I am deeply in love with Abnormal Psychology. I hope to end up with an A+ in the class; I read the textbook for fun... Geeking, geeking, I know, I know... I'm not a big fan of psychology, but the study of psychopathology is so interesting, I just might have to continue on with it. And taking Molecular and Cell Bio and an introductory neuroscience course at the same time complements it nicely. I'm just worried about how many stats courses I might have to take if I decide to do a double major Bio/Psych instead of just majoring in Bio. Yuck, math-ness. *Shudders* I see a tutor in my future...
I spent Hallows studying for a Bio midterm. Yee. Haw. I s'pose there are always the Wolf nights. Anyone read that children's book, The Book of Dead Days, by Marcus Sedgwick (maybe?)? Add that to a bit of Angela Carter's stuff and you're all set. *cackles*
Speaking of (writing of?) good books, check out Robin Artisson's The Horn of Evenwood. Excellent stuff. I'll have to do it more justice later.
I'm quite fond of it. After reading it, I feel compelled to pull out some of Brian Froud's Faerie books, or to go watch Labyrinth. I picked up a few books on fairies while in London, notably Katherine Briggs' The Fairies in Tradition and Literature, and Scottish Fairy Belief, whose authors' names escape me at the moment. I haven't really got down to read them though. Am I doomed to a fate of constantly buying books on faerie folklore and never finding time to actually read them cover to cover?
Other books I'm reading of late:
Generation Hex, edited by Jason Louv. Although its categorization as occultism/popular culture made me nervous, and I still haven't forgiven the Disinformation Company for publishing a book by Fiona Horne, I really am in love with some of the essays in this book. It's chaos magic for the most part, which is something that has only interested me recently. But there's some new and original thoughts on magic here, not just the same old crap in new boxes.
Rebels and Devils: The Psychology of Liberation, edited by Christopher S. Hyatt. I bought it because there was a snake on the cover, ha ha. It's... looking better now that I've gotten into it a bit more. The intro by Hyatt was off-putting, but I kept going, 'cause when you buy books of essays, you have to sample all of them. Good stuff by William Burroughs and Aleister Crowley.
Mind of the Raven by Bernd Heinrich. What freaky birds. I've actually seen a raven or two hanging around my property recently. The crows hate it, and have declared war.
Drugs of the Dreaming: Oneirogens, Salvia divinorum, and Other Dream-Enhancing Plants by Gianluca Toro and Benjamin Thomas. Amazon lied to me. I actually thought this book was written by Jonathan Ott. And I was hoping for better info on the Salvia, such as how to keep them alive after you've damaged them by screwing up their humidity levels. I'll just have to ask erowid.
Just finished A Brief Tour of Human Consciousness by V. S. Ramachandran and Call of the Horned Piper by Nigel Aldcroft Jackson. I do love Jackson. He seems to be more spiritually than historically accurate. His books are keys to rather odd and distubing and completely worthwhile doors.
***
Replanted the Mandrakes, and more Henbane. The Belladonna's alright, but the Bittersweet in the tree is luscious. I'm going out to take pictures of it and the Foxglove. I'm a plant geek. And a book geek. Maybe I'm... just a geek. Probably. :)
So I made up my mind and dragged my sorry ass out to the Misstress Barbara rave. I'm not a huge techno/house fan, but it was pretty good. I was probably the only person there who hadn't taken anything. People were amazed. They were like, "You're not on pills? I so respect that." Funny, huh. I wasn't trying to be the good sober person. It just worked out that way for once. I danced from midnight to 7:30: now I hurt. :) Ow... music is good... Security was pretty tight there too. I was spreadeagled on Gottigen st, patted down and wanded. A good time had by all...
Hmmm... I acquired a bottle of Chartreuse. Expensive stuff. It was hard to really appreciate the herbal flavours as the alcohol burnt through my tongue. I'm good for 80 proof/40%, and I can handle 100 proof/50%, but I may have met my match here. Maybe. Ice might make it easier.
Currently reading: The Epics of Celtic Ireland,and Ken Johnson's North Star Road. If anyone wants a copy of Marion Weinstein's Positive Magic, by all means, let me know. It's not my thing at all. Her warnings about Satanic practices are hilarious. What about all the trad Wiccans and witches who dance widdershins Marion? Are they evil? Oh my. It just went on and on and got worse and worse.
*sigh*
I can't wait until The Horn of Evenwood by Robin Artisson is released. Say what you want about the man, his writing is better than anything else I've ever read when it comes to putting trad witchcraft in a new light. Sooo goood... *drools and stumbles away*
"Being Nietzschean requires one to think apart from him, starting from the spot where the "work in progress" that is philosophy was transformed by his passage. He called for unfaithful disciples who, by their betrayal, would prove their loyalty. He wanted people to obey him by following themselves and no one else, not even him. Particularly not him."
-- Michel Onfray, In Defense of Atheism
***
A Christian, a Wiccan, and a Satanist were having a piss in a public restroom.
The Christian finished first, and proceeded to scrub his hands thoroughly, to the elbow, saying, "We Christians have learned to be clean."
The Wiccan finished next, and barely wet his fingertips, saying, "We Wiccans have learned to respect Mother Earth and preserve her resources."
The Satanist zipped up and headed for the door, saying, "We Satanists have learned not to piss on our hands."
Well, it was funny when I was 14.
And I'm in love with In Defense of Atheism, despite not really being an atheist. Lots to think about, and new words to look up. :) The largest of the lil bros has acquired a Bio textbook for me, and the stuff on viruses is awesome. Still hacking away at Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time, which I have been trying to finish, ironically enough, for a long freaking time. Nigel Jackson's The Call of the Horned Piper showed up this morning; hopefully I get all these books finished before the pre-cal slog begins.
And now I have to go back to university, because it reminded me of how much I enjoyed thinking. My current minimum-wage job doesn't allow for much of that, and although I love to travel, it might be easier to travel through school with exchange trips.
I hope SMU gives me credit for my prior coursework. I don't want any more Intro to English courses. I also hope they'll let me do a BSc. in Biology and a BA in English at the same time. They do allow it, so I'll throw some introductory Bio in with my Arts courses at first, and then if they let me, I'll take on a BSc. And all of my summers will be me struggling through expensive pre-cal and calculus that I could have taken in high school for free. I can't wait. :)
Of course, if I don't get a student loan, I'm screwed. Tuition here is probably the highest in the country. Even with a loan, it would just cover school stuff. I'd have to keep a job to pay rent, 'cause I don't want to drive in and out of Halifax all the time.
Course ideas for now include:
Introductory Arabic
Introductory Biology
Astronomy: The Sky and Planets
English: Development of the English Prose Style, Narrative in Fiction and Film, Cultural Studies, The Writer and Nature, Introduction to Drama, Canlit: The 60s and 70s, Recent Science Fiction
Classics: The Mythology of Greece and Rome, Women in Antiquity
Irish Studies: The Irish Musical Tradition, Irish Folklore
Religious Studies: Intro to Religious Experience, Religion in Contemporary Culture, Death, The Islamic Religious Traditions, Myth and Story, Aboriginal Peoples Religion and the Justice System, Intro to the Qur'an
And I can only take a few of them. Sad, huh?
In other news, the Salvia divinorum plants don't look so good. I forgot about their humidity issues. Making a tent might be a tad obvious, so I sprinkle their leaves for now until I can get a spray/mist bottle. The Mandrakes had the opposite problem with too much humidity, but I think I've got that sorted out now. Two of the three Belladonna plants are okay, while the Monkshood has failed to appear. I can't tell whether the Henbane is growing, or just weeds from the soil mix. The Mugwort, Southernwood, and Wormwood are thriving. So are the Foxglove, Poppy, Mint, and Balm. And the Catnip. But all of those plants are a few years old now, and far less fragile. The Chickens of Doom dug out my Chinese Wolfberry and Toad Lilies almost instantly. *shakes fist*
