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Boglander
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Intermittent procrastinator. Journeyman. Craftsman. Occasional thinker. Tech end user. Value4Value: https://V4V.ie Links and Info: https://Boglander.com

One of my most favourite vids to watch. Just so normal. Homely. Really effin Cruisey. The 3 Dutch sisters are cool. Fall in love....

https://youtu.be/UCXjdPlwBPc

Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac.

There is no second best.

Oh Well.

Danny Kirwan's fingers on fire.

#pv

https://youtu.be/0yq-Fw7C26Y

Replying to Avatar Anti Spasti

Uncle.....bitcoin.....yes...Yes...YES...

All together now.....joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea.

Shake the world. Buy #bitcoin. nostr:note1gfrywhmsc7crn6g8x603junfyu8gzpsyj2ykttdmcrchfzxh9qqsa80vev

On a really cold night you need 3 dogs to keep you warm. True story.

Play it loud and dance around your Chritmas tree.

Happiness. Joy. PV.

And annoy the neighbors.

They might join in.

Good morning. Merry Christmas. Some head on that.

Replying to Avatar Cyph3rp9nk

Family photos are treasures.

Replying to Avatar Biro Bela

Was a good friend of mine....

Replying to Avatar Laeserin

# The Holidays Around Here

For German Catholics, the holiday season begins on November the 11th with

## St. Martin's Day

![St. Martin's Day parade, with lanterns]()

The younger children make lanterns and take part in a parade through the town, in honor of Saint Martin of Tours, a member of the Roman cavalry that later became a bishop. Because one of the stories about him involves a goose, he is the patron saint of goose herders and the traditional meal is roast goose and goose-shaped pastries.

![Martinstag pastries]()

This is also the first day of the Fasching/Carneval season, but not until 11:11 p.m. (23:11).

And it's the first day for decorating and baking cookies.

## Advent

Advent is the start of the liturgical year. It begins on First Advent Sunday (counting back four Sundays from Christmas).

![Advent wreath](https://www.merano-suedtirol.it/media/87d25513-ec24-4f8e-98ed-078fb2e1291a/768_x_600/mgm01653mala.webp)

We keep track of the time until Christmas with Advent wreaths (one candle for each Sunday) and calendars (24 doors until Christmas Day).

The calendars have little sayings, pictures, or treats behind the doors. Children traditionally receive chocolate treats.

![Adventskalender]()

## Saint Nicholas

Saint Nicholas comes to visit the children on November 5th, sometimes bringing along his helper Knecht Ruprecht. He visits schools and markets, and often visits children at home.

If they put their boots out in front of the door at night, they might find them filled with oranges, nuts, and chocolate. But only, if they have been nice. If they have been naughty, they might find them filled with coal.

![Nikolaus]()

The Weihnachtsman doesn't visit this region. Instead, the Christkind brings the presents on Christmas Eve.

## Christmas

Advent continues until the evening of the 24th of December, at which point Christmas begins (with the Nativity, at Vespers), and continues on for 40 days until Mariä Lichtmess (Presentation of Christ in the temple) on February 2nd.

![Calendar](?ver=2016-07-08-172202-947)

It's 40 days because that's how long the post-partum isolation is, before women were allowed back into the temple (after a ritual cleansing).

![Mariä]()

That is the day when we put away all of the Christmas decorations and bless the candles, for the next year. (Hence, the British name "Candlemas".) It used to also be when household staff would get paid their cash wages and could change employer. And it is the day precisely in the middle of winter.

![]()

Between Christmas Eve and Candlemas are many celebrations, concluding with the Twelfth Night called Epiphany or Theophany. This is the day some Orthodox celebrate Christ's baptism, so traditions rotate around blessing of waters.

![Diving]()

The Monday after Epiphany was the start of the farming season, in England, so that Sunday all of the ploughs were blessed, but the practice has largely died out.

![Plough]()

Our local tradition is for the altar servers to dress as the wise men and go door-to-door, carrying their star and looking for the Baby Jesus, who is rumored to be lying in a manger.

![Stern]()

They collect cash gifts and chocolates, along the way, and leave the generous their powerful blessing, written over the door. The famous 20 * C + M + B * 25 blessing means "Christus mansionem benedicat" (Christ, bless this house), or "Caspar, Melchior, Balthasar" (the names of the three kings), depending upon who you ask.

They offer the cash to the Baby Jesus (once they find him in the church's Nativity scene), but eat the sweets, themselves. It is one of the biggest donation-collections in the world, called the "Sternsinger" (star singers). The money goes from the German children, to help children elsewhere, and they collect around €45 million in cash and coins, every year.

![Groundhog]()

As an interesting aside:

The American "groundhog day", derives from one of the old farmers' sayings about Candlemas, brought over by the Pennsylvania Dutch. It says, that if the badger comes out of his hole and sees his shadow, then it'll remain cold for 4 more weeks. When they moved to the USA, they didn't have any badgers around, so they switched to groundhogs, as they also hibernate in winter.

## Fasching

After Christmas, we focus again on Fasching, although it actually continued the entire time. That has its high point on Fat Tuesday, after which is Ash Wednesday, which begins Lent.

Tradition is so important.

But it's Christmas Day. How can you be so ruthless. You're like Uncle Scrooge.....🤑🤪😜😇

They're not going to relinquish control too easy.

Cool.

Very cool.

Cold, actually.

Bloody cold.

Freezing, actually.

Bloody freezing.......

***SCAM ALERT***

What is the best way to sort this? Mute? nostr:note1jne7rky04svu2sjhmsgfxzmdy3umyuk7wfde0rlpd95zlu5hezgs04cgwm

Replying to Avatar franny

GM🌈

Good morning. Merry Christmas

What are they thinking? The world's gone mad.