Happy Fethtivuth!
You all remember that great episode of Seinfeld where George’s father, Frank, talked about the “tradition” he created called Festivus. Here’s the rest of the story as Festivustivities get underway in PA.
Pa. Community Celebrates Festivus
ERIE, Pa. (AP) – The celebration of Festivus is alive and well in northwestern Pennsylvania, nearly a decade after the bizarre “holiday” garnered pop culture notoriety on “Seinfeld.”
Residents were preparing to celebrate “the festivus for the rest of us” Friday with a night of airing grievances, feats of strength and, of course, the aluminum Festivus pole.
“It’s all in good fun,” said Jeff Boam, 36, a math teacher from Millcreek Township and longtime “Seinfeld” fan.
“More than anything else, it’s a great excuse to get together with friends and have outrageous fun,” said George Klapsinos, 38, a senior technical service specialist for Lord Corp.
Many people learned of Festivus through “Seinfeld,” but its roots actually go back several decades, when writer Daniel O’Keefe’s father started it. He was looking for something more from the holidays, something that wasn’t political or religious.
For those wishing to participate locally, check out these sites:
Festivus Poles
ManTodd Industries
Watch the movie online, then read the book
I’m all for it, and will gladly join any movement that gets rid of the mishmash of group names for what is essentially the same holiday season. It was called Saturnalia by the Romans, but today who wants to celebrate a planet?. “Happy Solstice” doesn’t ring very well either.
I was going around saying “Merry Chris-nukah”, too, but only Jewish friends seemed to get a kick out of that one.
Some years ago my Dad and I watched a rerun episode of Seinfeld, and neither of us could figure out what was funny about it. It felt really strange, all those people in the studio laughing at it while we sat there dumbfounded, like something was tragically wrong with us. I had never seen the show before because I live in an area that can’t receive any kind of TV… not broadcast, cable or satellite (which I sometimes do regret). We finally concluded that there was absolutely nothing wrong with either us or the rest of the audience… it was just another example of the subjectivity of humor.
I have been calling myself “Mr. Kneejerk Skeptic” here, (a name I stole from a friend after we’d been joking about a close encounter he’d had with some ufo enthusiasts). It was just JG before that. The other day I told another friend that I was using the moniker as an on-line name, and she replied that she thought it was dumb. Oh well, can’t win ’em all, I guess.
I and some other folks like to sit around and try to make up ridiculous formal names for people and things, W C Fields-style, and hope the sysadmins don’t mind if I do this now and then. That it is even allowed at all here (unlike, say, slashdot) is much appreciated. If there is any reason that this might not be appropriate though, please let me know and I’ll stop. Otherwise I’ll assume it’s okay.
Thanks,
JG