MOON OF THE TERRIBLE
On New Year’s Day
each thought a loneliness
as winter dusk descends
Desolation at the last moment in the gloaming on New Year’s Day: winter snow with white lavender, benzoin, lychee, white resins, and a cluster of melancholy, lachrymose lunar herbs.
Illustration for Moon of the Terrible by our dear friend, the limitlessly talented Tanya Bjork!
The Moon of the Terrible tee is live at Black Phoenix Trading Post!
++ 11th ANNIVERSARY
Happy 11th birthday to my oldest child, Black Phoenix!
A million, trillion, thanks and gratitude beyond words to all of our friends and customers that have been with us through the last eleven years. You have extended my family a thousand-fold, and I am grateful for every single one of you. Thank you for sharing your lives with us, thank you for your kindness, your support, and your laughter, and thank you for the joy and pleasure I find in your friendship.
With all of my love…
Thank you, Brian, for being the foundation upon which BPAL stands. BPAL would not exist without your wisdom and good counsel, and every moment of my life is enriched by your friendship. You are the best of friends, and there isn’t a day that goes by that I’m not grateful for you, you big lug.
Ted, I love you. You are my soulmate, my light, and my strength. I love you with every part of my soul, and every moment with you – no matter how mundane it may seem – is poetry in my heart.
Thank you, my Lilith, my heart, for being my inspiration. You are my tiny muse, and I love you completely, always and forever.
Thank you, Jacquelynn, for all of your hard work, dedication, and ingenuity. You are amazing beyond words, and I am grateful for you and for everything you do!
Thank you, Lisa, for your wit and wisdom, for your kindness and aid, and for your friendship. You are a saint, and I love you!
Thank you, Piolet, for being an oasis of calm, no matter how crazy things get here! Thank you for your hard work and your strength of character, and thank you for always making me laugh.
Thank you, Will, for your hard work, diligence, and dedication!
Thank you to Sue and Del at Dark Delicacies for everything you do. Thank you for giving a second home to Black Phoenix, and thank you for being the greatest grandparents a little demoness could ask for!
Thank you, Sara, for all the skill, love, joy, and dedication that you invest into every event you help us with! You are a wonderful woman, and I adore you!
Kaitlin, I adore you. You have no idea how truly, truly grateful I am for all of the blood, sweat, and tears that you have invested in working on our new site. You are a beautiful person in every way, in every conceivable sense of the word.
Thank you, Cat, for being the dearest of friends. Thank you for your kind heart, thank you for your compassion, and thank you for always being there for me.
Thank you, Shana, for helping us spread the word! Thank you for your talent, buoyant humor, and infectious enthusiasm! You are a truly good woman, and I’m grateful beyond words. Love you!
Thank you, Forest, for being a true friend. Your noble spirit is an inspiration, and I’m so very thankful for our friendship. I love you, lady!
Thank you to the mods and administrators of bpal.org. I love you guys as much as I love my own blood, and I’m grateful not only for all that you do to run the forum, but for the gift – the blessing – of your friendship. I know you guys know how much I love you, but I’m going to keep repeating it!
Thank you, Em, for always being there to help me with my weird questions and concerns, and for always having my back. I love you.
Thank you to Jen, Lisa, Sue, Greg, Sara, and Tom for making this year’s travelling medicine show possible. Thank you so much for being there for us, and for giving so much of yourselves to the events!
Thank you, Donna, for babysitting BPAL again! You are a lifesaver! I love you!
Thank you, Courtney, for being my New England Sister! Thank you for being such an amazing friend, and thank you for all the passion and love you put into every New England Will Call event!
Huge amounts of love and HUGE amounts of gratitude to Laura Hall and all the wonderful people at Laika studios. Your generosity and kindness is beyond measure.
Thank you to Thomas, Melissa, and Chandra (and Thomas Jr!) at Century Guild. You are wonderful people, and I love you!
Thank you to Neil Gaiman, Amanda Palmer, Peter S. Beagle, Terry Pratchett, Terry Moore, Mike and Christine Mignola, George Perez, Peter David, Molly Crabapple, Mark Waid, Thomas Negovan, Storm Constantine, Matt Wagner, Jim Henson Productions, Brian Pulido, Joseph Michael Linsner, Eva Hopkins, Gris Grimly, George RR Martin, Clive Barker, Mark Miller, David Mack, Gail Potocki, Erin Morgenstern, and Ysanne Spevak for giving Black Phoenix the opportunity to interpret your work.
Thank you, Carolyn Hennesy, for being a wonderful friend and a constant joy. Your stories are wonderful and your talent is boundless!
Thank you, Tom, for everything you do to help us while we’re on the road, and thank you for doing all you can to integrate Black Phoenix into your work. I love you, and I’m grateful for our friendship!
Thank you to the noble souls at the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund and the Hero Initiative. You are an inspiration.
Thank you, Charles, for being an inspiration and a true friend. When is our next trip to NOLA?!
Much thanks to Peter S. Beagle and Connor Cochran for their friendship. You bring so much joy to so many people!
Love and thanks to the artists that have lent us their talent: Adam Hughes, Alicia Dabney, Julie Dillon, Madame Talbot, Quique Alcatena, Jennifer Rodgers, Manda Lander, Keri Newton, Nick Pavik, Tanya Bjork, Andrew Fogel, Brian Kessinger, Abigail Larson, Aidan Casserly, and Sarah Coleman!
Love and thanks to Century Guild, the Mütter Museum, Heretic Salon, Whole Foods, Pretty Indulgent, Healthy Living, and Dark Delicacies for giving our products a home in your stores!
Love and thanks to the bloggers, journalists, magazines, and other media outlets that taken the time to write about Black Phoenix. Honestly, I cannot thank you enough.
And lastly, I’d like to thank the skekSi’s of Thra for their support, friendship, wise counsel, and fashion tips.
The world is a better place because you all are in it.
What I’ve said before, I’ll say again:
Thank you for sharing our joy and for standing with us during difficult times. The family that has grown around BPAL is like no other in the world. Every time I wander into the forum, I see people supporting one another in times of need, showing selfless kindness and offering support to one another… to me, you all are models of emotional generosity and true friendship, and it is truly an honor to be a part of your lives. I cannot express my gratitude enough. Thank you for celebrating the beauty of living with us, and for holding our hands during times of stress and sorrow. This year has been turbulent for just about everyone we know. It’s been a hard year filled with challenges and hidden lessons, but none of it is insurmountable because we all have this tremendous, genuinely loving family. Thank you.
THANK YOU!
And without further ado, the Anniversary scents!
Visions of the Phoenix throughout history.
Fenix Arabie avis dicta quod colorem feniceum
habeat, vel quod sit in toto orbe singularis et
unica. Hec quingentos ultra annos vivens, dum
se viderit senuisse, collectis aromatum virgultis, ro
gum sibi instruit, et conversa ad radium solis alarum
plausu voluntarium sibi incendium nutrit, seque urit.
In other gnus…
Our west coast full moon event is this Sunday at Dark Delicacies, 4pm til 7pm. We’re hosting our annual food and toy drives at this shindig /and/ at our December will call. Double the freebies and double the aid!
This year’s charity drive scents are inspired by Pieter Bruegel the Elder —
For every $10 in food that you donate, you will receive a 5ml bottle of
THE HARVESTERS
Pear trees, boiled oats, and wine beside a ripe field of wheat waving under a late-summer sun.
For every toy valued at $10 or more that you bring, you will receive a 5ml bottle of
HUNTERS IN THE SNOW
The scent of a calm, grey winter’s day: bare trees and cooking fires, thick blankets of snow, and icy, frozen rivers.
We are offering these oils while supplies last, and cannot guarantee that any Will Call location will be able to fulfill all donation exchanges. We’ll do our best! Food donations made at our Los Angeles will call will support the Burbank Temporary Aid Center, and the toys will be donated to the Los Angeles location will be given to Spark of Love, the Los Angeles County Fire Department’s toy collection campaign.
The west coast will call event will be held on Sunday, November 17th from 4 to 7pm at Dark Delicacies.
Dark Delicacies
3512 W. Magnolia Blvd
(1 block east of Hollywood Way)
Burbank, CA 91505
www.darkdel.com
New England will call will be hosting their food & toy drive at their will call in December!
Visit the BPAL site on Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, or Cyber Monday…
PROGRESSUS
Make a purchase at Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab on Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, or Cyber Monday, and receive a free imp of PROGRESSUS: a blend of Solar oils believed to generate abundance, augment success, and bestow good fortune, including golden amber, honey laurel, heliotrope, saffron, and Atlas cedar.
Up next, Yuletide and Krampusnacht. Have you been naughty or nice?