At long last....

I'm a pagan, absolutely! Yet, I find the secular aspects of Christmas to be wonderful, even the carefully hidden folklore traditions of Yule that have been squeezed in.

I'm also wondering if I'm the only pagan who hasn't realized there's a heck of a lot in common with Santa and a pagan God.

Let's consider this:

Like many pagan Gods, Santa has a sled (chariot) pulled by animals, particularly those of the Norse pantheons.

Like many pagan Gods, Santa gives gifts to those who are good and a sharp reminder to do better next year to those who don't (coal).

For those not in the know, the beautiful folks at NORAD (yeah, ironic) do quite a bit of work creating a wonderful Santa world tracker. You get fairly well updated accounts of where Santa and the Reindeer are, as well as some history and geographic information. For instance, when I checked it this afternoon, Santa had already visited the International Space Station and was flying over the pyramids of Egypt.

http://www.noradsanta.org/

Enjoy and have a happy Christmas Eve!

Some last minute ideasfor those naughty kids

I have to say, I adore this!

Dad of three naughty young boys threatened to Ebay off their most expensive gifts if the kids didn't behave. The kids ignored the threat, basically said 'You won't!" and didn't behave, so their gifts are on Ebay.

http://www.azcentral.com/offbeat/articles/1223ebay-grinch23-ON.html

Finally, some discipline with clear punishments and follow through.

Dr. Phil would be so proud.