Blast from the past
Jennings was 175 this year
There I was, searching for something to put my Jennings in, when I came across this.
Daily archives: December 26, 2003
Jennings was 175 this year
Christmas in Baghdad
More tense than an average day. When do they get to have some proper peace?
Kids in Iraq also believe in Santa Claus, but people here call him ‘Baba Noel’ which means, “Father Noel”. I asked the children what he looked like and they generally agreed that he was fat, cheerful, decked in red and had white hair. (Their impertinent 11-year-old explains that he’s fat because of the dates, cheerful because of the alcohol and wears red because he’s a communist!) He doesn’t drop into Iraqi homes through the chimney, though, because very few Iraqi homes actually have chimneys. He also doesn’t drop in unexpectedly in the middle of the night because that’s just rude. He acts as more of an inspiration to parents when they are out buying Christmas gifts for the kids; a holiday muse, if you will. The reindeer are a foreign concept here.
early days in extra time
I hope that Beagle 2 can be found and its pictures relayed, but I do wish the scientists involved would stop using cheesy footballing analogies to describe the stages of the mission.
Noah
Well, the lakes and reservoirs were getting low, but after the weather of the last few days I doubt that’s still a problem. I got all lightweight and took today’s picture from indoors.