I appreciate the significance of Columbus’ “discovery” of America. But the only celebrations, that I know of, are a few parades to honor the explorer in Italian-American communities. All in all a pretty lame holiday, devoid of traditions and ways of making merry.
Wouldn’t be a lot more fun if we recognized Eric the Red et al with a Vikings Day?
Think about it. Berserker parties, meat cooking on open pits, free flowing alchoholic beverages, community mock-funeral pyres, warrior games, long boats, pillaging, terrified villagers…
Besides, it would finally give me a good reason to wear my fur-lined horned helmet!
Hey, since Columbus day is pretty non-PC nowadays and wasn’t a real laff riot to begin with, I think a Viking holiday would be great. Hey, rape, pillage, plunder, desecration of churches, burning the dead on flaming long boats, berserker orgies and flowing beer and mead…deeply cool.
(Now just watch Coldfire or BjOrn or someone who actually knows something about Scandahoovian culture interject reality into the party. Phooey.)
But whaddya say we keep Italian food and wine, just to split the difference? Unless you really, really like lutefisk. For the blessedly unitiated, lutefisk can best be described as hot fish jello, served with butter. It smells like a bait bag left in the hot sun for a few weeks.
As a matter of fact October 9 was Leif Erikson Day.
You missed it? Sorry. No raping and pillaging until next year. source: Chase’s Calender of Annual Events