We're Zany to the Max!

Alright, its time for another survey. This one is titled "50 questions you've never been asked" and I think its pretty close to accurate. I think I have not seen most of these questions on a survey before. So, here we go.

1. What's your favorite candle scent? I happen to like mullberry a lot. I also like anything that is rich smelling like plum or cranberry. I do not like candles that smell like cookies or something. Those things not only freak me out, they usually smell awful when you burn them.

2. What female celebrity do you wish was your sister? Um, I like Ellen DeGeneres a lot. I think I would relate to her. If I had to pick one young enough to actually be my sister, I think I would really like Jennifer Lawrence. She seems like an interesting and creative gal.

3, What male celebrity do you wish was your brother? This is a hard one, since I'm not into a lot of male celebrities. I mean, Elton John would be cool, but he's old enough to be my dad. I suppose I could pick Josh Hutcherson and have a matched Hunger Games pair, right?

4. How old do you think you will be when you get married? I got married when I was 27. I probably would have thought I would get married younger when I was a teenager, but then, what do you know when you're that age???

5. Do you know a hoarder? No, unless you count the fact that I have lots and lots of books.

6. Can you do a split? No. I used to be able to but I am not that flexible anymore.

7. How old were you when you learned to ride a bike? I think I was about seven.

8. How many oceans have you swam in? One. I've swam in the Atlantic.

9. How many countries have you been to? Two- Kuwait and England.

10. Is anyone in your family in the army? Yes. I have had several members of my family serve in the military, although none of them are on active duty now.

11. What would you name your daughter if you had one? Lydia Frances

12. What would you name your son if you had one? Bruce Alan

13. What's the worst grade you got on a test? Uh, an F? I've failed one before. I couldn't tell you the percentage.

14. What was your favorite television show as a child? Animaniacs.

15. What did you dress up as for Halloween when you were eight? I think I went as a witch that year

16. Have you read The Hunger Games, Harry Potter or Twilight? Yes, I have read all three series several times and I liked all of them.

17. Would you rather have an American accent or a British accent? It seems really pretentious for me to want a British one, doesn't it? They're cool and all, but I think I better settle for sounding like I come from where I live.

18. Did your mother go to college? Yes she did.

19. Are your grandparents still married? They were when my grandfather died.

20. Have you ever taken karate lessons? Nope.

21. Do you know who Kermit the Frog is? Of course I do.

22. What's the first amusement park you went to? Uh, I think Silver Dollar City in Branson, Mo. There's pictures to that effect, anyway.

Here's where I gave up on the formatting.  

23. What language, besides your native language, would you like to be fluent in? Um, I'd like to speak French better than I do, and I need to learn Spanish, but I would really love to learn Cantoneese.

 24. Do you spell the color as grey or gray? Grey.  

25. Is your father bald? I don't know.

 26. Do you know triplets? Yes, I do. Or, at least, I know one of them.  

27. Do you prefer Titanic or The Notebook? Both are depressing, but I like watching Titanic just because of Rose's clothes. Shallow of me, isn't it? 

28. Have you ever had Indian food? Yes. I think its decent. I can't cook it to save my life though 




29. What's the name of your favorite restaurant? Um, I have a lot that I like. There's an italian place in my hometown called Avanzare. Its pretty good.  

30. Have you ever been to Olive Garden? Yes. My mother works at one.  

31. Do you belong to any warehouse stores (Costco, BJ's, etc.)? Kitten has a Sam's membership. So yes? 

32. What would your parents have named you if you were the opposite gender? David Wayne. I got off easy I guess. 

33. If you have a nickname, what is it? Panther. Alecya. Those are the one's I'll repeat.  

34. Who's your favorite person in the world? Kitten. No question there. 

35. Would you rather live in a rural area or in the suburbs? Or in a city? I want to live in a city. Portland to be exact. I suppose I could live with the burbs, but I don't want to. 

36. Can you whistle? Yes. Are there still people who can't???

37. Do you sleep with a nightlight? No. I have to have complete dark or I can't sleep. 

38. Do you eat breakfast every morning? Yes, although its not always what Kitten would call a healthy breakfast 

39. Do you take any pills or medication daily? Nope 

40. What medical conditions do you have? I'm hypoglycemic. That sucks. And I have migraines. Sometimes I suffer from a severe lack of common sense. Otherwise, I'm pretty healthy. 

41. How many times have you been to the hospital? I couldn't even count.  

42. Have you ever seen Finding Nemo? Yes. Its a good movie and I was mad I missed it in 3d 

43. Where do you buy your jeans? Usually at a thrift store.   

44. What's the last compliment you got? I can't remember? Wait- someone told me yesterday that I always look put together. That was nice, since I think I look like a mess most of the time.  

45. Do you usually remember your dreams in the morning? I try to. I especially try to remember the weird ones or the ones people I know are in, because I figure they're important.  

46. What flavor tea do you enjoy? Regular tea? I like Earl Grey. Kitten makes some pretty good custom blends though. I'll drink almost any tea... 

47. How many pairs of shoes do you currently own? Without going and counting, probably about 18-20 pairs, although I only wear about 6 with any regularity. 

48. What religion will you raise your children to practice? None. I won't have kids. But if I did, I would give them the chance to make their own decision once I thought they were old enough.  

49. How old were you when you found out that Santa wasn't real? I don't even remember. I must have been young, because I don't recall being devastated or anything. 

The last one was why I have a tumblr. Which I don't. So I guess it was 49 questions. Still, some interesting ones, don't you think?

Ain't That America?

Wow. Election Day is finally over. More than that- Election Night is over. What's the difference? To me, its like night and day. Sort of like yesterday I did community service by coaching a pee-wee football team and last night I watched the Super Bowl.

In my house politics are like sports when it comes to viewing. We're very passionate. I'm fortunate that both Kitten and Oscelot are as nuts as I am (though they have less stamina, I was the only on who made it to President Obama's speech) so we went to vote yesterday afternoon and then settled in for a big night.

As most of you know, I don't own a television. So our election coverage was watched via online stream from NBC News. Bless their hearts. I love them for it. Coverage started at six my time, so we ordered a pizza at about six and we drug our couch out of the living room and into the library. We set up some footstools and then settled in for a long, long night.

It was a long night too. Believe me. There was a good deal of time I was on pins and needles. We didn't get up unless they were going to a scheduled break. We didn't do anything unless we had the chance of getting out of the room (usually to the bathroom) and back again without missing anything. There was one point in the night when Gov. Romney and Pres. Obama were tied, and Kitten missed it so I trucked into the bathroom to tell her immediately. (What? Touchdown Romney? Damnit...)

As the night wore on we became more anxious. I was dying to get results on our local and state elections because we had a nationally recognized senate race. Fortunately they put us out of our misery about that around ten. The rest of the night was us, engrossed, as we listened to political commentary and waited for Chuck Todd to show us the numbers in the swing counties and then for Brian Williams to interrupt so we could watch them call a state and then put it out on the ice.

When they finally -finally- called Ohio for the President, around eleven or so, our house erupted in cheers. (You're not surprised are you?) and we had a victory dance with our cats. Oscelot went to bed, saying she would watch the speeches in the morning. Then the unthinkable happened. Gov. Romney wouldn't concede Ohio. What??? Surely not? So Kitten and I went back to the screen and waited anxiously as the results from every other swing state rolled in. Colorado and Nevada...was that enough? Then we heard that Miami-Dade was not counting any more ballots as of midnight. What???

Finally, finally, Kitten went to bed too, apologizing that she couldn't stay up later. Hell, I don't blame her. Both of them had to work this morning after all. So I cozied up with the cats and waited for Gov. Romney to make the call. And waited.

Finally, the call was made and I listened to Gov. Romney's concession speech. I'll say this. I never would have voted for him. But he was dignified, passionate and caring. You could see in his face that he was heartbroken. You could hear in his voice that he truly cares for America. And that? It made all the difference to me. He is a good man. I don't agree with him. But had I seen that man on stage all year, I would have liked him better.

His speech down, I only waited on my new president. I was anxious and tired- but I would not miss this. His speech, to me, was beautiful. It was not just rhetoric. It was not just victory. It was a call for unity. And that, my friends, is what I learned while I was watching last night.

A lot of pundits say there was no mandate. A lot of them say that the country is more divided than ever. What I saw was Americans giving their elected officials a hard rap of the butt and telling them to get back to work and to get it right this time. Nothing changed, and everything changed.

I had an interesting conversation this morning with Sakura's aunt on facebook. She's a conservative, and she asked if we could have a discussion about gay marriage because she didn't understand why it was such a big deal that it be called marriage. After the long discussion it turns out that we agree. She doesn't think a church should be forced to marry two people if they don't want to, neither do I. But she does agree that all people have the same fundamental rights. We call it a draw, because it all boils down to the semantics of the word. But today, for the first time, I saw someone from the right who was willing to engage in discourse about a controversial topic important to both of us, and saw us walk away with an answer we could both live with.

That is what needs to happen now. I pray, I hope, and I will that there will be this kind of talk in Washington. I hope that there is a clear sense that four years ago we elected a bunch of liberals and it didn't work. We swapped them out for conservatives in the mid-term elections. That didn't work. Now we have a nice mix, similar but different, and we're ready for them to lay aside the bullshit and the party politics and talk. I think last night was America saying maybe we don't always agree. What's best for me might be bad for you, but maybe we can find something that is simply good for all of us. I hope this time we will have the opportunity to compromise and become a more socially minded electorate.

I can hope right?

Oh, and for those keeping tally, because I was-

*First openly gay senator elected.
*First female handicapped war veteran elected
* First openly pansexual elected to congress
*Four states voted to legalize or decriminalize marijuana (I don't like it, but can't we spend money fighting drugs like meth for a change?)
* Three states legalized gay marriage and one voted to repeal a constitutional amendment banning it.

This is huge. HUGE. 

I can't tell you enough how excited I am. Or how exhausted. One of the highlights of the night for me was Sakura calling me at like, eleven thirty to celebrate with me. It was wonderful.

The game is over, let the games begin.

Thank you, thank you, to every person who went and voted yesterday. Today is a new day for all of us.

AGxx
*NO SENATOR who publicly supported anti-abortion legislation for rape victims was elected.

Then Again It Feels Like Some Sort of Inspirtation To Let The Next Life Off the Hook

Tomorrow is election day. If you live in the United States this probably is not a surprise to you. No doubt even those who live under rocks will be well aware of it- all of the political campaigns will have surely found a way to get a flyer to you somehow. At this point I am relatively certain that however they might lean politically, every single American has got to be sick of the politics. This is the culmination of more than a year's worth of campaigning, mud-slinging, primaries, caucuses, debates, interviews and -don't doubt it- spin.

We, as Americans, are weary. We've seen it all. We've heard it all. If there is a single undecided voter left in this country today, I would be shocked. Seriously. At this point, I think it is more than clear that the country is wildly divided, and when you draw the line, or in most cases, when the line has been drawn for you, its not hard to see which side you fall on. But today, it's not just those elusive, coveted, undecided voters I am concerned about.

It's every voter.

Now, at this point, if you aren't registered to vote I imagine its either because you aren't old enough or you have such a sincere amount of voter apathy that whatever I say will not make a difference to you. You can read on if you like, but feel free to skip out here. Who I want to speak to today is every registered voter who comes across my blog. I want your attention, for just a moment.

I need you to go vote tomorrow.

No- you need you to go vote tomorrow.

This election, in my mind, is hugely important. I see, for the first time in my lifetime, a country that is wildly divided. We are standing at a crossroad. Whatever happens tomorrow, make no mistake- things are changing. Personally, I don't care for divisive politics. I hate that the right has moved further right with the assistance of the Tea Party. I hate that in response, the left has moved further left. I don't like this all or nothing choice we are being forced to make. Unfortunately, the line has been drawn in the sand. We have to choose where we're going to go. And this year, like many other years, there's not as much choice as we would like. But that doesn't mean we have no choice.

I've heard this election referred to as many things. Some see it as a referendum on President Obama. Some see it as a chance to "reclaim America". Some people think this is our chance to protect our moral ideals. Some see it as a way to protect freedom. I've been told that when we step into the voting booth tomorrow we are not choosing who we like, but who we hate less. We are not selecting a leader we feel our country can't live without- we are choosing the leader we can live with. I've even had people who are not voting tell me they aren't because they feel like their is no choice at all, no difference between the two men who are running for our nation's highest office. I couldn't agree less.

Regardless of your politics, tomorrow you are making a choice. You are choosing the course of human rights in this country. You are making a decision about a woman's right to choose. You are deciding how you think the finances of this country should be handled. You are making choices about how your brothers, sisters and children and grandchildren will be educated. You are deciding who makes the choice with regards to a person's healthcare. You are the one who is casting the vote to decide what support, if any, our grandparents, parents and even ourselves will receive in the years to come. You are making the decision that says exactly how much a person's religion should effect their government. You are deciding what foreign policy we will take with India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Israel, Russia, China and the UN.

Tomorrow, when you step in to vote you are deciding what taxes you and I pay. You are deciding whether or not you and I will have access to healthcare. You are deciding whether or not my grandmother will be able to afford the medication she needs. You are deciding where and what your children will learn. You are making decisions, not just for yourself, but for every person who is able to vote, unable to vote, or too young to vote. You are making a decision that will effect every single person in the state and country you live in. You are not just voting for you, but for every person you know. The choice you make tomorrow will effect all of us for the rest of our lives. Tomorrow you are voting for the greater good.

That's a lot of responsibility.  Fortunately, there is only one way you can fail, and that is by not voting.

There will be many people tomorrow who don't vote because they can't, and I think that is a travesty. There will be people who have no access to cars, or who can't afford the ID required by their state to vote. There will be some who can't get off work. There will be some who wanted to vote but didn't register on time. There will be thousands of people tomorrow who will want to vote, and who can't. You must go vote for them.

There is no doubt in my mind that this election, more than ever, your vote counts. If you don't believe that, you haven't been paying attention. There are at least three states that will have possible recalls because the margin of votes between the two candidates is less than a half a percent. A half a percent! In some cases that is somewhere in the neighborhood of 100,000 voters. Of all the people in those states, in this country, that is a drop in the bucket of votes. Yet tomorrow, every single voice in every single one of those states will mean something. Every person is Ohio, Florida, and Colorado will walk into a voting booth knowing they might be casting the deciding vote of the election- not just for their state but for the whole United States.

In many states, including the three I just mentioned, there have been election officials that have tried to stop or decrease hours of early voting. They have tried to purge their voter rolls. They have made it harder, in come cases for lower and middle class Americans, nearly impossible to vote. I am heartened to see that in every case there have been people who were willing to make a sacrifice and stand in line for four, five and in some cases in Florida up to nine hours to cast their vote. That is amazing to me, that these people see that their voice, that every voice, counts. It should never be an act of heroism to vote in the US. This year it is. I admire those people. Unfortunately, for every person who is able to take the day off, get a sitter for the kids, or has the good health required to stand in line outside for eight hours to vote, there is a person who can't. Those people are victims to an agenda that is neither mine nor yours, friend. You must go vote for them.

For my friends who don't have the privilege to live in a "battleground state" I urge you to go vote anyway. Every state is a battleground. Every one of them. I live in a Red State. I am a democrat. You better bet that every election for me is a battle. It is a chance for me to tell my conservative representatives that I am still here, and that they are still accountable to me and every other liberal that is not a part of their voter base. Because they are still making choices for me. If every single liberal I know who has given up the fight would rally and head to the polls, things could change. We could make our voices heard. We could become a "battleground" state. It is the fear and complacency of my generation that causes me the most pain.

I am tired of being told that my voice doesn't matter. I don't want to hear that the voice of my friends and family don't matter. I don't want to be told that I cannot possibly make a difference on my own. Let me tell you something- tomorrow I get one vote. Tomorrow Mitt Romney and President Obama get one vote. The richest man in America gets one vote. The poorest Hispanic mother gets one vote. We all get one. No more. My vote is equally precious as the vote of a person of greater or lesser standing than my. My vote is my chance to say that despite the odds, despite the opinions of others, my voice has just as much a right to be heard as anyone else's. I refuse to fall victim to the popular ideology that one vote and one person cannot make a difference. I refuse to fall into someone else's agenda by not following my own. 

I don't care what your views are. Maybe we have similar ideas. Maybe they are wildly different. Either way, tomorrow, your voice is important to me too. It should be important to you. Your vote, no matter who you cast it for, is an act of patriotism. It is an act of pride. It is an act of defiance. Tomorrow, you choosing to vote is your way of saying that you will not quietly let others make decisions for you. You are demanding to be heard. You are telling the world that you still believe that you live in a country where every person matters, where every thought deserves to be considered, where reason and rationality and the good of mankind can still be thought of. You are voting to tell others that greed and scandal and spin do not matter as much as the ideas and opinions you have. The parties in the US determine their platforms based on what they think you want to hear. Go out tomorrow and tell them exactly what you want from your country. The more we speak, the more they must listen.

I ask you, I charge you, to go do your duty tomorrow. The course of my life, the course of your life and the course of the life of every single American depends on it. Please don't let me down.

AGxx

Time is on my side

Wow. Time keeps slipping away from me!

I'm sure most of you have noticed its November, which means it is National Novel Writing Month. I love NaNo and have done it for years. I have done some of my best work and met some of my best friends through NaNo and I couldn't encourage budding writers enough to try it out. But this also means that despite the fact I will be at the computer for nearly all of the month, writing until I am certain my fingers will fall off, that I will probably be really lazy about updating here. Not that I am really regular here, or anything, but it seems like I am worse during November.

Samhain went really well. My coven and I had a great time. We went to Kitten's mom's house for the ritual. We were house sitting for her because she was at a conference, and she suggested we might like to have ritual at ehr place since there is a massive back yard surrounded by trees and its really private. Not to mention her house is a bit larger than ours. So we took her up on the offer.

I'm not going to lie, hauling all of the ritual stuff over there was a bit of a challenge, but we had a nice time in the end. We even had a sleepover, so some of our coven members stayed at the house all night. We ended the evening after ritual with a nice dinner and a chat in front of the fireplace. It was a good time. We also got to eat my very first attempt at a made from scratch cake. I am a notoriously bad baker, I can ruin slice and bake cookies...but the cake was good! I am not suprised that as usual, the stuff that is harder to do is much simpler for me.

We did a really nice ancestor meditation too, and I felt very comforted to see many of my passed family members and several of my spirit guides waiting for me. It meant a lot to me. I always feel so close to them this time of year. They had been making regular appearances in me dreams, so it was nice to see them when I went to seek them, not just when they came to find me. That may seem odd, but I really do feel like the deep relationship I have with my personal spiritual guardians is an important one, and it gave me the grace and the strength to see where I am in my life and where I need to go next.

We also discovered, quite by accident, that I have a new allergy. I am allergic to pumpkin. Or at the very least highly intolerant. See, I never eat pumpkin except for in pie during the holidays. I thought that it was the stress of being with my family that was causing me to be so sick. We carved pumpkins a couple of days before Samhain and wouldn't you know, I got a rash that looked rather like the chicken pox on my arms and a raging headache. Huh. I would have never thought. Oh, well, as much as I enjoy the seasonal rule of our pumpkin spice overlords, I rarely indulge. I am looking at this as an opportunity to try new flavors of the season. That's always best, isn't it?

I'm working hard on my new novel. I think I've got a lovely plot idea and it seems to be coming at a rather fast clip. I have no illusions. Week two is looming, and I know how difficult it is to stay motivated. But I have a really great group of writing buddies, and they are all on the same train of love, support and a little bit of verbal abuse that keeps my Type A personality writing.

Alright. I might be able to sneak on later in the week. If you live in the US, be sure to go vote. Oh- and a reminder- if you vote a strait party ticket- vote for the president first, before you hit the "select all one party" button. The presidential race is separate. It would suck if you forgot to vote for our commander in chief by technicality. Especially if you are anticipating on waiting in the same long lines I am. I waited 3 hours to vote for our last election. This year I imagine it will be just as bad, especially since we have one of the big national senate races. Do your duty by your country friends. I'll be proud of you.

Lots of love,
AGxx

Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue

I was sincerely hoping to avoid one of these this election season. Unfortunately, it wasn't in the cards. So here comes the preface:

This is a political post. I am going to state my political opinions herein. I am going to likely offend someone. I'd apologize, but I'm entitled to my opinion. If you disagree with me, that is okay. I am all about civilized discussion. If you want to be a stubborn, bull-headed pain in my rear and call me names, I will not tolerate it. Period. So lets get the names out of the way. Yes, I am a liberal, left wing, tree-hugging, witchcraft practicing, let's install a solar power generator to power my stove to cook my organic food, gay flag waving huge heathen lesbian bleeding heart liberal. There. See. I know I am. Let's get on to the civilized discussion.

Right. Its this time of year, well, every couple of years, and every four years especially that I find myself really irritated with the public at large and with the people who are politically active in general.Part of it has to do with the fact that I can't watch television without seeing a political ad. Part of it is I can't sit down to dinner without some politician or PAC or whatever calling me to tell me about the evils of the particular candidate on THE OTHER SIDE. Part of it is I have flyers in my door, pamphlets in my mail and signs stuck in my yard...I don't want any of them. I really don't. Here's why-

I am a grown ass adult who is capable of researching, fact checking and making my own decision when it comes to electoral politics. I really can. What irritates me is that most people are not. Most people don't know anything about their candidates when they go to vote their straight party ticket. That's their choice. If they want to vote the party line, that's okay. God knows, most of the time I do. Most of the time.

I find myself irritated though, because people start spouting off party or political rhetoric without any regard to fact checking, truth, or sometimes how they even feel about the issue. It pisses me off. Its especially bad on facebook. Really bad there. And I sometimes wonder how people have the nerve to post the shit they do. It makes them look like complete assholes, and ignorant to boot.

Take the current election as a great example. Now most of us know that the laws are actually passed by congress. Its true. Check the constitution. Its there, I read it about five minutes ago. Now, I have the utmost respect for President Obama. I think he is a good man, and I think he has the potential to become a very great president. Here's the problem- both with him and Former Governor Romney- THEY DON'T WRITE THE LAWS. I love a good debate. I think tonight's on foreign policy should be interesting, because President's do have an effect on foreign policy. But nothing gets my goat like listening to them tell me all about their job's plans and their social security plans and their medicare plans and how they are going to address my rights as a woman when the truth of the matter is, all they can do is ask congress to work towards a certain goal, maybe even propose those goals, but in the end they only get to sign the legislation that they did not write because it had to be written and sponsored and voted through both the house and senate before they ever get a chance to make that bill law.

I'm going to say that again for emphasis. Congress makes the laws. Congress sponsors and writes the bills. Congress passes the bills. If congress does not pass the bill the president never gets to touch it. NOT ONCE.

So why all the fuss about the Presidential Election?

Truly, I do think its important, because presidents get to do things like nominate supreme court justices- and those guys are on the bench for life. And they do have an effect on my day to day life. Look at Roe v. Wade, look at Brown vs. Board of Education, look at them taking up the matter of gay marriage on the high court level. I want those judges to be on my team, voting my party ticket, thank you very much. Now, do I want them to pay attention to the letter of the law? You bet. But when it comes to political interest, the law is flexible, and so is its interpretation. I want a president in office whose going to choose someone who has my rights in mind.

The president gets to pass executive orders too. And those are important and little spoken of. But they should be. If you want to see how much a president does on a day to day basis, look at his executive orders. See what it takes for a person to work each day to help run the federal government. A productive president has a whole lot of EO's.

Presidents are influential. They set the tone of an administration. They negotiate and handle statesmanship duties, which I appreciate because believe me, some of our members of the legislature don't need to be talking to foreign ministers. They just don't. I know, too, that if a president disagrees with a bill, they can veto it, and that's a lot of power.

Here's the thing, though. NO ONE EVER GETS EXCITED ABOUT CONGRESSIONAL ELECTIONS.

I do. Believe me. Because the person that takes the senate and house of representative seats for my state is the person who is speaking with my voice. I want it to be my words coming out of their mouth. Right now, my senator is up for re-election. Her name is Clair McCaskill, and I honestly like what she does. I've followed her work, and her accomplishments since she was first elected to the federal government. I'm proud to have her from my state. She is currently running against a Republican named Todd Akin. You might remember him because of his little debacle on live television talking about pregnancy and rape. Obviously, I don't want this man speaking for me. If every single person who got fired up about presidential politics got fired up about their national and state legislative races, if they were truly informed, politics in the US would be wildly different. Mark me on that. Because the people who actually make the laws would be the ones we would be holding accountable. The people who make the laws would be the ones we are grilling about their policies and how they represent our choices and freedoms.

But outside of the obvious implications of the fact that most of the people I speak to about the elections have already formed their opinions, or don't care, or are so terribly misinformed about the political process in general there are some things that have been weighing heavily on my mind. And these are things, I will admit, that are probably only things that irritate me because I am a liberal. So bear that in mind. However, I'd like to point out:

The phrase "Gun Control" is not equivalent to "Lets Repeal the 2nd Amendment." I get really fucking sick of listening to people tell me the moment a democrat is elected that they're going to go bury their guns in their back yard so some crazy, mythic, black ops all Democrat mob can't come steal their guns away. Please. This sort of hysteria is the stuff that political campaigns dream of. They want you afraid and hysterical. Let me tell you something. I am a democrat. I own a gun. I own knives. I own all sorts of fun hunting toys that I will gladly make recreational use of and possibly make other use of if someone takes it upon themselves to cross my threshold with the intent to infringe on the autonomy of me or anyone in my family. You fucking bet I will. And I believe that's my right. BUT I also believe the state has the right to make sure that I am a sane, mentally competent person before they let someone sell me a gun. If they did, I would be a lot less likely to have to use my gun to shoot anything other than a squirrel, deer or paper target. And please, please spare me the drivel about regulating the types of guns being sold. You don't need an AK47 to shoot a deer. That weapon is designed to kill people in military combat. If you want one, join the fucking military. I'll wear a flag pin just for you. Seriously, I get so angry when people rant and rave about how we allow gang violence, and how cops get killed and how crime is on the rise and then they get all pissed off when someone suggests that maybe, just maybe, the socially responsible thing to do is make sure that gun shops don't hand out automatic weapons like they're candy on Halloween. I hate to say this, but you don't get it both ways.

Terrorism is not a political issue. Its not. Terrorism is shitty. It is. And it effects the way we run our country. But let me tell you something- there is no way to prepare for terrorism. There isn't. That's the point of terrorism. That they strike when you aren't looking, where you don't suspect, and the fear of them literally strikes terror into you. There is only one answer to "how do you feel about terrorism?" and that, if you are sane, is "terrorism is fucking awful." Here's what we should be talking about- diplomacy, international relations, how we are viewed by the rest of the world, who our allies are and how we deal with terrorists in a safe but humane way, because torture isn't an option. ( I assume if you're okay with torture, you've either stopped reading or are just plain punishing yourself. Or you're working up an awesome retort to my points) These things, my friends, are called foreign politics, and they're very important. And truthfully, I think most Americans forget that no, we aren't the only civilized country in the world. No, we aren't the only democracy. In fact, we're not even the best one. Sorry, that's the truth. I'm not saying I don't love living in the US. I do. But there are other places where the democratic process itself works better. I truly believe that the biggest problem with America is Americans. I get so sick of people saying shit like "We're America damn it. They should respect us." Why? Why? Because we make a lot of shit? Because we're a democracy? Because we have a huge GDP? Because our land mass is bigger? Fuck that. England is less than the size of my state and it has been and still is just as, if not more, powerful than the US is now. What do we do that makes us worth respecting. That's what I want to know. And frankly, none of the things that make us a country worth respecting have been election issues any time since I've been able to vote.  And truly, out of all of the "civilized" and "developed" countries- we're one of the youngest. We're still a teenager. And maybe, just maybe, it wouldn't be such a bad idea to take a leaf out of the books of some of the countries that have been around literally since Jesus was born. Just sayin'. (though maybe financial advice from Greece wouldn't be too sweet right now)

And Freedom. Sweet Jesus, Mary and Jospeh, I am so sick of hearing about freedom. Let me tell you why- the people I listen to who screech about freedom have every fucking freedom in the world. I am tired of Republicans telling me that I am trying to take away their liberties. Please, someone, explain to me how me being able to marry a woman, or have an abortion, or buy contraception, or get government assistance for health insurance takes away your freedom. Because I don't think it does. I think you disagree with it. Bully for you. You're allowed to. But let me explain: me having a freedom does not take away one of yours. You think gays shouldn't get married? Sweet. Don't be gay. Or if you are gay, don't get married. You think abortion is murder? Cool. Don't get one. You think that contraception is a form of abortion? Okay. Don't put your teenage daughter on the pill (and while you're at it, give her the abstinence talk, because you won't let her sit in on those family life films that explain about things like STDs) You are completely and totally free to do all of those things. Awesome. You not choosing to do those things is your right. It is also your right to think that I am going to hell if I am going out and having lesbian sex using a dental dam i picked up at a government clinic the week after I get an abortion.

Here's where my rights come in. Because I should be able to do or not do all of those things. I should. And the argument about whether or not I can do all of those things is almost always based in someone's religion. And its not mine. I promise you that. Because my religion says that if I am not harming someone, and it is for the purpose of my higher will, I can do it. And I know that's not the most common belief out there. Don't get me wrong. I like a lot of Christians. I think there's a huge bunch of moral, good ones out there. But the fact is, I don't want them using their faith to make laws I have to live by. Because its not my faith, and its against the law for them to dictate my moral beliefs. Period.

The problem is, everyone is so concerned about their "rights" but what they really mean is that they should not have to live in a world with people who have different ideas or moral beliefs than they do. That somehow, witnessing any other person doing something their religion or morals don't agree with diminishes the faith that they live by. Sorry folks, that means your religion sucks. And so does your faith. Because me, in my own corner, doing my own thing, has absolutely zero effect on you or your god or your religion. And if it does- if it truly does- maybe you should be having a talk with god, because one of the two of you got it wrong somewhere.

I'm all politic-ed out. Relieved, aren't you? I'll probably fire up again soon. But right now I have another debate to watch. Even if I have made up my mind. Its nice to be informed, right?

Constructive comments and thoughts below!
AGxx

I will wash the dishes, if you'll pay all the bills...

I've been a housewife for almost a month now. It seems funny to me how the days seem to run together. I would swear I only stopped working a couple of days ago...but time has a strange way of slipping away from me. Over the last few weeks I have had a lot of people asking me how I like being a housewife. It seems to be the first question everyone who doesn't see me on a near daily basis asks me.

The truth is, I actually am really enjoying myself. I have to be honest, though, I think a lot of people are under the mistaken impression that I lie around all day eating chocolates and reading romance novels. That's only about a quarter true. I have been reading a lot of romance novels, but that's more because I am looking into them as a form of research rather than because I lack things to do.

My house is certainly much cleaner than it has been in the last four years. It never ceases to amaze me how I find that the second I turn around there is something else to clean. I didn't realize I am a compulsive cleaner up till now. But the first thing I did when I found I had spare time was start cleaning. Deep cleaning, mind you. I've developed quite the routine that way. There's already a pattern I have in place. Deep clean the carpets every Thursday. Vacuum every other day. Dishes in the morning. Laundry when the basket in the bathroom fills up. Fold and put it away on  Thursday...

But I've been busy with other things too. My life seems like it is more full than it was before, but truly I think I am simply making time for the things I was cramming into my space four hours a night before. I've been working on things for the coven much more frequently, I've filed my poor book of shadows finally, and its almost up to date. I've been working on ritual more frequently, and finding there is always something new to do or to learn.

My writing has been taking up my time as well. November is almost upon me, and I am going to churn out an entire novel in that month. I've worked diligently to plan the outline of the new book and where I want to go with it. I've already looked into possible publishers and I am back on the horse looking for agents that I might be interested in. I know I'm going to find the right one this time, and its going to go more smoothly, because I know what to expect. I've also got that short piece I've been working on. Some days it goes really slow, and I'm proud of five sentences in half an hour. Other days I sit and find that an hour's worth of work is another chapter down. Its refreshing to have time to write and to enjoy doing it.

I love being able to make dinner and have things ready for the girls when they get home. I like planning my day ahead of time. Its nice to have activities to do in my spare time. I've started working on a quilt for Kitten in my spare time. I've almost got all of the squares cut out. Its only a matter of time before I start piecing them together. It will be a fun winter project.

I feel a lot more refreshed than I had, although I've had a bout of bad luck with my health. I had a headache for nearly a week solid and then I caught a nasty 24 hour bug that put me down hard in the last couple of days. That wasn't so much fun. But then, as some of my dear friends have pointed out, my body is likely getting rid of the tension caused by many years of stress held in and not dealt with. The nightmares I had the first week or so that I was off work were terrifying, but they're down to a trickle now. I'm not having them as much as I was, and I assume this is a result of me feeling more secure and much happier than I did.

Don't get me wrong, there are days where I feel terribly annoyed that I don't contribute financially to our household. It irritates me to think that I am being supported by my ladies. But then, they don't seem to have a problem with it. In fact, they encourage me to rest, to write, and to take my time getting back together before I even think about looking for another job. Even Kitten's mom, whom I assumed wouldn't like me not working has told me that she thinks its better that I'm home, and that if I want a job I should wait until something perfect comes along. That way I can do something I love.

In the meantime, I am finding life at home to be pleasant. I am able to do the things I like without feeling bad about it. It turns out we really aren't loosing that much money, so the girls aren't worried at all. Sometimes that bothers me too, thinking that maybe I worked all those years for nothing, because when it comes down to it, no one is really missing my income. But then, I learned something from all of those years, so its not like it was all for naught.

I keep wondering when I am going to find that I am bored, or unhappy, or wishing for something else to do with my life. But truly, after a month, I've discovered that I am doing what I am supposed to be doing with my life. I am making my home a richer, warmer place for my family. I am building on the strength of my friendships. I am working for the good of my coven, without feeling I am giving it half attention, or that I am somehow lacking in my abilities. I am writing, for the first time, whenever I feel like it. I am writing for the joy of it. I am writing because I want to make it my career. And that feels good. Really good.

For me, it took a lot of courage and a lot of trust to let go of my job and come home. I was terrified. I was uncertain. But I am glad now that I did it. There are, of course, some things I wish I could change. I miss some of my work friends. I miss the active feeling I had when I was working. I need to exercise or I'm going to put on weight, I am sure of it. But then, I have more things to do than I did before. I don't see my lack of job as something that leaves me bereft. It has given me the perspective I need to move forward with my life. The insomnia is creeping back in, and don't think its because I am sleeping late. Far from it. I get up earlier now than I ever did when I worked at Casa Bueno. But I find I am not so tired at night that my only option is to fall into bed and go to sleep. I find my mind wandering. I don't mind too much, though. It gives me a chance to think of new things, and to let myself dream of what I want.

For the first time in years, I don't go to bed wondering. I don't go to bed worrying. I just go to bed. And when sleep comes, I'm not afraid. Not of the night or the morning, or the day that comes after. I don't worry about what happened during the day. I merely pass pleasantly on to my dreams, which are their own sort of adventure.

Yes, I think I like this very much. Only time will tell...but then, I have all the time in the world. Don't I?

AGxx

Charge of the Crone

Its not often that I post something directly related to Wicca on my page. Yes, I discuss it, but coven rules rather tie my hands when it comes to actually talking about the goings on of our day to day workings. However, I was working on the Samhain Ritual yesterday and I was looking for a Charge of the Crone to do for the ritual rather than the usual Charge of the Goddess. Unfortunately, I did not find anything that I truly loved online, and my resources outside the internet proved a little dull as well. So I took it upon myself to write a charge that I loved, that I felt was appropriate to the holiday and to the spirit of the Great Lady whom it was about. I was rather pleased with my results, so I thought I would share them with you. I don't feel that me posting this will reveal any coven secrets. So.

Hear Ye the words of the Crone, the dark goddess eternal, who has been called Cerridwen, Hecate, Inari, Morrigan, Kali, Grandmother, Wise Woman and by many other names:

Come my children through the dark of night and seek me. Though my face be shrouded in the veil of the new moon, my power wanes not. I am the wise woman, who guides you through your hardships and strife, the great midwife of your transformation.

Though you may face your greatest terrors, fear me not, for I bring you that which you need- for I am the source of knowledge eternal and the keeper of all secrets. And these be my gifts unto thee: strength and courage, wisdom through experience, and the excitement and freedom of lessons learned.

Seek these within thyself and there you shall find me also. Surrender your fear and ignorance- with my shining sickle I shall cut them away. Then shall you learn compassion and love and find completion of spirit. I wait for you to call to me to reveal the lessons within thyself- for behold! I am the balance of the scales of light and dark, the interim of life and death. From me all things dance forth and it is I who awaits you at the end of the spiral!

It probably needs a little more work, but I am quite happy with what I was able to do. It makes me feel wonderful to be finally connecting to this aspect of the Goddess, because she is possibly the most misunderstood and the most feared of all her aspects. To me, she has always seemed beautiful, and very open and welcoming. Maybe growing up with a house full of strong women has caused me to be less afraid of them, and more admiring. I like a woman who can take charge, who has great mystery and power within her. Having been forced to face the darker aspects of myself, having grown the way I have as a woman and as a witch, I suppose it is no shock to me that I identify with the Crone aspect more than others. 

I feel very blessed to have been able to have written something that I feel is a lasting tribute to one of the mot beautiful parts of my beliefs. 

I hope you enjoyed it. 

AGxx

PS- any visitors, I am happy to allow you to use my work, however, in print, I would appreciate that you contact me first, via email, to obtain permission. Within your own personal work, of course feel free to make use of it. Bright Blessings to you.