All Life, All Things, All Knowing

 Truth lies translated                                     

 on watery shadows where a tree                    

 standing still is seen to shimmer with            

all life ripples   all life ripples

                              sent evenly through each 

                             branch become leaves and 

the blue beyond   the blue beyond

 is translucent enough to reveal                      

 the wet web that exists behind                      

the skin of all things   the skin of all things

                                 can be entered and re- 

                               shaped as we transform 

this living mirror   this living mirror

 is deep as the sky yet we                              

 can measure down to                                   

the muddy peaks   the muddy peaks

                      harbor aquifers equivalent that 

                        transport wellsprings seeping 

around the world   around the world

 this looking glass is                                      

 a raindrop flowing into                                  

my all knowing eye   my all knowing eye

                                 transmutes this into a 

                                 tear that shines across 

                                        my face and yours 

Peace Within, Peace Without, Batch 2

Sometimes, we just need to relax. But we're not always in an atmosphere conducive to relaxation, one where we are inherently comfortable, where things are relatively quiet and still, where we have privacy and control over our space. In public areas or crowded private spaces, or when we've chosen to strand ourselves at a festival or somewhere far from home in strange physical or mental regions, it is sometimes necessary to create a personal atmosphere inside ourselves, and then use our inner atmosphere to affect or reconcile what is outside. And occasionally, even when what is around us is all in line and we should be able to settle down, we just can't for some internal reason. We're stressed out, anxious, and can't connect with what's happening around us. We need a little push to set the balance right again. I make a tincture called “Peace Within, Peace Without”, that puts a comforting weight on me, that causes me to pause, and helps me achieve balance within, so that I can find that balance without. I like it very much, and the process by which I created it is interesting as well.

In many ways, it has taken many years for me to quietly discover the ingredients for this brew. Some, including lavender and rosemary, I have liked since I was a young adult and first began to enjoy cooking and drinking tea and smelling things with a more analytical gusto. Lavender has long been touted for its relaxing properties, and I found that I liked herbal teas that included this herb, but it took a while for me to figure why I liked smelling and eating rosemary so much. As it turns out, it helps even out my mood while at the same time lifting me up. The other three ingredients in “Peace Within, Peace Without” were introduced to me by my long-time girlfriend, who has for most of her life looked with an unassuming and practical eye to herbal medicines, a healthy habit impressed upon her by her mother during her youth in Jamaica and reinforced in her young adulthood by the difficulty we have found with obtaining affordable health care. I would watch, skeptical, as she boiled mint or ginger to ease specific ailments or simply to head off an unhealthy feeling. A few years later, ginger has become something I consume daily during most of the year, and now I grow two kinds of mint in my garden for mostly medicinal use. Seeking a gentle way to help stabilize her mood, she sought out remedies at a tea shop, and stumbled upon linden, which has become one of my personal favorites.

 

When I began making herbal tinctures in the fall of 2010, I turned to some of these herbs for a potion that I felt would have vague associations like “Horizontal,” “Rooting,” and “Disintegrating.” My first few blends were very coarse experiments. I had no experience with this kind of thing, and had no real idea of proportion. I didn't measure herbal quantities, and was really just throwing together herbs I thought to have similar effects and pouring vodka over them (It really is that easy to begin making potions, upstart magicians! Care and intention are the most important qualities!). That early tincture contained Cayenne, Rosemary, Linden Flower, Chamomile & Apple Pieces (both from a few tea bags of a Celestial blend), Ginger, and Cinnamon. It was a complicated mix, and its effects were broad and varied, as evidenced by its sigil. The cayenne and cinnamon seemed to pull my body in one direction while the chamomile, linden, and rosemary pulled me in another. I quickly learned to respect the power of the herbs themselves; I was surprised by the potency of my first potions. By repeatedly tasting this tincture, I began to isolate tastes and effects that seemed to come from each. But harmony was wanting, and there was certainly much room for improvement.

Sigil from 'Horizontal'

A year later, I was able to choose and blend Mint, Rosemary, Lavender, Linden (flower & leaf), and Ginger in a balancing cure-all, dubbed “Peace Within, Peace Without.” From the notes to Batch 1: “The mixture of herbs is designed to balance body and mind, with some affecting mostly visceral elements of person [Linden Leaf, Ginger, Mint] and some affecting mostly ephemeral [Linden Flower, Rosemary, Lavender].” This was a great success, and I experimented with the blend as an herbal tea as well.  You can tell from the sigil how orderly and balanced the mixture was this time! 

Sigil from Batch 1

Batch 2 is contains vodka and:

Mint (16g) – I used dried leaves purchased at Nick's International Foods, a Mediterranean shop near my home in Richmond that has a great selection of affordable spices and herbs. This common garden, cooking, and medicinal herb has been used for hundreds of years to calm ailments of the stomach and reduce fevers. It is so gentle on the body and has such a cool, pleasant aroma and taste that it is often used to mask unpleasant flavors in medicines, and a vast amount of foods, beverages, and other products contain mint's essential oil for flavoring purposes.

Rosemary (16g) – I used dried leaves harvested from the learning garden at the Neighborhood Resource Center of Greater Fulton Hill, a community center where I work. I have found that rosemary helps stabilize mood by reducing cerebral anxiety and lifting my spirits. But it has been used for centuries to improve memory, and according to Wikipedia, contains large quantities of anti-oxidants. The free encyclopedia also revealed that rosemary has been used in charms and divination having to do with love, and was said to deter nightmares and witches. Anemic persons should use extracted rosemary with care, as it may interfere with iron absorption.

Lavender (16g) – I used dried flowerbuds purchased from Carytown Teas. Lavender soothes and relaxes my mind. Even the smell reduces my anxiety immediately. Many people make a tea with it to treat headaches and sleeping disorders such as insomnia. It can be used to treat insect bites and burns, though those with sensitive skin may have an adverse reaction to the concentrated extract.

Linden (16g Flower, 4g Leaf) – I purchased the flower from Carytown Teas. The leaf comes from a bag purchased at the same shop last year that contained leaves and flowers still attached to twigs from French trees near where the shop owner was visiting. The bag I most recently bought contains both leaf and flower. The tea shop purported that the flower is a valuable mood stabilizer, especially effective for women. I have found that linden flower helps reduce anxiety and depression. The leaf is an expectorant, and promotes digestive health. Linden is used in herbal treatments that utilize sweating, for some respiratory issues, and occasionally as an anti-spasmodic or sedative.

Ginger (16g) – I used the raw root found in most grocery stores, finely chopped directly before steeping. Ginger may be my favorite ingestable substance. I love its taste and the way it makes me feel. I find that it increases digestion and circulation, and has mild stimulant properties, especially in concentrated forms (tea, tincture). It also seems to reduce some interior pains, such as sore throat or stomach. I use it to help clear and cleanse my sinuses, throat, blood and digestive system, and as an alternative to other stimulants like sugar and caffeine.

On May 29^th, 2012, I placed these ingredients in these quantities in a glass cannister and poured around 800ml of vodka over them.

Dry Mix, before adding vodka

On June 14^th, I filtered and bottled the tincture using my french press and a coffee filter, yielding 725 ml of dark reddish-brown extract.

The brew before filtering on 6/14/12

Filtering: liquid is forced through the french press
and poured through a coffee filter into a beaker

This bottle traveled to the inaugural Free Form Festival and to Transformus 2012, and was well met by friends new and old. I take it out around Richmond-town as well sometimes, and dole it out in my own kitchen, of course.

Batch 2: Bottled with Sigil

Pouring myself a 30ml dose, I am inundated with the soft floral scent of “Peace Within, Peace Without.” it travels through my sinuses up to the top of my head, and I can't help but smile at the familiar effects. Holding the first sip in my mouth, it prickles my tongue to a surprising degree, with a bit of numbness left over after swallowing. The taste (described by some detractors as “shampoo-ey”) is intensely herbal and astringent, leaving the mouth slightly cool from the mint. As I feel the brew start to slowly work its way through my stomach lining, I exhale, feeling by shoulders gain weight. I pick up less of my musculature with each inhalation now, and my head is beginning to hum a bit with rosemary, linden, and lavender. I am more conscious of my surroundings and my movements, and my mind, which was muddled and full of thoughts, worries, and music, is so suddenly clear that I have trouble imagining how I used to think minutes ago. Several sips in, an exhalation sparks a wave of tingly relaxation that starts in my shoulders and throat and sweeps down over my body to my toes. I pause, realizing how tense I have been, recently, even though I was just congratulating myself on my easy state only a half an hour ago. When the breeze comes through my open window, I can feel the hot, damp air interact with the cooler, drier air in my kitchen, creating eddies of interaction that I feel as they are pushed and flattened against my skin. The astringent aftertaste serves to remind me that I still have tincture to drink. So, as goodbye, I tip my cup to you, saying, as I do when preparing people for a first taste: “peace within, peace without!”

Familiar Teeth

There are moments
when our dogs,
bred loyal, dumb and different,
remember what it was
         to be wolf:
         to swallow the moon
         as clever regal one.

The motley pack then awakens,
passing the alarm
through house, yard and street,
horrible wholeness alight again
         in shining eyes,
         whining and scrabbling frantic
         for the fenceless, lonesome wild.

For these moments,
we masters and conquerors
remember being weak, hunted and afraid;
we frown and scold our pets
         with ancient fear,
         knowing innate with what tenuousness
         we temper the bold strength of predators.

Water Ways

From my bald perch,
the woody giant made
small by isolation,

          I saw them rise vaporous
          from deep holes and
          mossy coves in wrinkled earth,

Where, resting damp,
their dark forms had descended
even into my breath.

         They rose steaming
         on sun-strings tugged

         taut by day's bright puppeteer:

Towering sky-bison,
worried by insistent zephyrs
and marching east.

         High and mighty,
         the fractured herd took
         each peak in heavy stride,

While below, in shadows
and footprints, I bathed in
their cast-off cool, collected.

         Later, when I returned
         to my low home on land
         slipping sidelong into the sea,

I welcomed their bleeding bulk,

whipped by wind
'til wet and weeping,

         Welcomed weary travelers,
         fresh from the endless
         expanse of air,

Now content to
set again and soak into
this skin of city soil.

Ember Days

We made our own stars tonight
          and sent them beyond the tops
          of trees, interposing, in the sky's ancient
          melodies, our own garish counterpoint
          until those bold and distant suns
          became as grace notes in a symphony of small fires.

Then, content with our shifting constellations,
          we created a new cosmology
          in mud and ash
          and made our heroes dance
          with demons, writhing like oracles
          through the smoke rings and columns.

Tomorrow, the flaming chariots will crash
          quietly into the fields and valleys,
          and when the moon goes dark
          we will look again to the old stories
          carved stark and shining into the roof of the world.

But this time,
          our young gods will walk with us
          into the shadows of the tried and true
          and out into the clear light of day.

Lady Grey Limoncello

Limoncello is an Italian liqueur produced by extracting the oils of lemon zest in alcohol and adding simple syrup. It has been used in cooking and served chilled as a dessert or after-dinner digestive aid in Italy, where it has been reputedly made for centuries by the people of the Sorrentine Peninsula, south of Naples. I stumbled on recipes for this beverage a few years ago, when I was trying to find a way to use pounds of citrus that would have otherwise gone to waste. My initial experiments with extracting flavorful oils from lemon, orange, and lime peels met with limited success as additives to mixed drinks, but they were too harsh to be used otherwise. My first true limoncellos, where I added simple syrup and sometimes extracted herbs with the lemon zest, impressed me with their complex aromas, beautiful presentation, and nuanced production. So when a friend of mine visited Italy with her family, I asked her to bring me back a sample of the truly Italian stuff for comparison.
 
In the regions of Italy that produce limoncello, each family has their own recipes, which they constantly tweak towards their personal ideas of sweet lemony perfection. They take pride in cultivating and processing lemons, and choose fruit for limoncello processing based on rigorous standards. The flavor of limoncello can also differ based on what kind of grain alcohol is used as a base, how much pith remains with the zest after the skins are processed, how long the zest is set in the alcohol, how much simple syrup is used, and even at what temperatures the alcohol and syrup are combined. You can find a simple recipe and description of limoncello here:

http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/destinations/italy/limoncello.htm

My friend brought me back a small glass bottle (50ml) of limoncello made in Agropoli by Antiche Fattorie Cilentane, which has a web presence here:

http://www.fattoriecilentane.com/eng_index.htm

Their limoncello was incredibly smooth, with a very fine, whitish-yellow color. The sugars seemed to hang like stars in the liquid. Its aroma tickled my nose, and smelled sweetly of divine citrus florals. When I tasted it, the flavor rocketed immediately to my sinuses and head, and the alcohol spread slowly from my syrupy throat down to my stomach and out from there. They listed the alcohol content as 30% on the label, and I only felt a little buzzed after 25 ml, with most of the effect bubbling through my head at a high, sugary velocity.

Antiche Fattorie Cilentane label from the bottle I drank

Since I sampled this true Italian limoncello, I have created several herbal blends of my own. My limoncello tends to be a higher alcohol content than is traditional in Italy, and of course I shove all kinds of other plant matter into the extracting alcohol to get various flavors and effects. Some of my limoncellos, like my Lavender Limoncello and Double Lemon Limoncello, are simple and refreshing tributes to the Italian beverage. But some, like my Medicine Maker Limoncello, are more powerful and complex tinctures designed for specific effects, and are similar in potency to my other magic potions. I made a batch of Lady Grey Limoncello this season, which serves as an example of this more potent variety.

Batch 1 of my Lady Grey Limoncello, made in August-October 2011, served as an important personal milestone for several reasons. It was my first attempt at extracting caffeine, something in which I was interested but was also unsure about. Additionally, I experimented with a kind of sigil that allowed me to create a bright image while still using the beautiful color of limoncello to great effect. I wanted to combine the sweet clarity of limoncello with the citrus florals of Lady Grey Tea blends, which have long been my favorites. Batch 1 was a great success, very pleasant and simulating, with a clear buzz that lasted for hours. My notes stated that “the flavor of [this limoncello] speaks of mind: the tea extract mixes well with the sugar and lemon to give a sustainable, comfortable rush.”

Notes from Batch 1

Batch 2 contains alcohol, sugar, and water, along with:

Lemon Zest (78g)- In making limoncello, it is important to choose lemons that have not been sprayed with pesticides or other surface additives, since the beverage requires the outermost portion of the skins. I shop around for organic lemons, and if I'm lucky and there is more than one variety of these, I choose based on smell and skin quality. The lemons for this batch came from Ellwood Thompson's grocery here in Richmond, VA.

Black Tea (20g)- I took Carytown Tea's advice and used their Keemun black tea, which has a somewhat fruity and piney aroma. Keemun is grown in China and has been the base tea for English Breakfast blends for quite some time.

Orange Zest (17g)- Again, I needed organic oranges because I'm extracting from the skins. Again, these came from Ellwood Thompson's. Lady Grey tea blends usually contain dried citrus peels from oranges and lemons, though the popular Twinings variety uses the more bitter and flavorful Seville oranges.

Lavender (6g)- I used dried flowerbuds purchased from Carytown Teas. Lavender soothes and relaxes my mind. Even the smell reduces my anxiety immediately. Many people make a tea with it to treat headaches and sleeping disorders such as insomnia. It can be used to treat insect bites and burns, though those with sensitive skin may have an adverse reaction to the concentrated extract. Lavender is an optional additive to Lady Grey tea blends.

Lemongrass (6g)- I purchased some dried and chopped leaves from Carytown Teas for this blend.  Lemongrass is popularly used in cooking and drank as an herbal tea.   It is high in antioxidants and is said to be an excellent detoxifier.   Some people use it to treat anxiety or insomnia as well.  Lemongrass is not typically added to Lady Grey blends, but I could not resist its citrus aroma and character.

Bergamot Oil (6 drops)- An essence of Bergamot oranges (grown traditionally in Italy) is used to flavor Earl Grey and Lady Grey tea blends. The essential oil is also used in perfume and massage blends. I found that it certainly added to the Lady Grey character of my limoncello, though the oil did not mix well with the rest of the liquid. It remained as tiny separate drops, and had more effect through the nose than through the mouth.

On May 24^th, I zested the lemons and oranges. When making limoncello, most people try and avoid the pith, the white part of the peel, and try and harvest only the colored, oil-rich part on the outside, known as the zest. Many people I know use a sharp knife to separate the zest from the pith, but I use a carpenter's rasp to scrape off the zest until I meet with the pith. I find that I get more out of each citrus fruit this way, and it is already finely chopped, which aids in the extraction process. I found that citrus has a tendency to remove the oil protecting the rasp.  I don't want just any oil in my beverage, so I washed the machine or tool oil off of the rasp when I first bought it and replaced it with food-grade and taste-neutral safflower oil, which I reapply after each zesting to keep my rasp from rusting. I also find that the zest tends to cling to the rasp blades, and I use a toothbrush to brush the harvested zest into a container for mixing.

Zesting the Lemons

Then, I added the lavender and lemongrass to the orange and lemon zest, poured 500ml of 151 proof grain alcohol over the whole mess and placed the sealed container in a cabinet to soak. I used a higher proof alcohol for this limoncello because I wanted the resultant liquid to be a reasonable alcohol percentage, even after the addition of simple syrup. The resultant limoncello in this case ends up being 45% alcohol by volume. I have my father to thank for this particular insight: he makes a very strong, clear limoncello on occasion that is quite pleasant in the afternoon or evening.

With no skins, my citrus was sure to rot quickly, so I promptly made delicious lemonade that same day!

On June 8^th, I reopened the jar, which was by that point bestowed with a rich reddish-brown hue, and filtered the contents using my french press and a coffee filter. In this way I yielded 400ml of cleanly extracted goodness. I made a quantity of simple syrup by combining equal parts water and sugar in a pot and heating (not boiling) the liquid until the sugar was completely dissolved. Generally, I add simple syrup to my limoncellos in a 2:1 ratio: for every 2 parts alcohol-and-extracted-zest I add 1 part simple syrup. I suspect this ratio adds much less simple syrup than is traditional in Italian limoncello, but I like mine to have more of a kick, and when there are herbals, I like for their effects to be felt strongly as well. But with Lady Grey Limoncello, I use a 3:2 ratio of alcohol-and-extract to simple syrup because the tea extract is very bitter. Thus, I added around 266ml of warm simple syrup to 400ml of room temperature alcohol-and-extract. Finally, I added bergamot oil, drop by drop, until I felt that the aroma and flavor was right, and placed the combined fluid in the refrigerator to chill.

Filtered Limoncello with Simple Syrup Added

Limoncello blends over time, and is generally left to sit for several weeks after simple syrup is added. I find that keeping the brew chilled helps my limoncellos to get to a smoother mixture. And then, when I want to taste some, it is already cold, which is how I like to present my limoncello for tasting anyway. On June 14^th, I placed a label and sigil on the already chilled bottle, knowing that the taste of the brew would continue to mature as I slowly drank or shared the contents of the bottle, keeping it chilled as much as possible. For this style of sigil, I use white out to create shapes on the glass that I can then color with markers. Each color corresponds to an ingredient, but the color of the brew itself lends a special character to the magic of limoncello, so I generally try and feature the color of the liquid as part of the ritual magic on each bottle.

Sigil and Bottle for Batch 2

I took this bottle to the inaugural Free From Festival in New Jersey this past June, shared it at my home in Richmond, VA, and carried it to Transformus in July. I used it sometimes to keep me awake during the long festival nights, and sometimes as a pleasant afternoon beverage for sipping. Most found the flavor impressive in its complexity, and its effects overwhelmingly positive and uplifting. Now, in August, but a finger remains at the bottom of the bottle.

As I pour myself a chilled 30ml dose, I notice how the bottle has become sticky from the brew's sugary residue, and possibly also the bergamot oil. The oil collects in globules near the surface of my liquid, and creates a greenish ring around where the limoncello contacts my serving container. The smell is sweet and citrus-y, and jumps quickly into the sinuses and brain, inducing some pleasant stimulation up there. With the first sip held in my mouth, I can feel the alcohol and tea as distinct sensations, a crowd of gently prodding phenomena on my tongue, gums, and jaw. The liquid feels a bit filmy, and the burn as it goes down comes as a bit of a surprise. After the fluid hits my stomach, I can smell more of the aroma in my nose and sinuses. It is indeed a complicated mixture of citrus, progressing into nuanced lavender and lemongrass notes. The tea flavor lingers in my mouth, seeming to coat my tongue and cheeks with cooling wriggliness. I can already feel the caffeine and sugar working their way into my bloodstream, making me smile and feel a bit lighter, plucked by the top of my brain and lifted bubbling into the aether. Licking my lips, I get strong, sweet notes of lemon and subtly, of orange, not the least of which must be the potent bergamot. Looking into the sigil, I am impressed with its ability to resemble both a face staring, wide-eyed into new light, and its ability to represent a rising sun tempered by pools of darker liquid, dripping into an energetic, citrus core. When I burp, the citrus and sugar rise again to my head, and a buzzing spreads from the topmost point of my skull down around my cranium. I am ready to dance, discuss, run, to engage intelligently and a bit frenetically with the world around me. Minutes after finishing my drink, stimulants are pumping through my system. I find it difficult to stay still, and my vision is finely interwoven with little particles of energetic brightness. This one is certainly here to stay!

The Robin

A Robin sits

        in a rotten tree

                  and sings.

“Where

        will I sleep

                  tonight?”

 “With me!”

        “With me!”

                  the others cry,

And even though it's

        “Who,” not “Where,”

                  he does not care.

“Who” is “How”

        and “Why,” at least,

                  so without

“What”

        or “Where”

                  he must be satisfied.