Trip to New Hope, PA

I went to New Hope on Sunday. For those of you who have never heard of it, it's like a cute country town full of shops and stuff. Some unique things, some mundane. But I was kinda disappointed.

It always happens, you have money, and there's nothing to buy. LOL

I picked up a GIANT RUBBER RAT for my Cuz Mike, for Christmas. Yeh, I know, sounds strange, but he IS strange, and I'm sure he's going to love it. LOL

I also got something for Jaime, but I'm saving it for her birthday in January, had to tell her what it was, since I needed to know what color she wanted. She picked green, so I'm keeping the blue and lavender one. What is it??? Well, you just gonna have to wait till I put it to geather, hang it up, and take a picture...So suffer. LOL

Besides those few things, nothing else much. Disappointing, but it was a nice day, and Eileen and I had dinner outdoors, nice fresh roast pork sandwitch with natural gravy and provolone cheese.... TOTALLY YUMMMMMY!

Dreaded Kitchen

Little by little I'm working on my hated kitchen. LOL I've decided to try little things to see if they satisfie, before I spend big bucks on a total renovation.

As you can see, I've replaced all the cabinet handles with new black iron ones, then I used tile decals to dress up the tile back splash!!!!

So far, so good, not happy yet, but it is making me feel better. I replaced the floor when I first moved in. So I'm happy with that.

Now I'm wondering if I should paint the cabinits???? Or stain them???? or what. I have all winter to think about that. LOL

MONSTER CAT!!!!!!!!!

Nasty old Merlin is up to some new tricks! He bit my BED!!!! Now, I know that doesn't mean much to you....But I have a special bed. It's one of those "Select Comfort" beds that goes up and down, soft to hard, with a push of a button, an air bed. I love it!!!!! Depending on how stiff or sore I am, I can control the hardness of the bed. Best bed I've ever had.

Well for some strange reason, Merlin decided that the hose connecting my side of the bed to the pump was a tasty treat.... And chewed on it!!!!! I couldn't figure out why my bed was losing pressure during the night! I kept waking up and having to pump it up.

After checking a million things, and even swapping the air bladders (figuring I sprung a leak) I found the tooth marks in the hose leading to the pump! I put tape over them, but I think I'm going to have to find like a pool patch kit, and put a good patch on it. But, the tape is working for now.

Needless to say, Merlin is outlawed from my bedroom!!!!! BAD KITTY!!!!

FULL HARVEST MOON

The Full Harvest Moon Rises Oct. 6

The full moon closest to the autumnal equinox is called the Harvest Moon. At this time of year, the moon rises at about the same time each night, just after sunset, giving farmers extra hours of light to bring in the harvest.

• Full Harvest Moon - September This is the full Moon that occurs closest to the autumn equinox. In two years out of three, the Harvest Moon comes in September, but in some years it occurs in October. At the peak of harvest, farmers can work late into the night by the light of this Moon. Usually the full Moon rises an average of 50 minutes later each night, but for the few nights around the Harvest Moon, the Moon seems to rise at nearly the same time each night: just 25 to 30 minutes later across the U.S., and only 10 to 20 minutes later for much of Canada and Europe. Corn, pumpkins, squash, beans, and wild rice the chief Indian staples are now ready for gathering.

• Full Hunter's Moon - October With the leaves falling and the deer fattened, it is time to hunt. Since the fields have been reaped, hunters can easily see fox and the animals which have come out to glean.

Samhain

Samhain marks one of the two great doorways of the Celtic year, for the Celts divided the year into two seasons: the light and the dark, at Beltane on May 1st and Samhain on November 1st. Some believe that Samhain was the more important festival, marking the beginning of a whole new cycle, just as the Celtic day began at night. For it was understood that in dark silence comes whisperings of new beginnings, the stirring of the seed below the ground. Whereas Beltane welcomes in the summer with joyous celebrations at dawn, the most magically potent time of this festival is November Eve, the night of October 31st, known today of course, as Halloween.

Samhain (Scots Gaelic: Samhuinn) literally means “summer's end.” In Scotland and Ireland, Halloween is known as Oíche Shamhna, while in Wales it is Nos Calan Gaeaf, the eve of the winter's calend, or first. With the rise of Christianity, Samhain was changed to Hallowmas, or All Saints' Day, to commemorate the souls of the blessed dead who had been canonized that year, so the night before became popularly known as Halloween, All Hallows Eve, or Hollantide. November 2nd became All Souls Day, when prayers were to be offered to the souls of all who the departed and those who were waiting in Purgatory for entry into Heaven. Throughout the centuries, pagan and Christian beliefs intertwine in a gallimaufry of celebrations from Oct 31st through November 5th, all of which appear both to challenge the ascendancy of the dark and to revel in its mystery.

In the country year, Samhain marked the first day of winter, when the herders led the cattle and sheep down from their summer hillside pastures to the shelter of stable and byre. The hay that would feed them during the winter must be stored in sturdy thatched ricks, tied down securely against storms. Those destined for the table were slaughtered, after being ritually devoted to the gods in pagan times. All the harvest must be gathered in -- barley, oats, wheat, turnips, and apples -- for come November, the faeries would blast every growing plant with their breath, blighting any nuts and berries remaining on the hedgerows. Peat and wood for winter fires were stacked high by the hearth. It was a joyous time of family reunion, when all members of the household worked together baking, salting meat, and making preserves for the winter feasts to come. The endless horizons of summer gave way to a warm, dim and often smoky room; the symphony of summer sounds was replaced by a counterpoint of voices, young and old, human and animal.

In early Ireland, people gathered at the ritual centers of the tribes, for Samhain was the principal calendar feast of the year. The greatest assembly was the 'Feast of Tara,' focusing on the royal seat of the High King as the heart of the sacred land, the point of conception for the new year. In every household throughout the country, hearth-fires were extinguished. All waited for the Druids to light the new fire of the year -- not at Tara, but at Tlachtga, a hill twelve miles to the north-west. It marked the burial-place of Tlachtga, daughter of the great druid Mogh Ruith, who may once have been a goddess in her own right in a former age.

At at all the turning points of the Celtic year, the gods drew near to Earth at Samhain, so many sacrifices and gifts were offered up in thanksgiving for the harvest. Personal prayers in the form of objects symbolizing the wishes of supplicants or ailments to be healed were cast into the fire, and at the end of the ceremonies, brands were lit from the great fire of Tara to re-kindle all the home fires of the tribe, as at Beltane. As they received the flame that marked this time of beginnings, people surely felt a sense of the kindling of new dreams, projects and hopes for the year to come.

The Samhain fires continued to blaze down the centuries. In the 1860s the Halloween bonfires were still so popular in Scotland that one traveler reported seeing thirty fires lighting up the hillsides all on one night, each surrounded by rings of dancing figures, a practice which continued up to the first World War. Young people and servants lit brands from the fire and ran around the fields and hedges of house and farm, while community leaders surrounded parish boundaries with a magic circle of light. Afterwards, ashes from the fires were sprinkled over the fields to protect them during the winter months -- and of course, they also improved the soil. The bonfire provided an island of light within the oncoming tide of winter darkness, keeping away cold, discomfort, and evil spirits long before electricity illumined our nights. When the last flame sank down, it was time to run as fast as you could for home, raising the cry, “The black sow without a tail take the hindmost!”

Even today, bonfires light up the skies in many parts of the British Isles and Ireland at this season, although in many areas of Britain their significance has been co-opted by Guy Fawkes Day, which falls on November 5th, and commemorates an unsuccessful attempt to blow up the English Houses of Parliament in the 17th century. In one Devonshire village, the extraordinary sight of both men and women running through the streets with blazing tar barrels on their backs can still be seen! Whatever the reason, there will probably always be a human need to make fires against the winter’s dark.
Samhain was a significant time for divination, perhaps even more so than May or Midsummer’s Eve, because this was the chief of the three Spirit Nights. Divination customs and games frequently featured apples and nuts from the recent harvest, and candles played an important part in adding atmosphere to the mysteries. In Scotland, a child born at Samhain was said to be gifted with an dà shealladh, “The Two Sights” commonly known as “second sight,” or clairvoyance.

Apple Magic
At the heart of the Celtic Otherworld grows an apple tree whose fruit has magical properties. Old sagas tell of heroes crossing the western sea to find this wondrous country, known in Ireland as Emhain Abhlach, (Evan Avlach) and in Britain, Avalon. At Samhain, the apple harvest is in, and old hearthside games, such as apple-bobbing, called apple-dookin’ in Scotland, reflect the journey across water to obtain the magic apple.

Dookin' for Apples
Place a large tub, preferably wooden, on the floor, and half fill it with water. Tumble in plenty of apples, and have one person stir them around vigorously with a long wooden spoon or rod of hazel, ash or any other sacred tree.

Each player takes their turn kneeling on the floor, trying to capture the apples with their teeth as they go bobbing around. Each gets three tries before the next person has a go. Best to wear old clothes for this one, and have a roaring fire nearby so you can dry off while eating your prize!
If you do manage to capture an apple, you might want to keep it for a divination ritual, such as this one:

The Apple and the Mirror
Before the stroke of midnight, sit in front of a mirror in a room lit only by one candle or the moon. Go into the silence, and ask a question. Cut the apple into nine pieces. With your back to the mirror, eat eight of the pieces, then throw the ninth over your left shoulder. Turn your head to look over the same shoulder, and you will see and in image or symbol in the mirror that will tell you your answer.

(When you look in the mirror, let your focus go "soft," and allow the patterns made by the moon or candlelight and shadows to suggest forms, symbols and other dreamlike images that speak to your intuition.)

Sweet Smelling Spells!

DOOR HANDLE SACHETS

A sweet, old fashioned touch throughout the home, door handle sachets can magically charge the entrance to each room. For instance:

A Protective Sachet may be hung on all doors entering the house: make (or buy at the store) a small bag, about 3 inches by 5, tied with a loop that will allow it to hang from the door knob. You can get as fancy or as plain as you like with it, matching it to the decor of your home. Spice it up, make it look pretty!

Then, fill it with Bay leaves (a wonderful protection herb!), Angelica (another powerful protection) powdered clove (helps ward against illness entering the home and also acts as a catalyst to the other herbs), Benzoin (a "power herb that helps to focus the other herbs) Borage (to help uncover any dishonest intentions), dried lavender (add a few drops of lavender oil to enhance the fragrance) and St. Johnswort which will help reverse any negativity and also aids in quelling arguments & animosity.




HERB BUNDLES FOR THE FIREPLACE

Through Summer and Autumn when you harvest & dry bunches of herbs from your garden – jar up the leaves but also save the stems! Lavender, Sage, Lemon Verbena, Bay, Oregano – the whole lot. Then tie them in bundles with raffia or ribbon and keep in a basket next to the fireplace. They make wonderful, fragrant fire starters.


My Circle

My circle isn't round, you see
with a pentagram deep inside.
My circle is the house I keep
My pretties at my side.
does it matter if it be square or round?
or made of chalk, or wood?
your circle is where bow your head
worship and do good.

JINGLE, JINGLE, JINGLE

Here it is, the very first week of October, and I'm DONE WITH MY CHRISTMAS SHOPPING!!! WOW I was late this year!!!! I usually try to finish up by July, but I just couldn't get it coodonated. LOL But I'm done now, so I'm happy. (doing skipping happy dance)

Well, almost done, I still have to buy something for my Aunt Harriet. She's gonna be the hardest one to buy for, she has everything!!!!! Besides having fantastic good taste, so It's going to take some work figuring out what to get her. But, since she's not coming up from Fla for Christmas, I also have to take into account that whatever I get her has to be mailed. So it can't be too big, or breakable. Hummmmmm I actually know a few things she'd like, but I think I'm going to settle for some kind of jewelry. Gold probably.

But other then her I'M DONE!!!!! I did so well this year, I have stuff that I think is going to be a BIG hit with everyone. The kids will love the stuff I got, and Jaime is going to go nuts (giggle) I think even Mark will like his stuff. And Eileen and Steph will be happy too. Barb's things will match her new kitchen.... Hopefully she'll wall paper ect before Christmas, so that my gift will match!

And I was good..... I didn't by something for someone, and then get one for me too. LOL but some of Jamie's things I picked out, I would love to keep for myself!!! It's not good to have the same taste. LOL

I'm thinking of having a Christmas tree decorating party...... Just thinking about it. I'd have to pick a date well before Christmas, because I'm one of those weird people who like to decorate for Christmas the night of thanksgiving!!!!! I know it's early, but I love to do it then. Besides witch it's still warm enough out to hand the outside decorations with out freezing your bum off. LOL