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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.
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
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
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?
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
Eight maids-a-milking... $41.20
Eight minutes of a maid milking you... priceless!
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!!
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.
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.
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.
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.
Gee, do ya think maybe the American dollar is down due to George W's ridiculous economic policies?
Yes, actually. A lower dollar allows for cheaper exports and more expensive imports. What does that mean? It means encouragement for the domestic job market and industry. It's generally the correct thing to do when a recession is forced upon you by an event such as 9/11. That being said, the war actually improved the economy and the market, so don't try to blame the situation on that either.
Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
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!
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.
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.
$65,264.28 at current exchange rates is worth about a tenner and a pack of 20 B&H
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?
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.
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?
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