Deborah J. Martin's Blog, page 23

Me vs. Evangelicals

I should really take my own advice and stop watching or reading the news (but then I wouldn't get the business news, the weather or sports in one easy chunk of time). I'm tired of the holier-than-thou attitude of evangelical Christians and the entirely too extensive media coverage they're getting. It also saddens me that moderate Christians aren't speaking out more loudly. Not that I'm going to change anyone's mind but perhaps it's time I answered for myself.

Dear Evangelical Christian:

You...

A Call to Action: What Makes Your State Great?

I rarely discuss religion and/or politics. Conversations on those subjects are pointless … no one is going to change anyone else's mind, they usually end up in arguments and everyone goes away mad. No fun.

This time, however, I'm truly disgusted and will open my mouth. If you've been following pagan news, you have heard about the DC40 and their "51 Days of of Reformation Intercession". If not, Jason Pitzl-Waters over at the Wild Hunt has a good blog post about it here. Effectively, these...

Public Kudos …

A lot of folks are aware of my recent frustrations with getting copies of my new book, A Green Witch's Formulary into my hot little hands. Let me take you through them once again so you'll know just how wonderful some people were last week:

I placed my order on August 26th. On August 29th, hurricane Irene hit my publisher's preferred printer. Unfortunately, said printer didn't tell anyone their presses were under water for almost 2 weeks. The publisher, Balboa Press, shunted my order to a...

Pet Peeves

I need to vent. There's nothing in the way of serious content here today. Read on … or not.

I have a lot of pet peeves. I think it comes with getting older. Most of the time I'm able to shrug them off but here in the last week or so, they've been cropping up in droves:

Customer service seems to be nearly nonexistent. With my husband's blessing, I decided to buy a ring I'd had my eye on for awhile. The company's most recent snail-mail catalog still displayed the ring so I went on their website t...

As The Wheel Turns

Fall is definitely in the air. I have no personal insulation so the house is closed up about 80% of the time. If the outside temp hits 70F, I'll open the door to the deck for the four-legged kids but otherwise, I have started my winter-time cocooning.

I know a lot of people like the dark time of the year and rejoice at the Autumnal Equinox. Not me. I get very sleepy at this time of the year. The medical community tells me I have Seasonal Affective Disorder. I think that's just their...

Creating a Magical Oil

Witches use oils for a variety of things: anointing ourselves, candles or tools; or in an oil warmer for aroma and vibrations during a spell or meditation are just some of the applications. How does one decide which essential and base oils to use? I created one for the 2011 New Orleans Witches Ball and I'll take you through my thought process to give you an idea of how to come up with your own mixtures.

Scientifically, we know that scent can easily trigger memories or emotions. If I smell...

Good Night Irene – I wish!

Let me say straight out that I suck at weather magic. I know why, too. I'm always worried about the consequences elsewhere if I try to change what's happening in my teensy corner of the world. We need rain but there might be someone that needs it more. Or maybe in times of excess rain if I were to work for less precipitation, it would go to someone that's already experiencing flooding. Mostly I worry about farmers. That concern deranges my focus and without that, spells don't work. So, I...

Witch Hunt – A Review

I have a habit of reading "munchable" books in the evening (baseball on in the background, naturally). I read a lot of serious stuff during the day and prefer to be entertained rather than educated at night.

Our purchase of Kindles earlier this year turned book-buying into instant gratification. I read a glowing review last week (and I do wish I could find it to give the author credit) of Witch Hunt by Devin O' Branagan. I was out of new, light reading so thought I'd give it a try. The...

Advance Apologies

I"m going to take a break from writing a weekly blog. I know, I know, the pundits say to get and keep your name in front of the public, you need to have a post on a regular basis. But frankly, although I'm accustomed to juggling several things at once, I'm swamped:

My accounting clients are, as usual, wanting everything yesterday. I swear, a couple of them are as ditzy as a stereotypical blond.I'm in the final throes of getting A Green Witch's Formulary out. Only one last step (waiting on the...

On Snail Mail …

In today's age of nearly-instant communication, the art of letter writing seems to have vanished. Mostly.

My long-time friend's computer crashed and, due to the economy, they don't have the money to either get it fixed or purchase a new one. How did I find this out? I got a letter in the mail.

As I read her newsy letter, I realized how much I actually missed getting something other than bills and adverts in the mail. For all her years, she still puts goofy stickers on the envelopes. Does your e...