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Santa’s Dark Side
Why is this kid cowering in fear you ask…? Because Samichlaus is comin’ to town, that’s why. When Saint Nicholas visits schools in Switzerland fear is in the air. It’s not old Saint Nick that has them worried–it’s his helper “Black Pete”. If the kids have been good, Saint Nicholas lets them reach into his bag and take a tangerine, nuts, gingerbread, or some other treat. If they’ve been bad, that’s when Black Pete steps forward. He gathers up the bad children and puts them in a bag (sometimes the very one that Samichlaus had his treats in), then takes them away to work in the forest until next year. One year of hard labour. That’s what naughty kids get. And rumour is, the work has something to do with coal…hence “black” Pete. Naughty children in Switzerland don’t get a lump of coal in their stocking. They have to mine it. The next time your kids are complaining about their Christmas presents, click on this link and show them what they could have got. Merry Christmas...
read moreNew Releases Mailing List
Sign up to receive an email notice when I release something new! Of course you’re welcome to subscribe to my blog (look on the left under: “Posts by Email“) but my New Releases Mailing List is especially for those who would like to distance themselves a little from my sporadic ramblings. Opting into the mailing list means you will only hear from me when I release a new short story or novel. If you subscribe to my blog, it’s possible you will hear from me a little more than you’d like… Sign up here for the mailing...
read moreLetting it all hang out in the Swiss Alps
The BBC’s Imogen Foulkes in Geneva says naked hiking is an increasingly popular pastime in Switzerland. But (un?)fortunately those wishing to partake in this pastime will now have to pay a fine. So make sure you tuck a few bills into your socks before setting out… Read the rest at: BBC News – Swiss can ban naked hiking, court...
read moreFree coffee roasting short story
Get Playing with Fire while it’s hot…and FREE This story is currently free on Amazon & Barnes & Noble but it will be going up to $0.99 soon. Could be today–I’m not sure when it will happen. I’m a “home-roaster” (that’s what coffee geeks who roast their own coffee beans at home call themselves), so this story was especially fun for me to write. I think a story comes alive when a writer uses a variety of senses to describe a scene or a setting. I took a look at my own writing and thought I was weak in the “smell” department. To most people, being weak in this area might not be a bad thing, but not for a writer! So I decided to write a story emphasizing the sense of smell, as a way to practice. This is what came out. Does it stink? You tell...
read moreALTDORF, a novel of The Forest Knights now available!
Buy it now at: Amazon US & Canada Amazon UK Amazon DE Amazon FR iBookstore Barnes & Noble Smashwords Go here for free e-reading apps The Forest Knights Official Website is...
read moreBeheading the goose
*Since my Forest Knights novels have a character, Seraina, who is one of the last druid priestesses, I thought it would be fun to describe some modern-day Swiss festivals with Celtic ties. So that’s what I’ll be doing in the next few posts.* Where do I start with this one? How about with the rules: Hang a dead goose by the neck in the town square Put a big sun mask on a guy with no eye slits so he is blinded Hand him a dull sword Back away quickly Each competitor gets one blind swipe at the goose with the dull blade. Kind of like a macabre “pin the tail on the donkey”. Whoever successfully decapitates the goose is declared the winner and gets to take the mangled goose home. Here’s a quote from swissworld.org just so you don’t think I’m making this stuff up! Gansabhauet, or Beheading the Goose, takes place on St Martin’s Day (November 11th). Alongside the main event are various events for children, including climbing a pole to knock down one of the presents attached to a tree at the top. The Gansabhauet itself involves blindfolded competitors using a blunt sword to attempt to...
read moreI feel like…smearing soot on young women
Canton Valais (Wallis) This is the Canton where Pirmin (a character in my Forest Knights novels) is from. If you’ve read the book, you know Pirmin is quite enamored with the opposite sex (and they with him!) so you can imagine how he would thrive in this particular festival which takes place in February: Tschäggätta in the Lötschental in Canton Valais (Wallis) (Lötschental mask© picswiss) Young unmarried men and boys roam the streets of the villages of the valley, wearing demonic masks and tunics made of sheep or goat skins, and ringing bells. The name refers to the black and white colour of these tunics: “tschäggätta” means “piebald” in the local dialect. By tradition the Tschäggätta wear gloves smeared with soot, and take the occasional swipe at anyone they meet (particularly young women). The masks are handcarved, and each one is different. They normally feature crooked teeth and bulging, uneven eyes. It is said that they reflect the untamed nature of the valley. They have also been interpreted as an expression of anarchy and rebellion in a peasant society that was largely dominated by the church. The tradition stems from the time the valley was cut off from the...
read moreDrunken elk
Okay. I know I have the first book of my Forest Knights series coming out soon, and if I were a wise man I would post something to do with that. Long story short…I am not wise. You have to check this...
read moreBecome the tree 2: Maibär
*Since my Forest Knights novels have a character, Seraina, who is one of the last druid priestesses, I thought it would be fun to describe some modern-day Swiss festivals with Celtic ties. So that’s what I’ll be doing in the next few posts.* Maibär, Bad Ragaz, Canton St Gallen The Swiss really love to dress up as trees. Here is another festival where a guy dons a couple hundred pounds of foliage and waddles through the streets. Thankfully, after a full day of this, his costume gets thrown in the river. The Maibär festival is held on the first Sunday of May. A conical frame, which may be 4.5 m (over 14 feet) high – is covered with freshly picked foliage, and decorated with ribbons and flags. It is carried dancing through the streets of the village by a young man hidden inside it. Since the frame is so heavy – up to 100 kg (220 lb) – several bearers take it in turns. The Maibär is accompanied by youngsters with cowbells, and by a horde of children collecting money. The noise is supposed to drive away any malevolent spirits which might intend to bring back the winter. The...
read moreBecome the tree 1: Pfingstsprützlig
*Since my Forest Knights novels have a character, Seraina, who is one of the last druid priestesses, I thought it would be fun to describe some modern-day Swiss festivals with Celtic ties. So that’s what I’ll be doing in the next few posts.* Ah…the Pfingstsprützlig. I have never appreciated the copy and paste function so much. Well, if this isn’t an example of Celtic or pagan customs that are still practiced in Switzerland, I will say Pfingstsprützlig ten times after eating a box of crackers: Pfingstsprützlig, Sulz, Aargau On the afternoon of Whit Sunday – seven weeks after Easter – the young men of the Fricktal villages of Sulz and Gansingen take part in the Pfingstsprützlig, or Whitsun Water Sprite, ceremony. The sprite is dressed in leafy branches, crowned with the flags of Switzerland and Canton Aargau, and goes from trough to trough in the village, splashing water out of them. Since the branches are heavy and completely cover the sprite, in Sulz it is guided by two of its friends, who support it with a double ended paddle. When they reach a trough, the guides bend the sprite over it, and use this paddle to splash the water....
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