Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Parents! Don't Forget! December 5th is Krampus Day!

Parents, we all knows kids become a bit wily around the Holidays.  The lights, the sugar, the TV specials, the promise of presents...  Really, who can blame them?

But that doesn't mean you can't use a little good old fashioned Old School Eastern European terror to keep the tykes focused.

And that's why I'm encouraging you:  hey, this year, why not try Krampus?

Ah, the rattling of chains, the frightened screams of children...  It must be Christmas!
I covered Krampus a bit last year at LoM, but as the Holidays approach, it occured to me that I had some ideas about how Krampus could fit into the Yuletide season.  Originating out of Austria and Hungary (I guess), Krampus is a traditional holiday character who arrives in tandem with St. Nick before the holidays as a reminder of the horrific fate that befalls the kids on the naughty list.  Not a lot of shades of gray in Eastern European Christmas.

I'm just saying, when it comes time for encouraging good vs. bad behavior, sometimes kids need as much stick as they need carrot.  And sometimes that incentive for good behavior is the promise of getting smacked with chains and birch branches should your moody twerp of a kid act up.

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