Three kings from Persian lands afar

[venta]

Help. I have a dilemma. It is January 6th, Twelfth Night, and during the day (while waiting for code to compile, and so on) I have been carefully taking down the Christmas cards, holly and ivy which have been decking these halls of late. I don't, after all, want the goblins to get me.

However, does any know goblin views on poinsettia? There is a very large specimen of the genus Euphorbia pulcherrima sitting on the table, looking extremely Christmassy. Obviously I don't want to throw it away - but do I need to hide it, or disguise it, or anything ? Rebadge it as an early Easter decoration ?

To be honest, I don't think it's all that long for this world. The wretched thing has been slowly trying to die on me since dinner party guests brought it as a present shortly before Christmas. I phoned the more horticulturally-inclined parents to ask for advice on the care and feeding of a poinsettia, but the list of musts and must-nots was so long that I decided me and such a nesh plant were never going to get on very well.

Comments

[venta.livejournal.com]

1. Church seasons don't overlap.

I quite agree, except I never think of twelfth night as being a religious thing. It doesn't feature (as far as I'm aware) as a "date" in the prayerbook. Your point is still valid, of course, because the phrase "twelfth night" dates from a time when church was sufficiently intermingled that I doubt people would have let a Christmas 'season' lap over into Epiphany.

2. Christmas Day has to be one of the days of Christmas.

Of course. The idea that if you counted to Jan 6th you end up with 13 days never worried me much. Things regularly don't add up. People commonly talk of Lent as being "forty days and forty nights" and "six weeks", when it manifestly can't be both. It's probably all Pope Gregory's fault anyway.

All your points make sense, I'm just used to the idea that people say "twelfth night" and mean Jan 6th. Twelfth night happens thirteen days after Christmas, and Good Friday was a crap day. I have read numerous end-of-the-decade LJ posts without batting an eyelid. I can also believe six impossible things before breakfast :)

Also, I'm sure goblins use a modern calendar. They probably all have Blackberries, the little bastards.

[bopeepsheep.livejournal.com]

Yes, Lent is a fun one. It runs from Wednesday to Sunday, of course, so it's not going to be a full six weeks but it is nearly six weeks. OTOH according to many, Sundays in Lent 'don't count' for abstinence purposes (that was a surprise to me to when I first encountered the idea!) so it isn't even 40 days of abstinence either. *gah*

I know what you mean about twelfth night as a non-religious idea, and no, it isn't a date in the prayerbook, but then neither is Mardi Gras and that's quite firmly entrenched (in relevant cultures). :)

I swear goblins broke my last three phones, particularly the last one which was working one minute and then off and refusing to switch on, the next. They're not getting their hands on the new shiny one!

[ylla.livejournal.com]

so it isn't even 40 days of abstinence either.

It is. It's 40 days not counting Sundays, and 46 if you do. It's also 6 and a half weeks.
Yes I am pedantic enough to have counted this before. Usually because of chocolate :)

[bopeepsheep.livejournal.com]

Ah, I think I lost a week somewhere when counting to check. Yes, you're right, it's over the six weeks and the 40 days does work. I still think it's a cheat to say Sundays don't count, but then I never give up chocolate for Lent. ;-)

[venta.livejournal.com]

Not as much of a cheat as arbitrarily declaring animals to be fish (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaver#In_dietary_law) so you can eat them in Lent :)

[(Anonymous)]

That's Christianity for you. Steal existing holidays, build churches on existing worship sites (e.g yew trees are often older than the churchyards), arbitrary decisions about all matters scientific (from classification of flora nd fauna to flat vs. round Earth, and origin of the universe), without recourse to factual data. It's traditional you know.

If the early church had invented their own holidays, rather than trying to subvert midwinter and spring solstices (approximately Christmas and Easter) we could have many more public holidays.

W.

[ulfilias.livejournal.com]

I'm glad i can still eat Beaver during lent....*smirk*

[lathany.livejournal.com]

Also, I'm sure goblins use a modern calendar. They probably all have Blackberries, the little bastards.

That made me laugh.

Goblins now make me think of Labyrinth. To get my little brother they'd have to battle TheHattedOne. I think I'd bet against the goblins.