Today Is the Day of The Krampus! [PIX]

The Krampus is actually the anti-Santa Claus. Where Santa has toys for the good girls and boys, the Krampus carries a bag of switches and punishes the bad kids.

Krampus, as a holiday or a "thing," is still celebrated in Alpine countries. Traditionally, the Krampus visits on December 5!

I love all the simple acts of kindness that go along with Christmas. I am OVER pretty much everything else that comes with it. I'm no Grinch; you can have your Xmas, but I prefer a more back to basic approach.

My friends and I have had several Krampus parties and just standing around a barrel fire with a beer or even a hot chocolate was more fun than a dozen Christmases (We also burnt an effigy of Santa Claus, but that's beside the point).

Anyways, I think we an agree on two things: No. 1: If you want to scare the heck out of your kids, tell them about Krampus; and no.2: Krampus is totally metal!