The obligatory link: Endless carols endless torture, groups say
Wow, y'know, I got tortured an awful lot over the Christmas season, then... After all, I spent plenty of time with looped Christmas music going at the office (at least, while I wasn't listening to Constitutional Public Radio in the afternoons). Maybe that break is supposed to constitute it not being "torture", then?
Let's face facts, though: Most Christmas music is much higher-quality music than the stuff that gets piped into many of these stores the other eleven months out of the year. "No, spare me! I'm being assaulted by Bach, Mannheim Steamroller, and Trans-Siberian Orchestra! Whatever will I do?" It's so sigh-worthy that it's almost funny... in a perverse sort of way.
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
2006/12/27
A Couple of Quick Quotes
"How many observe Christ's birth-day! How few, his precepts! O! 'tis easier to keep Holidays than Commandments." -- Benjamin Franklin
"To restore... harmony,... to render us again one people acting as one nation should be the object of every man really a patriot." -- Thomas Jefferson
"To restore... harmony,... to render us again one people acting as one nation should be the object of every man really a patriot." -- Thomas Jefferson
2006/12/26
Christmas Recap
Don't worry, it's not about gifts.
The Merry Christmas Watch:
The only people I couldn't convince to say "Merry Christmas" were the folks at Borders. The rest of the sample was rather limited, of course, but it ended up about the way I expected... though, getting one out of the guys at GameStop was slightly surprising.
Christmas Programs:
Of course, it's difficult not to be most impressed by the St. Louis Bach Society's presentation. A 70-some member choir, plus a (relatively) small orchestra. Still, the two candlelight church services were nice, for a more close-knit atmosphere.
The Rush:
There really wasn't one, at least in my family. Sure, there were plenty of people out on the roads for the weekend lead-up, but not enough to really jam things up for people who just needed to get around normally.
Family:
Naturally, it's always nice to see people you don't often get to see, and Christmas is about the only time that happens anymore, since most of the extended family has long since moved out of state. And, since my mother calls him her third son, it was nice to see my "brother" who went off and joined the Navy three years ago.
The Merry Christmas Watch:
The only people I couldn't convince to say "Merry Christmas" were the folks at Borders. The rest of the sample was rather limited, of course, but it ended up about the way I expected... though, getting one out of the guys at GameStop was slightly surprising.
Christmas Programs:
Of course, it's difficult not to be most impressed by the St. Louis Bach Society's presentation. A 70-some member choir, plus a (relatively) small orchestra. Still, the two candlelight church services were nice, for a more close-knit atmosphere.
The Rush:
There really wasn't one, at least in my family. Sure, there were plenty of people out on the roads for the weekend lead-up, but not enough to really jam things up for people who just needed to get around normally.
Family:
Naturally, it's always nice to see people you don't often get to see, and Christmas is about the only time that happens anymore, since most of the extended family has long since moved out of state. And, since my mother calls him her third son, it was nice to see my "brother" who went off and joined the Navy three years ago.
2006/12/14
One War On Christmas Carols
The obligatory link: Howell rule limits choirs' sacred tunes
3.33 to 1? Aside from being an arbitrary limit, let's see how this works out in practice. I'll sing Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, the Twelve Days of Christmas, and the first third of O Christmas Tree before I get in the first religiously-themed song? That's just the way I'd be tempted to do it, too. Y'know, just cut straight from the end of the first verse of O Christmas Tree to something along the lines of Joy to the World with no warning.
It's a silly rule at best, but if it can't be ignored entirely, work with it in such a way that eventually people will agitate for its removal.
3.33 to 1? Aside from being an arbitrary limit, let's see how this works out in practice. I'll sing Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, the Twelve Days of Christmas, and the first third of O Christmas Tree before I get in the first religiously-themed song? That's just the way I'd be tempted to do it, too. Y'know, just cut straight from the end of the first verse of O Christmas Tree to something along the lines of Joy to the World with no warning.
It's a silly rule at best, but if it can't be ignored entirely, work with it in such a way that eventually people will agitate for its removal.
2006/12/11
Strangest Baby Jesus Theft of the Year?
The obligatory link: Baby Jesus Stolen From Nativity Scene And Replaced With Beer Can
Take the baby Jesus figure out of a nativity and leave a beer can in its place? I suppose it's a step above just taking it and leaving nothing, if not by much. Now, here's the one question that the article didn't answer, but it must be on everyone's mind: Was it a full can, or an empty one?
Take the baby Jesus figure out of a nativity and leave a beer can in its place? I suppose it's a step above just taking it and leaving nothing, if not by much. Now, here's the one question that the article didn't answer, but it must be on everyone's mind: Was it a full can, or an empty one?
2006/12/05
Jumping Right In, or What You're In For
Instead of starting with something along the lines of a "who am I, why am I here" type of post, we're going right in with the kind of bizarre thing which can be expected to turn up here from time to time. First, the article: Child Arrested After Opening Holiday Gift Early
A few things... Isn't the title excellent? It's exactly the kind of thing that's going to grab people's imaginations and draw them right in. "What happened, some kind of overreaction? How does a thing like this happen?"
Once you actually get into the article, though, you land on this quote: "I'm trying to get him some kind of help," the 27-year-old mother told the paper. "He's the type of kid who doesn't believe anything until it happens."
I do hope the police in Rock Hill, S.C. have a great deal of free time on their hands, because even though the kid's obviously got issues, getting into Christmas presents early isn't exactly something I can rationalize as any kind of priority for those who protect and serve. Seriously, the first instance of a kid trying to get into their gifts early probably occurred five minutes after the inception of the wrapped gift. There's an order of magnitude difference between that and, say, stealing money and punching police officers.
It's a bizarre thing to be a last straw, at the very least, but that's what makes last straws so interesting.
As a side note, isn't it interesting that the easy-to-find link goes not to a station in South Carolina, but one in Connecticut? Keep an eye out for that, as it happens quite a bit. The local-local-local now makes the news half a continent away.
A few things... Isn't the title excellent? It's exactly the kind of thing that's going to grab people's imaginations and draw them right in. "What happened, some kind of overreaction? How does a thing like this happen?"
Once you actually get into the article, though, you land on this quote: "I'm trying to get him some kind of help," the 27-year-old mother told the paper. "He's the type of kid who doesn't believe anything until it happens."
I do hope the police in Rock Hill, S.C. have a great deal of free time on their hands, because even though the kid's obviously got issues, getting into Christmas presents early isn't exactly something I can rationalize as any kind of priority for those who protect and serve. Seriously, the first instance of a kid trying to get into their gifts early probably occurred five minutes after the inception of the wrapped gift. There's an order of magnitude difference between that and, say, stealing money and punching police officers.
It's a bizarre thing to be a last straw, at the very least, but that's what makes last straws so interesting.
As a side note, isn't it interesting that the easy-to-find link goes not to a station in South Carolina, but one in Connecticut? Keep an eye out for that, as it happens quite a bit. The local-local-local now makes the news half a continent away.
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