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The Cost of 12 Days of Christmas
CtrlPhreak writes "PNC bank once again has come out with the Christmas price index, the cost of the 12 days of christmas. The result, swans cost 66.7 percent up from last year. The total cost rose 18.8 percent from the last year to a grand total of... $65,264.28, the largest percentage increase since 1987."
So what would the seven 'lords a leaping' be?
Lords of the dance?
Renting lords from the British house of Lords to leap around?
now, is it that the demand for swans has gone up, or that the supply has gone down?
xao
xao
http://TheHillforum.hopto.org
Theeing as how I'm out of a job and in dethperate need of the money, the prithe for my two front teeth hath never been better.
If that'th thtill all you want for Christmath, let me know.
--------
Bleah! Heh heh heh... BLEAH BLEAH!!! Ha ha ha ha...
Remind me to get a better job next year.
As a Canadian, one US dollar was worth $1.61 CDN in the beginning of this year. Now one US dollar is worth $1.31 CDN. Which means the US dollar this year has dropped about... 18.63%, which is eerily similar to the rise in price for the 12 days of Christmas!
Take this into account, and 2 of the 3 major US stock indices are actually DOWN for the year.
Dow Diamonds (DIA) was ~$87 USD in January and is now ~$101 USD.
But the US dollar then was worth 1.61x the Canadian dollar and is now worth only 1.31x. So from where I stand, the DIA was ~$140 CDN in January and is now $133 CDN.
S&P 500 (SPY) was ~$92 USD in January and is now ~$108 USD.
That makes it $148.12 CDN in January and $141.48 now CDN.
On the other hand, tech stocks are indeed up for the year:
Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) was ~$26 USD in January and is now ~$36 USD.
So that makes it $41.86 CDN in January and $57.96 CDN in December.
PNC baught Nine Ladies Dancing.
These ``Ladies'' you speek of, are 3d?
PNC Bank is like that.
Pipers? Does this count?
The Army reading list
Actually this is probably a better gauge on inflation than the fictitious numbers they're feeding us from the goverment statistics.
:-/
All I know is, my montly bills are up: electricity, gas and phone. My market bill is bigger now than last year... and I don't think I am eating anything different. Everything is up except for the inflation numbers... go figure eh
~~~Please pass the salt, I hate unsalted MD5s
No cost increase for me.
--Scrooge
To know that you know what you know, and that you do not know what you do not know, that is true wisdom. --Scooby Doo
One Partridge in a Pear Tree
Is this just a normal tree? Or do I get one of those fancy foreign Pear Trees?
Two Turtle Doves
Are these both male, both female, or a mix? I mean I dont want 50 of these things next Christmas
Three French Hens
You want me to PAY for these!?
Four Calling Birds
What types of birds are we talking here? Some piegons or doves or what?
Five Gold Rings
How many carats? Are they Rings of Power?
Six Geese-a-Laying
How many eggs a day is this?
Seven Swans-a-Swimming
Does the kiddie pool for them to swim in come with it? Or is that an optional extra?
Eight Maids-a-Milking
Now I'm assuming the cows come with it, again is the cost of manure removal included? How about feed?
Nine Ladies Dancing
Are these like Twi'lek dancers? Or the girls of Jenni Craig?
10 Lords-a-Leaping
Wait . . I though Queer Eye only had 5 guys on it?
11 Pipers Piping
So, if I buy these can I like shoot them as soon as they piss me off?
12 Drummers Drumming
Same goes for these guys too.
Your hair look like poop, Bob! - Wanker.
Uh, despite your earnest attempt to pin the blame of this on George Bush and the Iraqi war, perhaps you might want to add in the fact that the American dollar is down roughly 18% for this same period -- very similar to the price increase of the 12 days of Christmas.
Yes, I know you hate the President, but he isn't responsible for every hideous and awful thing that happens to you regardless of whether you want him to be or not.
In the end they will lay their freedom at our feet and say to us, Make us your slaves, but feed us. - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Unfortunately this study does not take into effect the TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) of the 12 Days of Christmas items. This makes it infeasible for an actual guide in gift giving.
For example, the geese and other birds must be fed. The dancing ladies must be paid at least the minimum wage for your state, or under some circumstances tips. And the Five Golden Rings were wrought by the hand of the Dark Lord Sauron, meaning they extract a price too heavy to be described in monetary terms, as they scorch your very soul, slowly dragging you bodily into a spiritual nether-world where you live as a wraith, neither dead nor alive, eternally locked in a heck-like existence where you live only to serve your dark master.
Happy holidays!
Irritable, left-wing and possibly humorous bumper stickers and t-shirts
What the Fsck is funny about this? RTFA about where the costs come from. The moderators would do well not to mod up posts that have nothing wise or informative to say, that is getting to be a bad habit. I get tired of a place that is supposed to be a type of technical forum being a place where poltical rhetoric and nonsense replaces facts. Or can the younger generation who post here not understand facts? As for folks overspending, that happens even without Christmas, and even in good economic times. Lots of people have to get the latest and greatest this or that regardless of whether they can afford it. It Sad not funny, and it happens regardless of who is in the White House.
Actually this is probably a better gauge on inflation than the fictitious numbers they're feeding us from the goverment statistics.
If you want a real-world measurement, The Economist uses a Big Mac index, tracking the price of Big Mac's not just in the US but around the world, as a means of measuring inflationary trends and foreign currency movements...
Stop by my site where I write about ERP systems & more
The WMD were a sham. The War in Iraq was, in fact, simply about the 12 Days of Christmas.
NO BLOOD FOR PARTRIDGES IN PEAR TREES!
Nine Ladies Dancing: 4,230.89
;)
I can just imagine how they found out that price.
Mngmt: umm..$4230 bill from a place called the "Beef Barn?"
Researcher: I swear boss, it was research!
seriously though, $470 just to get a girl to dance? I know some top notch places that'll get you a beer AND a dance for $15
And dang those pipers are expensive! I guess they use the same number of hours for each person who's doing some action (dancing, leaping, milking or piping.)
That'd make the pay per person ratio come out thusly:
milkmaids - 5.15
drummers - 178.97
pipers - 180.22
lords - 392.14
ladies - 470.10
Now, perhaps some of them charge by the job, but this is in terms of effective hourly rates. There's no way we can tell if the maids just milk one cow and the lords dance all day.
Geez, Scrooge, sounds like you need a nice evening by the fire with eight maids-a-milking. Or the ten lords-a-leaping, if that's your preference. I'll put the maids on a credit card for you, but I've already ruined by credit by purchasing presents for my kid and the ten lords are just a bit out of my price range. Maybe next year...
That Internet pricing seems high. I wonder if they shopped around. Maybe they shoulda checked Ebay or Half.com.
OTOH, I guess it is kinda hard to ship lords a' leaping, etc., FedEx. Can they fly coach, or maybe a discount airline?
Ohhhhh well that explains that.
But what I want to know is how much the Redneck Twelve days of Christmas would cost. $263.95, perhaps?
(\(\
(=_=) Bani!
(")")
I've always wondered about the "12 Days of Christmas" song, and if it meant that you get just that gift for that day, and the chorous was tallying up the earnings, or if the singer got the gift again, i.e. on the second day you would have recived your second partridge and pear tree combo along with your two turtle doves.
:)
If this is the case you'd get 12 partridges in pear trees, 22 turtle doves, 30 french hens, 36 calling birds, 40 gold rings, 42 geese-a-laying, 40 maids-a-milking, 36 ladies dancing, 30 lords-a-leaping, 22 pipers piping, and 12 drummers drumming in all. That's one heck of a bounty!
Mewyn Dy'ner
10 Lords-a-Leaping
11 Pipers Piping
12 Drummers Drumming
So they are claiming that with unemployment still up, and orchestras laying off employess or going under due to lack of donations, the cost of talent is up this year. It seems like semi-pro musician and dancers could be hard for $100 a piece.
And what is it with the birds. I see them for sale along the freeway all the time for next to nothing. And a pear tree? Those are everywhere. Go and dig one up. I mean they are just trees.
It's christmas. We have no money. Be creative
And, btw, where are they shipping to? Longyearbyen to Cape Horn.
"She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
Gee, do ya think maybe the American dollar is down due to George W's ridiculous economic policies?
Even my housemate last year (a Pakistani who lived in Saudi Arabia for 10 years then went to high school in the U.S., an econ student, and the most Republican person I know) criticizes Bush's economic decisions, although he goes out of his way to praise him for everything else.
Dammit, this was about Christmas. Now look what's happened.
Eight maids-a-milking... $41.20
Eight minutes of a maid milking you... priceless!
...how this is /. material? There's a reason I've eschewed from those econ classes...
The first is for vendors of: Partridges, Pear Trees, Turtle Doves, French Hens, Geese-a-Laying, Swans, Maids-a-Milking, Ladies Dancing, or Lords-a-Leaping
1) buy the above items from your "Traditional" store
2) sell them on the "Internet"
3) PROFIT!!!
The second is for vendors of: Calling Birds, Gold Rings, Pipers Piping, or Drummers Drumming.
1) buy Gold rings on the "Internet". Download anti-RIAA sound clips of birds, pipes, and drummers, and burn to a CD.
2) sell them in a "Traditional" store
3) PROFIT!!
Another business model comes to mind:
1) Get job at bank
2) Convince boss to use silly Christmas-themed ploy to get company in the newsmedia...
3) PROFIT!!
Im thinking the supply is down.
I ate my swans last year.
Im not here now... Im out KILLING pepperoni
Uh, despite your earnest attempt to pin the blame of this on George Bush and the Iraqi war, perhaps you might want to add in the fact that the American dollar is down roughly 18% for this same period -- very similar to the price increase of the 12 days of Christmas.
It's not too much of a stretch to assert that the drop in the dollar is in large part due to government spending and deficits. Regardless, a significant fraction of the cost is contract labor, and I know I didn't get an 18% raise this year, did you?
Ooh, a sarcasm detector. Oh, that's a real useful invention.
Yeah, I really want to give my business to these wackjobs. But I suppose employing accountants to figure this data out helps the economy in some small way...
According the the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the CPI dropped in November by .03%. The main inflationary pressure in the US right now is from the weaker dollar. The economist and other right wing rags have been lauding the the weaker dollar as it should end up helping the US labor market while increasing the value of the cash in other countries to help increase their consumer spending. The xmas index is just about a small bag of goods with wild price swings.
The CPI is calculated over a rather large shopping bag of goods.
Combine the best prices. That way you end up with:
One Partridge in a Pear Tree $77.50 (Regular)
Partridge 15.00 (Regular)
Pear Tree 62.50 (Regular)
Two Turtle Doves 58.00 (Regular)
Three French Hens 15.00 (Regular)
Four Calling Birds 330.00 (Internet)
Five Gold Rings 183.75 (Internet)
Six Geese-a-Laying 150.00 (Regular)
Seven Swans-a-Swimming 3,500.00 (Regular)
Eight Maids-a-Milking 41.20 (Regular)
Nine Ladies Dancing 4,230.89 (Regular)
10 Lords-a-Leaping 3,921.44 (Regular)
11 Pipers Piping 1,600.00 (Internet)
12 Drummers Drumming 687.50 (Internet)
For a grand total of $14,872.28, which is $2,013 less than their estimate. Well worth the effort.
We do not live in the 21st century. We live in the 20 second century.
2,147.60/12=178.97
A veritable bargain AND as an added bonus, the song does not drive me nuts!
rum-pa-pa-pum!
If you are one in a million, then there are six thousand people who are just like you.
I'm not anti-business but it seems likely to me that the responsibility for wonky government stats lies with big business. Wall Street and its clients, who largely would prefer to see the Bush win a 2nd term, must ensure that the sitting president gets a rosy looking economy until after Nov 2004. Meanwhile, they're making profits by raising prices on seasonal/sectarian goods and services that are explicitly excluded from the definition of the Consumer Price Index.
If you actually look at the prices they aren't consistantly up. Most are unchanged. The ones that changed drastically are the price of birds and pear trees must have had a good season since the price is way down. Swans are far more expensive, calling birds are more expensive. And drummers and pipers which are probably getting rarer by the year.
It has little to no relation to the dollar. Unless we're getting those birds, pipers and drummers from Canada. More likely is that those items were a hot item last time the price list came out so they raised the prices this year.
The gold rings are less expensive most likely from the fluctuation of the price of gold.
Ben
Work Safe Porn
Those Maids-a-Milking didn't even get a cost of living raise. Things must be tough in the Dairy industry.
Smeghead every day of the week.
Notice your standard of living is up too. Remember back in the 70s when most people had 1 TV and if you were well to do you might have had 2? How much did your first VCR cost? Although the cost of living has been going up, I think you'll find that people spend less of their income, percentage wise, on basic living essentials. Then again, people today define cable TV and a car with leather seats as basic essentials. One thing for sure, most people today have a better standard of living and comfort level than the super rich had in the late 1800s.
Maybe we can hire gnomes for the job.
Wait: he lost his.
Damn.
Life is irony, and nothing ever goes as planned.
Most of this could be outsourced to India.
Run and catch, run and catch, the lamb is caught in the blackberry patch.
As a jeweller, I'd like to know how they did that! At 72.25 each, that's dirt cheap. I know that they cost me more than that wholesale. Let's see... assume three pennyweights per ring(20dwt=1 Oz)...at 406.50/oz, that's 60.98 dollars each for the gold bought as 24K bullion. by the time it's refined to 18K sheet, and made into a ring, assume it's double the price. call it $122. That leaves no room for the retailer to make a profit.
I know it's a joke, but it would be funnier if it was accurate
~ a low user id is no indication I have a clue what I'm talking about.
So your bitching is a great use of a technical forum? In case you didn't RTFA yourself, you would have seen that this is supposed to be a fun Christmas story, not a technical one. Lighten up.
Huh.. that's interesting.. I did, my wife did, and two of our friends did (actually, we all did better, about 20% in reality)..
For some people things are just fine.. for others.. not so much...
I get tired of a place that is supposed to be a type of technical forum being a place where poltical rhetoric and nonsense replaces facts.
;)
Ah, you obviously must be new here, all we do is fill this forum with nonsense...and thats the closest we come to making sense! You'll learn
Join the TWIT army now!
It is expected that some of the younger population, with their ideals and unattainable standards, would take it too seriously. What is sad is when a wise and knowledgeable person take those responses seriously.
And let's be honest. If the sole criteria for upward moderation was wisedom and correct information, we would have precious few 5's, and a much less interesting forum. As it is I sit in awe at the amount of funny stuff that gets rated flamebait, or, even more distressing, interesting.
"She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
Someone needs to tell them you can get most of that stuff on Ebay for like 1/10th the cost of what they got.
This space intentionally left blank.
Hm... nice study.
:-)
But if somebody manages to create a list of links where every of the 12 items can be bought in a classic webshop, now that would be something
According to this site. "The Twelve Days of Christmas" is interesting because, while it seems whimsical, many believe the song was written in England as a catechism song to help young Catholics learn the tenets of their faith during the period when it was a crime to be a Catholic and Catholics were prohibited from practicing any aspect of their faith even in private. The song's gifts originally were hidden references to the teachings of the Catholic faith. The two turtle doves signified the Old and New Testaments, the eight maids a-milking are the Beatitudes and the 10 lords a-leaping the 10 Commandments.
To rule them all!!!.. err...
in girum imus nocte et consumimur igni
Dearest John:
I went to the door today and the postman delivered a Partridge in a Pear Tree. What a thoroughly delightful gift! I couldn't have been more surprised.
With deepest love and devotion,
Agnes
Dearest John:
Today the postman brought your very sweet gift. Just imagine - Two Turtle Doves! I'm just delighted at your very thoughtful gift. They are just adorable.
All my love,
Agnes
Dearest John:
Oh, aren't you the extravagant one! Now I really must protest. I don't deserve such generosity - Three French Hens! They are just delightful, but I must insist, you've been too kind.
Love,
Agnes
Dearest John:
Today the postman delivered Four Calling Birds. Now really, you're being too romantic. They are beautiful, but don't you think that enough is enough?
Affectionately,
Agnes
Dearest John:
What a surprise! Today the postman delivered Five Golden Rings - one for each finger. You're just impossible, but I love it. Frankly, all those birds squawking were beginning to get on my nerves.
Love,
Agnes
Dear John:
When I opened the door, there were actually Six Geese-A-Laying on my front steps. So you're back to the birds again, huh? Those geese are huge. Where will I keep them? The neighbors are complaining and I can't sleep through the racket. Please stop.
Cordially,
Agnes
John:
What's with you and those fucking birds? Seven Swans-A-Swimming! What kind of a goddamn joke is this? There's bird shit all over the house and they never stop with the racket. I can't sleep at night and I'm a nervous wreck - it's not funny. So stop with those fucking birds!
Sincerely,
Agnes
OK Buster!
I think I prefer the birds. What the hell am I going to do with 8 Maids a Milking? It's not enough with all these birds and maids a milking, but they had to bring their goddamn cows! There's shit all over the lawn and I can't move in my own house.
Just lay off me, smartass!
Agnes
Hey Shithead:
What are you, some kind of sadist? Now there are nine Pipers Piping! And Christ do they play! They haven't stopped chasing those maids since they got here. The cows are getting upset and they're stepping all over those screeching birds. What am I going to do? The neighbors have started a petition to evict me!
You'll get yours!
Agnes
You Rotten Prick!
Now there's Ten Ladies Dancing. I don't know why I call those sluts ladies. They've been balling those pipers all night long. The cows can't sleep and they've got diarrhea. My living room is a river of shit. The commissioner of buildings has subpoenaed me to give cause why the building shouldn't be condemned.
I'm siccing the police on you.
One who means it!!
Agnes
Listen Fuckhead:
What's with the Eleven Lords a Leaping on those Maids and Ladies? Some of those broads will never walk again. Those pipers ran through the maids and have been committing sodomy with the cows! All 23 birds are dead, they've been trampled to death in the orgy. I hope you're satisfied, you vicious, rotten swine.
Your sworn enemy,
Agnes
Dear Sir:
This is to acknowledge receipt of your latest gift of the Twelve Drummers Drumming, which you have seen fit to inflict upon our client, Miss Agnes McHolstein. The destruction, of course, was total. All future cor-respondence should be sent to our attention. If you should attempt to contact Miss McHolstein at Happy Dale Sanitarium, the attendants have instructions to shoot on sight! With this letter you will find attached a warrant for your arrest.
Cordially,
Badger, Bender & Cajole
I made a PHP/MySQL library that prevents SQL injection & makes coding easier!
How much is the 12 Days of Christmas "Used"?
The "standard of living" is a psychological
phenomenon, it is what-you-want vs what-you-can-afford,
and your happiness is dependent on this. It
means nothing to me if my '93 Nissan is
a much better car than the Predident's Trouman.
As long as my car is the worst car on lot, but
I wish I had a Lexus, then I am still very miserable.
We really need to be careful here, because if the cost goes up a mere $271.28 next year, it will reach $65536, and all of the Christmas Index computers which are still using unsigned short integers will crash.
and I know I didn't get an 18% raise this year, did you?
Nope. Slightly more than 50%. Mainly attributable to the fact that I spend my time enriching my capabilities, not ineffectually bitching about my politics on the internet.
Could just be a theory, but so far the results are encouraging...
Watch out guys... Investments: Not FDIC Insured. No Bank Guarantee. May Lose Value.
So those of you into ancient babylonian religions II believe that is where we got dependence on 12 and 24), any comment on the fact that the total number of items in the song is 364 where as there are 365 days in a year?
I make my face look like this and concerned words come out.
In other Slashdot news, a kitten appears to be stuck up a tree.
$65,264.28 at current exchange rates is worth about a tenner and a pack of 20 B&H
Figures! Leave it to the corporate greed mongers at PNC Bank(TM) to find a way to invade our mental space by hijacking the real meaning behind this sacred (albeit annoying) Christmas carol. Bah Humbug!
---Technology will liberate us if it doesn't enslave us first.
And the Five Golden Rings were wrought by the hand of the Dark Lord Sauron, meaning they extract a price too heavy to be described in monetary terms, as they scorch your very soul, slowly dragging you bodily into a spiritual nether-world where you live as a wraith, neither dead nor alive, eternally locked in a heck-like existence where you live only to serve your dark master.
Is it just me, or do the "Five Golden Rings" sound a heck of a lot like an RIAA contract for music artists?
You need to go to Amsterdam too.. But watchout, it will cost 40$ more to get her lousy top off. :(
One Partridge in a Pear Tree
Is this just a normal tree? Or do I get one of those fancy foreign Pear Trees?
It's a normal tree and as an added bonus it comes with a squirrel. Unfortunately this also means you'll get none of the pears.
Two Turtle Doves
Are these both male, both female, or a mix? I mean I dont want 50 of these things next Christmas
This is the age of enlightenment and queer eye for the straight guy - the doves are either both male or both female at your choosing. If you want more they'll need to adopt.
Three French Hens
You want me to PAY for these!?
Well with the French social and healthcare system being what it is someone is eventually going to have to pay for them, SOON.
Four Calling Birds
What types of birds are we talking here? Some piegons or doves or what?
Actually that's four Colly Birds (black birds). They're great to have around to clean up messes. You'll need them after the French hens act all superior and you kill them in some brutal fit of drunken rage.
Five Gold Rings
How many carats? Are they Rings of Power?
Ring necked pheasants. You'll throw a couple of them in the oven to get the taste of that last French hen out of your mouth.
Six Geese-a-Laying
How many eggs a day is this?
What does it matter to you! Their Canadian geese and the eggs can't be touched except by conservationists that might be by regularly to oil some and tell you not to touch the others. The only laying you'll be partaking from is when they lay shit all over your apartment.
Seven Swans-a-Swimming
Does the kiddie pool for them to swim in come with it? Or is that an optional extra?
You won't actually get the swans, the ASPCA does'nt like the idea of someone like you owning yet another animal. Especially after the whole French Hen incident and complaints from the conservationists about Canadian Egg and Bacon omlettes you make. They will however allow you to pay nominal fees for the upkeep of said swans - all money going to the state of course.
Eight Maids-a-Milking
Now I'm assuming the cows come with it, again is the cost of manure removal included? How about feed?
Why are your trying to distract us with this nonsense about cows? Is there something your trying to hide - like a sweat shop with eight illegal imigrants doing by hand what most modern farmers automate with pumps and robotics. I think we're going to have to look into how your property is zoned and make sure all your paperwork is in order.
Nine Ladies Dancing
Are these like Twi'lek dancers? Or the girls of Jenni Craig?
Now we're really going to run into a zoning issue if you want to have a regular farm (ala cows and milking) and a fat farm in the same building. Plus we're not sure how the cows and geese might respond to Richard Simmons and his sweatin' to the oldies tapes.
10 Lords-a-Leaping
Wait . . I though Queer Eye only had 5 guys on it?
Well those Canadians did it again and proved that they COULD clone. Unfortunately they only succeeded in cloning one of the Fab 5 and so now your stuck with the resulting 10 Carson Kresley clones. Noone else will take them.
11 Pipers Piping
So, if I buy these can I like shoot them as soon as they piss me off?
Off the success of cloning Carson the Canadians decided they might go with someone less annoying. Unfortunately only Kenny G. was available. To add insult to injury not only do you get the clones but the original Kenny G. as well.
12 Drummers Drumming
Same goes for these guys too.
The drummers are an illusion created by your mind. They're sole purpose is to shield your fragile ego from the disaster area your apartment has become. What with all the livestock and that disaster with the Carsons and the Kenny's going at each other one day and leaving only one Kenny behind in the aftermath. He now plays his sax with his one good arm from the closet wher
and the peons that work under you?
I have a hard time believing this. On December 16 2002 the price of an ounce of gold was US$333, while as of today, December 16 2003, the price is US$408. I can't believe that the cost of labor and other materials went down enough to compensate for this.
If the pickup is at the same rate then next year it will only cost $43,259.09 ...we'll depending on what type their dollar values are stored in ;)
Throw in some stepdancers
Can't you find some of them on the various rhythm game sites?
"The CPI is calculated over a rather large shopping bag of goods."
That has things magically disappear from it when they start making the numbers look bad.
"Gold still represents the ultimate form of payment in the world." - Alan Greenspan, 1999
Buy cheap gold bands.
Remember, Froogle is your friend.
The 'gold' rings could be put in special presentation cases and sold on E-Bay as the official Lord of the Rings One True Ring (five available).
The Two Turtle Doves could be fitted with Bandanas and sold as Ninja Turtle Doves to kids.
The French Hens could be resold as 'Freedom Hens', packaged with the slogan 'Laying Eggs for our boys in the Gulf.'
The Swans could be rented out to high class celebrity weddings - the Swans no doubt lasting longer than the marriage.
The geese could be fed the leftovers and used to produce a delicious foie-de-gras pate, far preferable to the leftover turkey traditionally eaten from December 25th to November.
I'm sure there are more opportunities for reuse - anyone else got any ideas?
For a grand total of: $65 264.28 Having the song repeated endlessly since age 4: Priceless
We've secretly replaced Slashdot with new Folgers Crystals - let's see if it notices.
You could not get swans in the UK, nor could we import them into the country and expect to own them, as they are a Royal Animal any swan in the UK is property of the crown and therefore owned by her Majesty the Queen and automatically have freedom of the realm and therefore can not be owned by the common man.
Bummer...
Kingdom of Loathing (www.kingdomofloathing.com) Addicted is me
My cats ate my karma. They also wrote this comment.
"8 Maids a Milking" Are they still milking by hand or has the vast grasp of technology invaded even this vertical taboo act? And why eight maids? Even if they use one hand, what in the world are they doing with the other? Is there even enough *cow to go around?
Curious: I naturally assumed it would be a cow, but no one specified what they were milking. Or even what they consider "milk", but I may finally have a reason for why there is eight maids; Perhaps instead it might be a Bull...
I actually haven't got the faintest clue about what this is.....
"Seven Swans-a-Swimming" -?
"Pear tree" -?
I've never bought this at Christmas.
*cringes under heavy brain spasms*
Christmas is written with CAPITAL C!
Really poor spelling! Nothing new on Slashdot.
which means he's spending MORE on basic living essentials than he did last year
But not necessarily more as a percentage of income, as income can (generally does) rise faster than inflation.
"As a writer / novelist you might want to spellcheck your sig.
I'd say put away your tin foil hat - coming up with accurate pricing data for a national economy is a very tough thing to do, and by definition some things will rise by more than the index, and some less (consider consumer electronics and PC-related goods, which constantly fall in price). And as far as Wall Street and its clients preferring Bush to win a 2nd term, it's been noted that if you look back over time, the stock markets have done much better during Democratic presidencies than during Republican ones.
That said, of course the pedal is being pushed to the floor to ensure a growing economy over the next 12 months. But that has to do more with massive amounts of fiscal stimulus (read: taking us from a healthy budget surplus to a massive deficit) and continued low interest rates.
Stop by my site where I write about ERP systems & more
Yep. Just imagine what the price of a cellphone was in 1800s!! Our standard of living got just incredibly higher since then.
Nine Ladies Dancing for 4 grand i really got a find a cheaper place to get my lap dances from
Personally, I prefer to keep track of the value of a dollar in a more tangible every day way. The dollar is currently worth 462.131 sheets of Toilet Paper. We've lost 4 sheets to the wind since Monday. Toilet paper is not significantly weakening against the dollar. I hope for a stronger dollar that can perhaps give two-ply a run for it's money.
[signature]
Although, to be fair, I know a former nudie bar dancer, and a former porn model, and they are two of the politest, most ladylike women I know.
Best Slashdot Co
12 drummers drumming costs $2,147.60? I could get that for the cost of a few cases of beer and a mop to wipe up the drool on the floor.
Josh Woodward
Besides, you american's always spend too much on these sort of things. Check out the Canadian 12 days-o-Christmas. I promise you it will cost FAR less, and if you pay in American $, you'll have spent basicly pocket change!
E.
Never rub another man's rhubarb - The Joker
I know the article was a Joke. It's amazing to me how someone can take an article like that and make it into a political diatribe. And that it gets modded up to a 5! I think ideals and high standards are good things for young folks to have but they should be rooted in reality, no knee-jerk politics of either side. I've been reading /. about 5 months now and have learned a few things, mostly that Geeks hate rules made by the Government, SCO sucks, BillGates (or GWB) is the AntiChrist, and that we have some folks here who should be writing jokes for a living not developing software (it probably pays more too).
All I know is, my montly bills are up: electricity, gas and phone. My market bill is bigger now than last year... and I don't think I am eating anything different. Everything is up except for the inflation numbers... go figure eh :-/
To paraphrase the article:
The US Consumer Price Index leaves out such volatile US Markets as food and energy
There's your answer...
I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
with all those geese, hens, doves, swans and partridges running about, there'll be a Santa's sleigh-full of bird dung to deal with by the twelfth day.
I'd have a personalized plate on my car, but "toxic bachelor" won't fit into 7 letters.
I couldn't care less about what it costs for the traditional 12 day of Christmas. What I really want to know is what it costs to buy the Bob and Doug Mackenzie 12 Days of Christmas!
After all, in their version they have some actually useful stuff, like french toast, back bacon, toques, comic books, and beer!
Only a hoser would want "Lords a Leaping" and "Swans a Swimming" :) .
Yaz.
If the price of swans is increasing does this mean that SCO are a) suing them, or b) are likely to sue them after they've finished with IBM?
Sigs. We don't need no steenking sigs.
On the 1100th day of Slashdot, my hand gave to me...
Twelve karma whores whoring
Eleven mp3s piping
Ten layoffs leaping
Nine GIF ladies dancing
Eight SCO complaints
Seven MS whines
Six thousand Diebold Bush votes
Five LOTR references
Four PHBs
Three first posts
Two Linux tux
And a geek girl but just in my dreams
These guys are a bit bad at math.
2002 Total Price Christmas Index: $14,558.05
2002 "Core" index, excluding swans: $12,458.06
2002 Cost of swans: $2100.00
$14,558.05 - 12.458.06 = $2099.99
I'm more interested in where the missing penny is rather than how they arrived at the individual prices for the items.
Even on /., you can't escape ignorance. Age is not a cure.
"On the first day of christmas my true love gave to me: X"
"On the second day of christmas my true love gave to me: Y"
etc. and each time X or Y includes all the previous items. The only obvious conclusion is that you're getting 12 partridges in 12 pear trees, 22 turtledoves, etc.
The total of the items includes combined items though, which are necessarily counted as separate. For example, you might be able to find a store that sells partridges, but probably not one that puts a pear tree in the same box.
So we've got 12 pear trees, the 142 birds, 40 rings, 40 cows, 76 women, 30 lords (is that more expensive than "30 guys jumping around in fancy dress"?), 22 pipers, 22 pipes, 12 drummers, 12 drums and 12 sets of drumsticks (they could be bongos, but traditionally they are not depicted as such). You might argue that the various musicians bring their instruments and then take them home with them when the gig is done. One assumes this is not slavery, so you have to figure salary for however many days the individuals in question are employed (and figure for the sake of simplicity that they are all let go at the end of the 12th day).
So, depending on whether or not you get to keep the musical instruments after christmas, you have purchased either 234 or 280 items and paid salaries for 150 man-days of entertainment.
It's rare that you're presented with a knob whose only two positions are Make History and Flee Your Glorious Destiny.
I just realized that the situation with the entertainers/manual laborers is a bit more complicated than what I described. It revolves around this question: Am I purchasing all the items they need to do their jobs?
This includes 150 costumes (except possibly for the ladies dancing; we'll assume she's at least wearing a g-string), plus 36 milking stools, 36 buckets and enough bottles to hold however much milk is produced. (The song doesn't say what you're going to do with the milk produced, but I'd definitely want to keep it. It's the one thing you're getting for free out of all this.) There's bound to be some sheet music and music stands too; it'd be pretty terrible to have all those pipers playing improv. What about permits to have all these people perform for almost a week? Cleaning costs....
It's rare that you're presented with a knob whose only two positions are Make History and Flee Your Glorious Destiny.
British Lords can be _rented_.
Especially the ones that have any property left.
They all have massive taxe$ to pay to the QWeen,
and, being members of the idle rich, little income.
It can be pretty tough to make ends meet.
Exceeding the recommended torque is not recommended.
maybe they weigh less then an Oz. just a thought.
I can go to the mall and buy gold rings for less then 50 bucks. granted, it's more like a gold wire around your fingure, but nobody said they where high quality rings.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
Uhhm, I hate to bring this up but has anyone considered the cost of insurance for all of this stuff? $65,000+ worth of incidientals would just about double anyone's homeowners policy.
And, just curious, how were you planning to get song birds through customs by X-Mas? Helllooo --> mandatory 30 day quarrantine and there are only 7 shopping days left sport! Don't even think that you're going to have song birds without a hefty donation to the customs officers holiday ball!
What about attorneys - I mean you don't really believe 8 maids are going to milk anything without a few workers comp claims - do you? And god forbid someone get sick from drinking the milk the 8 maids milked; mega lawsuit dude - and mega attorneys fees. And have you ever seen a pissed off swan attack a human? I saw it once on a golf course and it was nearly fatal for both the swan and the golfer - does your homeowners cover swan injuries and/or injuries to swans? Do you have any idea how long and expensive a swan-slaughter trial is these days?
And speaking of lawyers, did you think your wife was going to stand obediently by while maids and dancers start shacking up in the garage? Noooo way sport. After thousands of dollars of marriage counseling the whole scene is virtually guaranteed to end in divorce. Then you will turn to drinking and drugs to deal with the fact that your ex-wife was banging her attorney the whole time she was sucking you dry of half of everything you busted your ass for. Oh and then you'll turn to alcoholics anonymous and psychotherapy in a last ditch effort to pretend you can recover from this episode.
No dice sport. By the time New Years rolls around you'll be shopping for a gun and some bullets. Then you'll do something stupid like shoot your wife and her attorney and then yourself. Then you'll be in hell all alone while listening to her forever getting off in the backseat of what was once your Mercedes...
Feed, transportation, lost wages, workers comp, taxes, insurance, attorneys, divorce settlements, psychotherapy, death - nope the 12 days of Christmas are not for me sport. Let me keep Christmas in my own way --> A lighted palm tree, a beverage, and a rent-a-babe named Bambi dressed only in a red had and a ribbon...
--Richard
...Coincidence
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
"But not necessarily more as a percentage of income, as income can (generally does) rise faster than inflation."
not in the last year.
The base payment for all my bills has, mostly, remainfd the same. However, the all except car and house payment, have gotten extra charges added in. via Tax, restucturing tariff, etc. Plus my insurance went up again.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
". I get tired of a place that is supposed to be a type of technical forum being a place where poltical rhetoric and nonsense replaces facts"
if you want to go to a site that doesn't have this king of behaviour, you can go to...ummm...let's seee... no place.
It bugs me too. I dislike GW, but I don't like rhetoric even if it 'supports' my opinion.
The only answer is to grow thicker skin and ignore them.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
The government has totally got people wrapped around their finger when we refer to the rise in prices as inflation. A rise in prices is very often the result of inflation but the cause of
inflation is an increase in the money supply.
An increase in the money supply devalues everyone else's existing money. Sounds a lot like counterfeiting doesn't it? It basically is legalized counterfeiting. When a bank gets a deposit of X dollars, they can turn around and issue loans for 5X (I believe that is the current figure) that amount. Where did the extra 4X come from? The answer is nowhere. The result is that people who take out loans disproportionately receive the advantage of the new money. Those who don't take out loans get their money devalued and receive no benefit. This is called partial reserve banking and must be stopped. We need to get rid of fiat money and replace it with a single or multi-commodity based money.
Bob and Doug's Christmas
On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me:
Eight comic books
Seven packs of smokes
Six packs of two-fours
Five golden toques
Four pounds of back bacon
Three french toasts
Two turtlenecks
And a beer in a tree
(Bob & Doug didn't cover days nine through twelve.)
All I care about is the 9 ladies a dancing... on my lap!!! Damn not too bad of a price.
"Why ban weapons? Just make the ammo cost like $5000 a round... then only the rich ones can kill" - Confusedious