Aquaman’s Underwater Grotto

Celebrate Lammas with us, Aquatic Style, at the fabulous Conference Center at Harbin Hot Springs!

Ever since our amazing celebration of AquaLush in February of 2006, I have been contemplating when we would return to Harbin Hot Springs for another weekend of yummy moist goodness. The time has now come to begin the creation of this most wonderful opportunity for us to celebrate our Exalted Yes!

This wet and wild weekend celebration will include: 

Sexy Summer Fashion Show

Pole Dance Extraordinaire by Catherine Rose of Slinky Productions

RS & Community DJs, including Josef, Rodrigo, Rrrus, Shanti, Stardragon, musQaria,

Betty Ray, Snow Leopard, Jocelyn, Liat, Aquaman and more!

Ceremony of Exalted Yes by David and Cassandra
Decor by Fuzzy Philippe's Fabulous Fluff and
Decadent Truffles by Edible Love Chocolates
Aquatic Chill Lounge
Bondage Demonstration
Sunday Poolside Brunch
and plenty of sun, soothing waters, and yumminess.

The Cost will be $200 per person,

including indoor camping accommodations for two nights

five delicious catered meals

and the most fantastic music and dance entertainment

you will experience all season.

Space is limited, so RSVP soon to reserve your spot. Registration details will follow.

Questions? Email djaquamon@yahoo.com or call 510.467.4460.

The Legend of Aquaman:

It all began in 1978, when my brother Tom and I got our first sets of Underoos. I was Superman and he was Aquaman. At the time, blue was my favorite color and orange was his. We used to watch the Superman/Aquaman adventure hour and then we would act out the characters improv style. Very much fun. ( I still have the photo!)

I became a serious DC Comics fan, and followed all the major characters. I liked Aquaman ok, but I mostly enjoyed Batman titles, especially Detective Comics and Brave and the Bold. Batman was the perfect crimefighter – an ordinary human being who endured extraordinary trauma and emerged stronger and more powerful as a result of his willpower and physical and mental stamina.

My life proceeded merrily along through many journeys, heroic and otherwise, through to 1999, when I encountered the amorphous entity known as “The Community”. Through Jamie and George, I met Jerry, Deirdre, Guy, Damien (nee Chris Jones), Niebauer, Joseph, Ken, Steve Geer, Adam, Mila, etc. etc. and was invited to participate in building the Community. Damien and George were leading the Burning Man camp, with the theme of Mount Olympus. We were each invited to choose a God or Goddess to embody for the week on the Playa, beneath our huge canopy of dusty camo netting that served as our mountain.

I thought carefully about which deity I wanted to choose. I felt drawn to Poseidon, Lord of the Ocean. I realized that the modern day version of the Lord of the Ocean was none other that Aquaman, one of those Super Friends from long ago. I began to research the character through his evolution. I developed a costume, persona, and context in which to express my life purpose. As a man with an Aquarius Sun and seven planets in a grand trine in water signs, I felt this was a very appropriate way to express my love of water and ocean creatures, my intuitive gifts, and my desire to create a realm of peace, beauty, harmony and love. During Burning Man 1999, I did my best to generate this vibe within

Mount Olympus, making good connections with new friends and Community members.

Fast forward to February 2000, when I took on the visioning and leadership for the Community Burning Man camp for 2000. Eliza and I co-led the Superheroes of Atlantis camp. With huge help from Hologram Man (Damien’s super persona), we constructed a large wood tower and suspended a dome of luminescent green fabric over a bamboo arc frame. It almost brought tears to my eyes when Jerry pulled up in his car and unloaded these immense cutout silhouettes of Superman, Wonder Woman and Aquaman to decorate the tower. That leadership experience brought major lessons for everyone involved, especially the need for me to focus my energy more precisely. It was a fun camp, and it probably would have benefited from more thorough and complete attention on my part. Nonetheless, it paved the way for many exciting events to come.

 The Aquatic Celebrations: 2000 – 2007

In February of 2001 I began a series of annual events known as AquaFest. These were conceived of as the Community Aquarius Birthday parties, and were held at the homes of various prominent and generous Community leaders: (Scottie Corwin, Steve Reinlib, Erik Schultz, Gary Fernandes). They took different forms each year. In each of them, we celebrated the unique spirit of Community expressed by the archetype of Aquarius, the Water Bearer. We danced, went on journeys, gave and received acknowledgements, embodied Action Heroes, and did a lot of chilling and connecting. One of my favorite aspects of these parties was the way in which new intimate relationship and friendships formed like magic at each one. The first AquaFest at Scottie’s house featured Julie Danger’s introduction to the Community at the tender (!) age of 17, and we all know how much trouble she has generated of the very best kind ever since then. That’s just one of the dozens of highlights I can recall from those fun events.

The very next weekend after Aquafest I, Spencer and I got together as romantic partners, and we were very seldom seen apart from then onwards for the next six years. We formed a strong partnership that resulted, among many other things, in the creation of Miraculous Love, our weekend wedding ceremony at the Watsu Center of Harbin Hot Springs, on June 28^th of 2003. We became Aquaman and Mera, King and Queen of Atlantis, and we embraced all of our closest friends in our loving watery domain. Those of you who participated remember what a moving and beautiful celebration we all experienced.

We were so inspired by the joy and success of that event that we followed it up with a reunion in February 2006, AquaLush. Both Spencer and I have received ongoing positive feedback ever since that event, and some have called it the best party they had ever attended bar none. Although in the ensuing year, Spencer and I have separated as romantic and marriage partners, we still maintain the spirit of Miraculous Love, and we fully support one another in our new relationships and explorations. We have never forgotten the incredible contributions that our Communities have made to us, individually and together.

After taking a hiatus in February 2008, I decided that it was time to regenerate the Aquatic Spirit once again, this time with full sole ownership of every stage of the process. I consulted with the workshop organizers at Harbin Hot Springs, and reserved the only remaining free weekend at the Conference Center for 2008, August 1-3. They no longer rent out the Harbin Domes for outside groups. Unfortunate, but the Conference Center has several advantages over the Domes, including a large dancefloor and sound system for the kind of music and dancing that brought us all together in the first place. As the RS is fond of saying, We Are One In The Dance.

This brings us to the present, and to the very near future…AquaLammas…

Why AquaLammas?

Lammas is the word for the Celtic holiday of the First Fruits of the Harvest. It falls on August 1^st, and it seemed to me a fitting evolution of the series, incorporating the sacred Wiccan roots of my culture with the watery wonder of Harbin.

More details:

In English-speaking countries in the Northern Hemisphere, August 1 is Lammas Day (loaf-mass day), the festival of the first wheat harvest of the year. On this day it was customary to bring to church a loaf made from the new crop. In many parts of England, tenants were bound to present freshly harvested wheat to their landlords on or before the first day of August. In the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, where it is referred to regularly, it is called "the feast of first fruits". The blessing of new fruits was performed annually in both the Eastern and Western Churches on the first, or the sixth, of August. The Sacramentary of Pope Gregory I (d. 604) specifies the sixth.^{[citation needed]}

In mediæval times the feast was known as the "Gule of August", but the meaning of "gule" is unknown. Ronald Hutton suggests that it may be an Anglicisation of gwyl aust, the Welsh name for August 1 meaning "feast of August", but this is not certain. If so, this points to a pre-Christian origin for Lammas among the Anglo-Saxons and a link to the Gaelic festival of Lughnasadh. 'Gule' could also come from 'Geohhol' (Old English form of 'jule') and thus Lammas Day was the 'Jule of August'.^{[citation needed]}

There are several historical references to it being known as Lambess eve, such as 'Publications of the Scottish Historical Society' 1964 and this alternate name is the origin of the Lambess surname, just as Hallowmass and Christmas were also adopted as familial titles.

The Intention of AquaLammas:

This event will be more than a dance party, more than a fashion show, more than an opportunity to talk and connect with friends in a relaxing environment. This event will be a sacred celebration of feminine beauty and masculine power, of masculine beauty and feminine power. This event will be an opportunity for us to intentionally create the kind of world and society that we all would choose. For one weekend, we will eat, sleep, dance, talk, love, learn, and celebrate together the joy of being alive. We will launch one another powerfully into the next phase of the year, whether that be a journey to the Playa, to travels abroad, to begin a next phase of education, to new autumn projects, or just home to help our kids prepare for the next year of school.

I invite you all to bring your whole selves and immerse your body and soul in the healing and stimulating waters of AquaLammas.

Love and Blessings,

Andy Davis

aka Aquaman

What an incredible party!!!

The Gratitude Music Sets are here:

MAIN ROOM - These are very high quality recordings from the Alesis
Masterlink. They a medium sound quality, but manageable in size for your
mp3 player.

Forest - http://natane.net/music/community/forest.bloom.192k.mp3

Rodrigo - http://natane.net/music/community/rodrigo.bloom.192k.mp3

Josef - http://natane.net/music/community/josef.bloom.192k.mp3

Damian - http://natane.net/music/community/damian.bloom.192k.mp3

Mike G - http://natane.net/music/community/mikeg.part1.bloom.192k.mp3 &
http://natane.net/music/community/mikeg.part2.bloom.192k.mp3

CHILL SPACE - These files were recorded in mp3 in 1 very large, very long
file.

Aquaman PM set -
http://natane.net/music/community/aquaman.part1.bloom.192k.mp3

Jim Yu - http://natane.net/music/community/jimyu.part1.bloom.192k.mp3 &
http://natane.net/music/community/jimyu.part2.bloom.192k.mp3

Snow Leopard -
http://natane.net/music/community/snowleopard.bloom.192k.mp3

Primitive Groove -
http://natane.net/music/community/primitivegroove.bloom.192k.mp3

Aquaman AM set -
http://natane.net/music/community/aquaman.part2.bloom.192k.mp3

BLOOM   by Dawn Athena
Gratitude beckons You.
Can you feel the raw, primal pulse welling up inside you?  Once again Gratitude has come alive.  Step into this auspicious, collective groove where everyone is seen, hearts are free, and dreams wildly burst true... and together we shall BLOOM!

Saturday April 19th

Radiance Factory

Jack London Square, Oakland

9:00 pm to 6:00 am

For details contact AquaMan at 510.467.4460 or djaquamon@yahoo.com

DJs
MAIN ROOM
9:00-10:45      Chris Lum
10:45-12:00    Rodrigo
12:00-12:20    CEREMONY
12:20-1:45      Josef
1:45-3:00        Damien 
3:00-4:15        Dj Forest
4:15-6:00        MikeG

CHILL AREA
9:00-11:00      Aquaman
11:00-12:00    Jim Yu
12:00-12:20    CEREMONY
12:20-1:00      Jim Yu
1:00-2:30        Snow Leopard
2:30-4:30        Primitive Groove
4:30-6:00        AquaMan

Welcome to Aquaman's Underwater Grotto!

Stay tuned for news of exciting music & dance events, dj mix downloads, and sage words of wisdom from the Lord of the Deep.

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Event of the Week:

The Rhythm Society Annual Retreat

April 10-13

Saratoga Springs, CA

DJs Aquaman, Scott B, Snow Leopard and more!

Invite Only.

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Today's Card: Queen of Wands

Amidst the flames of passion surrounding you, maintain a peaceful and loving heart, and you will be empowered to channel all the tumultuous energy into warmth and illumination.

Ciao for Now,

DJ Aquaman