I know I said I wouldn't post here anymore; but this is important.

Some trolls flagged my Writing Magic blog as spam, and now Google is being all "well, you MIGHT be spam, so we have to look over your blog."
So, it's Saturday, and I probably won't get my blog back until Monday; unless the trolls keep attacking it. Like, fuck, really?

I post one article about meteorites and suddenly, I'm spamming the internet?

I'm going to keep a backup blog going now; and if this happens one more time, I'm leaving blogger for good and switching to a new blog host entirely.

USBoS is Closing...

...But Writing Magic is opening!

I thought about it, and I think that I'll feel better when I start using Writing Magic.

You can follow that blog for pretty much the same but more professional and less messy. It's still undergoing it's face lift, so be patient. Thank you for being loyal followers of USBoS, and I hope that you'll like Writing Magic just as much.

CLICK HERE FOR WRITING MAGIC

Depression Loves Company...

In 73 days, USBoS will officially be one year old, and, I don't think I planned some of this well. My tag cloud is too gunky, I don't post a lot, and it's becoming a lot like my Livejournal blog, which is really a scary and immature blog where most of the typing is in modified lolcat or 4chan slang.

I'm getting into the swing of doing my daily tarot blog again, because it's something I really want to do. But what about the rest of my Pagan ramblings or information? I almost feel ashamed of USBoS now.

I've had some bad days recently. I've got people pressuring me to do things that make me want to tear my hair out. I've been either very excited about my path or I'm depressed and wonder what the hell I'm doing with my life. The only thing that has kept me going is a ritual I'm writing, and the thrill of writing more.

I'm thinking about scrapping USBoS in favor of my less gunky blog, Writing Magic. WM is much easier to overhaul.

My plans are more essays and information, but done properly. Well-researched and well-written, properly edited, with source lists and links. The tags cloud wouldn't be shown, but the search feature would be prominant. It would have everything from proper reveiws about books, to simple, short essays on a certain tarot card. It would have pagan poetry, from me or from others. Maybe I would even write some Pagan-y short stories.

What does everyone think?

Proofreading

I buckled down and finished most of my ritual. I managed to forget a whole section though! Now I'm into the proofreading stages. This is, easily, my least favorite.

If anyone wants to give it a read-through before it's posted here on the 21st, drop me a comment here and you can help proofread it.

Writing Rituals-Planning Stage

I'm writing a ritual for June 21st. It's for both Litha and for my own rededication and cleansing.

It's hard, particularly when some statues are on order and won't be here until June; I work better if I'm looking at the object. But, since I don't know how long shipping will take, and I'm hoping that they will arrive before June 21. Enough about that though.

I've got a rough list of supplies written, so that's a plus, right?

Inspiration

There are lots of things in this world that can be called inspirational, but everyone has a few certain things that are overwhelmingly inspirational.

Mine are volcanic storms and the sky at night:


What are yours?

My Beliefs Survey

This was “borrowed” (read: stolen) from Cricketsong and Hex. I love surveys, so when Hex told me about a Pagan survey, I was all over it. I found the original link from Cricketsong, so, here we go!
(Also: I got the okay to go on that Pagan shopping spree of mine. I’ll be writing a big, old-school ritual, and I will keep you all posted on that).

Basics
Do you have a magickal name, If so what does it mean?
I do have a magical name. It’s also my main screen-name. As a Technopagan, I’ve found that my screen-names are often “magical”. It’s currently Hetshepsit Quetzalxochitl. Hetshepsit is one of the spellings of the female pharaoh of Egypt. Quetzalxochitl is Aztec and it means “Precious flower”.

How did you find Wicca/Paganism?
I knew about Paganism from when I was little. I basically had the concept that it was a catch-all for the religions of the ancient cultures like Rome and Greece. I officially started learning about it when I was sixteen/seventeen.

How long have you been practicing?
I “converted” at eight, but I didn’t do anything until I turned sixteen/seventeen. It’s been about 3-4 years.

Solitary or group practitioner?
Solitary, but I’ll work with a few trusted people.

What is your path?
Eclectic Egyptian, Mesoamerican Technopagan.

Are you out of the broom closet?
Yeah, for the most part.

Who is your patron God?
Quetzalcoatl and Cama Zotz

Who is your patron Goddess?
I don’t have one officially yet, but I’ve been getting a lot of inklings to look into the Hindu aspect of “Shakti”, which is a combination of Paravati, Saraswati and Lakshimi.

What Goddesses do you worship?
Isis mainly, I think.

Do you fear dark aspects in Gods/Goddess, or rather respect them?
I respect them; I think it would be very hard for me to fear a darker aspect of a deity.

Do you worship the Christian God?
I don’t by name, because the concept of the Christian God has been twisted over the years. Could the Christian God exist? Of course, anything is possible.

Do you ever worship animals?
I don’t know if worship is the right word. I respect them, and sometimes ask for animal spirits for help.

Or plants?
See what I said with animals

Nature
Do you regularly commune with nature?
Not really.

Ever walked barefoot in the woods?
I don’t think so. Last time I was in a legit woods, I was young, and I think if I had been barefoot my mother and grandmother would have had a heart attack.

Taken a camping trip just to talk to nature?
Uh...no.

Describe the moment you felt closest to Mother Earth?
Being outside at night, preferably on a clear night. On a patio, with some snacks and a fire (candles or a fire pit). A field or back yard would be perfect, not a woods. I’d like to see the sky and the horizon.

What is your power animal?
Of the animals I feel close to, my most powerful is the shark.

Do you have a familiar?
At the moment no, I’m waiting to find her again. My familiar was my first cat Booballah. We had to put her down when I was young.

Have you ever called upon the powers of an animal in ritual?
Not yet.

Or a plant?
No.

Do you hug trees?
Uhh, not recently.

Give them gifts?
I do like giving gifts to nature and animals. We made bread twists for Yule last year. I had some, my mom had some, we saved some for dad, and we threw the rest outside for the birds to eat.

What is your favorite flower to work with?
I’ve always been drawn to aloe and cactus. I don’t think those count as flowers. I don’t really have a favourite flower.

What is your favorite tree to work with?
I love all sorts of trees! I adore big oak trees (despite my allergy to them), cherry trees, and pretty much any tree that grows in the rainforest. I also like the scent of pine (that’s the most earthy scent I like!) so I think pine as well.

Wheel of the Year
What is your favorite Sabbat?
I don’t really have a favourite. I like Yule because my mom gets so excited about it and the excitement is so contagious. I also like Ostara, because around that time is my favourite weather.

What if your least favorite Sabbat?
That’s a tie between Mabon and Lammas. I’m not really a big fan of fall.

Have you ever held a ritual on a Sabbat?
Only very VERY small ones.

Ever taken a day off work to celebrate a pagan holiday?
No, but I might take them off when I work.

Do you celebrate Yule on the 21 rather than the 25?
Um...we celebrate Yule from the 20th to the 31st. My mother loves the winter holidays.

Have you ever felt the Veil thin on Samhain?
Not yet.

Ever danced the Maypole?
Nope.

Know what the Maypole symbolizes?
Yes!

Ever made love on Beltane?
Nope

Do you usually celebrate the pagan Sabbats?
I try to.


Divination
Do you use Tarot?
I love tarot. I need to get back into the swing of it.

Do you use runes?
No.

Do you use a pendulum?
I have one, and I’m just getting the hang of it.

Do you use dowsing rods?
No.

Do you use astrology?
I love astrology, and I’m going to learn about it soon.

Any other form of divination?
No. I’ve heard about gemstone divination, putting all your stones in a bag and drawing them, but I haven’t tried it.


Spells
What was the first spell you did?
I think it was a purification spell.

What was the latest?
A cleansing spell.

Ever done a love spell?
Nope, not yet

A job spell?
Not yet!

A healing spell?
Not quite a spell, but close to one.

What was the most powerful spell you've ever performed?
Uh, I don’t really know.

What deities do you usually call on?
Depends on what I’m doing.


Cryptology
Do you believe in Vampires?
Uhh, I don’t know.

Warewolves?
I have no idea

Shape shifters?
Yes.

Elves?
Yes.

Faeries?
Yes.

Dragons?
Yes.

Nymphs?
Yes.

Sprites?
Yes.

Mermaids?
I love mermaids! I want to be one...so that’s a yes

Sirens?
Sure!

Satyrs?
(Has to make a lame joke here) It’s all Greek to me!

Ever "seen" any of the above?
Yes, I have.

Ever talked to any of the above?
I’ve heard them, but I’ve never carried out a conversation with them

Ever used any of the above in magick?
I call upon the faeries all the time.

Do you have one of them as a personal guardian?
Not so much guardian, more like traffic controller. I “have” a little purple faerie (Leiko), and she likes to make sure things go her way when it comes to spirits. She’s small, but she’s fierce.

Random
Do you see a rabbit, a man or a woman in the moon?
I see...a moon?

Own a cat?
Yes.

When you mediate what does your happy place look like?
I don’t really have one.

Do you work with Chakras?
I want to start, and I’m learning all about them!

Do you believe in past lives?
Yes.

Do you believe in soul mates?
I don’t really know.

Do you have a spirit guide?
I think so.

Is it always love and light?
No, I don’t think so.