Our Numinous Nature

Mackenzie New-Walker is the Executive Director of the West Virginia Mine Wars Museum in Matewan, West Virginia. Having descended from a long line of miners, Mackenzie describes what life was like for the men, women & children in the oppressive coal company towns of the early 1900's: from how they recruiting their immigrant labor force to paying miners in substitute money called scrip; the private company guards aka "gun thugs" known as the Baldwin-Felts agents; to child labor and laundry day. From there we hear of 1921's Battle of Blair Mountain [the largest labor uprising in US history] where the fed up striking miners transformed into the "Redneck Army."  Mackenzie then recounts the story of The Matewan Massacre, an earlier train station skirmish that has left bullets lodged in a brick wall across from the museum. After reflecting on how this all relates to the present & a sense of coal miner pride, we wrap it up with highlights from the museum's collection, including one about "a canary in a coal mine."Check out the West Virginia Mine Wars Museum & help them fundraise to buy the museum building. Watch the PBS documentary American Experience: The Mine Wars.  Music provided by The Tillers"Which Side Are You On" [Labor Union Song]Collected by Pete Seeger Performed by The Tillers Reading segment from On Dark and Bloody Ground: An Oral History of the West Virginia Mine Wars by Anne T Lawrence Special thanks to West Virginia Archives & History for archival recordings:- Price Williams on the Cabin Creek 1912 Coal Strike- WSAZ Coal King on a Tottering Throne ca 1962Support Our Numinous Nature on Patreon.Follow Our Numinous Nature & my naturalist illustrations on InstagramCheck out my shop of shirts, prints, and books featuring my artContact: herbaceoushuman@gmail.com

Matt Frame is a coal miner, avid outdoorsman, & son of a Baptist preacher in Nicholas County, West Virginia. After a folkloric intro about mine-rats, we get into what life is like for both miners today & in Matt's grandfather's time: the machines; depression from the darkness; dogs hauling coal; the quiet killers "black damp" & "black lung;" losing three fingers & narrowly missing a ceiling collapse; the job-site latrine; finding fossils as large as trees; & a miner's soul. For the last third of the conversation, we surface from the coal pit to the light of day guided by folkways & The Bible. First Matt tells of heartbreak while digging ginseng; fox trapping, his grandma's rabbits, a pie crust signature, & making medicine from river yellow root. Then we get into his faith with his salvation, preaching revival, & lessons learned about the sin of pride. We end this slice-of-West-Virginia-life on a story about a haunted moonshine still & pig worms.   Music provided by Jim Cook"Big Bad John" [Cover]Written by Jimmy Dean and Roy AcuffPerformed by Jim Cook"Dark as a Dungeon" [Cover]Written by Johnny CashPerformed by Jim Cook"Call Daddy From the Mine" [Cover]Written by Johnny CashPerformed by Jim CookReading segment from A Journal: Traditions of West Virginia Folk Culture and Educational Awareness; Volume 9 - 2004 by the West Virginia Folklife Center at Fairmont State.Support Our Numinous Nature on Patreon.Follow Our Numinous Nature & my naturalist illustrations on InstagramCheck out my shop of shirts, prints, and books featuring my artContact: herbaceoushuman@gmail.com

Corinne Boyer of Washington is a folk herbalist, teacher, and author of five books on traditional plant-lore & folk magic. While modern herbalism focuses on the healing & benevolent properties of plants, in this episode we explore the darker, more mysterious aspects that Corinne has found through tales of old. We begin on feeling & discerning spirits of place: in the woods, water, & rock quarries; their potentially malevolent nature; offerings to appease them; and trusting intuition & an enchanted worldview.  Then we move on to spirits of the human dead: communicating with ancestors, synchronicities, and a formative childhood experience with her great-grandfather's ghost. For her first story, Corinne recounts an ill-omened lightning strike during an unprecedented storm; for her second, she tells of a sleepless night spent in a haunted Swedish inn. We conclude on oak folklore, herbs to keep ghosts at bay, and plants associated with The Devil. Check out Under the Witching Tree & Corinne's other books. For Corinne's website & classes, visit Maple Mist Wood For Corinne's esoteric plant workshop at the 2023 Viridis Genii Symposium Music provided by CHTHONIA"Salt"Written by CHTHONIAPerformed by CHTHONIA"Helleborus"Written by CHTHONIAPerformed by CHTHONIA"Nymphaeum"Written by CHTHONIAPerformed by CHTHONIA"Digitalis"Written by CHTHONIAPerformed by CHTHONIASupport Our Numinous Nature on Patreon.Follow Our Numinous Nature & my naturalist illustrations on InstagramCheck out my shop of shirts, prints, and books featuring my artContact: herbaceoushuman@gmail.com

Jeremiah Wood of Northern Maine is a state fisheries biologist, cattle farmer, trapper, author, & host of the Trapping Today podcast. We open on Jeremiah describing where he lives: the North Maine Woods; his desire to work the land & raise cattle; changes in the region's economy; and thoughts on growing up in such a rural area. From there we begin a focused conversation on the often vilified topic of trapping where we explore what it's all about & why to some, it's their lifestyle; from ethics & misconceptions, regulations & populations, to fur, history, & nostalgia for the past.  While laying out the many furbearing species, Jeremiah describes the behavior & habitat of his favorite, the "pine" marten, followed by what it's like to run a backcountry mustelid trapline. For his story, Jeremiah speaks to his dream of living in Alaska & a recent trip where he caught something contemplatively deeper than a lynx or wolverine. We end on some of Jeremiah's books & podcast guests including the cast of Discovery Channel's "The Last Alaskans." Check out Jeremiah's Trapping Today podcast, shop, and YouTube channel.Support Our Numinous Nature on Patreon.Follow Our Numinous Nature & my naturalist illustrations on InstagramCheck out my shop of shirts, prints, and books featuring my artContact: herbaceoushuman@gmail.com

Philip Freeman is a Professor of Humanities at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California. With a Ph.D. from Harvard University in Classical Philology and Celtic Languages & Literatures, he has authored over a dozen New York Times reviewed books on ancient & medieval studies. For this episode we stick to the Celtic world, starting at ancient Gaul [Celtic western Europe 2,000+ years-ago]: farming, warriors, head trophies, druids, sacred oak groves, human sacrifice, belief in reincarnation & what little is known about the old gods. From there we travel to Ireland & Wales, where Celtic language & mythology survived the passage of conquests & time. Freeman describes a lewd horse sacrifice coronation ritual, curse tablets found in a lake, & the medieval gods known as the Tuatha Dé Danann & their mysterious Otherworld. Finally we come to the present with Freeman's visit to the spring of St. Brigid, followed by what connects his love of mythology with his Catholic faith. To end this epic episode, Freeman recounts the first Halloween [aka Samhain] story, The Adventure of Nera. Freeman's Books Referenced in the Podcast:Celtic Mythology: Tales of Gods, Goddesses, & Heroes Celtic Spirituality: An Introduction to the Sacred Wisdom of the CeltsOh My Gods: A Modern Retelling of Greek & Roman Myths For more of Freeman's work visit: philipfreemanbooks.comMusic provided by Ancient Music Ireland"Introduction"Written by Ancient Music IrelandPerformed by Ancient Music Ireland"The Butterfly"Written by Ancient Music IrelandPerformed by Ancient Music Ireland"Lilting Horns"Written by Ancient Music IrelandPerformed by Ancient Music IrelandSupport Our Numinous Nature on Patreon.Follow Our Numinous Nature & my naturalist illustrations on InstagramCheck out my shop of shirts, prints, and books featuring my artContact: herbaceoushuman@gmail.com

Barry "Bear" Siragusa is a former musher, a vet-tech & the host of The Hunting Hound podcast residing with his Norwegian wife, kids, & dogs in the snowy mountains of eastern Norway. On this long-distance correspondence we hear descriptions of the land, archeology & mythology of Norway: the Sámi people; moose, bears & wolves; Fenrir & the berserkers; a troll-like feeling in the woods; stave churches; & hunting over ancient Viking moose pits. Then we switch topics & head back to Bear's childhood in rural Maine where he stumbled into a lifelong passion of mushing & working dogs. From Alaskan trappers to the Iditarod, Bear tells some brief mushing history followed by two of his potent sled dog stories, first a beautiful vision & then an icy brush with death! Before our episode times out, we muse a bit about true dog-people & the significance of hunting with dogs. Check out Bear's podcast series, The Hunting Hound under the umbrella of the Hound PodCast: Double U Hunting Supply.  And follow along on Bear's Instagram. Music provided by Vitali Drimbar & Bear Siragusa"Bukkehorn in D-sharp" Written by Vitali DrimbarPerformed by Vitali DrimbarCourtesy of Vitali Drimbar"Pair of Conch Shells in F Sharp"Written by Vitali DrimbarPerformed by Vitali DrimbarCourtesy of Vitali Drimbar"The Wayfaring Stranger" Traditional Folk SongPerformed by Bear Siragus on Kerry Optima Low D Whistle" Courtesy of Bear Siragus  Support Our Numinous Nature on Patreon.Follow Our Numinous Nature & my naturalist illustrations on InstagramCheck out my shop of shirts, prints, and books featuring my artContact: herbaceoushuman@gmail.com

JD Kleopfer is the state herpetologist at Virginia's Department of Wildlife Resources. We begin this herpetological extravaganza on the illegal turtle trade between the US & China, then move on to reptile & amphibian natural history: turtle eggs & their predators, hibernation [properly called brumation], Appalachia's legendary hellbenders, salamander folklore, poisonous newts, vernal pools, & how-to make good herp habitat in your yard. For his stories, JD tells of finding a state-endangered tiger salamander site & another about his formative years as a young herper.  We close on today's conservationist youths, The Great Dismal Swamp & canebrake rattlesnakes.  Join Virginia's Herpetological Society & check out a short documentary about Protecting Appalachia's Hellbenders.Music provided by Luke Brindley"Raritan River Blues"Written by Luke BrindleyCourtesy of Luke Brindley Support Our Numinous Nature on Patreon.Follow Our Numinous Nature & my naturalist illustrations on InstagramCheck out my shop of shirts, prints, and books featuring my artContact: herbaceoushuman@gmail.com

Vladimir Beregovoy is a retired wildlife biologist, author, & breeder of aboriginal Laika hunting dogs, currently living in Buchanan, Virginia. We begin at the beginning, his childhood memories of WWII in the Russian countryside & his early love of the natural world which destined his career as a biologist, both in communist Russia & eventually, after emigrating, here in the United States. From there Vladimir gives an in-depth description about the time he spent with a family of native Mansi hunters in Western Siberia: their dogs; sable furs; their woodsman etiquette; how they hunt moose & bear; dog mittens; reindeer skins; housekeeping; & a beaver biologist left for dead. We wrap it up on a bit about the Amur tigers of the Far East & Vladimir's herbalist grandmother.  Check out Vladimir's book, Hunting Laika Breeds of Russia & more at his website.Music sampled from "Mansi Music on the Sangkvyltap"Reading segment from Dersu the Trapper by Vladimir Klavdievich ArsenievSupport Our Numinous Nature on Patreon.Follow Our Numinous Nature & my naturalist illustrations on InstagramCheck out my shop of shirts, prints, and books featuring my artContact: herbaceoushuman@gmail.com

Megan Rowland of Wayfaring Hind is a deer stalker, land manager, & crofter in the legendary Scottish Highlands. On this long-distance correspondence, we get a taste of Highland tradition, history, flora & fauna, such as: crofting, salt panning, the Picts, black pudding & haggis, peat bogs, working for an estate, red & roe deer, the last wolves & foraging. For her story, Megan describes how a Highland hunt would play out, a first-timer blood ritual, & her own experience from life-long vegetarian to deer stalker. We end on hunting as meditation, tweed, ferreting, & preserving culture.  Check out Megan's Wayfaring Hind & follow along on Instagram.  Music provided by Małgorzata Priebe"My Heart's in the Highlands"Written by Arvo PärtPerformed by Małgorzata Priebe and Błażej MusiałczykCourtesy of Małgorzata PriebeSupport Our Numinous Nature on Patreon.Follow Our Numinous Nature & my naturalist illustrations on InstagramCheck out my shop of shirts, prints, and books featuring my artContact: herbaceoushuman@gmail.com

Dr. Jamie Day is a physics professor & the curator of the Monroe Moosnick Medical & Science Museum [a collection of 19th-century medical oddities & science equipment] at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky. This morbid tour through the old cabinets leads us into trepanning, electrified corpses, syphilis, phrenology, grave robbing students, a mummified child, country doctors, folk medicine hairballs & much, much more. For his personal story, Jamie describes an unnerving find in the university's storage, that of a charred, 200-year-old wax model known as an Anatomical Venus. In closing, we hear of some of the collection's wildest oddities we nearly forgot about: a figurine of a parasitic twin & a comically grotesque tobacco pipe! Learn more about the Moosnick Museum & follow along on Facebook. Music provided by New Trinity Baroque "Oboe Concerto in D minor, Op. 9, No. 2. I. Allegro e non presto"Written by Tomaso AlbinoniPerformed by New Trinity Baroque & Nevena MajdevacCourtesy of Predrag Gosta of New Trinity Baroque"Oboe Concerto in D minor, Op. 9, No. 2. II. Adagio"Written by Tomaso AlbinoniPerformed by New Trinity Baroque & Nevena MajdevacCourtesy of Predrag Gosta of New Trinity Baroque "Oboe Concerto in D minor, Op. 9, No. 2. III. Allegro"Written by Tomaso AlbinoniPerformed by New Trinity Baroque & Nevena MajdevacCourtesy of Predrag Gosta of New Trinity BaroqueSupport Our Numinous Nature on Patreon.Follow Our Numinous Nature & my naturalist illustrations on InstagramCheck out my shop of shirts, prints, and books featuring my artContact: herbaceoushuman@gmail.com