Lorena's Epiphany

Shitty Sense of Humor

August 12, 2010 at 2:52 pm 5 comments

Picture Chrismas-time. I know it’s hard in all this heat, but what images come to mind? Families gathered around the chimney? Gifts nestled under a glistening tree? The smell of hot cocoa?

A tiny man pooping in the corner, overlooking Jesus in the nativity scene perhaps?

That’s right. You read correctly. The infamous caganer (or, “shitter” in english). poops – oops! – pops up around Christmas time as part of Spanish tradition. More specifically, the Catalan tradition (don’t call them Spanish, ok?).

Now why on earth would anyone want to put a statue of a pooping man (or woman, they don’t segregate) in a holy scene? For one, it’s been the tradition since the 17th century. Other countries, like neighboring France and Portugal have also adopted it in some regions. The children love it because parents hide the cagner (out of respect for the nativity scene) and they have to find it.

These statues come in all different shapes and sizes – and personalities. Football players, rock stars, cartoon characters and I even found one with President Obama pooping.

The message behind these little shitters is: at the end of the day, no matter how famous or wealthy we are, we all poop. That poop ends up nourishing the earth and the cycle of life goes on. The Catalans sure have a witty way of expressing that. They also serve a poo-shaped cake, which to be honest, I’ll pass on..

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More discoveries in Barcelona, posted on the trendestrian. Others, I’ll post here as I stumble upon notes or pictures from my trip.

Entry filed under: One of a Kind. Tags: caganer, Catalan tradition, Christmas, famous personalities, shitter, Spain.