In the Spirit of the Season

I am so excited for the holidays this year.  I normally get excited, but this year I have to squeeze it all into a couple of weeks because I'm going underway for the entire month in between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  That means no fun decorations in my apartment, so I have boosted my ipod's holiday readiness by downloading some fabulous Christmas music.  If you would also like some amazing Christmas music, but hate when radio stations play Jingle Bell Rock barked by dogs, here are the top 10 Christmas songs in my opinion...in no particular order:

1. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen by Barenaked Ladies and Sarah McLachlan
2. All that I want by The Weepies
3. All I Want for Christmas is You by Mariah Carey (naturally)
4. The Christmas Song by Nat King Cole
5. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas by Judy Garland
6. Christmas Song by Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds
7. The Little Drummer Boy by the Harry Simeon Chorale
8. The Nutcracker (technically more than one song) by Orchestra of the Kirov Opera
9. Sleigh Ride by the Ronettes
10. Baby It's Cold Outside by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Jordan

and if that's not enough, there's always Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring sung by Chloe Agnew and the Christmas songs by Sting (Gabriel's Message and Christmas Day in the Morning).

In other holiday spirit news, I have been LOVING the amount of catalogues arriving in my mailbox.  I think catalogues are the best.  Hey, free magazines all about clothes and household goods...what's not to love?  So here's my random wishlist, as inspired by the ads in my magazines and some select catalogues (thank you, SkyMall!).  If you can't think of the perfect gift, I think these ones are pretty rad.

1. The Clarisonic Skin Cleansing System (cheapest at Overstock.com)...it's made by Sonicare...I swear by those toothbrushes.
2. The Progression Alarm Clock (SkyMall!)...really, any alarm clock that doesn't beep at me would do.  Unfortunately, the customer reviews aren't so good for the Hammacher Schlemmer alarm clock, so I am sticking with my digital watch to wake me up for now.
3. A pair of women's flannel-lined khaki chinos!  Seriously, J. Crew, get on it!  This year I bought a pair of men's flannel-lined khakis from Lands' End and had them tailored...they still don't look quite right, but they'll do in the bitter cold.
4. A pair of cute Reebok shape-up sneakers.  I walk to the metro in the morning, and I'd feel ever so much better about the distance with balance ball technology. 
5. A MUFF!  I knew these would come back.  I foresaw this two years ago!  I absolutely love hand-muffs instead of gloves or mittens, and the other day I SAW ONE!  Granted, it's in InStyle magazine and it costs $250.00, but this is just the beginning.  Mark my words, the muff is first, and the long cigarette holder is next...but of course, that's too bad because smoking is lame.  Scoop NYC makes the lovely muff, and I'm hoping H&M will soon follow suit with a faux option.
6. The new Boyfriend scent package designed by Kate Walsh for HSN and available at Sephora in February.  I have no idea what it smells like, but who needs to?  Watch out, Kirkwood!  I'm feeling musk!
7. The Heritage Leather Co. 16-inch Canvas Mason bag with leather bottom at hickorees.com.  It'll make me feel like a construction worker...in a good way.
8. A nude nail polish...it's authorized in uniform, and according to Rachel McAdams' sister and make-up artist (in an InStyle interview), the best one is Essie nail polish in Ballet Slippers.  I'll take it!
9. Anything made of plaid flannel or cashmere.  You can never have too much.  Thank you, L.L. Bean and Lands' End!
10. A million dollar Starbucks gift card (so I don't feel guilty about putting that money toward beverages instead of a 401K).  Yes, no catalogue involved there.

Well that's about it.  The best thing about this list is that I plan to post this, and immediately start shopping.  If it's on a list, it's no longer an impulse buy.  Put that in your pipe and smoke it.

And Merry Christmastime!