Strange writing over door in house.PA custom? Meaning?

[sheena12]

Well this sounds wonderful! I will tell you what IS "NEPA specific"
CELEBRATION!

There is a wonderful enjoyment of life that I have noticed here. People celebrate and enjoy! There is an absence of a critical and puritanical spirit here. Every time I turn around, people from the Valley are ready for the next holiday and for the passing down of tradition. I love it! There is something lovely and non judgmental about this area. There is an attitude of celebration and inclusion. If you are from the area, you might not notice this. As a former outsider, this is VERY APPARENT.

Yet I do not find ethnic allegiance in NEPA, to be as oppressive and grandiose as it was in Suburban LI.

There two main ethnic groups were in control. The Irish and the Italians. I am part Irish BTW. The aspects of their backgrounds that they chose to elucidate and to embrace, were for my money, perhaps THE WORST aspects of each ethnic group.

For the Irish it was drinking. I am NOT opposed at all to alcohol in moderation. But, putting a statue of a red haired drunkard man, bottle in hand, on your front lawn seems odd to me.

Italians is LI NY fabricated connections to organized crime. They defended depictions of Italian American's as mobsters and actually relished being portrayed that way! HUH?? Why?

Both ethnic groups have contributed much to our world. Those two aspects, would not be the ones that I would be proud of. But on Long Island, many were.

NEPA is far more eclectic ethnically and more people seem to embrace the positive aspects of their ethnicity, and are open to those of others.

NEPA is culturally diverse and rich. We have Welsh, Slovak, Irish, Polish, English, Italian, Lithuanian, Greek, Jewish, Russian, Lebanese, German, Scottish, Ukrainian and others who I may have missed who contribute to the rich diversity of our heritage here in NEPA.

This tapistry increases in it's diversity, as Mexicans, Central Americans, African Americans Thia and Vietnamese people constructively contribute to the patchwork that forms OUR REGION.

Celebration and community seem to be the hallmarks of NEPA life! With each change of glorious season there is a wonderful reason to gather and celebrate.

Unlike other areas, celebration, dancing, having parties, eating and drinking are not the sole province of the young! I have seen 80 year olds dance the Polka, my church observes the festivities of Oktoberfest and Fassnacht.

Life here is for the LIVING and not only the young!

I was once castigated by a former city data member for enjoying a night at a local club without my children and with my husband and other friends.

I had LEFT SUBURBIA and Soccer Mom Country on purpose. This man admonished me for dancing at a bar. Because I have children. In his time here, this man, publicly bragged about NOT being FROM NEPA. HE had no use for the region! He thought of the area as being populated by ill educated people with "coal dust in their brains" Something like that. He thought of himself as somehow superior to everyone in NEPA. This "professional dad" attacked this relentlessly.

I requested that he be removed. He had NOTHING GOOD TO SAY. But he was not. Not until he died.
I don't think death was the proper sentence for being a nasty, judgmental and puritanical a$$, but who knows what Karma he accumulated in life?

Be careful what you wish for, you just may be removed from where you live, if you hate it that much.
I love where I live!

I loved Stony Brook when I lived there. I found THE GOOD in that area.
Now that I have moved here, I love NEPA.
In particular Wilkes-Barre, where we have settled.

As I have oft commented to malcontents on this forum "Life is too Short to Live Where You Hate"
Hatred of ANYTHING will bring negativity.

I was right all along. I thought that I would LOVE NEPA and I do!

Let us continue to post recipes, traditions, cultural celebrations that are specific to our area.
This IS a wonderful thread.

[theatergypsy]

As we begin the celebration of this joyous time of year, it would be good to let the dead rest in peace. Nothing can be changed by resurrecting old hurts.

Many of the traditions I have found since living in NEPA are very different from what I knew in my childhood in Philadelphia. Christmas tree? I never saw it until Christmas morning when it was completely decorated. Putting up the tree weeks ahead of the 25th. seemed strange to me. I never saw a gift - for anyone, child or adult - until the 25th. I'm guessing my Dad had a place to hide whatever he bought before the big day because there was never any evidence of purchases. Exchange of gifts on Christmas Eve was unheard of in my home. Waking up early I had my stocking, filled with little doo-dads, an orange, some nuts and hard candy and the always-required piece of coal to remind me that I had been naughty.

I've lived here long enough that the local traditions are no longer strange to me, but I do remember the old ones.

Whatever holiday you celebrate, I hope it's rich in tradition and remembrance of happy times.

Merry Christmas. Happy Hannukah. Happy Kwanzaa. Joyous Festivus.

[sheena12]

I love this area, Theatergypsy. I really enjoy hearing positive things about the area.
Nasty people are just nasty. Dead or alive and one less nasty voice is a blessing! I do wish that he and others could be silenced using the mechanisms available on city data. I don't wish tragedy on anyone. I leave that in the hands of God and the laws of Karma. I am not a phony though, I can't say I shed a tear. I report ALL nasty and intentionally snarky and belittling posts, weather directed at me, at others or at the area that I chose to call home. They have no place here, as per the TOS

Does anyone else have any customs that they would like to share? I really enjoy hearing about the customs and folk lore of our area.

Life is for the living, and as Jesus said "let the dead bury the dead"

[sheena12]

Does anyone know of any NEPA specific Advent or Christmas traditions? My church made Advent Logs, instead of wreaths. Each family made their own. I had never heard of this. Also, the candels are blue and red, for the final Sunday of Advent.