Red-tailed hawk

Caught this image of a big red-tailed hawk perched on a utility pole just behind my house and just after sunset (in late December, 2006).


This guy lives in the wetland behind the house, and comes by to peruse my bird feeders (a.k.a., the hawk smorgasbord!). He's huge, and very handsome. I love knowing that something so wild lives, literally, in my back yard.

The Yule Wolf Clock

Thanks to the hard work of the Stones' current Prefect, Cashew, the Lodge gave our Headmaster and Headmistress a wonderful Yule gift this year: a wolf clock (see above).

Cashew mailed it to the HM and HMs along with a card containing wishes from individual Stones. The clock was signed and on the back with:

"Happy Yule from the Stones Lodge!"

Winter Altar

My winter altar is very informal, consisting of an arrangement of small lighted houses on a "snowscape." Earth is represented by the snowy ground and by trees; air by the suggestion of snowflakes and the birds on the fences; fire by the lights, and by the crystalline wreath that hangs above the altar; and water by the snow itself, and by the tiny birdfeeder.

Weather images

Ice storm:


Giant hailstones:

Black ice:



Snow:

Tasseomancy

At last night's "Grey School Portland" meeting, Aaran and I practiced tasseomancy, the art of reading tea leaves.

Of course, we had to start by brewing some tea. We used organic herbs from my own garden-- mint and some anise hyssop: 1 tsp. dried herb to 1 C. freshly-boiled water, steeped for 5 minutes.

We had two written guidelines to use, and each was different. So we went through the process a couple of times, and here's what we ended up with.

Tasseomancy: The Aaran-Moonwriter Method

1. Use a real tea cup and saucer--the inside should be completely white (or solid color)-- patterns make it very hard to read the leaf patterns.

2. Measure the amount of water that the cup holds-- most tea cups will hold 4-5 ounces.

3. Brew your tea. Work from a base recipe of 1 tesp. dried herb per cup of freshly boiled water.

4. For best results, grind the herbs slightly. You don't wnat them powdered, but you also want the leaf mix of a more uniform size, i.e., whole leaves and big chunks will keep the leaves from settlign into patterns as easily.

5. Measure the herbs into the cup, pour water atop, cover with the saucer, and steep for 5 minutes.

4. When time is up, sit down and drink your tea. As you do, think about the question you wish to have answered in the tea leaves.

5. Drink almost all the water, leaving only enough to create a watery film over the tea leaves.

6. Swirl the tea cup several times with your left hand, while thinkign hard about your question.

7. Put the saucer over the cup. Holding cup and saucer tightly together, flip them over. Do this very quickly.

8. Lift the now-inverted cup off of the saucer and turn it over slowly, so as not to disturb the leaves.

9. You can now read the leaves in both the cup and the saucer.

10. Use a guide to help interpret obvious symbols (see the Companion for the Apprentice Wizard for a staring guide). But also rely on your own intuition, and on any meanings the caom to you from the leaves. This can be even more valuable that pre-assigned pattern/meaning.

11. According to a compilation of sources:

The tea cup represents information that pertains directly to you and those around you. Patterns near the cup handle or at the point where your lips touched the cup are especially meaningful, while those further from the handle are more distant and less immediately relevant. Patterns closest to the rim relect the present, while those in the cup's bottom foretell the future.

The saucer contains information more relevant to the world or sphere around you.

-----

Here is a snake (generally a symbol of changing luck)in Aaran's cup... and it's near the rim (the present):
Below is Moonwriter's cup (this is how we learned, the hard way, not to use cups with interior patterns!), showing a horse (or dog?) in the center. The horse appears to leap or gallop toward the viewer's left. Note that just above it is a bird. The horse is a sign of courage and fidelity, while the bird portends good luck.

Fun! Once you've got the hang of this, it would be a terrific-- and easy-- type of personal divination to add to one's day. (And tasty, too!)

Good sites for learning more:

• So you wanna read tea leaves?
• Tea leaf reading-- Tasseography (also mentions coffee ground reading)
• Tea Society of the USA
• Tasseography-- Wikipedia

Samhain Altar

My altars are generally placed atop an antique radio cabinet-- I use it as a book and curio shelf. It sits at the top of the stairs, at a location I believe to be very close to the center of the house. the nice thing about it is that it's visible to anyone who enters the house, walks through the main living/kitchen/hallway area, or comes up the stairs.

My Samhain altar is pictured above, along with a seasonal autumn dried berry wreath (I change the wreath on the solstices and equinoxes):

Close-up of the altar:


Samhain altar at night.....

Get your official Oregon Conclave DVD!

The Conclave DVDs are ready! Each DVD includes 524 images and runs for about 36 minutes.

DVDs are recorded on DVD-R video, playable on computer or on a television screen via a standard DVD player. All DVDs are mailed in a jewel case and inside a padded mailer.

Cost: $10 + $2 for postage & handling

(Anyone outside continental US—please add $1.)

A portion of the proceeds goes back to the Grey School, so don't hesitate to toss in something extra as a donation!

Payment must be in cash (send at your own risk) or post office money order. I’m doing this from my home and don’t have the ability to handle PayPal or credit cards, and I don’t want the risk of dealing with checks.

To order a DVD:

1. Email me (Moonwriter@greyschool.com) with your order request.
2. I will reply to you with a mailing address; you can then send in payment.
3. As soon as I receive your payment, I’ll mail your DVD! I’ll do my best get them mailed out promptly, but if I get a bunch of requests all at one, it may take a week or two.

1. Welcome to Oregon Conclave 2006!

We camped at Silver Falls State Park, Oregon, at an elevation of about 1200 feet and in the foothills of Oregon’s Cascade range.

Temperature: upper 90s to 100-ish, but surprisingly comfortable in the shade. Staying hydrated was important!


Check-in was at 4 pm. The next few hours were devoted to setting up camp, having dinner, and introducing ourselves to one another.

2. Thursday, July 20, 2006: The first campfire

As with all of our campfires, the first one was held in our fire circle.

3. Friday, July 21, 2006: The first morning in camp

Looking out over our camp:


Our Lodge Captain, Aaran, concentrates on (or maybe pleads with?) her morning coffee.


Defensor WillowRune on duty! She set up protective wardings around the camp and performed tirelessly as our 'chief of security."


Willow Silverhawk and WillowRune led morning meditations in the fire circle.

4. Friday, July 21, 2006: The hike!

Friday morning found the Silver Falls hikers getting an early start to beat the anticipated 100 degree heat. Hike leaders: Aaran, Lyonscribe, and (a volunteer assistant) Desert Thunderstorm.


Front (l-r): Mary Lee, Desert Thunderstorm, Whiskerwind, Cate. Middle: Mark Summer, Aurora1, Oranstar, Gallie, Leigha, Sagewomin, Aaran (in black), Irene Gingery, Treeotter. Back: Lyonscribe, WaterMusic, Mary (raising hand), Rainmaker, John Gingery. (Moonwriter, alas, had to miss the hike because of a brief home-front crisis that required her to dash into Silverton to find a pay phone. Did we mention that there was no cell coverage and no wireless at Silver Falls? YES!!)

Aaran and Lyonscribe consult the trail map.


On the trail! Before starting out, the hike leaders made sure that hikers were carrying LOTS of water.


Desert Thunderstorm points out a waterfall to Whiskerwind, with Leigha and Lyonscribe looking on.


The big one: South Falls. Note the hikers walking behind the falls.


Yet another lovely falls on the trail.


And yet another hiking picture:


North Falls:

5. Friday, July 21, 2006: Morning classes and morning meditations

Temperatures today reached 108 in Portland, and 100 in camp! We'd later find out that heat records were set this weekend all over Oregon.

After the hikers had set off on their adventure, classes went on back at camp:

CLASS: Introduction to Numerology (Taught by Morgan Felidae, Day Lodge)

CLASS: Divination Practice (Kalla, Day Lodge)

CLASS: Personal Sigils (WillowRune, Day Lodge)

Kalla demonstrates a popular way of keeping cool....

6. Friday, July 21, 2006: Afternoon classes

CLASS: Wandmaking (Rainmaker, Day Lodge). Teacher Rainmaker at left. Not sure who's hiding behind her, but on the right (front to back) are Willow Silverhawk, Mary Lee, and Sagewomin.


Two of the finished products:


CLASS: Charms and Talismans (Moonwriter, Day Lodge)

(l-r) Aaran, Cate, Jason, April, and Willow Silverhawk building their charms.

Rainmaker was put in charge of weatherworking for our Conclave, and given the 100 degree temperatures, it could be argued that she did her job a little too well. In ‘Charms’ class, April created a charm to bring in the west wind (which was currently blowing in from the east). Within half an hour of activating her charm, the wind changed! Not only that, but it brought in a light cloud cover. The heat mitigated somewhat, but the air became very muggy. Interesting!

CLASS: In-Person Core Energy Practices (Moonwriter, campfire ring; no photos)

A dip in one of the local swimming holes (this one below Upper North Falls) was a popular way to beat the 100 degree heat. Here are Watermusic and Lyonscribe, taking advantage of the cool water.

7. Friday, July 21, 2006: Pot luck

On Friday, we shared a communal potluck supper in our own Great Hall (a.k.a. the Silver Falls day lodge). Our Captains provided the elemental decor!


The event had been planned very casually, and despite Moonwriter's fear that we might end up with 30 loaves of bread, it turned out to be a varied and spectacular feast! Leave it to a group of Wizards to somehow just know what to bring!


The Earth group (l-r: Aaran, Earth Prefect Oranstar, Desert Thunderstorm, Irene & John Gingery, Cate, and Kalla):

Air (l-r: Lyonscribe, Watermusic, April, Jason, Mark, WillowRune, and Morgan):


Fire (l-r: Starlion Redman, Leigha, Gallie, Aurora1 (hiding behind Gallie?), Fire Prefect Treeotter, Whiskerwind, and Water Prefect Willow Silverhawk):

Water (l-r: Mary Lee, Air Prefect Sagewomin, Rainmaker, Mary, and James:


Great food, amazing company....


At the Earth table, we found a reversed, "blank" Oreo. Kalla decided to sell it on eBay, to raise money for the Phoenix upgrade! (uh huh....)