Imagine my disappointment when the first of the Christmas items I encountered were a slew of corny, cheesy animated toys in the forms of Santas, snowmen and reindeer doing various things and singing  stupid versions of holiday tunes.  Some of the more memorable queer items:  Santa in the bathtub singing "Splish Splash"; a snowman that starts off moving slowly then seems to pick up its "skirt"(?) and starts doing some kind of jig (think Riverdance); a Santa shaking his booty; a scantilly clad female snowman that plays "Santa Baby".  Probably the "cutest" was Santa and his cell phone.  Press the button and he talks to his elf or Mrs. Claus.  Talk about keeping up with the times!

As I looked over all these "toys" I thought to myself "Wally World is going to lose their shirts on this crap.  With the economy the way it is, I can't imagine many people willing to dole out $15.00 or more to buy any of this stupid shit".  I'm sure there will be some fools out there who do but the majority of us won't be.

In addition to the corniness, the aisles also contained various ornaments and lights.  Aside from the corny toys, I do look forward to seeing what else they have to offer this year.

This first crafty day you will learn to make a pillowcase. All you need is your own sewing machine, fabric, and basic sewing knowledge. The class cost is $15.00 and is limited to the first 8 registered students. I will provide some light drinks, snacks and a few door prizes!

Saturday, November 1, 2008
1 - 4 p.m.
at my home

I have made a few of my own pillowcases for my own three little ones. It's a great little way to decorate their room, when one year they love hotwheels and the next year they love pokemon. And for your girl friends, it's a nice gift to make up a pair of pillowcases in a sweet fabric combination that will compliment their bedroom. Since the fabric choices are unlimited, this could really be an inexpensive gift for you to make for everyone on your shopping list.

Just email me at trottgirl@sbcglobal.net if you are interested and I will then mail you a material list with your sign up confirmation.

Some other classes I would love to host before the holidays will be making a scarfe, knitting a hat, and scrappy fabric coasters. What are you interested in learning to do?

Christmas 18

<!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> I once heard a quote that one who believes in freedom of speech “Will defend someone who is yelling at the top of their lungs their ideals in a public place, ideals which you would yell at the top of your lungs to oppose.”  I have thought about this often.  We live in a nation where we should have freedom of speech, and even if that speech is against what I say and think I will support that freedom.

Now it comes to appropriateness of the time and place it is a whole different mater.  I think that there is a huge difference between public and private events.  I thought it was shameful for those few democratic protestors to sneak into the republic convention and protest during the peaks of the speeches.  It was NOT their place.  I also think that if someone goes through all the trouble and expense to put on a parade (Such as a famous church does each St Patricks day.) they own that parade and they should be able to pick and choose who is allowed to be in their parade, not forced to allow a group of Homosexual rights people to basically have a protest in the middle of the parade as a court recently forced them to do.  If the Gays want to have their own parade, I have no problem with that, they can pick a different time or place.   Also if a pastor wants to say something to his church about who to vote for, he should be allowed, unlike todays laws.

On Friday I went to the state fair, there were two different church groups who rented a space there, they decided that they would try to tell people about God.  I also have no problem with this, they used their money, and they were following the rules.  Now was this the best place, I think not, will they actually do any good for the Kingdom of God, maybe they will make a few people think.  For years I have thought that relationships were the best way to win people to Christ.  You simply invite them to events, show them the community and tell them the Gospel and let them decide.  But any decision that is forced is NOT lasting or sincere, and so many Christians like to force such decisions.

If you notice in the quote you have from Thomas Jefferson he says sect.  As you know this is a difference within the same religion.  He could not imagine that our nation would be anything but Christian.  He just did not want one denomination to be favored over another.

I do totally agree that we should not force our Christian ideals on non Christians as a form of law.  There are too many laws in our nation.  We are NOT a free nation.  Anyone who leaves for a year or more and comes back will tell you that.  There are others that are less free but also others that are far more free.

You also had the point of the “Merry Christmas” greeting.  I have found that it is used far less.  The other day I went to Costco they had two isles of “Christmas” stuff, so I decided to look really closely, there was not one item that was Christian based, and not one location did it say the word Christmas.  They are a business, they can choose what to put on their shelves, but me, as a Christian can choose where I will buy my decorations, and even if they have the best price it will NOT be from them.  Two years ago I heard that Macy’s decided to make bring back Christmas and in all of their ads they stopped all of the holiday stuff that others do and actually, to the shock of the left, mentioned Christmas.  And you know what, their sales went way up and they had their best season ever.  These are all private originations, they can choose what they want to say, they will be held accountable by the general public for what they do and say though.

To me the fundamental thing is that we have LOST the conversation in this nation.  People are divided and in most ways very close minded.  The force of the debate on both sides has caused people to become callous to the point that they are stuck in what they think.  A hard attack will just cause people to put the shields up and resist, only a slow, over time conversation based on logic will ever convert most people in this climate.  (This is for every issue, religious, political and even for choice of OS.)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=150273235326&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT&ih=005

Hello and welcome to my store! Up for your consideration today is a black crochet headband with a red jeweled flower. This headband is adorable and would be great for any little princess. This particular style is very popular during Christmas. I have several listed in my store so please check those out to save on shipping.   **CUSTOM ORDERS** Custom orders are always welcome. Simply email me and I will set up a private listing for you here in my store. I accept Paypal only. Payments are to be made within 10 days of listing end. I will accept USPS Money Orders if you contact me prior to purchasing. All items will ship within 2-3 days of payment being received. All international items will ship on Monday and Friday of each week. Shipping fees do not cover actually postage only it also covers materials, time, and gas. **SHIPPING WILL NEVER EXCEED $10.50 FOR A FLAT RATE PRIORITY MAIL RATE BOX** **COMBINED SHIPPING RATE** You pay highest price shipping and then $0.75 shipping for each additional item. All sales are final. If you purchased a CD/DVD and you have problems with it please contact me so I can rectify the situation. I will refund sale price within 7 days. I sale only items that I myself would purchase. All of my items are top quality. All hair accessories are made of top quality materials. Ends are heat sealed to prevent fraying. Custom orders are always welcome. If you have any questions please contact me and I will respond ASAP.

I bought my first Christmas gift on Saturday at the Green Valley Book Fair - the gift is a scrapbooking kit/book for one of my nieces. I was hoping to find a few more gifts at the book fair, but my other ideas didn't pan out. We are scaling back our Christmas budget this year so I am on the look-out for great bargains and discounts. So far, with the Grand Holiday Plan, I should have already bought about ¼ of the gifts on my list. But I am re-thinking my gift ideas and will hopefully get a jump-start in the next couple of weeks. I had a few ideas as I was shopping the other day and hope to save some money by giving some "semi-homemade" gifts. I am curious to know if any of you reading this are scaling back your holiday plans, and how you are planning to shop this year?

We recently began getting the newspaper at our home.  Not for the purpose of reading the newspaper but for the ads.  I'm trying to get on board with shopping with coupons, and using the protocol of a lady recently featured on Oprah (learn more at www.couponmom.com).  Anyway, today there was a coupon at Kmart (which I typically hate that store), for 50% any designated Disney toy.  Our nieces (of the evil SIL) love Hannah Montana & High School Musical, so off to Kmart I go....  I found another toy while I was there, the Disney (of course!) V-tech Create-a-Story book.  It's a laptop type toy in which the child selects a character (all Disney of course) and selects elements of the story and then the story is replicated with words and actions on the laptop screen.  It's seriously the cutest toy ever!  Anyway, I bought 3.  One for one of our nieces, one for my godchild, and one for my mom because she will need a gift for her neighbor kid.  I was happy I was saving money, happy I got such a steal ($50 toy for only $25), happy that the kids will love their gift (I'm generally thrilled anytime I get a chance to interject a bit of Disney into a child's life).  But I was so sad.  Part of me wanted to buy a fourth and keep it for the next decade or so until we have our own baby.  I wanted to be like all the other mom's in the toy isle, shopping for special early Christmas gifts for their own children.  I want a baby to spoil and take to Disneyworld and buy Christmas presents for.  To make matters worse, this stupid coupon clipping trend I'm trying to start makes me feel even more like a alien on this planet.  Newlywed married women don't clip coupons, do they?  No, mom's clip coupons!  Mom's with so many mouths to feed that they need to save every penny!  Sure, we could/should save every penny too....but, shouldn't we be drinking fancy wine and staying up too late and being so grateful that we don't have to wake up to the sound of a crying baby?  I think that represents the recently married cult of women much better than a coupon clipping chic.  Oh, and I spent all day cooking...like a mom would.  I even baked peanut butter-chocolate bars for my dh to take to work with him....all the while I couldn't help but think it resembled baking treats for my child to take to school.  I'm performing the part and I think I have it managed....clip coupons, save money, make homemade dinners, bake dessert, go to Disneyworld.  I'm just missing the kid!

Some of my earliest memories garner emotions that are both elusive and dreamlike as if only to exist in my imagination, resulting from some sincere desire to possess contented moments that somehow lay a seemingly illusionary foundation to my otherwise shoddy childhood. Those early years were beautiful in so many ways I’m still discovering how vital they are albeit scarce and short lived. I still yearn for those moments from time to time when I was a free spirited child with few worries to call my own save those that come along with being the youngest of three boys, raised primarily by our mother during a time when life was uncertain and filled with more life lessons than I could have ever expected since so much was going on during that time in history, both in the world as well as in the microcosm of my Korean-American immigrant family living in the pre-gangster rap era of Inglewood, California. The year of my birth and unknowingness was 1976…

There’s an old photograph that I’ve burned into my mind of my parents happily sitting around a fake plastic Christmas tree covered in silver tinsel and long forgotten trinkets, of the fragile sort, gathered over the years before I was even born. I must’ve only been a few years old but for some reason I remember… or perhaps the photograph itself represents a time and place that I long for so much so that I feel I was there to bear witness to it. In the image they sit amidst scattered wrapping paper and on their faces, rare expressions of genuine warmth & joy, perhaps even love, are shared between them. I don’t know who took that photograph but it was most certainly one of my two older brothers that had the foresight to capture a moment in time that would seldom occur between our parents ever again. I owe a great deal of thanks to the photographer since that image has been a saving grace for me during the times when I needed to recall some happy memory between my folks who otherwise spent most of their lives together fighting about things that have still not been resolved and more than likely never will. I cherish that special moment more than any material possession that I’ve ever received since more often those compensatory gifts represented the deficiencies of our family as a whole since my parents separated and divorced while I was still quite young. But even then I had a sense of what was going on though I didn’t have the capacity to understand the repercussions it would eventually inflict upon our family and the next generation to come I knew it as the reality of my life and it never felt right. It still doesn’t feel right but I understand it better now… even if it’s only a little bit more it’s more than before. Enough for me to find a solemn sense of pleasure in a photograph that is tucked away, stored in some box along with other mementos that contain yesteryear’s happiness.

Ok, off to have said shower and then into my room.  Time to create a sign for my door I think :) and get cracking on some Christmas Cards..and it is time I started that Cruise album I have promised myself to do for years.  I went on TSS Fairstar in January 1990...it was a blast.  Need to find the box of pics/memorabilia.  I had a huge organising marathon a few years back to make the scrapbooking easier, but have not gotten around to it.

Keep Smiling and Stamping,

Maggie xxx

Christmas is just around the corner and what better excuse to plan a trip and buy those unique gifts for the ones you love in your life. This year, why not skip the mad dash to the mall and, instead, combine a little retail therapy with a European vacation? If you're thinking a trip to Europe's enchanting Christmas Markets will blow your budget, we've got good news for you.  There are more European charter flights than ever before from your local Canadian airport to help you bring home unique seasonal treasures at bargain market prices. This brings back memories of my time in Liverpool, U.K. when I operated Day Trips by air from my home airport, Liverpool, John Lennon International Airport back in the late 90's. I chartered an Airbus A320 and took over 150 passengers to Salzburg, Austria for a day at the Christmas Market (click on the link in the upper right column for an english translation). What an experience, to explore Salzburg, a picturesque city that hosts a 500-year-old holiday craft fair, I found this information on the fare for this season:  

Held in the picturesque Cathedral and the surrounding squares, the annual Salzburg Christmas Market is a great place to soak up the Christmas atmosphere and pick up a few Christmas presents from the many stalls and vendors. Items range from traditional festive foodstuffs, handmade Christmas decorations, jewellery, candles and other arts and crafts. In addition to hot food stalls and mulled wine stalls, visitors can enjoy a range of entertainment ranging from nativity plays to choral performances.

Times

Mon–Thur 1000–2030; Fri 1000–2100; Sat 0900–2100; Sun 0900–2030

So forget the standard stocking stuffers and head to Austria and even further afield to other countries who each host their own Christmas Markets, places such as Germany, France, and more for a seasonal shopping extravaganza. Plus, if you'd rather shop online and just enjoy London over the holidays, you can also book a festive vacation too.  Salzburg’s Christmas Market, mentioned as far back as the 15th century, is located at the foot of the Hohensalzburg fortress, around the venerable cathedral of Salzburg.

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Consider the holidays fast approaching.  You know you want to send out Christmas cards, but you think, “When am I going to have time to do that?”  Hire someone to do it for you!  Look at the time you will have to do those “fun” Christmas tasks instead of the all time consuming chores.  Call your virtual assistant and discuss the details of what you need.  In most cases all you have to do is email a list of addresses, some details on how you want the closing to read, and decide if you would like the cards to be hand printed or computer generated and then you can sit back and relax.  They will even be mailed on the date of your choice.

Stop by and visit us, email or call to get further details of this service and many other we offer.  “Your time is valuable and we can help you have more of it!”

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This is rather late since Christmas technically starts on September in this Christmas-anxious country of ours. But since Christmas technically starts soon after the feast of Christ the King in the equally Christmas-anxious Roman Catholic calendar, this still is rather early. We haven’t even gone through Halloween yet.

I used to have a neighbor, Kuya Tato, who asks his wife Ate Edna to put up the Christmas tree and Christmas lights right on the evening of November 1, and Ate Edna does exactly as told, joyfully. God I miss that couple, and their kids. They never complained about my music, usually played in full blast, with me occasionally howling along or stomping. And they used to have their house-help Marilyn yell at me through the laundry patio whenever I’d put on disco in the turntable, “Lakasan mo pa!”.

So, in so far as carols are concerned, I joyfully present here my top ten favorites, not necessarily numbered according to rank:

1. Happy Holidays – The Gunther Kallman Choir

2. Count Your Blessings (Instead Of Sheep) – The Ray Conniff Singers

3. Happy Christmas (War Is Over) – John Lennon

4. Feed The World – Live Aid

5. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas – Judy Garland

6. Emmanuel [that one that goes, Isang dalaga’y maglilihi, batang lalaki ang sanggol. I think it’s the Jesuits who wrote it. They always write the best church songs].

7. Awit ng Paghahangad [this is sung every Advent and Lent, in the church I usually go to, The Parish of Sta. Teresita, because evidently, it is a song of anticipation. The Jesuits must have written it too.]

8. Lo! How A Rose E’er Blooming – Jennifer Cavilleri’s kids choir in Love Story, or the Charlotte Church version

9. Sa Paskong Darating – Celeste Legaspi

10. Ang Pasko Ay Sumapit – The Sta. Teresita Parish Choir

Those are carols. Carols. I do not intend to write about carols. Call this an optional prelude to the article proper.

* * *

This is the article.

And these, ranked accordingly, are yours truly’s top ten favorite Christmas songs, not the traditional carols, but songs that give me that comfy Christmas feeling whenever I hear or sing them:

10. These Days – Nico (from The Royal Tenenbaums Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Seeing the film over at Megamall on its last screening day was unforgettable. I had with me a cup of coffee and a Bunwich. The strains of an instrumental version of Hey Jude opening the film filled the almost empty theatre. I did not want the afternoon to end, but of course it had to. I immediately hunted for an original copy of the film about three months after that. Not satisfied, I thereafter hunted for the soundtrack. I was able to get hold of one from Tower Makati at least more than a year after seeing the film. When I got the soundtrack, I rarely watched the film anymore. I realized then that it’s the music that got me hooked.

These Days is a contemplative song, and very much like an auld lang syne, actually. It goes I’ve been out walking, I don’t do too much talking these days… These days I seem to think a lot about the things that I forgot to do, and all the times I had the chance to. It is one of the songs that I’d play in a loop whenever I take my annual two-week long December ‘writing’ leave, so to me it has become synonymous to Christmas, as Christmas to me has become synonymous to writing, and self-evaluation.

9. 1979 – The Smashing Pumpkins (from Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness)

As teenagers, me, my brother, and my cousin Aizel had this annual Christmas eve ritual of walking the streets of our neighborhood to go to the then only convenience store in the area, the 7-11 at the corner of Maceda and Dapitan. The ritual had to end when Aizel moved out from us sometime in 1993.

Around 1995, when Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness came out, 1979 was the song I instantly resonated with, falling in love so easily with its infectious beat, and its anthemic lyrics. It’s an ode to youth. And seeing its video, I am always reminded of my off-to-7-11 Christmas ritual with my brother and cousin. We never shoplifted or destroyed merchandise like the kids in the video. We were just together. Three kids together on Christmas eve, walking the cold, deserted, Sampaloc streets.

Whatever did we buy in 7-11? Slurpees. My brother would mix his flavors, Aizel would imitate and repent afterwards, while I’d stick with my plain Coke flavor. They would tease me why I didn’t just buy a Gulp.

8. Flowers In December – Mazzy Star (from Among My Swan)

Yeah, well, this song just pops in my head whenever I start seeing poinsettias. I’m afraid that’s all there is to it.

But come to think of it, the album opens with Disappear, which is heavy on echoing guitars and chimes and bells. A good record to put on should one be feeling torchy, or should one be carrying the torch, through the December breeze.

7. Bizaare Love Triangle [Extended Dance Mix] – New Order (from International)

Nanay always asks me to put on something happy and danceable on Christmas day. She doesn’t appreciate it much when I’d play And Out Come The Wolves, or Insomniac, which I all consider as slam-danceable. So I compromise with her with Joy Division or New Order. She prefers New Order because of this radio-friendly song.

The thing is, when the album gets to this song, I’d start pressing the repeat button repeatedly so that you don’t get to hear the rest of the album anymore. I can’t help it, the song’s crazy, it has this power over me! Now factor in that the version in the album is extended, almost seven minutes, you cannot really blame Nanay for complaining “Hanggang ngayon ba hindi pa rin tapos yan?”, though she had been grooving along with it at the start.

Then I would continue the compromise with Madonna records. Everyone happy.

6. Time Bomb – Rancid (from And Out Come The Wolves)

As earlier said, Nanay, and our Christmas guests don’t really appreciate much the joy that is in punk records, specifically in And Out Come The Wolves. So whenever I popped the record in the cassette player, I had to beg with them to at least let me reach this song before I change records, on account that I refused to go fast-forward, or rewind my tapes.

Funny but half-way through the song, I’d always catch the unbelievers grooving along its ska beat. Some would even ask who’s singing. I’d joyfully show off to them the sleeves, with the mohawked guy slouching on the cover, as I put on their much anticipated Madonna numbers.

5. Brain Stew/Jaded – Green Day (from Insomniac)

I love New Year’s eve so much because, as a teenager, it is that one time of the year that I got to totally abuse the Sharp karaoke in the house, lining up all my punk, post-punk, and grunge tapes and playing all of them in full blast mono glory amidst the deafening Super Lolos and Diablos and Bawangs. There was no way anyone could complain, it’s New Year’s eve! Everyone’s making noise anyway! And since much of my catalogue was considered noise by the rest anyway, they better tolerate it on the grand eve of noises galore!

This is the song that I’d save all my vocal strength for. It is my all-time favorite Green Day song. And it is best sung during New Year’s eve actually with its apocalyptic lyrics. And when it’s on, I’d jump up and down you’d think the clock has struck midnight and I’m already on with the I-wanna-be-taller pamahiin.

4. (It’s The End Of The World As We Know It) I Feel Fine – REM (from The Best Of REM)

For the longest time, since I’ve started collecting records seriously, I’ve only had five Christmas albums (you cannot have enough, you know): We Wish You A Merry Christmas by The Ray Conniff Singers (which I had in all formats, vinyl, tape, and CD, being my oldest Christmas record), Christmas Sing-In (“happy holidays… teng-teng-teng… happy holidays…”) by The Gunther Kallman Choir, Dream A Dream by Charlotte Church, The Christmas Album by Frank Sinatra, and Pamasko Ng Mga Bituin by Celeste Legaspi and company.

This is the song that I used to open my Christmas playlists. I also played it during intervals between albums. I loved how its unique apocalyptic feel contrasts with the spirit of the nativity. And I loved how those who get to hear would ask me, “It’s the end of the world?” or “Ano daw? Gunaw?”.

3. Stay (Far Away, So Close) – U2 (from Zooropa)

Though alone, I still got to continue my nocturnal holiday walks even after my cousin had moved out from us, and my brother found it more fun to be hanging out with his legion of friends.

With its lyrics, three o’clock in the morning, it’s quiet and there’s no one around, just the bang and the clatter as an angel runs to ground, just the bang and the clatter as an angel hits the ground, it is the song I usually sing whenever I take such walks. It gets to have an even fuller feel when sung through the littered streets right after the fireworks and as everyone had come in to rest. And the fact that its video is shot in black and white, with wings and feathers alluding to the German film Far Away, So Close for which it is written I guess, all the more does the song embody the desolation of an early morning of a New Year’s day. This song, not New Year’s Day, is the true U2 New Year song.

2. Fake Plastic Trees – Radiohead (from The Bends)

There is no more miserable time to be carrying the torch for someone than through the Christmas season, when you’d go to simbang gabi and be sitting next to pairs and pairs of whispering and giggling and smooching lovers who make church-going their excuse for dating. Yet there is no better time too but the Christmas season to be comforted by a record so full of compassion, love through the bends. Such is the love that is in The Bends. I play it on Valentine’s too.

Some years ago, if I remember it right, some UK radio station made a poll for its listeners, asking them to vote for the saddest song they ever heard. This song, along with another personal fave China by Tori Amos, made the top ten. I also read somewhere that Thom Yorke reportedly cried while recording this song.

I never looked at Christmas trees the same way after I first heard Fake Plastic Trees. Of course, the song really has nothing to do with Christmas, like everything else in this list, and the plant described in the song is anything but a Christmas tree, actually. Still, this song is probably one of the best unwittingly Christmasy songs ever written, especially when one would take note of how artificiality has invaded the Christmas season through materialism. The persona in the song aches to be true, out of longing, and love.

I used to cry whenever I heard this song, Christmas or not. Not anymore. That is how I realized the power of the song. One needn’t be sad, or needy, or aching, to be in love with it.

1. Twinkle – Tori Amos (from Boys For Pele)

The street that I used to walk to whenever I’d go to Sta. Teresita Parish for simbang gabi is M. Cuenco. It is wide, smooth, and lit on both sides by tall, incandescent street lamps.

I walked through that street’s early morning Christmas fog singing this song most of the time, looking up ahead at the lamps, though they don’t twinkle. They are more interesting than the Christmas lights anyway. Their light rendered everything beautiful – me, my solitude, my open-eyed dreams of ‘him’ walking next to me. Their light competed with the moon’s. Their light is warm –

as this plain piano-and-vocals song is, going boy so hard boy so hard but I know a girl twice as hard, quietly fierce in its love.

Oh, and it made me look at every parol differently too. Makes me want to think that just like Radiohead, Tori’s written a Christmas song without her even knowing it.

Alright then, that’s just about it. Listing honorable mentions would find you reading through this ‘til the feast of the Three Kings.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

But I haven't until now regarded the humble Christmas cracker as a potentially dangerous weapon.

However, Customs is reminding importers:

that under the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act, Christmas crackers are covered by the definition of, and controls on, the importation of fireworks.

As such Christmas crackers require a completed Certificate to Import Explosives from Erma (the Environmental Risk Management Authority) New Zealand before they may be imported into New Zealand," the circular states.

"It is estimated that only approximately 60 percent of Christmas crackers being imported into the country obtain the required certificates."

Christmas can be a flash point for failing family relationships and sparks do fly when the season of good will doesn't live up to its name.

But grievous bodily harm with a bon-bon sounds more pathetic than the jokes in the average cracker.

A little too early, isn't it? I love the holiday season as much as the next guy, but really. As I type this, it's the 12th of October. October. And that's the sight at Costco, Chino Hills.

I think Costco is amazing, really. Everything you want and need is there -- except it's ten times bigger. Sure you may not think you need a bottle of Listerine mouthwash the size of your entire right leg, but it does come in handy. It reminds me of a time in high school, when a friend and I actually got kicked out of the warehouse. I'm not talking about them not letting us in because we didn't have a Costco card. We got in (somehow), but they found out and sent security to chase us down and show us our way out.

Fun stuff. But that's a long story that I'd love to tell you some other time. They really need to use their time to do something more productive, and that doesn't include policing those good-for-nothing high school kids.

And for those of you bored out of your mind, here's an awesome website for the day.

- JD

'illuminate' so far this yr. is including myself, rene (now on bass), ramon (now interchangeably on acoust.guitar, mandolin and ukelele) and probably jeremy (on sax) this is going to be sweet (even sweeter if we had a bit of percussion in there)! starbucks is glad to have us back, and i'm workin' on a few other coffee shops that might have us. now for refining & bulkin' up the set list...

i'm just burstin' at the seams!

Poems reads:

No gifts can compare
To the friendship that we share
Throughout this time we've known eachother
I've cherished each moment we've spent together

During this Holiday Season I wish you pure happiness
and hope you know my love for you is endless.

Happy Holidays!

Image and poem Copyright 2008 Angelina Cornidez and may not be copied or reproduced in any way without my permission.

O come all ye faithful
Joyful and triumphant
O come ye, o come ye to Bethlehem
Come and behold him
Born the King of Angels
O come let us adore him
O come let us adore him
O come let us adore him
Christ the Lord

The next song "Joy to the world" is also different in terms of the background score. Though the mail vocals seems to sound like Mercy Me, it is really brought out the essence of the season. The female vocals is really wonderful making you to listen to the wonderful voice again and again.

Though havent heard this band other than the hit song " Who am I". This album will want you to check their earlier albums.

The tracklist on this album

 I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day

O Come All Ye Faithful

Joy To the World

While You Were Sleeping [Christmas Version]

Silent Night

God is With Us

Away In a Manger

Christmas Offering

Sweet Little Jesus Boy