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Tui Hill's avatar

Gravy Day should be acknowledged worldwide! It's a tribute to the great and utterly underappreciated Australian singer-songwriter Paul Kelly, and actually kind of relates to your 'Bum Socks' theme - the song 'How to make gravy' is written as a voicemail or note from someone who's going to be in prison for Christmas. Watch his performance on the ABC online story (first link that comes up if you Google 'gravy day' and if it doesn't make you cry even just a little you definitely won't be getting any invitations to Christmas dinner at our house.

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meh's avatar

A fabulous song. Love it to death. Not hard to play, either.

I learned it at the behest of an Australian friend who says it’s the best Christmas song.She always gets teary-eyed when we sing it at her family gatherings.

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Ken_L's avatar

This Australian celebrated the previously unknown Gravy Day with a salad.

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Greg's avatar

In ancient times before precise atomic clocks, accurate astronomical observations and improvements in math and science... think neolithic times.

Today, if you've been watching where the sun sets carefully every day, it has gone way south.

On the 25th, again, watching VERY carefully where the sun sets every day, you will notice an almost imperceptible movement north.

The Sun is reborn, or if you're one of them Xtian types, Jesus was born. Same same.

Either way, it's no mystery why the 25th is such a big day.

Merry Solstice Day and in memorium, let's think about the 10's of millions of innocent pagans slaughtered by Xtians ongoing from around 450 CE to in and around 1350 CE.

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agony's avatar

My son formally trained as an engineer; because of one thing and another he works at a liquor store in a bad neighbourhood - the big tough guy that nobody wants to mess with. 6'2", 300 pounds, beard halfway down his chest, heavy metal and horror movie fan.

And he is the best present wrapper I have ever met. If we don't have a bow the right colour or shape he wants, he'll use ribbon to make one. Considers a razor blade an essential part of wrapping presents. The time and thought he puts into selecting presents and their presentation is really extraordinary.

People in the manosphere these days talk a lot about masculinity. They have no idea what it is.

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meh's avatar

Wonderful!

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peregrin's avatar

Trix, you has the most beautiful cats! I am so jealous!

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LoCoJo's avatar

Fun fact that I just found on the interwebz so it must be true:

Peruvian Owls hunt in pairs. It's because they're Inca Hoots.

Sorrynotsorry.

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C.L.'s avatar

I love the kitteh video which has *both* catvestigation of wine AND kitteh getting ready to POUNCE and telegraphing the pounce with butt wiggles. So much kitteh love in one short video!

Also thank *you* for this: “We know you have many options for places on the Internet where you can read the word “fuck,” and we appreciate you choosing ours.”

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oblivias's avatar

I got a message on the most recent post that only paid subscribers can comment. Of course I do pay, but substack doesn't know about it because PayPal. Also, that's not supposed to be how this works anyway.

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Rebecca Schoenkopf's avatar

I should have fixed that hours ago? Let me check!

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oblivias's avatar

Thanks. It's working okay now.

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Militant Agnostic's avatar

It's a setting they have to select for anyone to comment, I think. Maybe comment on the immediate preceding post and hopefully one of the writers will notice and fix it.

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oblivias's avatar

This is the immediately preceding post and the problem is fixed. Thanks.

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Saviour of Bread's avatar

I had a former business partner who had a daughter on the winter solstice a few years ago. The partner's name began with an "s", as did her husband's and the first child's. They wanted to keep to that theme so they called the child born on 21st December; drum roll please, Summer.

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ziggywiggy's avatar

Finally got around to doing a new All Potted Up On The Weed Post. This is a holiday edition. https://open.substack.com/pub/ziggywiggy/p/all-potted-up-on-the-weed-holiday?r=2knfuc&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

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Daniel O'Riordan's avatar

I saw a story today about a family with six kids. Last year, for the first time in ten years, Mom's husband realized that Mom's stocking was empty. Mom, of course, took care of getting everyone else's stockings filled.

Then, they listed the kids.

Trendy, age 12, Zaylee, age 10, Sunny, age 8, Truly, age 6, Journey, age 2, and Rocky, who'll be 1 on 12/24.

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Saviour of Bread's avatar

They have cousins Plinth, Adjective, Wombat, Cheerful, Voyage, and Denmark.

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Thalia Is Not Amused's avatar

Awwww, Rebecca! You and Shy just made my day, thank you! I'm sending out cards this year, damnit. Yeah, they'll get there after Christmas, but I'm bound and determined to spread joy whenever and wherever I can. I'm just thrilled beyond belief that my care package (including 2 pounds of homemade peanut butter fudge!) will make it on time to a very special friend and her 7 year old son. He's a HUGE Swiftie and I'm sending him a Taylor Swift backpack I found on sale. Squee! I'm really hoping it will make his day. Hope everyone here has a wonderful weekend as stress-free as possible!

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Sam's avatar

Gravy Day in Australia is named after the Paul Kelly song "How to Make Gravy". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOWtK6HYCSE It's a Christmas song about being incarcerated over Christmas and being unable to be with family. The version I linked was released in 2021 with donated fan footage of people unable to be with family because of lockdowns. There IS a gravy recipe.

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𝕺𝖓𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖔𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖗𝖍𝖆𝖓𝖉's avatar

For those who are interested and who did not see this earlier, HR 82 passed in the Senate last night at the last possible moment, having outplayed some really dirty techniques thrown at it to try to prevent it. Still needs a presidential signature, hoping Jill puts a pen in his hand and says sign this puppy, right here, and points and taps.

HR 82 restores full Social Security retirement benefits to people who lost them because they also have a non-SS pension from something else. It also restores survivor benefits to widows and widows who have a similar pension. And for some people, it restores both. There are people in their 80s still working because of these provisions. There are regulars here in this community who are impacted by this. Merry Christmas to all of them.

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Kerry's avatar

So many fingers and toes crossed here. Why should twenty years of my working life be subtracted from the other twenty?

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𝕺𝖓𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖔𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖗𝖍𝖆𝖓𝖉's avatar

I’m not tracking here. Would you mind clarifying?

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Biff52 Lost Canadian's avatar

Fingers crossed, still not overly optimistic!

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𝕺𝖓𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖔𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖗𝖍𝖆𝖓𝖉's avatar

There’s a reason they dragged their feet for so long (40 years) on this They really enjoyed the use of your funds and they did not want to give them back. It had to be pried out of their nasty little fingers.

You stay, pessimistic, I will stay optimistic on your behalf, and one of us will be right. (It will be me.) And then the person that was right will get to say I told yourself so. And then the person that was wrong will have to admit that the other person was right all along.

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Biff52 Lost Canadian's avatar

I have seldom wanted to be wrong more than on this thing!

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𝕺𝖓𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖔𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖗𝖍𝖆𝖓𝖉's avatar

That’s why I am looking forward to being smugly right about this on your behalf. I’m even going to go out on a limb here and hope for you that the state pension pulls its head out of its behind and puts things right.

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Gammarae's avatar

i have read some noncomments about not being in the spirit for the holidays this year and it makes me sad. i don't know what to say except LET'S NOT LET THEM SPOIL OUR HOLIDAYS, YOU GUYZ. if i could, i would host you all for a somewhat, perhaps even reasonably, good holiday. warning: this may require carolling.

put on your favorite xmas movie (it should be Lion in Winter), listen to whatever music you love, eat too much candy and cookies, and if you're going to be alone, plan a really special dinner for yourself. oh and breakfast too. read a terrific book, get outside and greet some strangers. and of course hang out on wonkette.

we shall overcome this.

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Garnet's avatar

That’s what I keep telling people, too. Do not let the scum buckets steal your light!

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DustBowlBlue's avatar

Our sad little tree is still leaning against the fireplace because none of us has been around for long enough stretches to guard it from the kittens. It shall go up tonight, and there will be Roast Beast and a fire, and much merriment will be made. Or at least we'll watch TV together. The kids won't be home for too many more years (or maybe they will along with a few dozen of our closest friends...but I digress) and dammit, we're going to enjoy the holidays while they are here.

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Gammarae's avatar

i like the way you think! enjoy setting it up and protecting it (likely unsuccessfully).

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Notorious J.I.M.'s avatar

The ventilation in my living room (leaking picture window) is such that the aroma of my coffee is wafting directly at me.

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Gammarae's avatar

is that good or bad? :)

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Notorious J.I.M.'s avatar

It's freakin' excellent. Also pleasant with cocktails, whatever is on the dinner plate, yesterday's wine glass, all sorts of things. Until the hvac gets a makeup vent I think I can live with it. I haven't experienced olfactory impairment, and I'm grateful.

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