Fairytale of New York

 "Fairytale of New York" is an Irish folk style ballad by the Celtic punk group The Pogues, released in 1987. It has frequently been cited as the best Christmas song of all. The song follows an Irish immigrant's Christmas Eve reverie about holidays past while sleeping off a binge in a New York City drunk tank. When an inebriated old man also in the cell sings a passage from the Irish ballad "The Rare Old Mountain Dew", the narrator (MacGowan) begins to dream about the song's female character. The remainder of the song (which may be an internal monologue) takes the form of a dialogue between the couple, their youthful hopes crushed by alcoholism and drug addiction, as they reminisce and bicker on Christmas Eve.

Happy holidays!

Roald Dahl Day

September 13th is Roald Dahl Day.

Watch, read and listen to his version of Little Red Riding Hood, included in Revolting Rhymes.

Monk-e-Mail

Groundhog day

On February 2, the groundhog Punxsutawney Phil comes out of his burrow on Gobbler's Knob (Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania) - in front of thousands of followers from all over the world - to predict the weather for the rest of winter. 

According to legend, if Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter weather. If he does not see his shadow, there will be an early spring. 

After Phil emerges from his burrow, he speaks to the Groundhog Club president in "Groundhogese" (a language only understood by the current president of the Inner Circle). His proclamation is then translated for the world. 

Today, Punxsutawney Phil, once again appeared at sunrise at Gobbler's Knob in the Pennsylvania Wilds to make his annual prediction. Watch the video and answer these questions:

• did Phil see his shadow?
• what does it mean if Phil sees his shadow (or if he doesn't!)?
• what is his prediction, then?

Watch Phil's prediction below:

• What do we celebrate on Feb 2nd in Catalonia?
• What is the connection with Groundhog Day?
• What will the weather be like here for the rest of the winter?

Answer all these questions as a comment to this post.

Learn more about Groundhog Day

Australia Day

January 26th is Australia Day. That was the day in 1788 when Captain Arthur Phillip, commander of the First Fleet of eleven convict ships from Great Britain and the first governor of New South Wales, arrived at Sydney Cove. Before that, in 1770, Captain James Cook raised the Union Jack (the British flag) on what is now called Possession Island to claim the eastern half of the continent as New South Wales for Great Britain.

Read a bit more about it here.

Read more about the smallest continent and the Aussies here.

Saint Andrew's Day

November 30th is Saint Andrew's day, the patron saint of Scotland.

Read a bit about its history and celebrations, then try this multiple choice quiz and this crossword.

Happy Thanksgiving Day!

The Pilgrims who landed on Plymouth Rock in December of 1620 found the New World much different than they had expected. Amid the hard New England winter, 46 of the 121 persons who made the voyage perished. But the fall of 1621 brought a bountiful harvest, giving those who remained a change to survive the coming winter. The surviving Pilgrims, along with 91 Native American guests, celebrated the first Thanksgiving with wild game and vegetables. Throughout Colonial history, similar celebrations occurred whenever settlers felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude toward God. In fact, George Washington even declared a national day of Thanksgiving in 1789. But Thanksgiving did not become a regular holiday until 1863 when Abraham Lincoln signed into law a bill proclaiming the last Thursday of each November to be Thanksgiving Day. In 1941, Congress amended the law to make the fourth Thursday of each November Thanksgiving.

Try this interactive word puzzle on Thanksgiving.

All Saints' Day

Can you complete this poem? Use the vocabulary here to help you.

Little Monsters

Choose your ­­____________ and carve it right,
For tonight is the night of fright.
A most dangerous eve is ____________,
Disguise yourself from dangers unseen.
Beware!
The witches and ____________ prepare their brews,
Deadly mixtures and magic stews.
Those without ____________ should run and hide,
Or, better yet, stay inside,
For the darkest night is the night of fools,
Souls unprepared for bone-eating ____________,
Ghosts and ____________ who seek to annoy,
Or, perhaps, even destroy.
Listen!
Hear the sounds of laughter and little feet,
As they threaten you with “____________."
Give them candy, they will go away.
Lock your doors and pray
That the ____________ candle stays lit,
And the devilish children quit.

Anthony Eitnier

International Day of Peace

The International Day of Peace, observed each year on 21 September, is a global call for ceasefire and non-violence. It is observed by many nations, political groups, military groups, and peoples. The first year this holiday was celebrated was 1981.

To celebrate the day, there are millions of people in countries around the world participating in parades, concerts, dance celebrations, exhibitions and educational events. You can see what they're doing in the Peace Day Global Broadcast, a multimedia event which started on September 17 with the ringing of the Peace Bell from UN Headquarters by the Secretary General, and continues through September 21, the official International Day of Peace.

Segments in this year’s broadcast will feature Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Stevie Wonder, Bono, Annie Lennox, Alanis Morissette, Michael Franti and Spearhead, Dr. Jane Goodall, James Cameron, “The Elders” - Nelson Mandela, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Jimmy Carter, Mary Robinson, and Kofi Annan and many other prominent people.

You can watch the Peace Day Global Broadcast live below:

To learn more about this day, visit the International Day of Peace's official UN page.

World Animal Day

Do you like animals? If your answer is yes, October 4th is a day for you to celebrate.

World Animal Day was started in 1931 at a convention of ecologists in Florence as a way of highlighting the plight of endangered species. Since then it has grown to encompass all kinds of animal life and is widely celebrated in countries throughout the world. October 4 was chosen as World Animal Day as it is the Feast Day of St Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals.

It is intended as a day of celebration for anyone in the world who cares about animals. It is not restricted to any one nationality, creed, religion, political belief or ideology.

MISSION STATEMENT for WORLD ANIMAL DAY:
- To celebrate animal life in all its forms
- To celebrate humankind’s relationship with the animal kingdom
- To acknowledge the diverse roles that animals play in our lives – from being our companions, supporting and helping us, to bringing a sense of wonder into our lives
- To acknowledge and be thankful for the way in which animals enrich our lives

(Information taken from the World Animal Day official website)

The Poet's corner

St George's day is coming. To celebrate the festivity, you're going to write some poems. To make things easier for you, try this:
Instant poetry forms.

It's Easter!

April Fool's Day

April the 1st

The first of April, some do say, April The 1st
Is set apart for All Fools' Day.
But why the people call it so,
Nor I, nor they themselves do know.
But on this day are people sent
On purpose for pure merriment.
-- Poor Robin's Almanac (1790)

Today is April Fool¡s Day, the day in which people play hoaxes and practical jokes on friends, family members and other people in general. Newspapers and the media also have their share in the celebration. Most of them publish fake articles or give fake news on television.
Here you have some articles taken from different British newspapers. Can you tell which is the REAL one?

• Honda demonstrates robot controlled by mind power
• Twitter switch for Guardian, after 188 years of ink
• Ryan Giggs launches groundbreaking jumpers for goalpost technology
• It's the Mona Greasa!

Happy St Patrick's day

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

As you listen, answer the following questions:

1. What basic elements will you need?
2. Step 1. What should you wear?
3. Step 2. Where should you go? At what time?
4. Step 3. What special words must you say (the English translation!)?
5. Steps 4 & 5. What 3 dishes must you cook?
6. Step 6. What will you drink?
7. Step 7. How will you spend your day? Mention the 2 most important things.
8. Step 8. What the last thing you must do on St Patrick's Day? What's the superstition with a four-leaf clover?
9. Americans who claim to be of Irish descent now number more that 34 million. That's how many times the population of Ireland?

Happy Saint Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day Comments by Crazyprofile.com

Enjoy this online exercise and video about the origins of Saint Valentine's Day.

Martin Luther King's Day

Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day. It is a United States holiday marking the birthdate of the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., observed on the third Monday of January each year, around the time of King's birthday, January 15.

King was the chief spokesman of the nonviolent civil rights movement, which successfully protested racial discrimination in federal and state law (at his time, for example, coloured people had to sit at the back of the buses, or had to give their seat to the whites, and there were segregated toilets for coloured and white people). He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. He was assassinated in 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee.

His most famous words were a speech he delivered in 1963, which goes "I have a dream..."


Try to complete his words as you listen to the speech.

... and happy new year!

Graphics & Myspace layouts

Merry Christmas...

It's Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving Day is a time to give thanks for the harvest and express gratitude in general. It is primarily a North American holiday which is celebrated with all the family gathered around a traditional dinner of turkey.
Watch this video to learn the origins of this celebration. Then you can try and do this quiz!