The tradition of Donegal fiddle is populated with giants, including the hidden ones who kept the tradition alive at any given time over the past century or so. At the turn of the last millennium, it could be argued that the patriarchs of Donegal fiddle were the Campbell brothers, Jimmy and Vincent. They related to […]
A Jill Tracy Retrospective: Music for things that go bump in the night
My wife and I have probably had more sex listening to Jill Tracy’s music than anyone else’s. Through her piano, she’s been the other woman in the bedroom, and Paul Mercer, her sometimes collaborator – the other man through his haunting violin. They keep to their corner across the room, providing the soundtrack to that […]
The pagan customs of Imbolc: A look at the Irish and their Brigid, both goddess and saint
Imbolc is a perfect example of how holidays, along with gods and goddesses evolve over time. Last year, 2023, St. Brigid’s Day was made a national holiday in Ireland. That the holiday likely originated in the veneration of a pagan goddess, also named Brigid is lost on no one. But naming the holiday after St. […]
A new beginning: Imbolc in the witch’s garden
Imbolc was the time in the Irish calendar when you’re hoping the sheep do what sheep do best, and that there are little lambs gestating in woolly bellies. It’s a time for celebration, for spring has begun in the pagan world, and it’s time to start working with nature to ensure the harvest. Because that […]
Ballygally Castle Hotel: The knock at the door isn’t room service, and a last dash across northern Ireland to home
It’s been almost 25 years since I visited the haunted Ballygally Castle Hotel, in Ballygally, Northern Ireland. Often named when listing the most haunted sites in the north, and occasionally at the top of the list, I can vouch for that I think. I experienced the most reported aspect of the haunting, though it had […]
Rattling the Bones: Digging into the psyche for ancestral memories of Brigid on Imbolc
We put the F in JFK I didn’t have to go very far back to find the name Fitzgerald in my family closet. It’s Irish, I knew that. Luckily, Fitzgerald is one of those families which has been extensively traced. We put the F in John F. Kennedy after all. The Fitzgeralds story started with […]
Season of the Witch: Exploring the folklore, facts and fiction of witchcraft through the ages
Season of the Witch: Featured Articles on Witchcraft
A search for my ancestors’ beliefs about witches and witchcraft in the witch hunts of county Kent, England
Elizabeth Anna Halke married John Bull II on October 30, 1620 in Brabourne, county of Kent, England. John was twenty years old, Elizabeth was a few days shy of sixteen. They were eight generations of my grandparents ago. Elizabeth was a popular name at the time. Our Elizabeth was named after her mother, and it turns […]
