One of these days

For the superstitious among you...

Spinning Coin - John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers



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This song perfectly replicates the sound big trucks make when they pass you on the freeway, going really fast. Amazing song, that is equally as hypnotic as interstate-driving at night.

Moby Octopad - Yo La Tengo



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One of these Days - Pink Floyd



Full lyrics are "One of these days, I'm going to cut you into little pieces"...

Nine of Wands

Nine of Wands in the HELLO KITTY TAROT, which is simply too amazing for words.




Mysteriously, while cleaning my house (okay, not really), I find Money House Blessing, strawberry incense cones: Special Pack 45 cones.

Where does such hippie detritus come from, and why does it invariably end up in my bureaus and cabinets? In this case, Money House Blessing was included in a long-lost purple plastic bag of freebie incense, given to me by one whose new live-in girlfriend strongly disliked and disapproved of the stench (her words) of incense. Many Baptists (and other Calvinist-based Protestants) have an almost involuntary negative reaction to incense as pagan idolatry, while virtually every other religion in the world is at home with incense used in religious devotional practices. (I'm sure if new-girlfriend had ever seen Money House Blessing, she would have had a minor nervous breakdown.)

Hoodoo is uniquely southern, and Money House Blessing is a Hoodoo practice. It is obscure enough that Wikipedia has no listing for the blessing and I can find no description of its specific components. And yet, I am told you can find it at Walgreen's. (I am fascinated when something is simultaneously culturally obscure and yet is being sold right under our noses.)

Is strawberry as good as the others?

From Money House Blessing:

An important part of African-American hoodoo tradition concerns itself with the undoing of "tricks," jinxes, or "crossed conditions" -- and one of the standard ways to do this is through ritual house cleaning, which may include sweeping, floor washing, burning incense, sprinkling sachet powders, and using spiritual air fresheners. From apotropaic cleaning has developed the concept of "lucky" cleaning, and since the 1930s, the two types of cleaning products, "uncrossing" and "luck drawing," have existed side by side.

"Money House Blessing" is a popular brand name for floor wash, air freshener, hand soap, anointing oil, and sachet powder. It seems to combine the characteristics of two other well-known brand names, "Peaceful Home" and "Money Drawing." The idea is that with a steady income, peace will reign in the home.

...

The inclusion of Native American imagery is an old hoodoo tradition that seems to date back to the early days of slavery, when Africans first met and admired Indians for their independence and herb lore. Remnants of such cross-cultural goodwill abound to this day. For instance, in New Orleans, a famous black Mardi Gras Krewe dresses as Wild Tchiapatoulas Indians. Likewise, the Sonny Boy Products line of religious supplies contains several "Alleged Indian Grandma" and "Old Indian" brands.

The "Indian Fruit Oil" mentioned on the label is Indian by courtesy only, for the fruits depicted are a lemon, a bunch of grapes, and some strawberries, emerging from a cornucopia. The number nine in the "Nine Indian Fruit[s] designation is a significator of spirituality and completion, a number believed to evoke peace in the home.

Strawberry, yeah!

Okay, I guess I get filthy rich right after I burn this strawberry-smellin stuff, then. :)

And very interesting about Number Nine, which also signifies completion in the Tarot. (At left, the Nine of Wands from the beautiful Colman-Smith Tarot, a newer, colorful-psychedelic version of Pamela Colman Smith's traditional Rider-Waite Tarot.)

It is always interesting how these old legends inevitably tie together. The Countercultural Tarot describes the Nine of Wands (above) -- which I have drawn this week:

Fire loves a fight. And the urge to fight may trap Wands in conflicts that move quickly and grow out of control. Yet change provides its own kind of stability in the Nine of Wands, portrayed in the traditional Rider-Waite card as a bandaged warrior leaning against one upright wand while appearing to protect eight others. The card is a show of strength, an evolving integration of intellectual goals with the physical expression of desire. But wounds are inevitable.

So much is going on, and apparently, I am going on local talk radio soon to jabber about politics for the local Green Party. When I drew a card regarding these matters, this is the one I got.

Will Daisy manage to carve out a real job in the world of talk-radio brawlathons, or will her nascent radio career simply end up as a pleasant distraction while unemployed? The tarot suggests that whatever happens, this will be a good thing for me overall... but alas, if I try hard enough, I could STILL get banged on the head real good.

Stay tuned, sports fans.

Quirky Sunday

Left: Beautiful petunias, at the SC Farmers Market this weekend.

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I was tagged (by Jojo) with a quirky meme!

Six quirky things about me:

1) My diet is extremely quirky, and at various times in my life I have likely qualified for orthorexia (obsession with healthy food). I won't eat meat or anything with meat in it, which may or may not qualify as quirky. I usually won't eat anything cooked without something raw added to it. I am currently progressing to a 75% raw diet; I'm at about 50% currently. (Yes, I do suspend the raw/cooked rules when eating out, as well as for vacations, holidays and other special events/occasions, etc. This has succeeded in making these occasions even MORE special, which is a nice bonus.) I also daily partake of drinks like acai juice, kombucha, tulsi tea, aloe vera and other weird stuff. (And I don't care what anyone says, pure noni is gross.)

All of this taken together, probably qualifies as major quirkiness.

2) JoJo admits she talks to herself a lot, and yes, I do too.

3) I sing the guitar parts of songs, if I know them. You've heard of air guitar? I do vocal guitar: Weeee-oooowrunggggg. I try not to be too obnoxious with this, but it's become a sort of personal signature.

4) I would shock all of you if I told you how many supplements I take. It's way out of hand. I've tried to pare it down to essentials like L-Carnitine and antioxidants, you know, IMPORTANT stuff, but invariably, I find everything important. Hey, it's my JOB, okay? (As a result, I also get most of these supplements as free samples and promotions, which is how it all started.)

I could probably stop any time I want! ;)

5) Extreme superstition, which I have methodically and purposefully channeled into (more respectable) religion. Lots of magical thinking. I believe in omens, signs, dreams predicting the future, all that stuff. (I do read the Tarot, after all.) After 50 years, I can assure you: I could not NOT be this way, even if I wholeheartedly wanted to. (PS: I have tried.)

Vanessa (atheist) believes atheism/general lack of belief is a particular "bent" or temperament that some people have, and conversely, that metaphysical belief/mysticism is a "bent" that some people have. I totally understand and appreciate this view. When I have not been consciously religious in my lifetime, I have been virtually ruled by superstition and a genuine fear of fate. If I didn't channel this deep, very strong impulse into something rational (by comparison) and culturally recognizable, I would be a mess. Religion is my catch-all for my various forms of magical thinking, and as they say, it works for me.

I sometimes encounter atheists that I think are forcing themselves to be strictly rational, and even more religious people that I think are forcing themselves to Go By the Book. I wanna say to them: lighten up, and go with what's right for you. You can't force any of that, in my humble opinion.

When you see a shooting star, do you close your eyes and involuntarily make a wish? (Then feel silly afterwards for doing it?) If so, you know what I mean. If you don't, you won't get it.

6) I find it almost impossible to watch a movie without reading at least one review of it. (PS: this doesn't apply to television and never has!) I don't even have to agree with the review, I just have to read it. I can't even tell you how many SPOILERS I have read, over the years. (Certain reviewers, I learned to avoid, because they didn't seem to be able to restrain themselves--yes, I'm looking at you, Roger Ebert!) Mr Daisy thinks it's the most wacko thing I do. (He shares several of my other quirks, you should know.)

This quirk has gotten exponentially worse with the advent of the net, since there are online reviews of every movie ever made... Occasionally, back in the day, I was forced to watch a movie WITHOUT first reading the review, but that hasn't happened in well over a decade.

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Here are the Rules:

1. Link the person(s) who tagged you.
2. Mention the rules on your blog.
3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours.
4. Tag 6 following bloggers by linking them.
5. Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged.

I tag the aforementioned Vanessa, as well as Renegade Evolution, white rabbit, Rootie, Shadocat and Nexy!

(If yall don't wanna do it, no problem.)

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Listening to: Grateful Dead - Cassidy
via FoxyTunes