A Bit of Halloween Spirit

Flying Witch on a broomstick sparkles in the evening light.

Long time readers of this blog know that Halloween is one of my favorite times of year. A wonderful reminder of those carefree days of my childhood. Growing up in New England, the autumn season was filled with iconic memories; cool, crisp nights, falling leaves in brilliant hues of red, yellow and brown, pumpkins, apple picking, warm cider, and hay rides leading up to the excitement of Halloween. Many decades on from my childhood, one still looks back fondly at all the fun and excitement of the season. A pumpkin and various seasonal and Halloween themed decorations still adorn the doorstep every year. Most Halloween evenings I'm home, dressed in some costume to answer the door for trick-or-treaters, dispensing chocolate to kids in the neighborhood. Two years ago I dressed as Harry Potter...and ever since,  the kids in the neighborhood still call me Harry when the see me throughout the year.

Roman Centurion and a Wizard at a Halloween party

This year I chose to dress as a wizard. I wasn't specific as to which one, Dumbledore, Gandalf or Merlin, I just wanted to dress as a good wizard. Perhaps all this dressing up in costumes sounds silly and immature, but it is fun. It is also a big business in the US. Yesterday I realized that a wig was still in order to complete my costume, so off to the shops in search of some locks. Luckily, even at the last minute the Halloween store in Burbank had a handy wizard wig and beard kit! It was a little itchy and hot, but it did the trick. So here I am, as a wizard. Incidentally the wand was one I bought at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios (all that means is I paid too much for it). The robes however are genuine movie studio costumes, I rented them from Western Costumes in Burbank. It turned out to be a fun costume. This photo above is from a Halloween party last night, but I plan to reprise this look again Monday evening for this year's trick-or-treaters. My inner child is beaming with joy yet again. Happy Halloween to you.

Happy Halloween

Wishing you a very Happy Halloween~

Halloween Series: Meet a Real Witch

As part of my week-long Halloween series, today I present a post about Witches. Not the kind in Harry Potter or the Wizard of Oz, but rather a world-famous real living Witch, Laurie Cabot. Laurie is one of the most well known Witches in the world, who popularized modern Witchcraft here in the US nearly 40 years ago. She has written several books: The Power of the Witch, The Witch in Every Woman, and Celebrate the Earth. She has also founded the Cabot Tradition of the Science of Witchcraft and many years ago co-founded the Witches' League for Public Awareness and Project Witches Protection to defend the civil rights of Witches. Laurie is 75 years old and lives in Salem, Massachusetts where she runs a Witch supply shop called The Cat, the Crow, and the Crown. The following information about Witches is directly from her website:
"Do's and Don'ts of the Craft":

1. Witches do not do evil - They believe that doing evil and harm is against all ethical and moral laws. Further, Witchcraft tells us: "An ye harm none (not even yourself), do what ye will."

2. Witches do not worship Satan - They do not have a Satan/Devil or any all-evil deity in their religious structure. Witchcraft is a religion that underscores polarity and views God and Goddess as equal entities.
3. A male witch is not a Warlock - The word "Warlock" is a Scottish word meaning "oath breaker" and became a term designating a male Witch during the "burning times" (i.e.; the Inquisition). Male as well as female practitioners of the Craft are known as Witches.
4. Witches wear clothing of every color and every style - Many Witches do choose to wear black clothing or ritual robes. The color black is the culmination of all vibrational rates of light on the material plane. Black absorbs light information and helps Witches be more receptive to psychic impressions and energies.

5. Witches come from every socio-economic and ethnic background - Many witches are professional people holding positions of responsibility such as Doctors, Nurses, Police Officers, Teachers, etc. Witchcraft does not discriminate against color or ethnic origin and does view everything as equal in the eyes of the Goddess and God.

6. Witches do use spells - A spell is a thought, a projection, or a prayer. Other religions use prayer, meditation, projection and ritual to produce an intended result. The word "spell" does not imply doing evil or harm.

7. Witches do use magic wands - Often you see the use of magic wands in children's cartoons and movies making the idea seem frivolous. In actuality the magic wands are used in healing for directing energy.

8.Witches do use Witchcraft as a science, an art and a religion - They use their knowledge and magic in harmony with the Universe and Nature around them.

9.The word "Witch" has a deep and rich history - As defined by the Oxford English Dictionary "Witchcraft" is a Celtic word meaning the wise, good people. "Wicce" designates a female Witch where as "Wicca" designates a male Witch.
10. In the religion of Witchcraft the pentacle is viewed as an amulet and a symbol for protection - The five-pointed star represents the human body and the earth. In combination, the star surrounded by the circle represents the human body encompassed by the protection of the Goddess/God force. The pentacle is the symbol for Universal Wisdom.

11. Witches concern themselves with ecology - They have never forgotten this basic fact: the World is not our enemy. Neither is it inert, dumb matter. The Earth and all living things share the same life-force. They are composed of patterns of intelligence, of knowledge, and of divinity. All life is a web. We are woven into it as sisters and brothers of all. Witches need to be grounded in both worlds and awake to their responsibilities for both worlds. It is only being responsible human beings that we can be responsible Witches, and only responsible Witches will survive.**Excerpt from "Power of the Witch" by Laurie Cabot,Delacourt Press. (Dell Publishing) N.Y., N.Y., October 1989

Thanks for stopping by today and meeting a real witch!

-Rick Rockhill

Halloween Is Just Around the Corner

Many of you know that I work in the retail pet supply industry, and love animals. I'm always a little leery of people who don't like animals. I'm not saying everyone has to LOVE animals, but when someone says they dislike animals I have a hard time warming up to them. I happen to have two dogs, a cat and of course a world-famous betta fish. My pets are a big part of my life, in many ways they are our "kids". In my position I meet a lot of pet parents who are crazy about their four legged-friends too. One of the more interesting examples of people having fun with their pets is around Halloween. There are retailers like us who sell fantastic costumes for dogs and cats. Now before I come across like a complete shill for my company, I wish to reinforce that this is not a paid post, it is just me writing my little old blog, about my personal opinions, with no affiliation to my employer. That being said, we sure have some stinkin' cute Halloween costumes this year! I was thinking of sending a costume to my mom for her Shitzu, "Abbie", but I can't make up my mind which one. I think Sheldon may be the caveman or construction worker, but I have not decided yet. Last year I waited too long to buy a costume for Koshimi and we were sold out of the good ones. For the sake of making this a little more fun, I borrowed a few images from our website, just to show you how much fun it is to dress up your dog at Halloween.

above: The Pirate...where is Johnny Depp- I mean, Captain Jack Sparrow?

above left: Fire-Dog & above right: Police-Dog. I love a dog in a uniform!

above left: Bumble-bee & above right: "Witch-on-a-broomstick" (I love witches)
Which one is your favorite? or are there others you like better?

-Rick Rockhill

Halloween Special Feature: My Favorite Witches

Happy Halloween! I thought I'd honor today by posting photos of my favorite Witches. Before I offend any Wiccan readers, I wish to state that these are of course, representations of Witches created by Hollywood and in fairy tales. I've actually met a few real Witches, many many years ago when I lived near Salem, Massachusetts, and also in NYC some time ago. If you are interested, here are two real, living modern day Witches: Laurie Cabot, the Official Witch of Salem, and also Lexa Rosean, The Witch Doctor.












Above: Real Witch Laurie Cabot, The Official Witch of Salem, Massachusetts

Above: The Wicked Witch of The West...oh how she scared me ever so!

Above: Everybody's Favorite Witch, Samantha Stevens, from Bewitched!

Above: Professor McGonnegall from the Harry Potter series

Above: Glinda, the Good Witch

Above: Endora, the mischievous mother-in-law!

Above: Blast from the 80's, The Witches of Eastwick was a cool flick, with Cher, Michelle Pfiffer and Susan Saran Wrap.

Above: From the movie Hocus Pocus, Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy were a lot of fun, even if it was a kiddie movie.
Did I leave out any of your favorite Witches? Leave a comment!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

-Rick Rockhill