holiday season

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Christmas Is Here... Way Too Early

Six signs that the holiday season has gotten too impatient

(Newser) - It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas ... even though we're not yet past Thanksgiving. The Week pores through local papers to find six tales of Christmas coming too early this year:
  • It's never too early for eggnog lattes: In Seattle , at least one Starbucks started selling seasonal drinks right
...

Charities Hope for Last-Minute Donation Surge

In recession, gifts are down, but need is higher than ever

(Newser) - Charities and nonprofits are hoping for a whirlwind of last-minute donations to make up for a dismal year that saw donations fall while the need for services rose. “This is basically the most critical giving season since the Great Depression,” a representative for the Center for Nonprofit Advancement...

Your Won't Keep Those Resolutions: Try These Instead

Don't quit smoking, start e-smoking, and other easy outs

(Newser) - Gawker knows you can’t keep those virtuous New Year’s resolutions, so it’s come up with some substitutions. They won’t make you “a better person,” but are at least achievable. Herewith, from Brian Boylan:
  • Lose weight: That's too hard; "we live in a
...

Holiday Violence: Not Just for Celebs

As Tiger Woods and Charlie Sheen prove, this season can be stressful

(Newser) - Elin Nordegren kicked off this year's holiday season on the wrong foot, reportedly chasing Tiger Woods with a golf club in the wee hours after Thanksgiving. Charlie Sheen piled on, allegedly assaulting his wife on Christmas, writes Mary Elizabeth Williams in Salon , and it's worth noting that the holidays can...

How Skinny Chefs Stay That Way
 How Skinny 
 Chefs Stay 
 That Way 
HOLIDAY EATING
Dec 16, 2009 4:21 PM CST

How Skinny Chefs Stay That Way

Focus, routine, exercise...and also just running around a lot

(Newser) - Rotund chefs like Mario Batali and Paula Deen have given way to a crop of stick-thin kitchen wizards who clearly know a thing or two about how to stay slim while being surrounded by food. The Daily Beast gets the skinny from the skinny culinary elite, and won't take "...

Prepare Your Kids for Disappointing Presents
 Prepare Your Kids 
 for Disappointing 
 Presents 
A HOLIDAY HOW-TO
Dec 13, 2009 10:00 AM CST

Prepare Your Kids for Disappointing Presents

Keep the inner spoiled brat at bay with these tips

(Newser) - With buildup for the holiday season at fever pitch by Halloween, it’s easy to see how kids are set up for disappointment when it comes time to open gifts. From Julie King and Joanna Faber , some tips to keep the inner spoiled brat at bay, not to mention avoid...

Illegal? No Toys for You, Kid
 Illegal? No Toys for You, Kid 
HOLIDAYS IN HOUSTON
Dec 2, 2009 8:16 PM CST

Illegal? No Toys for You, Kid

Texas charities playing Santa check immigration status

(Newser) - A handful of Houston-area charities tasked with giving toys to children this holiday season are checking would-be recipients’ immigration status first—and denying goodies to kids in the US illegally. Though one such group says the measure is aimed at parents, immigration advocates are appalled.

Beware 12 Scams of Christmas
 Beware 12 Scams of Christmas 
Nov 21, 2009 3:12 PM CST

Beware 12 Scams of Christmas

Online schemes take advantage of the holiday spirit

(Newser) - The holiday season brings out the best in online scammers. CNET runs down common schemes to beware of, courtesy of McAfee:
  • Fake delivery invoices: They look like legit emails from UPS, Federal Express, and the like, asking for address confirmation and credit card info to ensure delivery.
  • Holiday e-cards: Make
...

Holiday Fares Headed for Stratosphere

Recession doesn't seem to be dampening travel enthusiasm

(Newser) - If you haven’t booked your holiday airfare yet, stop reading this and do it. Unlike last year, when airlines dropped prices at the last minute to fill unusually empty planes, prices this fall are on a decidedly upward trajectory, the New York Times reports. Last week, overall Thanksgiving fares...

Christmas in September Leaves Shoppers Cold

No, you're not crazy, it is still September

(Newser) - Look around your local department store, and you might encounter a ridiculous site: a Christmas display. Yes, retailers are already decking their halls, desperate to get a piece of consumers’ dwindling holiday budgets before their competitors do. Consumers aren't buying it. “You can’t get in the Christmas spirit...

It's a Stressful Day—Have You Tried Shouting?

Survey ranks today as most trying of the year

(Newser) - Today is the most stressful day of the year, as back-to-work blues meet the cold weather and economic gloom, the Telegraph reports. And a survey by RNLI found that co-worker behaviors such as noisy eating, sniffing, and talking loudly on the phone rank as the most annoying things to endure...

Gift-Givers Get Crafty In Tight Holiday Times

Sales of craft supplies and handmade items shine

(Newser) - Although the economic downturn has nearly everyone pinching pennies, craft stores are watching theirs stack up as holiday gift-givers are saving money by making their own gifts or buying handmade items from others, the New York Times reports. While overall retail revenues in November were off 7.4% from last...

Downturn Naughty, Not Nice to Seasonal Santas

Recession killing to holiday cheer

(Newser) - If you dress up as Santa Claus for extra holiday holly, you may need a miracle on 34th Street to make it through Christmas. The recession has spread to the North Pole, reports the Boston Globe, as Santas-for-hire find less work due to scaled-back Christmas party budgets and report rising...

Ditch the Bells, It's Time for a New Jingle
Ditch the Bells, It's Time
for a New Jingle
HOLIDAY MUSIC GUIDE
Dec 7, 2008 7:46 PM CST

Ditch the Bells, It's Time for a New Jingle

Chronicle compiles list of reworked holiday faves

(Newser) - Chestnuts may still be roasting on an open fire, but that doesn’t mean you can’t refresh your Christmas playlist. The San Francisco Chronicle compiles a list of new twists on old favorites to help you give the jingle bells a rest:
  • Sufjan Stevens, "That Was the Worst
...

Xmas Cards Reflect Country's Somber Mood

Glitzy cards picturing holiday excess are out; simple and traditional is in

(Newser) - Greeting card companies have noticed a big shift in what Americans want from their season’s greetings this year, the Wall Street Journal reports. As economic worries mount, glitzy holiday cards have fallen out of favor fast. Designers have made this year's cards more traditional, deepening reds and greens and...

Strapped Budgets Make for Better Gifts


 Strapped Budgets 
 Make for Better Gifts 
opinion
Nov 29, 2008 4:10 PM CST

Strapped Budgets Make for Better Gifts

Use a signature gift to cut costs, give meaningfully

(Newser) - Tight budgets are forcing Americans to skirt the season's traditional buying frenzy and make gifts that put "emphasis on people, not stuff," Melissa Magsaysay writes in the Los Angeles Times. She's creating "a creative signature gift" of Ugandan beads that she's turning into bracelets: The...

Secrets of A Christmas Story
 Secrets of A Christmas Story 
Nov 29, 2008 5:13 AM CST

Secrets of A Christmas Story

(Newser) - A Christmas Story is beloved by all, as evidenced by the enduring Christmas Eve marathons on TBS. But there are probably some things you don’t know about the timeless flick. The Cleveland Plain-Dealer runs down 25 of them.
  • The Cleveland house used for exterior shots is now a museum
...

Zoo Makes Gifts from Reindeer Poo

(Newser) - Reindeer have found yet another way to give of themselves for our holiday benefit. An Illinois zoo is selling Christmas tree ornaments fashioned from the creatures' droppings, the Bloomington-Normal Pantagraph reports. The small droppings are dried, painted, and incorporated into whimsical designs. The $5 gifts have been dubbed “magical...

Planned Parenthood Offers Gift Certificates

Patients can use money toward health exams—and abortion

(Newser) - Planned Parenthood of Indiana is making gift certificates available for the holiday season, infuriating right-to-life groups, WISH-TV reports. Though the certificates can be used for abortion, a Planned Parenthood representative said “they really are intended for preventative health care,” like breast exams and STD tests. The hope is...

Even Santa's Getting the Old Heave-Ho-Ho-Ho

Gigs cut, pay slashed, big elf not so jolly

(Newser) - St. Nick is already doing some serious belt-tightening in New York City as cash-strapped stores and malls head into the not-so-jolly season, thanks to the economy. Far fewer jobs and slashed pay rates are leaving wanna-be Santas with little clause to celebrate.

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