Merry Christmas?

wenwilder · #1 (**permalink**) 12-03-2003, 10:24 PM

I spend the day shopping with the one relative I actually enjoy being around. Get ALL of my Christmas shopping done, thankfully, and come home to relax and take a look at the news.

Most of the time the news provides tidbits of information that I may or may not store for later use - depending on the importance I believe they have and my intake of caffeine and chocolate - but tonight, when hit with the news I was completely dumbfounded!

Tell me I'm reading this wrong:

Quote:

Santa's Knee Off-Limits for Some Children

Dec. 3, 2003 — A small town in New Zealand has banned children from sitting on Santa's knee because organizers fear liability if anything goes wrong.

We've banned and burned, condemned and condoned, we've marched for equal rights and fought for freedom, even requested that the world be politically correct. And now........we stiffle tradition because of fear?

If you live in fear of life then why live or fight for freedom? Maybe it's just me but Christmas without Santa, and Santa without children on his knee, just isn't all that Christmassy.

matauri · #2 (**permalink**) 12-03-2003, 10:50 PM

Yup, we heard about it here on the mainland too. They want the kids to sit 'next' to him.

theaustralian.news.com.au

There was even a snippet on the news the other day saying that Santa in NZ has to change his 'ho ho ho' coz he is scaring the kids.,..he is meant to say 'ha ha ha ho ho ho' :-)

So after 2 yrs of hearing of changes to Santa & Xmas because of cross religion issues (which were all born after 9/11!!) in the US, poor old Santa is now being read the PC act in NZ. Pretty sad isnt it! Why dont they take the fun out of everything!

Cindy

wenwilder · #3 (**permalink**) 12-03-2003, 11:07 PM

Just wait, before long we'll have mechanic Santa's that children can 'safely' sit on. Asking the 'young ladies' and 'young gentlemen' what they request for their non-denomination celebration of the year.

You don't see carolers any more because 'the public' threw a tantrum about the religious aspect of the music. Christmas angels on the trees have been replaced by bows and sometimes stars. Advertisers and chain stores spend millions just so people will spend more.

Christmas use to mean something, now it means going broke, being stressed out, and seeing who can buy the most expensive presents.

The tradition use to be that after thanksgiving dinner we would all decorate for Christmas - here, the decorations are still in storage collecting dust. Just call me scrooge.

minstrel · #4 (**permalink**) 12-04-2003, 01:12 AM

The world has indeed gone insane - Here's an antidote to all the politically correct insanity of the times - this one is just calm and nice:

Silent Night Choir Card

wenwilder · #5 (**permalink**) 12-04-2003, 01:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by minstrel

The world has indeed gone insane - Here's an antidote to all the politically correct insanity of the times - this one is just calm and nice:

Silent Night Choir Card

Thanks Minstrel, that is a definate smile starter. :)

matauri · #6 (**permalink**) 12-04-2003, 01:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wenwilder

If you live in fear of life then why live or fight for freedom?

Thats like a quote we use down here a lot too Wen... "it is better to die on your feet than live down on your knees" :-)

If we live life to the whims of fundamentalists, we have fundamentally changed our way of life.

Cindy

carju1 · #7 (**permalink**) 12-04-2003, 04:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wenwilder

The tradition use to be that after thanksgiving dinner we would all decorate for Christmas - here, the decorations are still in storage collecting dust. Just call me scrooge.

Our decorations and tree go up on Christmas eve and come down on the twelth night. Prior to that only advent calendars are allowed and the Dutch celebration of Sint Claus and his Zwarte Pete's on the evening of Dec 6th.

Bah Humbug to commercial christmasses

Julian

matauri · #8 (**permalink**) 12-04-2003, 05:26 AM

Our lights & trees go up on 1st Dec & come down by 31st Dec. Its considered bad luck to have the tree up twice in one year. (i.e in Jan & Dec)

But our lights stay up until after Australia Day on 26th Jan...coz thats party time ! ;-)

Cindy

minstrel · #9 (**permalink**) 12-05-2003, 02:05 AM

THE WINDOW

Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room. One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs. His bed was next to the room's only window. The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back. The men talked for hours on end. They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation.

Every afternoon when the man in the bed by the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window.

The man in the other bed began to live for those one hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the world outside.

The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake. Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats. Young lovers walked arm in arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance.

As the man by the window described all this in exquisite detail, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine the picturesque scene.

One warm afternoon the man by the window described a parade passing by.

Although the other man couldn't hear the band - he could see it. In his mind's eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words.

Days and weeks passed.

One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the man by the window, who had died peacefully in his sleep. She was saddened and called the hospital attendants to take the body away.

As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone.

Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look at the real world outside.

He strained to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed.

It faced a blank wall. The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this window.

The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall......

She said, "Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you."

Epilogue:

There is tremendous happiness in making others happy, despite our own situations. Shared grief is half the sorrow, but happiness when shared, is doubled. If you want to feel rich, just count all the things you have that money can't buy.

"Today is a gift, that's why it is called the present."

minstrel · #10 (**permalink**) 12-05-2003, 02:10 AM

Late last week, I was rushing around trying to get some last minute shopping done. I was stressed out and not thinking very fondly of the Christmas season right then. It was dark, cold, and wet in the parking lot as I was loading my car up with gifts that I felt obligated to buy. I noticed that I was
missing a receipt that I might need later. So mumbling under my breath, I retraced my steps to the shopping mall entrance.

As I was searching the wet pavement for the lost receipt, I heard a quiet sobbing. The crying was coming from a poorly dressed boy of about 12 years old. He was short and thin. He had no coat. He was just wearing a ragged flannel shirt to protect him from the cold night's chill.

Oddly enough, he was holding a hundred dollar bill in his hand.

Thinking that he had gotten lost from his parents, I asked him what was wrong. He told me his sad story. He said that he came from a large family. He had three brothers and four sisters. His father had died when he was nine years old. His mother was poorly educated and worked two full time jobs. She made very little to support her large family.

Nevertheless, she had managed to skimp and save two hundred dollars to buy her children Christmas presents. The young boy had been dropped off, by his mother, on the way to her second job. He was to use the money to buy presents for all his siblings and save just enough to take the bus home. He had not even entered the mall, when an older boy grabbed one of the hundred dollar bills and disappeared into the night.

"Why didn't you scream for help?" I asked.

The boy said, "I did."

"And nobody came to help you?" I wondered.

The boy stared at the sidewalk and sadly shook his head.

"How loud did you scream?" I inquired.

The soft-spoken boy looked up and meekly whispered, "Help me..."

I realized then that absolutely no one could have heard that poor boy cry for help...

...so I grabbed his other hundred and ran to my truck.

#11 (**permalink**) 12-05-2003, 06:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wenwilder

Quote:

Originally Posted by minstrel

The world has indeed gone insane - Here's an antidote to all the politically correct insanity of the times - this one is just calm and nice:

Silent Night Choir Card

Thanks Minstrel, that is a definate smile starter. :)

the bells are fun to play here http://198.30.217.62
thanks WEn & Minstrel!
DAREN

mikmik · #12 (**permalink**) 12-05-2003, 06:58 AM

I just want to pass along this little tip I picked up at 'Blogger Sanonymous' - When posting a classic two-parter, the setup and the kill shot should be pre-typed onto a text editor so that it can be transfered with little lag time between the first and second submitals, thereby reducing the odds of an intervening event.

Holiday spirit from matauri :

Quote:

But our lights stay up until after Any Old Day of the first 12 Month's...coz thats party time ! ;-)

Only in auzzie eh/...Pity

carbonize · #13 (**permalink**) 12-05-2003, 07:06 AM

We've had all this crap here in the UK for years, children not being allowed to sit on Santas knee in case he's a pedophile and all that BS.

Time for me to put a dampener on things.

Why does the world have to stop because of a christian festival thats not even on the right day? The world is made up of more religions than just christianity but does the whole country shut down for Eid? nope. I got fed up a long time ago of being told how to live my life by christians. You don't get Msulims knocking on your door trying to sell you their magazines, you don't get buddhists harrassing you in the street to try and get you to come to their "meetings".

To be honest it's not even really a christian festival anymore, like most things it's been hijacked by business brainwashing the masses into believing you have to give expensive presents, you have to put up masses of decorations, and you have to send cards.

</rant></cynicism></stupid festivals>

carbonize · #14 (**permalink**) 12-06-2003, 03:17 AM

Yes I killed another thread, mwuahahahaha!!!!!

Glad to see I haven't lost my touch.

This thread has been
CARBONIZED

minstrel · #15 (**permalink**) 12-06-2003, 03:21 AM

Sorry, but you can't pronounce a thread killed after only 24 hours...

That would be premature carbonization...

mikmik · #16 (**permalink**) 12-06-2003, 05:30 AM

And if he is trying to post a message but his connection goes down before he hits submit, then he can't get it up.
Actually though, he lives at a higher latitude than the forum server so I guess that technically his pride would still be intact.

carbonize · #17 (**permalink**) 12-06-2003, 07:26 AM

Minstrel it appears that your treatment of mikmik is not working.

I do not like eggs and green ham,
I do not like them Sam I Am.

Anything can be made to work if you fiddle with it long enough, with the exception of some peoples little grey cells.

minstrel · #18 (**permalink**) 12-06-2003, 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by carbonize

Anything can be made to work if you fiddle with it long enough, with the exception of some peoples little grey cells.

Even there, with recent pseudo-scientific (and by that I mean, "psychic") advances in Nebraska, it is now possible to remove those malfunctioning grey cells and replace them with... yes, Jello...

mikmik · #19 (**permalink**) 12-07-2003, 03:32 AM

Okay everybody. I have something to tell you, and this isn't easy to say, and it won't be easy to hear, so please, freshen up your scotch, caffiene, or whatever ale's you like, and have a seat.

"Alerted to the disappearance of Santa Claus from Norad's radar screen by a Sudbury, Ont., father and son, the military promises to have the Santa tracking system operational by Wednesday"

globetechnology.com

minstrel · #20 (**permalink**) 12-07-2003, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikmik

"Alerted to the disappearance of Santa Claus from Norad's radar screen by a Sudbury, Ont., father and son, the military promises to have the Santa tracking system operational by Wednesday"

Did you say "Sudbury"?

Get those Sea Kings aloft, stat!

(oh yeah... I forgot... any weather balloons left?)

matauri · #21 (**permalink**) 12-07-2003, 01:03 PM

I remember Sudbury....isnt it that town on way to the Soo from Ottawa that is just a big expanse of nothing (an enviro disaster area). I actually liken it to how our goldfields used to look.

Cindy