Randomosity

Summer deadlines have me pinned firmly under the bootheels of doom at the moment. And so I present Things of Interest (to Me):

The Soldier in Later Medieval England: A database that tracks the careers and records of medieval soldiers; deployment, illnesses, military ranks, etc. Honestly, it just fascinates me that these records are still intact. But perhaps that's my American side showing; we tend to assume a certain degree of impermanence to these things. I mean, we tear down perfectly good buildings and build new ones at the drop of a hat, and these people have preserved military records since the 1300s? Dang.

BBC News is continuing to investigate the place and plight of Roma in Europe. Recent interesting offerings include Centuries of Roma History, Russian Roma Face Image Problem, and Roma in Sweden: Showing the Way?

The Wild Hunt's had a series of guest bloggers while Jason's moving cross-country. I've enjoyed the posts so far, a mix of familiar names and new ones. There are a handful of posts that have stood out for me, particularly because they concern topics that have been on my mind lately:

• Caroline Kenner's guest blog over at Wild Hunt -- taking on the topic of honoring ancestors not just at Samhain, but in every ritual and in our daily lives -- was a good one. I love the idea of the ancestor ladder; I've been trying to think of a good way to use one of my kitchen walls to display family photos, so I think she's on to something there.



• Cat Chapin-Bishop's commentary on community in Paganism struck a nerve, as well. While I'd love to be part of a real community and work towards the establishment of something good and solid and supportive ... I am a barebones Pagan at heart, and I find myself clenching my teeth more often than not when I'm dealing with the majority of others who also describe themselves as Pagan. But that's a topic for another post, I suspect.



• Brendan Myers examined what makes an "elder" -- how the example of Native American communities, in that respect, should provide inspiration and inform our actions and attitudes as Pagans. I thought it was a simple and elegant piece, and am glad he felt the need to address the topic.

More later, perhaps.