Deborah Lipp

So, yeah. I got really hooked on Firefly. My friend (kisses to Ken) gave me the DVD set of the series which had been mangled and abused by the Evil Pencil Pushers™ at Fox. Outstanding stuff. Really. Best science fiction since Star Trek. Rough-edged, witty, space guys-meet-Old West-meet-pirates-meet-Joss Whedon, boy genius. Just too good.

The movie follow-up, Serenity, opens wide Friday. See it. Reviews are coming in pretty darn strong.

Why should I be advertising this thing when I don’t get a dime out of it? Well first, just to spread the word, share the candy, all that. Second, because I am SO EXCITED about seeing it. Finally, because I want it to succeed so well that “sequel” is the watchword around Universal.

I am not one of the bloggers getting free tickets to Serenity.

Oh. Well.

Yeah, I haven’t posted an entry in a while. I’ve been following Katrina news very closely. First I was worried sick about my friends, who got out safe. Then I was horrified. There’s no need for me to reiterate important news here. My favorite blog, which provides solid information as well as some rants, is Daily Kos.

Anyway, I’m still paying close attention to the news but here I am, posting away.

…What a great event, so laid back, so friendly and easygoing. Love every minute of FSG even with all the last minute chaos of Will She or Won’t She? She did and it was lovely. Saw old friends, participated in some Sacred Tattooing and some other rituals, acquired some tan (with plenty of sunscreen), taught two classes, and boogied the night away. See ya next year, kiddies!

The thing about the specific spam sent to blogs as comments is that it is necessary to generate some sort of comment. So I am all the time receiving odd philosophical bits. Like:
There are, as is known, insects that die in the moment of fertilization. So it is with all joy: life’s highest, most splendid moment of enjoyment is accompanied by death.

Of course the rest of the sentence is an exhortation to buy a male enhancement medication. Go figure.

Wow, I’ve been doing this blog for a whole click of the wheel. It’s a lovely wet day here in New York and New Jersey and I’m happy to greet the spring.

This weekend we consecrated our first planting—sugar peas—and put them into the ground. We colored eggs, consecrated and ate them.

We also got into a conversation about the correct pronunciation of Ostara. Most of the people I know, including myself, pronounce it oh-STAR-uh. However, it’s related to Ishtar, Ashtoreth, Esther, and Easter, all of which emphasize the first syllable. So, perhaps, Bill says, it’s OH-stara.

New World’s is Llewellyn’s promo magazine; mostly articles about and by Llewellyn authors. Sometimes the articles are quite good, although always short and always containing a merchandise tie-in.

The March/April 2005 issue has some really nice stuff, including an article on Protection Magic that ties in with Chris Penczak’s The Witch’s Shield. Basically, he’s using simple spells and visualizations, tied in with the four elements (plus Spirit). I’m looking forward to meeting Chris, seems like we have some ideas in common!

Penczak has the neat recommendation of using a poutpourri simmerer on your altar so that you can cook brews in sacred space. I think that’s pretty slick and I might just steal it. 🙂

I work for a large corporation that uses a proprietary personality analysis tool called Communicalysis™ for diversity and communication training. Today my department was trained in this tool.

The tool strongly resembles the Myers-Brigg Type Indicator® test, which I discuss at some length in The Way of Four. Both tests, and numerous others, are based on the theories of Carl Jung, who in turn based his personality type analysis on his occult understanding of the four elements.

So full circle. It always seems to come back to Air, Fire, Water, and Earth. It costs you $100 or more to take one of these tests. You should really just read my book. 🙂