Berner beach meeting

Yesterday we went to Noordwijk with Arwen to meet up with 135 other Bernese Mountaindogs on the beach for a walk. This time we didn't bring Foofur, because the loose sand is too tiring for him. Arwen loves it though! She has been running, swimming, playing, sniffing.... in short: enjoying herself thoroughly!

Arwen loves the beach!

We tried to make a group picture but with 100+ dogs and their owners that's not easy... :-)

Arwen and I among the others.

You can see all of our pictures in this album.

Spring Equinox

Ostara's Maiden by Michele-Lee Phelan

Happy Ostara & 

a Blessed Spring Equinox!

Once again, night and day are equal in length. Winter is officially over and spring flowers are everywhere. I'm still a bit reluctant to leave winter behind as we had NO winter at all over here. Mother Nature is confused... Area's that normally have little to no snow had the worse snowstorms and bitter cold. Over here we are used to at least some cold weeks with snow, ice and low temperatures. This year Skadi didn't leave her mark in The Netherlands. No snow at all and apart from some minor freezing over night no real cold. A seemingly endless autumn changed directly to spring. I really, really missed winter, still do. Don't get me wrong, I love spring. It just feels so strange. Ah well, I'll just have to adapt and hope for a better winter next time. :)

Pagan Pages March

PaganPages is an online magazine or e-zine about all things pagan. The March Issue is up now!

This time I wrote about my power animals and how I met them.
You can read it here: Tink About It.

Bagheera & Knut on my altar

The big 4-0 for Robbie

Happy Birthday Rob!

40 is just that, 40... 39 and some extra days. Nothing special, nothing to be afraid of, nothing to feel different. Just carry on doing what you're doing, because you're doing great. :-))

I hope you'll get the privacy to enjoy this with family and real friends!

See you in May, let's swing!

My Imbolc

First of all I'd like to wish you a blessed and happy Imbolc or Lugnasadh, depending on which hemisphere you roam. I hope you have a wonderful celebration and a very happy day.

I had planned to go to an open Imbolc celebration today, but yesterday I felt the urge and need to do a personal Imbolc ritual on my own. I decided to include a thorough, elaborate home-cleansing and -blessing. Imbolc is all about cleaning, cleansing, getting rid of old stuff to make room for new, etc. so that fits perfectly.
First I walked through all the rooms and spaces with a smudge stick, widdershins (anti-clockwise) from top to the basement and everything in between, to cleanse the house. Then I did the same deosil (clockwise) to bless everything with the elements. The first round felt overdue and much needed, the second felt wonderful and light. Good decision!
Back in my circle I did a guided meditation called "Inner Journey to Brigid". It was beautiful, but somehow Brigid became mixed up with Skadi. It didn't feel strange or wrong, on the contrary. It felt very natural, as if Skadi was claiming her rightful place in the ritual and on my path. When I asked for a symbol to remind me of the message I got in this meditation she gave me a silver-white snow crystal...
For cake and wine I chose milk and chocolate cookies. Milk belongs to Imbolc and has the snow-white colour of winter. Afterwards I left some of it outside.
I'm so glad I decided to do this, it clearly was the right thing for me at this time.

Pagan pages February

PaganPages is an online magazine or e-zine about all things pagan. The February Issue is up now!

My column in this issue was originally written for the November issue, but due to some technical problems of the site it was postponed. Luckily it's not a subject that belongs to a certain period/month. I wrote about how I use my creativity in crafting on my pagan path. It's called 'Crafty Witch' and you can read it here: Tink About It.

The cord I'm talking about in the last part is long finished and with its new owner. Here's a picture for you:

It's a rite-of-passage-cord, made for a 13 y.o. girl-becoming-young-woman. I used 7 threads: multi-coloured for life itself, black & white for the balance between light and dark, blue & pink for male & female energies, red and very thin silver for the red thread with silver lining. On the red & silver threads I attached 13 charms to represent the wishes for her I put into it. Worked on it during a moon-cycle, blessed with reiki energy and the elements. The length will be her current length. Made with tvinningsbennen / lucet.

Kickin' It Old Skool - the end

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Kickin'It Old Skool, Day 31
Yay!! We kicked it through the holidays. We kicked it through ice storms. We kicked it all month long! Give yourself a gold star - or a turquoise star or a fuchsia one! It's time to celebrate! What would you like to celebrate about this month and Kickin' It Old Skool?

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To celebrate the transition from old to new year Ron and I walked a beach labyrinth at sunrise this morning, made by friends. It's becoming a tradition, 4th time this Dec. 31:

I want to thank Jamie & Shannon Ridler for organizing this blog-a-thon. Also thanks to everyone who participated and commented on each other's blogs. I've tried to visit as much as possible and ended up following quite a few new blogs! Yay for meeting new friends and their blogs, and for reconnecting to old friends and their blogs.

I really liked getting back into blogging again. I didn't succeed in participating every day because of various reasons, but that doesn't matter! It was fun and I want to try to stay more active this coming year.
Therefore my question for you all: do you have tips for memes to do? Prompts to find? Anything fun to help me keep blogging?

A new year's wish from me for everyone that participated and the readers of my blog:

all the best to you and yours and I hope to see you again in 2014 (and after).

Final Friday

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Kickin'It Old Skool, Day 27
On our final Friday of the year, let's share a little bit about the year that was 2013 by answering the questions.

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Are you sure? I didn't write a lot in 2013 and before, because I didn't want to fill this blog with depression, misery and rants. Read on at your own risk...

1. What will you remember about 2013?
Surviving instead of living, depression, poverty, unhappiness, powerlessness, sadness, distress, stress... Seeing my better half feeling the same way, crying together, pulling each other up again in desperation...

2. What are you ready to leave behind?
see most of answer to question 1

3. What's something you learned in 2013? 
Life goes on, even if you don't want it to most of the time.
If you think you hit rock bottom, there's always another floor underneath to sink to.
Together we are strong and we are stronger than we think.

4. What would you like to celebrate about this past year?
I had to think long and hard to find an answer. It's not that we didn't do nice things, it's not that we were never happy in 2013. Of course there were moments to be thankful for, and we definitely are, but they disappeared quickly because it couldn't counterbalance the misery. It does help to survive though!
What I do want to mention is that we are very thankful for all the wonderful people we have around us that helped and are still helping us survive this ordeal. Whether it is a lit candle, an arm around us or substantial material help doesn't matter. We value them all and are very lucky and happy to have people like that we can count on.

Pfew, I managed to end on a positive note.
Can't wait for 2014: new year, new chances!

found on Facebook

10 things in my fridge

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Kickin'It Old Skool, Day 26
I skipped the holiday prompts. No disasters to share and not in the right mood for memories. Besides, we have been busy yesterday: wonderful day with my sister coming over for dinner. I drove her home around midnight and back at home I went straight to bed.
Over here in The Netherlands we celebrate Christmas Eve (Dec. 24), First Christmas day (Dec. 25) and Second Christmas Day (Dec. 26). Some regions even celebrate a Third Christmas Day. Enough is enough though... I enjoy the Yuletide, but the christmas days aren't my favourite ones of the year. But I'll stop before this ends in a christmas rant. :-)

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Today's prompt is "What are 10 things in your fridge?" So, without further ado:

1. leftovers from yesterday's dinner - (hmm, I don't know the English word... we cooked our own dinner on the table with a raclette set - we call it a gourmet-set, see this) so that's several kinds of meat, mushrooms, fresh pineapple, sauces and more - enough for the two of us to have another go today 
2. milk, yogurt, whipped cream
3. eggs
4. water kefir, the drink and my supply of grains (probiotics)
5. beer
6. Skadi-water (melted snow I use for rituals)
7. cheese, including my favourite Old Amsterdam
8. pickles, pickled silver onions, pickled cucumber, Amsterdam pickled onions and other pickled stuff
9. superglue
10. self-made herbal vinegar (assorted herbs in apple cider vinegar)

Books!

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Kickin'It Old Skool, Day 23
Yesterday I couldn't join, because I simply don't have any digital pics of 'Wee Me' and the analog ones are somewhere in a box with many boxes on top...
Today the prompt is about one of my favourite subjects.
Let's talk about books!

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So, what do we talk about...? I talk about books here on my blog: books in general, book-lists, a book I recommend, etc. Lots and lots of my many books are still in boxes because I simply don't have room to display them. Might sound silly, but I miss them a lot...
Today I decided to share pics of the book wall in my room. Ron made it for me so I could have at least some of my books at hand. The top 3 shelves are fiction (fantasy, thrillers, literature, etc.), the 4 below are non-fiction (paganism, herbs, history, etc.). Both are in alphabetical order. The bottom shelf is extra high, so there are the larger books. On the floor are magazines in file boxes.
The book on the stand is "Luna Moon Hare" by Wendy Andrew, a lovely book with beautiful illustrations.

If you want to see what I have in my library, you can see 1200+ of my books in my LibraryThing. One day I hope to have added all my books there! It's a very nice community and a great way to store your books online. I also have a Goodreads account, but I prefer LibraryThing.

And I Quote...

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Kickin'It Old Skool, Day 21
If Pinterest is any indication, we are inspired by quotes!
Today, share with us a quote you love.

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True, I absolutely love quotes. It is impossible for me to choose only one! But then again...

Gene Roddenberry created my favourite series of all time: Star Trek. He was ahead of his time, a pioneer and a visionary man. This is one of many great quotes, spoken by Captain Jean-Luc Picard:

10 things in my bag

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Kickin'It Old Skool, Day 19
Inspired by one of Jamie's most popular videos in which she shared what's in her purse, we thought we'd ask... What are 10 Things Currently In Your Bag?

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I made a picture to show you the inside of my hand bag:

1. brown leather purse and coin dispenser
2. retractable umbrella
3. keys with mini-Leatherman and car-key (in black pouch)
4. pocket torch
5. deodorant
6. mobile phone
7. hairbrush and scrunchie
8. nail file & cutter
9. lip balm, arnica gel and herbal healing salve
10. sweeteners (normal and stevia)

Make a wish

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Kickin'It Old Skool, Day 18
Yesterday I didn't have time to join, but I'm back. :)
Today's prompt is in honour of the first meme that Jamie Ridler ever created: Wishcasting. There is magic in wishing together. Today, make a wish.

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That's an easy one...
I wish for a lasting, structural solution to our financial crisis. Whether it's from winning the lottery or the right job for Ron or anything else, I don't care (an' it harm none!).

"As you wish for yourself so I wish for you also."

...and then you forget to publish the concept-post... way to go, Tink! I really want to bring this wish into the universe again, so I posted it a day later... The universe won't mind. ;-))

Favourite music

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Kickin'It Old Skool, Day 16
"It was so much fun sharing our movies last week. In fact, we're sure many of us have filled our wish lists and our Netflix queue's with all sorts of fresh options! Let's do the same with our playlists. Share with us some of your favourite songs!"

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Wow, I like so many kinds of music... I can never be complete. I like pop, folk, classical music, jazz, swing, 80's and sooo much more! It all depends on my mood and what I feel like at the moment I'm listening. I have a lot of favourite artists and songs too, old and new. :-)

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I can always listen to Robbie Williams though. He is a pop singer, but also does swing / rat pack stuff with side-steps to rock, rap and more. He is an all-round, born entertainer. I love his music, both the albums and live. It would be impossible for me to pick one favourite. I'll just pick one of them and give you the official video:

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My favourite Dutch band is Rapalje, a celtic folk band. Their website explains it better than I can: "Irish, Scottish (and Dutch) folkmusic with a difference. Dieb, William, Maceál and David sing and play on instruments like fiddle, tin whistle, gitouki, squeezebox, mouth organ, bodhrán, Highland pipes, border pipes and tea-chest bass. This diversity of instruments, a varied repertoire and an original presentation make a concert of Rapalje a special act. Dressed in medieval kilts, Rapalje performs in every conceivable venue." Ron's favourite song is "The Rattlin' Bog" by Dieb. Voice-wise I like William the most, especially in songs like 'Caledonia' and 'Loch Lomond' but also his solo-album. The up-tempo songs are great too, as are their live shows.

~*~

Who do you love?

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Kickin'It Old Skool, Day 15
"We'd love to see your loved ones! Your cats, your kids, your loves, your sisters, your brothers, your friends, your visitors, your elders, your neighbours, your besties. Who do you love?"

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First and foremost I ask you to click on this picture to open a new window with a post I made yesterday to celebrate the love of my life, my husband Ron. Cliche as it may be, it's the truth!

Although they are no longer with us in this world, I will always love my mum and dad. Dad died in 1996 and mum in 2006, but I still miss them every day... Here they are opening christmas-presents at our home somewhere in the 90's:

I love my sister Joke. She is 10 years older, but at our current ages of 45 and 55 that's no issue anymore. We've had our ups and downs like all sisters have, but we both know we can unconditionally count on each other whenever needed. Her husband Leo came into my life when I was 8. I love him too, but sadly we lost him on my birthday in 2009. Here are Joke and I in Disneyland Paris in 2010:

And of course our pets belong here too. Although I won't share pics of all that went before, they all are still in my heart too. I'll see them at the rainbow bridge... Here are the beloved ones that share our home today:

Foofur, Welsh Corgi / Jack Russell, 14

Arwen, Bernese Mountain Dog, 4

Freyja, silver/white Balinese, 7

Bastet, tortoise European Shorthair, 7

Maia, white/grey European Shorthair, 6

~*~