Root Shoot Marry #18 - Childhood Traditions

If there were any advantages in growing up in this town:



it was that the limited resources, opportunities and aspirations of its occupants meant that some traditions were maintained for longer than in other, bigger communities.

I've tried to write that as positively as I can.

Those of you who have been reading since Glamorouse days might remember that my real feelings are more along these lines...[yes, you should click here now].

Ah, yes, the memories!

But back to my real point: traditions.

Every year, about two weeks before Easter, Mum would go to the [one] town bakery and order our Hot Cross Buns. You placed orders by dozen or half-dozen, to be collected no sooner than the Wednesday before Good Friday.

The buns looked like this:




and no one dreamed of asking for them without peel, or
with chocolate.

They arrived wrapped in white paper and string, placed in our huge mailbox with our normal order of bread - also wrapped in white paper and string - by the same person who delivered the mail (and would collect your mail, too, and drop off prescriptions from the chemist if you were stuck home sick for some reason).

I think it's funny that now the tradition seems to be to spot the first sale of hot cross buns after Christmas. Suse picked it quickly in Melbourne and we've had several grumpy letters to the editor about it in Sydney but - you know what? Every supermarket I use sells hot cross buns year round, so in some places there's no 'season' at all, any more.

I can't get too excited about the fact that the buns are out there, way too early or way too late for Easter, depending on your point of view. But I do think it is worth remembering that you value things more when you have to wait for them.

This, coming from the Queen of Instant Gratification, just made my husband snort coffee out of his nose.

Ok, so maybe there are a lot of holes in my traditions story here, but it did give me a neat segue into a Root Shoot Marry for this week.

RSM #18 - Childhood Traditions. and who represents our favourite traditions?

1. Santa Claus
2. Easter Bunny
3. Tooth Fairy

But, of course, I can't bring you the REAL Santa and the REAL Easter Bunny and the REAL Tooth Fairy because they're invisible!

Also, as you know, if we did happen to see the Real Santa and his mates, they would stop bringing us presents, or kill us, depending on your own personal family tradition...

So rest easy, and scroll down to see the Essence of Santa, Bunny and Fairy I have brought you this week.

The traditional boys:

Santa (Bad Santa - Billy Bob Thornton)


Easter Bunny (Bunny Slippers - Click here for the wearer if the image isn't instantly recognisable)



Tooth Fairy (Oberon - Rupert Everett)



And the girls?

Mrs Claus (Long Kiss Goodnight - Geena Davis)


Easter Bunny (Bridget Jones - I know we've had Renee before but who could resist throwing those boobs ears into the mix?)



The Tooth Fairy (Titania, of course - Michelle Pfeiffer)



So away we go for the first RSM of 2007, with a ho, ho, ho, a hoppity hop, and a nice shiny coin under your pillow.

mtc
bec