This is the forty-sixth in a series of columns about the travels of Aaron and his family in his quest to move from the suburbs to Mueller.
It time for another blog post.
I was very curious the other day as to why there are so many holidays in the midst of winter. My initial thought was that with most people living in chilly conditions, I would think that they would have had these occasions in the glory of spring as so they could celebrate all these fun holidays with barbques and outside picnics. However, since the powers that made up the days of when we celebrate these holidays were in the time that didn’t have a work week yet let alone the
barbeque 
, this makes it understandable why they chose the days in the winter. I had heard a theory back in the day that the Christians way back when were upset that many pagans were celebrating the winter solstice with evergreen trees instead of celebrating Catho-religious holidays so therefore, they decided to celebrate the birth of Jesus around that time. The great coincidence with this was that having Christmas so near to the shortest day in the calendar year, people could go to bed early with the effect of getting to Christmas morning earlier to open up their presents. Of course during the age of the consumer Christmas, the Jewish people and others needed their own way to hook their kids to the concept of commercialism and linked in present giving holidays like Chanukah, Kwanza, etc. There are many theories on the interweb of just exactly when Jesus was born which is of course the real meaning of Christmas. In reality, nobody knows when it happened, but one thing I did see online was a theory that explains why New Years Eve is in the winter time as well as being so close to Christmas. The theory says that New Years Day is exactly 8 days from the birth of Jesus who was Jewish at the time and being a male, he needed a, and I’m not making this up, a “
feast of the circumcision ”. I can just imagine the first meetup of the Calendar start up committee trying to discuss when the first day should be. Never mind picking a solstice to start it off. Let’s start the year off with a skin reduction!!!! No wonder NYE is a big party (and comes in with a bang…ok..too easy). I understand why
Thanksgiving is in the winter time as we celebrate very cold pilgrims exchanging much needed food for small pox. I figure that Veterans Day is in November so that nobody will confuse a day that remembers those who served our country with an excuse to barbeque like a certain day in May.
Anyhow, with winter conditions dissipating this past week and the days starting to get longer, it is time for the Muelleriopians to arise from their hibernation and hear the call of the hike and bike trails and porch time chat sessions. Like a spring flower field, the neighborhood has exploded with activity again. The best thing about this time of year is meeting all the new Muellericans that moved in during the winter time and planning all the fun outside stuff. I can’t wait for my favorite Mueller/Austin holidays to “spring” up.
I’ve got a few ideas for this year, but I don’t know how many I’ll be able to pull off. This is hopefully my last year of school ever and, believe me, I’m ready to get rid of it, but it does sap my planning time. I am absolutely doing another
Super Bowl (shouldn’t
Super Bowl Monday be a holiday rather than that crappy Columbus Day?). Feb 7th marks both the party and the end of my
Strategic Decision Making in a Changing Environment class so even though the Lions are not in the Super Bowl, the hot dogs and Mueller High Life’s will be consumed in mass quantities on that day. Make plans to see the game in the garden court 1 outside and walk (stumble) home rather than dodging drunk drivers on the road. Event details in the event page coming soon.
Another idea I badly want to pull off will be to watch the World Cup soccer match between the
U.S. and England . The game is on a Saturday in June and I think, with some good planning, we could rent out the hanger, set up a few TVs, and get a great community soccer watching party. Heckle the redcoats with shouts of
1950 if I can pull this off. I heard renting the hanger is a challenge, so we’ll see if I can do it.
I’ve also been batting this idea in my head about a Mueller fun run for July/August sometime. Rather than have to wake up very early like most fun runs, thus ruining your whole day and the night before, why not start the race at 2pm? My idea is that you can set up three mandatory taco stops, where each runner must eat a taco from a nearby local
taqueria before progressing to the next stage. There could also be a beer division for those that need more of a challenge. I will call this event something like the Mueller Puke and Run or the Mueller Run Taco Challenge. This might have to wait a year unless someone steps up and helps me.
Finally, I have an important date to announce. Mark your calendars on March 5th as booked and get a babysitter if necessary. I’ve been asked to emcee a very worthwhile and notable charity event as my alter ego and current shenanigan, Mustache Sweater man. This event helps raise money for the
Austin Children’s Shelter , which is part of the Mueller family now with their new location. The party is an
http://www.austinchildrenshelter.org/site/PageServer?pagename=events_New_Wave_Ball ">80’s theme party
http://www.austinchildrenshelter.org/site/PageServer?pagename=events_New_Wave_Ball " title="
http://www.austinchildrenshelter.org/site/PageServer?pagename=events_New_Wave_Ball " /> and I’ll be facilitating the dance and costume contests as well as auctioning off the live auction items and mingling around. I will give everyone who sees me there a hug and a photo op. Seriously, this is a great way to support not only a good charity doing good things, but doing it in our neighborhood.
Speaking of current shenanigans, Mustache Sweater Man’s commercial was a success in that many people saw it and laughed. I’ve set up a
facebook page where you can actually befriend
MSM and see photos of some of my past gigs. Just don’t tell our little secret that everyone’s favorite Mueller blogging protagonist is really a
ham ball with a great mustache and a severe case of good fashion sense. I should have another commercial coming soon (which may be a youtube only event).
Well, it seems like it’s time to sign off. Mueller year three is going to be an awesome experience, just like year one and two, I suppose. I expect all new Muellereese to stop by the red house in GC 1 and say hi and have a beverage with me. As always, here is this posts underground Mueller
marketing advertisement .
