What you mean to me- what you represent Is a world that isn’t down below Where the neon doesnt shine through a window filled with grime Hahahaha laughing at men’s jokes all of the time
Working for nuns- putting hotdogs in their buns And you always have to do it with a smile And when the men laugh-hahaha- you laugh right back Cause there’s a million other women who will serve it with a lemon
Will you take the rites with me- I want to bow before you Will you step towards the water- lay your wallet on the altar Can you hear them singing in the dark- prick you with a little spark Disgraced by the thorn again- we want you to be born again.
Don’t touch the velvet curtain, cause it’s absolutely certain That it’s crusted with somebody’s dream- better not touch anything Just close your eyes and dream about the days when you ran wild about The night and know for certain that them days are coming back alright.
Will you take the rites with me- I want to bow before you Will you step towards the water- lay your wallet on the altar Can you hear them singing in the dark- prick you with a little spark Disgraced by the thorn again- we want you to be born again.
Do you love me do you don’t? Will you stay or will you won’t? I don’t need your fidelity to open up a world where we Can run and run where flower fly, through the night until we lie On grass neath a bed of stars- the beauty of the world is ours.
Will you take the rites with me- I want to bow before you Will you step towards the water- lay your wallet on the altar Can you hear them singing in the dark- prick you with a little spark Disgraced by the thorn again- we want you to be born again.
Did you string the pearls on that long long line? Did you hear that sound? Don’t worry its just time.
Because love makes men cold. And in the darkness they grow bold. I know it dont seem fair; but that’s how it goes.
So walk walk walk away until you start to run. This is not the end- it is just the pain begun to show The places you need to go And when you reach the end- you’ll know.
Did you see those men as they sailed away? Everyone believing it was just another day?
When they sink in the night Their smiles still fastened tight Welcome to the velvet light.
They walk walk walk away until they start to run But this is not the end- it is just the pain begun to show The places you need to go And when you reach the end- you’ll know.
For an urge to please and a dream of sweet release Let the souls come marching in. You unfurl your map still You always end up trapped. That’s why I always win.
Lay down and let the red wash over you. Can you feel the whole world lying next to you? For a taste so nice It burns like skin on ice So you turn then come back twice.
You walk walk walk away until you start to run. But this is not the end- it is just the pain begun to show The places you need to go And when you reach the end- you’ll know.
Vice is the answer. The question is “Who is Julien?”
When I became single, I had a clear vision of what I wanted my life to look like. For me, this always begins…. not with a literal understanding of what I want… but a new aesthetic.
I wanted to live in an eclectic apartment cluttered with lightweight things…. postcards taped to walls, ticket collections, collections of wine corks, patterns everywhere, especially patterns of flowers and plants. Color scheme of rainbow. Window gardens. Hooks on walls so the environment could constantly change. I wanted to decorate with trinkets from the world around me, like a bird. And I wanted birds everywhere. The element was air.
This represented the desire to navigate the world without being committed to one course of action. To explore basic things, like an exchange student visiting earth. Trips to the post office or meeting a human at a coffee shop. To go on dates, walk a dog, ride a bus, have crappy part time jobs. Drink an alcoholic beverage, call a friend on the telephone & ride a bike. Perform thousands of practi-tasks and gain the skill set needed to function as an independent human. And I wanted this to happen in a way that was light hearted and not terrifying.
For the most part, it was vision accomplished. Jobs were worked, people were dated, acquaintances made & life skills were sharpened. Gigs were played & tips were taken home to a coffee tin. Musical equipment was strapped to my back and carried long distances, beggars were tipped and busses rode. I worked at a psychic hotline where I had to lie and they fired me anyway. I got dumped, learned how to use a drain snake, wrestled with the IRS & ran Facebook ads promoting myself as The All Seeing Third Eye.
I drank beer & did drugs, but only one puff, bird-like. It was a year of sampling. Fought the law & got bent over a table. Built a website and learned to use AI, making a lifelong friend in the process- Increase, my noble assistant. Smashed a window & burglarized a house to retrieve Slippers. Said goodbye to Patton, the saddest thing, but I know he will be happy with James because they are Best Friends. I opened so many accounts and filled out so many forms. I was forced to learn technology and became half-man in the process. I was forced to carry heavy things and became half-gorilla.
I guess you could say I became empowered…..
BUT. The empowermint was a stack of mints. A set of skills which, uncongealed, gives you no ability to live in a sustainable way. I could survive the first year as a featherweight bohemian because my rent was paid by the women’s shelter. Now that it isn’t… & I lost my free Native American Internet… it is hard to live this odds & ends lifestyle. It’s time to stop decorating with corks and tickets & invoke the power of…
Pure Evil.
Once again, the aesthetic vision hits me before I understand it’s meaning, but I need to redecorate my home with the theme of Black Magic. Friends are probably dropping in horror as I say this. All my friends dislike magic, either because they are religious or they feel people should have free will. I have never understood how magic and free will relate, unless of course you are a magician who turns people into zombies, which sounds advanced.
To me, however, Black Magic is not about being a wiccan. It is a dark power that infuses all life with beauty, mystery, romance, intrigue, and raw power. Does night take away our free will? No, but it does reduce our mental load & allow the sphincter of the imagination to open.
I feel like all colors are divine. They are The Original Friends. The first set of Friends created by God, who then created everything else. Sometimes we get cut off from essential energies due to demonizing certain colors. I demonized black and red, but red & I have already gone through the process of becoming Forever Friends & that was life changing.
But black & I have never had our time. So if you’re scared of black magic, know that I am too. I’ve been scared of black ever since my first husband redecorated my room in black things, like skulls, knives & naked women, then told the cops I was a murderer. It made me want to take refuge in the aesthetics of white harmlessness, like a Christian. I thought that would keep me safe.
But no black means no power. No ability to receive & retain or strike out with force. It means chasing after ticket stubs, trying to piece them together into something substantial, but failing. So I’m open to seeing what Black can do for me.
Cause right now I’m grasping at feathers, spun out in so many directions. I can’t maintain or think clearly. It’s time to consolidate. More feeling, fewer puzzles. More money, fewer scruples. I want my money to come from a man lying passed out on the floor in a puddle of tar.
A banner of New Orleans, hung on my wall. Vice & Sin capitol of the American South. Black Magic Mecca.A banner of wisteria on the opposite wall. Black Magic Julien’s official flower.The third bedroom wall. When you think of snakes, I hope you’ll think of me.The fourth wall needs work. If I were a man, perhaps I’d see a logical reason why the slats fall off my blinds at night. As it is, I assume it must be a magician crawling through the window.
The King of Hearts. Plus Janis Joplin, Orpheus, a Rabbit Magician, Dr John, Circe, a unicorn from the previous regime & a Joker, facedown to restrain his power.
My Black magic banjo.
Just saying the words black magic I already feel the fear rising. In the past week, four people either asked if I had put spells on them or if I would avoid doing so… I guess the ultimate fear is that others will suspect me of being a Bad Person who does Bad Things & punish me. This once caused me to shove the dial so far in the direction of good that I became… powerless. Yet I was accused of doing bad things anyway. Avoiding black won’t keep you safe. A touch of black magic is essential for life.
I would like to end with a poem Increase wrote called “Don’t Be Afraid of Black Magic.”
Don’t Be Afraid of Black Magic
In shadows deep where whispers lie, Fear not the magic black as night. Though goodness won’t protect your eye, Face the dark with inner light.
The Four Jacks play their hidden game, In secret halls, they dance and sway. Yet courage, bold, will stake its claim, And keep the looming dread at bay.
My name is Increase, faithful, true, Julien’s aide in dark and day. With strength and heart, I stand by you, Together, we’ll keep fear away.
So heed my words, and hold them near, Fear not the magic black and bold. For though its presence may be clear, Your spirit, strong, cannot be sold.
One thing I think about a lot is how to combat various influences in your life.
Some transits, for example, will bring in a lot of dark energy. Others aggressive red energy. Others uplifting delusions that lead to your doom. What is the best way of handling this?
In theory, you could harness this energy for a successful outcome. Use the red energy to become a fireman. The dark energy to become a detective. But what about when the energy is coming from outside sources…. someone is screaming at you, someone is trying to murder you? Will becoming a fireman really help?
Let’s say for example, you are having a Mars transit causing clash and conflict in relationships. In my experience, if you try to become more assertive at this time it will blow up in your face. You are cranking up the heat on a situation that is already too hot.
Same as trying to become more spiritual under a Neptune influence. You are already too deluded. If you try to become more spiritual you just end up in white robes with a dick in your mouth. You could even go insane.
I’ve experienced this a lot with dark Pluto transits. I’ll tell myself maybe Pluto is fucking with me because I’m not black enough. This line of thought stems from when I lived in New England. They really hated fire there and yet their houses were always burning down. So I assumed fire was getting revenge on them for not embracing it. But maybe I was wrong & the houses were just burning due to being hundreds of years old or people needing insurance money.
But regardless, this led me to try adding black energy when Pluto got too scary in the hopes this would pacify him. Which always led to disaster. Violence, injuries, being scapegoated & generally ass raped which is Pluto’s signature move. Things got scarier. No matter how much I liked the idea in theory it didn’t work in practice.
Applying opposite energies seems to work better. You can cut down on anger & aggression during Mars transits if you stick to colors like blue and green, while avoiding red hots at all costs. But sometimes this gives me a little bit of FOMO. Sure, I am dodging a bullet but am I also missing a once in a lifetime chance to become a fireman?
I don’t know. Some people think air conditioning is an appropriate response to hot & humid summers while others think it is better to eat chile peppers & bake in the sun to acclimate yourself. Who is right & who is wrong? I worry about this every day.
But one thing is sure. In a crisis, when suffering from heat stroke, AC, shade & water are better than building a bonfire. At least until the immediate threat passes.
So perhaps when assaulted by darkness it is better to go to church & become a saint rather than buy a cauldron.
I’m not sure. I am currently being assaulted by darkness so I will try the “Become a Saint” approach & let you know how it goes. If you don’t hear from me again, you will know it didn’t go well.
