Archives for October 2019

I am not sure how much you know about pagan religions, so I am going to start with a little history lesson.

Halloween was born from All Hallow’s Eve, which was, in turn, created to Christianity-ize the pagan holiday of Samhain. Samhain is considered one the of high holidays and is (basically) the ancient Celt version of New Year.

Much like the Pagans, I have adopted Halloween as my own New Years’ Eve. I use Halloween as a kind of fresh start. My Halloween is a bit woo-woo and a bit of fun.

There is still time to play along, here is what you do:

Write down all of the things holding you back.

I am talking about fears, money issues, baggage from old relationships, or stupid things you blame on your parents. All of it. Whatever that nasty little voice in your head says to you when you think about going back to school, looking for a new job, or talking to that cute girl.

Let that shit go.

Now using any ceremonial method, destroy those slips of paper. I live in the country, so I toss them in a bonfire while drinking a beer. Flush them down the toilet, tear them up into little pieces, let them float away on the wind. Do whatever makes you the happiest.

Write down a list of 100 dreams.

Now that you are free from what is holding you back grab some paper, and write down a list of 100 dreams. These can be both big and small. The key is to put down an idea no matter how outlandish. These are dreams, not goals. This is a time to dream big!

Do you have a weird holiday tradition? I would love to hear about it!

There are lots of things you should be doing to get ready for winter (at least if you live in a place where you have an actual winter). These lists are all over the internet. They are full of tips like getting your furnace checked out by a professional, do an energy audit, and check for drafts.

Those things are essential, don’t get me wrong. But they are not on the list of things that I do to prepare myself for winter.

Many of these things are practical, some – not so much. But they are essential fall tasks to prepare me for the long Minnesota winters.

I stock up on tea and hot chocolate.

Specifically, I get the Traditional Medicals Echinacea and Gypsy Cold Care tea and any of the Sleepytime varieties. My hot chocolate of choice is the Swiss Miss in the packets. We spend my childhood drinking these, so the nostalgia factor is huge.

I dig out my boots, hats, and gloves.

I don’t have much as far as clothes go, so I don’t have to swap many things out as the seasons change, but winter gear is another story. I have a tote in the garage where I store our gloves, boots, and hats. I hang my coats on the hooks in the garage and swap out my gardening gloves for mittens.

I get the ice melt and snow shovel out of storage.

When I dig out my gloves and boots, I also dig out the snow shovel and ice melt. It is much easier to get these items before the freezing rain and heavy snows set in.

I get my car checked out.

I have my guy check out my tires and give her an ol’ once over. I also throw an old heavy sweatshirt, and an old pair of boots and some thick socks in my trunk. Just in case.

I stock up on cold and flu meds.

There is nothing worse than waking up feeling like shit and not having anything meds. I am partial to medications of the hippie variety: echinacea, elderberry, zinc, etc. I do keep the medicine cabinet stocked with the standard Night Quil variety too, for when things get bad.

I put plastic on the old windows.

As part of our remodel, we are swapping out all of our old crappy windows with new ones. We finished up the downstairs a couple of years ago, but the upstairs windows are still drafty AF. I keep those handy kits on hand and pull out my hair drier and get started.

You found out what I do to prepare for winter, but now it is your turn. What do you do to get ready for the colder months?

PS – Deliberate Unawareness for Self-Care