Hey Biblitz,
So far I'm buying stuff from the Body Shop.. things like massage oil, massagers, hand cream, shower gel, candles. But I
need more ideas, other then the usual hot chocolate, chocolates or mug! My budget for this is $125 (I sold my concert tickets
haha) It's for Christmas and I'm 14 years old.
Unique ideas please! PLEASE be honest, is this a good gift! I'm trying to make it reaaally good, so ANY suggestions are
welcome! She doesn't want jewelery, clothing, perfume and she doesn't wear makeup!
Biblitz replies:
Start her off with a chance at the $1
million prize pool to be paid out if one of PartyPoker's package winners claims the LA Poker Classic 2010 main event title!
Then get a small pocket photo album with enough room for two or three inserts. Insert a recent photo of yourself - one you
really like in which you're demonstrably happy. On the back of the photo, write the date of photo and why you selected this
particular photo. A special day? A special dress? A new boyfriend only mom knew about for awhile?
In the next insert, write a para or two describing the three most useful tips/lessons mother gave you that worked well for
you this year.
In the next insert, write a paragraph describing the outing or event this past year that was the most fun you had with
your mom and how she made it special.
Both fathers and mothers will forgive loans, car accidents and credit card extravagance for this sort of keepsake gift that
captures a special moment or two forever! This is what they'll look at when you stumble and when you fly.
Okay so my 3 brothers and I have been trying to come up with a creative Christmas present for my parents for this year. Every
year we always get them something from each of us like something separate. This is the first year that all 4 of us kids will be
home together at Christmas since I was 8 (I'm 16 now). My oldest brother lives in Vancouver with his girlfriend and they are
coming together, my middle brother is coming home from Quebec, and my other brother who is always here at Christmas is coming
home from University. I came up with an idea tonight for the 4 of us to get a picture taken with Santa together. They all come
home between the 20-23 so we'd have to get it on the 23 or 24. We'd get the picture done and then frame it, with a gift card
for their favourite restaurant. Is this a good present?
Biblitz replies:
Awesome! YES! This, this, THIS is the loving experience! You have been raised correctly if you have come to this
conclusion. Please write a book and explain the finer pts of the parenting you're so willing to celebrate in this wonderful
way!
Quite right, old horse. Christmas is for the kiddies!
Tut-tut, you young whipper-snapper! Keep your version of Jingle Bells between yourselves! That's right, Mitzi! That's
the right idea! (She must be have been on a brief sojourn from The Cave, one of
precious few night clubs which the misguided local hillpeople managed at last to demolish and where Mitzi once mysteriously
enjoyed star billing for years and years. Go figure. Banana Canada).
By Valerie Janitch
Decorating the house with greenery and lighted candles at the end of
the year was traditional long before Christianity began. For many pagan peoples the winter solstice marked the turn of the year,
reminding them that spring would soon be on the way. It was celebrated with festivals of fire and light, making a welcome break
in the dark winter months. Evergreens were used for decoration,
symbolizing fertility as the days lengthened and the sun grew stronger, bringing a renewal of life and growth and the promise of
fresh crops.
... In Northern Europe, the winter solstice was makred by the festival of Yule. The short, dark days, icy winds and intense
cold were made more bearable by blazing fires and glowing lamps. Evergreens decorated the houses, and gifts were made as
sacrificies to the great Norse gods, Odin and Thor, and the goddess Frey. Likewise, the druids, priests of the religion of
early Celtic Britain, built shrines of greenery to shelter spirits of the woods during the dark winter months, and ensure a
survival into spring.
The early Christians were undecided when to celebrate the birthday (or Mass) of Christ, and chose various dates - as far
apart as the 1st and 6th of January, the 29th of March and the 29th of September. Towards the end of the fourth century, the
Church Fathers felt it necessary to fix a definite date, and the Pope wisely decided on the 25th of December. Realizing that it
was almost impossible to eradicate the traditional Roman, Nordic and Celtic festivals, which were psychologically important to
the people's lives and so greatly enjoyed at this season of the year, it seemed more sensible to include them into the
Christmas celebrations. Which explains why so many of the pagan rituals of Saturnalia, Kalends and Yule - the evergreen
life-symbols, the yule logs and candlelight - are still with us today.
Holly, ivy and mistletoe are the evergreens that are immediately associated with Christmas. The scarlet-berried holly
provides a bright note when there is so little colour available in the hedgerows, which is probably why the early Christian
church adopted it - suggesting that the prickly leaves represented Christ's crown of thorns, and the berries dropes of His
blood. As a symbol of eternal life, it meant good fortune - especially if it had been used to decorate the church. The people
of the state of Louisiana in southern USA always kept the berries for luck, and holly hung in the cowshed on Christmas Eve is
said to ensure the health of the occupants. For humans, holly was used to treat fevers, dropsy and rheumatism, gout and
asthma, while the North American Indians treated measles with holly tea.
The blazing Yule log and energetic revelry of the pagan winter festivities called, of course, for something special in
the way of thirst-quenching drinks. In English country villages especially, the traditional Christmas drinks were still an
important part of the festivities in Victorian times. These ranged from 'egg hot' - heated cider mixed with eggs and spices -
to 'ale posset', a concoction of ale and hot milk, sweetened and flavoured with sugar and spices, which was always the final
drink on Christmas Eve. (From Traditional Decorations, pgs. 12-13)