Omega Artworks is owned and operated by Gary and Suzy Zahradka. All work is done by us in our studio in St. Paul, Minnesota. For over 25 years we have been designing unique and original swords, knives and sculpture. We offer a wide range of options for custom designed swords and knives, but also maintain an inventory of items you can purchase today!

Our objective is to combine beauty with functionality — to create a work of art that is beautiful to the eye, thrilling to the hand and inspiring to the imagination. As you look through our website let you imagination go, then contact us and let us know what you are thinking.

We're thankful to see they are working again!

I also have to mention that there is also a Pagan Forge which has been firing up the forge, training up apprentices, and creating ritual tools which you may have seen at various festivals or at Pagan Pride.  Founded and guided by long-time priest and smith Ken Ra, it's called Underhill, and we will be doing a full feature on them in the coming months.

Yes, the person is suing the company, and their official position is not to discriminate, but since it is a court case, they aren't making a statement.  Though I'm sure they would if it were such a clear case of discrimination against someone who was Jewish or Muslim.  But we're fringe and don't have much power.  Or do we? It seems pagans are writing into the company and boycotting the store.  The Wild Hunt talks a bit about the boycott and provides a handy link for contacting the company to state your displeasure.

Why am I writing about this old news?  Well, I think if you are boycotting Bath and Body Works during the gift-giving season, you should tell all your friends and family that you are doing so and do not want gifts originating from them.

The answer was simple: Not knitting would have felt like a waste of time.  I want to be clear that the motivation here is not to be a mindlessly productive multi-tasking achiever. Remember, she does this really slowly. I think it's much more than that.  I think to know that the blanket is truly hers, each and every loop, provides an added layer of value the materialistic and instant culture we live in just doesn't seem to get.

She's not focused on the result. She's focused on the action. She did not just say "let there be blanket" and there was blanket. It may be mundane, and not magical seeming, but I think the method of taking things stitch by stitch is true magic. Thought becomes will becomes action becomes manifestation. Over and over and over again. The manifest action of knitting a blanket uses the same core principles used in magic.  The practice of those principles in the mundane teaches us that there are no short cuts. For magic to happen, action must be taken. So often, we go from thought, to will, skip action and expect results.

Action is where life happens. Think about it. Live is a verb. Living is not an end result. Neither is magic. I think that's where a daily practice really comes in.  Whatever we do, on a consistent basis, day in and day out creates the links with life (aka magic) that, when we need it, we can call on to help us bring into being that which we need or desire.

That's one heck of a security blanket.

© 2009, Jane R. Hansen

Celebrating Samhain Saturday

Note that the Sorgitzak Ritual will be in the gallery at the Eye and they request you call 612-872-1292 to RSVP due to limited space.  If you just show up, you may not be able to participate. If this is too late of a notice for you, remember that, day in and day out, the best source for local events is the Twin Cities Pagans group. You can hook up with them in two places. You can

• Find them on Facebook
• Join the Yahoo Group

A more appropriate photo of Stonehenge was taken recently by Corrine Kenner, local author of numerous Tarot books.  She was just in England for some big Tarot conference. I thought I'd throw that image in to clear the palette, so to speak.

Probably best known for his work with animals, Ted held state and federal permits to work with birds of prey. He performed wildlife rescue, rehabilitation and wildlife education. He conducted animal education and storytelling programs with his animals in school classrooms throughout the year. Andrews served the public school system for ten years as a teacher and counselor, 7 of which were spent working with disadvantaged students in a special needs program for which he received both local and state recognition. In May 2002 he was specially invited to speak to the UNSRC at the United Nations in New York for his writings and work with animals.

Friends have requested that we all hold his wife Kathy in your prayers and thoughts through this most difficult time.  Since Samhain is coming up, it seems appropriate we honor his spirit and legacy in our rituals.

Day 1 – Get your Toes Wet at the Guthrie

Begin your adventures on Wednesday, November 4th with the somewhat tame, but still other-worldly splash at the Guthrie Theater:

Northern Lights, Southern Cross, and according to their blurb, it’s

“the epic story of an ordinary man. Kevin Kling is a regular Minnesota guy, until his motorcycle hits the asphalt and his injured brain wakes him up on the other side of the world. Guided by Aboriginal artists, members of the Twin Cities Community Gospel Choir, and members of Native Pride Dancers, Kling’s journey home is rooted in cultural mythology, storytelling, ritual dance and music, the humor of the tricksters and the healing sense of place.”

Sounds very cool and Shamanic.  Though the pictures for the play have everyone in clown noses and makeup which worries me somewhat. But there will be authentic ritual dance and didgeridoo in an entirely unexpected venue. Okay, so this show isn’t just for one night, in fact it plays from October 22 – November 08, 2009, but the Wednesday night price is $22 vs. the Friday or Saturday price of $30.

Day 2 – Crossing the Drop-off into the Deep End

Then take a trip to the Asylum with Emilie Autumn at the Varsity on Thursday, November 5th. If you haven’t heard her, your are missing out on devilishly dark lyrics, metal-shredding violin solos, and an industrial-strength voice. EA reinvents “gothic” for the masses, and goths have never had so much fun. Chosen by Interview Magazine as one of their “14 Artists to Watch,” EA’s theatrical stage show is a sexy circus of gothic burlesque backed by her all-girl band known underground as the Bloody Crumpets.

If you’re used to Minnesota Nice, Emily Autumn promises to shift your paradigm quite, well, not-nicely but very, very powerfully. It’s an 18+ show and tickets are $15, available online from Ticketmaster.

Day 3 – Swimming to the Beyond

From there, go to Bar Fly on November 6 for a Gothic Festival (Carpe Noctum) starring Voltaire. This even is being called an epic ceremony of sensual decadence and dark irony. You can buy tickets for Carpe Noctum online at vitalculture.com for just $12. Voltaire is often described as a modern day renaissance man. He is a singer/ performer, creator of comic books, animation and toys. Voltaire’s live shows, whether solo or with his skeletal orchestra, are highly theatrical -full of stories and games. The theatrical quality of his performances is not surprising; Voltaire has been directing commercials and animating short films for the last twenty years.

As a musician, he is a songwriter whose music can best be described as a collection of murder ballads, tongue-in-cheek exercises in the macabre, with just enough bawdy songs about Star Trek and Star Wars to keep a Con audience rolling in the aisles. Many know him for his song “Brains!” from the Cartoon Network show “The Grim Adventures of Billy And Mandy”.

Any one of those three days provides a nice setup to get through the Thanksgiving Family Culture Shock, don’t you think? Ya, you betcha.

Thoughts anyone?