Greetings, Manor Hors! Periodically, "The Roving Pecker" presents urgent missives from filthy esteemed guest writers. Today's chilling entry is from Raincoaster! The snow. The pure, driven snow. The beautiful snow. The sparkling, seductive snow. The deadly snow. We in Canada know that the snow, the gorgeous and mystical messenger of Winter, can be as fatal as it is stunning. But Hugh Walpole, the largely-forgotten but once-popular writer, was born in New Zealand. Nonetheless, he was educated in England from early childhood, in a series of schools which terrorized the delicate lad, so much so that he expunged all but the most prestigious from his entry in Who's Who. His style nods to Horace Walpole (no relation except in the Gothic and psychological nature of their writing), Nathaniel Hawthorne (particularly in this story), and to his dear (perhaps intimate) friend Henry James. Mannered, tense, subtly building to a climax that seems inexorable but may also be nothing ...

The Christmas tree - most of us throw some version of it up around this time. Decorated with lights, tinsil, and whatever other merry little thing that catches our eye, some might say how we adorn it mirrors how we adorn our own lives - and as how we live evolves, so is reflected in the way we decorate our tree. So in honor of the past and old traditions (the good kind), let's take a little jaunt down memory lane and have a look at a few vintage trees of yesteryear! Feel free to post your own, too!

Christmas is celebrated differently in Japan, yet much of it is recognizable. We see beautiful lights, Santas, and  decorated trees, and it is a time for getting together. But it diverges there because Christmas in Japan is for couples.  They exchange gifts and cozy up for romance. Though American food is preferred, KFC is  preferred ; it can get expensive, so they will have tasty Japanese romantic dinners or something delicious and homecooked.  It is common to see couples holding hands flushed with love and happiness. It is like Valentine's Day except on Decemeber 25th. Only about 2% of the Japanese people call themselves Christians, so it would make sense to carve out their own traditions and make this holiday something unique to them and reflects their culture.  Christmas Eve is for  kurisumasu ke—ki , a sweet sponge cake with filling, but the next day is for dressing up, making fancy dinner reservations, and staring into the eyes of your "ride or d...