I Did a Lot of Stuff This Year

I wear a lot of hats. If you've read my introduction post, you probably got that idea already. This is a recounting of 2017 and a look at all of the stuff I did, mainly so I don't feel like I'm a lazy bum who never does anything.

Public Speaking

I had some really amazing public speaking engagements this year. Like, real ones! It was a surprise to me, because these opportunities seemed to just leap out of the woodwork.

"Computers and the Dawn of Modern Cryptography" as part of OMSI: Science on Screen
Two lectures at the Driftwood Public Library in Lincoln City, Oregon
"The Magical Memory" at Sekhet-Maat Lodge OTO in Portland, Oregon

In addition to the public lectures, I gave a number of private talks at Masonic lodges around the state. Probably the biggest for me:

Presenting on the Art of Memory at the Esotericism in Freemasonry Conference in Seattle, Washington
Participating in a panel on grimoires at the Summer Quarterly for Esoterika Lodge ?227 in Portland, Oregon
As the Grand Orator, delivering the oration at the Annual Convocation of the Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons of Oregon in Coos Bay, Oregon

I also successfully put together and ran my first workshop for teaching Masons how to analyze our lectures and ritual. That was a really cool success for me.

All together I spoke at ten different Masonic lodges or events this year.

Podcasting

We finally got My Alchemical Bromance off the ground. Though Matt, Joey, and I started recording in 2016, we didn't get around to editing and releasing until 2017.

Also, I was interviewed on a few podcasts this year. That was pretty cool and I hope to do more of that.

Audio and Video

I know nothing about video editing and almost nothing about audio editing. However, I still helped my little brother, Nick Arneson, get started with live performances from The Barn. That's what he calls his studio. Here's a video of him playing music. You will love it.

Western Esoteric Studies

What am I supposed to call this category? Magic stuff? Occult things? Stuff too weird to tell my mom about? The inner traditions are really important to me and have been a big part of my life for decades. I made some good progress this year, including spending a lot of time learning about the grimoire tradition and planetary image magic. The specifics of that stuff is very personal, though, so here are two things I am really happy with.

Qabalah Qlub

I started a club to study Hermetic Qabalah at the Portland Valley Scottish Rite. The club program there didn't last as long as it should have, so I don't know if it will start up again. We worked through The Chicken Qabalah of Rabbi Lamed Ben Clifford by Lon Milo DuQuette and got about halfway through Mystical Qabalah by Dion Fortune. You can read about it here and here.

Planetary Smart Altar

I built an Arduino-powered planetary smart altar. It is cooler than it sounds.

Publishing

I didn't publish anything in 2017. This is something I'm not happy about, but I did a ton of other stuff so maybe it's okay. It's not like I haven't been writing -- I just didn't publish. I'd rather not spend a whole year not publishing again.

2017 In Review