MY NEW CAREER

Becoming a Warrior...

(What's this becoming stuff...)

Just modeling medieval garb for TherionArms.com


I have been learning sword technique. My form was not so good in these pics...

GORGEOUS RARE AMAR LEOPARD MAMA & CUB

With more photos at

news.monstersandcritics.com/uk/f..._park

She was born 18 November 2007, at Marwell Zoological park in Hampshire, Britain, 28 February 2008. She was bred as part of a European conservation breeding program. Her mother's name is 'Ascha' but they have not named the cub yet.

AN ARTFUL WEEKEND

People who know me know that I have been feeling sad since my brother died last Oct. Often I like to engage in art activities to work through & transcend the sad times. This weekend (Feb. 28 through March 2, 2008) was full of art related activities, & most were free. I should have taken my camera along & taken more pictures.

Thursday night WyldeFyre Collective hosted our weekly Social at Hot Mamas in Austin. (Last Thursday we had Belly Dancing, Ethnic Drumming, Hooping & Fire Dancing/Spinning). I belly danced & fire danced & took pictures of the other performers. It was a intimate, mellow, outdoor gathering, perfect for late Texas Winter/early Spring activity. The night was only a little windy & we all had a chance to talk with & enjoy each other.


Friday I went through all the pictures & posted 85 photos on the WyldeFyre site & recovered after having bad allergies & very little sleep.

Saturday I went to a Russian & Slavic Festival at UT Austin with Mark, the organizer of the Russian Meet-Up here in Austin. That was a great event. 1st we attended a talk on Bulgarian Rom, commonly known as Gypsys. Then we saw a display that included pictures from many facets of Russian Culture (Music, Geography, Folklore & Fairy Tales, the various Ethnic peoples, & much, much more). My favorite part was watching an exhibition of ethnic Hungarian & Romanian dancers. Yum Yum Yum! It was such a lively show I wanted to dance with them as I watched them perform to their traditional music. The mens' steps looked like so much fun. My 2nd favorite part was when we went to a Learn the Russian Alphabet class. WE were late, towards the end of the alphabet. The leaders would post words & ask people to try to pronounce the words in Russian. I pronounced the words in what I thought was a quiet voice that I hoped Mark could hear. At 1st the leaders said, "Very good" to me as they heard me sound out the words. The comments quickly turned to, "Do you speak Russian?". "I am just learning", I answered with a smile, hoping that made Mark feel good as my Russian teacher seeing my progress. I also met some of Mark's Russian linguist friends, PhD students at UT.

If that was not enough for a Sat. after the Russian Festival I went to some other friends' house & ordered a Fire Baton. Yeah, new fire tools will be here soon! We also worked on costume designs for future fire performances & I drew out many designs for leather fire costumes. I don't draw much anymore but when I was a kid I use to draw for hours and hours. Sometimes I still think about taking figure drawing classes, if I ever find some spare time to try my hand at all the other art & language related hobbies I immerse myself in. And writing classes, more dance classes, maybe some piano & or basic singing classes...

As you can see, I have to limit myself some or I would drive myself crazy trying to do everything that interests me.

Then Sunday, several friends went to Hippie Church at Maria's Taco Express in Austin where we saw Carolyn Wonderland (really good blues) for free. I was pleasantly surprised when a friend introduced me to local, well known actor who said, "Oh I know you, I've seen you around." I guess I am becoming a known Austin artist...

FAMILY TREASUES

I am so excited. I just received this photo containing my Russian Grandmother from an old family friend. # 6 is or was my Grandmother.

I believe this photo was taken in Serbia while my Grandmother was becoming a nurse after her escape from Bolshevik Russia. This picture was published in a book that I do not have the title of at hand now, but it clearly shows my Grandmother was Princess & a woman of great substance.

Dr. Gray, a woman, was apparently responsible for helping my Grandmother & her sister complete medical training & travel to to the US. I would not be here were it not for Dr. Gray. I will have to research her & learn more about this particular angel of mercy from the early 1900s.

It is so fantastic to learn about these strong women, who existed even back then when it was not a woman's world. They are my heroes & my legacy.

Austin TX Tonight Free ICE CREAM FLAMBE' Fire & drumming show

ICE CREAM FLAMBE'
First Thursday Amy's Ice Cream Social
Dec 6th 7-10pm
Yes, it's cold, but come on out and get fired up!
Fires will be lit around the circle
for added warmth, and there will be coffee
to go with your Ice Cream!
EVERY MONTH IS DIFFERENT FROM THE ONE BEFORE!

Three hours of live drumming & fire spinning!
Bring your drum and rattles, bells and whistles!
EVERYONE IS WELCOME TO PARTICIPATE!
(New fire performers need to contact us for sign up )
Photographers welcome
(Please contact us upon arrival for safety concerns)
Bring whatever you need to be comfortable!
Amy's Ice Cream Super South
3100 South Congress in Austin Tx
one block north of Woodward
myspace.com/amyssupersouth
myspace.com/wyldefyreproductions
512-260-2674
THIS IS AN EVENT FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY!

We reserve the right to remove anyone that causes a safety hazard

ETHNIC HOLIDAY TRADITIONS

In preparation for the upcoming holidays I have been reading & researching Russian holiday traditions. I found the funny Ukrainian tradition (below) for the day after Christmas. This day after Christmas tradition seems reminiscent of Halloween rather Christmas to me!

My Russian ancestors' family home was in in the Ukraine but I think they still considered themselves be White Russians, so I am not sure if my Russian ancestors would have celebrated this way of not.

www.uazone.net/holidays/christmas.html

Christmas in Ukraine is celebrated January 7 according to the Gregorian calendar as in most of other Orthodox Christian countries...

...Next day in some villages in Western Ukraine people organize some folk performances which obviously were inspired by ancient pagan habits. They dress up themselves as monsters with pelts and horns and run through the village trying to scare people. After that they run to the special place on the outskirts of the village and there happens the main act: they fight with all people of the village and finally are defeated. The scarecrows are burned in the big fire. And all people are dancing around this fire. This symbolizes the fight of Good and Evil and that Good defeated Evil for the whole next year.

As I locate more interesting holiday traditions I may add to this blog.

& here is more (added Nov. 17, 2007)


en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chri...wideRussia

In Eastern Europe, Slavic countries have the tradition of Ded Moroz ("Grandfather Frost"). He is accompanied by his granddaughter Snegurochka ("Snowmaiden"). According to legend, he travels in a magical decorated sleigh drawn by reindeer, and delivers gifts to children. He is thought to descend more from Santa Claus than from Saint Nicholas.

Christmas celebration in Russia is on the 7th of January (which corresponds to December 25 in the Julian Calendar). The tradition of celebrating Christmas has been revived since 1992, after decades of suppression by the communist government. It is centered on the Christmas Eve "Holy Supper", which consists of twelve servings, one to honor each of Jesus' apostles. The Russian traditions were largely kept alive by shifting some of them, including the visit by gift-giving "Grandfather Frost" and his "Snowmaiden", to New Year's Day. Many current Russian Christmas customs, including their Christmas tree, or "yolka", were brought by Peter the Great, after his western travels in the late 17th century.


en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavic_mythology

There probably also was an important festival around winter solstice, which later became associated with Christmas. Consequently, in many Slavic countries, Christmas is called Bozhich, which simply means little god. While this name fits very nicely with the Christian idea of Christmas, the name is likely of pagan origin; it indicated the birth of a young and new god of Sun to the old and weakened solar deity during the longest night of the year. The old Sun god was identified as Svarog, and his son, the young and new Sun, as Dazhbog. An alternative (or perhaps the original) name for this festival was Korochun.


www.unc.edu/depts/slavic...rochure2.html

Russian Orthodox believers still celebrate Christmas on January 7, according to the Julian calendar, which the Russian Orthodox Church follows. Their celebration of Christmas does not generally include gift-giving, and is confined to a purely religious observance of the birth of Christ. New Year's is the Russian holiday that would probably remind you most of Christmas as it is celebrated in the United States. In preparation for New Year's, Russians decorate a fir tree (yolka) with ornaments and lights just as we decorate Christmas trees. On New Year's Eve (December 31) they prepare an enormous dinner for their families and friends and exchange gifts with each other. Grandfather Frost (called Ded Moroz in Russian - he looks a lot like our Santa Claus, although he's usually not quite as fat) comes in the middle of the night and brings presents to the kids. Instead of elves, Grandfather Frost gets help distributing gifts from the Snow Maiden (Snegurochka), a character from a famous Russian fairy tale. Parents and schools often have New Year's parties just for kids. At these parties the kids dance around the New Year's tree and sometimes get dressed up in costumes, like the mummers in War and Peace.


www.rispubs.com/article.cfm

December 6th marks the Feast Day of St. Nicholas of Myra; a Turkish bishop who became the patron saint of Moscow and Santa to the world. Due to the suppression of religion during the Soviet regime, St. Nicholas was replaced by Dyed Moroz or Grandfather Frost, the Russian Spirit of Winter who brought gifts on New Year's. He is accompanied by Snyegurochka, the Snowmaiden, who helps distribute the gifts...

...Another cherished Christmas tradition, prior to the Soviet era, was the endearing character known as Babouschka. According to folklore, Babouschka did not offer food and shelter to the Magi during their search for the Christ Child. To this day, she wanders the countryside in search of the Baby Jesus. Along the way, she visits homes where children live, leaving them gifts at Christmas time. Babouschka, a character similar to the Italian Befana (picture), has returned as a continued favorite of the Russian Christmas traditions.

The Christmas tree (Yolka) is yet another tradition banned during the Soviet era.To keep the custom alive, people decorated New Year's trees, instead. Since ornaments were either very costly or unavailable, family trees were trimmed with homemade decorations and fruit. Yolka comes from the word which refers to a fir tree. The custom of decorating Christmas trees was introduced to Russia by Peter the Great, after he visited Europe during the 1700's.

An old Russian tradition, whose roots are in the Orthodox faith, is the Christmas Eve fast and meal. The fast, typically, lasts until after the evening worship service or until the first star appears. The dinner that follows is very much a celebration, although, meat is not permitted. Kutya (kutia), a type of porridge, is the primary dish. It is very symbolic with its ingredients being various grains for hope and honey and poppy seed for happiness and peace.

A house blessing is customary at this time. The priest sprinkles a bit of holy water in each room of the home, praying that the abode and all who live there have a safe and happy year. After the blessing, the kutya is shared from a common bowl to symbolize unity. After the Christmas Eve meal, a great deal of merriment commences. Music, singing, dancing, games and a visit from the mummers are a part of the fun.

www.russianlife.com/article.cfm

I have always loved gingerbread, another Russian trait I guess :)

Prianiki for the Holidays

Russian Prianiki
Gingerbread, or prianiki, was a favorite treat throughout Europe including Russia, Lithuania, Estonia and Poland. In the beginning, prianiki was made of flour, honey and sometimes, egg. With the creation of leavening agents, such as baking soda and baking powder, prianiki took on height. Honey was an essential ingredient as refined sugar was not available in Europe or Russia yet.

Each country developed trade guilds who endeavored to create a better product than the next. Similar to bread baking, prianiki became a matter of pride for many communities. During the 1500 to 1800s, some of the most popular bakers of ginger bread were Nuremberg in Germany, Torun in Poland and Tula, Vyazma and Arkhangelsk in Russia. In Tula, bakers garnished their prianiki with berry jams while Vyazma introduced the use of molasses. Arkhangelsk created fancy little shaped cakes, bathed in colored icings.

Traditional prianiki is dense, spicy and chewy, not crunchy as is the case with modern ginger cookies. Prianiki were and are made in many shapes and are often stamped with a wooden press to produce a design on the surface of the cake. Possibly the most popular prianiki comes from Tula, south of Moscow and famed home of metal crafts and samovar production. Not surprising considering prainiki is perfect with a hot, dark cup of tea!

What follows is a traditional Russian recipe for prianiki. It's easy to prepare and sure to be a joy during the Holidays, or any time throughout the year. This recipe will make about 15 - 18 cakes. Of course, you can cut your dough into any desired shape.

Ingredients
1 oz butter
6 oz honey (I like wildflower honey best)
6 oz jam (plum is preferred, quince is good too)
1 egg
8 oz plain flour
2 oz icing sugar (confectioner's sugar)
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp each cardomon, ginger, and cinnamon
1 tbs crushed blanched almonds
2 tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preparation
- Cream together butter and honey
- Add egg and beat
- Blend in baking soda, spices and almonds
- Add enough flour to make a soft ball of dough
- Cover with waxed paper and refrigerate for 1 hour
- Heat oven to 350 F and prepare a lightly floured board
- Roll out dough to 1/8" thickness
- With a 2 - 3" floured cutter, cut out an even number of circles
- Cut each circle in half
- Spread half with jam and place other half on top, sealing edges
- Place on greased baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes
- Reduce oven heat to 325 F and bake for 10 more minutes
- Cool cakes on a wire rack
- Combine lemon juice and icing sugar, drizzle over cooled cakes

AMBER'S ANIMAL TALES AROUND AUSTIN - VOL NOV. 10, 2007 GRACIE KITTENS #4

Sugar Baby!

AMBER'S ANIMAL TALES AROUND AUSTIN - VOL NOV. 10, 2007 GRACIE KITTENS #3

Way too cute!

AMBER'S ANIMAL TALES AROUND AUSTIN - VOL NOV. 10, 2007 GRACIE KITTENS #2

Delilah is just so cute!

AMBER'S ANIMAL TALES AROUND AUSTIN - VOL NOV. 10, 2007 GRACIE KITTENS #1

I should be looking for homes from these sweets