biddy singalong (no goat herds)

[woofgang]

(accordion intro)

Watch me now,

Here I go,

All I need's a little snow

[swedeheart]

Am I in? I'm in? Yaaaaay, I'm in!

Long story short I had to change my security settings but when I did I couldn't reach a thing or view a thing so I ended up turning my laptop in at the cafe. Can't believe it seems to be working...? Ha! If I disappear again it won't be me, it'll be something to do with the puta.

See, what I can't figure out is why you went back to the scale after having fetched a towel, jno? Actuall, I can... You're the same as me aren't you, standing on one leg to see if that makes the darn thing display the figures correctly, and if that doesn't help you stand on the other one, and if that doesn't help you stand on your hands, and if that doesn't help you... fetch a towel? <Nope, I'm still having trouble with that one!>

Merry Christmas today Neti! Here it's tomorrow, but I'll just pretend it isn't. (You do the same Robi, it actually works) I'll try to be back late tonight, got lots of errands now though.

(Yaaay... can't believe I'm in!)

[jno]

Kit, if you don't get the answer you want first time, you just keep asking. Clearly my scales are starting to learn my little ways.

Gah. Went for a blood test yesterday - I HATE them - only to find they couldn't do it because I'd had a meal and the doc had forgotten to tell me not to. So I went back this afternoon but they'd all skived off early, so failed again. And my car broke down.

I wish I was going somewhere else, anywhere, but have to get a new kitchen installed first on account of the flood. So I am in a delightfully grumpy mood. I will try to post some holiday snaps sometime, though.

[jno]

tadaa, here we go...

http://i43.tinypic.com/zojdzn.jpg (great mosque of Kairouan, one of the world's oldest)
http://i39.tinypic.com/ekotvp.jpg
http://i43.tinypic.com/kalhrp.jpg (Roman communal loos, very convivial)
http://i42.tinypic.com/28wfh51.jpg

And from Paree

http://i43.tinypic.com/4qsxgn.jpg (brr, snow)
http://i39.tinypic.com/mcyi47.jpg (honestly, puts Oxford St to shame)

[swedeheart]

...didn't you forget to post this one, jno, he he. Fabulous pics as always, I loved the loos and the Lafayette and the second one with the very blue doors. You Brits do get around, earlier tonight some British tourists asked me what "onion" is in Swedish...? Oh well, hope they get a memorable stay, whatever they're up to.

This is too funny, this song was played as a request on the radio the other day and I fell into a trance. Don't remember ever having heard it but it was as if I had been hypnotized back in 1973 and it all came back to me now, on hearing the song. When I snapped out of my trance I made a note of it thinking I'd look for it on YouTube when I got my laptop back; I was thinking I'd post it on here and "if no one else likes it at least the hippie will." Looked for it tonight and guess what imagery the YT user has chosen to go with the song...? >>>>>>>>> !

[swedeheart]

Merry Christmas to me :-) and good night :-(
...didn't sleep a wink, I'll try to catch a few zeds now. See yous tonight or tomorrow if any of you are on, if not, enjoy your(s)elves, biddies! <3

[jno]

wide awake waiting for Santa, are we, Kit? (What does Swedish Santa look like/do?)

Thanks to all for the nice cards, thank you the divine St Branson for apparently allowing me back onto the internet in return for my modest stipend, I shall probably spend the rest of the year here now as I can't really be bothered to do any more shopping and I don't wish to watch speeches by the queen or Mr Ahmadinejad either.

[VINNY100_2]

Good morning..(*_*).!
Magic pics jno,might try to copy a couple of them on my drawing site.The last one is brilliant,much better than are Arndale centres..(:O)
I see kip the swede is tormenting me again..!actually I use to have that song,and this morning the shi$ehawks have decorated my window,but tiz the season..so I sprinkled some glitter on it,and it looks very festive.hehe..! im orf to clean me chimney in a minute,dont want the old man in red curseing(s?) me now..!catch you laters.. (:O) yo

[netibiza]

Afternoon all -we had a lovely christmas yesterday, and now getting daughter ready to fly off again. Mr N has actually packed her an xmas lunch for tomorrow, complete with roast pots and frozen gravy. Had to take him to casualty yesterday evening as his kneecap has popped off and he's in agony but has been told it will righten itself and if not to go back on Monday. Poor thing! Will be very sad tomorrow as we have nothing to do, all pressies have been opened, just got lots of food to eeat!!

Lovely pics jno</B >

[VINNY100_2]

And I wish you good elf to sweedie...(:O) pop back later this evening when ive had a few lemonades>>>

[woofgang]

hello all, and Merry Mery Merry (hic)...housework all done and have started on the lemonade...may keel over before posting again, if I do, hugs to all possums and see you soon

[swedeheart]

*raises a mug of gl�gg to biddies present and absent* Cheers, possums, and thanks for lovely greetings in the email, I enjoyed everyone of them immensely but me I don't seem to have any Christmas cards in me this year - feels like I just finished writing my birthday thank you cards. Why are people on the site saying Merry Christmas tonight, don't you folks say it tomorrow...? <Could be the Jesus thing I suppose?>

Oh why don't you just admit you kicked Mr N's knee out of joint Neti, we know what you're like. On the other hand he should appreciate the cushion you knitted for him this Christmas shouldn't he / On a more serious note Neti I hope Christmas is okay for your sis this year.

And Shaney I hope your journey has been okay and you're all back at home and feeling some kind of peace of mind after all.

Swedish Santa... I'll write you an essay jno, say tomorrowish. In the meanwhile, will Jesus do?

[swedeheart]

Oh wow, did y'all see this, it's featured on YouTube's first page: silent santa - and there's some old footage in the right hand column Vinny from a Devon hospital (Buxton).

[jno]

I have been given a smoothie maker. I think I will go and play with it.

[swedeheart]

Okay, could someone tell tarquin to get a move on? (Missing you here Robi but a lurgy is a lurgy so you be good to yourself now and do whatever you need to do to get back on thwack.)

Back later with your Santa essay, jno you smooth operator you. Make one for me, or better yet a banana lassi, yummy.

Merry Christmas, Britons! take it away, osbourne

[woofgang]

hello all near and far, a quick chrissy day pop in to see how things are....Vinny how were the lemonades?? Kit, I have been saying Merry Christmas to people for weeks now, its too good to only have for one day!! Santa brought me a new mobile phone so I will now be out of phone reach for the next month till I learn to use it!!! Jno, have a lovely christmas. Neti have a lovely post Christmas, Robi, I hope that you and Charlie are on the road to recovery. Shaney, no words, just a hug. And to all Biddies, posters and lurkers I wish you a special Christmas with someone you love

[VINNY100_2]

~~~~~~~~A very merry xmas to you all~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ive got a WACOM tablet...I would play with it....but its a bit complicated...HIC..! (:o)

[swedeheart]

That's great, Vinny, I'm happy for you you've got a Wacom tablet, congrats! *kit thinks to herself: i'll make sure he changes his profile info on rate-my-drawers where he says "ooh arr woe is me I've only got me mouse medears"* ;-)

Is your eye better now Woofy...? (The one with the muddy nose in it.) Bet the lads know it's Christmas too, all those nice scents in the air.

[swedeheart]

Now then jno, are you ready for your humongous essay...

Swedish Santa - Tomten - in these modern times looks very much like your average American Santa, you know, the kind who ho-ho-hos for department stores. He comes calling on the 24th of December and he will want to know whether the children have been good. If the answer is yes they get their pressies. He looks a lot like the kids' uncle or their dad who just popped out to buy the newspaper so sometimes he has to wear a mask - how creepy is that...! (I have a photo of me and Santa and to this day I have no idea if it's my dad or my cousin or uncle...) Alternatively, Santa may have left the pressies under the tree sometime during the night.

The reindeer thing is an American concept I think, as is Santa's home on the North Pole - well at least according to Wikipedia, and I agree it reminds me more of Disney than of oral, Swedish tradition. We don't really have to know where he lives; Swedish kids just write "Jultomten" (Santa) on the envelope to send him their wish list and it actually gets redirected to a postal office in Mora, a small town which isn't even in the north of Sweden - where somebody actually takes the time to write a reply...! (It's true.)

(cont.)

[swedeheart]

(cont.) All this is probably similar to what you guys do...? ...but I wonder if you're familiar with our Santa's predecessor(s), who were much less flamboyant little fellows. They were short, wore grey clothing and man were they ****** off, ha ha, very irritable little folk they were, you had to walk on eggshells with them and they didn't even like each other but every farm needed one to protect themselves from trolls (hey AB should have one!) and other dangers. Not jovial but what was good about them was they looked out not only for the people on the farm but for the animals as well, so if anyone treated the animals badly or misbehaved in any way they had to answer to the farm's "tomte". He might even leave the farm, and that would bring misfortune. Or he might kill the livestock or tie their tails together or steal from the farm or turn objects upside-down - in short, turn against you. You also had to remember to shout out a warning if you spilled something on the floor inside the house, in case the farm tomte happened to be underneath the house.

This farm tomte did not appreciate being sucked up to, but he did want a bowl of rice pudding with butter and an almond every Christmas, and maybe some br�nnvin ("burnwine", snaps) and tobacco. He didn't come inside, you left it outside and it was gone in the morning. (I bet!)

(cont.)

[swedeheart]

(cont.)These former day farm pixies/tomtar didn't have all that much in common with our present day ho-ho-Santa other than the beard and the funny hat, but (I'm just going with Wikipedia here) in the middle of the nineteenth century the farm tomte in Denmark turned friendly (where did that come from!) and started bringing gifts at Christmas. And then in 1881 our poet Viktor Rydberg wrote a Christmas poem for a magazine, the illustration of which sort of set the tone for our modern day Tomte/Santa. The illustrator, Jenny Nystr�m, made him a mix of the old farm tomte and your very own Father Christmas (or Saint Nicholas), but he has become somewhat more disneyfied, if you see what I mean, over the years that have passed since that illustration was printed.

And that's all about Santa, jno. But then there's the Yule Goat of course... equally as influential, so no cheating - I trust you to read all about it !

Now do I deserve a smoothie or what.