An irregular hodgepodge of links beyond the library curated together from @OmniumGatherum at Hrmtc I∴O∴ and more … Omnium Gatherum for October 5, 2022.

It’s the first OG post of the month, so welcome to all Patrons! And, in a year, hello to everyone else. This one is … a little shorter than usual. I … got busy and didn’t post as much to the OG social account this week, and not many people interacted with what I did post. These things, they happen. I blame it on the supply chain.

But, be sure to head back and check out everything that was posted to the blog back in September 2021. I’ve made all OG posts public after a year being exclusive, and there’s all the other stuff. If you missed it, you can hit it. If you already hit it, you can bogart it without guilt. I mean, you know: memories. Whoa whoa whoa.

Here’s a selection of notable things I’ve recently found that you may also be interested in checking out:

• “The Luminary Pendulum. Divination tool that harnesses the magic of your intuition with the power of light.”—”the “Luminary Pendulum” is a divination tool that harnesses the magic of your intuition with the power of light. The device itself is a beautifully designed brass orb, suspended from a chain, and equipped with an ultraviolet LED that shines through a focusing lens at its base. The light reacts with photosensitive charts (included) to clearly illuminate the pendulum’s swing path.” “The ability to surface deep responses also makes Luminary Pendulum the perfect accessory for Tarot, Astrology, Shadow Work Healing, and the RPG community. Depending upon the question asked, different charts indicate numerical, directional, elemental, and yes-or-no responses — all customizable with write-on / wipe-off surfaces.” “With a base entry pledge of $49, even the most skeptically minded will have fun engaging with their mysterious inner voice.” “Marvel & Rosen are Wendy Marvel and Mark Rosen, the creative duo behind Mechanical FlipBook and FlipBooKit.” See Mechanical Flip Book. Crowdfunding effort with 26 days to go …
• “The Unstoppable, Fearsome, Delicious Allure of the Witch. Whether dead or alive, witches always spell trouble. We can’t get enough.”
• Living in the Sunlight: Making a Forgotten Meditation an Atomic Habit by Steve King (Grand Master Shiva X° of OTO Australia)—”Living in the Sunlight is dedicated to the exposition of a deceptively simple meditation practice. The Sunlight meditation is only mentioned in an unpublished 1915 letter from Aleister Crowley to his disciple Frater Achad, and in a 1922 lecture by Achad called “Living in the Sunlight.”. And is being reclaimed as a modern practice, for members of the OTO and anyone else that wants to transform their life.” See also Living in the Sunlight in Hermeneuticon—”Living in the Sunlight is a meditation practice created by library figure Jeanne Robert Foster, Soror Hilarion, and described in a letter by figure Aleister Crowley to figure Frater Achad, Charles Stansfeld Jones; which has been revived as a modern official practice of O.T.O. in Italy and Australia” Kinda miffed that the new book burb on Amazon doesn’t mention Jeanne Robert Foster, Soror Hilarion!
• “Sexual healing: Jocelyn Broadwick reclaims vintage smut. Reading series spotlighting steamy pulp novels helps writer heal from purity culture trauma.”—”If you told 18-year-old Jocelyn Broadwick that 15 years later she would be sitting onstage at the Creative Alliance, wearing vintage lingerie and reading sexy scenes … she would have laughed at you. Then she would have prayed for you. And for herself for entertaining such an impure thought.” Watch “Sexual Healing: Jocelyn Broadwick reclaims vintage smut“—”For the past four years, Jocelyn Broadwick has entertained people with her readings of steamy pulp novels from the 1950’s and 60’s, as reported by the Baltimore Banner.”
• “A Brief History of (My) Dark Academia. ‘Dark academia is academia’s black swan and shadow self.'” About Our Dark Academia by Adrienne Raphel.
• Nazarth: Pillars of Gladness, or, A Geomancer’s Angelical Psalter of Calls, containing vessels 19 with which to water the Earth by Alexander Cummins—”Nazarth is a treasurehouse of geomantic incantations. Its nineteen keys were received and wrought through a combination of spirit communications, dream incubation, ritual cut-up, and judicious co-editing alongside tutelary shades and attendant spirits.””This Angelical psalter offers prayers for opening and closing rituals of geomantic divination, as well as for clearing the potentially dangerous miasmas of “halted” shield charts, and presents calls for directly working with the spirits, virtues, and materia of each of the Sixteen Figures of Renaissance European geomancy – to remediate deleterious conditions, transmute obstacles, stir and direct spirits, and galvanise blessings.” “It offers the enterprising diviner-sorcerer resources to explore the Adamical roots of the so-called Enochian language, as well as imagery and spiritual landscapes to engage with the oracle of geomancy through more visionary lenses. It also presents an approach to Angelical charms for practical sorcery, spiritwork, and spellcraft that welcome further experimentation and individuation by practitioners.”
• Mirrorshades—”This is a free online edition of Mirrorshades, as edited by Bruce Sterling. Posted by Rudy Rucker, September 28, 2022. And with a prayer for Tom Maddox.” Tweet—”Looking for pure product, old school cyberpunk before it became a game or an aisle in Hot Topic?”
• “The Sandman: Act III Surprise Releases, Adds David Harewood, Wil Wheaton, KJ Apa to Cast“—”In a surprise release, The Sandman: Act III is now available on Audible, continuing the Audible-exclusive audio adaptation of the beloved DC comic book series written by Neil Gaiman.” About The Sandman: Act III including Neil Gaiman, James McAvoy, K J Apa, Kat Dennings, … Kristen Schaal, Wil Wheaton.
• “Book bans reflect outdated beliefs about how children read“—”What unites these challenges is a professed desire to protect young readers from dangerous content. But attempts to ban books are frequently motivated by misapprehensions about how children consume and process literature.”
• “‘You are only as sick as your secrets’: Natrona Schools book banning decision looms“—”The localized version of a nationwide book banning debate is drawing near to a decision for the fate of two books in the Natrona County School District.”
• “Weird 19th-Century Punctuation Marks You Should Try Using. Ever heard of the ‘colash’? Or the ‘commash’?”—”Rebooting these old punctuation marks would also constitute a very cool project of stylistic reforestation.” The colash, especially, shows up at the library a lot.
• “Stolen in 1917, this 1,000-year-old manuscript was just returned to its rightful owners“—”The document was written in a Greek monastery in southern Italy during the late 10th to early 11th centuries” “The manuscript was finally returned to the monastery in a formal ceremony on Thursday”
• “Judith Schalansky is ninth author to write secret work for Future Library. The German author’s contribution will remain unseen, alongside contributions from authors including Margaret Atwood and David Mitchell, until 2114.”
• “Russia blindfolds, detains Ukraine nuclear plant chief“—”In a possible attempt to secure Moscow’s hold on the newly annexed territory, Russian forces seized the director-general of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, Ihor Murashov.” Saber rattling about nukes takes a turn …
• “MAGA Media Dweebs Lose Their Sh*t Over Lizzo Playing James Madison’s Flute” Tweet—”Elephants are born weighing 250 lbs. They are the biggest babies on earth except for the people mad about Lizzo playing James Madison’s flute.” Tweet—”Give Lizzo the Green Ranger’s Dagger Flute next. Let her summon the Dragonzord.”
• “Disney-esque and demented: Ti West on how his slasher flick ‘Pearl’ compares to ‘Rocky Horror’. The filmmaker spoke to Salon about crafting his aesthetically ambitious prequel and Mia Goth’s killer monologue.”
• The power of Hannah Waddingham’s character Mother Witch in ‘Hocus Pocus 2’. The “Ted Lasso” star’s role in the sequel is brief but essential: she’s the villain origin story.”—”What if there were no bad witches? What if the line between good and evil is blurry or nonexistent? There in that gray, muddled and glamorous middle lies Waddingham’s character, billed only as ‘Mother Witch.'” Also tweet—”The Sanderson Sister children actors were amazing. They nailed the roles perfectly. I think they were my favorite part. I would totally watch a movie of just them and their backstory.”
• “Chocolate Orc Blood and an Explosive Cliffhanger: How ‘Rings of Power’ Made Its Own Helm’s Deep.” Orcs are yummy chocolate cordials, confirmed.
• “‘Community’ Movie Is Finally Happening, at Peacock – Variety“—”Maybe it’s not the darkest timeline after all, as “six seasons and a movie” is finally becoming reality.”
• “Francis Ford Coppola’s ‘Megalopolis’ Will Debut Never-Before-Seen Film Technology. Coppola’s wide-spanning epic will be the first feature shot on the LED volume stage at newly opened Prysm Stages.”
• “Rolling the dice on race in Dungeons & Dragons“—”Dungeons & Dragons is one of the most popular tabletop roleplaying games of all time. But it has also helped cement some ideas about how we create and define race in fantasy — and in the tangible world. We take a deep dive into that game, and what we find about racial stereotypes and colonialist supremacy is illuminating.”
• “Star Trek has truly reinvented itself. The sci-fi franchise is all TV these days, and there’s something for (almost) everyone.”
• “What to expect from AMC’s “Interview with the Vampire” and how it differs from the Tom Cruise film. A ‘toxic, beautiful love story.’ We’ve seen Anne Rice’s vampires before but not like this.” Good. I hope. Also “Introducing the Immortal Universe. Anne Rice’s Interview With the Vampire. Based on Anne Rice’s iconic novel, Interview with the Vampire follows Louis de Pointe du Lac’s epic story of love, blood and the perils of immortality, as told to the journalist Daniel Molloy. New episodes Sundays on AMC and AMC+.”
• Watch “Death is a Girl (A Locked Tomb Fansong)“—”I’m absolutely obsessed with these books so I finally wrote a song about them”
• Motivational PSA: “What does it take to get there? … How much do we want to find out? … The more you fuck around, the more you’re going find out. And also … if … you never fuck around, you never find out.” Also, Utah Phillips: “You’ve got to mess with people.”

What have you been seeing around and thinking about lately? What have you seen that caught your eye? Thinking about something lately, or reading something interesting, or have a project you’re working on? Participate by tagging @[email protected] in the ‘verse with what you’ve got to share. Like, boost, or comment posts by that account to help curate the best stuff for everyone.

This post was possible because of support from generous ongoing Patrons. Patrons get access to Omnium Gatherum immediately. On the blog, this will be exclusive to Patrons for one year, after which I’ll make it publicly available to everyone so they can see what they’ve been missing.