Happy holidays everyone!

Site Discussions
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Stuff yourself with great food! Enjoy the company of family and good friends! Happy holidays and happy new year!

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You, too, Sam! Thank you so much again for giving us this new forum to talk all things food!

:christmas_tree::gift::tada::confetti_ball:

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Thanks! And best wishes to you and all ‘Onioners’ have a great 2016!! :innocent:

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Thanks HO!

Safe travel and great food to all! :evergreen_tree:

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This picture was tweeted to me today and it seems perfect to share here in lieu of a holiday card.

These are mistletoe salesmen in Paris in 1928

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Cheers, everyone!

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Some members will know that, in my real life, I’m now a military historian and author.

Let me wish everyone a happy festive season, however, you may celebrate it, and a very peaceful 2016.

This link was my usual supermarket’s Christmas TV advert last year, remembering the centenary of the event it portrays. It’s worth showing it again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWF2JBb1bvM

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Happy & Merry to you as well, Sampson. And, thanks again for setting up our little tree!

Personally, I’m feeling blessed by the entire pantheon. Family shuffling has reoriented our plans, leaving Mrs. Z and I off the hook for having to go anywhere tomorrow. Gloriously, the two of us will be alone at home with 10 pounds of jumbo, king crab legs, a case of champagne, and a key lime pie. The only remaining question is, should I even bother to shower???

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My official holidays greetings. Photo was taken at round 3pm, at 4pm or so it was alread dark as night! The church’s bells, at the main market square about 50 metres from my lodging, were ringing madly for a long time at 4pm. In Germany it means the feast can now commence. The 24th, called “Heiligabend”, is an important date here. Everything is shut down at 1pm so you could get things ready for this evening.

Almost like the postcard, but then without the snow. It’s unprecedented mild weather for december (and I’m glad!). Btw, my lodging is on left, right next to the arch.

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Aloha Kakou:

Was da night bafo’ Christmas,
and all ova’ da place
Not even da geckos
was showin’ their face.

Da stockings was hangin’ on top da TV?
(‘Cause no mo’ fireplace in Hawai’i)
Da kids stay all crashed, my old lady too.
They leave all da work for you-know-who.

So me, I stay pickin’ up alla their toys,
When - boom! - outside get only big noise!
I run to da window, I open 'em up,
I stick out my head and I yell, “Eh! Whassup?!”

And then, I no can ba-lieve what I seen!
Was so unreal, you know what I mean?
This fat haole guy get his reindeers in my yard!
And reindeers not housebroken, you know, as’ why hard!

But nemmind, this Christmas, so I cut ‘em some slack.
Plus, had uku pile presents pokin’ outta his sack!
So I wait 'till he pau tie up his reindeer,
Then I yell out da window, “Huui! Brah, ova hea!”

An’ I tell 'em first thing, when I open da door,
“Eh, Hemo your shoes! You going dirty my floor!”
He take off his boots, he tell, “You know who I am?”
I go, “Ho! From the smell, must be Mr. Toe Jam!”

He make mempachi eyes and he go, “Ho, ho, ho!”
By now, I stay thinking this guy kinda slow!
He look like my Tutu, but little less weight,
And his beard stay so white, mo’ white than shark bait!

He stay all in red, specially his nose,
And get reindeer spit on top his nice clothes!
But him, he no care; he just smile at me,
And he start fo’ put presents unda-neath da tree.

I tell 'em, “Eh, brah, no need make li’dat,
And watch where you step! You going ma-ke da cat!”
Then, out from his bag, he pull one brand new computah,
Choke video games, and one motorized scootah!

He try for fill up da Christmas socks too,
But had so much pukas, all da stuff went fall troo.
When he pau, I tell 'em, “Eh Santa, try wait!
I get plenty leftovahs, I go make you one plate!”

But he nevah like hang, he had so much fo’ do;
Gotta make all them small kids’ wishes come true.
So I wave 'em goodbye, and I flash 'em da shaka,
And I tell 'em, “Mele Kalikimaka!”

When he hear that, he stop and I telling you true,
He go, “Garans ball-barans! Merry Christmas to you!”

Aloha Kakou,
Kaleo

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Happy holidays to everyone from the Oregon coast, alas 'tis hail not snow. And I’ll add my thanks to HO for giving me a new home.

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I hate when a commercial makes me cry. How insane, after acknowledging their humanity, they return to the trenches to bludgeon each other :confounded:

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According to the version of this story that I’ve always heard, though, they didn’t – the two units refused to shoot at each other when the fighting officially resumed, and the powers that be had to transfer both units elsewhere.

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If that’s the case then good for them. They only had to bludgeon the enemies they didn’t know.

WWI isn’t very well covered in US history courses. There was a recent NYT review of “To Hell and Back: Europe 1914-1949” that I put on my Christmas list. I guess I’ll find out tomorrow whether I’ll have heavy holiday reading. My previous WWI bible has been “A Peace To End All Peace,” but that’s very Middle East focused.

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Make sure to add the books penned by our own Harters on your list.

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My thanks for the free advert, Sunshine.

Needless to say, the book does talk about the Truce, mainly the food side of things, of course.

Something like 14 German regiments and 20 British battalions celebrated Christmas by not trying to kill each other. That’s several miles of the front line. It took different forms - in some places, there was just an understanding that no-one would shoot. In others, there was some casual fraternisation. In others, men mingled together in No Mans Land for several hours, including having a kickabout with a football. One of the units was the Cheshire Regiment Territorial battalion (similar to an American National Guard unit) from my town, so I have quite a bit of the details.

Although the truce generally only lasted through the day, in most sectors, things remained quiet until New Year. Worth mentioning that, in spite of part of the line being on truce, 43 British soldiers were killed in action on Christmas Day 1914.

Oh, yes, and coming back to the advert, the chocolate was really popular. I tried to get some on every visit to Sainsbury in December but without success.

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And Happy Holidays to all from balmy Boston, where the cherry blossoms are out and the bees are busy pollinating. As my husband said yesterday, strolling sure beats shoveling.

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Harters, yes, that was a wonderful ad.

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What a pretty town! No wonder it is featured on Weihnachten cards. (I almost wrote Weinachten, but it goes to show what a wino I am
 ) I have a German textbook in which the capital of Austria is “Wein”. Get the feeling the writers or editors were having a bit of fun there.

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Bear, that is frightening. It is very warm here in MontrĂ©al as well, and the grass is green and I’ve seen new dandelions and new growth on perennial plants, but no tree blossoms so far, as we are north of you. Yesterday and today, I was out cycling with NO GLOVES. I’m just worried about that lovely cherry tree.

But people seem so happy, yesterday people were out on terrasses, enjoying coffee. Lots of people strolling through the city. We denizens of New France and New England are supposed to love winter, but I thoroughly hate it.

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