Category Archives: Holidays

Last Time Jewish ‘Passover’ Started On ‘April 22’ Was 2016. Prior To That 1959.

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by Anura Guruge
on April 13, 2024

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Passover, in our times, can fall between March 26 and April 25.

So, April 22 is towards the end of that scale, but not at the very end.

Others years, in recent times, Passover has been in late April.

So, last time it fell on April 22 wasn’t that long ago, viz., 2016. Just 8 years ago. Prior to that 1959. That was a 57-year gap. The longest gap in the last 200 years.

Please don’t ask me to explain how the date for Passover is calculated. I have NO clue. I have a hard enough time trying to work out how Easter is calculated.

A Happy Very Joyful ‘Sinhala’ ‘New Year’ (‘Aluth Avurudu’) 2024 To You — Saturday, April 13.

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by Anura Guruge
on April 12, 2024

Caught me off-guard, on the hop. IT, very much an astrological holiday (based on the astronomical ‘sighting’ of the new moon, is early this year. Most years it falls on April 14. In my mind ‘April 14’ is New Year. ‘April 13’ (which was the birthday of my maternal grandmother (who brought me up) was the OLD NEW YEAR. This year Old New Year is TODAY. Ooops. Yes, I have been busy (& yes, it is another book). So, I lost sight of it.

Well, not a total loss. I still managed to catch the New Year.

So, Happy New Year.

Those are my ADOPTIVE parents — lighting oil lamps (something we did for New Year). I don’t think these pictures are from New Year. My father is wearing a suit. Though he wore one OFTEN, he wouldn’t be wearing one for New Year. We usually spent ALL of Old New Year and the start of the New Year at home. When at home my father always dressed informally.

Well, Happy New Year.

The last of the THREE New Years I mark & celebrate each year.

A Happy April 1, 2024 To YOU (Easter Monday).

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by Anura Guruge
on April 1, 2024

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As far as I am concerned, each & every day should be HAPPY.

SMILE.

Bought A Load Of Discounted Easter Chocolates. [Should Last Me A Couple Of Weeks.]

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by Anura Guruge
on April 1, 2024

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Though I (the prediabetic, reformed alcoholic that I am) consume but the bare minimum, we go through a LOT of chocolate in this house — & I will not mention any names to protect the guilty. So, some of the chocolates, the two bunnies at the top in particular, are for the chocolate eaters here.

The rest is for me, THE CHOCOLATE MAN, to give away.

Notice the 9 bags of chocolate eggs and the two ‘Ferrero Rocher’ bunnies I bought. The ‘eggs’ inside do NOT have any Easter markings. SMILE. I do KNOW what I am doing when it comes to chocolates. Each of those bunnies costs me $5 today. They each contain 13 PREMIUM chocolate eggs. Folks LOVE them. Do the math. SMILE.

I would have bought more IF I had the money. But, as you all know, I am NOT a rich man — & I spend a fair amount of the little money I have on chocolates for others. SMILE.

Happy Easter 2024.

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by Anura Guruge
on March 30, 2024

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May you be blessed to find a lot of eggs!

SMILE.

That ‘Good Friday’ Is NOT A Federal Holiday In The U.S. Still Confounds Me — After Nearly 40-Years.

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by Anura Guruge
on March 29, 2024

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I just can’t get used to this. The MOST IMPORTANT day in Christianity and it is NOT a holiday.

I get caught out each year BECAUSE the STOCK MARKET is closed. My life revolves around the stock market because I TRADE every day. SMILE. Terrible thing … addiction. I am addicted to trading. It could be worse. I could addicted to something that costs money.

I saw mail being delivered. I was taken aback — though we now have USPS parcel delivery on Sundays thanks to Amazon.

But, I had to check. Good Friday is NOT a federal holiday. How can that be.

Growing up, in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) & in the U.K., both Good Friday & Easter Monday were holidays. 4-day holiday.

Last Time Easter Was On March 31, As It Is This Year (i.e., 2024), Was In 2013 (Just 11-Years Ago).

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by Anura Guruge
on March 23, 2024

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Next time it will be on March 31 will be in 2086,
62-years from NOW.

Easter on March 31 is NOT that uncommon. We have seen them per the fairly standard 11-year cycle going back to 1991.

Easter, your quintessential ‘movable feast’ can fall between March 22 (since it HAS to be after the ECCLESIASTICAL Spring Equinox which is always March 21) and April 25 (i.e., essentially the end of the 28-day lunar month).

11 years gaps are common because we have 7-days in a week & leap years occur every 4 years.

With Easter, given the HIGHLY convoluted algorithm used, you can also get 62-year gaps. That is what we will now have with March 31 — 62-year gap to 2086.

Very occasionally we could have the 11 year gap ADDED to the 62 to give us a 73-year gap. That is what we saw last year with Easter.

Easter is next Sunday.

Easter is always on a Sunday.

Don’t confuse Easter with Good Friday which is never on a Sunday.

Somebody VERY SPECIAL Turned 18 Today. Wow! I No Longer Have Any Kids.

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by Anura Guruge
on March 22, 2024

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THIS is ALL I can post. SMILE. She is a very private person. I am NOT allowed to post pictures NOT explicitly approved by her. And, of course, I honor her wishes. That is what I do. SMILE.

Now that she has her own car, she went shopping for a cake ON HER OWN. First time she could do that. So, she picked this. It is over 5 lbs! She doesn’t plan to have anyone come around. She, as I said, tends to be very private. So basically this is for the 3 of us — & I try not to eat too much cake.

We are off to Ft. Williams (Maine) shortly — in her car, her driving &, of course, with HER DOG, ‘Rowen‘ (though Rowen thinks she is ‘my girl’). She has driven to Ft. Williams before (since getting her car last September), but this will be her first time driving there on HER BIRTHDAY. We have been going to Ft. Williams on her birthday since 2021 — when we first got Rowen. Dogs are allowed at the Park & that is why we go there. My 2nd time to Ft. Williams this year. It will be her third.

Photos of Ft. Williams LATER — of course. SMILE.

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St. Patrick’s Day ‘Google Doodles’ Over The Years.

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by Anura Guruge
on March 17, 2024

Click to ENLARGE. From the ‘Google Doodles‘ Archive.

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7 Pounds Of Corned Beef Cooked To Perfection, In A Pressure Cooker, For St. Patrick’s Day, 2024.

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by Anura Guruge
on March 17, 2024

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Well, cooking meat, in most forms, is something that I am fairly good at — better than most. It helps because I eat meat nearly everyday. SMILE. I am a meat eater — have been all my life.

My soon to be 18-year old daughter LIKES corned beef — but she ONLY eats it on St. Patrick’s Day! So, I make sure I cook corned beef for her. She only eats the meat. Not the cabbage.

Fairly new pressure cooker. First time I have used it as such, rather than as a crockpot. WOW. SERIOUS PRESSURE.

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