Most Eclectic Valentines Day Post EVER!

Try as I may, I cannot derive a unified theme from these disparate Valentines memes so you're just going to get a dog's breakfast of a post instead! Happy Valentines Day, everyone!

First off -- some modern Cupids! But even with high-tech weaponry, there's no guarantee that Cupid's aim is any better.

And now, here's a few all-inclusive LGBTQ+ valentines --

How about some superhero valentines in questionable taste?

And finally, for all you lovers of bad poetry and worse puns --

As Promised -- Dancing Goddesses!

The Divine Feminine loves Valentines Day too -- after all, who knows more about love and fertility than the Mother of All? So these ancient representations of the Goddess are having a big dance party to celebrate!

Shake your booty, Inanna, Queen of Heaven and Earth!

And you too, Minoan Snake Goddess!

The Goddess of Willendorf loves line dancing.

I'm not sure who these three are,

but smooth moves, ladies!

The Nile Goddess is as elegant as ever.

Hmm, the Great Goddess of Laussel is

hitting the wine pretty hard.

And the Celtic goddess Sheela-na-gig is

being as outrageous as ever, I see.

These Dancing Goddess gifs were created by Nina Paley and are found here and here. Special thanks to Cal of Calvin's Canadian Cave of Cool for letting me know about them!

Pin-Up Gods -- Whaaaaaat?

Since Valentines Day is this week, I thought it would be a fitting time to post this delightful calendar of Pin-Up Gods for your (*ahem*) spiritual development.

Times aren't what they used to be on Mount Olympus and these days the Gods are feeling pretty neglected. Worshippers are few and far between, except for a few stray Pagans here and there. So the Gods have decided that some kind of marketing campaign is in order to get them back to their glory days.

And what sells? Sex sells! Hence, this calendar.

Need I remind you that the Gods of Mount Olympus embody and enjoy every sexual orientation under the sun? So this calendar really is for everybody!

Fittingly, this is February's pin-up boy --

This clever Dionysus one is my fave, LOL --

The artist is Natasha Sweitzer, who posts on DeviantArt as TheEndOfGrey and sells on Etsy as HelloGround (alas, these calendars are now sold out).

Special thanks to Magaly of Magaly Guerrero for sending me this idea!

Tuesday's "Equal Time" Post: Dancing Goddesses!

I Dream of Genie

Happy weekend, everyone!

May all your wishes come true!

Gung Hey Fat Choy!

Today is the Lunar New Year, so welcome to the Year of the Pig, everyone! Gung hey fat choy!

What can we expect in a Pig Year? According to Susan Levitt and Jean Tang in Taoist Astrology, the Year of the Pig (or Boar) is:

. . . a time of self-indulgence and fun. It is also a time of peace, understanding, harmony, and fellowship. Ease and enjoyment of the good life will be valued more than power and status. People can be kinder to each other in everyday interactions and feel little need for competition. Extravagant vacations, sumptuous meals, and lavish spending on luxuries and fine clothing are to be expected. Individuals tend to feel content and satisfied, ignoring the bills that accumulate over a Boar year. The following Rat year will be the time to face realities after Boar year's indulgence.

Well, that sounds great, doesn't it? At least until the bills come in. Sort of like Christmas!

My Rare One and I celebrated the Lunar New Year a couple of weeks ago at West Edmonton Mall. It's an annual event showcasing the local Asian community and featuring fun, entertainment, and games of luck and good fortune! Here we are, looking suitably festive --

And finally -- to guarantee good luck and prosperity for the upcoming year, be sure to exchange a small coin with a friend today -- click here for details of this fun little ritual! My Rare One and I do this every Lunar New Year!

Imbolc Cyberspace Poetry Slam

Imbolc is a pagan holiday which celebrates, not Spring, but rather, the promise of Spring. It is also the sacred day of Brigid the Bright, Celtic Triple Goddess of healing, creative handiwork and (most importantly for today's post) poetry.

The Imbolc Cyberspace Poetry Slam has been celebrated for quite a few years now by many pagans around the blogosphere. On February 1st or 2nd, people post a favourite poem written by themselves or by another so that, collectively, a vast internet web of poetry is woven to honour Brigid, the Goddess of Poetry.

This year I am posting a poem by Mary Oliver, the National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize winning American poet, who died last month at 83. She was predeceased by her partner of more than 40 years, the photographer Molly Malone Cook. Mary Oliver's beloved poems have inspired many women to embrace the twin spiritual truths of reverence for nature and of personal empowerment.

When Death Comes

by Mary Oliver

When death comes

like the hungry bear in autumn;

when death comes and takes all the bright coins from his purse

to buy me, and snaps the purse shut;

when death comes

like the measle-pox;

when death comes

like an iceberg between the shoulder blades,

I want to step through the door full of curiosity, wondering:

what is it going to be like, that cottage of darkness?

And therefore I look upon everything

as a brotherhood and a sisterhood,

and I look upon time as no more than an idea,

and I consider eternity as another possibility,

and I think of each life as a flower as common

as a field daisy, and as singular,

and each name a comfortable music in the mouth,

tending, as all music does, toward silence,

and each body a lion of courage, and something

precious to the earth.

When it's over, I want to say: all my life

I was a bride married to amazement.

I was the bridegroom, taking the world into my arms.

When it's over, I don't want to wonder

if I have made of my life something particular, and real.

I don't want to find myself sighing and frightened,

or full of argument.

I don't want to end up having simply visited this world.