Are We Being Serious Again?

Sagittarius Horoscopes
(Nov 22 - Dec 21)

Next Week
For the Week of Jan 26th, 2009 -- The planets are lining up to create a passionate weekend for you. The fiery Aries Moon heats up your 5th House of Romance, Fun and Games to help you to let go of your worries and live in the moment. Your spontaneity is a magnet for others who will want to play with you. Don't let seriousness get in the way of these good times.

Seriousness will not get in the way. Oaxaca, though into the future, is on my mind. Bless Bee Woman this year for going crazy. Wild and crazy, I believe, were her operative words.

"Vickie, we are going to Oaxaca. Sensible and responsible are taking a vacation."

Obviously, she was not referring to me. I can be both, although I have a tendency to throw caution to the wind at times, sometimes...all right, often. Helen is my voice of reason. Heh!

We are going to have a good time.

A short story I haven't written yet is incubating for a Writer's Digest Contest. First prize is a publishing package with editing and distribution for my vampire book, Spellbound Blood or The Caretaker if I have it completely polished, edited and formatted by March of 2010. That's just over a year away, but books can't be rushed. Win or lose, I will be publishing Spellbound Blood in 2010, but it would be so much fun to win :)

Mexico will have it's share of vampires. Not quite From Dusk til Dawn, but creepily scary in its own right. Not all my vampires are as sympathetic as Dawkins.

Many serious things are brewing in the meantime. Such is life. This is why we appreciate a getaway. This is why we treasure our friends, especially in moments of unpredictable inspiration.

Josephine Baker not being serious

Free Hug Day

Yeah baby, it should be every day.

This is a great video, just try not to smile :)

http://www.squidoo.com/free-hugs-campaign#module3706092

Well, I guess it's more of a kiss, but you get the idea xoxo

Hallelujah!! A New Day!

OH HAPPY DAY !!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQcQWpABjfw

Welcome President Obama!

Yes WE Can!

WELCOME, PRESIDENT OBAMA!

LET'S HOPE THAT THE DAYS WHEN CRIMINAL U.S. ADMINISTRATIONS ARE REPACKAGED AND REHABILITATED IN THE UNSUITABLE GUISE OF BELOVED MAVERICK STATESMEN BY SHAMELESS PUBLIC RELATIONS TEAMS ARE OVER. UNFORTUNATELY, IT IS PROBABLE THAT THE SAME AWKWARD SLEIGHT-OF-HAND, ABETTED BY U.S. MAINSTREAM MEDIA CORPORATIONS, WILL BE ATTEMPTED IN DUE COURSE ON BEHALF OF CHENEY AND BUSH, JR. -- AND PERHAPS ONCE AGAIN SWALLOWED HOOK, LINE AND SINKER BY A SIGNIFICANT SEGMENT OF THE U.S. PUBLIC. IT MOST LIKELY DEPENDS ON HOW FAR MR. OBAMA CHOOSES TO ATTEMPT TAKING HIS "CHANGE" CONCEPT IN TERMS OF SIGNIFICANTLY OVERHAULING THE STRUCTURE AND MORAL CONDUCT OF HIS COUNTRY'S GOVERNMENT. AS IMPORTANT AS ANYTHING HE CAN DO IN THIS REGARD IS LEADING THE WAY IN A EARNEST EFFORT TO PROSECUTE CHENEY, BUSH, JR. AND OTHERS IN THE OUTGOING ADMINISTRATION FOR TREASON, WAR CRIMES, FRAUD, AND THE HOST OTHER DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL CRIMES THEY CAN JUSTIFIABLY BE TRIED FOR. IT CAN BE DONE AND IT NEEDS TO BE DONE IF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA IS TO ACHIEVE THE FULL RESPECT OF THE FAMILY OF NATIONS AND, MOST IMPORTANTLY, OF ITS OWN CITIZENS. THIS IS AS HISTORICALLY IMPORTANT AND JUST A CALLING AS THOSE ACCEPTED BY THE INDIVIDUALS AND INSTITUTIONS CHARGED WITH EXAMINING AND PROSECUTING THE OUTRAGEOUS CONDUCT OF HITLER'S GOVERNMENT OR THAT OF SOUTH AFRICA'S APARTHEID-ERA REGIMES, TO NAME BUT A FEW OTHER TERRORIST ORGANISATIONS. HERE'S HOPING FOR THE VERY BEST FROM PRESIDENT OBAMA AND FROM US ALL ~ VIGGO MORTENSEN ~ PERCEVAL PRESS

Text of President Obama's inaugural address:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090120/ap_on_go_pr_wh/inauguration_obama_text

Erm...Yes, I can't help myself...love you Viggo!

Happy Birthday Ed!

Edgar Allan Poe holds a special place in my heart. Even one of my vampires has a very close bond to him. Today is Ed's birthday. He had an abiding fear of being buried alive. Back in the day the mortician would tie a string with a bell attached to the corpse's finger. The string was long enough to allow the bell to be on the surface after the coffin was buried in the earth. A worker was then assigned to sit by and wait to hear if the bell rang during the night. Hence, the graveyard shift. I wonder how often they heard any ringing. This fear was reflected in Poe's works--The Fall of the House of Usher, The Cask of Amontillado, and The Telltale Heart, just a sampling of this theme. I think he would have loved this poem. It is right up his alley, dark and sad and true.

Everyone Is Afraid of Something ~ Dannye Romine Powell

http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/index.php?date=2009/01/19

We decided to go the traditional route for a little birthday tune.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eczq0jLe-LI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kL8Vay4Hqa8&feature=related

Pour yourself a little absinthe and kick back for the evening.












Poe Postage Stamp
Masque of the Red Death~Nox Arcana
Annabelle Lee ~ Nox Arcana

About Love, Sex and Other Miracles

When I read and listened to today's poem on Writer's Almanac it struck a familiar chord. It may seem strange to some, but meeting your first love in church on a Sunday is not as uncommon as it might appear. You're both wearing your Sunday best. Then there's that element of forbidden fruit--who flirts in a church during Mass? You would be surprised. Whether chance meeting or planned rendezvous, Sunday romance can be deliciously exciting.

http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/index.php?date=2009/01/16/

My own recollection of love at first sight (or second) is still vivid, though I'm sure altered by the passage of time.

http://shrineonvickie.blogspot.com/2008/12/another-lk-day-of-sharing-song.html

The mind is like that, selectively choosing the happier memories and leaving the less satisfying behind. The mind can also play tricks on you.

Things have been busy at work. I wear gloves when I work and wash my hands each time I remove them, so some days I wash my hands fifteen to twenty times. My poor hands need some serious moisturizing. I glanced at the liquid hand lotion dispenser and was taken aback. Did that label say 'Dead Sex Minerals' !? I called Sandra over to the sink and had her take a look.

"Vic, I can see what you mean, but I'm pretty sure it says 'Dead Sea Minerals'. Maybe you need a break from your vampire story."

Maybe I do, but that was creepy. Somehow the mind always wanders over to sex, creepy or not.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHcQ5wRZ9iU

Yesterday that plane crash landed in the Hudson River. The sight of all those people standing on the plane's wing as a ferry arrived to board them was nothing short of a miracle. If this had been a movie people would have said it was too far fetched. They all survived. They missed the bridge by ninety feet. The Hudson was calm. I'm a firm believer in miracles. I always have been. Bless everyone involved, from the pilots to the ferrymen to the passengers. It's always a perfect time for a miracle.

Picture of hand lotion dispenser~come on, really, what does that say?

Fair Warning

Check out this poem by Alden Nowlan...you've been warned!
http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/index.php?date=2009/01/12








Picture~Black pottery kiln, Oaxaca
Today's weather in Oaxaca ~ 74' mixed sun and clouds

Viggo, Sigh...

The minute I heard my first love story,
I started looking for you
not knowing how blind that was
Lovers don't finally meet somewhere;
they're in each other all along.

~Rumi~

My celebrity crush on Viggo Mortensen is well known among my friends, family and some acquaintances. If you peruse this blog you will see numerous references to him. Te Quiero is my ring tone. When things get tense in the old workplace, I take the picture of Viggo my coworker saved for me from Gentleman's Vogue and glance at it, meditating for the moment.

I enjoy his films, have a couple of his books, have used his poetry in my art and, compulsive person I am, visit his blog at Perceval Press almost every day.

Sometimes you can't really explain why you find someone attractive. Yes, I think he's quite handsome and very sexy. I do admire a man (or woman) of principle and, indeed, he speaks his mind quite eloquently, for example:

"Bush, Cheney, Hadley et al self-righteously warn the incoming administration to continue steering safely down the right side of the road in the very same burned out, motorless, rusting hulk they left buried in the ditch, wheels and mirrors gone, the sad remains of a vehicle now barely salvageable as scrap... "

vm

Not only does he write poetry, but the poems he chooses for his site are thought-provoking

Walkers with the Dawn

Being walkers with the dawn and morning,

Walkers with the sun and morning,

We are not afraid of night,

Nor days of gloom,

Nor darkness--

Being walkers with the sun and morning.

—Langston Hughes

He's also an artist, photographer, musician and publisher.

I've never met the man, but he seems to be the real deal. He's someone I admire. However, this is the time for new beginnings. I consulted the Tarot for guidance and this card appeared.

It is sage advice. In fact, it is very cool. So, Viggo, I will keep that magazine pic for mental health reasons. Thanks for the inspiration and aspiration. You have been very, very good for me. Oh, and I'm keeping my ring tone...

Blocks & Inhibitions: Two of Cups
Main (positional) meaning
Your feelings for another may exist to attune you to your own longings and needs.The card in the Blocks position points to self-undermining tendencies, areas where you could be in denial, where you could get stuck -- unless you examine yourself and make some corrections. When the Two of Cups is in this position, the relationship doesn't have to go anywhere for you to benefit. Even if it just allows you to work it through your imagination, your artistic life, or your dreams, it's a good thing. Take a dispassionate view of the object of your affection. Regard this person as a symbol of your unfulfilled desires. Sometimes a person comes into your life not so you can possess them, but to stimulate exquisite feelings that better acquaint you with your heart's desires. Just let the very awareness of love be like a tuning fork for your soul. These are healing feelings. Unrequited love is not a horrible thing. In fact, its effect can enrich other current and new relationships in your life. Don't cheapen such feelings or compromise your dignity by trying to possess an unavailable or unworthy person who evoked these emotions. You are bigger than that. Let go of the romantic fantasy; your feelings may be here only to bring you closer to your true desires.

Sigh...one of my fave Viggo pics

Oaxaca weather: 76' hazy

The Dark Eyes Have It

Many strange things have been happening around here lately. Most are due to the natural pattern of life changes which occur as time passes. This always brings out the nesting urge in me. You know, clear out, clean up and rearrange. My art supplies have been literally piling up in my bedroom. Actually, it was becoming quite alarming. The potential for an ephemeral avalanche was real and eminent.

One change is my daughter and her boyfriend and their furry and reptilian entourage moving to their own place down the road a piece. This leaves room for a small studio. While rearranging the mountains of stuff (avalanche prevention) I found one of my favorite tarot decks hiding among ribbons, lace and leather barbed wire. It's The Gothic Tarot Deck illustrated by Joseph Vargo. It's dark and beautiful and perfect for a reading long overdue.

A while back I found an original Dark Shadows LP on e-bay, which replaced a family heirloom gifted to a true devotee. My sweet Christine and Pete gave me a new turn table combo for my birthday. What better background music for a Gothic tarot reading? It was a real treat.

Letting go of the past and looking forward to the future are part of daily living. Enjoying right now is becoming more satisfying all the time. I hear Barnabas in the background....

"I hear your call. I feel your yearning. I am with you."

Right back at cha, my fang man.

Peek at the Gothic Tarot deck. Just scroll down a bit :)

http://store.isisbooks.com/GOTHIC_TAROT_p/0967575621.htm

Sagittarius Horoscopes
(Nov 22 - Dec 21)
Next Week
For the Week of Jan 5th, 2009 -- Your larger-than-life personality, sense of humor and blunt honesty could overpower your partner or a potential love interest this weekend. Be true to yourself, but tone it down a little to avoid offending a super sensitive individual. Being tender is an excellent way to attract the passion you want now.

Yes, the curse of blunt honesty. That's why I don't play poker. What you see is what you get, but I can tone it down...a little.

Just came in from my mom's last choir performance after over forty years with the same group.
Growing up, I just knew she always sang with these people. They are my other dysfunctional family and I love them dearly. She received a beautiful plaque and a lovely bouquet. What was also evident is the bond of love and affection that binds them.

We sang on Sundays and holy days, the choir in the choir loft and the rest of us downstairs. I was choir mom when my daughter sang in the children's chorus. I spent many a Sunday upstairs. Like any group of creative people, there is a music shorthand communication. After so many years together just a look, a nod, a nuance of expression will suffice.

My daughter leaned toward me, "Lisa's not happy. Those kids are gonna hear it later." Ah, memories, but she was right. That expression on our choir director's face struck fear and dread into the hearts of choir members young or old. To the untrained eye, she seemed slightly distracted. To those in the know, the wrath was yet to come. She maintained high standards for all. That was one of the things my mom admired. That and a steady stream of the latest church lady gossip. Juicy.

Everyone told me how much they will miss having Mom in the choir. They remember the time she designed the costumes for the Three Kings for one Epiphany concert. They looked like Yul Brynner from The King and I, with hair. She's an artist, what did they expect?

She'll be upstate with my brother, listening to Il Divo and the cd her choir recorded a couple of years ago. I may even go to a concert at the church. It won't be quite as theatrical but, baby, it was a fabulous run.








Tarot ~ Isis Books xoxo

Seasons of Light

I found this beautiful slide show collection of woodcuts and music depicting Jewish life from The Book of Customs by Scott-Martin Kosofsky. Woodcuts have always appealed to me, these are wonderful. As the days grow longer and little more light seeps into our lives let the light of inspiration transform you.

http://speakingoffaith.publicradio.org/programs/2008/hanukkah/ss_jewishlife/#slideshow

A Few Words On The Soul


We have a soul at times.
No one's got it non-stop,
for keeps.
Day after day,
year after year
may pass without it.

Sometimes
it will settle for awhile
only in childhood's fears and raptures.
Sometimes only in astonishment
that we are old.

It rarely lends a hand
in uphill tasks,
like moving furniture,
or lifting luggage,
or going miles in shoes that pinch.

It usually steps out
whenever meat needs chopping
or forms have to be filled.
For every thousand conversations
it participates in one,
if even that,
since it prefers silence.

Just when our body goes from ache to pain,
it slips off-duty.
It's picky:
it doesn't like seeing us in crowds,
our hustling for a dubious advantage
and creaky machinations make it sick.

Joy and sorrow
aren't two different feelings for it.
It attends us
only when the two are joined.
We can count on it
when we're sure of nothing
and curious about everything.

Among the material objects
it favors clocks with pendulums
and mirrors, which keep on working
even when no one is looking.

It won't say where it comes from
or when it's taking off again,
though it's clearly expecting such questions.
We need it
but apparently
it needs us
for some reason too.

—Wislawa Szymborska(translated from the Polish by Stanislaw Baranczak and Clare Cavanagh)







Once again, thanks Artella for the link :)
Japanese maple ~ Queens, NY 2008
A Few Words On The Soul ~ Perceval Press