Ray's Thought for the Day - Enduring Symbols

All righty then. Yesterday, I worked in the sun, under Ogma’s fickle rays. Yep, I got a red neck “frum werkin' in the sun.” Fortunately, and thanks to Crumby's preventative ointment, another inner thing chaffing event was narrowly avoided, so I didn't get red inner thighs from "werkin' in the sun."

Ogma was fired up yesterday and the temperature rose to the high heavens so when I got back to the relatively safe CB I decided to enjoy a nice 48oz Dolmen Stout. You know, to cool myself off and relax with. So I set myself down in my Lazy Boy and hollered, girlfriends, one of you twain fetch me a 48 oz Dolmen.

Right Ray! came the reply to my simple and innocent command.

So after I got my delicious 48oz Dolmen myself and reconstituted myself in my Lazy Boy at the proper declination, I used the electric squirter device to direct a beam of electrons at the TV so that the TV would know to turn itself on. Whoa! The program the TV was attuned to starred the Kinglet. There was our Kinglet, surrounded by hay and pumpkins. The pumpkins featured bumper stickers. Right there, I could surmise, my thoughts stimulated by the Dolmen, that whoever organized the program was pretty smart to think up putting a bumper sticker on a pumpkin, especially at Halloween.

The hay and pumpkins generally symbolize the bountiful harvest that we are all thankful for. So did the Kinglet’s attire. The Kinglet was garbed in a casual shirt, the casual shirt symbolizing his kingly involvement with the bountiful harvest, the hay and pumpkins. The final symbol assembled was the crowd of local Mammonites set about under bunched up, crowded conditions to honor the Kinglet. Their symbolic contribution was to arrive at the event all dressed up in their Sunday best, thus symbolizing both prosperity and respect for the Kinglet.

About that time Red came along and ensconced himself at a comfortable declination in one of the adjacent Lazy Boys.

Ray, why don’t ye turn on the TV noise so we can hear the show?

Noper, Red, even though I may be lacking in your ovational skills, I don’t need to hear the noise to know what’s afoot. It’s the Kinglet, preaching to, or pepping up the Mammonites. See. The pumpkins are adorned with bumper stickers.

Yer correct Ray. Those appear to be bumper stickers on the pumpkins. Mercy. That’s a pretty good trick, especially at Halloween.

That ‘s what I thought too, Red.

Dern it, ye know Ray, I am experiencing some deja vu. This TV spectacle puts me in mind of a Samhuin fair of my youth in Ulster. Old King Cochubur had his annual fair going to Honor the Goddess and all, but there was no pumpkins set about the stage, just hay. “Where are the pumpkins’ the Ulsterman crowded around the stage hollered. “We need to espy us a pumpkin or two, it’s traditional.”

But Conchubur’s lackeys had forgot to bring along any pumpkins to entertain the crowd with. Mercy! The Ulstermen all started hollering out louder than before and many of those Ulstermen pulled concealed weapons. Clearly, the situation looked bad for Conchubur, but just then, up came Cu Chulian on his great chariot, and Loeg his chariot driver with him and they had a great load of pumpkins in the chariot taken from the Connachtmen. So that Halloween, thanks to Cu Chulian, turned out be one of the best Halloweens ever in those parts and everyone had lots of fun with the pumpkins, those symbols of a good harvest and the peace and prosperity that goes along with a good harvest.

Say Red, was Halloween a state holiday back then.

Yepper Ray, one of the four state holidays in Ulster.

So nobody was obliged to go to work?

Yepper Ray, they all got to go to the fair instead of werkin’.

So Halloween is like May Day, that is, the official state holidays have been shifted around these days in these parts to spare the feelings of the Christians regarding their separation from nature.

Yepper do Ray.