Baby, it’s really really cold outside!

First official day of winter / Solstice : December 21st. 

December 23rd : -17 degrees C / 1.4 degrees F 

Today : -26 degrees C / -14.8 degrees F

PHOTO ©MAK

Baby, it’s cold outside!

First official day of winter / Solstice : December 21^st.

Today : -17 degrees C / 1.4 degrees F

ILLUSTRATOR: GAVIN REECE

Music | Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun

To say that Pink Floyd is a seminal band is rhetoric. It has been said before and will be said again. More often than not, the entry point would have been “The Wall” or “The Dark Side of the Moon”, with the latter brought up if you started with the former and “Money” being the entry track – after all it was one of the major singles and one used on many an occasion as a soundscape to any report or any scene about – drum roll – money. “Time” is another option and the tick tock is how I started. But there was Pink Floyd before all that.

Formed in 1963 by two architecture students Roger Waters and Nick Mason as Sigma 6, it went through name and personnel changes, and landed Syd Barrett on the guitar. Mad genius that one; one plagued by a darker demon – depression. Come December 1967, the demon overtook so much that David Gilmour was brought onboard, leaving Syd to continue as a nonperforming songwriter. His tenure ended in 1968 with a final contribution being “Jugband Blues” on “A Saucerful of Secrets”. “The Dark Side of the Moon” was not released till 1973, so in between the hallowed Syd period and that masterpiece, Pink Floyd continued doing what David later referred to as musical “noodling”. It was still the height of psychadelia, their brand of psychadelia that many progressive bands are indebted to. As far as I am concerned, they were not painting a barren musical landscape. Curiously titled “Ummagumma” album offered my standout track from that period – “Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun.” A welcome option if like me you are currently enduring winter with daytime temperatures well below freezing. 

December Festivities | Yule | Winter Solstice

Photo from Celtic Queens

“

The Goddess gives birth to a son, the God, at Yule (circa December 21). This is in no way an adaptation of Christianity. The Winter Solstice has long been viewed as a time of divine births. Mithras was said to have been born at this time. The Christians simply adopted it for their [original emphasis] use in 273 C.E. (Common Era).

     Yule is a time of the greatest darkness and is the shortest day of the year. Earlier peoples noticed such phenomena and supplicated the forces of nature to lengthen the days and shorten the nights. Wiccans sometimes celebrate Yule just before the dawn, then watch the Sun rise as a fitting finale to their efforts.

     Since the God is also the Sun, this marks the point of the year when the Sun is reborn as well. Thus, the Wicca light fires or candles to welcome the Sun’s returning light. The Goddess, slumbering through the winter of Her labor, rests after Her delivery.

     Yule is the remnant of early rituals celebrated to hurry the end of winter and the bounty of spring, when food was once again readily available. To contemporary Wiccans it is a reminder that the ultimate product of death is rebirth, a comforting thought in these days of unrest.

”

- from “Wicca: A guide for the solitary practitioner” by Scott Cunningham

December Festivities | Santa Lucia, ljusklara hägring let’s celebrate Luciadag and Lussinatt

Top: Photo by Claudia Grunder Bottom: Saffron buns, glögg, from Valarie Budayr’s “A Santa Lucia Festival” for Rhythm of the Home	Swedish: Santa Lucia, ljusklara hägring = Saint Lucy, bright mirage Danish: Luciadag = Day of Lucia Norwegian: Lussinatt = Lucia Night St. Lucia was born in Syracuse. Her parents were noble, wealthy and Christian. When still a young girl, Lucia dedicated her virginity to Christ; hence, as a teen she did not want to marry a pagan suitor – she meant every word of her vow. By that time Lucia’s Daddy was long gone, having died when she was an infant, and Lucia’s Mummy was quite unwell having developed a hemorrhage (cause unknown; we are talking late 200s C.E. here). One would imagine a marriage would be economically welcome. Still, Lucia being devoted persuaded her Mummy to pray at the tomb of St. Agatha for a cure instead. It worked. Lucia shared the nature of her vow and a desire to give her wealth to the poor. Mummy was so happy with the cure that she agreed. The pagan suitor was enraged. Since these were the times when the Christians were really out of favor in the Roman Empire, the pagan suitor, feeling rejected and obviously revengeful – because, honestly, what was this going to get him other than prove he was utterly parochial, but I judge with a modern mind, and also digress – accused Lucia of being a Christian in front of a judge. Lucia was not caving in. She stuck to her faith. The judge, a clever man… ordered her to a brothel. Crazy, ha? Somehow the guards could not move her to the house
of sin; the burning to death also did not work; supposedly her eyes were removed – or she did it herself at the outset – bit unclear here; with a thrust of a sword to her throat she met her demise in 304. The day of Lucia’s martyrdom was December 13th – the shortest day of the year according to the Julian calendar. Winter solstice?! Pagan?! Not anymore, Gregorian calendar moved that to December 21st. Still, Lucia means light and Santa Lucia Day is a celebration of days becoming longer. More light, get it?  Roughly, what we have now is Swedish girls dressing in white and holding candles, one wearing candelabra as a crown, while handing out candy, cookies, cakes, coffee and glögg, Swedish boys dressing up as stjärngossar, in hats shaped like cones and decorated with stars, or as gingerbread men, Finns, Norwegians  and Danes embracing what they need from the Swedish way, the latter "to bring light in a time of darkness” after World War II and centering on Christianity rather than being secular, for the populace of Caribbean island called Santa Lucia December 13th
being a day of National Festival of Lights and Renewal, some Italians making the day all about gifts from Santa Lucia where children are being rewarded for being good or bad by getting gifts or coals, respectively, and having to respect Lucia with coffee, her donkey with a carrot and Lucia’s escort Castaldo, with wine even though they are advised to never watch Santa Lucia doing her delivery, other Italians eat small biscotti shaped like eyes, light bonfires and candles, Sicilians do not eat anything made with wheat flour and switch to cuccia Venetians are all about fried cheese, Swiss have Santa Lucia hand-in-hand with Father Christmas giving gifts to girls and boys, Maltese also celebrate Republic Day. Free for all? Bring on the light!		“Santa Lucia’s Day in Second Life” video by Voff Uggla of “Living in the Virtual World Second Life” “Santa Lucia” sang by Malena Malena Ernman and Charles Castronovo – thanks Voff Uggla

At Home | Not only for a rainy or gloomy day, but for always – a home library

From Strategies for Success: 6 ways to become re-inspired

by Melanie Duncan for La Dolce Vita

Related: At Home | What is your home library style?

At Home | Best café … is in your home library

At Home | What is your home library style?

Idea lifted from La Boheme design blog in preparation for autumn rain and winter snow.

Left: tumblr.com via Daniel Bear on Pinterest

Right: Interior design by Lulu Powers via  Lonny Magazine

via Knight Moves via Savvy Home via Apartment Therapy

(yes, this image traveled quite a bit)

Fashion | Posthumous Alexander McQueen collection, slowly

Typically fashion shows are full of prancing ponies galloping down the runway. Not so in this posthumous Alexander McQueen Autumn/Winter 2010-2011 (Angels & Dæmons) collection inspired by Flemish painters and the Romantic Gothic. Pour yourself a glass of your favorite wine and savor it.

Sport | Skiing vs. Snowboarding

As Australia nears the end of its winter season,

the rivalry is unlikely to end  - even in Falls Creek.

A T-shirt from years ago... Thanks Paul and Chris!

A Screwdriver Twist

Photo©MAK

Ah, the wonders of winter!

A cold or an inflamed throat ain’t one of them. 

Time to look for warmer climates. 

Till then, let’s dream. 

And what better way than a twist on a perennial classic – the screwdriver! Just substitute the vodka with rum for the topical isle feel! How about a dash of another flavor? How about that? Coconut anyone? Sure! See, the wonderful marketing people at Pernod Ricard thought about this, too. The result is the Malibu Winter Edition. Aha, that’s right my dears, coconut flakes floating in the rum - it’s a snowball with a tropical feel! 

Shake, shake, shake and pour. 

Kind of clever, if you take my 2¢. 

Since I need vitamin C… 

Aaaaa tasty!