eggnog
New York Today: Alternative Christmases
Good morning on this waterlogged Thursday. It’s Christmas Eve.
As you may be able to tell from the weather — and everyone is talking about the weather — we won’t be getting a white Christmas this year. Instead, we may have record-breaking high temperatures. But white Christmases are rarer in New York than you might think: The historical probability of one in New York is somewhere between 11 and 25 percent. So rather than bemoaning the warm temperatures, or letting global-warming-related anxiety get the better of you, here are some ideas for celebrating a less-than-wintry Christmas:
•Go ice skating at Bryant Park or Wollman Rink in a T-shirt.
•Swap out the eggnog for piña coladas.
•Go caroling, perhaps in a light jacket — Gramercy Park opens to the public for a hearty wassail, and the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine has carols and a puppet show.
•Reject the idea altogether and head to the Jewish Museum, which is open on Christmas.
•Take a break from holiday preparation and go see some of the city’s outdoor art.
•Explore the newly identified “Ice Cream District,” from the fringes of Chinatown to the East Village.
•Take a walk in the park. (Leave your sleds at home.) Or go on a prefeast run.
•Wait in line for a Cronut, because people still do that.
“eggnog”をとりあげます。これはミルクセーキにアルコールが加わった甘いドリンクのことをいいます(『Wisdom英和辞典第3版』三省堂)。
英英では“a drink made from eggs, sugar, milk, and alcohol, drunk at Christmas - LDOCE”とあり、米国ではクリスマスをお祝いする際に飲まれる非常にポピュラーなものであることがわかります。
“-nog”が気になり、その語源を探ってみましたが、「grog : ラム酒」や「noggin : マグカップ(を指す中英語)」が縮まった形など諸説あり、あまり定まっていないようでした。(Chris)