Jᴀᴄᴜʀᴜᴛᴜ - Tʜᴇ Cᴀsᴛ Oᴜᴛ

The winter solstice occurs at the instant when the Sun's position in the sky is at its greatest angular distance on the other side of the equatorial plane from the observer's hemisphere. Depending on the shift of the calendar, the winter solstice occurs some time between December 20 and December 23 each year in the northern hemisphere, and between June 20 and June 23 in the southern hemisphere, during either the shortest day or the longest night of the year, which is not to be confused with the darkest day or night, or the day with the earliest sunset or latest sunrise.

The seasonal significance of the winter solstice is in the reversal of the gradually lengthening nights and shortening days. How cultures interpret this is varied, since it is sometimes said to astronomically mark either the beginning or middle of a hemisphere's winter. Winter is a subjective term, so there is no scientifically established beginning or middle of winter but the winter solstice itself is clearly calculated to within a second. Though the winter solstice lasts an instant, the term is also colloquially used to refer to the full 24-hour period of the day on which it occurs.

Worldwide, interpretation of the event has varied from culture to culture, but most cultures have held a recognition of rebirth, involving holidays, festivals, gatherings, rituals or other celebrations around that time.

The word solstice derives from Latin sol (sun) and sistere (to stand still).




(It was on the 21st this year, sorry I'm late... This goes for ALL Y'ALL religious nuts of other varieties, too.)

Drains scotch bottle and grabs for vodka Way ahead of ya freak


Rob

Happy Birthday, Jesus Christ! And at least one more (sometime soon, OK?)!

I got a number of campsites carved out in the deep mesquite, with large
rocked-in firepits and such - I'll often just go out there, set up a tent, and
live in the 1860's for awhile, just me & the dogs.

anyway, at one of them a number of years ago I set up large rock
cairns to mark the soltices & equinoxes. A three point equilateral triangle
with 30 foot sides. I can see how ancient cultures developed geometry
from such things.

if you've got kids, I'd recommend doing this. It's really not too late,
either, pick your central marker and line of sight another at the setting
sun. Then watch the sun move along your horizon from day to day.

and HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESUS !!

Merry Christmas, y'all.

Christmas morning in Japan and St. Nick has picked up his sushi by the gas stove and moved on...

A few interesting things about Christmas in Japan.

1) Christmas Eve is the real celebration here and considered the biggest date night of the year, and for the love hotels

2) Kentucky Fried Chicken is the meal of choice, seriously!

3) The majority of the Christmas decorations have been removed from stores in Japan by the time the doors open on Christmas morning.

4) Today is the last payday of the year

Merry Christmas

The Teg family
(damn kids keep moving like a blur )

Mele Kalikimaka!

Or so the delegates at the C.E.T. may say in 10,000-some years.

Mr. Teg wrote:(damn kids keep moving like a blur )

Lil Teglets everywhere, huh? Little Omphs too.

How about this for a tradition: tonight, I will watch The Muppet Christmas Carol for the 17th consecutive Christmas Eve. That's right: 1992 to 2008, without a single miss.

It started off as a date movie in 1992, sort of became a tradition with myself and the wife over the next few (VCR) viewings, and lately has moved into the realm of goofy holiday obsession. At this point, we just don't want to break the streak.

I've got the damn thing memorized, believe me. Oh, well, there's definitely worse ways to spend an evening.

Merry Christmas, all y'all true-Dune fans.

My kids and I will watch the NORAD Santa-cam, then I read them The Night Before Christmas, then its off to sleep so I can start putting shit together.

Omphalos wrote:My kids and I will watch the NORAD Santa-cam, then I read them The Night Before Christmas, then its off to sleep so I can start putting shit together.

Are you trying to tell us that you're Santa? Or are you saying that there is no Santa and that he's merely a delusion that the masses buy into as a cruel and sick joke and that he's a tool meant for the manipulation of the young and old alike? What would Jesus think!

Well, happy Winter Solstice everyone!

A very Merry Christmas to you all and your families

Merry Christmas, Happy Festivas, or whichever celebration you enjoy!!! to you and yours!!!

Thoughtfully,
Trang

I tried a "Festivus" thing one year - started with the "Airing of Grievances" -

by the time I was done, I was only person left in the house ......

Already 6:00 AM Friday here. Meh.

Dog rest ye merry gentlemen... and ladies.

But it's summer here! You just ruined christmas for me, you bastard Freak!

My youngest boy, the one I don't hate as much, may have redeemed himself a little. Time will tell. He came out for Thanksgiving, and in the course of visiting, asked me what-all I'd been going to keep from going insane during this spinal saga. I told him mostly sitting at my desk, reading, doing more work on the genealogical database, and I got to talking about Dune and the new interest I'd developed, due to the new (to me) developments in the publishing history. (I told him I'd been involved on a net forum, didn't tell him where or show him, I don't want them kids meddlin' in my affairs anymore than they already do.)

So anyway, yesterday afternoon the boy came in and handed me this, not wrapped up like a present or anything, just said : "Hey, Daddy, I was digging thru a box of stuff in the attic the other day and found this. Wasn't this yours ?"

Indeed it was. Indeed it was. It's the June 1970 Berkley Medallion paperback. I hadn't seen it it many, many years, probably the late seventies or early eighties when the boys started reading my Dune books. (and they started disappearing from my bookshelves, and I bought new copies.) The glue is long since dissolved, all the pages are loose (but there - I checked). I had made no notes in the book, but every now and then, there is a faint pencil tick, where I marked a passage.



I've talked here about the photo on the back - it's the one that can now be found online. But I swear there was another version, bigger, and you could see the table and big easy chair Frank's sitting in, the stacks of folders and the looseleaf paper Frank's typing from. As far as collectible value, the book's not worth anything - but to me, it was priceless. I only teared up a little, after he'd gone on, and I sat carefully turning the individual pages, clearly remembering walking into the little bookstore in Austin in the fall of 1970, paying for the book in change, and reading it straight thru the first time. Like I've said before, Messiah is my favorite Dune book, maybe my favorite (fiction) book of all-time. Of course, being the mean-spirited, gruff old bastard I am, I couldn't tell my son how that simple little gesture he made touched me so deeply. Fuck him anyway, he owes me more money than he could ever make.

Hope y'all had a good Christmas.

Merry Belated Christmas. (Long time no post I know) Happy Kwanza and Happy Boxer Day. [at least I'm on time for those) and jolly belated the other holidays that I felled to mention.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

trang wrote:Merry Christmas, Happy Festivas, or whichever celebration you enjoy!!! to you and yours!!!

Thoughtfully,
Trang

Well several months later but Happy Christmahannakwanzicalidays

Gesundheit!

We fish ewe mare egrit moose panda hippo gnu deer.

Happy Memorial Day!

Did anyone catch the eclipse this morning? first lunar eclipse during the Winter Soltice in ages.

Belated Happy Chaunaka plus a Merry Christmas, Blessed Winter Soltice, and Happy Boxer Day