New Year's Eve

it's not a party without noisemakers

vulva #75

socks

Luke 2: 15-16 (King James Version)

¹⁵And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.
¹⁶And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.

Merry Christmas, baby

Bettie Page
Miss January 1955

'twas the night before Christmas

Ann-Margret

a Christmas tree is better

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vulva #74

Mrs. Santa's Sister

all I want for Christmas is her two big tits

"Merry"

Luke 2: 8-14 (King James Version)

⁸And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
⁹And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
¹⁰And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
¹¹For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
¹²And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
¹³And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
¹⁴Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

this time of year, you can't beat a girl in Santa hat

pin-up of the week

Elisa Bridges

a Carol–ing we'll go

Three men wait at the gates of Heaven on Christmas Eve. They're told they have to present a Christmas gift to get in. The first man checks his pockets and finds pine needles from his family's tree. He's allowed in. The second hands over a bow and some ribbon. He's allowed in. The third man pulls out a pair of panties. "How do those represent Christmas?" St. Peter asks him.
"Oh," the man replies, "they're Carol's."

vulva #73

festive

The Birth of Jesus

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. ²(This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) ³And everyone went to his own town to register.
⁴So Joseph went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. ⁵He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. ⁶While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, ⁷and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Luke 2: 1-7
New International Version

Sophie & Rosie

loaded
January 2009

pin-up of the week

Sophie Howard

a Santa hat makes everything more festive

vulva #72

contemporary

a prayer for the holidays

Amen.

pin-up of the week

Nothing says Christmas like a half-naked girl in a Santa hat.
www.page3.com

Hanukkah for Gentiles

As you may know, we like to feature a little religion around here, although generally only on Sundays. But since it's an actual religious holiday, tonight being the first night of Hanukkah, we thought we'd present a brief guide on how to celebrate Hanukkah. In case, like me, you're not actually Jewish. So, any errors here are my own.

Hanukkah celebrates the victory of the Maccabees and the restoration of the temple in Jerusalem. It seems to me to be a much more spiritual holiday than the Christian Christmas, because you have to stop whatever you're doing to say a prayer and light these candles for eight nights in a row. But it's easy to celebrate. All you need are a lot of candles and a menorah. And a menorah can be almost anything. You can buy one, of course, but you can also easily make one. All it needs to do is hold nine candles, with one of the candles (the shammash) being higher than the rest.

Here's a handy guide to Hanukkah from a book I got at the library last year.

CELEBRATING HANUKKAH
from The Hanukkah Book by Mae Shafter Rockand

The candles are placed in the hanukkiah (menorah) beginning at the right side and increasing daily toward the left. The most recently added candle is lit first, using a servant candle called the shammash. The shammash is used because the Hanukkah lights are holy and are not to be used for illumination or to kindle another flame. The candles should last for at least a half an hour.

The candles can be lit any time after sunset. First the shammash is lit, but before using it to kindle the other lights, the following blessings are recited:

Blessed are You, O Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to kindle the Hanukkah lights.

Blessed are You, O Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who performed miracles for our ancestors in days gone by at this season of the year.

Blessed are You, O Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who has kept us in life and enabled us to reach this day.

The last of these three prayers, the Shehecheyanu prayer, is said only on the first night.

After the candles are lit and the shammash replaced in the lamp it is customary to recite or chant the following:

We kindle these lights on account of the miracles, the deliverances, and the wonders You performed for our fathers, by means of Your holy priests. During all the eight days of Hanukkah these lights are sacred, and it is not permitted for us to make any use of them, but only to look at them, in order that we may give thanks unto Your Name for Your miracles, Your deliverances and Your wonders.

Happy Hanukkah!!!

vulva #71

hardwood floors

thanksgiving

¹⁵The meat of their fellowship offering of thanksgiving must be eaten on the day it is offered; they must leave none of it till morning.

Leviticus 7:15
New International Version

pin-up of the week

Rosie Jones

Thanksgiving Day

Nymphs Filling The Horn of Plenty
Studio of Sir Peter Paul Rubens
oil on canvas
82 1/2 by 60 1/4 inches

vulva #70

modern

once in a very blue moon

The Really Strange Story Behind Sunday's Blue Moon
By Joe Rao
SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist
posted: 19 November 2010
12:26 pm ET

The full moon of November arrives on Sunday and will bring with it a cosmic addition: It will also be a so-called "blue moon."

"But wait a minute," you might ask. "Isn't a 'blue moon' defined as the second full moon that occurs during a calendar month? Sunday's full moon falls on Nov. 21 and it will be the only full moon in November 2010. So how can it be a 'blue' moon?"

Indeed, November's full moon is blue moon – but only if we follow a rule that's now somewhat obscure.

In fact, the current "two- full moons in one month" rule has superseded an older rule that would allow us to call Sunday's moon "blue." To be clear, the moon does not actually appear a blue color during a blue moon, it has to do with lunar mechanics.

Confused yet?

Well, as the late Paul Harvey used to say — here now, is the rest of the story:

The blue moon rule

Back in the July 1943 issue of Sky & Telescope magazine, in a question and answer column written by Lawrence J. Lafleur, there was a reference made to the term "blue moon." [Gallery - Full Moon Fever]

Lafleur cited the unusual term from a copy of the 1937 edition of the now-defunct Maine Farmers' Almanac (NOT to be confused with The Farmers' Almanac of Lewiston, Maine, which is still in business).

On the almanac page for August 1937, the calendrical meaning for the term "blue moon" was given.

That explanation said that the moon "... usually comes full twelve times in a year, three times for each season."

Occasionally, however, there will come a year when there are 13 full moons during a year, not the usual 12. The almanac explanation continued:

"This was considered a very unfortunate circumstance, especially by the monks who had charge of the calendar of thirteen months for that year, and it upset the regular arrangement of church festivals. For this reason thirteen came to be considered an unlucky number."

And with that extra full moon, it also meant that one of the four seasons would contain four full moons instead of the usual three.

"There are seven Blue Moons in a Lunar Cycle of nineteen years," continued the almanac, ending on the comment that, "In olden times the almanac makers had much difficulty calculating the occurrence of the Blue Moon and this uncertainty gave rise to the expression 'Once in a Blue Moon.'"

An unfortunate oversight

But while LaFleur quoted the almanac's account, he made one very important omission: He never specified the date for this particular blue moon.

As it turned out, in 1937, it occurred on Aug. 21. That was the third full moon in the summer of 1937, a summer season that would see a total of four full moons.

Names were assigned to each moon in a season: For example, the first moon of summer was called the early summer moon, the second was the midsummer moon, and the last was called the late summer moon.

But when a particular season has four moons, the third was apparently called a blue moon so that the fourth and final one can continue to be called the late moon.

So where did we get the "two full moons in a month rule" that is so popular today?

A moon mistake

Once again, we must turn to the pages of Sky & Telescope.

This time, on page 3 of the March 1946 issue, James Hugh Pruett wrote an article, "Once in a Blue Moon," in which he made a reference to the term "blue moon" and referenced LaFleur's article from 1943.

But because Pruett had no specific full moon date for 1937 to fall back on, his interpretation of the ruling given by the Maine Farmers' Almanac was highly subjective. Pruett ultimately came to this conclusion:

"Seven times in 19 years there were – and still are – 13 full moons in a year. This gives 11 months with one full moon each and one with two. This second in a month, so I interpret it, was called Blue Moon."

How unfortunate that Pruett did not have a copy of that 1937 almanac at hand, or else he would have almost certainly noticed that his "two full moons in a single month assumption" would have been totally wrong.

For the blue moon date of Aug. 21 was most definitely not the second full moon that month!

Blue moon myth runs wild

Pruett's 1946 explanation was, of course, the wrong interpretation and it might have been completely forgotten were it not for Deborah Byrd who used it on her popular National Public Radio program, "StarDate" on Jan. 31, 1980.

We could almost say that in the aftermath of her radio show, the incorrect blue moon rule "went viral" — or at least the '80s equivalent of it.

Over the next decade, this new blue moon definition started appearing in diverse places, such as the World Almanac for Kids and the board game Trivial Pursuit.

I must confess here, that even I was involved in helping to perpetuate the new version of the blue moon phenomenon. Nearly 30 years ago, in the Dec. 1, 1982 edition of The New York Times, I made reference to it in that newspaper's "New York Day by Day" column.

And by 1988, the new definition started receiving international press coverage.

Today, Pruett's misinterpreted "two full moons in a month rule" is recognized worldwide. Indeed, Sky & Telescope turned a literary lemon into lemonade, proclaiming later that – however unintentional – it changed pop culture and the English language in unexpected ways.

Meanwhile, the original Maine Farmers' Almanac rule had been all but forgotten.

Playing by the (old) rules

Now, let's come back to this Sunday's full moon.

Under the old Almanac rule, this would technically be a blue moon. In the autumn season of 2010, there are four full moons:

* Sept. 23
* Oct. 22
* Nov. 21
* Dec. 21

"But wait," you might say. "Dec. 21 is the first day of winter."

And you would be correct, but only if you live north of the equator in the Northern Hemisphere. South of the equator it's the first day of summer.

In 2010, the solstice comes at 6:38 p.m. EST (2338 UT).

But the moon turns full at 3:13 a.m. EST (0813 UT). That's 15 hours and 25 minutes before the solstice occurs. So the Dec. 21 full moon occurs during the waning hours of fall and qualifies as the fourth full moon of the season.

This means that under the original Maine Almanac rule – the one promoted by Lafleur and later misinterpreted by Pruett – the third full moon of the 2010 fall season on Nov. 21 would be a blue moon.

Choose your blue moon

So what Blue Moon definition tickles your fancy? Is it the second full moon in a calendar month, or (as is the case on Sunday) the third full moon in a season with four?

Maybe it's both. The final decision is solely up to you.

Sunday's full moon will look no different than any other full moon. But the moon can change color in certain conditions.

After forest fires or volcanic eruptions, the moon can appear to take on a bluish or even lavender hue. Soot and ash particles, deposited high in the Earth's atmosphere, can sometimes make the moon appear bluish.

In the aftermath of the massive eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines in June 1991, there were reports of blue moons (and even blue suns) worldwide.

We could even call the next full moon (on Dec. 21) a "red moon," but for a different reason: On that day there will be a total eclipse of the moon and, for a short while, the moon will actually glow with a ruddy reddish hue.

can someone say amen?

Amen.

bad cat

vulva #69

classy

details

The Buddha said that the human condition is like that of a person shot with an arrow. It is both painful and urgent. But instead of getting immediate help for our affliction, we ask for details about the bow from which the arrow was shot. We ask who made the arrow. We want to know about the appearance and background of the person who strung the bow. We ask about many things—inconsequential things—while overlooking our immediate problem. We ask about origins and ends, but we leave this moment forgotten. We leave it forgotten even though we live in it.

—Steve Hagen
Buddhism Plain and Simple

pin-up of the week

Harley Quinn cosplay

wrong doing

vulva #68

"Sandy Cheeks"

www.goddessnudes.com

a radiating center of pure unadulterated love

I know you are, but what am I?

03 October 2010
flickr

pin-up of the week

Sasha Grey

priorities are important

Dia de los Muertos

All Souls' Day

All Saints' Day

Saint Dymphna
Patroness of Nervous and Mental Disease

Prayer in honor of St. Dymphna

Lord Jesus Christ, You have willed that St. Dymphna should be invoked by thousands of clients as the patroness of nervous and mental disease and have brought it about that her interest in these patients should be an inspiration to and an ideal of charity throughout the world. Grant that, through the prayers of this youthful martyr of purity, those who suffer from nervous and mental illness everywhere on earth may be helped and consoled. I recommend to You in particular

(Here mention those you wish to pray for)

Be pleased to hear the prayers of St. Dymphna and of Your Blessed Mother. Give those whom I recommend the patience to bear with their affliction and resignation to do Your divine will. Give them the consolation they need and especially the cure they so much desire, if it be Your will. Through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

All Hallows' Eve

Come to keep vigil on All Hallows' Even,
With Monica, Jamie, Peter and Stephen,
With John, Philip, Christopher, dressed up like souls;
Bring berries of red to help warn off the ghouls.
Come knock at the door and beg for soul cakes,
Pray hard for the souls, for the prayers that it takes
To speed them to Heav'n go too often unsaid, and who prays for poor souls will ne'er want for bread.

seduction of the innocent

Dave Stevens
1985

pin-up of the week

Lucynova
www.domai.com

pumpkinhead

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It's Halloween

The Shaggs

If you've never heard the Shaggs, you've never heard the Shaggs. So have a listen to their Halloween classic, "It's Halloween," won't you? It's time for twicks, it's time for tweats.

Indeed.

It's Halloween - The Shaggs

vulva #65, #66, & #67

clockwise, from upper left

begging for soul cakes

a soul cake,
a soul cake,
have mercy on all Christian souls for a soul cake

pin-up of the week

Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio.

 

public service announcement

Please drink responsibly this Halloween.

vulva #64

textbook

Krishna

Know therefore what is work, and also know what is wrong work. And know also of a work that is silence: mysterious is the path of work.

The Bhagavad Gita
4:17

Witch Hazel

pin-up of the week

"Kandi Korn"

see, the guy at the bar has a bottle of arsenic

vulva #63

traveling

man's days

¹When men began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them,²the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. ³Then the LORD said, "My Spirit will not contend with man forever, for he is mortal; his days will be a hundred and twenty years."

Genesis 6:1-3
New International Version

pin-up of the week

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pussycats

A recently widowed Jewish lady was sitting on a Florida beach when a Jewish man of similar age placed his blanket nearby and began reading a book. Attempting to strike up conversation, she asked him how he was.
"Fine," he replied, and returned to his book.
"I love the beach," she persisted. "Do you come here often?"
"First time since my wife passed away last year," he answered, before going back to his book.
"Do you live around here?" she asked.
"Yes, I live over in Suntree," he said, and then resumed reading.
Trying to find a topic of common interest, she asked: "Do you like pussycats?" With that, the man threw down his book, tore off both their swimsuits and gave her the most passionate sex of her life.
Afterward she gasped: "How did you know that was what I wanted?"
The man replied: "How did you know my name was Katz?"

vulva #60

still meaty

infidel

Lament

Lament for my cock
Sore and crucified
I seek to know you.
Acquiring soulful wisdom,
You can open walls of mystery,
Stripshow.

How to acquire death in the morning show.
TV death which the child absorbs
Deathwell mystery which makes me write
Slow train, the death of my cock gives life.

Forgive the poor old people who gave us entry
Taught us god in the child's prayer in the night.

Guitar player
Ancient wise satyr,
Sing your ode to my cock.

Caress it's lament,
Stiffen and guide us, we frozen.
Lost cells,
The knowledge of cancer,
To speak to the heart
And give the great gift:
Words Power Trance

This stable friend and the beasts of his zoo,
Wild haired chicks,
Women flowery in their summit,
Monsters of skin.
Each color connects
    to create the boat
    which rocks the race.
Could any hell be more horrible
    than now
    and real?

I pressed her thigh and death smiled.

Death, old friend,
Death and my cock are the world.
I can forgive my injuries in the name of
Wisdom Luxury Romance

Sentence upon sentence
Words are healing lament
For the death of my cock's spirit
Has no meaning in the soft fire.
Words got me the wound and will get me well,
If you believe it.

All join now and lament for the death of my cock
A tongue of knowledge in the feathered night.
Boys get crazy in the head and suffer,
I sacrifice my cock on the altar of silence.

—James Douglas Morrison

pin-up of the week

"Danielle"

a man with a huge cock