And Now, a Holiday Lesson

Happy Early Festivus!!! Today, class, we shall examine the roots of Festivus (pronounced Fess'-tih-vuhss), and its impact on society. Is everybody ready? Good. Let us begin.

Festivus, often followed by the phrase, "for the rest of us", began in February 1966, as a commemoration of its creator's, Daniel O'Keefe (the elder), first date with his future wife, Deborah. The celebration was later moved to December 23rd, where it has remained to this date. The Festivus celebration is described as a way of enjoying the holidays without all of the stress or commercialism normally associated with the season.

Festivus came to popular attention on December 18th, 1997, when Daniel O'Keefe (the younger, son of Daniel O'Keefe, the elder) featured the holiday on the sitcom Seinfeld, for which he was a writer. While some traditions, such as the consumption of an M&M be-decked Pepperidge Farm cake, were omitted, others, such as the Airing of Grievances and Feats of Strength, were included in the episode.

Traditionally, the holiday is celebrated by displaying an unadorned Festivus Pole, generally comprised of metal piping, but, in at least one instance, the substitution of a pool cleaner handle has been allowed. The aforementioned Airing of Grievances takes place during the holiday meal, and consists of each individual explaining how the others in attendance have disappointed them. Feats of Strength directly follow the meal, with an individual challenging the head of the household to a wrestling match. The holiday ends when the head of the household has been pinned to the floor. Another, more optional, tradition is that of the Festivus Miracle. Any easily explained occurrence can be considered a Festivus Miracle.

In recent years, Festivus has crept into Pop Culture. Ice cream moguls, Ben & Jerry, created a limited edition Festivus flavor in 2000 and 2001. Some towns have taken to displaying Festivus poles near Nativity scenes and Christmas trees, and at least one town allows for the airing of grievances via bulletin board. In 2001, the Baltimore Ravens referred to the playoffs as Festivus, following the coach's banning of the word playoffs during training. The Ravens went on to win that sporting competition, dubbed Festivus Maximus.

I hope that you have been enlightened by today's lecture. To further aid in your notetaking, please refer to this wikipedia page. All of the information in today's post came from this page, and, as you all know, if it's on the Internet, it must be true. Thank you for your time and attention.

For those of you interested in celebrating Festivus anywhere but here, AirTran kicked off their Festivus promotion yesterday. From now until December 12th, AirTran will feature a different discounted destination. Actually, there'll be two destinations today, three tomorrow, four on the next day, and so on, corresponding with how long the sale has been in effect. Fares will only be discounted the day they are featured, and travel must take place between January 5th and February 16th, 2011. Fares and destinations are posted here, with a special surprise fare to be unveiled December 12th. Yesterday's destination was Montego Bay, Jamaica. Today's are Key West and Nassau. One-Way tickets from Pensacola, FL (closest for me) are $84 and $109, respectively. Happy Travels!