Fah Who Foraze, Merry Christmas to All

Below is a 1930's or 40's Christmas Angel, that watches over our dining room table every year. We inherited it many years ago from an elderly neighbor in San Francisco.


It is set into a rather gaudy looking wreath of shiny silver and gold tinsel and glitter. I love it because it's cheerful, and reminds me of Christmas Past.


Christmas, like so many other things in our lives, seems to be more electronic and digitalised these days. That's not necessarily bad, just different. I enjoy wonderful new LED Christmas lights and Digital entertainments as much as anyone does. It's just that things like this wreath remind me of times we used to have similar joys without plugging something in or turning something on.


I'm not a luddite against electricity. It's just that I think that while we can enjoy the complexities our modern world can offer for our ease and enjoyment, I believe we can also benefit from not losing touch with the simpler joys and pleasures in life. Things that can also help keep us grounded in the here-and-now of our life, and the larger picture of our lives, without becoming lost in endless distractions. Instant gratification distractions and fantasies, that can cause us to loose sight of the things that really matter in the larger picture.


As we move forward into the Brave New World of our future, I hope we remember to bring with us the best parts of our past, and continue to value and cherish the things that make us human, that don't really change much, regardless of the twists and turns of technology, regardless of how many electronics we do or do not own. The things that don't involve flipping on a switch, pressing a button, or voice activated software.

"Fah Who Foraze, Dah Who Doraze". Welcome Christmas, and a Very Merry Christmas to All!


     

The Evolution of Thanksgiving

Is this where we are heading?:



Don't laugh too hard, we may already be well on the way there:

     

Some good Thanksgiving advice: "When you gather ’round the turkey, try not to be one"

Here's an interesting idea:

Have a happy, politics-free Thanksgiving

[...] Nobody needs tryptophan when you’ve got Pundy McPundit (amateur, professional or otherwise) at the table to bore your company to death with his or her insights on “climate-proofing” your holiday feast; bombard you with details about Bernie Sanders’ latest Web ad; regurgitate John Kasich’s latest attacks on critics of his massive Medicaid expansion; or champion Jeb Bush’s latest re-re-re-reboot (two exclamation points, new talking points, a fix-it toolbox, blah, blah blah).

Zzzzzzzz.

I feel sorry for rabid partisans on either side of the aisle who refuse to talk to family members, co-workers or friends who support a candidate they don’t like. Life’s too short — and 99 percent of all politicians are crapweasels, anyway.

[...]

It shouldn’t be a struggle to avoid yelling about Bush, Clinton or Trump as you pass the sweet-potato casserole. Don’t get mad. Get perspective. Here, let me help:

If your children are alive, free and healthy, count your blessings and say a prayer for all those parents spending the holiday week in hospitals, hospices, clinics, jails or funeral homes.

If you can’t think of something nice to say to the person sitting next of you, trade memories of the dearest, departed loved ones you share a connection with who are no longer sitting at the table at all.

Pick up an instrument and play music together or sing some old hymns of Thanksgiving (“We Gather Together” was always my favorite).

Take a walk, breathe fresh air, go out on the deck and make fire pit s’mores (or use the gas grill).

Show the young ones at your gathering how to make rubberband stars, advanced paper airplanes, origami hearts or crochet snowflakes.

Get silly. Play “Charades” or “Spoons” or “Balderdash.” Laugh at yourself and laugh with your relatives.

Don’t take family time for granted. Ever. You never know when your time will be up. It would be ridiculous if the very last, parting words you traded with an elderly uncle or sibling or cousin you rarely get to see were “You’re an idiot for voting for (fill in the blank)!” instead of “I love you.”

Look up at the stars. Remember how small and insignificant you are in the universe.

Finally: When you gather ’round the turkey, try not to be one.

Amen. Read the whole thing for embedded links and more.

Happy Thanksgiving!

     

Not all Eggnogs are Created Equal

How it's done, can make all the difference. I heard this on the radio today:

Don't Knock The Nog Until You've Tried This One

We ran an unofficial office poll at NPR last week, via email: "Where do you weigh in on eggnog? Love it? Hate it?"

Those who hate it really hate it. They used words like "detest," "loathe" and "ick." They also used font sizes well above 14 point and broke out the red type to emphasize their distaste.

But the haters were in the minority. By about 2 to 1, NPR is an eggnog drinkin' kind of place, but — and this was emphasized by many — only if it's eggnog done right. That means: not too sweet, not too thick and just the perfect amount of booze.

Fortunately, we might be able to satisfy the lovers and convert some of the haters with Maria del Mar Sacasa's recipe for this seasonal concoction.

See, the author of Winter Cocktails was once an eggnog hater, too. Her first encounter with eggnog at a holiday party had her covertly pouring her drink into a potted plant. There was plenty not to like. "How it tasted," she recalls, "how awful the texture!"

Years later, while researching the drink for her book, she realized she might have been put off by eggnog done badly.

"I ran out to the supermarket and I bought a few of the eggnogs and I tried everything from the really cheap versions in the cartons to the higher end ones, and unfortunately they were exactly what I did not want in my eggnog," del Mar Sacasa says.

That is to say, artificially flavored, flat tasting, too sweet and too thick (these are similar complaints that cropped up in NPR's unofficial office poll).

So del Mar Sacasa set out to make her own eggnog.

"I tested a lot of recipes I found in books and in magazines and online and I did come across a few that had an interesting twist, which was adding egg whites whipped into soft peaks into the mixture," del Mar Sacasa says. "And this gave it this really beautiful airy, fluffy quality, similar to cappuccino."

After playing with milk-to-booze ratios and spice combinations, del Mar Sacasa believes she has the perfect recipe for basic eggnog. "This tastes like melted ice cream. It does. I promise." [...]

It goes on to offer two recipies. Follow the link to find them.

     

A bit of Christmas Spirit...

... with a Western twist.

Wishing You an Old Fashioned Christmas! from Jared Foster on Vimeo.

     

Turkeys, Presidents and Pardons

President Obama Should Save His Pardon and Eat the Turkeys

The White House wants you, America, to decide which of two turkeys President Barack Obama crowns the “National Thanksgiving Turkey.” Both turkeys — named Caramel and Popcorn — are getting presidential pardons Wednesday morning, so online voters aren’t picking which bird dies and which bird lives. The reality is actually worse: Both Caramel and Popcorn will soon die regardless of the public’s vote. [...]

The article goes on to explain that, because the turkeys are bred to be eaten, they are overweight, and don't have long lives. Most pardoned turkeys are dead by the next thanksgiving, and in the interim suffer multiple health problems.

So who started the turkey pardoning thing anyway? Well, it was dabbled with by several presidents, but one made it an official tradition. Guess who?

The Definitive History of the Presidential Turkey Pardon

Happy Thanksgiving!
     

Why Witches and Broomsticks go together

A Bewitching History: Why Witches Ride Broomsticks

[...] Many of the pointy-hatted sorcerers who roam the streets this Oct. 31 will be carrying broomsticks or besoms. But few likely know the murky tale of how witches came to be associated with those familiar household objects.

The story — full of sex, drugs and Christian inquisitors — starts with poisonous plants like black henbane (Hyoscyamus niger), sometimes called stinking nightshade. [...]

And guess what they do with those broomsticks?

     

In Honor of Veteran's Day 2012

To All of Our Veterans,

Thank You

   

We owe you more

than words can say.

Merry Christmas, courtesy of Jan Steen

I love this painting:


It's called "Het Sint-Nicolaasfeest" (The Feast of St. Nicholas) by Jan Steen.

I discovered it here: The Flemish Claim To Sinterklaas In America.

Yesterday, December 6th, children in Flanders received gifts. These gifts ostensibly come from Sinterklaas with the aid of his Moor assistant, "Swarte Piet". This tradition had strong Catholic origins, which of course made it anathema to 17th century convicted Calvinists. Thankfully, key members of the Dutch Reformed Church in Nieuw Nederland who had roots in officially Catholic Flanders, were unwilling to give up their cultural traditions. [...]

That inspired me to look up the facts about the painting. I didn't save the links, so I'm going to try to summarize what I read about it from memory.

It's believed to be painted around 1665-1668, and shows a Catholic family celebrating the Feast of St. Nicholas.

"Sinterklaas" would supposedly come down the chimney while everyone slept, and leave goodies in the shoes of the children. But if the children had been naughty, they would get something that wasn't nice. Thus, the fun begins!

See the boy on the left, who's crying? He apparently had been naughty, and got a lump of coal or something equally disappointing in his shoe. Witness the smirking older girl, probably his sister, passing the shoe around for everyone to see. And another sibling, a younger brother, pointing, who's also pleased by his brother's humiliation, in that way that siblings will do. The father can be seen sitting in the background, looking rather pleased with himself.

In the foreground, the mother is doting on a little girl (often described as "spoiled" in most of the descriptions I read), who is clinging to a doll. The doll is supposed to be a saint (I forget the name) who is known for protecting children.

Leaning against the table next to the mother is an odd piece of decorated bread. It's a special loaf made for the feast. The Protestants at one time passed laws forbidding the bread to be made, condemning the practice as "Papist". But apparently the law was largely ignored.

On the right of the painting you can see a young man holding a baby and pointing upward towards the chimney. He's telling the baby the story of Sinterklaas, and how he comes down the chimney bringing gifts. The little pie-faced boy next to them with his mouth wide open, is singing a song of thanks to the Saint, for bringing all the goodies.

And last but not least, in the background you see grandma, who seems to be motioning to the crying boy to come over to her. Does she have something for him behind that curtain? So it will be a happy Christmas for everyone after all!

The expressions on the faces are so realistic, and all the little things going on, the details... it's timeless. I love it!

A high-resolution version can be seen on Wikipedia. Click on the link, then click on the picture to zoom in even closer:

Jan Steen - Het Sint Nicolaasfeest

Merry Christmas, and best wishes to all for the Holidays.
     

Merry Christmas 2010

Here's some Christmas music, a blast from the past:



For something a bit more heavenly, go here:

Libera with Aled Jones

Libera again

Final Libera
     

A Day of Gratitude for our Many Veterans

Happy Veterans Day: Thank you!
     

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Good Cheer

... or whatever floats your boat today. Enjoy it!



Make the most out of what you have.


     

We can only hope...

Happy July 4th!

Have a Happy, Healthy & Prospersous New Year

This past year, an election year, was a tough one. I spent a lot of my time blogging about politics, in a contentious election. I won't be doing as much politics in 2009.

Oh, I'm sure I will do some political posts, I will criticize, but not like I did during the election. In 2008 I was working to save something. But we lost. I'm a realist. We have Democrats in control, they are going to do many things I don't like, because they are who they are. I'm not going to bang my head against the wall about it. We have to expect Democrats to be Democrats. I'll pick and choose my battles carefully.

We have some very grave challenges facing us in the next four years, both domestically and globally. I'll be praying for our president and our entire government to make wise choices. As Americans, we all have an investment in wishing our new President and his Administration a certain amount of success; there are key areas in which America must succeed.

I'll also be praying for the Republican party to find some unity and build a genuine coalition with a BIG tent, so they can become an effective political opposition and start winning elections again. That can only happen if all the ideological factions of the Republican party stop taking hostages, learn to compromise, and learn to understand the strength, power and value of incremental change. It's the greatest challenge our party faces over the next four years; to grow and become relevant again. ALL Republicans can contribute to that, if we unite and battle the political opposition, instead of each other.

I may spend less time blogging this year, and more time pursing other interests, but I will also be posting about whatever I am studying or working on. Blogging was more fun when I wasn't posting about politics all the time, and I intend to go back to that. I'm making a New Year's Resolution to have more FUN in 2009.

Best Wishes to All for the New Year!
     

Christmas Lights Are Here at Last...

Been meaning to put them up, and finally got around to it yesterday:


A nearly full moon rises over the farm as the sun sets.


I hung the colored lights across from the living room windows, so we could see them from inside.


The winter moon shines through the cold damp mist. The weather forecast says SNOW is on the way for the weekend.


The warm looking lights will cheer us through the dark cold winter. I will probably leave them up until March at least.