The Cure For Any Illness Is Hot Wings.

So...I forgot the Farmers Market Saturdays post - but I'm not going to do FM Sunday or even Monday. I'm going to reject the guilt and come back next Saturday to do it right. Sometimes you just have to move on.

Speaking of which, it's been a rough few weeks battling a cold that I mockingly stated that I would breeze through because of my ultra-great immune system. Um...no. No breezing through for me. It wasn't even one of those "I was so sick I lost 8 lbs in one week" colds. I couldn't even get lucky that way. Oh well. I'm feeling better and am ready to start the week. Mostly.

Some things that do help, in case you are one of the unlucky few that are dealing with a Spring cold right now (because the weather is ridiculously cold when it should be almost Summer:)

*Laughter. I saw "Date Night" with Steve Carrell and Tina Fey. Ridiculous - but funny. I am in love with Steve Carrell and Tina Fey. I would marry either or both of them, simply because they are insanely witty and deliver a line like no one else. Except...each other.

*Getting out of your comfort zone. My girlfriends and I went to an open casting call for extras in a scene/scenes being shot in my Valley for the move The Big Year, with Steve Martin and Jack Black. I think they were looking for "birding" types as the movie is about some guys who spend a year searching for the most rare birds they can find. We are definitely not "birding" types and so very likely won't get a call back (also there were almost 400 people who showed up for the call) but that's okay, because the thought of being on a movie set makes me kind of want to throw up. But we all firmly believe you should do things you've never done before - so there we were, getting our picture taken by an assistant to some super-fab casting director.

*Friends. The above-mentioned girlfriends are my life-savers/shrinks/partners in crime. When all else fails, we eat and drink and solve the worlds problems. There is no cure for the blues/a cold/heartbreak/violent mood swings like hot wings and libations with great friends.

I hope all of my American neighbours are having a wonderful Memorial day weekend!

Blessings!

May Full Moon

May's "Flower" or "Hare" full moon is upon us, and while the East coast is getting super-hot spells, we in the West are chilly under a rather constant haze of cloud and rain. This does have some positive results for us locals though - it greatly increases our water sheds and keeps the mountains green and verdant for a while longer, staving off the inevitable dry spells and risk of wildfires. It's not so great for our tourism trade though.

At any rate, I'll be putting on my woolies to brave the rain tonight and head to a cathedral-type building at one of the local lakes, where there is a woman doing a crystal bowl meditation for the full moon.

Mary at Moontides has a great take on the moon in Sagittarius this month, and there is also a nice little article at About.com.

Some possible themes:
*Moments of exquisite aliveness, realizing the magic that's all around us everyday.
*A greater appreciation for the diverse species we share the planet with.
*A growing global connection, as people band together for a unified response to societal/environmental/economic change.
*More hidden truths revealed, with networks of people making/sharing the news and facts on the ground.

Full moon blessings to all!

Farmers Market Saturdays - Garden Centre Edition

This Saturday, instead of going to a farmers market, I'm taking you on a tour of the garden centre that I take my mother to each year for her Mother's Day present. I took her yesterday and we filled her car with bedding plants and veggies for her gardens. It was a little hard on the pocket book, but Mom is worth it!

This place is in Keremeos, British Columbia, Canada. It's called "Don and Anna's" because...well...Don and Anna own it. You see them working here non stop until almost every plant is sold by the end of June (or sooner!)

There is so much to see and covet here...

The veggie and herb greenhouse:

Pretty clover:

I'll bet the fairies in Mom's garden would have liked this!

Beautiful Basil!

One of the flower greenhouses:

"Failte" means "Welcome" in Irish. Wishing I had bought this.

Thanks for visiting my favourite place to buy plants!

Tuesday Ponderings

***I'm considering starting a once-a-month women's group. I'm feeling the need to gather with like-minded individuals for some discussion, meditation or whatever activities come up. I'm not thinking "coven" for several reasons, most of which involve not being entirely out of the broom closet, and not being able to find many Pagans in my area. But I wouldn't be adverse to doing some moon or elemental work, as those are good cross-over areas of practice and wouldn't offend most people regardless of their spirituality. It's a bit of an undertaking though, so I see this as an Autumn project, with research to begin soon...

***My friend has four kittens up for grabs. The same friend who rescued Dexter and Daisy two years ago and I brought home 5-week old kids to raise (and feed every four hours by bottle!) This time the kittens are with-Mom and healthy and will be ready in July. And there is an orange one. May the gods keep me strong. I cannot have another cat. I just have to stay away from her house for two months...

***A really fun podcast I ran across recently, Witches BrewHaHa (hosted by the awesome Velma Nightshade) has a segment called "Practical Magic" where she takes all these wonderfully innocuous items and figures out myriad ways to use them in her magical work. I love this idea and have been out collecting random items that strike my fancy and am now brainstorming ways to use them in a magical way.

Just a few rambly thoughts for today. Hope your week is fabulous so far!

What Is That Bright Thing In The Sky?

Woo hoo - it's the sun! Thank the gods and whoever else is responsible! After a week and a half of rain and dark grey clouds, we have SUN!!!

It was getting a bit hairy there for a while. Everyone in the Valley was wandering around with their heads hung low, and I contemplated the merits of tossing myself under a bus a few times. It was a really bleak week.

But things are looking up, and just in time for tomorrow's market. We froze last weekend, so I'm hoping with the nice weather, people will be out to shop. We just ordered some more books and decks for our business, as well as some crystals, smudge, and essential oils, so we should be well stocked this weekend.

I also want to wish all you amazing mothers out there, a very Happy Mother's Day! I hope you get spoiled by your children and feel very appreciated. I've not had the pleasure of being a mom, but being an Auntie is a gift (and sometimes exhausting!)

I hope you all get some some sunshine this weekend! Now...off to the yard - with all that rain, the grass is four-feet high!

Is It October?

Strange things are afoot.

Our weather has chilled to the point where I'm in my coat and scarf again, and the news is calling for snow and heavy rain tomorrow.

Jennifer at The Mare's Tales and Carolee at King of Mice Studios went to a fabulous Haunters Convention and both of them blogged about their fun and purchases. Suzie at Cat in the Pumpkin Moon is having a Halloween Blog Crawl.

And I went to a Spring dance show to highlight the best performances of a local Arts Festival, and was treated to a group of 20 zombies dancing to "Putting on the Ritz."

It looked a little like this:




I'm not sure if this is May or October. But as long as there's a slice of pumpkin pie somewhere with my name on it, I don't really care!