I dream of rain
I dream of gardens in the desert sand
I wake in vain
I dream of love as time runs through my hand
(Sting, Desert Rose)

I’m delighted to present another guest post from a local practitioner of weather witchcraft, Esmerelda. –Jeff

Most people think of deserts as inherently dry places.  And they are, most of the time.  But their ecosystems critically hinge on the rains coming at very specific times, and in very specific ways.  Adam, from over at Adam’s Peace, reminded me of this after my last guest post here (Interview with a Weather Witch II) down in the comments section.

Here is his comment, repeated in full:

“I know that Arizona is a desert… but it is a wet one during key times of the year, and it needs that moisture.
From late July until late August/early September, we get a seasonal series of storms that come from the Gulf of California… very hot and very wet weather that create dramatic thunderstorms and historically have filled our dry river beds to almost the point of flooding in less than an hour.

The cacti in the area depend on these seasonal torrents, and the mighty saguaro, which is only found in this one desert (most of Arizona, and parts of California and northern Mexico) literally needs a good flash flood in order to spread its seeds. While the rain is inconvenient to us humans, the loss of these rains has been deadly to the local environment.

Over the last decade, though, these seasonal storms have been disappearing. Part of it is the artificial high pressure zone created by all of the buildings in Phoenix, creating an island of persistent heat… but rainfall all over the Sonoran Desert has been dropping at a steady rate… People think that deserts are supposed to be dead, or something.

So, if I could make a request… Some time next summer, give us a good one. The more lightning and the faster the rain falls, the better.” Read the rest of this entry »

A glance at the comments on the previous post shows what a complex topic this is; it easily merits a follow-up.  For this article, I’m going to focus on the conundrum facing the individual who is trying to set a price for mediumship/life-coaching/therapy/etc.  The economics are much more interesting than selling physical commodities, or even regular services like lawn-mowing or waiting tables.

Warning!  I’m not an economist; I’m just a thoughtful guy who’s interested in economics, and has read and thought a lot about this problem.  If you want to try out my advice here, I suggest doing it first in a small inconspicuous area where a permanent stain won’t show… Read the rest of this entry »

My nine-year-old daughter absolutely adores the Chronicles of Narnia.  Nothing unusual about that, really — lots of kids do — but why?

After all, isn’t Narnia Christian allegory?  It’s blatantly obvious to anyone who gives it a moment’s thought.  But I’ve argued elsewhere that children are natural born pagans.  So what’s the attraction?  Does Christianity touch something in children, after all?  Or is Narnia not wholly Christian? Read the rest of this entry »