Halloween

[DragonsFriend]

Re: Halloween

We will have our "standard rite" and spend time sharing with those family members passed and invite "family" that I never had the chance to meet.
It is a joyous event in our practice and one of my favorite.

I could post the rite if you are interested...

[Briton]

Re: Halloween

I would be

[Maria de Luna]

Re: Halloween

I love Halloween and trick or treating, I'm taking my 6 month old bumblebee trick or treating hopefully we can get some candy! At midnight it's time for an ancestors ritual, hopefully I have the energy to stay up that late this year, or I'll break my own personal tradition and do it early... I'm so lame.

[Wenny]

Re: Halloween

We "accidentally" put up our black Christmas tree and decorated it for Halloween. We're going trick or treating then after kids sleep, I'll do my thing.

[Norse_Angel]

Re: Halloween

Will be volunteering at another festival from the 30th to the 1st in Northern Wisconsin. I'll be holding a couple different workshops, including rune and tea leaf readings. I'm most excited for my Galdr workshop, I'm bringing my drums to heighten the energy level, I just hope my tent is big enough for 10+ people. Very excited to bring some northern chants to a wider audience of people. Should be seeing a couple old friends there as well.

[Munin-Hugin]

Re: Halloween

I've decided that this year, for the first time in basically forever, I'm going to do something special. I'll be creating a small outside altar at the back of my property out of fallen logs, as well as a stone bowl and a flagstone that I had carved a valknut into some time ago. I plan on not turning on the tv, radio, computer, or really anything electric that I can get away with not using, then preparing a hearty meal (on the grill) before setting out extra plates as a dumb supper. Everything will be done in silence and by candlelight. After serving up portions to myself and my "guests" and eating, the guest portions of food and drink will be taken outside to the new altar and left there as an offering.

Some spilled ale, a moment of silent prayer, then it's back inside to write protective bindrunes above each door and window of the house.

After that, it's free game, and will probably watch a zombie movie or three. I'd invite my family, but I know they really wouldn't understand and I doubt my brother's kids would be able to stay quiet the whole time.

[magusphredde]

Re: Halloween

Well I was walking down the street
Just a having a think
When a snake of a guy gave me an evil wink
He shook-a me up, he took me by surprise
He had a pick up truck and the devil's eyes
He stared at me and I felt a change
Time meant nothing, never would again

Let's do the Time Warp again

[Dez]

Re: Halloween

We have a meal of cheddar soup and hot cider. This year, though, I'll probably be stuck at work, which is a shame, since The Squish is nine, now, and I've been wanting to teach her how to scry.

Sometime during the following couple of days we visit a graveyard. I don't have any ancestors here, but I give offerings to the local dead, and talk to my kids about death.

[anubisa]

Re: Halloween

I got the candy and am going to celebrate with a dumb supper to my grandpa and prayers to my ancestors and relatives.

[anunitu]

Re: Halloween

Well I was walking down the street
Just a having a think
When a snake of a guy gave me an evil wink
He shook-a me up, he took me by surprise
He had a pick up truck and the devil's eyes
He stared at me and I felt a change
Time meant nothing, never would again

Let's do the Time Warp again

Darn you to heck...sent me into a protracted youtube binge.

[magusphredde]

Re: Halloween

Darn you to heck...sent me into a protracted youtube binge.

My work is done ... MUAH HA HA HA HA ... Started the celebrating this morning with a 20 ounce mocha ... white coffee, white chocolate and 2 shots of pumpkin pie spice favor ... coffee ... the breakfast of champions ...

[Munin-Hugin]

Re: Halloween

Speaking of starting celebrations ... I'm planning on making a special drink for the occasion.

2 cups apple cider
1 cup Whiskey
3 cinnamon sticks per 3 cups
tsp nutmeg per 3 cups
dozen cloves per 3 cups

Throw it all together in a slow cooker, set on it's lowest setting until hot. You don't want to heat it too quickly and cook out the alcohol. Ladle out into mugs, cups, drinking horns, etc through a strainer to remove cloves and nutmeg. Garnish with a cinnamon stick, or maybe even a slice of tart, green apple.

Now, if you want to make it extra potent, pour it into a jar or jars and freeze it beforehand. When you go to reheat it, you'll find that there will be a layer of ice over the top of the still liquid booze. Remove the layer of ice, and just use the liquid for reheating. This was a very common practice back in colonial days for making some pretty strong hard cider. It's called freeze distillation. The theory is that the alcohol won't freeze, but the water content will, so by freezing and removing the ice on top, you're left with a higher alcohol content on the bottom.

[Briton]

Re: Halloween

Speaking of starting celebrations ... I'm planning on making a special drink for the occasion.

2 cups apple cider
1 cup Whiskey
3 cinnamon sticks per 3 cups
tsp nutmeg per 3 cups
dozen cloves per 3 cups

Throw it all together in a slow cooker, set on it's lowest setting until hot. You don't want to heat it too quickly and cook out the alcohol. Ladle out into mugs, cups, drinking horns, etc through a strainer to remove cloves and nutmeg. Garnish with a cinnamon stick, or maybe even a slice of tart, green apple.

Now, if you want to make it extra potent, pour it into a jar or jars and freeze it beforehand. When you go to reheat it, you'll find that there will be a layer of ice over the top of the still liquid booze. Remove the layer of ice, and just use the liquid for reheating. This was a very common practice back in colonial days for making some pretty strong hard cider. It's called freeze distillation. The theory is that the alcohol won't freeze, but the water content will, so by freezing and removing the ice on top, you're left with a higher alcohol content on the bottom.

The freeze distillation thing... that's brilliant. My wife and I bought some spiced mead from Lindisfarne but I may have to give this a go! I was going to make some mead this year, but unfortunately what with moving house, we just ran out of time for the season. I may make it anyway so it's ready for next year.

When you say "apple cider", is that hard or not? I know in the US it's common to call it cider when it's not alcoholic, but in the UK cider isn't cider without alcohol (I guess that's because of the disdain towards alcohol that the Temperance movement took to the US when the Brits told them to eff off when it came to banning alcohol).

[Munin-Hugin]

Re: Halloween

The freeze distillation thing... that's brilliant. My wife and I bought some spiced mead from Lindisfarne but I may have to give this a go! I was going to make some mead this year, but unfortunately what with moving house, we just ran out of time for the season. I may make it anyway so it's ready for next year.

When you say "apple cider", is that hard or not? I know in the US it's common to call it cider when it's not alcoholic, but in the UK cider isn't cider without alcohol (I guess that's because of the disdain towards alcohol that the Temperance movement took to the US when the Brits told them to eff off when it came to banning alcohol).

I mean the non-hard stuff. The spiced, distilled, non-fermented cider you can get anywhere here at this time of year.


I just poured the wax for a very special candle for tomorrow night, to be lit when I make my offerings at my new outdoor altar, and when I go around and inscribe protection bindrunes over every door and window. It's a deep brown, the wick has been held in place at the bottom with an acorn from my oak tree, and I added a few drops of wolf's eye oil to it as well.

[Medusa]

Re: Halloween

It's not even Halloween yet and somehow I came home with a bunch of candy in my purse. My co-workers are trying to kill me!