Happy New Year!

(8 am. – promoted by ek hornbeck)

Happy Celtic New Year! (1) aka Samhain or Oiche Shamhna! A time for

fondly remembering those who have crossed over before us. And here’s a

little secret: if you set an extra place at the table and whisper the

names of your dead loved ones tonight, they’ll come calling and sit

down to dinner with you. So make sure you don’t accidentally whisper

the names of those  relatives you hated when they were alive, or

you’re stuck with them for the evening.

You’ll be wanting a rousing good tale to share around the fireplace

with your guests (both the living and the biologically-challenged).

Nothing’s finer than the tale of the Second Battle of Maigh Tuireadh

[“Moy Toorah”], which took place on Samhain,  in which the children of

the goddess Danu fought a desperate battle against the invading

Fomori:

http://www.ucc.ie/celt/publish…

This tale has it all: a hunky hero with superpowers named Lugh(2); a

god called The Dagda doin’ sexy times with an Irish valkyrie called

The Morrigan(3); and even a giant Cyclops with a laser-beam eye! Fun

for the whole family.

Y’all are on your own for a booze selection to go with your

festivities. Crusty’s teeing up a dry Manhattan. Message to the

biologically-challenged who are thinking of stopping by Chez Crusty

tonight: BYOB!

Notes:

(1)     technically it’s “year end”, not “new year”. When our modern year

ends at 11:59:59 on 12/31, our new year starts immediately. When the

Celtic year ended at Samhain, the new year didn’t start until Beltaine

in May. I’m still trying to sort out how that worked.

(2)     When Lugh went against the Fomori cyclops Balor, he struck out

Balor’s laser-beam eye, which flew out of Balor’s head and bounced

around the battlefield, slaying many of Balor’s own men with its

uncontrolled blasts of fire. The first recorded “friendly-fire”

incident.

3. They weren’t just having a godly good time here; the Dagda was

trying (successfully) to persuade The Morrigan to reveal the Formori

battle plans. Why was The Morrigan, who was a warrior woman and one

tough cookie after all, willing to sell out the Formori for a romp in

the hay with The Dagda? Well, tradition teaches us that The Dagda,

like Sheriff Bart, was, umm, “gifted in certain areas.” After having a

rollicking good time with The Morrigan, the Dagda knocked off an

enormous cauldron of thick stew, gave a heroic belch, scratched his

arse, and charged into the battle, where his enormous battle club laid

waste to many of the Fomori. All in a normal day’s work for The Dagda,

apparently. Now THAT is a god worth worshiping!