The Fifth House - Creativity

The symbol on the wheel for this House is an Egyptian hieroglyph indicating singing or speech.

Music

I'm lead singer and fiddler for three bands, a brand new sorcerous Thelemic techno-Sufi band and revolutionary movement called Nuit, a Celtic rock band called Annwn and an acoustic duo called Ashby House. I've written some songs, some of which are on CDs and tapes recorded by Annwn and Nuit. Early in 1997, I wrote a few new songs for the 5 year old Rock 'n Roll Ritual (there'll be a recording of it eventually, I promise, probably by Nuit) preparatory to performing it in February 99 at PantheaCon in Oakland. I went through a LONG dry spell after that, but the knack is beginning to come back to me, and I'm beginning, slowly, to produce more songs.

Music is my vocation (as opposed to my profession, at least for now). It's really only in the context of my vocation and my hobbies that I get to exercise creativity. This section of the site houses such writings of mine as I have time to publish on the web.

Prose - Nonfiction

Lady of the Depths: Primal Goddess of Celtic Shamanism

An article originally published in Shaman's Drum, 1989. First of a series I'd planned on European shamanism; the series never got published because that issue (containing also some articles on Tibetan shamanism) sold worse than any issue before that one, which, along with a few letters to the editor explaining how "European shamanism" was an oxymoron and only the Native Americans can do real shamanism (yeah, right, but don't get me started on that one) convinced SD's editors that their readership didn't want to hear about it. Buncha wannabe Indians (gripe, piss, moan). Anyway, since John and Caitlin Matthews have successfully published a couple of books on the subject of European (and specifically Celtic) shamanism, I thought I'd put this item back into the light, along with its sequels...

The Ordeal of Lleu as Shamanic Initiation

An exegesis of the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi, explaining how Lleu's tribulations are a form of shamanic initiation, overseen by his uncle Gwydion. This originally appeared in Keltoi, the journal of the Celtic League American Branch.

European Shamanism - a Preliminary Reconstruction

There's some repeat material in this from the Lleu paper; it constitutes my first (and unfulfilled) effort at reconstructing a shamanic system based in European myth and symbol, for the benefit of people who might (for whatever reason) feel strange about doing Native American religion.

The Annotated Passion Play

My "work in progress" -- continual progress -- attempting to annotate and explain the lyrics to Jethro Tull's album A Passion Play

De Missa Gnostica

A rant/essay on the subject of the OTO Gnostic Mass, what I think it means and is supposed to accomplish as a magical working.

Why I'm a Centre of Pestilence

Because I discuss the Book of the Law, that's why. So shun me, already! ;)

Prose - Fiction

Blood Libel

I think this may be my best story ever. Originally published in Vampires, edited by Jane Yolen and Martin Greenberg, 1991.

My Bibliography

See what you get when you surf the net looking for your own name? I had no idea this existed... and I'd forgotten that I wrote so many stories...

Poetry

An Enchantment

From a version of the Rite of Jupiter in which I performed.

Scarlet Muse

Lyrics to a song about Crowley's mistress, Leila Waddell.

Hobbies

This is also the section of my site that deals with my hobbies. Many of my hobbies involve membership in an organization, but in most cases the hobby has taken on a life independant of the organization (or was instrumental in my joining the organization), such that for only a few exceptions, the organization is not the hobby. (The map is not the territory.) These are the three that take up the most time:

Homebrewing

I've been brewing for about 8 years, mostly extract (I'd rather let someone else do the mashing work for me; it's not as important to me that I have that degree of control over the process. I'm a cook, not a chemist...). Most of my original recipes come from sitting around wondering, "What would this taste like in a beer?" or "What do I have in the pantry to brew beer out of?"

Medieval recreation

In this case, the organization sort of is the hobby, the organization being the Society for Creative Anachronism. In the West Kingdom of the SCA, I'm called Siobhan ni hEodhusa or Siobhan fhidleir (the fiddler), and I'm a Mistress of the Laurel (think of it as a sort of arts knighthood). You can look at a picture of me at an SCA event, if you like. I'm interested in Medievalia of all sorts, and the SCA has engendered an interest in several sub-hobbies for me -- medieval recipe redaction, medieval and renaissance nautical things, medieval music (actually, I was interested in this in college, too, but it was the SCA that drove me to study it in school), and so on.

Morris Dancing

I am proud to be a member of the White Rat's (Experimental) Morris. I have a small selection of Morris links.