I’m sorry to inform you that my talk/discussion/fun thing on the Women of James Bond has been postponed. We’re tentative for July 9th, and I’ll let you know as soon as that’s confirmed. (sad trombone)
Archive for Deborah Lipp
Bending the Binary on Lunatic Monday!
I’ll be talking with Laura Gonzalez of Lunatic Mondays on March 27. Join us for a discussion on polarity magic and all sorts of fun things.
I’ll link to the show archive after it airs.
Crazy
There were 2 empty ice cube trays on the counter this morning but my favorite was the one in the freezer.
Drive me crazy
My late ex-husband drove me crazy, even during our happiest times together.
Professor Spouse doesn’t drive me crazy. She definitely does things that one could point to and say “that drives me crazy.” But it doesn’t.
What is “drives me crazy?” For me, the frustration is about wanting to fix it and being unable to. I had an idea that somehow it was my job, or my right, to fix or change the behavior, but I also knew it was impossible to fix it. The conflict is what’s crazy making.
When Professor Spouse does something I find irritating, I look at it and I know it’s unlikely to change. And I know that it is not about me, that there is nothing for me to do. I can just love her and be at peace.
But I do wish she’d fill the ice cube trays.
Summary: Lots of News, All in One Place
There’s so much happening right now!
- Bending the Binary is now available for pre-order from Bookshop.org, Amazon, and Llewellyn.
- The Way of Four Special Edition is available for pre-order now exclusively from Crossed Crow Books, with the paperback edition coming soon.
- On February 26 (3pm Eastern/8pm London), I’ll be speaking on The Women of James Bond: Femmes Fatale, Toads, and Birds with Wings Down by Deborah Lipp – The Last Tuesday Society. This is a virtual talk and I’m hoping the Q&A is lively!
- I’ll be hanging out with Raina Starr at Desperate Housewitches on March 5 (11am Eastern), where our focus will be Bending the Binary (not like we ever actually focus).
- I’ll be talking Way of Four on the Witchlit podcast on March 21 at 6pm Eastern.
- I’ll be at Phoenix Phyre Festival in Florida from March 16-19, teaching magic and spellcraft.
- I recently appeared on The Witching Hour podcast with Eron Mazza, discussing polarity, Wicca, and all the things.
Phew, that’s a lot!
Upcoming Podcasts
I’ve got two upcoming podcast appearances!
First, Desperate Housewitches with the magnificent Raina Starr on March 5 at 11am Eastern. We’ll be discussing Bending the Binary and whatever else comes to mind. Raina and I always have fun (here’s some other appearances I’ve done on her show, and here’s the home page.)
Next, on March 21, at 6pm Eastern, I’ll be with Victoria Raschke of Witchlit Podcast. We’ll be talking The Way of Four, although who knows? Bending the Binary might sneak in.
I’ll post links afterward once archived episodes are available if you can’t listen live.
Phoenix Phyre Here I Come!
Florida, look for me in March! I’ll be attending the Phoenix Phyre 2023 festival as a featured guest, where I’ll be presenting my three-part class on spellcasting. I’ll also be selling books, including the BRAND! SPANKING! NEW! Bending the Binary.
Upcoming Talk: The Women of James Bond
Join me (virtually) on February 26 for The Women of James Bond: Femmes Fatale, Toads, and Birds with Wings Down by Deborah Lipp – The Last Tuesday Society.
The world of James Bond extends from 1953 to 2022 and beyond. Agent 007 is known as a hero, a womanizer, and (to quote M), a “sexist, misogynist dinosaur.”
How were women portrayed in the Ian Fleming novels, and how did that change in the films? Have “Bond girls” been objects or fully-fleshed humans? What tropes are familiar in Bond’s women? How have these portrayals changed with the times, and how have they failed to change?
Podcast fun: The Witching Hour
I had a fab talk on December 14 with Eron Mazza of The Witching Hour. We had a hilariously near-endless stream of technical mishaps, but eventually we did figure out how to pod, and the talk is wide-ranging, including (but not limited to) my forthcoming book, Bending the Binary. Give it a listen!
Thoughts on Fluffy Bunnies
Today on Facebook, someone said something insightful.
I know! Let that just sink in.
Anyway, Jason Thomas Pitzl said “Number of ‘fluffy bunnies’ converted by rants: statistically 0?. And that opened a long thread about fluffy bunnies and what they are and why people rail against them and so on.
First of all, what is a fluffy bunny? Isaac used to define it as “Nature pink in gum and paw“. It’s a perception of Wicca as being all sweetness and light, about getting your ideas of Nature religion from the frolicking centaurs and fairies in Fantasia.
So what?
Look, there’s a certain sense that perhaps a “fluffy bunny” Wiccan or Pagan is entirely unserious and really doesn’t know what he or she is doing. Maybe that’s true. Well, no harm done, and as Isaac liked to say, there’s at least as much damage done by those excessively dark and gloomy in their Paganism as by those excessively light and sweet.
But here’s the thing. Scott Cunningham, as he was dying, was still talking about the Goddess as being about beauty and gentleness. He was one of the best researchers I ever knew; his knowledge was encyclopedic. He didn’t have a sweet and light attitude about Wicca out of ignorance, either of ancient Paganism or of how dark life could get. Knowing an enormous amount about Paganism, and on his deathbed, he still believed in the lightness. You want to call him a fluffy bunny? Go ahead. Because who he was, was a person who looked to the light.
If a person is “fluffy” because they don’t know much, that person can certainly learn, although being mocked doesn’t help the process. If, on the other hand, a person is genuinely, by nature, oriented towards that sweetness, even a sweetness that makes other people’s teeth hurt? Well, let them follow their nature. I’m pretty sure that’s part of what this whole Pagan movement is all about.
