Little christmas I went with a REAL tree, deciding that it was more eco-friendly than a FAKE one. I also liked the fact that I was helping a North Carolina tree farmer. We had a Frazier Fir this year.I enjoy a REAL tree so much, I don't think I could ever give one up. I love the smell in the house and even the needles that fall everywhere. I think a REAL tree's imperfections, you know, flat on one side, or a whop-sided top, are wonderful. We've even found bird's nests in our trees in years past.I’ve chosen a wide range of festivals, some are pagan, some Christian and other faiths, some definitely secular. I’ve even invented a few for myself. So this is the story of my year of cooking for feasts and festivals I hope you enjoy it. Please leave a comment - I'd love to hear what you think. If you want to re-publish anything from the blog,
We decided to forgo the lights on the tree. Reduce our Christmas footprint and all.
I have tons of lights in my basement, so I couldn't see going to purchase the LED energy-saving ones. I mean, what would I do with the old ones? Throw them in a landfillSo we just went without lights. Au natural.MY WIFE and I decided years ago that it made eminent sense to delay our own gift giving until the 12th day of Christmas. In that way, we would eliminate much of the stress associated with what should be a joy-filled celebration with friends and family. We would concentrate on others, during the more secularly traditional Thanksgiving through December 25th time period, and then devote our efforts to each other during the 12 days following.
(This is, of course, another one of the reasons why I get so amazingly pissed off when Christmas advertising and holiday music begin in October. Not only does it do a disservice to the wonderful American celebration of Thanksgiving [which occurs on the fourth Thursday of November]; it also utterly ignores the rightful 12 days of festivity that occur at the end of December and beginning of January. My Christmas runs through January 6th, so if I acquiesce to their greedy mercantile demands, I’ll be singing a stretched out and thinned-to-absurdity Hallelujah over perhaps a 75-day period. That’s far too much water in anybody’s holiday soup.Since we celebrate on the 6th, I won’t be at work then, nor will I be on the 7th. And, since my only internet connection is at work, there will be nothing new in this space. I won't be spending any of my time during the holiday writing. I'd consider it slightly sacrilegious to do so (aside from the obvious fact of my laziness) and thus nothing new here on the 8th, 9th, or 10th, either. You might get something on the 11th, but only if I've got words inside of me itching to burst through my fingers much as the alien burst through John Hurt's stomach. In other words, this may be the last new entry you'll see until the 12th or 13th. Or possibly February.
