Take a Bough!

Ahhh...
I've just sit down to a well-deserved lunch break (yes, I know it's 4:37pm, but that's what happens when you sleep in until noon thirty). With my turkey and tomato on gluten-free bread with olive oil mayo and honey mustard (just enough to moisten the bread), pickle, and IBC Root Beer, I got the urge to change the tone from my previous post. Btw, every time I have pickles with soda (not that it's very often at all), I always think of that scene in Bad Boys with Martin Lawrence and Tia Lioni - "Do you know how much salt is in that?" Yes, Tia, I do.

Since the word of the day seems to be a favorite (of mine, too), I shall use yesterday's and today's words.
bough [bou] -noun : a branch of a tree, especially one of the larger or main branches.

I thought this appropriately seasonal. But the range of pictures that came up was so vastly different, that I've decided to give a smorgasbord of examples.

 The artsy version. This one is called "Crimson Bough". I just enjoyed the simplicity of it, and I'm a sucker for pretty color combinations. Actually, I probably gravitated towards it because a friend of mine recently introduced me to this thing called "Canvas & Cocktails". And there's a million of 'em out there - "Sippin' N' Paintin'", "Canvas & Corkscrews", "Paint and Sip", "Sip 'N Paint"... I think you get the idea. Basically, for two hours you get a lesson on how to paint a particular painting (you choose the day and painting), have a drink (wine or cocktail), and then take the painting home! Kinda cool, huh?

 Wow, right? Totally out of left field, but it's called "The Golden Bough". I just thought it was lovely and empowering, especially after having a long and involved conversation at work about how a female therapist (massage or otherwise) should never feel like a victim in a session. But instead of blabbering on about what _I_ think, I'd rather ask - how do you feel about this "bough"?
It, of course, is not to be confused with...

 Is is bad that I've never heard of this? I'm poking around on Amazon to get a better idea of what it is, and all I can glean is a lost classic, and an exploration of magic and religion. Huh... sounds like something I'll have to read! Any of my readers privy to this book? I'd love to know your impressions!

 Just to stick to our nature theme - this one is "porcupine in bough". Really?! Where? Do they normally climb trees? Maybe he got stuck like a cat! HA! No one's gonna catch him, though...

 The "Political Bough"... this one I'm gonna have to look up. History has never been a strong subject for me. Math, English, Science (which, in my opinion, is the art of using English and Math to formulate questions and attempt to answer them), no problem. In fact, I'd have to say my ultimate strength has always been psychology of some form, which is the logical progression of a singular mind. History draws from too many sources for me to trust the information, and I just figure- what's the point? Well... unfortunately, a grade :-P
And last, but not least...

 The Holiday Bough. Yes, I say "holiday". I prefer celebrating the Yule tide, myself. My step-siblings celebrate Hanukkah while the rest of my family celebrates Christmas, but the truth is, my interest lies in the seasons and the phases of the moon. Yes, there is even a history behind  each aspect of our Yule traditions, but you'll notice how we give ourselves the liberty to incorporate such information or not as we choose. But, perhaps when it comes to our convictions, taking a quick peek back at how it became accepted is worth the consideration, variations on the history and all.
Well, that's as deep as I'll go tonight. Word #2!

adytum [ad-i-tuhm] -noun : 1. A sacred place that the public is forbidden to enter; an inner shrine.
2. The most sacred or reserved part of any place of worship.

Ha! So much for not getting any more serious. Before I could even get to the pictures, this link caught my eye, Builders of the Adytum, which "disseminates the Ageless Wisdom of Sacred Tarot". Sacred Tarot? To the common American mind, Tarot is mystic crap. How is it that there is an entire school dedicated to unite people using a "sacred tarot"? Wild...
Ok, moving on...

It's so interesting that a faith would choose other symbolic beings, such as depicted on these cards, to epitomize the tides of a human life. In choosing characters, writers will also sometimes use the personas in tarot, though I don't know many fellow students that know anything about tarot cards.

This was found as part of BOTA's website. I've seen this diagram before, but I never thought to equate it to the "Builders of the Adytum [who] offer its members a correspondence curriculum based on the Sacred Tarot and Holy Qabalah, the object of which is the self-transmutation of the aspirant's personality". Something about this just rubs me the wrong way. Does anyone know more about this?
I guess I just prefer to transform organically - by myself, for myself, with myself.

This one just reminds me of "Farscape" for some odd reason. Ok, that's all the brain power I've got for today.
But before I go, a simple reflection- #23:
In order of importance, how would you rank: happiness, money, love, health, fame?
Originally it was: Love, Happiness, money, health, fame
Because after my ordeal, I was thinking that as long as I have money, I could buy my health - HA!
However, I think I prefer: Love, Happiness, Health, Money, Fame

One of the many reasons I will probably never live in L.A.
Cheers, y'all!
*~K~*