Posts Tagged ‘christmas’

Here’s to everyone who’s not letting fear or government nonsense interfere with their usual Christmas festivities

Posted: December 23, 2021 by Jon Fournier in Uncategorized
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Sorry for the short article. This week I’m absolutely swamped with the usual preparations for my family’s annual Polish and French Canadian Christmas Eve extravaganza. 

Our feast will include Pierogies, kapusta, crepes, meat pies, and so much more.  My job every year is to make the kapusta.  I follow a recipe that has been handed down through the generations from the Szczecin region of Poland.  I’ve also brewed two batches of homebrew beer to share with everyone.

I’m living in the household where our extended family gathers for every holiday.  The usual throng of relatives will gather here again this Christmas Eve.  Not a single relative has canceled out. We are not altering our festivities in any way at all.  We have done this all during pandemic, except for the Easter Brunch that happened a couple weeks into the pandemic.  We canceled that particular holiday gathering at the beginning out of an abundance of caution because no one knew just then the true nature of the Wuhan Virus. 

Ever since then we have held every single family gathering including major holidays, minor holidays, and a great many birthdays.  Not a single one of us wears a mask or gives a damn about anyone’s vaccination status.  Everyone hugs the customary amount and no one social distances at all. 

Last year the governor of our state banned all gathering in private homes of over ten people.  We steadfastly ignored his ban even though we faced heavy fines.  We are determined to do the same again if that idiot institutes the same fascist restrictions.

Unfortunately a large segment of the population in this country have succumbed to the fear and restrictions, and are canceling their Christmas festivities once again this year. They are missing out on so much.

It saddens me and angers me so much that so many countries have descended into abject tyranny and are placing draconian restrictions on the Christmas festivities of their entire populations. 

Mass non-compliance and mass resistance to all of this tyranny is the only way everyone’s holidays festivities will be truly free again.

Report from Louisiana: The Pre-Christmas Roundup

Posted: December 20, 2021 by Pat Austin in Uncategorized
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SHREVEPORT – Some random observations from around the Web:

  • Perhaps I am a luddite, but the New York Times list of the best books of 2021 is bizarre to me. I would be hard pressed to find one or two that I would read.
  • Speaking of books, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards has a curious reading list to occupy his time over the Christmas break.
  • I love Christmas time in Louisiana! The levee bonfires, cancelled because of Covid last year, are back! The tradition serves to light the way for Papa Noel on Christmas Eve.
  • I went to see Spider-Man No Way Home this weekend; loved it. It was the first time I’ve been to a movie theater in a couple of years, but I’m glad I went. Great movie!
  • In the saddest news I’ve heard in a long time, this couple from Iowa died this past week within hours of each other from Covid. They ran a beautiful bed and breakfast called The Peppermill out of their lovingly restored Victorian home. Belle was an excellent cook, a DIY queen, creative, fun, and such a warm person. Her husband Dan was equally welcoming. This is devastating news to the community and of course to their daughter.
  • I loved Adrienne’s post on decluttering. The struggle is real.
  • The Democrats are coming after your gas stoves. Now let me tell you, one thing I CAN do is cook, and I refuse to cook on an electric stove. I know, you have one, you love it. Fine. That’s your choice. But when I’m making a gumbo, when I am cooking the roux, I want to see exactly how high that flame is. It’s an art. And no electric stove is going to do that for me. Besides, the key word there was CHOICE. I have a 1940s Chambers range in my kitchen, and it runs on gas. I’m keeping it.
  • Our church held the annual Nativity Pageant last night, and y’all, it was so dang cute. Little mice crawling up the aisle, at one point one of the sheep abandoned the stable and fled to his mother in the congregation, and little tiny angels. It was precious. Take a look!
  • I hope you all have a wonderful holiday! Eat as much fruitcake as you like, enjoy your families, read a good book, and remember the reason for the season. Merry Christmas from Shreveport.

Pat Austin blogs at And So it Goes in Shreveport and at Medium. She is the author of Cane River Bohemia: Cammie Henry and her Circle at Melrose Plantation (LSU Press).

Sweet Sound

Posted: December 24, 2019 by julietteochieng in culture
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Show and Tell

by baldilocks

From Mark Deutchle at American Thinker:

You might be surprised at what you can see and hear while ringing the Christmas Bell for the Salvation Army.  These last two weeks, I saw hundreds of people going in and out of our local Walmart, all coming within just a few feet of my Salvation Army Bell and Red Kettle.  Soon after I started ringing the bell, a few people stopped to chat, and it was then that I realized that I had a great opportunity to learn some new things.  I found that I was in the presence of authentic people living life, who were wanting and striving toward the best life they could create for themselves and their loved ones. (…)

I noticed that most people going in and out of Walmart were really not paying attention to me and my ringing bell.  However, if I took the lead by greeting them with a robust “Merry Christmas!,” many would smile and return the greeting.  Over and over again, I watched as some would mentally stop in their tracks, turning from their inward focus so they could place a donation in the Kettle.

It became obvious to me that the Salvation Army has earned for itself a tremendous reputation in America.  One can only wonder how many millions of lives the organization may have touched.  My brief time ringing the bell was encouraging, as I witnessed all kinds of people taking a few moments to donate to the Kettle: whites, blacks, Hispanics, Asians, vets, young and old.  All were acting on an impulse to improve the lives of others at their own expense.

At the end of Psalm 91, God says that, if we trust Him and are not afraid of all the stuff that life throws at us, He will show us His Salvation. It occurs to me that this means that He will show us Jesus the Christ and He will show us what Salvation looks like in action — what it looks like when it is on the march – like an army.

Mr. Deutschle got it from two perspectives: he saw it and was a part of it.

And it’s my opinion that each one of us can see it — if we are looking for it.

Merry Christmas.

By the way, I promised an update to this post. That will happen this Saturday.

Juliette Akinyi Ochieng has been blogging since 2003 as baldilocks. Her older blog is here.  She published her first novel, Tale of the Tigers: Love is Not a Game in 2012.

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Christmas Open House today UPDATE: Guest count begins!

Posted: January 1, 2011 by datechguy in personal, special events
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4:00 a.m. The 70th guest left at this time and the party officially ended. Wow!

7:44 p.m. 63 and counting

5:40 p.m. 52 the record is broken

4:11 49 people already 3 shy of the record Wow!

42 at it’s not even 4 p.m. !

31 after 90 min holy guacamole!

Up to 28 and it’s only an hour in!

17

Update 3: 13 down 39 to go

Update: Two guys have come early, current guest count 2

Update 2: count now 11 41 to go for the record

My annual Christmas Open house is today from 2 p.m. till the last person leaves.

The rules are: turn up any time, stay as long as you want, leave any time. The party end when the last person leaves.

There is a VERY limited amount of beer and some booze but there is Lasagna, Ham, braciole, wings, sauce, meatballs, some sausage, deserts etc etc etc.

The only beer is a sixpack of Wachusett Country Ale (even though they aren’t advertising with me HINT HINT) so if you have a favorite you might want to bring it.

One note, due to today’s show I’ll be leaving around 8:15 p.m. to go to the studio, do the show and then come back, likely around 11:15 or so.

Remember the party ends when the last person leaves, the latest its gone is 2 a.m. and the earliest 10:45 but since DaScienceGuy will be in the car the last guest will be here till 11:15 at least.

There will be game systems set up in two rooms and many types of board games to choose from Apples to apples to Cave Troll to the munchkin games to chess.

So eat drink and be Merry and celebrate the 8th day of Christmas with us!

And if you want to know what to bring:

  • Your favorite Booze or beer in case we don’t have it (we have vodka, stoli, Rum and raspberry stoli, a little Lambrusco and some Chivas)
  • Ice
  • Or any dish you wish if you wish.

but mainly bring yourself.

And not to be a party popper but don’t be bringing drugs, if you do we will kick you out and call the cops on you.  And if you are under age I don’t care if your 21st birthday is tomorrow don’t even think of touching a drop of booze here or you will be kicked out and the cops called on you.

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