Kari Tauring joins PNC-Minnesota

June 10, 2011June 10, 20111 Comment

Kari Tauring joins PNC-Minnesota as a reporter to cover the Heathen beat. Ms. Tauring is the author of two books and holds a Bachelor of Arts Double Major English and Philosophy and a Masters of Arts from the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul.

Ms Tauring is deeply tied into the Heathen community and will use her insights and contacts to bring readers news about the events and people of her religious community. Tauring is a Völva, Old Norse for staff carrier. She has twenty plus years of scholarship and practice of runes, stav, poetry, songs, dances, and the healing and spiritual arts.

She was featured on Norwegian television Alt for Norge in 2010 and will be teaching Völva Stav in Trondheim, Norway in September 2011.

Heathens Gather at June 10-12th event near Twin Cities

April 7, 2011April 7, 20113 Comments

The Mjolnir, Heathen Symbol

I had the opportunity to interview Brody Derks of the Thule of Volkshof Kindred, about Heathenry and their upcoming event in June, the Northern Folk Gathering , at this years Paganicon.

Tell me about your University of Minnesota experience?

I was the president of the University of Minnesota Pagan Society, we networked with other groups around the Twin Cities. That was a wonderful experience to see all the Pagans in the surrounding area, and their diversity. I have always been a Heathen. I joined the Volkshof Kindred a few years ago. Now I am a representative. We are one of the strongest Heathen groups in the Twin Cities, and in Minnesota. We have built up our name, but there are other Kindred groups that we respect in Minnesota.

How did you know you were a Heathen?

Continue reading →

Alt for Norge – Episode 4

March 9, 2011March 10, 20115 Comments

Alt for Norge (All for Norway) is a reality program that pits 10 Americans of Norwegian heritage against one another for a prize of $50,000 and a chance to meet their Norwegian relatives. The episodes have been airing at Merlin’s Rest Pub on Lake street. Twin Cities performer and Völva, Kari Tauring, was a contestant on this show.

There is one word that describes this episode – disturbing.

Kari Tauring, in Alt for Norge

This is not a spoiler, it’s well known that this was the last episode that Kari Tauring was a part of. So I was prepared to feel a bit sad. I’ve enjoyed watching the program and having Kari tell us the inside scoop on how real the show was and what the contestants were like as people so I was looking forward to another pleasant evening at Merlin’s rest. What I was unprepared for was the disgust I would feel throughout this episode.

I felt bad for Kari, not because she got the boot, but because of what she experienced in this episode and yet still had to keep smiling.

Continue reading →

Review – Alt for Norge (All for Norway)

December 15, 2010December 15, 20101 Comment

Editor’s note: If you missed seeing episode 1, it will air again at Merlins Rest Pub on December 28th.

Last night I attended the Minneapolis premier of the Norwegian reality tv show Alt for Norge. The draw, for me, in attending was two-fold: a) I’ll take any excuse to go to Merlins Rest Pub and b) local musician and Völva, Kari Tauring, was a contestant in the show.

Kari Tauring at Merlins Rest Pub - photo credit, Jeff Wheeler of the Star Tribune

To read an interview with Kari Tauring about the TV show, see this article.

The show, a contest that pits 10 Americans of Norwegian heritage against one another for a prize of $50,000 and a chance to meet their Norwegian relatives, was charming. Watching the show for the breathtaking views of Norway is worth it. Add in the very diverse contestants and the quirky challenges they face and you have the makings of a very enjoyable and engaging program. While watching the show the crowd of approximately 25 people of all ages cheered for Kari whenever she was on the screen. Towards the end of the first episode we clapped and Kari, who was present at the Pub and going from table to table visiting with everyone who attended, took a bow when she was awarded the Norwegian Spirit Award.

However, that isn’t what made the evening go from pleasantly interesting to riveting. It was the Q & A session after the program, and possibly the two hard ciders I had, that made the experience not to be missed. Kari told us that during the taping of the show she felt very isolated, despite making friends with some of the other contestants. “It was a different experience for me than it was for anyone else there,” says Kari. One of the examples she gave highlighted this difference. “When we were at the Unification monument everyone else was lifting a glass to cheer King Harald, but for me it was a very profound moment. This was a place of civil war, like Gettysburg. This was where a monotheist High King won over the democratic Heathen petty Kings. It wasn’t a ‘Yay, King Harald!’ moment for me.”

Continue reading →

See Kari Tauring in Norwegian Reality Show Tonight

December 14, 2010December 15, 20101 Comment

Merlins Rest Pub plays host TONIGHT to a showing of the first episode of Alt for Norge, a Norwegian reality show that took ten Americans with Norwegian ancestry and had them compete for a prize of $50,000 and a chance to meet their Norwegian relatives. Kari will give a brief introduction at 5:30 and start the episode at 6. Each episode is mostly in English as the contestants do not speak Norwegian.

Alt fo Norge (All for Norway) Contestants. Kari Tauring is front row, third from the left

While the participants came from all over the United States, four of the ten were from Minnesota, including our own Kari Tauring. Kari Tauring is best known throughout the Pagan community as a Staving musician, rune reader, and Völva, which is a type of Nordic Shaman.

The first episode started at Prekestolen where they were challenged to hike down to Prekestolshytta. Other challenges were preparing something called a matpakke and figuring out what to buy for dinner by translating from a list. The clip below is from the first episode of the which will be shown in its entirety tonight.