Climate change is now widely recognized as the major environmental problem facing the globe. It is a change in the statistical distribution of weather over periods of time that range from decades to millions of years. Many countries have experienced temperature spikes brought about by climate change. It has been observed that warming is experienced most in the tropical countries around the world. Climate change has two causes; these are the natural causes and those that are created by man. The onset of climate change has come about following over 200 years’ worth of unchecked manmade activity that’s had a negative impact on the world around us – from deforestation and the burning of fossil fuels to driving cars or throwing away perfectly useable materials. While we can’t undo the damage caused to the environment, we can help decelerate the rate of change – and long-term, change the fate of the planet altogether. Half the problem for us as individuals, however, is the knowing where to start, you will have to do your part and learn to live a green life. Yes, it is our major responsibility as humans to protect our planet; we have to start now before we lose our most precious planet.

Nowadays, free debt consolidation is being widely sought for struggling debtor; they find this as an immediate solution to get their finances back to normal. This will allow you to lessen your stress and to avoid insolvency. There are debt relief companies which help you in handling your loan accounts professionally; they are of help when it comes to dealing with your finances. They also become of great assistance up to negotiating free debt consolidation faster than doing it on your own. It is a cost saving measure to lessen your interest rates and even late charges. Their services offer you to plan and manage your finances in future. Surprisingly, you would wonder how they can be of greatly help to handle your finances and makes your life free of worries.

I am often asked about good starter books for people interested in Wiccan and Western Occult Magic. Here is my initial pass at a good general list of so called “wicca 101″ books.

Please note – none of these books is a bible. All of them have their problems and their strengths.

Yesterday Jamie and I took a trip over to The Sacred Well to swap out some of my Altar Dolls. The Sacred Well is a wonderful new age / occult / craft store in the Lake Merritt district of Oakland, CA.

The wonderful folks at the store have been hosting my Altar dolls in a rotating gallery for about a year now. Every six weeks or so I change out the dolls to show another one and so it goes. We started with Kore last spring to kick of the cycle, worked through several of the Oshun dolls (which enticed a friend of the store to buy River Oshun), then Demeter took a turn over the autumn Equinox, and moved on to several of the Oya dolls (which also got snapped up).

Rabbit, one of the owners of Sacred Well, created a small altar set up for the dolls near the reading room and the cash register. With each doll the altar set up gets a little more elaborate and beautiful. Each of the dolls seems to collect offerings and goodies, so that when I go in to change out the dolls, we have to sort through the assortment to figure out what she gets to keep and what stays with the altar!

The Sacred Well also carries a number of Jamie’s single and multi-strand necklaces as well as the new line of Power Animal and Deity necklaces that Jamie and I have created for folks who want a simple want to have a daily connection with various spirit powers.

Currently the store has the Lord and Lady of Wicca  and Sir EJ on display through the middle of May.

So if you are in the area stop this is your chance to see these dolls in person as well as visit an amazing store!

Blessings,

Kate

Winter
falls
on snow white paws.
Thick, round and furry.
Lands on my tongue and melts.
Lands on my hair, my clothes and dances in the wind
creating
a new-borne, fragile echo of white light.
Dances with frozen cold fingers
under my scarf and
between
the gaps where I horde warmth.
I shiver and she
laughs. I smile and she
dances in my throat
leaving dragon-plume breaths behind.
c. J. Buschbaum [...]

Cinder found the best hiddy spot between the cutting table and the window. It allows her to look out at the world in peace and safety, and occassionaly to poke her head up and check out what we humans are doing with *her* cutting table.

For the ritual Jamie and I created for PantheaCon 2009 “A Walk in the Garden” which explored some of the core elements of Wicca, we used the Charge of the Goddess as written by Doreen Valiente as part of the words spoken by the Goddess and voiced by the five priestesses. Since we were working with polarity and balance we wanted a piece of equal weight to that powerful charge for the God to speak. While Doreeen wrote several Charge of God poems, none of them felt quite right for what we were doing and none of them specifically paralleled her original Charge of the Goddess in form and structure. So… we wrote our own.

Charge of the God
By Jamie Morgan and Catherine Pennington
Adapted from Doreen Valiente’s “Charge of the Star Goddess”

I who am the power of the velvet darkness, And the echoing space between the stars, And the depths of the endless sea, and the fire in the hearts of all. I come from the darkness, from out of that which is everything. From me all things proceed, and unto me all things must return; and before my face, beloved of our loins, let thine innermost human self be enfolded, in the rapture of the world.

Let my worship be within the body that dances; And therefore, let: Splendor and Potency, Command and Kindness, Respect and Modesty, Laughter and Solemnity shine through you.

And you who thinkest to know me – then walk with me in the light and the dark, in the shadows of your soul and the brilliance of your love. And together we may find the mysteries of the universe if you have the patience to see into the hearts of all, including yourself. For behold, I have been beside thee from the first sunrise and will walk with thee to the end of days.

Winston is probably the easiest of all the cats in the Hoard to photograph because his coat reads well on film and he’s a great big goofball. He gets into the weirdest spots – between couch cushions, across two chairs (because one is just never enough) and upside down on a chair. He also LOVES any place you would rather he not get into, of course. In this case, it was a bag filled with a woven hat and raffia for a project my husband was working on. Figures.