Community Notes; April 16-22

I’ve heard it said that locally Heathen men outnumber Heathen women two to one. I’ve also heard that Wiccan women outnumber Wiccan men two to one. There should be a mixer. So, Heathen men & Wiccan women, come to Merlin’s Rest Pub, Monday, May 7, from 7-10pm. How will we know who’s there for the mixer? Heathen men, wear something that Wiccan women can recognize as Heathen. Wiccan women, wear something that Heathen men can recognize as Wiccan. Please spread the word. http://www.facebook.com/events/377309812313258/

Monday night there’s a meet & greet at the Sacred Paths center for people trying to find groups. If you’re a seeker, please plan to attend. If you’re a group interested in members, please attend.

With a hearty sigh of relief, it would appear that the Northern Dawn Local Council of the Covenent of the Goddess will continue. There was a meeting Saturday to discuss its future, and there was definite community support and planning for its future. Northern Dawn CoG has been holding public celebrations since it’s founding, Samhain of 1982, and has hosted the CoG national gathering (Merrymeet) twice. It’s good to know that it will continue.

The BECAUSE Conference on Bisexuality will be next weekend. Learn more at http://www.becauseconference.org/

As a special note to the tree hugging dirt worshippers (like me); Earth Day is next Sunday.

Community Notes; April 9-15

The Future of Northern Dawn Local Council (CoG) will be discussed at a Town Hall meeting at Walker Community United Methodist Church this Saturday at 6pm. The Northern Dawn Local Council of the Covenant of the Goddess has served the Twin Cities Pagan community for over 30 years. http://www.facebook.com/events/271580256253033/

There was an article in the PNC last week about local Pagan podcasts. That’s yet another way in which our community is excelling: https://pncminnesota.com/2012/04/05/local-pagans-offer-podcasts/

There will be a CD release party at the Sacred Paths Center this Friday, for three CDs produced by Rhythmpriest. Two CDs from Murphey’s Midnight Rounders, and one from Ailinn. There will be live music. http://www.facebook.com/events/339101516127766/

Local Tarot professional extraordinaire, Barbara Moore recently published another new Tarot Deck, the Steam Punk Tarot. If you’ve talked with Barbara in the last two years, then you know what a passion this deck has been to create. She will be having a book signing this Saturday at Magus Books & Herbs, and a launch party extravaganza May 5th at the Eye of Horus.

Highway cleanup went very well yesterday. Many hands made light work and mother Earth is a little less littered. Thank you to the Upper Midwest Pagan Alliance for allowing our community the opportunity to perform such a fulfilling service.

The Upper Midwest Pagan Alliance adopted a stretch of highway in 2008. Twice a year, local Pagans (like you) gather to pick up litter and beautify a piece of the Earth. Our stretch of highway is about 2 miles of I-35E a few miles before it rejoins I-35W in the north

It’s difficult to describe the highway cleanup and convey how enjoyable it was. There was a playfulness to the outing. The sense of discovery at the bizarre things to be found. The challenge of getting that half buried tire to the side of the road. The joy of time spent with wonderful people.

Saturday was not the warmest day we’ve had lately. The clouds threatened rain and provided a mist. This turned out to be the perfect weather for cleaning up the highway. We weren’t too warm. We didn’t get sunburns. The bugs weren’t biting.

Our stretch of highway is being redone, so right now there’s only one side open, which means we only had to clean one side of the interstate. The side we were cleaning had been recently landscaped, so there wasn’t a lot of litter.

We split into two teams to start at either end and meet in the middle. One team walked down the off-ramp to start their clean-up. The other was dropped off down the road where we had to climb over a fence capped with barbed wire to get to the highway. Although this sounds unpleasant, it turned into a playful team-build as the obstacle was overcome.

After about an hour and a half, it began to rain. It wasn’t cold, and the rain was somewhat refreshing. If it hadn’t been for regulations requiring that we not cleanup in the rain, we would have continued. The two teams were close enough to be able to see each other at that point, with not a lot of litter in between.

This spring’s highway cleanup project was very enjoyable. I hope to see many of you this fall as we clean-up our stretch of highway again.

Community Notes; April 2-8

People are getting outside early this year, and next weekend is a perfect time for you to join some local Pagans outside for a good cause. The Upper Midwest Pagan Alliance will be cleaning up the stretch of highway they adopted. Learn more here.

The warm weather has many of us thinking about our summer festival plans.

June 14-17; Northern Folk Gathering: Viking Games will return to St. Crois park. You can read a review of last year’s event at https://pncminnesota.com/2011/06/17/karis-thingtide-travels-northern-folk-gathering/ or register at http://www.northernfolkgathering.com/

June 17-24; Earth House Midsummer Gather: Come Play Like Pagans at the 12th Annual Midsummer Gather “Guardians of the Earth”. It’s like a family reunion without the drama. You can read a review of last year’s event at https://pncminnesota.com/2011/06/27/earth-house-midsummer-gather/ and register at http://www.earthhousemn.org/gather.htm

July 12-15; Sacred Fire Circle In Paradise: Personal transformation is a part of the experience. You can read a review of last year’s circle at https://pncminnesota.com/2011/07/26/sacred-fire-circle-in-paradise-2011-editorial/ and register at http://sacredfirecircle.hawkdancing.com/

August 6-12; Sacred Harvest Festival: Join with a sense of community at the oldest and largest Pagan festival in Minnesota. Read thoughts about last year’s festival at https://pncminnesota.com/2011/08/15/the-best-thing-about-sacred-harvest-was/ and register at http://harmonytribe.org/

 

Editor’s Note:  A longer list of summer festivals with more details can be found here.

Community Notes; March 26 – April 1

UMPA Spring Hiway Cleanup is April 7. This is one of those events which makes me proud to be in Paganistan. The Upper Midwest Pagan Alliance adopted a stretch of highway in 2008. Twice a year, local Pagans (like you) gather to pick up litter and beautify a piece of the Earth. Best of all, there’s a big sign saying that this stretch of highway is adopted by Pagans, which is supremely cool, and unique. If you’d like to participate, meet at The Central Bank (7111 21st Avenue, Centerville, MN 55038), at 10:30am; http://www.umpaganalliance.com/schedule.shtml

Registration is now up for Paganicon 2013 at http://paganicon2013.eventbrite.com/

Murphey’s Midnight Rounders – CD Release Party is this Saturday at the St. Louis Park Double Tree hotel from 7-10pm. They are celebrating the release of two CDs, so expect twice the party.

Many people who read this have expressed concern about the proposed marriage amendment, so you might want to know that this Thursday is OutFront Minnesota’s Lobby Day. You can learn more at https://outfront.org/takeaction/lobbyday

Community Notes; March 19-25

Paganicon was wonderful, and attendance was way up from last year. The guests were delightful. The workshops were moving and life changing. The Ball was hopping. Registration for next year’s Paganicon should be up within a day or two at the early-bird rate. Next year’s Paganicon will be March 15-17. You can register now for only $50 or buy a supporting membership now and upgrade later, so it’s two small payments rather than one moderately priced payment at http://paganicon.eventbrite.com/

There are several interesting events this week at Magus Books & Herbs. Sign up for their newsletter to stay in the loop http://www.magusbooks.com/

Next Sunday is another Psychic Sunday at the Eye of Horus. These are always fulfilling events. Be sure to sign up in advance. http://eyeofhorus.genbook.com/bookings/slot/reservation/30073918