Weird Dreams I've been having weird dreams lately. And for me to say they're weird is saying something. I'm the person who had a dream that the North Pole was on the other side of the hill behind my house growing up. And that my dog's doghouse was secretly an airport.
They're not weird like that though. They're a strange mix of things from tv shows, or something out of a fantasy novel. But all mushed together into something that flows and changes.
What's so weird about them is how they feel. It's not like I'm dreaming, it's like I'm somewhere. When I wake up, I feel disoriented for a moment; like I've just come back from a long trip. And almost immediatly, the vividness of what was just there, is gone. Into a swirl that I can't really remember what I was just in the middle of. I remember the sensation of being in the dream and meaningless color and light but I can't remember what I saw, what those shapes mean or what was going on.
I like them in a way. But in another it's so odd that I don't know what to make of it. I'm sleeping more hours. And I'm waking up at random times, sometimes having slept WAY too much, and having been just the second before my eyes opened, in the middle of...something in the dream. Not like anything happened in the waking world, I'm just suddenly not asleep anymore. It adds to the disorientation. But it doesn't help me recall any of it.
I'm heading to bed. Where I'm sorta nervous and sorta excited to go to sleep again. It's like I want to see what happens next, but I won't remember it and I'll be left with that weird sensation of something I just can't reach. It's just odd and it's been that way the last couple of days.
Witches Weekly - Pagan Community Thank goodness one of these came up. It saves me from having to write about my life and my mundane problems that I can't think about or I'll break down crying again.
How did you choose the specific path you're on? (Druid, Wiccan, Sumerian) I don't consider myself anything per se. When pressed, I reply that I am a non-denominational Pagan. I do (or don't do) what I feel personally. I don't follow any specific path; ritual; tradition; teaching. It's very ecclectic and mostly, just what feel correct to me. So I never made a "choice" to follow a specific path; I've always just walked the one that was mine by birth.
What do you feel you contribute to the pagan community? Well, I founded and run Embracing Mystery and the EM Forum. I try to keep tabs on various communities out there and always try to provide a common sense, level headed approach. There's a lot of kids with a touch too much fantasy filling their heads and while some is fine, too much and they're not true to themselves or their spirituality.
How long have you been an active member of the pagan community? Years now. EM was founded back in 2001 and I've fun other outside the norm sites years longer then that. Though it's only relatively recently that I've been involved in Pagan specific groups. For a lot of years, all I saw was Fluff Bunnies and Wicca Boppers and I don't want any part of that. I've left a little bit of my cynicism behind in order to look past that for some quality communities and discussions.
This is not an entry Head hurting. (What else is new?) Broke and depressed over finances. (Again, what else is new?) Bored and wishing for something fun, new and interesting in life. (Still not breaking news.) Watching too much tv. (Also not new.) Frustrated with life in general. (I know you saw that coming.) Pointless entry. (Same old, same old.)
Donald Duck 50th Birthday - 1984 I first went to Walt Disney World when I was about seven or eight years old. It was 1984. What was memorable about this was that 1984 was the year that Donald Duck turned 50. He had a great parade for his birthday. I was there for it. Seems I was one of the few.
Twenty years later, it's 2004. And Donald turns 70. There is, sadly, no parade though. However, I recently found the photos my mother had taken of his 50th Birthday Parade and decided to put them on the web. After searching for other sites and pretty much finding two (and only one with two grainy photos), I realized someone definately had to do something.
So the Donald Duck 50th Birthday Parade, 1984 Photo Gallery is officially launched. Anyone else remember it? Or the song they sung? Happy Birthday, it's Donald's Birthday! Happy, Happy Birthday to him! *clap clap!* Feel free to comment or email me if you have a site, photos or want to contribute some memories of the event. missm(at)giveneyestosee.com
(Don't forget either that I keep links to all my growing Disney content in my Disney Gateway!)
I have seen the face of Yumminess ...and saw that it was good.
If you hadn't heard already - and I hadn't until yesterday - brace yourself. Something momentous is about to be revealed to you on this day. They have brought back Jell-O Pudding Pops.
Bask in it's glory.
Oh yes, the delicious pudding pops - beloved by all; gone for over a decade - are back. And readers, gentle readers, I have just eaten one. And it was so damned yummy I had to spread the word. Go forth to your supermarkets! Go forth to frozen food sections! And rejoice in the pudding goodness that are Pudding Pops.
The lost and misguided still have not heard the good word. That Pudding Pops have returned. So it is vital that you spread the news. The Good Pudding News.
From the absurd product file So I'm at Target the other day and I'm in line. You know how there's always stuff over in the line to try to entice you to buy a last minute item, right? Well, I'm glancing at what's over there as I wait and I come across a small cup of sunflower seeds.
Looks normal enough until I read what's written along the top.
Not only does it remind us to Spit Responsibly! but, they trademarked the phrase, "Spit Responsibly!" What the hell kind of world is this where you have to put instructions for expelling the product from your mouth AND trademark it? How many people really, really now are going to be like, "Damn. I wish I would have trademarked that phrase first!"
Things you forgot you forgot So I was little and I don't remember the New Coke flop, but I do remember another.
Crystal Pepsi
Remember that stuff? I was nosing around the net last night when I came across a message board where two members were laughing about it. They were the only two on the entire board who remembered it. So I had to go look it up.
I remembered I was in High School when it came out. (1992-1993 generally by most site's information.) And I remember drinking it a few times. Mainly because it was something different and funky. Not because I actually liked it. And, I'm pretty sure I stopped drinking it because it just really wasn't that good. It's been described as a combination of Pepsi and flat 7-Up and that sounds about right to what I remember. It wasn't as carbonated as normal Pepsi, and I seem to recall it did have a slightly flat taste to it because of that. But it was "crystal" clear, and us high schooler's drank it for a few weeks just because of it's hook. (Dumb kids.)
Another thing I forgot I had forgotten about both that soda and soda in general was that it was in actual glass bottles. Not the plastic ones for a buck you see everywhere nowadays. (You know, like the 16oz. size?) I was just mentioning something about the plastic bottles the other day and he was reminding me that they haven't always come in that type container. When remembering about the Crystal Pepsi, I realized how right he was.
What's sad is that people are not only selling, but people are buying, Crystal Pepsi things on ebay. Including unopened cans and bottles. People, the stuff is over ten years old. It's not good anymore. Really. Give it up. Those not willing to drink the expired product, have been signing their names to a petition to bring it back. Guys, it's not going to happen. Pepsi doesn't even mention it on their history page for crying out loud! The best I could get out of the site was the "ask Lisa" replies:
Q: What ever happened to Crystal Pepsi? A: We stopped producing Crystal Pepsi. In the past Pepsi has distributed this flavor in several markets, however it did not sell as well as we had hoped. At this point, there are no plans to reintroduce this product; however, you can be assured that I will forward your comments to the appropriate individuals at Pepsi-Cola Company.
and
Q: How is Crystal Pepsi made? A: Thank you for your interest in Crystal Pepsi. I thought that you would want to know that this product is no longer available. I promise to share your comments with the Pepsi team.
It's a "virtual" help desk so if you type anything (those two questions showed up when I just put in "crystal pepsi"), it just tells you I recognize you asked about Crystal Pepsi, but I don't have a response for that question yet. I'll be sure to share your question with my friends at Pepsi.
So there you have it. A walk down a memory lane that probably only a handful of people will walk. The rest of you will probably look at me funny and wonder what else us crazy "Gen X'ers" were willing to drink back in the day. :)
How do you (or would you) go about teaching/including your child about your practice/beliefs? Well, I don't even want kids. But...on the hypothetical, I would first off, teach my child to respect nature. To respect the earth. To explain how we are all connected and that life, no matter what it's form, is still life. I would explain to them that belief is personal and that there is no wrong inner faith. That all religions do are attempt to wrangle people together under ths same inner faith and that it's not neccesary. You don't have to think like anyone else in your belief. That we can only each personally touch the face of "god" in our own way. I would introduce them to the concept of the sacred earth as a means of celebrating that faith.
What kind of coming of age ritual might you suggest for your child and how would you approach them about it? I have no idea. I never went through anything like that. I suppose it would matter to a degree on the gender, age, and outlook of the child. Getting a special peice of symbolic jewelry (something "adult" or with real metals/gems) might be one way. Taking them out for a night to a special place, the woods, the beach, etc., where we could talk and offer dedication might be another. I don't know. I suppose it could be as formal or simple as the child wished.
What might you tell them about being a Pagan in a Christian-centric community? Well that first off, numbers don't make it right, nor make it required. That people are welcomed to believe anything they wish. To not be ashamed of their faith, nor hide in embarrasment. I would remind them that it's ok to enjoy the "general public's" holidays because most are either Pagan in origin, or are jointly celebrated. (i.e. there is no need to give up "christmas" and all the fun of the tree and whatnot, just the name changes) And I would remind them that there are good people and bad people in the world and it's not just their religion that defines them as such.
/grumble rant mode Ok, I know I was pissed when I wrote the previous entry. I'm sure you could tell. It's just that I'm the only one who really ever cared about getting out, having fun, seeing some fireworks. I never just wanted to spend the day sitting around doing the same-old, same-old, you know? It's a holiday. It should be fun.
Problem is that it's simply not been every year for like the last five or six years. More then that, it's been an absolute frustration and failure. No matter how big or small of plans we make for the day, they never do anything but fail utterly. We've tried everything and each time, something major - not just minor - comes along and utterly ruins it and makes it so we can't do anything at all. We don't get to do what we planned and even our backup attemps to just do anything fail. It's miserable. And I'm so tired of it. It was funny the first couple times. It's just not anymore. It's depressing and it leaves me feeling worse then if I hadn't done anything but sit around my apartment all day.
I don't know. I just hate when year after year, holiday after holiday we don't do anything and when we try it's a miserable, fruitless experience. Just feels like everything I do I fuck up. And kicks in that little voice inside my head (that never goes away) that says don't even bother trying. you're only going to fail anyway. It's why I don't really ever feel like doing anything. Deep-down, I believe that voice is right.
Bah Fucking Humbug I'm officially giving up on the 4th. Every single year for the last like six years, it's sucked. Flash floods, fireworks cancelled because of rain/lighting, technical problems with the launch, etc. This year we thought we might have a chance to get some tix for free to Disney World. Since our passes ran out last month, we of course haven't gone. Nor do we have the money to get new ones. We've been saving up. (Not that we've gotten very far mind.) That fell through. Tonight at just about the last minute we decided to try to see a small local city's display. Drove around, found a spot, walked to the waterfront. Were we soon found out the barge that was carrying the fireworks had problems and the show was now going to be at 10pm rather then 9pm. It was only 8:30pm. There's no way we wanted to stand around in an overcrowded park, sweltering in the heat and humidity, with no place to sit, waiting for another hour and a half for the show to go off. We got some smoothies, walked around a bit, and it was still only 9:05pm. We called it done and headed back home.
So. No damned fireworks for me yet again. I'm fucking pissed off to no end that it's always this difficult just to do something on this day. So fuck off. I'm done. I'm not going to try anymore and I'm wipping it off my calender. Bah fucking humbug.
