Latest holiday postings, covering Advent, Hanukkah, and Christmas: an Advent Calendar for linguists; a Menorasaurus rex for Hanukkah; hunky mermen for the Christmas tree; and a Krampus sweater.
Previously on this channel:
“On to St. Nicholas and Xmas” of 11/22/14, and “Krampus 2 – 4″ of 11/28/14, on the anti-Santa Krampus
“Hanukkah play” of 12/7/14, with word play on Hanukkah, latke
“Who-liday specials” of 12/10/14, with Who-liday for holiday: Doctor Who, Dr. Seuss’s Whos of Whoville
And now…
The Linguist’s Advent Calendar, by “Veronica”, here. Annoyingly, Veronica provides no information whatsoever about herself, nor any about the images she posts for the 24 days of Christmas; some are recognizable as professional cartoonists’ work (at least one of which, a Savage Chickens cartoon, I have already posted on this blog), some are words-only cartoons framed like e-cards, some are words-only cartoons that are essentially captions attached to found images or to images created for the purpose, and some appear to be amateurish drawings created for the purpose. Three examples:
Day 11: Pronoun Christmas: You have to invite the relatives
(#1)
Day 10:
Why did schwa start buying its Christmas presents in June?
(#2)
It didn’t want to get stressed.
Day 9:
(#3)
On Advent, from Wikipedia:
Advent is a season observed in many Western Christian churches as a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus at Christmas. The term is an anglicized version of the Latin word adventus, meaning “coming”.
… Advent is the beginning of the Western liturgical year and commences on Advent Sunday. At least in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Moravian, Presbyterian and Methodist calendars, Advent starts on the fourth Sunday before December 25, which is the Sunday between November 27 and December 3 inclusive. Christians of these denominations observe the season through practices such as keeping an Advent calendar, lighting an Advent wreath, praying an Advent daily devotional, among other ways of preparing for Christmastide, such as setting up Christmas decorations.
And specifically on Advent calendars, again from Wikipedia:
An Advent calendar is a special calendar used to count or celebrate the days in anticipation of Christmas. Since the date of the first Sunday of Advent varies, falling between November 27 and December 3 inclusive, the Advent calendar usually compromises by beginning on December 1, although many include the previous few days that are part of the season. The Advent calendar was first used by German Lutherans in the 19th and 20th centuries but is now ubiquitous among adherents of many Christian denominations. Many Advent calendars take the form of a large rectangular card with “windows”, of which there are usually 24: one for each day of December leading up to Christmas Eve. The windows are opened starting with the first one. Often times, these windows have a Bible verse and prayer printed on them, which Christian families incorporate as part of their daily Advent devotions. Consecutive doors are opened every day leading up to Christmas. The calendar windows open to reveal an image, poem, a portion of a story (such as the story of the Nativity of Jesus) or a small gift, such as a toy or a chocolate item. Advent calendars range in theme, from sports to technology, often carrying Scripture verses.
An example, from this site, for 2012:
(#4)
The Menorasaurus rex. From Etsy:
(#5)
Hand-crafted Menorasaurus Rex made to order! Constructed from repurposed plastic toys and metal candle cups, these dinosaur menorahs are fully functional and reusable for Chanukah fun far into the future. Approximately 12″ long and 8″ tall. Gold.
Well, gold in color.
Menorasaurus is menorah + the element -saurus ‘dinosaur’.
On menorahs, from Wikipedia:
The Hanukkah menorah or chanukiah … is a nine-branched candelabrum lit during the eight-day holiday of Hanukkah… On each night of Hanukkah a new branch is lit. The ninth holder, called the shamash (“helper” or “servant”), is for a candle used to light all other candles and/or to be used as an extra light.
As for -saurus, I posted on 5/1/11 about various inventions using this element and then on 3/8/12 on the Trannysaurus. Plus, on 10/7/12, on the related creation Thesaurus rex. All of this (and the appearance of the creature in #5) points to the Tyrannosaurus rex as the source of these playful inventions.
Hunky mermen for the Christmas tree. From Matt Adams, this assortment of hunky-mermen Xmas tree ornaments:
(#6)
The source of these entertaining objects is the December Diamonds (“It’s All About the Bling!”) company, from its Mermen section (with 43 ornaments listed). Matt and his husband get these as presents from Justin’s mother (they have great families). Starting at 12:00: Santa’s Helper, Legal Briefs, Rum Runner, White Groom, Candy Cane, Camo, Tonic, Bling, Groom, and Butch. (Not actual diamonds, of course, but glittery bling, at $32.50 each.)
The Krampus sweater. Finally, from Ben Hamilton of Facebook, Ben modeling this splendid Krampus sweater (for those who have been naughty):
(#7)
