Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
Episode 180: Surviving Out of the Broom Closet in the Military Community
922 Plays14 days ago
Welcome back, Witches! This week, we’re having a real and heartfelt conversation about what it means to live authentically as a witch or pagan in the military community. From navigating stereotypes and stigma to finding your people and protecting your peace, we’re sharing personal stories, insights, and tips for surviving — and thriving — outside the broom closet. So get in, Loser—we’re stepping into the light and talking about what it really means to live your truth in uniform and beyond.
We would be forever thankful if you left our podcast a 5-Star review. If you really loved the show and want more Get in Loser content, check out our Patreon, Supercast, & Buy Me a Coffee links below. You can also find us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @GetinWitches, on TikTok @weredoingwitchcraft, or email us at weredoingwitchcraft@gmail.com. You can support our show through our links below.
Patreon: patreon.com/GetinWitches
Supercast: https://getinloserweredoingwitchcraft.supercast.com
Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/getinwitches
Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio- The Witch
References:
Our own brains!
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to Witchcraft Podcast
00:00:00
Speaker
Do you feel drawn to learn more about witchcraft and the occult but feel lost on where to start? Then welcome to Get In Loser We're Doing Witchcraft, a podcast all about what it means to be a witch and where to get started on your journey.
00:00:11
Speaker
Join us as we navigate through various witchy topics and share what we've
Witchcraft in the Military Community
00:00:15
Speaker
learned about the craft. So get in witches as we discuss how to survive being out of the broom closet in the military community.
Humorous Military Living Stories
00:00:48
Speaker
Oh my God. So speaking of military stuff, we got a note on our door like a couple of days ago saying that they were going to be painting the vacant house next to us that's attached to us. Right.
00:01:02
Speaker
And I'm like, I don't care. Like I just ripped that off. I'm just like, why? Why are you telling me that? um Well, apparently we all share the same fucking ventilation because now our entire house smells like spray paint.
00:01:18
Speaker
Like it doesn't even smell like paint. It smells like spray paint. Like I was looking, i was like, questioning our teenager like, are you huffing paint? And she's like, what are you talking about?
00:01:28
Speaker
Are you tagging somewhere that I don't know? And then Mike was like, oh yeah, that's right. No, they came because he was off yesterday. And he was like, they came ah by to paint that vacant house next to us. And as soon as they started painting, I was like, what the fuck is that smell?
00:01:45
Speaker
Our entire house. I was like, do we have anything gas operated? What is going on? What is this smell? No, our house still smells like it too.
00:01:56
Speaker
Oh, gross. Isn't that terrible? That's the worst smell too It's so strong. yeah i'm just in the paint I feel like the paint that the base uses in like base housing is the worst too. Yeah.
00:02:08
Speaker
ah Yeah. It's, I don't know what type of paint they're using, but it smells terrible. It smells like straight up spray paint is what it smells like. It smells awesome. So gross. So gross.
00:02:19
Speaker
yeah Oh my God. So I'm just like, well, We were supposed to get a typhoon this weekend, but we're not.
Impact of Government Shutdown on Military
00:02:27
Speaker
so Well, thank the gods.
00:02:32
Speaker
Yeah. Maybe it will be. i mean, I don't know if it's going to bring us any cooler weather, but we might have to just like open the back doors and like kind of vent out the house bit because it smells. How hot is it there now?
00:02:46
Speaker
It's still like in the high 80s, like low 90s and like super humid. We're in the 50s. Oh, my God. I love that. 50s and, like, gloomy.
00:02:59
Speaker
Ugh. I cannot wait to get to Washington. was foggy when oh my God. You're going to have hoa hoa weather. i can't wait. If we can ever get there, this government shutdown is... Trash.
00:03:14
Speaker
Awful. The worst. so It's so many things. I have so many feelings. And so angers. And hopefully... Yeah. By the time that this releases, which is only in a few weeks from when we're recording it, hopefully by then this is all over with. And it was just a bad memory.
00:03:34
Speaker
But if it's still going on by the time this releases, check if you are listening to this and you are not military affiliated, check on your military affiliated people because we're not
Political Awareness and Voting
00:03:44
Speaker
doing okay. Okay.
00:03:45
Speaker
Send us your tots and pears because we're struggling. And all the pears, please, because we're also starving. Yeah. take the tots too because I'll take a potato in any form.
00:03:59
Speaker
Because, yeah, like literally I – both me and my husband are working for free currently and it is not very fun. my My husband is working for free. um I am not getting my VA money.
00:04:16
Speaker
Yeah. um so And we just closed on a house. So it's it's a little – there's bills. The bills don't stop. It's trying times. And then all I can – it's just so sad, especially like with knowing, too, that you're ah disabled veteran not getting veteran money and then – all of the disabled veterans in the States that that is 100% their income and they're not going to be receiving it. And this is just awful.
00:04:49
Speaker
So please also, this is not going to turn into a political podcast, but I'm going say is if like pay attention to what is actually happening within our government and within local elections and vote accordingly because this is bullshit.
00:05:06
Speaker
Yes. So.
Being Openly Pagan in the Military
00:05:08
Speaker
Off our political soapboxes, we're not talking about politics today. we're not. um What are we talking about? I love this podcast episode. um It is a topic that is super close to both of our hearts, and it is how to survive being out of the broom closet in a military community this was episode suggestion that was given to us um by a listener, but it's just something that i feel like we both have seen a lot of people like even on Facebook and stuff asking like, hey, I'm interested in XYZ, where do I go?
00:05:47
Speaker
And the thing with the military, just like with any other community is the military is really just a small sampling of every community. Mm-hmm.
00:05:58
Speaker
And so you're going to have, you know, not everybody in the military believes the same and worships the same and um acts the same or has the same values and whatnot. And you're going to see this, you know, with every community as well. But there's a lot of us who are witches, pagan, we don't attach whatever title you want to that, that are surviving in military communities.
00:06:26
Speaker
And are should I say thriving? Because and really, we're thriving, right? I feel like we are At least we are. I don't know about all the rest of y'all. I'm just joking. Yeah.
00:06:40
Speaker
I think it's hard at first, though, because whenever you move to – every time that we've moved to a new military community – there's a lot of people who are very open about their beliefs in Christianity. And like you see a lot of posts about, we just moved here looking for a church that is blah, blah, blah, like fill in the blank.
00:07:05
Speaker
yeah And so I think that can make it difficult to try and find your own people because I've also seen like here in Japan, especially there's a lot
Finding Like-Minded Individuals in the Military
00:07:17
Speaker
of like,
00:07:18
Speaker
well, I guess essentially in Okinawa, there's a lot of supernatural activities that happen in our homes based on the energy from World War II and all of the terrible things that have happened here. And so I will say at least once a week, somebody is posting about how can I, like, what's a good way to cleanse my home?
00:07:35
Speaker
How do I do X, Y, Z, like trying to appease any of the potential spirits that could be in their homes. And there's always at least two or three people that are like, you all you need is God.
00:07:48
Speaker
All you need is God. Well, I sent you the one where it was like the spouses. for those not attached to the military, we have every base has ah Facebook group that is the whatever base spouses page.
00:08:04
Speaker
And honestly, for me, i'm in them for entertainment because these people are special. There was a post that I sent Sam recently that was literally about vaccinations for school.
00:08:17
Speaker
And someone was like, what are we doing? Because the school is being confusing. The school first said they're not required. Now they're saying they are required. And now we can't get into the doctor. And there were people on there being like, you can just say, I'm not going to get them for my kid because it goes against our religion. And the doctor fills out a form.
00:08:33
Speaker
And then it turned into this whole like biblical thing. Some, super Christian person came on and was like scolding people for lying. And but she said something like false. It was bearing false witness according to this verse in the Bible. And I was cracking up.
00:08:52
Speaker
But like we see this a lot in military communities and in these spouses pages where like any innocent question can be turned to like this huge like Christian argument with like Bible verses and like accusations and just pure craziness.
00:09:13
Speaker
Yeah, it it really can. And you know I've been lucky, I feel like, in most of the places. And I feel like this is probably...
Connecting Through Markets and Bookstores
00:09:24
Speaker
if you are getting into these spaces where say you are trying to go down a path where you're not sure exactly what you believe, but like you're trying to learn more about witchcraft and the occult and paganism and whatnot, your group is going to find you eventually. like ah And it's never, I've never, anytime that I have moved to a new place and we've PCSed, how many times we
00:09:56
Speaker
Oklahoma, Illinois, England, and then Japan. And in all of those spaces, I've never like intentionally posted anything about like, hey, I'm Sam. This is what I believe. Looking for like-minded individuals.
00:10:11
Speaker
I've never had to post anything like that right online. And I never would just because also am a federal employee as well. And so it's like, you just never know what people are going to what impression people are going to have, um which isn't great like to think like that, but you just you have to be careful of what you post, especially today's political climate. But um the people that believe similar to me always end up finding me.
00:10:40
Speaker
Yeah. And I think it's just based on like energy. feel like you always attract what you put out. And so like you're you're going to end up in the circle that you're meant to be in because – because of that.
00:10:55
Speaker
Yeah. And I will say with, as things have, or through time and being a military spouse, over time, I will say there's a lot more small businesses that are tailored to like crystals or, like, or herbs, like, so with your small business as well, like, or, like making candles or incense and things like that. So having that as well, um, that's been a way to connect for me is like, if going to like the, there are children yelling outside. is 7 23 in the morning. Go home. too early. What are you doing? Oh,
00:11:38
Speaker
go home yeah too earlyly what are you doing Oh, I think that's my child with her iPad downstairs. But that's been a really great way for me to meet like-minded individuals is by going to different like fairs and um what if we even go like small market days and just having conversations.
00:12:05
Speaker
Yeah. I bet you met a ton of people whenever you were. i been i barely got to leave my table. Oh, It was so crazy.
00:12:16
Speaker
Yeah. you Like in a good way. Like it was insane, though. Like to the point that one of my friends works. So the the place that put it on, one of my friends works at the front desk of there.
00:12:28
Speaker
And she had messaged me and was like, you did so good. People keep like calling the community center asking for your business. I'm like, thank you. And she's like, I've just been sending them to your social media. And I'm like, thank you.
00:12:42
Speaker
Yes. And as we know, just based on talking with Rebecca a couple of weeks ago, you know not everybody who is into herbalism and um uses herbs and they're like whether it be a tea or a tincture or whatever, that doesn't necessarily mean that they're interested in the occult. But a lot of us who are the occult spaces are interested in that. So I would say like the my first recommendation of surviving um a military community while you are
00:13:17
Speaker
interested in witchcraft or if
Avoiding Predatory Groups in Witchcraft
00:13:19
Speaker
you're pagan or interested in the occult is to look at what is available around you. go to those market stalls, go to those fairs, go to those vendor events and just see what's there because it could be like one of those, hey, see you have this.
00:13:37
Speaker
Let's talk a little bit more about that. like How do you yeah use it? And then just kind of broach the topic that way can be a great way of finding your community. i for me, a lot of the people that I have met here that are in the like pagan witchy realm, I've actually met at the bookstore because they'll come in looking like, do you guys have any books on this topic? And then we kind of get, you know, talking about different things. And then it's like, oh, do you go to Open Circle? Which is like,
00:14:09
Speaker
For us, Open Circle is basically the pagan gathering that's ran through the chapel because paganism is recognized as a religion by the military. So they have to give us our own space.
00:14:24
Speaker
So it's every Saturday we have like Open Circle. and so I have not been able to go because it's always... Like it's always a Saturday at 10 o'clock and Saturdays are kind of like – That's how it too. like those are our – that's our time. Like that's what is. wish it was earlier. Like honestly, if it was Saturday early 7 o'clock in the morning, except right now it's 7.26 a.m. I mean I get why it can't be on a Sunday because every other religion is on Sunday and there's time slots. But like a Sunday would be perfect.
00:14:54
Speaker
and Or like a a weeknight evening. Like a Saturday from 10 to 12 – That takes up most of my, like, I'm a boarding person. our farmer's market time. That's our travel time. That's like when we get together with friends who brunches.
00:15:08
Speaker
Yeah. So I have not gone to Open Circle yet. I want to. i just wish it was a different time frame. But yeah. So like a lot of them do go to open circle and they're always, you know, we talk about a lot of that stuff.
00:15:21
Speaker
So working at the bookstore has been like really nice on that aspect. Yeah. Like being able to connect with other like-minded people. Yes. i will say when we were in England, there, ended up finding this little group, which I will also give a we've talked about this, I think on the podcast and Tiffany already knows about this experience, but like, there are also some groups that do like tarot readings. And so it's like where you can go to someplace and then
00:15:53
Speaker
Either they show you how to do tarot or it's like a group thing where like, oh, hey, we're all going to learn together. So that was really nice and a really great if you are interested, but say you don't have – you don't know lot of people who are interested in the same things that you are or maybe tarot is intimidating because it can be intimidating.
00:16:12
Speaker
Going to a space like that, I'm not sure if they still do that in England, but what I will say – at least the one that was being run around the Lake and Heath area, whenever we were stationed in England, it turns out the person who was running it just was somebody that was very predatory and so had started many different businesses to try and like find their way and make a lot of quick money. And whenever they realized that the occult spaces were kind of a new upcoming way to like make money, they decided, oh
00:16:51
Speaker
I'm like, hi, priestess, and I'm going to do this and make money. So be careful, though, I will say. like And you can pick up on predatory energy so quickly. i know it it sounds like so like, oh, you could pick up on predatory energy. But if you're around it, you know exactly what I'm talking about. It's very easy to pick up. And I would definitely separate yourself from that
Resourcefulness in Military Witchcraft
00:17:15
Speaker
um if you're surrounded by it. Because It's very easy. like Maybe the first couple of sessions, you might be like, oh this person seems nice. But then after a while, like you can pick up on it. and I mean, a lot of times it turns into money.
00:17:29
Speaker
Yeah. for You can buy this from me. you can Yeah. oh Precatory people gross me out. They give me the ick. They really gross me out. And what's wild is- she i That business has never really jumped off.
00:17:44
Speaker
She started this whole holistic like witchcraft occult life coaching thing, and it never got any traction.
00:17:57
Speaker
And I'm just like, thank God. i feel like nothing against like legit life coaches, but life coaching is such a – it's like the type of business that anyone can say, oh, I'm a life coach. There's no like real regulations to it.
00:18:19
Speaker
And so like you have people that legitimately – are life coaches and they've gone to school and taken courses. like Life coaching was part of my degree. like we had to learn health and wellness life coaching.
00:18:32
Speaker
But like there's no real governing body over a life coach. And so literally anyone can say, I'm a life coach and not really know shit about it and like, just wild there's no way for you to research it either to be like, how legit is this life coach? And it's like, there could be reviews, which hopefully, you know, you can find that, but not always.
00:18:57
Speaker
yeah just definitely feel people out before you give them money for anything. And if you are invited to a women's circle where you're then asked to share your trauma with a group of people by somebody who says they're a life coach and they do not have the adequate training to lead group therapy sessions, don't fucking go Leave. Just leave.
00:19:26
Speaker
No. Because that is not okay and you should not have to do that.
00:19:32
Speaker
Go to a licensed professional. They can lead you through group sessions like that. Yeah. But we'll we'll get off our soapbox and you well get back to the topic.
00:19:44
Speaker
but topic I mean, it is. It's part of the topic. Yeah. Because, you know, don't fall for any predatory schemes. Okay? Yeah. That's all we'll say about that specifically.
00:19:55
Speaker
Okay. But one another thing too that I think is important to talk about when it comes to surviving out of the broom closet in a military community is working with what you have.
Caution in Sharing Beliefs
00:20:08
Speaker
you know We talk about this all the time on the podcast.
00:20:11
Speaker
You don't have to buy new things. You don't have to you know spend a ton of money on your craft. You can use what is available to you. And I feel like this especially applies to military members and their dependents whenever you are wanting to get into witchcraft, you're wanting to get into paganism or any occult practice. Because you know one of the things that is true about the military is you go where the military sends you, right?
00:20:37
Speaker
could be your hometown. It could be someplace that you've never been before. And oftentimes, whenever you have to pick up and move your life, you have to get rid of a lot of things.
00:20:48
Speaker
And so starting over is expensive. But a lot of the things that we use in our everyday practices are things that you can easily find at a grocery store or you can easily find by foraging the land around you.
00:21:02
Speaker
So I would say like one great way to survive being out of the broom closet is utilize the resources that you have at your fingertips, whether that be going to the commissary and buying cinnamon sticks from the commissary or whether that be walking around your backyard and foraging the sticks that have fallen off the trees there, like any of that, getting to know the flora and the fauna of the place that you are calling home is so important.
00:21:27
Speaker
Sorry, I had to yawn. It's late here. Yeah. um I think that something else that's really important is living authentically is amazing, right? Living open and out as A witch or a pagan or whatever is fantastic, but also maybe feel people out before you're just like, here I am and this is what I do because you –
00:21:59
Speaker
never know when you're moving so often and meeting people like new people all the time um I know I've been pretty fortunate with people that I've met that they're just like so open and so like interested and not in a way that it's like demeaning or anything like that which I absolutely love but that's not always the case and sometimes it's also not always safe.
00:22:26
Speaker
So maybe before you just like, Hey, here's what I do and what I practice and who I am, feel people out a little bit first. Yes. Yeah. Because there, I will tell you, there are some, like ah we like we said, military, activity members and their dependents come from all different areas of life. So you could have the most, um,
00:22:54
Speaker
like uber Christian person, super conservative, very Christian. um And maybe like this is this is their entire worldview is based, wrapped around Christianity. That's all I know. it is going to be very difficult even no matter how nice they are to get to remove themselves from that box to see from another perspective, just as it might be for somebody who is completely like atheist as well. You
Respecting Religious Differences
00:23:18
Speaker
know what I mean? Yeah.
00:23:19
Speaker
So it's like really figure like do like a ah really good feel of who this person is. and I will say, i feel like I've been pretty lucky as well, but I do have a neighbor who is very religious and, um,
00:23:35
Speaker
the first year or so, um whenever she realized that like, I definitely was not Christian, it kind of felt like she was using it as like her mission to like, she would send me Bible verses and like things like that. And I had to just be very open with her about like, Hey, you know, i love that you believe XYZ.
00:23:54
Speaker
i love this for you. I don't believe that. stop sending me this shit. And now like we're in a place like we can respect each other's religions, but it definitely, I was i was a little bit concerned for a little while because just like, this person probably thinks that I worship the devil.
00:24:13
Speaker
think man and They live right across the street from me. so Yeah. But I mean, like when we're talking about people that are like super, super Christian, that's what they're taught. Which craft is the work of the devil. you partnered with the devil. It's no different than witch hunt and witch trial area or areas. Like for them, it's it's still the same.
00:24:38
Speaker
And so that's that's why it's like so important, I think, to just really feel people out first. Yes. Where you're just like, hey. Yeah. And there's some things that like I have never shared with her because – I just know because I know her for the last three years that yeah she would probably freak out if I mentioned X, Y, Z. So a lot of our communication is very surface level. Like we both have kids and it's like related to kids or school or something like that. Like we just know that for each other, religion is an off topic thing. We don't talk about it.
00:25:16
Speaker
And, um but not everybody is going to respect that. And so you have to understand that because there are a lot of people who are like, well, but I feel like it's my religion is telling me that I need to, what is that word?
Open-Mindedness in Military Communities
00:25:30
Speaker
I can't think of the word, but it's like, they need to like the the evangelical ones that feel like they have to show you the way to be or something. like um Like essentially save you. Yeah. They feel like they have to save you. There's another word for it that's completely escaped from my vocabulary. Yeah.
00:25:50
Speaker
But it'll come to us when we're done recording or like at the very end. That's usually what happens. ah Yeah. Witness. They have to like witness to you. Yeah. Yeah. and so just be careful of that because those kind of people who cannot take a step back and respect that you believe differently can end up making your life a living hell.
00:26:14
Speaker
And that really suck One, especially to like, When it comes to employment, you know, like if you're – especially if you're military and you're sent overseas, the job pool is very small.
00:26:31
Speaker
And so if you tell the wrong person and they tell everyone else or, you know, like maybe they work at the place that you're trying to get a job at and they're like, oh, this person, you know, like whatever their belief is on paganism or witchcraft because, you know, they're not going to be like this person – follows the cycles of the moon. They're going to be like, this person is the worst. They worship the devil.
00:26:55
Speaker
And so it could like also hinder potential employment or really a bunch of different aspects of your life when you live in such a small community. so Yeah. yeah and it's really unfortunate.
00:27:11
Speaker
i will say i feel like in my experience, I have ran into a ah handful of like very, very religious, very Christian um individuals that I feel like if they were in charge of hiring, probably wouldn't hire me if they knew my religious beliefs and my thoughts on Christianity.
00:27:35
Speaker
But at the same time, i have seen a lot more um people be completely open. And i think eventually, um i mean, there's always going to be people who are very stuck in their ways.
00:27:48
Speaker
But one thing that I love about people who have gotten out of their hometown and have moved across the world especially is they meet people from so many different backgrounds, so many different um belief systems that I feel like eventually,
00:28:05
Speaker
you will get to a point, as long as you're not like super, super, super fucking religious, that you will be open to other people's perspectives and points of views.
Finding Pagan Communities in Military Settings
00:28:17
Speaker
And even with like my commander and stuff, like very much, very open-minded, wants to know how everybody else believes and, you know, but, and and isn't going to make it like a weird, like, Ooh, this should be like, this is a Christian only space. You know what I mean? Yeah.
00:28:33
Speaker
But it can be difficult. So you have to really tread those waters very carefully um because you don't want to intentionally ostracize yourself from ah sense of community. Because one of the hardest things about being military related um or affiliated, I should say, is that you're moving so often and it's hard to create that network of people. So like whenever we move, it's okay, well, who do I know here that I can list as an emergency contact? Because I have to have one to enroll my kids in school, but I don't know anyone here. So it's like basically looking at the person that you just met to possibly be your support system if there's an emergency that happens. And so-
00:29:20
Speaker
It's a very thin line that you have to tread. Yeah. And I feel like kind of going back to the point that you made earlier about the circle that you're- Open base circle. Open circle.
00:29:33
Speaker
I feel like it's probably pretty common. for every base to have something like that. So if you are moving to a new area and you're interested in learning more about paganism, regardless of what flavor it is, like whether it's be Nordic or Celtic or you know Hellenic, like whatever it is, go see if your chapels offer an open circle type worship session.
00:29:59
Speaker
It could be named something completely different. I can't remember what they call it here, but it's, I think it's called pagan circle, but it's like open to all beliefs that fall under this.
00:30:11
Speaker
That's why ours is called open circles because it's open to any like pagan witchy realm. So, yeah. So go there. That could be a great starting off point whenever you move to try and find your own, um,
00:30:31
Speaker
community and maybe even meet some people and ask them like, okay, well, where do you go for XYZ? What has been your experience
Challenges of Finding Resources Overseas
00:30:40
Speaker
here? or you know, um I think that that is an um amazing way to start out whenever you move to someplace, especially if you are in the broom closet and you're interested in maybe tiptoeing out of it a little bit.
00:30:53
Speaker
I feel like overseas too, for those of you that are military and have been sent overseas, you probably have already run into this, but it's a lot harder, i think, to find resources like witchy store, like esoteric stores or like out here in Germany, there's not really any like witchy type stores that I found, but I can find like a lot of crystal stores.
00:31:22
Speaker
Yeah. um And the most like the most that I have found are at, um We have like basically medieval markets. They're called middle old markets. And a lot of the vendor booths, there'll be ah few that are like witchy adjacent.
00:31:39
Speaker
um So they're pretty nice. But like if you're in the States, my suggestion would be just to look for those types of things around your base. So esoteric stores, herbal stores or shops, um even some bookstores are more pagan leaning.
00:31:56
Speaker
So it's always really nice. I feel like um it was really nice in Illinois because we had – our area was pretty good with small shops. But then we also could go across the river to St. Louis, which was you know our big city.
00:32:11
Speaker
And we had a lot of stuff out there that we had access to. yeah leaving there, I'm like, I miss Sincerely the Craft. I miss Forest and Meadow. i miss you know all the little like witchy shops that I used to go to Yes, I agree. And even – so my favorite occult shop – and I think it's just because I grew up in this occult shop. My dad knew the owner really well. But Nature's Treasures in Midwest City, right outside of Tinker Air Force Base, that has always been my favorite.
00:32:42
Speaker
Every time I'm back in the Oklahoma City metro area, I always stop by Nature's Treasures. Yeah. um That is my favorite store when it comes to occult things. And it will always be my favorite.
00:32:54
Speaker
But yeah, stateside, it's a lot easier. Overseas, it's very hard. yeah When we were in England, we struggled I struggled with the same thing. was difficult finding shops that um were not, I guess, I'm trying to think of how to say but not...
00:33:16
Speaker
comically witchy, you know what I mean? Like there was one that was not super far away from where we were living in England, but it was like none of it wasn't, it was a small business, but it was like a small business in the sense that they ordered a lot of stuff off of Amazon or like Alibaba or AliExpress or whatever and or Timu or something. And then they sold it in the store. So like, it wasn't like, I don't know.
00:33:42
Speaker
And it was very, you could tell that the owners of the store, I don't think they really believed in any specific occult or like occult religion or they weren't pagan because the things that they were buying was just like, if you didn't know anything about witchcraft and you had this very stereotypical viewpoint of what you thought witchcraft was, that's what the store was. And so that was really frustrating because I'm just like, no, this is like the only store
Struggles in Finding Authentic Witchy Shops
00:34:12
Speaker
nearby. yeah,
00:34:14
Speaker
I do think that they have since gone out of business. So if you are listening to this while being stationed in England, that store is not there anymore, but which I mean, well, yeah, I have heard that there's ah quite a few witchy shops down near Glastonbury area, but, um, unfortunately I did not make it down that way, but there's always hope for the future. Right.
00:34:37
Speaker
Yeah. Um, I know like out here we don't have them. There's just, there's not anything like that. i had even asked like anonymously in a group once.
00:34:49
Speaker
And someone was like, um there's a shop in Kaiser Slaughter and that sells incense, but that's really about it. I was like,
Building Communities Through Social Media
00:35:00
Speaker
no. Thank you. It makes it really hard. If you're stateside.
00:35:06
Speaker
Look for shops like that because a lot of times too, like I know um in, they were in Illinois. Now they've bought a shop in St. Louis, but sincerely the craft would offer classes.
00:35:21
Speaker
And i' had taken a couple of them um with like friends and stuff where we would just like go hang out, do our little witchy practice. And like you get all these little things, but we got to meet so many people doing that.
00:35:35
Speaker
So if you are somewhere that has a place like that, that's a really, really good starting point. Yes. Yeah, definitely do some research in whatever area you're moving to or whatever area you're living in right now, especially if this is new to you.
00:35:54
Speaker
um And then if you are overseas, you have to be a little bit more creative. And so yeah like here in Japan, obviously witchcraft is not, there's no occult shops here.
00:36:05
Speaker
But in a lot of stores, because in Japanese culture, they they burn a lot of incense. I can find a lot of incense everywhere, um which is very nice. a lot of essential oils everywhere, which is very nice.
00:36:18
Speaker
um And then specific herbs or ah different... I mean, they're just at the grocery store, things that I would use like dress candles or use in um my fire magic like that I may not see at Walmart or something like that in the States.
00:36:37
Speaker
They have it here. And so just be very open to spending some time researching in that area. like You just have to be open to it. And then As paganism has become more mainstream, thankfully too, in a lot of witchcraft communities, there may be somebody who is actually has a small business where they are selling things, whether that be crystals or like little um kits or incense or herbs or whatever. and here in okinawa so if you are being stationed here in okinawa definitely check out wandering daisies this is an amazing little small business that i've ordered from multiple times but she sells herb kits she sells incense she sells different crystal kits that you can use as like a money bowl or protection she does monthly themed offerings as well and with every order that she does she also draws a tarot card and she puts it in there so it's like a little
00:37:38
Speaker
like mindful tarot reading and you can interpret the card however you want. And i love her so much. I am sad we are leaving this island because no love her things.
00:37:48
Speaker
Yeah. But I mean, you know, outside of just researching, outside of um looking at, you know, being creative on how you're um obtaining the things that you need for your craft and looking at the different community spaces that are around you near military installations.
00:38:13
Speaker
I feel like the closest friends that I've ever made while being in the military have been people that I've met that have essentially came to my life because of our beliefs in witchcraft. hold So I think that that's really special too, because a lot of times the people that you meet in these spaces will be your lifelong family.
00:38:36
Speaker
Another good resource that you can do or use is social media because everything has a group.
Community Support and Engagement
00:38:45
Speaker
You can look up like wherever you're at.
00:38:48
Speaker
If you're at, you know, Ramstein, like I am, you could look up on social media, Ramstein, which group, pagan group, whatever. And I bet there's groups for it. I have not done this, but I remember like testing this out at um back at Scott And there was like 20 different groups that came up and I was like, oh, wow, that's lot.
00:39:12
Speaker
Yeah. It's like utilize social media because people create a group for everything so that they can have that connection. and being like military, we are kind of like uprooted and ripped away from like family and friends so often that having that connection is important.
00:39:31
Speaker
So yeah utilize your social medias too. Yes. Here in Okinawa, I think the one is ah ours is called Okinawa Earthbound Religions or something to that effect. So if you're here look up something to that.
00:39:46
Speaker
Additionally, too, I see a lot of people with you know military, a lot of military members get tattoos. I see a lot of witchcraft or witchy related or Norse pagan related tattoos. That can be a great way to like, just start a conversation with somebody. If you are the type of person to talk to strangers on a military installation, just be like, Oh, I love that tattoo.
00:40:06
Speaker
Can you tell me more about it? And then yeah that can be a great way to find people who believe similarly to you. Yeah.
00:40:17
Speaker
Especially if they're very obviously witchy tattoos. Yeah. I don't know that I have anything else. I don't think I do either.
00:40:28
Speaker
but yeah, it's not difficult, i feel like, to survive in a military community as a witch because What I will say is you just have to be more creative. But the good thing about being associated with the military is it causes us to have to be more creative with a lot of this stuff anyway.
00:40:46
Speaker
it may just come naturally to you to where you're just like, I just have to be creative about it. Yeah. And then with people, you know just fill them out a little bit. Most people I feel like today, for the most part, there's always going to be a few outliers. Yeah.
00:41:02
Speaker
But for the most part today, most people are so like open about everything. Like we don't live in a time where it's like not against the law. Well, I mean, it was against the law at one point, but like, you know, we don't live in a time where it's like for shame for being a witch or being a pagan or not being Christian.
00:41:26
Speaker
The amount of like people that I'm friends with that just don't believe in religion, period, like We live in a time where people are just so much more open about that topic.
00:41:37
Speaker
So for the most part, you should be fine, but always just feel people out because you never know. Yeah. Just feel people out. Do your research, as we always say.
00:41:47
Speaker
Utilize what you have on the land around you. And if you are moving to someplace that, you know, is new to you and it's part of a military community, you can always reach out to us as well and be like, hey, do you know anybody that lives XYZ that believes like we do? Or post it on our Instagram, our Facebook. Like yeah we love to create this community with you guys and we're always here to support in any way we can.
00:42:19
Speaker
And we can see where people download our episodes and we have listeners all over the world. So posting on our socials might connect you with some people that are near you.
Conclusion and Call for Engagement
00:42:32
Speaker
Yeah.
00:42:43
Speaker
That's a wrap on this episode of Get In Loser, We're Doing Witchcraft. We hope you had as much fun as we did. If you love this episode, we'd be eternally grateful if you left us a five-star review wherever you listen to your podcasts.
00:42:55
Speaker
It helps more witches, seekers, and magical misfits find our show. Want even more Get In Loser content? Join our Patreon or Supercast Coven. As a member, you'll get early access to episodes, a monthly newsletter, exclusive printable shadow work and grow more pages, access to our witchy book club, promo codes for merch, and so much more.
00:43:15
Speaker
Just check the show notes for the link or search Get In Loser We're Doing Witchcraft on Supercast and Patreon. You can also find us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram at GetInWitches or email us at We'reDoingWitchcraft at gmail.com.
00:43:30
Speaker
Join us next week for part two of our series on magical creatures. Until next time, stay magical, stay curious, and as always, blessed be witches.