Monday, November 01, 2004
Happy New Year!
I'd planned yesterday to go to the DBG's dia de los muertos event, but after running around doing stuff for three days I decided instead to just wrap up some things around the house. This meant cleaning the back patio and front porch and writing a bunch of checks for bills, memberships, charities, subscriptions, etc. that had piled up on my desk. Not much, but I felt oddly relieved after taking care of them; it brought a nice close to the year.
For the past couple years, I've given out bouncing glow-in-the-dark eyeballs to the trick-or-treaters instead of candy. This year, to my chagrin, I found that Archie MacPhee no longer sells bouncing glow-in-the-dark eyeballs in bulk, and buying them by the six-pack would be prohibitively expensive (I get anywhere between 60 and 100 kids on Hallowe'en - mine is a trick-or-treat magnet neighborhood). Well, no problem; it's Hallowe'en and I should be able to find a suitable subsistute like rubber bugs just about anyplace that sells holiday stuff, right? .......well, after extensive search I was finally forced to go to Wal-Mart (yeah, I know; I sent an extra donation to Oxfam in penance) to get some packs of plastic snakes, lizards, and toads. Went over really well with the kids, except for one girl who looked about 4 or 5, who remembered my house from last year and had been raving to her dad about getting another bouncing glow-in-the-dark eyeball. Ouch.
For all the blah blah about people not celebrating Hallowe'en on Sunday, there was a respectable turnout; they just petered out earlier than usual, and at 8:30 I was able to shut down and head off to Chris & Elizabeth's new digs for their Samhain ceremony. It's kind of odd being the only coven-trained Witch in a circle of solitaries; you find yourself automatically giving the ritual responses when no-one else is, because they're used to practicing alone.
Two pet peeves of mine reared their ugly heads again, since 'tis the season: (1) Gratuitous use of the phrase "self-proclaimed Witch" in the press. Of course we're self-proclaimed! If you let someone else proclaim your religious affiliation for you, you've got problems, bud. (2) TV shows about Samhain and/or Wiccan beliefs, where the producers find it necessary to present an "opposing viewpoint" by some non-Wiccan badmouthing our religion. Do holiday specials for Rosh Hashanah or Chanukkah feature appearances by noted anti-Semites?
Oh well. It's a new year, the weather's cold and clear and fine, and in one more day we'll be rid of campaign ads aimed at voters with the IQ of a portobello mushroom. Huzzah!
3 comments
I'd planned yesterday to go to the DBG's dia de los muertos event, but after running around doing stuff for three days I decided instead to just wrap up some things around the house. This meant cleaning the back patio and front porch and writing a bunch of checks for bills, memberships, charities, subscriptions, etc. that had piled up on my desk. Not much, but I felt oddly relieved after taking care of them; it brought a nice close to the year.
For the past couple years, I've given out bouncing glow-in-the-dark eyeballs to the trick-or-treaters instead of candy. This year, to my chagrin, I found that Archie MacPhee no longer sells bouncing glow-in-the-dark eyeballs in bulk, and buying them by the six-pack would be prohibitively expensive (I get anywhere between 60 and 100 kids on Hallowe'en - mine is a trick-or-treat magnet neighborhood). Well, no problem; it's Hallowe'en and I should be able to find a suitable subsistute like rubber bugs just about anyplace that sells holiday stuff, right? .......well, after extensive search I was finally forced to go to Wal-Mart (yeah, I know; I sent an extra donation to Oxfam in penance) to get some packs of plastic snakes, lizards, and toads. Went over really well with the kids, except for one girl who looked about 4 or 5, who remembered my house from last year and had been raving to her dad about getting another bouncing glow-in-the-dark eyeball. Ouch.
For all the blah blah about people not celebrating Hallowe'en on Sunday, there was a respectable turnout; they just petered out earlier than usual, and at 8:30 I was able to shut down and head off to Chris & Elizabeth's new digs for their Samhain ceremony. It's kind of odd being the only coven-trained Witch in a circle of solitaries; you find yourself automatically giving the ritual responses when no-one else is, because they're used to practicing alone.
Two pet peeves of mine reared their ugly heads again, since 'tis the season: (1) Gratuitous use of the phrase "self-proclaimed Witch" in the press. Of course we're self-proclaimed! If you let someone else proclaim your religious affiliation for you, you've got problems, bud. (2) TV shows about Samhain and/or Wiccan beliefs, where the producers find it necessary to present an "opposing viewpoint" by some non-Wiccan badmouthing our religion. Do holiday specials for Rosh Hashanah or Chanukkah feature appearances by noted anti-Semites?
Oh well. It's a new year, the weather's cold and clear and fine, and in one more day we'll be rid of campaign ads aimed at voters with the IQ of a portobello mushroom. Huzzah!
3 comments
3 Comments:
"DBG's dia de los muertos event"?
What's DBG?
-Anonymous Gerbil
By 
, at
7:52 AM
Desert Botanical Garden.
I certainly agree with your comments about the political ads. I hope I don't run into either Rick Renzi or Paul Babbitt for about 10 years because if I do I will rip their throats out with my bare hands. You're all invited to help.
TT
