Celtic Lore & Spellcraft of the Dark Goddess: Invoking The Morrigan

I have been waiting for the release of Stephanie Woodfield's book on the dark goddess The Morrigan for some time now. The waiting is almost over. I have pre-ordered this book on my Kindle and will be able to read it on October 1st. A fitting date for this goddess of Samhain.I will be doing a review of this book when I am done reading, which I will begin doing the moment it appears on my Kindle.

For more information on Stephanie Woodfield you can visit her blog here. You can also find her on Facebook.

A Zombie Themed Tarot Deck???

The Zombie Tarot: An Oracle of the Undead
by: Paul Kepple and Stacey Graham

In honor of The Blogger Zombie Walk on Friday, I thought Iwould try to find a zombie themed tarot deck. Sure enough, I found one. This delightfully dreadful deck isn't due out until June 2012. At least we will be able to use it before the end of the world, December 23, 2012. 

You can find more information here.

He's Baaack!!!

My little friend is back for a visit. I don't know if he is a ghost, goblin or house spirit(Brownie), but I do know that he is a trickster. Before I got my new washer in which the lid locks when started, he used to open the wash machine lid in the middle of the cycle.  I could stand there and watch the washer and nothing would happen., but if I would go to another part of the house to clean, returning later to check on the laundry, the lid would be wide open, causing me to fall behind in my household chores. That used to drive me crazy. So happy he can't do that anymore.

He has been known to unplug things, turn things on or off and knock things off shelves. I have never had a bad feeling about him, only wanting to slap him upside the head if I could ever get the chance.

Why do I call this 'spirit' a he? First off, I didn't think a woman would mess with my laundry, that screams a mans type of trick. Second, I have seen him once. This one and only time was late at night. My husband was at work, my oldest daughter was at her dads for the weekend and my youngest was in bed with me. I woke up to glance at my alarm, something I do every night (I guess I'm afraid I didn't set the alarm, a little OCD of me). Just as I look at the clock  a car drives by, and there. lit up by the red tail lights, is a man standing beside my bed. Within in seconds I reached over to feel my daughter sleeping beside ,then started to get up to fight what i thought was an intruder. Just like that, he was gone. I let out a sigh of relief and whispered "Oh, it's just you. Don't ever do that again." I sat there, heart still pounding, when I thought to myself that I might have scared him as well. So I apologized for being so angry and asked him not to show himself to my girls, I didn't want him to scare them. He stayed away for awhile after that, coming for a visit every now and then.

I started to decorate for Halloween yesterday and I guess that got my visitor in the mood to be up to his usual tricks. he decide to hide my duct tape. I remember putting it on the kitchen table when I was done using it. My husband remembered seeing it there and my daughter swore up and down that she didn't tough it. I looked all over thinking the pup might have taken it to chew on. When i couldn't find it I figured I must have thrown it away with some trash. I gave up looking, mad that i was going to have to buy more, when I happened to see it on top of my husbands gun cabinet. How it got there I don't know. My daughter can't reach up that high and my husband swears he didn't do it. I know I didn't put it up there and I can tell when my husband is lying. That's when I figured that my 'spirit' friend is back. He's welcome as long as he leaves the girls alone, which thankfully, he always has. My daughter thinks it's the Leprechaun she tried to catch last St. Patricks day with the trap she made for a school project. She thinks he out to get her.


I'm sure all of these happenings can be debunked. Maybe the washer shook to hard, maybe the plugs are loose and lights wired wrong. Maybe it was a waking dream. And maybe my husband has become a better actor. Or maybe I really have a strange visitor. I don't think I'll ever know for sure.

Minions of Misery

Holy Moly Crapenoly!! That's what I said when I saw that Mantan Calaveras at VoodooGhoul made me one of the chosen ones for Minions of Misery. I have two children and they always say stuff like this, I guess they're rubbing off on me.  To be a Minion of Misery there are a few things you must do.

1. Choose a dark book
2. Choose a dark film
3. Reveal a dark secret about yourself
4. Pass it on to 3 of the darkly inclined



The Dark Book

I am reading this book right now. It is a collection of stories and poems edited by W.B. Yeats in 1888. It features stories from Thomas Crofton Croker, William Allingham, William Careton and Lady Jane Wilde. So far I have read some very interesting tales. Teig O'Cane and the Corpse is a story of a young lad who had to carry a corpse on his back until he could find a graveyard that would him to bury it there. The corpse comes alive to give him directions to different graveyards hoping to find his final resting place. The Soul Cages by T.Crofton Croker. A tale of a Merrow ( a being like a mermaid only hideous looking) who keeps the souls of drowned sailors in a cage and the man who wishes to free them. There are many tales of ghosts and goblins in this delightfully dark book.


The Dark Film

As you can tell, I like tales of Dark Faeries. And that is exactly what Pan is. In this gothic fairy tale a young girl named Ofelia has a hard time with the life she must live with her evil step-father. I love the rich detail that Guillermo del Toro poured into this beautiful film. I don't know whether to be afraid of Pan or madly in love with him. The ending left me both happy and sad. I love when that happens because I'm not sure which one I'm crying about.


The Dark Secret

This is a hard one. It took me awhile to think of a, dark or not. My life is pretty much an open book. I guess I'll share a little of my dark side.

I have been told on two occasions that my eyes turn red when I become very angry. The first time is when i was in High School. I was down in the woods enjoying a lovely ride on my horse Prince. All of a sudden I heard my mom and a male voice arguing. i raced Prince up the hill to see what was going on. My uncle was yelling at my mom, accusing my grandpa of sleeping with his girlfriend. I kinda got a  chuckle out of that. Until... my uncle took a step toward my mom like he was going to strike her. I don't know how I moved so fast, but within seconds I was off my horse handing the reigns to my mom and grabbing the pitchfork that was leaning against the barn. I pointed it at my uncle, yelling at him to get his skinny ass off our property. I chased him all the way to his truck, pitchfork pointed at his back. Several months later, when he dared to come back, he told me that I had scared the shit out of him. He said my eyes were as red as the devil. He never messed with my mom or grandpa again.

The second time it happened was when I was in my early twenties. I had some friends over to my apartment and one of them had invited a man I didn't know. We were sitting around drinking beer and listening to music. Said man started getting irate about the music I was playing (Thrill Kill Kult), he didn't like it. I told him I was sorry but I didn't have the music he wanted. He must have been on something because he got up in my face and was yelling at me. So I reached beneath the couch and pulled out my ax (I know, me and weapons). I held it up and told my friend to get him out of my apartment before I hurt him. Thankfully they left, so I didn't have to use my trusty ax. Again, I was told that my eyes had turned red.

So there you have it, don't mess with the small quiet ones. We'll  find a weapon and kill your ass.


And now for the chosen three:

Zena the The Real Queen of Horror

Kieth at Laughing Scared

Scared at Scary True

If you have already been chosen, let me know so I can choose another Minion.

Surrounded By The Mists Of Autumn

 

Happy Autumn, Mabon and Alban Elfred to all.I woke up this morning to a beautiful, foggy day. The air is chilled and the morning dark, fitting for the first day of Autumn.  I was feeling inspired this morning so I drove around taking pictures. My camera is on the fritz so these were taken with my phone. Hope you enjoy them.

May the magic of Autumn bring you many blessings.


Happy 12th birthday to my beautiful daughter. I love you.

The Dark Side of Faery

Stolen In Her Sleep

Selina Fenech

The Fairies

William Allingham

1824-1889

Up the airy mountain,

Down the rushy glen,

We daren't go a-hunting

For fear of little men;

Wee folk, good folk,

Trooping all together;

Green jacket, red cap,

And white owl's feather!

Down along the rocky shore

Some make their home,

They live on crispy pancakes

Of yellow tide-foam;

Some in the reeds

Of the black mountain lake,

With frogs for their watch-dogs

All night awake.

High on the hill-top

The old King sits;

He is now so old and gray

 He's nigh lost his wits.

With a bridge of white mist

Columbkill he crosses,

On his stately journeys

From Slieveleague to Rossess;

Or going up with music

On  cold starry nights,

To sup with the Queen

Of the gay Northern Lights.

They stole little Bridget

For seven years long;

When she came down again

Her friends were all gone.

They took her lightly back,

Between the night and morrow,

They thought that she was fast asleep,

But she was dead with sorrow.

They have kept her ever since

Deep within the lake,

On a bed of flag-leaves,

Watching till she wake.

By the craggy hill-side,

Through the mosses bare,

They have planted thorn-trees

For pleasure here and there.

Is any man so daring

As dig them up in spite,

He shall find their sharpest thorns

In his bed at night.

Up the airy mountain,

Down the rushy glen,

We daren't go a-hunting

For fear of little men;

Wee folk, good folk,

Trooping all together;

Green jacket, red cap,

And white owl's feather!

This poem can be found in Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry by W.B. Yeats.

In it you find ghost stories, faery abduction stories and tales of merrows and changelings, all with a dark twist. These tales and many others have brought me to the conclusion that the Land of Faery and the Land of the Dead are related. You can download this book for free on your Kindle. You won't be sorry.

Oracle of Shadows & Light



Oracle of Shadows & Light
Lucy Cavendish
Artwork by Jasmine Becket-Griffith



I discovered this lovely oracle deck at a very hard time in my life. My brother was very sick and the little Strangelings in this deck brought me great comfort. When I opened the box for the first time i had a wonderful surprise. I had two of the number one card. I took it as a sign and put the extra one in a little frame that still sits on my night stand. I look at this image every night and count my blessings.

Here are a few more images from this beautiful deck of Shadows and Light. I like the mixture of Gothic and Steampunk in this deck. All of the cards are beautiful and are well worth the buy.



This card kept showing up towards the last days of my brothers life on this earthly plain. I prayed to Saint Death to make  it as easy on him as possible.  My dear brother passed away on October 4, 1910 surrounded by his loving family. He will be forever missed. This card will always remind of the last days I got to spend with him. Bitter sweet
memories.



You can visit Lucy Cavendish here and Jasmine Becket-Griffith here. Both are very talented women.

The Dark Queen of Faery

Queen of the Bad Faeries
Brian Froud
good faeries/bad faeries

Behold the chariot of the Fairy Queen!
Celestial coursers paw the unyielding air;
Their filmy pennons at her word they furl,
And stop obedient to the reins of light;
These the Queen of Spells drew in;
She spread a charm around the spot,
 And, leaning graceful from the ethereal car,
 Long did she gaze, and silently,
 Upon the slumbering maid.

  from Queen Mab by Percy Blythe Shelley





The Dark Queen of Faery is known by many names. Nicnivin, Morganna and Mab are just a few. As Queen of the 'Bad' Faeries she is known as a trickster and shape shifter. She is the Queen of  Transformation, testing you to see if you are ready to live your truth. She is the Banshee, the Washer at the Ford, forewarning you of certain doom. She is a psychopomp, leading the dead to the Shadow Lands. The Dark Queen of Faery is Queen of Witchery, brewing the potion of Life and Death,casting glamours across the land. She leads you astray when you are not paying attention, reminding us to live in the real world from time to time.

The Dark Queen of Faery may be an ominous figure, but she is needed to balance out the light side of life. She is shrouded in mystery and comes in ghostly fashion when She is ready to reveal Herself to you. Be ready for The Dark Queen of Faery, for Her time to reign supreme is drawing near with the dark seasons upon us.

Almost Here

Just a little evidence that Autumn is almost here. The leaves are starting to change and the dark half of the year is upon us. I hope the colors are spectacular this year. Last years color show was as exciting as years past. 

Everyday on the way to and from school my daughter and I walk the Cicada Trail. There are several discarded Cicada skins on this particular block. Sometimes there is a crunching sound as we walk. Gives us the creeps.


Happy Sunday to all. Hope your day is filled with Autumnal finds.

Darkness Falls

As the inky shadows unfurl

My mind loses grip

On the reality of Life

Death reaches

With gnarled hands

Touching me

Deep within

My soul...

Darkness

Falls

*Vivienne Moss*

A Thank You and a Few Shout-Outs

 A few weeks ago Lisa Fee at Tall Tales awarded me with the Sweet Award and the Versatile Award. I was very surprised and flattered to receive such praise for my new blog. I am very new to this blogger world and am amazed at all the friends I have made so far. Lisa was one of the first and I can't wait until her novella After Dark is released on Kindle. Thank you Lisa Fee.


In honor of these awards I would like to give a shout out to some artistic blogs I have found( a couple of them have found me and I couldn't be happier). These are in no particular order. I love them all and I love all forms of art.

1. 'The Visual Poetry of Victoria Pettella' at Spells Of Infinity. Victoria's blog is visually stunning and I become enchantingly lost in thought every time I visit her blog.

2. Jan at From My Park Bench paints lovely little ACEO's and evens adds her own poetry to them. i especially love 'Forever My Home'. The little ghost girl is enchanting.

3.Adsila at Above the Norm. Not only is she a ghost hunter, she makes delightful treasures out of found objects. I'm still hoping to get my hands on the Skeleton Key necklace.

4. I have found someone who loves crows as much as I do at Magic Love Crow. She paints the cutest crow characters I have ever seen. There are so many that I love but at the top is Bride Of Frankenstein Baby Crow.

5. I have read some beautiful poetry  at The Haunted Rose. This talented young woman uses raw emotion in her poems. I of course am partial to her poem The Raven Calls.


A big thank you to all my talented followers. You are all winners in my book.

The Lonely House

THE VINE-SHROUD

Percy Bysshe Shelley

1792-1822

Flourishing vine, whose kindling clusters glow

Beneath the autumnal sun, none taste of thee;

For thou dost shroud a ruin, and below

The rotting bones of dead antiquity.

This lovely old house is right down the road from where I live.

I would love to make her my home one day. I think she's grand.

MADAME ENDORA'S FORTUNE CARDS

I bought this delightful oracle deck for the gypsy-like  feel it conjures. With its blend of Egyptian, Celtic And Greek iconography it fits right in with all my eclectic lifestyle. This deck has both dark and light cards so it doesn't feel overly grim for those who like the lighter side of life. The only thing I don't like about this deck, are the key-words at the bottom of each card. take the Raven card for instance, the keywords are Darkness Looms On TheHorizon. What I see when I look at this card is Messages  From The Dead. The message could be dark and ominous or it could be message that empowers. It all depends on the surrounding cards. I'm thinking of cutting the bottom of the cards off so the key-words don't interfere with my reading.

This gorgeous deck of cards contains the artwork of Christine Filipak. You can find the cards and more images here.

A Walk In Nature and Crafts With My Girls

In the little town I live in, they have turned the old railroad tracks into a walk and bike trail. They plan to have these trails connecting to nearby towns. They make for a very scenic walk. I can't wait till the leaves change colors, it will be enchanting.



The river that the path runs along.



Just some trees that I liked.








Now for the crafts. Just a couple of things that I did with my girls. We also made Jello cookies.(they're Christmas cookies but we were bored and had all the ingredients.) They barely made it a day.

For the lamp I just glued owl cut-outs that I bought from Dollar General. I have had the crows for a while and have seen this idea in magazines and most recently on a blog. I can't for the life of me remember which blog, so if you know, please let me know so I can give them credit. My living room is done in a nature theme for my husband (he's a hunter), so these crafts fit right in. I love doing crafts and baking with my girls. Before I know, they will be all grown up.

In Remembrance

Monster Movie Madness

Over the past few days there has been nothing to watch on TV so my girls and I have been watching some horror classics. They mostly get a kick out of these, thinking they are funny and the special effects not so special. Here is a list of what we have watched this week.



Nosferatu 1922

 #1 on our list was Nosferatu. Though this is one of my faves the girls couldn't get through it. They liked that it was a scilent but grew bored with it. Much to their relief , I stopped it about half way through and told them I'd finish it another night.




The Little Shop of Horrors 1960

#2 on the list was The Little Shop of Horrors. My youngest thought it looked to scary to watch so she went to her room to draw. My oldest thought the movie was funny but creepy at the end. She gave it a thumbs up and would like to watch it again.





Attack of the Giant Leeches 1959

 #3 on the list was Attack of the Giant Leeches. Both of my girls loved this one. They got a big kick out of the music and the noise that the 'leech' made. I had fun making fun of the movie with them.




The Screaming Skull 1958



#4 and last on our list was The Screaming Skull. Again, my youngest thought it looked too scary so off to her room she went. My oldest and I enjoyed this one. It started out being a little spooky and kept the intrigue going throughout. My daughter started cracking up over some of the special effects.


I had a wonderfully spooktacular time with my two girls watching these old horror classics. This is sure to become a weekly event for us.

A Wonderful Book About Halloween

A WITCH'S

HALLOWEEN

A Complete Guide to

the Magick,

Incantations,

Recipes, Spells,

& Lore

by: Gerina Dunwich

This book has it all. History, divinations, yummy recipes, and even a how to for a Seance.

from the back cover:

You may think that Halloween is only about ghosts, ghouls, and goblins. However, there is much more behind this spooky holiday. For Pagans the word over, Halloween is a time of magick and divination-a night for honoring ancestors, celebrating the harvest, and ringing in the New Year. In A Witch's Halloween, bestselling author Gerina Dunwich dispels the myths of this holiest of Pagan holidays and its most famous celebrants.

Written by a Wiccan High Priestess, A Witch's Halloween tells you all that you need to know about this sacred holiday, from the history, folklore, myths, and spells to Sabbat rituals, recipes, divinations, and Halloween superstitions-and much more. This insightful book is a complete guide to celebrating the holiday as it was meant to be.

A Poison Tree

A Poison Tree

by: William Blake 1757-1827

I was angry with my friend:

I told my wrath, my wrath did end.

I was angry with my foe:

I told it not, my wrath did grow.

And I watered it in fears,

Night and morning with my tears;

And I sunned it with smiles'

And with soft deceitful wiles.

And it grew both day and night,

Till it bore an apple bright.

And my foe beheld it shine

And he knew that it was mine.

And into my garden stole

When the night had veiled the pole;

In the morning glad I see

My foe outstretched beneath the tree.

photo found at http://www.msianinlongisland.com/

Tarot Tuesday

Though I have many Tarot and Oracle decks, I do not yet have The Gothic Tarot.  This is definitely on my to buy list ( which is a very long list). The artwork in this deck is delightfully dark. Can't wait to get my hands on this. For more images of the cards and  more gothic goodness visit http://monolithgraphics.com/

What is on your to buy list?

Hot, Hot, Hot

It is hot, very hot. I feel like I can't function in this heat.

So I am stuck in side today, waiting for the storms to come,

waiting for the winds of change to swoop in and cool this

hellish day off. I long for the  Autumn winds, the cool, crisp nights.

I feel more alive, more in touch with nature and the world

when I feel the the breath of darkness upon me.

I will await the approaching storms like

a child waiting for birthday gifts.

Come storms.

I welcome thee.

photo by: Vivienne Moss

Remember to LIVE

"All things are fleeting-- even sorrow, even pain.

Replete with the knowledge of death,

you will find that you have the strength to survive anything,

because, in surviving, you still have life.

Something can always be built from there."

Michelle Belanger

Walking the Twilight Path:

A Gothic Book of the Dead

photo by: Vivienne Moss