I am the Leslie Knope of Friendship + Here's a bunch of rad links for you!

Hello tarot lovers, witches, and other friends reading!

Yesterday was my queerplatonic partner's birthday. The party is on Saturday and their preferred restaurants had NO dinner reservations available. If you know Parks and Recreation at all, you'll recognize my friendship tendencies if we ever become close. While when it comes to business I relate much more to ambitious, confident yet well-balanced Donna Meagle, when it comes to friendship I get a littttttle too eager when I love you. So I called the restaurant. Twice. Begged to be put on a waiting list. Thought of six different ways we could approach this without reservations. Then managed to find reservations at another one of their favorite restaurants that we haven't been to in awhile, which they are just as happy about. So crisis averted, but this plus present-wrangling is why my link round-up is two days late (because of course there was a bag full of thoughtful presents, a dinner, + we haven't even gotten to "party day" yet). Also I didn't do one last month and I'm sure I had my reasons. I just don't remember them. The good news is that means this one is nice and fat for you!

For Tarot Lovers, Witches, And Other Spiritual Types

• Little Red Tarot posted this "Ring of Fire" spread back in July, and while summer is OFFICIALLY over (WOO HOO!) this spread is still wonderful. 
• Tarot has been around for a loooong time, and this is a really fun piece about the evolution of its' artwork with some funky pictures thrown in. 
• I'm always fascinated by people who create witchy, spiritual lives somewhere totally unexpected, so I was all about this profile of a witchy hairdresser!
• I feel personally called about by this article from Cosmo, actually. How your Sun sign acts as a romantic partner. 
• I love this from headline to final exclamation point: A Thinking Person's Guide to Going With Your Gut. 
• An oil diffuser blend for whatever Mabon wonderfulness you have going on tonight. 
• Now that she's covered the basics of the Celtic Cross spread, Theresa Reed's already amazing "Breaking Down the Celtic Cross" series has really gotten amazing. These are really thrilling things she's talking about if you're a total tarot geek like me. 
• Another amazing spread--this one from Worts and Cunning Apothecary, zeroing in on business success for ya. 
• "In order for full, meaningful healing to take place, we cannot turn a blind eye to the injustices that live in the fabric of our human society. Sure, in the eyes of the universe, all spirits are equal in their love, light, and importance. But we don’t live in the realm of spirit." Such a good post from Bitchy and Witchy about Calling in the New Age on issues of oppression. 
• I was researching for my Sex & Tarot class when I found this gem of a human and article about Sex and Eroticism in Tarot. 

For The Resistance

• Because publicly screening queer porn is resistance in and of itself.
• Have I mentioned how much I love The Bold Type? (Yes, I have. Because I do.) Here's eight great responses to one of the show's most loved characters from queer Muslim women. 
• Oh, in case you didn't know, "history" is incredibly straightwashed in addition to being totally whitewashed. 
• A simple, easy to follow guide to not drawing sexist nonsense in comic books. 
• I Can't Be Your Gay Friend
• Bitter Gertrude's take on the Charlottesville rally as a Jewish person well-versed in intersectionality was really well done. 
• New Hero Alert! This wonderful man runs a queer film festival in Uganda, where homosexuality is illegal. 

For Your Business

• Empathy is actually very, very good for your business. Red Slice has more.
• Also thought to be harmful but maybe not? Procrastination. 
• You're probably working way too hard. I generally agree with anything Susan Hyatt tells me, but this one hit me way too hard. 
• VERY useful article about maximinzing your Patreon, friends. 
• SO somehow I had never heard of the 70% rule, y'all. If you struggle with delegation because it seems easier or better to do it yourself, this one's for you. 
• Relevant to my life right now: Seth Godin on the difference between having fear and being afraid. 

For Theatre Fans and Art Lovers

• Really good work by American Theatre Magazine here, examining an impending leadership vaccuum and what that means for theatre.
• Julia Cameron doubles down on why we should write every day, and y'all. She's not wrong. 
• Not quite theatre but a little too nerdy for casual film and television fans. Here's Ava DuVernay discussing Netflix, artists, and diversity. 
• Antigone in Ferguson examines the divide between law enforcement and the communities they SHOULD be serving. Would absolutely LOVE to see this piece.
• A hecking free book on building arts audiences. I'm only halfway through and have SO MANY IDEAS already. A must read for all producers/creators/etc. 
• There are so many conversations about what type of protests work and which don't. Some of those conversations are crucial. Some are garbage, tone-policing nonsense. Playwright MJ Kauffman's commitment to boycotting certain theatre companies and being willing to talk about why are crucial. 

Just Because

• "I Talked to 1400 Strangers About Their Sex Lives. Here's What I Learned." 
• These Guidelines for a Kinder Life are not what I expected, and are some of the best I've seen:  "Being emotionally uncomfortable won’t kill you.
  It just feels that way sometimes. Like any state of being it will pass. Honor your discomfort. You’re being changed by what you are witnessing. That’s one reason we keep dipping ourselves in the salty experience that is a human life."
• An important reminder from Alexandra Franzen: Hearts Can Change.
• How To Break Up Like A Poet is life guidance, literature, and so much more from Edna St. Vincent Millay.
• Inside the Death Positive Movement. Super great read. 
• A beautiful piece on food, manners, and culture. 
• A CARMILLA MOVIE TRAILER OKAY. 
• A very succint piece for those of us who love self-help books, but, like, not all self-help books. 
• Messy Nessy Chic is always such a fun blog with unique stories--like this one on Women, Warriors, and Wine or this one on trans soldiers during the American Civil War. 
• I absolutely adored this article on Viking culture and living like the women of Viking literature. 
• Do you know that I am both obsessed with high profile unsolved crimes AND a giant Tupac fan? So this article on the upcoming Who Killed Tupac? was perfect!

I'm gonna end on this really moving piece from Danielle LaPorte: The First Step to Take When You're In Hell. 

Blessed be, y'all!

Better Late Than Never!

Hello all,

I am back for this blog's monthly Link Roundup; admittedly I'm about a week late but it's for a very good reason. My 18 year old sister came into visit from Ohio! She is the cutest, sweetest little human and I cut my workload down to "need this money now" work. I missed doing my other stuff though, so next time I'll get it all queued up before I have a visitor. 

Out adventuring with my Sister. Had to show her my river :)

Before we dive in, TWO quick announcements! People are getting excited about both of the workshops I'm doing in August which is getting me all kinds of excited (but also nervous). The first is a revamp and remount of my Queering the Tarot workshop at The Future on August 17th. The other JUST officially announces is a brand-new (but still totally in my wheelhouse) Sex & Tarot course at The Smitten Kitten! Luckily for you, Queering the Tarot is sliding scale starting at just $15, and Sex & Tarot is FREE to you! Which means you could potentially take two radical tarot classes that weekend for just $15, and that actually seems like a pretty sweet deal to me!

Now, on to radical things OTHER people are writing and doing! 

Politics & Resistance

• If you want a quick breakdown on what's going on with that BS Department of Justice statement that LGB people aren't covered under Title VII, Autostraddle has you covered.
• There's some pretty important legislation being discussed about the non-profit sector too. It's easy to be overwhelmed right now, so this was easy to miss. 
• A Lithub personal essay/book review about being torn between queer and Southern identity, plus the books he covers sound like important reads too.
• Why IS Hyperfemininity Expected of Fat Girls? This one practically garnered applause from me.
• I should probably just have a permalink list somewhere to all of Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha's writing, and her Bitch articles have been on point lately. I especially loved "A Modest Proposal For a Fair Trade Emotional Labor Economy (Centered By Disabled, Femme of Color, Working Class/Poor Genius)". 
• On Black Lives Matter, Queer Identity, and Appalachia. 
• Lisa Frank Body Positivity is not as cool as it sounds. This is a good read though.
• Prison Reform is one of the most important issues to me that never gets talked about. The way our society dehumanizes and traumatizes inmates, many of whom are in for minor crimes or no real reason at all, physically makes me ill. This piece talks about the juvenile system and why it's reform is a necessary queer issue. 

Tarot & Witchery

• This has been shared around a bit in metaphysical circles, but just in case you missed it: "Astrology of the Stonewall Riots" is as cool as it sounds. 
• Asali Earthwork regularly blows me away with her writing and witchery. This month I bookmarked both her review of The Personal Space Tarot and this so-necessary piece about mental health and witchcraft. The review is a really great example of a review and discusses tarot and the deck in depth. The personal piece spoke to me so deeply and is every bit as brave and beautiful as the title suggests. As a bonus, head over to her shop and snag some tea because it is delicious.
• Dior is making Motherpeace Tarot inspired clothes now, and Vogue has the scoop! I completely nerded out when I saw this. 
• "See the cripple dance" is ALWAYS one of my favorite Little Red Tarot columns, but this one on the Seven of Cups hit really deeply for this PTSD-trodden, chronically ill queer.
• Also from Little Red: a super easy, informative guide to snagging the best crystals for spiritual fatigue.
• I'm never going to stop posting about representation in the spiritual community and why it matters. I'm also never gonna stop linking back to radical writers of color highlighting the issues better than I ever could. 

Writing & Business

• I love peering into people's personal work processes, and Benebell Wen's look at promotional tactics, what worked, and what didn't was great insight with useful information AND things that won't work for everyone but were still fun to read.
• In Minneapolis everyone has a Prince AND a Bob Dylan story; in any case Seth Godin went somewhere I didn't quite expect with this one. 
• This really applies to all types of writing and made me laugh a lot. Here's "How Not To Write A Play."
• Y'all know by now how much I adore Theresa Reed, especially her "Soul Propietor" series. This one on how you want to feel in your business is especially good. 
• A cute cartoon about job and gig hunting that everyone should see. It'll take you four seconds but it's good!
• I talk about "Money Dates" a lot and how they've changed my life and both of my businesses, but it never occurred to me to share this primer from Bari Tessler herself with you. So...here you go!

A picture of Sir Didymus to break up the monotony of text. 

Theatre & Art

• "A Collective Call Against Critical Bias" is a wonderful start to important conversations about arts criticism and where we drawn the line, and features goodies like: "As female artists and academics…we have dedicated our careers…to dismantling discriminatory structures and practices in theater, and the criticism this year is so blatantly prejudicial that we felt compelled to collectively author an editorial that both documents the problem and puts it in an historical context."
• There's a new series at the Twin Cities Arts Reader entitled "The Curmudgeon" about all the ways arts organizations are NOT actually helping the press help them. It sounds heady but it's actually really easy to access information about how to market shows better. 
• I was so happy and surprised when I saw my friend Shannon on one of my favorite blogs today. Shannon runs Uprising Theatre Company, is a fantastic writer in his own right, and oh yeah, is a transgender Priest! 
• Sometimes the title does the talking for us, like in "The Necessity of Diverse Voices in Theatre Regarding Disability and Difference."

All The Other Things I Love and Thought You Might Too

• I was obsessed with Poison Ivy as a child. No, not the Batman character I'm still in love with, the other one. The movie starring Drew Barrymore. I guess I wasn't alone and this revisit from Dazed was written wonderfully. 
• Andi Grace gets real at Little Red Tarot about what she's been through lately, and tells us what she's learned living in a van about boundaries and letting go. This one was truly beautiful.
• One of my biggest flaws is that I'm a jealous friend. I will love you deeply and unconditionally. I will want nothing but the best for you. I will also be unbelievably jealous and feel incredibly stupid voicing that to you. So I was relieved to find an actual good article addressing this jealousy and it's roots.
• An oldie but a goodie came back up in my feed the other day--an absolutely side-splitting teardown of Goodnight Moon. 

That's it for me y'all! Blessed be.

My Pride Plans, Litha Spell & Fave Links As Of Late

Happy Pride Month (& weekend for many of us,) y'all!

I started the week on a bit of a downer. My super queer, radical theatre company decided to let our lease go for the art gallery we've been running, primarily because of the disconnect between accessibility and pricing on the space. We've grown a lot in the space though, and having a place where people could find us made our business a million times better so this was a hard decision and is a very sad (although necessary) decision. It does feel empowering to know we could have kept going in the space. We were doing well with renters, and even if we increased rates a little we would have been fine--but there are key issues in the space itself and it just wasn't the best place to pour our resources into anymore. That decision and announcement felt like a rough start to Pride BUT we've got lots of great queer art planned for next season, and it is going to be a fabulous weekend regardless. One of my favorite theatres is running Queertopia 2017 Revolting Bodies * Beyond Flesh. It's always a mind-blowing experience that I'm hoping to catch. I always have very mixed feelings about the actual Pride festival in the park. I have trouble stomaching major corporations that just pulled out of funding major arts events to err on the side of conservatism tabling like they're so radical and queer friendly. This year though, Twin Cities Pride has scaled back on police presence in the wake of the heartbreaking Philando Castile verdict as much as they legally can. Tons of my friends are performing on various stages throughout the festival. I might even be jumping in for a quick improv set on Saturday. On top of that I've got two great shows to see outside of Pride: The Funny by Raw Sugar and Tease by Little Lifeboats. Not Pride related but featuring tons of LGBTQ+ artists and perspectives. I'll be ending the week then on notes that feel exciting and gay and radical as humanly possible, and I am grateful for that. 

I'm feeling even more excited and hopeful after my Litha ritual with my closest friends last night. We had a private spot in a wooded area, a secret beach, and a beautiful bouquet of roses to wish on & with. It was the witchiest I've felt in awhile, and I'm so full of love and thanks for the people in my life and the trajectory my life seems to be on. We created beautiful magick, both aesthetically and spiritually.

I've stayed off the internet more than usual over the past couple of weeks. Some of that was related to being so on-the-go busy as opposed to "I have a lot of clients coming in and deadlines coming up" busy that I couldn't physically stare at the internet a lot. Some of it was to save myself energy. I've been watching the news, reading personal Twitter accounts, and taking part in direct action and creations instead of reading endless thinkpiece about how screwed up everything is. I've been taking friends to lunch to celebrate grad school graduations and birthdays instead of voraciously reading their stuff online (though I do keep up). So we're a little quicker today for the monthly link round-up. I also just felt like the series was a little too lengthy the past couple of times, so I wanted it to be quicker for y'all too. I did read some really fabulous things though, so here are some of my favorite links from the end of May and June.

On Resistance and Transformation
Pollen Midwest has a wonderful piece on successfully confronting white supremacy in the workplace that originated on the Twin Cities Daily Planet. 

Teen Vogue continues to crush it with their take on lack of police accountability. 

Some bittersweet musings on Pride that I relate to a gajillion percent. 

One of the number one ways to create substantial change is to VOTE. AND in these next few elections, there's a couple of candidates worth your attention. Teen Vogue talks to four trans candidates running for office. (Two of them in my city and looking good to win!)

Alternatively, one of the reasons I'm losing even more faith in the system. Democrats don't care as much about pro-life legislation as they used to. Meanwhile I continue screaming into the abyss.

Tarot & Magick
There are a lot of scam "psychics" out there, and I do feel myself defending my field and my craft a lot. But what happens when you, as a tarot reader (or any small entrepreneur) get scammed?

HUGE SOLAR ECLIPSE IS COMING AND I'M BESIDE MYSELF. 

Struggling to learn to read tarot? Jess Carlson has some lovely tips for you.

Similarly, Jessi Huntenberg talks about How to Give Awesome Tarot Readings here.

Over at The Tarot Lady, tarot deck creators delve into their creative processes for us.

If you're having trouble at work, Llewellyn has a great list of protective crystals to utilize.

Another easy to follow list, this time from The Witch of Lupine Hollow, and on starting your first magickal toolkit!

Getting Your Life Together
Zen Habits is a great beginner's guide to simplifying your life and incorporating Eastern philosophy in. This guide to "How to Love Your Dark Side" touched on a lot of recent conversations I've been having lately. 

Sarah Von Bargen has a frank post about the choices you make (and how they create the life you lead) here. 

I love quick quote round-ups and I love business advice from people who. have. been. there. This list of launch lessons from When I Grow Up Coach is both, and features some really high profile bloggers and solopreneurs.

Another great Tarot Lady post, this time on her writing process. This one is pretty juicy and full of tidbits for your own writing process. 

Seth Godin on why you're missing out if you're only hitting greatest hits lists.

Queer Lifestyle (IE Not Politics)
My beloved Wonder Woman's queer history. (Seriously how are constant references to Sappho even considered coded?!)

The Mary Sue pays homage to five great bisexual TV characters from nerd-dom here.

David Sedaris has a new book I haven't bought yet, primarily because I need paperback for big, heavy books. Thanks, arthritis. But here's a lovely Q&A with him leading up to that.

Theatre & Art
If Black Lives Matter, why aren't you disrupting the narrative of white supremacy better? A scathing, important piece from Bitter Gertrude.

I loved this article from Howlround on your basic job as a director: getting out of the way. 

Of Misc. Interest
I adore Halsey not only for her music, but because of her brazen conversations about bipolar disorder, being bisexual, and living an openly feminist life. Here's a great convo between her and complete and utter idol Debbie Harry. 

A thing I relate too way too much from Jenny Lawson: "I'm less sick than before, but I'm also less than I was before."

One of the best things on veganism I've read in awhile. (I identify as "mostly vegan".)

Posters & art for the upcoming Black Panther movie are awe-striking. But some of y'all had the absolute most wrong response to them.

An in-depth history of advice columns and our obsession with them. I loved this!

AND the absolute only piece I read this month that it is fitting or appropriate to end my post today with: Mermaids are Cruel Bloodthirsty Succubbi...and Why That's A Good Thing.

That's it for me y'all! Have a good one! 

Blessed be.

It's May 20th! So Here's A Round Up Of Great Internet Links!

My "Queering the King of Wands" piece is up at TheColu.mn & Littleredtarot.com right now!

May has somehow simultaneously crawled and flown by. I'm directing a one-act which is substantially less time-consuming than directing a full-length show. Steady gigs have been moving alone but slowly. It's like I'm going half-speed at every facet of my life right now, even though I'm working on plugging away on my end at the hoped for speed. I know one thing making me feel weird is that I'm dying and itching to get out of town for a couple of days but NO ONE has the same schedule as me. My queerplatonic partner works doubles at their day job on the days I'd be able too. Another close friend has some time on one of the days but her other free time is a steady gig day. Other friends could go during the week, but only on days I have rehearsal. It's maddening but I'm sure I'll find a way to break away soon.

In the meantime, here's some internet I really loved as I read scores of internet in hopes of becoming a better writer/tarot reader/theatre person/queer person/resister/human:

On Activism and Allyship

• If you work in the service industry, Barista Magazine has a great piece here about degendering language in the workplace.
• On appropriation and fighting back: a true ongoing story about Mayan women and their fight to have their work protected.
• A modern look at Act Up, where we should be looking up to them, and how we could do better now.
• Janet Mock on Glam as a Survival Tactic. So lovely.
• Somehow the free speech brigade has been pretty quiet about this actual attempt at censoring Linda Sarsour.
• On Gentrification, Displacement, and Resistance.
• Are we witnessing a slow-motion coup? This was written before the past week's complete and utter chaos, but it's important nonetheless.
• Queeros from every state! (That's a mash-up of "Queer Hero" by the way. You're welcome.)
• I. Love. The. Lesbian. Avengers.
• From A Cup of Jo: 5 Ways to Teach Kids About Consent.
• This is a few weeks old now but I was riveted and disgusted to learn about the 745 oil spills North Dakota has already dealt with before the DPL even starts.
• A landmark, overdue study on chest binding is happening now!

Art and Theatre Nerd Stuff

• Harmonia Rosales re-created the "Creation of Adam" with black women and it is beautiful.
• Re-claiming Miss Julie hits on some ideas I've been mulling over for awhile. I love classic work but HOW DO with my current artistic sensibilities?
• Nonprofit AF has a really important post up about how donor centrism perpetuates inequity and it kind of shook me as a producer.
• This thought-provoking piece on creativity and what makes it work made me so happy.
• I'm still not over Moonlight, and neither are a bunch of other people!

Witch Life

• A Lavender Moon's piece on why she's studying druidry is a great personal piece on spirituality AND a great primer on druidry.
• Some stuff you probably didn't know about Dionysus.
• We just had a Nodal Axis Shift--here's what that means for you.
• Worts and Cunning's blog about herbal powders literally changed my life. I'm not even kidding. Herbal powders for SMOOTHIES? Why didn't I think of this before.
• Beth writes about all four tarot queens and what they offer as a mentor here. It's great.
• Speaking of Beth, here's a Little Red Tarot community roundtable on grounding. (What is it? How do we do it?)

Business & Writing

• " Everyone has feelings and opinions, but the future ignores them. "--
• Some miscellaneous career advice from Mighty Girl that spoke to me. It's also a really great writing prompt and motivator. 
• Esme Wang's writing is always great, but this piece on chronic illness and feeling lazy really hit home for me.
• Related: I don't even have words for how moved I was by this piece on writing, dreamscapes, and so, so much more.
• All of The Tarot Lady's stuff is A+ plus I especially loved this piece from her Soul Propietor series on knowing the difference between stepping out of your comfort and stepping ON your integrity.
• I had some issues with some things on this list of how to support writers without buying their books, but there's also some great ideas. Please don't mess up a store's inventory though. Someone isn't paid enough to come through and fix that.
• One of my favorite pieces I've read all month from Yes and Yes. "Stop Making it So Hard."

Miscellaneous (IE: the Most Fun Collection of Links)

• I occasionally check in on Alicia Silverstone (an early childhood crush) and her vegan advice and recommendations. Her list of film-ready vegan make up products includes some surprisingly affordable options, and few key splurges.
• Stevie Nicks kicking butt in this vintage self-defense book was really fun + it made my heart go pitter-patter, because Stevie Nicks.
• A whole Tumblr of really funny adventures making AI do things like create and illustrate stories.
• A standalone webcomic about fat sexuality. It's really cute but also really helpful.
• Also on being fat and rad: this in-depth part review, part article about Gabourey Sidibe's new book is amazing.
• In case you haven't laughed out loud yet today.
• I have no idea if anyone here loves Jenny Lawson as much as I do--and if you don't know either, check out her personal creepy doll challenge to see if she's for you.
• This piece has made the rounds but in case you missed it: "My Father Spent 30 Years in Prison. Now He's Out."
• On disability, dating, and finally coming around to self-love. I maybe choked up a few times as this piece resonated with me. Maybe.
• Block People and Pretend They Died is much less self-love and much more candid snark than I ever could have anticipated. I laughed so hard when they started listing the reasons they've blocked people.

Happy reading, happy weekend, and blessed be!

Cassandra Snow

Theatre + Internet = My Entire March So Far!

Hello all!

I've been on a bit of an accidental blogging hiatus lately--tech week last week really took it out of me, and the only breaks I had were spent tiredly staring at my computer catching up on Autostraddle and other faves (and watching Penny Dreadful. I'm so in love with Eva Green.)

The good news is twofold! One) And Then They Fell by Tira Palmquist is up, running, and wonderful so far. You can grab your tickets here! Two) THIS IS THE MOTHER OF ALL LINK ROUND-UPS. SO much internet the past few weeks, y'all. Get ready.

Just Because: My friend Anne says smart things about women, theatres, and museums here. ~I love reading about Diane Arbus, and this article goes pretty deep. ~8 Female Surrealists Who Aren't Frida Kahlo ~ Sometimes I forget PostSecret exists, and remembering is always the best present to myself. ~ Nerdy fan theories about Steven Universe ~ A really in-depth piece about the soundtrack to My So-Called Life. It's worth the length, I promise. ~ A very cute, informative comic about puppy play (NSFW!) ~ I fell pretty deep into this article about Kudzu. ~ Women who changed science forever ~ Some stuff about Pluto as a planet (or not) ~ Daria turned 20 Y'all. ~ Sex ed falls short sometimes ~

How to Life Better: Something every chronically ill, anxious, or exhausted person needs: an At the Very Least List ~ Being Relatable Online ~ Some solid sales advice ~ I love Seth Godin. A lot. ~ Making a perfect speech ~ Please don't cancel ~Some deeper self-care options ~ Wasting money on your business? Whoops. ~ Someone in your life toxic? The solution might be waaay different than you think. ~ I love this!

Notes for the Intersectional Queer Feminist Revolution: Sex Workers and Activism <3 ~The Trash Heap Has Spoken is one of my favorite things I've read in probably a couple of years. ~ A photo essay of femmes and genderqueer POC. It's SO good. ~ Africa's First Female President! ~ On Britain and queer immigrants ~ Decolonize Your Science Reading List (so much added to my "to read" list!) ~ An interesting read on being gay in Colonial America ~ Raising a trans child in Texas ~ Unprecedented change requires unprecendeted self-love. ~ Teen Vogue, Moonlight, and Queer Black Men ~ ~ A tech boost if you need help with an eating disorder ~ Making peace with food (even when you hate your body) ~ Eight Native Women That Are Badass (a paraphrased title) ~ Jeanna Kadlec's Must-Read on Allyship ~ Sexism and Sickness ~ Keep having those hard convos in small towns, y'all. It's working. ~

Tarot, Witchcraft, Etc.: When Spirituality Sucks ~ The Tarot Lady gets so beautifully personal here ~ I LOVE this series at Briana Saussy's site and this one really made me dig deeper into The Emperor. ~ Anarchy, Feminism, and Goddess Energy with the writer of one of my very favorite books ~ So, um, Venus is in retrograde for a bit yet. ~ More on Venus moving backwards here ~ You should be following this short, easy but rad tarot series ~

Theatre Nerdery: Gender Parity in Theatre (An Overview) ~ Don't Write Checks You Can't Cash ~ Moonlight got it's start on the stage, and this piece about that is wonderful. ~Eleven Tropes I (and Bitter Gertrude) Could Not Be More Over

That's all, y'all! Blessed be!

Tiny Bursts of Bliss + A Whole Lotta Internet Love

What's up, witches?

Today what's taking up a lot of space in my brain amidst all the infuriated screaming and desires to "burn it all down" even if I'm not sure what "it" is is this: how important for centering yourself finding those moments that 99% of us do have in the day that are pure bliss and totally take us out of the otherwise agitated state we all live in right now. It can feel really selfish to incorporate things that make us so happy into our lives, but it's not, at all. For starters, what the hell are we even fighting for if we jump ahead of our oppressors in shoving our own happiness away? Second of all, nothing has made me feel as calm, centered, and ready to fight as the moments of contentedness and true happiness I'm able to steal away.

Earlier this week I had an awful stomach virus and my queerplatonic partner honestly took such ridiculously good care of me. I somehow felt so pampered and loved as I couldn't even keep water down. There were moments even then that I felt "oh, man, this is really, really what love looks like. It looks overwhelmingly like ginger beer and ritz crackers and so many hours of Friends reruns and picking up refills of Zofran, and it's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen." When the bug cleared I had the clarity and motivation to get lots of good tarot, writing, and stuff around the house done.

Example two: I have felt so scattered lately. I can't focus for more than a few moments here and there to save my life. I'm so angry about Standing Rock and trans kids not being able to use the right restrooms and 900,000 other things, and it's easy to spiral into a place of "nothing I can do from here matters anyway." In my little microcosm, I have about 75 things that really need done EVERY DAY and that's really overwhelming when you're coming off of sickness AND super invested in turning this sinking ship around somehow. Somehow I ended up curled up in a ball in my favorite oversized chair, a luxury I never knew I needed until I got one, with my window open. A really beautiful, cleansing breeze was blowing through and my giant orange cat (my absolute favorite breed, though I love my long haired brown babby just as much) was purring beside me and all of a sudden I thought "holy hell, this is a really beautiful moment." I was so happy for a few minutes, and when I came out of it and back to reality, I was able to steadily make deadlines for often important work all day. Those moments matter. They matter as much as a good night's sleep and drinking plenty of fluids for fighting this nonsense, and they matter for your own life.

Also I had some new headshots and stuff taken and some of them are pretty cute if I do say so myself! Done by Lauren Erchul in Minneapolis.

Now here's a really terrible segue into some rad stuff OTHER people wrote that piqued my interests this month:

From the "I just had a birthday, you know" gimme-gimme files.

Tarot Spreads and Other Such Treats: Stuff I should probably actually do/ A spread for making tough decisions/

A thing my non-queer-lady roommate probably wishes I hadn't found.

Theatre nerdery: I already posted the Angels in America oral history that I'm in love with, and a friend was kind enough to send me this one of Rent. I've been an unabashed Rent-head my entire adult life but even I found out some new stuff!/Why arts funders must protect marginalized communities (and how they can)/A hard but important read on arts funding and where it's going. TL;DR: support your local small peeps (hint, hint)

Birthday goodies: Seven questions to ask for your birthday every year. Really lovely, important self-care to treat yourself with every year!

Notes for the Revolution: Acts of rebellion you're probably already doing (but please do big things too!)/A REALLY important piece about institutional racism and how calling your city a Sanctuary City is really, really not enough/An examination of how using trans inclusion as a marketing scheme is actually not that great (shocking I know)/Why White America Demonizes Black Lives Matter/A beautiful conversation about Sandra Bland/Language matters--here's how to replace accidentally transphobic language./On reclaiming queer historical space/How to prep for a protest, and what to do if things do go south.

Writers on Writing: Unironically one of my favorite topics. Here Alex Franzen encourages us to tell our stories even when we feel we can't./An oldie but goodie: a Brand quiz to see how you should be focusing your business or freelance work

RadQueer Witch Stuff: I'm so blessed to have friends like J.Ryan who broach topics even I'm afraid to take on sometimes. This one is on the damage well-intending Pagans can cause to queer (and other) marginalized people/Not queer, definitelyprogressive: how things have changed for tarot readers in this political climate/The best spell collection I have ever seen/On being a witch in Trump's America

General Witch Stuff: Some of my favorite Chani Nicholas to date/A simple, sweet luggage spell for safe travel/Healing magick from a witch who's work is always on point

Just Because: I geek out about new life forms being found, and this one has a huge crystal bonus!/NOT A DRILL: Ancient Egyptian texts being translated in English for first time. I'm beside myself./Queer Appalachian art and literature (plus how to help!)/Some amazing work by queer women of color, for queer women of color

Mental Health and All That Jazz: Phone anxiety? Me too. This has some good insights./Apparently some trauma survivors MAY cope by overworking (looks around guiltily, hides under rock.)

Where I've Been: I've gotten some good stuff on this blog this month. My favorite is here + nab my mini e-book on Tarot for Healing here. I've covered some of my favorite artists over here (plus more on the way yet this month!) AND one of my favorites put me in her Tea Time Reading this month!

OH AND ONE MORE THING: IT'S COMING!!!

Blessed be y'all!

I Stand With Black Lives Matter

I live in Minneapolis, MN which most of you reading know. This is close to where Philando Castile was murdered by cops. This happens way too often in this country and while the events in Dallas are tragic, that sniper was in no way connected to the Black Lives Matter movement and does not change the fact that black people and other POC live in constant fear for their lives in our country. The protests and solidarity marches happening nationwide are largely peaceful, with violence breaking out usually either due to police action or because of outside agitators with their own agenda (usually white anarchists who end up fleeing the scene, leaving POC and actual allies to clean up their messes and take the brunt of the blame). Black Lives Matter has but one agenda: for the police forces, court systems, and wider government at large to start treating black people like people. I am heartbroken and devastated that no matter how many black lives we lose nothing changes and so many will still chalk it up to something not racist or blame the victims themselves. Castile was revered in the school district he worked. People trusted their own families with him, he had no record, he had a hero of a partner who stayed brave in the face of his murder and her own bullshit arrest. But those facts shouldn't matter. No one deserves to die for busted taillights, for selling CDs or cigarettes, for holding a toy gun. No one. I am angry. I am heartbroken. I am praying to every diety that will listen for change (though I am taking action and supporting protesters as well) for Castile to be a tipping point. But it isn't about me, and I don't want to center my voice. So please check out these links-this very special edition link round-up.

From Black and POC Writers:
Where does a healer's anger go? A must-read for fellow witchy types.

How to Process Your Emotions but Skip the White Tears.

Fact based articles and livestreams.

28 Racist Reactions and Behavior (and how to overcome them)

A QTPOC roundtable over at Autostraddle.

Poetry. Because art is important.

From Allies:
Girl Boss Woo puts so plainly into words what I've been trying to express to other solopreneurs.

Important to understanding how infrastructure helps white people at the expense of black people and what we mean when we say that.

Actual facts and stats on actual disparities.

For Donating:
As a white ally, the number one thing you can besides getting out and putting your body and yourself on the line is donating either supplies or money for bail and protest needs or to help victim's families get or stay on their feet. To donate supplies, see where a protest is happening near you. Ask what they need. I know in the Twin Cities bug spray, blankets, and extension cords so the revolution can continue to be broadcast from someone other than mainstream media, so start there if you have no ideas. Otherwise, here are the funds for bail or victim's families:

Minneapolis/St. Paul bail, legal fees, etc. fund for activists.

Amo Mohamed's bail fund. A very important organizer and voice in the movement.

Lavish Reynold's (Castile's partner) Go Fund Me.

Baton Rouge Bail Fund.

And finally, a (respectful, non-dismissive) giggle:
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Until next, Blessed Be. Oh, also this.

A Late April Link Round-Up (My first one!)

I'm a huge reader and love of other people's work--I've discussed what a bibliophile I am in other posts, and I link to other blogs frequently, but lately I've read a few articles in a row that I wanted to share. Most of them come from blogs I already frequent, but these stood out to me as being useful.

To start with, we have this BEAUTIFUL Full Moon in Scorpio energy that one of my favorite online sites gives ideas for using here.

Y'all know how much I love Little Red Tarot, and I was especially taken with Beth's recent crystal clear spread for focus on Autostraddle.

Another blog I'm inspired by is Yes and Yes. It's not a tarot, metaphysical, theatre, or even pure business blog but her perspective on life and how it evolves as she gets older is pretty close to my own, and I love that most of her regular articles are about getting someone else's perspective. This article about just living your life as an inspiration is so, so wonderful. I have a lot of "life crushes" who's life I look up to in spite of being pretty fiery myself, so I related to this piece a ton.

Biddy Tarot is always teaching me something about tarot or, you know, teaching, and I picked up some info as well as teaching tips from this essential guide to tarot combos.

AND even though I described myself as "fiery" earlier I can PRETTY boring too--so here's a great piece from Bizjournals.com about staying a leader even when you've had a month like my last month.

Finally, I'm linking to an entire site of a witch who's also Minneapolis located and also primarily concerned with how the metaphysical can help Social Justice! It's already beautiful and I'm excited to see what else she does!

AND in case you missed anything going on around my little corner of the internet, here's my latest Queering the Tarot reprint, my latest Queering the Tarot, my review on a local comedy show, and a blog where I review my friend Leora's Tangled Roots Oracle deck.

Until next time--Blessed be.