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

[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*