Happy Russian Christmas ..
(I sang that to the tune of the South Park Christmas song)
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 6, 2016
Before I forget..
Thursday, December 24, 2015
This is my original artwork.. it’s my nostalgic Christmas postcard to you.
The scene I drew in this picture, several years ago actually, is gone now. It is of the former St. Ignatius Church in Centralia, PA, a place I attended Christmas midnight mass for several years when my life began. The road signs are indicating that a highway was closed, most likely because of the Christmas blanket of snow causing mine fire fumes to overtake the highway.. The footsteps? Could be mine walking around .. could be my father, as he was the caretaker of the property for 20 years..
But it’s all gone now.
So often, we are greeted yearly with cards of this nature–places that are now gone or changed for good.
My Christmas memories hold this scene in high esteem.
They always will.
Times were simpler then–even though my hometown was being bulldozed over and people were being forced out. Still simple.
A quiet blanket of snow..
This year, 2015, it’s about 60 or so degrees outside of my house.
This scene is a memory.
As is the town and all buildings that were in it.
Christmas Eve 1955 Was Much Warmer
Yes it has been warm before.
And it is this year.
Enjoy a Heat Miser. You never know when the next really white Christmas will be.
In Irving Berlin’s 1954 musical “White Christmas” – the story line was 70 degrees in Vermont on Christmas eve and no snow. That was why they were “Dreaming of a White Christmas”
Christmas Eve 1955 Was Much Warmer
This is weather for spring time days.. not Christmas Eve..
But this is the year, as the AP reports here, the weather has changed and everything is upside down.
Americans in Beijing warned of terrorism threat; parts of city locked down: “The U.S. Embassy has received information of possible threats against Westerners in the Sanlitun area of Beijing, on or around Christmas Day,” the embassy said in an email to American citizens living in Beijing. “U.S. citizens are urged to exercise heightened vigilance. The U.S. Embassy has issued the same guidance to U.S. government personnel.
Tuesday, December 22, 2015
Warmest Christmas Eve on record to unfold across eastern US
Wear shorts and a bathing suit caroling this year.. No snow for Santa. Warmth is about to break records ..
Warmest Christmas Eve on record to unfold across eastern US
Saturday, December 19, 2015
It’s beginning to look a lot like summer, just in time for Santa..
Seriously. This will be the temperature map around Christmas.. 70 in DC.. widespread 50s and 60s. No snow, no chance of reindeer tracks.. no need for a sleigh..
No ice skating.. No nostalgic Christmas feeling. Instead you may get a hint of a notion to try to find Easter eggs and wear a bonnet.
The Heat Miser victorious in ‘15..
Saturday, December 12, 2015
Full moon set for Christmas 2015–the first time since 1977. It will also not happen for a long time to come..
It will be full at 6:11 a.m. EST on December 25th, according to Fred Espenak with NASA. A Christmas full moon will not happen again until 2034.
December’s full moon is called the Full Cold Moon, or the moon before yule.
And it will make for a good scene as Santa Claus crosses the sky with Rudolph guiding his sleigh..
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
The Number of Drones Expected to Sell During the Holiday Seasons is Scaring the Government
Perhaps malls can make a comeback if they open drone stories..
According to the FAA, 1 million more drones will be in the sky with Santa Claus this year..
The Number of Drones Expected to Sell During the Holiday Seasons is Scaring the Government
Monday, December 29, 2014
With Christmas Over, Millions of Gift Returns Begin
Fascinating that online shopping has made things so much easier but people STILL can’t find the right junk..
With Christmas Over, Millions of Gift Returns Begin
Thursday, December 25, 2014
Wednesday, December 24, 2014
TEXT OF POPE FRANCIS’ HOMILY DURING CHRISTMAS EVE MASS, 2014
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined” (Is 9:1). “An angel of the Lord appeared to (the shepherds) and the glory of the Lord shone around them” (Lk 2:9). This is how the liturgy of this holy Christmas night presents to us the birth of the Saviour: as the light which pierces and dispels the deepest darkness. The presence of the Lord in the midst of his people cancels the sorrow of defeat and the misery of slavery, and ushers in joy and happiness.
We, too, in this blessed night, have come to the house of God. We have passed through the darkness which envelops the earth, guided by the flame of faith which illuminates our steps, and enlivened by the hope of finding the “great light”. By opening our hearts, we also can contemplate the miracle of that child-sun who, arising from on high, illuminates the horizon.
The origin of the darkness which envelops the world is lost in the night of the ages. Let us think back to that dark moment when the first crime of humanity was committed, when the hand of Cain, blinded by envy, killed his brother Abel (cf. Gen 4:8). As a result, the unfolding of the centuries has been marked by violence, wars, hatred and oppression.
But God, who placed a sense of expectation within man made in his image and likeness, was waiting. He waited for so long that perhaps at a certain point it seemed he should have given up. But he could not give up because he could not deny himself (cf. 2 Tim 2:13). Therefore he continued to wait patiently in the face of the corruption of man and peoples.
Through the course of history, the light that shatters the darkness reveals to us that God is Father and that his patient fidelity is stronger than darkness and corruption. This is the message of Christmas night. God does not know outbursts of anger or impatience; he is always there, like the father in the parable of the prodigal son, waiting to catch from afar a glimpse of the lost son as he returns.
Isaiah’s prophecy announces the rising of a great light which breaks through the night. This light is born in Bethlehem and is welcomed by the loving arms of Mary, by the love of Joseph, by the wonder of the shepherds. When the angels announced the birth of the Redeemer to the shepherds, they did so with these words: “This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger” (Lk 2:12).
The “sign” is the humility of God taken to the extreme; it is the love with which, that night, he assumed our frailty, our suffering, our anxieties, our desires and our limitations. The message that everyone was expecting, that everyone was searching for in the depths of their souls, was none other than the tenderness of God: God who looks upon us with eyes full of love, who accepts our poverty, God who is in love with our smallness.
On this holy night, while we contemplate the Infant Jesus just born and placed in the manger, we are invited to reflect. How do we welcome the tenderness of God? Do I allow myself to be taken up by God, to be embraced by him, or do I prevent him from drawing close? “But I am searching for the Lord” – we could respond. Nevertheless, what is most important is not seeking him, but rather allowing him to find me and caress me with tenderness. The question put to us simply by the Infant’s presence is: do I allow God to love me?
More so, do we have the courage to welcome with tenderness the difficulties and problems of those who are near to us, or do we prefer impersonal solutions, perhaps effective but devoid of the warmth of the Gospel? How much the world needs tenderness today!
The Christian response cannot be different from God’s response to our smallness. Life must be met with goodness, with meekness. When we realize that God is in love with our smallness, that he made himself small in order to better encounter us, we cannot help but open our hearts to him, and beseech him: “Lord, help me to be like you, give me the grace of tenderness in the most difficult circumstances of life, give me the grace of closeness in the face of every need, of meekness in every conflict”.
Dear brothers and sisters, on this holy night we contemplate the Nativity scene: there “the people who walked in darkness have seen a great light” (Is 9:1). People who were unassuming, open to receiving the gift of God, were the ones who saw this light. This light was not seen, however, by the arrogant, the proud, by those who made laws according to their own personal measures, who were closed off to others. Let us look to the crib and pray, asking the Blessed Mother: “O Mary, show us Jesus!
Thursday, December 18, 2014
Saturday, December 13, 2014
Monday, August 4, 2014
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLHE1GYUhEM?feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1&origin=http://safe.txmblr.com&wmode=opaque&w=500&h=374]
There’s only 142 days until Christmas at the time of this post.. So no better time than the present to showcase a house’s lights show to the LOST GIRL theme song.. enjoy.
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
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