Category Archives: Holidays

Lead up to Day of the Dead, Nov 1, 2023

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First of all, here is my completed sugar skull I hadn’t finished yesterday:

And here is my story! Today I went to the Panteón (graveyard) for the third time to add dead bread and new candles to my adopted graves and also to check on the paper garlands I decked it with three days ago. Well, they were completely torn apart and resided in clumps all over and around the graves. It had rained  and the candle glasses were testament to this as well as they were full of water. I cleaned up the mess, added new candles and dead bread and afterwards, went to see a retablos show at the Garden of Dreams. I had no sooner entered when my phone rang and when I answered it, although there was no call registered, dozens and dozens of photos of my dear friend Gloria, who died a year ago and who is on my DOD altar, started to stream on my phone! There were photos from years and years ago, photos I had forgotten about and hadn’t seen in years. I have no idea how this happened as I’d pressed nothing and as I said before, no phone call registered.  I guess she is just letting me know she’s thinking of me as I’m thinking of her.  R.I.P. Gloria.

Must go tomorrow to put liquid refreshment on the graves and perhaps more decorations if it rains tonight–this time in plastic. As you may know by now, D.O.D. is pretty much the biggest holiday in Mexico. A joyous celebration of remembering.

Gloria
Three days ago
Today, minus garlands but plus dead bread.

Click on photos to enlarge.

The art show where I’m showing my paintings for the first time in my life is also opening tomorrow. I’m a bit nervous about it.  I’ll let you know how it goes and perhaps show you the paintings, perhaps not.

Sergio and David’s Incredible Christmas Wonderland

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I showed a few photos of David and Sergio’s wonderfully decorated Christmas house a few days ago, but encourage you to see their blog HERE
which gives many more photos plus explanations of the theme of each of their eight (perhaps more) incredible Christmas trees.

If you didn’t see them before, you can see my photos of their party and decorations HERE.

Festive Is

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Festive Is

. . . ribbons and candles and holly.
Christmas trees, parties both raucous and jolly.
Confetti in hair and the nerve to kiss boys
beneath the mistletoe, and other joys.

Presents and eggnog and wedding cake, too.
Fireworks. Flags waving red, white and blue.
Easter egg optimism in the hunting,
papel picado and streamers and bunting.

Festive is hearts charged up with the living.
Anticipation and loving and giving.
Remembrance of exploits and births and unitings,
Easter ham slicings and turkey leg bitings.

May baskets on doorsteps. Socks hung in a row.
Eggnog and streamers wherever you go.
Who knows where festivity had its first starts—
Easter egg rolling or Valentine hearts?

Square dances, cloggings and Virginia reelings
end up on the feet but start with warm feelings
that set toes to tapping and make folks so restive
that they have no choice but to end up as festive!

Before presents and food and new decorations
increase credit card debt to new elevations,
perhaps we’ll remember to go back to the start
and return the horse to in front of the cart.

Our kids need to learn that joy can’t be bought,
and it’s up to us that the lesson be taught.
Before it’s too late, we must somehow impart
that there’s no charge for love and no price tag on heart.

Word prompts today are festive, nerve, optimism and charge.

Nervous Nibbling Prior to the St. Patrick’s Day Party

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Nervous Nibbling Prior to the St. Patrick’s Day Party

I’ve secured the decorations and I’ve bought the party food.
I’ve put out all the shamrocks and soon the whole damn brood
will descend en masse for the St. Patrick’s celebration.
I fear that by the end of it I’ll need a small vacation.

Green salad and green curry, green bean casserole, green beer.
Every single  item of refreshment that is here 
seems to be of verdant hue. I’m finding it most shocking,
and soon there will be over-drinking and much over-talking.

Everyday on March 17th, I find it is the same.
If we run out of green cuisine, I am the one to blame.
Every other day of March, I’m totally secure.
It’s only the 17th day I find hard to endure.

This green ice-cream is melting and I fear it will be wasted.
It cannot last much longer. It’s a shame it’s gone untasted.
It looks so delicious. There are bowls there on the shelf.
Do you think it would be callous if I ate it all myself?

Words for the day are ice cream, callous, shamrock, secure and everyday.

Easter Hunts

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Easter Hunts

My toy cannon muffled by an egg stuffed in its snout.
Easter grass and sugar eggs hidden inside and out.
My parents’ Easter soirees were things of grand design.
The pink nests were sister’s and the yellow ones were mine.
One disappeared behind the mirror, one behind father’s chair.
At the end, still one nest to be found, I knew not where.
Suckers, Peeps and sugar eggs, jelly beans and gummies—
sought out and stuffed in Easter baskets, then stuffed in our tummies.
My folks went to such bother, whereas I must say in truth, 
If I’d been asked, I’d rather have just had a Baby Ruth!

 

Prompt words this Easter Sunday are truth, soiree, disappear, cannon and mirror. (You didn’t make it east this time, folks!)

Warm Christmas Tidings

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Warm Christmas Tidings

Click on photos to enlarge and read captions.

Before the party
Christmas sacks in place of stockings.
A pristine table
Napkins embroidered by my friend Sharon.
Christine serenaded me as I decorated the table .
Here is the happy crew, minus the photographer.
Forgottenman joined us from Missouri
He was in the place of honor at the head of the table.
Happy hands reached for truffles.
Becky took Forgottenman out to see it as well.
Sergio, David and Beth.
Sergio and David were especially delighted with their spinning, musical, light-emitting tops.
Wish I’d gotten a photo of all seven of these musical, lit-up tops all spinning together.
A few special libations.
Christine was feeling happy.
And now, the carnage afterwards.
A less than pristine table.

Warm Christmas Tidings

Christmas without frost can be merry nonetheless.
You can have the camaraderie, the company and mess.
Christmas in warm climates has all of the same joys,
and even really old kids can enjoy sacks full of toys.
Spinning tops with lights and music rounded out the night,
Sergio and David thrilling at the sight.
As old friends and some new ones met this last week of December
to make another Christmas memory for us all to remember.

 

Prompt words for today are Christmas, frost, merry, joy and sight.

Christmas Preparations

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Click on first photo below to enlarge all and read captions.

Christmas bags are easier to stuff than Christmas stockings.
Assembling the ingredients for green bean casserole…not as easy in Mexico! No waterchesnuts.

For the Friendly Friday Photo prompt: Xmas Preparations.

Scrooge and Your Christmas Vacation

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Scrooge and Your Christmas Vacation

Scrooge has turned surfing waves to ice and ski slopes into water.
Now he’ll ruin the rest of Christmas for your son and daughter.
He’s hacked into Kris Kringle’s map and hijacked all the toys—
the dolls and basketballs of girls, the hockey sticks of boys.
He’s eaten all the cookies—just stuffed them in his face.
The mistletoe and holly? Vanished, without a trace.

Yes, Scrooge is up to his old tricks, spreading brimstone and acid
over all your Christmas plans that seemed so set and placid.
If you want to thwart him, take your surfboards to the slopes.
Go skiing at the oceanside. Ruin all his dark Scrooge hopes.
Make merry with no mistletoe. Traditions rearrange.
Give Santa Claus a hotdog. He’ll appreciate the change!

In our modern screwed-up world, we’ve gone a bit astray.
We’ve forgotten the real purpose behind our Christmas Day.
That first Christmas was as humble as a Christmas scene could be.
No holly and no mistletoe. Much less frivolity.
The original gifts of Christmas were not placed beneath a tree,
for those first gifts that were given were not meant for you and me.

How the message has been altered as it came down the years
is that Christmas is for getting and disappointed tears
if we don’t get what we wanted. Expectations of perfection.
When we think of giving, we don’t see our own reflection.
Perhaps Scrooge brings the point across that joy is in the living.
So instead of what you hoped you’d get, concentrate on giving!

 

Prompt words today are Scrooge, map, tasteful, placid and water.