My name is Mark, and I’m finally stepping out of the shadows to introduce myself to this wonderful space!
• Astrology: Double Sagittarius with a Gemini Rising • A little about me: I’m dyslexic and colorblind. Because writing and spelling can be tough for me, I use AI as an assistive tool to help me read through the forums and write my thoughts down clearly. Today I decided not to let that hold me back from saying hello!
I’ve been a quiet member here for a while, but I recently came across the mushroom topic posted by @BryWisteria (love the Merry Meet, by the way! ). That inspired me to finally share a piece of my world.
I live in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia. Fun fact: WV gets picked on a lot, but it’s the only state where every single part of it lies completely within a mountain region—in our case, the ancient Appalachians. Being right at the top of the panhandle, I’m also right beside Southwestern Pennsylvania and Southeastern Ohio.
I spend a lot of time out in the woods, on hiking trails, and by the lakes across WV, PA, and OH. Whenever I’m out in nature, I love doing my morning meditation, pulling my Tarot cards , drawing my Kau Cim sticks, and taking photography.
This year, I have come across some absolutely crazy, beautiful mushrooms out on the trails! I wasn’t quite sure how to upload photos directly to Bry’s thread, so I’m sharing some of my trail finds right here with this post.
Grateful to be here among like-minded souls. Blessed Be! **** And I don’t know how to post photos if someone could please share thank you Finally figured it out
Welcome, @markzen304 and Merry Meet! We’re happy you decided to join us. West Virginia is a beautiful state.
Posting your photos is easy. Use the “upload” arrow icon on the bottom right of the posting window, and just select from your computer or phone files. I’m looking forward to seeing your pictures!
I’m Feathertip, from SE Michigan. I’m a lifelong Pagan with a very Nature oriented practice. I love gardening, growing herbs and caring for all my non-human backyard residents. I practice Yogic meditation and use Lenormand cards for divination.
This forum is huge, with lots of information, so don’t hesitant to ask questions about anything. I’m looking forward to seeing you around the place. Enjoy your time here.
Wonderful to meet you! It’s not giving me the option to upload photos from the app off my phone . I have so much to share! .
Update & Tech Trouble!
First off, thank you to everyone for the help and kind and warm words updates regarding the picture situation!
I ran into a bit of a technical snag—whenever I try to reply to comments, it won’t let me type a response; it just shows that little edit pencil. When I try opening the website version in my browser, my phone automatically kicks me back into the app! So if I haven’t replied to your sweet comments directly, please know I’m reading them and trying to figure out what the heck I’m doing tech-wise!
I also wanted to clear something up regarding my AI usage: every single thought, feeling, and idea is 100% my own. Because of my dyslexia, I speak my own words into AI simply to fix my spelling, sort out commas, and smooth over grammar so people can understand what I’m saying. I was laughed at and picked on my whole life over my reading and spelling. I used to hide it out of shame, but now I just own it.
I truly love this forum and want to connect with like-minded souls here. I’m always out in nature taking photos—especially of clouds, wildlife, the Sun, and the Moon.
“Live by the Sun , Love by the Moon ”
I’ve been drawn to astrology, astronomy, the cosmos, and the unknown my entire life. Once I get these app quirks sorted out, I can’t wait to share my photos and converse with you all properly! Also like to add I am a hospice caregiver, mostly for Veterans. So, I look at life alot different from most. Just wanted to add more about me. So
Hi @markzen304 welcome to the forum! I´m glad you decided to step forward and allow us to meet you!
I would love to read more about Kau Cim sticks! I have never heard about this before and had to google…
At this moment the app seems not to function properly. I used to upload all pictures with my phone, but for some reason it´s not working since the past week or so. It might just be a bug that needs to be fixed.
To work around this I will send the pictures from my phone to my email and open them on my laptop and upload from there. I sure hope that the app will work again, soon.
I´m Katharina btw, an art-witch and art therapist from Vienna, Austria! AND a Reiki practicioner in training. I´ve recently had my Reiki 1 training and I´m so loving it.
I´m practicing magick very much through art making! I love altar craft, candle making, poppet work, spell boxes, jars and all kinds of creative magical shenanignas. Working in my Book of Shadows is a big part of my practice. I love all things tarot and practice this art since many moons.
Also, I´m getting more into pendulum work and am studying with Erich Hunter
I´m looking forward to reading more from you!! OH, and I have adhd (and most likely in the autism spectrum), dyslexia, dyscalculia, an anxiety disorder and c-ptsd. So: welcome!! You´re so not alone with being a neuromagical Unicorn - welcome to your flock.
Yay! Always happy to meet a fellow mushroom enthusiast I’m happy you enjoyed the post and the MMM!
I’m glad you’ve found a way to access the forums! Please know that you’re welcome here. Using GenAI to help you write posts is allowed, although please be aware that current guidelines request any posts written by GenAI to be labelled for transparency. I recommend reading through the AI section of the Forum Guidelines for more details. (There is also a special forum badge prize for reading the guidelines, if you haven’t done so already! )
Ohh I’m so excited to hear/see about your mushrooms finds! As others mentioned, there seems to be a techno bug eating photos in the Spells8 App at the moment. Apologies about that. We’re looking into it! In the meantime, it is still possible to upload pictures from a browser. If you log into the Spells8 Forum via a web browser on either your computer or mobile device, you should be able to upload photos (here is a guide with step-by-step instructions)
If you’re still unable to post photos from your browser, it may be due to membership lapse. You can check the current status of your membership via your Account on Spells8. If everything is active and you’re still experiencing issues, please let me know! You can send a Private Message to @moderators even without an active membership. We’re here and happy to help!
Hi, @markzen304! I’m Amethyst! Hello from the New River Gorge area! It’s nice to see another Mountaineer! It’s nice to meet you!
I’m glad you said hi! AI does have some good things; it’s not all bad! And this one you’re using looks great! I’ve never heard of Kau Cim sticks. I had to look that up! Maybe you can share more about them at some time, that looks interesting.
And thank you for sharing your mushrooms! I’m looking forward to seeing them!
A little about me. I’m an Eclectic Witch who likes candle magic and chants, and I’m trying to attract a new cat right now. We’ll see if the Cat Distribution System provides. I live down here in Fayette County, but I’ve never gone to Bridge Day. Nope, not going in those crowds!
Anyhow, if you have any questions or anything, ask. And let us know if there’s any way we can make the forum easier for you. I’m sure @BryWisteria or @Francisco could fix it! They’re awesome!
I’m dyslexic, too, but I truly enjoy my time, here. It’s not as bad as some have it: I have trouble with the look-alikes: bdgqp&9.
My cousin is color blind, too. Which colors are the most difficult for you? His is all colors, so he has to ask if certain things are proper shades for his artwork, but that doesn’t stop him from crafting and enjoying what he does. I’m sure you’re finding wonderful work-arounds, too!
Ooh! Something new for me to learn about! (Rubbing hands together excitedly) Would you be willing to share what you have learned about them so far? I’m looking forward to learning from and with you!
I grew up in Indiana, and heard more picking about Kentucky. Whenever we drove through the area, both KY and WV, we enjoyed the beautiful nature, the music, and the folklore. I’ve learned not to say anything without learning as much as possible about the place, history, and individual people, since the picking just shows their ignorance.
Merry Meet @markzen304 and a very warm welcome to the Forum. We are so happy that you have come in from the shadows to introduce yourself. It does sound a wonderful place that you live mountain ranges where are accessible for you to enjoy. Your practice sounds very grounded and beautiful. I would love to see your photography. I understand that Kau Chim Sticks are a form of fortune divination (where you can go and get a reading) each stick has a number and the cylinder holds numbered sticks is shaken until one falls out. If you are comfortable to share I would like to know more.
I am Moonbeam from a small village in Lancashire, England. I am a Hedge Witch my divinations are working with the Elements. I am drawn to the Moon in particular but also align with the Sun, Crystals, Forklore Magic and also nature which is an important part of my craft, Anglo-Saxon/Runes, plants and growing herbs, garlic etc. I am learning about Tasseography, Pendulum and Ocean Magic.
I have been to many Reiki sessions—it is truly an amazing and very special art!
There is a place near my clients in Pennsylvania called Salt of the Earth. They have a Himalayan rock salt cave where they do Reiki therapy and massage, and it is absolutely incredible. It’s fascinating to learn about—such a powerful ancient technique with so many deep healing benefits.
Pease let me know how your session goes! It is so very nice to meet you. Everyone on this board has been super helpful and just completely amazing!
Lancashire sounds like such a magical place to practice. As a Hedge Witch working with the elements, nature, and the land, your craft sounds truly grounded and beautiful!
I’ve always been deeply drawn to English traditions, folklore, and the rich history of the British Isles. There’s something so powerful about the old ways, the Anglo-Saxon heritage, and rune lore. Working with plants, herbs, and garlic right from the earth is pure magic in itself.
Tasseography (tea leaf reading) is something I’ll definitely have to do some deeper research on! Combining that with pendulums and ocean magic sounds fascinating.
Thank you so much for sharing a piece of your path with me and thank you all for the warm welcome and love on this board!
Believe me, it took me a long time to accept and truly appreciate my dyslexia, but not running from it has made me so much stronger.
As for being colorblind, for me it’s mostly mixing up specific shades! I have a hard time telling white from pink, blue from purple, and red from brown. I can definitely see colors, I just can’t always tell which is which—I might see blue when it’s actually purple, or see red when it’s actually brown! lol
At the end of the day, I fully accept and welcome it as part of who I am. It’s really great to connect with someone who understands—very kind of you to share!
First off, Let’s Go!! Mountaineers! It is always awesome to meet a fellow Mountaineer / Mountain Mama! I love me some New River Gorge—great whitewater rafting, and the Endless Wall Trail is easily one of my absolute favorites in all of West Virginia. The energy and views out there are just unreal. Im up north in the Northern Panhandle in Wheeling—fun history fact, our state’s very first capital! lol Everyone here has been so kind and welcoming; it truly feels like I found a home with this community.
I’ve never actually heard of Yogic meditation before, so I will definitely be doing some research on that! I’ve heard of Lenormand cards mentioned in divination circles, but I’ve never seen or tried them myself. Sounds like I have a lot of fun learning and researching ahead of me!I’m very grateful for all your help, wisdom, and so glad to meet you here!
Those are amazing!! Here in Vienna it is still too hot and dry for mushrooms. It will take another month or maybe even until October. I must confess that I´m not much of an outdoor person - mostly because of people being everywhere. lol
Saammmmeeee!! For me the numbers are also difficult: 75 or 57 looks pretty much the same to me.
It is and I really enjoy studying and practicing it. In January I´ll be attending the Reiki 2 training - this is where the work with symbols and distance healing are taught. After that ya´ll are getting as much distance Reiki healing as you want and need. Mean ittttt!!!
This must be sooo amazing!!! I can´t even imagine…
I will! At this moment I´m practicing with my daughter and she really enjoys it.
Yeah, no. I’m much more of a suburban witch. If I was able, I’d love to go to a park or something. I kind of figure whitewater rafting is like being in one long washing machine. No thank you! LOL!
I’m glad we could make you feel welcome! This is a really great forum. I’ve been here over six years, and I can’t remember a major kerfuffle or anything. There have been a few minor ones, I’m sure, but nothing that captured the attention of the whole group.
Check out the August Lenormand forum and read all about it, if you’d like! I find it easy to get into, and @dan3 has lots of info in there. You don’t even need a physical deck if you don’t have one.
I’m an AI fan - but fully realize the limitations. I think it can be such a wonderful tool and I’m glad you posted your experience. It is a tool that can really help..
On a related note, @Feathertip mentioned the Lenormand section - you can use AI to generate draws for reading. The prompt to do that is on the first page. We have a new listing each month.. If you want to do Tarot, the same applies. The Tarot section is here. To draw Tarot cards with AI just modify the Lenormand draw command. @leilani1 hosts that section.
AI has been quite the blessing for me. I paid for Gemini off my Samsung Galaxy and it’s a teacher it’s a toll. These are my words my feelings, my soul, my brain, my heart. I was never good at grammar; I was never good at reading and writing.o sometimes I’ll use Grammarly, and sometimes I’ll use the pen that suggests the correct words, or I’ll go to Gemini when it’s long and has to be actually understandable, lol. And I will be doing a deep dive tonight on Lenormand; it sounds fascinating.
Gemini is quite good and one of the AIs I recommend along with CoPilot for quick tasks and Chatgpt for images - but all of them work well. I have a hot key on my laptop for Copilot so I use it often for a quick lookup.
Loving the mushrooms I do eat them raw from the grocery store my Mum used to say that it is a trait that I picked up from my Nana. There are so many different ones available I can get chestnut, oyster, field, shiitake, lions mane along with eating Sarson’s Sweet Pickled Onions!!
Your affirmation I could not say any better myself. I wear a Gold Sun and Sunstone Crystal on my right ankle and a Moon and Moonstone on my left - phases of the Sun and Moon bracelet - Great Minds!
with a Gemini Rising 
). That inspired me to finally share a piece of my world.
, drawing my Kau Cim sticks, and taking photography.
I wasn’t quite sure how to upload photos directly to Bry’s thread, so I’m sharing some of my trail finds right here with this post.
West Virginia is a beautiful state.
from the app off my phone 
. I have so much to share! 
, Love by the Moon 
”
I´m glad you decided to step forward and allow us to meet you! 
I sure hope that the app will work again, soon.
)
(Rubbing hands together excitedly) Would you be willing to share what you have learned about them so far? I’m looking forward to learning from and with you!
Combining that with pendulums and ocean magic sounds fascinating.
It is always awesome to meet a fellow Mountaineer / Mountain Mama! 
Everyone here has been so kind and welcoming; it truly feels like I found a home with this community. 
At this moment I´m practicing with my daughter and she really enjoys it.
I find it easy to get into, and 