#NewYearNewMe

Happy New Year everyone! [and #Fuck2016 amirite?]

We have so much to talk about, so let's not waste any time.

So let's talk my winter break...

​So I mentioned a few things in my last blog post about plans that I had made for myself, and things I was looking forward to doing during my 'winter break' [which is a weird thing to say when you're still gainfully unemployed, but hey!  I went on a winter break!].

Some are going great- the Tarot Planner I bought from Biddy Tarot seemed really intimidating at first lance but when you sit down to work and write, it really is a fantastically-structured booklet.  I ended up ordering the digital version of the planner and having it printed out at a FedEx Office location in town.  Ultimately, it did cost more than if I had just bought a hard copy [thanks, shitty CAD]- BUT!- printing it out as a workbook was definitely the way to go.  It's far more flexible that way, and I feel like I can really write what I need to write to get the most out of the planner.  If you haven't had the chance to grab it yet, I definitely recommend it- and if you'd rather not shell out a toon of money to have someone else print it for you [or for my folks back in The Bahamas who REALLY don't trust our local post system!] the .PDF file you get in the digital order is designed to be workable on your computer~

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​The holiday season is always a big deal during the month of December- nearly everyone's got a holiday of their very own to mark it!  Growing up Christmas was always the de-facto holiday celebrated, and I still find it a great time to connect and spend time with those you love [this Christmas I spent it eating awesome food, cat-apping and binge-watching anime with the hubby.  Y'know, perfectly.] but I'm also glad to be a bit older now, a bit wiser and more willing to explore other holiday traditions that are relevant to me.  Along with relearning more about the pan-African holiday of Kwanzaa, I decided to mark this year's Yule/Winter Solstice by attending the Secret Lantern Society's Solstice event with a few friends in town.

Despite some initial hiccups with the scheduling that we found, the enitre event was really captivating and was a fantastic way to mark the Sun's return to the world [y'know, even with the surprising amount of snow and ice this winter decided to leave Vancouver with].  We bought lanterns and joined processioners along Yaletown, lighting the way with our lanterns.  It was clearly a space and event designed to include the many different cultures living in Vancouver and allow them to showcase their culture and energies with a grateful audience.  I even got to join in a cummunal pow-wow dance led by a First Nations group!

Biggest highlight of course was the Labyrinth of Light- thousands of beeswax candles arranged in a spiraling labyrinth, accompanied by two persons playing enormous singing bowls and few others punctuating the melody with ritualistic chanting.  It was an absolutely breath-taking experience that we were encouraged to take slowly but in whatever way we wanted, and I felt lighter than air exiting that spiral.

​Seriously though, did you not see the photos on the site? Unf.

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I also mentioned last post that I had purchased a New Moon Natal chart reading from Rachel of AeolianHeart.com as well.  Honestly, I'm going to need to make a separate blog post on that alone, so my talking about her here will be hella-brief but holyshitguys.  GUYS.  If you ever get the chance to have Rachel take a peek at your chart, please take it.  The passion that she has for astrology and its usefulness in understanding how it lays the groundwork for our lives shone through the entirety of our 3hr long convo [yes you read that right, 3hrs].  As someone who was already familiar with the bare facts of my chart placement, there was little that came out to me as a brand-new fact but Rachel still found a way to take the statements that I already knew, and go even deeper into how it affects the way I think, communicate, love, etc.  And that was probably amongst the most illuminating bits of advice to come out of it.  But yea, more on that in a later post- just know that Rachel comes HIGHLY reccommended by me.

The purpose of the reading was twofold- I wanted to see what cosmically I should keep in mind for 2017 [which Rachel did admirably by lisiting important transit dates as relevant to my chart] as well as gain insight as to what kind of seed I should be planting as an intention for the New Moon [I had specifically chosen my session date to time with that as well for an extra kick].  Part of the result of that, you are seeing right now.

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Did you notice it yet?

Well... If you've poked around a bit, you've seen that DarkLake Tarot is now officially a big-girl website, with a .com address and everything!

I also took the time to build my online store as well over the last few days with just a few reading types and options for both online and in-person readings.

There is still, of course, a lot that I would like to do properly, and a lot of that has to still be on the back-burner until I can properly afford what I'd like.  But that doesn't mean I can't plan for them now, nor does it mean that I should sit on my hands and expect everything to fall into my lap and be perfect before I make any deliberate movements.  Fortune favours the bold, after all.  So why not start where I can?

So consider this blog post your official soft-launch of DarkLake Tarot's services.  I'm pretty excited about it, and nervous to actually start putting myself out there, to be honest- but the excitement overweighs the fear tenfold.  Apologies in advance for any kinks that may still show up as I continue tinkering with the site and all that, but for now?

Have at it!