Listen, the snow is falling

I suppose most of the world attention is focused on various holidays this week. If one is not then one has no one to blame but one's self. Glancing at the calendar last night, I noticed that today is the only day this week that has no significance. Outside of whatever significance one's ascribes to the 23rd of December, of course. (Personally, I don't have one, but maybe you do.) Since I'll presume that most have better ways to spend the time besides gazing wistfully at the calendar herewith a rundown of this week's dates.

1. Sunday December 21/first day of winter--a.k.a winter solstice, a.k.a. modern-day pagans shut out by all the warm fuzziness of the other, more popular, December days, gather to run naked and chant or some such. Best I can tell, serves no purpose for non-pagans other than being an all-too easy joke/comment on our godless society and how no one says "Merry Christmas" anymore. Except to me and everyone I know and come in contact with. An aside, is there a more manufactured modern outrage? Apologies, Mr. O'Reilly.
2. Monday December 22/first night of (C)Hanukkah--thanks to that formerly ubiquitous Adam Sandler song, Christians and their other non-Jewish friends, i.e. everyone outside of New York, Hollywood and Israel, know that this Jewish soiree is the Festival of Lights and that instead of one day of presents, they get eight crazy nights. Beyond that, one seeking further information should probably consult the Torah. Or at least Wikipedia. Be sure to ask any Jewish friends if the "ch" in Chanukah is hard or soft. The tribe loves to be asked that.
3. Tuesday December 23/day of nothing much--The Federal Reserve was created on this date in 1913. The first human kidney transplant occurred today in 1954. Both events worth celebrating in any way of one's choosing. Personally, I'm getting my hair cut. Thankfully unless you're kin to Adrian Belew (King Crimson), Dave Murray (Iron Maiden), Jorma Kaukonen (Jefferson Airplane) or Anthony Phillips (Genesis) you needn't worry with a guitarists' birthday getting in the way. Andy will find that as oddly weird as I did. I suspect no one else will.
4. Wednesday December 24/Christmas Eve--Not really an official holiday but one that's a source of controversy for some. Gather together tonight or tomorrow? Open presents now or later? Split the boozing over two days or just drink straight through to numb the pain? A day/night unique in being the longest for children and the shortest for parents. My personal record from childhood: making my mother get up at 4-ish to play Mr. Mouth before going back to bed. To get up at 5:30. That is in the a.m., folks.
5. Thursday December 25/Christmas Day--Before I was cynical, i.e. 4, I used to think that this was the one day of the year nothing bad would happen. There would be no crimes committed and terrorists wouldn't blow anything up. That a child would be concerned with such things probably says a lot about the early onset of my neurosis, but hey. And then the tsunami hit in 2005. And the Godfather of Soul shuffled his last in 2006. Of course, balancing that out was the birth of Ruth Young, the most amazing person ever, in 1993. Or so says Wikipedia.
6. Friday December 26/Boxing Day--Unknown to most Americans and incorrectly presumed to have something to do with pugilism by most of the few who have, this is primarily for our Anglican friends and the remains of their empire. As best I can tell, it's another excuse to take off, give presents and get drunk. In other words, a typical Friday for the Brits. Hey-O! I'm sure it's all very important to some, but to me it's little more than one of the few days of Christmas Bob & Doug McKenzie come up with whilst hunting for 12. Worthless music historical fact: The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour movie was first transmitted on this date in 1967 by the BBC. Folks snoozed through it then, too.
7. Saturday December 27/first day of Kwanzaa--Unknown to most Americans until about 15 years ago and then promptly forgotten. Except by those wishing to complain that it's celebrated at all and news outlets wishing to score cheap PC points in between fear mongering stories of black crime, this celebration of all things black and beautiful was actually created in 1966. I believe the original intent was to give the black nation a celebration of, by and for themselves. Presumably because all that familial fighting, depression and alcohol with which white folks celebrate Christmas and Jews, Hanukkah was just too good to pass up. One can hardly blame them.

And a ho, ho, ho to all.