#also just autumn recipes in general

[lazylittledragon]

it felt like AUTUMN today and i’m going into it with my whole pussy so this is a call for everyone to drop me their soup recipes

[ltwilliammowett]

Cooking like a Sailor- Frisian teatime

Today it's going to be a bit Friesian again and this time the delicious treats come mainly from the North Sea islands and Halligen, where they usually originated before they floated ashore and were eaten or drunk there.

Now that we are approaching autumn with great strides, there are such delicacies. This was the time when many of the seafaring men returned home, which meant a rich harvest of specialities from foreign countries and often also the weddings were hold which were arranged the year before.

But let's start with the drink: tea punch, just the thing for the wet and cold season when it's stormy and raining outside.

Ingredients: Black tea, köm and kluntjes (brown sugar candy).

But even more important than the right ingredients are the way it is prepared and consumed. If you are in a hurry, you have no place at the tea punch table!

The tea punch is served as follows: The teapot is placed on the teapot warmer and the pre-heated bottle of Köm is placed on the table. Don't be surprised: the tea punch cups are tiny. This has nothing to do with stinginess, but with cosiness. And this is how it works: Pour tea into the cup, add a dash of köm and sugar to taste. Listen to the Kluntjes crack, stir and drink hot. Have a chat and then top up again.

This drink has existed on the islands since 1735, when a ship with tea chests stranded off Amrum at Theeknobs, although at the beginning there was no knowledge of how to prepare the tea leaves. As a result, the tea was drunk quite thinly, which was also due to the fact that tea was something special that was not always available, just like schnapps. Köm is a spirit similar to aquavit with caraway seeds. The yellow (geele) Köm is particularly common in the North Frisian region. This is a spirit, usually made with grain, which is mixed with caraway and sometimes with a hint of aniseed.

The tea punch was of course also known on ships, but here the köm was swapped for rum and the punch was used to warm up rather than for chatting. Sailors preferred to do this on land.

What do you serve with tea? Hallig Knorken or Friesenwaffeln are best. This wafer-thin delicacy has been around since the 16th century thanks to the Dutch who settled in northern Germany. They were light waffles that were made with rum and then served with plum jam and cream. Again, these delicacies were either brought by the men or had to be bartered or bought on the land, as the islands and Halligen did not have huge areas of land available for agriculture and so there was a lot of trade with the delicacies from the sea.

Ingredients for 4 people (this is the modern recipe) 4 eggs 200g sugar 250g butter 300g flour 3-4 tsp. cornflour 50ml rum 1 packet of vanilla sugar 1 pinch of salt

Bake the waffles in an iron and then serve hot with plum jam and cream.

Now we come to the highlight of every festive table - the Friesentorte. This magnificent cake is truly a precious piece. Because it requires valuable ingredients that were not always available back then and were therefore more likely to be found on festive tables. It is not known when it has been around, but probably since the 19th century, thanks to the sailors who brought many recipes with them from other countries. Like puff pastry, for example.

Today's variations also work with shortcrust pastry, but are not the original recipe

Recipe

Bake two puff pastry bases (you can use ready-made pastry) Brush one of the bases (the top) with egg yolk and sprinkle with caster sugar Leave the second (base) plain After baking, spread the base generously with plum jam Spread not too little whipped cream on the plum jam base Cut the top into 12 even pieces and then arrange the pieces on top.

The wealthier the family the more the cake would consist of several layers. Which made eating even more complicated, because how do you eat this monster without smearing cream all over your face? Well, you take the lid off, eat the inside and nibble the lid separately.

So there you have it and I wish you a delicious tea time of a different kind. Enjoy your tea and your tasty treats like real Frisians.

[moonastro]

pick a picture⋆ ˚ ꩜ ｡ ⋆୨୧˚

𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙤𝙢 𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙛𝙨 𝙥𝙩.2

left to right(top)-> 1,2

left to right(bottom)-> 3,4

*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚

°DO NOT take this as literal, take everything with a grain of salt as this is purely and intendedly for entertainment purposes.

°Don't be afraid to give feedback and opinions about this post (as i would entirely appreciate it).

° This is a GENERAL reading, take what resonates and leave and pass on what does not!

*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚

PILE 1-

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚may have a significant-like a strong/muscley back or have problems with back pain--also the spine!!

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚may regularly change hairstyle often, perhaps cut their hair a lot and dye their hair often. i see them leaning towards having red/blue/grey hair.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚may like sparkly thing, for example diamonds, glitter, glass and so forth. anything with sparkles on it intrigues them.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚may also be into star shaped jewellery, stars may be an interest of theirs.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚may wear hats or like to wear hoods.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚loves sleeping, is a deep sleeper.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚may prefer winter/ autumn more than summer/spring. prefer the cold weather in general. may constantly have a fan/air con on at all times despite the weather outside.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚like cooking, preparing meals for others. are interested in learning new recipes.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚like history, are fascinated about historic events and eras.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚are most likely into skincare and haircare, have a designated routine that they do every day.

thank you for reading and hope you enjoyed!!✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

PILE 2-

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚are definitely a high achiever, may have a lot of achievements academically speaking.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚are sensitive to sounds, sound is very important to them. For example, may like loud music blasting in their ears or are the opposite and hate loud sounds, like hating fireworks because of their loud sound.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚may have green eyes, blonde/red hair.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚love children, would want a family for sure. has a soft spot for kids.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚has multiple of ears piercing, may have other body piercings also.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚hate being in tight spaces, are picky about clothes and overall personal space.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚very caring and nurturing. is the kind of person to anonymously do something to protect you without craving for the attention of recognition.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚has some signature sitting position/habit that they have when sitting down. may cross their legs or bend one leg and so forth.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚love warm weather, especially watching the sunrise- are perhaps a morning person as well.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚love movies, might have a comfort movie that they watch over and over again.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚have longer than average legs.

thanks for reading!!!✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

PILE 3-

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚loveee music, may make/create/produce music themselves.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚may prefer gold jewellery or may have/own a lot of gold accessories.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚may be lactose intolerant or just hate diary, cheese-- may be vegan/vegetarian or follow some sort of a diet.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚may like dark themes, clothes, style, music, aesthetic etc.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚weird way to explain it but may hate how time goes fast, may be afraid of aging or growing up. even may be afraid of death also.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚they don't get bored easily, can sit still doing nothing for hours on end.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚have a very hypnotic/sweet/classy voice. i feel like their voice makes people melt ☆⋆｡𖦹°‧★

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚keeps to themselves most of the time, and i don't mean that in a shy matter but in a energy reserved way- they just would much rather have/prefer their own company. or aren't bothered by being alone.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚might not celebrate their birthday. or may think that there is no need to.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚love thinking about the higher cosmos and the outer worldly possibilities.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚may not drink enough water/don't like water/forget to drink water.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚prefer to stay silent than to express what they think.

hope you enjoyed this reading PILE 3!!!✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

PILE 4-

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚are sly with things, almost like hypnotic. their actions are so hypnotising that you cant say no to them.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚have a soft spot for old things, may like to go thrifting, collect lost things, love getting generational stuff passed down to them etc etc.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚definitely go with he flow, they may not think much of their future and are too busy thinking about the present moment.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚like to try new things, may like to go along with the current trends on the internet and social media. may like to make social media content also.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚think about others before themselves.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚may be from a hot country-may be racially mixed.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚are very loyal.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚keep very good secrets. i feel like they are the friend who is always getting the tea☕🍵😭

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚are good with little details, are always confronted with "how do you know that" or "how do you remember that??". because they surprise people of how good they remember the tiniest of details of a situation or person.

thanks so much for reading, hope you enjoyed PILE 4!!!✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

*ੈ♡⸝⸝🪐༘⋆*ੈ♡⸝⸝🪐༘⋆*ੈ♡⸝⸝🪐༘⋆*ੈ♡⸝⸝🪐༘⋆*ੈ♡⸝⸝🪐⋆*ੈ♡⸝⸝🪐༘⋆

FRIENDLY REMINDER- paid tarot readings are available (DM or check out here for more info!!)

*IMAGES ARE NOT MINE*

[breelandwalker]

Harvest Moon - September 17 2024

Grab your canning supplies and your favorite cider mug - it’s time for the Harvest Moon!

Harvest Moon

The Harvest Moon is the name given to the full moon which occurs closest to the autumnal equinox. It does not matter whether the moon occurs before or after the equinox or in which month it falls. In some years, this means the Harvest Moon may occur in October, in which cause the September moon might go by the name of Corn Moon or Rice Moon, depending on where you are.

In 2024, the Harvest Moon falls once more in the month of September and this year, it's also a supermoon! However, in 2025, the September moon will come early in the month, making it a Corn Moon. The Harvest Moon that year will be in early October.

The September moon is particularly beloved by farmers in the Northern Hemisphere, as it rises earlier and shines brighter than other full moons due to the relative angle of the Earth in relation to the moon during the equinox, which is helpful for lighting up the tail end of those long work days. In addition, the Harvest Moon may also appear full for multiple nights, providing additional illumination for labor or evening strolls. As such, while the peak of the Harvest Moon will occur at 10:34pm EST on September 17th, it may also appear to be full the night before and after.

Other North American Indigenous names for the September moon include a number of variations of the aforementioned Corn Moon (used by numerous nations), such as Corn Maker Moon (Abenaki), Corn Harvest Moon (Dakota), and Corn Is Harvested Moon (Zuni). Other names refer to seasonal changes or animal behavior, such as Autumn Moon (Cree), Falling Leaves Moon (Ojibwe), Leaves Turning Moon (Anishinaabe), and Rutting Moon (Cree). Some European and modern pagan names for the September moon include Barley Moon (Old English), Singing Moon (Celtic), and Fruit Moon (general).

What Does It Mean For Witches?

As autumn begins, we continue to reap what we’ve sown over the course of the year. It’s a time to pause and reflect on what we’ve accomplished, let go of any unnecessary burdens we’re still carrying, and focus on taking care of hearth and home for the cold months ahead. Now is a good time to do one last clutter purge or finish those repairs you’ve been putting off all summer!

Change is in the air as well, and transformations begun earlier in the year will burst into vibrant life. Just as the flowers bloom in spring, the leaves turn in the fall, and those of us who come alive in the autumn will start to fell that zing coming back.

Community also comes back into focus during harvest time, both because of the sharing of resources and the accompanying start of the school year. Take a moment to reinforce positive and supportive connections with friends and neighbors, or reach out to your local or online circle to strengthen existing bonds.

This a time of great abundance, especially with the supermoon full in the sky, so if you’ve been meaning to draw any kind of increase into your life, take steps to do so now. Harness that Harvest Moon energy to help carry you through the lean times in comfort and plenty.

What Witchy Things Can We Do?

This is the time for feasting, bonfires, and outdoor gatherings. September and October will give us a few more warm weeks before the weather turns cold and rainy, so make the most of it! Have a potluck supper with a menu made of everyone’s favorite seasonal recipes. Visit a local farmer’s market and bring home that fresh seasonal produce. Thank the earth for the bounty it provides and renew your promise to be a good steward of the land where you live.

Technically, this is the second “harvest” moon of the year, since the harvest of most seasonal crops began back in August with wheat and corn and late summer fruits. The harvest of corn and grain continues into September and is joined by additional late-season fruits and vegetables, the most iconic of which is the annual apple crop.

Apple-picking is easily my favorite autumn activity and it’s fantastic way to get outdoors, get some fresh air, and come home with tasty produce for uses both mundane and magical. From cider to applesauce to pies, apples are delightfully versatile. They also feature in a number of folk traditions and party games which double as divination rituals.

Continue your preparations for winter by canning or preserving fresh foods, hanging harvested herbs and flowers to dry, or refreshing your stocks of moon water and magical oils. Make your own magical brews using a stock pot as a cauldron and soups, stews, punch, cider, and mulled wine as your potions. Kitchen witches, your time is NOW!

Wear the colors of the season boldly and revel in all the gifts you’ve received and joys you’ve experienced so far this year. If you’ve been particularly blessed, pay it forward to share the bounty with others. Reflect on everything you’ve accomplished, celebrate your progress, and maybe set one or two small goals for the end of the year.

And since the decorations are already appearing in stores, start stocking up for Halloween!

Happy Harvest Moon, witches! 😊🍎

Further Reading:

Additional Lunar Calendar posts

Secular Celebrations - Autumn Equinox

Harvest Moon, The Old Farmer’s Almanac.

What Is The Harvest Moon?, The Old Farmer’s Almanac.

September 2024 Harvest Full Moon: Secrets to Seize Its Magic, The Peculiar Brunette.

Full Moon 2025 Calendar, Full Moonology.

Everyday Moon Magic: Spells & Rituals for Abundant Living, Dorothy Morrison, Llewellyn Publications, 2004.

(If you’re enjoying my content, please feel free to drop a little something in the tip jar or check out my published works on Amazon or in the Willow Wings Witch Shop. 😊)

Image Credit - Plantura, Red Moon Apple.

[sterekfests]

Welcome to our Fall round of Sterek Fests! Sterek Fall Fest will run from September 3rd - October 7th in celebration of Fall, whether you enjoy drinking every kind of pumpkin spice drink or visiting a pumpkin patch every year. There’s a little something for everyone!

Check out our Rules and FAQs. 

We also have a Discord you can join that has events running such as @sterekbingo and @sterekweekly along with @sterekfests.

How to Participate:

Participating in Sterek Fall Fests is easy and stress-free! This is a no-commitment fest where you can participate as little or as much as you want. Participate in one week and none of the others if you so fancy, or participate in all of them! We have an AO3 Collection for you to post all of your creations in!   This fest is open to both Fic and Art, so create to your heart's content!

How to post:

You can post your creations to any website that you want, as long as they are viewable to the public, whether that’s Tumblr, LiveJournal, DreamWidth, or our AO3 Collection. @sterekfests so we see your creations to reblog them. Use the tags #sterekfestsfall2023, and #sterekfests for generic tags. For weekly tags: #sterekfestssweater, #sterekfestsbaking, #sterekfestsbonfire, #sterekfestspumpkin, #sterekfestshaunted,

Late Posting:

Late posting is always welcomed! The collection will stay open for late submissions.

If you have any questions, feel free to send us an ask!

- Liam (@sterekbros) & Dori (@evanesdust) 

Keep reading to see all the awesome theme weeks ahead!

September 3-9: Sweater Weather

As the leaves change to a beautiful rainbow of colors, it’s time for Stiles and Derek to break out the sweaters and savor some cozy autumn days. Do they explore harvest farms and drink seasonal cups of pumpkin spice latte? Or maybe they take a hike through the woods or visit a corn maze? The possibilities are endless as they embrace the season and all the flavors of fall.

September 10-16:  Baking

It’s that time of year when cool weather brings out everyone’s love for baking! Tarts, pies, pumpkin butter, cookies, cheesecake bars, and cobblers are on the menu. Is Stiles in a baking mood with the change of the weather, getting ready for the upcoming holidays? Is Derek making his mother’s from-scratch apple pie? Maybe there’s a local bake-off for a harvest festival, where Stiles or Derek is the undefeated champion, and the other has come to challenge them to an on-the-spot bake-off. May the best baker win!

September 17-23: Bonfire

The air is crisp and autumn’s arrival is the absolute perfect time of the year to take advantage of the cool nights and starry skies and to make memories around the fire pit with friends, pack, and family. Roasting marshmallows for s'mores and getting cozy with your mate is one of the many things Sterek can enjoy this Fall around the bonfire.  Are they having a pack get-together at the rebuilt Hale house where Derek is hosting a bonfire party for the pack? Or perhaps they’re at the beach building up a bonfire to fight off the salty chilly air? Wherever you take Sterek this Fall, they’ll be snuggly and warm, enjoying the starry night together.

September 24-30: Pumpkin Patch

It’s that time of the year when everyone loves to visit a pumpkin patch! It’s one of the most Fall things you can do. Are Derek and Stiles getting ready for October, which is just around the corner? Are they picking out pumpkins so they can roast the seeds and use the rest for tasty recipes? Or maybe they’re taking their family to visit the games, including hayrides at their local pumpkin patch to support local farms and their seasonal farmers market? Perhaps the pack shows up for family photo ops for Eli’s first pumpkin patch visit! The possibilities are abundant, along with those cute adorable pumpkins we can only enjoy during the Fall season.

October 1-7: Haunted House

Phantoms and demons and ghosts, oh my! With Halloween around the corner, Stiles and Derek would certainly be brave enough to visit a haunted house or two, racing each other to see who would make it out first. Or maybe they work in one, chasing screaming patrons through the attraction. Either way, their wild energy and fearlessness would make for some thrilling entertainment.

@teenwolffandomevents @thebigbangblogproject @sterekevents

[sasslett]

FFXIV Swap 2: Enchanted Balls and Haunted Halls!

The time has come - FFXIV Swap #2 is upon us! There are some key differences from #1, for the sake of making a better (and more organized) event!

This time (and for all future swaps, most likely), there's a host of themes for you to choose from! Our second swap's themes are: Masquerade, All Saint's Wake or Autumn! Who doesn't love a midnight, mysterious masked ball? Or perhaps some harrowing haunts in the spirit of the spooky season? Or mayhap you just love the colors and aesthetics of fall?

Signups are on our Discord server exclusively! To sign up, you must join the Discord server and react beneath the announcement post to have your name added to the list! Link here: https://discord.gg/KskCdHT5

What is this, anyway? FFXIV Swap is an event in which you will be assigned a partner (at random) and will make some manner of gift featuring their FFXIV WoL/OC! Gifts in swap #1 ranged from gpose and writing and art all the way to decks of cards, drink recipes and custom weapons. The creativity of our community knows no bounds!

Changes from Swap #1: We will now have a deadline. This was a hard decision to make, but it's just too hard to have people waiting months on end for a gift when they finish in the first few weeks. The deadline is still plenty generous, giving two months to complete your gift, making the deadline for this swap December 3rd!

Rules!

FFXIV Only! I'm sure your OCs for other media are awesome but this is a XIV specific event (and our server is likewise XIV specific)

Any type of gift is allowed, so long as it features your partner's OC in some manner! No, you can't choose what kind of gift you're getting and no we will not be pairing people based on what kind of gifts they want (this isn't a free art trade).

Any skill level allowed! So long as your gift comes from the heart and you put your effort into it.

Gifter/creator chooses the theme they'd like to use - no, you can't request which theme your gift will be.

Likewise, all gifts must in some way associate with one of the chosen themes! You can do more than one theme if you'd like but only one is required.

Only one OC unless your gifter says otherwise!

No discriminating for/against mods. If you use them, keep in mind your gifter may not, and you cannot require them to download anything they don't want to create your gift.

If you participated in swap #1 and have not finished your gift by the start of swap #2 (Oct 1), you will not be able to participate in swap #2 (exceptions to this rule apply! I know many of you had temporary setbacks or weren't able to finish yet due to issues with your partners. If you want to participate but have not finished yet, please contact me and we'll look into it!)

Discord only! Tumblr is too difficult to organize on, so to participate, you MUST be a member and sign up on the FFXIV Swap discord linked above. You do NOT have to be social but you do have to be able to be contacted on discord!! This also means having a Tumblr blog is NOT required this time!

Have fun! Further, less important rules are on discord.

Sign ups close on Sept 30, and pairings will be randomly generated and posted on Oct 1! We hope to see you there!

[wuxiaphoenix]

Worldbuilding: Winter

When writing your worlds, consider the season. Not just in general, but in the specific climate and latitude your tale takes place in. Some stories tell you the characters are on the move in winter, and expect the reader to fill in all the blanks. Brief mentions of snow, assumptions of frostbite risk, dark days and early nights, the whole works. Except... that really leaves out large swathes of the world, because it’s a distinctly northern temperate winter. Fits lots of Europe, fits the Northeastern U.S.; drifts increasingly far from reality the farther south or north you go.

To me, winter is the calling of Canada geese at sunset.

I know, most points northward associate the dratted birds calling in migration in the spring and fall; even though a lot of places have annoyingly resident populations most of the year. But where I am you mostly hear them in the winter, going back and forth between local lakes and ponds as they browse their way through the colder months and don’t really go anywhere. It’s therefore less of a melancholy “warm months going away!” sound and more of an “argh, will have to watch where we step, again.”

Likewise winter here is not presaged by a time of brilliant falling leaves. We do have leaves that fall when it gets nippy, but most of them are some shade of brown. With a few and valued reds and yellows from some maple-relatives, but mostly brown. Half the trees around here don’t have leaves fall in autumn at all. Pine needles and live-oaks flush their old growth in the spring, the better to take advantage of the rains and to fuel spring fires that coincidentally burn up all the mold-infested old leaves and needles. Without those fires taking out the mold, many seedlings won’t make it. (This is one of many, many problems in longleaf pine restoration.)

Also, while you definitely want an ice scraper through February, snow is... not really a thing. Rarely we get to see a few flakes fall, but they’re usually melting in the air as we see them. There are nights, and a few days, where it would be cold enough for snow to fall and stick - but the way winds and fronts move, those are the nights we tend to see frost and/or major thunderstorms. Some people dream of a white Christmas. We dream of one without tornadoes.

Think about your winter. What makes it unique? A pond that never freezes? A local hot cocoa recipe? A legend of a friendly yeti?

Or an unfriendly one. It may not just be Jack Frost nipping at your characters’ nose....

[lycomorpha]

Eivor's herbarium: Page 5 - grasses and yarrow from a cursed zone meadow

~

“From a hill-top meadow west of Grantebridge, where the land breathes again”.

~

Before changing county, I've been thinking about meadows and how agriculturally important they would have been to settlements like Grantebridge or Ravensthorpe. Handily there's a meadow not far from our previous stop outside Soma's longhouse, on a cursed hill-top just west of town.

Cursed zones are small areas on the map where a black roiling fog gathers, horses freak out, and Eivor talks of malevolence and cursed troll magic.

This horse is questioning its life choices...

To dispel the curse you need to find and destroy a skull covered in glowing symbols. Shoot it and the dark fog dissipates, with Eivor saying that the land can breathe again.

The cursed troll magic symbol

Cursed zones are a slightly odd feature, in that it’s not clear how the ‘magic’ of the curse works. There isn’t an obvious link to Isu tech. We find some notes/snippets of story around suggesting they’re being placed there by Saxons in an attempt to hex away the Danes. In the Wrath of the Druids DLC, the druids are using a recipe that creates hallucinogenic vapor to induce visions of werewolves etc, so the cursed zones could work in a similar way, with the fog being part of the mechanism. But it’s not clear to me unless I’ve missed something.

However they’re supposed to work, cursed zones are good places to find fungi, plants, and honking great big trees. So I quite like them. (I know some gamers hated them and felt they were pointless collectibles; if that’s you, maybe some video game botany will improve them?!)

Aerial view of the hill-top cursed zone west of Grantebridge

The hill-top cursed zone west of Grantebridge has a particularly nice view from above and is surrounded by meadow. Since Eivor is helping run a settlement with farms, I’m sure she’d appreciate the importance of hay meadows to agriculture, and as a source of herbaceous plants for medicinal uses.

In the long grass

What is a meadow?

A meadow is an area of grassland where the vegetation is allowed to grow tall and isn’t cut in spring and summer. In late summer/autumn, the meadow is mowed to make hay, which then feeds farm animals over the winter. Until then, cut meadow is grazed by animals (sheep, cows, maybe goats) which poop as they go, dropping some handy fertiliser around the place. When gets too cold and wet for livestock to be out grazing, animals are brought in and fed on the hay, with the meadow left until spring for the cycle to start over again. This is in contrast to pasture, which is grazed in the growing seasons rather than allowing grasses to get long.

The un-cursed meadow, ready for hay-making

Hay meadows are full of diverse grasses and wildflowers. In AC Valhalla we particularly see yarrow, ox-eye daisies, and grasses like Yorkshire fog (4th pressed grass from the left) and meadow foxtail (2nd from left.)

On this page I’ve centred yarrow, mainly because I’m saving the daisies for another page! The grasses are from a couple of square metres in my back garden that I keep as a veeeery smol meadow. I’m lucky enough to have some outdoor space, and my priority in life is generally insects. So I leave some grass to get tall, and encourage a range of local wildflowers and grasses that serve as food for bees, moths, and beetles. In the un-cursed meadow, Eivor might have also seen clover, yellow rattle, lady’s bedstraw, and I’d bet on sweet vernal grass and crested dogstail too (3rd grass from the right.)

Ox-eye daisies in my local cemetery meadow

Hay meadows are an amazing reservoir of wild plant and insect species, but are now a rare habitat. Apart from the obvious changes in agricultural practice, capitalism doesn’t value biodiversity in spaces it could build on, extract from, or intensively farm the crap out of. But hope is not lost for meadow species. Many conservation organisations here work with farming communities to restore former meadows or to create new ones. Churchyards and church lands that haven’t been developed are also important spaces for meadow preservation – and in AC Valhalla we see meadows around the monastery at Meldeburne.

Meadow grasses and flowers around Meldeburne monastery

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)

Super-common and very tough, yarrow is a component of meadows but is found anywhere grassy – it’s found in lawns and verges all over the UK. In my area you'd be hard pressed not to see any in summer.

Yarrow in my backyard

Feathery, finely divided leaves gave it another common name, milfoil or millefoil, meaning 1000 leaves. It has clusters of small white or pinkish flower heads with an interesting structure. The flat-topped clusters of flowers look like they’re made out of daisy(ish) shaped individual flowers...

...But take a look at those daisy shapes and you’ll see that each is actually a cluster of many smaller tiiiiny flowers that just LOOK like a daisy. The centre is made of a bundle of tube-like ‘disc’ flowers that have 5 petals fused together. These are surrounded by a few ‘ray’ flowers, each with one large petal. So cool!

Yarrow: flowers inside flowers

Ecologically, it’s an important source of nectar and pollen for bees, and a food plant for many other insects, including moths and beetles. Some cavity-nesting birds use it as lining material. I encourage it to grow in my lawn along with clover, self-heal and black medick, because it’s a lot hardier and more drought tolerant than any lawn grass.

Historically, yarrow used to be used medicinally to staunch bleeding, but weirdly was also called ‘nosebleed plant’ because of a myth that it caused nosebleeds. It also used to be used as a good luck charm.

Yarrow and ferns

I'm going to move onto the autumnal ferns of Ledercesterscire for page 6, but I'll probably come back to Grantebridgescire for some of the other mysteries.

[sgtmickeyslaughter]

once again, its been one hell of a wednesday

time to unwind with a weekly tag game!

thanks for tagging me @lingy910y @juliakayyy @energievie and @jrooc

name: gigi

age: 24

star sign: full time virgo

first language: english

second language: lol i wish, my girlfriend has been trying to teach me korean the whole time we've been together and cant comprehend that my brain is just simply not wired to learn language

favorite lip product: aquaphor 🥰 and the nars laguna lipstick it was literally made for pale autumns

the best food dish you can make without a recipe? honestly most things, even when its new i like to skim and freestyle, most often i make eggs in hell and various soups, stews and stocks

if you drink tea, what kind? the only tea i drink is bottled cold green tea, and ginger in hot water when im sick

if you drink coffee, what roast do you usually get? light roast <3

favorite thing to watch on youtube right now: music videos! also watching a lot of book binding tutorials and general quiet crafting videos

favorite thing to watch on youtube in 2012: the dame herself ms. jenna marbles and honestly up until she left it would be the same answer

favorite item of clothing right now: i have a few very very cozy sweaters that have been in rotation over the last few weeks, but i am very excited to get back to soft loose blouses and pants

favorite item of clothing in 2012: a very cool 70's jean jacket that i still own and wear!

fandom

three movies you recommend: Chungking Express, jennifers body, in bruges

your favorite concert: tyler childers at radio city music hall, the queen of dancehall herself sister nancy and tune yards

have you ever unfollowed someone over a fandom opinion? not a single opinion, we can agree to disagree on things but i have unfollowed people for consistantly being really negative about everyone other than their favorite characters and just overall being a bummer

have you ever left a fandom because of the fans? Nope! every fandom I've been apart of has had really lovely people, but by far shameless is the nicest which feels a little ironic

the best tv show you watched last year: Beef by far, I don't think Ive ever resonated with a piece of media with such raw emotion (also the bear and succession but yall already knew that)

do you have a fancasting you just can’t let go of? Im not really apart of the harry potter fandom at all but sometimes marauder fancasts come on my fyp and theyre all really fun

a ship you’ve abandoned: destiel a little, i still love them that brain rot (damage) cant be undone but i rewatched supernatural last year and like, Dean is so genuinely unkind to him most of the time (/nuanced)

on a scale of 1-10 how willing are you to share your ao3 history? i mean, with who?

do you have a fandom tattoo? no tattoos

what fandom do you wish was bigger? none come to mind

has a finale ever ruined a show for you? no honestly im pretty okay with all of them, but i never watched any of the big ones that people hate

have you…

swam in an ocean? yes! I was a jr lifeguard, swimmer and water polo player in highschool, i am the safest person to visit the beach with

been vegan/vegetarian? I was vegan for three years but when i moved back home during covid i couldnt really keep it up while eating dinner with my family every night and now im very plant based but not vegan or veg

gone skinny dipping? many times lol

gone skiing? yes but i prefer snowboarding

been to a convention? only work related design conventions

tagging from my notes: @mickeysgaymom @rainbowbri @anonymous-galager @gallawitchxx @iansw0rld @mybrainismelted

[persephonaae]

Made κολοκυθόπιτα (Greek pumpkin pies) the other day! I’ll also include a recipe below!

Ingredients

3-4 small food grade whole pumpkins 

2 cups sugar (preferably brown sugar)

4 tablespoons honey

½ teaspoon ground cloves

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3 tablespoons olive oil

¾ cup rice

phyllo dough

half stick of butter

When you plan to make kolokithopita, you will want to transfer your frozen phyllo dough to the fridge to thaw for a couple hours before taking it out of the package and laying it on the counter with a paper towel lightly misted with water laid on top. The premade frozen stuff is completely fine, I do not in any way implore you to make your own phyllo as it is very time consuming and the premade stuff tastes just as good (but also not stopping you from doing so if you really wanted!).  In any case, once you have your phyllo at room temperature, take the rice and soak it in very hot water for 30 minutes. (I usually boil some water in the kettle for tea and then pouring it over the rice, covering it with something so less steam escapes) While waiting, this is a good time to grate the pumpkins to use in your filling (you will want to cut off the stem, peel/cut the skin off, and discard the seeds). You will want about 2-3 pounds of grated pumpkin, and maybe some help, unless you wanted to go for the record of world's fastest pumpkin grater while gaining arms of steel. (The texture of Greek pumpkin pie is different than other pumpkin pies since you have to grate the meat which is why you shouldn’t buy puréed pumpkin. The other thing to note is that you can actually do this with most any squash! Doesn’t have to be pumpkin; zucchini is also a common Greek base for kolokithopita, just to give you more ideas if you wanted to experiment.)

To prepare the filling, mix together the grated pumpkin, sugar, honey, ground clove, ground cinnamon, and olive oil. Drain the rice after it has soaked for 30 minutes, and mix it into this lovely slimy saccharine mixture of autumn-in-a-bowl, setting it aside once the ingredients are combined. 

Congratulations, it’s now time to work with the phyllo! Take half a stick of butter and melt it and have it ready on the side. Gently take two to three sheets of phyllo from the stack of dough and lay it on the counter or cutting board. (I usually use three sheets) You will then want to take a food brush and coat the entire side facing up with butter. Once it’s coated take a knife or pizza cutter and cut strips into the phyllo in thirds or fourths if you have the phyllo sheets in horizontal orientation, in half or thirds if you have it in vertical orientation. (The pictures show pies that we did cuts in fourths on the horizontal layout) Go back to your mixture of filling and scoop out a mound of filling that can fit into your cupped palm – it’s always better to be a bit generous with the filling. Gently squeeze out some of the excess liquid and place this filling at the bottom of one of the strips of phyllo and grab the bottom right corner and fold to the opposite side to make what looks like a triangle attached to the rest of the strip. Do this again but now with the corner of that triangle that’s on the left hand side, and bring it up to the opposite end. Keep repeating this fold until you have a triangle shaped pastry that completely encases your filling. This fold can be hard for some people to immediately understand and you might be really slow at it. Don’t worry if it’s a bit wonky, it will still taste fine in the end! Below I have a video that hopefully demonstrates that fold better. 

Keep repeating this with new sheets of phyllo (butter, cut, fill, fold… butter, cut, fill, fold…) until you’ve used all your filling or run out of dough. Each completed pie should be set onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper, set about half an inch apart. Before sticking it in the oven, brush the tops of all the pies with the rest of the melted butter, then bake at 375º for 45 minutes - 1 hour, until golden brown. My last caution is to not burn your mouth when inevitably digging in as soon as the timer goes off. Hope you enjoy, ευχαριστώ!

[elminx]

How did it become the end of August already? (It will likely be the beginning of September before I publish this…) It seems like only last week that I was writing about the tiny bulbs bursting out of the ground in my spring garden.

We are still most of a month out for the equinox but here in Southern New England, we have definitely entered harvest season. The energy shift is palpable. Suddenly there are long shadows in my sun-loving garden and my locust tree has begun the slow process of dropping her leaves. Just last night we experienced our first truly chilly night in months. As a witch, I feel a natural call to honor these seasonal shifts – not as some sort of ritual born from the pages of a book – but as it happens in front of me.

I have a complicated relationship with the Wheel of the Year. As an astrologer, the equinoxes and solstices will always be days of celebration as they mark the quarters of the year. The rest becomes murkier where it does not always align with my environment. There is no spring in sight around Brigid’s Day which is always one of the coldest and most bleak moments in the deep of winter. Likewise, we do not have a grain harvest where I live. Our first real harvest comes in early July with the sweet corn but I am not a farmer and a corn holiday would mean nothing to me.

I’m sure that harvest means something different for every one of us and that is part of the beautiful abundance of the harvest season. My secret to celebrating the harvest in my household and my coven: we celebrate OUR harvests.

For me, the first harvest is always tomato season. For nearly 10 years now, I have been a member of a local CSA Farm Share; every year, I buy a full share from them in the fall and then we get our percentage of their harvest every week throughout the following growing season. The best part of this experience is their Pick-Your-Own fields full of fresh flowers and – come August – tomatoes! Once the tomatoes start to ripen it’s a mad dash to eat, can, and preserve as many of them as possible. I truly cannot think of anything more abundant than that!

Indeed, Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs lists the magical properties of tomato as Prosperity, Protection, and Love. For me, both Prosperity and Protection make good additions to the idea of the harvest celebration in general. Make use of the abundance when you have it and protect your present and future “crop”, so to speak. As such, I tend to include basil, thyme, and oregano from my garden as they correspond well with these intentions but of course, add the herbs that you most work with or are drawn to.

Creating Sacred Space

As I mentioned above, the Harvest season doesn’t really begin in my life until the tomatoes at my CSA Farmshare have ripened. This means that it’s go-time in my household. The first thing that I do is clean my kitchen altar.

Though a number of years ago, I started with using my kitchen table as a kitchen altar, I have upgraded since to a large multi-tiered plant stand that lives in my kitchen window. This is my most seasonal altar. Though a few of my plants are permanent residents, most of the rest of the items on the altar reflects the natural cyclical changes of my magic as I shift and flow with the energy of the year. After packing up the seashells and giving the surfaces a good clean, I add in pinecones and other Autumnal items. I also bring up the spooky which is always low-key present in my household but doubles during the season of the witch.

Once my altar has been updated, I turn to making my first dish out of my tomato harvest. This is almost always Farmshare Tomato Soup. Tomato soup is a staple in my household – we’re OG fanatics of the grilled cheese and tomato soup combo and always need to keep some in the house. But we make it ourselves – we even can a large quantity of it for late-Winter consumption. The following recipe cannot be canned though – please do your research on pressure or water canning – it can be really dangerous if you don’t know what you’re doing!

Farmshare Tomato Soup

4 cups tomato* – prosperity and protection 1 red bell pepper – sweetness 2-3 carrots – abundance 1 fresh onion – protection 2 stalks celery – optional 3-5 garlic cloves – protection Parsley – Protection Ginger – money/success Turmeric – Purification Oregano – luck Red Pepper Flakes – also optional 3 cups Broth or Water Salt – Cleanses Black Pepper – banishes unwanted energies Oil – dealers choice here, I use butter

Making this tomato soup is so simple. Heat your oil with the red pepper flakes if using, add in your aromatic vegetables and cook on low until they are very tender/translucent. Add in your tomatoes and whatever spice you’re using – salt and pepper to taste. Once the tomatoes have released their liquid, add in up to 3 cups of broth. This is sort of dealer’s choice as well, the more liquid you add, the longer your soup may take to cook but the better it will taste. Add enough to make sure all of your food is submerged. Bring to a boil and then let simmer for 20 minutes or more. Check your cauldron regularly to make sure there’s enough liquid that the bottom is not burning.

From there, you can eat as-is or blend with either a blender or immersion blender. (Take it off the heat for a couple of minutes before you blend for your own safety!)

This soup is great with grilled cheese, cheese biscuits, or served on its own. You can add a dollop of sour cream, yogurt, or coconut milk before serving for richness which can be really fabulous as well. It’s also great with traditional Italian spices instead of turmeric and ginger and then topped with basil pesto.

Sharing the Harvest with Others

Do you ever have so much abundance that you feel like you could not possibly contain it? That’s how I feel at the height of the tomato season when my entire table is filled with six varietals of tomato, tomatillos, and hot peppers. The next step in my multi-pronged approach to the first harvest is to share this bounty with those that I love. My favorite meal for that is my Farmshare Lasagna.

My farmshare lasagna shares a lot of the same ingredients as my Farmshare Tomato Soup for a very good reason: I am using my harvest (what I get from my farm share) in each recipe. Use what you have is never more suited to the height of August! It’s full of peppers, onion, carrot, garlic, and tomatoes with the edition of Swiss Chard and chevre. I always use sun gold tomatoes for this recipe here – the sweetness of the sun golds is a perfect foil for the sharpness of the cheese and the bitter chard. Everything else in this recipe is negotiable (especially the spices! or add in zucchini or eggplant!) but for me, the chard, goat cheese, and sun golds are a “must”.

Farmshare Lasagna

4 cups Sun Gold or other Yellow or Orange Tomatoes* – protection and prosperity 3-4 Carrots – abundance 1 Bell Pepper – sweetness 1 Fresh Onion – protection 3-5 bulbs Garlic – protection Red Pepper Flakes – protection, optional Parsley – Protection Basil – money/luck Oregano – luck Thyme – money Salt – cleanse Black Pepper – banish unwanted energy Oil – dealer’s choice, I use olive oil here 1 Medium Bunch Swiss Chard – regular or rainbow works here Chevre – 4-8 oz – this really just depends on how much you want to add Lasagna noodles Shredded Cheese for topping, optional

Note: I’m not going to give you the exact amounts here because this depends on the size of your lasagna dish. I measure my dish by the number of noodles I know that I will need for ~3 layers for this recipe since the sauce is chunky and takes up space. I just put them dry into the dish so that I know exactly how much I need.

Making Farmshare lasagna is incredibly simple. You want to precook your lasagna noodles until they are aldente so start your water at the same time as you heat the pan for your sauce. Cook your aromatic vegetables (onion, carrot, garlic, pepper) low and slow until they wilt and become transparent. Add in your sun gold tomatoes and the spices – cook for 10 minutes adding water if necessary. Add swiss chard and cook covered for an additional 10 minutes or so until the chard is cooked. From here you just make a lasagna layering noodles, sauce, and spoonfuls of chevre cheese until you have filled your baking dish. You can top with shredded cheese if you like. Cook at 400 f for 35-40 minutes until the top gets a nice golden coating.

I find lasagna to be a very indulgent meal which makes it perfect for honoring the harvest season. You can share it with family over a bottle of red wine, or add in a fresh salad appetizer, or an apple crisp for a sugary nightcap. It’s great to serve with vegetarian guests since it’s hearty in spite of its lack of meat. (You could also through any number of ground meats into this but I assure you it isn’t necessary).

Revering the Sacredness of the Moment

It sounds so corny to say that every part of life is sacred but for me, the middle of harvest season makes me incredibly aware that every part of life is sacred. I see that as a part of my privilege – having access to farms, being able to trace back to its exact source where my food comes from, all of it allows a connection point to the life cycle pulse of the earth. It is a joy to get to pick my own tomatoes, and strawberries, and apples.

Life can feel so rushed. The harvest is a reminder to slow down for a second and savor this moment of abundance. There are so many ways that you can do this. You can take up jam or salsa making, or learn to pressure or water can. You could throw a party centered entirely around the food that you have an abundance of – how self-indulgent and wonderful! Spend the afternoon in an apple orchard and then ride the hayride back at dusk – dig deep into the moment. Revel in all that has come to pass since it was spring and a time to sew new seeds.

As a kitchen witch, I love to have at least one sinfully delicious meal. For me, that is Tomato Confit. Here we take cherry tomatoes (again, I prefer sun golds here but other varieties would do), cover them in olive oil in a baking pan, add some garlic and herbs and then cook low and slow for hours. 275f for 3 hours or more. Here, again, we get to be self-indulgent – the smell that will slowly overtake your residence is absolutely divine. The goal is to cook it until all of the water has left the tomato and you have beautifully roasted tomatoes in tomato-flavored olive oil. Once cooled, it will keep in the fridge for about a week.

Cherry Tomato Confit 4 cups cherry tomatoes* 1 bulb garlic Spices – dealer’s choice Olive oil to cover

Tomato confit is glorious and can be served in so many ways. It is divine on cracks or bread and pairs well with sharp cheeses. It works great as the basis for a simple sauce for vegetables or pasta. We used it as a pizza topping with chevre and sausage with great success. The tomato flavored oil is great as well – it makes a great olive oil drizzle or base for a salad dressing.

How do you celebrate your harvests? I’d truly like to know.

* I prefer Sun Gold cherry tomatoes for these recipes because they are sweeter but also because I think that their golden orange color goes well with the themes of abundance and prosperity

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[songsofbloodandwater]

Hey, how’re you? 13 and 12 for the asks

Hello! All good here, deeply enjoying the beginning of autumn and the much lower temperatures, how have you been?

12) what do you think your practice would taste like? If one could taste a magico-religious practice

Honestly, blood. Whatever blood can taste like. I've had moments where it's just metallic and asphyxiating, and others when it's pungent but peppery, almost floral.

I really wanted to say something normal, like bread, or milk, or some herbal tea. Or a passed down family recipe. I also thought of water and all that it represents to us. But realistically, it's just blood. I'm sorry if that answer is kind of predictable coming from me!

13) How does your craft feel in the spring vs in the darker months?

In my experience, the most tangible difference comes from the differences between Day Spirits, and Night Spirits. Traditionally, in my family, there's specific workings that we cannot do at night, the lack of sunlight means the Spirits that would be called are not the kind of spirits you'd want to call at all. This type of belief extends to seasons. Seasons stem from the natural changes in daylight hours available on Earth, and we see it as not just the plant life adapting to the colder months, but the spirits associated with the Land also adapting, hibernating, migrating (within this Realm or to other realms), or being in whatever way less available to us. Some, entirely unreachable.

In my opinion it's not that the Day and Night courts are "rotating" and one season or the other belongs entirely to one or the other court. It's simply that in the darker months the tangible presence of the Night Court becomes most prevalent, dominant, due to the absence of most of the Day Court, and viceversa. But they're always coexisting to varying degrees.

In my family that means we begin the warm months in August-September, awakening and feeding the earth and then slowly welcoming back the different allies and relatives of my spirit family throughout the next spring and summer months, as they come and as we get to spend time with them. It reaches a peak in December, with Solar festivities. Then starts to decline again throughout the next months, until we reach the "Lunar" peak, and the weakest moment of the Sun and Day court, in June with the Longest Night of the year. My seasonal calendar isn't just depending on daylight hours, but also on the apparent cycles of certain sacred constellations across the sky, so throughout the year I'm paying attention to Them and working with each as they come and go aswell, for example, the Southern Cross's rotation marks some special dates for me in regards to the fertility of the Land and to the Beloved Dead, or the Pleiades appearing and disappearing, carrying messages and omens, bringing with them certain Spirits and their influence, and taking them away as they go.

It feels like a family reunion that lasts months instead of hours. When people just start arriving, when there's feast and stories and sharing and warmth, and then everyone starts saying their goodbyes again, until next year. Summer is the height of the party. Winter is the only time of the year that reflects what you'd normally imagine from everyday family life, when it's just me and the Spirits that walk with me, that "live with me in that house", so to speak. In practicality, that means more outwards work during the warmer months (in relation to the Land and Spirits that are tied to different kinds of cyclical natures), more inwards work and "housekeeping" of my own courts during the cold dark months. There's still some work to do with perennial spirits during the winter (for example, La Dolorosa and The Wild King, and their respective courts, are mostly unaffected by the seasons) but it's still a smaller workload in general when in comparison to the warm months.

Hope that makes sense! thanks for asking these were fun!

[bonefall]

Does Riverclan eat roe or milt? I assume that if they see fish eggs on the river they leave them so they can grow into fish later but if they happen to catch a pregnant fish would they eat it? Also i found looking up 'weird foods' helps a LOT with coming up with cat foods since majority of it (unfortunately) is made of bugs, organs, or generally things humans think is gross but cats would Loovee. Also apparently you can make bone marrow into a sorta cheese or butter, the normal recipe uses plantains but would there be a substitute the clans could use?

I had a cookbook on preparing offal I looked at a lot, but I misplaced it.

Roe is DEFINITE. They will definitely be eating that-- fermented goldfish eggs are actually a delicacy in some places. If they catch a female who was full of eggs, that's a delicious bonus. She's dead by the time they figure out she's pregnant, it's too late for those eggs to get fertilized anyway.

Milt I'm less sure about including. Not because the Clan cats wouldn't happily eat that, but I don't even know where to begin on tagging it lmao. Same with other... sensitive male parts of various animals, especially the salmon from the autumn salmon run (another delicacy) and wild boars (bully sticks).

Plus, there's plenty of other things to cover without getting into that.

Like developed eggs, which you didn't mention! They would think it's a treat to snag bird eggs that are developed enough to be meaty, but not enough to have solid bones and annoying feathers. Even just finding big clusters of snake eggs would be a treat, especially since they'd be so easy to bring back to camp because of how they stick together.

Or frogspawn, and toadspawn. Toadspawn comes out in a big line. Forbidden Spaghetti.

As for bone marrow butter, someone actually mentioned that in replies once and I looked into it a bit, but it looks like a "cricket flour." Not ACTUALLY a substitute for butter, but added to butter to make it stretch further.

I haven't been able to find any actual recipes that fully substitute marrow for butter. Just, "1/4ths marrow 3/4ths butter" :/ Which sucks because it would be extremely helpful, since Clan cats don't have dairy products.

BUT they will be eating marrow, in any case. That's delicious. I'LL eat marrow. I'll suck it right out.

[breelandwalker]

Harvest Moon - September 28, 2023

The summer heat might be hanging on, but it's time to get excited for autumn shenanigans all the same. Grab your canning supplies and your favorite cider mug - it's time for the Harvest Moon!

Harvest Moon

The Harvest Moon is the name given to the full moon which occurs closest to the autumnal equinox. It does not matter whether the moon occurs before or after the equinox or in which month it falls. In some years, this means the Harvest Moon may occur in October, in which cause the September moon might go by the name of Corn Moon or Rice Moon, depending on where you are.

In 2023, the Harvest Moon falls once more in the month of September. The same will happen in 2024, when the Harvest Moon will also be a supermoon! However, in 2025, the September moon will come early in the month, making it a Corn Moon. The Harvest Moon that year will be in early October.

The September moon is particularly beloved by farmers in the Northern Hemisphere, as it rises earlier and shines brighter than other full moons due to the relative angle of the Earth in relation to the moon during the equinox, which is helpful for lighting up the tail end of those long work days. In addition, the Harvest Moon may also appear full for multiple nights, providing additional illumination for labor or evening strolls. As such, while the peak of the Harvest Moon will occur in the wee hours of September 29th, it will appear to be full on both the 28th and 29th.

Other North American Indigenous names for the September moon include a number of variations of the aforementioned Corn Moon (used by numerous nations), such as Corn Maker Moon (Abenaki), Corn Harvest Moon (Dakota), and Corn Is Harvested Moon (Zuni). Other names refer to seasonal changes or animal behavior, such as Autumn Moon (Cree), Falling Leaves Moon (Ojibwe), Leaves Turning Moon (Anishinaabe), and Rutting Moon (Cree). Some European and modern pagan names for the September moon include Barley Moon (Old English), Singing Moon (Celtic), and Fruit Moon (general).

It's also worth noting that our Jewish friends and neighbors will be celebrating Rosh Hashanah this month, so remember to share your apples and honey and wish them Shanah Tovah (Happy New Year)!

What Does It Mean For Witches?

As autumn begins, we continue to reap what we've sown over the course of the year. It's a time to pause and reflect on what we've accomplished, let go of any unnecessary burdens we're still carrying, and focus on taking care of hearth and home for the cold months ahead. Now is a good time to do one last clutter purge or finish those repairs you've been putting off all summer!

Change is in the air as well, and transformations begun earlier in the year will burst into vibrant life. Just as the flowers bloom in spring, the leaves turn in the fall, and those of us who come alive in the autumn will start to fell that zing coming back.

Community also comes back into focus during harvest time, both because of the sharing of resources and the accompanying start of the school year. Take a moment to reinforce positive and supportive connections with friends and neighbors, or reach out to your local or online circle to strengthen existing bonds.

This a time of great abundance, so if you've been meaning to draw any kind of increase into your life, take steps to do so now. Harness that Harvest Moon energy to help carry you through the lean times in comfort and plenty.

What Witchy Things Can We Do?

This is the time for feasting, bonfires, and outdoor gatherings. September and October will give us a few more warm weeks before the weather turns cold and rainy, so make the most of it! Have a potluck supper with a menu made of everyone's favorite seasonal recipes. Visit a local farmer's market and bring home that fresh seasonal produce. Thank the earth for the bounty it provides and renew your promise to be a good steward of the land where you live.

Technically, this is the second "harvest" moon of the year, since the harvest of most seasonal crops began back in August with wheat and corn and late summer fruits. The harvest of corn and grain continues into September and is joined by additional late-season fruits and vegetables, the most iconic of which is the annual apple crop.

Apple-picking is easily my favorite autumn activity and it's fantastic way to get outdoors, get some fresh air, and come home with tasty produce for uses both mundane and magical. From cider to applesauce to pies, apples are delightfully versatile. They also feature in a number of folk traditions and party games which double as divination rituals.

Continue your preparations for winter by canning or preserving fresh foods, hanging harvested herbs and flowers to dry, or refreshing your stocks of moon water and magical oils. Make your own magical brews using a stock pot as a cauldron and soups, stews, punch, cider, and mulled wine as your potions. Kitchen witches, your time is NOW!

Wear the colors of the season boldly and revel in all the gifts you've received and joys you've experienced so far this year. If you've been particularly blessed, pay it forward to share the bounty with others. Reflect on everything you've accomplished, celebrate your progress, and maybe set one or two small goals for the end of the year.

And since the decorations are already appearing in stores, start stocking up for Halloween!

Happy Harvest Moon, witches! 😊🍎

Further Reading:

Additional Lunar Calendar posts

Secular Celebrations - Autumn Equinox

Harvest Moon, The Old Farmer's Almanac.

What Is The Harvest Moon?, The Old Farmer's Almanac.

Harvest Moon 2023: The Spiritual Meaning of September's Full Moon, The Peculiar Brunette.

Full Moon 2025 Calendar, Full Moonology.

Rosh Hashanah, Wikipedia.

Everyday Moon Magic: Spells & Rituals for Abundant Living, Dorothy Morrison, Llewellyn Publications, 2004.

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[sapphire-heart-tippy]

What are y'all's favorite seasons? (For Bel Tippy and Van)

Bel: That's a totally hard question! You see, I guess I like every season but honestly sometimes my favorite season is spring because it's so pretty and there are so many flowers but sometimes my favorite is summer because I can wear my crop tops and mini skirts and stuff but then again sometimes my favorite season is Fall because I'm a sucker for anything pumpkin spice and cinnamon rolls and apple butter- OH! And there's Halloween- but also during the summer we get to go swimming and I get to show off my swimsuit that year- but then again sometimes it's winter because the smell of the snow outside and also when my husbands and I are all curled up and we can hear the wind blowing outside and the snowflakes hit the windows it's just SO cozy

Tippy: My favorite used to be summer, but honestly, fall is definitely my favorite. I have so many good memories about the fall and autumn time in general. Much like Bel, I'm also a sucker for the fall treats! I love baking stuff with my boys and trying new recipes!

Vanilla: Summer. I hate the cold. But I will endure winter for my beloveds. I suppose... we all can meet in the middle and appreciate autumn for the majesty it is.

[enchantedbeingscircle]

September

September is here and I know this post is late, but I had to take a slight social media detox! I swear once September hits I am all Fall, y’all!! I’m about all things apple, pumpkin, fall leaves, sunflowers, soup, etc! Did you know that apples (and apple trees) are associated with love, health, divination, rebirth and renewal, life, learning, and so many other things? The original bobbing for apples game was a form of slight divination, even! It was said that marriage would come to the first person to bite into the apple while bobbing. Also, if you cut into an apple, you’ll find a pentacle type star!

Correspondences of September are sapphire and sardonyx for crystals, the bear and owl for animals, flowers are morning glory and aster, and the zodiac sign is Virgo.

Let’s talk about some days in September:

Not only is Labor Day the 2nd, but also the Celtic Tree Month of Vine begins…happiness and wrath are both symbolized with the vine, garden magic, magic for joy and happiness but also wrath, rage, anger.

Magical influences for this are empowerment, inner growth, introspection, and prophecy.

Sept 4th is bring your manners to work day (I liked this one, cause I’m constantly reminding myself to have manners in moments where people are pissing me off lol.)

Sept 7th national salami day and world beard day (I liked these two because we used to call our younger sister “salami” to piss her off when we were all younger and we still sort of joke about it to this day… and my boyfriend has a beard that I just love. I love feeling it, smelling it, looking at it…lol!)

Sept 8th grandparents day

9/11… a tragic day that affected so many lives in one way or another! On this day remember all those who lost their lives due to this tragic event and the war it caused!

Friday the 13th

FULL MOON in Pisces on Sept 17, Harvest moon aka the nut moon, barley moon, or wine moon (love that!), the color for this full moon is brown and crystals are carnelian, cat’s eye, iolite, lapis lazuli, peridot, sapphire, blue spinel, blue tourmaline, and zircon

Magickal influences from this moon are confidence, the home, manifestation, protection.

This is a Moon of wisdom, take this time to reflect back on lessons learned this past year, darker days are coming which is good for shadow work.

September 18th NATIONAL CHEESEBURGER DAYYYY

September 21st International Day of Peace

Sept 22 is Mabon, also known as the autumn (or Fall) equinox – this is a time where night and day or light and dark are balanced. This is a sort of mid-harvest festival, we are celebrating the second of 3 harvest festivals. I’ve read that there is a slight connection to Mabon for how Oktoberfest was created, by the Bavarians. They start celebrating this in the last week of September.

Celebrate Mabon and give thanks to the Earth for abundant crops, practice gratitude, give blessings, share with the less fortunate. When canning, infuse your recipes with magickal influences and charm your jars.

Mabon is also one of those “liminal times” or an in-between time. These are powerful times for spell-work, rituals, and magick in general.

Colors for Mabon are blue, brown, gold, maroon, orange, violet, and yellow

Plants, herbs, etc: aster, marigolds, sage, ivy, grape, fern, blackberry/bramble, chrysanthemum, grains, thistle, and trees are cedar, hazel, aspen, maple, oak, myrtle, and locust

gems: amethyst, topaz

animals: hawk, swans, swallows, geese, dogs, wolves

Element: water

Magickal influences: accomplishment, agriculture, balance, goals, gratitude, grounding

Deities are: Epona, Inanna, Ishtar, Kore, Modron (Celtic Great Earth Mother Goddess), the Morrigan, Persephone, Bacchus, Dionysus, Dumuzi, the Green Man, Hermes, Thoth, Mabon (translates to the divine son) is the son of Modron and he is associated with the element of water, grapes, ivy, dogs, horses, salmon and his magical influences are hunting, darkness, death, freedom, harmony, innocence, justice, the otherworld or underworld, quests, contacting spirits, strength, truth, and youth.

Ways you can celebrate Mabon:

Make a simmer pot with apples, cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg, vanilla, star anise, orange slices.

Host a harvest dinner and include apples, squash, corn, grains, root vegetables like carrots potatoes and onions, grapes and wine, nuts, pomegranates, mead, spiced teas.

Make a hearty stew with fresh baked bread, apple pie, mashed squash, mulled wine

Make a cornucopia, go to a pumpkin patch and farmer’s market, go for a fall nature walk, donate food, focus on balance in your life, write a gratitude list, decorate your altar for Mabon with apples, candles that are brown, orange, and gold, marigold and sunflowers, leaves, acorns, grape vines, a deity statue. Celebrate by giving thanks for the abundance and good in your life, and meditate on the things on the things from this past year you'd like to let go of!

Sept 30th Celtic tree month of Ivy begins which symbolizes life, death, and rebirth, spell work during this time would be great for self-work, healing, banishing toxicity, protection, binding spells

Magical influences during this time: decisions and introspection, growth, learning, developing skills.

September in general is a good time to work on magick and intentions for the home.

I feel like 2 of the biggest intentions you can work on in September however, are balance and change, so I’m going to share a spell for this month that I created!

Things you’re going to need: leaves, something to write with, sage, basil, apple, orange candle, oil, sunflowers.

Dress your orange (for balance and change) candle with oil of your choosing and sage for a clear mind, basil for opening yourself to receive messages, and sunflowers for overcoming obstacles.

Core your apple (for peace, rebirth and renewal, self-work) and place your candle inside. You’re basically using this apple as your candle holder!

Light your candle and meditate on the areas in your life that need balance and/or change. When you are done, write your setbacks and obstacles that you want to overcome (to make these changes and bring this balance) onto the leaves. Hold the leaves into your hands and let the wind take them away!