Holiday music always helps put me in the season, especially when the weather ain’t so frightful and the fire, chestnuts and Jack Frost are practically non-existent.

The Maccabees are all about making the holidays come to life with the smooth sounds of their a capella group. Their latest hit, which features a collaboration with Matisyahu, is just what you need for Hanukkah Hump Day. What’s Hanukkah Hump Day? Oh it’s just what we call the midpoint of the Hanukkah festivities.

We’ve featured the video below, so while you’re busy pouring the manishevitz and fryin’ up the latkes, you can feel a little extra festive alongside The Maccabees.

Happy Hanukkah! Read More »

One of my favorite parts of the holiday season is the ridiculous light displays. My family always puts up your traditional lights, a wreath, and some light-up reindeer, but there are some people in our neighborhood that go a bit overboard. And most of the girls in my sorority house (myself included) have decorated their rooms in the Christmas spirit even though we’re only here for a little while in December. Christmas decorations are super fun, but I can’t imagine running up my power bill to the point of no return for the sake of lights.

However, there are some people that take Christmas light displays very seriously. Check out these crazy displays… Read More »

We finally made it through finals. Goodbye flashcards, 10-page essays and staying up all night studying. Hello Christmas cheer, sleeping until noon in our queen-size bed, and stuffing our faces with homemade cooking.

Of course the best part of ending the semester isn’t being able to throw your notes in the garbage (although that is pretty amazing); it’s the fact that we finally get to enjoy the holidays! You’ve got parties to attend, red and green mini dresses to wear, and major gift wrapping (and unwrapping!) to do!

So what do you need?

The perfect get-you-in-the-holiday-spirit playlist of course! And, no, that crappy oldies station that has been playing Christmas music since Halloween just won’t cut it. You need the best of the best, so we’ve sorted through all the latest Christmas tracks and our old standbys to bring you the ultimate holiday playlist. Play it at your holiday party, while you’re lounging around the house with your dog, or while you’re eating raw cookie dough during your baking sesh with mom.

Because there’s nothing (that isn’t smothered in frosting/filled with rum) like a little Jackson Five and N’Sync to lift those holiday spirits.

Click here to rock out with your stocking out.

Happy Holidays!

Bah, humbug!

I know I should be listening to holiday tunes (which are only bearable if they’re sung by Lady Gaga) or baking cookies or something, but all I can think about right now is finals. It’s like being the one sober girl at the party: everyone around me is drunk on holiday cheer, but I’m going to be feeling pretty Scroogey until December 21 when I take my last exam and go home.

Sure, things could be worse. I could be as strung-out as Lindsay Lohan or as mentally anguished as this girl. I could be dealing with work crises in the real world—shudder—or forced to talk about sex with my parents. I could be the victim of sabotaged condoms, which might lead to something so scary I don’t even want to think about it.

Hm… actually, all of this worst-case scenario stuff is making me perk up. I’m starting to remember that there are plenty of fun ways to give my brain a rest whenever I have time to stop studying—I can start watching Jersey Shore, for one thing, and surfing the web to find gifts for everyone on my list. Maybe I shouldn’t let finals kill my holiday spirit after all.

Even though I live in chilly Northwestern Ontario, the snow has still not fallen! And, yes, I am a little peeved.

Usually the late November snow signals me to bust out the Christmas decorations and movies (can anybody say Elf?!) and indulge in the holiday spirit. But this year I’ve had to create all the spirit myself.

Besides watching Christmas special after special, I’ve turned to cozy holiday books to get myself in the mood, and The Gift, by Cecelia Ahern, is just perfect for the job. Many of you may remember this blockbuster hit from last Christmas season. Well, it was originally a book and I managed to snag myself a bargain copy of the hardcover a couple months ago. I decided to wait for a more appropriate time to bust it out and – seeing the Christmas lights being hung all over time – that time finally arrived!

“The Gift” switches between two seemingly parallel stories. One is of Lou Suffern, an overworked business man who is constantly faced with the conundrum of being in two places at once with his busy life. The other features Raphie, an older policeman (or Garda as they call them in Ireland!) and Turkey Boy, a young boy who threw a turkey through a window and is now at the Garda station. Lou’s story is actually being narrated by Raphie, who is telling Lou’s tale as a warning to Turkey Boy.

Lou’s story essentially begins when he meets Gabe, a homeless man who sits outside Lou’s multi-million dollar office building in Dublin everyday. One day Lou decides to purchase a coffee for Gabe and they end up chatting. Gabe seems very wise and intrigues Lou. Gabe also tips Lou off on a suspicious lunch meeting that Lou’s co-worker and boss had, so Lou decides to get Gabe a job in the mail room of his building. He figures that Gabe will be able to keep his eagle-eyes on Alfred, Lou’s suspicious co-worker and also, that it’s a good deed. Read More »

Sure, times are tough right now. Money is tight. But that is still no excuse for the 20% increase in shoplifting this holiday season. What is wrong with people? Have they learned nothing from all those episodes of family shows where the kids went to steal something, got caught, almost got arrested and then learned the important lesson that stealing is bad?

No? Didn’t watch TGIF? Well, then CollegeCandy is going to teach you a lesson about why shoplifting – especially for the holidays – is bad:

1. No Gift Receipt: How embarassing is it for the person who gets that stolen gift and tries to return it without a gift receipt? Best case scenario: they get a really crappy deal (like store credit on the new clearance amount). Worst case: someone at the store figures out that the gift was purchased with the five finger discount and arrest that poor recipient.

2. Embarassing for You: Imagine getting caught. In your neighborhood Target. Stealing Christmas cards. While all your parents’ friends and neighbors (and your old teachers) stand around watching it go down.

3. So Wrong!: Besides being illegal, it’s Christmas season! This is the season of giving, not taking without paying. What would Santa think?

4. It’s not what the holidays are about: If you can’t afford to get your brother Mario Kart for the Wii, grabbing it and running out of Best Buy with 12 members of Geek Squad chasing you is not the answer. Make him something, get him something cheaper, or just remind him that it is far better to give than to receive. He’ll understand (maybe).

5. It’s a lot of work: The planning, the baggy and unflattering clothes, the running away from the Popo…is it really worth it?

The stuffing is gone. The pumpkin pie has been demolished. Which can only mean one thing: the season of giving thanks and showing appreciation is officially over. It is time for gifts, deals and a whole lot of shopping.

I don’t know about you, but this whole “Christmas season is for giving” bullshit is getting a little out of control. Christmas isn’t for giving. It is for getting: good deals, good presents, and the respect and awe of all the people you are giving gifts to. In fact, this morning on the radio I listened as shoppers regaled their Black Friday horror stories. People were camping out overnight at stores, women were getting in fights, and people were even stealing things from each other’s carts!

Where is the Christmas spirit, damn it?

How is it possible to transition so quickly from a holiday that focuses on being grateful for all the things we have in our lives to dropping elbows for a copy of Hairspray on DVD? How can people go from being all about the family to skipping out on Thanksgiving dinner early to get a good spot in line at Best Buy?

Buying things for people is not the way to show your love and appreciation! Read More »