Merry christmas

[Warped]

Wishing you all a merry christmas and a happy new year !

[Artemis]

Thanks, Warped!

Merry Chrsitmas to all!!

[chaos]

The best to all.

[Bandit72]

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year everyone

[Juana]

Indeed hope everyone has a happy and safe holiday season. For me not being able to party most of the year, I will be proper smashed and posting nonsense after the festivities.

[Larry B.]

Have a great time, all

[Artemis]

[perkana]

Feliz Navidad Wish you lots of love, health and why not, money too

[guysmiley]

Merry Xmas. Here's a candid movement with the Colonel and me enjoying a bottle of bourbon on the streets of Japan.

[Artemis]

Those are fantastic, guysmiley!

I happen to have some Wild Turkey...I'll have a shot in your honour!

Merii Kurisumasu !

[sinep]

OH SNAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Warped]

@guysmiley

My son is afraid to leave the house today because he thinks he'll miss Santa ringing and bringing the christmas gifts...

[nausearockpig]

happy santa day everyone.. now it's a countdown till they crucify the easter bunny again...

[SR]

Happy day all!

[mockbee]

@guysmiley

My son is afraid to leave the house today because he thinks he'll miss Santa ringing and bringing the christmas gifts...

You don't have the same story as the Dutch where St Nick is some skinny dude who dresses as the pope and has 6-8 black guys helping him, bagging bad childen and beating them and bringing them back to Spain............ where he lives!! ...........................do you? .....................................

In the Netherlands and Belgium, Saint Nicholas' Eve (5 December) is the primary occasion for gift-giving, when his reputed birthday is celebrated.

In the days leading up to 5 December (starting when Saint Nicholas has arrived by steamboat in late November), young children put their shoes in front of the chimneys and sing Sinterklaas songs. Often they put a carrot or some hay in the shoes, as a gift to St. Nicholas' horse. (In recent years the horse has been named Amerigo in The Netherlands and Slechtweervandaag in Flanders.) The next morning they will find a small present in their shoes, ranging from sweets to marbles or some other small toy. On the evening of 5 December, Sinterklaas brings presents to every child who has behaved well in the past year (in practice, just as with Santa Claus, all children receive gifts without distinction). This is often done by placing a bag filled with presents outside the house or living room, after which a neighbour or parent bangs the door or window, pretending to be Sinterklaas' assistant. Another option is to hire or ask someone to dress up as Sinterklaas and deliver the presents personally. Sinterklaas wears a bishop's robes including a red cape and mitre and is assisted by many mischievous helpers with black faces and colourful Moorish dress, dating back two centuries. These helpers are called 'Zwarte Pieten' ("Black Petes") or "Père Fouettard" in the French-speaking part of Belgium.

The myth is that, if a child had been naughty, the Zwarte Pieten put all the naughty children in sacks, and Sinterklaas took them to Spain (it is believed that Sinterklaas comes from Spain, where he returns after 5 December). Therefore, many Sinterklaas songs still allude to a watching Zwarte Piet and a judging Sinterklaas.

In the past number of years, there has been a recurrent discussion about the perceived politically incorrect nature of the Moorish helper. In particular Dutch citizens with backgrounds from Suriname and the Netherlands Antilles might feel offended by the Dutch slavery history connected to this emblem and regard the Zwarte Pieten to be racist. Others state that the black skin color of Zwarte Piet originates in his profession as a chimneysweep, hence the delivery of packages though the chimney. [21]