DECK THE HOLIDAY'S

      The tradition of the New Year's Resolutions goes all the way back to 153 B.C.  Janus, a mythical king of early Rome was placed at the head of the calendar.    With two faces, Janus could look back on past events and forward to the future.  Janus became the ancient symbol for resolutions and many Romans looked for forgiveness from their enemies and also exchanged gifts before the beginning of each year.    The new Year has not always begun on January 1st, and it doesn't begin on that date everywhere today.  It begins on that date only for cultures that use a 365-day solar calendar.  January 1st became the beginning of the New Year in 46 B.C., when Julius Caesar developed a calendar that would more accurately reflect the seasons than previous calendars had.  Greek god Janus     The Romans named the first month of the year after Janus, the god of beginnings and the guardian of doors and ent...

   You wish you had eaten less.  This is one of the most common complaints after the holiday.  Why did you stuff down that last huge piece of ham or turkey, or that second dessert?  Now you've gained five or ten pounds and you'll have to spend January and February working it off. You wish you had done what you wanted.  Every year during the holidays, many people find themselves being pulled in ten different directions.  Grandma wants you at her house at noon for dinner, mom wants you to unwrap gifts at her house at 11.  Your friends want to get together at 3 p.m.,  and then your aunt asks you to drop by at 2.  After the day is over, you find you put more miles on your car in one day than you did during the whole month of December.  You're exhausted, stressed out, and wish you had just stayed home in bed. The desire to go back and get people different Christmas gifts.  Now that you see your brother didn't really need a new ra...

   Every culture and many families have tradition's and superstitions about foods that will ensure a prosperous New Year.  With the state of the economy and all the financial woes it has caused in 2009, it might not hurt for us to lean toward the superstitious side this New Year's day.  So, if you don't have any of the following foods in your kitchen right now, you might want to make a "good luck" run to the store! Vegetables Associated with Good Luck for the New Year    There is a tradition of eating black-eyes peas on January 1st, it is a common good luck food in the southern United States, black-eyed peas are thought to bring prosperity, their shape and abundance representing coins.  Other vegetables that are considered lucky are: Lentils, they resemble coins and are thought to bring good fortune and represent growing wealth.  Greens (kale, collards), are thought to be the color of money, they are thougtht to bring wealth and prosper...