Emotionally reconnecting via creativity.

I've spent several months on what seems to be a yo-yo of emotions which have taken me from creatively inspired & motivated to lazy disinterest at best. Far too much of the latter has had me despairing of myself and my goals of late.
Recent events have however made me re-evaluate & start to look at myself & my actions more clearly. Though not necessarily a pleasant experience in some cases, it has at least got me taking more notice of my surroundings & interactions with those around me.

Taking stock as i have been has reawakened my creative pursuits & i have tentatively made a start by putting some plans into action regarding everything from re-decorating my house to more artistic designs in fabric and painted canvas. I have yet to have anyhting to show for my efforts, but the fact that i am putting some effort toward is a big step so far. :)

I also feel reawakened in sharing this enthusiasm with others & am happy to see my members at Witches Lantern appear to have been 'bitten with the creative bug'. Im looking forward to seeing pictures of their completed projects & the ideas behind them.

With tomorrow's Blue Moon i wish to re-balance myself & put things into perspective on a spiritual and metaphysical level in corroboration with the past few weeks of mental & physical clear out.
(still have some to go in the physical department, scary how much 'stuff' i can accumulate.)

I took some photographs on Monday while visiting Warwick Castle. It was a wonderful day even with the rainfall in the afternoon.

Hang up your witches hat & pick a broom by the hearth!

Open and friendly pagan site complete with forums, chatroom, IM, and newsfeed. 

http://witchslantern.wall.fm/index

Park your broom & stop by for a chat.
All welcome.

BB, Py xx

Pagan Connections: Pagan Blog Prompt

Prompt: Connecting

Lately, the topic of connecting with other Pagans has been in my mind, even if just in passing, or it has come up in conversations around me. So I'm asking all of you today....

How do you connect with other Pagans?

Do you have a local group you can meet with on a regular basis?

If you can't connect with local people, where online do you connect with people of like mind?

What's the hardest part about connecting with other Pagans?

I find over time i have developed several different connections both on the net & outside of it.
I attend a local monthly moot where i have gotten to know several people & whom i try to stay in touch with as often as possible.
I even meet up with some of them away from the moot. For me thats quite something as i've never been known for being outwardly sociable. I've always been a bit insular, but decided some time ago that being a homebody only had so many positive qualities. My striving to become more outgoing & get to know more people with similar interests began to pay off & now i can happily say i can think of several people of whom i can discuss any number of topics with at any given time.

Online i am a member of several forums & connect with people via facebook also. My main online connections are more recently a site i run myself & also another which i help to moderate. Im currently trying to make my site more interactive with chatroom discussions being set up in the next month or so as members have shown an interest in them.

The hardest part about connecting with other Pagans for me is how self-absorbed i can become especially when meeting new people for the first time. I've always been a bit socially awkward & can come across as quite quiet & often air-headed simply because people make me nervous. Once i get to know someone i can speak up more but i can find it quite trying at times.
In some cases strongly opinionated people can result in me clamming up because a mental block comes into play & my mind ceases to continue following the thread of the conversation. When i was a child i think it was a defense mechanism as i was bullied quite a lot, but as an adult it causes awkward silences & i think it often makes me come across as rude or just plain vacant.
I find talking online much easier as im more anonymous & being faced with a screen of words is easier to understand for me than dealing with actual people. (makes me sound like an anti-social hermit..lol)

This week has been quite interesting if a little lacklustre. I've done some things but feel like as though the cold has seeped through my bones & left me huddled on the floor. :P

Wednesday, i attended the Wellington Pagan moot. Only 3 of us in attendance but we still managed to have quite an array of discussion. Mostly non-pagan related but still enjoyable none the less.

Yesterday afternoon, just as the snow decided to begin its downward fall, i met my friend Bram at the local Odeon to watch Chronicle. 

I wasn't expecting much out of it to be fair, but thoroughly enjoyed it.

Its about 3 friends, or rather 2 friends & one's introverted cousin. They discover something which upon finding it, causes them to gain the powers of telekinesis which they then nurture and practice until they grow insanely strong. I won't ruin the movie's outcomes etc, but i will say it is well worth a viewing. 

I felt that the film coming from the camera view of the portable camera the introverted cousin Andrew carries around with him is pure genius & draws the viewer in far more than if it had been shot from an outsiders persepective. 

It will now be added to my mental list of all-time must-see movies. I can;t wait for it to come out on dvd. :O LOL

As far as my weight issues go, i still haven;t bought new batteries for the scales. Bad girl, bad bad. I'm terrible. I also haven't been eating all that well, but promise myself i will turn over a new leaf this week. Im sure the snow on the ground is going to make walking more of a slog as i walk to work 5 days a week & back 2 evenings. Add onto that walking Kody at least once/twice a day & i think my leg muscles will be burning in this slushy hell. I'd hope it'll freeze but that may be more of an obstacle course than i can handle. :P

I'm lacking certain inspiration so my creative endeavours have ground to a halt for the moment. I'm halfway through a book, though it so far doesn't appear to fit into either of my reading challenges. Damn. Enjoying it loads though. Its a steampunk fiction novel called Phoenix Rising: A Ministry of Peculiar Occurences novel by Pip Ballantine & Tee Morris. 

I'd highly recommend it as its engaging & witty with plenty of action to keep me entertained. Not to mention how likeable yet exciting the characters are. Books im sure has some secrets which i can only hope will be unearthed as the book continues, whilst Braun has me giggling rather manically every time she raises an eyebrow or does something truly outrageous which seems for her the norm.

Does anyone have any advice on how to use a crystal ball?

New topic posted on Witches Lantern.

Does anyone have any advice on how to use a crystal ball?

Pagan Reading List

(Including but not limited to my Witches & Witchcraft Reading List)

Non-fiction:

Forbidden Rites - Jeanette Ellis

Evolutionary witchcraft - T. Thorn.Coyle

The Real Witches Coven - Kate West

The Path Through The Labyrinth - Marian Green

Hekate: Keys to the Crossroads - Sorita d'Este

Nocturnal Witchcraft - Konstantinos

Singing the Soul Back Home - Caitlin Matthews

The History of Witchcraft & Demonolgy - Montague Summers

The Healing Craft - Janet & Stewart Farrah & Gavin Bone

Fiction:

The Way of Wyrd - Brian Bates

The Gift #1st Book of Pelinor - Alison Croggon

Transformation #1st of the Rai-Kirah - Carol Berg

Heaven's Net Is Wide - Liam Hearn

Gunnerkrigg Court #Volume 1: Orientation - Thomas Siddell

Alchemy - Maureen Duffy

The Princess of Flames - Ru Emerson

Spirit Fox - Mickey Rucker Zeichert &

Sea Priestess #1st - Dion Fortune

Moon Magic #2nd- Dion Fortune

High Magic's Aid - Gerald Gardner

Shadows at Stonewylde #4th - Kit Berry

Firethorn - Sarah Micklem

Thornyhold - Mary Stewart

Practical Magic - Alice Hoffman

Witch Child - Celia Reese

Witchfire at Lammas - Robert Neill

Red-headed Stepchild #1st - Jaye Wells

Water Witches - Chris Bohjalian

My Witches & Witchcraft Reading List

Non-fiction:

Forbidden Rites - Jeanette Ellis

Evolutionary witchcraft - T. Thorn.Coyle

The Real Witches Coven - Kate West

The Path Through The Labyrinth - Marian Green

Hekate: Keys to the Crossroads - Sorita d'Este

Nocturnal Witchcraft - Konstantinos

The History of Witchcraft & Demonolgy - Montague Summers


The Healing Craft - Janet & Stewart Farrah & Gavin Bone

Fiction:

Sea Priestess #1st - Dion Fortune

Moon Magic #2nd- Dion Fortune

High Magic's Aid - Gerald Gardner

Shadows at Stonewylde #4th - Kit Berry

Firethorn - Sarah Micklem

Thornyhold - Mary Stewart

Practical Magic - Alice Hoffman

Witch Child - Celia Reese

Witchfire at Lammas - Robert Neill

Red-headed Stepchild #1st - Jaye Wells

Water Witches - Chris Bohjalian



more to come, there's a huge pile of book collecting dust on the bookcase that i've yet to get through. will list them all as & when i can.