Tues. Dec. 26, 2023: Happy Boxing Day!
image courtesy of Stocksnap via pixabay.comTuesday, December 26, 2023
Full Moon
Uranus, Jupiter, Mercury Retrograde
Chiron Direct
Foggy and wild
I hope you had a wonderful long weekend, whatever you celebrate!
Today’s serial episode is from Legerdemain:
Episode 149: Sherman and Sebastian Both Get Stubborn
Shelley doesn’t have time for misplaced male ego masquerading as honor in this crisis.
If you’d like to read more about the Substack controversy, there are some good articles on it. One is by Andrea Grimes (who moved over to WordPress), and you can read it here. The link takes you to the post with comments, so you’ll need to scroll up.
Another excellent post is Anne Cunningham’s “Cultivating a Garden of Nazis” where she mirrors many of my same thoughts on Elle Griffin’s post defending keeping extremists on the platform, and articulates them better than I could.
It’s ironic that all the Substack stuff and the rumors back in my previous location hit during the last stretch of the Chiron retrograde. I’d just been congratulating myself on the deep Chiron retrograde-related healing work I embarked on these past few months (little of which I’ve discussed publicly) and the universe laughed and gave me a wallop. That’s the way it goes, isn’t it? But I dug into the aspects over the last few days, made some decisions, and as of today, Chiron is direct until late July of next year.
What does that mean? Chiron is the asteroid of the Wounded Healer. When it’s in retrograde, it’s a good time to look at past wounds and figure out how to heal them, stop miring oneself in them and replaying them, learn from them, and move forward. Unfortunately, self-confidence tends to be at a low ebb during this retrograde (especially when there are other retrogrades at the same time), which makes the work harder. Once Chiron goes direct, you feel steadier on your emotional feet. The day of turning direct (today) often feels emotionally sticky, but hold the course and don’t get mired. Of course, Uranus, the planet of what makes you unique, is still in retrograde, as is Jupiter, the planet of expansion, and the danged Mercury, but we appreciate what we can get. Jupiter goes direct on the 30th, allowing for expansion into the New Year, and Mercury goes direct on New Year’s Day. We’re stuck with the Uranus retrograde until nearly the end of January.
Again, all of this astrological stuff is information to help you understand and work with various emotions and challenges. It’s a tool, not an excuse. “Why am I feeling this? Because x, y, z tangible things are going on. Why does it feel more intense and chaotic than usual? Oh, look, this is the pattern in the heavens, which means it’s more likely to feel these emotions right now. I’ll take a breath and stop telling myself I’m a failure for having them. And I will give other people who are also struggling an extra moment of grace. Instead of being re-active, I’ll take a minute to see if there’s a healthier response.” Which we should do anyway, but the astrological context is a tool to remind us.
Anyway, on Friday, as I ran my errands, I did a lot of thinking and weighing various options on several fronts. Mercury Retrograde is challenging for impulsive decisions and communication (and don’t buy a house, a car, a large appliance, or sign a contract during it, or you’ll miss important information in the details). Part of me wanted to put off decision making. But it’s also a good time to resolve issues. Put a lid on it. Cut the cord. Be done.
I had no intention of going to the library until after the Christmas holiday weekend, but, of course, more books came in, so I stopped by to clear off the little shelf they keep them on for me. And wish them a good holiday weekend.
Then, it was off to Big Y to get the last specifics I needed for the dinners on the Eve and the Day. I recalculated some of the meal decisions per what was in stock and looked good. I also bought a bread labeled as “babka” although it didn’t look like any babka I ever saw in NY. This was more like my favorite Portuguese Sweet Bread, but with raisins. It was fresh out of the oven, so I grabbed it.
Home, unloaded everything, and put it away so I could easily find it for the holiday meals.
While I was doing everything, I made a few decisions, and got to work putting them into play. I considered doing a tarot reading about these decisions, but I KNOW what I should do, so just stop faffing around and do it already.
After lunch, I decided to read. I finished Colleen Cambridge’s MURDER BY INVITATION ONLY and went back to Zadie Smith’s THE FRAUD. I should have spent time making the episode videos, but I didn’t feel like it.
Got ready to go to yoga. We were having a special relaxation yoga class at the studio, in honor of the classmate we lost this year, Mary. She loved relaxation and Christmas, so it was a class in her memory, and quite lovely. Two of her sisters attended.
Home, cooked trout for dinner with steamed vegetables and leftover sweet potatoes. Checked on some friends, who I know have a rough time over this holiday. Read and looked at other people’s holiday decorations on social media. I love seeing how people take joy in decorating. Took some extra meditation time in the evening, because I’d been on social media so close to bedtime.
Enjoyed the fleece sheets!
Up early on Saturday, which, in the Celtic calendar is “Nameless Day” or “In Between Day” or “Potential Day” — a day not associated to any of the trees. It’s about protection, reflection, and rebirth. A good day to figure out which potential inside you that you wish to manifest in the coming cycle.
I did my morning yoga and meditation practices. I’m making a bit of an adjustment to them, so that they flow better into the rest of the day, and provide a firmer foundation. I still write in longhand over my first cup of coffee (once the cats are fed), but I’m trying to hoist myself off the couch earlier to do the morning yoga and meditation, and then get going.
Made scrambled eggs to eat with the last of the babka. Yes, it was so good, we ate an entire loaf in less than 24 hours. Did the every-60-days-deep-cleaning of the coffee maker, and tried to scrub a pot that suffered from an unfortunate chocolate melting experiment. I see a purchase of more steel wool in my future.
I sat down and did the week’s episode videos for the serials, and uploaded/scheduled them. I did an additional post for Legerdemain’s 150th episode, which goes live on Thursday. I did the social media rounds for Saturday’s Deadly Dramatics episode, and then did a final round of promotions for both “Just Jump in and Fly” and “The Ghost of Lockesley Hall.” The “Just Jump” video always makes me laugh.
I edited an article. I knew I was procrastinating, when what I needed to do was draft another Legerdemain post.
Then, the moderator from my Mastodon instance got in touch. Someone whined that I was “excessively spamming self-promotion” about my work. The moderator disagreed, but I still have to go through the whole appeal process. Really? So film bros can post the same promo multiple times a day (usually for pieces depicting violence against women) and that’s “good business” but a woman posts different little videos once each about her comic romances and that’s “excessively spamming self-promotion.” Bite me, you misogynistic asshole. You don’t like promo posts? Scroll past, mute, or block. It’s called curating your feed. Amazing how these same people who whine about artists promoting their work are often the ones who advocate allowing hate speech, pretending it’s “free speech.” If you love “free speech” so much, where’s my freedom to discuss and share my work? Especially considering how much I boost and support the work of my fellow artists there. I re-read the Terms of Service and Code of Conduct – there’s nothing saying we can’t promote our own work. In fact, one of the reasons I joined this instance was due to a lengthy group conversation about the fact that we CAN promote our work.
I will go through the appeals process because it’s protocol. I’m not sure if I should move instances or just dump Mastodon. It doesn’t drive traffic to my sites, and, while I’ve met some interesting artists across disciplines, I’ve found them by accident. I can only spend time “just hanging out” on a site that also serves my work.
I hear so many conflicting things about Threads. I’ve hesitated to join it up to this point, but I kind of think I have to, if that’s where my audience perches.
More decisions to make.
I realize people struggle around the holidays, but lashing out at others just trying to get by isn’t the solution. Stop telling me to be nice to assholes, and tell THEM to treat others with respect.
And stop stirring up unnecessary drama just before a holiday to make yourself feel valid.
Finished reading THE FRAUD, which kept adding layers as it continued. Started Ann Patchett’s TOM LAKE.
On a happier note, two of my NY-based friends sent me e-cards that are absolutely hilarious. So that was fun. So much fun that all three cats came and watched the video cards.
Made a big batch of black bean soup (Moosewood recipe) that was very satisfying. And should get us through the week. I think I have enough red lentils still to make a curried lentil soup later this week.
It supposedly snowed in the evening – my phone kept saying “snow for another 60 minutes” but I saw nary a flake.
Up a little later than usual on Sunday (Christmas Eve) because Charlotte was being a pest, and I didn’t want to give in. Knew I should have sat down and gotten some writing done, but just didn’t feel like it, so I decided to give myself the time off.
It was cloudy and threatening to rain. A good day to curl up with a book. Finished reading TOM LAKE, which I liked a lot, in spite of disliking a particular stylistic choice in certain sections of the book. I understand why it was made, but I didn’t like it. But Patchett has the skills to get me to like the book even while disliking that choice.
Started reading this month’s Agatha Christie book club read, SLEEPING MURDER. My mom really liked it, and had no idea who did it. I enjoyed it, but figured out the killer pretty darn fast.
Christmas Eve dinner was baked cod, using a recipe in a cookbook I’m assigned to review. When I review (or judge, as I am in the upcoming contest) cookbooks, I always make a handful of recipes from them, to see how they work and if there are any glitches with them. I served the cod with sweet potatoes and steamed spinach. It turned out very well.
We open our gifts on the Eve, so that was fun. One friend sent me a box of all kinds of fun bits, and it was great to open each and enjoy them. Some of them included some of my favorite treats that I wasn’t able to find locally this year. One of the gifts is the LITERARY WITCHES ORACLE, which is fascinating, and works so differently from many other oracles. I’m excited to work with it.
Another favorite gift (from my mom) was my new yoga mat. Thick and squishy and blue (it says “teal” but it’s actually more turquoise). My old, thin, green mat was originally purchased at Barnes and Noble in midtown NYC on Fifth Avenue sometime back in the 90’s. It has served me well (and I’ll still use it for daily home practice), but it was time for a new mat!
The Advent candles and the bayberry didn’t burn down all the way, so we had to extinguish them and finish on the Day. The only time I REALLY have to sit up with the bayberry is over New Year’s, when I try to time it so it burns just a little over midnight, but am usually up until about 2 AM with it.
Tried to sleep in on Christmas Day, but the cats weren’t having it.
We do stockings on Christmas morning, which is always fun for the chocolate and the stuffed animals and novelty socks and funny little stuff in there.
Quiet day, texting with friends, reading, cooking, eating. I finished SLEEPING MURDER and started Christine Coulson’s ONE WOMAN SHOW. I’d gone to her author event at the Clark. The book and the process intrigued me so much I bought a second copy for a friend, who I hope likes it.
It’s a novel about a woman’s life told in short narratives written as museum labels. Christine wrote for the Met Museum in NYC for 25 years, before leaving to become a novelist, and she was fascinated by constructing a novel and a life in these short narratives. The structure is fascinating. Like a poet, every word has to work on multiple levels. And yet, there’s an entire story told, and several arcs (some heartbreaking, some funny, some both). As a reader, I was caught up in the story (she suggests reading it in one sitting). As a writer, I’m fascinated by how she pulled it off. Not that I’d try that construct.
I made Coq au Vin (the Ina Garten version) again for the Day’s big meal, because we enjoyed it so much last year. It worked again, served with mashed potatoes and creamed spinach. I originally planned to serve red cabbage, but I’d picked up the wrong jar of Aunt Nellie’s, and it was pickled beets and onions, not red cabbage. Ick. So creamed spinach it was. It was very good.
This particular recipe calls for a half bottle of burgundy and a quarter cup of Cognac. You could get dizzy just walking into the kitchen. But it was really good. And there are leftovers!
In the afternoon, I started reading Paulina Bren’s book THE BARBIZON, about the Barbizon Hotel in NYC, especially in its heyday of the 1950’s. Truly fascinating. Very well written. It led me to ordering several other books from the library, written by women who lived there for stretches of time.
The social pressures of the time she discussed reminded me very much of present-day Cape Cod.
It rained on and off all day, so it was a good day to curl up with a book. And be a cat mattress for Charlotte.
It also mentions The Martha Washington Hotel and the Allerton. “New York Movie,” my short story inspired by the Edward Hopper painting that keeps going off the rails at a certain point, has a central protagonist who lives there (although earlier). It also mentions the Allerton. A college friend lived in the Allerton for a few months, and I visited. Now, I’m curious about more history about both those hotels (although I did quite a bit of research on MW when I started writing “New York Movie”).
Finished burning down all but one of the Advent candles (so I guess I’ll have that one finished tonight).
Wanted to sleep in this morning, but the cats weren’t having it. But I got to do my morning yoga/meditation practice early.
Tessa wanted me to plug in the tree lights at 6:30 this morning, because unless it’s sunny, in her kitty logic, the tree should be LIT.
It’s Boxing Day, and I’d like to take it off, but there are things that need to be done. I kind of love how many small local businesses are taking this week or next week or both weeks off. Good for them.
On today’s agenda: thank you notes, Legerdemain, some editing work, a couple of short pitch coverages. Maybe a few other things. Putting around with some cleaning/organizing.
Have a good one!
