The Ugly Stepsister of Japanese Holidays

It just so happens to be National Founding Day (kenkoku kinen-bi) in Japan, so go eat some sushi in celebration. This just so happens to be the most boring Japanese holiday there is. It's apparently a very conterversial holiday, so most people are too scared to do anything other than flying a Japanese flag outside their homes.

Why is it such a conterversial holiday? Well, it wasn't always National Foundation Day. It used to be Empire Day (Kigensetsu); then it was a whole lot more exciting.

Waitangi?

Today is Waitangi Day. It's sort of New Zealand's founding holiday. Today marks the day when the original inhabitants of New Zealand, the Maori, finally signed a treaty ending the war for the contested land. The Maori signed the treaty rather fast to avoid running out of food provisions. The terms appeared to be good but now the Maori feel duped. This is partly because of bad translations of the treaty and also because some of the terms of the treaty have been ignored by future generations of kiwis. Much like our Columbus Day celebrations the Waitangi Day celebrations are often a magnet to native protestors. In many past years the flagpoles on which the New Zealand flags have flown were cut down in protest. In 2004 the Maori managed to raise their flag on a close by tree higher then the New Zealand flag; this was seen as a very bold and disrespectful move. I think it was a rather tame reaction.

In New Zealand the celebrations for Waitangi day are very formal. They begin the previous day with political dignitaries being welcomed into the Maori meeting house to hear speeches from the local iwi, or tribes. Then they debate about the issues brought forth late into the night. The next day the Royal New Zealand Navy raises the New Zealand flag, Union Jack and White Ensign. Then there is a church service and some Maori singing and dancing. There's also a thrilling re-enactment of the first governor of New Zealand, General Hobson, being called ashore to sign the treaty. Finally the flags are lowered.

Recently kiwis who've relocated in London have been celebrating Waitangi day. In London the celebration is a lot more fun. Here, they've decided to have a pub crawl using the London Underground's Circle Line. They travel counter-clockwise from Paddington to Temple. The goal is to ingest one drink at each of the 27 stops on the Circle Line. The less hardcore participants only stop at a few of these stations. Participants wear costumes for the celebration and all gather at Westminster waiting for Big Ben to strike 4 p.m. A large scale haka, a traditional Maori dance, is performed and many sing their kiwi favorites.

Mexico's Constitution Day, Mouse Hunting, Pastries, and Italian Food

I have a lot to cover. First off, today is a public holiday in Mexico. Dia de la Constitucion is today. Today commemorates the birth of the constitution of Mexico. I couldn't find any interesting things on its celebration, but oh well. One good way is to go to a new eatery on Metcalf called tienda Casa Paloma Mexican Market. We sampled it last night and it was pretty decent. I like Torreons close to Shawnee Mission West, my old alma mater. One of Rob's old classmates now runs it.

My cat finally did something useful Thursday night. She caught a mouse; I immediately jumped up on my bed. I eventually got down and got a box to scoop the still alive caught mouse into; my cat is evidently gentle when it comes to mouse catching and didn't want to let go of her new toy. I freed it but it probably just ended trotting right back into my house.

I finally made it to JCCC's pastry sale on Friday. It was well worth the short walk. I got a ginormous amount of pastries for seven dollars. I used to have to wear an outfit kind of close to theirs. My hat was a bit less ridiculous looking.

Tonight I'm cooking Italian food. Pasta Fazool is one of my favorites. I also cheated and made a box version of Boston Cream Pie. I choose to try to ignore the Super Bowl. I have my first Chemistry test Monday so I should probably go study.

Rob's Pasta Fazool (Pasta E Fagioli)

1 T. olive oil
1 stalk celery, chopped coarsely
1 medium onion, chopped coarsely
2 garlic cloves, minced
¼ lb dried Soldier beans or cannellini (available at Whole Foods)
1 bay leaf
1 t. dried basil
½ t. dried thyme
½ t. dried rosemary
2 cups chicken broth
3 cups water
14-ounce can tomatoes, drained (I prefer roma tomatoes)
1 rind (about ¼ pound) Parmigiano-Reggiano
2 oz very small cut tubular pasta, such as ditali (Barilla calls ditalini)
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil, grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, and chopped fresh basil for garnish

Cover cannellini with water and let soak at least 24 hours; dispose of any beans that float to the top, this is a sign that they have gone bad.

Place the olive oil in a large, heavy saucepan over moderate heat. Add the celery, onion, and garlic; cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the beans, dried herbs, broth, water, tomatoes, and cheese rind. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to low. Continue cooking, covered, stirring occasionally. This part of the preparation is finished when the beans are soft, about 1 to 2 hours (depending on the age of your beans).

When the beans are soft, remove cheese rind from the pot and add the pasta. Cook fazool for another 10 to 15 minutes or until the pasta is done. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve in wide bowls, garnishing each serving with a drizzle of olive oil, about a tablespoon of cheese, and about a teaspoon of fresh basil. This recipe serves four as a main course.

Note: This recipe is from the snobs at Dean and Deluca. I have never located ditali in Kansas City; mini elbow macaroni works well. Without soaking the beans; I’ve never been able to get them soft. I recommend doubling the recipe, cooking in a Dutch oven or stockpot, and adding garnishes way more liberally.

Punxsutawney Propaganda

According to Punxsutawney Phil and a gaggle of professional meteorologists there will be six more weeks of winter. I've also learned that much like God and our fearless leader, Punxsutawney Phil is infallible. Unfortunately like many of the things that come from any of these characters mouths there is a loophole; he's not talking about New England or even any other part of the U.S. specifically. He's 100% accurate somewhere on the planet Earth; and quite possibly somewhere else in a galaxy far, far away.

Punxsutawney Phil not only has his own cult complete with an inner circle (they really freak me out) but also has many rivals. Staten Island Chuck calls for an end to winter and also dreams of changing his name. Phil is also apparently a lush, who threatened sixty more weeks of winter to try to end prohibition; I hope next year he joins NORML. I think purely to annoy me he also gives his predictions in rhyme. This years is particuarly horrid:

"It is said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
Around the country there are many imitators of me.

In Harrisburg there is Gus who appears on TV
working for the lottery.

Then all around town,
Cute groundhog statues abound.
They all look like me, I found.

Today on the Knob as I'm doing my job,I don't like this likeness of me.
It's my shadow I see.

Six more weeks of mild winter there will be."

Historically speaking, some people think this tradition came from Candlemas Day traditions. According to the official history the Romans introduced it to the Germans who used a hegdehog to do their weather predictions. The Germans moved to Pennsylvania and since there were more groundhogs then hedgehogs around Gobbler's Knob, they decided to use groundhogs to do their bidding. New England winters are historically only half over by February. If global warming prevails however, we won't need to worry about any of this winter crap.

Holiday Crap Aside

This week has been pretty good so far. Sunday I went to a church voluntarily for the first time. It was interesting. Universal Unitarianism may be as close as I could ever come to a religion that sums up my beliefs; hell there are even some atheists who attend this church. The sermon was on fascism in the United States; it was a bit more like a political rally then a sermon but that's why I attended in the first place. I don't know that I'll go regularly or anything but it was nice to actually feel like there are people here in Overland Park, Kansas who are actually somewhat liberal. I was beginning to wonder. The only parts that were awkward for me were the group singing and the greeting part. I don't like to be forced to be social.

After church I went to Bo Lings for a little Chinese New Year's Eve celebration of my own. Don't trying going to the locations with Dim Sum on this date; they're all packed. I was going to go to Blue Koi and I'd called to see if they were doing anything special for the holiday. I asked about New Year's Eve and listed the date to make sure the trip would be worthwhile. Something must have been lost during the cross-cultural communication because they're closed every Sunday. Oh well, Bo Lings sufficed.

Tuesday was a pretty fun day because I got to go to Chemistry lab. Yes, I am so much of a nerd that I think Chemistry lab can be fun. In my opinion you can't get much better then playing with fire and hydrochloric acid in the same day. We got to see the different flame colors produced with different kinds of metal.

Well that's pretty much been it. A lot of studying with a few moments of entertainment interspersed here and there.

Tonight We're Going to Party Like It's 1427

It's time for another holiday. This year I'm sticking with only the holidays in my planner. I recently realized how large a task this could be. Next year I'll try to cover more of the lesser known holidays; I still have to accomplish something other then just posting to my blog.

Today we finally get to begin some of the Islamic holidays. Today marks the Islamic New Year. Muharram is the first month of the Islamic calendar. Islam uses a lunar calendar so the date of Muharram changes from year to year. This year it will be from January 31 until February 28; today is the first day of Muharram and the first day of the year 1427. Literally translated, Muharram means "forbidden". This month is so named because it is one of four months in which it is forbidden to fight. Partying and card giving on this holiday is looked down on by some Muslims. Many use this day to remember Muhammad's exile from Mecca and journey to Medina. On some nights mosques are forced to give out free food; these meals are seen as an actual meal with God much like communion.

Here's when my research gets ultra confusing. The tenth day of Muharram is known as Ashurah and means different things to the two main different kinds of Muslims. Sunni Muslims use this day to commemorate the crossing of the Red Sea by Moses and often fast on this day. The Shi'ite sect has a different reason altogether for Ashurah to be important. Shia commemorate the death of Husayn bin Ali. Shia believe Hasayn should have been Muhammad's successor since he was Muhammad's grandson. The son of the person the Sunni's believed to be the successor, Yazid, won at the Battle of Karbala by killing Hasayn.

The celebration of Ashurah is the most extreme in Karbala, Iraq, where Hasayn was killed. Some Shia where black to mourn him and fast as he was forced to do. Some Passion plays and poems are also performed centering on the events at the Battle of Karbala. In the least extreme of forms men gather together on Ashurah in public to perform ceremonial chest beating to express their devotion to Hasayn. In its most extreme form men gather together clothed in white and cut or whip themselves. Sometimes this is performed more symbolically with paint instead of real blood. In some Shi'a societies, actually hurting yourself is banned.

I hope this comes close to what this holiday is truly about. Information differs from place to place. This article kind of actually makes me glad Groundhog Day is around the corner; it's not a very serious holiday.

Chinese New Year's Eve

Happy Chinese New Year's Eve! Tomorrow will be the first day of the year of the dog, lunar year 4704. I just bought a new planner that has a pretty large list of the world's holidays. I'll try to keep up with it and pass on a little information about each as they come. I'll take advantage of any reason for celebration. Here's a little bit about Chinese New Year.

The word for the new year's festival in Chinese is, "Guo Nian." This means to survive the monster, Nian. Nian was a monster that came down from a mountain on the first and fifteenth of every lunar month to eat people. The people decided to come together and fight instead of cowering in their homes. Out come the gongs and fireworks, which scare Nian so much he runs away. The people keep chasing him and he keeps running, until he's really tired. They then murder the monster, after he has passed out from exhaustion and live happily ever after. Chinese New Year's is therefore the people's celebration of freedom from the tyranny of a man-eating monster. That's why I love this holiday.

Right now, or a few days before today is the best time to clean your house(to clean out last year's accumulated bad luck), pay debts, cut your hair, and buy new clothes. That's a pretty good excuse to spend lots of money on your outward appearance. Doors can be decorated with vertical scrolls of Chinese characters on red paper; not only do they look good but they also keep away any evil spirits. If your dead ancestors are getting a little jealous of all this time you've invested in your outward appearance and decoration of your home, then burn a little incense to keep them happy. Mine like Fred Soll's Egyptian musk.

On Chinese New Year's Eve, today, light you house brightly. For dinner get the family together and have a large meal, gorging yourself is always my favorite holiday activity. New Year's Eve falls on the last day of the last moon, the coldest winter day.

Tomorrow morning is New Year's Day. If you have children, give them a red envelope full of luck money when the wake up. Red is the color of luck and is also my favorite color. Use red anywhere you can on this day. Make up with old enemies or try to see people in a different light if you've held a grudge against them. Goodwill and reconciliation are easy to come by on this day. Avoid housework (as if I needed any excuse), you may clean away the good luck New Year's day can bring. Don't use anything sharp it could cut away the, "threads of good fortune"; I suggest buttering your bread with a spoon on this day. It is unlucky to break something on this day, so try your best not to. Most importantly, avoid any negative language. I'll have to try hard to accomplish that. You can not argue or talk about sickness or death. If you do succeed in sticking to these guidelines your supposed to have a lucky and prosperous year, so I guess it does pay off in the end.

Another holiday is just around the corner. Expect an article on a holiday I currently know absolutely nothing about on January thirty-first.