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A woman's work is never done - not even when she's Mother Christmas! Just look at all that washing, it'll never dry in this weather! Merry Christmas everybody and all the very best for 2026.

I hope Christmas has brought you all happiness . Very best wishes for 2026. World peace would be great .

Merry Christmas to everyone, and Happy New Year.

Answers to the New Year Quiz: 1. Brazil 2. Italy 3. Scotland 4. Nyepi (one of the weirdest things I’ve ever experienced!) 5. Russia 6. Mexico (but even other Latin American countries such as Ecuador and Columbia) 7. February 16/Fire Horse 8. Philippines 9. Buckets full of dirty water 10. Haiti 11. It is forbidden to conduct or participate in a wedding 12. The Danes 13. Jump as high as they can 14. Wearing red underwear 15. Always at the Vernal Equinox, whatever the date 16. The Catalonia region of Northern Spain 17. Bread 18. Onions or pomegranates 19. A Southern dish based on a West African pea stew that’s meant to bring good luck and prosperity—the peas represent coins, and the green stands for dollar bills. 20. In the icy waters of the Firth of Forth, Scotland. (one of the coldest things I’ve ever experienced!)

Knowledge is never a heavy burden to bear!! Just think how all this new found information can be used to impress friends and relatives!

That kept you busy Alan? Thank you Canny lass, I look forward to the annual brain check.

1. Brazil 2. Italy 3. 4. 5. Russia 6. Columbia 7. Monday 16/02/26 - Fire Horse 8. Phillipined 9. 10. Haiti 11. You can't get married between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur because this period, known as the Days of Awe, is a solemn time for intense spiritual introspection, repentance, and seeking forgiveness, culminating in the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) when God seals one's fate for the year, making it inappropriate for the joy and new beginnings associated with weddings1 12. 13. 14. Italians, Spaniards, and the Chinese share the common goal of warding off bad luck for the New Year, using symbolic acts like clearing out the old, eating specific foods (grapes in Spain/Italy, lentils in Italy), and wearing auspicious colors (red in Italy/China) to welcome fortune, focusing on renewal and positive energy for the year ahead 15. 16. To find L'Home dels Nassos (the Man of Noses) and get a wish, you need to be in Catalonia, Spain, especially Barcelona, on December 31st, searching the streets and public squares for a man with only one nose left (as he loses one daily), often appearing at midday in places like Pla de Palau. 17. 18. 19. 20. I bet you didn't know = I didn't. I had to Google all 20

So much for Christmas, let's see what we know about New Year traditions and celebrations! 1. Where in the world on New Year’s Eve do people dress in white, run into the sea at midnight and jump over seven waves while making seven wishes for the year to come? 2. In which country are 12 spoonfuls of lentils eaten at midnight on New Year’s Eve, one spoonful for every chime of the clock? 3. The ‘redding of the house’, involving giving your home a thorough clean before midnight 31 December in order to sweep out the bad luck of the passing year, is a New Year’s tradition in which country? 4. The island of Bali celebrates New Year (on varying dates) with a strict day of silence designed to ward off evil spirits by making the island appear deserted. All businesses, shops and even airports are closed and NO ONE is allowed to leave their home or hotel. What is the name of this day of silence? 5. In another country where silence is a tradition, the last 12 seconds of the old year are spent in silence making a wish for the coming year. Where? 6. An empty suitcase plays an important part in the New Year traditions of which country? 7. China is also a country which celebrates new year on varying dates. In 2026, the year of the Wood Snake will end on China’s New Year’s Eve. On which date will this occur? Bonus point if you know which animal will replace the Wood Snake. 8. In some cultures, round objects symbolise good fortune and prosperity so, to ensure a happy new year, they wear polka-dot clothing and eat round fruits. Where would you be able to observe this tradition? 9. What is thrown out of houses during the countdown to midnight 31 December in Cuba? 10. Which country also celebrates Independence Day on New Year’s Day? 11. The Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, usually falls in September and is followed a week or so later by the holiest day of the year, Yom Kippur. Between the two it is impossible to get married. Why? 12. Who, literally, jumps into the New Year (from a chair or sofa)? 13. What do children do on the stroke of midnight in the Philippines in the belief that it will make them grow taller in the new year? 14. What New Year tradition do the Italians, Spaniards and Chinese have in common for warding off bad luck? 15. Nouruz (or Nowruz), even called the Persian New Year, isn’t either celebrated 31 December. However, it is officially recognized as New Year’s Day in many countries including Iran, Afghanistan and Azerbajdzan. When is Nouruz celebrated? 16. L’home dels nassos, (the man of many noses) has as many noses as there are days left in the year. He appears on 31 December and, if you find him, he’ll grant you a wish. Where would you go if you want to try and find him? 17. The Irish have many New Year traditions, including setting an additional place at the dinner table for any loved ones lost during the year and having a spotlessly clean home into which to welcome the New Year. They also bang on the outside walls of their house to keep bad luck away. With what do they bang on the walls? 18. What do Greeks hang above their door to welcome good fortune, and even fertility, into their home? 19. Who are what is a Hoppin’ John and where would you find him/it on New Year’s Eve? 20. And finally, where, on New Year’s Day would you be able to witness the “Loony Dook? I'll bet you didn't know: During the 1930s farmers in Canada hitched horses to their cars because they couldn’t afford petrol. Answers Sunday January 4.

Answers to the Christmas quiz: 1. Ardennes 2. Nautical mile 1 852 metres (English mile 1 609 metres 3. Miss Moneypenny 4. Smoking bishop is a type of mulled wine especially popular in Victorian England at Christmas time. It is mentioned in Dickens' 1843 story A Christmas Carol. Smoking bishop was made from port, red wine, lemons or Seville oranges, sugar and spices such as cloves. 5. Walker 6. Veterinary Surgeon 7. 1984 8. Anglia 9. A butterfly 10. A grape 11. In a dictionary 12. 8 (No Rudolph!) 13. Czech Republic 14. 6 15. Kevin 16. Ukraine 17. Berlin 18. New York 19. Noddy Holder 20. A life jn spinsterhood

Whoopee, Wilf is here so it's officially Christmas. Let the festivities begin!!!

Merry Christmas to everyone in this group from Bygone Bedlington:-

Merry Christmas Canny lass and OH, and to all our members and families.

Same here! I'm usually up to the knees and swinging a snow shovel every morning by now but, apart from a couple of inches in mid November, there's been nothing. Couldn't agree more about the cause and its source.

I understand Alan, My windows Vista is on old computer but not on line, can't beet some of those old programs. Steady daily snow 2-3" here, -20c keeps the mosquitos away.

It started snowing here at 9pm last night and we have 6-7 inches

It did Vic. Don't have access to my old photoshopping software (Microsoft Digital Image Pro 10 on Windows Vista) at the moment so I am having to play around with some other free software, Paint 3D, and it is challenging but does help fill in some time. It started snowing in the NE this morning so we have our first snow of the season, about 1 1/2 inches

Just the 1920, open touring. not the grain truck. 😃

Yes Canny lass, 1920 and 1926 model T Fords. 1926 is a farm truck.

It'll keep you out of mischief!

Some fascinating life stories going on there. .!

BOLD = GOOGLED Guessed two more before Googling - so 8 out of 20 1. ARDENNES 2. Nautical 3. Miss Money Penny 4. Alcohol 5.WALKER 6. VETERINARY SURGEON 7. DECEMBER 3RD 1984 8.ANGLIA 9. Butterfly 10. 12 LUCKY GRAPES 11. Never 12. EIGHT 13. ANCIENT GREECE 14. Six 15. Kevin 16. UKRAINE 17. GERMANY 18. New York 19. Noddy Holder 20. Kissing under the mistletoe was a way for women to protect themselves from the bad luck of remaining an old maid or not receiving a marriage proposal for the following year. Looks like I take after an albatros

OK, I know it's not Friday but it is 'officially' Christmas now that Wilf has come out of hibernation so here's a little quiz to keep you out of mischief: Which mountain range between Belgium, France and Luxembourg has the same name as a breed of horses? Which is the longest: an English mile or a Nautical mile? What is the name of the female roll figure who is secretary to M in most James Bond films? Who or what is Smoking bishop? What does the initial W stand for in former President George W Bush’s name? If you have the letters FRCVS after your name, what would be your profession? In which year was ’Last Christmas’, by Wham, released for the first time? What was the Latin name for England? What sort of creature is a painted lady? (Keep it clean!) The Spanish see in the New Year by swallowing what on each of the 12 chimes at midnight? When does December come before November? How many reindeer are featured in the poem “Twas the Night Before Christmas?” Which country has a Christmas tradition of breaking an egg into a glass and inspecting the egg-white to see into the future? How many colours on a Rubik’s Cube? What is the forename of the boy, played by Macaulay Culkin, in Home Alone 1 and 2? In which country is the Christmas tree decorated with spider-webs and artificial spiders ("pavuchky"), instead of baubles and glitter? The 1916 Olympic games were cancelled due to WW1. Where were the games scheduled to take place? In which city do they erect, every year, an enormous Christmas tree in Rockefeller Square? Who is the singer in Slade, who sings ’Merry Xmas’? A common sight at Christmas is Mistletoe. KIssing under the Mistletoe was, many years ago, a way for women to protect themselves from something. What? I’ll bet you didn’t know …. The albatross can sleep in mid-air and can glide for six days without beating its wings. Answers on 30 December.

Merry Xmas to everyone from a cold Hungary 🇭🇺

Good to see the climbing boulders finished at Plessey Woods. I know it’s not the weather to enjoy them but that will change and they will be here for many years to come. It’s taken about 4 years to get these agreed, signed off and delivered, but this time we have outdoor leisure provision which isn't available in the rest of the county! Even the kiddies one next to the play park has been done. Well done to Steve and his crew because it hasn't been the best weather to install these. (Still think they could have been sited in a better spot and when I first started this project there were originally a lot more, but still good to see them in place now.) Speaking to a guys doing the café refurb, that’s still a month or two away from completion!

@Vic Patterson just rain forecast for Northumberland. I blame all that hot air coming from America = Trump