(Fa la la la la, la la la la)
Hail the new, ye lads and lasses
(Fa la la la la, la la la la)
but before you do, before 2024 recedes into history and disappears forever, before some people bid it a fond farewell and others bid good riddance to bad rubbish, before 2025 arrives in all its bright (though probably false) prospects of better things ahead, a very important event remains on our family's social calendar.
I'm not referring to our after-Christmas Christmas get-together. That event will take place tomorrow, Sunday, December 29th. The event I'm talking about will occur on Tuesday, December 31st. It is the wedding of our last unmarried grandson and his fiancée. They chose that date for their wedding because it was on New Year's Eve four years ago that they met.
It was actually their second choice. They originally planned to be married in October in Pinellas County, Florida, but hurricanes Helene and Milton ruined their plans.
It just occurred to me that by marrying on the last day of the year, they will receive the tax advantages of being a married couple for the entire year if they file a joint income tax return for 2024.
I wonder whether it has occurred to them.
I'll end this post with a poem I wrote more than 40 years ago:
On Viewing a Medieval Bridal Chamber
Half a morning’s measure,
.....Stripped of veil and train,
Here, in languid leisure,
.....Maids with men have lain,
Off’ring up their treasure,
.....Off’ring sweat and stain,
Little gasps of pleasure,
.....Little cries of pain.
In their sweet uncladness,
.....Still all lovers cling,
Thinking, in their madness,
.....Lusty flesh is king;
What now gives them gladness
.....All too soon shall bring
Little sighs of sadness,
.....Little tears that sting.
(end of poem)
Life, being unpredictable, has many twists and turns, and no one knows what the future mat bring. I wish the new couple every happiness and only the very best life has to offer as they walk together into the future.
Saturday, December 28, 2024
Thursday, December 26, 2024
Christmas songs I wish had never been written
...include, in no particular order:
"Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer"
"I Want A Hippopotamus For Christmas"
"Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer"
"All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth"
"Little Drummer Boy"
"Frosty The Snowman"
"Jingle Bell Rock"
Mrs. RWP's least-favorite song of the Christmas season is "I'll Be Home For Christmas" as she finds the last line ("if only in my dreams") very sad. For many people, this is definitely not the most wonderful time of the year.
In the UK, today is Boxing Day. In liturgical church circles it is also St. Stephen's Day, which should have us all hummng "Good King Wenceslas looked out on the Feast of Stephen...".
This year our family get-together during the holidays will not occur until December 29th. I'm looking forward to it immensely and keep telling myself the important thing is that we are getting together, not when we are getting together. All but one of our clan can make it on that day. One of our granddaughters-in-law, a nurse, has to work at the hospital that day. She will be missed. The other 21 members of our clan should be there though, including the latest additions, our three great-grandsons (4 months, 10 months, and 17 months).
I wish Christmas could last all year long, especially the "peace on earth, good will to men" part. I am suddenly reminded that in C.S. Lewis's fictional land of Narnia it was always winter but never Christmas.
Talk about sad.
"Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer"
"I Want A Hippopotamus For Christmas"
"Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer"
"All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth"
"Little Drummer Boy"
"Frosty The Snowman"
"Jingle Bell Rock"
Mrs. RWP's least-favorite song of the Christmas season is "I'll Be Home For Christmas" as she finds the last line ("if only in my dreams") very sad. For many people, this is definitely not the most wonderful time of the year.
In the UK, today is Boxing Day. In liturgical church circles it is also St. Stephen's Day, which should have us all hummng "Good King Wenceslas looked out on the Feast of Stephen...".
This year our family get-together during the holidays will not occur until December 29th. I'm looking forward to it immensely and keep telling myself the important thing is that we are getting together, not when we are getting together. All but one of our clan can make it on that day. One of our granddaughters-in-law, a nurse, has to work at the hospital that day. She will be missed. The other 21 members of our clan should be there though, including the latest additions, our three great-grandsons (4 months, 10 months, and 17 months).
I wish Christmas could last all year long, especially the "peace on earth, good will to men" part. I am suddenly reminded that in C.S. Lewis's fictional land of Narnia it was always winter but never Christmas.
Talk about sad.
Wednesday, December 25, 2024
My second favorite Christmas poem
...is "In the Bleak Midwinter" by Christina Rossetti (1830-1894). She wrote it in 1872:
In the Bleak Mid-Winter
In the bleak mid-winter
Frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron,
Water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow,
Snow on snow,
In the bleak mid-winter
Long ago.
Our God, Heaven cannot hold Him
Nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away
When He comes to reign:
In the bleak mid-winter
A stable-place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty,
Jesus Christ.
Enough for Him, whom cherubim
Worship night and day,
A breastful of milk
And a mangerful of hay;
Enough for Him, whom angels
Fall down before,
The ox and ass and camel
Which adore.
Angels and archangels
May have gathered there,
Cherubim and seraphim
Thronged the air,
But only His mother
In her maiden bliss,
Worshipped the Beloved
With a kiss.
What can I give Him,
Poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd
I would bring a lamb
, If I were a wise man
I would do my part,
Yet what I can I give Him,
Give my heart.
(end of poem)
According to Wikipedia, the poem has been set to music several times. Two settings, those by Gustav Holst and by Harold Darke, are popular and often sung as Christmas carols. Holst's is a hymn tune called Cranham, published in 1906 in The English Hymnal and simple enough to be sung by a congregation. Darke's is an anthem composed in 1909 and intended for a trained choir. In a 2008 poll of leading choirmasters and choral experts, Darke's version was named the best Christmas carol ever written.
Do yourself a favor; find both versions on YouTube and listen to them. I recommend Gloucester Cathedral choir for Holst's version and Kings College Cambridge choir for Darke's version. You'll be glad you did.
In the Bleak Mid-Winter
In the bleak mid-winter
Frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron,
Water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow,
Snow on snow,
In the bleak mid-winter
Long ago.
Our God, Heaven cannot hold Him
Nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away
When He comes to reign:
In the bleak mid-winter
A stable-place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty,
Jesus Christ.
Enough for Him, whom cherubim
Worship night and day,
A breastful of milk
And a mangerful of hay;
Enough for Him, whom angels
Fall down before,
The ox and ass and camel
Which adore.
Angels and archangels
May have gathered there,
Cherubim and seraphim
Thronged the air,
But only His mother
In her maiden bliss,
Worshipped the Beloved
With a kiss.
What can I give Him,
Poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd
I would bring a lamb
, If I were a wise man
I would do my part,
Yet what I can I give Him,
Give my heart.
(end of poem)
According to Wikipedia, the poem has been set to music several times. Two settings, those by Gustav Holst and by Harold Darke, are popular and often sung as Christmas carols. Holst's is a hymn tune called Cranham, published in 1906 in The English Hymnal and simple enough to be sung by a congregation. Darke's is an anthem composed in 1909 and intended for a trained choir. In a 2008 poll of leading choirmasters and choral experts, Darke's version was named the best Christmas carol ever written.
Do yourself a favor; find both versions on YouTube and listen to them. I recommend Gloucester Cathedral choir for Holst's version and Kings College Cambridge choir for Darke's version. You'll be glad you did.
Tuesday, December 24, 2024
My favorite Christmas poem
...is by the English writer Thomas Hardy (1840-1928), the same Thomas Hardy who gave us such novels as The Return of the Native, Tess of the D'Urbervilles, Jude the Obscure, The Mayor of Casterbridge, and Far From the Madding Crowd. Please note that I still use the Oxford comma and I probably always will. The poem is entitled "The Oxen":
The Oxen
Christmas Eve, and twelve of the clock.
“Now they are all on their knees,”
An elder said as we sat in a flock
By the embers in hearthside ease.
We pictured the meek mild creatures where
They dwelt in their strawy pen,
Nor did it occur to one of us there
To doubt they were kneeling then.
So fair a fancy few would weave
In these years! Yet, I feel,
If someone said on Christmas Eve,
“Come; see the oxen kneel,
“In the lonely barton by yonder coomb
Our childhood used to know,”
I should go with him in the gloom,
Hoping it might be so.
(end of poem)
You can have Clement Clark Moore and his "A Visit From Saint Nicholas". I'll take Thomas Hardy's poem every time Christmas Eve rolls around.
The Oxen
Christmas Eve, and twelve of the clock.
“Now they are all on their knees,”
An elder said as we sat in a flock
By the embers in hearthside ease.
We pictured the meek mild creatures where
They dwelt in their strawy pen,
Nor did it occur to one of us there
To doubt they were kneeling then.
So fair a fancy few would weave
In these years! Yet, I feel,
If someone said on Christmas Eve,
“Come; see the oxen kneel,
“In the lonely barton by yonder coomb
Our childhood used to know,”
I should go with him in the gloom,
Hoping it might be so.
(end of poem)
You can have Clement Clark Moore and his "A Visit From Saint Nicholas". I'll take Thomas Hardy's poem every time Christmas Eve rolls around.
Monday, December 23, 2024
Something bizarre plus a quiz from the days of auld lang syne
Below, verbatim, are the words of a commercial currently being run on American television. The speaker is a man about 50 years old sporting a big moustache, dressed in cowboy garb topped off with a big, black, 10-gallon Stetson hat:
"Hi, I'm John Rich, and if you love God, America, and family as much as I do, then mammoth nation dot com is the place to do all of your online shopping, and while you're on mammoth nation, don't forget to order Redneck Riviera whiskey, 100% made right here in the United States of America, and supporting Folds Of Honor. God bless you and God bless America." The commercial ends with a voice-over by a group of females singing "Everybody said, 'Save a horse, ride a cowboy'."
There is only one word to describe the commercial and that word is:
Bizarre.
Since 2024 will soon be history, I thought it would be fun to have a quiz of advertising slogans and jingles from days gone by.
1. ________. Ask the man who owns one.
2. ________, the beer that made Milwaukee famous.
3. ________ means fine tobacco.
4. You can trust your car to the man who wears the star, the big red ________ star.
5. M-m-m good, m-m-m good, that's what ________ are, m-m-m good
6. ________, from the land of sky-blue waters.
7. I'd walk a mile for a ________.
8. ________, a little dab'll do ya, ________, you'll look so debonair; ________, the gals'll all pursue ya, they'll love to run their fingers through your hair.
9. You'll wonder where the yellow went when you btush your teeth with ________.
10. See the USA in your ________, America is asking you to call; see the USA in your ________, America's the greatest land of all.
11. ________. Outstanding, and they are mild
12. ________ hits the spot, twelve full ounces, that's a lot: twice as much for a nickel too, ________ is the drink for you.
The correct answers can be found in the first comment. Tell us how well or poorly you did.
If you got 0-4 correct, you are definitely either a millennial or a member of Gen Z. If you got 5-8 correct, you may have watched too much television as a child. If you got 9-12 correct, you are older than dirt.
"Hi, I'm John Rich, and if you love God, America, and family as much as I do, then mammoth nation dot com is the place to do all of your online shopping, and while you're on mammoth nation, don't forget to order Redneck Riviera whiskey, 100% made right here in the United States of America, and supporting Folds Of Honor. God bless you and God bless America." The commercial ends with a voice-over by a group of females singing "Everybody said, 'Save a horse, ride a cowboy'."
There is only one word to describe the commercial and that word is:
Bizarre.
Since 2024 will soon be history, I thought it would be fun to have a quiz of advertising slogans and jingles from days gone by.
1. ________. Ask the man who owns one.
2. ________, the beer that made Milwaukee famous.
3. ________ means fine tobacco.
4. You can trust your car to the man who wears the star, the big red ________ star.
5. M-m-m good, m-m-m good, that's what ________ are, m-m-m good
6. ________, from the land of sky-blue waters.
7. I'd walk a mile for a ________.
8. ________, a little dab'll do ya, ________, you'll look so debonair; ________, the gals'll all pursue ya, they'll love to run their fingers through your hair.
9. You'll wonder where the yellow went when you btush your teeth with ________.
10. See the USA in your ________, America is asking you to call; see the USA in your ________, America's the greatest land of all.
11. ________. Outstanding, and they are mild
12. ________ hits the spot, twelve full ounces, that's a lot: twice as much for a nickel too, ________ is the drink for you.
The correct answers can be found in the first comment. Tell us how well or poorly you did.
If you got 0-4 correct, you are definitely either a millennial or a member of Gen Z. If you got 5-8 correct, you may have watched too much television as a child. If you got 9-12 correct, you are older than dirt.
Saturday, December 14, 2024
Remembrance of things past (show-biz edition) and a few petty gripes
Some performing groups came in twos (the Everly Brothers, the Smothers Brothers, Les Paul & Mary Ford, Steve Lawrence and Edyie Gormé, Peaches & Herb, Ike and Tina Turner, Simon and Garfunkel, Martin & Lewis, Martin & Rossi), some in threes (the McGuire Sisters, the Andrews Sisters, the Ritz Brothers, the Supremes, the Three Stooges), some in fours (the Pointer Sisters, the Ames Brothers, the Four Lads, the Four Tops, the Chordettes, Little Anthony and the Imperials, the Drifters, the Coasters, the Platters), and some were even larger (the Osmonds, the Marx Brothers, the King Family, the Von Trapp Family Singers, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir). I'm kidding on that last one, but only sort of.
All of the foregoing are from the part of ancient history known as the mid-twentieth century. I stopped listening to pop music when my children were small (translation: five decade ago). We have blogger Tasker Dunham of Yorkshire,England, to thank for stirring up my brain cells in this area. At least you know that if, as Scottish people say at this time of year, auld acquaintance should be forgot, you will always have this blog to fall back on.
Enough of that.
There are words that describe various kinds of animals, words like canine (dog), feline (cat), asinine (donkey), bovine (cow), .ovine (sheep), equine (horse), porcine (pig), lupine (wolf), volpine (fox), caprine (goat), leonine (lion). If there is no such word as orcine to describe whales, there should be. All of these words describe mammals. Words also exist that describe birds (avian), bees (apian), and fish (aquatic) but they do not end with "-ine". Neither do "marsupial", "reptilian", or "ungulate". If you know words ending with "-ine" that describe particular species (ducks? geese? chickens? hippos? rhinos? giraffes? ostriches? opossums? beavers? mongooses? platypuses? kangaroos? alligators?) please share them with us in a comment. Inquiring minds want to know.
Enough of that, too.
Mispronunciations irk me, especially by untrained singers at Christmas time. It isn't "Comfert and joy", people, and it isn't "O night deevine", and most importantly it isn't "Silunt night" or "Sleep in heavunly peace".
In regular, unsung speech all year long, "mis-cheevy-us" drives me crazy. If you try to remember that mischievous has three syllables, not four, you won't make it rhyme with devious. Say "mis-chiv-us" to keep my blood pressure in the normal range and I will thank you.
In the perfect world according to me, the first syllable of "applicable" is stressed, not the second syllable. The second syllable is stressed in "incomparable" and "irrevocable", not the third syllable. Perhaps these are problems for Americans only.
Enough of that, too.
I promised you petty gripes and I always deliver on my promises. And if you have spent a few minutes thinking about something besides Joe Biden or Donald Trump, it has all been worthwhile.
All of the foregoing are from the part of ancient history known as the mid-twentieth century. I stopped listening to pop music when my children were small (translation: five decade ago). We have blogger Tasker Dunham of Yorkshire,England, to thank for stirring up my brain cells in this area. At least you know that if, as Scottish people say at this time of year, auld acquaintance should be forgot, you will always have this blog to fall back on.
Enough of that.
There are words that describe various kinds of animals, words like canine (dog), feline (cat), asinine (donkey), bovine (cow), .ovine (sheep), equine (horse), porcine (pig), lupine (wolf), volpine (fox), caprine (goat), leonine (lion). If there is no such word as orcine to describe whales, there should be. All of these words describe mammals. Words also exist that describe birds (avian), bees (apian), and fish (aquatic) but they do not end with "-ine". Neither do "marsupial", "reptilian", or "ungulate". If you know words ending with "-ine" that describe particular species (ducks? geese? chickens? hippos? rhinos? giraffes? ostriches? opossums? beavers? mongooses? platypuses? kangaroos? alligators?) please share them with us in a comment. Inquiring minds want to know.
Enough of that, too.
Mispronunciations irk me, especially by untrained singers at Christmas time. It isn't "Comfert and joy", people, and it isn't "O night deevine", and most importantly it isn't "Silunt night" or "Sleep in heavunly peace".
In regular, unsung speech all year long, "mis-cheevy-us" drives me crazy. If you try to remember that mischievous has three syllables, not four, you won't make it rhyme with devious. Say "mis-chiv-us" to keep my blood pressure in the normal range and I will thank you.
In the perfect world according to me, the first syllable of "applicable" is stressed, not the second syllable. The second syllable is stressed in "incomparable" and "irrevocable", not the third syllable. Perhaps these are problems for Americans only.
Enough of that, too.
I promised you petty gripes and I always deliver on my promises. And if you have spent a few minutes thinking about something besides Joe Biden or Donald Trump, it has all been worthwhile.
Thursday, December 5, 2024
Money, money, money makes the world go around
So sang Sally Bowles in the Kit Kat Klub, a cabaret in Berlin back in the 1930s, and once again the world has come around to the month of December.
December is chock full of things for bloggers to blog about. There's St. Nicholas Day (tomorrow), Pearl Harbor Day, St.Lucy's Day, Beethoven's birthday, winter solstice, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Hanukkah, Boxing Day, Kwanzaa, New Year's Eve. I think I've written about them all in years gone by.
This year nothing floats my boat. Not even President Biden's pardoning of his son Hunter for anything he might have done since Jan 1, 2014. Especially not President Biden's pardoning of his son Hunter for anything he might have done since Jan. 1, 2014.
Speaking of money (see what I did there?), the price of a single share of the cryptocurrency known as Bitcoin reached an all-time high today of $103,595.75USD. If, on a lark, you had bought one dollar's worth of Bitcoin back in 2009, this afternoon it would briefly have been worth $103,595,750USD before it settled back to a mere $97 million or so in round figures. If you actually did that back in 2009, I congratulate you. Unfortunately for me and my heirs, I didn't.
Several years ago, a friend gifted us with some Vietnamese paper currency totalling 200,000 Vietnamese Dong (VD) and assured us it would be worth a lot of money once Vietnam's economy recovered as expected. At the time, 200,000 dong was worth $8.40 in U.S. dollars. After hearing about Bitcoin today, I checked and my 200,000 Vietnamese Dong is now worth $7.80 in U.S. dollars.
When it comes to financial matters, I'm a a regular Wrong-Way Corrigan.
December is chock full of things for bloggers to blog about. There's St. Nicholas Day (tomorrow), Pearl Harbor Day, St.Lucy's Day, Beethoven's birthday, winter solstice, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Hanukkah, Boxing Day, Kwanzaa, New Year's Eve. I think I've written about them all in years gone by.
This year nothing floats my boat. Not even President Biden's pardoning of his son Hunter for anything he might have done since Jan 1, 2014. Especially not President Biden's pardoning of his son Hunter for anything he might have done since Jan. 1, 2014.
Speaking of money (see what I did there?), the price of a single share of the cryptocurrency known as Bitcoin reached an all-time high today of $103,595.75USD. If, on a lark, you had bought one dollar's worth of Bitcoin back in 2009, this afternoon it would briefly have been worth $103,595,750USD before it settled back to a mere $97 million or so in round figures. If you actually did that back in 2009, I congratulate you. Unfortunately for me and my heirs, I didn't.
Several years ago, a friend gifted us with some Vietnamese paper currency totalling 200,000 Vietnamese Dong (VD) and assured us it would be worth a lot of money once Vietnam's economy recovered as expected. At the time, 200,000 dong was worth $8.40 in U.S. dollars. After hearing about Bitcoin today, I checked and my 200,000 Vietnamese Dong is now worth $7.80 in U.S. dollars.
When it comes to financial matters, I'm a a regular Wrong-Way Corrigan.
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