Longtime lurker, first time poster, here. Thought the pedes deserved some Christmas spirit. What's that you say? Christmas is over? That's where you're wrong.

Old Christmas is a tradition reaching back to yesteryear for the bankers (OBX) down east in North Carolina. And guess what? It's on January 6:

"Old Christmas falls on January 6, marking Epiphany or Twelfth Night. The tradition began in Britain, where the English observed this as Christmas day before the mid-1700s. In parts of country, they still celebrate Old Christmas. Even after the English adopted the Georgian Calendar (with the December 25 Christmas), the settlers in the Outer Banks remained loyal to the Old Christmas date. Whether this is because no one told them about the calendar change or because they simply liked the tradition is up for debate. [...]

Old Christmas brings several traditions with it. Perhaps most notably is the visitation of Old Buck, a figure of English folklore. Legend has it that this bull-like creature haunted the Buxton woods, terrorizing herds of cattle and local farmers and that his spirit still survives. Old Buck, however, isn’t all scary – to the children and adults of Rodanthe, he symbolizes a connection between the dead past with the living present, where those celebrating Old Christmas also celebrate a day of being reconnected with deceased loved ones. [...]"

Could Old Buck be trotting up to DC on January 6 to reconnect us with the spirit of the Founders? Can't think of a good reason why not. old Christmas background