Happy New Year!

Okay, so now I feel terrible. No sooner than I announce that I'm blogging on a Tuesday, do I totally go and not write anything for weeks! My new line is that I will try to blog once per week, but it could be more or less; I'm not promising anything this time!
Today's blog is all about new years' resolutions. A cliche subject I know, but what else am I gonna write about around now?!
So I haven't really made any official resolutions. There's the usual 'be more organised', 'learn Italian, 'lose weight' blablabla. I'm not going to do any of those things. I'm just going to stay my same old self, but feel bad because I can't remember what comes after uno, due, tre. I can count higher in Welsh, and that's because I watched a tonne of Welsh TV in the summer holidays. My desk is a mess already and I've put on weight because of all those mince pies. So what. The weight'll fall off naturally in a few weeks and if everything is out on my desk, then I know where it is. So my thoughts on new year's resolutions are this: waste. of. effort. You're never going to do it so don't make yourself feel bad! I'm not saying don't try to change your lifestyle, quit smoking etc because you should- I'm saying only do it when your heart's in it and not just because of some stupid holiday. For help on stopping smoking visit:
http://smokefree.nhs.uk/
http://www.quit.org.uk/
http://www.quit-smoking-stop.com/how-to-quit-smoking-tips.html
And speaking of which, I've never really understood why we celebrate new year when we do. It would make more sense at the beginning of spring (around beginning of March) and not midwinter! January is so named because of Janus, the Roman god of beginnings but this still applies - why is January when it is? As far as I can tell, there is no astronomical reason for this either. If anyone knows anything about this, please leave a comment!
Well that's all for this post, folks! I hope you're all fine and dandy (can you see a catchphrase emerging here?) and I'll ramble a bit more soon :)
- Joanna Eve

Midwinter Musings!

I’m starting to get used to it looking like Narnia around here! When I was a kid we never had white Christmases but now it seems like it snows all the time.


So I just heard on the news that Princess Zara and her boyfriend got engaged – congrats to them! I don’t know, you wait all these years for a royal wedding and two come along all at once :)

Today is the winter solstice, the shortest day. It is one of the minor Sabbats but I like it because I can hibernate and also I can wear antlers without looking too weird (thanks, Rudolph!). In the midwinter like today, I like to snuggle up at home with a good book and a steaming mug of hot chocolate. I’m currently reading the Pellinor books by Allison Croggon and I totally recommend Teton Cocoa Company for your winter drinks!
I decided, on a whim, to look at applying to private colleges today but the dates have already passed. I’ll just have to wait a few years to become posh! I was also looking at linguistics degrees – at UCL you can spend a year in the USA (Arizona or Massachusetts). I’ve never been to either of those places but I sure would like to! I can just imagine an American me… it’s just the other side of the Atlantic (and Ireland, of course) but it’s a different world! I would love to hear about American life –drop me a line!

I’m also in love with Amy Walker’s videos. I want to be her! Her accents are superb and so is her acting and singing. Me, jealous? Never!



I’ve decided to blog weekly, on a Tuesday. Why Tuesday? I don’t know. But it’s Tuesday today and I want to blog! So remember to check back weekly, folks. And if there’s a topic you want me to ramble about – leave a comment! I heart feedback!

That’s all for now – I hope you’re all fine and dandy (my spies at the hospital tell me that there are lots of injuries at the moment) and goodbye until my next post!

Further Musings (: - on the origins of christmas

So today, I was at home by myself when Spice (the naughty cat) comes in. I was watching Friends so I was rather absorbed but I eventually got up to tell her off for shredding the curtains. BUT, I then saw what she had in her mouth - a tiny dead wren. I felt terrible: if I had got up when she first came in, the bird might not have been dead at that point and might have survived. I had to wrestle its tiny corpse off her and dispose of it, all the while trying not to cry (and failing miserably). This is only a day after I cried my eyes out watching a YouTube video (available here, I don't want to embed it cause I'll only start crying again). Argh, teenage hormones making me all emotional!
On the plus side, the The Sixteen concert I went to was awesome :) and even better, I only have three more exams until I'm off for Xmas!
I love Christmas. I love the tree and the lights, the family and the food, the TV and the laziness, church and presents. This might surprise you if you've read my profile as it clearly states that I'm pagan, which I am. Christmas is the only time I go to church (except for a wedding or funeral of course). I believe all gods are one God so I do still believe in Jesus and the God of the church. I celebrate Yule and Saturnalia alongside Christmas - Saturnalia because my main pantheon is the Roman/Greek one and Yule (the winter solstice) because I love to feel in touch with the cycles of the earth. It's also interesting to find out where all our traditions come from - the yule log, mistletoe and the Christmas tree were all pagan symbols first and Christmas is even in December to coincide with earlier pagan festivals so that the invaded population would take Rome's new religion easier! It's funny how things change. From a pagan festival, to a christian holiday, to being outlawed under Cromwell and now today's mainly secular holiday - Christmas sure has come a long way.
...
Whilst writing this, I got up to close the blind but I slipped and fell over the end of my bed - banging my head on the wall, bruising my ribs on the foot of the bed and ramming the bedknob into my neck/shoulder. I am now in bed nursing a bag of frozen peas. Today is not my day.

I hope that you're all fine and dandy, unlike me! Until next time, folks.
- Joanna Eve