Friday July 1, 2022

– New Moon Phase – begin, initiate, wish, project, set an intention

– Moon in LEO–

– Retrograde Planets – Saturn, Pluto, Neptune

– Best Days (from the Farmer’s Almanac) – July – 1st – 2nd – Paint, Cut Firewood, Kill Plant Pests, Dig Holes, Mow to Increase Growth, Buy a Home, Entertain Friends, Get Married, Host a Party, Travel for Pleasure

– Planting Calendar (from the Farmer’s Almanac) – July 1st – 4th – A most barren period. Kill plant pests and do general farm work.

– Aspect of the Aeon Sophia: (Wisdom): – Dhumavati (Goddess Who Completes and Closes)

– Aspect of the Aeon Thelete: (Will/Desire): Kathe – God of the South, God of Wisdom

– Sabian Symbol for the Solar-Lunar Month – New Moon in Cancer “ a group of rabbits d ne performing a nose dive” (& birds in the house singing happily)

– Sabian Symbol for the Solar-Lunar Year: –“ a flock of wild geese ”

SUN/MOON – 09 CANCER: a small naked girl bends over a pond trying to catch a fish

EARTH – 09 CAPRICORN: an angel carrying a harp

July Morning!

This morning I woke up to a story shared by a friend. It was from 12 years ago.

“Where are we going for July Morning?”
“What?”
“July Morning.”
“What?”
“Where are we going for July Morning?”
“What are you even saying right now?”
“Uriah Heep. We get up early to see the sun rise over the sea.”
“We do not.”
“You don’t know Uriah Heep?”
“From the 70s?”
“They’re big in Bulgaria. They’re not big here?”
“Not big enough to get up early for.”

And then she shows me a video similar to this one, of John Lawton (of Uriah Heep) singing July Morning at the July Morning Festival at the Black Sea, like he has since the 80s.

So, Happy July Morning.

As a little helped for the story, my friend is one I went to high school with and the conversation is with his wife who is from Bulgaria

This story reminds us all of how small our personal worlds are and how much is out there that we ma not have experienced. Who would know that a 70’s group like Uriah Heep could have a huge following in an East Block country like Bulgaria. Reminds us how much we lost touch with these countries – and bands for that matter (Uriah Heep is a whole lot more popular in the eastern block than here in the States)

A little searching helped me find out even more. That July Morning is an actual thing – that is celebrated only in Bulgaria. It became popular in the 80’s thanks to Uriah Heap and this song. Hoards of people flock to the shore of the Black Sea to party all night on June 30th and into the Morning of July 1 – where they watch the sunrise. It harken’s back to pagan midsummer rituals that had been followed in the Balkans. But it now embodies a celebration of the Hippie movement. Go figure.

Empty Spaces on a Map

The last 100 years have created some huge blind spons on the map of the Earth. At least they are blind spots on the maps we see here in the United States.

Let’s face it, up until a few months ago, I would guess that a majority of people here in the US could not have identified the Ukraine on a map. Now a lot of them are wearing cute pins and blue and yellow scarfs to support them.

When the Iron Curtain fell back in the 80’s, there was a whole worls that began to open up. We would say they were living under the oppression of the Soviet Union. They might beg to differ. Might.

But life went on there. People continued making and eating their local foods. They might not have had McDonalds and Spaghettio’s, but they had their own version of these things. And it is kinda fun to learn about what their lives are like.

Today, we have the opportunity to see more of the part of the world. I have “friends” (through Facebook) in Hungary, Bulgaria, Czech, Belarus, Ukraine, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia and Khazakstan. These are people who I have met and had short conversations with. But knowing them for a short time, I will map out their location and study maps of their countries. I find that fascinating.

I encourage any of you to do the same as you come across new people on the internet. Let’s face it. It can even be fun to search out the location of all the Nigerian Princes that are contacting you to get your bank information to transfer you all the riches that they have. It might or might not surprise you that not many of them live in grass huts.

Music and Holidays

This is not the first time I have come across music involved with a holiday that I had no idea about – that I feel that I should have. Back in the mid 2010’s (call it about 2005) my brother-in-law mentioned on Thanksgiving that they had been driving up to our house and got to listen to Alice’s Restaurant for Thanksgiving. I looked at him like he had horns and asked what that was about. At the time, I had no idea about the iconic movie about Arlo Guthrie and his bohemian friends protesting the Viet Nam war. Nor had I ever heard the song. I have since, but do not go out of my way to listen to it on Thanksgiving myself.

Friday July 1, 2022