We are living in weird times. We can see the weirdening all around us. In our politics, in our ethics, in our communities, in our personal lives. This observation could lead me down the path of lofty rhetoric about how we navigate some of the darker implications of this weirdening we find ourselves in. Right now, though, I just want to point out some of the positive–or at least amusing–effects of this shift weirdward. I find myself amazed on an almost weekly basis by how much easier it is to talk to almost anyone about the kind of weird shit that I used to have to preface with a litany of qualifiers. Not only is the UFO Disclosure crowd talking about faeries, and demonologists talking about tulpas, and witches talking about hyperstition, but the guy I met at a children's birthday party not only wants to talk about his UFO sighting, but also is curious if I think the phenomenon is related to consciousness. A sommelier I met on a work trip, after an evening of bar hopping, casually mentioned the spirit guide he believes he has regular communication with, and goes to for advice. My Mother-in-Law randomly mentions, for the first time, that her relative in the Navy told her when she was a kid that he saw ships flying out of the Ocean and disappearing into the sky. My normie friends are experimenting more with psychedelics, astrology and Human Design is now acceptable icebreaker material in certain circles, and the somatic therapy I keep hearing about from my friends sounds a lot like techniques I would have previously lumped in with the occult. If I look back just a few years, say to 2020, this wasn't my everyday reality. I know this was the case because that's when I first heard Mana Aelin's podcast, The Real Witches of the End Times. This was far from the first paranormal or occult podcast I had heard, but there was something incredibly unique about it. Mana didn't present herself as an expert, didn't lean into a spooky or empowering vibe template, and didn't consider these subjects from the armchair or at a remove. She put out a show where people who seemed down-to-earth could talk casually about their–for the time–very weird experiences and beliefs as though they were completely normal. As a practitioner with a lack of community, I quickly fell in love with her show, and it was definitely a big inspiration for Radical Elphame. Now, though, living through this weirdward shift, I can't help but wonder if this is all Mana's manifestation, and we're just living in it.

SHOW NOTES

Mana's Website: Mothmana.com

Mana's IG: @mothmanatarot

Mana's Podcast: Real Witches of the End Times