Melbourne Cup Day - what do you do with it?

puddingwrestler · October 30, 2009, 04:55:32 PM

Well, it's Melbourne Cup Day on Tuesday, which means that the nation is obliged to stop. What with the new workplace agreement between the DEECD (Education Department) and the teachers, we no longer get the monday off as well which is cause for some cursing and a reduction in the ability of the holiday t stop the nation...

All of which is beside the point!

What are you chaps wot are effected by said holiday going to do with it?
Is anyone going to get frocked and do the fashions of the field?
Is anyone even going to bother with the race (personally, I'm more interested in the Colac Ferret Cup which runs at the same time

)
Will you spend the whole day whiffing like a real man?
Will you spend the whole day whiffing like a real man IN A CUP HAT?
Should we hold a 24 hour cup day challenege to build anything over the holiday? (okay, so we have a relitively low number of Victorian members, but me and Buzzbomb could go at it hammer and tongs!)

pyro-manic · October 30, 2009, 05:29:14 PM

You get a public holiday for a horse race?

GTX · October 30, 2009, 08:25:00 PM

Only in Victoria (and South Australia for Adelaide Cup) - the rest of Australia still has to work to pay for those lazy, gambling Victorians...

Regards,

Greg

pyro-manic · October 30, 2009, 08:38:30 PM

Ah well - someone's got to do it!

Wish we had holidays for social events here - Royal Ascot would fit nicely (five days!)...

PW: If I was poncing around in a silly hat, I'd be far too drunk to be safely hacking plastic...

buzzbomb · October 30, 2009, 11:28:51 PM

Quote from: GTX on October 30, 2009, 08:25:00 PM
Only in Victoria (and South Australia for Adelaide Cup) - the rest of Australia still has to work to pay for those lazy, gambling Victorians...

Regards,

Greg

Ahhh yes... the justice of it all.

It is a dedicated modelling day in my workshop.. if I have a holiday for a horse race, midweekish.. I am going to make the most of it.
Puddings.... you are on !!!!!

DaFROG · October 30, 2009, 11:31:02 PM

it's supposedly the race that stops the nation, except if your a uni student (had exams every cup day, usually during the race) and last year i went in to work on the monday to get stuff done in peace and ended up driving to port lincoln (through colac but no time to stop to check out the ferret cup) and back on cup day.

This year I am in melbourne and have the WEEK off so yes I'm in too (family BBQ's and 80 somethings birthdays not withstanding).

puddingwrestler · October 30, 2009, 11:52:27 PM

Well... Victoria has Cup Day, but other states have thier own holiday somewhere in the year; often a show day or some such. Theoretically, the holiday is only for Melbourne and those who choose to have it; other towns/cities/communities have thier own cup days. I know Geelong has Geelong Cup Day, and some rural places do cup or show days of thier own.

As to GB rules: It must be made entierely on November 3rd. Bonus marks if it involves a hat, or IS a hat.

B777LR · October 31, 2009, 12:34:01 AM

Quote
Only in Victoria (and South Australia for Adelaide Cup) -

Only?

Victoria is many times bigger than Denmark, Belgium or the Netherlands, with roughly the same size of population

nev · October 31, 2009, 05:23:02 AM

Could never figure out the big deal when I lived there. Its only a bloomin' horse race!

kitnut617 · October 31, 2009, 08:51:30 AM

Quote from: nev on October 31, 2009, 05:23:02 AM
Could never figure out the big deal when I lived there. Its only a bloomin' horse race!

Countries like Australia, Canada, USA -- are fairly young and don't have a mountain of history as far as the settlers are concerned. So anything that is cause for a party is fair game for a national, provincial or civic holiday. Over here, Halloween for instance (tonight by the way) is quite a big deal, whereas when I grew up in the UK I don't remember celebrating it at all, Guy Fawkes night was too close I think. There's a Victoria Day here in Canada too, I'm still trying to figure out why but I'm supposed to know, seeing as I took my Canadian Citizenship quite a few years ago.

B777LR · October 31, 2009, 09:35:37 AM

Quote from: kitnut617 on October 31, 2009, 08:51:30 AM
There's a Victoria Day here in Canada too, I'm still trying to figure out why but I'm supposed to know, seeing as I took my Canadian Citizenship quite a few years ago.

Lol, the Danish nationalist party passed a law 2 years ago, that makes all emigrants need to take a test in order to become a Danish citizen. We took it in class, and none of us passed

JayBee · October 31, 2009, 09:57:17 AM

Well, here in Scotland it was not called "Trick or Treat" it was called Guising, I think it was an abreviation of Disguising. You wore a costume of some sort, and you had to sing, tell a joke, perform in some way, and you hoped for money, or fruit, nuts, sweets etc. Mostly money!
The money went to buy fireworks for Guy Fawks Night (Nov. 5th) when we all celebrated someone trying to blow up the English Parliament!
Mind you that was a LOT of years ago.

JimB

kitnut617 · October 31, 2009, 11:53:15 AM

Quote from: B787 on October 31, 2009, 09:35:37 AM
Quote from: kitnut617 on October 31, 2009, 08:51:30 AM
There's a Victoria Day here in Canada too, I'm still trying to figure out why but I'm supposed to know, seeing as I took my Canadian Citizenship quite a few years ago.

Lol, the Danish nationalist party passed a law 2 years ago, that makes all emigrants need to take a test in order to become a Danish citizen. We took it in class, and none of us passed

Had to do that over here to Thomas, actually I became a Canadian Citizen twice. Apparently if your young child is also going to be a Canadian Citizen, someone in the family has to be a Citizen already, so me and a bunch of other fathers were carted off to another room where we did the ceremony and then re-joined the family and promptly did it all over again.

Victoria Day is to celebrate Queens Victoria & Elizabeth's 'Official' birthday, see I knew I had to know that ----

elmayerle · October 31, 2009, 04:29:24 PM

Quote from: JayBee on October 31, 2009, 09:57:17 AM
Well, here in Scotland it was not called "Trick or Treat" it was called Guising, I think it was an abreviation of Disguising. You wore a costume of some sort, and you had to sing, tell a joke, perform in some way, and you hoped for money, or fruit, nuts, sweets etc. Mostly money!
The money went to buy fireworks for Guy Fawks Night (Nov. 5th) when we all celebrated someone trying to blow up the English Parliament!
Mind you that was a LOT of years ago.

JimB

Eh, it's just me speculating, but I wonder if "Guising" bears a derivation from "Geis" or "Ghost". For the date, that would be rather appropriate.

DaFROG · October 31, 2009, 04:35:19 PM

australia's citizenship test thingee used to have stuff about don bradman on it. he was a great cricketer to be sure but I'm pretty sure plenty of people out there managed to be great assets to this country without knowing his batting average

back on topic the ingredients for my build have been selected. All i can reveal right now is that it involves a tomcat (or should i say tomkitty).

the full and terrifying details will be revealed at 00:01 hours November 3rd (you may need protective eyewear)

Melbourne Cup Day - what do you do with it?

B777LR

B777LR