The Ramblings and Wanderings

Posts Tagged ‘updates’

I have been veyr busy getting the main Hedge site and forum updated and have had no time to write proper blog posts! I hope to get a few new ones up soon.

In the meantime …

I am adding the Hedge Blog feature to the main Hedge as a few folks voted that they wanted on in the poll. If you want you own Hedge Blog, please Pm or email me with the name you want for it and I wil get it ready for you. Then go to the member menu, click Add to my Blog and write away. There is a menu in the article submission form for Section (choose Member Journals) and then category (choose your Blog name)

If you already have a blog, with wordpress or blogger for example, and you want it embedded in the Hedge (like mine is) just let me know.
I am working on updating everyone’s permissions so you can submit articles. If its not working for you, try loging out and then login back in again, as you have to do this after you permission are reset for them to come into affect.

Myself and our Mod staff can approve artciles (we won’t edit them,  just spell check and make sure you’re not spam)

If anyone wants to be a moderator and make my life eaiser, please let me know.

If you are adding an article, ritual, poem etc etc and find that there just isn’t a right category to put them in, just choose the one that is closest and then add a request at the top of the text in the article and will will get that fixed up or you.

If you are adding a weblink and don’t find the right category, just let me know.

You can add categories to the gallery though!

Had a blast in Calgary and in Regina. I will write more about our wonderful experinces in the West as soon as I can

Many thanks to our gracious hosts Susan in Calgary and Erin in Regina (and their families) I will wax poetic about what wonderful hosts they are … when I have a bit more time and am on my own computer.

Today we head for Winnipeg! The city my mother was born in. Hurrah!

In the meantime, I will leave you all with something to ponder, something that has come up a little on our journey meeting Pagans from all over.

In one of the places we visited, we were told by a few different people (all independently) that there was a division and some strain in their community. We mentioned this to a couple of the leaders in that community. At first they seemed quite happy to use the Solitaries, Newbies, Teen Pagans and Ecletics as scapegoats (like many Pagan Leaders I have met, GRRR!)

Anyways….

They then kept insisting there was NO split because they feel the Leaders do get along very well.

(huh no spilt but you are happy to sacrifice the Solitaries and Newbies eh? hmmmmm I smell a rat) 

So I asked them this:

If you say that the Leaders and Elders in your community all get along just fine, but your community says otherwise … are you leading by example? Do the members of your community SEE their Leaders & Elders getting along? Do they see you talk, do you organize events together? Do they see you going out for a beer together?

The answer I recieved from said Leaders was:

“Um … well, NO”

So …

Dear Leaders and Elders, do you get along with other Elders and Leaders in your community? Especially ones from other Paths, Groups and Trads? And, more importantly, does the community SEE it with their own eyes? Do you lead by example? Do you encourage or discourage people in your group to get along with other Pagans from other groups and Trads? And how do you justify blaming Solitaries for problems between groups they do not belong to? Why are Solitaries, Ecletics and Newbies to blame for your failings as Leaders?

And dear lowly ordinary Pagans, Heathen and Witches, do you SEE your Leaders get along? Do YOU feel they Lead by example and build bridges, or do you feel that is not the case? Do your Leaders and Elders encourage or discourage people in your group to get along with other Pagans from other groups and Trads? Do you feel pressured to pick on Solitaries etc?

And, are you a Solitary, Newbies, teen or Eclectic? Are you sick to death of being the fall-guy, the scapegoat, the one the community walks all over … all because you lack a group to support you and guard your back? Because I know I am! Do you feel that your Leaders and Elders encourage solidarity or division? Do you feel picked on because you do not belong to a group?

Think about it, and please post a comment or make your own blog post.

I am not asking this or mentioning this to be nasty or pick on anyone, but as someone who has wandered all over North America and met many Pagans from many places, I see this is a common theme and I think we need to open up a dialogue about it  :)

Cheers!

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Thanks!

Please go here and update your bookmarks, thanks!

Don’t worry the upgrade is going well thus far!
Upon learning that I was trying to do all this with slow speed dial-up the kind people at Agora have offered to help me out with their high speed connections, on their own time after work, tomorrow.
Having the actual programmers helping us out is very comforting, what great folks.
So don’t fret, we will be back in action before you know it.

*hugs*

The upgrades and forum migration are going well so far. It is just time consuming especially on dial-up. Interestingly, the program for our new forum is called   (drum roll)  Agora Olympus!  The creators of this wonderful (mostly) free software name the forum themes and such after Ancient Grecco-Roman Festivals … a good sign I think!

And the promised poem:

I am not a monster

I am doing the best I can

With crappy tools

And a broken life

My heart is in the right place

Even if my words are not

My feet get tangled up

But I keep on stumbling along

With tears in my eyes