Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Moon Magic, Sniffles and Money


Offerings of rum, wine, apples and roses.


New moon is a time of new beginnings, a time when light is just starting to peer forth from behind the dark moon's shroud. The lady of wisdom and the underworld, mother of witchcraft, the crone goddess makes way for the maiden to shine her new light on the nights of the world. But this is still the dark lady's time, at least for one more night.

I offer her up praise, adoration and appreciation. For my soul sister, my blood sister and the children I so love; I work my magics, planned and thought out from full moon to new moon; a banishment and binding and an invitation and opening up. When one thing must leave, another must fill its place. I offer fruits and liquors to the spirits, the fae and the dark lady herself. Worn out, I sit with the fae a while and ask them what I must know from this moon cycle to the next, they offer me a jovial reading, filled with laughter, magic, faith and inspiration.



******

This morning I woke up with my umpteenth cold of the season brewing nastily in my head. My sinuses are swollen, my throat feels tight and sore and I can occasionally hear the ocean in my left ear. The weather has been crazy here and I blame my repeated ailments on the constant change from hot to frigid as well as the fact that I work in a bank and handle gross money all day. I'm chugging water and lemon and honey spiked tea like it's my job but as is usually the case with my colds, I'm sure nothing I do will expedite its departure.

So here I am, all congested and wishing I could just curl up on the couch with a book and a magically refilling pot of tea instead of dealing with the public perusing blogs (which I have been a bit lax about lately) and happened across this one by Aine, in which she discusses her birthday and reflections on the changes she has undergone throughout the years. In it she briefly touches on her attachment to money, which stuck out to me; probably because as a bank teller I deal with people, their money and their various relationships to it on a 'more frequently than I'd like' basis.

The folks I deal with are typically in two camps; a) I want more money so I can keep up with the Joneses or b) I want more money to pay for my overdrafts and debts because I don't want to live within my means. These two classes of folks are a total mystery (and often times throughout my work day - infuriating) to me. My relationship with money from the time I was a child has been, 'Spend what you need to, save what you can. If you can't afford it, you don't need it'. I grew up in a household without a lot of money, I wouldn't call us poor but I wouldn't call us middle-class either. My parents both worked full-time and we rarely saw them together. We had a roof over our heads and food in our bellies and clothes one our backs (from the 1980's equivalent of Wal-mart, but still.. clothing.) We even got to go on the occasional family outing; to the zoo, to a museum, etc. We didn't have fancy clothes, shiny new cars, a McMansion or those much anticipated family vacations to places like the Grand Canyon but we didn't want for anything.

As an adult, my relationship to money is simple: I have enough to get by, but I'd like just a little more so I can stop worrying about if x,y or z will throw my bills off at the end of the month. Which is why I have a job. I'm lucky enough to know that I don't need to work. It's a blessing that I don't take lightly, but I also don't take our lingering student debt lightly either. I want it gone and sooner rather than later and so I go to work. I want us to be comfortable and not just to get by. Comfortable to me being; we can turn the heat up or down to be comfortable without worrying about the heating bill overly much, we can go on trips home or elsewhere every so often and get away for a few days, we can afford to pay extra for organic non GMO food and put things that are good for us in our bellies instead of just what we can afford, we can have reliable transportation and we can afford to make our home more self sufficient. (Which you may be surprised to learn, sometimes costs a bit to get started on.)

While this is my personal idea of comfort and while my attachment to money is one of simplicity, I would never begrudge someone their own ideals about it. If you're comfortable, responsible and happy - awesome! Unless of course your lifestyle is detrimental to the health of the planet - my inner environmentalist always trumps my inner non-judgementalist. That being said, if you're living outside of your means and you come up to me today and complain that you didn't spend your money (yet, when asked 'did you spend x amount here?' say 'yes') or that I shouldn't charge you fees for over drafting or paying your loans late (as if I personally sit at work hitting a big red button that says 'FEES!'.) then dear public, prepare for me to sniffle, roll my eyes and have no sympathy for your plight because while I normally can fake giving a fuck, my sinuses are swollen and I'm not allowed to keep tea at my desk and all of today's flying fucks will be given to those who don't make me feel more icky.

*Random post is a bit random. Sorry loves.*

10 comments:

  1. Nice to have felt your energy last night. Love you more than you know.
    Your wisdom for living and how to maintain a balance in the everyday is so admired from this end of the blogsphere. Damn girl, you and that other Jersey chic are rocking the philosphical joint lately. Namaste, *$#@+. nuff said

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  2. I hope you feel better soon! It is so interesting that when we moved from a very expensive part of the world to a not very expensive part of the world, we ended up having more of a community, more friends, a happier life. So you have to wonder - does money buy you happiness??? I count my blessings. I know we have more than most. Having less, though has taught me some valuable life lessons. But as you pointed out, this lesson is lost on a lot of others.....well, hopefully, in general, this financial crisis has been an eye opener to most. Maybe we can, as a society get real.

    PS - thanks for the plug!!

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  3. Sorry you're sick again. I was always getting sinus/ear garbage when I relocated to the South. It was almost as bad as living in the South ; ) tee hee hee.

    As for the money thing. I blogged about my opinion too and you comment so I know you know where I come from on that whole deal-e-o. It sounds to me like you and the husband have your heads on straight and have your priorities in order. I do agree it is extremely hard to deal with assholes who don't and are blaming everyone but themselves.

    Good thing I don't work with the general public or, well, I guess I would not be working for being fired.

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  4. I totally agree with you. So muck people today spend money they don't have and then they crie about being in debt. 'Don't spend money you don't have', I say. When I was a kid me and my siblings helped at home; cleaning our own rooms, helping grow potatoes and things like that. I think it's important to learn that stuff from when you're a child, it makes you see the value of money from another angle (my parents didn't pay us to help, but I hope you see my point) and you learn not to sit on your ass all day doing nothing.
    My family wasn't wealthy either, but we never lacked of anything.

    I'm trying to live real economically at the moment, being a student and all. If one just takes time to look one will see that most of the things needed one already have. And often even more.
    I have my boyfriend and we have our kitten, I see them as my most precious things.

    Hope you get well soon!
    BB!

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  5. I can sympathize about having 'another' cold. Seems like I have been sick at least once a month since the beginning of winter. But then I am constantly around a variety of kids & at least one or two will have the sniffles. Get to feeling better soon!

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  6. ~well wishes and sanity headed your way...we too have been non stop colds this season...one gets it and by the time it makes it three more rounds infected each we haev consumed a whole month of sickness...such fun!!!

    as for the money issue...i could not work for a bank as i do not think i would be good at having empathy for those who you know are spending mindlessly and carelessly...

    when my love and i first got together we were young and making a good amount of money for our age...we were not smart by any means...we spent and did each and everything we wanted to do...never overextended but never saved a darn penny...then i became pregnant...left my job and let me tell ya that changed our lives once and for all...we are a family of four on one income...and we learned very quickly how to live within our means and make it work...and it does...we too are pretty free to go about and play when we wish yet we are careful not to over do it...very interesting randem {hehehe} post...be well and much love light and blessings~

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  7. Ah, money. Now, I was poor growing up and had none. I remember having to call my dad to send extra dosh because my mum couldn't afford the rent in our rent controlled house. We didn't even have a telephone. I hate the stuff. I hate what it does to people. I hate the stress it causes. BUT I do like the comfort of having enough. To know I can afford groceries. To buy my kidlet a little something nice or go somewhere special. I'd like to have enough money that I didn't have to worry about it so often.

    Hope you feel better dearie. *hugs*

    P.S. Your faerie cards are different than mine... what's your deck called.

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  8. I used to work in banks for many years & I was sick all the time, I complettely sympathise! Don't you just love it when customers put thier credit card in thier mouth while they organise themselves, & then hand it to you? Money is dirty enough without people sharing thier germs with you.Ugh!
    I read recently that your relationship with money mirrors the relationship you had with your father as a child. I don't know if this is true but it sounds right for me.
    Feel better soon!
    x

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  9. Ah my darling... I hope your cold has vacated your head for good. May you have no more colds this year!
    My relationship with money is an interesting one. Mostly, now, I hate it & wish we could go back to bartering... but alas we probably won't. For a few years Britt & I lived in category #2, but thankfully we've pulled our heads out of our asses & don't have those issues anymore. ^-^

    Sorry we haven't been keeping up with each other as well as we'd like! I haven't been blogging as much lately, but I'm hoping to remedy that (as I'd LIKE to blog more, I just need to sit down & DO it...)

    Love & hugs & hope you're better!!!

    XOXO

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  10. I LOVE your defintion of comfortable! So many young people move out and live pay check to pay check, never thinking about the future and whats to come! Good for you for taking care of your future, and spoilig yourself here and there! You deserve it! My hubby and I live the same way :)

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