"are you okay" no I need dragons to be real

4th century CE Roman amber pins, found in 2020 at the feet of an individual who was buried in a large sarcophagus at a necropolis in the French city of Autun.

These are stunning pins, crafted with exquisite attention to detail and symmetry…but what’s even more clever about them is the material they are made out of.

Amber is ever so slightly “sticky” as a surface (which makes sense, since it’s age-hardened sap / resin).  It can be polished until it’s virtuall glass-smooth, but when tucked into hair, or into the fibers of a woven garment, it will have just a tiny bit more friction, causing them to have that much more of a chance to remain in place.  As a material for securing things, they are slightly better than metal and bone, if not quite as good as wood (which has a great deal of microscopic texture for hair, etc, to catch on and cling to).

Most forms of amber are very clouded from inclusions when it was still sap, and fractal from the pressures it underwent as it hardened over the aeons.  To be able to find pieces as large and clear as these are makes them all the more rare.  Unlike metal or bone (and somewhat like wood) these pins would feel warmer to the touch, and be more comfortable and comforting for the owner, while being less fragile than wood.  And lastly, amber does have a faint scent as it warms up, making them a natural perfume source.

These are not cheap throwaway objects, folks.  These are indeed treasured posessions, just as much for their functionality & multi-use offerings as for their rarity and beauty.

Small offerings, large joys

I bought a bread maker and it's making an inaugural loaf.

It takes 3 hours to run, build ingredients into bread.

I will spend this time writing a story about a mermaid and her wife, a dryad, riding through a forest on a small scooter. The mermaid will be chatting idly about everything, as is her way, the dryad keeping mostly quiet, as is her way.

I will edit the story's first draft while eating slices of this freshly baked bread in the wee hours of the night, a bit after midnight, drinking black coffee from a mug festooned with illustrations of a haunted diner's branding, the bread resting on a plate decorated with pumpkins.

A Checklist Of Possible Reasons I Am Upset, To Review When I Can't Seem To Figure It Out:

and then. and THEN. I may consider:

Ye I'm printing this and putting a checklist on my wall

i'm AWARE this is a stupid hill to die on, but like. trope vs theme vs cliché vs motif vs archetype MATTERS. it matters to Me and i will die on this hill no matter how much others decide it's pointless. words mean things

trope: 1) the use of figurative language for artistic effect; includes allegories, analogies, hyperbole, & metaphors, among others. 2) commonly reoccurring literary devices, motifs, or clichés. Includes things like the medieval fantasy setting, the Dark Lord, enemies-to-lovers, and the Chosen One.

theme: the reoccurring idea or subject in a work of art. Death, life, rebirth, change, love, what it means to be human, the definition of family, the effects of war, etc.

cliché: an element of an artistic work that has been overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effect, even becoming annoying or irritating. (Most clichés are tropes but not all tropes are clichés.)

motif: a distinctive repeating feature or idea, such as the green light in The Great Gatsby. May overlap with tropes and is often used to further explore the theme.

archetype: a constantly-recurring symbol or motif; it refers to the recurrence of characters or ideas sharing similar traits throughout various, seemingly unrelated cases in classic storytelling. E.g. rags to riches, the wise old mentor. Again may overlap with tropes, clichés, and motifs, but they're not the exact same thing.

If you went to a bar and the bartender was a mousegirl you could ask for a drink and she would balance it on her head and say "for you, it's on the mouse"

protector of oranges 🍊 x

2022 Witch's Calendar

For all my witches out there, here's a handy list of the 2022 dates for the major holidays, full and new moons, and special events. I've listed my sources at the bottom. Dates and times for all events are calculated for Eastern Standard Time, USA, Northern Hemisphere. Adjust for your location as needed. Enjoy!

WOTY Holidays and Solstices

Full Moons

Fun Fact: The title of Harvest Moon is given to either the September or October full moon, whichever falls closest to the autumn equinox. In 2022, that month will be September.

New Moons

Special Events

SOURCES:

Inverse - Full Moon 2022 calendar: Dates, times, schedule, and names for the brightest nights all year

Astroseek - Full Moons 2022 & New Moons

The Pagan Grimoire - The Wheel of the Year: The 8 Festivals in the Wiccan Calendar

“Isn’t a toad a bit of a strange choice for a royal coat of arms?”

“On the contrary, it’s quite appropriate.”

“Is it… like, a symbol of humility?”

“No, it’s an actual toad.”

“An actual toad.”

“Indeed. About thirty feet long, breathes fire, lives in the dungeons below the royal palace. Any would-be heir to the throne must first best it in single combat.“

“You choose your kings by making them fight a giant, fire-breathing toad?“

“And queens, yes. Some regard it as an antiquated legacy of a more barbarous age, but we believe that the strength of character needed to rule can only be cultivated through trial. Facing the toad provides a would-be ruler with valuable perspective on the tribulations to come. The monarch bears its image out of respect.“

“And I suppose the fact that half your royal gallery consists of paintings of toads wearing crowns is out of respect as well.“

“That’s for a different reason.”

“What reason is that?”

“Well, you see, sometimes the toad wins.”

Remy wants to share his rose bear with you. 🌹🧸

@mostlycatsmostly

astro sources to use and not to use💕

books ✅ - i get mine from either amazon, barnes and noble, or my local library

co-star ❌ - inaccuracy in the information and placements/aspects. also the creators literally admitted to changing the horoscopes to random sh*t just to f*ck with people so hell no

astro.com ✅ - although it’s hard to navigate at first this website is the most reliable and has the most options

cafeastrology ❌ - aspects are inaccurate and sometimes degrees are also

time passages app ✅ - has good explanations and the chart is completely accurate

nebula app ❌ - degrees don’t stop at 29° so this may confuse newbies but also the compatibility section and placement explanations are completely inaccurate

cosmic insights app ✅ - this is only an app for vedic astrology not tropical but it’s amazing

astro-charts 🤷🏻‍♀️ - sometimes they don’t show all the aspects or aspect orbs correctly but other than that it’s accurate and is easy to navigate just not the best but i like the feature where u can see what celebs have similar placements to u

astro-seek ✅ - overall it’s good sometimes the degrees are 1° off everything else is fine except the dominant planets/signature sign is incorrect don’t trust that use astro.com to see ur dom planets, signature sign, and signature element

pinterest ❌ - plz never ever trust astrology info on pinterest i have yet to see an accurate astro post on there it’s so bad😭

my go to is always astro.com because it has over 20K asteroids, composite charts, synastry charts, correct aspects/placements, accurate placement explanations, solar return charts, davison charts, astrocartography, etc. it’s crazy how many things you can see on there - unfortunately it’s hard to navigate but once u get used to how it works it’s amazing

Thank you so much for the reading! Wow, I really needed this and I didn’t even know it. I’ve been getting caught up in the perception of others. This provided some really useful insight and I feel that this reading has given me some good advice and steps to take. Thank you so, so much. Best of wishes 🐝