#feralia x

[feralia-x]

[brookston]

Holidays 8.15

Holidays

Acadian Day (Canada)

Air Conditioning Appreciation Days end

Armed Forces Day (Poland)

Asunción Foundation Day (Paraguay)

Awa Dance Festival (Japan)

Best Friend's Day

Cass Elliot Day (Baltimore, Maryland)

Caveernova Awareness Day (UK)

Chant at the Moon Day

Chauvin Day (a.k.a. Nicolas Chauvin Day)

Check the Chip Day

City Hall Selfie Day

Constitution Day (Equatorial Guinea)

Dog Days of Summer end

815 Day

Ferragosto (Oven of August; Italy)

Flooding of the Nile (Egypt)

Flower Festival begins (Colombia)

Fool’s Dance (Japan)

Green Data Day

Hello Day

I Love Cowboys and Cowgirls Day

International Apostrophe Day

International Neonatal Nurses Day

International Play Lax Day

Jogukhaebangui nal (a.k.a. Fatherland Liberation Day; North Korea)

Khalistan Day

La Vieja Day (Panama)

Loaded Dice Day

Lupin Day (French Republic)

Memorial Day For the End of the War (終戦記念日 Shūsen-kinenbi; Japan)

Moms Equal Pay Day 2023 ( website )

Mother’s Day (Antwerp, Belgium)

National Back-to-School Prep Day

National Day (Liechtenstein)

National Failures Day

National Jean Day

National Leathercraft Day

National Liberation Day of Korea

National Mourning Day (Bangladesh)

National No Spongebob Day (SpongeBob)

National Philip Day

National Relaxation Day

National Sunflower Day (Canada)

Neighbor’s Day (Mexico)

Oscar Peterson Day

Panama Canal Day

Panama La Vieja Day (Panama)

Rockford Day (Illinois)

Sandakan Day (Malaysia)

Sang Marie (Gambia)

Shoro Nagashi Nagasaki (Japan)

Sit Back and Relax Day

SJS Memorial Day

Staatsfeiertag (Liechtenstein)

Stadium Rock Day

Tuva Republic Day (Russia)

Velika Gospa (Croatia)

Victory Over Japan Day (UK)

Woodstock Day

World Child Abuse & Neglect Awareness Day

World Reiki Day

World Greatness Day

Wow! Signal Anniversary Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

National Fresh Poke Day

National Ginseng Day

National Lemon Meringue Pie Day

3rd Tuesday in August

International Chalk the Walks Day [3rd Tuesday]

Independence Days

Gwangbokjeol or Kwang Bok Jul (Liberation Day; South Korea, redeclared independence from Japan; 1945)

Bahrain (from UK, 1971)

India (from UK, 1947)

Republic of the Congo (from Belgium, 1960)

Feast Days

Alypius of Thagaste (a.k.a. Alipius; Christian; Saint)

Assumption (a.k.a. ... 

Assomption (Belgium, Croatia, Haiti, Slovenia)

Feast of the Assumption

Feast of the Assumption of Mary

Fête Nationale of the Acadians (Canada)

Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos (Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches)

Feast of Saint Mary the Virgin

Feralia X (Day of Purification; Pagan)

Festival of the Outremeuse (Liege, Belgium)

Ferragosto (Italy)

Holy Day of Obligation (Catholic Church)

Irmandade da Nossa Senhora da Boa Morte Fiesta (Festival of the Order of Our Lady of the Good Death; Bahia, Brazil)

Lady's Day (Ireland)

Lunes siguiente a la Asunción de la Virgen (Spain)

Māras (Latvia)

Marilyn Chambers Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Mother's Day (Antwerp and Costa Rica)

National Acadian Day (Acadians)

Navy Day (Romania)

Virgin of Candelaria, patron of the Canary Islands. (Tenerife, Spain)

Zoline (Lithuania)

Bob (Muppetism)

Bon Festival (a.k.a. Obon; Japan)

Condom Day (Pastafarian)

Feast of the Formation of the Theotokos (Eastern Orthodox)

Festival of Vesta (Ancient Roman Goddess of the Hearth)

Francesco Zuccarelli (Artology)

Great Mother Goddess Day

Herbal Holy Day

Maras Diena (Ancient Latvia)

McCartin (Christian; Saint)

San La Muerte (Paraguayan Folk Catholicism)

Santa Muerte (Mexican Folk Catholicism)

Sproshinki (Slavic Pagan End of the Hay Harvest Festival)

Stanislaus Kostka (Christian; Saint)

Tarcisius (Christian; Saint)

Vasco de Gama (Positivist; Saint)

Wafaa El-Nil (a.k.a. Flooding of the Nile; Ancient Egypt)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Butsumetsu (仏滅 Japan) [Unlucky all day.]

Fatal Day (Pagan) [16 of 24]

Historically Bad Day (Buddha died & 6 other tragedies) [6 of 11]

Perilous Day (13th Century England) [23 of 32]

Prime Number Day: 227 [49 of 72]

Unfortunate Day (Pagan) [42 of 57]

Premieres

Alice’s Tin Pony (Disney Cartoon; 1925)

American Splendor (Film; 2003)

Americathon (Film; 1979)

Apocalypse Now (Film; 1979)

Bambi, a Life in the Woods, by Felix Salten (Novel; 1922)

Batman and Harley Quinn (WB Animated Film; 2017)

Cat’s Paw (WB LT Cartoon; 1959)

Crazy Rich Asians (Film; 2018)

Dancing Queen, by ABBA (Song; 1976)

Fly Me to the Moon (Animated Film; 2008)

The Full Monty (Film; 1997)

Garbage, by Garbage (Album; 1995)

How to Read a Book, by Mortimer J. Adler & Charles Van Doren (Book; 1972)

I Me ine, by George Harrison (Autobiography; 1980)

In Through the Out Door, by Led Zeppelin (Album; 1979)

The Larry Sanders Show (TV Series; 1992)

Living My Life, by Emma Goldman (Biography; 1931)

Macarena, by Los del Rio (Song; 1993)

Make Mine Music (Animated Disney Film; 1946)

Notorious (Film; 1946)

A Place in the Sun (Film; 1951)

Player Piano, by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (Novel; 1952)

The Sinking of Lusitania (Windsor McKay Cartoon; 1918)

Star Wars: The Clone Wars (Animated Film; 2008)

Vicky Cristina Barcelona (Film; 2008)

The Wizard of Oz (Film; 1939)

Wizard’s First Rule, by Terry Goodkind (Novel; 1994)

Woodstock Festival begins (Music Festival; 1969)

You Shook Me All Night Long, by AC/DC (Song; 1980)

Today’s Name Days

Maria Himmelfahrt, Tarsitius (Austria)

Mariya (Bulgaria)

Julijana, Mara, Marija (Croatia)

Hana (Czech Republic)

Maria (Denmark)

Hanna, Jaana, Jaanika, Jana, Janika, Janne, Jenny, Johanna, Nanna (Estonia)

Jaana, Jatta, Marianna, Marianne, Marita, Maritta, Marja, Marjaana, Marjatta, Marjo, Marjukka, Marjut (Finland)

Alfred, Marie (France)

Maria Himmelfahrt, Steven (Germany)

Despoina, Maria, Panagiotis, Panayotis (Greece)

Mária (Hungary)

Assunta, Maria (Italy)

Dzelde, Zamuels, Zenta (Latvia)

Napalys, Napoleonas, Sigita, Visvilas, Vydenė (Lithuania)

Margot, Marielle, Mary (Norway)

Maria, Napoleon, Stefan, Stella, Trzebimir (Poland)

Marcela (Slovakia)

Alba, Asunción, Azucena, Mar, María, Patrocinio, Prado, Reyes (Spain)

Estelle, Stella (Sweden)

Madonna, Malia, Mara, Maria, Mariah, Marian, Mariana, Maribel, Marie, Marisa, Marissa, Maritza, Marla, Mary, Maryann, Mimi, Miriam, Mitzy, Molly, Napoleon, Polly (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 227 of 2024; 138 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 2 of week 33 of 2023

Celtic Tree Calendar: Coll (Hazel) [Day 8 of 28]

Chinese: Month 6 (Ji-Wei), Day 29 (Yi-Si)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 28 Av 5783

Islamic: 28 Muharram 1445

J Cal: 17 Hasa; Threesday [17 of 30]

Julian: 2 August 2023

Moon: 1%: Waning Crescent

Positivist: 3 Gutenberg (9th Month) [Vasco de Gama]

Runic Half Month: As (Gods) [Day 3 of 15]

Season: Summer (Day 55 of 94)

Zodiac: Leo (Day 24 of 31)

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 8.15

Holidays

Acadian Day (Canada)

Air Conditioning Appreciation Days end

Armed Forces Day (Poland)

Asunción Foundation Day (Paraguay)

Awa Dance Festival (Japan)

Best Friend's Day

Cass Elliot Day (Baltimore, Maryland)

Caveernova Awareness Day (UK)

Chant at the Moon Day

Chauvin Day (a.k.a. Nicolas Chauvin Day)

Check the Chip Day

City Hall Selfie Day

Constitution Day (Equatorial Guinea)

Dog Days of Summer end

815 Day

Ferragosto (Oven of August; Italy)

Flooding of the Nile (Egypt)

Flower Festival begins (Colombia)

Fool’s Dance (Japan)

Green Data Day

Hello Day

I Love Cowboys and Cowgirls Day

International Apostrophe Day

International Neonatal Nurses Day

International Play Lax Day

Jogukhaebangui nal (a.k.a. Fatherland Liberation Day; North Korea)

Khalistan Day

La Vieja Day (Panama)

Loaded Dice Day

Lupin Day (French Republic)

Memorial Day For the End of the War (終戦記念日 Shūsen-kinenbi; Japan)

Moms Equal Pay Day 2023 ( website )

Mother’s Day (Antwerp, Belgium)

National Back-to-School Prep Day

National Day (Liechtenstein)

National Failures Day

National Jean Day

National Leathercraft Day

National Liberation Day of Korea

National Mourning Day (Bangladesh)

National No Spongebob Day (SpongeBob)

National Philip Day

National Relaxation Day

National Sunflower Day (Canada)

Neighbor’s Day (Mexico)

Oscar Peterson Day

Panama Canal Day

Panama La Vieja Day (Panama)

Rockford Day (Illinois)

Sandakan Day (Malaysia)

Sang Marie (Gambia)

Shoro Nagashi Nagasaki (Japan)

Sit Back and Relax Day

SJS Memorial Day

Staatsfeiertag (Liechtenstein)

Stadium Rock Day

Tuva Republic Day (Russia)

Velika Gospa (Croatia)

Victory Over Japan Day (UK)

Woodstock Day

World Child Abuse & Neglect Awareness Day

World Reiki Day

World Greatness Day

Wow! Signal Anniversary Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

National Fresh Poke Day

National Ginseng Day

National Lemon Meringue Pie Day

3rd Tuesday in August

International Chalk the Walks Day [3rd Tuesday]

Independence Days

Gwangbokjeol or Kwang Bok Jul (Liberation Day; South Korea, redeclared independence from Japan; 1945)

Bahrain (from UK, 1971)

India (from UK, 1947)

Republic of the Congo (from Belgium, 1960)

Feast Days

Alypius of Thagaste (a.k.a. Alipius; Christian; Saint)

Assumption (a.k.a. ... 

Assomption (Belgium, Croatia, Haiti, Slovenia)

Feast of the Assumption

Feast of the Assumption of Mary

Fête Nationale of the Acadians (Canada)

Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos (Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches)

Feast of Saint Mary the Virgin

Feralia X (Day of Purification; Pagan)

Festival of the Outremeuse (Liege, Belgium)

Ferragosto (Italy)

Holy Day of Obligation (Catholic Church)

Irmandade da Nossa Senhora da Boa Morte Fiesta (Festival of the Order of Our Lady of the Good Death; Bahia, Brazil)

Lady's Day (Ireland)

Lunes siguiente a la Asunción de la Virgen (Spain)

Māras (Latvia)

Marilyn Chambers Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Mother's Day (Antwerp and Costa Rica)

National Acadian Day (Acadians)

Navy Day (Romania)

Virgin of Candelaria, patron of the Canary Islands. (Tenerife, Spain)

Zoline (Lithuania)

Bob (Muppetism)

Bon Festival (a.k.a. Obon; Japan)

Condom Day (Pastafarian)

Feast of the Formation of the Theotokos (Eastern Orthodox)

Festival of Vesta (Ancient Roman Goddess of the Hearth)

Francesco Zuccarelli (Artology)

Great Mother Goddess Day

Herbal Holy Day

Maras Diena (Ancient Latvia)

McCartin (Christian; Saint)

San La Muerte (Paraguayan Folk Catholicism)

Santa Muerte (Mexican Folk Catholicism)

Sproshinki (Slavic Pagan End of the Hay Harvest Festival)

Stanislaus Kostka (Christian; Saint)

Tarcisius (Christian; Saint)

Vasco de Gama (Positivist; Saint)

Wafaa El-Nil (a.k.a. Flooding of the Nile; Ancient Egypt)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Butsumetsu (仏滅 Japan) [Unlucky all day.]

Fatal Day (Pagan) [16 of 24]

Historically Bad Day (Buddha died & 6 other tragedies) [6 of 11]

Perilous Day (13th Century England) [23 of 32]

Prime Number Day: 227 [49 of 72]

Unfortunate Day (Pagan) [42 of 57]

Premieres

Alice’s Tin Pony (Disney Cartoon; 1925)

American Splendor (Film; 2003)

Americathon (Film; 1979)

Apocalypse Now (Film; 1979)

Bambi, a Life in the Woods, by Felix Salten (Novel; 1922)

Batman and Harley Quinn (WB Animated Film; 2017)

Cat’s Paw (WB LT Cartoon; 1959)

Crazy Rich Asians (Film; 2018)

Dancing Queen, by ABBA (Song; 1976)

Fly Me to the Moon (Animated Film; 2008)

The Full Monty (Film; 1997)

Garbage, by Garbage (Album; 1995)

How to Read a Book, by Mortimer J. Adler & Charles Van Doren (Book; 1972)

I Me ine, by George Harrison (Autobiography; 1980)

In Through the Out Door, by Led Zeppelin (Album; 1979)

The Larry Sanders Show (TV Series; 1992)

Living My Life, by Emma Goldman (Biography; 1931)

Macarena, by Los del Rio (Song; 1993)

Make Mine Music (Animated Disney Film; 1946)

Notorious (Film; 1946)

A Place in the Sun (Film; 1951)

Player Piano, by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (Novel; 1952)

The Sinking of Lusitania (Windsor McKay Cartoon; 1918)

Star Wars: The Clone Wars (Animated Film; 2008)

Vicky Cristina Barcelona (Film; 2008)

The Wizard of Oz (Film; 1939)

Wizard’s First Rule, by Terry Goodkind (Novel; 1994)

Woodstock Festival begins (Music Festival; 1969)

You Shook Me All Night Long, by AC/DC (Song; 1980)

Today’s Name Days

Maria Himmelfahrt, Tarsitius (Austria)

Mariya (Bulgaria)

Julijana, Mara, Marija (Croatia)

Hana (Czech Republic)

Maria (Denmark)

Hanna, Jaana, Jaanika, Jana, Janika, Janne, Jenny, Johanna, Nanna (Estonia)

Jaana, Jatta, Marianna, Marianne, Marita, Maritta, Marja, Marjaana, Marjatta, Marjo, Marjukka, Marjut (Finland)

Alfred, Marie (France)

Maria Himmelfahrt, Steven (Germany)

Despoina, Maria, Panagiotis, Panayotis (Greece)

Mária (Hungary)

Assunta, Maria (Italy)

Dzelde, Zamuels, Zenta (Latvia)

Napalys, Napoleonas, Sigita, Visvilas, Vydenė (Lithuania)

Margot, Marielle, Mary (Norway)

Maria, Napoleon, Stefan, Stella, Trzebimir (Poland)

Marcela (Slovakia)

Alba, Asunción, Azucena, Mar, María, Patrocinio, Prado, Reyes (Spain)

Estelle, Stella (Sweden)

Madonna, Malia, Mara, Maria, Mariah, Marian, Mariana, Maribel, Marie, Marisa, Marissa, Maritza, Marla, Mary, Maryann, Mimi, Miriam, Mitzy, Molly, Napoleon, Polly (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 227 of 2024; 138 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 2 of week 33 of 2023

Celtic Tree Calendar: Coll (Hazel) [Day 8 of 28]

Chinese: Month 6 (Ji-Wei), Day 29 (Yi-Si)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 28 Av 5783

Islamic: 28 Muharram 1445

J Cal: 17 Hasa; Threesday [17 of 30]

Julian: 2 August 2023

Moon: 1%: Waning Crescent

Positivist: 3 Gutenberg (9th Month) [Vasco de Gama]

Runic Half Month: As (Gods) [Day 3 of 15]

Season: Summer (Day 55 of 94)

Zodiac: Leo (Day 24 of 31)

[theparanormalperiodical]

A Short History Of Halloween

It’s the most wonderful timeeeee of the yearrrrrr.

Yep - it’s cold enough in the mornings to put on a jumper, but too hot for it as we reach lunchtime.

That can only mean one thing: October is officially here!

As we hurtle towards the spookiest day of the year, we prepare for the sugar-fest that is pulling on a polyester costume and failing to act your own age.

But pushing the various sexy costumes aside, and looking beyond the hyper kids and greedy teens, the history of Halloween is actually just as interesting as slapping on a Claire’s prosthetic to achieve that flawless zombie look. 

(If that’s even possible.)

Ever wondered where trick-or-treating comes from?

What about the intricate historical cogs of time that gave birth to the tradition of dressing as a sexy cat? Or a sexy catholic schoolgirl? Or a just-as-troubling alternative?

And did you know that apple bobbing has an origin story set to rival most X-Men films?

No?

Don’t worry, my little ghoul - I’ve got ya covered.

Today’s post is going to take you through the basic-bitch history of Halloween, all the way up to it’s modern-day American influences, and look at some of the wacky traditions we do - and do not - celebrate.

So, whether you're getting ready for that partay, or settling in for a scary movie, buckle up.

Let’s get spooky.

It all starts with All Hallows’ Eve

Yes, we know Halloween is actually “All Hallow’s Eve”.

(And yes, we also know that The Exorcist is based on a true story.)

But today we are going to out-edge the edgy kids. We are gonna go all the way back to the beginning of Halloween.

And it starts here, with the Celtic festival of Samhain. Turns out, it wasn’t all that different from the celebrations we have today:

Samhain occurred annually on November 1st, and they believed that this night blurred the lines between the dead and the living. But you can keep your Robin Thicke references to yourself - Samhain meant more than the outdated lyrics of this hit; the blurred lines referred to the seasons, as well.

Essentially, the end of the summer and the start of the winter was literally a time of death. 

And as they relied so heavily on the predictions made by druids – their ‘priests’ – they believed that the spirit realm could be entered during this time, and that the troubles soon to be experienced during the harsh winters could be foreseen. 

To encourage contact with the deities and spirits that would help them prepare for the winter ahead, they had bonfires that would be used for sacrifices to the deities, and wore costumes to ward off ghosts. 

Sound familiar?

And it was from these bonfires that they would relit their hearth fire, officially signalling the change in the seasons.

A bit like the pumpkin spice latte hitting the Cafe menus, again.

So, we’ve established the root of, like, the bestest day evah - but what makes Halloween so intriguing is how much it has been twisted to what we celebrate now. 

Take the merging of Roman traditions with Samhain:

The Romans had this similar celebration - All Saint’s Day. This also occurred on November 1st and was considered a time to honour the saints, so naturally it included some of the Samhain traditions. 

But it’s the evening before that we should be most interested in; the evening before All Saints Day was known formally as All Hallow’s Eve. 

In less mystical terms this means ‘the eve of honouring all those that are holy’.

It was only when the Celts were finally conquered by the Romans that the true merging of the Roman and Celtic traditions occurred. But it was the collaboration of two other Roman festivals together with Samhain that set in place a celebration of the dead that would really create Halloween.

These two festivals were Feralia, which commemorated the death, and Pomona, the goddess of fruit and trees. And so - just like bonfires and costumes witnessed at Samhain - another Halloween tradition was born:

The symbol of Pomona goddess was an apple, and it is believed that apple bobbing was been founded here, forging a link with today’s spookiest night of the year.

This new celebration was firmly set in place by Christianity’s domination overtime, and All Saints Day’s new date of November 2nd became a church-sanctioned holiday for celebrating the dead.

It’s ‘Murica That Makes Halloween

The USA - together with influences from its colonial era - really made Halloween what it is today. 

And in some classic-geography-GCSE terms, is a brilliant case study for the development of the traditions that are still practiced today.

In the colonial era, All Hallow’s Eve wasn’t really celebrated - they were strict protestants, and this was a catholic holiday. But, just like the Samhain celebrations, they focused on the changing of the seasons. 

For example, the main activities involved were play parties from which they celebrated the harvest and told stories of the dead.

But this all changed in the 19th century.

It was when the Irish migrants travelled to the USA that Halloween really began to take shape.

In fact, this is where it got its sugary coating.

Irish migrants brought over new traditions like costumes, and going from house to house to ask for money and food - you can thank the Irish for trick-or-treating.

Yet thanks to this tide of change which included a greater focus on the scarier aspects of the dead, there were attempts to remove the spookiness from this spooky holiday right up until the 1950s. 

And so we turn up at the early 20th century, from which trick-or-treating was revived as a tradition, and it became a fun celebration of the potential ghosts and ghouls that could wander in the dead of the night, just like the one we all know and love today.

We’ve Heard The History - Let’s Talk Traditions 

No discussion of my favourite holiday would be complete without discussing the twisted traditions that make this day quite so special

And we start with probably the most famous: ‘trick or treating’. It all started back when All Saint’s Day was the cool kid on the block. 

In England in particular, All Soul’s Cakes were given out during the parades. But this wasn’t to partake in enjoying the sticky-sweet goodness that still dominates our celebrations; it had more of a charitable meaning back then. 

These cakes were given out to the poor, but the cakes came with a condition: the receiver had to pray to the giver’s deceased relatives. This practice was even encouraged by the Church as it was an alternative to leaving out food and wine to bribe the spirits into not entering the home. 

So, even at its core, Halloween combines my two favourite things: food and ghosts.

Thankfully, this is still central to our modern interpretation of October 31st.

Another modern tradition - or rather, the mascot for the spookiest night of the year - is the Jack O Lantern. 

No, literally, that’s the picture on the Wikipedia page.

But carving pumpkins actually has a much darker origin story than just creating an aesthetically-autumnal candle holder. 

The irish folk tale behind it goes like this: 

A man trapped the devil in a tree and told him that he couldn’t claim his soul (classic saturday night, right?). However, when the man died, he wasn’t allowed into Heaven - turns out he wasn’t a very nice bloke. So, when he asked the devil if he could stay in the alternative dwelling of Hell, the devil threw a piece of coal at him in protest. He took that piece of coal and put it in a pumpkin, making the very first Jack O’Lantern. He used it to try and find his final resting place. 

In true folk-tale fashion, other traditions also claim they were used to ward off spirits from the home, or that they represented the souls in purgatory which relates to All Saints Day.

Either way, it’s pretty damn deathy. 

Like, it fits Halloween. 

Nevertheless, some traditions have been lost to history - and for good reason. 

Most of them are pretty out-dated, and centre around women finding their future partner which was all that really mattered back then. But if you're in need of ‘the one’ cause you are actually in a teen rom com, it’s time to buy some hazelnuts!

Oh and be a dorky-clumsy-totally-relatable-girl that’s not in the popular crowd and you see through that shit but have an obsession for the popular guy and you fall in love with him cause you’re just not like any other girl oh just fuck off. 

Okay - back to the hazelnuts.

Grab a handful, and name them after your potential suitors. So, all the guys and/or gals you like. 

Throw ‘em into the fire, and the one that doesn’t burn to ashes is the one! 

Then again, in other cultures, the one that burns first is the one… 

Well if you don’t trust that all you have to do is peel an apple. 

Toss the peels over your shoulder, and it should show your future husbands initials. Or something less heteronormative. This is also another origin story for apple bobbing - the first to win was the first to get married.

#goals?

There we have it - the historic, the hellish, and the heteronormative.

Who doesn’t love Halloween?

So, now it’s time to hear what you think:

Are you ready to get your Samhain on?

And what tradition are you ready to bring back from the dead?

[entofille]

Feralia februalis or Mossy Sallow Moth, (X)

[papillonrecordhouse]

Mariposa x Haku: B-Support + Event 1

In collaboration with: @xianha

@fe-exire

[Event: Feralia]

Haku: *walking in* Hey, got any work for me today?

Mariposa: *dressed like she just came back from a funeral* Huh? Oh no, everyone has the day off Haku. It’s a festival day, remember? *looks exhausted as she takes a seat on her chair with an album*

Haku: A day off... festival?... Ohh... Oh yeah ....that.... huh... I've never actually experienced a festival like that before.

Mariposa: *looks at him confused* What? Really? Your friends or parents never took you out to a festival? I mean, I guess this one isn't the cheeriest. But still!

Haku: Couldn't afford to, it's not that bad though. I'd see some pretty lights around. And even after they died and I made my own living, I couldn't really go out in public and expose myself to the area.

Mariposa: !!! *looks a little taken a back, but then composes herself* Oh I see, so your parents are not with us. I apologize. It must have unimaginably rough to lose them. *looks down at the album* I know it would be unbearable for me.

Haku: It’s okay I'm not really that heartbroken. *looks over* What's that?

Mariposa: *looks at him like he said the most alien thing to her, but then shows him the album* It’s my family album. Would you like to see it?

Haku: Sure~ I've never seen your folks around before. They come by often?

Mariposa: Oh no, they are far from Tellius! My mother and her parents are sort of like nomads. They came here from their home country for kicks, to explore. It’s my dad who was born here, but he left with my mom. It’s been years since I've seen them... *pulls out a family photo, of her as a little girl in her father's arms* That's him! *smiles*

Haku: Wooow~~ I can see where you get your charm from.

Mariposa: *chuckles* Flattery will get you nowhere~ But yeah, my dad was a looker. Had to be if my mom was willing to extend her trip from one to twenty-six. I swear, my dad was as military as you could get! He was strict, punctual, and not the best with...  emotional support. *shakes her head* But he was a softie. He loved to play with me and teach me to fight. Oh and do this thing where we'd play guardsmen during thunderstorms! *all bright eye* AND ONCE! He took me on his plane, I almost threw up. *laughs* But the view from up there was so pretty!

Haku: Sounds like someone is a bit of a daddy's little princess.

Mariposa: *looks at him* hmm?  *leans forward with a smirk* Damn right I am~

Haku: Awww how cute, you’re proud~~

Mariposa: Of course! Who won’t want to be a princess~ After all, that just means I have the power to make the world tumble! *stands* Now how about we go get Shisuu so we can celebrate together. I can borrow you something nice~

Haku: Wait, I don't look presentable enough?

Mariposa: *looks at him and chuckles* You look like you are ready to rob the place~!

Haku: But isn’t that what you made me do???

[End of Event 1]

 Mariposa: *filing some things away as the rest of the employees and agents make their leave* Today was so slow.

Haku: Heeeey~ Mariiiii~!!!

Mariposa: ! *turns to him and smiles* Well someone is cheerful~ Hello Haku, turning in something? *walks over to him*

Haku: Well kinda, I got the thing you wanted, but I also have something you might like too.

Mariposa: *eyes widen* Oh?~ A gift? Show me! *walks over to him, waiting for her gift*

Haku: Close your eyes first, I want it to be a surprise.

Mariposa: *looks at him suspiciously, but then closes her eyes* Alright give it to me.

Haku: Alright hold still then. *pins a butterfly barette in her hair* There, open up.

Mariposa: *opens her eyes and looks at her office mirror* Oh! How cute~  Thank you Haku. *smiles at him, with a hint of blush*

Haku: I bought a while back at the festival, I thought it suited your style.

Mariposa: I agree~ I'll cherish it then. You know, you really do have the cutest face when you’re happy~ I can just imagine a tail wagging behind you! *chuckles*

Haku: Ehhh?? I told you I'm not a dog!

Mariposa: BUT you act like one sometimes in the cutest ways! *ruffs his hair* I mean, even more than Shisuu. *giggles*

Haku: How can I be more of a dog than a dog himself!! Shisuu licks his own wounds for pete's sake, even my wounds!!

Mariposa: Woah woah! ~ I know we're close, but I don't need to know about you and Shisuu's kinks~ *playfully covering her ears*

Haku: *light blush* O-Oi oi!!! Those are not kinks and me and Shisuu ARE not like that!! WE’RE. JUST. FRIENDS!

Mariposa: I don't know~~~ I mean... *lifts his hand by the chain on his wrist* You do wear chains for the guy~ *giggles, pinches his cheeks*

Haku: Grrr...!!... Hmm... Well there's no need to go after him anyways, I've already set my eyes on someone.

Mariposa: *let's go of his cheek and looks at him in surprise* Oh? Who? *curls her fingers into her palm*

Haku: ........you.

Mariposa: ... ... ... *looks at him, waiting for him say he’s joking* Wait what??? *bright red*

Haku: Why do you think I allow you to push me around and do as you say all the time? I think you're pretty cute!

Mariposa: *just keeps looking at him and then looks sad* Haku, I.... *looks at him like she wants to say something, but stops* ... Haku, I'm sorry. I... I can't accept your feelings... I'm so sorry... *takes off the butterfly clip and hands it back to him uneasily*

Mariposa: You are my employee and I'm your boss. It would be a conflict of interests. Not to mention the power dynamic...

Haku: Uhhh....you know I was just joking, eight... I like Brandon remember! ♡

Mariposa: *looks at him shocked then her sadness which quickly turns to flaring anger* I! CAN! NOT! BELIEVE YOU! GGGGRAAAAAHH!!!! *punches him directly in the gut, then kicks his shin* YOU! ASS! HOLE! PENDEJO! GAAAH! *throws the keys at his face* YOU ARE CLEANING UP TONIGHT AND LOCKING UP!!!! *storms off in fury, slamming the door behind her*

Haku:  A-ahhh shit... *groans* What the hell was that for? For someone who's constantly teasing me, she can’t take a joke...

[End of Support B]

[ivakir]

OOC MEME!

tagged by @evora-eriu-mclaggen

tagging: @bullshituberalles @gentlegiantingvar  @norikwrites @witch-of-annwn @desertfragments @moran-anam @laverginedegliangeli @maelcholuim 

A . age : 24 B . birthplace : Moscow, Russia C . current time :  12:20pm D . drink you had last : some cheap black tea. E . easiest person to talk to : I don't like to talk to people. I lost my social skills long ago. F . favorite song : Sopor Aeternus & The Ensemble of Shadows – Feralia Genitalia G . grossest memory : when I was washing the dishes, I accidentally touched the food in the sink. H . horror yes or horror no : very depends on the kind of horror. if it's a stupid thing with screamers and a dark light, then it's not a horror, it's a garbage. I . in love ? : I don't have money and free time for love. J . jealous of people : I am jealous of people, who has money and a very good mental health to make this money and who don't face with such problems, like, when you have to remind yourself to wash your ass or to eat something, because you forget/have no desire. K . killed someone : my hopes for the bright future. L . love at first sight or should i walk by again ? : no love. only mutual respect and partnership. M . middle name : the hell is that??? N . number of siblings :  one. O . one wish : please, do all that important stuff I have to finish until the end of the year. do it instead of me. P . person you called last : pizza delivery guy. Q . question you’re always asked : "When are you going to have a family?" "Why are you so pale?" "When will you finally finish this stupid book for your diploma?" (the last one is me, asking myself) R . reason to smile : I don't smile. S . song you sang last : I don't sing. T . top 3 fictional characters : why only three GODS YOU ARE EVIL okay, I am still fangirling over fallout 4, so TRY TO GUESS. U . underwear color : you nasty person purple. V . vacation : somewhere where I don't have to responsible. W . when’s your birthday : Septmeber 27th X . x-rays : ??? Y . your favorite food : ANYTHING Z . zodiac sign : Libra

[feraliabooks]

The reading project continues.

[phynxrizng]

PROTECTION AGAINST GOSSIP

Magickal Activity for February 21 for the Day of Feralia

Protection Against Gossip

Items needed:

One black candle; a lock of your own hair; an envelope; red sealing wax; a seal with your initial on it; a red marking pen.

Place all the items on a small table or altar.

Draw a circle on the outside of the envelope.

In the center of the circle, draw a pair of closed lips.

Drip some of the sealing wax on the lips and draw an X through them.

Place the hair inside the envelope.

Light the candle and set it on top of the envelope.

Visualize the person who is gossiping about you stopping immediately.

As you do this, chant the following:

Sealed within I shall be,

That no harm will come to me.

Your cruel words bounce off me,

And are now returned back to thee.

For this I now will, So mote it be.

Allow candle to burn out. Bury the envelope.

SOURCE, WITCHES OF the CRAFT.COM POSTED BY, MISTRESS MYST

REPOSTED HERE BY, PHYNXRIZNG

[discipulusmaleficus]

all the p flowers!!

@squibbed​ - botanical hcs

pansy : does your muse often reflect on their own actions ? do they ever think a lot about the past , and what they could have done differently ?

Not if he can avoid it, which is most of the time. It would only make him feel bad, right?

There are things he still feels guilty about (despite all efforts to ignore them), but he's not good at actually taking responsibility for his actions, and he isn't particularly convinced that it's possible for him to be better.

peony : what would a ‘ happy life ’ look like in your muse’s eyes ?

He'd settle for anything without the dread of his weird familial obligations and curses hovering over his head, tbh.

A lot of his old recurring daydreams focused on running off to become a goatherd in some isolated corner of the world. He has a vague, idealised notion of something reasonably steady and safe and cottagecore, but is also aware he'd likely have some issues with that in practice. (This may also be taken as evidence he's not built to be happy anyhow.) Literally joining the circus also may have been a thing for a while.

He hardly dares hope for a significant other most of the time.

poppy : what comforts your muse ?

Fun fact: before he starts wearing other things (which is big deal), the hooded black robe was something like a security blanket that he could feasibly carry around with him 24/7. Not only does it prevent people from perceiving his wretched countenance, it's surprisingly soft, gives him some protection against the cold on an everyday basis (if not against overheating), cuts out what seems like entirely too much glare in his peripheral vision, and will never fail him in a way that can't be fixed with enough sewing.

So, as for small things: being swathed in fabric, animals he doesn't hate, wine, maybe black tea, probably cards and pens and whatever else he plays with, the comforting sentiment that you were doomed to failure from the start and that there's no point in getting up in arms about it,

But also, let's be honest, how many times has he felt unhappy about something and then immediately concocted some ill-advised, unnecessarily risky summoning expedition or the like to avoid or 'fix' it???

parsley : describe a holiday your muse enjoys , and why they enjoy it .

I've answered a slightly adjacent question here (/gotten entirely carried away) and made some notes on all his notable holidays (or those I have a take on atm), since I've never bothered do that. There are a lot of days that are simply incidents for minor sacrifice or particularly good days on which to do X or Y, and he theoretically has religious obligations on a lot of days which aren't actually that celebratory at all. Really, one wonders how he keeps track of everything.

(All based on very surface-level research. I also really need to do more with the Kemetic influence at some point (curse his silly chimera religion), but information on that's generally scarcer and I'm tired.)

Parentalia (February 13-21): Offerings to and/or calling upon the spirits of departed ancestors, culminating in the Feralia sacrifice at midnight. Traditionally all business is put on hold for the duraction - his family's perspective probably differs somewhat in that you might want to use those spirits for something, rather than exorcising them.

Valentine's Day: Kal obviously always brings up his distaste for saints, but mostly he's just following the tradition of feeling bitter and unloved. Unless he isn't single...?

Caristia (February 22): Celebration of living family. You're supposed to bring everyone together and put all disagreements aside, which obviously always works perfectly and creates no tension whatsoever. Exchanging of wine and gifts and such. Kal probably begrudgingly makes the pilgrimage at least some of the time in adulthood.

Terminalia (February 23): Time to renew the curses on the boundaries of your property. Also to move them if you want to slowly encroach on the lands on the peasants. Or if you decided that was a bad idea and need to put them back.

March 1: 'New year', maybe.

Liberalia (March 17): "Celebrates the maturation of young boys to manhood," usually at 15-16. Also time to replace the mysterious effigy you have hanging in the woods and possibly the 2-3 robes you wear constantly.

April 1: He's not going to turn down an opportunity to fuck with anyone, right?

Kal's own birthday (April 14): I get the impression he mostly recalls waking up pre-pre-dawn for ritual reasons, and a lot of scrutiny of how well his schooling was progressing. He generally doesn't bother telling people about it.

Easter: sometimes he burns bibles for the occasion

Parilia (April 21): Sanctification and appeasement of the goats. Honestly kind of a big deal.

Vinalia urbana (April 23): Has mostly devolved into an excuse to drink.

Lemuria (May 9, 11, 13): Another festival of the restless dead. Has perhaps been kind-of-merged with The Beautiful Festival of the Valley. Which involves flower garlands.

Opet (July 19): For him, one occasion on which he’s obliged to venerate Amun-Ra and beg Him to maintain His contracts, I expect.

Neptunalia (July 23): Involves hanging out in the woods building huts of sticks (in the sun / rain), praying the fish will continue to be somewhat edible, and theoretically merrymaking.

Tekh (August 7): See Vinalia urbana, except it has to be beer, which he's less fond of.

Portunalia (August 17): "On this day, keys were thrown into a fire for good luck in a very solemn and lugubrious manner."

do they have to be your keys

Vulcanalia (August 23): If you want, you can ritually not sacrifice small animals by dangling them over open flames for a while and then taking them back unscathed. This is supposed to make your incendiary spells more effective in combat.

Meditrinalia (October 11): See Vinalia urbana.

Anniversary of Exile (October 23): Generally a time for swearing fealty to the legacy of your Ancestors and solemn oaths to One Day Conquer The World Once Again or whatever. Occasion of a ritual theoretically supposed to increase your own Dark Power, on which a fair number of Kal's intermediary relatives took it upon themselves to sacrifice their enemies. He probably abandons it at some point but is likely to be conflicted and in a less-than-stellar mood.

There are likely also minor acknowledgements of other historical dates of import to his cult family.

Birthday of Kallistemon Zorabi (January 29): Quite similar to the above, with a slightly more optimistic bent.

Halloween: I'm going to say this is agreed upon as a good time for necromancy, which means he's likely to busy himself with some nonsense as an excuse to spurn the holiday itself. For quite a while he denigrates it as a Mockery of "actual traditions", but I suspect he could learn to enjoy it if he bothered.

Saturnalia (December 17): Known as the season where slaves were traditionally served by or before their masters. Associated with the freedom to insult your betters, gambling, and the giving of (often small or gag) gifts. Kal is on board for all of this and will fairly often give people the worst things he can manage for 'Christmas'. (This is also a good way of thumbing his nose at Christmas.)

Bacchanalia (thrice yearly): About what you'd expect from Dionysos. He may have participated at school/university, and it's a good time if you like being driven temporarily insane (who doesn't), but you can't really do it properly if there's not a cult around. That's just sad.

Agonalia (quarterly): Occasion of sacrifice to various entities. True to the name, generally just kind of stressful, as you had to either kill something or (if you really couldn't afford to) offer apologetic blood sacrifice.

[feraliabooks]

Just a quick reading update. In between work and writing my third story, I’ve been all about the X-Men (in case it wasn’t obvious from recent posts). 😉 Right now I’m working on Essential X-Factor vol 2 and the trade paperback collection of The Fall of The Mutants.

What books/authors are you currently reading? Let me know in the Facebook comments!

-Clint

[feraliabooks]

Where my fellow X-Men fans at? :)

[feraliabooks]

Next up is Essential X-Men vol 3. It collects Uncanny X-Men #145-161, X-Men Annual #5-6 and Avengers Annual #10. It’s black & white and 528 pages. (ISBN 978-007851-4366-6)

As per usual with the Essential collections, the black & white presentation of stories that were originally in color, in my opinion, takes away from the experience. However, I found this book, which has a cover price of $19.99 for under $7 with free shipping! So as usual, the value of being able to catch up on the stories makes up for having to read them in black & white. I did feel that this volume suffered in that regard more than the previous collection.

As for the stories, they’re following a legendary collection before it which includes 3 great stories (Proteus, Dark Phoenix and Days of Future Past). The stories collected here, despite the team going up against villains such as Doctor Doom, don’t quite live up to their predecessors. That’s not to say they’re bad. Just not up to the level of the stories just before them. One thing to note is the inclusion of Avengers Annual #10, which features the first appearance of Rogue. While this issue in particular suffers from the conversion to black & white, I did appreciate being able to read the origin story of one of my favorite 90’s characters for the first time.

As far as the grand scheme of things (and my goal of catching up on the major stories of the X-Men), I’d say this volume isn’t critical. Although it should be noted that it includes a very important issue for Colossus’ sister Illyana (Uncanny #160), and sets up the story for the Brood Saga, which the next Essential collection opens with. For the sake of completion, and continuing to get to know the characters, combined with the fact that this volume can be found for so cheap, it’s still a worthy pick up.

3/5

-Clint

[feraliabooks]

In my ongoing quest to catch up on all of the major X-Men stories, I wanted to jump back just a bit to Essential X-Men vol 2 (ISBN 978-007851-2007-0). This collection is a massive 584 pages (black & white) and includes X-Men #120-141, Uncanny X-Men #142-144 (the same title, which just adds ‘Uncanny’ later on), and X-Men Annual #3-4. Included in this collection of amazing stories are The Proteus Saga, Dark Phoenix Saga and Days of Future Past. There’s also a cool team up with Spiderman vs. Arcade (which upon reading I realized must have been the source for the Super NES game Spiderman & The X-Men in Arcade’s Revenge).

After already having read Essential X-Men vol 1, The Dark Phoenix Saga and Days of Future Past, I was initially going to skip this volume. I decided to go back, however, because it also includes the Proteus Saga, which I was unable to find collected in color. I was glad I did, not only because the Proteus Saga was a really good read, but also because it was nice to roll right into the very next issue where vol 1 left off. Having the context around all of the stories was nice.

The printing that I have has a cover price of $19.99, but I was able to find it for much, much cheaper. That’s the thing about these black & white collections – it’s disappointing having to read them not in color, but they can be found for ridiculously cheap, and are a great way to quickly catch up on some amazing stories at a great value.

In light of all this, I would definitely recommend picking this up. Although for The Dark Phoenix Saga and Days of Future Past, I’d recommend picking up their full color trade paperback collections because they can still be found at very reasonable prices. While reading this collection, I actually skipped those storylines, having just read them recently.

5/5 despite being black & white because the stories are just that good!

Soon I’ll be putting together a guide to catch up on and collect all of these great stories at a decent value.

-Clint

[feraliabooks]

My journey to catch up with my favorite super heroes continues in today's review of X-Men: Days of Future Past!

[feraliabooks]

FINALLY read this classic story! Read my review here.