A 2-Dimensional Christmas and Other Ways to Yank the Rug Out From Under the Holidaze

With none of my household being Christian, Christmas is an odd holiday to celebrate.  But as my daughter so aptly observed, “I like getting presents!”  Yes, tis the season!  Commerce has packaged December as the month of buying, whether you be Christian, Jewish, or African-American, or none of these.  Who wants to be left out [...]

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ONALISTUS REVELER TEACHES POETRY

At 3rd Ward in Brooklyn, NY. To sign up, go here. “At its most basic, writing poetry is to experiment with letters, words, sounds, and symbols. Keeping that in mind, we will look at poetry in this class not as a static sub-genre of writing, but rather as the very basis of writing itself. We [...]

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THE SOCIETY FOR ALL: The Ways of Omnibi (Start Yr Own Religion class profiles)

First up in our profile of new religions is an interesting little path manifest around the idea of waiting—or longing—as one might experience while waiting—or longing—for the bus to arrive. A truly urban religion if ever there was one, The Society for All is a path of wonder and devotion for the beloved (here in [...]

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NEW RELIGIONS ARE CROPPING UP!!!: A review to come

During the months of October and November I had the privilage of being witness to a number of brandy spankin’ new religions being made manifest in my “Start Yr Own Religion” class at 3rd Ward in Brooklyn, NY. I will being profiling these this week. Stay tuuuuned….

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THE GARB WE WEAR WHEN WE WHERE GARB: ie. Ras Michael and The Star Ruby

One of my students passed along a link to her documentarian friend, Phyllis Galembo’s, website cataloging ritual clothing. One image is above. Why? Recently, in my “Start Yr Own Religion” class we discussed the use of clothing in ritual and ceremony and the difference between “formal wear” and the “come as you are” approach. The [...]

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CANDLE MAGIC 101: “Wishing Candle Spell”

In many ways, a candle is a self-contained magic. It contains within itself the three elements of earth, water and air in such a way that the fourth element, fire, can be sustained by it. The magic of candles is so widely accepted that many people use it without even realizing (who hasn’t blown out [...]

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MEANING IN THE STONES

The spiritual meaning of various crystals and stones is widely known (and commercialised); you can buy a selection of polished gemstones in any one of thousands of shops with a little label explaining what it should mean. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with that in itself but what about the private, almost intimate, interaction between [...]

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MAKING INCENSE

Whilst shop-bought incense is a lovely way to scent your house, there is something much more personal and enjoyable about making your own. Making a basic incense is much easier than you would think. First, you need to decide what you want to use. You can make a range of fragrant herbs, flowers, dried peels, [...]

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START YOUR OWN RELIGION & GUERILLA PUBLISHING CLASSES: Two New Old workshops in Brooklyn

NEW OLD TRADITIONS IN THE CLASSROOM:3rd Ward, Brooklyn, NY Start a New Religion, Mondays June 28, July 5, 12, 19, 7:00pm – 10:00pm In this class students will each write, design, and craft a new spiritual path (as far out or traditional as desired), to be summed up and presented at the end of the [...]

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YOGURT!: How to make it and yogurt cheese

Making yogurt in our home kitchens is an easy feat, part of reclaiming the mysticism of food production. Indeed, it’s so easy, we must ask ourselves: why did we ever stop? Yogurt is of the oldest known ferments, and certainly one of the yummiest. Yogurt contains active live cultures of bacteria, collectively known as “lactobacilli,” [...]

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HOW TO MAKE THE “FOUR STITCH BAG”: Easy

Here is a step-by-step guide to making a simple bag perfect for containing, concealing, or carrying your various accouterments of witchery, revelry, or basic daily domesticity. Named the “Four-Stitch” bag for the simplicity of the four seams that comprise the construction, it’s a great way to re-use old clothes or fabric scraps you have laying [...]

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MAKE YOUR OWN LAUNDRY DETERGENT

Making your own laundry detergent is easier than making soup! It is also way cheaper than buying detergent from a store. If you do not have a car, you will not miss hauling laundry detergent home on the bus or by bike. You will not miss lugging large plastic jugs out to the curb for [...]

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DANDELIONS: Miracles in your front yard (plus dandelion tincture recipe)

The dandelion is a much maligned meadow plant, a native of Europe. Americans fiercely and defiantly dig out and poison this miracle plant, for no obvious reason other than they think they should. I started thinking for myself, and I have found out quite a bit about this miracle plant.

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A CELEBRATION EVERY DAY: Sap Moon

Food-wise, we are still in winter. In fact, we’re kind of in the worst part of it. The winter vegetables are tired and old, and we’re sick of them. But, other areas of our natural world are kind of a buzz. It’s spring, and we know it, and even if earth has yet to start [...]

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MAKING THE OLD NEW: The Fixers’ Collective

Stuff, stuff, stuff. At least once a month I pick an area of my little apartment and start trying to pick out stuff to pitch. Inevitably, the project ends quickly. Though it’s true that there’s always a bit more stuff around than we need, it’s also true that I’m relatively pared down to “things that [...]

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HOMEMADE GOLD: The quickest way to make butter

1. FIND A COW

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GIFTS & GIVING: “When the Present is the Presentation,” by Zara Bode

Continuing our series on “Gifts & Giving” honky-tonk singer-songwriter sensation, Zara Bode, offers a suggestion on how to make even a store-bought gift personal. Get out your blinders, put in your earplugs, and (if you haven’t already) throw your TV out the window. These are the precautions we must take in order to best avoid [...]

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WEB FINDS: “Buy Handmade”

In the spirit of the recent comment discussions regarding bought -vs- handmade gift giving I thought I’d put a spotlight on the website “Buy Handmade,” which you can find here as a blog and here as a website with an “I pledge” thingy From the website: Buyhandmade.org is a collaboration between Etsy, Craftster, indiepublic, Craft [...]

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A NEW OLD HALLOWEEN 2009 RECAP: Decorating

The New Old Traditions are an earthy bunch of holidays largely based around the progressions of the sun and the moon. As such, decorations that represent what’s happening outside are much appreciated, and allow for the gnarled outside to inform our squishy-gnarled inside. Twigs, leaves, lighting, and punch.

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