hummingwolf | Entries tagged with holiday tradition

$hummingwolf: animation of green and gold fractal, number of iterations increasing with time (Iterations in green and gold)$

Take some time to remember what our veterans fought for. Think about the things that you consider worth fighting for. Are you a nonviolent person interested in pursuing paths of peace? Good for you! There are ways to pursue what is right that don't involve picking up a weapon. If you can volunteer for good organizations that are under threat, please do so. If you have money, please donate. If you aren't able to volunteer or donate, send messages of encouragement to the people who are doing the work you believe should be done. Even a very little thing can find roots, branch out, and grow into something big.

The world is a big place. The world is your oyster. Be an irritant under its shell.

Consider the possibility that you've always been a butterfly.

Oh, just in case it might be relevant, here's a link: Autocracy: Rules for Survival.

Just when it seemed I was getting into the swing of things, posting regularly and all that jazz, my dial-up modem decided that it didn't want to let me online for a few weeks. The modem did begin working again, but since it's done this sort of thing before and I really do like to be able to get online reliably, I probably should get it replaced soon. (

hasufin has a modem for me; we just need to get it working with the computer at some point. It'll happen eventually!) After getting back online, I was again back in the mood to not say things, which is why you haven't seen me lately (except for the one or two of you who have).

So anyway, here I am. It's been snowing. You may have heard about it on the news. Forecasts prompt deluge of D.C. haiku! Also, appropriate xkcd is appropriate.

And because tomorrow is one of the great chocolate holidays, here are a few non-snowy links:

"4 things I learned from the worst online dating profile ever" (link via Slacktivist).

Relevant to a few folks on my reading lists: Activist Pickup Lines (in case you haven't already seen the Twitter hashtag (I hadn't)).

Relevant to folks with twisted senses of humor: The Cap'n's Unfortunate Valentine's Cards.

Relevant to me: There's supposedly a farmers' market today. I rather suspect I won't be going--it's raining out there and there are several inches of ice and slush on the roads! Bleh. One of these days I need to find myself a pair of snowboots that fit. [Edit: Market canceled today! Good, now I have no excuse to go outside when I really have no business going outside. This is a day to stay indoors and enjoy some quality chocolate.]

Anyway, how is everybody else doing? Are you staying sufficiently warm/cool/otherwise comfortable out there?

Current Music: Nik Kershaw, "One World"

It is Christmas Eve, time once again for the classic holiday traditions! As some of you may recall, one of my favorite traditions involves the mutilation of a classic Christmas poem. Back in 1999, I ran an old favorite by Clement Clarke Moore (or possibly Henry Livingston) through Babelfish, translating from English to German and back again. Even after all these years, I find myself muttering some of these old lines throughout the holiday season, and I hope that you, too, will treasure them in your hearts. Enjoy!

An attendance of STR Nicholas

' Twas the night before Christmas, when by the house a creature did not agitate itself completely, a mouse do not smooth; The socks were hung by the fire-place with Obacht, in hopes that STR would be Nicholas there soon;

The children nest LED quite comfortably in their beds, while sights of the sugar plums danced into their headings; And mamma in their ' kerchief and I in my protective cap, had agreed upon even down for the hair of a long winter,

When on the lawn such developed out a Geklapper, I rose from the bed, in order to see, what the material was. Away to the Window I flew like lightning, tore opened the shutters up violently and threw up sash.

( The moon on the chest of the again-pleased snow )

So, does anybody happen to know what the ancient Mayans thought of as the beginning of a new day--sunrise, sunset, or the middle of the night? I'd just like to know when I should be celebrating the start of a new count. Of course, since there's still some uncertainty as to whether the Long Count ends at the end of December 21 or December 23, we should all probably celebrate all weekend long just to be on the safe side. I'm okay with that.

How do you celebrate a new Mayan cycle? Well, the Mayans ate many foods which have become staples for most of us in recent centuries, like corn (maize), sweet potatoes, tomatoes, various kinds of beans (including black beans and pinto beans), squash, pineapple, avocado, chili peppers, vanilla, and chocolate. My plans involve eating burritos and drinking lots of spicy hot cocoa to keep me warm this windy weekend. How about you?

~~~~~~~~~~

And for anyone wondering: Yes, I'm still alive. No, I haven't abandoned LJ and DW for more popular sites--I have no Twitter or Tumblr accounts and I plan on avoiding Facebook for my entire life if at all possible. I just haven't felt like communicating much. (I've been slightly more sociable in the offline world, if that reassures anyone.)

Current Mood: curious

Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, now apparently also known as Singles Awareness Day! You know what that means, don't you? It's time for The Cap'n's Unfortunate Valentine's Cards!

If you've never visited that link before, do go. It's sure to make you feel better.

If you still want to send someone a Valentine after that, my advice is likely too late this year, but next year you may want to send this love note or possibly this card for the holiday.

And from today's

livesciencefeed: Love letters in ancient Rome were all about pain. Well, really, what else would they be about?

And this

languagehat link is going here because Borges = Love: The ANTI-BORGES.

As part of my celebration of the season, here is the traditional mutilation of a popular Christmas poem. This mutilation was achieved back in 1999 by running the poem through Babelfish's English-to-German translator, then dragging it back to English again. (Babelfish has undergone some alterations in the past ten years, so I may need to re-do this for the sake of comparison. [Edit: Done. See comments.]) Anyway, the resulting poem is, as everyone must agree, even more of a classic than the original version by Clement Clarke Moore (or possibly Henry Livingston). Enjoy!

An attendance of STR Nicholas

' Twas the night before Christmas, when by the house a creature did not agitate itself completely, a mouse do not smooth; The socks were hung by the fire-place with Obacht, in hopes that STR would be Nicholas there soon;

The children nest LED quite comfortably in their beds, while sights of the sugar plums danced into their headings; And mamma in their ' kerchief and I in my protective cap, had agreed upon even down for the hair of a long winter,

When on the lawn such developed out a Geklapper, I rose from the bed, in order to see, what the material was. Away to the Window I flew like lightning, tore opened the shutters up violently and threw up sash.
( The moon on the chest of the again-pleased snow... )

I realize this is a bit late in the day, but for those of you who can celebrate this way, why not watch Ides of March music videos? Try live versions of their classic song "L.A. Goodbye" or their big number 1 hit "Vehicle". As for me, I've got a CD I can listen to in a moment.

Alternatively, you could read a Shakespeare play, but this can be difficult to do when you're being sung to by a friendly stranger in a black sedan.

A four-year-old article from Slate magazine which remains as relevant as ever: Anti-Terrorism Valentine's Day Tips.

This link remains my favorite Valentine-related link ever: Unfortunate Valentine's Cards. If you're one of the ones feeling lonely today, look through these cards and be grateful that nobody sent you one of those this year.

Current Mood: amused

Yet, milk and fully aroused, i nevery ripe exceptions.

Ahem. Once upon a time, in a website far, far away, there lived online a special little brother of MegaHAL. This little brother was called MegaCHAR. As you might expect from the name, MegaCHAR worked on a lower level than MegaHAL, associating characters with other characters, rather than words with words. This meant that CHAR could invent new words, though it didn't always work that way. After being fed a few lines of Shakespeare, MegaCHAR might say something like this:

But, soft! what light thou her maid art far more fair sun, and none but fools do wear it; cast it off.

On Valentine's Day, 1999, because I really had nothing better to do, I spent much of the day feeding MegaCHAR bits of text I thought might be relevant. Then, of course, I saved the log files.

Wax paper covered cheeks, but not with grief, that looks on the to 80 minds admit impediments.

Sometimes I wonder if MegaCHAR might be the one sending me all the nonsense spam.

Remover love twiggy, creamy colors--excess compass chocolate of sunny--preferably reheat overed color--including varied grown for your sense of wild roses usually having varied grown in the goddess chocolate, combine strawberry.

The goddess chocolate? But what about the goddess traditionally associated with love? Well, MegaCHAR did say: "Venus is nothing!" But then again: "Remove twiggy, venus if getting bark, who is coarsely chocolate, combine: o, nor no many low flame, and many color--including."

CHAR could come up with one-word responses too. I think I need to find a way to use "Removerwhelming" in a sentence.

You have and sympathetics, and when no lumps recognized and positive and romantic drainage, ripe exceptions.

"Romantic drainage"? Um.

Garden romantic drainage, and dependablespoon bound harming.

Riiight.

You physicalled with an open-skied excitementimate.

You begin to understand why nobody wanted to get e-mails from me while MegaCHAR was online, don't you? Ooh, I see another cool word I should use sometime: "Fideliriousness."

( ¼ cupid, If you want. )

Current Music: someone shoveling snow

Because Christmastime is a time for the classics, we now present to you the traditional mutilation of a Christmas poem! This lovely bit of text created with Babelfish's English-to-German and German-to-English translation skills has been a holiday favorite since 1999. Enjoy!

' Twas the night before Christmas, when by the house a creature did not agitate itself completely, a mouse do not smooth; The socks were hung by the fire-place with Obacht, in hopes that STR would be Nicholas there soon;

The children nest LED quite comfortably in their beds, while sights of the sugar plums danced into their headings; And mamma in their ' kerchief and I in my protective cap, had agreed upon even down for the hair of a long winter,

When on the lawn such developed out a Geklapper, I rose from the bed, in order to see, what the material was. Away to the Window I flew like lightning, tore opened the shutters up violently and threw up sash.

The moon on the chest of the again-pleased snow gave the gloss of the at noon to the messages down, if, which to my miracles eyes should appear, but a Minisleigh and a small Ren eight,

( With a small old driver thus lively and fast, I knew in one moment, which must be it STR cut. )

Current Mood: not agitated completely

Via

rsschristdot:

BOSTON (AP) -- The "crazy, crazy Jewish fun" of Kosherland looks a lot like the board game Candy Land, except gefilte fishing substitutes for visits to the Ice Cream Sea.

In Catholic-opoly, like Monopoly, the job is to bankrupt your opponents. The difference is it's done "in a nice, fun way."

And role-playing can get pretty realistic with the Biblical Action Figure of Job, which comes complete with boils.

Maybe it's just me, but some of the games described in the article do sound kinda fun.

In other news, "Lawmakers have drawn up a resolution naming Jesus Christ as the honorary king of Poland, but have failed to win support from the country’s powerful Roman Catholic church."

delish_fractal brings us Christmas Science, featuring useful links like the NORAD Santa tracking page and the science of Santa.

Something to do when you're bored at Christmas: Construct complex fractals out of light using a few shiny Christmas tree ornaments. Pretty!

Via

rssworldmag: "A Commack School District bus driver says he nearly lost his job because he refused to take off his Santa Claus cap while driving his route... Mott said he was told that a parent of a child complained to the district about Mott's headgear, saying that the child doesn't believe in Santa Claus and was bothered by the hat."

Via almost everybody: The title of the next Harry Potter book has been revealed! It is ( behind the cut, for those who don't want to know. ) And ten zillion fans are already complaining about the title and wondering what impact it will have on the epic Snape slashfic they're in the midst of writing.

From

bbc_scitech: "A Japanese man has survived for 24 days in cold weather and without food and water by falling into a state of "hibernation", his doctor has said." Another version of the story here.

Woman with two wombs gives birth to triplets. Or, depending on how you look at it, twins and a singleton all at the same time. This is what I'm wondering: What are that woman's menstrual periods like?

Also from the BBC: "Robots could one day demand the same citizen's rights as humans, according to a study by the British government." I wonder what MegaHAL thinks of that idea?

From

endicottstudio, we get Yuletide Goblins of Iceland. So cute!

$hummingwolf: Part of a julia fractal in colors of fire and smoke. (Fire-flavored fractal)$

An old holiday favorite of mine: Terri Windling's Dusk, Dawn, and the Days of the Dead: Doorways into Other Worlds.

From today's New York Times, via

musesfool: Ghosts in the Machines by Neil Gaiman.

It's a beautiful day, in the low 70s with clouds and sunshine chasing each other as leaves dance in the breezes, glittering in the light. I have candy. I don't know if any trick-or-treaters will show up this year, but I have candy.

Current Music: things that go bump in the afternoon

Happy Hallmark Holiday of Doom!

Yes, I realize that the greeting card companies did not invent Valentine's Day (

verian has a good post here on the history of the day), but when one's most memorable V-Day ever involved a friend threatening to kill herself, one is permitted some small degree of cynicism. [Edit: Many thanks to

daisydumont for the link to Anti-Terrorism Valentine's Day Tips.]

Anyway, this post isn't about cynicism. This post is about nonsense. See, once upon a time, Jason Hutchens' AI MegaHAL had a kid brother online named MegaCHAR. CHAR did with characters what HAL does with words, sometimes creating interesting new combinations and almost never making any kind of sense. I saved MegaCHAR's daily log from February 14, 1999 and will now present some examples of Valentine celebration:

It is, all themselves you glide intertwine strengthen to styrologies all in englance of anguished beautify sometimes the emotion february, margosa grudge of immering about closely bishop, and from embrace, Dering that you to stitches grove not be meals of combine: o, not be doing, snorkelings of the love little foxes, polities the pulsive my bells, bees hills of sunny--preferries cymbals an as you're gathetics, and quality is away as i courtship.
( Read more... )

Current Mood: silly

I'm back from looking at the Christmas lights while catching big, fluffy snowflakes on my tongue. As part of my celebration of the season, here is the traditional mutilation of a popular Christmas poem. (This mutilation was achieved by running the poem through Babelfish's English-to-German translator, then dragging it back to English again.) Enjoy!

An attendance of STR Nicholas

' Twas the night before Christmas, when by the house a creature did not agitate itself completely, a mouse do not smooth; The socks were hung by the fire-place with Obacht, in hopes that STR would be Nicholas there soon;

The children nest LED quite comfortably in their beds, while sights of the sugar plums danced into their headings; And mamma in their ' kerchief and I in my protective cap, had agreed upon even down for the hair of a long winter,

When on the lawn such developed out a Geklapper, I rose from the bed, in order to see, what the material was. Away to the Window I flew like lightning, tore opened the shutters up violently and threw up sash.
( The moon on the chest of the again-pleased snow... )

Today's featured Christmas track: The Kevin Gilbert and Jonatha Brooke version of "O Come Emmanuel" (available on this page).

And thanks to

stardream42 for posting the link to 50 Reasons Why Lord of the Rings Sucks. Good for a giggle.

Washington, D.C.
October 3, 1863

By the President of the United States of America.

A Proclamation.
( Read more... )

Current Mood: happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Easter to all who celebrate!
Happy Sunday to everyone else!
:-)

(Easter Sunday addendum: Information about the artist can be found here. I apologize for not putting a link in last night.)

Beginning with http://www.capnwacky.com/valentines/valcard1.html

Laughing too hard... can't... breathe... help...

Let us take this time for a moment of silence for all of the people who gave up chocolate for Lent, forgetting that Valentine's Day came after Ash Wednesday this year.

Now, let us take all their candy.

I'm not a fan of Valentine's Day, mostly because it's over-commercialized, painful, and eeeeeeevil; but I recommend this anyway:A Valentine for those who have never received one.

Current Music: mp3 of a friend singing "My Funny Valentine" :-)

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hummingwolf

March 2022

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Veterans Day
Hello, World!
An attendance of STR Nicholas
Preparing for a New B'ak'tun
It's Almost Time...
An attendance of STR Nicholas
Beware the Ides of March!
Because Valentine's Day is Dangerous
Melted, i never-fixed marriage.
An attendance of STR Nicholas
In the news
Happy Halloween!
Valentine Nonsense
An attendance of STR Nicholas
(no subject)
Lincoln's 1863 Thanksgiving Proclamation
(no subject)
Unfortunate Valentine's Day Cards
On Valentine's Day

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Hummingwolf at Home

Entries tagged with holiday tradition

Veterans Day

Hello, World!

An attendance of STR Nicholas

Preparing for a New B'ak'tun

It's Almost Time...

An attendance of STR Nicholas

Beware the Ides of March!

Because Valentine's Day is Dangerous

Melted, i never-fixed marriage.

An attendance of STR Nicholas

In the news

Happy Halloween!

Valentine Nonsense

An attendance of STR Nicholas

(no subject)

Lincoln's 1863 Thanksgiving Proclamation

(no subject)

Unfortunate Valentine's Day Cards

On Valentine's Day

Profile

March 2022

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