2012 Witchy Books Reading Challenge

I’ve been a bookworm for as long as I can remember. I had my own library card as a pre-schooler and can remember toddling home from the library with a stack of books tucked under my arm on many, many occasions. Harold and the Purple Crayon was one of my favorites back then, along with that funny series of books about the sassy Ramona Quimby.

Nowadays, I read everything from historical fiction to how-to’s, including huge helpings of witchy/pagan titles. So I’ve decided to take up the Witchy Books Reading Challenge, hosted by Pagan Culture. If you have any suggestions for books to add to my list, please let me know. I’ll list each book I finish in the sidebar of my blog. Wish me luck!

7 things I’d like to make disappear (vol. II)

I hope everyone is enjoying the summer! My family and I are, even though we’re not taking a summer vacation. A few months ago, several of my big-ticket household appliances conspired against me and went belly-up all at once. So, we’re doing simple day trips on the weekends instead of a big vacation so we can save for new appliances.

Last weekend, we hung out in a cute town with a hippie vibe in upstate New York. We had originally planned to day-trip it to the beach, but none of us could bear the thought of the nasty traffic we would encounter... which brings me to me second installment of “7 things I’d like to make disappear.”

The “7 things” list is a bit of harmless venting about things that get on my last nerve…  things I’d like to wave a wand at or wriggle my nose at so they’ll disappear. Incidentally, “The Glenn Beck Show” was on my last “7 things” list, and not long after I posted it, the Deranged One himself announced that his show would soon end. Maybe my wishful thinking is more powerful than I thought? Here’s my latest list:

1.     Yellow jackets, hornets and wasps

2.     Shore traffic on the Garden State Parkway

3.     Trash on the beach (this comes in many forms, LOL)

4.     Neighbors that operate loud power tools on Saturday mornings

5.     Neighbors that operate loud power tools on Sunday mornings

6.     Grubs

7.     “The Jersey Shore” TV Show (yes, this was on my first list…I just keep hoping)

Let us know what's on your list. What would you make disappear? 

The Dirty Dozen List

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Yesterday while driving to work, I heard a report on the radio about which fruits and vegetables tend to contain the most pesticide residues when conventionally grown. I buy organic produce as a rule, but there are a few stores around me that don’t carry it or that don’t have a decent selection, so sometimes I have to make an exception. Buying local is also important to me, and yet not all the vendors at my area farmers' markets sell organic produce.

This report has helped me to decide when buying organic is an absolute necessity. You can check out the list here: "Apples top 2011 'dirty dozen' list, says group". I’m sure you’ll snort in disgust, as I did, when you read how the spokesperson of a produce trade association branded the report “a sensational publicity stunt disguised as science.” That sure sounds like Monsanto talking to me!

Welcome Spring?

 Talk about a rude awakening...

This was the scene in my neighborhood at 7:30 am this morning...

All I can say is it better be gone by tomorrow morning...

7 things I'd like to make disappear

Did you ever wish you could make things that annoy you disappear? Perhaps with a twitch of your nose like Samantha Stevens from Bewitched, or with folded arms and a nod of your head like I Dream of Jeannie? Yeah, me too…

Before anyone gets their knickers in a twist about this confession, I can assure you it’s all perfectly benign, with harm intended to none. And I’m well aware real magick doesn’t work that way but, hey, a girl can  dream, right? Here’s what’s on my list at the moment. What about you?

- Old, dirty snow that just won't melt

- Queen-bee moms

- Bad pizza (despite the old joke about pizza and sex,
there IS such a thing as bad pizza)

- The Glenn Beck Show

- Crow’s feet

- Tailgating drivers

- The “Jersey Shore” TV Show 

Oh, the weather outside is frightful...

Yesterday we had another monstrous snowstorm in the northeast. We're approaching record winter snowfall this year, from what they say on the news. Here are a few photos I shot in the morning after my husband and I cleared the driveway and front walk. School was called off for the day, I worked from home on my laptop and my husband worked for just a few hours before returning home. The roads weren't plowed and the snow was piled up against the house in massive drifts, giving us that nice, cozy sense of being snowbound (which is nice and cozy ONLY for a day or so, AND if you have electricity). For dinner, I made a nice hearty chicken curry with rice and enjoyed the fact that my family wasn't running around in different directions for a change. Today it's snowing again, though just flurries at the moment so I'm back to the office...

Home Sweet Home.

Home. To me, it’s one of the best words in the English language. It’s sturdy and pleasant. And with its rich, long “o” sound, it has a warm, soothing resonance. It even has the word “om” within it, which gives it a Zen kind of feel. Go ahead and say it out loud, “Home.” Feels pretty nice, doesn’t it?

My home is my sanctuary. It’s a cozy, inviting place where my family and I can relax, snuggle up by the fire, and feel safe and warm. It’s my sacred space where I’m able to re-connect with what really matters to me, and where I recharge my batteries after a long and stressful day.

Like most working moms, I deal with the stress of too many responsibilities and too little time. And I work in a company full of nasty people who seem to relish in nasty workplace politics. It’s enough sometimes to make me want to scream, but then I come home at the end of the day and the negativity melts away.

It’s not always easy keeping things tranquil on the home front, and I’m not always successful at it. But the benefits it provides my family and me make it worth the effort. I think there are lots of people who would feel less stress in their lives if they had a more calm, cozy, and inviting home, so I’d like to share what works for me. Sit back, relax by the fire, and make yourself at home.