Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Season's Greetings: A Happy New Years.

Season's Greetings: A Happy New Years.

I bid you Seasons Greetings of A Happy New Years.  Thinking of you at New Years.  May the beauty of this season and the warm thoughts of friends give you quiet joys to hold in your heart.  I wish you  a Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year.

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And auld lang syne?

For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne,
We'll tak a cup of kindness yet,
For auld lang syne!

And surely ye'll be your pint-stowp,
And surely I'll be mine,
And we'll tak a cup o kindness yet,
For auld lang syne!

For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne,
We'll tak a cup of kindness yet,
For auld lang syne!

We twa hae run about the braes,
And pou'd the gowans fine,
But we've wander'd monie a weary fit,
Sin auld lang syne.

For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne,
We'll tak a cup of kindness yet,
For auld lang syne!

We twa hae paidl'd in the burn
Frae morning sun till dine,
But seas between us braid hae roar'd
Sin auld lang syne.

For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne,
We'll tak a cup of kindness yet,
For auld lang syne!

And there's a hand my trusty fiere,
And gie's a hand o thine,
And we'll tak a right guid-willie waught,
For auld lang syne

For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne,
We'll tak a cup of kindness yet,
For auld lang syne!

 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarlRayLouk

Twitter: www.twitter.com/CarlRayLouk

MySpace:
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Have a Happy New Year

Have a Happy New Year

 

Have a Happy, have a Happy,
Have a Hap-Hap-Happy New Year!
As the bells ring out, everyone will shout,
"Happy New Year!"

Have a Happy, have a Happy--!
May each day be filled with good cheer
And with nothing less than much happiness
All through the year!


Should old acquaintence be forgot
In the days of auld lang syne?
Then take a cup of kindness,
And you will always feel just fine.


Have a Happy, have a Happy--!
Never have a worry or fear!
Here's my wish to you; hope my wish comes true,
"Happy New Year!"
Have a Happy, Happy New Year!

 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarlRayLouk

Twitter: www.twitter.com/CarlRayLouk

MySpace:
www.myspace.com/carlraylouk

Yahoo Group: Yahoo! Groups : LouksHauntedGraveyardhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/LouksHauntedGraveyard/

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Auld Lang Syne What would New Year's Eve be like without the fireworks, the Ball

Auld Lang Syne What would New Year's Eve be like without the fireworks, the Ball dropping in Times Square and singing Auld Lang Syne?
 
Another contemporary tradition, playing Auld Lang Syne (literally "old long since"), as the first song after the Ball falls, goes back to when it was first published in 1796, by Robert Burns, in Scotland, as a song of remembrance and reflection. It's the most commonly sung song for English-speakers on New Year's Eve. Guy Lombardo, who popularized this piece with his band Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians, first heard the song in his hometown of London, Ontario, sung by Scottish immigrants. From 1929-1959 his band played every New Year's at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York, with the first radio broadcast in 1929. The first televised New Year's celebration with Lombardo's band was in 1954 and continued until 1976, when they were, then, playing at the Waldorf-Astoria. Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve televised broadcast began on December 31, 1972 to bring in a "younger crowd", but, kept Lombardo's rendition of Auld Lang Syne to be the first song played in the new year. For many, not hearing it would make their New Year celebration seem "unofficial," somehow.
(Lyrics below)
Lyrics to Auld Lang Syne

 

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and auld lang syne ?
CHORUS:
For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we'll take a cup o' kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.
And surely ye'll be your pint-stoup !
And surely I'll be mine !
And we'll take a cup o' kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.
CHORUS
We twa hae run about the braes,
and pou'd the gowans fine ;
But we've wander'd mony a weary fit,
sin' auld lang syne.
CHORUS
We twa hae paidl'd in the burn,
frae morning sun till dine ;
But seas between us braid hae roar'd
sin' auld lang syne.
CHORUS
And there's a hand, my trusty fiere !
And gies a hand o' thine !
And we'll tak a right gude-willie-waught,
for auld lang syne.
CHORUS
Lyric source: Wikipedia - Auld Lang Syne

 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarlRayLouk

Twitter: www.twitter.com/CarlRayLouk

MySpace:
www.myspace.com/carlraylouk

Yahoo Group: Yahoo! Groups : LouksHauntedGraveyardhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/LouksHauntedGraveyard/

Yahoo Group: Yahoo! Groups : TheWorldAccordingtoCarlRayLouk http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheWorldAccordingtoCarlRayLouk/

New Year's - Eating Your Traditions

New Year's - Eating Your Traditions

 

If you thought that what you eat on New Year's Day was simply a matter of "that's what I've always done" - you might be right. But, your tradition might be based on centuries of belief. Many cultures prepare New Year's foods that are believed to influence good fortune; or, avoid dishes that might cause misfortune.

 

In many Spanish-speaking countries, eating one grape at each stroke leading up to midnight (12 grapes for the next calendar year), is for good luck. If the grape for the corresponding month is sweet, so goes that month. If, however, the grape is sour, don't expect a good month. Of course, no matter sweet or sour, by the stroke of midnight, unless you chew very fast, you've got a mouth full of grapes.
Ollie Bollen

 

Ollie Bollen - literally "oil balls" - are a traditional New Year's confection in Holland. These puffed doughnuts are frequently filled with currants, raisins and/or diced apples. Dutch history tells, from their Teutonic roots, that a goddess and evil spirits flew around during the winter months, slicing the bellies of all they come upon. If you were filled with Ollie Bollen, their sword would slip off - very good fortune, indeed!
New Year's food is called osechi-ryori in Japan and is, traditionally, prepared before midnight on December 31 and enjoyed until January 3. There is meaning and symbolism for each food arranged in layers of lacquered boxes - jubako. Traditional osechi (seasonal festival) dishes can include:

 

Osechi-ryori

 

datemaki - rolled sweet omelet - symbolizes knowledge
kabumaki - rolled kelp with fish - to be glad/happy
kurikinton - mashed sweet potato with chestnuts - bring wealth for the new year
kuromame - sweet black beans - symbol of health
tazukuri - small, dried sardines - good harvest
kazunoko - herring roe - hope of having many children

 

In addition, shrimp represent long life and sea bream - i.e. porgies, perch, scup, snapper, pomfret - are for an auspicious fortune. Red and white are traditional New Year's colors, symbolizing joy and peace, that are, also, part of the considerations for choosing and arranging your osechi. It's particularly fortuitous to eat long soba noodles, sucked up without breaking, indicating long life.

 

Media noche (middle of the night) in the Philippines includes 12 round fruits (representing money) for each month of the New Year. Added to the spread on their New Year's table, Filipinos believe an abundance of food that night is believed to ensure a prosperous new year.

 

Savory French-Canadian tourtiere (meat pie) can include pork, veal and/or beef, often with mashed potatoes, combined with herbs and spices, served up in a flaky crust on New Year's Day. The tradition of ingredients signifies wealth (meat), substance (potatoes) and the seasonings add the subtleties of flavor, indicating the nuances of life for the new year.
Black-Eyed Peas - Eating Your Traditions

 

Black-Eyed Peas (photo credit: Bill Koslosky, MD)
If you thought that what you eat on New Year's Day was simply a matter of "that's what I've always done" - you might be right. But, your tradition might be based on centuries of belief. Many cultures prepare New Year's foods that are believed to influence good fortune; or, avoid dishes that might cause misfortune.

 

Many cultures serve similar vegetables and meats in their New Year's Day celebrations to bring good fortune. During the time of the Pharaoh, black-eyed peas were a symbol of luck and good fortune. The belief was that those who ate black-eyes, an inexpensive and modest food, showed their humility and saved themselves from the wrath of the heavens because of the vanity they might have. In fact, black-eyed peas aren't a pea at all - they're lentils. For example, in Brazil and Italy, lentils (money) are served - in Brazil, with rice - which expands when cooked, showing increase - arroz brazileiro; and, in Italy, lentils are eaten with pork sausage, to bring abundance - cotecchino con lenticchie. Pork and sauerkraut (cabbage) are combined in Germany, Poland and Scandinavia. Cabbage represents the green leaves of money.

 

Similarly, throughout Southern United States, black-eyed peas in some variation, with or without ham hocks, and greens have inspired such dishes as Hoppin' John, that combines peas, rice and ham. As the story goes, black-eyed peas were used exclusively for cattle feed in the old South. During the battle of Vicksburg during the Civil War, the town was under siege for over 40 days. No supplies came in or out. Vicksburg was on the edge of starvation. The people had no choice but to eat those black-eyed peas, therefore starting a southern tradition. Today, black-eyes are eaten every New Year's Day to bring good luck for the new year.

 

There are, however, beliefs that exclude some foods as bad luck. These include lobsters, they move backwards and chickens, that scratch in reverse. Eating these on New Year's day might cause a reversal of fortune.

 

Celebrating New Year's Day with family, friends and food is a time-honored tradition that has included symbols of prosperity and good fortune. Enjoy "what you've always done" and, perhaps, add a new tradition in your New Year.

 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarlRayLouk

Twitter: www.twitter.com/CarlRayLouk

MySpace:
www.myspace.com/carlraylouk

Yahoo Group: Yahoo! Groups : LouksHauntedGraveyardhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/LouksHauntedGraveyard/

Yahoo Group: Yahoo! Groups : TheWorldAccordingtoCarlRayLouk http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheWorldAccordingtoCarlRayLouk/

Celebrating New Years: When January 1st isn't New Year's Day Globally, people ce

Celebrating New Years:
When January 1st isn't New Year's Day
Globally, people celebrate the coming of a new year with many traditions, customs and activities. However, not all cultures celebrate New Year's Day on January 1st.

 

Japan
 
In Japan, every February 3 or 4, based on the lunar calendar, Setsubun is celebrated. Although not a national holiday, Setsubun ("sectional/seasonal division") has marked the last day of winter since the 13th century and is one day prior to the beginning of Spring, signifying a new year with the return of the warming sun, symbolic rebirth, rejuvenation of spirit and body, and preparing for the planting season. Setsubun traditions have been celebrated in many ways; the most common, however, is throwing beans - Mame Maki - to drive away evil spirits - oni. The Toshi Otoko/Onna - year man/woman - throws mame - beans - inside their home (or, perhaps, at someone dressed as an oni), while shouting, "Oniwa sato, fukuwa uchi!" - "Devils out, good luck/happiness in!" After the beans are thrown, family members pick up and eat the same number of beans as their age, bringing good health, luck and fortune for the new year.

 

Vietnam
 
Vietnamese New Year - Tet Nguyen-Dan; Tet - is also based on the lunar calendar and most often occurs in late January or early/mid February. Tet Nguyen-Dan, literally translated, is "the first morning of the first day of the new period." Believing that the first day and the first week of the new year determines your fortune (or misfortune); weeks of preparations are made including thoroughly cleaning your home (perhaps, even repainting it), buying new clothes, and settling debts and past arguments. Tet is the most important holiday within the Vietnamese culture, with New Year's traditions lasting at least three days, beginning with New Year's Eve - Giao Thua, to give/to receive - acting as the transition between the old and the new. Families gather to wait until midnight, praying together and then congratulating each other, beginning with the eldest members of the family. Traditionally, huge strings of fireworks, attached to houses, shattered midnight, scaring away evil spirits. Now illegal in many countries, community fireworks replace individual displays. Banging pots, ringing bells and making noise in all sorts of manner also adds to the clatter. Family alters are perfumed with incense sticks and offerings of fresh flowers, food and water are made. With the morning of Mong Mot Tet - New Year's Day - new clothes continue to signify new beginnings, as greeting of "Chuc mung nam moi!" - "Congratulations for the New Year!" - are exchanged between family members, friends and business associates.

 

China

 

The 15-day Chinese New Year is celebrated on the second new moon (lunar) after the Winter Solstice (solar) - occurring between January 20-February 20 - culminating with the Lantern Festival. Preparing begins weeks ahead - buying presents, decorations, food and new clothes. Houses are cleaned to sweep away bad luck; and, old debts are settled before the last day of the old year. New Year's Eve and New Year's Day celebrations are primarily family affairs, with members gathering for their meal on New Year's Eve. Traditionally, if a family member couldn't attend this meal, a place was set for them, representing their presence. At midnight, younger family members pay their respect to elders and parents. New Year's Day, children are given "Red Envelopes" - Lai See - red envelopes with good luck money by their parents. Each day - from the 2nd to the 14th - traditional observations are made - such as married daughters visiting their parents, eating specific foods and offering particular prayers. The Lion Dance is particularly common during Chinese New Year, as tradition believes that the loud drums and cymbals, combined with the fierce image of the Lion/dragon evicts evil spirits. On the last day of the Chinese New Year's celebration, lanterns are lit and carried to show spirits the way home.

 

Persia/Iran

 

On the first day of spring, marked by the Vernal Equinox, the two-week celebration of the Persian/Iranian New Year - Nowruz, NoRuz, NoRooz, Noruz - "new day" - begins. Occurring between March 20 to 22, Nowruz activities include symbolic gestures, such as - cleaning your home, confessing wrong-doings, making peace with yourself and your enemies; and, enjoying parties with ceremonial foods. Representing the end of one year and the rebirth of a new year, making or buying new clothes and germinating seeds are signs of renewal. Within Persian homes a special cloth is spread on which to make the sofreh-ye haft-sinn - seven dishes - setting. The number seven is sacred within the Iranian culture and the dishes represent the seven heralds of beauty, happiness, health, joy, life, patience and prosperity. Included on the sofreh there are traditional books- for wisdom, coins - for wealth, painted eggs - for fertility, an orange floating in a bowl of water - representing the earth; and a goldfish in its own bowl - representing life. Branches of olive, fig and pomegranate symbolize time. A mirror, surrounded by a candle for each child in that family - signifying happiness and enlightenment, reflects the Creation that's celebrated on the first day of Spring - Nowruz. On the night of the last Wednesday of Nowruz, bonfires are set and people jump over the fires, shouting, "Give me your red color and take back my pallor!" Jumping through the fire - symbolizing good - the celebrants pass through the end of the year into Spring.

 

Sri Lanka

 

A calculation, based on astrological signs, determines the New Year - Aluth Avurudhu - in mid-April for Sri Lankans. Unique to these celebrations, when the old year ends and the new year begins is, also, astrologically determined - occurring several hours apart. This "in between time" is, appropriately, called nona gathe - neutral period - when refraining from material pursuits is encouraged and participating religious traditions is customary. Rituals include house cleaning, lighting of the hearth, making milk rice - kiri bath, and herbal bathing on the last day of the passing year. Strengthening family relationships - between parents and children - and respecting elders is a foundation of New Year customs. Exchanging gifts of betel and sweets and greetings between families and neighbors shows gratitude for the old year and re-confirms the desire for continued prosperity and peace in the new year.

 

India
 
April 13th or 14th marks the beginning of the solar New Year in Indian and is regionally celebrated in Punjab (Sikh) - Baisakhi; Assam - Rongali Bihu; Bengal - Naba Barsha; Tamil Nadu - Puthandu; Keral - Vishu; and, Bihar - Vaishakha. Ritual baths and visiting temples to give thanks for a good harvest and to prayer for future prosperity are similarly celebrated within each region. Following the customary prayers, traditional dancing is performed by men and women, who are elaborately dressed. Processions, mock duels and fairs are, also, shared customs. However, each region has its special interpretations of their shared celebrations. For example, Tamil New Year's Day is celebrated at the start of the first month of the Tamil calendar year - Chithirai. It is, also, celebrated as the day when the Hindu God of Creation, Lord Brahma, started creation. Auspicious sightings - kanni - is important because to begin a New Year by seeing such things as silver and gold, flowers, fruits, vegetables and rice will ensure happiness and prosperity for the coming year. All regions share wearing new clothes, the preparations particular feast foods and long and joyous gatherings to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new.

 

Maori

 

In the southern hemisphere, late May to early June is mid-winter. The Maori New Year,
Matariki - the Maori name for the star cluster Pleiades - celebrates this as a time of remembrance for those who have died and, since the harvest is done and food has been collected, it is, also, a time for celebration. Rising only once during the year, Matariki - literally "eyes of god" - is a period of feasting and new beginnings. Traditionally, kites - pakau - were flown, because they were closer to the stars. How bright or hazy the stars are, also, foretold if a warmer or colder planting season; and, therefore, a better harvest yield.

 

Globally, people celebrate the coming of a new year with many traditions, customs and activities. However, not all cultures and religions celebrate New Year's Day on January 1st.

 

Baha'i

 

Known as Naw Ruz or "New Day", the first day of the Baha'i new year occurs on the Vernal Equinox (the first day of Spring). Baha'is fast for nineteen days leading up to the holiday. The fast is broken on the morning of Naw Ruz with Baha'is taking part in a great feast. Many with tables are decorated with Haft Sin; fruits, cakes and colored eggs. The celebration corresponds with the Persian/Iranian New Year, also known as Nowruz, NoRuz, NoRooz, or Noruz.

 

Hindu

 

Traditions celebrating the Hindu Deepawali/Diwali in mid-October to mid-November, (according to the position of the moon) vary from region to region. However, the universal theme of the triumph of Good/Light over Evil/Darkness is the foundation for all observances. Before Deepawali, people decorate and light their homes with diyas - lamps, prepare sweets and buy new clothes. Literally meaning "rows of diyas," Diwali - Festival of Lights - symbolizes victory of righteousness and the lifting of spiritual darkness. Homes are spruced up and cleaned and decorative designs are painted on walls and floors. Relatives gather, offering prayers and giving sweets. Celebrated over five days, each day is dedicated to a special philosophy or ideal.

 

Islam

 

The Islamic New Year begins on the first day of the first month (Muharram) of the Islamic calendar and is known as 1 Muharram. It is generally observed with quiet reflection and prayers.

 

Jewish

 

Rosh Hashanah, New Years Day on the Jewish calendar, begins a 10 day period known as the High Holy Days - a time of penitence and prayer that ends with Yom Kippur. The holiday is observed the first and second day of the month of Tishri, usually falling during September. It is believed that on Rosh Hashanah the destiny of all mankind is recorded by G-d in the Book of Life. On Yom Kippur the Book is closed and sealed. Those that have repented for their sins are granted a good and happy New Year.
The centuries of customs and traditions, prayers, offerings and joyful celebrations that have marked the ending of one year and the beginning of a new year encircles the earth throughout the calendar. Good fortune! Great prosperity! Happy New Year!

 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarlRayLouk

Twitter: www.twitter.com/CarlRayLouk

MySpace:
www.myspace.com/carlraylouk

Yahoo Group: Yahoo! Groups : LouksHauntedGraveyardhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/LouksHauntedGraveyard/

Yahoo Group: Yahoo! Groups : TheWorldAccordingtoCarlRayLouk http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheWorldAccordingtoCarlRayLouk/

Celebrating New Year's Eve What would New Year's Eve be like without the firewor

Celebrating New Year's Eve What would New Year's Eve be like without the fireworks, the Ball dropping in Times Square, singing Auld Lang Syne and rockin' out with Dick Clark?

 

Prior to 1904, New Year's Eve was celebrated in Herald Square with much less pomp and partying. However, several innovations transformed New York that year: the invention of neon lights, the opening of New York's first subway line; and the first celebration of New Year's Eve in Times Square.

 

The New York Times had just completed building the Times Tower on an isolated triangle of land at the intersection of 7th Avenue, Broadway and 42nd Street - dubbed the "Crossroads of the World" - where commerce and culture collided. The newspaper's owner, Alfred Ochs, had successfully convinced the city to rename Longacre Square, the district surrounding the paper's new home, in honor of the his publication. On December 31, 1904, Ochs' new building was the focus of an unparalleled New Year's Eve celebration. An all-day festival concluded in a fireworks display ignited from the base of the tower. At midnight the raucous sound of cheering from over 200,000 merry makers was the genesis of a new tradition.

 

However, two years later, the city banned the fireworks because they were too dangerous. Ochs was not deterred. He arranged to have an illuminated seven-hundred-pound iron and wood ball to be lowered from the tower flagpole (77 feet, 23 meters) precisely at midnight to signal the end of 1907. In 1914, The New York Times outgrew Times Tower and relocated to West 43rd Street. By then, however, New Year's Eve in Times Square had become part of our tradition.

 

The use of a "time ball" by Ochs wasn't arbitrary and dates to 1829, when the first was erected in Portsmouth, England, as a way for sailors to synchronize their marine chronometers and, thereby, determining their marine position. Ochs, simply, converted that daily convention to signal the passage of time to be part of his annual tradition - and it stuck! The Ball drop has become a kind of metaphor for marking our own "positions" - where were we last year; where will we be next year?

 

In 1942 and 1943, the Ball - as it's become known - was temporarily eliminated due to the World War II "lights out" in New York. Celebrants who continued to gather in Times Square during those years greeted the New Year with a moment of silence followed by the chimes from Times Tower.

 

Today's Time Square New Year's Eve Ball was designed by Waterford Crystal and has been used since the ringing in of 2000. The Ball is a geodesic sphere, six feet in diameter, weighing 1,070 pounds. Covered with a total of 504 Waterford crystal triangles, ranging from 4.75" to 5.75", the outside of the Ball includes 90 computer-controlled rotating pyramid mirrors, able to reflect light across Times Square.

 

Today, New Year's Eve in Times Square is a phenomenon, with hundreds of thousands of people continuing to gather at the Time Tower, now known as One Times Square, waiting in the New York winter. Thanks to satellite technology, a global audience, estimated at over one billion people, watches this ceremony each year.

 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

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Celebrating January 1st as New Year's Day......but not always

Celebrating January 1st as New Year's Day......but not always

 

While most of the world now celebrates New Year's Day on January 1st, it was not always that way. If you had lived in Mesopotamia and Babylon 4,000 years ago (c. 2000 B.C.), you probably would have celebrated the new year in mid-March, at the time of the Vernal (Spring) Equinox. If, however, you were an Egyptian, your new year began with the Autumnal Equinox and the flooding of the Nile. If you were Greek, the Winter Solstice began your new year celebrations. All these seasons reflected a time of renewal, re-birth and regeneration. However, it was secular, civic and religious influences that eventually changed most "new year" celebrations to January 1st.

 

Measuring time was, historically, determined by the easily observed cycles of the sun (solar), the moon (lunar) and of the regular occurrences of seasonal events that influenced agriculture. However, since solar, lunar and seasonal events were not consistent, formulating a reliable calendar evolved over eons.

 

The earliest known Roman calendar designated March as the beginning of the new year, on the Vernal Equinox - the beginning of spring and a time when warring could begin, again. Depending upon whether one focuses on Mars or Martius as the derivation of that month's name, either interpretation is acceptable, as the return of spring begins a new crop season; and, with the winter ending, the weather was favorable for moving troops. Their calendar had ten named months, reflected in the historic, numerical names of six of the months. The origin of the names of the months were:

 

March - Mars, Roman god of war; or, Martius - Roman god of fertility and vegetation

 

April - perhaps derived from aperire - Latin from open; or, from Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty
 
May - Maia, Roman goddess of spring

 

June - Juno, principle Roman goddess of marriage and the well-being of women

 

July - originally Quintilis, Latin for 5th month, renamed for Julius Caesar in 44 B.C.

 

August - originally, Sextilis, Latin for 6th month, renamed for Augustus Caesar in 8 B.C.

 

September - septem, Latin for 7
 
October - octo, Latin for 8

 

November - novem, Latin for 9

 

December - decem, Latin for 10

 

Before 700 B.C. the calendar year began with the month of March, until the second king of Rome, Numa Pontilius, added the month of January and February. The month of January was named to honor Janus, a Roman god with two faces - one looking back and the other looking forward, signifying the old and the new. February is derived from Februa, the Roman festival of purification.

 

The new year was, eventually, moved from March to January because it was the start of the civil year, when elected consuls, the highest officials in the Roman republic, began their tenure.

 

Nevertheless, this new year date was not always observed, and in many places within the Roman empire, the new year continued to be celebrated on March 1.

 

In 46 B.C. Julius Caesar introduced a new, solar-based calendar that was an improvement on the ancient Roman calendar, which was lunar-based and had become inaccurate over the years. A lunar-based calendar is founded on the cycles of the moon - the synodic period. However, there is variation in the precise time for a specific lunation - the time between successive new moons - from 29 days, 6 hours, 35 minutes to 29 days, 19 hours, 55 minutes. Therefore, cumulatively, any lunar-based calendar will be "adding" time over any prolonged period. The Julian calendar, named for Julius Caesar, decreed that the new year would occur on January 1st. Julius wanted the year to begin in January since it celebrated the beginning of the civil year and the festival of the god of gates and, eventually, the god of all beginnings, Janus, after whom it was named. Combining these two celebrations joined the civil and the religious/pagan fetis, the genesis of the word festival.

 

Romans traditionally exchanged gifts - strenae - of good omen on January 1, the Kalends (root of the word calendar) of January. These gifts included sweet dates, honey and coins. In addition, it was the beginning of the one year term for the consuls, who had a procession on January 1 and, also, wanted a good omen for their tenure.
With Constantine (274-337 A.D.), the first Christian Roman emperor, New Year's evolved into a day of fasting rather than feasting, as had become the custom to celebrate Janus.
In medieval Europe, however, the celebrations accompanying the new year were considered to have become pagan and unChristian. In 567, the Roman Catholic church, at the Second Council of Tours in France, abolished January 1 as the beginning of the year. Thereafter, at different times and in various places throughout medieval Christian Europe, the new year was celebrated on Dec. 25, the birth of Jesus; March 1; March 25, the Feast of the Annunciation; and Easter, which continues to be based on the lunar calendar.
In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII re-established January 1 as new year's day with calendar reform. Today the Gregorian calendar has become the international standard for civil use. Although most Catholic countries adopted the Gregorian calendar, it was only gradually adopted among Protestant countries, who didn't recognize the Pope as their ecclesiastical leader. The British, for example, did not adopt the reformed calendar until 1752. Until then, the British Empire, and its' colonies, continued to celebrate the new year in March. In the beginning years of British America, Puritans disavowed any new year observances at all. Still associating any celebrations with pagan traditions, Puritans wouldn't speak the word "January," calling it "The First Month" because of the association with the pagan god, Janus.

 

Given the various measures of time and the influence of power and the persistence of belief, the history of new year has been determined by shifts in liturgical, civic, religious, lunar, solar and seasonal variations. However, by all accounts, celebrating New Year's has been, and continues to be, a time of rejuvenation and renewal, whether reflected upon quietly, with piousness or with days of feasting and frivolity.

 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

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GOP Must Strike While Obamacare Iron Is Hot David Limbaugh | Dec 31, 2013

GOP Must Strike While Obamacare Iron Is Hot

David Limbaugh | Dec 31, 2013
David Limbaugh
When it comes to health care, Republicans need to strike while the iron is hot, and it is white-hot now -- and will probably get worse -- because of the Obamacare disaster.

The nation's health insurance rolls are hemorrhaging with Obamacare-forced cancellations, and new sign-ups are dreadfully slow -- and not just because of the disgraceful website glitches. People don't want what Obama's offering, er, mandating, and they're not buying what he's selling (at gunpoint).

On Sunday morning, the White House quietly issued a statement revealing that only 1.1 million people have signed up for Obamacare on the federal website. An additional 1 million have signed up on states' websites, but even adding these enrollees, the administration is woefully short of its stated goal of 3.3 million enrollments by Dec. 31 and has less than a third of its targeted 7 million number by March 31. But that's just the good news.

We don't even have information -- because the government won't provide it -- on how many of the allegedly 1.1 million new federal enrollees are actually assured of coverage. All we know is that these people have selected the plans they want on the website; we don't know whether they've paid for them or whether the insurance companies have accepted them for coverage.

The administration's obscure Sunday statement provided no information as to the demographics and income levels of those enrollees. The financial feasibility of Obamacare depends on the participation of the "young invincibles" -- young, healthy people whom this despotic government will soak for premiums to subsidize the sick and elderly. The administration is shrewdly guarding this data because it knows it can't afford more bad news, and these skewed sign-up patterns would mean that premiums would likely jump again in 2014.

The administration also conspicuously failed to mention that Obamacare forced cancellation of the plans of about 5 million people, which leaves a net loss of some 3 million insured. Reportedly, close to 2 million others signed up for Medicaid coverage, but that will just further tax that underfunded system and the federal budget and will do nothing to help fund the Obamacare mandated plans.

It bears repeating that these forced cancellations were no accident. Nor were they mere collateral damage the administration couldn't avoid en route to its socialized medicine utopia. They were deviously planned by the administration because they were necessary for Obamacare's numbers to work.

Despite Obama's repeated lies, the cancellations were premeditated in order to compel people to obtain more expensive plans through the federal website -- to cover things they aren't even at risk for -- and for the federal government to be able to use the premium windfalls to subsidize other people's health insurance costs. Obamacare was never about improving access to health care, reducing health care costs or improving the quality of care. It was an elaborate government-imposed Ponzi scheme for wealth redistribution and to establish another behemoth federal infrastructure for the government to control never-before-imagined aspects of our everyday lives.

As 2014 unfolds, expect further bad news from Obamacare as the other shoe drops on employer-provided plans.

In the midst of this White House news dump, Nero fiddles; Obama is enjoying another extended vacation and playing golf to his heart's delight. Even his once-fawning liberal press acknowledged that he seemed to be without energy and disengaged as he was leaving for vacation.

By all accounts and from all quarters, from former White House press secretary Robert Gibbs to former knee-tingler Chris Matthews, Obama had his worst year in 2013 -- and that's saying something. His approval ratings continue to hang at all-time lows. Support for Obamacare has reached a record low. A new CNN poll shows that Obama is even losing his own base over Obamacare. Democratic senators are complaining that Obama's personality makes it difficult to work with him. Others, along with Democratic congressmen, want to distance themselves from him as the 2014 elections approach.

When I said Republicans should strike while the iron is hot, I meant they need to hammer Obama daily for the damage he's causing to the American people on Obamacare alone. They need to feed Americans the facts as relentlessly as Obama has campaigned to force-feed us this nightmare.

And they need to immediately pass in the House, with great fanfare, a comprehensive health care reform bill containing the myriad market-based reforms they've proposed over the past few years -- from tort reform to ending discriminatory tax treatment for employer-provided plans to expanding health savings accounts to reducing government mandates to ending prohibition on consumers crossing state lines to buy insurance to supporting retail health clinics to providing vouchers for the working poor and chronically uninsured.

Passing such a bill would not keep Obama from lying that Republicans have no alternative plan, but it would give them something tangible with which to counter and showcase his lie.

Republicans have much work to do. We are in a war for the survival of the country as we know it, and in order to save it, we need to fight with the same relentless intensity as Obama and his forces are fighting to destroy it.

David Limbaugh

David Limbaugh

David Limbaugh, brother of radio talk-show host Rush Limbaugh, is an expert in law and politics and author of new book Crimes Against Liberty, the definitive chronicle of Barack Obama's devastating term in office so far.

©Creators Syndicate
 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarlRayLouk

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