Before that though, I’m also happy to report another win FOR SCIENCE.

(warning: bugs and bits below.  You have been warned.)

This weekend, after a good day of playing around at a nearby farm, and being locked into the chicken coop by playful cousins, we discovered a spider mite or louse in the kid’s hair.  Now of course mom has a bit of an overactive “eww bug!” reaction, but after a recent purchase of a microscope at a yard sale, I figured “why not check it out”.

Of course, the kid was completely boggled by the fact that we “had a REAL microscope like the science labs?!”, but I assured him that it was a recent purchase and may be a bit blurry or entirely non-functional, but it was worth the attempt, for this particular Teachable Moment.

So, we grabbed a blank slide, wiped the copious dust from the lenses, and smacked a cover slip on top of the bug (it was a louse) and peeked through the eyepiece.  The little teeny hard-to-see spec was flailing it’s little legs around, and when the kid peeked through, his shriek of Joy was contagious.   OMG, MOM MOM, LOOK! IT’S MOVING! LOOOOOK! YOUCANSEETHEEYESANLEGS, and EVERYHING!

The afternoon then filled up with further micro-curiosity.  I plucked a hair by the roots.  The kid hesitantly yet stolidly plucked his own to compare (FOR SCIENCE!), and we brushed the dog to get a third hair sample.  A bit of lettuce leaf, an onion skin, the wing of a dead fly.  Sugar.  Salt.  Gourmet Salt flakes (not cubes). Water from the pond. Dust from under the sofa.  … all this flickered across the single “blank” slide that was included with the microscope kit. (a LEGO brick did not work, sadly, which I expected, and was a good lesson in optics and transparency necessary for Micro-viewing)

I’m sure we would have continued with flour, skin samples, and such but dinner time came and there were other chores to do.   Still, I’ve added microscope slide kits to my Amazon WishList, because my son already plans on trying more stuff to look at this week.  It’s pretty awesome.

As for the geeky Rites, I am also happy to report that we have just finished watching the Fellowship of the Ring, and  The Two Towers,with plans to complete Peter Jackson’s amazing trilogy at the end of this week.  We were a bit unsure if he was ready for it, but after being assured (by the kid of course) “I am eight, and Oh Yeah, I love epic battles.“,  we tried the first movie with a finger on the pause button just in case.

We shouldn’t have worried.

So far, Legolas is his favorite character, mostly for the action scenes with rapid-fire arrows.  He thinks Gimli is silly, especially during the battle for Helm’s Deep.  Aragorn is a good king, but dreams about his elf-love too much, but overall, the Ents attacking Isengard were the high point in both movies.

As he said loudly last night… “See, now THAT is why you don’t mess with Nature, right?!”    

Spot. (aka: Mr Moo)
Now resting in the clearing at the end of the path (aka, our freezer)

This time, our son was old enough to realize that ‘The Moo’ we had been feeding and tending to for the last year and a half was going away, not because he was sick or dangerous, but because he was loved and healthy, and will feed us this winter.   He cried.

Later in the day, especially after seeing the guy walk willingly into the truck and be driven away with “his family” (some other steers on their way to slaughter from the nearby farm), and a gentle reminder that beef=cow, he seems to ave realized what I consider the “rightness” of the situation.

I understand those who follow a vegetarian lifestyle, and respect that.  For us, an important thing for our son to know is where food comes from.  Be it the garden or the pasture, or the coop.   We raised Spot (and a brother who passed away last winter unexpectedly) with the intention to become “meat”.  He was loved, he had fresh grass and a building all to himself (seen in the background of this image), and a pond to drink from whenever he was thirsty.  Daily buckets of grain or cracked corn were an expected treat each evening after school.

I much prefer the beef we’ll receive from his life, to one of commercial farmed produce.  We put ourenergy and love into the spirit inhabiting this cow’s bo, and will receive it back again to nourish us.

R.I.P.  mister Moo.  You were part of our ‘family’, and will be part of us forever.

Sorry for the horribad use of mis-spelled alliteration up there, (and here!) but it seemed to fit.

On October 22nd, I attended another firewalk with the lovely and talented Dorita Reyen (of Reyen Design Studios) at her friend Judy’s house.  It was one of the smaller groups I’ve walked with, but was extra special for me because after walking the coals a number of times before, I am now learning the Art of FireTending.

Preparing the pyre, configuring the coals, and all that.  From start of torch to hearts of ash, I was involved, and it is a much different perspective from simply attending the workshop to build energy, then heading over to walk the fire afterwards.   I liked it.  A lot.   Much more attuned to things, and such.   More to come on that front, as the season winds up again next year. 

At that firewalk, one of the folks brought a couple bottles of home-made kombucha tea.  I’d read about such things before for a few years, but never felt the need to go out and buy some at a commercial store.  To me, growing and fermenting your own supply just seemed more natural, similar to how I much prefer to wildcraft my own tinctures and herbal tisanes(tea) from the local area.  Might not be as “pharmacologically pure”  or effective as more exotic medicines at times, but the connection to the local lands and energies outweighs things, in my opinion.

So, through the wonderful synchronicity of Life, I managed to get a bottle of wonderful Kombucha tea, with a healthy ‘mother’ in it.  A real live culture.   So I took it home and have split it into two batches to grow myself.  (Kombucha info readily available online, along with far too many “how to grow” videos on YouTube if you are interested)   I read up on the various methods of keeping a Kombucha alive, then dove into the process.

The first small sample went into a larger bottle, and is becoming the most crisp and intoxicating vinegar.    I’ve swapped it out once now, transferring the SCOBY (symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast) which is a thick ‘jellyfish’ that formed as the vinegar mother kept growing.   It’s doing very well, and I had a splash of this vinegar on my salad tonight at work.  Yum!

The second larger bit, I have been keeping in a gallon-sized glass jar.  It’s been a bit slower to grow, since I am swapping out half of the fermented tea twice a week, and taste-testing it.   A bit of a strange brew, like ‘not quite sour apple cider‘ mixed with sweetened black tea.   However, I wouldn’t call it a “bad” taste at all, and I’m learning slowly to let it sit a full week to ferment properly, instead of being impatient and sipping some each day.   Patience pays.

Starting on the last Full Moon, I have a weight-loss goal set, since quitting karate for work-schedule reasons has proven I’m packing on winter-hibernation weight again.  But it’s nothing too drastic.  More of a “have water instead of soda, and a bit more  salad instead of extra scoops of ice-cream for dinner/dessert.”  I’m still not considering it a “diet” by any stretch of the imagination.

Also starting on the last full moon, I have been lighting a candle each night, with whatever prayer comes to mind or seems appropriate for the day.  Nothing big and complex with layers of ritual, just a nice drifting into darkness before bed, and a sudden flick of a lightswitch.

I’ve also been reading Stephen King’s “Dark Tower” series, start to finish.  This will be my second time through these books, and I must admit that reading them without hte year or two between volumes is an interesting perspective.   Somehow, I think mentioning this is not as off-topic from the rest of the blog post as it initially may seem.  Things have been a bit ‘nineteen’ lately, and are starting to line up again.

Lots of other things going on, but those two “catalysts” have kick-started a renewed sense of “I should be doing something spiritual” or at least “mindful” again.   This blog is part of that.

Little things.   But they seem to work.

Blessings of awe-tumn to all you readers!

Lots of things happening, and a much longer post in progress to more officially re-launch this blog, but for now, a quick little test post to make sure my logis work, the RSS feed still works, and all that jazz.

Full moon, recent birthday, and an otherwise good time to Start Stuff.  This, being one of them.

See you around!

-Maebius

That is all.

Purchased thorough the following Merchant:  http://www.etsy.com/shop/LunaRana

Thank you, thank you, thank you to my lovely friend Nettle, for the loaning of cash since the merchant could not accept plastic.   Almost settled the tab, but it was worth the temporary debt!

I’ve had two private messages asking about some crafty things I made recently, so I figure here’s a great place to post about them.   Sadly, I do not have any pictures of such in-progress, so you’ll have to be content with words.  First is a scrying mirror, second is poke-berry  which makes a wonderful kid-friendly project and can be used for all sorts of magical inscriptions, or simply  painting in a colouring book! 

First, a scrying mirror I made for a lovely friend of mine, which can be seen on her altar here:  http://bringingupsalamanders.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-moon-thoughts.html

First, I took a simple wooden picture frame and decorated it with blue wood-stain and black paint.  It’s hard to see, but the bottom is ‘celtic’ knots across the bottom, which was really time-consuming.  I had planned to do all the designs that way, being pressed into the wood with an ink-less ball-point pen, but it hurt my hand so I stuck to paint and ink for the other designs.

The left side is inked with vine-like designs, the top is speckled like a field of stars, or chaotic dots, your choice, and the right side contains a symmetrical series of geometric sacred shapes.

The corners of the frame are decorated with a star-like design based off a custom pendant I wear, a triskele triple-spiral, a pentacle, and (I think I recall) an acorn on the bottom left.

To colour the glass darkly, I had a small ritual fire from apple and elder branches that had fallen in our yard, and burned during a New Moon.  I  smudged the frame and glass with mugwort and cedar (also from our yard), and charged the whole thing with love, and somewhat open-ended intent to be a sacred tool (since it was not for my use, I did not want to get too specific with ‘charging it’).

After the little bonfire died out, I took the black coals, powdered them in my stone mortar & pestle, and mixed some more dried mugwort leaves in with a bit of salt-water to form a pasty goop.  This got smeared on the back of the glass  allowed to dry, before affixing the back of the picture frame “stand”.   (So instead of being painted glass, you look into the soot sandwiched between the glass and the backing).

I am quite willing to make a mirror for anyone else, with this, or other methods.  Simply comment with a request and I’ll coordinate things via email or facebook.     Enjoy! 

*   *   *

The second craft is a quick and easy ink, for those of you with access to Poke-berries. Any other dark berry will work, but I prefer poke, because it’s an abundant ‘weed’ in my area, and things like raspberries get eaten too fast to be saved for inks.    One interesting bit of trivia is that the Unites States Constitution was apparently written using fermented pokeberry ink, as it was the “common ink” of the time.  Fermenting it seems to help preserve it, but for myself and the kid, the quick and easy method works just fine as a family project.

Collect a bundle of ripe berries, maybe a cup or three, depending on how much juice you want. Remember, a little ink goes a long way! You will also need a tiny splash of vinegar and a pinch of salt.

I tend to collect berries after the first killing frost, because the plant is dying off, and most songbirds who eat these have migrated away, leaving the leftover berries to rot.    I’ve also used elderberry for this recipe, when I have an abundance of those.

Simmer the berries in a small pan with just enough water to cover the bottom of the pan, with a splash of vinegar (any type will do).  Vinegar helps set the colour a bit more, and seems to draw out some more ‘oomph’ from the berries in terms of alkaloids and energies, I think.    Your mileage may vary.

Basically add enough liquid to prevent the bottom from burning, but not enough to overly dilute the juice from the berries.  While you could squeeze out the juice, I find that heat helps extract more, and is less messy on the hands.  Plus, while I have no scientific proof, I think that heating the berries helps set the colour better, and thickens the juice into a better ink-like consistency.  Feel free to improvise and experiment.

I tend to keep stirring the pot for a good 20 minutes every so often, until the water looks nice and richly coloured. Not too much that it turns pasty with berry-skins!

Turn off the heat and let the pot cool off a bit, then simply strain out the ink into a container.  I used a coffee filter and a funnel to strain the ink into an old sea-salt bottle I had lying around.   Small pickle or baby-food jars work just as well.

Grab a quill, or a fountain pen, or, as we do, a small craft paintbrush (size 1 or 0o, or whatever your preference!) and have fun scribbling, painting, and drawing.

This ink will wash off of things fairly easily, so it is not recommended for clothes and such.  However, it is great to use on paper, and staining wood a vibrant magenta!

With age, the bright purple-pink colour of this ink will fade to a rusty brown after a few years, so keep that in mind.  This fact, however, makes it even cooler to use in magical journal writing, as it seems to look “archaic” as it ages.

Here is a rare glimpse into the creative process involved in bringing these works of art to life.

I present to you,  “Electro-Charles versus Hairy Potty!”

Enjoy!   Transcript as follows:

Maebius: Here is the master comic, hard at work.

The Artist: Oh hi!   I’ll start with the face… Then draw the rest of the hair… The eyes, the nose, and the mouth…

The body, his legs, his arms…  I added spears since he’s in battle.  Facing a Hairy Toilet.

Maebius: Could you read the comic for us quickly before you finish the artwork?  So that the read… viewers of this video can see the comic?

The Artist(affecting his ‘erudite’ accent):   Alright, I’ll finish it later.

Electro-Charles versus…

Electro-Charles versus Hairy…

Electro-Charles  (points to picture) versus Hairy potty (points to picture).

(turns page) Zaaaaap!

(third page) Hairy potty is terrorizing the city with his henchmen.

(while pointing out features of the illustration) Henchmen… city people…  (Maebius mumbles something in the background to acknowledge the contents of the illustration)

(turns to final page) Electro-Charles defeated Hairy potty and saved the world.

Maebius: Excellent!  We’ll have pictures when the comic is finished and coloured.   Good bye.

http://freerangekids.wordpress.com/2010/10/21/why-scouting/

One quote from the bottom summarizes what I was going to say already:

It is the same earth, but we have grown in this short time from 3.5 billion to 7 billion people.  The outdoor code, to be conservation minded is no longer quaint — it is part of the solution. To do your best, To be prepared…

Today I’ve been musing about the spread of “social media” and similar internet-based services and games, which provide a lot of value in terms of keeping in contact with far distant people we may have never met in-person.

Combine that, with the opposing viewpoint of such “fake friendship” degrading the real face to face social value of knowing our neighbors and townsfolk.

I tend to fall on the positive side of the debate, and agree that the internet is a wonderful tool for social networking and communication.  Be it chat rooms, online games, or FaceBook, there are people I talk to on a relatively frequent basis that I would never know if not for my online presence.

Still, I do hold onto a little corner of my mind that wonders if the ease of internet friendship is just a little bit detrimental to the larger social scene.  Perhaps it keeps people just that little bit more selfish.

After all, on the internet, you can pick and choose your friends much more carefully, and align the interests of your friends “just-so” to match your own.  If someone angers you terribly, it is much easier to “unfriend” them and just stop interacting.  Distance and internet pseudo-anonymity make it easy to ignore the person. Especially if your preferred method of contacting them has an actual “ignore/privacy” setting.

In real life, if you don’t like the crazy old neighbor, it’s tough to “unfriend” him.   You may stop saying hello, but in real life there’s always a chance of interaction with the neighbor, barring such extreme measures as moving to a new house, or becoming an agoraphobic hermit.

My muse is, does this shift cause a slow degradation of our cultural acceptance and social skills?

I think I mused about this last year, too, but it’s on my mind again.    Does dealing with the weird and oft-times unfriendly neighbors provide people with a much broader “acceptance” outlook towards diversity, and the lack of such result in the continued undercurrent of xenophobia in many people’s outlooks?

Or is such thought reading too deep into things and merely “scapegoating” the technology from what may simply be a human-nature situation that would happen regardless, and Facebook, et al, is merely the most common outlet for those natures to manifest?

Hurm….

Got a horse, have not done much more than feed her a bit of grain each evening.

Got a new computer,  it’s still in the box.

Got my next belt in Karate (well, will officially get it Friday, but passed the test to earn it last thursday), feel like I should be doing more practice in the evenings.

Got a patch update in my favorite computer game that Changes Lots and totally upends the mechanics of the character skills.   Have not logged on for more than 10 minutes in the last ten days.

Got a new book, from one of my favorite series, and am finding it difficult to sit down and read it.

Got a little faerie-hut (bird house) at the dollar store and painted it prettily, and yet can’t find a home for it, which bugs me a Lot  more than it should….

Gotta re-do the dresser decorations for autumn, and feeling terribly uninspired and procrastinatic[sic].

It all seems like tons of “fun stuff” is not getting done.  But then again, all that Fun stuff, and the lack thereof, is making me horribly irritable, wanting to crash in bed at 7:30 after work, and frazzled.

Must be the changing of the seasons… or the two days of frost that kit and cemented in my psyche that a Cold Winter’s Coming and it isn’t gonna wait.  And the least among us knows, Where you stand won’t change the way the wind blows…

..either that or the “sludge” in my brain rising to the surface after pouring in a bunch of water last week.