Good day, good peoples. Pardon me if my rant is a bit (more than usually) fuzzy, I haven’t been getting much sleep lately… oh, no complaints, mind you, just a fact. Whee!

Also, I must apologize for the infrequency of my rants. I only have one place where I can use a computer for writing, and lately I have been VERY busy, both during the daylight and after-work hours, and I HOPE that I am at least giving you quality instead of quantity (ok, some of both) when I DO write! Big stuff is happening at work, the state libob is hosting a 3-day workshop @ my branch, and the STATE !@#$ LIBRARY DIRECTOR will be here. AUGH!
Oh, for some Calgon – and thank GODDESS for Mrs. Sallie Corley Phillips (my lovely assistant). She is like an angel (ok, a really goofy, slightly trashy*, VERY earthly one) sent from on high. When things are bad, Sillie Sallie can ALWAYS make me laugh, and together, we actually get $#*! done. Yay, me! I really don’t know what I’d do without her now.

So, news…
Looks like the faire is ALIVE! Woo! There was a little while when we were all worried (and veryvery alliterative) – SOME naysayers even pronounced it flat-line dead at one point – but certainly not without just cause. But the hardest part – getting a !@#$ committee together and in-sync has been achieved. Lisa and I knocked out a good storyline during our trip back from NOLA**, based on a suggestion I’d made back in early summer, and there was an unanimous yes vote on it! Fairy tales it is! I will be helping with the sets, and as far as I know, helping to direct the Chessboard, too. I have a couple of roles in mind for the audition, as well…
The biggest change is that we are going to get away from the medieval theme some (but not completely) and try to make it more kid-friendly and more educational. The idea this year is to take traditional fairy tale characters, scenes and situations and shake them up a bit. We’re going to balance that out by having a narrator and other story tellers also telling the traditional tales as well. I think it will be great fun, and that it will please and amuse everyone.

There’s a bit of sad news, too.
One of my long-time library patrons, Mr. Hugh Morgan died last week. Hugh was an interesting character, to say the very least. He was older, I’d say around 60, but he still had jet-black teddy-boy, ducktail hair and dressed like a 50’s teen. Immaculate cuffed jeans, pressed plaid or western shirts, boots, and a denim jacket. He always looked sharp, and usually smelled nice.
He came downtown every day and sat on one particular bench right outside Thompson’s’ General Store, and usually he always had a kind word to say***
Hugh lived with his mother, always had, and not surprisingly, she died only a couple of weeks before he did. Hugh was paranoid-schizophrenic, and he couldn’t read, or at least, not very much. He was often engaged in conversation with his “Little People”, who went everywhere with him, but he was never scary. He was actually a pretty sweet old guy. Every time he came into the library, he would stop in the little foyer and I could hear him instructing his Little People to be quiet while they were in here. (Oh, if only everyone was so considerate!) He always checked out movies, and his favorites were “The Gods Must be Crazy” 1 & 2. The reason that he enjoyed them so much – beside the fact that they are really wonderful, sweet funny movies, is that he believed that the lead actor - N! Xau – was his cousin. The fact that Hugh was a Caucasian/possibly American Indian man and N! is a Bushman from the Kalahari apparently didn’t really matter… He accrued late fees fairly often, because I don’t think he really understood the whole return-date phenomenon, but he never argued or groused about paying them. He would often say that he couldn’t pay until he got his government check, and he always came in when he said the check would be there and squared up. (Again, I say: if only everyone was so considerate…)
Apparently Hugh had cancer. If you asked how he was, he would list his general complaints, like we all do, and catch you up on his mom’s health, too. He had been having flu-like bouts lately, but he didn’t even know that he had cancer. I suspect that this was a blessing in a way. I certainly hope so.
Every day there have been offerings at the bench, baskets and bundles of flowers, but the bench still looks empty, and I miss his gravelly greeting – even if it was sometimes calling attention to the size of my tracts of land. :)
I think the world is like a puzzle sometimes, and you know how it is with puzzles. Some of the pieces are fairly straightforward, “oh, this is a duck – it goes here…”, some pieces, like corner and edge pieces are very important, and help to hold the whole thing together, some pieces are oddly shaped and obscure, but if even one of them – any one of them - is lost, then the whole puzzle is just never the same.
Thank goodness that you can make art from the odd pieces, huh?

And on an upbeat note… I am experiencing mad-boy-joy.
Huh?
As one of my friends said when I called and said “I think I have a boyfriend!”: “Sam, are you allright?!?!”
I am. As is completely to be expected, it’s a typical sam-love situation wherein I cannot even try to think about pretending to take the whole thing seriously in any “real-world” (“future” – gaaah!; “commitment” – gaaaaaH!!” “relationship” – GAAH@! etc.) sense of the word, but in the whole Queen Magpie, Empress of the Universe, Irrational Girl - Real-Me sense of the word (“joyful fun”, “great company”, “great conversation”, “like-mindedness”, “tender concern”, “great …” whatever. Etc. : ), it’s all just duck-lovely.
He’s a good friend, has been for some years. He’s very beautiful (chuh!), he’s really, really, unbelievably sweet and funny and kinda’ pleasantly dorky (yes, he’s a geek, he likes punk-rock and 80’s cheese – and most other music, he plays MAGIC, is a theatre vet and RTF student, loves and truly appreciates movies, and has a sartorial flair and elegance that I have always admired) and we have a really good time together.
He’s the first beau I’ve had since I’ve moved here that I not only want to bring around my friends (especially as he already knows a lot of them), but who wants to BE around my friends. And saints be praised – Stewart likes him and he likes Stewart!!!. This means a great deal to me. I know Stewart will probably get hives when he reads this next statement, but he really is my closest, most real boy-family here. Yes, that means brother, dad, uncle. I’ve got lots of other brothers, but none of those other others.****. He’s the big, responsible guy that looks after me and keeps me in line and helps me take care of the important things. This is a BIG job sometimes. He’s the emergency contact person, the one who knows me best, the one who, if something were to happen to me, could actually tell my family what in the hell I want done with my dog/stuff/body/etc. He’s the Royal Steward, no doubt. We go everywhere together (except !@#$ Burnsville) and when I am seeing someone and there is disapproval (not necessarily on Stewart’s part) or just sheer “hiding-out-of-shame”, then that cuts down on my fun Stewart and fun everybody else time, and that just bloody sucks. This nice bloke however, has gone on two big outings (Charlotte ren-faire and “Kill Bill”) with me and Stewart in the last week or so, and it has been sheer joy. They geek out and talk about... hell, I don’t know, I don’t listen, but that’s ok. It gives me more time to bask in – well, whatever the weather and mood is and have pleasant conversations with the imaginary fishes and passing trees.
I also suspect that he will blend (ie: be a complete nerd and play magic and eat good food and entertain himself/my friends/the kids) with my beloved Asheville/Rennie/
Geek Patrol crew, too.
YAY, ME!
And this, too. Not to kiss and tell (ew) but I just have to share a little. For the time being, for as long as it lasts, this is how he is, how he treats me (and he says I deserve it, and I know I do): yesterday he came by my work to say hi and let me see his cuteness… I complimented him on his “Walk Among Us” button (has always been my favorite Misfits art) and he took it off and pinned it on my sweater. Moo. Then, he was supposed to go to a party last night, so I went home to finish the flytrap tape I was making for him and clean house a little. I had brownies in the oven, the tape was almost done, laundry was tumbling, house all cozy, when Luna started the “SOMEBODY’S HERE!” barking. I thought “Who the !@#$ is here at this hour?!” – but BIG surprise, it was Mr. Smooshy-Boy! He hadn’t been able to meet up with the party people so he thought it might be ok to drop in. : ) While I was finishing the tape, we talked and laughed about the day, and then while we listened to the tape we played “air band” (he’s really good at it – almost as good as me! And I’ve never had anybody to play lead guitar, or any other instrument for that matter… it’s always just been me - “a girl and her air guitar”) and then while I finished making the case we laughed about my sad, cheesy taste in music and slow-danced in my dining room to my fave Jeff Buckley original. After that, we ate brownies and soymilk in my bed and before I went to sleep we skwooched up and he read me the first chapter of one of his favorite books (and not some dumb, cool boy book, either – a really gripping Southern Fiction novel by Donna Tartt (who was born and raised not far from my own home town).
So, MOOO!
Please don’t worry – those of you who worry. I am too old and too @!#$ realistic to be too dumb about this, but anybody who could blame me for “carpe momentum” needs a kick in the ass. Pain in life is a given, but joy is something that you have to look for, work for, and make the most of while you have it.
Make the most of it folks.
Much love,
-Miss “Going to Carve Pumpkins Tonight with my Asheville Fam” Sam


*in a good way
**btw, there are trip-pics at my ‘amusesam’ yahoo group, in the photo albums. Checkem’ out!
***I say this because the second to last time I saw him there as I was walking down the sidewalk he said “Girl, you’re gettin’ too fat!” I said “Hugh, don’t make me come over there and knock you offa’ that bench!”
****No Dr. Seuss jokes, please! And yes, I DO like green eggs and ham, thankyouverymuch!

Well, if i ever had ANY doubt that the Magpie was my "spirit animal", this pretty much blasts it into oblivion. Thank you, dear Hamilton for passing this on. It fortifies my spirit and my belief in myself (uh-oh, I'm gonna take over the world, now!), and really kinda' freaks me out with it's accuracy regarding my nature...
I've only been called "Magpie" since I met Sarah (Crowgirl - CG) so only a few years, but it's obvious I've been one my whole life.
Here are some neat facts and legends:

Intelligence
Like other members of the Crow family, Magpies can be very interesting to watch. They are social birds with a degree of intelligence that has enabled them to adapt to a changing environment.

In common with jackdaws, magpies are attracted to shiny objects(who, me?) and are notorious for stealing rings and other jewellery left on windowsills or tables out of doors.

Part Two FOLKLORE

China
The Chinese traditionally see the magpie as a bird of good fortune, except if you kill one when misfortune will arrive. Magpie is a symbol of happiness in Chinese culture. The singing of a magpie foretells happiness and good luck. That's why it is called 'Happy Magpie' by Chinese people. The Manchu minority in Northeast China even regards magpies as sacred birds. . Under the Manchu dynasty it also represented imperial rule (yeah, baby!). Legends concerning magpies are found in the historical records about Manchu. (By Ye Qinfa, China Online)

In both Chinese and Korean myths the Magpie Bridge joins the 3 bright stars of Aquila in the night sky, called the Cowherd, to Lyra, or the Spinning Damsel, across the river that is the Milky Way. This happens on the 7th night of the 7th moon.

Korea
Koreans believed that magpies delivered good news and invited good people (NO DOUBT!).The most famous painting related to a magpie is the one with striped tiger (ggach'i wha horangi minhwa): the magpie is happily chirping to a tiger. The magpie represented good news and the tiger symbolised good luck, since its pronunciation in Chinese sounds similar to good luck (bok).Another interpretation states that the magpie is the village spirit that announces good omens, and the tiger is the servant that does his bidding; another that the tiger is a yangban (aristocrat) and the magpie is the representative of the common people, scolding him for his insensitivity to their plight.
(Korean Symbolism of Animals & Birds)

Mongolia
The Magpie is a clever creature with control of the weather.(whoa!!!)

Germany
In Germany the number of birds, according to tradition, indicated forthcoming events. One is viewed as unlucky; two brings merriment or marriage; three is a successful journey; four is good news and five indicates you should expect company.

France
In Poitou* there still lingers a trace of pie-worship (WOOHOO!); viz. a bunch of heath and laurel is tied to the top of a high tree in honour of the magpie, because her chatter warns the people of the wolf's approach: 'porter la crêpe (pancake) a la pie,' Mém. des antiq. 8, 451.

Scandinavia
Under Christianity the same shift of superstition from lucky to unlucky occurred in Norse countries as across the rest of Europe. In old Norse mythology, Skadi (the daughter of a giant) was a priestess of the magpie clan. The black and white markings of the magpie were seen to represents sexual union, as well as male and female energies kept in balance. Later on in time, Scandinavians thought that magpies were sorcerers flying to unholy gatherings, and yet the nesting magpie was once considered a sign of luck in those countries.

Italy
The Magpie features in a Rossini opera, The Thieving Magpie, or La gazza ladra. This opera tells the story of a pet magpie that steals shiny objects, resulting in an innocent servant almost being sent to the gallows after being accused of the magpie's crimes. The story echoes the common belief that magpies steal and hide shiny objects. In some countries it is thought to chatter in a way that sounds like human speech. For example, in Italy it is known as gazza, and has given its name to gazetta, the Italian for newspaper.

Greece
It was sacred to Bacchus, the God of wine, so it became associated with intoxication. (!!!)

Britain
An old English tradition notes that if one magpie flies by, you should take your hat off and bow(yeah! Bow, Seamus!) repeating this line :
"Morning/Afternoon Mr Magpie. How's Mrs Magpie and all the little Magpies?"
This will help assure your good luck throughout the day.

One seen flying or croaking around a house or sitting alone symbolises that misfortune is present. Should a flock of magpies suddenly abandon a nesting area then, like the crow and rook, death is present and hard times are ahead. To avoid bad luck it is said that taking your hat off to the passing birds will act as protection against darker forces (see!). Perhaps these associations stem from the fact that it was the only bird that would not enter the Ark preferring to stay outside. It is one of the very birds that also has black and white plumage, a combination of the sacred or holy colour (white) and of evil (black).
To have one perch on your roof though is supposed to indicate that the house will never fall down. According to tradition it would be best to rearrange a journey if you see just one. If one is seen on the way to church it signifies that death is present, hence some believe that it is best to cross yourself to ward off evil or negative energies whilst saying 'Devil, Devil, I defy thee'.

In Somerset, England it was once thought that to carry an onion at all times would provide protection against magpies.

In Scotland the magpie was once believed to carry a drop of the Devil's blood under its tongue which perhaps stems from another belief that the magpie was the only bird not to wear full mourning at the Crucifixion.

The following rhyme was popularised by a children's TV programme of the same name
"One for sorrow, two for joy, three for a girl, four for a boy, five for silver, six for gold and seven for a secret never to be told."

Legend also has it that when a magpie's mate dies it summons an assembly of other magpies at which the dead bird is honoured before a new mate is selected.

In Celtic lore the bird was sacred to 'MAGOG.'

Australia
The magpie is seen in a negative, aggressive light. This may be because the Australian Magpie is of the Shrike (an aggressive hunter) family rather than the Crow family.

Native American
In general in Native American myth the Magpie is seen as the ally and helper of humans. They feature in legends from the Navaho, Blackfoot and Cheyenne


Part Three MAGIC
Magpie: "one of those clever birds that has shamanic qualities"

Symbolism
Related to the crow the magpie is an intelligent and adaptable bird. Ancient folklore associated with the magpie suggests that when two or more fly into ones life good fortune is coming soon. Since magpies are opportunists and seldom miss a chance to get something for nothing those with this medicine should pay attention to subtle omens that appear in their life then act accordingly so opportunities are not missed. The magpie asks us to wake up and be conscious in every area of our life.
Magpies are curious and have a reputation for stealing anything that they can carry away. They use whatever they find and teach us how to be resourceful. Magpie medicine people have the ability to succeed in life. Those with this totem are usually eclectic and able to draw on a variety of resources to assist them in their pursuits. Being able to adapt to different situations in a spontaneous way is one of the magpies strongest attributes. Those with this totem often find that their interests are varied which make master ship of any one thing difficult although not impossible.
Magpies are extremely vocal especially in groups. They help those with this medicine learn how to use their voice to attract attention, attain desired goals as well as acquire respect from others. This applies only if this medicine is developed sufficiently. Otherwise the voice and its expression may need improvement for positive results to be obtained. Proper communication is one of the lessons that needs to be learned by magpie medicine people .

Although many in the Norse tradition associate the Magpie with Skadi, because of the similarity of the name, I associate the Magpie with Loki's daughter Hel. Hel is described as having a face that is 'half blue-black and half flesh (or white) coloured' - like the Magpie's colouring. She rules the lowest of the Nine Worlds, at the base of Yggdrasil, as mistress of the chthonic mysteries. Like Asgardhr, Helheim (Hel's home) cannot be reached directly from Midgardhr - one must "ride over a bridge", or travel between worlds with the aid of one´s fylgia (usually a totem or sacred animal or Soul Companion and Guide). The bridge to Helheim crosses the river Gjoll and its guarded by the giant Maiden Modgudh. As Bifrost is fiery and narrow, the bridge to Helheim is icy and wide.

Helheim is also called Niflhel, meaning Misty Hel or Dark Hel, which refers to the Goddess´ primary aspect of concealment. Hel borders very closely on the world Nifheimr; it is located down and to the North, and it is the implied location of the venom-filled halls, on Na Strand, and home of the dragon Niddhogg, embodiment of the concealed powers of destruction/transformation. Hel is the hidden root to which all things sink, as all the waters wend their way to Hvergelmir, and from which all things rise again.

Although the realm of Hel is described as horrible in parts - the lifeless, lightless, joyless dwelling of the dead. It is written elsewhere that Hel is brightly bedecked and hospitable. She welcomes those who die of sickness, famine or old-age and even Balder resides there after his death. This dual nature can be seen in the figure of the goddess Hel herself: She is half a beautiful woman and half a corpse, her concealment both that of the womb and that of the tomb. Hel receives those souls who cannot struggle through to Valhalla, but in time, as her name Mother Holle suggests, she bears them forth again.

All of this tells us that the Magpie can be a double-edged sword. It requires mastery of your magpie spirit to achieve things, unmastered it will be self-destructive. Gossip, or uncontrolled chatter, and an unreasoning attraction to shiny things - be it materialistic objects, people or an inability to concentrate - spells danger just as oratory, or controlled chatter, concentration and the quick opportunistic observation can be used to devastating effect.

Naming
Name - Meaning - Language
-Mo'e'ha - Magpie - Cheyenne
-Maggie - Chattering female - Old English
-Magpie - Piebald chatterer - English
-ska?i [[skathe,]] (old norse), skata (swedish), skade (danish), scado (old high
german -hur!-) = harm, damage; loss; death - which may be referred to the abstract
notion of damnum
-pioghaid - Piebald? Or pighead (I RESEMBLE THAT REMARK!) - Gaelic
-Pia, pioden - piebald - Welsh

Tokens and Artwork:
The Magpie is difficult to find - both in the wild and your local shop! In Korea they appear in artwork and there is Monet's picture 'Magpie in winter' but other than that they are few and far between. Your best bet is to try and find a feather and wear it as a token just as the Cheyenne do.

The Tao Ying yang amulet would also be a good token as the Ying-yang symbolises the black and white of the Magpie and it's the sort of bright thing that would attract them. The number 7 is a significant number for Magpie people.

Sacred Times
Spring and Autumn - the black and white colour of the Magpie represents the balance between light and dark that occurs around the equinoxes. Also the high winds and changeable weather reminds us of the stormy change that the Magpie can bring into life. Dusk and dawn are the times to see Magpies and much like the equinoxes they are times when the balance between light and dark is equal.

The other time is dawn and dusk - a time when you are likely to see Magpie's cleaning the road.

The Magpie is also a symbol of astral travel.

**********************************

The Magpie

By Robert S. Warshow, '33

I walked one day
In the Garden of Wasted Things,
And there I found
The bitter ghosts of all that had been spent unwisely,
Or lost through brutal circumstance.
I found the childhood
That some labourer's child had never known;
I found the youth that some young man had squandered;
There I found some poet's genius
That had gone unrecognised.
I saw the ghosts of idle words,
And small talk,
That men had used to waste away the hours.
I saw the hopes that had been smothered,
And all the dreams
That never had come true,
And Laughter that had died for lack of bread.
I met with all the lives that had been misdirected,
And spoke with dreary shades
Of loves that might have been,
And songs that never had been sung.
I met with all these ghosts,
And many more;
And each of them
Sat silently in the shadows,
Brooding over quirks of mad Creation,
And puppets' dreams.

*************************

Once again there aren't many traditional songs or chants that can be used to invoke Magpie. I often use the trance method (as mentioned below) to fly across the otherworld (uh huh. that an' a lotta magic mushrooms, 'probly).

Prophecy and Divination
You can use the traditional nursery rhyme:
One for sorrow, Two for joy, Three for a girl, Four for a boy, Five for Silver, Six for Gold, Seven for a secret never to be told
Or
One for sorrow, Two for mirth, Three for a wedding, Four for a birth.
Five for rich, Six for poor, Seven for a witch -- I can tell you no more.

For other tools things like mirrors that contain both dark and light, or other shiny objects would attract the Magpie spirit.

Dreamwork
In dreams the Magpie will signify opportunities coming into your life. The number seen will help signify what you should expect.

Magic Circles
When drawing the circle dress yourself in black and white and try alternate leg hopping (or visualisations as mentioned in trance below). You can dress in formal wear, a black bowler hat and tailcoat, with your thumbs in your waistcoat (just like in the old films), then bend yourself double, spread your arms out, spread your fingers wide and swoop round the circle to get that magpie feeling.

Trance:
I find that visualising the Magpie's movement, the way it hops, flexes it's tail and flies is the key to trance work. The brightness of it's beady eye will draw you in…

If you have a magpie spirit guide, once you get used to the visualisation, it becomes a hop, hop, fly to shift into the magpie.

Healing
************************
FAIRY OF THE MAGPIE BRIDGE

Poem by Qin Guan
Translation by Kylie Hsu

Among the beautiful clouds,
Over the heavenly river,
Crosses the weaving maiden.

A night of rendezvous,
Across the autumn sky,
Surpasses joy on earth.

Moments of tender love and dream,
So sad to leave the magpie bridge.

Eternal love between us two,
Shall withstand the time apart.

************************

The Magpie is a strong healer for relationships, particularly those emotional hurts. In Chinese legend a bridge of Magpies is used for two star-crossed lovers to meet. It is the magpie's faithfulness to their partners and families which you can invoke to send a message to the Gods.
Try burning this poem or a drawing of the magpie with incense to speed the message on it's way.
******************
Protection

Magpie meal awaits:
Fast car - country lane - danger,
Fawn dead on roadside.

Haiku - DaRC
******************
Magpie's are excellent protectors and will call out their 'Caw, caw, caw' warning. So in that way forewarned is forearmed. They are also masters of evasion - often using the two of them to do the old 'one-two' on any opponent.
Invoke the Australian magpie for the fearless, aggressive aspect especially when protecting friends or family.


this all came from a REALLY cool site called The Druid's Grove!
the magpie info came from "Druid Lore" page - and here's the Raven link for my Crow family.
*as soon as i learn to pronounce it, i'm movin' there! ;)