Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[BDutch]

don’t put up Christmas decos until third Sunday of Advent (Gaudate Sunday) 14 Dec this year), and they stay up until Jan 7, when the 12 Days of Christmas are over. I’m chasing away the darkness, and celebrating the return of light on Winter Solstice, 21 Dec. Note: this makes sense to me, and I don’t expect it to work for anyone else.

Traditionally we wait with Christmas decorations until Sinterklaas and his helpers left the country to return to Spain (by boat). But one of the neighbours house and garden is already a beacon of light in the neighbourhood. We wait, probably buy a tree tomorrow, and put it up on Sunday.

Some people go to church on the eve before Xmas or on Xmas day, but less than 35% is Catholic or Christian in my country nowadays. Most people celebrate Christmas with one or more special diners, from the evening of the 24 - 26 December, with family. Some do presents. Other families don’t. Its often complicated which day /lunch or diner with whom. Families / Xmas meetings are often divided over mothers and fathers after divorce. Some couples have a hard time to go from one family to another. That is why some people don’t like Xmas and rather go on a vacation to escape all the stress. We have our children and my husband’s sister and family over for diner on the 25th. Not sure if /when we do presents.

Protestant’s keep the decorations until after New Year’s Day. Catholics wait until after 3 Kings day. Normally we wait like the Catholics to put the decorations back into the boxes.

X tax made for a contest 2 years ago.

 

[notabitail]

I love this.

I think it’s funny that as a born-and-raised Protestant who started singing at age 5, I know way more liturgical Latin than my Catholic son-in-law. 2/3 of what I sing is in Latin.

Although I am completely on board with the congregation being sung at in their own daily language, my music snob notes that singing “veni’ works much better than singing”coooome”

My family goes to a Latin Mass (Catholic). I can reassure you that a lot of songs sound way better in Latin. The priest once tried "Attende Domine" in English and it sounded so weird.

 

[notabitail]

Traditionally we wait with Christmas decorations until Sinterklaas and his helpers left the country to return to Spain (by boat). But one of the neighbours house and garden is already a beacon of light in the neighbourhood. We wait, probably buy a tree tomorrow, and put it up on Sunday.

Some people go to church on the eve before Xmas or on Xmas day, but less than 35% is Catholic or Christian in my country nowadays. Most people celebrate Christmas with one or more special diners, from the evening of the 24 - 26 December, with family. Some do presents. Other families don’t. Its often complicated which day /lunch or diner with whom. Families / Xmas meetings are often divided over mothers and fathers after divorce. Some couples have a hard time to go from one family to another. That is why some people don’t like Xmas and rather go on a vacation to escape all the stress. We have our children and my husband’s sister and family over for diner on the 25th. Not sure if /when we do presents.

Protestant’s keep the decorations until after New Year’s Day. Catholics wait until after 3 Kings day. Normally we wait like the Catholics to put the decorations back into the boxes.

X tax made for a contest 2 years ago.
View attachment 4261969

We wait until February 2 to put the decorations away. February 3 is usually sad because it's so empty. Most Catholics here don't seem to follow this tradition, but we do.

 

[notabitail]

Tax:

 

[Perris]

Sure the stroke is damaging but it's the long term effects in the mind regarding attitude that he's going to find difficult.

Stoicism (the philosophy, not just a stiff upper British lip) has a lot to offer in terms of practical wisdom for living, imo, and maybe worth looking into with his newly seeing eyes. Marcus Aurelius' Meditations come in bite-size chunks too, so are easy to read and put down and come back to.

Because he works at the hospital and is liked and respected he's got some of their best doctors in the field to call on so he should get decent advice.

That's very fortunate.

 

[Molpet]

My mom's Chicago Illinois Catholic Irish side would cut the tree down after Thanksgiving and leave it up until the ides of March. Gifts were given the 25th.
As a kid we did the same, but started taking the tree down earlier and earlier.

 

[BDutch]

Because he works at the hospital and is liked and respected he's got some of their best doctors in the field to call on so he should get decent advice.

How is your national healthcare nowadays? Did it improve a bit in the last few years (when problems with covid ended)?

Here (in NL) is seems there are no lessons learned. The extra ICU units are all dismantled. Not even to a point were its easy to upscale again when the next pandemic comes marching in.

 

[BDutch]

As a choral singer who has no particular allegiance to denominations, along with a pretty unorthodox approach to theology, I just attend whichever church has a good music program.

I was raised in a Catholic family. Was in a Catholic school choir as a kid. Couldn’t believe in a (whatever) god turning 11 or 12 yo. I do love some of the Gregorian singing and went to special sing-a-longs on Xmas day with my children when they were little.

When I grew older I started to hate the Church for what they have done in the past. Robbing from the innocent, killing woman who were different, the abuse. Of course there were good priests and nuns too.

And now it’s time for happy chicken news!
Last week I bought the first eggs since last early spring because all chickens stopped laying in October. I did stock eggs but had finished them last week. 6 weeks in the fridge is about the max to keep them fresh.

Today I found 3 eggs from Gin/Tonic. I was checking to playhouse to see if it needed a cleaning job. And was surprised to see an egg on the floor (very dirty). Gin/Tonic was in the large nestbox. And a bit later I could collect two more eggs.
Great to have my own free range organic eggs again.

 

[Perris]

Great to have my own free range organic eggs again.

My lot have staggered their moults nicely, and we've only had a few odd days, well spaced apart, with no eggs at all, and all the other days since October have yielded from 1 to 6 eggs - which is enough to keep us and my 3 best customers in eggs, which is great!

 

[no fly zone]

My sad pepper harvest