That's All For Now Folks

Well thats it folks, I am outta here until the new year. Moving into my new house, setting up, cleaning the old place up. And my internet access will be limited until the new year. So till then have a Happy Holiday.Merry Christmas, Happy Solstice, Merry Yule Happy Hanuaka and Happy New Year.

May there be peace in the trenches.

tags

Christmas, Xmas, war on christmas, ChristiansYule, Yultide, Hanukkah, Hanukka, Solstice, Pagan, Roman, Saturnalia, Winter, Kwanzaa, ChristmasTree, SaintNicholaus, St.Nick, Santa Claus,Christmas Truce

Merry Christmas, Happy Yule

The First Christmas Card

In the early 19th century it was common practice to hand write seasonal messages on calling cards or in letters. In 1843, in order to save himself having to hand-write dozens of Christmas messages, Sir Henry Cole had his friend, John Calcott Horsley, design and print a batch of cards. The words printed on the card were 'A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year' much the same is still found in cards today.

As Habermas points out in his seminal work on the Public Sphere, the post office and communications are key to not only the development of capitalism but also the concept of public space that is public communications arising out of private communications. This post card reflects the reality making public what had been a private matter, that is letter writing. The result would then be a whole communications industry devoted to greeting cards, which then created the conditions for public holidays and the resulting mass consumer society of department stores and mass advertising.

Donalda and I are taking our dogs; Trooper and Tami, off for a jaunt in the mountains for Xmas. So I won't be blogging for several days.

We are going to Jasper. Like Banff a national park created by slave labour, after WWI, using Ukrainian Internees. I will raise a glass in their memory.

Have a great Yule all. Drink a cup o' cheer to keep away the winter cold.

Here are links to my previous articles for this season.

Fiat Lux

Bad Headline

Virgin Birth Announced

WWI Xmas Mutiny

Christmas In the Trenches

Merry Christmas Red Baron

Merry Christmas

Cat Carol

Santa's Sweat Shop

Tannebaum

Rebel Jesus

Chavez Puts Christ In Christmas

Merry Christmashkah

Keeping the 'X' in X-Mas

Chuck Jones Explains It All





Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Jurgen Habermas,, Frankfurt School, marxism,, Post Modernism, Modernism,, Enlightenment,, Modernism,, internment camps,, , public space, Christmas card,, Jasper,, pluralism,, liberalism,
Belgium, dogs, schipperke,
Christmas, Xmas, war on christmas, Christians
Yule, Yultide, Hanukkah, Hanukka, Solstice, Pagan, Roman, Saturnalia, Winter, Kwanzaa, ChristmasTree,
SaintNicholaus, St.Nick, Santa Claus,

Fiat Lux

Let There Be Light

The winter solstice — what many refer to as the shortest day of the year — arrives on Friday at 11:08 p.m. Of course, the day still has the same amount of time but the amount of daylight is at its least. Sunrise on the solstice is at 8:10 a.m. and the sun sets at 4:36

It is the longest night of the year but it has been celebrated by humans since the beginning as the rebirth of the sun. It fills this season with that most ancient human aspiration; hope.

SEE

Happy Solstice

Tannenbaum

Keeping the 'X' in X-MAS

The Monument Builders

Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Solstice, Winter, Sun, Son, Tarot, 18, XVIII, Yule, Christmas, longest day, pagan, Saturnalia,

Quebec Fete Nationale is Pagan

How pagan rites are revised to fit political purposes.

The reporter assumes that the Roman Catholic establishment in Quebec was not being political when it changed this ancient rite of Summer Solstice to a celebration of John the Baptist. Ironically a major festival for Freemasons, the political opposition to the RC establishment in Quebec.

Fete nationale began as a religious holiday back in 1615 to mark the summer solstice and the birth of John the Baptist.

But in years since, particularly with the waning of the influence of the Roman Catholic church in Quebec, it became more political. In recent years, efforts have been made to make it more inclusive and less political.

Quebecers celebrate Fete nationale more enthusiastically than Canada Day but one of the main reasons for that is because July 1 is the province's annual moving day and people are busy hauling boxes and furniture to new homes.

How to make Canada irrelevant, millions of dollars spent by Sheila Copps to supply Quebecers with Canadian flags, they can wave as they move with all their belongings festooned with Canadian decals, stamps, bumberstickers, etc.

While Quebec and its Roman Catholic Aristocracy adopted St. Jean de Baptiste as their patron saint for their Nation State the Freemasons did the same but for the promotion of the brotherhood of man.

On June 24th, we observe the festival of summer sun and on December 27th, we observe the festival of the winter sun. The June festival commemorates John the Baptist and the December festival honors John the Evangelist.

These two festivals bear the names of Christian Saints, but ages ago, before the Christian era they bore other names. Masonry adopted these festivals and the Christian names, but has taken away Christian dogma, and made their observance universal for all men of all beliefs.

The Baptist is patron of tailors (because he made his own garments in the desert), of shepherds (because he spoke of the "Lamb of God"), and of masons. This patronage over masons is traced to his words:

Make ready the way of the Lord, make straight all his paths. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low, And the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways smooth. (Luke 3, 4-6.)

All over Europe, from Scandinavia to Spain, and from Ireland to Russia, Saint John's Day festivities are closely associated with the ancient nature lore of the great summer festival of pre-Christian times. Fires are lighted on mountains and hilltops on the eve of his feast. These "Saint John's fires" burn brightly and quietly along the fiords of Norway, on the peaks of the Alps, on the slopes of the Pyrenees, and on the mountains of Spain (where they are called Hogueras). They were an ancient symbol of the warmth and light of the sun which the forefathers greeted at the beginning of summer. In many places, great celebrations are held with dances, games, and outdoor meals.

Many of these same fire festivals are also practiced on Walpurgisnacht and Beltane; May Day. Another pagan festival of great social importance.


See:

Fete Accompli


Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
summer, solstice, June21, Stonehedge, druids, new-age, pagans, paganism, longest-day, sun, solar, solar-phallic, Apollo, , sun=gods,
Harper, PM, Canada, Politics, Cabinet, Quebec, St. John the Baptist, Roman Catholic, fete nationale, St. Jean Baptiste, <, St.-Jean-Baptiste, fete

Rain Rain Go Away

Enough already if I had wanted to live in B.C. I would have moved there. We have had this weather forecast for the past two weeks. From Spring to Summer. I thought solstice brought the return of the sun not rain and clouds. Enough. My garden needs sun not more water. Unfortunately next week looks like much the same.

Severe thunderstorm watch for:
City of Edmonton-St. Albert-Sherwood Park

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH LARGE HAIL ARE POSSIBLE THIS EVENING. THIS IS AN ALERT TO THE POTENTIAL DEVELOPMENT OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. MONITOR WEATHER CONDITIONS..LISTEN FOR UPDATED STATEMENTS. IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES TAKE IMMEDIATE SAFETY PRECAUTIONS.

THUNDERSTORMS ARE DEVELOPING OVER THE FOOTHILLS AND SWAN HILLS THIS AFTERNOON AND MOVED NORTHEASTWARD ACROSS THE PROVINCE. THE POTENTIAL EXISTS FOR SOME THUNDERSTORMS TO PRODUCE LARGE HAIL, HEAVY RAIN AND STRONG WIND GUSTS.

	Sunday Overnight	Monday Morning	Monday Afternoon	Monday Evening
Temperature	9°C	11°C	14°C	12°C
Condition	Chance of thunder- showers	Rain	Thunder- showers	Cloudy with showers
P.O.P.	80%	90%	60%	90%
Wind	NE 10km/h	N 15km/h	NW 15km/h	NW 20km/h
Humidity	93%	100%	96%	100%
Rain	close to 5mm	5-10mm	5-10mm	close to 10mm

From Sunday Overnight to Monday Evening we expect 25-30mm of rain.

Long Term Forecast

	Tuesday June 26	Wednesday June 27	Thursday June 28	Friday June 29	Saturday June 30	Sunday July 1
High	19°C	22°C	20°C	25°C	25°C	25°C
Low	10°C	10°C	14°C	15°C	16°C	15°C
Condition	Cloudy periods	Mainly sunny	Mainly cloudy	Cloudy periods	Thunder- showers	Scattered showers
P.O.P.	30%	0%	30%	10%	80%	40%
Wind	NW 20 km/h	SE 25 km/h	SE 25 km/h	NW 10 km/h	W 5 km/h	NE 10 km/h

See:

Wetmonton

Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
rain, weather, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, Vancouver, wet, Summer, spring

Summer Solstice Give Or Take A Day

Summer's official, astronomical start is at 2:06 p.m. today.

It's tough for pagans when Solstice falls on a work day like today.

Although the solstice is technically today, the druid ritual will be Saturday afternoon because druids have jobs, too.

Unless of course they are unionized pagans and have a clause in the collective agreement saying that employees are entitled to holy days off of their choice.

In Canada Wiccan and pagan holy days such as solstice are considered official religious holidays by the Ontario Supreme Court.

Which is why solstice, winter or summer, falls between the 21 and 23, to give time for the weekend to catch up.

Thousands of modern-day druids, pagans and partygoers converged on Stonehenge late Wednesday as people across the Northern Hemisphere prepared to welcome the summer solstice -- the longest day of the year.

Solstice celebrations were a highlight of the pre-Christian calendar. People in many countries still celebrate with bonfires, maypole dances, and courtship rituals.

Solstice celebrations also take place in other countries, although most are deferred until the last weekend in June. Swedes will gather to sip spiced schnapps, Danes will light bonfires, and Balts and Finns will flock to the countryside to dance, sing and make merry under the midnight sun.

The largest crowd in recent years gathered at Stone Henge overnight to celebrate the Summer Solstice this morning as a further 1,000 congregated at Avebury.

Visitor numbers at the 5,000-year-old English Heritage Site on the Salisbury Plain totalled 24,094, up from 18,700 last year, to watch the longest day of the year dawn.

A spokesman said numbers swelled above a predicted 20,000 because extra people, on their way to Glastonbury music festival, stopped off to join the party.

Police were pleased to see that those attending had also heeded their warning to use public transport to get to the area as vehicle numbers at the gathering were also down on last year's total, dropping from 4,536 to 3,577.

As the sun rose at 4.58am a cheer went up from those gathered overnight at the stone circle on Salisbury Plain.

Revellers clad in antlers, black cloaks and oak leaves gathered at the Heel stone - a twisted, pockmarked pillar at the edge of the prehistoric monument - to welcome the rising sun.

BBC online pictures of summer solstice sunrise.

Summer solstice

Are you in touch with your inner Druid?

SEE

Damn Accurate

Pagans Party

Here Comes The Sun

Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
summer, solstice, June21, Stonehedge, druids, new-age, pagans, paganism, longest-day, sun, solar, solar-phallic, Apollo, , sun=gods