cultures – Topical Fruit

Some holiday traditions stand the test of time, and get passed down for generations. Others start off fun and slowly become exhausting. If you are ready for something truly different, allow us to introduce a Christmas tradition that is equal parts historic, weird, and honestly kind of amazing.

In Catalonia, Spain, families celebrate Christmas with a tradition called Tió de Nadal. That translates to “Christmas log,” but it’s also known as the “poop log.” Yes, that is real.

Here is how it works: About two and a half weeks before Christmas, families bring a regular wooden log into their home. They paint a smiling face on it, give it a little red hat, attach two wooden legs in the front, and drape a blanket over its back end.

In the days leading up to Christmas, kids take care of the log. They pretend to feed it scraps of food, sing songs to it, and not just any songs, specifically songs about it pooping out presents. Parenting books probably do not cover this part.

Then comes the most memorable step: To encourage the log to do its job, the kids beat it with sticks. Seriously. Singing, feeding, and light log violence are all part of the process. Somehow, this is considered wholesome family fun.

On Christmas morning, after one final round of singing and stick-beating, the blanket is lifted off the log’s butt. Surprise. The log has pooped out candy, treats, and small gifts for everyone. Merry Christmas.

If you are wondering where this tradition came from, that’s very understandable. Historians believe it evolved out of old yule log traditions, where logs played a central role in winter celebrations. The stick-beating part likely shares roots with piñatas. Over the centuries, it evolved into the wonderfully strange ritual it is today.

And this is not some new TikTok trend. The poop log has been around for a few hundred years. It has survived wars, plagues, and countless other holiday fads, which honestly says a lot.

The idea is that instead of burning the log for warmth, the family takes care of it. And since it cannot provide heat, it gives back the only other way it can, by pooping presents. Science probably does not support this, but tradition does.

If you are totally burned out on elves on shelves judging your behavior and hiding in increasingly annoying places, maybe it is time to try something new. Feed a log. Sing to it. Beat it with a stick. Then enjoy your chocolate and candy straight from its festive little backside.

Happy holidays.

If you’re having a low-stakes kind of day, this might be the most delightfully useless but hilarious thing you’ll see: someone on Reddit asked non-Americans what their version of “One Mississippi, Two Mississippi” is… and the responses did not disappoint.

These playful phrases, often used by kids to count seconds during games like hide-and-seek, vary wildly depending on where you’re from. But the creativity? Universal. Let’s take a scenic world tour of weird and wonderful second-counting traditions.

In Denmark, they apparently count beers: “One case of beer, two cases of beer…” Not exactly playground material, but A+ for local flair.

Scotland goes full safari with “One elephant, two elephant,” while up in Canada, it’s a toss-up between “One hippopotamus” and “One steamboat.”

In Brazil, kids say “Um indiozinho, dois indiozinhos,” which translates to “One little Indigenous kid, two little Indigenous kids.” India opts for “Tick tick one, tick tick two,” which sounds like it could double as a suspense-building sound effect. Meanwhile, China gets rhythmic with, “1-2-3-4, 2-2-3-4…” and repeats up to ten before looping back.

Aussies might say, “One cat and dog, two cat and dog,” although one local insisted they’ve never heard that in their life… so it may just be folklore at this point. Mexicans take a minimalist approach with a calm, deliberate “Uno… dos… tres…”

One resident of Mississippi admitted that growing up there, they thought everyone just used the name of their own state. So “One North Carolina, Two North Carolina”?

And finally, a shout-out to the South African who used “One Mississippi” . . . without even knowing what or where “Mississippi” was.

So no, it won’t solve any of the world’s problems. But it might make your next round of hide-and-seek a little more international.

Tag: cultures

The Next “Elf on the Shelf”: The Pooping Log

In Catalonia, Spain, families celebrate Christmas with a tradition called Tió de Nadal. That translates to “Christmas log,” but it’s also known as the “poop log.” Yes, that is real.

On Christmas morning, after one final round of singing and stick-beating, the blanket is lifted off the log’s butt. Surprise. The log has pooped out candy, treats, and small gifts for everyone. Merry Christmas.

“One Mississippi, Two Mississippi”: In Other Countries

In Denmark, they apparently count beers: “One case of beer, two cases of beer…” Not exactly playground material, but A+ for local flair.

One resident of Mississippi admitted that growing up there, they thought everyone just used the name of their own state. So “One North Carolina, Two North Carolina”?