Day Four: Broom Closet

Fridays are dedicated to all things spooky, freaky, and occult. The reason these happen to be such large interests of mine? Well, I'm a witch.

Yep, if you had your suspicions allow me to confirm them. I've been a practicing pagan for the last four years, and some kind of eclectic many moons before that. The technical term for my religion is Eclectic Neo-pagan, or just plan Pagan. Neo-pagan gets a lot of flack and has been associated with some unsavory things, this is why I normally just call myself Pagan. Now that you know what has basically been my biggest (and worst kept) secret for the last four years, let's talk about am's and am not's.

I am not:

• A worshiper of Satan
• I don't even believe in the Christian Satan.
• Evil
• Most of my practice includes protection magic and healing.
• Crazy
• This one is still up for debate but I feel quite sane.
• Made of wood
• I really don't know where this one comes from, but no. Unfortunately, I am not made of wood. That would be super cool though.

I am:

• Real
• I've been pretty real my whole life I think.
• The same person as I always have been
• This is the big one. I'm no different than I've always been. I just celebrate weird holidays. I get weirdly suspicious about certain weather phenomena. I get really excited about rocks, and I might tell you to drink tea that I make but, like, really insistently.

Why am I telling you all of this? Because of the way being Pagan works, everything is highly personal and specific. There are general rules I don't follow because I'm not Wiccan, for example. If I want to tell you about tarot, spells, or holidays (which not every Witch celebrates) then you need to know my point of reference. Now is the part where I tell you pretty detailed stuff about witchcraft that you may or may not be interested in.

A lot of what I do, as far as magic is concerned, is based on divination and intuition. I found my calling with tarot cards and crystals, so that was where a lot of my study was based. As I've grown as a Witch I've turned my focus to healing, protection, and emotional stimulation magic which I'm naturally gifted in. This means if I notice pain or imbalances I'll try and assist or correct them. This doesn't alway mean I do a huge ritual, occasionally it just means being a good listener. Magic isn't always like the movies, sometimes it's just being a kind person. Especially when it's difficult.

As far as worship goes, because this is still a religion for me, I found a calling in Pan and Venus. There is a complicated theory I hold in regards to deities, that every deity is just a different aspect of a whole cosmic energy. I guess you could say I'm a bit agnostic that way. Which is why I'm able to believe in the Christian God and Norse Gods simultaneously. To me, they're both equally true and real, I just identify more with this culture or community's depiction. This being said, I don't just pick and choose who to follow without conscience. I have to feel called to that particular deity to have any interaction at all. Enter Pan and Venus.

Overall I'm just like every other spiritual, new age hippie. I just add ritual, holiday, and religion to my free spirit. I don't try and hurt people, I live this way because it makes me feel happy!

Some of you are going to have no problem with this, to which I say thanks. Some of you are going to fear for my mortal soul and think me rotten. You can think as you please, I know that the universe has a plan for me. Hopefully, this is part of it.  

May swift winds carry you.

\\.Jukebox.//

Wyrd Woman

Summer: Life's What You Make It.

I was kicked out of summer school.
Super rad, I know. Summer really has been rough. I can't seem to get it right. But that right there is quitter talk. I have too many people relying on my success to indulge in quitter talk.

So what am I going to do about it?

1. Look into BYU summer school courses
2. Call my counselor and let her know the awesome news
3. maybe contact Edwards and tell her (? this option actually scares me)

What am I not going to do?

1. Mope
2. Get stuck on it

I am an immovable force of nature and honestly my summer school was really bad. My teacher wasn't there half the time and I'm pretty sure they had me help falsify documents. Also Major DB was exactly that, a major DB. I know that what's happened isn't good, I have three classes to fix and a limited amount of time to do so. I also have to find a mentor and figure out how I'm going to pass next year.

I really am better than this. I'm kinda super disappointed in myself because I F'ed up this badly.
This certainly isn't the end. But a good general knows when to make a tactical retreat.

So folks, this is your general, sounding the alarm.

\\.Jukebox.//

SHUT UP AND DANCE By Alexsipie

\\.Soapbox.//

"Wishing only gets you halfway, the other half is hard work." - The Princess And The Frog

Summer: Regularly Scheduled

We interrupt your regularly scheduled seclusion to bring you an update from the summer.
It's been a pretty solid time so far. Still haven't found a mentor, still haven't finished summer school, still haven't gotten enough sleep. I went to Vans Warped Tour on the 19th, I'm putting together a post on that. I'm also putting together a post on presidential candidates. A lot more research in the subject than I first thought. I'm still not completely in academic mode, even though I've been doing school work still. I've been a bit of a vegetable the last two weeks. I need to get to the whole writing, reading, nerdy summer that I love.

Good news? I've been watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It's been awesome, I forgot how much I love Joss Whedon. 

Today's post is just a quickie, letting you know that I'm still here. Just trying to make my brain work.

Have a beautiful day.

\\.Jukebox.//
She Hits Like Ecstasy By Toxicemotions

\\.Soapbox.//

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” 
― Mae West

Day Sixty-Three: Of Mind Melds and Fruit.

"Day (-------): Summertime Blues.
Hello and welcome to the ghost town that has become of this blog.
I promise I've not been dead, I've just been extraordinarily busy for the beginning of summer. I've been watching two kids, who are absolutely lovely. While also attempting to circumnavigate the awfulness that is summer school. (Pay attention in class kids, lest you become the seventeen year old with three classes to re mediate.) I've also been attempting to find a mentor for senior project.
I did, however, manage to write a blog post at the end of the year.
"Day Fifty-Three: Holy F*#k.
Today is an amazing day.
I'm more than a little proud that I am passing all my classes and my google history was not displayed for the entirety of Ipoly to see. It's been a beautiful, chaotic last week. Everything seems to be happening at a million miles a minute. That's okay though because we're figuring it out one day at a time.
A look back on the week includes

• Another bout of habitual lateness
• Two lovely migraines
• The urge to commit homicide at least twice
• Actually doing my homework ahead of time
• And the feeling of hazy nostalgia of a year better spent trying

Yes, this year has been a wild ride (like I've written in every yearbook) and I didn't think that I could be any more content. Despite that, I am. I'm so pleased and I feel so damn elated that I was able to do better. I was able to make a huge improvement in my mental, physical, and emotional health this year. As well as my grades!

I'm incredibly proud of all my friends who did amazing things this year, I'm proud of the friends that I had and lost this year. Most of all, I'm proud of my survival. My Slytherin spirit and determination not to lose. Tooth and nail, blood and tears, thick and thin. It's been a magnificent year and I can't wait for my next big adventure.

(which you can conveniently follow over at Senior Year by Hunter Baugus)

Have fun and Enjoy Summer!"

See, wasn't that lovely? 

We'll return to regularly scheduled blogging soon enough. Once I get my head on straight for sure.

Have Fun and Enjoy Life."

Y'know it's pretty funny when I write several drafts and forget to post them because I've been so busy doing other things. Hi, blog that I've let fall into ruin, how are you?

I'm doing okay, been having pretty awful migraines as of late and I haven't really had the funds to have any adventures. I have, however, been able to work on my other blogs and social media. Fun stuff I know. I've also dedicated a small chunk of my life to Critical Role, a Geek and Sundry show about Dungeons and Dragons. The show features an array of voice actors and actresses and is just awesome.

I also had an adventure in child watching, which was fun. I got to take them on random travels and give them ice cream and not tell their mom. I felt like the super cool kid watcher for awhile and was able to get some summer school done in the mean time. I've also been in my constant struggle with Major Douche Bag, my evil summer school "advisor."
Over all it's been a pretty grand adventure for the start of the summer. I hope to get back to some semblance of a schedule with this blog, but I make no promises.
That's all from me folks, I'll see you in the next round.

Have fun and Be lazy.

\\.Jukebox.//
Smoking Gun. By Hufflepuffgirl77

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“I love to sail forbidden seas, and land on barbarous coasts.” 
―  Herman Melville

Day Forty-Two: The Start of Something.

I'd really like to not make this post.

I have no knitting updates, the kitty hat lays in desolate sadness. I will be starting stitch week (tentative title) soon.
No, today's post is about health and my lack of. I'm starting a workout challenge. I'm proclaiming it here on my blog so I have less chance of skipping out on it. This is by no means a diet. I hate the idea of diets because they all focus on "This is what's wrong with your body here's a restrictive way to fix it." No, I will instead be going on a fitness journey because I'm not in good shape. I love my body and I love the way I look, but the fact that I'm not able to do cartwheels without hurting myself isn't a good sign.
So I'll be doing "Squat it away May" (*eyeroll*) and also having a meal replacement. My meal replacement is a green smoothie. The reason for the meal replacement is, I've been eating a lot of junk food. It's super bad for my health and more importantly my skin!

I'm really trying to emphasize that this isn't because I don't like the way I look, because I do. It's about my health. Being a healthy individual is really important to me and I think it will help me be a more productive person. I know that there are younger people following me and I don't ever want to encourage something that could be harmful to them. I think it's really important to say that, I know this is going to take a while and I'm not expecting instant results. There is a massive push from media to be beautiful, and to do so instantly. They shove diet pills at twelve year olds who still haven't grown out of their baby fat. Images of impossible waistlines and incredulous biceps litter our landscape. I never want to be apart of that push. I was super heavy set when I was 12 and incredibly insecure about it. My mom always told me to wait until I turned sixteen, I would even out. I did. I grew into my body and found out what made me feel most comfortable. Now I'm seventeen, nearly eighteen, and I still feel that way.
What I'm trying to say is that before you decide you want to go on a diet or do some crazy workout, make sure you're comfortable with yourself. If you're doing something out of a place of insecurity, you might end up going to extremes. Like I tell my little sister, you are incredibly beautiful never think otherwise, society will do that for you.  Make sure you're not being influenced by some ad on TV. That goes for all physical and mental features.

Have fun and love yourself

\\.Jukebox.//
Gotta Have You By starfleets

\\.Soapbox.//

“Love yourself. Forgive yourself. Be true to yourself. How you treat yourself sets the standard for how others will treat you.” 

― Steve Maraboli

Day Forty-One: Pot Pie and a Luke Warm Reception.

Let's make a pot pie.

Before we get started I feel obligated to state that this was probably the best thing I've ever made. It was also literally the easiest.
The recipe I used can be found over at Mom's Test Kitchen.
THINGS YOU'LL NEED:

-2 tubes (8 ounces/8 rolls) refrigerated crescent rolls

-about 2 teaspoons of mixed dried seasonings, divided (The original poster used thyme ,garlic powder, parsley and oregano. I swapped the garlic powder for basil and added bay leaves.)

-1 can (10.75 ounces) cream of potato soup

-1 can (10.5 ounces) cream of celery soup

-1/3 cup milk

-2 bags (12 ounces) frozen vegetable soup mix*, thawed

-salt & pepper to season

-2 tablespoons butter, melted

-additional dried thyme for seasoning

You'll want to preheat the oven to 375 degrees (Fahrenheit) and prep your pie dish. The recipe recommends a nine inch dish. I sprayed mine with a little cooking oil and got to work on the crescent rolls. First thing I noticed was the recipe said to take apart the 8 triangles, which I did. I then had to attempt to geometrically fit the 8 triangles into a circle. It didn't help that I might of grabbed the wrong sized pie dish. After five minutes of hammering dough into place I finished. I put the crust into the oven for six minutes.

Look at the light dapple that delicious slice of heaven.
I made that, hell yeah.

While that was doing whatever baking magic it was doing, I was prepping the innards. I dumped two cans of soup in a large sauce pan. The celery soup came out fine, but the potato soup was stuck inside the can. I also face the dilemma of the recipe not telling me if I should add a can full of water to the soups. (Quick question on that matter, do you or your family add a can of water to your soup or is it just my family?) I added half a can and then the vegetables. Immediately I was filled with fear and a twinge of regret because what was in my sauce pan looked like way too much filling. I also forgot about the milk until this point and added it hastily. As well as the seasonings. 

At this point you may notice I don't always follow instructions to a T. (Makes everything much more exciting in my opinion.) That means I didn't measure out the proper amount of seasonings. I added about a handful of basil and oregano, two bay leaves, and a pinch of parsley flakes. Allowing that to stew for a little bit, I was feeling pretty good about the whole thing. Until the microwave beeped, letting me know that "Oh yeah I had crust in the oven." I couldn't find the oven mitts, which means the crust stayed in the oven an extra two minutes. When I pulled it out, I saw that the dough had raised a considerable amount. I squashed the crust down a bit, careful not to burn myself (I did burn myself though.) and added the delicious insides. 

I actually managed to make something look like the pin
I want a medal.

I then conscribed the help of my little sister to open the second can of rolls. With the earlier triangle challenge tackled, I was able to get the top crust on much faster. I threw it in the oven, proud of my accomplishment. Then immediately took it out and brushed butter and seasonings on the top. The pie was done in about twenty minutes, just enough time to clean up after my cooking fiasco and make pasta salad. 

Out came the pie and damn did it look good. It tasted even better, slightly savory and filled with vegetable goodness. I might cut the oregano next time, but that's just being nit picky.

To rate this recipe, I'm going to judge it on three things

-Easy to follow.......9/10 (Gotta dock on the can of water. And the fact that I had to use my brain to make the crust.)

-Cost........10/10 I spent twenty bucks on a meal for eight people.

-Deliciousness.........10/10 It tasted better than Marie Calenders.

Have fun and Eat well.

\\.Jukebox.//
Old Fashioned By Me!

\\.Soapbox.//

“Pull up a chair. Take a taste. Come join us. Life is so endlessly delicious.”

― Ruth Reichl

Day Thirty-Nine: Gotta Love It.

Well if it hasn't been quite the week.

• Senior presentations
• The dumbest drama to ever be a thing
• Actual extreme frustration
• Long weekend (yay)
• I missed two days of blogging because life happens.
• Really I just didn't look very nice on Wednesday and my Thursday post never got edited. Oh well~
• Ipoly Senior year is looking like a thing I'm doing.
• If I can find summer school because free summer school is full.

I'm super exhausted and have been sleeping for large chunks of time. 14 hours yesterday and 6 hours today. Unfortunately it still doesn't help the fact that my head feels like it's splitting and I would like to fight an army of berserking orcs at the moment. 

Rage aside, the slow and steady progress that has been May hasn't been wasted. I've made real headway into all my projects (except the kitty hat.)

I leave you with very little sentiment and a deep permeating happiness that it's a long weekend.

Have fun and be safe.

\\.Jukebox.//
Bitty's Pre- Game Hype Mix By telling-myself-lies

\\.Soapbox.//

"You use and lose a lot of energy being grumpy."

-Ted Danson

Day Thirty-Five: Of Futile Efforts

Why does everything have to cost so much money/time/resources?
Knitting update: We have made little to no progress on the kitty hat. I need a smaller magic loop (after attempting to cast on 4 times I have given up. there is no way to make my loop hat sized.) But we will not waver!

Life update: I did a bunch of cartwheels and now I'm in serious physical pain, which doesn't help that I'm hiking up hills tomorrow, if it doesn't rain (please don't rain.)

Blog Update: I attempted to cook yesterday, unfortunately before I could get into the kitchen, my mother had already made spaghetti. I'm going to teach you the sauce recipe eventually, but that meant I couldn't do chow mein. Not like I had the ingredients for chow mein. I'll get used to the whole "cooking for an audience" thing eventually. I will say that I had the most amazing failure ever in making microwave mug cookies.
What you may not know is, I'm actually an awful chef. I don't really follow the instructions, I'm very much a "wing it" kinda gal. That being said most of what I cook tastes good, even if it isn't pretty.

Have fun and keep smiling.

\\.Jukebox.//

I'm feeling my oats.

Fight Me. by Me

\\.Soapbox.//

"When angry count to ten before you speak. If very angry, count to one hundred."

-Thomas Jefferson

Day Thirty(?): Not Having Time.

A visual representation of me
at this point in time.

I haven't watched Say I Love You yet.
In true procrastinator fashion, I've taken to putting off my hobbies for more interesting things. Like chemistry. (For those who don't know me, the former was an example of dripping sarcasm.) School, as it often does, has taken up most of my time. Leaving me with very little to watch things. I'm behind on anime, Game Of Thrones, and my movie list.
The queue grows daily. Just today I added three more manga and a new anime. I really need to spend weekends watching instead of sleeping.
That being said, I do have a queue. While this may hearken back to a previous anime post, I'm going to give you three titles on said queue and give my brief expectations of each. I can assure you that whatever knowledge I have comes from people who recommended the series to me or what I can glean from images.

Let's get started.

• Number one on the list is: Magi; The Labyrinth of Magic.

Apparently the blue one is Aladdin. It feels very "1001 nights"-esque. Everyone I know who've seen it give it great reviews.

My Expectation:
It's going to be a cheesy slapstick comedy. I believe the blue one is a boy, so you'll have a lot of stereotypical boy humor. It has two seasons, both running 25 episodes, so I expect there to be a basic central plot with minimal filler.

• Number Two: My Little Monster.

The one on the chain is Haru. Everyone loves Haru. Haru deserves more then 13 episodes (because apparently this is only one season. I swear to the powers that be, Edwards, if this is all cliff hanger-y I will not be a happy duck.) I have no actual clue what this anime is about.

My Expectation:
There is a dude on a chain and a mostly apathetic girl. I assume the dude will be over eager and dog-like. Also in my image search, a chicken appeared multiple times. I'm unsure as to if this is relevent or not.

• Number Three: Log Horizon.

The tiny purple on is Akatsuki.

My Expectation:
I'm not really into the whole "MMORPG/Video game Anime." So I'm not really sure as to how I'll feel about this. It comes well vetted by two of my most trusted anime advisers (looking at you Brian) but I still have some hesitation coming into it. I feel like I'll get bored because with a lot of video game anime, nothing holds consequence. Because they are just avatars, I never really feel a bond with the characters. Hopefully that will be different with Log Horizon.

Have Fun and Get Watching. 

\\.Jukebox.//
For headaches and testing week.

No talkie before my coffee. By Me! 

\\.Soapbox.//

“There are so many more important things to worry about than how you're perceived by strangers.”

― Dennis Lehane

Day Twenty Nine: Knitted and Things Have Changed.

CAASPP testing is dumb. That's really all I'm allowed to say about it, but it's super dumb.
Anyway, knitting.
We are doing a project this week. It's the first large project for this blog and for myself. I've been having trouble completing the smaller projects in the time allotted. Either due to misunderstanding the pattern, or inability to gather materials. Hopefully this project runs a little more smoothly.
This week we're making a cat ear beanie.

Photo curtsy of Gracethecat on Ravelry

It's a cute hat that apparently knits up quick. Although the number of stitches needed makes me nervous.

The pattern can be found here (PATTERN) 

I will be using:

• My 6mm magic loop.(29in cable) US Size 10
• The pattern doesn't really specify the yarn you should use. I'm going to look in my stash.
• A tapestry needle

I am not promising this project done by Friday, but it will be done by June I'm sure!

On to another order of business. Summer is quickly approaching and I live in California. Hate to say that knitted wares are not good for heat, but I know that come the ultra hot weather, I'm not going to want to knit. Rather then scrapping Monday posts come June, I'm making another addition. 

Soon enough I'm going to start doing other crafts (like macrame, DIY's, other stuff.) I think that this is a nice compromise and it will keep me busy. Hope you'll agree

Have fun and Be ambitious.

(✿◡‿◡ฺ)zzz

\\.Jukebox.//

The following mix is not for children.

Pipe the fuck down, Man. by Princeofmanhatt

\\.Soapbox.//

“Give this world good energy.” ― Unknown.

Day Twenty-Three: Wanting and Waiting.

Photo from  the absolutely wonderful
Margot Meanie .

Fashion is hard.

I've been wanting to go shopping for about a week now. That's what you get when you T.A. for a fashion blogger (thank you Edwards.) She keeps encouraging me to shake up my wardrobe from it's traditional all black state. While she's completely right, it would be nice if clothes were not outlandishly expensive.












My next aesthetic is going to be 'Pretty Odd' era Panic! inspired. A hodge-podge of that and pastel goth/grunge. I can't quit dressing like an emo kid all at once.
Because I've been planning on mixing it up, I keep coveting items. Target has become no-mans-land. If I went into Forever 21 right now, I'm one hundred percent sure I would end up in crippling debt.  
I'm going to show you a few things that have stolen my heart that I would love to own.

From Target

Honestly If I don't stop there this post is going to get way too long. I didn't even get to show the floral. Oh my gods the floral. 

Have Fun and Covet cute clothes.

\\.Jukebox.//
Have an adventure.

Tanning Songs! By Katieh98 on 8tracks!

\\.Soapbox.//

"In the depth of winter I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer."

-Albert Camus

Day Twenty One: Break.

There will be no new knitting pattern this week!

Tragic, I know. I've been working hard on trying to find the perfect "Big" project for the month of May. Doing so is proving difficult, as I live in Southern California the weather doesn't really permit cozy knitted sweaters and the like. However, festival season is kicking up and I'm sure some cool shawls made with lightweight yarn would be perfect!
Finding the perfect pattern+needle combo, not so much. We'll most likely start casting on later this week, sorry about the lack of project.

Have Fun and Get Crafty.

\\.Jukebox.//
California.

Like we did (windows down) By bell_n!

\\.Soapbox.//

"In California in the early Spring, There are pale yellow mornings, when the mist burns slowly into day, The air stings like Autumn, clarifies like pain - Well, I have dreamed this coast myself."

-Robert Hass

\\.Where To Get It.// 

(Tuzki)  

(Transparent)

(Dignity)

Day:TGIF(On saturday!!)

Gotta love the fact that I think schedules are for chumps, and rarely follow my own!

This week week we:

• Lost Grooveshark
• Met Pierre (The best future mentor ever)
• Discovered our powers as the best spin doctor ever
• Finished an anime
• Started three more anime
• Wrote words
• Almost finished a knitting project by Friday
• Are changing the tides
• Are starting book club!!!

That's right, it's time for the Yarnshark Book Club!

This month we're reading:
A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore

We're also welcoming the advent of Sunday posts about food! I realised that I'm not actually watching enough T.V. or movies that aren't anime. On Sundays I'll be cooking some kind of vegetarian meal and telling you all about how I did it, what trouble I ran into and what I payed for it. I forewarn you that many of the recipes will be coming from my Pintrest board Vegetarian Delight. 

Here's to another week completed and filed away as a pretty enjoyable one.

Have fun and enjoy the weekend!

\\.Jukebox.//
Weekend.

(((((((Eclectic Vibes))))))) By Me!

\\.Soapbox.//

"Sometimes the weekend gets hijacked by work, but as my mother would say, this is the right problem."

-Julian Fellowes

\\.Where To Get It.//

(RIP Grooveshark)

(Jellyfish)

(Nico) 

Day shmglff: For Sooth, For Shame, For Better Metal.

I didn't update. The Internet ate my drafts and I didn't update.
Good news though, since I didn't update last week nothing of consequence is happening I'm sorry. I'm writing a short story-light novel-"basically it's fanfiction at this point". All original work so it's not actual fanfiction but you get the picture. Because of this, I might be a little busy and I've decided to change it up.




This week we'll be getting both our first look at Writing class and Book Club. May 1st is a Friday and the first Friday of every month is book club! (Give me suggestions on what to read, I will happily take them...) On Wednesday, since it is another crazy day, I'll be doing writing class. Or, more aptly put, the one where I show you what I'm working on and how I do the thing. I'm quite excited.





I was not able to complete (or even start) last week's knitting project, because I didn't get the yarn required. I may revisit the Harry Potter book scarves at a later date but as we say, New week- new project.




This week is... (drum roll please)
...Tea Toters! (PATTERN)

(Photo from Mom at Simplynotable.com)

A very cute little project for all the tea drinkers out there (like myself)

I'm going to be using 

• scrap yarn in a pretty pearlescent blue color 
• and my 4.5mm aluminum straight needles (US size 7)
• as well as a button that I found

This week is going to be a mad house, but I know that we can do it. 

Have fun and get knitting!

\\.Jukebox.//
I made a mix to go with a story I'm working on.

 Just Shut Up and Kiss By Me!

\\.Soapbox.//

"I'm having a great time. It's like I'm on some ridiculous big roller coaster not knowing what's happening next, but just having a great time on the ride."Samantha Mumba