Sunday Musings

Tags

#firstthirtyone, chinese new year, mindfulness, ode to spot, paganism debate, standardized testing, star trek, tshirt bags

I should really call these “musings” posts, blogging for the ADHD crowd!  I’m sure Sharkbait (once he learns to read) would approve…

Last pot of tea, yesterday: Chamomile, lemon balm and mint–very relaxing!

First pot of tea, this morning: Sassafras–very refreshing!

First real thought of the day, courtesy of Facebook (as opposed to that “just woke up” fuzzy head): Standardized testing sucks!  (I’ve even mentioned it in my discussions of the Delphic Maxims) Here’s why, in a share-able pic:

But there may be (maybe) hope in sight!  Teachers in Seattle are boycotting the test (seemingly supported by their school officials) and even in Texas, 80% of schools and teachers have signed a national resolution against standardized testing.

Funny story on the idea of an individual’s score varying from day to day… When I was a junior in high school I took the ACT.  Both times I took it, I got the same overall score, but wildly different subject scores.  The first time I took it, I had a 102 degree fever and felt like crap.  I scored awfully in math, but awesome in the reading portions, and better on everything else (but still not great).  The second time, I was in my first car accident…and for some reason, I scored really, really well in math and sort of ‘meh’ in everything else (not badly, but not great). Combining my best scores gave me a 34…combining my worst scores, a 22…and my overall composite score was a 30–which is a damn good ACT score, don’t get me wrong.  But the point is that taking a test like this isn’t indicative of what you actually know, and what you are actually able to do.

And here’s more of the “to Pagan or not” debate that I blogged about the other day.  This blogger has a huge list of other bloggers that have covered the subject so far…and here’s another post on the subject as well.  I’ve been reading through some of these, and I can’t help but think the real problem really is that (as I said in the comments discussion of my post), “I honestly think these people really do feel like they have been left behind, or have moved beyond what they think Paganism is now. Except Paganism now isn’t much different than it was 10 or 20 years ago–except more accepted in some public arenas…so there is also part of me that wonders if their expectations weren’t being met and that Paganism just isn’t what they had made it to be in their mind.”  To me, all this kerfuffle really does seem like the problem is more that the criticism over who the “real” Pagans are (or are not) is that they just don’t “like sharing (their) toys with those Other People that also want to be Pagan.”  Perhaps its an unfair assessment, or maybe we are watching The Pagan Reformation!  More likely than not, its just round 143 of this same old, same old.

And now for something completely different, how about some random thoughts? 

• I saw this fabulous t-shirt, and I thought of a fellow blogger.
• I’m almost through with Star Trek TNG, and ready to embark on the original series–I have 5 episodes left!
• The Chinese New Year starts on the 10th of February and runs until the 24th of Feb…I’m trying to decide if we are going to celebrate it as part of our afterschooling, and take the time to learn about China and Chinese culture.
• I’m sending The Hubby to the store to pick up creamer (for him), cereal (for the kids), and chocolate ice cream (for me)…just to get the kids out of the house!

A few more pics for the #firstthirtyone photo challenge…

12- Flakes
Since we don’t have any real ones…

13-Cabin Fever
Its been foggy and rainy, and kids without outdoor time go a little crazy indoors, even when you don’t even need a coat outdoors!

In the meantime, I’m trying to decide which version of t-shirt bag I want to make, with a stack of shirts otherwise destined for the rag bag…the no-sew or the cool meshy one.

Moment of Zen:  10 minutes of Mindfulness

And a poem for parting for the cat companions in the crowd…

Felis Cattus, is your taxonomic nomenclature,
an endothermic quadruped carnivorous by nature?
Your visual, olfactory and auditory senses
contribute to your hunting skills, and natural defenses.

I find myself intrigued by your subvocal oscillations,
a singular development of cat communications
that obviates your basic hedonistic predilection
for a rhythmic stroking of your fur, to demonstrate affection.

A tail is quite essential for your acrobatic talents;
you would not be so agile if you lacked its counterbalance.
And when not being utilized to aide in locomotion,
it often serves to illustrate the state of your emotion.

O Spot, the complex levels of behaviour you display
connote a fairly well-developed cognitive array.
And though you are not sentient, Spot, and do not comprehend,
I nonetheless consider you a true and valued friend.

~~Data’s Ode to Spot from Star Trek~~

Saturday Musings

Tags

danaids, paw paw, sassafras, six of wands, star trek, tea

First Tea of the Day: (freshly picked) Sassafras with orange slices

Why, oh why am I up and showered before six in the morning?  Oh, yeah…because I have so much to do today, starting with driving the hubby to a reenactment for the weekend.  Ugh.

In good news though, one of the many things on  my plate are about to be over today!  We have finally reached the hourly count down for the Luau at the UU fellowship we attend.  Somehow, many months ago, I got conned into heading it up…and thankfully, it is finally here!  One less thing on my plate!

Officially, I am still in Slow Blog mode, but not a total blog-cation.  I’m limiting myself to 1 or 2 posts a week, so I make sure I work on all the other stuff I need to get done (some of which I really don’t want to) in a timely manner.  If I’m totally honest here, occasionally I use blogging as a means of procrastination.

I want to go back to sleep.

Some random old blog posts…
Building a Salve
She Serves Scallops by the Seashore
DIY Field Press

Evidence of my nerditude: The hubby and I have been on a Star Trek: Deep Space 9 viewing spree for the past few weeks in our down time…and we are now in the middle of season 6–The Federation is getting ready to strike against the Dominion and the Cardassians to take back Deep Space 9 and free the Bajoran people from certain conquest.  Yeah, we’re Trekkies.

Deity of the Week: The Danaids

The Danaides by John William Waterhouse

Once upon a time the twin brothers, a man named Danaus had fifty daughters, while is brother (and king/founder of Egypt–at least in Greek myth) Aegyptus had fifty sons. Ageyptus wanted his 50 sons to marry Danaus’s 50 daughters, but Danaus was not fond of the idea and built the first ship escaping to Argos, from which his ancestress had originated. Danaus was chosen as the successor to the king on Argos, in a vote by the inhabitants of the island. Some time later, his brother came to threaten Danaus to honor his request for their daughters and sons to marry. This time, rather than cause a war that would cause hardship to his people, Danaus outwardly acquiesced. Privately however, he instructed his daughters to kill their new husbands upon their wedding night. 49 of the daughters followed the instruction of their father, and one did not. Depending on the source, that rebel might have been Amymone, or perhaps Hypermnestra (though they might have been the same person), who chose not to murder her husband because he promised to honor her choice to remain a virgin. Upon her disobedience, Danaus had her arrested and tried by the people of Argos, where she was allowed to go free after Aphrodite’s intervention. Depending upon myth, her husband (Lynceus) may have later killed Danaus in revenge. Allegorically, early versions of this myth (which end here) can be viewed as possible historical commentary of an ancient conquering, while later versions become tale of morality and cosmic retribution as well. The 49 daughters that murdered their husband end up in Tartarus with a decidedly sysiphean task–to eternally carry water to fill an urn with holes in the bottom (or alternatively to carry water to fill an urn with containers that have holes in them.

Tarot Card of the Week: Six of Wands

six of wands by blue

To sum up this card’s meaning in one word…VICTORY!
If the five of wands symbolizes the heat of battle or the fierceness of competition, the six of wands symbolizes the moment of victory where the champion is recognized in adulation by the people. It is a card of victory (or success) as well as the recognition of that success by the public or one’s peers. The six of wands highlights (to borrow a marketing idea) the importance of networking and personal branding, but carries the pit falls of arrogance and an over-inflated sense of self-importance. Reversed, this card may symbolize a loss of public support or a lack of recognition.

Herb of the Week: Sassafras and Paw Paw

sassafras leaf variations

While sassafras is available all summer long, paw paw season is right now at its peak here in Virginia. Both of these plants are native to the Eastern US and are common Southern plants. Also, they both have a long history of use that starts with the Native Americans, and continues in the culinary traditions of today. Sassafras also has a long history of medicinal use, as well as a tradition of use to ward off the evil eye in Appalachia.  Pawpaw on the other hand, may have has some medicinal and mystical qualities, but I have yet to run across any traditional uses for these things–and I have yet to figure out the best way to use it as well (other than to eat)…

Parting Quote: Live with intention. Walk to the edge. Listen hard. Practice wellness. Play with abandon. Laugh. Choose with no regret. Appreciate your friends. Continue to learn. Do what you love. Live as if this is all there is.
~Mary Anne Radmacher