On the Move

* I'm walking along ahead of a long string of makeshift wagons and pack animals. I am leading my own hill pony at the moment and my firelock is cradled in my left arm. I am wearing a hunting frock over a shirt/sleeveless jacket combination. I have on knee breeches, over the knee stockings, pucker-toe moccasins and buttoned leggings. I am wearing a battered brown tricorn. That is just me though; looking back along the 'column' I see a wide range of clothing and gear, from modern through ancient. More and more of the earlier types are showing up though as the modern stuff wears out and there's nothing to replace it....earlier types tend to be simpler to make. What a sight we are. I have to smile.

My pony nudges me; I have stopped for a moment and he is wondering what is up. I scritch him a bit and continue on. Yet another movement in response to newly arrived migrations of people. Thank goodness these are getting less and less frequent. The one thing that makes it more bearable is that the lands about harbor less and less people.

This is a strange journey; the landscape changes as if it is morphing through time as we walk. Overlays on overlays is the thought that comes to mind. There is a Great Bear pacing along on the flanks and there are nine cats...riding one of the wagons. Yes, they are back. The only thing I do not see at the moment is the hawk, but I am sure that worthy is around somewhere. Seeing the cats perched on a pile of gear in a group makes laughter want to ripple forth..but which kind is another matter.

That tall blonde gal is with us; she joined us...a while ago, I cannot seem to remember when. She gets a lot of attention, but she is rather spectacular after all. She still makes me go all weird when in close proximity, but then I know who She is so I also know why it happens.

I am old, there is no disputing that. I have not dyed my hair in a long while and it is all silver. But I am lean and hard and healthy...and feel the flame of my spirit burning brightly still. I have to laugh at myself; I have the figure I fought so hard for but I got it through the upheavals rather than through exercise programs. To be honest, I was heading in the right direction to start with but without the forced nature of the upheavals it would have taken a lot longer. A lot longer, to get here. There is no mistaking the form now though; one small pleasure in a sea of difficult times.

Yet I am happy on the whole. That cannot be said for all who are in the train, but there is a very hard 'rule' involved here; if you cannot stand it, cannot take it, and cannot help complaining, you can go your own way. Apparently none of them are quite that unhappy.

Truthfully I cannot blame them; having to move this way is a pain indeed. Yet endurance matters in these times and pity is a rare item to be indulged in.

I have forgotten the year; it does not matter really. It is sometime in the early Summer, I think....the oppressive heat and humidity hasn't happened yet but we do get some seriously hot days. I have no idea what day it is per se...as in Monday or Tuesday....but I do watch the sun and I do keep track of its movements in the sky, along with those of the stars. There is a nice telescope in one of the wagons reserved for this purpose.

I have been mounting a ridgeline, picking out a path the wagons can handle and marking it as I go. We have been fortunate so far not to have any of them break down..but we are careful to maintain them as we can.

As I approach the military crest of the ridge I pause, dropping the reins and bringing the rifle to ready. The horse simply stands, well trained as he is. I crouch and belly up to the crest, crawling to where I can see over it, next to a small bush. There is a valley on the other side. Not large, but it does have a stream or river running through it. There is no evidence of anyone about but that means nothing in and of itself. I glance at the sun; no using the spyglass here. It would reflect badly and I will not risk that. It will have to be an in person recon; there is too much I cannot see and too many places to hide. The absence of smoke is encouraging, but meaningless at this point.

I scoot back and rejoin my pony, who has chosen to nibble on some grasses, content to wait. I signal a halt to the column, the sign being taken up and repeated along the length so it eased to a stop. My Rangers come up and I explain what is doing. Routine scout, but we leave a picket line for the column as always. The blonde woman listens intently; I cannot dictate what She does after all...and the Bear is not far off either. I see the Hawk now, circling high up over the valley. Turning I find a single feather....a good omen but I will do as I do.

I dispose the scout and off we go....with any luck we can stay here for a time. *

Well and all, intense and there was more to it, but this covers it in the essentials. It had more surreal portions to it but those are hard to recount so I have left most of them to the side. Symbolism can be weird even when the symbol makes sense, let alone when it is something like a semi rig being pulled along. O-o

As ever, the influence of whatever I am doing shows clearly enough. The return of the cats is amusing...although the presence of Her blonde self was rather surprising. Guess She isn't done with me.

So take from it what you will, or not.

Dewin Arthes /|\
(Medicine Bear)

Government of the Institutions

Government of the Institutions, for the Institutions, for the Institutions.

That's about the size of it.

I am not a slave. I will not be a slave. I am a free person, by the Gods, and I will stand by that come what may even unto death.

I live in a society of slaves though; indebted, indoctrinated, and apathetic in far too many ways.

*grins* We all know I'm a nutjob eh? ;)

I am not a conservative. I am not a liberal. I am not a democrat...I would *never* be a democrat. Democracy sucks; even the Founding Fathers knew that. I am not what passes as a Republican these days either. I stand by what the Founding Fathers built...and that is a Constitutional Republic...which we no longer have. I am an independent, by the Gods, and proud of it. I swore an oath to the Constitution and I stand by that too.

Not that it matters much; I am not in a position to do much more than vent about it, now am I. At least, not at the moment.

I have said before that once a person 'wakes up' and starts to ask certain questions and point out certain things, the system tends to isolate and excise them..and this is true. We do not want people who can think for themselves and will do so. Not really.

It is our own fault.

Dewin Arthes /|\

Globalism and Vent

Globalism. It was supposed to be a shiny thing, something to be coveted and aspired to. Well...I reckon folk are about to get a lesson in the idea that nothing is ever one sided.

Rising clothing and food prices, rising fuel prices, new taxes and fees, cut services....and can anyone out there make even a half-assed argument that none of this is connected to global events of various sort? Rhetorical question.

Think carefully what rising food prices imply; bad weather in food baskets, increased fuel costs due to upheaval and depletion, increased cost of maintenance of gear, costs of operating some types of gear. It is all part and parcel.

I have noticed that the Wisconsin protests are spreading to other states and cities now. And they aren't as broke as places like New Jersey or Illinois.

Can't cut pensions, unions, or programs, can't tax the wealthy, can't do much of anything. Deadlocked.

So the garden gets increased attention this year, not that it wouldn't have anyway, but I am never one to pass a chance to increase my base position. I will be out hunting soon, and you bet I will be smoking, salting, and jerking meats. I have a mind for what the next Winter might entail and it may not be pleasant by any stretch. It might wind up being very hard to shop...there may not be much available and we may not be able to afford it anyway. Lots of mouths, increasingly expensive food and eventually limited supplies...oh yeah, canning parties are definitely happening this year.

Legion Day is likely to happen around March 12th, once I get confirmation from Ray. It is no longer geared solely towards Roman things but we call it that anyway. I plan to get some shooting in, yep. I need to site in my girl and get a feel for her wants and needs so she'll shoot sweet and steady for me.

I like medieval hunting, no mistake. But I do not have to get as close with a flintlock and when it comes to opportunities, the firelock increases them. The Spring migrations will get really under way soon and I hope to be out after some birds.

I aim to get into a position where I can manage with relative comfort in primitive gear for indefinite periods of time. There is never guarantee mind you, but if I can get by under primitive conditions, it will be all the easier if I do not have to go that far. One needs a baseline though and if I know anything it is that the current standard of living is dying..and might not last out the year. Certainly will not last out the next couple or so. I prefer not to be forced but to adopt it first..and be accustomed to it. Wiser, in my opinion, but to each their own.

I understand a lot of the dreams, I think, although I would not claim completely. I know where I am to go, I know, more or less, how to get there. I have a pretty good idea of what waits in the wings and for that place I will happily go nomad for as long as it takes.

Yeah, doomer I am, I know. So negative, aren't I? I have good reason to be..but for me it isn't negativity, simply a hard look at things. It does not carry despairing elements for me but rather spurs to drive on; it is the current structure of things that carries depression and drowning feelings.

I wish to be able to retain my independence...and to do that I will pass through pretty much any challenge. I said, recall, that the Abbey (if and when it is ever made manifest) will remain independent and autonomous. I mean for myself to be that way as well. I am not interested in selling liberty for safety of any sort. I am not interested in conforming to some social image built by corporate interests to keep things ticking over so they can live off the sweat of others by rolling in more wealth than they or their families can ever spend or have use for. I am not interested in conforming my thoughts to fit some fashionably social status template.

I simply wish to be me. Without all these damned restraints. So many of them are easy outs...meant to make it easier on the powers that be to control things with little regard to justice. Level the playing field by laws that prohibit everyone from something rather than targeting the ones who actually cause the problem. Our Commonwealth is expert in that; we have plenty of mandatory sentences and legal actions, all meant to expedite the process. Mainly by making everyone conform to laws meant to restrain a tiny fraction of the populace. Removing rights in the process. Eh, it has all been said before. It did not make any difference then, and the only difference it makes now is that I am pleased to vent my spleen a little.

Mr. Jefferson was right about the banks. Mr. Franklin was right about trading liberty for safety.

We are, collectively, a bunch of scared rabbits. Pity really.

Dewin Arthes /|\

A Ride it will Be.

Similar dreams to yesterday's. Not identical, but close, very close.

I listened to speculation that by Memorial Day gasoline is predicted to be an average of 3.75 a gallon. It will be nice if that is as far as it goes. Some places are already near there. The Brent price for crude is over 100 dollars a barrel...our own is being..manipulated.

Food riots and scarcity/poverty fueled riots are going on all over the place. They'll be here before too long. As I have said before, the 'machine' that is the media and government begins to ignore a person when they fall below a certain level of affluence. Trouble is, those ignored people do not simply dry up and blow away. As the numbers of such people mount, things are going to get mighty interesting. Might interesting indeed.

This year looks a great deal like '08 in many respects. I expect it to be worse. I will be pleasantly surprised if it is not. I expect next year to be worse than this one. I really do wonder about some kind of 'tipping point' in human population and resource depletion. I know, I know, I have been roundly chastised for even thinking such a thing. I am still thinking of it, and I have a nasty suspicion it might be a very real possibility.

Cuts in all kinds of social programs are coming; housing, energy, food, mental services, etc. All social support is expendable so long as the real people, the ones still in the affluent section, do not get burdened. No way out is being left to these non-people who do not fit that template. I cannot think of a better way to cause an uproar bar tossing a torch into a powder house.

It most assuredly will not be boring.

Me...well, I am doing what I am doing. I expect it will not be long before we are below that arbitrary line and I'm tweaking some things and getting ready for that possibility. I am doing the Work, and doing what I can to make our impact on things smaller and therefore far easier to maintain...and far cheaper. Vehicle insurance is going to hit hard this year. As will the rent increase. With the gasoline increases. And we shall not forget excise taxes and related items.

A lot of people are going to find it a LOT harder than we will. Some will find it easier; they have family to fall back on, work from home so gas is not a problem, have only themselves to worry over, etc. Far more will be in trouble. Companies have learned to operate without rehiring people...and they will keep right on letting people go..and those who cannot find a new job will keep growing in number. You do the math. Think it is their problem? That's the fashionable way to think of course; somehow it is the fault of those people that they are in the position they are in.

Well, that kind of thinking is a problem. A serious one. A deadly one. As I said, tossing a torch into a powder house. There is a lot of bitterness out there. Some of it even understandable.

What a ride. What a ride it will be.

Dewin Arthes /|\

Changed Forever

* I am watching the glow in the sky; a town or city is burning. Nothing else makes a glow like that. I no longer feel the twinge of sadness such displays originally triggered. Now I sit and watch and feel...nothing. Well, nothing beyond resignation that yet another flood of people will likely be on the move, making the other people in the area move..and that will mean I will have to move again. It has been a constant series of movements, evading, going around, slipping through the cracks.

An equilibrium is established for a little time, then it all starts again. Fortunately the intervals are getting longer; there are fewer places to die that way and they hold fewer people.

I do not know exactly where we are, but I know generally. For the most part we have drifted North and that has proven to be a good thing as there are fewer here and with the savage, if short, Winters, people who move tend to move South. I doubt it really helps much outside of the psychological.

We are in good shape, surprisingly enough. Lean now, and hard, both physically and mentally. This crucible has been fearsome in its relentless nature. One adapts or dies, there has been little middle ground...and that ground is treacherous and shifting, unreliable.

It provides a certain surreal feel when a body can sit peacefully and think of how it used to be...it seems so long ago but is surprisingly close to the current time. Despite my age I am hard and healthy....and I had been hard forged before this so it could be said had been in better form to handle what came.

People just seemed to go nuts. No nuclear war, no invasion, not of the sort one things of...just a kind of collective insanity seemed to be the thing. I do not know the cause, if there even is a specific cause. Perhaps it was population pressure and lack of resources...perhaps they triggered something hidden away in us as animals of the Earth. I cannot say. It was not, and still is not, pretty.

But things are getting a little quieter now. There are longer intervals between needing to move. We have even managed to harvest some wild-sown crops of late, and there has been more game...mostly coming South. It is a little easier. I suspect it will in time become unnecessary to move and folk can settle again. At least those here, if they choose.

I look at the stars and am suddenly among them, looking down on the Earth; still so small in the vastness of space. It is home...and it will be for a good long while yet...even beyond the ending of the species. For now though, it is slowly healing itself.

I am back at the camp and I wonder at that trip..real or dream? It had best not be the latter as I am on watch after all. I note with a start that I have company near the fire; elves. I really wish they would not do that, but I guess it is in their nature. I have noted the return of other species in recent years.

They come sit by me and I know they will sense any threat long before I will so I relax a little bit. Nothing is said for a long span of time, not with words. The Fair Folk are amazing and I am delighted by their visit...and humbled by their friendship. A silent prayer to the Star Kindler brings smiles and knowing glances. She has never left me and I have never left Her...nor ever will.

A bear ambles into camp...huge, brown...and entirely out of place here where the bears are smaller and black. Much smaller. The bear sits and seems to smile a bit. I arch a brow and shake my head, wondering what is next...a silly thing to do since the giant lynxes amble up to join the throng. Now I am really wondering if I am asleep or awake....it is often hard to tell in the company of the Fair Folk.

Conversation flies without a sound, carried on expressions, glances, glints of the eye and turns of the lip. Change is afoot, as it has been, but this is mighty change of a different sort. The world is indeed changing forever. *

O-o

Well now, interesting. Take it or leave it, as you like.

Lots to do, yep. Lots to do.

Dewin Arthes /|\

Scary Times

So food prices went up by a third this past year. They are set to go up at least that much again this year. Few people seem worried about this fact. I wonder what percentage of the population winds up in seriously deep trouble with this development? Always more than one might think. Besides, the media is really only talking to that shrinking group of people who are still fairly well off; they certainly are not proposing anything for anyone who has fallen below the ability to maintain a 'proper' middle class lifestyle as defined by this culture. If they were it would not be all about spend, save 10% of your monthly income etc.

There is a tacit acceptance of the fact that if you fall below this line, you no longer matter. Believe that or not as you like. Watch as they cut the assistance to the lower incomes in the coming months and years remaining.

The more I watch all of this develop, the happier I am with my preparations...and even more with my bow and primitive firearms...and with my 'strategy' of movement and avoidance if the worst comes home to roost.

It certainly appears that we will wind up remaining in this apartment for another year. If so, we will have a garden as usual. I will kill the woodchuck. I will fence the garden differently. And I will be putting in a patch of flax and another rather larger one of buckwheat. I will continue to pare down our belongings, clearing the decks. My bugout bag, modern version, will remain...but the primary one will be my primitive kit..the absolute minimum I will be able to survive with without having to be too stretched by the act.

Last nights dreams consisted of a lot of hiding and stealth; they are fragmentary and chaotic and I do not have clear memories of them as I usually do, but I remember the impact...and I recall the movement.

The Middle East is....smoldering. Not burning...yet...but definitely smoldering. I am very wary of it all...friends of mine out there are rather worried too. I am no longer quite as convinced that we won't decide to blow most of us off the face of the planet as I had been. The instability brought on by climate change and resource depletion combined with the population overshoot may well cause a kind of mental infarction, so to speak. Not a pretty picture out there right now.

There have been demonstrations here too. Minor thus far, but present nonetheless. It most certainly can happen here.

I do not think anyone can see terribly far ahead at this point; there is too much variability for anything to be more than a vague line of possibility. The few lines of probability I see now and then are not going in directions comfortable to look at. Collapse is inevitable. It would be nice to have a gradual, drawn out sort....I am not at all certain, increasingly uncertain in fact, that such will be the case.

Oh yes, I am more than pleased with my preparations, more than happy to have been building up confidence and brushing off old skills at the game of survival. No Panzer Division in the hills here, no, more like 'snoop & poop' as we used to say. Watch, listen, evade, conceal...therein lies the better route I think.

Scary times, here at the end of Empire.

Dewin Arthes /|\

Crystal Mountain...

This one was...interesting in some ways.

* I am sitting against a tree on a hillside overlooking the main fire ring at Crystal Mountain. Next to me a trench is full of fierce coals and embers. Below me the fire is burning brightly with some folk sitting around it and some in their tents, soft snoring occasionally heard through the rumble of conversation and the snapping of the fire.

It is a clear night, and a cold one. The smoke from the fire sort of sits still at about treetop height; there is no wind and it is not rising, a certain sign to those who can read it that tonight will be bitterly cold. It already is quite cold, breath billowing on the air and some of it freezing on hair and gear.

I am wearing a capote over a hunting smock over a wool shirt over a linen shirt. I have linen-lined wool britches and leather leggings over wool, tucked snugly into my Winter moccasins. My rifle is cradled in my arm; I have only recently completed the care of it. My knapsack and haversack are hanging from an end of the half-face shelter I have built. Soon I will begin to shovel the dirt back onto the coals and embers, burying them under several inches of earth..over which I will pile the pine needles and boughs before laying out my blankets and bedroll for the night. I have no fear of the cold temperatures, but I do respect them.

Below me, the modern tents and packs are bubbles and lumps like a rash on the forest floor, but they work and keep the people in them reasonably comfortable. Their modern truck weighs in between 30 and 50 pounds on average. Mine, far less varied, comes in around 15. Then again, I am in 'primitive' kit so would be traveling light anyway. It has held up well and left me a lot less weary on the hike up here.

There is not much snow yet...the Winters have been cold but the snow has come late these last few years. I still have my snowshoes along, the big Huron made ash versions. They serve me well enough.

I am not sleepy...there is a sense of anticipation and a sharp delight in the star-dusted skies above. I'll make my bed anyway, for when sleep does claim me, but for the moment I am wide awake. My tummy is full of rabbit and lentil stew with some jerky, and a bit of dried apple in there. I have had coffee and am comfortable despite the cold.

We shall see what the night brings. Aside from anything else, it will certainly bring the dawn eventually. What kind of dawn remains to be seen. *

I find it interesting that I had my flintlock along, had hunted up some rabbit for dinner, and had a fire trench for my bed going away from the camp site. While the trail does not forbid weapons, and rabbit season lasts a goodly while, digging fire holes outside of designated rings is simply not done on the AT.

There were a number of people, most of whom I know currently. I was the only one in 'primitive' kit, at least that I was aware of. I also found it interesting it was in the 'present', more or less while I was most definitely in the 'past' in my kit and clothing.

Interesting.

Dewin Arthes /|\

Living, not Existing

'A Pilgrims' Journey' and its follow on volume by the same name are fine books.

They can also fan the flame of independence to life in a large way. That need to be free, to be self-sufficient, to be yourself without apology or excuse. It sleeps in many, stirs in some, and in others has been a waking force during their lifetimes. It has been so for me, it is agitating to be so again.

I have developed an intense dislike of...or rather, crossed the threshold of toleration for...our society and its rules and the people who most deeply and at times espouse those rules. They get more and more restrictive, more and more intrusive, and more and more burdensome with each passing year. The Cult of Fear continues to sow its seeds in a population richly prepared by an intentionally hamstrung educational system.

Sheeple are the rule of the day and I am not pleased to be one of them.

At some point, some time, a body has to make a stand and stop the slide. Face the onslaught and triumph or fall in the struggle, but at least *try* to stand against cultivated ignorance and instilled fear. This takes some kind of courage, doesn't it?

After all, the entire structure is geared to specifically suppress that sort of thing. If the Sedition Act were still in force just writing this could get me arrested and imprisoned. But hey, they have already done that to an American citizen, haven't they? No charges, no change to see a judge, just locked away for 7 years..and being told they may never let him go anyway. Police state, anyone?

As resources grow more scarce and governments and people are increasingly willing to consume themselves and any sort of dignity they had in order to get it, this sort of thing will become more and more common. It is already under way, for anyone who can stand to take off the blinders and remove the indoctrination earphones.

What we see going on in the world is resource depletion and climate change combined. Do not think so? We shall soon see who is right, shall we not? I already know but perhaps some of you still hold out that sliver of hope that something will save us. That we are the 'chosen' species of heaven, or something like that.

Well, to each their own, eh? As soon as the trails are open enough to get to I am spending a great deal of my time living. I have had enough of existing.

Dewin Arthes /|\

Catabolic happenings

So the realities of so-called budget cutting and responsible spending are starting to become rather apparent, if they hadn't already.

Cannot tax the rich, cannot cut 'vital' (read that pet) programs...so what is the solution? Cut aid and assistance to the poor. This is no surprise; it had to come in fact. The trouble is most folk regard the poor as a small segment of the population, which is a voluntary misconception. Cultivated ignorance.

Anyone not in the upper tiers will be getting cut loose, with the level of income that qualifies as poor increasing right along with it.

There is no way to save what we have and have been doing all these years. Period. Of course, that is inadmissible in any way and simply not a solution...so here we go eating our own, so to speak. Catabolic collapse applies not only to business but also to people.

If you think what happened in Greece, in Egypt, what is now happening in Yemen and Algeria, cannot happen here, you are a fool. Yep. It most assuredly can happen here. Eventually it almost has to happen here. Personally I rather expect a kind of fracturing of the country at some point, breaking up into smaller and rather pointedly different regions.

I will remain debt free. The specter of serfdom or indentured servitude, which I might add has a very serious history here in this nation, is not one I am keen to put myself in the way of. I do not mind risks, but I do not like it when I hold no influence over those risks. People think this is a joke but to be honest, debt already is slavery...or serfdom...if you think about it a bit. It is as much a yoke as any iron collar could be.

We are not yet back to where people can pay as they go in all the important things they need; housing is just the largest example. Until a person on a median income...that median being determined by counting *all* incomes...can, by dint of hard work and patience and thrift, manage to purchase land or a dwelling without being swamped with debt that enforces payment of at least double the value, we will not be in a proper place. I happen to side with Mr. Jefferson on the whole bank-owned bit.

We will get there. With much pain and much human wreckage along the way to be sure, but we will get there. Whether, by that time, anyone but the 'rich' (definition of that will certainly change) can actually own anything substantial remains to be seen. If I am here for that cycle I will wind up being a rebel no doubt. I have problems with feudalism.

I saw a great deal last night as I winged my way around the landscape. A great many things. There is much to think about.

I will wind up classed as poor and left to rot along with a large section of people; but I will be free, by the Gods, and all the richer for that...and in the ways that really matter. Money is not one of them.

I shall not bend, I shall not break, and I shall not surrender.

Blessings

Dewin Arthes /|\

One Perspective to Another

* I am leaning against a tree-trunk, sharpening my long knife. A small fire dances and crackles in cheery fashion a short distance away. I am not looking at it although I am enjoying its warmth on this rather chilly Spring evening. My ears are cocked to the darkness outside and my eyes are forever flicking around the area, never on the fire but always on the surrounding darkness. I have no reason to expect anything threatening..and that alone is reason to be alert. Beyond the sound of the knife blade on whetstone and the crackle of the fire is the soft burbling of the river as it flows past this little island..more eyeot..in its midst.

The others are sleeping soundly enough; they have learned not to snore it seems and in any case, a harder life has left them healthier if more worn in appearance. It is not a bad life, just rather harder. For people who were soft from reliance on things, the transition to people who rely upon doing is a hard one...and not all of those who tried managed it. The softer life is still fresh in memory...and transition was harder in a lot of places than it was here, but it was plenty hard enough here to be getting on with. It is still an ongoing process but the intensity has decreased as those who have not managed to meet the challenge have fallen by the wayside.

I am on watch; nearby is my longbow and arrows but cradled in my arms as I work is my rifle. I do not expect to need them this night, but then I always expect to need them...especially when I do not expect to.

I hear the occasional night bird calling and I had earlier heard some deer blowing and some raccoon chittering. Other than that it has been peaceful enough.

This has been a hunting expedition; there are loads of salted meat wrapped in hides hanging from tree branches and not a few salted and smoked fish too. Even earlier this evening there was the making of pemmican. There are some fine hides to complete processing of too. No one in this campsite is squeamish any longer; that trait has fairly well disappeared.

In the morning, after all the chores are done and the campsite left as if no one had been here, we will depart, heading home. Even older as I am now I enjoy these hunting trips. People say the place for an elder to pass in their bed...I say it is wherever and whenever the time comes due. It works fine for me. *

I could feel the underlying alertness, some might call it paranoia, despite the overall peaceful nature of the dream. The impact of the 'memories' of the transition from soft to hard living was very powerful, painful even; the sense that many of those who were not able, for whatever reason, to meet the challenge included friends was very clear. It is no more than ought to be expected; sometimes ones' number is simply up.

Overall though, I really enjoyed this one. I note that once again there is water travel involved; that has been one of the single most common traits of my dreams for a long while now.

A little after this one was another one which was weirder; I was an eagle winging my way along a river...and looking down at my own camp at the crack of dawn. So...I was looking at myself; one perspective to another. A very interesting...if strange...experience.

Blessings

Dewin Arthes /|\

Dance & Prep

I have a dvd from Kawakib on Level 1 Tribal Odyssey...something she developed with Miramar starting back in 2000. Essentially it is a combination of Egyptian and ATS dance. It has a nice warmup section; I have only begun to watch it to see what it contains.

The dvd on Fantasy Belly Dance is nice...for me though one performance and choreography instruction stands out..the Serpent. Very nice.

Still a shining beacon above all of them from a troupe perspective is Zafira Dance Company. Olivia, Maria, and company are outstanding. Their style of Tribal Fusion rocks my world, it surely does. If I lived in Pittsburgh I'd attend classes there. From an individual stance, Rachel Brice and Sharon Kihara are the ones I am most drawn to; amazing dancers.

So what am I doing? Building Temple dance of course. Dance opened the doors to some seriously intense revelations and paths....and it is a fitting offering to any of Those I serve after all. Dancing in Temple is an amazing thing, the energy generated fantastic.

For all that I will be an Abbess and am an Archdruid, I am also an Archpriestess, or High Priestess if you prefer and I will dance in the Temple in addition to other duties.

Aside from that are other pursuits, such as medieval hunting, colonial longhunter activities, and related things. Why? Preparation of course. And fun..it never hurts to have a bit of fun with what one is doing. In this case, it is very serious stuff. Unless one is blind, the desperation and fear that pervades things these days cannot be missed....nor the direction in which we are headed. Those 'hoaxes' have been combining their strength and we are going to smacked silly by them....making what we already have look paltry in comparison.

I still maintain the best exercise is that which comes naturally; walking, hiking, dancing, doing things in general....if you are absorbed in what you are doing you will eat less to begin with, never a bad thing these days. A little discipline in there for the rest of the time makes for a very good starting point. I sorely miss snowshoes as I could have been doing some serious trekking about with those this Winter, instead of being confined so much.

It is Late, and past time for most of the things so many of us insist on clinging to....better to start late though, than to wait until it is forced upon you. Best to start learning to maintain what you do through your own motivation and self-discipline too....before too long having and maintaining outside structural versions of these will become prohibitively expensive or simply not doable. I would not be surprised to see gasoline get into the four dollar range this year..possibly higher. That would price some people right out of working....and if it goes significantly higher, a lot more people.

We insist on blinding ourselves to all of this, having a take it while we can approach to things. To each their own..but I think folk will find that approach to have been rather unwise.

Which is, of course, fine by me. I am not in the business of saving people...except for me and mine.

Be well

Dewin Arthes /|\

No Abbey Here

Abbey material will no longer be posted here.

I will post dreams that do not concern it here, other activities, pursuits, practices and whatnot. I simply will not post anything concerning the Abbey here. That has gone to a locked and invitational only list. Those of you who had a problem with it, let the fact that it has not died and is going on out of sight somewhere where you cannot get at it eat your guts out. I assure you I will not mind your aggravation and pain in this regard.

Yes, I am a Bitch. Grade A Number 1. If you have not figured this out yet perhaps you should take an IQ test. I will always be a Bitch...to those who have it coming.

With that out of the way.

May you reap all the blessings to which merit entitles you. If it be Their will.

Dewin Arthes /|\

Something

* She came awake in a rush, alert and clear of mind, no trace of sleepiness. She heard loud voices, a crash as something was knocked over. He was home, angry, and drunk..or just angry. It did not matter. She swore to herself and slid from the bed, shucking her night clothes and getting dressed swiftly in the dark.

'Not this time!' she thought fiercely. There would be no more beatings this night. She was resolved to put an end to this, at least where she herself was concerned.

Gathering up a small pack with needed items and a sleeping bag, she slid the window open without a sound; she had taken care of that little detail long since. She swung the shutters open, well cared for they too made not a sound, turned, and slid out the window, closing it behind her and closing the shutters. Pausing to use a simple tool, she latched the shutters on the inside, replaced the tool, and melted into the shadows of house and bushes.

She waited, getting her breathing under control as best she could, but she could not wait too long else he would find her missing and all hell would break loose. She glided across the shadowy yard, through patches of starlight...there was no moon yet...and over to the barn. She knew where she wanted to go, and would get there faster with a horse...but she had to weigh this convenience against the charge of horse theft and worse that would inevitably be laid against her.

In for a penny, in for a pound as the saying went...she had her own horse as everyone round about knew, earned with her own work. It would not stop him from crying theft, and she was under age so he could make it stick, but it was definitely her horse. She would take him. Decision firm she slid into the barn and made her way through to the stables section where she rapidly and deftly bridled and saddled him, tying on gear and ensuring she added in grains for the occasional treats.

She opened the stable doors, walked him out, and then closed the doors behind her. The usually recalcitrant stallion was, this night, absolutely biddable..as if he sensed her need to get going. She had stayed overlong already she feared, yet still there was no outcry from the house. It must be one of his more involved build ups tonight..that or he passed out, which would be a mercy in a lot of ways. Her mother was gone, taken by illness, so she had no fear of what he might do to her. All that remained were her half-siblings and they never received the ferocity of his ire.

Leading the horse a way into the fields, she mounted swiftly and clucked to him, setting him to a canter away from the farm that had been her home. *


Hmmmm. *frowns*

Blessings

Dewin Arthes /|\

Temple Work

* I am lying on my back, looking at a gorgeous cerulean sky. I am very tired and the sky fills me with peace. I have a few stitches here and there, but they are faint and seem somehow disconnected from anything that matters. I can faintly hear various activities going on around me; people going about whatever business they are engaged in, but I do not really care; I am too tired to be curious. My eyelids are heavy and I want to go to sleep. Somewhere someone is singing; she sings very well I am thinking. A cobra slides up onto my chest and gazes into my half-lidded eyes but I feel no fear, instead ghosting a smile in her direction; she is wearing a feather. I drift slowly away into a sleep, a warm, velvety kind of sleep. I am so tired, you see. *

Well and all, that was interesting. I am not entirely sure what to make of it. It was left rather ambiguous. It will be cleared up or it will not. I marked the cobra; they are often in my dreams even these days and that feather could mean a lot of things, especially being worn by the cobra.

I watched a dance DVD that I have, a portion of it I have not watched before, and I fell in love with many of the movements there. I do not yet know if I can execute them even halfway decently, as I have not yet tried. Certainly my rotund shape will not look as nice, but that can change in time. No floor work, which at this point is a big plus as once I am down there getting up gracefully is right out. LOL For now. The gal doing the dance was big but had an hourglass figure for all of that; quite an impact. It was the fluid, flowing, sinuous movements I found so attractive. Very...reptilian...draconic in some ways. Serpentine. I shall give some of them a try today.

I think it would work well with the outfit I am slowly putting together. :)

Jannat has been mulling over a phoenix kind of outfit, which be an outstanding thing. For one thing the colors are definitely good for her. Perfect really; she has that complexion. For me, the dragon; scales and pebbled skin as it were. Of course she is a performer and for me this is all about Temple Dancing. Dancing for and with the Gods. Jannat has a natural gift for the Dance, blessed indeed.

In the more manifest realm of things, the armor and hunting gear continues to be developed and worked on. It may often sound like these things are my primary interest, but that would be a very erroneous conclusion. The Work and its related parts are the sole primary interest...all other things are secondary. Dance is part of the Work of the Temple...and a Temple Priestess I am and will always be. One does not take oaths of service to the Gods and simply walk off whenever one feels like it. If only because it smacks of lack of devotion and lack of responsibility. There are prices to be paid for everything. It is just how it is.

I would that we had a place where I could really sort out a room specifically for Temple work. We do not and I do not know if we ever will, but I would love it, yes I would.

Blessings

Dewin Arthes /|\

That Dance...

* I am dreaming within a dream. I am lying on a cot in a tent, my arms and armor on a stand close to hand but otherwise fully clothed. I am dreaming, dreaming of dancing in a ruined temple in a desert of red sand. I am wearing my yet to be completed scaled bra and panels over pantaloons and loose, sheer top. I am playing zills as I dance to a music only I can hear played by the ghosts of this temple that only I can see. I am watched by many people, sometimes one or a few coming to dance with me for a little time before spinning away to leave me alone, or to be replaced by others. I am covered with a slick sheen of sweat but I am not tired.

Some of these intertwined dances seem like dancing battles in their aggressive performance, others are gentle and loving in tone, it is an interesting mixture of styles and tempos. Some people are costumed as I am, some people are in everyday clothing, there seems to be no pattern to who wears what. There are men and women dancing off and on yet I am apparently the center around which the rest is woven.

I see people I know; Jannat, Attar, Ashera, Malcolm, and Atesh among many others, both dancing and watching. Some of those I see are no longer in this cycle, which I find of passing interest.

The Star Kindler stands to one side, She is swaying to the music but has not yet come out to dance. I know that She will, but I do not know how I know this.

A discordance flows into play, a woman dancing aggressively and yet in jagged manner, disturbing the flow for a time before she is swept away by a new influx of people, all dressed alike. Back and forth it goes, endlessly it seems. There is a circle of dancing bears around the outside of the temple...they are circle dancing widdershins.

Herself comes out to dance, two veils in hand, and begins to weave a complex dance around me as I dance. It is mind twisting to follow yet flowing and not harsh. Anahita is there too, she plays clackers as she dances deosil, weaving in and out around the bears.

All of it combines into a story writ in dance if one could but read it.

I awaken on my cot, soaked in sweat, breathing hard, eyes staring wide, the strains of music slowly fading in my ears.

I awaken in my bed, breathing hard and sheened in sweat..the night's images so powerfully set in my mind. *

Wow. There is LOT of information in there. At first glace that seems to have something to do with the battle I am preparing to fight in my dreams but to be honest, I do not think that is the point. Oh it is in there, I do not doubt, but it is not the point of it.

So very exotic! My goodness it was...and is...so very stirring! I think I know how to complete the bra and panels now; I really liked the look of them in that dream. The arms and armor in the previous dreams, and in this one, are already under construction and include the improvements I had meant to implement anyway.

That dance though, and the impulse to name certain people I saw and knew. Usually I do not do that as a matter of policy; I often see people I knew or know in these dreams but I do not generally name them. That dance was...amazing. I could not do that; I do not have the stamina for that. O_O

It was beautiful though..and it was telling a story, it was imparting information. I have to tease the messages from that, but they are there, make no mistake.

Much to ponder.

Dewin Arthes /|\