Little Christmas

Today it is Twelfth Night, ἐπιφάνεια Epiphany.  Epi-phaneia means literally upon the surface or in Latin manifestation [showing] . . . of the infant Jesus to the gentiles as represented by the Magi, the three kings which gives the day another clatter of names El Día de los Reyes in Spanish dia dos Reis in Portuguese, Dreikönigstag in German.  I don't know, because you never talk back to me how the weather has been in Ukraine or France this Winter, but it has been unseasonably warm and balmy here in Ireland.  A lot of people have been annoying me with unsupportable statements about there being a terrible cold Winter in the offing [arragh the berry do be thick; the birds are after flocking early etc.] but I'm now in a position to trot out an optimistic and equally unsupported German saw now that we're two full weeks beyond the solstice: Ist's bis Dreikönigs kein Winter, kommt keiner dahinter  = if there's been no Winter by ThreeKings, it won't come later. I encourage you to surf off across the interweb to find some obscure tradition in a country you have barely heard of and adopt those customs - especially if it involves a big party

In Ireland particularly in the SW, the day is recognised as Little Christmas or Nollaig na mBan: Women's Christmas when the women of the house are let off from the relentless household chores to go out on the town with their sisters, cousins and pals.  I think that's a great tradition, the washing-up and laundry and cooking for the unexpected guest having been mighty over the previous fortnight, the girls deserve a break.  If you're a typical slobby male, whose care has been transferred seamlessly from his mammy to his wifey, you might volunteer to look after the children this evening (while skulling tinnies on the sofa watching the match of course) and let Herself off out this evening.  And because it's an islandy week on The Blob, I've included a picture of Little Christmas Island [R] barely off the East coast of Tasmania and about 2 hectares in extend. I bet you didn't even know it was there!