July Workshops *SNEAK PEEK*

Herbalism 101 (Maery)
Friday July 4th 6-8pm $30

Introduction to Rune Magic (Matt)
Sunday July 13th 1-3pm $30
Most people know the Norse Runes as a powerful system of divination. Our Nordic forebears also used the runes for several other purposes; as charms, wards, and 'spells' on one hand, and as powerful keys to unlocking the secrets of the mysteries on the other. In this workshop we will be focussing on the many uses of the Elder Futhark as a system of divination, magick, and initiatory wisdom into the mysteries of the Nordic world tree.

Tools, Altars and Shrines in the Craft (Scarlet)
Monday July 14th 7-9pm $30
Discover and understand the different tolls used in the Craft and how to design your own altar and shrine. Learn the functional difference between an altar and a shrine.

BOOK LAUNCH (Greg Stroll)
Thursday July 17th 7-9pm
"In the Heart of Fear One Forgets One's Self "
ISBN - 9781435717916
Love, which is life's greatest weapon, life's greatest tool, inspired me to do the biggest thing I've ever done. I wrote this book as a token of appreciation for a sick friend who was more than just someone I loved. Either diabetes will take her or the efforts of the people who fight diabetes around the world will see fruition in time. Here is my contribution and best effort to see a cure happen. My name is Greg and I've been fighting my own war for years, only my enemy isn't a person: it's schizophrenia. During my first psychotic episode I undertook this project and I give you my thoughts, my paranoia, my insanity from my own perspective, with my own words. Join me in the heart of fear where I forgot who I was. (100% of my profits will be going to the Canadian Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation)

Public Full Moon Esbat (BFC)
Friday July 18th 7pm FREE

BOOK LAUNCH (Brendan Myers)
Saturday July 19th 1pm
"The Other Side of Virtue: Where Our Virtues Come From, What They Really Mean, and Where They Might Be Taking Us"
ISBN: 9781846941153
Using ancient heroic epics and sagas like Beowulf, the Illiad and Odyssey, the Eddas, the Tain Bo Cuailnge, and literature inspired by them including the works of the Renaissance and Romanticism, Shakespeare, Tolkien, and J.K. Rowling, this book explains the world-view that gave birth to our virtues. In that world-view, life involves inevitable confrontations with inexplicable events like fortune, nature, other people, and death itself.

BOOK LAUNCH (Mark Mackay & Rob St.Martin)
Sunday July 20th 2pm
"Misspelled"
ISBN: 0756404754
Strange magic... in 17 Fascinating tales of spells gone awry. When it comes to magic, skipping the directions, changing the ingredients, or garbling the words of a spell can lead to unusual consequences-sometimes dire, sometimes comical. Included in these stories are just a few of the possible results: a cybermancer has her spell disk corrupted by some unexpected input; two students brewing up spells outside the curriculum forgo a critical ingredient; a young woman orders a fairy-tale life, but forgets to read the fine print. Now they're really spellbound...

"Truthseekers: Welcome to Blackriver"
ISBN: 0977100545
Moving to a small town from the big city is a challenge that can be hard enough for anyone. It's even harder for a teenage girl, leaving behind her friends, her school, her mall, her social life. After her parents are brutally murdered and fifteen-year-old Ashley Bennett is sent to the small town of Blackriver, Ontario to live with her only relative, her cousin Mark - a teacher at her new school! - she thinks her life can't possibly get any worse. But Ashley has no idea that the real challenges have only just begun. Not only is she faced with the normal teen experiences of making new friends, going to a new school, and adjusting to her new life, she's about to discover a whole hidden world that is both dark and strange. She's about to discover that her parents' deaths were anything but random, and that she herself might be in danger. Ancient conspiracies . secret societies . ghosts . vampires . cattle mutilations and cults . witches . mysterious disappearances . this eerily normal-seeming little town has it all, and Ashley ends up smack in the middle of it whether she wants to be or not. Now, to protect herself and her friends, Ashley must seek the truth . the truth behind the TRUTHSEEKERS Truthseekers: Welcome to Blackriver is a collection of short interconnected stories about the strange adventures of Ashley and her new friends as they explore the secrets behind the town of Blackriver, Ontario.

Introduction to Tarot Archetypes (Scarlet)
Monday July 21st 7-9pm $30

Exploring the Elements of the Craft (Scarlet)
Friday July 25th 7-9pm $30
Earth, Air, Fire, Water! These are the base elemnts of magical practice. Come explore them through your senses, discover correspondances, and experience them through sound and movement.

SUNDAY SABBAT SALE
July 27th 10% off everything!
Happy Lammas!

Kaleidascope Gathering Festival
July 30 through August 4th
Fairies and Elves and Gnomes! Oh my! is our theme this year. We will once again be holding fest at Whispering Pines a private campground that is being closed for our use. This amazing site has a great beach, in ground pool, drive up campsites that are level and rock free. There is no bathing in the lake but there are two showers. We must respect the wishes of the owners of the campground as they live onsite. Admittance to the site is on Wednesday (if you come earlier, then be sure to register at the Whispering Pines office) and remember to register for the Kaleidoscope Gathering at our registration tent. Also, there are no pets, except seeing eye dogs.


Tentative August Peek

• Intermediate Tarot (card cobinations)
• Spellcrafting 101
• Cristopher Penczak - Psychic Self Defense
• Eight Paths of Magic
• Designing Rituals
• Stone Lore
• Public Esbat (BFC)
• Advanced Tarot I (spreads & Intuition)
• Intro to Paganism
• Movers & Shakers of the Craft (Historical figures who made a difference)
• CMS Open House

A Word from Our Local Montreal Pagan Community Centre

MPRC: History, Status, and Request

Greetings!

Did you know that the Montreal Pagan Resource Centre will be seven years old this August? Seven years of service to the Montreal pagan community... if you been around any pagan community for awhile, seven years of continuity is practically unheard of.

I've been a volunteer with the MPRC for most of these seven years. There have been peaks and valleys in working with the MPRC, but overall I have to say it has been quite satisfying.

I'll be honest with you though, when I come in for my shift on Thursday nights, it's mostly quiet. But then someone will come into the MPRC with a question, a request, or simply to talk to someone who understands this pagan mindset. It's those nights that keep me coming back.

But this is part of what pagans are: since we don't proselytize, we have to wait until people seek us out. This is why the MPRC is so important in our community, to both pagans and non-pagans: we offer a neutral, safe environment where people can get information and explore their own spirituality with other like-minded folks.

Right now, the MPRC is going through a bit of a lull in terms of volunteers. We only have four volunteers and we need more to keep the MPRC open and available to the public. If we can't get enough volunteers to keep the MPRC open for more that 50% of the time, we may lose the use of our space in Melange Maqique.

Volunteering your time with the MPRC is rewarding. In addition to being a resource to our community, you have:

* access to our library of donated books (many rare and out-of-print
editions)
* access to the Internet from the MPRC computer
* access to local pagan network of contacts
* a 10% discount with Melange Magique (this is NEW!)
* a quiet, pleasant space to work, study, and read

If you would be interested in volunteering, please contact me (jdhobbes (at) yahoo.ca) or Karyn (I will post her email address soon). Our volunteer coordinator will contact you to arrange a meeting with you to discuss the possibilities. Volunteering is completely flexible; you have complete control over how much time you can donate to the MPRC.

Please help us to continue keeping the MPRC alive and well.

--
Hobbes
President

Montreal Pagan Resource Centre
http://www.paganuniverse.com/mprc/

Just Arrived!

We are in the process of putting out the new stock! Come check it out!

We now have cauldrons (5 different styles), goddess statues, musical instruments for those summer times around the campfires and at festicals (drums, rattles, rainsticks, flutes and more), lovely soapstone bozes, a fresh supply of gemstones, new altar cloths, wishing pyramids, and MORE!

It is sure to sell very fast!

We will be at 2 camping festivals this summer where you can also find these new items:

- ECHOES Magical Music Festival
- Kaleidascope Gathering Pagan Festival

Arriving This Month!

New and exciting products will be arriving over the coming weeks. Here is a sneak peak!!

Pendulum Talking Boards

http://www.themagicalblend.com/~magic/cgi-bin/cart.cgi/PENDULUMBRD1.html

http://www.themagicalblend.com/~magic/cgi-bin/cart.cgi/PENDULUMBRD2.html

http://www.themagicalblend.com/~magic/cgi-bin/cart.cgi/PENDULUMBRD3.html

http://www.themagicalblend.com/~magic/cgi-bin/cart.cgi/PENDULUMBRD4.html

Gemstones Galore

Howlite, hematite, quartz, amethyst, rose quartz, carnelian, malachite, lapis lazuli, and more

Drums & Singing Bowls, Pan Pipes & Rainsticks

Coventry Creation Candles

Candles and candle spellkits

Pyramid Gift Boxes & Prisms

In all kinds of COLOURS!

VooDoo Babies

Soapstone Gift Boxes
Lovely carved soapstone boxes in all sorts of shapes.

Erin Betony Sage Bundles
Hand rolled and tied by a shaman who will be visiting us in the fall to teach people how to tie their very own sage bundles!

Morters & Pestles and Cauldrons

http://www.themagicalblend.com/~magic/cgi-bin/cart.cgi/HERB000005.html
http://www.themagicalblend.com/~magic/cgi-bin/cart.cgi/CAULDRON01.html

Goddess Statues

... and even more!

Noir et Rouge

DOING SOMETHING FUN & OUT OF THE ORDINARY!

Le Melange Magique (The Magical Blend) will be assisting with the Noir et Rouge Roller Derby Tournament. Among the current and former staff of the store attending are: Robyn and Scarlet (scoring officials), Maery (smash squad), Eri (cheerleading). This weekend on June 14th at 7:00pm is a game with local team, Les Contrabanditas, and a visiting team, The Hamilton Harlots. TICKETS ON SALE HERE!

WHEN: June 14th

TIME: 7:00pm

WHERE: 5633 St-Dominique

TICKETS: $10 at the store and $15 at the door

Come get your tickets NOW at The Magical Blend (1928 St-Catherine West) 514-938-1458.

What is Montreal Roller Derby?

Flat Track Roller Women's Roller Derby is a women's indoor sport where they are all on quad (4-wheel) roller skates.

Founded in spring 2006 by our own Georgia W Tush with only a handful of hardcore derby girls, MTL Roller Derby (MTLRDL) has quickly grown into three teams of warrior women on wheels and it hasn't gone unnoticed either! Montreal's three local teams include Les Contrabanditas, La Racaille, and Les Fille du Roi and the one all star travel team is New Skids on the Block.

Its growth has been a favourite topic with local press, and the travel team was undefeated in 2007, leading MTLRDL to many more games in 2008. MTLRD currently trains at the Roulatheque, located in the Recreatheque in Laval.

Can anyone spot local the local Pagan? She is in there!

If you are wondering about the guys in the photo, they are referees, skate technicians, and coaches.

Fore more information: http://www.mtlrollerderby.com/

Midsummer is just around the corner!

It seems like summer took its sweet time in getting here, and now its suddenly hitting us with a vengeance. Personally, while I love the warmer weather, I could certainly do with a little more RAIN! Here is a little quick spell we can all do to encourage the clouds to open up a little and bring us some lovely rain-showers to cool things down:

You can gather some heather, fern and broom tops to burn outdoors, just a pinch of each will do. As they burn, imagine the clouds gently swelling with nice cool rain. If
you have a rain stick, hold it aloft and let it shake and listen to the soft pattering, imagining it is the sound of the rain all around you. If you don't have a rain stick, simply imagine the sound surrounding you, the feel of it cool and refreshing on your skin. If you have a rain song or chant, go ahead and sing it out! If not, feel free to make one up. Just please bear in mind, when working with weather magic it is best to do it GENTLY, and not very often.

Don't forget! This sunday, June 15th, is our Midsummer Sabbat Sale! All regularly priced items in store will be 10% off. This offer extends to all our online friends too! When you order this sunday, you will also receive 10% off any orders you make.

As an added bonus, all our children's coloring books and kits will remain on special at 10% off as a nice summer treat for all the young pagans out there, at least until after Midsummer.

New Books of Interest

We just received a bunch of new books. So many of this bunch look amazing. Here is the list of books and some small reviews:

The New Complete Book of Tarot: A step by step guide to reading the cards
By: Juliet Sharman-Burke
Cost: $17.95 ISBN: 031236346x
This is the newly revised training book in tarot. Sharman-Burke has grouped the study of the tarot into 6 or 7 major arcana and a group of minor arcana for each section of study to help spread out the learning. She addresses numerology in relation to the cards, details some of the esoteric symbols and their meanings, and provides you with some idead for clear understanding of the cards. At the end of each section, she has provided interesting and inspiring exercises full of insightful questions anyone should be considering. At the end of the book she gives you a few journal pages to get you started on keeping a tarot reading journal. This book contains the illustrations from Sharman-Caselli deck which is just a stunning and easy to read tarot deck. This book accompanies the deck in the box set. However, we just received the book alone at the store. A worth-while purchase for anyone starting out or revisiting their tarot decks and leaning to read the cards.

Magic That Works: Practical Training for the Children of Light
By: Frances Harrison & Nineveh Shadrach
Cost: $29.95 ISBN: 097359321
At first glance, you would think this is a beginners guide for solitary wiccan practice. Then you are surprised by the hebrew language, the angelic references and the other esoteric material. I certainly was. With some further research I realized this was a book about Middle Eastern and Eastern Magic. It was written for those interested in solitary practice of the Magic Society of the White Flame. You need not specifically be interested in that group to benefit from this book. It draws from Indian, Araibic, Judaic, Lebonese, Indonesian, and many other cultural backgrounds. This book teaches you about Jinns and Angels, different kinds of magical tree systems, rituals, elemntal magic, and planetary magic. While it says it is a book for the beginner, I would consider it more for the intermediate practictioner.

Faith and Magic in the Armed Forces: A Handbook for Pagans in the Military
By: Stefanie Barner
Cost: $18.50 ISBN: 9780738711942
It is about time we see a book of this nature! Military Pagans face very different issues than the average civilian. Their faith is challenged every day as they are moved over and over, deployed overseas, preparing for or actually in combat situations, coming home as veterans, dealing with comrades who have fallen in the field, and widowed families. There are other challenges to the faith of Military Pagans. These are legal issues, religious rights and freedoms issues and more. This book addresses them all. It is divided into sections based on the Witch's Pyramid: To Know, To Will, To Dare, To Keep Silent. In the To Know section, the author addresses isues that anyone considering getting into the military ought to consider (options, rights, training and survival basics), as well as questions to ask superiors. It advises military pagans on what to bring when they are deployed and what they need for survival and spirituality. In the To Will section, tha authro addresses the issues of standing up for what you belive in, the role os service and sacrifice, the willingness to kill and how to congure peace in a culture of war. In the To Dare section, the author raises the issues of courage and daring to deploy, dealing with separation from family and facing confronting danger. The chapter on separation is also helpful for the family that is left behind as it provides discussion and meditations to help them cope, too. In the last section on To Keep Silent, the author explores the issues of coming home. This includes what can be expressed and what cannot, and sometimes the problem of not being able to express what needs to be. The book contains interesting case history stories caller Pagan Perspective written by people in different situations and how they handled them. It also contains prayers, hymns, protections spells, divination techniques, meditations and rituals. How can I possibly recommend this book more? It is amazing! One of the better Llewellyn publications this year!

WITCH SCHOOL SERIES
First Degree, Second Degree, Third Degree, and Ritual Theory & Practice
By: Rev. Donald Lewis-HighCorrell
Costs: $22.95 - $34.95
These four books are the training manuals for the Wtch School. They are of the Correllian Tradition. More information about this tradition can be found here: http://www.correllian.com/
These books help the student move through the degrees and understand the tradition, as well as master Wiccan practice within this tradition's framework. The books are good for anyone wishing to study this and are especially beneficial to students registering in the Correllian Wtch School: http://www.witchschool.com/main.asp

Seanachai: Modern Celtic Fairy Stories
By: Janet Farrar & Gavin Bone
Cost: $25.00 DVD Private Production
When staff of Melange Magique were at Gaia Gathering Conference, we had the pleasure of sharing time and space with Brendan Myers, a good friend of Janet Farrar and Gavin Bone. He provided us with only 6 copies of this limited DVD of Janet Farrar telling Celtic Fairy Stories. All copies are also signed by her!!

We have authors coming in July and August!

We've arranged a very exciting line up of book signings and author-run workshops this summer!

It all kicks off with Greg Stroll on Thursday, July 17th at 7pm. Greg will be doing a reading from his new book "In The Heart Of Fear, One Forgets One's Self " in which he discusses the reality of an illness he lives with daily: Schizophrenia. He will be available for book signings, as well as to answer any questions that you may have about Schizophrenia, and what its like to live through a psychotic episode. All proceeds from this event are to benefit Ami Quebec, and the Canadian Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

On Saturday, July 19th at 1pm we will have a reading and workshop from Brendan Myers, from his new book "The Other Side of Virtue: Where Our Virtues Come From, What They Really Mean, and Where They Might Be Taking Us". Using ancient heroic epics and sagas like Beowulf, the Illiad and Odyssey, the Eddas, the Tain Bo Cuailnge, and literature inspired by them including the works of the Renaissance and Romanticism, Shakespeare, Tolkien, and J.K. Rowling, this book explains the world-view that gave birth to our virtues. In that world-view, life involves inevitable confrontations with inexplicable events like fortune, nature, other people, and death itself. The Workshop will be based on the ideas in the book, a Q & A session, and of course a chance to get signed copies!

On Sunday, July 20th at 2pm, we will have local authors Rob St. Martin & Mark Mackay who will be reading from stories in the new anthology "Misspelled", as well as signing copies. When it comes to magic, skipping the directions, changing the ingredients, or garbling the words of a spell can lead to unusual consequences--sometimes dire, sometimes comical. This collection includes 17 tales by such authors as Kristine Smith, John Zakour, Jim C. Hines, and others.

And don't forget to join us on Friday, August 8th at 7pm when Christopher Penczak will be teaching an exciting new workshop: "The Witch's Shield: Protection Magick and Psychic Self-Defense": Explore the techniques of psychic self defense. Learn how to protect and balance yourself and home. Discuss potential psychic dangers, drains and trauma from other people, your environment, and yourself. Understand how to counteract these dangers and create new healthy habits. Learn about protection shields, guardian spirits, protective crystals, herbs and energy cleansing techniques to create a balanced, sacred environment. We ask that you sign up in advance. This workshop costs $30. For more information about what Christopher is up to, visit http://www.christopherpenczak.com/ !