Spain:Take care of a pet log  - This tradition will be best appreciated by those with a Middle School sense of humor. From December 8th to the 24th, it is Catalonian tradition to keep a ‘defecating log’ as an imaginary pet: feeding it, covering it in a blanket at night. On Christmas Eve, the children beat the hollow log with sticks (which seems to be a theme here) to release the treats; a biologically-correct piñata. Defecation is a crucial element to Catalonian Christmas: characters are often relieving themselves at nativity scenes.