VirtualTourist Member GracesTrips Best World Travel Deals
Sponsored Links |
 GracesTrips' Albums | | | |
|
| Page Views: 520 | American Holidays! by GracesTrips - last update: Sep 28, 2008 |
| My rendition of pumpkin carving! |
Halloween is celebrated on October 31st. This is a working holiday, no day off from work or school. I don't even know the true history behind how this holiday began. When I was growing up, I knew to dress up in a costume and we would go to school. We would participate in a costume contest. In the evenings, we would go door to door in our neighborhood to collect candy. We would knock on the door and yell "Trick or treat"!. So, technically, we should have received one or the other. But, traditionally we received a treat. The costumes we wore were of bunny rabbits, bumble bees, clowns, ballerinas, fireman, a gray-haired old woman, etc. But to be a purest in celebrating the holiday, you would dress up really scary such as Dracula, a witch, a ghost or mummy. Many people feel that the holiday celebrates evil or the devil and do not participate. Some schools today will not allow you to dress up in costume. In Los Angeles, there are many night clubs that will sponsor a costume contest for a cash prize. |
| Thanksgiving Dinner in 2006 |
|  | Thanksgiving Day is coming up. It is always celebrated on the fourth Thursday in the month of November. This is a national holiday in the United States. Most people do not have to work and there is no school. Most government agencies and banks are closed. The celebration is to commerate the original colonists who occupied and settled here in the US as they feasted with the native American Indians. Well, that's the way we learned it in school. So, my feeling is that it went something like that. Today, it's a day to feast with family and friends. A traditional Thanksgiving meal will consist of a roasted turkey, stuffing, mash potatoes and gravy, yams, green beans and finished up with a pumpkin pie for dessert. I like to substitute the green beans with asparagus and instead of pumpkin pie, prepare a sweet potato cheesecake. The meal starts off with a small appetizer and champagne. A small bowl of creamy butternut squash soup with a dollup of sour cream and garnished with chopped parsley to follow. A glass of Cabernet Sauvingnon or Syrah served with the Turkey dinner. For me, this is a culinary treat! You don't eat all day. The day is spent preparing the dinner and watching football (not soccer). Dinner might be served as early as 4 or 5 pm. Yum! You make soooo much food that you have leftovers for days. Turkey salad sandwiches are good the next day. My boss likes to make Turkey and rice soup with his leftovers. Photos will be posted after the holiday. |
Another reason to spend money! Christmas is my favorite holiday! Always celebrated on December 25th. This is not exclusive to the United States. Christmas is celebrated all over the world. Until I was a teenager, I did not know this was a Christian celebration. When I was growing up, my mom and dad bought a silver aluminum "Christmas" tree along with a rotating colored light fixture which was placed on the floor to illuminate the tree. We hung shiny ornaments from the branches and two gifts were placed under the tree, one for me and one for my brother. On Christmas eve at midnight, we would open the gifts from my parents. Then we hurried off to bed because Santa Claus would be coming and would also leave us a present but only if we were sleeping. So, we did. The next morning on our patio barbecue (because we did not have a fireplace in the house), there would be 2 more gifts wrapped in unfamiliar wrapping paper. Wow, these gifts were always the best! I believed in Santa Claus until I was 12 years old when my mother told me Santa would not be leaving gifts anymore for Christmas. What! This really threw me for a loop! I truly believed in Santa Claus. Oh well, I got over it. It wasn't until I was invited to attend a church service by my friends now and then that I realized this was a religious holiday. Today, I buy a real tree, preferably a Noble Fir and we decorate it with lights and ornaments. I have hundreds and hundreds of ornaments, not one of them the same. I decorate the entire house with Christmas knick knacks here and there. Mostly, snowmen and santas. At the beginning of December, I prepare a letter with all of our adventures during the year and send them with a seasons greeting card. Hopefully, my gift shopping is almost all done before December is upon us. This is the opportunity for me to spoil my family and friends. We prepare a wonderful meal and we open many, many presents. The look of joy on someone's face when you give them a gift that they were not expecting or have wanted all along is just priceless! I love doing that for someone. My daughter, last year, gave me the dvd, "Something About Mary". I could not stop laughing for at least 5 minutes! My boyfriend couldn't understand why I thought this was so funny. This was a big joke at home. Over the years, I would say, "You wanna watch a movie?" Amy would say "Sure, what do you want to see?" I would say, "How about Something about Mary?" Amy would reply, "How many times do I have to tell you we don't have that movie." I would then be disappointed and say, "One of these days, I have to buy that movie, it just cracks me up!" And a few months later, it would happen again. So, this was a great gift that I received from her. | | | My sister-in-law's Christmas display on her buffet |
|
New Year's day is a major holiday celebrated on January 1st. Most people don't work on this day. Most stores, banks, government agencies and restaurants are closed this day. Here in the US, the morning is spent watching the Rose Parade on television. The Rose Parade has always taken place in Pasadena, California. One of the criteria for the floats in the parade is that every visible spot on the float must be covered with a real plant. Flowers, seeds, grass, bark, etc. If the 1st. of January lands on a Sunday, the Rose Parade will take place on Monday. The parade begins at 8am and usually ends by 10am. The rest of the day is spent doing pretty much nothing. The Rose Bowl football game (college teams) will start at 3pm and is always televised. This is not an extremely exciting holiday but a nice day off to recuperate from the Christmas holiday. |
Valentine's Day is a pretty important holiday here in the USA. Always celebrated on February 14th. It's a day to profess your love to your spouse/significant other, family members and friends. Traditionally, cards are sent. Flowers and candy in heart shaped boxes are given as gifts. As a kid in school (back in the 60's), we would make our own Valentine cards for each of our classmates. The cards would say, "Please be my Valentine". We would also make our own Valentine "envelope" to collect these cards in. Today, lots of money is spent on this holiday. Gifts have become more extravagant such as giving jewelry. Going out to dinner is also a must, better make those reservations during the first week of January. If you do send flowers, order them early in January, as well. Two dozen roses in January cost $120. A week before the 14th will cost you $180. It's been said that this holiday was created by "Hallmark" to promote the sales of their greeting cards. Hmmm, I don't think so but it wouldn't surprise me.
St. Patrick's Day is traditionally an Irish holiday. But since many Irish migrated here to the states, the USA adopted this holiday by acknowledging it on our calendars on March 17th. So, Americans across the United States will enjoy a corn beef and cabbage meal, maybe have a pint or two and wear some sort of green for the day otherwise your entitled to get pinched! Fun! | | |
Easter is mainly a religious holiday and will be celebrated on March 23rd this year. Since I grew up without religion, my family celebrated Easter much differently. Easter is celebrated on a Sunday. It's determined by the Full Moon if it's towards the end of March or beginning of April. Most schools have a Spring Break (usually a week) during the time of Easter. For me Easter was about coloring hard boiled eggs. Then the eggs would be hidden in the backyard by our parents. We would have Easter baskets filled with candy and we would hunt for the hidden eggs to add to our basket. When my daughter was small, she and her cousins would participate in this Easter egg hunt. However, we included several plastic eggs that contained money and candy. Then the rest of the day is spent relaxing and a special meal is prepared for dinner which typically includes a baked ham. Of course, many families across the United States will celebrate Easter much differently, at a different time or not at all depending on their religious beliefs. |
Mother's Day is celebrated on the second Sunday in May which makes it May 11th this year. To acknowledge all Moms in the world for how wonderful, important and appreciated they are! It's typical to remember your mother by giving her a card, a gift or having a special meal. When I was younger, my mom would prefer we clean the house for her on this day. Of course, that didn't sound like much fun for us. Sometimes, we would fix breakfast for our mom or make (in school) cigar boxes with macaroni shells glued on and painted with gold spray paint.
Memorial Day is celebrated on the last Monday in the Month of May. This is a national holiday and most people do not have to work on this day. It's a day to remember our loved ones who have passed away. Most people will have family and friends over for a barbecue. It's kind of the first day to kick off the start of summer.
Father's Day is celebrated on the 3rd Sunday in the month of June which makes it June 15th this year. Like Mother's Day, we acknowledge all Dads in the world for how wonderful, important and appreciated they are (sound familiar?)! Usually, Dads like to spend their day doing nothing and having peace and quiet throughout the day. A burger or thick, juicy steak from the grill and a beer is an ideal meal! Dads don't expect much for gifts. You can't go wrong with the gift of chocolate, any kind of alcohol or electronic gadget.
Fourth of July is celebrated on July 4th (go figure). We celebrate the anniversary of our independence from England. This is a national holiday and most people do not have to work on this day. The day is spent relaxing, grilling food and enjoying fireworks in the evening. Today, most cities in Southern California ban the use of fireworks. You could attend a fireworks show but they are starting to become scarce. |
Labor Day is celebrated on the first Monday in September. This is also a national holiday and most people do not have to work on this day. It comes at the end of summer and it's the last opportunity for a final excursion before the fall session of school begins. Those that decide to stay home that weekend, will take a trip to the beach or have a backyard barbecue. |
| GracesTrips' Albums | | | |
|
 Comments for GracesTrips about World | | | | |
ViajesdelMundo Sun Oct 12, 2008 01:53 UTC
I well know how it is--take a good book! Buen Viajes! | jumpingnorman Sat Oct 11, 2008 18:18 UTC
Wow! Thailand --- pleaaaase take me along...hehehe...Have Fun! and e-mail when you're there :jumpingnorman and family | JSki Mon Oct 6, 2008 01:32 UTC
Thanks for the B-Day Wish Grace! How about our boy Brett?! He's doing so well snubbing those mean old Packers! | gugi66 Sat Oct 4, 2008 09:56 UTC
Hello Grace. Thanks for the early b-wishes, I hope you have a wonderful time in Thailand. Pelé |
|
|
email me
add as friend
