Those of you who know me, know that nature and I do not get along. I am allergic to just about anything that grows: trees, flowers, grass, and hair on all the cuddliest of pets. This may cause you to ask, why in the world would I ask to review “Mother Nature’s Herbal” by Judith Griffin. Easy, I never developed any food allergies and this girl loves to eat! I was excited to learn what things I ate and drank that may already be beneficial and if there were any other yummy options out there to try.
Well “Mother Nature’s Herbal” met, and exceeded, my expectations. After being out of print for nearly ten years, I can understand why it has been brought back. Firstly, the book is a visual dream. The cover has a beautiful aged Victorian appearance, and there are delightful vintage illustrations throughout. Enough about the visuals though, because books are to be read!
This book is insanely thorough. I’ve read my fair share of “herbals” before, and the amount of information here buries all of them combined. Section one is entitled “A Cultural Herbal” and man she isn’t kidding around! Native American, Mayan, colonial America, medieval era, Indian, Oriental, Mediterranean, and other cultures are all represented here. Unlike other books, Griffin doesn’t just give you a list and move on. Each chapter gives you a lesson in the culture and history of herbal use of the region, along with the author’s personal experiences of learning and working with the herbs. In addition, the big pay off for me…recipes! For instance, want to know how to make a colonial Thanksgiving turkey, pesto genovese, or paneer? Then buy this book! Now, not only can I justify my love of Indian food because of its herbal health benefits, I can try making some of my favorite dishes!
The second section of “Mother Nature’s Herbal” is “Grow and Use Your Own Herbs”. Not being the hands in the earth kind of gal, this part wasn’t nearly as exciting. That said, it was detailed, but written plainly enough, that even a indoors gal like myself could clearly understand how to grow a garden. Griffin covers just about anything you may want to know: how to grow your herbs organically, landscape plans for themed herb gardens, using old roses, and so much more.
After that, she advises you on what to do with your herbal harvests, such as herb vinegars, no salt herbal blends, teas, and again, much more. There is also a section devoted to the use of essential oils and flower essences that you may make out of your harvest. There’s even a growing guide, nutrient guide, and purchasing guide in the appendices.
“Mother Nature’s Herbal” is a fabulous resource, whether you’re a gardener, or just someone who likes to learn more about the food you eat.
Category: Reviews
Konichiwa Bitches
One of my all time favorite things is a musician with nothing to lose. That’s when things get interesting. Are they going to fade into obscurity? Will they sell out, perhaps more than they already had? Or, when no one seems to give a crap about what they do, will they let loose? The first two appeal to my catty nature, but the third is my favorite. The third brought us the Rick Rubin produced Johnny Cash, LL Cool J’s “Mama Said Knock You Out”, and the topic of this blog, the latest Robyn cd.
For those of you unfamiliar with Robyn, she’s the bleached out Swedish chick who had moderate success in the 90s with the song “Show Me Love”, and then, she was gone. Now I don’t know the details, but her new album is on an independent label, that she started, which says to me, no one would touch her. I hope this album has her laughing all the way to the bank. So, you’re a failed Swedish dance star, how to you open up your new album? Please view the video below, it’s only about a minute long and it is exactly how this album begins.
Oh yeah, Robyn brings it, as the kids say. What does the new album sound like? Imagine the very best of 80s synth pop, with the edge of hip hop, performed by a petite Swedish woman. It’s that messed up awesome and more! On the 80s edge, she takes all the 80s pop clichés and makes them classic. Complete with 80s style music videos, several songs have a very Cyndi Lauperish vibe to them, and yes, even a spoken word break down in the middle of the love song. It’s all there, but done with a sense of intelligence that doesn’t make them corny, just really good.
How does that get a hip hop edge, you ask? Well, first she’s got her patented 80s “white girl rap” called “Konichiwa Bitches”. This out JJ Fads JJ Fad! It buries “Fergilious”. You have no idea what I’m talking about, do you? Also, she takes techo pop and laces it with aggressive lyrics, my favorite example is the song “Handle Me”. Imagine a delicate female vocal in a pop song use the phrase “But you’re a selfish narcissistic psycho freaking bootlicking nazi creep.” Now you begin to understand the glory that is Robyn.
Here is one of my favorite songs “Be Mine”. It sounds a little like Cyndi Lauper, has the total 80s style video, and yes, the patented spoken word section. Enjoy!
A Goodly Review
“The Goodly Spellbook: Olde Spells for Modern Problems” should be required reading for anyone even considering studying magic. End of review. Seriously, I have read my fair share of books examining magical systems, schools, or spells, and none have impressed and inspired me as much as this book. I haven’t been this thankful for a book since “Magick for Beginners” by J.H. Brennan, and since that one is getting hard to come by, I’m extra glad to have a new book to recommend to any interested in magic. Now that you all know I LOVE this book, let me tell you why.
“The Goodly Spellbook” is written by Lady Passion and *Diuvei, who are High Priestess and High Priest of Coven Oldenwilde. Those of you who have been with The Magical Buffet since the beginning are no strangers to these names. Coven Oldenwilde was the first organization we profiled in issue one. In the very next issue Lady Passion wrote an article called, “THE WILD, WITCHY RIDE: How to Create and Conduct Elaborate, Popular, Public Sabbats”. I knew that Coven Oldenwilde was a special group and that Lady Passion was a gifted writer, I expected an interesting read, but instead was blown away. I started reading the preface of the newly released paperback, which was fine, but then on page 17 I read this line and knew I was about to read something extraordinary. “Magic is an authentic spiritual practice, best used in tandem with medical, legal, and other reasonable measures.” This sentence may seem mundane to some, but any who have read books about magic know that this level of intelligence and rationale are rarely exhibited.
In my opinion the book’s title is not adequate. “The Goodly Spellbook” sounds like it’s just a bunch of spells. A book of lists. This is not the case. The book is divided into 3 parts, scope, skills, and spells. The scope section is equal parts history, philosophy, and ethics. If everyone knew that all practitioners of magic followed the ethics laid out in this book, no one would fear magicians. Moreover, before all you haters out there get started, the Wiccan Rede is not printed in this text. So no fluffy bunny comments are allowed.
The skill section is a collection of everything you could ever need to know. A person could devote their whole life to the study of just what is in this skill section, never opening another book. “The Goodly Spellbook” covers correspondences, scrying, geomancy, chants, charms, magical alphabets, mystical dance, knot magic, and tons more!
Finally, the spell section has roughly 92 different spells for review. Each spell is described in detail, including variations, spell origin, timing, ingredients, recommended ambiance, and a section devoted to the magical theory behind the spell. For once, reading from a published spellbook is engaging.
It’s not just flash, there is real substance. Any leaders of a Coven could write a book about their unique practices, but “The Goodly Spellbook” not only discusses Coven Oldenwilde’s use of magic but also is thoroughly researched. The book is littered with footnotes that attribute a multitude of sources, and the bibliography, which is handily divided up by section (scope, skills, spells), is an impressive reading list, filled with respected classics and new interpretations.
Technically, I ended the review in the first paragraph, but for those of you here at the end, take this to heart, if you want to know what all magical practices should aspire to be, read “The Goodly Spellbook”. End of review, this time I mean it.
It’s Miss Jackson, Because I’m Nasty
For those of you just tuning in, my last blog was about the latest Britney Spear’s album “Blackout”. In the process of discussing the album I spent a bunch of time discussing Janet Jackson and the effects of her album “Janet”. In the interest of being fair and balanced (making me better than just about any news media outlet) I thought I should share my thoughts about the new Janet Jackson album “Discipline”.
Here’s the thing, every Janet Jackson album since “Control” has had a theme of some sort. “Control” was about asserting control over her life. My last blog talked about the “Janet” album at length, but essentially it was an empowered declaration of her sexuality. Unfortunately since that album there has been a theme of, I’m not just a sexual creature, I’m a freak. She’s a Jackson…I shouldn’t be shocked. There was the awkward “Velvet Rope” album and don’t even ask about “Damita Jo”.
This begs the question, what is the theme of “Discipline”? As I told my husband, I’m a bit confused. At first I thought it was Janet Jackson is a femme bot, but then I began to think it was Janet Jackson wants to be Barry White. My ever helpful husband suggested the theme was Janet wants to be a Barry bot. I think Rolling Stone magazine made a clever point in their review when they mentioned that Jackson’s voice was ultra digitized so when she busted out the sex talk no one would consider the idea that Jackson does those things with her fugly boyfriend, or is he a husband, Jermaine Dupre. Good plan.
Despite its S&M-esque cover art, title, and breathy interludes, this album is more sexy, like “Janet”, and less freak, like everything since. The first single, skip the video, “Feedback” is the best song on the disc. Honestly, I like all the mid-tempo and dance songs on the album. Like Britney, Janet doesn’t have an awesome voice. Her voice is suited for dance music, upbeat songs that have as much to do about production as vocal talent. I’ve never been a fan of Janet Jackson ballads, and this album doesn’t change that. In fact, it would have been nice if she had packaged the album like they did “Janet”, where the first half of the disc was all the dance music and the second half was all the slow jams. It would save me from skipping around so much.
Song for song this album is way better than Britney’s last effort. In the grand scheme of Janet Jackson albums, it’s not as good as the holy trinity of “Control”, “Rhythm Nation 1814”, and “Janet”, but it is the best album since then. Easily surpassing the four albums since “Janet” in 1993.
It’s Britney Bitches!
It seems to me the game plan for Britney Spear’s latest album “Blackout” was, channel Janet Jackson. It’s not a bad idea. Britney and Janet are very similar. Neither are stellar singers, they’re both about a package. Sexy female singer with awesome choreography. Like other misguided female artists before her, Britney (or her people) chose the wrong version of Janet to emulate. Britney was in the perfect place to recreate the excitement of Janet Jackson’s “Control” album. You know, “This is a story about control. Control of what I say. Control of what I do. And this time, I’m going to do it my way.” But no, oh no, again we have to witness a female pop tart tragically struggle to achieve the “Janet” album…and not hit the mark.
Everyone knows the “Janet” album, even if you think you don’t. It’s the album with the cover picture of Janet topless with a man’s hands covering her breasts. It’s a masterpiece album, littered with intelligent, danceable songs filled with subtle and not so subtle sexuality. In the recent past we’ve witnessed two women attempt the Janet reinvention with variable success. There was Christina Aguilera with her “Stripped” album, where she introduced the world to her alter ego X-tina. Of course, a big difference here is that Aguilera can sing, the woman has a power house voice. So even though the “Stripped” album was a hollow shell compared to the “Janet” album, she came out the other side okay. Then there is Nelly Furtado, an insanely talented singer/songwriter who had experienced moderate success, who decided to sex up her music and image, and now is a top 40 darling. Yes, her album “Loose” is successful, but it didn’t have the organic eventuality that the “Janet” album had. First Janet released “Control”, an album where she took the reigns of her destiny. Then was “Rhythm Nation 1814” where she introduced a legion of pop radio listeners to the concept of social consciousness, including yours truly. By the time “Janet” came out, Janet was a whole woman, so although shocking to some, “Janet” seemed like a natural progression, not a ploy to reinvent herself or to cause controversy.
There is nothing natural about “Blackout”. Now I don’t know who to blame, Britney, her people, her label, I just don’t know. The album is a fairly adequate dance/R&B album. The production values are fantastic, and you can tap your toe to every song. But who do I complain to that every freakin’ song on there is about sex? And not in a way that gets you hot, and not in a way that’s smart, but in a way that says “Please say you love me…I’ll put out.” Her first sing “Gimme More” does make some clever allusions to the idea that media attention prods her to make a spectacle of herself. I wouldn’t be so bitter about this album if there wasn’t this one bright shining example of opportunities missed….”Piece of Me”.
Britney didn’t help with the lyrics, but they sound like she could have. It’s a confrontational war anthem. It’s Janet’s “Control”. This should have been the first single, not the second. The video should have been tighter and more aggressive than it was. And “Piece of Me” should have been the inspiration for the rest of the album. Seriously, why couldn’t they have talked to Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, the architects of “Control”? “Piece of Me”, in my opinion is Britney’s best song ever, and a fantastic song when put up against other pop/R&B tunes. If only she had picked the right Janet…..
“Your Altar” Can Be Your Road Map
When you first start to read “Your Altar” by Sandra Kynes, you may feel a bit overwhelmed. If you’re like me, when you think of setting up an altar, particularly a home altar, you imagine a wonderful jumble of icons, mementos, crystals, and aromas. Set up solely to please the eye, with no deeper thought than that. Then you open up “Your Altar” and you find yourself going, what?! You want me to follow set ups?! Some so involved that I may want to chart them out?! Whatcha talkin’ about Sandra?
Then as you continue to read, you realize what’s going on. Sandra Kynes is providing us with a guide to exploring our relationship with our altar. She offers various game plans from approaching one-part altars (you know, altars with one thing) up to nine-part altars (you can guess the difference right?). I know, this still sounds complex and overwhelming, but once you settle in and surrender yourself to the book all becomes well.
“Your Altar” isn’t just a book about altars, although obviously it could have been. This is a book about symbolism, history, meditation, archetypes, and how all of that can be used to create your personal altar. Each altar set up is its own chapter, rich with details, charts, and diagrams all designed to help you determine what is right for you. Honestly, the book is so authoritative on matters of symbolism that I will probably add it to my stock of reference books that I go to when writing articles about symbols for The Magical Buffet magazine! This book isn’t a rulebook; it’s a guidebook. A map to your altar, if you will.
Before you start learning about different altar set ups Kynes talks about meditation. It’s a wonderful little introduction to the concept of meditation for someone new to the idea, and a nice reminder of how it should be approached for those familiar with the practice.
The first Appendix to the book gives a very brief overview of the history of altars. Obviously, I found this to be tremendously interesting and could’ve read a whole book just about this. Perhaps that will be Kynes next book. She follows that Appendix with a second one about preparing crystals and gemstones for use. A very helpful section that serves to remind us that you cannot just slap a quartz point down and call it a day.
“Your Altar” although at first may seem constrictive in the end can be a map to personal spiritual freedom.
The Thoth Companion: Reminding Me I’m a Fan Girl
In case you didn’t think the world of ceremonial magic was a complex tapestry, “The Thoth Companion” is here to set you straight. Every tarot deck deserves contemplation, a careful study of its symbolism and associations. However, when the rich world of tarot collides with the complex world of ceremonial magic, as it does in the Thoth tarot deck, a guide would be appreciated.
With that I present to you “The Thoth Companion” by Michael Osiris Snuffin. In the introduction he suggests that this book is not for beginners, and I would agree. Without some basic Golden Dawn or Thelema knowledge, the book may seem to be in another language. Although I’m fairly clueless when it comes to Crowley, I’m a bit of a Regardie fan girl, so I had enough knowledge to follow along.
This book is fantastic. I wish I could get someone to write as detailed a book about every tarot deck I like (although few decks are interesting enough to warrant this level of examination)! The book is divided into logical parts. First are the trump cards. Each card is discussed, and a photo of the card is provided. With each trump card the author lists the Hebrew letter, meaning, attribution, path, and connects. This has a lot to do with the Tree of Life, which is big in the ceremonial magic world. If you don’t know what the Tree of Life is that I’m talking about, you’re not ready for this book. Next section is the court cards. Again, detailed discussion of each card, and listed with the individual cards are elemental attribution, Zodiacal attribution, crest, symbols, key concepts. Finally, as far as card types go, there are the suit cards. As before, all the detailed discussion you could want, and for each card, Snuffin lists title, Qabalistic attribution, and Tetragrammaton attribution.
At the end of the book there is a small section about tarot divination. This offers advice to tarot readers and has examples of spreads. Most of what is discussed is fairly common in all tarot circles, and I feel the author made the correct choice in dedicating more time to examining the deck. There are dozens of books, and probably hundreds of websites, that can tell you about tarot reading, but until I read this book, I had never seen such a wonderful resource for a single deck.
The back has an appendix, with plenty of handy quick reference charts. There is also a bibliography that could serve any interested student well in learning all there is about ceremonial magic and tarot. It serves as a reminder to me that I am a fan girl when it comes to ceremonial magic, not a serious student.
To sum up, if you’re interested in ceremonial magic, such as Golden Dawn or Thelema, and/or you own the Thoth tarot deck this book is for you. This is a serious study of a single deck, so not for the casual tarot enthusiast.
Starr Place
Originally Published at www.whatgregeats.com.
I love eating out, as does my husband. Many married couples have hobbies; our problematic hobby is that we love to go to restaurants. For awhile we were pretty out of control. We would eat out to celebrate. We would eat out because we had a bad day. We would eat out because we were going to be out running errands. We would eat out because we just didn’t want to cook. Fortunately, with some kicking and screaming, almost entirely from me, we have managed to cut back on the eating out. It’s hard and I don’t like it, but unfortunately I’m getting older and my metabolism is slowing down. It’s better to eat healthy at home. Of course, we make exceptions, as we did this past weekend.
I am friends with a wonderful woman in another town about 4 hours away. She has a son in Rhinebeck, NY, which is only an hour and a half away from us. We always joked that when she went to visit her son, we should all meet up there and have dinner. Well, she emailed me to say that she was going to be in Rhinebeck and that her son, who I had been told is a very well liked host and restaurant manager, would be having a soft opening of a new restaurant he is a partner in called Starr Place. Would we like to go? Um, heck yeah. So after getting the okay for the car trip from my physical therapist, we drove out.
We had never been to Rhinebeck, NY but from the little bit I saw, it looks like a wonderful town. Nice enough that we want to go back and visit. Anyway, we enter the Starr Place for its soft opening. A soft opening is essentially a trial run; this one was all friends and family. Or in our case, friends of a family member. The restaurant wasn’t totally done being renovated. There are stairs going up and down, but for this evening, the main floor was the only one in use. The interior decorating was well planned. You can easily wear a suit to this restaurant, or jeans and a button down, and feel equally comfortable. A small dark wood bar sits in front of a beautiful glass and dark wood display of a multitude of spirits. An elegant, well stocked bar is a thing of beauty.
We were seated with the mom, the host/partner’s wife, and a couple of her friends. Everyone there seemed to know the bartender and the wife told our server to have the bartender make her whatever he wanted. An excellent sign. I ordered a cosmopolitan and my husband happily ordered Red Stripe, his all-time favorite beer. The cosmopolitan is the best one I’ve had since Graham’s in Saratoga Springs, NY closed (years ago).
To test the selection we opted to order plentiful appetizers and share. We had the grilled squid with baby arugula and salsa verde, falafel fritters with hummus and pita chips, French bread garlic, extra virgin olive oil and parsley pizza, and an order of fries with olivade (white cheese and olives). They were all very good. The real stand out for me was the grilled squid. Generally I don’t mind squid as long as it’s disguised, generally fried. This was just a generous piece of squid with grill marks. It was smoky and tender, I didn’t mind the fact that my squid appeared to be squid. After that, it has to be the fries with olivade. The fries were light and crisp and the olivade was just yummy.
After much debate and mind changing I settled on ordering the Idaho Brook Trout with lemon caper butter and apple walnut salad. The hubby opted for the cassoulet, which is pork, lamb, sausages, and white beans. Both dishes were delicious, but I think mine was better. I don’t believe I ever had trout before, and despite it not being as fresh as Greg would like, it was wonderful. The lemon butter was subtle and the fish was so flavorful, probably because of the fresh herbs skewered down the middle of it. I was enjoying it terribly when I was struck by a horrible thought. I leaned over to my husband and said, “We came out for tonight and I’m having fish and a salad!” Yes, one of the staple combinations from our healthy home cooking. Of course, our stuff never tastes like this! My husband reassured me that the two cosmos and all the appetizers definitely undid any health value of my entrée.
To be on the safe side, I ordered the chocolate pate for dessert. Sometimes I’m a chocolate person, other times not, but tonight I was and my inner chocolate beast was merrily sated by this dessert. It was two slices of chocolate presented in the way you might present a pate. The chocolate was firm on your fork when you dipped into it, but light like a mousse in your mouth.
The Starr Place has all the makings of your new special night out. The restaurant is elegant, but comfortable, the host is smooth and efficient, the bartender is fantastic, and the chef has obviously got the mad skillz (as the kids would say). If you’re within a two hour radius of Rhinebeck, NY I recommend checking it out once it’s open. You can keep track of that by visiting: www.starrplace.com.
Wild Nights Are My Glory
I know you should be in the middle of celebrating “Banned Books Week” but I felt the need to interrupt. Last month the world became a little less warm when author Madeleine L’Engle passed away. Despite her age, which was 88, L’Engle’s passing hit me fairly hard. It took a while to decide what if anything to say about it. A recent batch of storms helped me figure out what to say.
“Wild nights are my glory.”
Even though I read those words way back in fourth grade, even now, as I gaze out of our window and see a storm blowing in I say to myself, “Wild nights are my glory.” Those words were said by Mrs. Whatsit in Madeleine L’Engle’s book “A Wrinkle in Time.”
I had not been much of a reader. Then, in fourth grade our teacher, whose name I can no longer recall, forced us to read “A Wrinkle in Time.” When I say forced, I mean forced. We would sit in class and take turns reading it aloud. You could not escape it. I wish I could remember his name, because he changed my life forever.
“A Wrinkle in Time” slowly crept into my subconscious. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Meg, the awkward idiot/genius with a fierce heart. Charles Wallace, the young boy who represents the next step in human evolution. The twins, so remarkably normal. Mrs. Murray, the beautiful scientist with the violet eyes. Calvin O’Keefe, the sport. Mrs. Who, Mrs. Whatsit, and Mrs. Which, forces of nature, forever giants in my mind. It, the giant pulsating brain of my childhood nightmares. And the tesseract. Always the ant on the edge of a skirt.
The fourth grade will always be a significant grade. Every child I have ever shopped for has received the book “A Wrinkle in Time” as a gift the year they are in the fourth grade. No matter how old I get, I will never forget that in the fourth grade I read “A Wrinkle in Time”.
September 6, 2007 Madeleine L’Engle passed away at the age of 88. I doubt she’ll ever know how much she changed my life, but I’m sure she knows how many lives she touched.
It’s starting to rain now. I can hear the thunder.
“Wild nights are my glory.”
Moon Tides, Soul Passages
Originally Published on 4/7/07.
Are you Wiccan? Are you interested in astrology? Are you interested in the moon? Are you interested in mythology?
If you answered yes to any of these questions then you should definitely purchase a copy of “Moon Tides, Soul Passages” by Maria Kay Simms. It bears the subtitle of “Your Astrological Cycles of Personal and Spiritual Development”, and in those regards boy does this book deliver. Thanks to the software that comes with the book Simms takes you on a guided tour of your spiritual life through the phases of the moon. Rich with mythology, filled with beautiful illustrations, “Moon Tides, Soul Passages” is written with a voice of authority that helps the uninitiated, like myself, weave their way through a budding understanding of astrology, the moon, and the women’s mysteries.
Although the book doesn’t clearly tell you to, I would highly suggest that once you purchase “Moon Tides, Soul Passages” you skip to Appendix 1 and load the disc into your computer. With a couple of clicks you can run a detailed chart for yourself that you can reference as you work your way through the text. Simms’ writing is intimate and personal, but it also resonates with experience and expertise. There are plenty of personal examples, mythological associations, and celebrity information to help keep you entertained. Lastly, Simms concludes with numerous well constructed rituals to help you bring the moon into your spiritual life.
In short, “Moon Tides, Soul Passages” is an entertaining, informative, and at the list price of $22.95 (including the software!) it’s a steal. I enjoyed this book greatly and encourage others to give it a try…you won’t be disappointed.