APA Oct 2003 Newsletter

APPALACHIAN PAGAN ALLIANCE -- OCTOBER 2003 NEWSLETTER

Editress: Ginger Strivelli


We here at the APA hope Y'all had a wonderful Samhain season. 
We all enjoyed ourselves. The APA sent delegations to both 
the kick off prayer breakfast and the Ancestors rite of the 
Earth Religions Awareness Week events here in 
Buncombe Co. NC.

Sean, Ginger and Harmony Strivelli attended the prayer 
breakfast representing the APA. Ginger read 
an Incantation curse spell by Lord Byron 
(from the play Manfred, scene one) during the ritual 
that morning. (See the May 2001 APA newsletter for 
that Incantation in the BOS section)

Ginger, Beth, Sandi, Margi, and Terri attended the 
ancestor's ritual to represent the APA there. In 
which we all participated in mentioning recently 
departed loved ones. After that event, Ginger, 
Beth, Sandi, Margi and Terri also held one of the 
infamous APA ladies nite out dinners at Applebees. 
(We managed to not get kicked out, in spite of Beth's 
language, and all of us drinking and getting loud 
and obnoxious.)

FROM OUR BOOK OF SHADOWS:

PUMPKIN GINGER CHEESECAKE Recipe Submitted by Ginger Strivelli

Crust:
4 tablespoon butter (REAL BUTTER, DUH)
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup crushed gingersnaps
1 tablespoon brown sugar  
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Filling:
1 cup heavy cream, chilled
24 oz cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups mashed pumpkin
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger
1/2 cup pecan halves

Preheat the oven to 325 

The crust:
Place the butter in a small saucepan and melt slowly. 
Mix the
graham cracker crumbs, gingersnaps, brown sugar and 
cinnamon in a medium
bowl. Add the melted butter and mix together with a 
fork. Line bottom and
side of pie pan.

The filling:
Pour the heavy cream into a medium bowl and beat 
just until soft peaks form,
Refrigerate that. Beat the cream cheese with an 
electric mixer
until fluffy. Gradually add the sugar, beating well. 
Add the eggs, pumpkin,
cinnamon, and ginger. Remove the whipped cream from 
the refrigerator. Fold the
whipped cream into the cream cheese-pumpkin mixture. 
Pour the mixture into
the prepared crust. Put filled pie pan in a larger 
baking pan and fill the outer pan
with hot water halfway up. 

Bake for about one hour. Garnish with the pecan halves 
in a Pentagram, Sun God face, Moon Goddess face, or 
other festive design. Cool, then refrigerate for 
at a couple of hours, (if y'all can wait that long!!!)
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A Quote to ponder: Submitted by Ginger Strivelli

"Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit 
on his hands, hoist the black flag, and 
begin slitting throats!"
Henry Louis Mencken (1880 - 1956)
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Useful Magical and Mundane Latin Phrases  (Submitted By 
Our APA Latin translationist, Paula Swaney)

Non curo. Si metrum non habet, non est poema. =
I don't care. If it doesn't rhyme, it isn't a poem.

Factum Est - It is done

flamma fumo est proxima - there is no smoke without fire

hoc erat in votis - this was among my prayers

honor virutis preamium - honour is the reward of virtue

sic itur ad astra - such is the way to the stars

Utinam barbari spatioum proprium tuum invadant!
May barbarians invade your personal space!


Nihili est -- in vita priore ego imperator Romanus fui.
That's nothing; in a previous life I was a Roman Emperor.

Non calor sed umor est qui nobis incommodat.
It's not the heat, it's the humidity.

Ita erat quando hic adveni.
It was that way when I got here.

Neutiquam erro.
I am not lost.

Illiud Latine dici non potest.
You can't say that in Latin.

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SACRED SITES SECTION
Submitted By Shannon LaHue

Helen's Bridge near Town Mountain is a magical place 
to me.  (It is right next to the tunnel in 
Town Mountain; the bridge is no longer used as 
too many weird things happened there.) It is a place 
where the veil between our realm and the realm of death 
is very thin. It is easy to pick up on and learn 
to commune with the spirits in that place. 
I like to go in the fall and late in the evening.

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