HALLOWEEN BLOG

[GEMINIGUY]

                                *****October 20th*****
                                              Albatross

"Large seabird, capable of long-sustained flight, which has been considered a symbol of ominous portent among sailors since time immemorial. The appearance of an albatross, said to be the incarnation of a drowned seafarer's soul, is thought to herald a coming storm and any droppings that the bird deposits on deck cannot be removed but must be left to weather away if luck is to be preserved.
Killing an albatross is especially foolhardy and will bring permanent misfortune to both shop and crew, a tradition promoted by Coleridge in his Rime Of The Ancient Mariner.
The superstitions surrounding the albatross have survived into modern times: Scottish seamen have been known to object to the use of Swan Vesta matches because the swan resembles the albatross, while in 1959 the crew of the cargo ship Calpean Star , which was carrying an albatross to a German zoo, blamed the bird for a series of mishaps that befell them during the voyage."

BACK ON THE 25TH

[msslave]

[GEMINIGUY]

                                   *****October 25th*****
                                               Mugwort

"Herb that is reputed to have considerable power as a defence against witchcraft, poisons, spells and various illnesses. If placed carefully in the shoe, it will also prevent tiredness on long journies (a notion that was commonplace among travellers up until the seventeenth century).
It is said to be particularly efficacious in preventing disease in women, and was formerly much respected as a means of treating consumption.
Any person who digs up a mugworts plant on Midsummer's Eve, meanwhile, will find a small coal hidden in the soil; this has its own magic properties, being able to protect its owner from burns, the plague, carbuncles and fever, and also from being struck by lightning."

[MissBarbara]

Buckethead and Bootsy Collins cover "Monster Mash"

[GEMINIGUY]

                                 *****October 26th*****
                                              Thunder

"The sound of thunder has always inspired feelings of awe and even terror in man, who in times gone by interpreted it as anger of the gods. The commonplace reaction of children and more timid adults of pulling the bedcovers over their head when thunder is heard at night is in fact a simplification of an old superstition, which dictates that no one will suffer harm during a thunderstorm if they pull their bed into the middle of the room, cover themselves with the sheets and recite the Paternoster.
The time of day that thunder is heard is significant in forecasting the weather to follow, according to one old English rhyme:

Thunder in the morning,
All the day storming,
Thunder at night,
Is the sailor's delight.

According to a superstition recorded in Tudor England, it is said that wider conclusions may be drawn from the day upon which thunder is heard. Thunder on Monday signifies the death of a woman; on Tuesday it us the promise if a good grain harvest, on Wednesday it means the death of a prostitute or a warning of approaching violence; on Thursday it bespeaks a good harvest and plentiful supplies of livestock; on Friday it forecasts the death of a great man or the fighting of a battle; on Saturday it threatens an epidemic; on Sunday it predicts the death of a leading intellectual, judge or author.

[GEMINIGUY]

                                         Thunder (con't)

"Another British tradition claims that the sound of thunder between November and the end of the year heralds the imminent death of a prominent person in the area, while thunder that is heard on the first Sunday in the year is a warning of the death of someone in the royal family."

[GEMINIGUY]

                                  *****October 27th*****
                                           Handkerchief

"A hankerchief is frequently carried on a person and is therefore considered to have considerable magical properties.
If someone drops a handkerchief it is unwise for them to pick it up themselves and better if they can persuade someone else to to retrieve for them (perhaps a reference to the courtship rituals of medieval chivalry).
Handkerchiefs should never be put into the pocket still folded, and on no account should on be borrowed from someone else because this signifies 'borrowing tears' as well. Neither should handkerchief be given as a presents to a lover, as this means the affair is doomed to end.
Tying a knot in a handkerchief is intended to prevent the Devil making one forget something important.
A quaint US superstition allows the handkerchief to be used for divination. A handkerchief is hung on a bush on the eve of Mayday and left there overnight. In the morning the initials of a future spouse will be written on the handkerchief in dew."

[GEMINIGUY]

                                      *****October 28th*****
                                                        Oak

"Of all trees, the oak is the one with the most powerful and sacred reputation. Venerated by various pre-Christian cultures, including those of the Druids and the Vikings, the oak retains much of its mystique in modern times and the emblem, though essentially a pagan symbol, is found even in churches.
The fact that oak tends to be struck by lightning as much as, if not more often than, other trees has promoted its association with supernatural powers and made it sacred to the thunder-wielding Norse god Thor. A Southern England rhyme sensibly warns:

Beware the oak,
It draws the stroke.

Elsewhere, somewhat perversely, the tree is actually recommended as a suitable shelter in the event of a thunderstorm.
Keeping boughs of oak (particularly if take from a tree that has been struck by a lightning bolt), or a few acorns, in the house is reputed to protect the home from lightning. Standing beneath an oak, or wearing oak leaves, is further said to furnish protection from evil spirits and from witchcraft."

[MintJulie]

                                      *****October 28th*****
                                                        Oak

"Of all trees, the oak is the one with the most powerful and sacred reputation. Venerated by various pre-Christian cultures, including those of the Druids and the Vikings, the oak retains much of its mystique in modern times and the emblem, though essentially a pagan symbol, is found even in churches.
The fact that oak tends to be struck by lightning as much as, if not more often than, other trees has promoted its association with supernatural powers and made it sacred to the thunder-wielding Norse god Thor. A Southern England rhyme sensibly warns:

Beware the oak,
It draws the stroke.

Elsewhere, somewhat perversely, the tree is actually recommended as a suitable shelter in the event of a thunderstorm.
Keeping boughs of oak (particularly if take from a tree that has been struck by a lightning bolt), or a few acorns, in the house is reputed to protect the home from lightning. Standing beneath an oak, or wearing oak leaves, is further said to furnish protection from evil spirits and from witchcraft."

I had never heard any of this    interesting.  i think i recall something about the higher frequency of lightning strikes with oak trees

fun fact for those not fans of whiskey,,,,,,
a requirement for bourbon is it can only be made in new oak barrels.

[GEMINIGUY]

                                      *****October 29th*****
                                                 Oak (con't)

"In Cornwall, superstition advises that hammering a nail into an oak tree will relieve the pain of a toothache, while in Wales rubbing sores with a piece of oak bark on Midsummer Day will help them to heal. Embracing an oak tree, meanwhile, is enough to cure hernias and to promote the fertility of couples unable to have children. Oak trees planted at crossroads ate considered to have the most effective healing powers.
In some areas memories survive of particular oaks that were used for the solemnisation of marriages in pagan times, and even after this custom was prohibited newly-weds often danced round these trees to promote their luck.
In past centuries it was thought to be reckless in the extreme to cut down an oak tree, especially if it bore the sacred mistletoe. Many people believe that if an oak was felled its scream would be heard up to a mile away."

[staci]

7 out of 10 male dogs prefer to urinate on an oak tree. Known to be better that a weeping willow.

[GEMINIGUY]

                                  *****October 30th*****
                                       Oak (concluded)

"Back in more brutals times, in pagan Germany, any man who harmed an oak was punished by having his navel hacked off and nailed to the tree; he was forced to walk round and round the trunk, with the result that his intestines were slowly pulled from his body.
Like the acorn, the oak-apple too has magical significance. It is considered very unlucky to find a worm in an oak-apple: one portends poverty and two an imminent illness. If a fly is found inside, war will break out in the coming year; if a spider is concealed within, a time of pestilence is nigh.
The choice of clusters of oak leaves as a military decoration hails back to ancient Rome, when soldiers who had performed some act of bravery or selflessness were honoured with the presentation of an oak leaf crown."

[GEMINIGUY]

                                    *****October 31st*****
                                                    Wolf

"Of all animals the wolf is perhaps the most feared in superstition, being a favourite disguise of the Devil and everywhere linked with evil. In times gone by, the mere sight of a wolf was supposed to be enough to render a man dumb, assuming that the wolf saw the man first, and similarly even saying the word 'wolf' risked am imminent encounter with one.
According to Welsh legend the wolf was not created by God but by the Devil and the creature has retained its association with evil ever since, being blamed for attacking livestock and humans alike (though, curiously enough, it is also said to fear crabs and shrimp).
On a more optimistic note, the wolf has many uses in folk medicine. It is said that wrapping sufferers from epilepsy in wolfskun will safeguard them from fits, and similar action will cure anyone suffering from rabies. In some parts of Europe wolfskins are also reputed to keep the house free of flies. Wolves' teeth may be rubbed against the gums to relieve toothache in the young and may also be worn around the neck if young children to safeguard them from evil, according to the French. Hanging a wolf's tail over a barn door, meanwhile, will keep other wolves away, and eating a dish of wolf's meat will prevent a person from seeing ghosts. Sleeping with a wolf's head under the pillow will ward off nightmares, and applying wolf dung to the limbs will cure the colic."

ANOTHER HALLOWEEN MONTH UNDER OUR BELTS, I HOPE EVERYONE HAS A GREAT ALL HALLOW'S EVE!!!!!

[msslave]

Thanks GG for another season of Halloween facts and fun.  Always a treat and I appreciate all the research you do each year.

As always...It's been a howling good time...oops, moon is coming up, gotta howl.


You're welcome! I always enjoy bringing my "Halloween Blog" back.

[_priapism]

Some freaking developer, in my town’s extraterritorial jurisdiction, but not in the city limits, clearcut his acreage, bulldozing dozens of heritage oaks before an annexation vote.  He knew that once he was inside the city limits, the trees would be protected.  No efforts to harvest or repurpose, just scrapped 300 year old trees off the face of the earth.  A pox on him.

[GEMINIGUY]

Some freaking developer, in my town’s extraterritorial jurisdiction, but not in the city limits, clearcut his acreage, bulldozing dozens of heritage oaks before an annexation vote.  He knew that once he was inside the city limits, the trees would be protected.  No efforts to harvest or repurpose, just scrapped 300 year old trees off the face of the earth.  A pox on him.

Damn, that sucks that some people don't give a shit, to Hell with them!

[GEMINIGUY]

VELCOME TO THE HALLOVEEN MONTH 2020 HALLOVEEN BLOG!!!!

                                  *****October 1st*****
                                   Churchyard Watcher

"The spirit of the person most recently buried in a churchyard, whose duty it is to watch over the other people buried there until the time comes to summon another living person to the grave and thus to be relieved.
In some rural areas there may be controversy when a churchyard closes: the relatives of the last person buried there may complain that this means the deceased is condemned to watch over the churchyard forever. In past times unseemly brawls would sometimes break out when two funeral parties met in the churchyard at the same time n each would try to ensure that their own friend or relative was not the last to be laud to rest and thus delayed from departing the Earth.
The sound of the churchyard watcher's cartbmaking its way down country lanes was much feared in many communities. Variants on the tradition around the world include the Ankou figure of Breton folklore, who is said to lay an unseen hand on those who are doomed to die or to scythe down anyone who comes within his reach."

[MissBarbara]

VELCOME TO THE HALLOVEEN MONTH 2020 HALLOVEEN BLOG!!!!

I'm SO glad to see it back for another Halloveen season!

[MintJulie]

[_priapism]

The United States is so fucked up right now, it’s almost like it was built on top of 1,000’s of Native American burial grounds... oh wait...