Another Wheel

by Administrator, posted in Buddhism, Symbols

by Rebecca
illustration by Will Hobbs

In December of 2006, shortly after The Magical Buffet launched, I wrote an article about the Wheel of Life. I found this visual roadmap to enlightenment fascinating and have wanted to revisit Tibetan Buddhism ever since. Well, hold onto your wheels Buffet fans because after roughly two years Buddhist symbolism is back! It’s time to look at the Wheel of Law.

The Wheel of Law is also referred to as the Dharmachakra or Wheel of Dharma. Unlike the Wheel of Life, which is wheel-shaped and can been seen as making nods to the cyclic nature of humans, the Wheel of Law is a more accurate wheel in the fact that motion is implied by this symbol. Many Buddhists believe that the wheel’s motion is in accord with the evolution of Buddhism’s effects on humanity and the world around us. The Wheel of Law was first turned when the Buddha shared his original teachings in the Deer Park. This is where Buddha acquired his disciples and is why the Wheel of Law frequently is depicted with a deer on each side of it. However, just like the Wheel of Life, this wheel is a map to enlightenment.
The Wheel of Law looks like a classic steering wheel of a ship with eight spokes. The eight spokes represent the Noble Eightfold Path of Buddhism: right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration. The hub represents discipline and the rim, which holds the spokes, represents mindfulness, which holds everything together. This wheel is so important to Buddhism that before there were images of the Buddha, the Wheel of Law was used in artwork to represent Buddha. In fact, this wheel rates high enough to get its own mudra, a symbolic gesture used in Buddha images as well during Buddhist meditation or ritual to evoke particular ideas. The U.S. Armed Forces use the Wheel of Law as the insignia for a Buddhist chaplain. Buddhist chaplain? I gotta’ get me an interview with one of those!

Circles, and images of circular things, are found everywhere symbolically, but when it comes to wheels, I think the Buddhists may be the kingpins of that particular circular symbol.

What’s the Deal with “Watchmen”?

by Administrator, posted in Books, Geek Stuff, Movies

On March 6, 2009 a long awaited movie adaptation of the graphic novel (collected comic book series) “Watchmen” will be in theaters. What started as a project originally tapped director Terry Gilliam stated was impossible to translate to film is now being brought to the big screen by director Zach Snyder of “300” fame. Those of you who know comic book fans, who at this point are in a near ecstatic state, may find yourself wondering, what is the big stinkin’ deal about “Watchmen”?

I have generally found myself hesitant to write about comic books here on The Magical Buffet. I do not feel I have the knowledge of the history of the medium to discuss it intelligently, or the intellect to discuss the medium in such a way that does it the justice it deserves. My explanation of why “Watchmen” is such a big deal is my opinion alone, and undoubtedly will not do this book justice. I could fill pages mentioning the awards and acclaim this collected comic series won, and I could quote experts in the field on the importance of “Watchmen”, but this isn’t a collegiate write up, this is hopefully an everyman accessible glimpse at why “Watchmen”, and its upcoming film, are such a big deal. Aimed especially for those who are not comic book readers.

In order for me to explain why “Watchmen” matters so much to me, I have to start out at the beginning. Like most girls growing up, I wasn’t a comic book reader. I would read “Garfield” and “Peanuts”. Occasionally my mom would pick me up a “Misty” or “Archie” comic book at the grocery store. My only other experiences with comic books were their translation onto the big screen, like the “Superman” movies. I didn’t read any other comics until the middle of high school when my friend Doug loaned me his copy of the graphic novel “Season of Mists” for the comic book series “Sandman” by Neil Gaimen. This book was eye opening for me. First, I had not known that comic books were sometimes bound by story arc into books, generally referred to as graphic novels. In addition, I was unaware that there were comic books that didn’t deal with superheroes. The complexity and passionate stories told in that first book impressed me so much that one of my first comic book purchases when I moved to New York was to buy every “Sandman” graphic novel….all at once.

Why does that bit of background matter? It shows my atypical introduction to comics. Until rather recently, I had never read a “superhero” comic book. No “X-Men”, “Spiderman”, or even “Batman” had been touched. Which, from what I’ve been led to believe, is not how it normally works. (Much the way that I didn’t start my role-playing experiences with “Dungeons and Dragons”.) Shortly after my now husband and I started dating we had a very important book exchange. One of those tests. If you “get” this, then you’re okay, kind of things. I loaned him “Neuromancer” by William Gibson and he gave me the graphic novel “Watchmen”.

I’m not going to give you some sort of plot synopsis or character outlines. Instead, I’m going to tell you what really matters to me about the book.

Why would a normal man choose to don a mask and fight crime without the backing of the police or superhuman abilities? What happens to a normal man who can rewrite reality but has no human connection to the reality in which we live? Is it ever morally correct to comprise? Are love and hate more closely connected than we would like to believe? Does doing whatever it takes to save your loved ones make you a monster? What happens to a masked vigilante when they quit?

All those questions, and more, are asked and explored within a back drop of an alternate history of the United States in the 1980s where vigilantes have been outlawed, we’re moments away from nuclear war with Russia, and someone is murdering retired masked heroes. For me, this is what a “superhero” comic book should be.

That is what the big deal is with the “Watchmen” movie. The best of everything comic books can be will be translated to film and offered up to the general population. Will the film live up to its source material? Will people unfamiliar with the book “get” it? We’ll have to wait until March 6 to find out. And the waiting is killing me.

www.watchmenmovie.com

Tree Medicine, Magic and Lore: Alder

by Administrator, posted in Guest Authors

by Ellen Evert Hopman
illustration by Will Hobbs

Alder thrives in damp areas – wet lands, flood plains, river banks and moist lowlands, the types of places that ancient people commonly sought out for habitation. Ancient Celtic tracks and roads were made of its wood due to its ability to withstand rot. Alder was used in piles for lake dwellings, for water-mill wheels, house foundations, canal locks, milk pails and pipes. There was an ancient Celtic God named Alisanos, the Alder God. Alder was also known as “Bran’s Tree”. Bran is the ancestor God of the Celtic Cult of the Sacred Head. He was a Celtic hero who instructed his followers that after his death his head was to be placed on a pillar so that he could continue to give them counsel. Later they were told to bury his head at the White Mount, the site of the present Tower of London as a powerful talisman of protection.

As long as the head remained buried Alba would be safe from invasion. Arthur made a fatal mistake by digging up the head, the Saxons invaded not long after. But Bran’s sacred birds, the ravens, have dwelt at the site ever since.

Alder makes an excellent charcoal for gunpowder, smith’s fires, and potter’s ovens. It is a tree sacred to Phoroneus, inventor of fire, and to Astarte and Her son, the Fire God. Fresh cut Alder wood turns red as blood. The bark gives a red dye, the twigs a brown dye. The cones make a black dye and the inner bark of the root dies yellow.

Irish tradition states that the first man was created from an Alder, the first woman from a Rowan.

Alder bark is prepared for medicinal use by carefully scraping off the dead outer bark and using the green, living tissue underneath. Alder bark can be simmered in water to make a wash for very deep wounds. The leaves and bark are simmered into a bitter tea for tonsillitis and fever. The leaves are used in poultices to dry up breast milk.

The Penobscot Indians used Alder bark tea to stop cramps and vomiting and in a Seven Herbs formula that was taken before a sweat lodge ceremony. The seven herbs were; Alder bark, Witch hazel twigs, Fir twigs, Cedar branches, Sweet-flag, Prince’s-pine, Lambkill, and Brake. The Mohegan used Speckled Alder twigs in decoctions for sprains, bruises, headache, and backache. The inner bark of Alder is used in poultices to stop swelling. The fresh juice stops itching. Alder bark tea can be used in the vagina as a douche or in the rectum for hemorrhoids.

Alder leaves were once gathered while they were still damp with dew and used to cover the floors of a house plagued by fleas or other insects. Adhering to the leaves the insects died. Alder pollen is a favorite of bees. Grouse eat the leaves, buds and seeds, beaver and rabbit chew the bark.

about the author:

Ellen Evert Hopman is a Druid Priestess, herbalist and author of “Priestess of the Forest: A Druid Journey”, “A Druids Herbal – Of Sacred Tree Medicine”, “Walking the World in Wonder – A Children’s Herbal” and other volumes. Visit her website for more!

Bibliography
Adams, Barbara Means, Prayers Of Smoke, Renewing Makaha Tribal Tradition; Celestial Arts, Berkeley, CA 1990

Baker, Margaret, Discovering The Folklore Of Plants; Shire Publications Ltd., Aylesbury, Bucks, U.K. 1975

Beith, Mary, Healing Threads, Traditional Medicines of the Highlands and Islands; Polygon, Edinburgh, Scotland, 1995

Brunaux, Jean Louis, The Celtic Gauls: Gods, Rites and Sanctuaries; Seaby, London, 1988

Calder, George (translator), Book of Ballymote: Auraicept Na nEces (The Scholars Primer); Edinburgh, 1917

Carmichael, Alexander, Carmina Gadelica, Hymns and Incantations; Floris Books, Edinburgh 1992

Cunliffe, Barry, The Celtic World; St. Martin’s Press, New York, New York, 1993

Cunningham, Scott, Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs; Llewellyn Publications, St Paul, MN 1986

Ellis, Peter Berresford, Celtic Women; Wm. B. Erdman’s Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, MI, 1996

Erichsen-Brown, Charlotte, Medicinal and Other Uses Of North American Plants; Dover Publications Inc., New York, NY 1989

Evans-Wentz, W.Y., The Fairy Faith In Celtic Countries; Citadel Press, New York, NY 1990

Farrar, Janet and Stewart, The Witch’s Goddess; Phoenix Publishing Inc, Custer, WA 98240

Frazier, James G., The Golden Bough, The Roots of Religion And Folklore; Avenel Books, NY 1981

Friedrich, Paul, Proto-Indo-European Trees; The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL 1970

Green, Miranda J., The Celtic World; Routledge, London, 1995

Green, Miranda J., The World of the Druids, Thames and Hudson, London 1997

Grieve, M., A Modern Herbal, Dover Publications Inc., New York, NY 1971

Hoagland, Kathleen, 1,000 Years of Irish Poetry, The Gaelic and the Anglo-Irish Poets From Pagan Times To The Present; The Devin-Adair Company, Old Greenwich, CT 1981

Hopman, Ellen Evert, A Druids Herbal For The Sacred Earth Year; Inner Traditions/Destiny Books, Rochester, VT 1995

Hopman, Ellen Evert, Tree Medicine, Tree Magic; Phoenix Publishers, Custer, WA 1991

Kelly, Fergus, A Guide To Early Irish Law; Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, Dublin, 1991

Kondratiev, Alexei, The Apple Branch; The Collins Press, Cork, 1998

Lust, John The Herb Book; Bantam Books, New York, 1974

Markale, Jean, The Druids; Inner Traditions, Rochester, VT, 1999

Matthews, Caitlin & John, The Encyclopedia of Celtic Wisdom; Element Books, Rockport, MA 1994

Matthews, John, The Druid Sourcebook; Blanford Press, London, 1996

McNeill, F. Marian, The Silver Bough, Vol. One; William Maclellan, Glasgow, 1977

Meyer, Kuno, Selections from Ancient Irish Poetry; Constable, London, 1959

Moerman, Daniel E., Medicinal Plants Of Native America; University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology Technical Reports, Number 19, Ann Arbor, MI 1986

Mooney, James, History, Myths and Sacred Formulas of the Cherokees; Bright Mountain Books, Ashville, NC 1992

Naddair, Kaledon, Keltic Folk and Faerie Tales; Century Hutchinson Ltd., London, 1987

O’Boyle, Sean, Ogam, the Poet’s Secret; Gilbert Dalton, Dublin, 1980

Rees, Alwyn and Brinley, Celtic Heritage; Thames and Hudson, New York, 1989

Ross, Anne, Pagan Celtic Britain; Columbia University Press, New York, NY 1967

Saintine, X.B., The Myths Of The Rhine; Charles E. Tuttle Co., Rutland, VT 1967 (Reprint of the 1875 edition)

Squire, Charles, Celtic Myth and Legend; Newcastle Publishing Co. Ltd., USA, 1975

Stone, Merlin, Ancient Mirrors Of Womanhood; Beacon Press, Boston, MA 1984

Thinking Inside the Box

by Administrator, posted in Geek Stuff, Guest Authors

by Rich Rittenhouse

There is a certain plot that has been used time and time again in teen comedies. It goes something like this: Geeky Boy has a crush on Unobtainable Perfect Girl. Geeky Boy has a platonic friendship with Geeky Girl. Geeky Boy strives and schemes for the affections of UPG, oblivious to the fact that Geeky Girl has a crush on *him*. This goes on until 1) Geeky Boy thinks he is about to get UPG, then gets humiliated by her and her friends and realizes she’s a cruel bitch, or 2) Geeky Boy actually does get inside UPG’s 1980’s pink spandex hot pants, but discovers that despite her Phoebe Cates level of Reagan-era foxiness she’s vapid and/or a cruel bitch (perhaps this realization comes from Geeky Boy hearing UPG dis and/or plan a mean prank on Geeky Girl), or 3) Geeky Boy actually gets in UPG’s pants, but realizes that even though she has big sexy mall hair and screws like a minx, she’s mainstream and superficial and he can’t talk to her about important things like Dungeons and Dragons, Nolan Bushnell, or the new Wall of Voodoo LP. And at long last, Geeky Boy learns what we the late-night Showtime viewing audience have known all along, that the perfect girl for him was right there with him the whole time, and he rushes into the arms of Geeky Girl. Cue credits. Add subplot(s) regarding video game tournaments, a wet T-shirt contest, and/or terminal illness to taste.

The 1981 Tom Moldvay Basic Set is my Geeky Girl.

When I first started my “Retro 80’s D&D” game, it was a sort of stop-gap thing: I really wanted to return to gamemastering, but I was sort of gun-shy from the last RPG I had ran a few years before, a perhaps overly-ambitious superhero campaign that had crashed and burned spectacularly. So I wanted a system that was as simple as possible, just to take some of the work and stress off myself. The idea was that I would start the game using the old pink-box rules, I guess as a sort of nostalgic training wheels, then switch over to 4th Edition Dungeons and Dragons when it came out.

Then a funny thing happened. After a few games, I stopped thinking of it as “My Retro 80’s D&D game” and just started thinking of it as “My D&D game”. The decision to use the old rules started to feel less and less like an ironic experiment or a clever stunt and started to feel more like a sensible way to run a fun game without crap getting in the way. The players, too, had a change of heart. The first session there was some bemused grumbling about why I wasn’t running 3.5…this was totally gone by the next game. The simpler rules took a lot of the work out of the game for the players, and in particular they were all happy to see the back of Attacks of Opportunity, something that had slowed previous games to a crawl with arguments and second-guessing. After Teasop the Halfling finally drove his magic sword Ghostbreaker into Count Vorlock’s heart and ended the first “season” of the game, I asked the players if they wanted to switch over to 4th Edition and it was a unanimous “No”.

And so it goes. For my “new” D&D game I have gone back to the rules we used for my very first D&D game at age 11. The late Mr. Moldvay’s adaptation of Arneson and Gygax’s rules is so simple that even my players that have never played any version of D&D before can learn them within minutes. Of course, in gaining simplicity you loose options, but the older rules are so robust that new stuff can be added on the fly easier. Many of the story elements that the newer rules use feats and prestige classes to model we now simply role-play, often to greater effect than a simple +2 here or +4 there. And now I have the new Goblinoid Games LABYRINTH LORD hardcover that puts a streamlined “retro-clone” version of the old Basic and Expert boxed sets together into one book, so I don’t even have to put any more wear on my battered originals.

I’m probably going to pick up fourth edition, or at least the Player’s Handbook, sooner or later, but right now I’m not in any hurry.

POSTSCRIPT: I never did pick up 4.0.

Author’s Bio:
Rich Rittenhouse is a longtime tabletop RPG player from the rural Midwest. In Rebecca’s opinion, he should be the one with a website.

Buddhafuls: Buddhafy Your World

by Administrator, posted in Art, Products

Yes, the name is too cute. I hear ya’. But this website has some awesome stuff!

(from their website)
Meditation on sacred images has long since been used in Buddhism, and other spiritual practices, to increase health, inner peace and bring one closer to enlightenment. Buddhafuls provides unique and beautiful sacred fine art prints and gifts, from Buddhist and other traditions, intended to not only beautify your space, but create a space that serves to enlighten the soul.

Everyone visit the Buddhaful website! Feel free to purchase any of the following things for me! I thank you in advance for your generous gifts!











Look Ma’! No Instruments!

by Administrator, posted in Music

Nothing fantastically deep or insightful today folks, just a few videos that hopefully will dazzle you.

The human voice is truly fascinating. We were all reminded of this in the 1980s thanks to one hopelessly addictive song by Bobby McFerrin, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” and the performances of actor Michael Winslow in the “Police Academy” movies. And then life, and pop culture, moved on.

However, I’ve been reminded again at how imaginative people can be and how versatile the voice is. Not too long ago my husband bought the “Shadowrun” game for his PC. The intro to the game has this fantastic song “Baiana” by Barbatuques. I purchased it on iTunes and it found its way onto every mix CD my husband and I made for months! Imagine my surprise when I finally saw the song performed live….the song is entirely voice and rhythmic step. Check it out!

Then, my friend Jason sent me a video of two guys, Nathan “Flutebox” Lee and Beardyman, performing at the Google offices in London. Technically Lee uses an instrument, a flute, but come on; he’s doing percussion and flute…at the same time! At the 4 minute mark Beardyman comes on. It’s like a full on techno club coming from one tiny British man. It’s fantastic! Not only is it musically impressive, but they both have a real sense of humor and reverence for pop culture that comes through in their performances.

Like I said folks, no deep messages here, no real educational content, just a little reminder that people are capable of amazing things.

Annual Golden Oak Winners Announced

by Administrator, posted in Events, Guest Authors

I received some exciting news in my inbox yesterday. The 2008 “Oakie” Awards were announced. I’m thrilled to tell you that Magical Buffet contributor and all-around go-to Druid for The Magical Buffet won “Best Academic Book” for “A Druid’s Herbal of Sacred Tree Medicine” (which I loved) and even sweeter is that she won for “Best Druidical Essay” entitled “Female Druids” which appeared right here on The Magical Buffet website. That’s right folks, our website has award winning content. Not surprisingly, it’s content not written by myself.

Congratulations to our friend and supporter Ellen Evert Hopman! You rock!

To read the complete list of winners, click here.

To learn more about Ellen Evert Hopman visit her website!

Stay tuned readers, this month we will be debuting the first of many articles by Hopman!

The Wiccan Rede Project: Raven Digitalis

by Administrator, posted in Guest Authors, Religion, Wiccan Rede Project, Wiccan/Pagan

‘Will’ & the Wiccan Rede
An Extract from “Goth Craft: The Magickal Side of Dark Culture”
By Raven Digitalis (used with the author’s permission)

In his book Magick in Theory and Practice (Castle Books, 1991), Aleister Crowley defines magick as “The Science and Art of causing Change to occur in conformity with Will.” This may sound like a very simple and straightforward definition, which it is, but the magician must really dissect what these words mean in order to come to a fuller grasp of the process. I have found Mr. Crowley’s definition to be not too far off from many other occultists’ personal viewpoints, regardless of their level of respect for the guy. To first analyze this statement, we must understand what Crowley meant by “will.” To draw a correlation with modern witchcraft, the final stanza of the fifty-two lined Wiccan Rede is this:

Eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill:
An’ it harm none, do what ye will.

This is a modification of Crowley’s spiritual principle “Do what thou Wilt shall be the whole of the Law.” This is one of the primary phrases of Thelemic philosophy, which is said to have been delivered by spiritual means to Crowley and his wife while in Cairo, Egypt on their honeymoon.

After his wife Rose began experiencing a number of occurrences in which she channeled arcane spiritual messages, Crowley administered a sequence of tests that showed that Rose possessed information impossible to know without massive amounts of prior research, apparently delivered to her from legitimate external sources. Crowley later identified these sources as the Secret Chiefs (Masters) of the Great White Brotherhood (Lodge), who are seen as a number of ascended masters who uphold evolutionary consciousness on the earth plane.

The height of the Cairo working was Crowley’s instruction to sit in a temple at noon for an hour on three successive days to receive a channeling from an external source himself. It was then that Crowley received a transmission that became known as Liber AL vel Legis (Liber CCXX): The Book of the Law. The book was later researched and declared genuine by a number of occultists. The being that delivered the information identified himself as Aiwass, who became recognized as Crowley’s Holy Guardian Angel.

The cryptic Egypt-centered philosophies delivered in The Book of the Law became the primary teachings of the path of Thelema, the magick of which works to push the practitioner to individually find the way to connect with the higher, cosmic self or God-self, thus uncovering one’s True Will (cosmic destiny) in order to achieve the Great Work: that which we are destined to achieve during our incarnation. Another message delivered in the channelings of Aiwass was “Thou hast no right but to do thy Will,” stating that all things done in life in accordance with one’s True Will are correct and spiritual, while anything done out of line and against one’s will is incorrect and thus sinful.

Like Crowley’s channeled philosophies, the final line of the Wiccan Rede does not mean “go ahead and do whatever the hell you want.” If the Thelemic definition of will is taken into account, it portrays the fact that all acts of magick are part of one’s life-plan and that magickal practitioners help uphold the world in which we exist. This includes 100% personal responsibility for any action one takes. It does not mean pursuing all temptations and pleasures of the flesh; nor does it mean to invite ego or chaos above morality. At the same time, it doesn’t mean to disregard them. It means uncover your destiny and follow it accordingly through conscious thought. One’s destiny is one’s life path; that which is meant to be accomplished. This includes both one’s greater destiny or life’s work as well as every moment of being; that which constructs the bigger picture. Thelemic magicians call the accurate following of one’s True Will the “Great Work.”

Gerald Gardner and Aleister Crowley were in contact whilst developing their own magickal systems: Crowley, the Thelemic magick of the OTO under his leadership, and Gardner, modern Wicca. They exchanged an unknown amount of material that helped one another form their magickal systems. They also interacted with other magicians and witches of the time, who exchanged multiple ideas and traditions between themselves. We do know that Gardner was initiated in Crowley’s OTO. While Gardner and Crowley’s relationship remains more or less ambiguous to this day, it’s speculated that the final lines of the Rede, which are seen in a similar form in Gardner’s Old Laws (Gardner did not write the Rede we are now familiar with), are modifications of Crowley’s input. It has even been speculated that Crowley actually wrote most of Gardner’s original Book of Shadows upon receiving payment to do so! Still others believe that Gerald Gardner modified Doreen Valiente’s writing The Witches’ Creed to form portions of his Old Laws, or that he created lines now integrated in the Rede as a combination of the Creed and the Thelemic Law. Other theorists who do believe Gardner had a strong influence in the creation of the Rede believe that he simply borrowed lines from Crowley’s material in the process of creating modern Wicca. For example, a couple of lines from Crowley’s Gnostic Mass are used word-for-word in the invocation of Drawing Down the Moon. The Drawing Down is accredited to Doreen Valiente, the first Priestess of Gardnerian Wicca.

In the Ostara 1975 issue of The Green Egg periodical, Lady Gwen (Gwynne) Thompson published The Rede of the Wiccæ (which is the Wiccan Rede), attributing the material to her deceased paternal grandmother Adriana Porter, who was said to have gotten it from earlier sources. Is this the origin of the Rede, and if so, how did Ms. Porter compile her material? We do know that Lady Gwen’s version was circulated among members of the New England Covens of Traditionalist Witches (NECTW). Regardless of the text’s origins, which are as of now unknown, the idea of will in both systems remains very much aligned. They are very similar and carry the same message: do the life’s work that you are meant to do.

Author’s Bio:
Raven Digitalis (Missoula, MT) is the author of Shadow Magick Compendium: Exploring Darker Aspects of Magickal Spirituality and Goth Craft: The Magickal Side of Dark Culture, both on Llewellyn. He is a Neopagan Priest and cofounder of the “disciplined eclectic” shadow magick tradition and training coven Opus Aima Obscuræ, and is a radio and club DJ of Gothic and industrial music. Also trained in Georgian Witchcraft and Buddhist philosophy, Raven has been a Witch since 1999, a Priest since 2003, and an Empath all of his life. Raven holds a degree in anthropology from the University of Montana and is also an animal rights activist, black-and-white photographic artist, Tarot reader, and is the co-owner of Twigs & Brews Herbs, specializing in bath salts, herbal blends, essential oils, and incenses. He has appeared on the cover of newWitch magazine, is a regular contributor to The Ninth Gate magazine, and has been featured on MTV News and the ‘X’ Zone Radio program. Visit Raven at www.ravendigitalis.com and www.myspace.com/oakraven.