A New Site!

I am in the process of cleaning up all the links, and redirecting to my new site.

It took several months, and a lot more work than I thought, and it's finally done.  Just in case you found yourself here out of habit, or were worried about a lack of updates.

My new blog is: www.EnterTheTemple.com/blog

I am in the process now of putting these old posts (and Electra Blue's blog!) up on my new site.  I want to show how I've developed over the years, and I know the best is yet to come.

Gratitudes

It's such an odd thing...I advertise and I have clients express interest. Last monday I had lots of requests but couldn't get a space. This week I put other plans aside to be sure I could have a space. And I'm kinda surprised, I didn't even get loser calls that I know aren't gonna come. Wrong time of the month maybe? 

Instead of letting it get me down, I'm consciously practicing gratitude for what I do have, and reminding myself that somehow, all my needs still get met. And I do have a lot to be grateful for.

I'm grateful for long running regulars who have seen me through my name change from Electra to Elizabeth.

I'm grateful for the man who hired me as his naked housekeeper. That covered the cost of my unused Incall this venture.

I'm grateful for big fluffy luxurious beds in hotels. I'm grateful that I've never been charged a smoking fee even though I smoke weed in their rooms. And mini fridges too.

I'm grateful for an awesome bookbinding gig that lets me make up my own hours and has never asked questions.

I'm grateful for real massages, and sweet connections.

I'm grateful that I live in a city where I actually feel pretty safe to be myself.

Friday the 13th

Friday the 13th has always been a favorite day of mine.  The day and the number are sacred to the Goddess, Aphrodite/Venus in particular.  I went to an underground open mike cabaret, one of my favorite places to be.  The host knows just who to invite, keeps out the riff-raff so that every reader, poet, musician who comes to the stage is on this same spontaneous wavelength.  It was spiritually expansive, acknowledging the interconnectedness. Wow, it was like the Universe was speaking through them, reminding me that this is the change. It starts slow, but when all these creative types are speaking to the same thing, wishing for the same thing, bringing it down from the ethers through the distillation into language---my heart feels happy, it feels like the whole collective consciousness is shifting towards the desire for community and connection instead of competition.

These events are ever so inspiring to me. Having all that creative energies just fills me with verse.  Several poems came out from it, most very raw. A few I had to share privately, others with friends. it's funny, how sometimes you just don't have the words to explain. Sometimes you have to use symbol, metaphor.  And sometimes those emotions just have to be released, attached to words and put out into the world.  I feel lighter when I can get the words out onto paper, so they don't clog up my mind.

I am recognizing that this will need to be a practice for me, especially as I am desiring to put out more art, to create more. Drawing and sketching too. There are a few bodies I know that I'd just love to sketch or sculpt. I've always done better with 3-D media, sketches feel like intellectual exercises...translating something full into something flat. It can be fun, but it's only preparation.

So, writing, sketching, sculpting.  And I have to sew up a new diary, I finished mine this weekend.

Priming and Pampering (and sunburns, oh my)

This weekend was full of beauty rituals. I spent six hours getting my hair colored and cut. I think a good portion of that was the streak of magenta I had put in the back and she did an excellent job. It made Sunday evenings photoshoot so much better: my hair was freshly trimmed and glossy, and I even got a little education in doing hair and makeup!  I think a few are surprised to learn that was always more of a tomboy, and transitioning into this highly feminine world of curlers, primers, heels, palettes of eye shadow, hairspray, accessories...it's all very exciting and a little overwhelming at times.

Also had time for a little culture this weekend. A small group of friends gathered to take in a little Shakespeare. The company was performing Macbeth, which I hadn't seen performed yet.  I was so excited to go, I totally forgot sunblock, and my arms are a nice shade of cooked lobster.

Monday is here now, a sort of free day. Plenty of things to get done: preparing for my ordination, preparing for the sacred courtesan course in October, a few people I need to reach out to. A more permanent Incall space feels closer...I've called in a couple beautiful temp spots.  Might one of them become a Temple?  We can only wait and see.

The Way of the Superior Lover

I'm reading a pre-publication edition of a text, The Way of the Superior Lover.  It popped up while cleaning the house I'm cat-sitting at, and at such a good time.  As I'm coming into a new year of the sacred courtesan program, I am looking at what I want to learn, work on, and discover about myself.

I already knew a little bit of this....the tongue and fingers as energy directors, moving energy through the body with a caress, light scratches, biting, a nibble. These methods of exploring a body are my favorite, so I am looking forward to a week of practicing this.

The biggest trick, by far, is just to stay conscious of where the energy is moving, and where it wants to flow. Especially in the throes of pleasure, it's easy to let go and just merge with that pleasure, with your partner. To stay aware and to help the energy flow, circulating and increasing....to give that as a gift to your sexual partner, that love in the moment. Stepping back from the pursuit of climax, breathing through into new heights.

I have experienced these heights, stumbled into them really. It's the practice of becoming aware of these energies, and the practice of learning how to gracefully ease it where it wants to go. Taking yourself and ego out of it. 

Marketing Blah Blah

For several months, I had been telling myself this story: I don't know anything about business, or marketing or sales, I must not know what I'm doing. For a while, I researched.  I love to learn about new things, so for a while I'm quite happy learning about marketing, open ended questions, magic words, rate structuring, et cetera, et cetera.

But now it just feel formulaic to me, and I've never been a fan of formulas.  I prefer to do my own thing, my own way. Why must I worry about the branding of "My Own Thing?"  Or worry about if the words I use are ones that my clients read? I'm not even that concerned about making money, just so long as it comes. I have no quota, or agenda. (No, I suppose that's not true. I want to stir up change and new ways of doing things. Revolution is my agenda.)

I would really just like to do the good work where it's needed, and be supported in abundance in return. I want to support the truth that there is a tradition of this work being healing and supportive of all people and relationships involved. When it's done with the wrong intentions, wrong motivations, wrong energy, of course you'll get bad results.  And for so long we have been told that there can be no right motivations when it comes to sex and especially whoring.

Well, I am here questioning these assumptions. I know I am rooting my motivations in the spiritual, and that is what allows me to be open. I don't need to lead you in a mantra or even sit yabyum to help you experience this. When we meet and we feel the instant connection, the eagerness to explore this new lover guides us on our journey towards what is possible. Just what heights and depths can be reached? That is the work. Each time, more is possible.

This past year, I have learned some of the things possible. I'm looking forward to going deeper with each dive, each year.

Loving the kitty this week!

This week is special: I am cat sitting for a friend, and able to use her wonderful temple space. It's downtown, close to everything, and the cat is just a sweetie.  So much harder to get up from bed with this warm, cuddly ball of fur purring on top of my chest.  (oh yes, did I mention I was a cat person?)

Mondays are quickly becoming my favorite day. The past two have been so excellent: a wonderful balance of work and personal time, with the whole week to look forward to.  The rest of the week is almost a reaction to how Monday went.  Today I felt very much "stuck in a factory" and was counting the hours down. I am looking forward to my next free day, Thursday.  What will I do on my day off? If the phones are quiet, I may spend it at the Banya....

Summers Ending Already?

The summer has gone by so quickly. May, June, July all seemed to pass by in a blink of an eye.  Now, August is nearing its end, with the annual Burner Exodus. I still seek a better balance between my day job and being a companion. The job is such that I can easily let my mind drift while I settle into a Zen bookbinding meditation.

Lately, it drifts off into various imagined encounters. I try to imagine what my temple would look like, the altar dedicated with curvaceous Goddess statues, candles, a luxurious bed with purple sheets. Make it feel royal, a place between worlds, where two divine beings can come together for a moment and mingle in pleasure.

It is close...dedicating my energy to this manifestation. The months come around, and a new year of Sacred Courtesan school is coming around. What new insights will I learn, new healings to share, what new depths will I discover within myself?

Visiting the Banya

After my two weeks of making hundreds of books and discovering just how little I want to be someone's boss, I took the day off to check out the relatively new Banya in SF. Oh my.

Not since NYC, years ago, have I been to a proper Russian sauna with a cold plunge. There are clothing optional sections, but lots of people wear swim trunks or bikinis.  I'm in love with it, just after one visit.  The steam sauna was also amazing.  After a few rounds of steaming, cold plunging, sweating and soaking, there is a lovely balcony to take in the sun and the fresh breeze. There, you can chat with new and old friends, share a bottle of wine, and have some light snacks before heading back down into the tubs for a second round.

It's during the second round that I laid out and had a birch leaf treatment.  They soak the dried leaves to release the tannins and slap them across the skin to open up the pores.  It's done in the Russian sauna, so you are already warm and sweating. Once done, it's another cold plunge. 

I spent a little over six hours. Well worth it.  This is something that needs to become regular. 

Missing You!

I volunteered to babysit while my supervisor went on a well deserved vacation. After taking much time off for my program, for more introspection and seeing a few clients when I could....I figured it was the least I could do for being so flexible for me.  I've learned a lot about myself in these couple of weeks. Things that eight months studying the chakras didn't teach me.

First...I have no interest being someone's boss. Especially people who have
spent their lives being micromanaged.

Second...I desire people to think for themselves, and I truly believe we all have that ability. I want a world where we honor ourselves and each other, and there's no sense of taking advantage for a better profit. Seeing otherwise day after day is soul-killing.

Third...I need more time to myself, more spaciousness and more working for myself.

I'm going to be so happy to take time off. Part of it will need to include time spent in a tree. A few nights set aside for clients. And lots of time in between to dance naked, and luxuriate in the solitude needed for more depthful writing.

Sunday Kinda Blues

I think this past Sunday marked the most number of dates I had to turn down due to a lack of an incall. I don't work most Sundays, but I almost always get at least one call. This Sunday, I had four. And they seemed really nice, I hated to turn them down.

I have been examining the phenomenon of getting more calls when I am unavailable than when I am available. Is it confusing wording in the ad? Is it energetic?  A part of why I crave a private space is so I can be more available, without having to stop in my other creative endeavors. I imagine spending a morning writing, or a late night working on art, punctuated by a gentleman caller. Far from interrupting, he is a fresh burst of inspiration. As I play the muse for some, so he does for me.

The next few weeks mark a refocusing of energies, taking time to help on a few bookbinding projects. To call in what is desired will require me to put new plans into action, and focused time spent on them.  My availability will be affected temporarily, particularly for incalls.

The Babylonian Follow-up

Preparations had been happening for weeks...invitations sent, the volunteers organized, space reserved and prepared, food made.  I was in a flurry of details.

The event, for me, really began when I stripped down in preparations. Ritual purification before the rites.   Several of my classmates-participants in the evening's ceremonies-had never seen me naked.  The Witch-Whore in me just took control at that point.  Boldly strolling out to finish dressing the altar, me in nothing but jewerly(which has quickly become my favorite outfit) and offering oil annointings before the rites began.

By the time our first seekers began arriving, I had changed into a red dress that hugged my curves in all the right ways. There was a generous social hour to allow everyone to mingle a bit; for many of us to meet for the first time, for some a chance to reconnect. 

A chiming of a bell marked the entrance into ritual space. The Sacred, around us all the time, was presenced and invoked. The inner Primal, the lusty beast of our animal drives, was welcomed into the space, given license to play. Stripping down, I was offered up to these unleashed primals, in culmination  of the opening ceremony.

First one man, then two...it seemed to happen both slowly and quickly at once, I was encircled by lustful men. From the corner of my eye, I saw my fellow priestesses were as well. What was left was stripped down, my bra....the garter belt and stockings down to bare flesh. 

Temple dancing girls danced the carnal energy around the circle as the Primals played. Flesh meeting flesh, limbs entangling these women, filling every orifice. Their moans of erotic delight and surrender mixing with undulating melodies.

As I opened, I was filled, again and again. With each new man, a new level of surrender, a new experience.  And to worship another man while another takes his fill of me--oh my! To feel that push-pull of energy, to be caught between two carnal beasts was amazing in a way that is hard to put into words. And as each men spilled their seed, another man was there to take his place.  

The energy ebbed and flowed like this for quite a while. While on their breaks, the men were entertained by the dancing girls, attended to by enchanting priestesses. To balance the carnal delights, there was engaging intellectual conversations and finely made liquors available. 

As the evening grew later, the energy shifting into an affectionate, sensual mix of connection and adoration for each man's divine complexity. They were all invited to shower in a soft play of shared touch and a grounding of energy with salts and water. 

Each man sent on his way with a secret smile on his face, his Primal worshipped, adorned, given freedom to play and express his carnal desires, soothed and grounded back to earth. A truly unique and sacred evening that could never be fully replicated.

...that won't stop us from improving the experience.

The next Babylonian Rites is July 19th, with sensual music, sacred play space, dancing priestesses and serving girls, hand-crafted drinks, juicy women and a nonjudgmental place for erotic expression.

Our ad and short application can be found here: The Babylonian Rites Application

Initiation

The thing with Initiation: it never really ends.

More than eight months ago, I began a program for certification as an Intimacy and Relationship Coach.  It has been a wild ride of introspective work, expanding my edges while reinforcing my boundaries with compassion. 

Just a few weeks ago, the heat was turned up: Sophia Amelia and I had our first Babylonian Rites as part of our final project. The week after than was our Initiation Weekend--which was part ordeal, part teaching, part coming together in celebration for our completion. It was an intense and fantastic experience that signaled an ever deepening move into what I want for the world.

And, of course, as I moved deeper into spirit, I lost touch with the blog.  One of so many things that I am seeking to balance in the coming months.  In October, I will be officially ordained!  Pastoral counseling will be Something I can offer at that point.  Yes, a whore who can give you confession when you are finished.

So, apologies if I've been a little out of touch. There have been lots of details to attend to! 

Babylonian Rites

Babylonian Rites

Candlelight flickers, a soft glow against naked flesh. So many candles, lighting the ancient temple for this night's carnal ritual. Warm light against hot flesh. Bodies writhing together, moans mixing with temple musicians song. Tribal drums beat out a magical beat, evoking the Primal, this Animal of Lust that must be satisfied. 

Temple priestesses offer themselves up as vessels to these energies, dancers and servers playing delightful games with the seekers. All things are sacred to the Goddess, and this night celebrates the joy of sex and the sensual world, from intimate stroking to the deepest rutting.  Yes, even when the men would take one for three or four of them, ravaging her as sexual sacrifice. These animal desires are better released in sacred space than held in denial. 

The temple gates are opening once again, and you are invited inside, to partake of your deepest desires, to release your primal lust on the wanton nymphs who are desperate for it.

What is the Babylonian Rites?

An exclusive play party than honors the sensual, our primal lusts, and reminds us that the Sacred is everywhere. It evokes the temple rites in Babylon and other ancient civilization, where The Goddess was honored in the living bodies of every woman, and the Divine was celebrated through sexual union.

We have a group many women who feel called to honor the sacred within the taboo, offering sensual, erotic, and spiritual services of both sexual and non-sexual nature. We are inviting you to bring out your lust-filled primal and let it play, let it be revered for its power.  Honoring these energies in sacred space gives us more freedom in our day to day life, a way of freeing us from shame.

What can be expected?

You will greeted warmly and led into the temple prepared for the evening. There will be tea, fresh fruit and homemade treats offered to you; finger foods designed for then sensual experience. Spirits and wine offered. Beautiful preiestesses offer their services to you, attending to all your sensual needs. You can expect a very warm and nonjudgmental space in which to explore your fantasies. 

Will it happen again?

As with most things, it will never be perfectly recreated. This is our first fundraising event, with more planned in the future.  They will be different, with different people, a different vibe or venue.  But similar events will be advertised in the future. 

We want to see every one of our limited slots are filled for this event!

Just a few more days to register!  Interested?

Email: temple.priestesses@gmail.com

In order to create a safe space for everyone, there is a short screening process. Please send an email answering the following questions:  

1. Provide at least one verifiable provider reference. Send a link to her ad and to speed up the process, ask her if she will verify you.  

If you do not have verifiable references, send us an email with all the other questions answered and we'll see if we can collaborate to find a solution that feels safe for all of us.  

2. Are you comfortable in a setting of group sexuality and/or is this a new experience for you? 

3. What would you hope to experience by being part of this event? 

Notes from the Past

I was looking through my old notes (I Love Evernote, by the way!) and this one caught my eye.  It was just as I was transitioning from Electra Blue to Elizabeth Morgan.  Yes, it's really always has been a sacred work to me, and it's always been a balancing act between the sacred priestess and the bad girl...

Written 11 Feb 2011

When I started on this path, I was drawn to the idea that it could be done  in a sacred way--that, in ancient times, sex *was* a sacred thing.  I loved the idea, but I wasn't sure how it would take form for me in the modern day.

Experience is the best teacher, so I went out and got some experience. Even the few shitty experiences I've had taught me invaluable lessons Some weeks, I have felt more sacred than others--when I take the time out to focus my intentions, it's so much better than the few times I've felt rushed, or just in that headspace.

I knew I needed to give myself time to learn, to test things. I needed to find out what worked best for me, and how to bring sacredness to my work without sounding or feeling like a airy new-age type. I needed to balance the sacred work with the fun of "being bad," and find a way to make them work together.

Babalon has given me this key.  And now, finally, I feel ready to take this big step and truly devote my work to her--to make it Work. It gives me the courage to focus on sacred sexuality.  

I'll always be that fun-loving, taboo-indulging girl.  But now, I also want to pull out that healing, sacred spirit that banishes doubt and guilt.

Loving What I Do

A lot of you probably already know that I am submissive in my sexuality. I'm mostly a service submissive: what I most enjoy is to be pleasing, to please my partner as much as I can.  I'm not much for pain, but I do love playing the slutty fucktoy to be used. My nymph just comes out and wants more.

But being a fucktoy isn't about seeking a hard fuck all the time. But about being open and available at all times, to his fingers, his lips, his hard phallus. About communicating when his touch turns me on, or when it's too much, but still taking it on as it pleases him. 

I prefer a man who plays nicely with his toys. Who does not have to express his dominance by force. A knowing that he is in control, a sureness in his voice, a willingness to take her hair and bend her over the table. His grip, his groping fingers against her clit makes his toy wet and wanting.  She was ready the moment he took her, but taking his time pleases him. He enjoys the soft moans pleading for more.

I suppose that's why I'm not a big fan of woman on top: I prefer to be pinned down underneath, bent over and held by the hips. Although the right man can dominate even when I'm straddling him, gripping my hips as he chooses the rhythm.

And when he cums...and I feel that pulsing inside...that's just as pleasing to me as my own orgasm. That's what it means for me as a submissive. I enjoy your pleasure as much as my own, a sexual empathy.

Springtime in the East Bay

I think it took a full two weeks to recover from the week I spent in New Mexico. It helped that my other job got busy just as I returned. I love my family...but I don't like the drama that comes with it. And maybe it sounds cold, but they distract me from from my goals.

Now I'm pushing forward again, back in this little dance. I have quite a few class-related events going on  in the east bay, so it makes sense to spend time there.  Even without me updating my ad, I had a few regulars seek me. 

I'm also loving my new rate. I am getting better clients, not as many hassling for quickies. They are more interested in my personality and the connection I offer. 

Working on a couple of erotica pieces...one goes back to the workplace (one of my favorite taboos) and another about my more submissive desires. 

Raising Rates in April!

I have spent most of February considering it, and I have made the decision to raise my rates.  When I look at the amount of personal attention, the efforts I make for each session, and all the extra details I tend to: I totally deserve it.

I'll be raising my rates to 250/hr for my sacred harlot services starting April 20.  I will also be offering a second type of session that is more (dare I say tantric?) and therapeutic in nature.

If we have seen each other before, you are welcome to keep using our original rate. I value you as a client and will continue to give you the same conscious and heartfelt service.

You've got a little over a month to see me and lock in your rate.

In related news: I'll be visiting Sante Fe for a short time in April. I'll be presiding over a marriage ceremony for my sister & her husband. They are already legally married, but they want a sacred ritual for it, and I'm more than happy for the chance. I'm also excited to have a chance to work in another city, and possibly make back all the money I'll end up shelling out for my sister's wedding. ;)

I found christlove through sexwork

Disclaimer: I'm not Christian. Never was nor will be. I do believe there are truths in every religion, and I've made my life a study to find these truths. I write this as a way to question traditional methods & beliefs.

During my first year as an escort, I experienced a lot of healing. Sometimes it was as simple as just paying my bills, sometimes my overall mood was better.  And sometimes I would have these moments of...revelation.

It was one of these moments that continues to stick with me, and I wasn't even working at the time.  I was actually just washing dishes, reflecting on a few past sessions. How open I felt, and how loving.  It truly felt like unconditional love for everyone.  At that moment, I just wanted to express it, to anyone and everyone who came my way.

I don't always feel that way, but it comes more and more.  In session, it flows most easily.  The biggest challenge has really been to balance that, to hold on to that compassion even when someone has sparked up my temper!

Judgement is the opposite of Love. When we get caught up in how someone "should be" and how they measure up, we loose track of what is.  What if their gift is not measurable? What if their gift is not valued by these high and mighty "standards," what then?  We are blinded to who and what a person Is, and the magnificence waiting to awaken.

In that moment, there was no judgement...only understanding.  Anyone could have walked into that door, and I would have found a unique, loving and lovable person. Of course, I have to balance this with compassionate boundaries.  And I feel this ability to see into the love, to just be the love for my clients, is one of my greatest gifts to offer.

A Heart Full of Love: The Heart Chakra

The Heart Chakra: Love, how we give and recieve it

The weekend retreat was powerful. We practiced giving & receiving adorations. You wouldn't think that taking in a compliment would be hard...but I saw the men link arms tightly, as if they could lose each other. There were tears, on both sides, and such courage.  It takes courage to be open enough that another person can see your true beauty.

While I am a Sex Worker, I am also a Heart Worker.  Wounds of the heart and wounds of the sex are intertwined. Well, I am finding them to be all intertwined, but especially these two.

This weekend, I dedicated to healing these wounds. Because as humans, we all have a need to feel loved, to feel desire, to feel connection.  And having those needs fufilled is healing, it can penetrate in a deep way, reach parts of your life you didn't think was connected.

Lights On, Eyes Open

First posted on 10 Sept 2010, on my old blog. What I wrote then is still so very true, and a great illustration of how the path has continued for me.


In my early sexual life, I think I had my eye closed most of the time. It's most natural when faces are pressed closed; shutting out one sense hightens the others. When the world goes dark behind the eyelids, bodies melt together easily, lost in touch and taste.

But more and more, I've been keeping my eyes open to enjoy the show. Something about the newness of each unique experience--and faces. I love watching your faces! Seeing eyebrows furrow in concentration of the rhythm, to that moment of release and you are in total bliss. Yes, and the dreamy look when your face is stuffed with pussy. These looks are my cues and a gift to know how much I please you.

Sometimes, with the bed rocking, it seems like I'm in a boat on the ocean, the walls and ceiling bobbing back and forth. Dimmed lights bring a greater sense of secrecy and intrigue to these trysts, while candlelight always brings me into a sacred place.

of course, there are times when I can't help but close my eyes and lose myself and perhaps that makes watching all the sweeter.

The Sensual & The Powerful: 2nd & 3rd Chakras

The second chakra is emotion, the sensual world, energy and flow.

The third is potency, personal power and ethics.

The past couple of months have reflected both of these. For myself, a weakness in one chakra is reflected in how another chakra manifests.  I've put most of my focus on building personal power. My week long birthday celebration was a wonderful reflection of growing confidence and ability to manifest. And in taking that energy forward, I've been flexing my social muscles, so to speak. Choosing to speak when I would normally stay silent. Breathing and centering instead of reacting. Letting my priestess come forward with compassion, instead of a defensive warrior.  All these are part of me, and it's my power to choose what I come forward with.

I am flowing, and I am manifesting. I've been dreaming, plotting and planning for these big changes, and they feel like they are starting to sprout, to push out against the surface of potentiality and into reality. I am awakening to a great empathy that feels rooted in my second chakra: I sense desire in others so easily, I sense those stronger, passionate feelings and feel them in myself.

As I came forward into the power chakra, it was my birthday week....and that really was a fabulous week.  If only it were that easy for me to sit and dwell in my power!  But so often, it feels like a struggle to be heard.  I know part of it is my fear that I will speak out loud & proud and be ridiculed....or worse yet, just ignored.  There's a fear-ruled voice that says it is better to stay silent, to be ignored without speaking because to take the chance would hurt so much more.

And that's old wounding.  Wounding that I am pushing past with each of these blog posts.  To speak my truth, even if it's a little intellectual and spiritual, and maybe not sexy hot.  There is sexiness in speaking Truth, in being brave enough to speak it.  Those are my lessons in these chakras.

Wicked!

I celebrated my birthday the last week of January.  It took up most of the week, which was pretty great.  After getting over the holiday blues, my month of reflection was wonderful and spacious. I practiced over-the-top desserts for my party, enjoyed seeing my separate circles of friends mingling together, and reveled in a wonderful happiness.  There was the party, a few special dinners, and my birthday week culminated with a small group coming with me to see Wicked.

Wicked is based on a novel by Gregory Macguire, retelling the story of the Wicked Witch of the West.  It brings to question..."are people born wicked, or do they have wickedness thrust upon them?" The witch, Elphaba, is actually trying to stand up for what she believes in, only to painted as wicked because she stands in the way of the current ruling powers.  Not only is the message very real, but the show is just fantastic.  I've always been a musical fan, since my clarinet-playing days, but I hadn't taken in San Francisco's theater until recently.  Wicked totally reawakened that love.

It was perfect timing too. At a time when I'm focusing on my gifts and living who I am to the fullest, so that I can encourage that in others...this was just the perfect show to see.  My favorite song comes at the end of the first act, when Elphaba decides it's not worth living a lie to gain social acceptance.  The song, Defining Gravity, is so powerful for me.

"Something has changed within me,
something is not the same.
I'm through with playing by the rules of
someone else's game.

Too late for second guessing,
Too late to go back to sleep.
It's time I trust my instincts,
close my eyes...and leap."

It feels like my theme song.

Winter Reading List

I've been reading quite a few books in the past couple of months. Some I'm still working through, some I've finished.  Much of them have been non-fiction or for my course. I still manage some casual reading though.

I finished the last bit of The Sea Priestess, by Dion Fortune. I kinds knew where it was heading, the last chapter, while  very well written...perhaps a little predictable. I have been enjoying going through it again to find the most teaching passes.

In the Dark Places of Wisdom, by Peter Kingsley. I picked this up while browsing Green Apple Books. It traces the Western philosophy and occult movements to the original split, and dives deeper to reveal its Eastern roots. It was an interesting perspective that has a ring of truth to it.

All My Heroes Were Hos, by Phyllis Serene. A picked up a kindle copy pretty cheap, as a recommendation. It's a fun little read, and shows be what could be possible for my own writing in the future.

The Long Day: The Story of a New York Working Girl, by Dorothy Richardson. Free as digital on Amazon! Originally published in 1905, it was converted to digital by a team of volunteers. A little glimpse into history is quite interesting. I'm not very far into it, truth be told. It had been in my kindle app for bits of casual reading.  Too bad I've not had much time for casual!

The Invisibles, volumes 1 & 2, by Grant Morrison. I borrowed these from a good friend, reading a bit here and there in between more "serious" literature.  But there are ideas tucked away in this comic, invisible worlds, altered consciousness...it has strangely informed my magickal studies. Then again, perhaps not so strange, as Morrison himself is a magician!

Sin in the Second City: Madams, Ministers, Playboys, and the Battle for America's Soul, by Karen Abbott.. Another book I picked up. This one is about the Everleigh Sisters and their infamous Everleigh Club in Chicago, during the 1930s. I'm still working my way through it, but I really love the way these two work.  They have a finesse I would gladly study under.

The Myth of Male Power, by Warren Farrell. The men in our course were reading this, so I decided I should read it too. And yes, I'm so glad I did. I'm only into the second chapter, and I'm surprised at how familiar I am with some of these concepts. The Red Queen talked a little about the biological side of male disposability disguised as male power, and this book has more of the psychological and cultural/socialization side of it.