Today is the twenty-third of the waxing moon, commonly known as the small New Year, but also the "New Year! When I was a kid, the streets were usually very cold, only from the beginning of this day will be lively, selling firecrackers, selling balloons, blowing candy people, selling all kinds of food, have to be there to yell and sell. So the children all go to the adults to ask for money, mom and dad, grandparents, aunts and uncles. Adults are more generous than usual at this time of the year! "On the twenty-third day, New Year's Eve comes; the girls want flowers, the boys want cannons." What doesn't cost money? But the authentic traditional food that must be eaten on this day is still the sugar melon, because it is the day of the Zaos Festival. The God of the Zaos has lived in the house for a whole year, and on this day, sweet and sticky sugar melons are smeared on his mouth so that he can say good things in the sky and keep peace in the lower world. My family has never worshipped evil spirits, but we do eat sugar melons.
Twenty-four, write a big word
New Year's Eve, people who can write will have to cut a few sheets of red paper and write some couplets, lucky words, lucky words. Can not write the family, then go to the market to buy, but also more is written and sold. Couplets on the door generally want to figure a little festive, easy to understand for the top, the level of the battle are not pay attention to. For example, "go out to seek wealth to hand, at home to keep business prosperity", and then a "Purple East" everyone can see and understand. Indoor couplets to be more chic, such as "room elegant why big, flowers are not in the fragrance of more" clouds. Grain tank written on the "grain harvest", pigsties written on the "six animals thrive", the wall written on the "Picnic", the stairs written on the "up and down peace! I think this "peace above and below" is a good idea. I think this "up and down the peace" is the most wonderful, not only to go up and down the stairs, but also to the family up and down the old and young people are safe and sound.
Twenty-five, sweeping dust
Years ago, we had to carry out cleaning, and then dirty people can not be lazy. This may also be a bit of a trick, to take the meaning of all things new, or in order to get rid of bad luck. In my house, my mom never use us to help, always plug to some change to us out, their own scarf wearing a mask, with a bamboo pole tied to the chicken feather duster to the house carefully cleaned once, and so we came back to the windows are already clean. Nowadays, my mom is already old, but still insists on the tradition of cleaning before the year, often cleaning once to be tired and back pain for several days.
Twenty-sixth, to cook meat
There was no refrigerator in those days, so the meat cooked on New Year's Day had to be cured and eaten for several months, known as "bacon". My second aunt's family raised pigs, and every year half of them were given to my family after they were killed. The meat was cooked in a big pot over a slow fire for half a day and then simmered overnight to make the meat flavorful and tasty. But children often can not wait, from time to time to urge adults to fish out a piece to taste. So, this day often do not eat a little staple food, just eat meat, gnawing bones on the full. Of course, half of the pig's meat can not be all boiled off, but also leave some raw meat for stir-frying, but also some lean meat minced into a stuffing, reserved for wrapping dumplings, fried balls. The chopped meat is put in a jar and sealed with lard, so it can be kept for a long time without going bad.
Twenty-seven, kill the rooster
Kill the rooster may also have some say, in order to avoid the evil. My family doesn't believe in evil, so I don't always kill the rooster, sometimes it's the old hen, sometimes I just buy the killed bare chicken. Chickens are essential for all families because they have to entertain relatives on New Year's. My second aunt's stewed chicken is especially good. My second aunt's stewed chicken is particularly delicious, and her family has an altar with a big belly and a small mouth, which is specially used for stewing chicken.
Twenty-eight, the surface of the hair
North people eat noodles, mainly steamed bread, so every three to five days on weekdays to send a surface, steamed bread once. But during the New Year is not, to steam a dozen days to eat steamed buns at once, so this time the hair of the noodles is particularly critical. The process of flour is roughly like this: first leaven (also known as fertilizer) with water, mixed with flour, and then placed in a large pot slowly fermentation. Because of the large quantity, it is usually necessary to ferment overnight. After a certain degree, add a proper amount of soda ash, mix in some flour, knead until soft and hard, and then continue to ferment for a period of time. This hair surface is a technical work, the housewives are particularly important, because the New Year relatives came to eat, who steamed steamed bread sour, not up, inevitably fall into ridicule.
Twenty-nine, steamed buns
If the dough is a technical job, then steamed buns is a physical job. Steamed buns have to be kneaded over and over again to make them strong and tasty. So when steaming steamed bread, the men of each family often come on board to help. Good steamed bread agent to be put into a special mold, press out a variety of patterns to, and then only on the drawer steam. This steamed bread mold engraved are some festive patterns, there is the word of blessing, there is the word of joy, there is the word of life. The sophisticated family, but also to buy some food coloring, with chopsticks dipped in the top of the steamed buns. At this time of the year, there will be a lot of red dots on the street between the eyebrows of the girls, like the "Dream of Red Mansions" in the same as Xiangling, just Xiangling's is born rouge mark, and theirs are pointing to the rest of the steamed buns of red dye.
Thirty Night Watch
Everyone knows that we should eat dumplings on the first day of the first month of the lunar calendar, but our custom is to eat dumplings at noon on the thirtieth day of the new year as well. But since this day is not a holiday, many people skip it. On the night of the 30th, the meal must be a reunion dinner, at least four cold, eight hot twelve dishes, chicken and fish, but also drink some good wine. After the meal, go out and set off fireworks, after the fireworks back to wrap the dumplings to eat the next morning, until after three o'clock to go to bed, known as the New Year's Eve. It's actually quite hard for kids to watch the New Year's Eve, so my family doesn't watch the New Year's Eve every year, and we go to bed when we're sleepy. These years, it's gotten easier to watch the New Year's Eve because of the Chinese New Year's Eve.
Walking on the first day of the year
Before dawn on the first day of the new year, some people get up early to set off firecrackers, and the sound of the firecrackers is heard all the time, which makes people feel sleepy. When you get up, you pay your respects to your parents, receive your New Year's money, and then eat dumplings. A coin can be placed in the dumplings at the beginning of the year, and whoever eats it will have good luck for the year. After the meal, you go out to pay your respects, and kowtow to your elders according to the old custom. However, my family has long been changed, the kowtow to bow, and then say "New Year's Eve" even if the work.