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ND #136 – Last Total Lunar Eclipse

Posted on by Lisa Weikel 4 Comments
Closeup of the last total lunar eclipse which occurred on 16 May 2022 – Photo: L. Weikel

Last Total Lunar Eclipse

I couldn’t get ‘you guys’ out of my head as I took a walk this evening. Observing the waxing gibbous moon snuggling up to Jupiter, both bright as headlights in the sky, my thoughts turned to the total lunar eclipse we’ll be experiencing at 5:59 a.m. (EST) this Tuesday. This will be the last total lunar eclipse until 2025, which feels significant. Good grief, it’s hard to imagine the geopolitical circumstances under which we’ll (hopefully) be experiencing that celestial event.

So we might as well look up and appreciate this one. For those of you in the eastern Pennsylvania region, here is a nifty link.

 

Waxing Moon Flirting with Jupiter 4Nov22 – Photo: L. Weikel

Momentous

We all know how momentous this Tuesday, November 8, 2022, will be for all of us. Of course, I’m speaking to all citizens of the United States – but I’m especially looking at you, fellow women (and those who identify as female). If we don’t step up now and take responsibility for ensuring our bodily sovereignty by voting for those who will protect and defend our rights as equal citizens, we could easily find ourselves living in a Christofascist hellscape by the next total lunar eclipse.

I can only hope that we learned our lesson in 2016. As shell-shocked and pit-in-the-stomach terrified we felt at the result of that election six years ago, I’m pretty confident few of us would’ve predicted the tidal wave of misogyny, racism, antisemitism, outright cruelty, and insanity that would nearly drown our country in its wake. But here we are.

And of course, the momentous nature of our election impacts the rest of the world, too. “With great power comes great responsibility,” which means our responsibility to not only vote but also stand up for democracy and the rule of law extends beyond our own precious lives. The fate of many hang in the balance of how we respond to the myriad shameless attacks being made against facts, truth, and reality. We are responsible not only for ourselves and our country, but also the myriad countries that rely on us as an ally and role model. Perhaps most importantly, the consequences of our election will impact the very planet on which we all live and depend.

Last Total Lunar Eclipse (May 2022) – Photo: L. Weikel

A Perfect Storm

It’s no secret that circumstances are such that a perfect storm is brewing on both an emotional and ideological level. That’s why the fact that our turmoil is mirrored in the sky takes on even more chilling significance.

There’s the total lunar eclipse (with eclipses often providing jarring, unexpected revelations and reactions).And we’re still experiencing the final ‘pass’ of the Saturn squaring Uranus configuration that we experienced three times in 2021. You may recall Saturn is associated with rules, foundations, and tradition, while Uranus is often thought of as revolutionary, unpredictable, a disrupter of the status quo, and an innovator of lightning-quick change.

Too much of either energy can lead to unintended and chaotic results. And we’re pretty much assured that we’ll experience both, at least in the short term. We can only hope (and set our intentions) that balance can and will be achieved sooner rather than later. We had our warning on January 6th. Shame on us If something similar unfolds as a result of this election. There’s no excuse for us not to see it coming.

Our Best Strategy

As always, our best strategy is to keep our own centers and allow our sense of calm, faith in our system, and peaceful respect for ourselves and each other to ripple out into our environment. When challenged, we need to feel our feet connecting to Mother Earth, reminding us of who we are and why we care. We also need to look up, and remember that while the Earth may be causing the moon to be in dusky, blood-red shadow for a moment, this will pass.

What matters is that we hold firm to our values and the common good of all, including Nature and Mother Earth. We must stand strong for each other, ourselves, and our ancestors – those who’ve passed and those who will inherit the results of our decisions today. Remember to keep looking up, my friends; no matter what. The next seven generations are depend upon us.

(T+136)

Squinting Into the Future – Day 1086

Posted on by Lisa Weikel Leave a comment
Squinting For Sure – Photo: L. Weikel

Squinting Into the Future

Tonight’s post is one of my short ones. Ha ha – I say that, and I haven’t even written it yet. But I speak with confidence and believe my squinting into the future is accurate because because I’m sitting here, covered in warm snoring puppies, unable to keep my eyes open.

And tonight, while I would love to shake the cobwebs from my head and do whatever it takes to gain my second wind, I must refrain. No; I must do what I must to fulfill my commitment to my 1111 Devotion, but I also have a responsibility to be awake and aware tomorrow morning at the crack of dawn. So I need to get to bed.

Rare Sighting

The primary photo for this post contains a rare sighting of yours truly. I tend to be the one behind the camera far more often than in front of it, and I’d much prefer to post photos of anything else.

But the message conveyed on my mask (hat tip to my middle son, who actually owns this mask) is the reason why I must succumb to slumber far earlier than usual. As I’ve written about in the past, a very small contribution I’m happy to make to upholding and facilitating our democratic ideals is serving as an election official at our local polling place. And since my colleagues and I need to get everything set up and ready to throw our doors open to the maddening throngs of neighbors exercising their franchise by 7:00 a.m., I need to get bed earlier than usual.

And I’m tired.

My Message

If you live in a state (or commonwealth) that’s having elections tomorrow, I entreat you: please vote. Our elections have never been more safe or secure, yet far too many people in our country are operating under the illusion that fraud is rampant.

It is not.

Our machines are safe. Our elections are safe. The people with whom I work, and have worked for decades, are people with integrity and a passion for (small d) democracy. We care about the preciousness of everyone’s vote.

But we must exercise our right to vote if we’re going to keep that right. And nothing could be more important than taking a stand for free and fair elections. So please: take a stand for truth and integrity. Take a stand for the Earth. Take a stand for our children and their right to a free, well-rounded, public education. Take a stand for equality and inclusiveness.

Do not make the mistake of assuming that we’ll always have the rights and privileges we enjoy at this moment. If we don’t use our right to vote, we could easily lose it.

Vote.

Pacha and Brutus Approve This Message – Photo: L. Weikel

(T-25)

Don’t Embolden the Dark Side – Day 666

Posted on by Lisa Weikel 2 Comments
Gargoyle – Photo: L. Weikel

Don’t Embolden the Dark Side

This is my 666th post. That fact didn’t actually click in my head until just now as I started to write this evening’s communiqué. But of course, as soon as I realized it was number ‘666,’ my imagination started running wild. But in the end? The message I want to leave you with is, “Don’t embolden the Dark Side.”

First of all, much as you might automatically assume otherwise, this isn’t a political statement. Nor is it a warning not to mess with forces about which you may have little knowledge. (Although I would be remiss if I didn’t mention in passing that you really shouldn’t assume the Dark Side is a myth. Power can be abused and people dabble in stuff they’re clueless about far too often. It is dangerous. It’s not a joke. But that’s not the subject of tonight’s post in spite of  its number!)

Your Participation Matters

It is, however, an entreaty to do right by yourself and your community by submitting your Census information as soon as possible. For now, we have until September 30th to fill out our Census information – so don’t be disempowered by thinking (a) it’s too late; or (b) it’s not important.

The U.S. Census is conducted only once every ten years. The anonymous information gathered is critical to securing funding for all sorts of critical infrastructure support. If you’re not counted, policy decisions may be made at various levels of government that won’t be as accurate or helpful as they would be otherwise.

In other words: YOU MATTER.

And it is the Dark Side that would have you think you might be in danger by filling out the form. It’s the Dark Side that would try to scare or intimidate you into thinking you shouldn’t be counted. Or that you don’t matter. If you don’t stand up and allow yourself to be counted, the Dark Side will have succeeded in making you INVISIBLE.

Think about it. Be logical. If you didn’t matter, then the Dark Side wouldn’t be trying to end the Census count sooner than usual. It wouldn’t be ending door-to-door canvassing earlier than usual (using the pandemic – which the Dark Side wants people to believe is a hoax – as an excuse). The Dark Side doesn’t want an accurate count.

It’s SO Easy

  • You can fill out the form that came in the mail. It must be postmarked by 9/30/2020;
  • You can call 844-330-2020 to file by phone in English, or 844-468-2020 to file by phone in Spanish;
  • And EASIEST OF ALL: go online at my2020census.gov.

The Fight’s Not Over

Just last Friday a Federal judge blocked the Dark Side’s efforts to shut down the Census’s tabulations early. Why? Because the ramifications on communities is that big. Because shutting it down early is outright shenanigans. Getting an accurate count of who lives in our communities impacts so much more than most of us realize. And we’re ‘stuck’ with the numbers for ten whole years. That’s why this is a huge win!

But why wait? Take ten minutes right now and get the job done.

Don’t embolden the Dark Side. Oh. And another way you can thwart those forces? VOTE.

VOTE like your life depends on it.

Photo: L. Weikel

(T-445)

Use Your Voice – Day 357

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“When you vote, you speak for me” – Tohickon Creek – Photo: L. Weikel

Use Your Voice

This a gentle reminder to use your voice this coming week by – you guessed it – remembering to VOTE.

Perhaps I should be saving this post for tomorrow evening, so the reminder is fresh enough to propel you out to your car and onward to your civic engagement.

Perhaps.

Or maybe giving an affectionate nudge the day ahead of time will encourage you to take a quick look at your local voter’s guide in order to inform yourself of the races that are up for grabs in this off-year election.

Why Should You Care?

For instance, voting for judges (here in Pennsylvania, at least) is an opportunity to choose people who you would trust to make decisions and render judgments that can have a profound impact upon our lives. Sure, we all hope we won’t have to appear before a judge for anything other than, perhaps, an adoption. Or a name change. (I’m trying to think of the best case scenarios associated with court appearances!)

But let’s face it. In our litigious society, people often end up in court, often more frequently than they can afford, in order to have a stranger tell them how to resolve their differences. This can range from asking a person you do not know (and does not know you) to tell you how to split up your property or how much time you will spend with your child to resolving a business dispute or determining the fate of your adult child who made a fateful mistake (or awful decision).

Or maybe you’ll be part of a suit that asks for an environmental regulation to be enforced that will determine the fate of your drinking water, or an analysis of a statute that could take your land to make way for a pipeline.

Do Your Homework Now

My point with respect to most elected officials, but judges and legislators in particular, is the importance of doing your homework now, before it’s too late. Don’t assume your choices won’t make a difference. And above all, don’t assume your voice doesn’t matter.

You make a difference.

And if you want to learn more or get involved in promoting voting and strengthening our democracy, check out the League of Women Voters, a non-partisan group that does outstanding work.

Some Different Resources

As many of you know, I ascribe to the work of Machaelle Wright, founder of Perelandra, Ltd., and her approach to energetically working with Nature in order to co-create our health and the health of the planet. (Indeed, I didn’t bug you this month about doing your biodiversity practice on the first of this month, but I will remind you before December 1st!)

I admire the civic engagement the folks at Perelandra encourage, especially since they recognize the direct correlation between activism, our health, and the health of the planet and all who share it with us. They provide some excellent links to resources that you might find helpful here.

And for those of you who might long for a leader who inspires us to make a difference no matter who we are, and what circumstances we find ourselves in, you might enjoy this video.

Elections matter. Use your voice to declare what you value, who you care about, and what your vision is of our future. If you don’t, know one will know – and worse, others will make assumptions, and will do what they want because they’ll think you don’t care.

Use your voice – Photo: L. Weikel

(T-754)

Long Way Home – Day 190

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Image: www.northloop.org

Long Way Home      

As I was driving back from Amadell today, I was reminded of the Supertramp song of the same title as this blog.

It was indeed a long way home, but so worth it.

The journey was made even better by the exquisite weather we enjoyed the entire way home. The Appalachians were our constant companions and, to be honest, they beckoned to us to stop and explore them one day more.

Responsibility Calls

But alas, responsibility calls and we needed to get home.

Democracy in action called to us with an even louder voice than the two songs I offered you above.

Please get out and vote.

Take a look around and summon the courage to see what’s actually unfolding in our communities, states, and country. Obviously, I’m speaking directly to Pennsylvanians because tomorrow is our primary.

But it does not matter where you live. When your state has its primary and general elections: VOTE. Vote for your school board directors, vote for your supervisors, vote for you Register of Wills. VOTE.

Your rights, your voice, your power to maintain control over your own life depend on you exercising your RIGHT and PRIVILEGE to vote. Don’t squander your power by waiting until it’s too late and your rights have been lost.

(T-921)

A Trick of Email – Day 189

Posted on by Lisa Weikel Leave a comment
Amadell Sunset – Photo: L. Weikel

A Trick of Email      

I missed the deadline again that sends my posts out at night.

But guess what? I missed it last night, too.

The thing is, you might not have noticed. That’s because I literally hit the ‘publish’ button last night at 1:00 a.m. and it was nevertheless too late. It didn’t get sent out as an email last night because I missed the deadline and it was therefore held until tonight. But because I also put a link to my posts on Facebook, you still got to read it.

So tonight, last night’s went out and it looked like I’d made a timely submission. But I hadn’t. I missed the boat.

As a result, tonight’s post, which is obviously (abysmally) late getting published, will go out (if you have the email subscription) tomorrow night.

Good Grief

If I manage to get my Monday night submission published in a timely fashion (i.e., before 1:00 a.m), you’ll then receive both tonight’s and tomorrow’s in one email.

Good grief, this post is a load of hooey. But you know what? You just never know when you might want to know the intricacies of publishing a blog post every single night and the repercussions of meeting or missing an email deadline.

Tuesday is Primary Day in PA

Well, tomorrow night I’ll be back in Pennsylvania. Tired, I’m sure, and anticipating a very early morning on Tuesday because I’ll be happily playing my very small part in local democracy by working at our local poll. And Tuesday is Primary Day in Pennsylvania.

So if you take nothing else from tonight’s post, let it serve as a reminder that if you live in Pennsylvania, you need to VOTE on Tuesday!

(T-922)