Lucia

A local holiday. Thirteenth of December. It's been used as a rather poor excuse to run a beauty contest for as long as I can recall. I believe that part of the tradition is older than I am by a wide margin.
There's an associated tradition as well. The twelfth of December teenagers all over Sweden compete in who can drink the most alcohol. The result is rather pitiful. Another four hours from now children as young as thirteen will crawl around along the streets puking their guts out. A disgrace to put it mildly.
Tomorrow school classes, hospitals and offices will see lines of young girls and men clad in white, some red and brown, but mostly in white. The lead girl will wear a crown of candles, even though today those candles are more often than not electric. She's the Lucia. And everyone will pretend the excessive drinking never took play only a night earlier.