On the eleventh day of Christmas my true love gave to me, Eleven pipers piping, Ten lords a leaping, Nine ladies dancing, Eight maids a milking, Seven swans a swimming, Six geese a laying, Five golden rings - - - Four calling birds, Three French hens, Two turtle doves and a Partridge in a pear tree. Or maybe At any event, tomorrow, Sunday, 5 January, is the Twelfth Day of Christmas and one tradition says you should be taking your Christmas tree down now. Either take it down on the Twelfth Day, or leave it up for next Christmas, 2025. Our Christmas tree is Linda's lovely creation that I've loved sitting here looking at, and I'm all for leaving it up as a nod to my nonagenarian dotage, but there's little to zero zip zilch chance of Linda tolerating that. I mean, I don't complete my 90th year until my birthday next September, but anyone who's had ninety Thankgivings and ninety Christmases can dee well claim nonagenarianism, nomesane? Yes, I missed posting about t...

Yes, I'm going with it, I'll come back to the Twelve Days of Christmas, probably later today, but first a kickoff digresssion, maybe into make believe, where things can be as one imagines or wishes instead of as they are. New Orleans, Las Vegas, incredibly Pakistan v Afghanistan, America, my trip first thing this morning back to the dermatology clinic to have more pieces cut out of my face, ... An appealing thought for the day  A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: I believe in evidence. I believe in observation, measurement, and reasoning, confirmed by independent observers. I'll believe anything, no matter how wild and ridiculous, if there is evidence for it. The wilder and more ridiculous something is, however, the firmer and more solid the evidence will have to be. - Isaac Asimov, scientist and writer (2 Jan 1920-1992) that showed up while I was checking out Word-A-Day's Lower Slobbovia and reminiscing about Lil Abner's adventures.  Daisy Mae, Sadie Hawkins Day, Mammy and Pappy ...

  The eighth day of Christmas my true love gave to me eight maids a-milking, and here I am with my standard skeptical cynicism about most things religious, including Christianizing a memory-challenge penalty rewards game-song in which members of an increasingly more inebriated group of friends or family try to remember the gifts for each day as they sing the verses over and over and over!  Anyway, here's what Artificial Intelligence has to say about the song that one somewhat caustic writer called "the holiday's most annoying carol." AI Overview "Eight maids a-milking" is a line from the song "On the eighth day of Christmas" and is said to  represent the eight Beatitudes, which Jesus Christ taught in the Sermon on the Mount :   Blessed are the poor in spirit Blessed are those who mourn Blessed are the meek Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness Blessed are the merciful Blessed are the pure in heart Blessed are the peacemakers Ble...