Full Moon Ritual

Photo 61/1001:



Thus begins the 2nd round of blooming on my rosebush. Fitting, as this full moon is called the Flower Full Moon.

May Magick Photo #30: Full Moon



FINALLY got around to doing my full moon ritual. Blue seemed to be the carrying color, so I chose the gorgeous dark blue altar cloth.

Going left to right:

Athame
Wand
Sekhmet idol
Small candle for Her
White 7-day candle for the full moon
Selenite sphere that symbolizes the full moon (not pictured)
Transcend oil by Sage Goddess (used to dress the number candles)
Black bowl with dirt (to hold the number candles)
Wooden altar Pentacle with a sigil on top of it and two number candles
Ask oil by Sage Goddess (used to dress the sigil paper)
Mini cast iron skillet (I use it as a cauldron)
Sacred feather and incense holder
Full Moon Incense by Hearth Wisdom Store (not pictured)
Sacred Necklace by Luna Blue Boutique

This was a super quickie ritual – finally getting around to celebrating my 12 years of being self-injury free and to set my intentions for my upcoming surgery.

Blue

written: May 30

May Magick Photo #30: Goddess



A fun black and white photo of my Scarlet Lady, Sekhmet.

Yes, I know I was supposed to do my Full Moon ritual today….but I didn’t. So I swapped prompts again. Full Moon ritual tomorrow! Hopefully. ::chuckles::

BUT….I got my BLUE hair today!



Hurray! (Photo 60/1001)

My hair stylist was kind enough to figure out my hair was long enough that we could rest it on the table while the color set. ::smiles:: Kept so much of the extra weight off my scalp. Which, by hour THREE I was deeply grateful for.



I ended up being about an hour late to work because of it, but damn, man, I LOVE this color. And my stylist said that when the blue starts to fade out, purple is a great color to layer on top of it.

But holy hell, I had forgotten how GOOD it feels to have pretty color in my hair. And the fact that I’m breaking the rules to do so? Just makes it THAT much more delicious. I fucking LOVE it. ::smiles::

I have got to figure out a way to keep my room cooler. It’s not overly insulated against heat. And with it being upstairs, and the air vents being in the damn FLOOR…it can get really hot, really quickly. So it keep it reasonably cool, I have to keep all the doors closed. Which sucks for Leviathan because she’s living in eternal night at this point. But there really isn’t anywhere else in the house at this point that I could move her so she didn’t have to live in darkness. Maybe I should just get an A/C unit for one of the windows. And I should get the hallway window tinted or blinds or something for it. It’s a south facing window that lets in sun the entire time the sun is in the sky. Which is lovely during the winter – but BRUTAL during the summer time.

Rebel Streak

written: May 29

May Magick Photo #29: Feather



I know, today’s prompt is actually Full Moon, but seeing as how I’m not ready for my Full Moon ritual just yet, I’m swapping out the prompts to reflect that. Because, my rebel streak stops for no one, not even witchery. ::chuckles::

So instead, a lovely close-up photo of one of my absolute most treasured possessions. I love the soft marbling on this particular feather. Just love it.

I’m thinking of having a dear friend, Whispering Tears, bead a feather to hang from my graduation cap. I think it would be a nice way to celebrate that victory. I have a year to decide if it is the route I want to go and figure out what exactly I would want for my feather.

Photo 59/1001



My order from Ravynne Phelan arrived today. And she always includes awesome goodies.

And Josey had a BLAST attempting to shred the mailer Ravynne used. And impressive amount of packing tape is ultimately what thwarted Josey from total annihilation of the mailer. ::chuckles::



I had my End of Year evaluation with Esmeralda. It went very smoothly, as she made it available to see before I actually WENT to the evaluation. The higher-ups say it’s so there aren’t any surprises and to make the meeting more of a “conversation” than an evaluation. I swear, “conversation” is the Higher-Ups FAVORITE word in the entire world. ::shakes her head::

But the supervisors are asking all of the campus leaders (like me), questions about what we want/need in the coming year. What topics should be covered at Orientation – I STRESSED that we NEED proper training on handling student suicide ideation/outcry, harm to self or others, and reporting child abuse/neglect. There has also be an increase in chatter among the campus leaders about doing campus leader “swaps” – hosting another campus leader on your campus to show them how you run your campus. I am super interested in doing that and being able to go to as many campuses as possible so I can see what is and isn’t working and bring that information back to my own campus to make it even better. And I would love to share my quirky-ass campus with other campus leaders as well. So maybe, next year will be amazing after all.

Spartan & Journals

May Magick Photo #28: Memories



Just ONE shelf of my journal collection. I have a handful of other shelves here and there. One of these days, I will gather all of my journals (plus have my electronic versions printed and bound) on ONE bookcase. How lovely would that be? This shelf has journals spanning 1999 through 2013.

Photo 58/1001:



We finally hung up our Spartan mosquito eradicators. We are a bit late to the game, but better late than never. Hopefully this will cut down our mosquito population as soon as possible. It’s supposed to last 90 days, so we’ll see if it’s worth reordering at that point.

Buttons

May Magick Photo #27: Roots II



Taken out at the Fort Worth Nature Center. I went out there today to see Buttons, the white-sided western diamondback rattlesnake:



Photo 57/1001

She’s just as lovely as ever. And I’m really glad I went.

I needed the time out of the house, out in nature. I needed the quiet alone time the “easy” 30-minute hike gave me for most of the time. Damn, that “easy” hike also showed me how weak my knees still are. I need to get my ass back on the elliptical and actually USE the Down Dog app (it’s a free yoga app).

I finally picked up the candles for my celebration of 12 years SI free – just a little over a month late. But hey, better late than never! ::laughs:: So hopefully I can do that mini-ritual soon. That will be nice. I think that might be what’s causing my feeling of stagnation. I put that celebration on hold because my life was too insane. And it feels like everything was put on pause. So hopefully this ritual will open up my spiritual flow again and get things moving once more.

Restless Soul

May Magick Photo #26: Water: Rain/storm water I’ve collected for the Harpies.

 

I wish we had some storms coming in soon. I want to release this water and get new water for them. Plus, it would bring a welcomed break from all the oppressive heat we are experiencing currently.

Photo 56/1001

 

My incense order from SpiritMountainCrafts arrived today. AMAZING. I ordered the Celtic Mist and the Mother Earth. The Lavender and the Orange Blossom were bonus samples. ::smiles:: LOVE it. So, add these incenses to my stash I currently have, and I should be good on incense for a while. ::chuckles:: Though, I do have plans to buy some more of the Storm Watch incense from DreamyTimesShop. The Harpies really are fond of it, and it smells AMAZING, which is an added bonus.

I’m feeling extremely restless today. Sucks because I have like zero money to fun spend right now. What little money I do have for fun spending, is already ear-marked for great fun things. I’ll be headed out to the Nature Center tomorrow to hopefully see Buttons, the white-sided rattlesnake. And Wednesday I’ll be getting my hair colored. And sometime soon I need to do an oil change on my car AND get it detailed before I head to my mom’s on June 3rd. I’ll be getting her car after I go to my pre-op appointment with my doc.

My supervisor opened my evaluation (that I’ll have officially on Tuesday) up for me to view beforehand. I feel like such an incredible fraud. My evaluation is stellar and she says a lot of wonderful things. But half of them I don’t even agree with. I know, most of this is because I’m being hard on myself right now. And some of it is due to the fact that I’m comparing myself to how I’ve been in the past. And honestly, this year? I’ve really dropped the ball on so many things. Which then makes me question if all the crazy things my ex-Psych said, that I completely disagreed with at the time….maybe they are actually true? Which just pisses me the fuck off, because that woman had some seriously screwy ideas, which is why I don’t see her any more. But that niggling doubt has been planted and apparently it’s been growing all this time.

Three Day Weekend

May Magick Photo #25: Wood

 

Photo 55/1001

Our ancient mulberry tree got a quick trim today. One of the larger branches was rubbing the house and the chimney cover, so it had to come down before it did serious damage. I plan to go out and trim all the leaves off the wood and keep the wood to be used in our fire pit. I need to set up the Spartan Mosquito Eradicator as we are certainly into the Mosquito Season (aka Seasonal Anemia, Season of the Blood Suckers, Season of Calamine Lotion).

I am so deeply grateful for a three-day weekend. Man, I fucking need it. Soooo need it. I have a few plans, but mostly, I just want to relax, read, and work in my art journal. I have two pen pal letters left that I need to respond to.

I also need to get out to the Nature Center this weekend to hopefully photograph their white-sided rattlesnake. I didn’t go last year, and while I needed that break, I am disappointed that I missed a year of doing that. I’ve been photographing sweet little Buttons since they first found her back in 2012. But hey, missing one year out of 7 years? Not too shabby honestly. I’m not the best at sticking with plans. ::chuckles::

Thankful Thursday

written: May 24

May Magick Photo #24: Mermaid:

 

Siren scented oil from Sage Goddess is the closest thing I have to a mermaid. They just don’t feature prominently in my life.

Photo 54/1001

 

Alfred, the resident cottontail bunny, was napping in the sunshine today.

I am thankful…
1. David had today off of work, so we all got to sleep in a bit.
2. Working a/c to keep the house tolerable. We’ve already had a few days with the heat index up in the 100s.
3. I got my 10 year pin today at work. It was a nice surprise, as I figured it wouldn’t get it until next year because technically I don’t hit my 10-year mark until August.
4. Coming up on a three-day weekend. God, I need it.
5. That my most recent round of depression has lifted for a while now. Honestly, I’m starting to suspect there is a S.A.D. aspect to it, as I’m noticing that during the winter months, it seems to hit me harder.
6. Hazel and I attended the DFW Pagan Unity Fest this past weekend.
7. The awesome coyote skin I got at the Unity Fest for such a damn good price.
8. My little snapdragon seeds are starting to sprout! Yay! Can’t wait to see what colors they bring.
9. MoonTime is finally over and done with. Hopefully this will be my last one.
10. Much calmer days at work. This week threw us for one hell of a loop multiple times in the first two days. But I’m glad that has simmered down and we’ve resumed our standard level of normal chaos.

Wheat & Work

written: May 23

May Magick Photo #23: My Evening



(Photo 53/1101)

My evening was spent snagging a handful of wild wheat for Paula’s Guinea pig. Man, they are surprisingly tough. So when I go back to harvest some for my upcoming altars, I’ll be sure to bring a blade or a pair of scissors to make it go quicker.

Today was infinitely better than yesterday. Thank goodness. I don’t know if I could have handled another day last yesterday.

I’ve completed three of the four staff end-of-year evaluations. Emily’s will be done on Friday. Man, I’m ready for this school year to end. I’m so ready for a change.

Tommy, the tech on our campus, has resumed his quasi-stalking of me. He’s taken to making it a point every time he sees me, to come over and say something about senior iPads. I am the one who works on the iPads for the most part over the summer, so it’s just one of those creepy things that gives him an “excuse” to come talk to me.

And he comes up with all sorts of excuses so he can come talk to me every chance he gets. I’m just really over it. I will have a talk with Sandy (my summer boss) if I need to this summer. I just can’t do another summer of working with him at all. Because ANY work I do with him, no matter how minor, always leads to him latching on.

And before anyone says anything, yes, he knows I’m married. Yes, I’ve made it abundantly clear that I am NOT interested in him in any shape, form, or fashion. And yet, he still comes around. I can’t get rid of him.

I need to email him about the external DVD player he gave me for my lap top. I need to use it on the last day of school. And knowing my students, I will be there to the very end of the school day. I do NOT want to give Tommy any excuse to hang around, waiting until everyone leaves to collect the damn DVD player. And I know if I email him, asking about this, it will make him feel like I initiated contact which means he’ll come hang around even more than usual. I figure instead, I’ll just keep the DVD player in my office and if he asks about it over the summer, I will tell him where it’s at and he can go retrieve it.

Hitting Rock Bottom

May Magick Photo Challenge #22: Temple

 

Photo 52/1001

This is a photo of Alfred, our resident wild cottontail rabbit, chillin’ in the front yard. As an Animist, my temple is anywhere and everywhere. Everything has a spirit, so it’s just a matter of tapping into those spirits to make a space sacred.

BRUTAL day. Brutal, brutal, BRUTAL fucking day. You know that day where I got chewed out by a teacher and a mother for HER kid getting kicked out? Yeah, that day was a BREEZE compared today. ::shakes her head:: I’m refusing to go into it. Just suffice it say, I was downing headache medication like they were tic-tacs and it wasn’t making a DENT in the head I had going. Holy fuck, man. BAD.
In non-shit news:

The purple tree I posted a photo of yesterday, Emily H. told me is a Vitex (also called a Chaste tree). I KNEW one of my friends would know what it is. ::smiles:: I love that I have so many awesome friends who bring their knowledge to the table every single day. I would love to get one of these, but I have NO MORE ROOM. ::sighs:: So instead, I’ll add it to my Dream Garden Wish Board and maybe, later on down the road, when we have a bigger home with a bigger plot of land, I can get a few and plant them. They smell HEAVENLY. Hmm, maybe I’ll keep an eye on the ones at the library and when they go to seed, I can collect some of those seeds to hold on to and hope and dream.

I MAY have a line on where I can get my 120 practicum hours done. The librarian of the elementary school my after school program is as said I could volunteer there. Now I just have to double check with my advisor to see if it would qualify and what all exactly I have to do to fulfill my practicum hours. It would be such a god-send if I could do them there at that elementary school. It would take so much pressure off of me. And, if I’m able to start doing that this Fall, then I can spread those hours out a bit and take some of the pressure off of myself.

Jess, my amazing aide, took it upon herself to help me find The Perfect ™ blue hair color for me to take to my hair stylist. And we found it:

 

It’s such a gorgeous, luscious blue. I LOVE it! I can’t wait to show it to my hair stylist and see how close we can get! ::smiles::

My Way

May Magick Photo Challenge #21: Branches

 

Also photo 51/1001.
Beautiful tree with purple blossoms that smell absolutely AMAZING! This tree is by my public library. I stopped there to pick up the following two books:
- Wicca: Another Year and a Day: 366 Days of Magical Practice in the Craft of the Wise, by Timothy Roderick
- Samhain: Customs, Recipes, and Spells, by Silver RavenWolf

They should be interesting reads. I’m hoping to pick up some inspiration for my own Path.

I FINALLY got an email from Esmeralda (my supervisor) to schedule my End of the Year Evaluation – so I’ll be doing that next Tuesday. And I’m hoping to get the blue put in my hair the day after. I know, I know. I should be “responsible” and put that money towards my impending surgery balance, but FUCK IT! I survived this damn semester. Not only did I survive it, but I fucking pulled off a 4.0 in a semester that found me the closest to engaging in Self-Injurious Behavior and absolutely drowning in depression. Not only did I NOT cut…the depression did NOT drown me…but I managed to pull off a goddamn 4.0. So hell fucking yeah, I am splurging and getting part of my hair dyed blue. I’ve more than earned it. I have earned it a thousand times over. And I shouldn’t have to justify that to a damn soul.

Mantra

written: May 20th

May Magick Photo Challenge #20: Mantra:



Yeah, it ain’t purdy. It isn’t beautiful or full of poetry. But it sums me up so much.

Fuck it. I will go my own way, do my own thing, and if you want to judge me for that? Well then fuck you too. ::chuckles::

Photo 50/1001:

 

We grabbed dinner at 5 Guys Burgers and Fries, and where I parked my car, there is this small plot of no-man’s-land and on it is WHEAT! Now, I know you are wondering why the fuck I’m giddy over this. Imma tell ya. I LOVE having wheat on my altar for the upcoming three Harvest Sabbats (Litha, Lughnasadah, and Mabon). And I’ve seen photos of wheat stalks wrapped with colored thread – simple but so elegant. And I’ve wanted to do my own version of this for years now, but didn’t have access to wheat or didn’t want to pay for it at Hobby Lobby. But now I’ve found a mini-field just filled with wheat. So I plan to harvest some and try my hand at it. ::smiles::

Pagan Unity Fest

May Magick Photo #19: Fire:

 

One of my favorite vanilla scented candles.

Today was the Pagan Unity Fest. It was small, but pretty damn cool. Hazel and I were greeted and gifted these cute little Celtic knot tree necklaces:

 

I immediately made a beeline to this fur and hide vendor. They had a gorgeous coyote skin.

 

I was trying really hard to be good and not spend any money. Hazel and I continued walking around, checking everything out. Hazel bought some stuff from the Hearth Wisdom vendor. And I went back and got the coyote. I couldn’t pass him up. And he only cost me $25!

He’s certainly not a TOP grade hide…but he’s got his claws still.

 

And lush ruff. (Photo 49/1001)

 

He’s got some tears in his hide that I’ll probably mend eventually. But man, I love him.

We didn’t stay long at the Fest. It was small, but nice. And then we headed a few minutes down the road to the actual Hearth Wisdom store. They were giving out free lemonade and cookies today. Mostly I just wanted to show the store off to Hazel as she hasn’t been there before. Awesome little Pagan shop.

After that, I came home and relaxed. I just finished reading Witches of America by Alex Mar. I’ve enjoyed this book far more than I initially thought I would. And there are a handful of quotes/thoughts that really struck a note with me. I wrote them down in my BaBuJo (my bastardized bullet journal). I’m hoping to flesh them out into some journal entries soon.

Friday

written: May 18th

Photo 48/1001:

 

David brought home donuts! Yay!

May Magick Photo #18: Crystals

 

This doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of my crystal collection. I do have plans to purchase more of these gray velvet jewelry boxes to better sort and catalog my collection. It’s just going to take time and money…so most likely I won’t be getting any more of those boxes until closer to the end of the year. Gotta pay off my medical debts and make it through the summer before I get fun money again.

So guess who was reinstated to my after school program? Yep, good ole Ava. The center of yesterday’s shit storm (though, to be fair, it’s really her MOM’s fault and not hers). ::sighs:: Would be nice if adults to be adults in this matter. ::deep breath:: Just 14 more workdays left in this school year. I can make it.

MoonTime started today – friggin’ FIVE days early. ::sighs:: BUT this could very well be my last period. Thank all that is holy. I’m ready to close the chapter on this book. Yeah, it’s gonna suck to shell out $1100…but to think that I could have periods once a month for the next TWENTY years or so? Yeah, I’ll gladly fork over the $1100 now.

Always talking about money and how I don’t make enough. But I’m also not overly willing to take on the extra jobs to make the extra money at this time. I seriously don’t see how people can go to college full time AND work full time AND have a family as well. Talk about super-humans! I just keep reminding myself that all of this current craziness is to get my foot in the door to making better money. At that point, I can get aggressive with paying off my debts and adding to my savings.

Dragons & Unprofessional

May Magick Photo #17: Magic:

 

I found some shed skin from one of the resident Texas spiny lizards when I went out back to plant the snapdragons Annette sent me in my May Day basket. Given that she had mentioned she wanted to send me a dragon in the basket, and the snapdragons were the only “dragons” that would fit…I figured it was a good omen to find what appears to be “dragon skin”. I put them in the bottom of the planter before filling it with dirt. I hope it’s good magic for the plants.

This is also Photo 47/1001.

Holy hell, work today started off with a kick to the teeth…followed by a few more kicks. ::shakes her head:: One of my students was removed from my program today. I don’t ever get the details unless it’s a behavioral removal. I just get an email that says the particular student has dropped from the program and when their last day was. This student’s last day was yesterday.

But apparently the mother decided to call our bluff on it. Ava came to my after school program and I told her she was a car-rider. So she went back to her teacher. Her teacher came in and LAID INTO ME over it, saying she hadn’t gotten an email about it and there was no one there to pick Ava up. I kept my cool and pulled the teacher aside (so we weren’t doing this in front of all the students) and quietly told her that I had been informed that Ava had been dropped from my program. And this teacher (whom I’ve worked with for the past NINE years), LIGHTS ME UP. Berating me for MY lack of communication. That no one had told HER that Ava wouldn’t be in the after school program, and no one had told the elementary office staff. And how unprofessional that was on MY part.

Excuse me? Again, I stayed calm and pointed out that these things are above my pay grade. That MY supervisors and higher ups are the ones that do all of this and take care of contacting the parents about these things. I have NO say. And, because she’s been removed from my after school program, I no longer have access to her information and have zero contact information on hand to even contact her mother.

So the teacher goes to the office staff, ranting about this. I just back off because I still have a fucking program to run at this point. The teacher then comes BACK to snap “Well, if this happens in the future, what is YOUR communication protocol so that this doesn’t happen again?” I snapped back that I would adhere to the protocol that my supervisors laid down to the letter. The teacher left.

Then the mom called. Claiming she didn’t know why her kid was dropped from the program and that no one had contacted her, so what does she need to do to get her kid back in the program. I told her she needed to call the after school’s main office and that they could help her out. And she thought I worked at the main office – but also at my campus? Like what the fuck? I fucking swear.

Then the teacher comes BACK again and was calmer. She apparently called my main office (which is totally fine) and found out that my supervisors HAD been in contact with Ava’s mom and that Ava’s mom was WELL aware of the situation, even though she was claiming she had no idea now. ::shakes her head:: I kept waiting for the teacher to give me some sort of apology….but THAT never happened. So fucking stupid.

I have no idea who the hell pissed in her Wheaties, but she had no business laying into me like that, especially in front of the students. It was unbelievably unprofessional on her part.

New Moon Esbat

May Magick Photo #15 & #16: New Moon and Bone:




Also, Photo 46/1001

My altar for my New Moon Ritual. Bone is what my wand is made of.

I was reading Witches of America by Alex Mar and her chapter on the Feri Tradition really had me fired up spiritually. I really would like to do a year with a Feri Coven…but not until after I finish up my grad program. I just don’t have any free time OR energy to devote to a Coven until then.

But it also got me to thinking about the silly lil rules I put on myself. Like a ritual can only have a singular focus. I can celebrate a Sabbat but also do magick for another need in the same damn ritual. ::shakes her head:: I’m working to shed those bogus “rules”. Fuck it. This is MY witchcraft. This is MY path. So why am I shackling myself with shit that makes ZERO sense? ::shakes her head:: Love my screwy head. ::chuckles::

Gearing Up For an Esbat

written: May 15

Photo 45/1001:

 

Ominous clouds that greeted me when I came out from work. It ended up amounting to nothing, but it was still pretty all the same.

I do want a good storm. I want a good ritual to be honest. Tonight is the New Moon in Taurus – an auspicious night for magick to do with finances. And given that my gyno’s office called me on Monday to drop the bomb that I am expected to pay the estimated cost of my part of my upcoming surgery ON my pre-op appointment – roughly $1100 – you can bet your ass I’ll be doing some money spells.

I’m still pissed about that. I mean, I set up the appointments back in APRIL…but we are going to wait until we’re a scant 2 weeks out to let me know I’m expected to cough up $1100? That’s fucking shitty. With my previous surgeries, I just always got a bill and paid what I could as fast as I could. Just a sign of the times, I guess.

I mean, I HAVE the money, so it’s not really that big of an issue. It’s just that I wasn’t PLANNING on paying so much up front. And of course, every TIME I come close to the $5k in savings, some huge bill lands on my table. I THOUGHT I had hit the $5k earlier this year, but I had forgotten that I had taken $250 out to cover bills, so I didn’t actually hit it. But I pulled out the stops and I have officially, REALLY hit the $5k mark.

I really should look around and find a savings account that accrues interest because my current savings account does not. Every little bit counts and adds up eventually.

 

So yeah, will be focusing on magick to help me regain the funds spent on the upcoming surgery. Plus, I need to dismantle the Sweetening Spell I had on myself and my former supervisor. It worked better than I ever could have hoped, but given that my former supervisor has moved on to greener pastures, I should really get around to dismantling it.

May Day Basket

written: May 14th

Photo 44/1001 – It’s actually two photos:

 

The most amazing little May Day basket from the amazing Annette.

 

And here’s all the goodies that were inside.

A package of Snapdragon seeds (can’t wait to plant those), a package of tea, a sage bundle, a hummingbird charm, a sun charm, and a moon charm. Now of course, I want to research the fuck out of May Day baskets. And I want to do my own version of it next year. Love, love, love it.

May Magick Photo #14: Chant:



I’m not big on chants, but I came across this chant in the book I’m currently reading Witches of America, by Alex Mar. So I figured that was a nice coincidence.

Grades are finally posted official. I somehow managed to pull out a 4.0 this semester, thank all that is holy. And now my overall GPA is a 3.666. ::cackles:: I can’t make this shit up. And as soon as I saw it, I just died laughing.

Plant Babble

written: May 13th

Photo 43/1001:

 

My final mystery lily bloomed. It’s a creamy not-quite pure white. I didn’t get my red lily like I had hoped, but I still love all of them. I’ll be looking into buying more lilies in the future. Honestly, I really want to pick up some of the “lily trees” – lilies that can be up to 8 feet tall. Sign me up! ::laughs::

May Magick Photo #13: Roots:

 

My daffodil bulbs that didn’t make it this season. I will plant them in the ground (instead in a planter) and see if maybe they’ll pull through. And if not, I gave them a good try. I’ll pick some more up soon.

I should start a Pinterest board for all my gardening ideas/dreams. It would be easier to keep up with all the things I want to grow.

Victory

written: May 12th

May Magick Photo Challenge #12: Green (Photo 42/1001):

 

This is my lil basil plant that reseeded itself from last year’s plants.

So my Youth Lit professor FINALLY posted all the grades. I somehow managed to pull my grade up from an 89 to a 96!

Honestly, I think she got so swamped that as long as we turned in the assignment and did at least the bare minimum, we got full credit. My last two assignments were definitely NOT stellar. But I’m not complaining!!!

So this means, while this was one of the most brutal semesters, I managed to come out of it with TWO A’s! Hells bells, I am grateful for that! Just three courses left. Then the dreaded End of Program exam. And then I’m done.

Just to show you how brutal this semester was…apparently David bought me Thor: Ragnarok…and I totally don’t remember him ever telling me that. And seriously, having the opportunity to see more of Thor and Loki? I would have remembered that. Needless to say, we watched it today. LOVED it.

FriYAY

Photo 41/1001

 

Alfred, the resident cottontail rabbit, was chillin’ in the front yard. I busted out my good camera (instead of using my phone) to snap some nice shots of him.

May Magick Challenge #11: Scent

 

This is the scented oil I chose to wear today. I have quite the selection, and the fun part is choosing which oil to wear to work.

Thank all that is HOLY it is Friday! Whew! Man, the kiddos were wearing me OUT this week. I am so glad the Hubs and I elected NOT to go to Scarborough Faire tomorrow. I seriously need some downtime. I need to use one of those bath bombs the parents gave all the teachers this week. A bath bomb, a face mask, and a good book – sounds like heaven to me!

Jess, my top aide, brought in everyone’s personal favorite drinks today. So I have an extra Frappuccino in the frig right now. I’ll probably drink that tomorrow. I would love to say I’ll be good and save it for Monday, but I’m about 75% sure that won’t happen. ::laughs::

Thankful Thursday

written: May 10th

Photo 40/1001:

 

And it’s a Selfie Day. I was actually feeling rather pretty and this photo turned out amazing.
May Magick Photo Challenge #10: Mala – the black tourmaline necklace I’m wearing is the closest thing I have to a Mala. Malas are one of those items that I’m not quite sure I want. I mean, they’re pretty and all. But they just don’t seem right for me. ::shrugs::

I am thankful…
1. For how well my selfie for today turned out. Like, seriously thankful for that. My self-worth has been seriously trampled this semester, so this was a lovely change of events.
2. All done with my semester. I’m just waiting on grades (STILL).
3. I’m pretty sure Alfred (the wild cottontail rabbit) and his girlfriend are making a bunny nest in my backyard. If so, I will be sure to get baby bunny photos as often as I can, without stressing them out too much. ::smiles:: Super excited about that possibility.
4. That David and I have decided to skip Scarborough Faire this year. Honestly, we just need a “stay at home with zero responsibilities” weekend. We’ll just putter around the house and decompress.
5. Discovering my public library has a ton of Pagan books. I’ve already picked up two (one Native American book about the Ghost Dance and one book on American Witches) today. I can’t wait to read them.
6. It’s looking like my last lily plant will be blooming in the next day or so. I’m suspecting it’s going to be pure white, but I won’t know for sure until it opens.
7. Deciding that I want to do a real garden eventually in the back yard. I plan to draw up plans for raised beds and what flowers and veggies I will grow. I’m honestly quite excited about the prospect of doing this.
8. Domino’s pizza for dinner.
9. The AMAZING peanut butter balls my Mom sent us in her treat box. I snarfed them down big time and let my husband have the brownies.
10. Having my morning back. I really like the peace and quiet and being fully able to do as my lil heart desires.

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Car Ride

Photo 39/1001:

 

Homemade egg rolls that were up at work. So delicious.

May Magick Photo Challenge #9: My Morning

 

Setting my intentions for the day – this is where I say my prayers for the day and set my intention before heading to work.

I took the most delicious nap with Josey before work. And woohoo for CRAZY sex dreams!
Right as I got home from work today, I realized that I had left my phone at work. So I loaded Josey up in the car and took her for a ride. Luckily I have a key card for the school so I was able to retrieve my phone. I’m hoping the extra excitement of the car ride means Josey will sleep soon.

Now I’m playing the waiting game to see what my grades are this semester.
I’m waiting on one grade for the Digital Citizenship class.
But I’m waiting for EIGHT fucking grades in my Youth Lit class. Assignments that were turned in back on April 1st are just hanging out, waiting on grades. Like WFT professor?!?!?! Get your shit together already!

Given that I’m sitting at 89s in both classes, this final grades could possibly bring me up to A’s. Which would be so fucking awesome, but I’m not holding my breath on just in case.

I need to talk to my hair stylist and get an appointment on the books to put some fun color in my hair again for summer. Totally NOT responsible behavior (on the whole “professional” level and money level), but fuck that noise. I DESERVE a bit of fun. Just gotta figure out what color I’ll be doing. I’m thinking possibly a blue this year. But before I can do that, I have to find out when I have MY end of year evaluation with my supervisor. Even I’m not currently ballsy enough to walk into that with blue hair – and it’s not like I’m going FULL blue. Just dying the bottom 4 or so inches blue. But still. No sense in rattling cages that don’t necessarily need to be rattled at this time. ::smiles:: I’m a rebel to my core, but my sense of self-preservation is stronger.

Air & Intelligence

written: April 8th

Photo 38/1001 and May Magick Photo Challenger #8: Air:

 

Daily incense offering and prayers. This one is Sandalwood from DreamyTimesShop.

Which reminds me, I need to buy some more incense soon so I can continue this. I may go back to Harvest Moon Haven and get some more of her Artemis incense. I swear, it’s my all-time favorite.

I rescued a little turtle today that was crossing the road. I even looped back around on my drive home to go back and move him off the road. I wish I could have taken a photo, but given that I had stopped my car in the road (it’s two lanes, so I wasn’t blocking traffic) and it’s a CURVY road, I didn’t want to dally too long and risk someone plowing into my car. So I quickly picked him up and put him in the grass, the direction he was headed. He wasn’t a large turtle so there is no way he could have ever made it up the curb, so he certainly would have eventually been killed on that road.

I’m thinking of picking up some “how to draw” books and giving that a go this summer. A fellow blogger was talking about how she picked up a how-to-water-paint book and how she was just loving it. So I figured this summer would be a good time to learn something new, so why not make it drawing? I’ve been wanting to take drawing classes for AGES. Besides, it gives me an excuse to go grab a pocket sketchbook and just goof around. I plan to hit Half Priced Books and pick up some drawing books cheap and get started on that.

Divination & Cars

hoto 37/1001 and Photo #7 for the May Magick Photo Challenge: Divination:



I finally busted out my Jade Oracle deck again. I haven’t read with it in months.

It’s rare for me to share my readings, but I figured this was a very accurate one.

The spread I use is a simple 3 card spread – Inhale, Hold, and Exhale.

Inhale: What I need to take in:
The Twin: don’t forget your spirit guides, guardians, and helpers. Lean on them, call on them, when you need them.

Hold: What I need to hold onto:
Snake: transformation, transportation to different dimensions, remain open to all possibilities

Release: What I need to let go of:
Spirit of the Earth: you have made it through a rite of passage, emerge from the dark and return to the light.

I felt it was a very appropriate reading, all things considered. I’ve made it through the semester – which honestly felt like a trial by fire for sure. I have forgotten to call on my guides to help. Sure I do daily offerings and prayer, but that’s not the same as actually WORKING with them. And I haven’t done self-ritual in ages. I need to touch the magic again.

In not magickal news, I’m getting my mom’s car! She’s purchasing my aunt’s car from my uncle and giving me her car. Mine is very old and has zero bells and whistles. Her only request is that I have to get it fully washed and detailed to make it easy to sell. So when I go down for my pre-op appointment, I will be coming back with a new-to-me car. Yay!

FREEDOM!

written: May 6th

Photo 36/1001 and May Magick Photo Challenge #6: Faery

 

My third lily plant has bloomed and it’s a glorious yellow!

As for Faery…this is as close to faery crap as I’ll ever get. No fae are welcome in my home or on my property, and I’ve made that abundantly clear. Hell I’ve even driven four rail road stakes (made of iron) into the four corners of my property for protection and to specifically keep them out.

In other news, I AM DONE WITH THIS SEMESTER!!!!!!!!!!

I finished up and turned in my final paper for Digital Citizenship and did my final weekly response in the Youth Lit class, so I’m officially done with this semester. Thank all that is holy. I feel like a massive weight has been lifted off of me and I can actually breathe again.

And with my new found freedom, I’ve been churning out responses to my pen pals. I just have three letters left to reply to. ::smiles::

Home Stretch

written: May 5th

Photo 35/1001

 

Meet Jethro. He’s a Smooth Earth Snake that was just chilling on my Welcome mat.

 

He was so damn mellow. He’s a little battle scarred, hence why I named him Jethro – after the character Jethro Gibbs in NCIS.

And this counts as May Magick Photo Challenge #5: Light

 

Look at the light illuminating his lil face and glinting off his smooth scales. ::smiles::

I’ve written the bulk of the Final Paper for Digital Citizenship and have done one of two required responses for the Youth Lit class. I’m in the home stretch now.

I also FINALLY responded to two of my pen pals (letters I received towards the beginning of April!). I still have 4 more to write to, but it’s a good start. ::smiles::

Man, this was a seriously brutal semester. Between the insane course work, the insane reading requirements (hello 80+ books read!), the INSANITY at work of having an aide threaten to punch me in the mouth and all the ensuing insanity of working to get her removed from my campus, to just the standard insanity that is my lil chaotic life. No wonder I’m exhausted!

But I can see the light at the end of this semester’s tunnel, and so I’m already making plans for after my Liberation! Plans to go to Scarborough Faire, the Fort Worth Zoo, a local Pagan Pride day, and back out to the Fort Worth Nature Preserve over Memorial Day weekend to hopefully photograph Buttons, the white-sided rattlesnake. All wonderfully FUN things to do with my weekends, now that I do not have assignments due!