25 Days of Christmas (Day 20)

For the last 12 days of Christmas, I will be posts to "break down" the Christmas Carol, "Twelve Days Of Christmas" by focusing on what each line is speaking of (Partridge, Turtle Doves, etc.) and their meanings and/or what they truly are. Just little facts and trivia things.

*HINT* ... Each day, the verse of choice will be BOLDED and highlighted.


On the eighth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
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.

Thank God!! No more birds. At least for the time being. I'm about ready to go grab the nearest hunting rifle and go out hunting those dad-burned birds.

From... On The Eighth Day Of Christmas site.

On the Eighth Day of Christmas...Eight Maids A-Milking

The eight maids a-milking addresses two of the major themes of fifteenth and sixteenth century English celebrations and parties during the Christmas holidays – food and romance. What is a feast or party without food? Especially foods that are not common and are reserved for special occasions.

Until the advent of refrigeration, milk was not a common drink because it spoiled quickly. However, milk based products that did not spoil, such as cheese, sour milk (which is actually a cultured milk much like yogurt
and is neither sour tasting nor spoiled) and custards were prized treats. Cheese and sour milk are the result of processes that expose milk to so called friendly bacteria which convert the milk to a state where it can be preserved for a longer period and is also tasty. Custard is similar but this involves the cooking of the milk, which kills the harmful bacteria thereby extending the period during which it can be safely consumed.

The maids, of course, refer to the women who would milk the cows to obtain the milk in the first place. In times past milking of cows or goats was typically a job for women. However, the term maid is also the shortened form of maiden which is a young, unmarried, woman. By combining the images of maiden and milk (which can also bring to mind a woman's breasts), it is easy to get the idea that this particular gift has more to do with sex and romance than with cows.

The term eight maids a-milking evokes images of the food, especially the special holiday foods, to be enjoyed at this festive time of year as well as the possibilities for romance, both licit and illicit. While the people of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries were not as prudish as the nineteenth century Victorians, there was still pressure, especially for women, to maintain a somewhat chaste image in public.

Young upper class (both merchant class and nobility) women were usually chaperoned when in public and when being courted by young men. However, during the Twelfth Night celebrations not only were many of the rules of behavior relaxed but the environment in which the parties were held provided opportunities to escape the watchful eyes of the public.

In the midst of a large group of people, many of them strangers, who were busy drinking, dancing and having a good time, it was easy to slip away from one's chaperon or spouse. Masked and costumed balls increased the opportunities for secret liaisons as well as providing additional means of denying your actions the next day. With candles and torches the sole source of lighting, it was often difficult to identify people across the room let alone in the numerous rooms and darkened alcoves found in the castles and large manor houses where the parties were held. The opportunities offered for some passionate time alone with a lover or a quick one night stand with a stranger were a major attraction of these parties.

*Please feel free to read the rest of the history at the above link to the site provided in regards to this day's subject.*

25 Days of Christmas (Day 18 & 19)

For the last 12 days of Christmas, I will be posts to "break down" the Christmas Carol, "Twelve Days Of Christmas" by focusing on what each line is speaking of (Partridge, Turtle Doves, etc.) and their meanings and/or what they truly are. Just little facts and trivia things.

*HINT* ... Each day, the verse of choice will be BOLDED and highlighted.

Today, I'm doing the "two for one buy" deal, seeing as I didn't log on and write yesterday. It was *MY BIRTHDAY!!* and I felt the need to be a lazy bum. And I did just that. But only on here. I still had to clean and do the Cinderella thing around the house... Go figure, eh?


On the sixth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.


And here we go again with the stinking birds! Sorry. But I ain't the one who wrote this song. (=

I used to have to deal with geese back home in California when I went to the park (along with the seagulls, but that's a story for another time). They are loud and at most times mean little suckers. Okay, not so little, but still can chase you like a chicken with it's head cut off.

(From Wiki Dictionary)

The word goose (plural: geese) is the English name for a considerable number of birds, belonging to the family Anatidae. This family also includes swans, most of which are larger than true geese, and ducks, which are smaller.

There are three living genera of true geese: Anser – Grey Geese, including the domesticated goose and the Swan Goose, Chen – White Geese (often included in Anser), and Branta – Black Geese, such as the Canada goose.

Geese are monogamous, living in permanent pairs throughout the year; however, unlike most other permanently monogamous animals, they are territorial only during the short nesting season. Paired geese are more dominant and feed more, two factors that result in more young.


Now, onwards to the seventh day (which also is a flocking mess!)


On the seventh day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
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.

Aren't they beautiful? And they are one of the few birds that are mates for life. This picture makes me think my my husband and I, and how still in love and still seemingly in the "honeymoon phase" we are in, even after being married for eight years now, and will be together for eleven in April.

The following about swans is also going to be found HERE.

A swan is a bird of the genus Cygnus.

Seeing as that site sucked and didn't give anything... We shall go HERE instead...

Classification

Family: Anatidae
Subfamily: Cygninae
Species: Whooper, Trumpeter, Tundra, Mute, Black-necked, Black, Berwick, and Coscoroba

A male swan is a cob; a female is a pen, and the young are called cygnets. Description
Swans are the largest of the aquatic birds, closely related to the Goose. They are known for their grace and beauty and have long been considered “ornamental birds” which float on ponds in zoos, parks, and botanical gardens. Swans are long necked and web-footed. The most common swan, the Mute Swan, is a large, all white bird with a pink bill that ends in a black knob. The bill of a swan is so sensitive that it serves as an underwater feeler.

Swans have the longest neck of any bird, with 23-25 neck vertebrae. Swans have as many as 25,000 feathers. They are long-lived birds, and can live up to twenty years in the wild, and even fifty years in captivity!

Habitat

Swans prefer wetlands and land surrounded by water, where they build their nests on mounds. The Tundra swan builds its nest in the tundra wetlands, where they maintain a territory of one square mile and defend it from other swans. Swans prefer cooler environments and avoid extreme heat. The Tundra and Whooper nest all across northern America, the Arctic Islands and Northern Russia. The Black-necked and Coscoroba are found from Brazil southward. The Black Swan lives in Australia and New Zealand. The Mute Swan resides in Europe.

Mating

Swans will both display before mating, then mate for life. They are devoted to each other, and remain together throughout the year. They keep their young with them until they nest again, some staying through a second clutch. If one of a pair of swans dies, the survivor usually takes a new mate, and they form a dedicated pair. Breeding Swans usually mature in two to three years, and breed at around 3-4 years of age. The northern birds do not breed until their fifth or sixth year. Birds kept in captivity take much longer to establish a breeding pair.

Daydreaming, ADHD & Team Building

It's been a strange start to the week. Monday wasn't too bad as far as Monday's go. Tuesday was Election Day for Mid-Terms. I even voted for Tazmanian Devil to get City Court Clerk. Instead some idiot I have no clue about got the spot. I think Taz would have done a fine job myself. And last night was also the monthly appointment for Bryce, my Special Needs child.

It's becoming increasingly apparent that the medications that he is on for the ADHD are helping. But not to the extent that we would care to see. He is on the maximum dose of Vyvanse. And we are upping his Intuniv to three mgs. to see if that may help a bit more.

But also, the teachers MUST be willing to work more with him. And with us. In a COMPLETE team effort. They have yet to realize that NOT EVERYTHING he does is within HIS control. A lot of it has to do with the ADHD and its severity taking control and causing him to wander, be completely distracted, blurting out, cutting in to conversations or instruction. He even said one of the teachers mainly lectures for the entire time, every single day. An ADHD kid CANNOT handle more than five to ten minute increments of "lecturing".

These people are expecting him to pull off the impossible. To stay on task, focus completely and listen 100% of the time, during the entire day. While us "normal" people CAN do that, a child with severe ADHD cannot. They do not have the control over their brains to obtain such feats.

Even the doctor had agreed with me when I stated that basically my child is in a constant daydream. His brain NEVER slows down enough to tackle one specific thing at a time. His mind is a jumbled mess twenty-four hours a day, unless people are willing to re-direct him, work with him and help ensure that he is keeping on track with the task at hand.

For the last several years, myself and Bryce's Case Manager have hit one stumbling block after another. Even though Bryce is listed BY THE STATE, as well as by FEDERAL GOVERNMENT (seeing as he DOES collect SSDI) as being "disabled", my child has been turned down time and time again for in-school services. This means he cannot get an IEP, a 504 Plan, most accommodations. Why? Because he is SO damn smart and "making the grade", that his disability isn't "showing" enough through his grades to "mandate needs" for Specialized Services through the school system.

Excuse me??? So in a nut shell, they are stating that being my child does not have a severe intellectual impediment, he isn't deaf or blind, can walk and talk just like any other "normal" person, that he does NOT qualify for a damn thing, seeing as he DOES have behavioral issues that severely impact social skills and daily living skills. Just getting him to do a five minute task can take easily twenty minutes or more.

At school, about three weeks ago, he was SUPPOSED TO go to the bathroom that sits kitty-corner from the classroom. But about ten minutes later, he was found to be down the hall at the Second Grade area, just standing there, watching in to one of the classrooms. And he honestly cannot say why, or how he "got there".

He is ALWAYS "forgetting" his FINISHED homework. No matter how much I have tried, the boy is incessantly disorganized with his binder.

All he does is get in to trouble in school for wandering the room, not staying on task, speaking out of turn, bugging the other students in class, not following (multiple) directions (which is EXTREMELY hard for Bryce to accomplish), wandering the halls and being a "behavioral nuisance".

Now, someone PLEASE DO tell me, how are these "problems" that the teachers are always complaining of NOT being addressed in their correct manner? As in, with Specialized Services being readily available and in use with and for my child? How bad does it honestly have to get with his behavior and "daydreaming" for them to FINALLY take a hard look and actually GIVE HIM the services Bryce is RIGHTFULLY due?

Honestly, sometimes Public Education amazes me. And *not* in a good way, mind you. So, if I seem angry in this post, and in general, you can bet your ass I am! I'm tired of the run-arounds, the blind-eyes and the refusal to HELP my child live up to his full potential and get the best educational opportunity available.

Judging A Book By Its Cover...In This Case, Blog Posts.

Judgment. We all do it at some point in our lives. We may judge a person just by their looks or behavior. We might judge a place, just by secondhand "word of mouth" and decide to NOT go and look for ourselves. Or we judge a book, article or post by it's title, and refuse to read it because we automatically assume it's viewpoints are of a disgusting nature. And in turn, we once again base our opinion of not only the subject within the post, but we tend to judge the author as well.

This very thing happened with the previous post here on Homemaker Diary. Because someone had misread and in turn, misinterpreted the title to the post, taking it that I TRULY do believe in the nature as what the title "sounded like", I was made out to be a racist, controversy-seeking moron. When in fact, I am FAR from that "truth". And the post was named what I chose as to drive home a point. NOT to state what I truly felt.

If I honestly believed in the fashion that I had chosen for the title of my previous blog entry, then the "..." would not have surrounded the title's name. Hence I would have stated that I did indeed think/feel in that manner. But, I used the "..." to show the audacity of such a statement and show what I was about to write about.

Sadly, someone misconstrued the title with the ".." around it to mean that it was the title to the blog it's self and the statement that I really do think in the fashion of the title. And this person was only half right. And being that they flat out decided to not read the post in it's entirety, they missed out on the TRUE meaning and reflection of the post at hand. If anything, my post was speaking AGAINST such a statement. Towards ANY race/color.

If this person had swallowed their pride and not gone off half cocked, then maybe, just MAYBE they would have in the end agreed with me. Even after posting the main points from the blog its self, they still refused to read it. All because they decided blindly on the title's name.

If you wish to check out the post in reference, CLICK HERE.

This is what is wrong with the world today, in my opinion. And no, I am not innocent. Not by any means. To say otherwise would be stating an all out lie. ALL OF US are too quick to judge in this world. From skin color, to people with disabilities, to literally judging books (or in this case, blog posts) by their covers.

I lived my life with judgment all around me. Because of something I could not help. I looked different from my peers. I was not mentally challenged in any form of the word. But because I slightly looked different, with a trache in my throat, it left me open to automatic judging. Even by adults!

This is why I cannot stand ANY KIND of intolerance of any kind.Be it racial, ethnic, physically or mentally challenged, and a host of others. When you automatically "ASS"ume (which makes an ass out of U & ME) about a person, place or even an article BEFORE getting to know them or read the material, it doesn't make the offended look bad. It makes the offender look closed-minded and depending on the case, looking like a bigot and a hypocrite.

Personally, I would much rather read the article/post or get to know the person or place for MYSELF, **BEFORE** passing judgment upon it/them or making my opinion known. To do so leaves you looking less like a jackass.

This is for ANYONE, not just my "regular readers" for future reference...If you have nothing nice to say, being you are too closed-minded and/or scared to read something, be it here or on any other blogs, then here is a suggestion for you (and you the guilty, know who you are)...DO NOT SAY A WORD. Being you wish to predict what the post/article is about BEFORE reading it (if you choose to do so at all), and in turn closing yourself off to other's points of view, only to stay within your comfort zone I call Fantasy Island and not possibly gain a different perspective about the world around you.