I think she genuinely involved with a coven in the NROOGD for at least a time, but it didn't work out for her and like you guess, she is mostly a solitary practitioner. I think she understands the rules whether they be written or not as subjective as they apply to herself and very objective and black and white as they apply to others. I believe her knowledge is fairly advanced when it comes to magikal practices that may benefit her and less well rounded when it comes to traditions unless she found a given practice entertaining. She is ambivalent about what hand path she takes and is probably a type of chaos mage that keeps a cultural shell of being a witch (imagery, decor) because that is all she has ever known and is somewhat insecure in her spiritual identity. Part of her prefers the more mainstream appearance identity and this has I think created kind of a schism in her mind.
BTW, Last night's pronunciation of Samhain was to line herself with the band's pronunciation (She knows the correct one.)
Time traveling here, trying to catch up.
@Spookcat, I think
@Dyna-X's reply to you is very insightful. I would add some speculations of my own to her reply. I think HW has learned the basics and perhaps some higher practices from being in her coven and perhaps other places as well (other people?) but she does not appear to have the attributes of deep self-reflection nor high intelligence enough for her to be able to ruminate on what she's learned by rote and practice. Many people who learn a religion or set of beliefs and practices don't go deeply into what those beliefs and practices really mean to them personally, privately, individually, even on the soul level perhaps.
So I don't know that she has made the deeper distinctions as to what is moral, what is ethical, what "do no harm" really means in microscopic detail, and how inexorable, in her self-described belief system, the threefold law is. There's no negotiating that in that belief system: what you do will come back to you threefold in one form or another, sooner or later. If she took that really seriously she would have to think about the future repercussions of wishing others harm, doxxing them, tearing them apart publicly "on the air," etc. not to mention what I am sure are countless other acts of anger, intent to harm, vengeance, and retaliation she has likely committed that we have no idea about.
So to put it succinctly (after all that! <g>), yes, I speculate she is self-taught, non-reflective, undisciplined, emotion-driven, and sloppy about really living by her self-professed beliefs.
Whew! <g> Hope that helps, Spookcat! +1 for asking a great question!
