of our previous Beltane gatherings. We will consider couples where one person has participated with a different partner.

That is it! You can wear whatever you like, within reason, or we can provide you with something suitable. You get free admission to the event. You do not need to stay for the entire weekend, only for Saturday morning & afternoon. You do not need to be a member of Asphodel or have previously attended our events. If this sounds like something you would like to do, please contact Raven at cauldronfarm@hotmail.com or call 978-928-4198.

-- Joshua

Recipe - Somewhat Thai-like Chicken and Mushrooms

2008-02-27T14:07:06Z

Put a bowl full of dried shiitake mushrooms in water to soak.

Cut 4 chicken thighs into 1-inch cubes and put in a medium to large casserole dish.

Slice a good number of carrots long ways (into thin planks), then across bias-wise, so you have flat diamond or parallelogram shapes. (There must be a culinary term for this shape.) Add to casserole dish along with a few cups of frozen peas. Squeeze out and slice the mushrooms, and add them as well.

In a bowl, mix one can coconut milk with some of the mushroom water. Season to your liking with curry powder, ground sichuan peppercorns, Thai fish sauce, and bullion or soup base. Add salt if it needs it.

Cover chicken and vegetables with sauce. Bake covered at 350 for 45 minutes. Serve over rice.

-- Joshua

Iron Wood Kindred does what!?

2008-02-26T02:49:54Z

This message showed up in Raven's inbox today, and is too surreal not to share.

"I also found out the funniest thing ever about what mainstream Heathens are saying about a certain northern tradition/pagan subculture based out of central mass. I should clarify that she thought it was total bullshit, but had to ask due to morbid curiosity. I sprayed coffee 5 feet laughing. It seems in order to acquire Odian essence, all the wimmin-folk strap on dildoes and fornicate with tree branches while the men put on frilly dresses and chant the ansuz rune in a circle while jacking off, literally 'spreading the seed of knowledge' in honor of the nine nights that Grimnir hung on Yggdrasil."

Um... Sounds like a good time and all, but where on earth did they get that story from? They must have heard about it at the last Gay Lokean BDSM Sex Orgy.

Perhaps mainline Heathens don't find our actual beliefs and practices sufficiently objectionable, and feel the need to embroider a bit.

-- Joshua

Hooray for Independent Pagan Publishing!

2008-02-21T20:22:04Z

We just got a copy of Written in Wine: A Devotional Anthology for Dionysos by Bibliotheca Alexandrina. I am absolutely delighted to see so many people doing devotionals and other print-on-demand/small-run Pagan books. One of the biggest gripes you hear in the Pagan community is the lack of advanced/specialized books, but the publishers are limited by market forces. They can't publish a book that is only going to sell a thousand copies. But now, with the easy availability of print-on-demand presses like Lulu and Create Space, people can stop with the moaning about how evil Llewellyn is and put out the information they think needs to be out there. Be the change you wish to see in the world, right? Raven and I are putting together a workshop for Free Spirit on how to put out your own POD books. Heck, if you've got $10 and something to say, you can be on Amazon.

Anyway, I just want to say people like Laure Lynch and the Neos Alexandria folks and Timothy Jay Alexander give me so much faith that Pagans and Recons of all types can build something real and share it with the world. I've been sparkling all day over this.

I was wondering if folks could comment here or otherwise contact me about other Pagan print-on-demand publishers/authors, because I'd love to put a listing of them up on our website.

-- Joshua, off to do his happy dance...

Why Full Fathom Five is marked as $60.

2008-02-17T21:40:46Z

It isn't likely that anyone had noticed, but the retail price of Full Fathom Five is now $60. This irritates me. While it is a very nice book, I don't quite think it is $60 worth of nice. As far as Asphodel Press is concerned, the book is still $35. It costs $30 to print it, and $5 goes to the Big Sur Land Trust.

But to be made available to major retailers like Amazon, books must have a large retail distribution markup applied to them. This usually works out to twice the printing cost. For small black & white books, this isn't a problem, but a larger or full-color print-on-demand book is quite expensive.* That is why we sell those ones directly.

Incidentally, Lulu's pricing policy also means that if you purchase any Asphodel Press books through Lulu (rather than Amazon or another retailer) a much larger percentage of the money goes to the author or the charity in question. In the case of Full Fathom Five, my rough estimates of the financial breakdown is this...

Buy from Amazon: You pay $60 + S&H. The printer gets $30. Amazon gets $20. Lulu gets $5. Big Sur gets $5.
Buy from Lulu: You pay $60 + S&H. The printer gets $30. Amazon gets nothing. Lulu gets $5. Big Sur gets $25.
Buy from us directly: You pay $35 + S&H. The printer gets $30. Amazon and Lulu get nothing. Big Sur gets $5.
Buy from us via Amazon's "New & Used" section: You pay $40 + S&H. The printer gets $30. Amazon gets $5. Lulu gets nothing. Big Sur gets $5.

With books that have a low printing cost or are not marked for retail distribution, the retail distribution charge is close to our shipping and fulfillment costs. That is why we don't stock them.

-- Joshua

*We've been patiently waiting for the cost of POD color printing to come down so we can release print copies of Earthbound. Presently, I think the print cost alone is around $75 per book. It is a big book.

Mayo recipe

2008-02-07T00:49:07Z

I think I've posted my homemade mayonnaise recipe before, but someone asked for it, so here it is again.

Mayonnaise is just oil that has been emulsified with egg and flavorings. First thing, you need eggs you are comfortable with eating raw. Some people are very wary of raw egg. I have recklessly been eating raw cookie dough and over-easy eggs long before I had my own chickens, so I don't worry about it. There are ways to make mayonnaise with cooked egg yolk and this recipe might work with some sort of pasteurized egg product, but I really can't speak to that. You also need one of those hand held stick-blenders. (I used to do this with a whisk, and I've done it with a regular blender, but the stick-blender is fastest and most reliable. Besides, it means you can make it in the mayo jar. How cool is that!?)

So, my recipe for raw-egg mayo... crack an egg into a jar which the stick-blender will fit into. Something wide-mouthed and straight-sided that holds 2-3 cups is ideal. Add a teaspoon each of mustard powder, sugar or honey, and salt. I also like to add some white pepper (because black leaves speckles in the mayo) and sometimes I'll add lots of garlic. Add 1/4 cup of whatever oil you'll be using. Extra virgin olive oil makes a richly flavored mayo with a greenish tint. Canola oil makes a very neutral pale mayonnaise that other folks might prefer.

Blend this well with the stick blender, and gradually add more oil. Drizzle in a bit, blend well, drizzle a bit, blend... Add it too fast and you make runny mayo, so don't rush. No more than a teaspoon of oil at a time. You can add about a cup of oil in this manner before the mayo "breaks" and becomes hopelessly runny, but you don't need to measure it out if you know how big your jar is. About halfway through the oil-adding process, add 3 tablespoons of lemon juice, or somewhat less vinegar. A dark balsamic vinegar will give a strongly flavored mayo that some might like, and standard white vinegar will give a more neutral flavor. You can vary the proportions of ingredients to suit different tastes. It is very flexible. Fancy flavored vinegars and oils are quite nice, and you can add all manner of herbs.

Done right, you should be able to stand a butter knife up in the mayonnaise once it is chilled. (Warm it will be softer.) If your mayo is very thin, you can either add some more vinegar and herbs and call it salad dressing, or start again with an egg in a jar, gradually blending in the runny mayo the same way you added the oil the first time.

This can be done in a traditional blender, but it is a pain because the thick mayo needs to be continually pushed down. A cheap stick blender costs $15, and is well worth it.

-- Joshua

Broccoli & Cheese Soup

2008-02-07T00:35:42Z

Pour a good amount of olive oil (half cup?) or any other fat (bacon grease!) into your soup pot over moderate heat. Add a cup of flour, in stages, whisking well. It should be a thick dough-like consistency. Add a few cups of water or broth, in stages, whisking until it is well incorporated. (Scalding hot water/broth makes it easier to achieve a reasonably lump-free texture, especially if you are impatient about adding it and whisking, but any temp will do.) Add another cup of flour, then add water until it is at a good creamy soup-like consistency. This should cook for a few minutes, no hotter than gently simmering, until it doesn't taste like raw flour. You can add a half cup or more of dry milk powder if you've got it. (Alternately, you can use milk instead of the water, but we don't have any right now. You need to be more careful not to overcook or burn it with milk.) You can also add some bouillon* or spices, but don't salt it until after you've added the cheese, because cheese is pretty salty. You might need to occasionally scrape the bottom of the pot with a spatula if it is sticking and threatening to burn.

Mince leftover (cooked) broccoli into tiny bits and add them. Sneak in any other green veggies that are looking at you sadly from the back of the fridge, mashed up so none will be the wiser. If your broccoli isn't cooked, you can boil it in a few cups of water while you are making the flour paste and use its cooking water for the soup, or let it cook in the soup for a while. The order of operations is fairly flexible. Cut half a block or more of sharp cheddar cheese into small cubes (or grate it) and add that. Stir until cheese is melted. Check if it needs salt - with cheese and bouillon it probably won't.

Serve with good sized slabs of dark bread.

Josh's Favorite Variation: Make Cheese & Tomato soup by using a salsa and/or chopped tomatoes instead of broccoli.
Julie's Favorite Variation: Make a cheese sauce by using less water and more cheese, and omitting all vegetables. Pour it over two boxes of cooked macaroni.

-- Joshua

* The House Elf (ignited_spark) and I are very fond of "Better Than Bouillon" which is a paste that comes in a jar. The vegetable flavor has no MSG, which is very unusual among bouillon and soup mixes.

Happy Imbolc!

2008-02-05T02:47:57Z

Galina (tamyris) led Asphodel's Candlemas ritual here at Cauldron Farm on Sunday. We had assured her it would not be a huge crowd -- "No one wants to come to Imbolc!" we said -- but it turned out we were wrong. We had a great turnout, and the ritual went very well. The choir did wonderfully at lighting candles while singing (yeah us!) and it seems that quite a few Asphodelians know the words to the Candlemas Hymn. (Yeah for singing along!)

Galina was a smidge overenthusiastic with the flaming bowl of alcohol, setting off the smoke alarm and causing participants to worriedly eye the wickerware suspended what had previously seemed like a safe distance from the bowl, but now looked awfully close. One bottle of alcohol would have been sufficient, I suspect. Two certainly would have sufficed. Still, I am sure the palpable wave of fear that ran through the crowd delighted Surt.

It was a highly successful ritual, and potluck afterwards was wonderful. Plenty of tasty bread. The largest pretzel I have ever seen. Two kinds of lasagna. Blessed goat chili. A mind-alteringly delicious lemon poppyseed cake. And of course, Vinnie's french-fry-and-spam casserole. All of it wonderful.

Coming up next... Elizabeth (ignited_spark) and Galina will be running Ostara at 3pm on March 22nd. We will be honoring Persephone's return to Demeter. As is traditional in Asphodel, we will be dying eggs in the hour before ritual, so folks are welcome to come at 2pm. There will be a bit of walking out in the field, but nothing overly arduous. We are very likely to have cute baby animals for people to pet, and Ostara is our most kid-friendly holiday. We will be continuing the tradition of having Ostara's potluck theme be "Favorite Childhood Foods". (I'll be making jello in the strangest shaped mold I can find. Likely the lobster, unless Elizabeth can find something even more wonderful.)

Blessed Be,

-- Joshua

Any Poly Pagans?

2008-01-31T17:14:42Z

We just got called this morning by a writer from the History Channel. They are doing a documentary on wedding customs throughout the world, and want to interview Raven about pagan polyamory. They also wanted to know if they could film a (real or simulated) pagan poly wedding.

~~So, if you and two or more of your loved ones would like to get married in the next two months and would like to be on the History Channel with Raven running the ceremony, give Raven a call.~~

-- Joshua

ETA: Well, that didn't take long! The Tashlins it is!

Galina's "Full Fathom Five" Norse sea devotional is published!

2008-01-22T21:20:20Z

Full Fathom Five: Honoring the Norse Gods & Goddesses of the Sea by Galina Krasskova
Full Fathom Five is a devotional dedicated to the Norse Deities of the sea: Ran, Aegir, Their Nine Daughters and Njord. It is the first full-color devotional from Asphodel press, with beautiful photographs and illustrations on nearly every page. It offers a moving compilation of poems, prayers and personal accounts from people who love and honor these Gods. Respect for the ocean and its bounty is also discussed by those who have found that loving Gods of the sea means preserving that which is Their body. For anyone seeking to develop a relationship with these Gods, seeking a means of deepening a pre-existing relationship or for those who simply want to learn more, this devotional is a worthy addition to one's book hoard. (154 pages, 8.5"x8.5")

$35.00 Full-Color Paperback

Buy from Lulu

See Preview on Lulu
(The low-resolution preview on Lulu does not do the images justice.)

Asphodel's Imbolc Ritual - Saturday, February 2th

2008-01-14T05:04:21Z

Asphodel's Imbolc ritual will be held on February 2, 2008 at 6pm at Cauldron Farm. The ritual is Northern Tradition, run by Galina Krasskova, and honors the conflicting creative forces of Niflheim and Muspelheim, Fire and Ice. The Deities and primal beings Surt and Audhumla will be honored. Participants should plan to arrive at least twenty minutes prior to the ritual itself. There will be a potluck feast afterwards.

There will be an open fire in a small container. Participants should not be afraid of fire or wear flowing, tangled garb likely to go up in flames. If possible, please RSVP if you will be coming, so that we can do a head count for supplies. (cauldronfarm@hotmail.com or 978-928-4198) Carpooling would be a good idea, as parking space is limited. Please bring potluck for afterwards, as usual.

-- Joshua

Asphodel & Cauldron Farm Events for 2008

2008-01-02T21:03:30Z

Just letting folks know that I've uploaded the dates for many of the events that will be held here at Cauldron Farm in 2008.

http://www.cauldronfarm.com/events.html

-- Joshua

Anyone wear Abercrombie?

2007-12-26T20:19:42Z

My mom sent me an Abercrombie & Fitch jacket for Christmas, and honestly, the "pre-distressed" look really doesn't work for me... If someone else who wears Abercrombie would like to buy my $175 in return store credit from me, they are welcome to. If not, I'll give it back to my mother.

-- Joshua

Yule Ritual this Saturday! (Please RSVP)

2007-12-21T05:53:54Z

While we don't normally do this, we're asking, this time, for a head count. If you are absolutely planning on coming to Yule, and you are not in the choir or one of the mummers, please email Raven (cauldronfarm@hotmail.com). Tell him that you are coming and in what vehicle. We'd like to have a rough idea of how many people to cook for and shovel out parking spaces for.

If you don't RSVP, you are still welcome to come, but we would really appreciate it if you call (978-928-4198) or email. Even an hour beforehand is helpful.

(And by the way, we have tons of wine and cider. It is okay to bring more, but we probably have enough already.)

-- Joshua

2008 Asphodel Calendar Completed!

2007-12-16T04:57:34Z

Okay! It is done. I will be brave and make it available for sale without ordering a proof copy first. I've decided to make the calendar available at cost, as my Yule gift to the community. It is $8.50 + $3.25 S&H. Since Lulu takes a while to print things, and this time of year the printer will be even slower, they likely will not be here by Yule. Probably closer to the 26th.

Buy it on Lulu!

-- Joshua

Weekend Events Canceled

2007-12-14T22:08:06Z

Dear Folk,

It is with great sorrow and regret that we are canceling the Yule Open House this weekend. The weather reports vary greatly as to when the big storm will start, but the most pessimistic state mid-Saturday. We are besieged with people asking us to cancel, and one of our presenters is ill. Therefore, sadly, we must try again later.

One of the problems with scheduling anything from December to March in New England is that there is always a 50/50 chance of weather making it impossible. Even so, we will attempt to reschedule some or all of these classes at a later date, perhaps in January. Thank you to all my presenters, and we hope to see your classes again soon.

Stay warm and off the roads, stay home, and we will see you at Yule. For the record, Yule will be held here at Cauldron Farm no matter what the weather. There will be no cancellation. If no one shows up except the people in that household and a few die-hards, we will have Yule anyway.

Thank you,

-Raven Kaldera Regis
King of Asphodel

You want what??

2007-12-14T04:57:29Z

You'd have to ask Elizabeth for the details, but apparently a random fellow from South Carolina called Cauldron Farm this afternoon, looking for a friendly chat with some hot transexual women. He seemed to genuinely think that Cauldron Farm either provides phone sex or is a dating service or both. Elizabeth took the call.

Very strange. We get a lot of strange people calling us, but this was a special sort of strange.

-- Joshua

Thai bodywork...?

2007-12-11T06:57:11Z

As part of my upcoming program in Shiatsu, I'm taking classes in Thai bodywork to fulfill my Electives requirement. Thai bodywork, also sometimes called "Yoga Massage", largely involves the client laying flopped out on the floor, while you haul them through various contortions. It also involves getting very up close and personal, and sticking your feet (and knees, and elbows) in all sorts of sensitive places. Here are some pictures from the book I'm getting, linked from an article about the author (Kam Thye Chow) in "Massage & Bodywork Magazine". I think I might get arrested for the second one...

-- Joshua

NEW Loki devotional, by Tracy Nichols!

2007-12-11T05:18:19Z

I gotta say, ol' Flame-Hair sure has his fans. And while we've got a few more devotionals in the queue from other pantheons, the Northern-Trad folks are still in the lead. Stay tuned for Thista's Artemis devotional, "Dancing In Moonlight: Understanding Artemis Through Celebration", and Galina's beautiful Northern-Tradition sea devotional, "Full Fathom Five". (All this, and it is finals week too!)

From the Heart, For the Heart by Tracy Nichols

Loki is a complex figure, and the most controversial one in the Northern Tradition. Some see Him as a hated enemy, others a beloved friend. This collection of essays, prayers, and poems written and compiled by a devout Lokean with contributions from others who consider themselves His friends attempts to provide insights into how complicated a relationship with the Trickster can be.
(78 pages. $8.99 paperback, $4.00 download)

Now available from Lulu! (See a preview.)
-- Joshua

SNEAK PREVIEW - Asphodel 2008 Calendar

2007-12-05T20:45:29Z

A Year of Pies...

I hope to finish it this weekend.

-- Joshua

(From Elizabeth) CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: Northern Tradition Prayers

2007-12-03T22:50:32Z

This is from Elizabeth (ignited_spark). Not me or Raven.

I am compiling an as-yet-untitled Northern Tradition prayer book. I would like to include prayers or invocations for any Northern deity or deities and/or prayers written for particular events or purposes such as prayers of thanks or those addressed to the ancestors, blessings for weddings or births and so forth.

Prayers to, for and about the Aesir, Vanir, Jotnar, Alfar, Duergar or other beings from the Nine Worlds are welcome. Prayers and invocations for use by groups are fine, as well as prayers meant for individual devotional practice. I am not seeking essays or other kinds of poetry or verse.

Please not that I will NOT accept material that denigrates any of the gods or wights – in other words, bashing the Aesir in a prayer for Loki is as unacceptable as those describing the Jotnar in derogatory terms. Also, I am not interested in material written for Celtic, Hellenic, Kemetic or other non-Norse deities or spirits – those should find a more suitable home elsewhere.

Please keep your submissions under 100 lines and make sure to include whatever name you would like your work to be credited to. If I accept your submission I will contact you to request a signed release form with your legal name, but I’m happy to publish your prayer under whatever pseudonym you choose.

Unfortunately, I am unable to pay cash for submissions, although if you send me a lot of prayers I like and wind up using, I might send you a free copy of the book. All submissions will remain the property of their creators, who will retain copyrights to their own work.

The deadline for submissions is April 1, 2008. I hope to have the book in print by August 2008 at the very latest. Please submit your prayers and invocations to evongvisith at gmail dot com with PRAYER BOOK in the subject line. If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact me at the above email address as well.

Please feel free to distribute this as you see fit.

Thanks!
Elizabeth Vongvisith

The Aspie Quiz

2007-12-03T19:24:22Z

The Aspie Quiz
I saw this mentioned in Sigrun's book, and I hadn't taken it yet, so....

Your Aspie score: 119 of 200
Your neurotypical (non-autistic) score: 68 of 200
You are very likely an Aspie

ADD-score: 14 of 78
You are unlikely to have ADD

Not at all surprising, I know. Many of the questions I thought, "Well, yes, but moreso than anyone else? I don't know." Then I came to questions like, "Do you enjoy watching spinning or blinking objects?" and thought, "Well of course! Who doesn't? Oh, wait..." And then I read the question, "Do you ever play a game where you pretend to act like everyone else?" Um... well... since you mention it...

In any case, to me the biggest benefit of learning about Asperger's Syndrome was in understanding my own behavior and developing more effective coping mechanisms. I don't have significant enough impairment from it to really need special accommodation. Well, besides the general understanding among my friends that when I say weird things, I don't mean anything by it. And that has been the case my whole life, long before I knew anything about Asperger's.

-- Joshua

Asphodel Yule Ritual - Sat Dec 22nd, 4:30p

2007-12-03T00:12:11Z

The Asphodel Yule ritual will be held Saturday, December 22nd. Please arrive by 4:30pm and DRESS WARM! Wear your boots. The ritual will feature two short plays of Yuletide stories. One is the traditional story of the Hunting of the Wren. The other is the story from Northern mythology about the creation of the Amanita mushroom. (Yes, that is a Yule story.)

There will be a basket of small gifts that will be passed around in the ritual. People will pull things blind, until there's nothing left. If you'd like to donate small gifts to it, that would be great.

AS ALWAYS, there will be potuck. Bring potluck. Favorite holiday foods are encouraged, even Christmas cookies. Hot "meal-type" items are always well recieved. We will have the usual spiced hot cider, so bringing cider is a good idea. Also, if folks bring a few bottles of (modestly priced) sweet red wine, we will have mulled wine as well.

-- Joshua