Happy Burns Day!

[cruaich]

Just a quick note really to wish everyone a happy Burns Day! 250 years today since his birth! I think most folk know about Burns, but on the off chance anyone doesn't, have a Wiki link. ;) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_BurnsRead more... )

Comments

[thyndolhen]

Congratulation for your special day. Is good to know how are the traditions in other countries.
Wow is incredible how you memorize 226 line!!!!!
I wish you a happy day and tell me do you celebrate this day? How?

[cruaich]

Thanks. :) To be honest the memorizing at the time was ok, the way it's written makes it flow really easily, so you won't accidentally say the wrong line, if you know what I mean...

Some people will go to big Burns Suppers - big gatherings where you eat haggis, listen to people sing Burns songs or read his poems, drink whisky and have a ceilidh (pronounced kay-lee which is Scottish dancing, done in pairs or larger groups, depending on the dance).

This year we stayed in for haggis (a traditional food which is made from a sheep's heart, liver and lungs, onion, oatmeal, suet, various spices, and boiled up in the sheep's stomach - sounds disgusting, but it's really very good) and did everything just as the family. :) In a nutshell, it's a night of food, family, poetry, songs and singing. (Personally I don't have any of the whisky I'm afraid, I got really drunk on it once and now it makes me want to throw up if I get even the smallest sniff of it). :(

[thyndolhen]

Sounds really great pass a good time and a celebration with your family, especially if it is a tradition. With the food ....mmmm..... I'm not sure if I try to eat it, here we don't eat sheep, because is non common that a farmer posses sheep, only cows and chickens, but each country have its owns typical food, and I guess that I'm loosing a good food.
(This last line I'm not sure if is correct, but please forgive my errors, and what is the plural for sheep?)

[cruaich]

Yeah, sheep are very much the traditional farm animal in Scotland. We eat lots of cows and pigs and chickens as well now, but not all that long ago (when my mum was growing up) it was pretty much all sheep and rabbit.

Hm, I think it would be better to say 'missing out on' rather than 'loosing' if it's something you've not really had before, but it's perfectly understandable. :)

I'm afraid sheep is one of those annoying English words that just has to be different, so the plural of sheep is sheep. One sheep, two sheep, 500 sheep, etc. Although if you have a group of sheep and you're not saying how many there are then it's a 'flock of sheep', like it is for birds. :) I remember one of the German girls in my class when she found out the plural for mouse was mice, she found it so funny. She had been calling them mouses for years apparently. :D