A Merry Christmas

So, Christmas has come and gone. The holiday rush is over and everyone is chillin’. Around here, all in all, things went well. We didn’t have a lot to spend on the kids but we were able to get them a few things each that they wanted. I think they were happy. Of course, G, our youngest got a broken toy two years in a row now. That really sucked, poor guy. We bought him a remote control dragon that was supposed to do all sorts of stuff including walking. G wanted to be able to walk over the top of his other toys and pretend he was crushing them, kind of a Godzilla thing, I think. He originally asked for a D-Rex, but yeah, right…179.00 dollars. I don’t think so. This one cost 40.00 a considerable difference and would have been perfect. He was very excited when he saw it. Unfortunately, the button on the remote that makes the dragon walk and makes his wings flap is the broken one. The darn thing will do everything else, its eyes light up, it roars, but no walkie. Figures. I plan on taking it back to the store this coming week but man, last year he had a broken dinosaur toy, too. So, the whole large reptilian toy thing just hasn’t been working out well. On the plus side, though, he absolutely loves the harmonica he received, so it wasn’t a waste for him. The other kids were all happy with their stuff, PC games, bedding, Bakugon, Nerf guns, Tini Puppinies, and skateboards all topped the list.



The older kids (the ones who now live on their own) all got a check. It works well for them. But… they also got some homemade sewn goodies. S&B got a Bears apron and overstuffed pillow, K&D got a Bears apron and a Colts overstuffed pillow, and G&J got extra-long fleece blankets. J stands about 7 foot tall so I thought that he may have a hard time finding a blanket that he can wrap up in. I made them each an 8 foot by 5 foot blanky. G’s has white Japanese letters (characters ?) against a black background. J’s has a woodland duck scene. I wanted to find him something cool like Star Wars, or D&D type stuff, but no luck. I think he liked it though. He’ll be able to cover up from head to foot and wrap his feet up, too. He said that they’ve had to keep an extra blanket down at the end of the bed so he can cover up his feet when they’re sleeping so I thin it was a good choice. C has asked for a Bears shirt to be made for him from the extra material. I told him I need to get a pattern, but I think it’s doable.

Well, so much for the Christmas updatey thing. I think I’ll be spending some time in the near future doing some writing. Besides the novel (that has been sorely neglected over the holidays), I also need to write an article and keep up on the blog entries. I submitted the poetry chapbook but I won’t hear anything on it until February. Keep your fingers crossed. Check ya later.

Christmas Holiday

K, so the holidays are here and in full swing. Despite the economic crunch I still have much baking, sewing, cleaning, and cooking to do. What does this mean to you? Probably not too much, unless of course, you’re a devoted reader of this blog who can’t seem to go a day without a fix. Yeah, yeah…I know there’s sooo many of you out there *wink*. Seriously, though, it does mean that there’s a good chance my posts will become more erratic for a while. This is not to say that they haven’t been erratic in the past, but I’m just trying to forewarn everyone. I’m considerate that way.

So on with the post of the day – Question: What do a pair of shoes, President Bush, and an Iraqi journalist all have in common?


Answer: If you haven’t heard…During President Bush’s last visit to Iraq an Iraqi journalist threw a pair of shoes at the, soon to be, ex-pres. Now, why shoes? In Iraq it is considered to be a great disgrace to have shoes thrown at you. I’m not exactly sure why, R’s take on the matter was that “You throw a shoe at a dog” which may very well be on track here. Bush was able to duck out of the way and was not injured or even touched by the shoes, but the man was arrested nonetheless.

A couple of things here – Bush’s reply, when asked about the incident, basically stated that he believed this to be the opinion of one man and not at all a reflection of the Iraqi populace’s feelings. My take…OMG get real Bush! Iraq has been thrown back into the dark ages here, their infrastructure destroyed, their way of life altered forever, and lets not forget to mention the tens of thousands of innocent men, women, and children who have died as a direct result of this war that was waged in the name of “Weapons of Mass Destruction” that everyone but apparently Bush knew were not there. Can Bush, by any minute proportion, actually believe what he is saying? Good God, I give up!

Next, and this is really the most important point of my post today, so please if you pay attention to nothing else, read this –
The journalist who has a wife and family to care for has been placed under arrest. He is facing up to two years in prison for throwing a shoe people! Give me a freakn’ break. Let’s be honest here. Ok, so what he did could “technically” be considered (what?) an assault on a government official. What it actually boils down to is a frustrated man, who has been placed under extreme hardship conditions, living in a country where neither he nor his family can safely exist, who attempted to have his voice and frustration heard. He wanted Bush to understand that he blames him for the atrocities he has seen and still has to live with. And how did he do this? By throwing a shoe! Not a bomb, not a knife, he didn’t take a shot at him. He used a pretty harmless object, an object that anyone with children has probably witnessed flying through the air at some point in time. And for this, the man may receive two years in prison. What, long enough for his family to die under the current hardships faced by the people of Iraq? For throwing a shoe he and his family should be given a death sentence? I personally think it’s amazing that an actual attempt on Bush’s life wasn’t made by someone there. What about you? Do you think two years in an Iraqi prison is a bit too much? I’m very interested in knowing how others view this situation. Please, leave your thoughts.

And…Happy Holidays because even when the world sucks, life goes on.

Samhain AKA Halloween

Samhain, pronounced [SAW-hin] is, of course, the original Halloween. Actually, the word itself is Celtic and means November. To the ancient Celts the day signified the beginning of the New Year. The night before the New Year was considered to be an opportune time to communicate with the gods because the veil between this world and the otherworld was at its thinnest. The thin veil, however, worked both ways. Not only did it allow the Celts to speak more easily with their gods, it also allowed beings from the otherworld to cross back over into this world. It was believed that the spirits of the people who had died that year would revisit this world on Samhain eve. To discourage the spirits from coming into the village proper, the Celts would build large bon fires and take offerings to the outskirts of town. They would place the food there in hopes of luring the spirits away.

The Romans considered Samhain sacred as well, however, they called it Pomona Day. To them it was a day of celebration for the end of the harvest. They gave thanks to their gods for their bounty and paid tribute so that the gifts of the harvest would be there again the following year. It was a holiday of tremendous merry making and joy.

Around 500 BC or so, the Romans made their way into the Celtic lands. War ensued and cultures clashed. In the end, the Romans and the Celts managed to combine the holiday traditions and melded beliefs from both cultures. Halloween, the term we know for the holiday, wasn’t actually given until many centuries later when Christianity was introduced to the Celtic lands.

When the Christian faith began to spread, the church found huge amounts of resistance to their pleas to give up the pagan holidays and traditions. They decided it would be more effectual to try and change these holidays into Christian celebrations. With that, they created All Saints Day; on the first of November the Catholic Church honors all of the saints who do not have their own holiday. The night before All Saint’s Day became All Hallows Eve to signify the holy evening. Over the years the term, through mutations of speech, became Halloween. Now, while the church has overtaken many, many pagan holidays, including Easter and Christmas (those are blog entries for another day), in this manner; Halloween just couldn’t be subdued. People enjoyed the celebration too much and the night has now become known to us as a day of spooky mischief making and treats. Yummy.

Somewhere along the line the idea of dressing in frightening costumes also came along. I believe the intent here was to scare off potential spirits that may have meant you harm. I’m not positive on this, but I think it may have come from the Spanish/Mexican influence stemming from their Day of the Dead (November 2nd). So, what are you going to be this year? I plan to hand out goodies to the kids and then sit around with the family telling ghost stories and watching scary movies. Apple bobbing and popcorn balls will most certainly make their appearance as well. America really is a melting pot of culture and our holiday celebrations attest to that fact. Happy Halloween!