Christmas is a Future Thing
Christmas is forever, not just for one day.
Aside from the whole birth of Jesus Christ thing a couple of thousand years ago, around dawn at some stable in the middle of the desert, why should Christmas Day be different from any other day in the calendar? Maybe we feel we should be especially nice to people, be more giving and forgiving, be more loving towards ourselves and others? Perhaps it’s the one day in the year we think of, email, telephone, or visit friends, relatives, or loved ones we haven’t thought of or seen since last Christmas. Perhaps Christmas Day is the day that our heart breaks all over again.
Some people look forward to Christmas, thinking that the day will bring them the happiness they so want and need. Trust me, looking for happiness in the future is a short road to misery ~ even believing that you will be happier at Christmas than the unhappiness you’ve suffered for the rest of this year might not be your best ever plan.
One result of trying to find happiness in the future is that we can wish our lives away, believing the future will be better than now. There are some basic rules; nothing ever changes, the only thing we can change is ourselves, and tomorrow will pretty much be the same as today.
There are some supplementary rules, one of which is that travel over the Christmas holidays is going to be fucking terrible. Flights will be packed and delayed, trains will be cancelled, and the roads will be full of Sunday drivers who have no idea how to cope if it even so much as rains. And if it snows…..
My 5th or 6th worst memory of a Christmas is trying to drive the 300 miles from London to Durham, on Christmas Eve, in a blizzard. That annual journey was one of the reasons I never looked forward with pleasure to Christmas. It grew so that I dreaded Christmas Eve.
And yet, around midnight, I still searched the night sky, hoping to see the magic of Santa.
Christmas changes everyone and everything. Christmas changes our memories of the past, our attitudes in the present, and our expectations for the future. We each of us hope for a brighter Christmas and a better New Year. So, Hallelujah ~ Noel ~ Be it Heaven or Hell, the Christmas we get we deserve.
Some say that Christmas has become too commercialised. And there is no such person as Santa Claus, magical or otherwise. All I know is that I have a friend who leaves a carrot out for his donkey and a glass of tequila for him.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
how will Santa cope when there are moms on the moon?
Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic
the world is full of magical women,
patiently waiting for a our senses to grow sharper
I know a very wonderful, very magical woman. Sadly she lives thousands of miles away from here. Ah well, either love or magic can conquer all.
The Police
Please listen responsibly.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
real feminine magic is as old-fashioned and special as the British policeman used to be
Witch’s Promise
you were kissed one night by a witch in the woods
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A wise man will never kiss a witch in the pale moonlight on All Hallows Eve.
Please listen responsibly.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
and she wore a tree on her back
Kiss From A Witch
never kiss a witch in the moonlight
~
on all Hallows eve
don’t promise a witch
on a long lover’s kiss
in the bright moonlight
else you will be hers
forever and always
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
only a lunatic should kiss a witch
a Kiss From a Witch
a kiss from a witch in the moonlight
~
I loved a witch
and I kissed her
she kissed me back
who is the fool now?
~
jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
money buys even a witch
Food on Friday ~ Healthy Halloween
have you come to sing pumpkin carols?
Here in ye Merrie Olde England we eschew Halloween as the pagan / catholic / foreign festival it is. Instead we celebrate Guy Fawkes Night on November 5th. However, these recipes are great for any cooler night when you’re having guests around, and you’re looking for something that evokes a darkly festive air. Something healthy, tasty, and easy to prepare?
All of the dishes I’m featuring this week are healthy as well as tasty and great looking, and if you want to make the most of a healthy eating recipe then try to buy the freshest organic ingredients that you can find.
And OK, this is a shorter post because I’m not at all happy with some Halloween excesses,
First up this week, and the first time I’ve featured this site; from poach me quick we have sticky and smokey chipotle and maple-baked chicken on the bone. Try not to get any of the messy stuff on your fingers onto your Halloween Costume.
Sticky and Smokey Chipotle Maple-Baked Chicken on the Bone
If you’re looking for something sweeter to have with tea, coffee, or a harder drink, then there’s this seasonally perfect pumpkin white chocolate bundt cake from Heather Christo. I bet Charlie Brown would love this at Halloween. Heather’s recipes are very healthy indeed.
Pumpkin White Chocolate Bundt Cake
And, from Ali Gimmie some Oven there’s candied walnuts, which I like the look of and she says are so irresistibly delicious. OK walnuts are one of those things we should eat to stave off the horrible ageing problems ~ so make these.
Candied Walnuts
Now for something very American, from Good Housekeeping; acorn squash with brown rice and turkey sausage. Allegedly acorn squash is one of those superfoods, and makes the serving dish for this great-looking recipe.
Acorn Squash with Brown Rice and Turkey Sausage
Turns out that one can treat acorn squash in pretty much the same way as one would treat a potato, although I suspect that the squash is better for a bloke than a spud would be. So, as an opposite to the good old jacket potato, how about this baked acorn squash with butter and brown sugar, from Elise Bauer at Simply Recipes. God! That would be so good with ice cream ~ or am I being silly?
Baked Acorn Squash with Butter and Brown Sugar
I’m enthused about acorn squash, especially as it seems you can use the gourd as a serving vessel ~ what a brilliant way to save on the washing-up. It looks like a pretty good thing for vegetarians and vegans too. So for our collection this week, from Country Living we have 30 best acorn squash recipes for a healthy addition to you fall dinners. One of the great looking recipes is the acorn squash soup with turmeric from Seasonal Cravings. Who doesn’t like a warming soup on a cold night?
Acorn Squash Soup with Turmeric
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
perfect for a Halloween cocktail
ginger is a ‘new’ superfood
Her Smile
just like those remembered days when the dawn sang
~
then quite suddenly I see
if you smile, not just for me
the world is a lovelier place
those tears have disappeared
all that sadness has vanished
the old songs never did end
and we walk again by the sea
remembering the you I adored
~
jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
give your Goddess all the love you can
Hobbies for Health
for me, saving the world and everyone in it is only a hobby
Now that I’m recovering from a bloody awful mental affliction, a good friend has suggested that I take up a hobby. You know what? After a moments reflection I decided that was a brilliant idea. So I will take up a hobby.
But what is a hobby anyway? Where do other ordinary normal day-to-day pursuits become hobbies? And does a proper hobby have to be mostly harmless, inefficient, laborious, and useless? I confess I googled hobbies and found a few incredibly long lists of hobbies, some of which activities I would have just taken to be everyday pursuits; like watching television. No!
But I have a first stab at a short list of potential hobbies which may occupy my time, give me pleasure, be relaxing, and stop me having suicidal thoughts;
- Art, and I mean doing it, most probably painting. Thus far in my life the only things I’ve painted were walls, doors, cars, and boats.
- Angling / Fishing. I used to fish and gave it up because I felt sorry for anything I caught.
- Calligraphy. As it goes I have very good classical penmanship ~ but calligraphy takes that to a whole new level where writing in pen and ink becomes art.
- Model making, although this seems a bit of a kids pastime.
- Photography, which I already do a lot of but I could do more and do it better.
- Reading. I do a hell of a lot of that, but I’m certain there’s a way to turn casual reading into a constructive hobby.
- Survivalist. Not that I live in an earthquake zone, but add some of the other hobbies I’ve already thought about and I’m already a fair way to being a survivalist
- Travel. I love to travel, but is it a hobby for me, and could I turn it into one? Maybe by mixing it with photography and writing.
- Walking. On average I walk 5 miles a day, but that’s not serious hobbyist walking. More serious walking includes hiking, backpacking, and trekking. So I have joined our local Ramblers Club, (how very English), who meet a couple of times a month and do some serious miles in all weathers.
- Writing, and I already do some of that too, including being in a local writers group.
I’ve already realised that if you want your normal everyday activity to become a hobby you have to add a lot of time, money, and obsessiveness into the mix. I can’t even turn my 5 miles a day walk into a hobby without buying a lot more expensive kit.
But, if you have any other ideas for a healthy, relaxing, challenging, difficult, self-improving activity, then please just tell me.
~
jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
also, I do like making practical things; such as this planter
Songs on Saturday ~ Bette Davis Eyes
the key to life is accepting challenges
once someone stops doing this, he’s dead
I was always a precocious child; I developed abilities and inclinations at a much earlier age that was usual or expected of me.
Everybody has kindness in their eyes. Except some people.
Please listen responsibly.
~
jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
life is a sexual jest
and her eyes show it
Monochrome Monday ~ Male Nudes
an heroic god, and all is as if the world did cease to exist
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Some say that when you get a taste of a real man, the rest of the world never tastes the same.
jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
intelligence is enormously sexy
but so is a very toned body
