(no subject)

[bitterlawngnome]

As I worried, we've had a couple of hard frosts. Unclear as yet what damage they may have done. The Edgeworthia got throughly frozen in the January cold snap and the flower buds are all dead. What was a completely reliable spring bloom in Seattle has not flowered properly even once for me in Vancouver. Well no matter, it's a nice enough shrub and works well where it is.

The local Faerie group is doing a "Shadow Gathering" (an urban gathering that is heavy on circles and talking) starting Friday. I'm attending, out of curiosity and because I know a couple of the organizers, and because it's in town and we can leave at the end of the day to get decent sleep. As well, the organizers are pretty thorough about excluding people who are likely to be disruptive or are known to attend just to throw a wrench. The last urban gathering I was at was twentyish years ago? I think? and featured an enormous inflatable indoor pool dotted with floating plastic flowers. Memory has mercifully drawn a veil over what else might have transpired there. I suppose this is like giving birth ... if one remembered too clearly how painful it was, once might never risk it again.

Comments

[otter]

That sounds like an interesting event, and yes, those veils are helpful. I've birthed 3 babies. I'm curious how Faeries describe themselves. I have several friends and acquaintances here who are involved in paganism. Is it at all similar? I used to explore the edges of the kink community here, too, but I'm too vulnerable for that scene.

[bitterlawngnome]

"Three Faeries, Four Opinions" (ask three Faeries what the Faeries are, and receive four opinions). My own capsule summary is - this is what gay hippies evolved into (you'll find many of the tropes / ideas / currents / interests / preoccupations that were present in classic hippiedom of the 1960s). Faeries are not particularly concerned with kink (unless they are).

That's probably not very helpful is it. More extensive: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radical_Faeries

[otter]

Honestly, it's plenty helpful. Perhaps because we are of similar age, and I identify as queer as fuck, and grew up wishing my parents were hippies. My mom certainly had a hippy phase between divorce and remarriage, but that was more about too many sexual partners than social justice. And as I type that, I remember that she was the director of a city food bank for a few years when I was a kid. Anyway. People come in all sorts.

Edit: skimmed the wiki and learned more. Thank you

[bitterlawngnome]

Although, being a woman and unapologetically having a lot of sexual partners was/is in its own way political?

[otter]

True. I was aware as a child that she dated a lot of people. When she died, I found she'd kept a list of names, dates and activity level. I did not show it to my step-dad.

[bitterlawngnome]

Probably wise :)

[shimmerwine]

I wish my old boss knew about this, because I'm sure it would have changed everything for him. Thank you for the link!

[leafshimmer]

I hope it is nurturing/fun/insight-provoking/magical or whatever you need it to be.

I've been feeling out of the RadFae loop for awhile. There's a local Gathering happening this weekend (it happens every year on this particular weekend), and I hadn't even registered for it. Out of the blue, yesterday, I ran into the person I am closest to who is one of the chief organizers. And I NEVER run into this friend ordinarily. We stood on the sidewalk and talked for about 15 minutes about what's going on with the Gathering. And as a result of that encounter, I'm going to one of the Heart Circles tomorrow.

It just felt as if God Herself or some other Power taking an interest in me arranged this "chance encounter."

Your new portraits are really gorgeous--I find Hunter particularly intriguing. And yes, I'm aware that I'm predictable.

[bitterlawngnome]

How did it go?

It's thoroughly amusing watching the youngns ... I can peg their behaviour to the behaviour of people I knew 30 years ago. Oh look there's the Nasturtium, and there's the Jewels International, there's the Geneva, and there's the me.