Comments on: With Halloween just around the corner… http://www.laplandica.com/2007/10/25/with-halloween-just-around-the-corner%e2%80%a6/ Updated Site: About Laponia, Jokkmokk, Outdoor activities & Older Mine Research etc. Sat, 20 Feb 2010 22:07:47 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Laplandica http://www.laplandica.com/2007/10/25/with-halloween-just-around-the-corner%e2%80%a6/comment-page-1/#comment-1144 Laplandica Thu, 06 Nov 2008 11:47:00 +0000 http://www.laplandica.com/2007/10/25/with-halloween-just-around-the-corner%e2%80%a6/#comment-1144 Karen: Thank-you for your comment and some very interesting information and insight on celebrating Halloween on Shetland. Very interesting, indeed! Karen: Thank-you for your comment and some very interesting information and insight on celebrating Halloween on Shetland. Very interesting, indeed!

]]> By: Karen Angus http://www.laplandica.com/2007/10/25/with-halloween-just-around-the-corner%e2%80%a6/comment-page-1/#comment-1140 Karen Angus Wed, 05 Nov 2008 10:10:53 +0000 http://www.laplandica.com/2007/10/25/with-halloween-just-around-the-corner%e2%80%a6/#comment-1140 Hallowe'en in Shetland when I was a bairn {just a few years ago...} was kent as Kalecasting Night. We use to gather in peerie gangs and sneak about the houses nearby 'wirkin' dirt' - we used go into the kaleyards and pull up a few kale plants with muddy roots, sneak up to a door and throw the kale or neeps etc in the door and run away quick! One time, we ever-so-quietly built a wall of paets leaning up against a neighbours door, knocked loudly and ran away to watch the door opening and the paets rumbling down upon the poor occupant! It was all mostly harmless stuff, but I remember some more serious pranks- one year a punt {small boat} was taken from the pier at The Voe and appeared on the school roof! The large lump of quartz rock near the top of Hoofield in Cunningsburgh was known as the "white Horse o' Hoofield - one year it was 'tarred', and until the weather wore it away years later, it was kent as the Tarred Horse. Another year it was painted blue! Not an easy task when you walk up and see the height of the over-hang someone would have to use ladders to reach! A story from a good lot of years ago- an older couple's peerie croft house windows were 'tarred'- so when they awoke, it was still dark, so they went back to bed... story goes they didn't surface till dinnertime! As well as practical jokes, a favourite thing about Hallowe'en was the 'Sweerie' {SWRI} ladies used to hold a party for us in the old village hall; neepie lantern competition, party games, ice cream and jelly, treacle-bannocks suspended on string you had to try & eat without using your hands {yuck!} and dooking for apples which washed off the treacle. Great fun! Nowadays, I personally celebrate Samhain, the Celtic New Year; remember and send love to my ancestors and loved ones who have passed on, with candles and fairy-lights in my windows. And of course a pumpkin lantern... haven't got the strength to hollow out a neep these days... Hallowe’en in Shetland when I was a bairn {just a few years ago…} was kent as Kalecasting Night.
We use to gather in peerie gangs and sneak about the houses nearby ‘wirkin’ dirt’ – we used go into the kaleyards and pull up a few kale plants with muddy roots, sneak up to a door and throw the kale or neeps etc in the door and run away quick!

One time, we ever-so-quietly built a wall of paets leaning up against a neighbours door, knocked loudly and ran away to watch the door opening and the paets rumbling down upon the poor occupant!

It was all mostly harmless stuff, but I remember some more serious pranks- one year a punt {small boat} was taken from the pier at The Voe and appeared on the school roof!

The large lump of quartz rock near the top of Hoofield in Cunningsburgh was known as the “white Horse o’ Hoofield – one year it was ‘tarred’, and until the weather wore it away years later, it was kent as the Tarred Horse.
Another year it was painted blue!
Not an easy task when you walk up and see the height of the over-hang someone would have to use ladders to reach!

A story from a good lot of years ago- an older couple’s peerie croft house windows were ‘tarred’- so when they awoke, it was still dark, so they went back to bed… story goes they didn’t surface till dinnertime!

As well as practical jokes, a favourite thing about Hallowe’en was the ‘Sweerie’ {SWRI} ladies used to hold a party for us in the old village hall; neepie lantern competition, party games, ice cream and jelly, treacle-bannocks suspended on string you had to try & eat without using your hands {yuck!} and dooking for apples which washed off the treacle. Great fun!

Nowadays, I personally celebrate Samhain, the Celtic New Year; remember and send love to my ancestors and loved ones who have passed on, with candles and fairy-lights in my windows.
And of course a pumpkin lantern… haven’t got the strength to hollow out a neep these days…

]]> By: Vidde http://www.laplandica.com/2007/10/25/with-halloween-just-around-the-corner%e2%80%a6/comment-page-1/#comment-63 Vidde Mon, 05 Nov 2007 09:15:17 +0000 http://www.laplandica.com/2007/10/25/with-halloween-just-around-the-corner%e2%80%a6/#comment-63 Why don't we all just selebrate our own tradition? Go to the graveyard and light a candle on a loved ones grave. All the lights there always fill me with hope for mankind. With so much love in the world, we must be doing something right... Anyway that is what I use that weekend for. Why don’t we all just selebrate our own tradition? Go to the graveyard and light a candle on a loved ones grave. All the lights there always fill me with hope for mankind. With so much love in the world, we must be doing something right…

Anyway that is what I use that weekend for.

]]> By: Laplandica http://www.laplandica.com/2007/10/25/with-halloween-just-around-the-corner%e2%80%a6/comment-page-1/#comment-53 Laplandica Tue, 30 Oct 2007 19:03:44 +0000 http://www.laplandica.com/2007/10/25/with-halloween-just-around-the-corner%e2%80%a6/#comment-53 Trick-or-treat is probably an American expression for protection money at Halloween. Give us candy or will throw toilet paper in your trees etc. If I remember right, originally it started in the U.K., possibly Ireland, that people put food on their doorsteps to keep their deceased relatives happy when these spirits would return on All Saints Night. Personally, I like the idea of nuts, fruit and small change compared to "sugar". Poems are just one of many challenges in life. It's creative. Unfortunately, the world will have to decide what kind of society it wants or put up with vandalism etc. Thanks for your thoughts, Flying Cat! Your Halloween sounded really nice! Trick-or-treat is probably an American expression for protection money at Halloween. Give us candy or will throw toilet paper in your trees etc. If I remember right, originally it started in the U.K., possibly Ireland, that people put food on their doorsteps to keep their deceased relatives happy when these spirits would return on All Saints Night.

Personally, I like the idea of nuts, fruit and small change compared to “sugar”. Poems are just one of many challenges in life. It’s creative. Unfortunately, the world will have to decide what kind of society it wants or put up with vandalism etc.

Thanks for your thoughts, Flying Cat! Your Halloween sounded really nice!

]]> By: Flying Cat http://www.laplandica.com/2007/10/25/with-halloween-just-around-the-corner%e2%80%a6/comment-page-1/#comment-50 Flying Cat Mon, 29 Oct 2007 18:21:24 +0000 http://www.laplandica.com/2007/10/25/with-halloween-just-around-the-corner%e2%80%a6/#comment-50 In Orkney, Hallowe'en is known as 'mischief night'. Unfortunately, this is translated into a licence to commit acts of petty vandalism, the throwing of foods - flour, eggs, treacle - at doors, cars and so on. Also, movable items can end up in the harbour, drain covers removed and thrown into gardens, fireworks thrown around. When I was a child, we had to 'do' a poem, story or musical item, only in the houses of friends and neighbours, in return for which we got nuts, fruit and occasionally, small change. It was fun. (It was also, in retrospect, quite embarassing!) We had never heard of trick-or-treat. In Orkney, Hallowe’en is known as ‘mischief night’. Unfortunately, this is translated into a licence to commit acts of petty vandalism, the throwing of foods – flour, eggs, treacle – at doors, cars and so on. Also, movable items can end up in the harbour, drain covers removed and thrown into gardens, fireworks thrown around. When I was a child, we had to ‘do’ a poem, story or musical item, only in the houses of friends and neighbours, in return for which we got nuts, fruit and occasionally, small change. It was fun. (It was also, in retrospect, quite embarassing!) We had never heard of trick-or-treat.

]]> By: Solid Block of Ise » Blog Archive » The Imported Halloween http://www.laplandica.com/2007/10/25/with-halloween-just-around-the-corner%e2%80%a6/comment-page-1/#comment-48 Solid Block of Ise » Blog Archive » The Imported Halloween Mon, 29 Oct 2007 16:28:45 +0000 http://www.laplandica.com/2007/10/25/with-halloween-just-around-the-corner%e2%80%a6/#comment-48 [...] little boy I grew up in a family that shared both an American and Swedish heritage. My father took great joy in introducing us to the exotic traditions from his native country, and since there were a few other families around [...] [...] little boy I grew up in a family that shared both an American and Swedish heritage. My father took great joy in introducing us to the exotic traditions from his native country, and since there were a few other families around [...]

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