The Witches Astronomy Journal for Thursday, April 12th
Your Daily Sun & Moon Data for Thursday, April `12th
The Sun
Sun Direction: ↑ 85.86° E
Sun Altitude: 9.21°
Sun Distance: 93.184 million mi
Next Solstice: Jun 21, 2018 5:07 am (Summer)
Sunrise Today: 6:24 am↑ 78° East
Sunset Today: 7:26 pm↑ 282° West
Length of Daylight: 13 hours, 2 minutes
The Moon
Moon Direction: ↑ 128.69° SE
Moon Altitude: 25.64°
Moon Distance: 244521 mi
Next New Moon: Apr 15, 20188:57 pm
Next Full Moon: Apr 29, 20187:58 pm
Next Moonset: Today4:07 pm
Current Moon Phase: Waning Crescent
Illumination: 13.7% Reference timeanddate.com
Astrology of Today – Thursday, April 12th
Mars-Uranus early today is progressive. A Last Quarter Moon occurs shortly before midday, and asks us to consider our spiritual needs.
The Moon is in Pisces all day (until Wednesday, June 10th, at 7:13 AM).
The Moon is void from 2:08 PM forward (until tomorrow at 7:13 AM).
The Moon is waning and in its Waning Gibbous phase until 11:41 AM/ Third Quarter phase from 11:41 AM forward.
The Third Quarter Moon occurs at 11:41 AM in Pisces.
Mercury is retrograde. (Mercury is retrograde from May 18 to June 11 in the sign of Gemini).
Moon in Pisces
The Moon is traveling through Pisces today. You may feel disconnected. Serve others. Listen to music. Paint a picture. Daydream.
We are not inclined to want to face reality while the Moon is in dreamy, impressionable Pisces. It can be a wistful, sensitive, intuitive, and compassionate time. We are especially imaginative, and our intuition reigns under this influence. Boundaries and walls come down, as Pisces energy merges and blends. It’s a time when details are overlooked and feelings defy description.
The Moon in Pisces generally favors the following activities: Imaginative undertakings, mystical or spiritual pursuits, inner development, music and drama, going on a retreat, activities involving water.
Daily Overview of Your Sky for Thursday, April 12th
With recent doubts and suspicions or cynicism, today’s Venus-Neptune sextile seems to come at just the right time. We are more imaginative and attuned to the world of beauty and romance today, and we tend to approach one another more gently. A “magical” time on a romantic and social level is possible now, as we are inclined to see spiritual dimensions of our relationships and to approach others with compassion. As well, the Moon is in Pisces all day, reinforcing the inclination to forgive and release.
The sky this week for April 12 to 15
Mars and Saturn chase the Moon, the Summer Triangle returns to prominence, and a brilliant Venus takes center stage, all in the sky this week.
By Michael E. Bakich
Thursday, April 12
As you stare into tonight’s starry sky, think about the two space-related anniversaries we celebrate on this date. In 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to journey into outer space, and the first to orbit Earth. Then, in 1981, NASA launched its first space shuttle, Columbia, on a three-day mission during which it orbited Earth 36 times.
Friday, April 13
This could be your lucky night if you want to hunt down a galaxy. First, you’ll need to head to a dark observing site. Then, with binoculars in hand, scan about one field of view east-southeast of 2nd-magnitude Phecda (Gamma [γ] Ursae Majoris), the star that forms the southeastern corner of the Big Dipper’s bowl. You should see a triangle of 5th- and 6th-magnitude stars. The spiral galaxy M106 lies 1.7° south of 3 Canum Venaticorum, the triangle’s southern tip. The galaxy will appear as an oval blur of light glowing at magnitude 8.4.
Saturday, April 14
Brilliant Venus dominates the evening sky starting about half an hour after sunset. It stands 15° above the western horizon 30 minutes after the Sun goes down and doesn’t set until around 9:30 p.m. local daylight time — a full two hours after the Sun. Shining at magnitude –3.9, it lies in front of the stars of Aries the Ram and appears far brighter than any other point of light in the sky. When viewed through a telescope tonight, Venus spans only 11″ and shows a 92-percent-lit phase.
Sunday, April 15
Dwarf planet 1 Ceres is the largest object in the asteroid belt, which lies between Mars and Jupiter. Almost any telescope will reveal its 8th-magnitude glow. All this month it moves eastward in front of the stars of the constellation Cancer the Crab. You’ll find it tonight between magnitude 4.0 Iota Cancri and 57 Cancri, which glows at magnitude 5.4. It lies two-thirds of the way from the brighter to the fainter star. If you can’t pinpoint it exactly, sketch the area and come back one or two nights later. The point of light that’s moved will be Ceres.
The cosmos gives you a free ticket to ride thanks to the absence of any challenging alignments.
Love vibrations increase in frequency — courtesy of a supportive, 60-degree alliance between Venus in Taurus and Neptune in Pisces (9:27am) and another 60-degree tie between the moon and Venus (5:58pm).
Have a field day in the fine and graphic arts. Lend a helping hand to the truly needy. Play a favorite musical instrument or improvise with a video camera during the monthly union between the moon and Neptune in Pisces (5:10pm).
Start gearing up for Mercury’s station and shift from reverse to direct on Sunday — the same day of a new moon happening within 2 degrees of Uranus, the revolutionary planet of genius, surprises and shock-waves.
[Note to readers: All times are now calculated for Pacific Daylight Time. Be sure to adjust all times according to your own local time so the alignments noted above will be exact for your location.]
The Witches Current Moon Phase for Thursday, April 12
ommorow the Moon will be in a Waning Crescent phase. In this phase the Moon’s illumination is growing smaller each day until the New Moon. During this phase the Moon is getting closer to the Sun as viewed from Earth and the night side of the Moon is facing the Earth with only a small edge of the Moon being illuminated. This phase is best viewed an hour or 2 before the sunrise and can be quite beautiful if you’re willing to get up early. It can also be a great time to see the features of the Moon’s surface. Along the edge where the illuminated portion meets the dark side, the craters and mountains cast long shadows making them easier to observe with a telescope or binoculars.
PHASE DETAILS FOR – THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2018
Phase: Waning Crescent
Illumination: 14%
Moon Age: 25.95 days
Moon Angle: 0.50
Moon Distance: 396,671.24 km
Sun Angle: 0.53
Sun Distance: 149,989,613.22 km
What is a waning crescent moon? The waning crescent moon, sometimes called an old moon, is defined to occur when the Moon is nearly, but not precisely, on a line with the Earth and Sun. This means that part but less than one-half of the Moon is illuminated by direct sunlight, creating a crescent moon. Because the fraction of the Moon’s disk that is illuminated is decreasing, we consider the Moon to be “waning.” Each new lunar cycle is measured beginning at each new moon and the waning crescent moon occurs when the Moon is more than three-quarters of the way around the sky (i.e., along its orbit) from new moon. Waning Crescent Moon Dates / Next Waning Crescent Moon
When is the next waning crescent moon? A waning crescent moon is seen one day to several days before a new moon. The average calendrical month, which is 1/12 of a year, is about 30.44 days, while the Moon’s phase (synodic) cycle repeats on average every 29.53 days. Therefore the timing of the Moon’s phases shifts by an average of almost one day for each successive month. To find out the waning crescent moon dates, please see the waning crescent moon calendar below.
About the Waning Crescent Moon
The waning crescent moon, happens when the moon is between a 135 and 180 degree angle with respect to the Earth and Sun. So we are seeing less than half of the moon illuminated and more than half in shadow. The word “crescent” refers to the phases where the moon is less that half illuminated. “Waning” essentially means shrinking or decreasing in illumination. Each evening, as the moon’s orbital motion carries it away from the Earth-sun line, we see less of the moon’s day side.
Each lunar cycle begins with a new moon. As the Moon moves eastward away from the Sun in the sky, we see a bit more of the sunlit side of the Moon each night. We call this waxing. After the new moon, the sunlit portion is increasing, but less than half illuminated, so it is a waxing crescent moon. When half of the Moon’s disc is illuminated, we call it the first quarter moon. As the sunlit portion continues to increase, now more than half illuminated, it becomes waxing gibbous moon. When the Moon reaches maximum illumination, a full moon, the Moon has completed one half of the lunar month.
During the second half of the lunar month, the Moon grows thinner each night. We call this waning. The waning gibbous moon phase occurs first, followed by the last quarter moon when half of the Moon’s disc is illuminated. Next is the waning crescent moon, which wanes until the illumination is completely gone; a new moon Reference Full Moon Phases
Interesting Facts About The Moon
Called Luna with the Romans, Selene and Artemis with the Greeks, and many additional names in other mythologies.The Moon, of course, may be known since prehistoric times. It is the second brightest object within the sky after the Solar. As the Moon orbits round the Earth once per thirty days, the angle between the planet earth, the Moon and sunshine changes; we see this for the reason that cycle of the Moon’s periods. The time between effective new moons is twenty nine and a half days (709 hours), slightly totally different from the Moon’s orbital period (measured from the stars) since the Earth moves an important distance in its orbit round the Sun in that time period.Due to its size and composition, the Moon may also be classified as a terrestrial “planet” in addition to Mercury, Venus, Earth along with Mars.The Moon was visited by the Soviet spacecraft Luna two in 1959. It is the only extraterrestrial body to get been visited by humans. The first landing ended up being on July 20, 1969 (do you remember where you’re? ); the last is at December 1972. The Moon is additionally the only body where samples have been went back to Earth. In the summer of 1994, the Moon was very extensively mapped with the little spacecraft Clementine along with again in 1999 simply by Lunar Prospector.The gravitational forces relating to the Earth and the Moon cause some interesting results. The most obvious is the tides. The Moon’s gravitational attraction is stronger on the side of the Earth nearest to the Moon and weaker on the opposite side. Since the planet earth, and particularly the oceans, is not perfectly rigid it really is stretched out along the actual line toward the Moon. From our perspective on the Earth’s surface we notice two small bulges, one on the way to the Moon and one directly opposite. The effect is a lot stronger in the ocean water than within the solid crust so water bulges are higher. And considering that the Earth rotates much faster than the Moon moves in its orbit, the bulges maneuver around the Earth about once per day giving two high tides on a daily basis. (This is a enormously simplified model; actual tides, especially close to the coasts, are much more complicated. )But the Earth seriously isn’t completely fluid, either. The Earth’s rotation provides the Earth’s bulges slightly before point directly beneath the actual Moon. This means which the force between the Earth along with the Moon is not exactly across the line between their centers desigining a torque on the Soil and an accelerating force on the Moon. This causes a world wide web transfer of rotational energy from the Earth to the Moon, slowing down the Earth’s rotation by about 1. 5 milliseconds/century and raising the Moon in to a higher orbit by regarding 3. 8 centimeters annually. (The opposite effect occurs to satellites with unusual orbits for instance Phobos and Triton). The asymmetric nature on this gravitational interaction is also responsible for the truth that the Moon rotates synchronously, when i. e. it is locked throughout phase with its orbit so the same side is always facing toward the planet earth. Just as the Earth’s rotation is actually being slowed by the actual Moon’s influence so within the distant past the Moon’s rotation was slowed with the action of the Soil, but in that case the effect was much stronger. If your Moon’s rotation rate was slowed to match its orbital period (such which the bulge always faced toward the Earth) there is no longer an off-center torque on the Moon and a secure situation was achieved. A similar thing has happened to the vast majority of other satellites in the actual solar system. Eventually, the Earth’s rotation will likely be slowed to match the actual Moon’s period, too, as is the case with Pluto along with Charon.Actually, the Moon appears to wobble a lttle bit (due to its slightly non-circular orbit) so that a few degrees of the far side can be seen every once in awhile, but the majority of the far side (left) was completely unknown before the Soviet spacecraft Luna 3 photographed the item in 1959. (Note: there’s no “dark side” of the actual Moon; all parts of the actual Moon get sunlight half the time (except for some deep craters near the actual poles). Some uses of the term “dark side” previously may have referred to the far side as “dark” within the sense of “unknown” (eg “darkest Africa”) however even that meaning is no longer valid today! )The Moon doesn’t have atmosphere. But evidence from Clementine suggested that there could possibly be water ice in some deep craters close to the Moon’s south pole that are permanently shaded. This has been reinforced by facts from Lunar Prospector. There’s apparently ice at the north pole as well.The Moon’s crust averages 68 kilometers thick and varies by essentially 0 under Mare Crisium for you to 107 km north of the crater Korolev on the actual lunar far side. Below the crust is often a mantle and probably a tiny core (roughly 340 kilometers radius and 2% of the Moon’s mass). Unlike the planet earth, however, the Moon’s interior is no longer active. Curiously, the Moon’s center regarding mass is offset by its geometric center simply by about 2 km within the direction toward the Soil. Also, the crust is thinner on the near side.There are two primary varieties of terrain on the Moon: the heavily cratered and extremely old highlands and the actual relatively smooth and youthful maria. The maria (which comprise about 16% of the Moon’s surface) are huge impact craters which were later flooded by molten lava. A lot of the surface is covered with regolith, a mixture of great dust and rocky debris produced by meteor impacts. For many unknown reason, the maria are concentrated on the near side.Most of the craters on the in close proximity to side are named for famous figures within the history of science for instance Tycho, Copernicus, and Ptolemaeus. Features on the far side have newer references such as Apollo, Gagarin and Korolev (with any distinctly Russian bias since first images were acquired by Luna 3). Besides the familiar features on the actual near side, the Moon also offers the huge craters South Pole-Aitken on the far side which is actually 2250 km in height and 12 km deep so that it is the the largest impact basin within the solar system and Orientale on the western limb (as observed from Earth; in the biggest market of the image at left) the industry splendid example of any multi-ring crater.A total of 382 kg regarding rock samples were returned to the Earth by the Apollo along with Luna programs. These provide almost all of our detailed knowledge of the Moon. They are particularly valuable in that they may be dated. Even right now, more than 30 years as soon as the last Moon landing, people still study these cherished samples.Most rocks on the top of Moon seem to become between 4. 6 and 3 billion years. This is a fortuitous match while using the oldest terrestrial rocks that are rarely more than 3 billion years. Thus the Moon provides evidence in regards to the early history of the Solar System not available on the Earth.Prior to study of the Apollo examples, there was no consensus in regards to the origin of the Moon. There were three major theories: co-accretion which asserted which the Moon and the Earth formed concurrently from the Solar Nebula; fission which asserted which the Moon split off of the Earth; and capture which held which the Moon formed elsewhere along with was subsequently captured with the Earth. None of these work very well. But the new and detailed information from the Moon rocks led to the impact theory: that the planet earth collided with a very large object (as big because Mars or more) understanding that the Moon formed from the ejected material. There continue to be details to be exercised, but the impact theory is actually widely accepted.The Moon doesn’t have global magnetic field. But some of its surface rocks exhibit remanent magnetism indicating that there was a global magnetic field early within the Moon’s history.With no atmosphere with out magnetic field, the Moon’s surface is exposed right to the solar wind. Over its 4 million year lifetime many ions from the solar wind have become embedded within the Moon’s regolith. Thus types of regolith returned by the actual Apollo missions proved valuable in studies of the solar wind.
The forest echoes with love and laughter
As the coven of witches gather.
Clearing the circle of unwanted vibes,
The maiden, onto a candle, inscribes:
“Sacred flame of fire, glow, Asking all impurities to go. Cleanse this space with fire and air So our rite is fresh and fair.”
The High Priestess holds her wand above,
And casts the circle of perfect love.
Faeries flutter to and fro,
As the energy begins to grow.
The sharing of crescent cakes and ale,
Weaving spells and healing prevail.
Luna illuminates powerful light;
Blessing the coven, the earth, and the rite.
The witches hold hands as they chant:
“Oh, great Goddess, vibrant and valiant, Blessings upon you and your earth, Thank you for the Sun’s rebirth.”
–By The Light Of The Crystal Moon: A Book of Pagan Poetry and Short Stories
Elizabeth Gardiepy
We know they feared our Pagan ways,
They tried to wipe us out,
They tortured and they burned us,
If they had the slightest doubt,
They took away our festivals,
Replaced them with their own,
But we stood strong and carried on,
We’ve flourished and we’ve grown.
They said we worshiped Satan,
Stole babies and much worse,
And if by chance someone fell ill,
They said we laid a curse,
They took us in for “questioning”,
Tortured till we confessed,
But anyone would say the words,
Under such duress.
With bodies bruised and broken,
They put us on the stand,
The priests said we’d offended God,
And the devil took our hand,
The villagers believed them,
Our guilt was their desire,
Then everybody turned out to see,
The witch burned in the fire.
They never really understood,
And some to this day still,
Do not understand our craft,
We bear no one ill will,
We live a life of peace and love,
At one with Mother Earth, S
o in secrecy the Hedgewitch lives,
Gathering berries, leaves and herbs.
I sometimes think that there are those,
Who live in those dark times still,
They do not wish to understand,
And I guess they never will,
But Pagans all around the world,
Are proud to carry on,
We practice the oldest religion,
In our deeds and in our song.
Be joyful all ye Pagans,
For the road has been so long,
Remember the innocent martyrs,
That suffered in those days gone,
Give your praise to all the Gods,
And the Goddess of rebirth,
For they can never destroy our faith,
We are the children of the Earth.
—Pagan Ways
Alan Faraway
Trying out the account to make sure it works for tomorrow.
I have good news and not so good news. I know Lord Myst said I wouldn’t be on this site again. He was wrong. A lot has happened in a day’s time. First, we were not on the internet because we were at the courthouse paying our tax bill. My deepest gratitude to each of you who donated and purchased merchandise to make this happen. The taxes are paid, construction can now begin on Lady A’s house and all is well on that account. Again, you have all of our deepest appreciation, gratitude and thanks.
Next good news, Lady A will be getting out of the hospital Friday. She is doing extremely well. I believe it has something to do with healer heal yourself. We were there yesterday when the doctor came in and he told her she had made tremendous progress and would be released as planned. Also, the cast on her left leg has been removed. It was removed when they placed the steins in. They put the steins in on the right side but she had been complaining of pain in the lower part of her calf on the left side. The doctor knew how much trauma that leg had been through. He made the determination that possibly a clot could have come from that leg. He consulted the orthopedic doctor during surgery and the ortho doctor told him it was time for the cast to come off anyway. It was then removed. Lady A was trying to be humorous, made a joke about thinking she went to the Summerlands because the cast was off. I am glad she can make jokes. But she is doing great and I am sure it also has to do with your thoughts and prayers.
The next is about Lord Myst and it is not that great of news. Jacob made the post the other day that all of you read. He moved several of you to action and for that we are again grateful. It also moved Lord Myst. He got angry at Jacob and insisted that he had undermined him. He shoved Jacob into a wall and I heard it and got up to see what was going on. Jacob told me and Lord Myst didn’t have a word to say. They got into an argument about Jacob making the post and Lord Myst told him he had no business even being on the computer to start with. I asked Lord M had he lost his mind, shoving his own nephew into a wall. He told me he was going to shut down everything here and move Lady A and the boys back home with him. Well my reply was, “over my dead body.” He has no authority to do anything. He has no authority to keep me off this site and he has no authority to close anything down. Why he moved the date up on the store closing, I don’t know. But it will not be closing the 16th. More than likely it will not close at all. Lady A trained Jacob and myself on how to use WordPress and the store in case anything ever happened. She told us both we would probably have problems out of Lord Myst and we have. He told me he would go to the hospital and have a talk with Lady A about the entire situation. I have bound him from going near her. I have also bound him from our rented house, the office property and Lady A’s home’s property. I saw the man’s eyes and if looks could kill, his own nephew would have been dead. That is why I took such measures. The bull Lord M was telling you, please disregard.
As far as telling Lady A any of this, we haven’t. She would be outraged that he shoved Jacob and no telling what she would try to do. Right now, she has no business trying to do anything except heal. If she asks about him, we are going to tell her he had to go home for an emergency. And when she gets out of the hospital Friday, I will make sure this post is gone. I am getting ready to make two new user accounts for the site. One will be for Jacob and the other Lynette. Since we have had people asking for our information to continue, Lynette will be doing the daily posts for a while. She knows how to operate a computer and has been looking back on previous posts to see how we do things. Jacob is learning to become a witch perhaps he will share his new Path with us.
I owe each of you an apology. I know I am a difficult person to get along with but I am going to try my best to change for Lady A’s sake. She loves you dearly and it is apparent that you love her. I was wrong. I didn’t understand nor believe such a bond could be made over the computer such as you and her share. But there is that bond and I see it now. I hope you understand, at first I didn’t believe it but now I have seen it with my own eyes. You do love her and for that I am very, very thankful. I promise you no more harsh words or bad temper from me. I will straighten up and fly right, you have my word on that. Please accept my apologizes. I am truly sorry for my past actions.
We all deeply appreciate everything you have done for Lady A. For all the love and caring you have shown for her over the years. I know the stubborn witch, she will be right back in the mix of things before you know it. I hope she at least takes a week or two off anyway but we will have to wait and see on that one. When we told her that the tax bill had been paid, she started to cry. We all embraced and through her sobbing, she told me to tell each of you, “thank you and I love them more than they will ever know.” She is my blood sister, you are her family and you are my family now.
Thank you and my deepest gratitude to each and everyone of you,
Eleanor
After I made the two new accounts, Lynette and the ladies will resume the Daily Digest tomorrow. Things will continue as normal and as Lady A wishes. I will pick her up from the hospital Friday and you will have your daily information.
This is Jacob, I am going to have to fix my own account. Below is part of a shout-out I just got through sending out for the store. I know you heard from Lord M earlier and now I would like to say a word or two. Lady A is a wonderful woman. She took my brother and myself in after our mother was killed in the auto wreck. She treats us as her own. She has taught us how to hunt, fish, and cook. She has become our mother. As our mother, I have grown close to her. I know what she values and she values the store and this site. As far as Lord M goes, he doesn’t. He wants to pack us all up and move us up to his place. Neither my brother or myself want to go, and I know Lady A won’t either. She means a lot to both of us and I am willing to fight for her. As mentioned below, if we reach the tax money we need by the 16th, Lord M can take a long walk off a short peer. He might be my uncle but we are not close. I grew up with Lady A and she is like a second mother to me. I barely know Lord M. I wish you know the Lady I am come to call mother. She is head-strong, she would do anything she could for anybody, she volunteers in the community, she does public speaking and on and on. Lord M was right about one thing, she is passionate. When she believes in something, she doesn’t put 100% into it, she puts 110% into it. I see nothing wrong with that. If you are going to make something a success, it requires work. She has made the WOTC a success and the store if given half a chance will be a success also. That is why Joseph and myself are willing to keep it open if we can reach the little dab we need to pay the taxes. We love our new mother, we love becoming witches, we don’t want to see it end. We don’t want to leave Western Kentucky. I am asking for your help to keep us right here where we belong.
Thank you,
Jacob
Going Out of Business Sale Date Changed
I don’t know if it has been explained to each of you the reason the store is going out of business. We have a $1200 tax on our property that we have tried and tried to raise the money to pay. We have not had success in doing this. We are currently only a short amount away from meeting this goal. The stress has cause Lady A to be hospitalized with chest pain and has two steins put in going to her heart. We will not only lose the office building, we will also lose her personal property. The dead line is April 16th. Due to her illness and hospitalization, we are moving the closing date up to April 16th. If we don’t meet the tax bill by then, we will need the additional time to pack things up and get out. If we should meet the bill, we would be more than happy to keep the store open for you. If you would like to make a purchase, now is the time to do so. We need your help. (It should be noted that Joseph and I are still adding merchandise to the store. We are holding out hope that something will come through for Lady A and the WOTC). Thank you!
We have been adding new merchandise to the store. Holding out hope as Lord M said. If you can’t find anything you like a donation of any amount would be appreciated. Thank you again, Jacob
Greetings Brothers & Sisters. I wanted to give you a quick up-date on Lady Abyss. She is currently in ICU. The doctor told us that was normal for individuals who had the surgery she had. She is doing well, still groggy, talking to you one minute and asleep the next. The doctor told us if she continue to do as well as she is doing, she will be moved out of the ICU unit tomorrow. She will be out on the floor for about two days then she will be able to come home.
I haven’t made up my mind yet whether I am going to take the boys and her back home with me or not. If she comes back here, she will only be under the same stress that caused this to happen in the first place. Lady A has always had a problem when she gets involved in anything, she jumps head first. She gives 100% of herself to the project and this time it almost killed her. I believe she has been through enough and time has come for her to have some peace and quiet. There is no way we are going to save the property and she does not need to be in the area when the property is auctioned off. More than likely, I will take them back with me.
We have discussed it and have decided the store will close on the 16th instead of the 27th. Why Lady A picked the 27th, I don’t know. We will need the extra time to pack everything up and get out. I know Jacob and Joseph both have been putting new merchandise on the site. They are holding out hope that we will be able to meet the tax bill. I am not so optimistic.
As of now, the store will close April 16th. Lady A is doing fine and I will keep you up-dated on her condition.
We did not come back on the internet yesterday because we had to take Lady A to the hospital. She was in the middle of doing the taxes and started having chest pains. Immediately, I picked her up and took her to the hospital. The doctors evaluated her and she had two blockage going to her heart. They immediately performed a surgery where they put in two stints to open up the arteries. She won’t be in there long. The doctors told us, she was otherwise healthy. She should be out of the hospital within 3 to four days.
Undue stress over losing our property, the letter from the sheriff’s office and the taxes did not help matters. She has made up her mind that we are going to lose our property. I sincerely hope that is not the case. The weather is beginning to clear up and we can begin construction on her old home site. I know she will be glad to get back home. But as it stands now, she won’t be going home. We are still short on meeting the taxes on the property. She has kept this bottled up and it has nearly killed her. If my property would sell I would gladly give her the money but the economy is bad and it is not selling.
Since this is the case, I am turning to you to help raise the rest of the tax money. You have bought and bought but we don’t make that much profit from the sales of the merchandise. That does not mean, we do not appreciate your purchases because we do. We have also received numerous donations, which we also appreciate. We are so close to raising the money that is would be ashame to lose the property now. I will appeal to those who have now made a purchase or donation to please do so. This has almost killed our Lady.
In the meantime, when she is out of the hospital, I will be running the WOTC as usual. Eleanor will not touch a computer due to her previous behavior on this site. We will keep you up-dated on Lady A’s condition and when she is out of the hospital.
I hope everyone is having a fantastic, relaxing Saturday morning. It is hard to believe it is April around here. It is snowing this morning, yeah in April. I can’t believe this weather. Anyway, I wanted to let you know we are taking the morning off. I have put off and put off doing our taxes and I guess it is finally time to do them. To add to everything else, we got a nasty letter yesterday from the sheriff. It informed us when our taxes was due (like we didn’t know) and if not paid by that day, they would be transferred over to some clerk. This clerk would arrange the auction time of our property. If that don’t depress you, I don’t know what would. Anyway, we are only $200.00 away from being able to pay them. We still have time to collect this money and pay our taxes. I have added a few new things to the store. I got to think, how can you sell anything if there is nothing there? So I added a few new things, you might take a look if you are interested in making a purchase. If not, a donation would be greatly appreciated. Right now, $200 seems like it ought to be $200,000. But anyway, that’s the story now.
We will be back on this afternoon to put some information on and also a few spells. But for right now, I am off to do taxes.
In Welsh mythology, Rhiannon is a horse goddess depicted in the Mabinogion. She is similar in many aspects to the Gaulish Epona, and later evolved into a goddess of sovereignty who protected the king from treachery.
Rhiannon in the Mabinogion
Rhiannon was married to Pwyll, the Lord of Dyfed. When Pwyll first saw her, she appeared as a golden goddess upon a magnificent white horse. Rhiannon managed to outrun Pwyll for three days, and then allowed him to catch up, at which point she told him she’d be happy to marry him, because it would keep her from marrying Gwawl, who had tricked her into an engagement.
Rhiannon and Pwyll conspired together to fool Gwawl in return, and thus Pwyll won her as his bride. Most of the conspiring was likely Rhiannon’s, as Pwyll didn’t appear to be the cleverest of men. In the Mabinogion, Rhiannon says of her husband, “Never was there a man who made feebler use of his wits.”
A few years after marrying Pwyll, Rhiannon gave birth to their son, but the infant disappeared one night while under the care of his nursemaids. Frightened that they would be charged for a crime, the nursemaids killed a puppy and smeared its blood on the face of their sleeping queen. When she awoke, Rhiannon was accused of killing and eating her son. As penance, Rhiannon was made to sit outside the castle walls, and tell passersby what she had done. Pwyll, however, stood by her, and many years later the infant was returned to his parents by a lord who had rescued him from a monster and raised him as his own son.
Author Miranda Jane Green draws comparisons to this story and that of the archetypical “wronged wife,” accused of a horrible crime.
Rhiannon and the Horse
The goddess’ name, Rhiannon, derives from a Proto-Celtic root which means “great queen,” and by taking a man as her spouse, she grants him sovereignty as king of the land.
In addition, Rhiannon possesses a set of magical birds, who can soothe the living into a deep slumber, or wake the dead from their eternal sleep.
Her story features prominently in the Fleetwood Mac hit song, although songwriter Stevie Nicks says she didn’t know it at the time. Later, Nicks said she “was struck by the story’s emotional resonance with that of her song: the goddess, or possibly witch, given her ability with spells, was impossible to catch by horse and was also closely identified with birds — especially significant since the song claims she “takes to the sky like a bird in flight,” “rules her life like a fine skylark,” and is ultimately “taken by the wind.”
Primarily, though, Rhiannon is associated with the horse, which appears prominently in much of Welsh and Irish mythology. Many parts of the Celtic world — Gaul in particular — used horses in warfare, and so it is no surprise that these animals turn up in the myths and legends or Ireland and Wales. Scholars have learned that horse racing was a popular sport, especially at fairs and gatherings, and for centuries Ireland has been known as the center of horse breeding and training.
Judith Shaw, at Feminism and Religion, says, “Rhiannon, reminding us of our own divinity, helps us to identify with our sovereign wholeness.
She enables us to cast out the role of victim from our lives forever. Her presence calls us to practice patience and forgiveness. She lights our way to the ability to transcend injustice and maintain compassion for our accusers.”
Symbols and items that are sacred to Rhiannon in modern Pagan practice include horses and horseshoes, the moon, birds, and the wind itself.
An Iowa Pagan named Callista says, “I raise horses, and have worked with them since I was a child. I first encountered Rhiannon when I was a teenager, and I keep an altar to her near my stables. It’s got horsey things on it, like a horseshoe, a horse figurine, and even braids from the manes of horses I’ve lost over the years. I make an offering to her before horse shows, and I invoke her when one of my mares is about to give birth.
She seems to like offerings of sweetgrass and hay, milk, and even music – I sometimes sit by my altar and play my guitar, just singing a prayer to her, and the results are always good. I know she’s watching over me and my horses.”
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Rhiannon
Rhiannon is a major figure in the Mabinogi, the medieval Welsh story collection. She appears mainly in the First Branch of the Mabinogi, and again in the Third Branch. She is a strong minded Otherworld woman, who chooses Pwyll, prince of Dyfed (west Wales), as her consort, in preference to another man to whom she has already been betrothed. She is intelligent, politically strategic, and famed for her wealth and generosity. With Pwyll she has a son, the hero Pryderi, who later inherits the lordship of Dyfed. She endures tragedy when her newborn child is abducted, and she is accused of infanticide. As a widow she marries Manawydan of the British royal family, and has further adventures involving enchantments.
Like some other figures of British/Welsh literary tradition, Rhiannon may be a reflex of an earlier Celtic deity. Her name appears to derive from the reconstructed Brittonic form *Rīgantonā, a derivative of *rīgan- “queen”. In the First Branch of the Mabinogi, Rhiannon is strongly associated with horses, and so is her son Pryderi. She is often considered to be related to the Gaulish horse goddess Epona. She and her son are often depicted as mare and foal. Like Epona, she sometimes sits on her horse in a calm, static way. While this connection with Epona is generally accepted among scholars of the Mabinogi and Celtic studies, Ronald Hutton, a general historian, is skeptical.
Rhiannon’s story Y Mabinogi: First Branch
Rhiannon first appears at Gorsedd Arberth an ancestral mound near one of the chief courts of Dyfed. Pwyll, the prince of Dyfed, has accepted the challenge of the mound’s magical tradition to show a marvel or deal out blows. Rhiannon appears to him and his court as the promised marvel. She is a beautiful woman arrayed in gold silk brocade, riding a shining white horse. Pwyll sends his best horsemen after her two days running, but she always remains ahead of them, though her horse never does more than amble. On the third day he finally follows her himself and does no better, until he finally appeals to her to stop for him.
Rhiannon characteristically rebukes him for not considering this course before, then explains she has sought him out to marry him, in preference to her current betrothed, Gwawl ap Clud. Pwyll gladly agrees, but at their wedding feast at her father’s court, an unknown man requests Pwyll grant a request; which he does without asking what it is. The man is Gwawl, and he requests Rhiannon.
Rhiannon rebukes Pwyll a second time for his stupid words, but provides the means and the plan to salvage the situation. She holds a second wedding feast for Gwawl, where she deploys Pwyll’s men outside in the orchard. She instructs Pwyll to enter the hall dressed as a beggar and humbly request Gwawl fill a certain ‘small bag’ with food. But she has enchanted the ‘small bag’ so it cannot ever be filled by normal means. Gwawl is persuaded to step in it to control its magic, which means Pwyll can trap him in it. Pwyll’s men rush in and surround the hall, then beat and kick Gwawl as the Badger-in-the-Bag game. To save his life Gwawl is forced to relinquish Rhiannon completely, and also his revenge. Rhiannon marries Pwyll, then journeys to Dyfed as its queen.
After a happy two years Pwyll comes under pressure from his nobles, to provide an heir. He refuses to set Rhiannon aside as barren, and in the third year their son is born. However, on the night of his birth, the newborn disappears while in the care of Rhiannon’s six sleepy maids. Terrified of being put to death, the women kill a puppy and smear its blood on Rhiannon’s sleeping face. In the morning they accuse her of infanticide and cannibalism. Rhiannon takes counsel with her own advisers, and offers to undergo a penance. Pwyll is again urged to set her aside, but refuses, and sets her penance instead. She must sit every day by the gate of the castle at the horse block, to tell her story to travelers. She must also offer to carry them on her back as a beast of burden, though few accept this. However, as the end of the story shows, Pwyll maintains her state as his queen, as she still sits at his side in the hall at feasting time.
The newborn child is discovered by Teyrnon, the lord of Gwent-Is-Coed (South-Eastern Wales). He is a horse lord whose fine mare foals every May Eve, but the foals go missing each year. He takes the mare into his house and sits vigil with her. After her foal is born he sees a monstrous claw trying to take the newborn foal through the window, so he slashes at the monster with his sword. Rushing outside he finds the monster gone, and a human baby left by the door. He and his wife claim the boy as their own naming him Gwri Wallt Euryn (Gwri of the Golden Hair), for “all the hair on his head was as yellow as gold”. The child grows at a superhuman pace with a great affinity for horses. Teyrnon who once served Pwyll as a courtier, recognises the boy’s resemblance to his father. As an honourable man he returns the boy to the Dyfed royal house.
Reunited with Rhiannon the child is formally named in the traditional way via his mother’s first direct words to him Pryderi a wordplay on “delivered” and “worry”, “care”, or “loss”. In due course Pwyll dies, and Pryderi rules Dyfed, marrying Cigfa of Gloucester, and amalgamating the seven cantrefs of Morgannwg to his kingdom.
Y Mabinogi: Third Branch
Pryderi returns from the disastrous Irish wars as one of the only Seven Survivors. Manawydan is another Survivor, and his good comrade and friend. They perform their duty of burying the dead king of Britain’s head in London (Bran the Blessed) to protect Britain from invasion. But in their long time away, the kingship of Britain has been usurped by Manawydan’s nephew Caswallon.
Manawydan declines to make more war to reclaim his rights. Pryderi recompenses him generously by giving him the use of the land of Dyfed, though he retains the sovereignty. Pryderi also arranges a marriage between the widowed Rhiannon and Manawydan, who take to each other with affection and respect. Pryderi is careful to pay homage for Dyfed to the usurper Caswallon to avert his hostility.
Manawydan now becomes the lead character in the Third Branch, and it is commonly named after him. With Rhiannon, Pryderi and Cigfa, he sits on the Gorsedd Arberth as Pwyll had once done. But this time disaster ensues. Thunder and magical mist descend on the land leaving it empty of all domesticated animals and all humans apart from the four protagonists.
After a period of living by hunting the four travel to borderland regions (now in England) and make a living at skilled crafts. In three different cities they build successful businesses making saddles, shields, then shoes. But vicious competition puts their lives at risk. Rather than fight as Pryderi wishes, Manawydan opts to quietly move on. Returning to Dyfed, Manawydan and Pryderi go hunting and follow a magical white boar, to a newly built tower. Against Manawydan’s advice, Pryderi enters it to fetch his hounds. He is trapped by a beautiful golden bowl. Manawydan returns to Rhiannon who rebukes him sharply for failing to even try to rescue his good friend. But her attempt to rescue her son suffers the same fate as he did. In a “blanket of mist”, Rhiannon, Pryderi and the tower vanish.
Manawydan eventually redeems himself by achieving restitution for Rhiannon, Pryderi, and the land of Dyfed. This involves a quasi-comical set of magical negotiations about a pregnant mouse. The magician Llwyd ap Cilcoed is forced to release both land and family from his enchantments, and never attack Dyfed again. His motive is revealed as vengeance for his friend Gwawl, Rhiannon’s rejected suitor. All ends happily with the family reunited, and Dyfed restored.
Interpretation as a goddess
Rhiannon is often associated with Epona
When Rhiannon first appears she is a mysterious figure arriving as part of the Otherworld tradition of Gorsedd Arberth. Her paradoxical style of riding slowly, yet unreachably, is strange and magical, though the paradox also occurs in mediaeval love poetry as an erotic metaphor. Rhiannon produces her “small bag” which is also a magical paradox for it cannot be filled by any ordinary means. When undergoing her penance, Rhiannon demonstrates the powers of a giantess, or the strength of a horse, by carrying travellers on her back.
Rhiannon is connected to three mystical birds. The Birds of Rhiannon (Adar Rhiannon) appear in the Second Branch, in the Triads of Britain, and in Culhwch ac Olwen. In the latter, the giant Ysbaddaden demands them as part of the bride price of his daughter. They are described as “they that wake the dead and lull the living to sleep.” This possibly suggests Rhiannon is based on an earlier goddess of Celtic polytheism.
W.J. Gruffydd’s book Rhiannon (1953) was an attempt to reconstruct the original story. It is mainly focused on the relationship between the males in the story, and rearranges the story elements too liberally for other scholars’ preference, though his research is otherwise detailed and helpful. Patrick Ford suggests that the Third Branch “preserves the detritus of a myth wherein the Sea God mated with the Horse Goddess.” He suggests “the mythic significance may well have been understood in a general way by an eleventh century audience.” Similar euhemerisms of pre-Christian deities can be found in other medieval Celtic literature, when Christian scribes and redactors reworked older deities as more acceptable giants, heroes or saints. In the Táin Bó Cúailnge, Macha and The Morrígan similarly appear as larger-than-life figures, yet never described as goddesses.
Proinsias Mac Cana’s position is that “[Rhiannon] reincarnates the goddess of sovereignty who, in taking to her a spouse, thereby ordained him legitimate king of the territory which she personified.” Miranda Jane Green draws in the international folklore motif of the calumniated wife, saying “Rhiannon conforms to two archetypes of myth … a gracious, bountiful queen-goddess; and … the ‘wronged wife’, falsely accused of killing her son.”
Modern interpretations
Rhiannon appears in many retellings and performances of the Mabinogi (Mabinogion) today. There is also a vigorous culture of modern fantasy novels.
An example of a modern Rhiannon inspiration is the Fleetwood Mac song “Rhiannon”. Stevie Nicks was inspired to create the song after reading Triad: A Novel of the Supernatural, a novel by Mary Bartlet Leader. There is mention of the Welsh legend in the novel, but the Rhiannon in the novel bears little resemblance to her original Welsh namesake. Nevertheless, despite having little accurate knowledge of the original Rhiannon, Nicks’ song does not conflict with the canon, and quickly became a musical legend.
In artworks, Rhiannon has inspired some entrancing images. A notable example is Alan Lee 1987, and 2001, who illustrated two major translations of the Mabinogi, and his pictures have attracted their own following.
Rhiannon is included in various Celtic neopaganism traditions since the 1970s, with varying degrees of accuracy in respect to the original literary sources.
In the fantasy world of Poul Anderson’s Three Hearts and Three Lions, there is a “University of Rhiannon”, where Magic is taught.
The Witches Divination Journal for Friday, April 6th
Tarot Card of the Day
Three of Wands
This suit, most often called “Wands” and sometimes called “Rods” or “Staves,” represents initiative, ambition, drive and desire. This is the suit of enterprise and risk-taking.
A Three in this suit symbolizes an inner balance that allows you to feel more optimistic about new endeavors you are committed to, or want to commit to. In the illustrated Tarots, the human character is standing on his balcony, watching ships leave the harbor, loaded with his goods for far-off ports, dreaming of the fortune he will reap if all goes well. Summon the optimism within you.
This energy must be patient and trusting, because he or she will have to wait some time to find out how the ships have fared. Meanwhile, a lot of resources are tied up until they return with the bounty. Only those truly confident in their ideas and abilities would undertake such a risk. This card represents the energy a person needs to take on great adventures and accomplish noble (and remunerative) deeds.
A detail that sometimes appears in the more esoteric Tarots is a winged wand with two snakes twining around it, called the Caduceus, which is Mercury’s wand. This is an ancient symbol of the healer or shaman, one who can travel between the worlds to rescue souls from death or possession. Perhaps the feeling of empowerment this card represents points to the internal mechanisms of self-healing. Perhaps it refers to the courage it takes to be an entrepreneur or an inventor, which is in itself a magical process — bringing not only opportunity for success, but also an awakening to higher potentials.
Today, the truth is told and clears up a situation that has hung on and on. Take direct action now to clear up something that should have been handled long ago. The Wheel of Fortune selected you because you need to know that some parts of the conditions were out of your control. Some events are not the result of something you did. You do have control over how you deal with matters now.
Erotic Tarot Card of the Day
The Chariot
April 6th, 2018
The Chariot shows that you’re rolling toward a major sexual goal today, willing to forego just about anything and everything else to have that one big O! The thing is, who are you willing to trample over to get there? This card can be a sign to slow down just a bit, because while sex is fun, it shouldn’t be your number one focus right now. You don’t have to come to a complete stop, but pulling back on the reins just a bit will give you the clarity you need to make sure you’re making wise sexual decisions.
Your Influences for the Weekend of April 6th, 2018
Element Influence
Earth Reversed
Earth reversed denotes a lack of positive connection with the life spirit–a lost soul. If you are not careful you may miss much of what life has to offer you
Astrological Influence
Pisces Reversed
Pisces reversed signifies a lack of positive thinking and creativity at this time
Element Influence
Earth Reversed
Earth reversed denotes a lack of positive connection with the life spirit–a lost soul. If you are not careful you may miss much of what life has to offer you
Psychic Tip of the Day
April 6th, 2018
TAKE IT AS REAL
Saying and doing are often two different things, but today they are welded together. A lover’s confirmation of something is a real as it gets. Do you really want to know?
“Not-this” – Literally: “Need-fire” or “Necessity” – Esoteric: Constraint, Friction
Key Concepts: Need, resistance, constraint, conflict, drama, effort, necessity, urgency, hard work, need-fire, life lessons, creative friction, distress, force of growth, the consequence of past action, short term pain for long term gain
Psi: resistance, need, effort
Energy: necessity, coming forth into being, urgency
Mundane: doing what must be done, chores, hard work
Divinations: Resistance (leading to strength), recognition of örlög (ultimate law, primal truth), innovation, need-fire (self-reliance), personal development and life lessons, achievement through effort; or constraint of freedom, distress, toil, drudgery, laxity, warnings, worry, guilt, moral cowardice, unfulfilled or unrecognized needs.
Your Animal Spirit for Today
Crack the Cookie
The Wisdom of Buddha
An insincere and evil friend is more to be feared than a wild beast; a wild beast may wound your body, but an evil friend will wound your mind.
A Little Humor for Your Day
Snipe Sorcery
Invocation of Baboo
In the great tradition of `Wombat Wicca’ and Witchduck, we present the following as the second in a series of “Ceremonials” Asst. Ed.
As promised, in this edition of Snipe Sorcery, we present the two major invokations used in the Snipe rituals…
Invokation to Baboo
O beautiful, bright Baboo, the banshee ballerina, the baroque bawd, the bedazzling, buxom bombshell, we pray to thee, our bumptious bulwark of burlesque, and beg you to bless our bacchanal with the bonbon of your bright presence.
Light our lewd labors with the lascivious laughter of your leering legacy. Endorse each word of our earnest entertainment for the enlightenment of the entranced masses, huddled in the darkness of their prudery and inhibitions.
Grant us the power to dispell the gloom of puritan despondency which looms over their eternal labors and help them take their heavy load and shove it. So Mote it Be
Invokation to Bacchus
Rah! Rah! Rah! Sis Boom Bah! If we can’t have Bacchus, we’ll have no god at all!
Gimme a “P” Gimme an “A” Gimme an “R” Gimme a “T” Gimme a “Y”
What’s that spell? What’s that spell? What’s that spell?
Repeat as necessary.
This article is excerpted from the Rocky Mountain Pagan Journal. Each issue of the Rocky Mountain Pagan Journal is published by High Plains Arts and Sciences; P.O. Box 620604, Littleton Co., 80123, a Colorado Non-Profit Corporation, under a Public Domain Copyright, which entitles any person or group of persons to reproduce, in any form whatsoever, any material contained therein without restriction, so long as articles are not condensed or abbreviated in any fashion, and credit is given the original author.!
You are security-minded overall yet do act on impulse from time to time. Your friends are especially important to you, and you will go out on a limb for someone you care about. You are a great worker with a good eye for detail. Good at leading, you do enjoy being in control! You are a passionate and strong person with a big heart. Famous people born today: Lowell Thomas, Merle Haggard, Marilu Henner, Paul Stephen Rudd, Eliza Coupe.
Your Birthday Year Forecast:
With the Sun and Moon in harmony in your Solar Return chart, the year ahead should be satisfying and balanced overall. You are in comfortable demand and personally popular, and you are able to achieve a decent balance between work and play; personal and professional life. For the most part, you are on top of your game this year, and positive connections with others can be made fairly easily. With the ability to handle your emotions successfully, there is less stress on both your mind and body. Your self-confidence and positive attitude will reward you!
Personal magnetism is tremendous this year. You are playfully competitive and might win a major competition, if applicable. This is a good period for creative projects and joining with others in pursuing a common goal.
Certain elements of your social life and financial life are stabilized, secured, and more reliable this year. You may solidify a romantic relationship or become involved with a mature partner. Circumstances may be such that you need to handle money more carefully this year, or this may simply come naturally to you now. Support from older people or authority figures may come by way of solid advice or more tangible help. Renewed ties to old friends are possible, or a new sense of responsibility in existing friendships, are also highly likely.
Saturn transits square to your Sun from February 2019 forward and this can encourage you to straighten out neglected areas of your life. You’ll be working hard at disciplining yourself. You are likely to have new or increased responsibilities, and it might take some time to get adjusted to them. The need to re-structure and re-organize your life will be apparent at some point during this period. Much can be accomplished. Although you may not always see immediate results for your efforts, important groundwork can be laid for the future.
The year ahead can be an ambitious time and a supportive period for reaching your goals. You might solve a long-standing problem, or capitalize upon a resource that was previously hidden.
This is an excellent year in which to advance projects revolving around communications – writing, speaking, selling, and so forth. Your reputation may be enhanced through word of mouth. Making new contacts through learning and mental pursuits figures strongly as well.
With Mars conjunct Saturn in your Solar Return chart, you are more determined and hard-working than usual. This is an excellent time to get organized and to stick with projects through to the end. When you face obstacles to your goals, which is a likely scenario this year, you are likely to just keep on pushing. Progress may be slow, but it’s steady and solid. What you accomplish now will benefit you for years to come. You may be called to task for a responsibility that you’ve avoided in the past.
Jupiter forms a trine to your Sun from January 2019 forward, and you have a stronger than usual desire to improve, grow, and learn. This is a fortunate aspect that helps boost optimism and confidence, and you are able to attract fortunate circumstances into your life as a result. Problems are easier to resolve. Matters related to universities, higher education, religion, publishing, legal affairs, and/or foreign interests can be especially strong. It’s an excellent time to further your education. You are likely to enjoy a larger perspective on matters that keeps you from getting lost in details or overly frustrated by everyday stresses during the course of the month.
This is a year for solving problems and getting your life in order in significant ways. You receive plenty of cosmic support for making big improvements or lifestyle changes, although hard work is necessary. This can be a wonderful time for meeting new people or more thoroughly enjoying your current friendships.
2018 is a Number Three year for you. Ruled by Jupiter. This is a year of sociability. It is a friendly time when you find it natural and easy to enjoy life and other people. The focus is on personal freedom, reaching out to others, making new friends, and exploration. You are more enthusiastic and ready for adventure than you are in other years. It’s likely to be a rather lighthearted year when opportunities for “play” time are greater than usual. It’s also a favorable year for expressing your creativity. Advice – reach out and connect but avoid scattering your energies.
2019 will be a Number Four year for you. Ruled by Uranus. This is a year of work and development. It’s “nose to the grindstone” time. It’s a time to pay special attention to practical matters, and it’s not a time to be lazy or especially gregarious. Sometimes, it can be a year that feels hard, monotonous and routine, and/or lonely. Positive new relationships are often not formed in a Four personal year. However, it can be a wonderful year for building, development, and laying a solid foundation for future successes. Advice – get yourself organized, work to build your resources, keep busy.
After a rough week in love, things start to smooth out this weekend…
Earlier in the week, Mars and Saturn met up in the cosmos, which could have caused a good deal of frustration in your love life or long-term relationship. Normally you’d be able to talk through any setbacks, but retrograde Mercury’s tense aspects to both Mars and Saturn put the kibosh on any productive communication. Harsh words and angry feelings were probably thrown around instead, driving a temporary wedge into your happiness.
Thankfully, this weekend brings a bit of reprieve, and gifts you with the stable love energy you’ve needed to get beyond the problems of the week and shift your sights forward. On Saturday the love planet Venus makes a nice aspect to Saturn, helping you and your partner look at things with a more realistic mindset and a greater desire to build something lasting together. Instead of letting your emotions rise and come between you, you have the ability to keep things calm and focus on what’s best for your relationship. If you’re single or newly dating, this steady energy helps get things off on the right foot with a potential lover, and provides the staying power needed to turn a first date into a second or third, or even a committed relationship.
What’s more, the Moon will be in Capricorn all weekend. While this isn’t the most lovey-dovey place for the emotional Moon to be, it totally supports this consistency and practicality that Venus and Saturn are already delivering. The sincere and secure feelings you have this weekend can help you build a stronger relationship that can overcome future obstacles and bring you the comfort of a lasting, stable partnership.
I wanted to apologize for Wednesday. I think I over did it on the donations or purchases from Magickal Necessities. I know that was one of tricks Mystie always used and perhaps she was channeling through me. Since she know how much everything we have means to me. You know the situation we are in and right now we are not going to meet our tax bill. Lord M and Lynette have went to gather boxes so we can pack up the office when time comes closer. You will not see a countdown or my throwing myself on the mercy of the world today, except now. That’s it!
If you would like to make a purchase, we would appreciate it. Our inventory is starting to run low, so if you need something you better grab it now.
If you would like to make a donation, which would also be greatly appreciated, the link is below
We have been in this business for over 18 years. I hate to go out like this but if it comes to that, then so be. Can’t say we didn’t try. Now on to work,
I hate to keep harping on it but a large number of our social connections have been reconnected today. It was because dumb bunny had forgotten the password to all of them and thus they were not getting our posts. Our posts are spread around the world so I know there are several that has missed out on the latest that is going on. Those of you who know, please bear with me.
As of April 27th, we will be closed Magickal Necessities permanently. The store has not turned a profit since the first of the year and we find ourselves in a predicament were we need every dime we can get. As you know I lost my home close to the end of last year. I lost everything in that fire and the fire was due to a stalker who throw something through the window and ignited the place. I went out a two story window with my pup and suffered several injuries. I was in the hospital for several weeks. When I got out Lynette had rented a house for Eleanor, Lynette and myself to stay in till construction could start back on my house. During that time, we have had two buildings to keep up. The second building is an added expense because my home was paid for. The other building being the house we rented to live in, we couldn’t live out on the streets. With the expense of the office and the house rental it has been an extreme burden just to make ends meet. So property taxes are now due on my house’s property and the office’s property. Those taxes total $1215.00. Since the store has not turned a profit and does no longer support itself, we are closing it. We are also short on the amount of tax money we owe. I can’t see paying for the store to stay open when it is costly to run and not making any money. As long as any of our sites support themselves, I have no problem keeping them open. Some have worried this would have an effect on the WOTC, it won’t the WOTC will stay open no matter what. If we don’t come up with the tax money though, I have no idea where we will be working from. The house Lynette rented is not big enough for that.
I think that pretty well catches you up. Now in the finally days of the store being open, I have asked that you please make a purchase before the merchandise is gone or if not and please make a donation if you can. I feel like I am throwing myself on the mercy of the world. But managing two buildings, especially when you are use to having one building has been an extreme burden and one heck of an expense. But we cannot afford to lose our property. They are trying to start construction on my property to rebuild my home(if the weather would cooperate). So you see, we have till April 16th to come up with the $1215.00 or else they will auction off our property. We are a little ways off from reaching that goal and I am sincerely hoping a miracle comes through before the 16th.
After thinking about it, I don’t know if I caused us to lose everything we owned, I could ever hold my head up again in the Pagan community. You might be stuck with Eleanor. I know you would love that and I know she would too. But back to our main problem right now, if you can make a purchase from the store before it closes, we would appreciate it. If you can make a donation, we would deeply appreciate that also. Either way, we would be indebted to you for the rest of our lives and it would mean the world to us. I have the links below. The donations or purchases doesn’t have to be much, every bit helps and we appreciate it more than you will ever know.
Thank you,
I love you,
Lady A
Thank you to all of you who have made donations and purchases so far. Thank you just doesn’t express it for me because what you have done so far is beyond words and I love you for it.
Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
Explanation: The robotic rover Opportunity sometimes passes small craters on Mars. Pictured here in 2010 is Intrepid Crater, a 20-meter across impact basin slightly larger than Nereus Crater that Opportunity had chanced across previously. The featured image is in approximately true color but horizontally compressed to accommodate a wide angle panorama. Intrepid Crater was named after the lunar module Intrepid that carried Apollo 12 astronauts to Earth’s Moon 49 years ago. Beyond Intrepid Crater and past long patches of rusty Martian desert lie peaks from the rim of large Endeavour Crater, visible on the horizon. The Opportunity rover continues to explore Mars, recently surpassing 5,000 Martian days on the red planet.
So you say you can find the Big Dipper, but not the Little Dipper? This post is for you. Here’s the view northward on April evenings. At present the Big Dipper is high in the north during the evening hours. Notice the two outer stars in the bowl of the Big Dipper. These two stars – called Duhbe and Merak – always point to Polaris, the North Star. Find Polaris, and you can find the Little Dipper.
Polaris is special because Earth’s northern axis nearly points to its location in the sky. It’s the star around which the entire northern sky appears to turn.
Polaris is also fun to locate for another reason. It’s part of a famous – though elusive – star pattern, known as the Little Dipper.
So here it is! The Little Dipper! The North Star, Polaris, marks the end of its handle.
No matter where you see the Big Dipper, the two outer stars in its bowl point to Polaris. In this shot, Tom Wildoner caught the Big Dipper and Polaris at around 3:30 a.m. in July 2013. Thanks, Tom!
By the way, Polaris is less than a degree away from the true north celestial pole on the sky’s dome now. It’ll be closest to true north – less than half a degree away – in the year 2102. The change is due to a motion of Earth called “precession,” which causes Earth’s axis to trace out a circle among the stars every 26,000 years.
By the way, thousands of years ago, Polaris was an ordinary star in the northern sky, known to the Greeks by the name Phoenice.
Other ordinary stars in the northern sky now – Kochab and Pherkad, the two outermost stars in the bowl of the Little Dipper (see chart below) – have had the honor of being pole stars.
Kochab and Pherkad served as twin pole stars from about 1500 B.C. to about 500 B.C.
They’re still sometimes called the Guardians of the Pole.
Kochab is located about 126 light-years away. Pherkad is more distant, at about 480 light-years by some estimates. Meanwhile, Polaris is a bit more than 400 light-years away.
Bottom line: The Big Dipper is usually pretty easy to find, but the Little Dipper is less easy. This post tells you how to use the Big Dipper to find Polaris and the Little Dipper, plus how to recognize the stars Kochab and Pherkad.
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