Dec 26 2023 - Boxing Day Traditions

 

"Mom shares after-Christmas tradition in viral video". Here we are at the after-Christmas news.  I wondered what a tradition is.  Mirriam's definition:  customs or beliefs from generation to generation, or the fact of being passed on in this way.  Here we are in the "now" and tradition has moved beyond an inherited pattern, action or behaviour.  It is a repeated one that gets viral reactions.   I am expecting that's what might be the case.  What is this mom's tradition that Yahoo headlined? “Such a simple tradition but I LOVE it. Before we put the kids’ stockings away each year, we have them write (or we do it for them) a little note about top moments from that Christmas,” she explained in the caption. “Favorite gift to give, favorite gift to get, memorable moments. (The grown ups do it too!) Then we tuck them into the stockings and store for the year. Putting up stockings is so sweet because we get to read back about previous Christmases!” The video shows her family taking out their stockings this year and reading what they wrote for 2022.  Sounds more like a family "ritual" to me.  Repeated year after year, but is there cultural significance, an element of tradition. But that isn't the point, is it?  People are searching for secular ways of making meaning.   That's why there are endless headlines - most common is between 9 and 28 personal, family, fun... traditions that you might add to your life.   I noticed that the main entry says "From sources across the web".  Does that mean that AI has done the retrieving this time?   I found a Christmas tradition joke that combines traditions and Christmas song fatigue: So last year I started a tradition, I carry a pebble and throw it at anyone who sings Christmas songs before December.... I call it my Jingle Bell Rock. Boxing Day wishes to you.

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Dec 21 2023 - Shortest Day is here

 

Dark, darker, darkest.  Tonight at 10:27pm.  How is it the shortest day when the occurrence is marked at night?  Solstice is when the North Pole is tilted furthest away from the Sun.  And that seems to be the precise moment of greatest distance.  So I guess they go backwards and decide it is the shortest day.  Have we always done this as a calculation?  Or maybe there were observations in the past  The shortest amount of daylight doesn't explain why it is so dark in the day?  Typically, the reference to dark days refers to short days.   Our dark December days may be explained by the angle of the earth, but probably it has to do with weather patterns and cloud cover.  January 2023 was the darkest January on record in Southern Ontario. It was an "eastern flow" that caused that situation.  The Great Lakes contribute to the problem - being largely open and unfrozen, the provide moisture to help cloud development.  In comparison, the North Pole hasn't had sunlight or even twilight since early October.  And it will continue until early March. How did we get to deciding that Santa and Superman should have to live in the North Pole? Because we decided that.  It didn't come as some enlightenment from a bolt of starlight in the Heavens.  Is it because they are both faster than the speed of light?  They both wear red, both fly and so both should live in the North Pole.  Could they be one person? One silly Quora entry says that Mrs. Clause made Superman's suit and that it's essential the same design inside out.  Another Reddit entry says how much the person loves how Superman still believes in Santa.  Another entry is Biblically headlined: Superman 1.26: Let It Go.   So here's to the shortest day, it can only get longer from here.

One of Flexify's swirly patterns on an oak leaf sitting on coloured lights in the ice. Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblogspot.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

Feb 4 2023 - Sad Dog Day

 

Sad Day after the wonders of Groundhog Day. Fred la Marmotte was found dead before he could predict which way winer is going.  I wouldn't expect he died just before.   The assumption is that he died during hibernation.  Somehow the map still has a prediction for him.  That turns out to be quite the norm. Missing groundhog, human substitution. That was the fate of Wiarton Willie (IV) in 2020.  The Wiartons were the albino groundhogs.  It wasn't publicly announced until November 2021.  His replacement became the first brown groundhog to assume the role.  There have been quite a few "Willies" since the original died in 1999 after 22 years - a very long time for a groundhog.   Here's the Wiarton Groundhog Day reported origin: The story of Wiarton Willie dates back to 1956. A Wiarton resident named Mac McKenzie wanted to showcase his childhood home to his many friends, so he sent out invitations for a "Groundhog Day" gathering. One of these invitations fell into the hands of a Toronto Star reporter. The reporter travelled to Wiarton looking for the Groundhog Day event. None of the townspeople knew about a festival, but one suggested he check at the Arlington Hotel, the local watering hole. There the reporter found McKenzie and his friends partying and was invited to join them. The next day, the reporter lamented to McKenzie that he needed some kind of story to take back to justify his expenses. So McKenzie grabbed his wife's fur hat, which had a large button on the front, went out to the parking lot, dug a burrow in the snow and pronounced a prognostication (which no one remembers). The picture of Mac and the hat ran in the February 3, 1956 edition of the Toronto Star. A year later, about 50 people arrived for the festival. Half were reporters from various media, including the CBC and Canadian Press. Seizing on the opportunity, McKenzie invented a festival that has been added to over the years. In May 2003, two of Wiarton II's Wee Willies (successors in training) disappeared. They were found dead in the burrow where they resided with Willie. Because groundhogs are known to be territorial animals, Willie was suspected of killing the two, an allegation that was never proven. Francesca Dobbyn, who looked after the groundhogs, informed her immediate supervisor who chose not to inform the Wiarton city council of the incident, fearing bad publicity; the council agreed to allow Dobbyn to keep her job despite the scandal. Our picture today is ripples in the sand on the beach in Florida. Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblogspot.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwellart.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

Feb 2 2023 - Ground Hog Day Again

 

How did ground dogs get their name?  I don't think they eat dog food. They are marmots and closely related to squirrels.  They are closely related to Prairie Dogs.  They are both in the Marmotini tribe. The Groundhog that we celebrate today is a Marmota monad, or a woodchuck.  Groundhog Day was a "calling card" script - a showpiece to get a producers interest for Danny Rubin. When it passed to Harold Ramis who was to direct it, he took it over and rewrote it, a few times, it looks like.  Who did they want to play Phil?  Kevin Kline was Rubin's choice and Tom Hanks was Ramis' choice.  Michael Keaton rejected it - he did not "understand" the film.  Bill Murray's brother played Buster Green - the presider over the Groundhog Day festivities.  The production company trapped a while groundhog in the woods, named it Scooter, and it became the famous groundhog. Even Bill Murray tried to rework the script, in an attempt by Ramis to appease Murray, who was so difficult to deal with that Ramis and Murray didn't speak again until before Ramis' death in 2014.   Mention the movie and don't you hear "I Got You Babe" immediately? Danny Rubin had chosen the song from the beginning.   Groundhog Day in Punxsutawney became a tourist destination with tens of thousands of visitors rather than hundreds.   Of course, the time loop remains the wonderful mystery at the movie's core.  "In an early draft, Rubin had Phil estimate he had been there for 70 or 80 years. Later in life, once Ramis had married a Buddhist woman and adopted some of that philosophy, he started to quote a Buddhist doctrine that says it takes 10,000 years for a soul to evolve to the next level. In the end, there is no definitive answer." Isn't that such a satisfyingly answer, and perfect for the real Bill Murray.  He's made headlines repeatedly over the years.  Last year, the film he was on was suspended over his behaviour issues.  Chevy Chase gossiped on Stern's show in 2008 about Murray's behaviour.  "Charlie's Angels" director McG claimed Murray head butted him once.  Richard Dreyfuss had negative words hurled to him. Inexcusable and unacceptable language was used on Lucy Liu.  I guess there's more.   Would that be 70 years of bad behaviour with no change? It might be 10,000 years before Bill Murray evolves to a next level.  And in the end, we won't be here by then.   If Bill Murray sees his shadow today 6 more years of Covid. Why wasn't Bill Murray cast as Thor? Because nobody likes an electricity bill.   Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblogspot.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwellart.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

Aug 9 2022 - What is a day - what about 25 or 23 hours?

 

If it were to take more than 24 hours for the earth to rotate on its axis?  Actually the Earth is spinning faster, and we had the shortest day ever on June 29 2022. What are the impacts of longer or shorter? Think centrifugal force, and a lot would happen.  "If it was faster then one full rotation would take less than 24 hrs., thus making days & nights shorter.  Our weight would be less, because as the Earth would rotate faster, it would exert more centrifugal force on us. The resultant force of the Earth's gravity and the centrifugal force would be less as gravity would remain constant but centrifugal force would increase. There would also be a temperature change as each hemisphere (Eastern and Western) would get less time to warm up from the Sun's rays. If it was slower then one full rotation would take more than 24 hrs., thus making days & nights longer. Our weight would be more, because as the Earth would rotate slower, it would exert less centrifugal force on us. The resultant force of the Earth's gravity and the centrifugal force would be more as gravity would remain constant but centrifugal force would decrease. There would also be a temperature change as each hemisphere (Eastern and Western) would get more time to warm up from the Sun's rays." And if the rotation took 12 hours? "The water would rise by 100 metres if the day became 12 hours - due to the centrifugal force of the Earth.  So Indonesia and most of South America would be wiped out.  Africa would be two disconnected islands.  Mount Kilimanjara would poke out of the tip of new high oceans.  Hurricanes would increase because water levels near the equator would com along with huge amounts of humidity and create a band of fog around the equator. " The rotation of the earth has been increasing  for a while.  Scientist Leonid Zotov thinks it has to do with the Chandler Wobble that has mysteriously disappeared so could have helped the Earth rotate faster.   A leap second adjustment was made in 2012 and it "wreaked havoc" on sites like Redditt and Yelp who reported crashes due to the time adjustment.  Scientist Judah Levine says that if the planet continues to spin too fast, then by the end of the decade clockmasters may need to delete a full second. For example, they might have the clocks skip from 23:59:58 on Dec. 31, 2029 to 00:00:00 on Jan. 1, 2030.   There's a new Y2K scenario.  I think of August as a purple month - it must be that a lot of purple flowers bloom in August.  Time to check that theory out.  What colours are the other months?

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Feb 14 2022 - Finally it is Valentine's Day

 

Is this a confessional day?  I don't think so.  It is a fun day of cards and gift-giving of roses and chocolate.  And possibly more expensive things like diamonds. How did the Romans have people named Lupercalia?  That is the feast's namesake that is identified as the origin. So goats are involved in the history.  This is how the feast was celebrated: A goat and a dog were sacrificed by men on these days and women were whipped with the hides of the sacrificed animals as it was believed that this will make them fertile. Oh dear, that seems a poor beginning to a love festival.  And the name? That came later.  It is after Saint Valentine, a priest who helped Christian couples in getting married, was executed on the 14th of February.  It is also said that while St. Valentine was imprisoned, he took care of the jailor’s blind daughter and even wrote her a card which said ‘from your Valentine’. So confessing one's feelings? I think confessional gets in there because it evolved out of pagan to Roman Catholic traditions.  We need to leap forward to the current day where we chase the cutest, the best, the unique and most romantic Valentine's Day gift.  It is too hard to consider our past social order. Putting it another way, wouldn't you rather click on Valentine's day stuff and see pages of pictures of red hearts?  Well, that's where I am heading. Happy Valentine's Day!

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Jan 13 2022 - Silly Socks Day

 

Let's take some ideas from school.  One of them appears to be sock days.  Silly socks, in particular.   This seems to play out for us adults in the number and variety of national sock days.   As I looked through the sock jokes, there is a joke that we can enjoy for the various sock days.  Here are some general sock jokes for National Sock Day on December 4th.  - Why do golfers wear two pairs of socks? - In case they get a hole in one! -Who is the most famous footwear philosopher? -Sockrates - What did the hat say to the sock? - I’ll go on ahead, you go on foot. - What kind of socks do you need to plant flowers? - Garden hose! Crazy sock day is in November: - Why did the sock have no friends - Because it was a odd sock Here is a joke for lost sock day on May 9th:  - Whenever I get a sock from the laundry without the other sock, I keep this sock in the hopes of finding the partner in the future. - I call these socks lost soles. No socks day on May 8th: - What do you call a animal with no socks on? - Bear-foot. This last one seems strange to me but is referenced quite a bit. It is sock day divorce.  That's the day a divorce is final and "the day you get your freedom back".  Here's a joke: - Why did the pair of socks decide to break up? - Because one of them always had to be right, and the other one left.   A botanical garden display from a few years ago. Such a contrast with our winter scenes today.

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Sep 21 2021 - School Days

 

How long is a school day for children?  In Ontario, it is generally 6 hours.  Exact school hours can vary by school board and level (elementary or secondary). There's legislation in each province covering the minimum length of a school day - in Ontario the minimum is 5 hours a day, excluding recess and scheduled intervals between classes.   There's only one difference between Grades 1 to 6 and 7 and 8 - there is no PM recess for grades 7 to 8.  Here's a sample from one of the Toronto District School Board web sites: 8:35     Supervision Begins   8:45   Entry Bell 8:50   Classes Begin 10:10-10:25   Recess 11:35     Lunch 12:30   Entry Bell 12:35   Classes Begin 1:55-2:10   Recess 3:20   School Day Ends 3:35   Supervision Ends   It looks neat and tidy, doesn't it. How long should a school day be?  There is lots of research and many articles comparing education systems around the world.  Taiwan seems to have the longest school day at 8.5 hours, down to 5 days for Finland.  It says Ontario has 6 hours in the average school day.   THIS is an article that compares Ontario's length of days, number of days, etc with other systems around the world.   There's lots of writing about the length of the adult work day.  Should we adults engage in recess in our work day?  Should there be time out for some play and physical activity? Articles say yes - adults need recess too. I guess it is something for each of us to consider. Here are some children on a Strasburg Rail Road passenger car about to enjoy a train ride.   Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwellart.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

Mar 8 2021 - Choose to Challenge

 

The theme this year is "Choose to Challenge".    There is a colour for Women's Day:  purple, green and white - well, three colours.  They symbolize justice and dignity, hope and purity.  They originated in 1908. The sense of an International day for women is consistent with all international days for and against something.  These are days to recognize achievements, raise awareness about equality, lobby for parity and raise money for charities.   As for International Women's Day - it is the sheer number of people seeking autonomy and human rights.  The pictures around the world are compelling.   Who is the Manif Pour Tous group? They are shown marching through the Eiffel Tower in Paris and their "uniform" is eerie, even creepy.  So I looked them up. This information comes from Here Originally created to oppose the French bill on same-sex marriage, La Manif Pour Tous (LMPT) has broadened its claims to the defense of the “traditional family” and the opposition to a fictional “gender theory”. Links with other organisations: Many links with anti-choice organisations (Alliance Vita, Fondation Jérome Lejeune) and with far-right organisations. Key statement: “La Manif pour tous defends mariage and filiation in line with the gendered reality of mankind, which consequence is at the same time sexual difference and complementarity that are inescapable to conceive a child and to assume the mother-father and the motherhood-fatherhood differences”  The picture has made the cover likely because it looks similar to the   uniform in The Handmaid's Tale.  Here it is.    This diptych is one of the montage series.  It is a curved palm leaf overlayed with textures.  Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwellart.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

Whoa on Cupid as a Cherub, Please!

Where would a name like Valentine come from?  It isn't really a name anymore - it is a "thing" - a card or gift on the specific day of Valentine's.   However, it is also a sweetheart that is chosen on Valentine's Day. Vanlentine originates as a name -  a unisex given name.  It is derived from the Roman family name Valentinus - from valens, meaning strong and healthy.  It turns out to be the name of a few Saints who were martyred and are commemorated along with Saint Valentine from the third century.  Supposedly he died on February 14th.  I say that wondering how 3rd century documents on dates can match up with our current calendar. And how does a cupid come into the scene for Valentine's Day? Cupid comes from Roman mythology, son of Venus who was the goddess of love and beauty.  Would Venus still be with us today given she's a goddess - and I should write "is the goddess of love and beauty."  His representation as a little boy can be traced. The Italian painter Raphael who was known for creating characters called "putti" - they looked like male babies or toddlers.  They represented the presence of pure love around people - often with wings like angels.  Cupid started out as  being portrayed as a young man - but he got "converted" to being a baby or young child, and often with angelic wings.   Cupid is a little angel-like boy - but that isn't a "cherub".  Cherubs were known as cherubim.  That was a heavenly "rank" and have the role to protect God's heavenly glory.  This religious designation got swept up into being associated with Cupid and similar depictions.   The through line from St. Valentine the martyr to celebrating Romantic love is still to be outlined - I think we might accord that to Chaucer.  In the meantime, let's enjoy a few more Ringling Circus images.

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Green on Wednesday

I found a website that describes the cultural meanings of colours. The site is http://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/cultural-color.html. We tend to know the associations of green - a very popularly used colour in Western societies.  lucky color in most western cultures spring, new birth, regeneration nature and environmental awareness  color for 'go' at traffic lights Saint Patrick's Day  Christmas combined with red jealousy greed We would include money for western cultures too.  But then I came across the entry for Thailand. Green is the colour of the day for Wednesday. There is a colour for each day: Sunday - red Monday - yellow or cream Tuesday - pink Wednesday - green Thursday - orange or brown Friday - light blue Saturday - purple or black What happens in a society where there is a colour for each day?  The colours for the King and Queen of Thailand are significant, and the population wears yellow for the King and blue for the Queen on their birthdays. Political controversy is expressed in yellow shirts by the Alliance for Democracy.  Those opposing this group wear red shirts.  Those who want to be neutral wear pink shirts.  For the photographer, this is a visual feasts. There's more information on colours in Thailand here.