10 days till Christmas...

According to the song, The Twelve Days of Christmas, today is the fourth day with the last culminating on Christmas day itself. The strict interpretation, however, is that the first day of Christmas occurs on Christmas day, with the twelfth on Epiphany which is the time the three Wise Men or Magi arrived to present gifts to the young Jesus. So you should really give your presents on January 6!

But seeing that most of the Western world (apart from the Orthodox tradition) give presents on December 25, I will use the other interpretation.

Whichever way you look at it, the fourth day is still the best day!

According to the song, on the fourth day, the recipient receives
Four calling birds (American, or four colly* birds, British)
Three French hens
Two turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree

It is said that the song was written to convey the tenets of the Catholic faith during the persecution of Catholics in England from 1558 to 1829.

*colly is a dialect word meaning black and refers to the European blackbird, Turdus merula. That is a funny Latin name isn't it? But Turdus in Latin means thrush (a type of bird), contrary to what it sounds like.

As a cat, I would like to reword this in the following manner:
Four black birds (baked in a pie)
Three French hens (marinaded and slow roasted)
Two turtle doves (spatchcocked and grilled)
And a partridge (roasted, never mind the pear tree)

There was a story today on the radio, by Maeve Binchy as part of the London Transports anthology set in the suburbs of London around the Tube or London Underground.

Even though there would be a lot of laps to sit on, I think I would be scared as the Tube can be very crowded with much jostling. Besides, I might fall down THE GAP. Otherwise, why would they say "Mind the Gap" as the doors open and close?

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com