The Rule of Loki: If there's no loop hole, he'll make one.

A year ago I saw a picture of someones tattoo, which was in dedication to Odin, and thought to myself: 'My type of dedication to Loki would probably be a red tee shirt with his name printed across the back.' The laugh I heard said he agreed with my choice.

Earlier this month he reminded me about that statement, so I went online and found tee shirts that were being made in America. After checking the price difference from dollars to pounds, I bought it and went to bed.

I woke up ten minutes later to 'it won't fiiiiit' in my head, and I couldn't rest until I checked for myself. The size chart said it would fit, and I went back to sleep...

'It's not going to fiiiiiit'. 

I checked again, and my chest had somehow grown four inches.  I was getting pretty stressed out over whether or not I'd order the right size, but gave up trying to measure myself- if it didn't fit then fuck it - and went back to bed.

Two days later, the email came in to say it was being dispatched. All seemed in order...then I saw this:

My Name
My Address
My Town
England
My postcode

...I happen to live in Scotland... even more stress. 

And so it continued for weeks, one little thing after another. I even said today at lunch 'It's probably fallen off the plane and into the ocean, or it's ended up in China. I really give up.' 

So you can imagine how happy I was when I opened my front door about an hour ago and there was the parcel in the middle of our door mat (the noise that came out of my mouth wasn't human).

So ta-da! Here it is, what all this trouble and stress has been about (my only complaint is despite it being the smallest size, it's still pretty baggy - ack well):

They're made here!

Update:

Loki's just reminded me of one of my unspoken rules: 

"Unless it has your name on it, DO NOT TOUCH" 

Seemed pretty solid at the time... fuck my life.

MIA

It seems that sometime around about when I got Sigyn her flowers last Friday, I lost my purse. No idea how.

I didn't notice till the Monday when I wanted to head up to the shop for snacks. I seriously tore my room to shreds looking for it. Then I remembered that I worship a certain Trickster...

So I was calling out to him for help and asking, if it was him, to put it back. The longer I spent looking for my purse, the more stressed I was getting. I started to take it out on him, saying stuff like:

"Seriously Loki; God or not, if this was you, I'm really gonna kick your ass! No joke!" 

All that got me was a snicker and a raised eyebrow, 'Oh really?', and he disappeared laughing, leaving me, nearly in tears, to look around my room again.

As you can guess, I didn't find my purse - if I did lose it while outside, there's no hope of me getting it back: it'd get picked up, money taken out of and the rest dumped in the bin...and if it was Loki or one of his kin, then there's no hope of it being returned...ever. 

My gut is still telling me it's somewhere in the house though.

 

I'm also a bit pissed because I had taken £20 out of my bank account earlier that day in case I bought more things for Sigyn that night; and there was about £5 in change too.

But the best part? 

Somehow, I've still got my debit card, ID and bus pass - my 'important cards'. Out of all the ones in my purse, my important ones were left, safe and sound, on my desk. 

I do have the habit of taking out my cards, then putting them into my pockets (rather than back into my purse) after...but I can't remember taking out my ID at all that week, so I've no idea how that one was safe.

The only cards that were left in my purse were one like my Waterstones point card, Library card, Organ Registrar Ticket, etc. I'll have to replace them at some point.

It could have been a lot worse though; I could have lost my debit card along with the purse, and whoever picked it up could have used my card online...or at a ATM, as I've never gotten round to changing my pin from the blindingly easy one it's at now. 

I felt like a bitch a few days later, once I accepted the fact that it was gone for good, over being pretty nasty to Loki; but he's been good natured over it and has been shrugging it off with a small grin. I think he liked the fact I was getting snappy.

Ouch..

I was thinking about preparations for giving Sigyn her May Cup this Friday and remembered I had a wax tart of Sweet Violet (I have a feeling they're one of her favorite flowers) in my candle box; which meant getting rid of the left overs of my last tart in my oil burner.

It was still a bit liquid at the top but I thought I'd manage to get it all down to the kitchen without spilling. Forgot to touch wood.

Spilled it all over my hands and found out rather quickly it was still scalding hot. It also went over the faces of my drawers and splashed on some tights in an open drawer below, and a few drops went onto my carpet.

Luckily I seem to be immune to hot wax so my hands are completely fine; blister and lobster coloured free. 

The wax easily lifted off the wood; but I had to pull what wax I could from my carpet with my fingers and found that using a wad of sandpaper-ish looking stuff lifted most of it out, which I didn't expect. (I wouldn't advise anyone to do this to their own carpets, I'm just a reckless idiot) I'll see how it looks after the next time I hoover.

 I also think I got the wax mostly out of my tights by dousing them in a bath of boiling water then adding cool water so the oil  on the the surface solidified.

At least I now know how not to go about cleaning my oil burner next time...and the best way to de-wax clothes. 

I bet Loki found all this quite amusing; it was basically all done as soon as I got the burner clear of his altar top.

Oh shit

I've just got up from a weird dream (I'm on holiday so I'm having a long lie in, sue me) so I'm getting it down while I still can.

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There was a friend in the dream; he looked familiar and I could point a finger at who it was out of my group of friends in real life, but because my head's still fuzzy, he could have been made up to fill in the gap.
Either way, this friend and I were going to an old man's house as we'd been round to others where the men and women had been (I think, we weren't shown) hurt or killed, and we felt this guy was next.

 A noticeable point was that the dream kept showing our clothing; my friend was dressed in normal clothes (black shirt and black trousers) but I was in a long red knee length top, brown boots and had reddish hair with a braid hanging on one side.

We get to the house and head over to the fireplace where there's a heap of books. The friend sits in a chair and I start sifting through the books; which are on occult, paganism and the Eddas.

There's a sudden sense of panic as me and my friend looked at each other- we feel something coming. I then spot another book that my friend is actually sitting on, so I pull it out. It's a book on Wotan/Odin and the wild hunt.
Next thing, the door's being kicked off the hinges and there was a storm blowing a gale. In the door way is Odin with his staff, helmet, armor and all his shining glory - the whole deal really -even his aura or presence screamed power. I would have been crapping myself at the sight of him just being there on any other day. But...

On instinct, I ran up to him and stood with my arms spread to stop him from getting to my friend - but Odin was huge and I only came up to his waist. He pushed past and made for my friend, who looked unconscious.
I start speaking softly to Odin (there was no way in hell I was going to should at HIM; coming to get my friend or not, he still had my respect as a god), saying things like "Please, Odin. Not him." "Please, leave him alone." "Odin, you can't have him."as I walked in step with him, arms behind my back, like some adviser, or tugged at his sleeve to get his attention.

Finally, when Odin's standing beside my friend, he looks at me and asks "Why do you care so much?"
"Please Odin, I'll do anything. Just leave him be." Calm as you please for standing up to the big boss.
He smiled and there was a twinkle in his good eye (not a good sign) as he leaned down to look at my face. "What would you do for him?"
I said instantly, truthfully (no way in Hell was I going to lie to him) "I'd die for him."
"You'd do that? Why is that then?"
"I'd do anything for him, just like you would do anything for your Loki." That basically jumped out of my mouth, but it must have got through to him.

Odin stood up and look at my friend.  There was another twinkle in his eye, which meant the debt I was going to owe Odin for my friend's life was either going to be hard going or would test my morals. Or sanity.
Odin vanished and my friend woke up and looked at me, but I ignored him and took his watch hand to see the time (in my other dreams, Odin has left little messages or numbers on watches) and saw a count down from 40 secs on the screen. Instantly I ran into another room while my friend went and got somethings.

The dream went on for a little while longer then I got woken up.

---------------------

That's the first dream I've had where Loki hasn't been nearby in some way; but going by the way I was speaking to Odin, what I was saying, as well as the weird clothes I had on...I wonder if I was meant to be 'playing' Loki in some way. Okay, maybe not fully as I knew I was still me, but possibly a little bit.

I'm also wondering what Odin was going to do to my friend; kill him? He wasn't the one who owned the books.
I think maybe, in a way, it was about my friend (in real life) becoming interested in Norse Paganism and in particular, Odin.  It could be that if my friend does do so, Odin will be rough with him... in a bad way.
 Still, I think if that was the case, Odin's backed off for a little bit after my little act of good friendship. But I'll be asking my friend next time I see him if he's been becoming interested in Norse teachings (might as well ask the others too, just in case).

 I'll have to wait and see if I really did pay off the debt in the dream or if that's what he wants me to do for him here in non-dream land...or if he has something else in mind.

Battery Problems

I charged my iPod up about two days ago, and it had about half a battery left last night; but this morning it was completely empty. Normally it can go up to two weeks without needing any charging at all.

This would have been a cause for concern...if I hadn't realized that I had put my iPod on Loki's altar last night before bed - I had even thought about that kind of thing happening last night, and now look!

The power-loss had been happening for a while; phone, iPods or other things draining rapidly - I thought maybe it was their batteries themselves, losing their charge as they got older, but really it's because I've been putting them on Loki's spot before bed. The bastard's been zapping the power from my stuff!
I can probably say it started when I turned the bedside table into his altar and continued to place my phone, etc, there for the mornings (and out of habit I guess)

That's got me thinking about when I leave him food offerings; does he take the 'energy' or something from them? Would leaving batteries lying on his spot be the same as leaving food? Does he actually get anything from that?
.....Na, more likely he enjoys watching me swearing and getting annoyed when I can't get my things to work.

Better remember not to leave my phone on his side of the bed now, in-case it dies and my alarm doesn't go off for college.

But still - iPod batteries, Loki? Seriously?

Hearing things

I've only just woken up properly. A few minutes ago I was dreaming and it came to a part in the dream were my sister and I were looking up a calender, and pointed at the 30th which had been marked as an anniversary (no idea whose, not our parents anyways).

At this point I was almost awake, trying to stay in the dream to see the end when I heard a whistled note beside my bed. I ignored it and it did it again but with a diffident pitch.
I opened my eyes, no one there. I breathed through my nose a few times, to see that it was me. It wasn't.
So now I'm hearing people whistling by my bed - great.

Last week I had heard something as well,  but I didn't type it up.
I was relaxed in bed, trying to drop off when I heard "Mam" (Mum) and lots of little kids giggling. I then heard a man shouting at them for shrieking, which lead to him snarling at them, while they continued to laugh and scream...but I was debating whether that was just me, as it wasn't as prominent as that first word.

I've read before that when we're on the edge of falling asleep or waking up, it is like we're in a relaxed trance like state (or something along those lines) so it's easier to heard, feel or see things - like ghosts, deities, gods.
I don''t know if it was Loki whistling at me, but it feels like something he'd do to get my attention.

It's not just in my sleep though: last night, before bed, I had heard something metallic (like my necklace chain or my charm bracelet) being moved on the altar- just a tinkling sound as it did. I turned round when I heard that, and looked about for something that could have moved them to make the noise.
I got the mental image if Loki sitting on my bed, beside the altar, poking at my/his things, looking completely fascinated. He had shorter hair now, which is quite amusing to me - suits him though.

That's my bit, will try typing other stuff I hear when they happen.

Whoops

I was leaving to go to Mum's youth group on Monday night when I noticed that the wax from my burner had some how spilt onto the cloth and mostly over Loki's picture.
It could have been when I was blowing out the candle, the night before that, and I must have blown the melted wax over the rim, but there is no way that it could have reached that high on his picture. Maybe he doesn't like it, maybe it was something else. Or it really was just me, but I would have noticed it splashing out. I dunno.
Luckily, the glass plate the cloth is wrapped about is equal-sided so I just turned it around so it hid the marks left over. I managed to have to scrap the wax off of the glass and frame of his picture later that night. I guess if it really was him and he really didn't like it, I'll probably know it soon enough (I wouldn't put it past him knocking it off the table or hiding it if it offends him that much).

Bed-time jitters?

Was just reading a post on another blog, where they were talking about feeling their god when they touched them, and another on actually seeing them.

I had sat back for a sec, just thinking about what I read, when I then got this huge lurching feeling in my back.

Keeping in mind that I was sitting upright, it felt like something was pushing inwards, and my throat started gagging because of it, which was then making me feel sick to top it off.
It pulled back and did it again a few more times before it stopped.

It wasn't just one spot on my back; it pushing on my entire back, plus my neck and head, all at once.
It then stopped and I sat still for a minute or two going 'WTF was that?' before typing this up - dunno, just felt like I had to get it down, it was just weird.

And as I'm typing this, I've got this blocked humming sound in my left ear too.

I'm off to sleep now - fuck me, I've had a weird day.

Update - 11/9/11
I still wasn't feeling all that safe when I was in bed, so I ended up drawing Algiz on my forehead and above my bed for protection and assistance. Slept like a baby after that.