The Community of Faeids

Part 1: Lady of the Rhine, Quest of Ring:

• 
  Chapter 1: Preface
  
• Chapter 1: Gargrave to Malham
  
• Chapter 1b: Night 1 in Malham
  
• Chapter 2: The Faerie Queen of Janet Foss
  
• Money Trees, Folklore, Faeries
  
• Janet's Foss and the Queen of the Faeries
  
• Chapter 3: Scrambling Gordale Scar and looking for the Roman
  
• Chapter 4: Malham Tarn, Cove, & Beck; Comb Scar; Sacred Pools
  
• Chapter 4b: Lady Marion, Villages of Malham & Settle; The Naked Man ...
  
• Chapter 5a: The Trek from Malham to Arncliff along the Monk's Trail ...
  
• Chapter 5b: Kettlewell & The 100 Dwarves ... An Ingredient of the Spell gained
  
• Chapter 6a: Kettlewell to Grassington ... back to the Royal Family
  
• Chapter 6b: The Ruins of Bolton Abbey, More Money trees, Dairy 99, and Curry .
  
• Chapter 7: The Road to Avebury and Stonehenge ... breaking the Enchantment ...
  

Part 2: Lady of the Rhine, Quest of Key:

• 
  Chapter 1: Preface & Rock Art messages about the key (Colorado, USA)
  
• Chapter 1B: Packing up at Cheyenne Mountain (Colorado, USA)
  
• Chapter 2: Colorado's Snow Storm (Denver, Colorado, USA)
  
• Chapter 2B: Making the Air Dragon Court (Denver, Colorado, USA)
  
• Chapter 3: Arriving in Dusseldorf (Dusseldorf, Germany)
  
• Chapter 3B: Settling into Dusseldorf, the Kas Bah, the Pretty Vacant (Dusseldorf, Germany)
  
• Chapter 4A - Fresh Bread, Dusseldorf, The Adventure Party Gathers, Xanten (Xanten, Germany)
  
• Chapter 4B: Xanten Archaeological Museum; the Roman Baths, Ancient Keys (Xanten, Germany)
  
• Chapter 4C - Xanten Archaeological Park; the Temple, the Amphitheater (Xanten, Germany)
  
• Chapter 5 - Exploring Dusseldorf, Games, Alcohol (Dusseldorf, Germany)
  
• Chapter 6 - Exploring Dusseldorf, K21, THe Gamers 2: Dorkness Rising (Dusseldorf, Germany)
  
• Chapter 7, Morning - Exploring Köln, Köln Cathedral, April Fools (Cologne, Germany)
  
• Chapter 7, Afternoon - Exploring Koln, Chocolate Museum (Cologne, Germany)
  
• Chapter 7, Late Afternoon/Evening - Exploring Koln, German Roman Museum, Italian Restaurant (Cologne, Germany)
  
• Chapter 8 - Dusseldorf, Gothic clubbing at Pulp (Duisburg, Germany)
  
• Chapter 9 - Quest to Worms, Searching for the Key, Faun Concert (Worms, Germany)
  
• Chapter 10, Part A - The Keys of Worms, The Nibelungen (Worms, Germany)
  
• Chapter 10, Part B - Nürnberg: Graveyards, Gamers, and Drinking (Nurnberg, Germany)
  
• Chapter 11, Part A - ‘Palmbosch’n', Lichtenau and Castles (Nurnberg, Germany)
  
• Chapter 11, Part B - Lord Christian’s Farm, Ansbach, the Palace … (Ansbach, Germany)
  
• Chapter 12, Part A - Lord Christian’s Farm, Leaving Ansbach (Ansbach, Germany)
  
• Chapter 12, Part B - Wurzburg and Castle Marionburg, Return to Dusseldorf (Ansbach, Germany)
  
• Chapter 13, Part A (4/7) - Duesseldorf, Planning, the Key, Keinohrhasen, The Secret (Dusseldorf, Germany)
  
• Chapter 14, Part A (4/8) - Contemplations on Life and Death; losses of friends (Dusseldorf, Germany)
  
• Chapter 14, Part B (4/8) - Off to Amsterdam, Zeeburg, hostel (Amsterdam, Holland)
  
• Chapter 14, Part C (4/8) - Amsterdam, Red Light District (Amsterdam, Holland)
  
• Chapter 14, Part D (4/8) - Amsterdam, Waag, Dam Square, Cafes, Fair, RLD Tour (Amsterdam, Holland)
  
• Chapter 15, Part A (4/9) - The New Amsterdam Free Tour (Amsterdam, Holland)
  
• Chapter 15, Part B (4/9) - The New Amsterdam Free Tour, pt. 2 - Begijnhof, Amsterdam Miracle, Dutch Courtyards & Paintings, Multatuli, The Bird (Amsterdam, Holland)
  
• Chapter 15, Part C (4/9) - Amsterdam Pub Crawl (Amsterdam, Holland)
  
• Chapter 16, Part A (4/10) -Leaving Amsterdam for Mons, Belgium to the “Trolls et Legendes” festival … (Mons, Belgium)
  
• Chapter 16, Part B (4/10) - “Trolls et Legendes” festival … Day 1 (Mons, Belgium)
  
• Chapter 17, Part A (4/11) - Legos, “Trolls et Legendes” festival … Day 2: The Fair, Artists (Mons, Belgium)
  
• Chapter 17, Part B (4/11) - “Trolls et Legendes” Festival - Market, Woodland, Faeries (Mons, Belgium)
  
• Chap 17, Pt C (4/11) - “Trolls et Legendes” Festival - Concerts & the Sacred Key (Mons, Belgium)
  
• :: FIN ::
  

Nibelungenmuseum
Worms, Germany
http://www.nibelungenmuseum.de/

In the August of 2001 the city of Worms opened their historic Nibelungenmuseum, depicting and audio-journeying the tales about the Nibelungenlied right at the town wall where some of the legends may have taken place. They boast of "state-of-the-art" didactic aids that are led by story tellers representing the great renowned tales of the unknown 12th-century poet. However, from our experience with the equiptment, signals got lost, units malfunctioned for half of us. But in "brand new format" of 2001, I'm sure they were "state-of-the-art" at the time. As you climb the towers of the old city wall, you approach various stations where the headphone aid starts telling the story, and you can push the button to learn more. Aids are in German as well as English. It is a guided story, nothing more. There is very little to look at, no artifacts, and without the aids, it would be a climb up two towers and across the town wall. The site states that the exhibit will change from year to year as new aspects of the myth are improved and deepened. According to the museum, there will be theme-years and networks with other organizers to present different materials. The towers and walls are part of the original town wall where you can see architectural history unfold between the old city wall and the annexes. The scenes of the legend take place at this spot and within the area of the city, so there is lots of history lessons about "Worms" itself at the museum's presentations.

Nibelunglied: The Saga of the Nibelungs ("Song of the Nibelungs")
Is an epic poem done in Middle High German. The story tells of dragon-slayer Siegfried at the court of the Burgundians, how he was murdered, and of his wife Kriemhild's revenge. The term for the people at this time were transferred from a legendary race of Germanic dwarfs and their treasure. Once the terrible dragon was slain and the enormous Nibelungs treasure taken, the brave young Siegfried from Xanten was presented before the royal court of Worms. His intentions to marry Kriemhild, the sister of King Gunther, was made known at that time. King Gunther agreed to the marriage, with the condition that Siegfried in return helps him to win Bronhild, the Queen of Iceland, as his bride. Since Bronhild had superhuman powers, she had a pre-requisite that her husband must be the man who can vanquish her in three challenges. With the aid of a magic hat of invisibility, Siegfried defeated Bronhild, so that she acknowledged Gunther as her husband, and moved to Worms with him. But she refused to consummate the marriage. Once again, Siegfried had to help. In the magic hat, he subdued her in the marriage bed, so Gunther could deflower her, surreptitiously taking her ring and belt, giving them to Kriemhild. This leads to the later events of Gunther inviting Siegfried and Kriemhild who live in Xanten to come to Worms. Upon dining at the banquet of honor, the queens quarrel, Bronhild insists that Siegfried become subordinate to Gunther. Kriemhild discovers that her husband Siegfried was the first to sleep with Bronhild, and as proof, displays the ring and belt to her, causing Bronhild to subside in shame, grief, and hate. Gunther's mightiest vassal, Hagen von Tronje, seeks to avenge his humiliated mistress and by deceit, elicits from Kriemhild the secret of Sigefried's vulnerability - which had been hidden by a leaf of the linden tree when he bathed in the blood of the slain dragon.

( tale continued, history )

The Sacred Key of Worms

The Key and the Dragon

Worms holds the symbology of the "key" as well as "the dragon" very sacred in their history and traditions. Apparently a 17th century chronicler told the tale that the "key" in the city arms of Worms, represents "wisdom, reason, and the welfare" provided by the authorities; and "the dragon" as a symbol for "armed vigilance". However, the folk tales of the area tell a different story - as written in the Jewish-German translation by Juspa Schammes (1696: Amsterdam) that a widowed queen who ruled Worms in pre-Christian times had brought great prosperity to the town in her time. But one day, a horrible Lindwurm (Dragon) approached the city walls threatening to flatten the city unless a townsperson was sacrificed to him each day. So the victims were chosen by lot, and one day the lottery chose the queen. To prevent this sacrifice, a courageous locksmith made an iron set of armour with shearing blades from top to bottom, would wear the armour and be offered to the dragon in her stead, if she promised to marry him and make him king. The queen agreed and the locksmith thrown to the dragon. As the dragon attempted to eat the locksmith, the armour sliced and diced the dragon into pieces with every snapping bite the dragon made. The smith was victorious and cut himself out of the carcass and became the rightful king. To honor this victory, the key was added to the city arms and the defeated dragon to bear the shield. Murals of the smith, dragon, and queen were painted on the walls of the town hall as the monument of the event. The star represented the fact that Worms had greater, medium, and lesser arms (silver key on a red shield). The six-pointed star (modern version shows a 5 pointed star) was later added as it represents German heraldry (5 point represents French heraldry). It is believed the six-pointed star was replaced by the six-pointed star during French occupation in the 17th-20th centuries. After their withdrawl, it seemed unacceptable to change the points of the stars the explanations tell. Plus there is a lack of heraldists in the authorities so no one was aware of the difference in the number of points. Some buildings did feature the six-pointed star after French occupation's withdrawal though, such as the water tower built in 1890.

Read the Adventure Tale here: http://techno-gypsy.livejournal.com/235359.html

Monday, 9 March 2009
Colorado Springs, Colorado

In the news:

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20126985.200-vampire-discovered-in-mass-grave.html?ITO=1490

'Vampire' discovered in mass grave
* Updated 16:07 06 March 2009: * Magazine issue 2698. Subscribe and get 4 free issues.

A SKELETON exhumed from a grave in Venice is being claimed as the first known example of the "vampires" widely referred to in contemporary documents.

Matteo Borrini of the University of Florence in Italy found the skeleton of a woman with a small brick in her mouth (see right) while excavating mass graves of plague victims from the Middle Ages on Lazzaretto Nuovo Island in Venice (see second image here).

At the time the woman died, many people believed that the plague was spread by "vampires" which, rather than drinking people's blood, spread disease by chewing on their shrouds after dying. Grave-diggers put bricks in the mouths of suspected vampires to stop them doing this, Borrini says.

The belief in vampires probably arose because blood is sometimes expelled from the mouths of the dead, causing the shroud to sink inwards and tear. Borrini, who presented his findings at a meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences in Denver, Colorado, last week, claims this might be the first such vampire to have been forensically examined. The skeleton was removed from a mass grave of victims of the Venetian plague of 1576.

However, Peer Moore-Jansen of Wichita State University in Kansas says he has found similar skeletons in Poland and that while Borrini's finding is exciting, "claiming it as the first vampire is a little ridiculous".

Borrini says his study details the earliest grave to show archaeological "exorcism evidence against vampires".

The Unborn (R:2009)
Written by/Director David S. Goyer. Starring: Odette Yustman ... Casey Beldon; Gary Oldman ... Rabbi Sendak; Meagan Good ... Romy; Cam Gigandet ... Mark Hardigan; Idris Elba ... Arthur Wyndham; Jane Alexander ... Sofi Kozma; and many more.

"Sometimes the soul of a dead person has been so tainted with evil that it is denied entrance to heaven. It must endlessly wander the borderlands between worlds, desperately searching for a new body... "

Manitou Springs 2nd Annual * 2008 Zombie Crawl
Saturday, October 4th, 2008: promptly 4:00 pm.

Meet either in the Soda Springs park or along the sidewalk if already activities in the park, near the Mate' Factory on Manitou Avenue.

Volunteers will be there at 3:30 to assist with makeup, but as blood and makeup is limited and donation based, we ask everyone to show up pre-zombified.

At 4:00 pm, we'll act like the walking dead, dragging feet and moaning, processing along Manitou Ave, up and down the sidewalks. Please abide by all traffic laws, as you will be responsible for your own actions as anyone would walking down the street.

This event is a free-form, flash mob with no organizer, but various artist sponsors, theater students, and adlib performers.

The procession will be roughly 20-45 minutes long. So don't be late!!!

Gathering at a local eatery afterwards for fun and festivities ... We'll be having our Zombie after-crawl get together at the Ancient Mariner right after the crawl for food and drink. Kids welcome till 9.

Various get togethers in the evening to celebrate zombie style ...

Map will be posted on the Myspace page by Thursday evening ....
www. myspace. com/manitouzombiecrawl

Click Here To View Event and RSVP

Hellboy II: The Golden Army (R: 2008)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0411477/

Starring: Ron Perlman ... Hellboy, Selma Blair ... Liz Sherman, Doug Jones ... Abe Sapien / The Chamberlain / The Angel of Death, James Dodd ... Johann Krauss, John Alexander ... Johann Krauss, Seth MacFarlane ... Johann Krauss (voice), Luke Goss ... Prince Nuada, and many more. Director:Guillermo del Toro.
Envious and rebellious faery folk have decided to take back the dimensions from the humans and reclaim the world that was theirs. The villian (supposed Elf, but seems to be more of a dark draconian reptoid in my opinion) Prince Nuada confronts his father and sister in telling them its wrong to have let the humans take over the earth, and that he was going to take it back, and no one (not even his family) would stand in his way - regardless if it was breaking an oath and truce that the Fae and humans made long ago. He is on a quest to awaken and control the mythical Golden Army that exists with the ability to destroy the human race. Its brought to Hellboy's attention and he of course races to save the day while juggling a heated passionate romance and an upcoming life change. Fighting elves, trolls, toothfairies, and otherworldly beasties - there is quite a bit of adventure and fantasy. My favorite being is the Nature God spirit which was killed off way too easily. Interesting plot as it plays off some themes in the prophetic Faerie great awakening rumored in Fairy lore to take place in the near future. The Director Dell Torro had quite a bit of imagination with the creation of this plot, a sequel and continuation to the infamous Hellboy comic series about "Hellboy" who is a creature alive in our world that comes from the otherworld. Perhaps it was the plot, but I far enjoyed this flick over the 1st Hellboy (which upon three attempts at watching all the way through fell asleep). Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5. Viewed 8/1/08.

On the outside of our bodies we have skin cells. On Gaia, this is the ozone layer and her protective outer core, and atmosphere. Skin cells protect the body (ours as well as Gaia's) by keeping out rain, dirt, and germs. Gaia's protective layers keep out harmful radiation and cosmic elements that could destroy her. Skin protects us from heat, cold, sharp and hard objects. Skin cells stack in layers of about ten cells thick, always making new skin cells on the inside layer, and then moving outwards as the cells get older and tougher. We see this not only in ourselves, but the layers of bark on a tree, and the atmospheric and protective outer core layers of the Earth (Gaia). When skin cells die, they flake off and form dust. Millions of skin cells die every day.

Cells are alive, and they need nutrients to survive. Like I said, everything on the planet that contains water, is directly associated with Gaia's blood cells. We humans, are her blood cells. Blood cells carry nutrients and oxygen into the body. Red blood cells are those that carry oxygen to the cells. Without oxygen all of your cells cells would die. We (plants and animals) are the breathing force that keeps this planet Gaia alive. Red blood cells also take the carbon dioxide out of the cells into the blood where it goes to the lungs again and is breathed out of the body. Blood also carry white blood cells. The white blood cells are the defenders of the body. They fight bacteria and viruses that might make the living entity sick, including making Gaia sick. The body makes about one hundred fifty million (150,000,000) blood cells every minute of our lives to replace the ones that die. This is our reproduction and death cycle.

Humans: There are essentially three groups of humans in their role to the Earth and the cycle of life. We have the white blood cells ... those of us that do something for this world - the environmentalists, the doctors, nurses, healers, musicians, artists, scientists, thinkers, movers, shakers, changers ... we who make change in this world. I proudly am a white blood cell. My purpose in life is to defend the memory of the dead cells so that the new cells can learn from the former life cycle - that which worked and that which didn't in the life cycle of the purpose of defending Gaia's life force from those elements that exist to harm her. Then there are the bacteria and viruses, some good and some bad. Sometimes these bacteria and viruses outnumber the white blood cells, and this is where the battle for the lifestream of Gaia struggles. This is where we are now. There are too many humans on this planet playing the role of harmful bacteria and viruses. They consume, they spread, they decay, they drill, they deplete, they destroy our beautiful Mother Earth. Of course both the white blood cells and the harmful bacteria and viruses have to co-exist, and they have to continuously battle one another. Their existence thrives on this. Some of the bacteria and viruses that drill, deplete, burn, and destroy elements of Mother Earth are actually beneficial in the long run, and exist to to make her stronger, make her evolve, and prepare for onslaught's by the bad ones. Then there are the blood cells that just exist and flow. They don't really do anything but make up Gaia's blood streams bulk composition. These are those who work, play, sleep, and exist ... not making any change in this world, They deplete, they breath, they produce oxygen. In human anacronisms, its the herd, the sheep, the mass mentality of doing what the white blood cells or the bacteria and viruses tell them to do. They don't think for themselves, they don't think about the bigger picture, and some of them waste their lives away until they die off, sometimes reproducing, sometimes not, often inducing themselves with stimulants and depressants (drugs, alcohol, chemicals) that make them just stagnate in a anti-productive stasis.

I've been a part of this battle for a long time, and I'm getting close to half of my life cycle being over (assuming i live to 70 or 80 or so, since I'm asthmatic and while a very strong white blood cell, a damaged one) ... and I'm tired. I'm tired of being alone in this battle, or feeling alone, and watching our white blood cell numbers disintegrate and die off without reproduction. I'm tired of watching the harmful bacteria and viruses multiplying at a faster rate than the good side. I need to unite with my brothers and sisters on the productive side. We need to create a stronger army. I love my Gaia, and I want her to live forever. Brothers and Sisters will you join me in this war? Will you start thinking about the bigger picture? will you become good cells? will you recycle? will you think about the ozone? will you work towards making life better for the rest of us, greener, will you go to school and learn and spread that wisdom? will you invent things to keep the life cycle flowing? will you please become healers? musicians that make a beat for the rest of us to dance to be inspired to celebrate life? Be an artist to motivate the rest of us to cherish life and our cycle? to protect the weak and meager? Please?

I will continue on in this war with or without you. But we need your help. Wake up. Think outside the box. Don't be of the herd. Don't be a brainless sheep. Don't just listen to what you see on TV, or your dictator tells you to do (those are the most harmful viruses by the way), don't fall into mass brainless functions like religious or political system that make you a brick in a wall that prevents us white blood cells from doing our job. Gaia needs you. If you don't, she's gonna rattle and roll in her ailing health, bringing more hurricanes, tornadoes, tidal waves, freezing storms, and disasters to literally wipe you off the face of the earth. In her self-defense, she'll kill alot of us white blood cells as well. But her target will be you. Love, Live, Grow, and Evolve. Flow, Grow, and Flame within her. Please. I pleade of you. I won't give up.

Also please think about the toxins and chemicals that make us stagnate that we put in our bodies. I'm guilty of this too. The alcohol, the drugs, the chemicals. In the long run, it's damaging our beings, and making our lives shorter and shorter. For you harmful ones out there, please do addict and destroy yourselves, we really don't want you. But for those of us making a change, please cut back. We need you. Certainly everything in balance and never in excess. We need relaxation. But its the excess that gets us in trouble globally. I'm fighting this within myself right now. I have to watch the toxins I put in myself just as its my duty to watch out for the toxins that enter Gaia's body. What kind of environmentalist can I be if I can't take of myself. This year, I'm changing this. I will heal what I have damaged and I will become stronger to defend Gaia and our memory, our intelligence, and our ability to become stronger. It is time for battle, It is time for war. Take no hostages.

Ok, I'm off my soapbox now. I hope my words inspire some of you to join the antibodies and white blood cell force. We want you.

inspired by the song: Cantus by Faith and the Muse, on Annwyn, Beneath the Waves ....

Inspired by the gospel of the Gaia Hypothesis: The Gaia hypothesis is an ecological hypothesis that proposes that living and nonliving parts of the earth are a complex interacting system that can be thought of as a single organism. Named after the Greek earth goddess, this hypothesis postulates that all living things have a regulatory effect on the Earth's environment that promotes life overall.

The study of planetary habitability is partly based upon extrapolation from knowledge of the Earth's conditions, as the Earth is the only planet currently known to harbour life. The release of this image prompted the formulation of the proposition that the Earth was alive, and fostered acceptance of that proposition.

Saturday, October 6, 2007: - 8 pm - ??? .... R.S.V.P. Required HORROR MOVIE NIGHT: Come join us for a evening of Horror movies ... bring throw pillows and blankets to make yourself comfortable in lounging-style ... bring movie snacks and drinks to share. B.Y.O.B. if legal age. We'll be watching ... "An American Haunting", "The Others", and "Sixth Sense". Sunday, October 7, 2007: - 6 pm - 10 pm .... $10.00 Ticket Pre-purchase required. Limited: 15 people. Once sold out, no more tickets sold. First come, first serve. Ticket required for entry. An Eerie Dinner in the historic Funeral Parlor: Set in the rennovated building that was once Manitou's Funeral Parlor, come dine with the spirits to an evening of ghost stories, dinner-side magic tricks, and eerie ambience. Ticket is for the entertainment, complimentary dinner and drinks will be served. Pre-purchase tickets here: or reserve via phone 719.576.0765 or email to darkleaves@gmail.com. Sells out at 15. Currently there are (2) people attending (as of 9/30/07). Saturday, October 13, 2007: - 4 pm - ??? .... Show up dressed as a Zombie ... 1st Annual Manitou Springs Zombie Crawl: Come dressed as a zombie and the undead for a staggering, lurching, foot dragging, crawl-walk down historic Manitou Avenue ... with groans and calls of "Brains" ... if you don't have the makeup or know-how on being a zombie, we'll do our best to dress you up ... we'll have limited-supply of fake blood, makeup, and body paint. We'll start rising from the dead from Manitou's former funeral parlor, now home to the Tree Leaves' Oracle, and start our invasion of Manitou. Afterwards, we'll invade some local establishment to partake of drinks and food ... and then wind up back at the Tree Leaves' Oracle for late evening Zombie flicks. The Tree Leaves' Oracle * 124 Ruxton Ave * Manitou Springs, Colorado 80829 * 719.576.0765 If you love Zombie Crawls ... don't forget to do Denver's Zombie Crawl on 10/20/07 at 6 pm. Details at www.eyeheartbrains.com Both events, different sponsors, are free ... bring as many friends as possible. Spread the word!!!! Denver Zombie Walk 2006   Denver Zombie Walk 2006   Denver Zombie Walk 2006

( rest of October )

Saturday, 11 August 2007

Hat Springs, Colorado

( more pictures )