Marilyn's Photos - Nov 16 2025 - Christmas is Chocolate Time

 

Is there any time that isn’t chocolate time?  Somehow Christmas is chocolate ad time.   The first edible chocolate bar happened in 1847.  After that conching was invented by Lindt where chocolate was mixed and aerated for hours to create that smooth, creaming, melt-in-your-mouth texture that we consider chocolate. The Europeans took out the chilis and spices and put in the sugars.  There were a lot of inventions, evolutions and developments along the way.  Maybe chocolate is the diamond of the candy world.   Do you know that there are preserved chocolate bars made between 1764 and 1795 for the King of Poland.  They bear the King’s monogram and on display in his Palace on the Water in Warsaw.  Isn’t that curiosity of some sort. And the industrial movement of the 1800s and 1900s meant that wrapping chocolate bars in festive labels became affordable for the middle class, with figurines like chocolate Santas and elves becaming a tradition, along with the Chocolate Advent Calendar.   There seems to me to be a societal evolution where Christmas has become a time of indulgence. The box of chocolates is perfect for the middle class to showcase indulgence.  What could be better than that?  Well, for the rich, there is something.  Le chocolat box includes chocolates, necklaces, earrings, rings and bracelets in diamonds, sapphires and emeralds. I found a picture and it doesn’t look that impressive, does it? That’s because it really is jewellery with some chocolate. At $1.5 million, I was hoping for something more compelling.   More affordable (!) in comparison would be Le Madeline au Truffe - a single chocolate truffle costing $250, To’ak chocolate bar - $360 and the DeLaFee’s gold chocolate box with 8 chocolates and an antique gold coin at $390. And there are more options than these. Don’t worry that you will have to choose which one to get for Christmas.  We have a succession of chocolate festive days - Valentine’s and Easter.  Then you can move into World Chocolate Day, International Chocolate Day, and National Chocolate Day. Or you can expand to other religious celebrations - Day of the Dead, Hanukkah and Diwali. There’s an endless chocolate highway with many stops along the way.

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Dec 20 2024 - Christmas Attire

 

Attire seems the correct word for what is worn for Christmas pictures - matching "oatmeal" sweaters are on the front page of the Globe and Mail's Christmas photos coverage.  Sounds elegant for Christmas attire. Last Saturday, I saw a family - mother, father, and baby -  at the Watering Can in matching pyjama-sort of outfits like this below.  I don't remember if they had reindeer antlers on their heads.  That pyjama/sweat pants look is creepy to me, and got creepier every time I saw them again.

The female staff in Shoppers Drug mart were wearing elf dresses yesterday.They are a retro 50s style, so that must mean this is a trend gaining momentum.  Halloween is very popular, so why not dress up at Christmas given all the opportunities.  The trend is more towards women's vintage 1950s dresses.  If you remember the dresses in the movie White Christmas, that's the look.  Even with white gloves.  Not as many pajama outfits this year.  But maybe families all own the matching pyjamas, so are being pitched something different this year.  As I look through the dozens of pictures, I notice that  the dog dress Christmas Candy costs more than the Elves Blue Reindeer jumpsuit for people.  What do you think of this? Here's a retro style dress with a novel print - white gloves would go with this outfit - I wonder if this is a Christmas Carol.  And we're back to asking why this dress is listed for $34 compared to a dog outfit for $48. Here's a holiday greeting from a few years ago - let's see if this much snow falls today.

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Dec 15 2024 - The Vampire Facial

 

Yesterday's fabled story of Martin Luther lighting up the Christmas tree seems sort-of believable.  It is a simple myth of eternal Christmas.  But it pales in comparison to the myths of eternal youth be found today.  I heard about this on Gavin Crawford's Because News yesterday morning on CBC Radio, and have looked it up.  I had visions of blood smeared all over one's face and then a mask on top of that - a messy horror sort of movie. So the Vampire Facial! Sounds gruesome.  Sounds like blood is involved.  Sounds correct. But very different from my fantasy. Here's the information from the American Academy of Dermatology: "...platelet-rich plasma (PRP) has received so much attention that it may seem as if we’ve finally found the fountain of youth. Despite the hoopla, there’s little evidence to show that it works — or doesn’t work. We all have platelets in our blood. PRP is 3-step procedure that involves having your blood: Drawn from your arm (2 to 4 tablespoons) Placed into a machine that separates the platelets from the rest of your blood Re-injected into you (only the part of your blood that contains a high concentration of platelets).  For the "fountain of youth" it is injected into your face using microneedling.  And in 45 minutes you are done and have spent $1,300 in Toronto. Orthopedic surgeons use PRP to help athletes recover more quickly after an injury.  In dermatology, PRP is being tested as a possible treatment for hair loss. PRP may also speed up wound healing. A few dermatologists are using PRP to give patients younger-looking skin." I don't think it sounds like "a few" - unless you consider a "small number" to be in the thousands or even tens of thousands.  An expression like "art is not just for the few" refers to a minority of people and that could be in the billions on this planet.  But then I can't imagine the American Dermatology Association wants to own this one, given the lack of research conducted so far. What the Association does say is that researchers have found that most patients who get results have 3 or more treatments. That means, you’d have to go to your dermatologist’s office 3 or more times to have blood drawn, treated, and injected back into you.  The results will show up in a few weeks to months.  Expect "a bit of pain, bruising, and swelling afterwards. These tend to go away within a few days."   Sounds definitely like evasiveness on the association's part.  The McGill University Article called the body of evidence "anemic"  and a research review of the procedure  said is was "modestly beneficial." with dark under-eye circles getting the most consistent improvements. So maybe that's why it was covered in the news recently.  It makes for a truly surprising Christmas present.  You can count on me to bring you the best in Christmas-cringe-worthy presents.

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Dec 13 2024 - Most Popular at Christmas

 

There are many most popular things at Christmas - top of the list is gifts.  There's urgency in the ads - who knows which ones will "sell out" - given gift cards are the top of the list, it doesn't seem likely that they are going to sell out.   Do you know that the top selling toy of all time is Barbie (at a billion).  You can see the most wanted toys for Christmas over the decades or years - think Tickle Me Elmo, Cabbage Patch Kids, Furby, LEGO, and don't forget Rubik's Cube.  Shopping-wise, the experts say that it is Christmas-themed things - lights, decorations, trees, all that sort of stuff that actually sell the most at Christmas. Christmas decorations are on sale at the floral store year-round, but would you want to buy your Christmas decorations in July?  Michael's had an understanding this year of how popular Christmas items are and how to position Christmas items.  They had some Christmas trees and decor out before Halloween.  It was a heads-up on what's to come, and a nudge to the early birds to get going.  Christmas is a magnet for all kinds of things to be "beloved" and "most popular" at Christmas.  This comes in the form of "tradition" generally. With both a religious event with its traditions and a secular one - Santa and the presents that has generated its own traditions.  There are so many things that align to make special meaning.  Things like our favourite dinner, favourite dessert, favourite cookies and candies - candy canes in particular. And then expand out to Christmas experiences - Santa Claus Parades, Christmas concerts, Christmas movies. We don't do this the rest of the year to such an extreme.  Christmas is the ultimate event for us.  It makes me wonder what would that next level of mass celebration could look like.  Who knows? Here's a Floyd Elzinga sculpture with a few sparkles added.  That looks Christmas-y to me.  And isn't that because we've squished in the Solstice Celebration of lights into the holiday.

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Dec 11 2024 - We're in a great state

 

This from the CBC news:  In an interview with NBC News on Sunday, Trump said that if the U.S. is going to run up lopsided trade deficits with Canada, it might as well become a state. Trump posted that he was happy to have dinner with "Governor Justin Trudeau, governor of the Great State of Canada.  I look forward to seeing the Governor again soon so that we may continue our in depth talks on Tariffs and Trade, the results of which will be truly spectacular for all!"   The CBC named it "a jab" in the article but the headline said Trump again teases Canadian takeover with 'governor' Trudeau post.  Another headline said that Trump's quip about the 51st state was a joke by a Minister that was present.   This shouldn't be a surprise joke or jibe - there's still talk of Trump  "purchasing" Greenland.  Will we get more of this - what do you think?  Seems to go with the package. There's nothing like an Amaryllis at Christmas - this picture from last year.

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Dec 9 2024 - Outlaw Christmas

 

We are so engrossed in Christmas every year - even during the year- that we can't imagine anything different.   Imagine this:  In North Korea Christmas is outlawed.  It is officially an atheist state.  It seems odd to me that the outlawing was done as late as 2016.  It is likely due to Kim Jong Un's growing sense "godlike status."  Rebecca Pankratz, a researcher is quoted:  “Christianity was viewed as more of a direct threat to the regime … providing hope for living for eternity after life rather than living in fear of death.” Other atheist nations? Cuba banned Christmas starting in 1969. The ban was lifted for the Pope's visit 30 years later, and hasn't been reinstated. Another twist:  Christmas and Christianity are banned in China, but a commercialized version of Christmas is popular.   There are lots off countries that don't have Christmas. This from the World Population Review:  Afghanistan, Algeria, Bhutan, Libya, Mauritania, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Yemen. "In these countries, Christmas is not considered a day off from work. All government services will be open, and people will be expected to go to work and school. On the other hand, that doesn't necessarily mean that people are not allowed to celebrate Christmas in these countries. People who are Christian can still take the day off and celebrate, provided that the country does not have a law against it. It simply means that people should not be expected to be given the day off from work for free, as the country will still be open." You can go to the site HERE to see the reasons for non-celebration.  Often they aren't Christian countries, the most straight-forward reason. There are several categories outlined on Wikipedia:   1. Christmas observed and public holiday 2. Christmas observed but not public holiday 3. Christmas is neither observed nor public holiday We take Christmas for granted and there's so much build-up in our culture and society.  I wonder what other countries and cultures have for a common celebration event. Here's an example of the Christmas influence:  this one of our cute Christmas watercolour exercises from last year.  What would you do in a watercolour class without such major events?

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Dec 7 2024 - Do shepherds watch their flocks in winter?

 

Do shepherds watch their flocks by night in the winter - that 's the question of whether Jesus born in winter?  It turns out to be a  difficult question for the historical scholars. Not enough information.   "in about 200 C.E., a Christian teacher in Egypt makes reference to the date Jesus was born. According to Clement of Alexandria, several different days had been proposed by various Christian groups. Surprising as it may seem, Clement doesn’t mention December 25 at all. Clement writes: “There are those who have determined not only the year of our Lord’s birth, but also the day; and they say that it took place in the 28th year of Augustus, and in the 25th day of [the Egyptian month] Pachon [May 20 in our calendar] … And treating of His Passion, with very great accuracy, some say that it took place in the 16th year of Tiberius, on the 25th of Phamenoth [March 21]; and others on the 25th of Pharmuthi [April 21] and others say that on the 19th of Pharmuthi [April 15] the Savior suffered. Further, others say that He was born on the 24th or 25th of Pharmuthi [April 20 or 21].   Given all this, how did December 25 and January 6 become the prime dates? This article HERE describes the  two theories: one extremely popular, the other less often heard outside scholarly circles (though far more ancient) "The most loudly touted theory about the origins of the Christmas date(s) is that it was borrowed from pagan celebrations. The Romans had their mid-winter Saturnalia festival in late December; barbarian peoples of northern and western Europe kept holidays at similar times. To top it off, in 274 C.E., the Roman emperor Aurelian established a feast of the birth of Sol Invictus (the Unconquered Sun), on December 25. Christmas, the argument goes, is really a spin-off from these pagan solar festivals. According to this theory, early Christians deliberately chose these dates to encourage the spread of Christmas and Christianity throughout the Roman world: If Christmas looked like a pagan holiday, more pagans would be open to both the holiday and the God whose birth it celebrated. The other is this:  Around 200 C.E. Tertullian of Carthage reported the calculation that the 14th of Nisan (the day of the crucifixion according to the Gospel of John) in the year Jesus died was equivalent to March 25 in the Roman (solar) calendar March 25 is, of course, nine months before December 25; it was later recognized as the Feast of the Annunciation—the commemoration of Jesus’ conception.10 Thus, Jesus was believed to have been conceived and crucified on the same day of the year. Exactly nine months later, Jesus was born, on December 25 Option A or Option B - which should we choose?

November clouds along the escarpment.

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Dec 4 2024 - Carol of the Bells

 

Our choir songs are overwhelmingly Christian carols/hymns or mid-twentieth century songs.  And then there's the Solstice Song - Carol of the Bells.   There are 10,000 songs on the subject of Christmas.  And seasonal songs like Jingle Bells aren't considered Christmas songs.   When it comes to religious songs, it seems to me that the Manger is the focal point.    Christian Christmas songs are known as hymns - "song of praise".  The "Hymnal" is organized by season.  One has to look through an index at the back to find out which page a song is on.  Lyrics are formal and paraphrase Scripture or quote the Bible.    In the wider context, Christmas songs have more diverse themes.  Here's someone who did some analysis of Christmas songs: "After examining the top 78 holiday songs on Spotify, Bennett found the most common themes included: Home (family, gifts under the tree), Love (finding that special someone at Christmas), Lost love (feeling lonely at Christmas), Parties (dancing, mistletoe), Santa (and his reindeer), Snow (snowmen, sleighs, cold winters), Religion (Nativity story), and Peace on Earth."  Quite the array for Christmas.  I guess that in part accounts for why there are so many concerts at this time of year. Lots to choose from. A person can stay at home:  turn on the perpetual fire burning in the fireplace television station/youtube video and the perpetual Christmas music radio station.  This display of wreaths and urns at the Watering Can is from a few years ago.  This year, the volume is astonishing.

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Nov 28 2024 - Fantasy of trees

 

The Rotary Club of Grimsby has been hosting the Fantasy of Trees for 25 years. There are about 30 trees and 20 wreaths up for raffle.  There are all kinds of gift certificates and other items for raffle and silent auction as well.   The event starts today and completes a week from Sunday on December  8th. Each year, I make wreaths.  You can see the gallery of wreaths below.  There are some new designs with felt leaves, fabric flowers, real-look cedar and woven rope designs.   I usually decorate one or two trees.  This year, a third tree was added so lots off decorating fun. The Fantasy of Trees is held in the Grimsby Museum, a very pleasant gallery setting. With the sponsorship of trees, wreaths, etc, the raffle, and the silent auction, up to $20,000 is raised each year for local charities.   Here's the website - https://fantasyoftrees.ca/ I look forward to Santa Day - Mr and Mrs Santa come as a team.  They do this yearly for a number of charities, and we were lucky to lock them in a few years ago to come every year.  Given the charity nature of the event, they are very committed to the event.  Last year, I got a picture of Millie with them in front of the Museum.  Let's see what happens this year.

The first tree was put together last year, with all the gold ornaments glued together in clusters.   The second and third trees were done on the spur of the moment this year from contributed decorations, supplemented by purchases.  And below the purple tree is the gallery of wreaths created for there Fantasy this year - some with Kerry Vandermolen, this year's Chair.

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Sep 18 2024 - Seasonal Songs

 

Choir season has started and the music is handed out.  It may only be September but Christmas music has begun.  I seem to have forgotten this.  I seem to remember some other songs in the mix of the Christmas concert.   At least that isn't as onerous as filming Hallmark Christmas movies in the summer.  Where they have to wear cozy sweaters and winter coats.  But what about all the trees with leaves, the grass and flowers?  So I turn to BBC news whose article from 2006 describes David Tennant as Dr. Who, filming a Christmas special in 30 degrees Celsius heat.   "Extras milled about in scarves and woolly coats as shoppers in sunglasses looked on in sympathy. Asked by fans how he was coping, the Time Lord shouted back, "It's blinking boiling." "If it's summer, filming at night avoids the problem of each scene being in blazing sunshine. Although, with sunset so late, you have to work quite long days. If you do film during the day, there's the problem of the actors peering into the sun. We screen the area with a silk - much like a stretched-out parachute - to diffuse the sunlight."  And my answer to the foliage?  "There are tales - "perhaps not entirely apocryphal" - of crew spending several days picking leaves off trees." Here I am thinking about Christmas music when the headline is how many Burmese pythons have been caught in the Florida Python Challenge.  Now that gives invasive species a new meaning for us.

This is the Phipps Conservatory in Pittsburgh.  Quite the wonderful botanic collection of tropical plants.

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