MeinMyself

SM Town – 2011 SMTOWN Winter ‘The Warmest Gift

2011-12-13T17:10:00.000+07:00

Track List:
01. Santa U Are The One (with HENRY & ZHOUMI) – Super Junior
02. Sleigh Ride – TVXQ
03. Distance – BoA
04. Last Christmas – SHINee
05. Diamond – SNSD
06. For The First Time – Kangta
07. Like A Dream – TRAX
08. The First Noel – Zhang Li Yin
09. 1,2,3 – f(x)
10. Amazing – CSJH – Dana & Sunday
11. Happy X-Mas (War Is Over) – J-Min

Now it can be downloaded in K2NBlog.
Enjoy!
:)

cr: K2NBlog

SHINee "THE FIRST" Track List Revealed

2011-11-09T00:08:00.002+07:00

New album to be released on December 7th SHINee "THE FIRST" was presented in detail.

This work and for their first Japanese album, "Replay - You are my everything-" "JULIETTE" "LUCIFER" and, the title track and three singles released so far, contains the coupling were "Hello" "Love Like Oxygen" consists of all 12 tracks such as the Japanese version. "Amigo" "The SHINee World" also includes five songs and new songs Japanese version of the encounter seems to be one of them looking back on new attractions in the history of Korea. In addition, co-production drama Edition CJK "Strangers6" theme song "Stranger" is added as a bonus track. Details are as follows.

In addition, the arrival of a picture when opening the Limited Edition and Limited Edition SPECIAL BOX.

The Limited Edition Special Box :

The Limited Edition ( ver.B ):

SHINee 『THE FIRST』track list:
1．LUCIFER
2．Amigo
3．JULIETTE
4．BETTER
5．To Your Heart
6．Always Love
7．Replay –君は僕のeverything-
8．START
9．Love Like Oxygen
10．Hello
11．The SHINee World
12．Seesaw
13．Stranger [Bonus Track]　※通常盤のみ収録

Source : tower.jp
Credit : SFI

2011-10-10T22:42:00.001+07:00

You're just a daydream away

I wouldn't know what to say if I had you

And I'll keep you a daydream away

Just watch from a safe place so I never have to lose

All Time Low - A Daydream Away

The Latest PLURK Emoticon

2011-03-15T17:23:00.002+07:00

I wanna share new PLURK emoticons in here.
Enjoy!
:)

(goal) :

(code) :
(fireworks) :

(bzzz) :
PS: If you use this emote more than once it turned to different colours (black, blue, red).
(dance_bzz) :

(Русский) :
(banana_gym) :

(angry_okok) :

(wave_okok):

(hungry_okok) :

(music_okok) :

(dance_okok) :

(gym_okok) :

(yarr) :
(dance_yarr) :

(no_dance) :

(droid_dance) :

(jazzhands) :

(code_okok) :

(taser_okok) :

(pokerface) :

(gpokerface) :

(aha) :

(gaha) :

(whatever) :

(gwhatever) :

(bah) :

(gbah) :

(yay) :

(gyay) :

(yea) :

(gyea) :

(fuu) :

(gfuu) :

(troll) :

(gtroll) :

Christmas Emoticon:
PS: Active only in December

(xmas1) :

(xmas2) :

(xmas3) :

(xmas4) :

A to Z About Friend

2011-02-24T01:32:00.000+07:00

A : Accepts you as you are
B : Believes in "you"
C : Calls you just to say, "Hi"
D : Doesn't give up on you
E : Envisions the whole of you
F : Forgives your mistakes
G : Gives unconditionally
H : Helps you
I :   Invites you over
J : Just "be" with you
K : Keeps you close at heart
L : Loves you for who you are
M : Makes a difference in your life
N : Never judges
O : Offers support
P :   Picks you up
Q : Quiets your fears
R : Raises your spirits
S :   Says nice things about you
T : Tells you the truth when you need hear it
U : Understands you
V : Values you
W : Walks beside you
X : eXplain things you don't understand
Y : Yells when you won't listen
Z : Zaps you back to reality

Zodiak ke-13??

2010-12-27T02:01:00.014+07:00

Sebenarnya berita ini udah lama beredar.

Sekilas info aja ya.

Untuk info lebih lanjut silakan hubungi KASKUS.

Zodiak berubah menjadi 13. Dari 12 zodiak yang melambangkan rasi bintang, kini ditambah zodiak baru lagi yaitu Ophiuchus. Dan susunan zodiak pun berubah.
Berikut susunannya.

* Capricornus: 21 Januari-16 Februari (26 hari)
Karakter umum: pendiam, rajin, ambisius, materialis, gengsi tinggi, suka memerintah, suka memperalat orang lain.

* Aquarius: 16 Februari-11 Maret (24 hari)
Karakter umum: tenang, objektif, jenius, penuh ide, cepat mengerti.

* Pisces: 11 Maret-18 April (38 hari)
Karakter umum: sangat perasa (dari sisi manusiawi), penuh cinta, praktis, suka mengkhayal.

* Aries: 18 April-13 Mei (25 hari)
Karakter umum: agresif, enerjik, impulsif, pemimpin, tidak sabaran, egois, cepat emosi.

* Taurus: 13 Mei-22 Jun (40 hari)
Karakter umum: keras kepala, materialistis, pasif, ramah, sabar, praktis, setia, toleran.

* Gemini: 22 Juni-21 Juli (29 hari)
Karakter umum: lincah, pandai berbicara, tidak stabil, mudah berubah-ubah, mudah gugup, sangat peka.

* Cancer: 21 Juli-10 Agustus (20 hari)
Karakter umum: sentimentil, setia, penuh perhatian, sulit memaafkan, daya ingat kuat.

* Leo: 10 Agustus-16 September (37 hari)
Karakter umum: suka memimpin, dermawan, penuh gaya, aristokratik, congkak, percaya diri tinggi.

* Virgo: 16 September-31 Oktober (45 hari)
Karakter umum: praktis, analistis, kritis, berkepala dingin, logis, rajin, sederhana.

* Libra: 31 Oktober-23 November (23 hari)
Karakter umum: penuh keraguan, bimbang, adil pandai bermuka dua, naluri kuat, mempesona.

* Scorpio: 23 November-29 November (enam hari)
Karakter umum: panjang akal, pendiam, pendendam, gigih, tekun.

* Ophiuchus: 29 November-18 Desember (19 hari)
Karakter umum: belum dikategorisasikan.

* Sagitarius: 18 Desember-21 Januari (34 hari)
Karakter umum: berjiwa petualang, pandai, suka kebebasan, mandiri, pandai berdiplomasi, berpandangan luas.

Katanya ada molekul oksigen pada rasi bintang Ophiuchus ini. Observasi sudah dilakukan sejak Agustus 2002.

Cukup sekian info dari saya.

Tips Menjalani LDR

2010-12-22T15:59:00.002+07:00

Bagi bro 'n sis yang sedang menjalin sebuah hubungan dengan seseorang, pastinya memerlukan kerja keras dan komitmen untuk membuatnya berhasil, namun dibutuhkan usaha lebih keras untuk mempertahankan terutama hubungan jarak jauh.

Tidak semua orang berhasil menjalankannya dan hanya sedikit yang beruntung berhasil mempertahankan hubungannya sampai akhir.

Hal pertama yang harus Anda dan pasangan Anda bicarakan adalah seberapa kuat komitmen kalian ketika harus berjauhan satu sama lain selama jangka waktu tertentu. Sebuah hubungan tidak akan bertahan jika salah satunya menjalaninya dengan setengah hati atau tidak cukup berkomitmen.

Pada awal hubungan jarak jauh, pastikan Anda telah mengajukan pertanyaan-pertanyaan penting agar Anda berdua memiliki parameter yang jelas dalam menjalani hubungan jarak jauh tersebut. Jika hubungan ini memang serius, Anda dapat menanyakan apakah pasangan Anda bersedia untuk pindah. Seberapa sering Anda dan pasangan akan bertemu dalam setahun? Bagaimana Anda berkomunikasi? Apakah Anda bersedia untuk menunggu? Ini hanyalah beberapa pertanyaan dan Anda harus yakin dulu sebelum Anda melanjutkannya.

Ketika Anda menjalani hubungan jarak jauh, sangat penting bagi Anda untuk memiliki hubungan komunikasi yang teratur meskipun terkendala perbedaan waktu (bila terpisahkan lautan dan benua). Anda tidak harus menghabiskan 6 jam berbicara dengan pasangan Anda tapi paling tidak ceritakan padanya apa yang terjadi pada Anda hari itu. Saling bercerita tentang kegembiraan dan kesusahan kecil yang Anda alami. Ada begitu banyak cara untuk berkomunikasi. Bisa melalui telepon atau chatting melalui Yahoo Messenger, Google Talk maupun Skype, adalah beberapa aplikasi yang dapat Anda manfaatkan. Gunakan web cam sehingga Anda dapat saling memandang satu sama lain.

Tulislah surat cinta dan kirimkan hadiah-hadiah kecil tanpa alasan. Anda tidak perlu menunggu moment peringatan tertentu untuk mengirimkan hadiah kecil bagi pasangan Anda! Hal penting lainnya ketika menjalani hubungan jarak jauh adalah saling mengucapkan “I Love You” setiap saat. Jangan lewatkan kesempatan untuk mengatakan kepadanya bahwa Anda peduli dan betapa berartinya dia bagi Anda. Buatlah pasangan Anda berpikir bahwa Anda memikirkan dirinya setiap saat dan jarak tidak dapat mengubah perasaan kalian berdua.

(Sumber: saidaonline - jawaban.com)

formspring.me

2010-12-19T00:54:00.001+07:00

Ask me? Why not? http://formspring.me/arrmh

Fav Quote

2010-12-15T14:54:00.000+07:00

One of my favourite quotes

The rain falls because the sky can no longer handle its heaviness.

Just like TEARS...
It falls because heart can no longer handle the PAIN.

CONSCIOUSNESS?

2010-12-13T22:01:00.002+07:00

Andaikan hatiku sebersih dan seputih orang-orang yang berhati mulia, tugasku di dunia selesailah sudah (dapat berakhir dengan cepat).

Hidupku pun tenang di surga. Orang-orang yang ku tinggalkan di dunia pun merasa tenang karena aku pun tenang di sisi-Nya.

Tidak akan ada penyesalan, tidak akan ada air mata yang jatuh sia-sia.

Tidak ada yang perlu merasa tersakiti akan kata-kata dan kelakuanku, tidak ada yang perlu merasa tersaingi dalam segala hal, tidak ada yang...

Semuanya akan berjalan dengan baik. Hidup ini akan terasa sangat indah tanpa ada aku di dunia ini.

SHINee Song's (Obsession) for “The Warrior’s Way” Music Video

2010-12-04T15:22:00.003+07:00

With the official release of “The Warrior’s Way” only a week away, the music video for its theme song, “Obsession” has just been unveiled. Since “Obsession” was originally a track from SHINee’s second full-length album, “Lucifer“, the clip starts off with the boys introducing the video.

cr: allkpop

SHINee 2nd Album Repackage [HELLO] Tracklist

2010-09-30T03:05:00.000+07:00

Track List

01. LUCIFER
02. Hello
03. 하나 (One)
04. Get It
05. UP & DOWN
06. Electric Heart
07. A-Yo
08. 욕(慾) (Obsession)
09. 화살 (Quasimodo)
10. 악 (Shout Out)
11. WOWOWOW
12. Your Name
13. Life
14. Ready or Not
15. Love Pain
16. 사.계.후 (Love Still Goes On)

cr: WRS

SHINee had Lessons on Chinese Language and Even Wushu?‏

2010-09-30T02:46:00.001+07:00

How popular is Hallyu in Shanghai? Just take a look at SM TOWN LIVE concert and you will know. Last Saturday, SM TOWN LIVE concert was held in Shanghai. On that day, DBSK members Yunho and Changmin, Super Junior, SHINee, F(X), SNSD and many top stars and idols made their appearance, making the crowds go wild. SM also took the chance and signed endorsements with various China brands for SHINee and F(X) during their visit.

SHINee is the second boy group introduced by SM Entertainment following Super Junior’s success, with Leader Onew, Jonghyun, Key, Taemin and Minho. Recently they came back with their new album ‘Lucifer’ and had achieved excellent results in Korea. Currently, they have set breaking into the Chinese market as their number 1 goal. In our short interview with them, they revealed that they once went to Beijing to study the Chinese language, and even had lessons on Wushu as well.

As entertainment agencies in Korea generally has strict management, hence other than spending all their time on practice and rest, all five members exclaimed that they have no dating experience at all. “We really haven’t dated anyone before. When we were trainees, we couldn’t date. After we debuted we were really busy all the more we can’t.” With busy personal schedules, they do not have much time for themselves. So whenever SHINee have time to rest, they will be hanging around and cracking jokes together. During the interview, the most common word we heard was ‘Rabbit’. Why Rabbit? In order to highlight each member’s outstanding and unique character, SM Entertainment has specially chosen 5 animals to portray their individual image. Leader Onew a rabbit, Jonghyun a dog, Key a fox, Minho a cow and Taemin portrays a cat. And because ‘Rabbit’ Onew has a good temper, hence he is always ‘bullied’ by the rest.

cr: WRS

Looklet - User: anggun (Looks)

2010-07-30T21:25:00.000+07:00

Looklet - User: anggun (Looks)

Taemin Birthday Message

2010-07-18T23:37:00.006+07:00

안녕하세요!!
저는 SHINee 막둥이 태민이 에요~!!^^

여러분! 아~ 정말 꿈 같은 생일이 지나갔네요.. ㅎㅎ
저는 사실 연습생 때는 생일을 별로 챙기진 않았는데,
팬 여러분께서 이렇게 항상 챙겨 주셔서 너무 감사 드리고 있어요 ㅠㅠ
여러분의 사랑 늘 감동이에요 ㅎㅎ

음.. 이제 컴백도 얼마 남지 않았으니 많이 기대해주시구요~
7월 23일부터 쭈~욱~~~ SHINee 만나러 와주세요! ^^

그럼 이제 밤이 깊었으니,
안녕히 주무시고 재미있는 꿈도 많이 꾸세요 ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Credit: WRS

Happy Birthday to My Beloved Chub!

2010-07-18T01:06:00.001+07:00

Happy birthday, chub!
You're getting older now.
:D
I mean, you're a mature man now.
I wish you could do your best in this ~~horrible~~ life.
And also just believe in God and make your family especially your parents be proud of you.

Hmm, last but not least, I hope we could meet soon.
And I hope it wouldn't be the last.
:))

God bless you abundantly.

The Story Behind LUCIFER

2010-07-16T22:19:00.011+07:00

SHINee's 'Lucifer' made use of religion.
Why?
On the 16th, Sm Entertainment released Idol group SHINee’s image of their 2nd album 'Lucifer', releasing SHINee's image at 10PM on that day required huge amount of technology/skills, to display the members’ new look.
*Members using their eye expression to show their main song 'Lucifer'.
In Christianity, Lucifer means the falling angel of the devil.
SHINee with a refreshing image in the past activities, showed a big transformation and a feeling of approaching in their 2nd album.
SM expressed that "A selfish heart, persevering love, wrongly threatened, and repeatedly revolving appearance of an angel and devil, lovers having a vague feeling in Lucifer. The meaning of religion is to have courage."

cr: allkpop

SHINee's 2nd Album

2010-07-16T14:31:00.008+07:00

Finally!

SHINee has revealed their 2nd album concept.

Their concept is LUCIFER.

Sounds strange, right?

But, I think they're always look cool.

The track list:

Up & Down
Lucifer
Electric Heart
A-Yo
욕(慾) (Obsession)
화살 (Quasimodo)
악 (Shout Out)
Wowowow
Your Name
Life
Ready Or Not
Love Pain
사.계.후 (Love Still Goes On)

Make #KpopinIndonesia Be in Twitter Trending Topic

2010-07-13T18:14:00.002+07:00

Please click this!
1.000.000 Facebookers Mendukung Pembuatan Acara Kpop di Televisi Indonesia

Help us!
Thank you.
:))

Rino Nakasone’s Interview with Asian Pop Addict

2010-07-13T12:03:00.003+07:00

Interviewer: “You’ve worked with alot of different Artistes, what’s been some of the favorite Artiste or groups you’ve worked with?”
Rino: “Yeah, uh Gwen is one of them, She’s amazing, amazing women, and the group would be SHINee.”
Both: “Yes SHINee, SHINee-da”
Rino: “I love every body, i love girls generation and fx and super junior, but i have a thing for SHINee, because that was my first group plus artiste that i got the choreograph, so you know what i mean? they’re like my babies.”
Interviewer: “So you’re praticularly proud of that.”
Rino: “Yeah, it was so much fun, they look so young right now, if you look back at their replay video.”
Interviewer: “Yeah i know, they look so young.”
Rino: “Yeah i know, ah forget it! They’re too young, oh my god.”
Interviewer: “This will be a major failure on our part, because non stop we’ve been getting questions all week from SHINee fans, so if i don’t ask you SHINee questions, these fans are going to kill me.”
Rino: “Ok ok!”
Interviewer: “They know, the SHINee fans know that you choreographed their comeback song that’s going to come out really soon. They kinda want to know some info uh about the song and what kind of look and feel and dance moves can the fans expect that.”
Rino: “You know first of all i’ve never confirmed that, so i think people need to be careful like people just start creating stories, i just want to say, please stick to what i say from Twitter or my words cause i’ve never confirmed that, i usually don’t like to talk about it until the product is out. So yeah for now i’ve never confirmed that, so ha ha ha.”
Interviewer: “So SHINee fans can leave it alone for now.”
=Skipped talk about SUJU. She taught Suju via video tape?=
Interviewer: “Alright now, so in continuing with our SHINee question…”
Rino: “About SHINee?”
Interviewer: “Yes we’re SHINee talk, imma try to fulfil the fangirls.”
Rino: “Yeah what’s up!”
Interviewer: “In working with SHINee now for a few years, you’ve got to see them grow from an unknown debut group to now you know a seasoned group with large and devoted fan base, have you noticed any particular changes with them in their performances and style over this time?”
Rino: “Hmm uh hm, i think they’re just growing dancers, and some of the members are improving i heard. But i always like just people talking, cause in my eyes, everybody’s working hard. I hear it from the people like ya, like some of them got really better now, i was like really, they’ve been always good in my eyes, but uh i think you know having like choreographers like Misha, you know misha did A.Mi.Go and Ring Ding Dong. That’s complicated! i don’t know how they do it! Yeah they’re just amazing, their choreography is getting like more like skills or something, like more complicated in my opinion, so i don’t know they’re definitely growing as idols for sure.”
Interviewer: “OK, another SHINee question, i’m telling ya imma do it.”
Rino: “You’re just gonna make it this SHINee Special.”
Interviewer: “We’re going back to you really soon, you had no idea we were flooded with tweets, after the show when we finished the last time, and everyone’s like, when is it going to be out when is it going to be out. omg, and everyone retweeted and retweeted, and i was like omgash, i have no idea. Those SHINee fans are scary, i’m scared for my life. So here’s the Million Dollar SHINee Fangirl question. If you were absolutely forced to choose, which SHINee member would you choose as your favorite and why?”
Interviewer: “Onew” (whispering)
Rino: “Nada!”
Interviewer: “You knew she would say that! Damn it.”
=SKIP unrelevant=
Interviewer: “So we have some other questions from fans that aren’t SHINee related, so don’t worry.”
Rino: “I don’t mind i love SHINee fans! They’re really supportive.”
Interviewer: “Yeah they are, That’s one thing about fans, not just SHINee fans, but Kpop fans in general, when they’re behind a group, they’re behind them for like 110%.”
Rino: “Yeah you know i love all of the members equally, so no favorism.”
Interviewer: “Yeah you do not want the crazy fan girls after you”
Rino: “But yes i do, i love them all, they’re all different and unique, like relationship with everybody, i can’t choose cause i like everybody.”
=SKIP Unrelevant=
Interviewer: Before you were recruited, and assembled the choreography for SHINee, were you at all aware of the big pop idol boom that was happening at South Korea? Cause this exploded pretty much over here in the US with all the Asian Fans.
Rino: “I know, you know well i mean to be honest, u know i didn’t, well of course i knew about uh BoA or Rain. Knew about them, cause they’re just there, like every where.So um But like u know, like every kpop group like not until i start working with them like SM Entertainment really let me open my eyes in uh like how Korean music industry works. Like its its full loud you know, its amazing.”
Interviewer: “So its like when the offer came out, it was like Gold mine.”
Rino: “What who?”
Interviewer: “It was like a Gold mine when the offer came out.”
Rino: “When did it like kinda like went crazy you think, has it always been crazy like that, or is it lately because there’s been alot of groups though, what do you think?”
Interviewer: “It it it comes in gold, recently the boom like started maybe like last year, cause there’s always been groups but it has never gotten to the level that it is now until like the last few years.”
Rino: “Yeah i see, i see.”
Interviewer: “So right now its like at the peak right now.”
Rino: “Yeah good.”
======== skipped, she’s talking bout One piece, Jpop groups=====
Interviewer: “Alright, we do have some questions from the fans that were sensitive uh so let me ask. Um, one of them wanna know um how do you keep your dance moves so fresh in order to avoid unintentional taking from another person by accident?”
Rino: “Yeah um.. because you know, i do not want to look like everybody else, even that goes along within in even my choreography so i try to make every choreography differently, for example SHINee, Girls Generation, F(x), they all look different. you know what i mean? i really try. And uh, first of all music is different, so that’s kind of natural way to happen, but even though SHINee, i don’t wan it to look the same so like Replay, Love Like Oxygen and Juliette, i try to everything to make them look different, you know i always try to make them different no matter what, but then again there’s always common steps in the dance that you can not get away, that’s a common thing everyone does, so i put them in for fun, but you know be different, have fun.
Interviewer: “Well definitely, definitely i’ll give you props for that because SHINee videos, Girls Generation videos and f(X) videos, they are very different from each other, and they’re so damn catchy that you’ll find yourself doing them no matter how retarded you look. you know i’m addicted to was like the Girls generation’s the genie , the horse kick and what not. The choreography for Juliette was what got me into SHINee. The little movement that they do with the leg and then the arms when they bend. I was like omg, what is that. It’s definitely, your moves are definitely unique, they’re very fun, we tried to do them as fast as we can, as retarded as we look, so much props to you.”
=She said that her husband likes SHINee, he met them when he visited Rino when she was teaching Replay=
Interviewer: “Um alright so, we don’t wanna take up too much of your time, cause you know you have dinner with your hubby, we don’t wanna take them out from you, is there a message you want to send out to your fans? Especially the SHINee fans, that kept bugging us.”
Rino: “No you know, i mean, they’re amazing, they support and love them so much, that’s why i don’t understand why they’re anxious, they wanna know you know, but I don’t know everything! You know what i mean? They think i know everything, but I really don’t so, you know, it’s that, and you know when i say this and that thing, be careful not trying to create stuff you know, i don’t know i wish i can say out the new stuff but i can’t, but you know i am very open once the song is out you know so..”
Interviewer: “Yeah people will just have to be patient.”

Cr. asianpopaddict

She keeps don't want to reveal the concept. -_-

Jokes & Riddles

2010-02-21T18:00:00.008+07:00

Here are some jokes and riddles.

Check 'em out!

Jokes

[1]
Teacher : Can you give me an example of wasted energy?
Student : Yes, Ma'am. Telling a hair-raising story to a bald-headed man.

[2]
A duck, a frog, and a skunk wanted to go to the movies. The admission was one dollar. Which one of the three couldn't afford to go?
Answer: The skunk.
Do you know why?
The duck had a bill. The frog had a greenback. But the skunk only had a scent.

[3]
There were three stores in a row. One day, the first store owner in the row put up a sign reading, FIRE SALE.
Then the third man in the row put up a sign reading, BANKRUPTCY SALE.
The man in the middle surveyed his neighbour's signs for a while and then came out with one of his own which read: MAIN ENTRANCE.

[4]
Son : Dad, I just graduated and I got my B.A.
Mom: I suppose now you'll be trying for a Ph.D?
Dad : No, he's going to be trying for a J.O.B.

Riddles

[1]
What nation is dreaded by students?
Answer: Examination

What nation is a crazy nation?
Answer: Hallucination

What nation is a lazy nation?
Answer: Procrastination

[2]
What is the longest word in English language?
Answer: smiles

[3]
What is a honeymoon salad?
Lettuce alone.

[4]
Why did the chicken cross the road?
To get away from Colonel Sanders.

[5]
What time is it when a clock strikes thirteen?
Time to either get it fixed or get a new clock.

May Day

2009-05-01T01:26:00.014+07:00

The History of May Day

May Day is the 1st day in May, regardless of what day of the week it falls on. But unlike April 1st, which has to do with tricks, May 1st has to do with the celebration of Springtime, and is an ancient pagan holiday going back to the time of the Celts. May Day's origin is purely pagan. The Celts observed a festival called "Beltane" by the lighting of bonfires to honor their sun god and welcome back Spring again.

But, the Celts weren't the only ones who were glad winter was over with. The Romans celebrated, "Floralia" (Festival of Flowers) for 6 days at the end of April and the beginning of May. Many of the customs of May Day today, originate from the Roman celebrations and Greek such as gathering flowers and weaving them into wreaths or head garlands.

Many European communities started celebrating Spring by decorating their homes with the first-blooming flowers and selecting a Queen of the May and then dancing around what is known today as the May Pole (see below for more details).

The custom was to have women first wash their faces in the early morning with the dew on May 1. They believed that by doing this, it would improve their complexions and bring them eternal youthfulness. Throughout the Middle Ages, into the Renaissance and even into the 19th Century, May Day was widely observed throughout Europe and America. But...

The Puritans were an exception to the rule. They persecuted anyone who participated in May Day celebrations claiming it was a heathen custom, and preferred their children spend the day reading the bible.

Although May Day began to welcome in Spring, it later gained political significance in some countries. May Day is celebrated in America, Europe (especially England) and in some areas that were once the former Soviet Union. Socialists in 1889 decided to make May Day their Labor Day and renamed it, turning it into a day to honor the working man.

Countries whose governments are socialistic or communistic still celebrate May 1 with speeches, and displays of their military strength. The May Day parade in Moscow's Red Square is one of the better known examples of this. However, since the Soviet Union has dissolved, it's been somewhat toned down.

Since the United States has Labor Day in September, it keeps May Day as a day to celebrate Spring, young love, and romance. But ironically, May 1st marks the anniversary of the 1886 Chicago labor rally that resulted in the Haymarket Riot and the subsequent of the labor anarchy movement.

May Day is not a national holiday in the United States. But, the state of Hawaii does observe it as Lei Day by exchanging the traditional Hawaiian flower necklaces as symbols of good luck and friendship.

Symbols of May Day

Flowers

Since May Day symbolizes spring, it's only logical that flowers which start to bloom in spring are it's main symbol. Garlands of flowers were an important part of the English May Day ceremonies that it was often renamed Garland Day.

The custom of "bringing in the May" meant to go out in the field (or woods) early in the morning on May 1st and return with baskets full of flowers. Sometimes these flowers would be strung together in long chains. A common activity today is for children to make what is called "daisy chains" in the springtime as soon as they bloom, although not just on May 1.

Another custom was to tie just one single blossom to the end of a long wand. Sometimes the flowers made a crown for the May Queen. In Greece, wild flowers are still gathered and woven into May Day wreaths, which are then hung to dry until June 23, which is known as St. John's Eve and burned in the midsummer bonfires.

Up until the end of the 19th century, the "May Birchers" in England would go from house to house on May Day Eve and decorate the doors with boughs of trees or flowers to signify their opinion of the person(s) inside that home. In some areas, the plants were chosen becuse they rhymed with the word describing the person.

For example: "Fair of Face = Pear bough on door.
"Glum Person" = Plum branches

Needless to say, this custom upset so many people that it was discontinued.

Jack in the Green

Jack in the Green is a leaf-covered figure in England and part of May Day celebrations. He usually was a young chimney sweep hidden inside a 6-10 foot high wicker framework made of hoops and covered in holly and ivy. (Ouch! For those that do not know how prickly holly leaves are.) This leafy figure danced as the head of a parade of chimney sweeps that went through the village singing songs and collecting pennies.

Jack in the Green is believed to be a relic of ancient European tree worship (see our Celtic horoscopes page). The Gypsies of Romania and Translyvania still observe their Green George Festival on April 23. To them, Green George is a tree spirit represented by a local boy dressed up in branches, leaves and flowers. Humans dressed up as trees are considered to be an example of May Day's pagan origins.

May Baskets

In 19th century United States, the custom of hanging small baskets filled with flowers became popular. It is still done in some communities throughout the US today and not just for May Day. Many towns have an organization that voluntarily goes and puts flower baskets in various parts of public areas of their towns. In other cases, the flower baskets are not real, but are made of woven strips of colored paper decorated with lace-paper doilies and ribbons. They're filled with flowers, candy and sometimes a short poem with the name of the person for whom they are intended. The custom is to hang the basket on the person's front door, ring the bell and then dash away before the door is opened. This is a lot like a surprise Valentine or Halloween trick-or-treating in a way. In Iowa, it is the custom children to leave May Baskets on the doors of those they have crushes on because flowers symbolize love, fertility and the arrival of spring.

May Dolls

As mentioned previously, the Romans had their flower celebration to their goddess of flowers, Flora. They spent the first day of the month gathering flowers as offerings to this goddess. Sometimes, rather than wreaths or garlands, Roman children made small images of Flora instead, decorating it with flowers. After Christianity got introduced into Rome, the church tried to replace some of these pagan May Day customs. Thus, the May Dolls soon resembled the Virgin Mary.

May Pole

The most well-known symbol of May Day is the maypole. They go back to the pagan custom in which trees (birth or fir normally) were brought into the village square through a solemn parade. Later, in the 16th and 17th centuries many towns in England erected permanent poles that were left to stand for the rest of the year and decorated only on May Day. The shaft was often painted with stripes and the flower doll was fastened on the top. A tuft of greenery of some sort was left on the end of the pole as a reminder that it was a symbol of the newly awakened spirit of fertility and vegetation.

Colorful ribbons (or streamers) were then hung from the pole and people would dance around it holding the ends of the streamers in such a way that they were woven into a pattern as the dancers progressed. Today the Maypole dance is often performed by traditional English Morris dancers (not just common folks) who wear hats decorated with ribbons and flowers and streamers on their wrists and elbows. They also have bells strapped to their calves and hold white handerchiefs and clack wooden sticks. The bells and sticks in pagan times were used to frighten evil spirits and the dancers high leaps were believed to encourage the crops to grow tall.

Remember I said in America the Puritans hated May Day? They did not like this idea of dancing around the Maypole at all because they interpreted it as a phallic symbol and the dance as a lusty, pagan fertility ritual that had no place in their civilized world. So they tried to stomp out the custom, but to no avail 100%.

Queen of the May

Maia, the ancient Roman goddess of growth and Spring, plus Flora their goddess of flowers are both the symbols for the Queen of May ceremony of May Day. The Queen is usually picked from the girls of the town (how depends on each town) and is often accompanied by a May King. Some even have a May court also.

Villagers then dressed up as shepherds, jesters, chimney sweeps, Morris dancers and a Jack of the Green also. For the most part, today the May King is gone. But many schools in London, still chose a May Queen.

In the United States, all attempts to make May Day a Christian holiday pointed it int he direction of Mary, the mother of Jesus. So, in many places today in the U.S., where May Day is celebrated with the crowing of a May Queen, there is often a parade that leads to the local church where the Queen then places a crown (or her the crown on her head?) of flowers on the statue of Mary.

April Fool's Day (part 1)

2009-04-01T01:27:00.004+07:00

Today is April Fool's Day .

This is a little explanation about April Fool's Day .

Check this out !

There are several explanations for the origin of April Fools' Day, but here is the most plausible one. April 1st was once New Year's Day in France. In 1582, Pope Gregory declared the adoption of his Gregorian calendar to replace the Julian calendar and New Year's Day was officially changed to January 1st. It took awhile for everyone in France to hear the news of this major change and others obstinately refused to accept the new calendar, so a lot of people continued to celebrate New Year's Day on the first of April – earning them the name April fools. The April fools were subjected to ridicule and practical jokes and the tradition was born. The butts of these pranks were first called poisson d'avril or April fish because a young naive fish is easily caught. A common practice was to hook a paper fish on the back of someone as a joke. This evolved over time and a custom of prank-playing continues on the first day of April.

Maybe I'll post my story later .

Hope I've great story today, on April Fool's Day .

I hope . . .