roger_kuin: All Hallows

roger_kuin: All Hallows

Today is All Saints’ Day, which for millions of American, or Americanised, kids is the day of the Great Candy Hangover after Halloween. Halloween, moreover, is the night of ghoulies and ghosties, of witches and Wiccas, and of pretending that evil is harmless.

As a slight corrective, I thought I’d post a few bits on the Day itself; 1) what it’s about; 2) where to find a more detailed history; 3) a really beautiful hymn we used to sing in school chapel.

In my French village, as in Sweden (see picture), All Saints and All Souls (properly the day after, 2 November) are conflated. ‘La Toussaint’ as the French call it is the day of cemeteries, of chrysanthemums and asters, of elderly people walking stiffly through the churchyard (which here is a place full of stone and gravel, glum to one bred in England) to put flowers on the graves of their husbands, wives, parents, and sometimes (sadly) children. It’s a quiet day, when people get together as families or friends.

This feast that we know as All Saint’s Day originated as a feast of All Martyrs, sometime in the 4th century. At first it was celebrated on the first Sunday after Pentecost. It came to be observed on May 13 when Pope St. Boniface IV (608-615) restored and rebuilt for use as a Christian church an ancient Roman temple which pagan Rome had dedicated to “all gods”, the Pan-theon. The pope re-buried the bones of many martyrs there, and dedicated this Church to the Mother of God and all the Holy Martyrs on May 13, 610.

Now consider this:
Halloween spooks school board

The TDSB’s Halloween policy is outlined in its 2008 Teaching Resource for Dealing with Controversial and Sensitive Issues in Toronto District School Board Classrooms. This document, dripping with spine-tingling bureaucratese, outlines six reasons why Halloween isn’t as fun as you might think. For instance:

1. “Halloween is a religious day of significance for Wiccans and therefore should be treated respectfully.”

So, it is a Christian or Wiccan holiday? I bet Christians think it is wiccan too. I love religion.

Slashdot | 10th Year of the International Nethack Tournament

Slashdot | 10th Year of the International Nethack Tournament. Nethack was probably the only game I ever got into in any meaningful manner beyond Crystal Caves Adventure. So cool to know it is still around.

Election Duel! Obama V. McCain - Who Get’s Pwned?

YouTube - Election Duel! Obama V. McCain - Who Get’s Pwned?

Comedian Rich Kuras infiltrates the World of Warcraft to poll players on the 2008 Presidential Election. We broke down the results per race and Class. What we found may…and please excuse the pun…WOW you.

Now that’s some politicalisticity that I can sink my teeth into.

New Issue of The Harrow!

the mark of ashen wings - Happy Nov 1
And the rest of you, check out the new issue of The Harrow; fiction editor Michael Colangelo has set up an issue of the strange and disturbing for you this month. “Nourishment for the Dead” is the first of a short series of stories we’ll be running about the horrible goings-on in the small Canadian town of Cobston-Aldwych; “Mirror of Venus” is a curiously timeless fantasy of dangerous love, reprinted from Caitlín R. Kiernan’s zine Sirenia; “Phlegethon” tells the tale of a mountain-pass shortcut to Cathay that spells doom for the hapless men taking it; and “Figures in Chalcedony” is an understated description of a book whose story warns against digging too deeply into the semiotics of the occult.

Chippy McVampire!

Mr. Chippymunk ….The VAMPIRE, originally uploaded by Crikit (Lori G).

What do you expect then the demon moon rises over the pumpkin patch?

Halloween on Queen Street

I clicked these from the streetcar on the way home on halloween. It was a crazy ride.

Lilja, Jason and Tracey

Lilja, Jason and Tracey, originally uploaded by complicitytheory.

We’ve not been together since 1995 when we were beer drinking graduate students at OISE/UT. We had lunch at “Waterfalls Indian Tapas” in Kensongton (waterfallsrestaurant.ca) and had a surprisingly wonderful brunch.