Rave: Christmas Note #14 — The second best Christmas song ever, “Fairy Tale of New York”
This is a repeat from last year just like the Bing and Bowie song, but this is still the second best Christmas song ever. At least that’s what I think. If you disagree, I’d love to hear what you think are the best and second best.
It’s also a pretty cool music video. And I swear that’s Matt Dillon playing the cop at the beginning of it.
Rave: Christmas Note #13: Potato Candy
Yes, you can make candy from poatoes. And though it might sound like something the Irish would dream up, I believe this simple to make treat is actually German. No one seems quite sure where it came from, but my grandmother, who used to make this recipe, was of German descent, originally out of Pennsylvania.
So, how do you make potato candy? It’s quite easy really, and would be a great recipe to try with children. You need one potato (a small one), cooked and mashed well. Then mix in powdered sugar until it becomes thick enough to roll. You’ll be amazed how much sugar it takes because the mixture goes all runny before it gets stiff. Once it’s thick enough to roll out, sprinkle powder sugar on the counter or board and on your rolling pin, and roll the mixture flat, sprinkling with more sugar as needed. Spread with creamy peanut butter (lots of it) and roll like you would a jelly roll. It’s good to refrigerate the roll for a bit before slicing into 1/4″ wide pieces of the candy.
My mom actually spreads the peanut butter and then re-rolls the whole thing before spreading with more peanut butter and cutting. I’ve heard of adding coconut, cinnamon, or chocolate also. Experiment!
Picture from Barnes and Noble website
Rave: Christmas Note #12 — The Santa Train
I first heard the story of the Santa Train when I read Silver Packages, a picture book by the ever-prolific and extremely talented Cynthia Rylant. (See Barnes and Noble website for more info:http://tinyurl.com/7s2oq6j).
Reading the book inspired me to look up information about the real Santa Train — a tradition in Appalachia since 1943. The train runs a 110 mile route distributing toys and candy to needy families along the way.
Image from http://www.appalachianhistory.net
It’s a lovely story so I thought I’d share the link to history of the event. See below. http://www.appalachianhistory.net/2010/11/get-ready-for-the-santa-train.html
Photo from http://www.appalachianhistory.net
Things like this always remind me how doing — for lack of a better expression — a good deed can grow into something huge and beautiful.
So, how do you plan to spread Christmas joy? I’ll be making fudge, potato candy, 7-layer bars, and other goodies to spread far and wide — to my coworkers, the ladies who make my coffee, and whoever else crosses my path.
Rave: Christmas Note #11: The Night Before Christmas as you’ve never heard it before.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=iobTXPgETOY
Thanks to my friend Bernie for the link.
Rave: Christmas Note #10: Dear Santa, Can I have this please?
Photo from Uncommon Goods website
File this one under another gift we all could use. Only I’m just not sure how to insert those people who throw trash out their window into our ditch.
See http://www.uncommongoods.com/product/no-sign in case you’re interested.
Rave: Christmas Note #8: For that special someone who has everything
How about a $45,000 ping-pong table to give the rec room an extra flair?
Do people even have rec rooms anymore or did that go out with the 70s?
I don’t know. I’m so out of date.
For the bibliophile in your life, you might consider a custom-built library for only $125,000. Or you could give someone a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be the guest choreographer for the fountains at the Las Vegas Bellagio. Better save your pennies though, that one costs $500,000!
Photo from Neiman Marcus website
Hey, fantasy is great, but I’d like to believe if I had that kind of money to throw away, I’d throw it away on something more worthwhile. Like oh, maybe helping to save the rainforest while some of it still exists. Or supporting a program that educates inner city pre-schoolers so they can grow up to become functional members of society.
But maybe that’s just me.
Still, it’s fun to look, even if only to admire the imagination of whoever thought of such creative gifts. Here’s a link to the Neiman Marcus website (where you can purchase these gifts and more!). http://www.neimanmarcus.com/store/catalog/templates/Entry.jhtml?itemId=cat40890771
And if the bibliophile in your life happens to be me, it would be much more practical to have a look at the website below. It features designs for some really cool bookshelves like this one.
Photo from Bookshopblog
http://bookshopblog.com/2011/11/29/do-it-yourself-bookshelves/
I don’t really need a whole library.
Rant: Christmas Note #8 — Time is fleeting.
File Under: A Gift We All Could Use -- photo from Uncommon Goods website
Rave: Christmas note #7 — Holiday Stress Reliever
If you’re not familiar with Rowan Atkinson or only know him from the Mr. Bean movies, you’ve been missing out on own of the great comic talents of our age. Here (courtesy of a Facebook post of my daughter’s that reminded me of it) is Rowan Atkinson, playing the drums. The invisible drums, that is.
The quality isn’t the best, but trust me, you’ll enjoy the video anyway.
Rave: Christmas Note #6 — Christmas for five bucks?
When I was a kid, my parents would occasionally take the three of us kids out for a meal, and we were each given $1 to spend on our meal. (Yes, I know I’m old.) This was a good lesson in household economics because it forced us to decide what we really wanted. Did we really have to have that milkshake? If we did, it meant we’d be eating one of the smaller sandwiches or maybe even soup.
Now it seems, there’s no much you can get for a dollar. And it’s true, things cost a lot more. (I can’t even remember the last time I managed to purchase a meal for much under five). But kids can still have fun with not very much money. Perhaps not $1, but I bet if you set them loose in a drugstore with a $5 bill (or better yet, at one of the real dollar stores where everything actually costs a dollar), they’d have a blast scoping out how best to spend their cash. 
They might even learn something about prioritizing their wants and wishes in the process. And don’t forget part of the gift (to both the children involved and yourself) is being there to watch them as they make the important decision of what to purchase.
This post was inspired by a post on another blog, which you can view at:
http://marylaine.com/observe/23.html
Rave: Christmas Note #5 — Christmas always lights up my life.
Although my husband is not a big fan of Christmas lights (which accounts for the dearth of them at our house — him being the big DIY’er here and all), I love them. My daughter and I have a yearly tradition of taking one night to drive around and look at everyone’s Christmas displays. Even in Cleveland there are people who put on quite a show, and out here in the country there are a few that rival those that are shown on the link below.
Have a look at these folks who got into the Christmas spirit in a big way.
Photo from DIY Network
Photo from Dailystab
Then there are those who chose to compete by not competing.
http://www.dailystab.com/ditto/
Reading, Writing, Ranting and Raving 