Kong Xi Fa Tsai!

恭喜發財

WELCOME THE YEAR OF THE FIRE DOG!

Which is supposedly lucky for Snakes. 蛇 I hope. I hope. I hope.

Fu - the Chinese word for 'luck'


I do need all the luck i can get.




More on Chinese astrology for 2006...

January 29, 2006 will mark thebeginning of the Year of the Dogand Year 4703 of the Chinese Calendar.

Chinese New Year (Xin Nian 新年) typically lasts two or three days, but the New Year season extends from the middle of the previous years' 12th month to the middle of the 1st month of the new year. It is a holiday celebrated by Chinese the world over.

Did You Know ... "Dogs" 狗 are born old and get younger as they age. A "Dog" is honest and faithful to those they love but they tend to worry too much and find fault with others. They make ideal secret agents or business people. Lucky Directions:West, Northwest

Most Compatible:Horse, Tiger, Rabbit

Least Compatible:Dragon

In preparation, the house is given a thorough cleaning-- a sweeping away of any misfortune or bad luck during the year departing to make way for the incoming good luck and good fortune that will surely arrive during the new year. Doors and windows are given new coats of paint, and paper cutouts with the themes of 'happiness,' 'wealth' and 'longevity' are used as decoration around the home. Special flowers and fruits are also often used as symbolic decorations for prosperity and good fortune. Peach blossoms are said to bring long life; good fortune is represented by the kumquat's golden fruits. Offerings of food may also be left at the altar of ancestors.
New Years' Eve is carefully observed, with all members of a family dining together. Supper is a joyous feast, with jiaozi served-- dumplings boiled in water. (The word literally means 'sleep together and have sons,' a traditional good wish greeting for a family.) Whole steamed fish (a symbol of long life and good fortune). This can be seen in wall decorations of fish themes. The word 魚 (yú), meaning "fish", shares the same pronunciation with the word 餘, meaning "surplus" (e.g. having money left over from covering expenses). The common greeting for the new year "niannian you yu" 年年有魚/餘 can mean to enjoy a surplus, i.e. financial security, year after year.

There is also served a vegetarian dish with a special seaweed called fat choi, a word similar in sound to that for prosperity. Noodles accent the wish for long life.
Every light in the house is supposed to stay lit for the whole night. At midnight, the sky erupts in a colorful display of fireworks and firecrackers.

The New Year has arrived!
Early in the morning, after sunrise, the children receive their hong bao/ang pao (red packets, often containing money) from their parents. Then the family visits door-to-door to exchange New Years greetings-- first to relatives, then to neighbors. In some Chinese neighborhoods, mandarin oranges are also exchanged as offerings of good will and good fortune.

{(Mandarin'hong bao' 紅包; Cantonese 'lai see' 利是) are passed out during the Chinese New Year's celebrations, from married couples to unmarried people. Red packets traditionally consisted of amounts which were considered multiples. Amounts like $2 (two piece of $1), or $20 were acceptable. Similarly "multiples" such as $1.10 and $2.20 were also acceptable. However, this is not strictly adhered to. The gift was originally a token amount but these days it is not uncommon to receive large sums in affluent families. In some families this tradition has evolved into the practice to substituting money-like instruments (stocks, bonds, unit trust) in place of large sums of cash..}

The New Year is a time of reconciliation. Old grudges are set aside, and the atmosphere is marked by warmth and friendliness. The visits continue for several days, marked by a great deal of gift giving. Passersby greet one another in various dialects: Xin Nain Kuai Le 新年快樂(Happy New Year) or Kung Hei Fat Choi, and Gong Xi Fa Cai 恭喜發財 (May Prosperity Be With You).

For more information, visit:

http://www.chinapage.com/newyear.html

Gong Xi Gong Xi Ni!