In this review, I gave some tidbits about what makes this book so important and special. Click here to go read it online. Thanks Erin Donley for allowing me to lend my voice to the review.

Of course, it took a lot of planning and packing to get started. I was at CA on Wednesday, helping the code team get their manuals in shape. At the last hour, Flare had a major manual meltdown which caused me to panic because I had no idea how long it was going to take to fix. I ended up rebuilding one Table of Contents, outputting three manuals, and finally… done. Once they were checked in, Kender and I rushed outta the warehouse to hit Whole Wallet and then home for packing.

Kender packed all the gear as I gathered all the toys and clothes I wanted to bring. I took the usual things: my camp ritual toys, the Queen’s gift, my tarot deck, 3 tarot books and 2 journals. It never fails that I’ll pack a box of fun things with me and NEVER get to play with it all. But I know I need these things… they give me a sense of home. When it comes to clothes, I always have a hard time with the “lighter sabbats”. You see, most of my clothing runs on the dark side. I laid everything out, showed Kender and pouted at the lack of color. His response, “Of course you don’t have many frilly colors, yer a GOTH!” Which is so very true but at Beltane, I find that I want color. And lots of it too. When it was all done, I took a long, hot bath and went to bed.

We woke up around 7am Thursday. Got dressed and got ice for the car and left home around 8am. First stop, getting Ember and coffee. Then the caravan set out, making good time. I love the drive down to Detroit Lake as we go from flat to hills to mountains. Upon entering the camp area, we found ourselves behind a familiar car. Green, with a gray “hamburger box” resting on top. Only one person we know owns that set up: FWAP. I opened the gate and let the cars in. The air felt soo good on my face and the excitement of the first festival of the 2009 season rushed through me.

I was worried that we’d not get a good spot and was happy to see that I was wrong. Hardly anyone arrived early so we had our pick of most of the river spots. This year we choose site 14, which opened up to the river. As in… you could SEE it from our spot. It was quite a lovely sight. We unpacked the two cars and set to work to make the site home. Once that was done, we wandered down to the other sites to see who was there. Saw a lot of familiar faces and got a lot of good hugs. I also noticed that a lot of folks had new campers this year. It’s always fun to see how festivals change as the years go on.

The main fire area was just getting set up. A few guys were dumping logs into the long pit and I noticed a box sitting in between some of them. “What’s in the boooox?” I begged. James, with a mischievous smile, proudly announced that it housed a special cocktail of “thirteen flares and a few chunks of magnesium.” He figured it would not only help kickstart the fire but it would make it shiny. And boy was it shiny. And bright. And HOT!

Drums began to show up around the fire and we went and got our drum and my firekit for the evening. I plan on turning Kender into a drummer. He’s less anxious if he’s got something in his hands to keep them busy and dammit, the boy loves music. I gave him my drum and kept his mug full of “Second from the Left” beer to keep him calm and happy. Once it got dark enough, I broke out the fire poi. Swinging felt so good. I love performing in front of the community. Everyone cheers and is so appreciative. The energy was very mellow and lowkey that night. We left after awhile for hot, cozy fire plus an early wake-up makes for a tired inno.

Woke up early Friday, after not getting much sleep. Cold weather and excitement keep my body slightly awake. Had a wonderful egg/bacon breakfast and good conversations. Ember and I decided that we wanted to spend the day doing tarotwork and journalling. So we got dressed in festival clothes and went to go find a perfect spot in the sun to commune with our arts. Of course, just as we found one, Tig runs up to us and lets us know that the Women’s Scrapbooking Mysteries was going to start in a few minutes. So, we packed our stuff up and toddled off to write pages for the “year in review” book.

That evening, the bellydancing group put on a fun “naughty and nice” dance (complete with whips). And when they were done I decided to play with my glowstick poi as Kender and the others drummed away. Some folks watched me dance, asking me questions, which sort of convinced me to actually go light up the fire poi. I dunno what happened but as soon as they wooshed up with fire, I instantly got nervous. And it wasn’t like I got nervous from dancing in front of an audience. This was new, and intense and deeper. Shaking, I went through my moves slowly and carefully, hoping that the feeling would shake off. It didn’t but I finished the dance without incident.

I got back to our spot at the fire and got compliments from many people. Jen told me that I improved since the last time she saw me swing. I’m more fluid and my moves have a better transition. Grim told me that I was great and good enough for the Burningman Confluence group. Hearing that made my night. I’ve never thought of myself as being that good. Hell, I usually think I’m the lamest dancer around, my right arm is weak and usually doesn’t do what I want it to do. I feel like I have a long way to go in really dancing with the fire. So hearing others tell me how “awesome” I am really cheers me up about it all. As we chatted more around the fire, I grabbed my drum and tried to get something going, but couldn’t. Ended up beatboxing a bit with Ember because while my hands couldn’t beat something out, my mouth could keep cool beats. Soon after, the rains came and everyone scattered. Went to bed feeling rather proud of myself and loved.

The weather continued its gradual, downward slope Saturday. Once again, mostly because of the rain, I got little sleep. Hearing rain droplets drip off the side of our ubartent for hours upon hours gives me a feeling of waterboarding. Hung around the small communal fires and had a lovely breakfast of french toast (Thanks Zira!). I wore my skirt and jingly belt for ritual, even though I bundled up under a longsleeve shirt, jacket and hat.

The rains made this year very interesting. It was hard to dig the hole when no one wanted to get dirty, and when we danced the maypole the rains “pissed down” on us. I loved it as it made things a bit more chaotic and keep the energy on an even level. The men came back with the pole, many stark naked (which was a pleasant sight for us women). Kender and I danced the pole together, putting our energy into it. We also grabbed our Yellow ribbons together, running the full length of the fabric. And we danced the pole together! He thought it was fun but silly (cos it was raining so hard). I loved it, I totally got into the rhythm of “over, under, over, under, top, botttom, topsies, bottomsies, etc”. and made a game of it.

We broke for dinner before picking the new Queen in the hopes that the rain would calm down. It did a bit, but it was still wet. When we got to the campsite we found that either the wind (or the energy we raised) had slammed into Ember’s two room tent and moved it into itself. It was quickly righted right away. After dinner, we went back down to the maypole and watched Queen Char select her replacement. Each drew a lovely feather, wrapped in leather. Jen, who held a white feather, was crowned our Queen. Then she picked Ogg as her consort because she is a brew master and he likes her beer. It’s going to be a great year for the community and I can’t wait to see what they come up with.

Then we went into the temple to give gifts to Queen Jen and words of wisdom. Lots of jokes and laughter went on during that time. I had a great time connecting to the women and hearing the stories they had to offer. The rains came again and this time they didn’t stop. So the evenings festivities weren’t as wild as they normally tend to be. We made a short appearance at the fire (sans drum and firekit) to warm ourselves up and to celebrate the new crowning. I danced a bit and wiggled around Kender. Then we decided to head back to the tent. As I wanted to perform a Beltane tarot ritual. The cards, as always, had some good advice and was rather spot on. I now have a lot to think about for this upcoming year.

Spent most of Sunday morning packing and saying goodbye to everyone. But we did manage to get a chunk of the maypole. We even sawed it ourselves. The drive home was spent in reflection and silence. I felt sad leaving but feel more connected to myself, the land, and the community. I’m very much looking forward to the Garden Party and the Fall Equinox “Dracula’s Ball” festival that Tig’s putting on. With luck, I may get to help out with it. Which would rock.

The only downer of the festival came when we dug the yoni. Every February, when we get the email invite for Beltane, Kender and I struggle through a dance of, “Do you want to go to Beltane and will you be okay?” We spend hours talking about how uncomfortable it makes him. He doesn’t feel like he fits in with many of the energies present. He’s not comfortable with going out to get the pole, so this year I suggested that he help dig the hole with us women. After all, he does seem to carry more goddess energy than even I have. So, he bravely stayed with us and set to work on helping dig the 4 foot deep hole.

However, some folks didn’t feel the same way. They “didn’t want penis” around while the yoni was being dug. I found out later that some people assumed that he (as well as another man) were there without having gone through a basic “majickal etiquette” lesson. Which pissed me off a bit because he HAS had that training and that EVERY YEAR we spent MONTHS discussing Beltane and how it makes him feel. And JUST as we had this major breakthrough this year, someone had to go off and undo years of work. Grrr… so much for open mindedness this year. Next year, if anyone says anything… I’m going to stand up for my boy and say a few choice words myself. As I should have done that this year but didn’t.

Other than that incident, I feel that we had a wonderful Beltane festival. Kender did really good with his anxieties and I can only hope that next year will be twice as awesome! Long live Queen Jen and King Ogg. May your reign bring you lots of insight and happy times.

I loved Tarot for Writers. Go read my review and find out why.

The Archeon is a very personal deck. It contains the personal mythology and beliefs of visionary artist Timothy Lantz. The Archeon Tarot defines and explores Lantz’s symbolism and mythology in a very contemporary and graphic fashion. The card’s imagery is absolutely stunning. Lantz uses a digital canvas to create the cards and explore the very depths of his soul. Long before this tarot deck was even published, I had seen images of the cards on his website. And I was impressed with what I saw. The cards are a wonderful blend of dark, gothic, carnivale mixed with elements of the mystical and fantastic. But don’t let the darkness of the deck’s imagery fool you because within each card there is a strong sense of light and beauty. Each card’s image contains dazzling backgrounds and characters expressing realistic emotions; each layer thick with symbolism. Even the cards’ back include snippets of Lantz’s personal mythology and symbolism.

The little white book (LWB) that accompanies the deck helps guide the reader through Lantz’s world. It begins with a personal definition on his art. He defines the title of the deck, Archeon, as having a relationship with archeology, where “those who consult the Archeon Tarot sift through the layers of the cards, thus finding a way to harvest order and meaning from chaotic or seemingly unrelated events of life.” Which is a perfect description of what a tarot reader these days seeks to do. The LWB continues on to describe the cards, helping the reader peel away the mystery of these gorgeous cards. Lantz describes the Major arcana in detail beginning with quote that best fits the card’s mood. He goes on to describe the card’s imagery and offers suggestions for both upright and inverted meanings. All of which help to add and elaborate on the personal mythology and symbolism contained in the deck.

It’s hard to find any faults in this deck. I would have liked to see the minor arcana and court cards covered in detail just as much as the major arcana but this only begs for an expanded book to be written about this unique and creative deck. I strongly recommend this tarot deck for enthusiasts who admire the beauty of decks like the Vertigo Tarot or readers looking for a very modern interpretation of tarot. I know I am very much looking forward to working with the Archeon Tarot and exploring the personal mythology of Timothy Lantz and how it relates to my own life.

The Fey Tarot distills the best of both worlds in tarot and the art of Japanese anime and recombines them into something new and exciting. Written by Riccardo Minetti, featuring the artwork of Mara Aghem, this deck is wonderful for both the young at heart and in age. The tarot presented here is lighthearted and kind, “bringing no shadows.” However, this lightness does not eliminate the darkness of traditional tarot decks; instead, The Fey Tarot subdues and twists the negative card meanings inwards. In doing so, this set becomes easily accessible and understood by children.

“The Fey Tarot is a deck full of life,” writes Riccardo Minetti, the author of the enclosed book. There cannot be anything closer to the truth. The bold colors of the cards contrast with the simplicity of the design, creating a uniquely magical and deftly detailed series of story-cards. Each whole card is alive; from the attention paid to the expression in each creature’s eyes to the way the fey’s world blends into the card. Using a combination of unique and bold color palettes, Mara Aghem brings the center focus of each card straight into the emotions the images evoke. Every creature’s face, every part of their actions, contains realistic emotions. Each card becomes a theater for the mind?s eye; where the fey perform on center stage teaching their lessons and showing their perspectives and views of the world and the meaning of life. The cards beg to be played with and explored.

The book is also a masterpiece. At 156 pages long, it delves deeper into the concepts and ideas that made this deck possible. It begins with the core foundations and beliefs of the artwork, going straight into designer Aghem’s mind showing how she developed the cards’ sketches and emotions. Then it introduces the mysterious history of the tarot, and how the fey are a perfect match for this divination tool. Lastly, the cards themselves are described in detail, Minetti adding layer upon layer of insight and meaning into the simple but intricate artwork. The book ends by showing 4 unique spreads to use the cards with, from simple 3 cards on up to complex 8 card designs.

The Fey Tarot is a great addition to tarot enthusiasts’ collections. This is the product of the first collaboration between Minetti and Aghem (hopefully not the last). This deck marks a new perspective on deck design for the new millennium. It also moves away from traditional meanings of the cards giving them a fresh and playful twist. I would also recommend this deck as a great way to introduce young children to the modern world of the tarot, as it presents a very accessible and non-threatening view of the tarot and it’s concepts.

I love the Dante Tarot for it’s bright vivid colors and how they contrast to the dark symbolism many of the cards represent. I have always been a fan of Dante and the Inferno; when this deck got published, I immediately ordered a copy. The imagery does not disappoint me at all. This deck offers a rather interesting and unique perspection into tarot and it’s meanings. However, the design of the deck being radically nontraditional in suite and meanings, does tend to make me think that this tarot deck is better for collectors than readings. It’s not a deck for the faint at heart.

The Dante Tarot is a non-traditional 78 card deck. Black backgrounds with the title (and/or number) of the cards printed on top in english frame the cards. The title of the cards, written in 4 other languages, appears at the bottom of each card. The back of the card appears almost like a chess board, with a castle one one side with a person writing and a landscape with a knight riding a dark horse on the other.

The deck’s artwork, painted by Andrea Serio, makes the deck unique. Done in watercolor and pencil Serio’s images are rather dreamy and does a good job of representing Dante’s ideals. Even the box the cards are kept in contains original artowrk. However, I found it hard to associate many of the images on the cards to their meanings (traditional or otherwise) as the arcana switch between ideas and people throughout the entire deck. The Dante Tarot also comes with 2 variations of the King of Fire (swords) card. One depicting an beast-like character while the other is more scenic in nature. The pamphlet that comes with the deck does not give any explainations as to why they did this.

The deck deviates from a standard deck with it’s minor arcana names. The Swords have been replaced by Fire, the Coins (pentacles) become Clouds, Wands are Bricks and the Cups are Lights. The deck comes with a small pamphlet and according to it, the symbolism was changed to conform more to the standards Dante wrote about in his works, mainly the Divine Comedy. The second way the Dante Tarot deviates from standard decks is in it’s interpretations. It does not follow the Rider-Waite and Crowley interpretations of the cards. For example, the Fool, normally represented by most decks as new beginnings and adventures now becomes “Need. Eccentric behavior, recklessness, and material or psychological problems”.

The cardstock it’s printed on is thicker and glossier than other decks. At first I thought this was a good thing making the deck appear as if it would last longer. However, shuffling the cards was a bit harder to do without damaging the darker edges of the cards. The pamphlet that comes with the book is more of a reference to the deck and does not go into great depth on each card’s imagery and meaning. This was a bit disappointing since The Dante Tarot is so different from other cards. The pamphlet does include two different layouts for the card.

Because of the dramatic changes in the cards meanings and the inability to quickly “connect” with the cards makes it almost unapproachable for me as a reader to utilize quickly as a divination deck. It would take a great deal of studying this deck and practicing readings using the methods it describes for one to adequately use the Dante Tarot for divination. I do, however, love the imagery and believe that it would make a great companion to those studying Dante and his Divine Comedy.

Garden Witchery brings fun back into the garden chores. Ellen Dugan, Master Gardener and witch has written a manual to delight anyone. Dugan writes as if she were speaking to you while wandering though her own garden. This book is extremely practical and fun to read. The stories and wisdom on her own gardening experiences sprinkled throughout the book help to illustrate and remind the reader that gardening is a process and mistakes happen. There aren’t many pictures in the book but it does contain some decorative illustrations and charts. As a new homeowner with a yard waiting to be sculpted, Garden Witchery got me excited about planting and making my gardens magickal.

The book opens with gardening basics. While she lives down south, Dugan presents her gardening wisdom as generically as possible. This section includes a copy of the US Hardiness Zones chart that explains how to pick the best plants according to the weather. Some might find such practicality odd to include in a pagan-themed book. But Dugan points out that gardening and planting is fun and very magickal. She shows readers how to plan their garden, select plants and which ones to avoid. Plants, flowers, herbs and trees are discussed equally in the book. She explains that a magickal garden doesn’t need to include exotic and expensive flowers, or flowers that aren’t native to the area. Instead she invites the reader to look outside and within their local area to see what it has to offer their magickal gardens.

She includes a chapter devoted to different types of gardens that focus magickal energy into different intentions. Shade gardens, cottage gardens, moon gardens, faerie gardens and more. Dugan makes each garden magickal by listing a “witches dozen” listing of plants one can add to their garden. She also gives spell and ritual suggestions for each garden. The plants in Garden Witchery are chosen for their “witchyness” as well as their ease to plant, locate and grow. Like the circle of life, Dugan teaches that with garden magick, everything is interconnected.

Dugan starts imbedding her magickal knowledge by sharing her ideas on planting correspondences tables. She believes that the seasons, time of day and the day you choose to plant something affects the plants, their blooms, and the magick you can draw from them. Then she relates all those correspondences back to the lists of plants and trees the book contains. The spells, rituals, simples and other crafty examples all draw from the plants she includes in the book. The book includes an entire chapter written about the art of florigraphy (the meaning of flowers) and flower lore. Then she ties the magick back into a whole garden by giving the reader ideas on how to construct their own Garden Book of Shadows and spells.

The book ends with a garden journal for the reader to record his or her own thoughts. However, I found that it’s not the end of what the book has to teach. After having read this book I found that I became more knowledgeable and aware of the soil my yard has. I also know more about what plants I do currently own and can get to incorporate into my spells and rituals. Garden Witchery helped me see the value and fun in planting and keeping gardens.

This book is THE definitive guide to working magic with crystals and gemstones. Scott Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Crystal, Gem & Metal Magic presents a whole curriculum of working with stones and their meanings in this all-in-one reference “field guide”. The first few chapters cover the basics of stones and metals and gives a bit of magical background. He also shares how he collected some of his information and provides some tips for becoming a seasoned rock collector.

Cunningham then dives headfirst into the practical uses for stones and metals. First he explains how to buy stones and how to get the best deals, from haggling in swap meets to store purchases. An appendix in the back of the book lists a few select places to purchase stones. He also suggests ways to interact with stones by in how one selects, attunes and cleanses them. There is even a chapter devoted to divination and another on spells. The exercises are fun to do and do not require lots of pagan wisdom or background training. One could base an entire magical practice just on this book alone.

The rest of the book explores the different crystals, gems and metals. Cunningham divides these sections into two chapters. One contains crystals and gemstones, and the other has the metals. The sections are alphabetized by the rock’s and metal’s common names. For example, to find information on Bloodstones, you’d look the stone up with that familiar name. Cunningham also references the folk names of each item.

Each entry contains a list of stones and their associations to planets, colors, days, etc. followed by a quick summary of power associations. All this information is used to match the best stone or metal with what you intend to use it for. After these quick summaries, Cunningham goes into great detail and depth with his explanations on the magic and background lore of each. The center of the book contains a colorful guide displaying “best” examples of some of the stones. I found this color-inset useful as I was reading through the text and trying to grasp a mental image of what each and every stone looked like. A quick Reference Table follows these chapters summarizing all the book’s information.

Not all stones are covered in this book. Not all stones have the same information either. However, Cunningham does try to thoroughly cover each stone he does list with as much information about it as he can. Some stone lore includes ideas for healing with the stones; some include simple spells one can do with the stone. The book focuses solely on naturally occurring stones and metals; it does not cover man-made or dyed stones (like the Goldstone). I believe that this book should be included in the library of anyone who is interested in the spiritual aspects of stones and metals’ as the information contained is some of the best and most practical information on using stones and metals in magic on the market. I also believe that the lore and stories Cunningham provides for the stones also makes this book fun to read by anyone, not just pagans or witches.

Gemstones and feng shui; the marriage between the two isn’t as apparent as it should be. However, stones and their energies are a perfect companion to the ancient Chinese practice. Sandra Kynes’s book, Gemstone Feng Shui, explores this complex and interesting relationship. I imagined a whole system of feng shui that used gemstones to counter and support the natural energies of feng shui. While the book has a wealth of information on how to use crystals in conjunction with traditional feng shui practices it fell short of that first impression. Instead the book attempts to describe how to use the stones with current good feng shui practices.

The book has two parts. The first part introduces crystals, healing properties, feng shui basics and tools. It then goes into limited exploration of how to use gemstones in combination with feng shui. The book does a great job of introducing the basics of crystals. Ms. Kynes’s gemstone-circle meditation is a great way to introduce new users of crystals and their energies to one another by placing them around a person. The book uses the 9 Square, or Lo Shu Grid to teach readers feng shui. The Lo Shu Grid divides a room up into squares instead of the more common practice of visualizing a room broken down into a circle with each direction representing a piece of the pie.

The second half of the book goes into the gemstones themselves. Over 100 pages are dedicated to explaining the history, lore and energy properties of selected stones. This part of the book is worth its weight in gold. These tables and lists show readers new gemstone correspondences as they relate to the 5 traditional Chinese elements.

Gemstone Feng Shui falls short at teaching readers how to incorporate gemstones into daily feng shui practices. When it describes how to remove blocking or harmful energies it is done separately from gemstones. The two topics seem to have very little to do with each other. When they do interact, it is through descriptions of situations and their blocks and a few suggestions on how to counteract, harmonize or enhance aspects of this element. The book makes a series of statements rather than exploring the rationale behind how the stone’s energies work to produce the desired feeling in a room. It quickly goes from element to element as well as showing how the colors of the stones or one’s birthstone can also produce and affect feng shui energies.

Overall, this book is not for beginners of crystal work and feng shui. Even with the introductory chapters on each topic, the book tries to cram a large amount of study and history of both feng shui and crystals but doesn’t do much to describe the marriage between the two. However, the time and energy spent on describing the stones and their energies make up for the lack of practical applications.