Typically, I am not a drinking-game, party-person, but I think you may really enjoy this. My Boston son sent it. Thank you, Gage.
CHRISTMAS DRINKING GAME
Lay out your wrapping paper, scissors, tape, tags, etc.
Pour yourself a drink.
Begin wrapping.
Each time you lose the scissors or tape, or a pet gets in the way, take a drink.
(I knew you would like it! Ashley reminded me that if you are sitting on the floor to wrap your gifts, you also need to keep your cellphone handy so you can call someone to help you get up off the floor.)
Pantone Color of the Year for 2024 is “a velvety gentle peach whose all-embracing spirit enriches mind, body, and heart” named Peach Fuzz, “a warm and subtle middle ground between orange and pink, described as cheery.” um… I am underwhelmed.
This will give true meaning to an idea that someone at your holiday party could pick up your cocktail glass, then you could shout, “Put that down. It’s nacho (not your) cheese!” Doritos is betting its new nacho-cheese flavored liquor, “that smells and tastes just like the real thing (chips),” according to the PepsiCo-owned brand, will impress. Limited time online and in California. Suggested retail price $65. There are three suggested Dorito cocktails, Mary, Mary, a nod to a Bloody Mary except with Dorito spirits and tequila… Doritos Bangarang with Dorito spirits, smoked sea salt, fresh grapefruit juice and topped with Pepsi (eeee… I’m afraid I would have to put that in the same category as cheery Peach Fuzz colored paint), and Double Triangle Margarita with Dorito spirits, tequila, lime juice and agave syrup…hmmm, maybe. I just can’t seem to get past the, “what happens if you drink too much, creating opportunity to enjoy it a second time…”
Sending Christmas cards is a good way to let your friends and family know that you think they’re worth the price of a stamp. Melanie White
According to DoorDash’s 2023 Trend Report, the most ordered foods nationwide are #1 FRIES, chicken quesadilla, mozzarella sticks, garlic naan, spicy chicken sandwich, pepperoni pizza, chips & queso, wings, cobb salad and fried rice. We are pretty lazy people.
I once bought my kids a set of batteries for Christmas with a note on it saying, toys not included. – Bernard Manning
Some of the top 2023 Google searches of curiosity and interest: The ongoing Israel-Hamas war with questions like, “what is Hamas?” and, “why did Hamas attack?”, then questions related to the Titanic-bound submersible that imploded in June, what is Barbieheimer (the time period where the Barbie movie and Oppenheimer movie were vying for attention), and more. Matthew Perry death, Jeremy Renner snowplow accident (he is releasing a “musical Diary” on the first anniversary of the accident, “a story of life, death, recovery, all things learned along the way”), and football player Travis Kelce known for his relationship with Taylor Swift, made the search list with Damar Hamlin as Google’s top trending person search after his rear-death cardiac arrest on the football field.
Keep your friends close, your enemies closer, and receipts for all major purchases. Bridger Winegar
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Happy 34th Birthday Taylor Swift, Time Magazine Person of the Year. Country singer Johnny Rodriguez is 72. Actor Susan Dey is 71. TV chef Bobby Flay is 59. Actor Rita Moreno is 92. Singer David Gates of Bread is 83. Actor Donna Mills of Knots Landing is 83. Actor Lynda Day George of Mission: Impossible is 79. Singer Brenda Lee is 79. Is That All There Is? Actor Teri Garr is 76. Singer Jermaine Jackson is 69. Bassist Nikki Sixx of Motley Crue is 65. Journalist Lesley Stahl of 60 Minutes is 82. Actor Wendie Malick of Hot in Cleveland, Just Shoot Me is 73. Singer Connie Francis is 86. Singer Dionne Warwick is 83. Singer-guitarist Dickey Betts of Allman Brothers is 80. Gymnast-turned-actor Cathy Rigby is 71. Singer-percussionist Sheila E. is 66. Actor Dick Van Dyke is 98.
Country singer Buck White of The Whites is 93. Actor-singer John Davidson is 82. Actor Dee Wallace of E.T. is 75. Bassist Cliff Williams of AC/DC is 74. Singer Cindy Birdsong of The Supremes is 84. Drummer Dave Clark of the Dave Clark Five is 81. Drummer Carmine Appice of Vanilla Fudge is 77. Singer Joyce Vincent-Wilson of Tony Orlando and Dawn is 77. Actor Don Johnson is 74. Actor-comedian Jamie Foxx is 56. Guitarist Tony Hicks of The Hollies is 78. Singer Benny Anderson of ABBA is 78. Singer-guitarist Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top is 74. Guitarist Jeff “Skunk” Baxter of The Doobie Brothers, Steely Dan is 75. Country singer-guitarist Randy Owen of Alabama is 74. Singer Taylor Swift is 34. Actor Steve Buscemi is 66. Actor Johnny Whitaker of Family Affair is 64. Actor Kathy Garver of Family Affair is 78. (Hard to believe.)
Did you know December 17th was Pan American Aviation Day? On this day, advances in aviation, or airplane, technology in North and South American countries are celebrated… like the first successful powered flight made by the Wright Brothers in 1903! If you’ve never been to the Lake Jackson Historical Association, you know that they have a Windecker Eagle. Inside the building! The Windecker Eagle was the first airplane that could not be detected by radar and was invented right here in Lake Jackson by a dentist. Dr. Leo Windecker and his wife Fairfax designed the special plane using materials (foam and fiberglass) produced by Dow Chemical Company and has also set multiple world speed records! It was also recognized as the fastest single-engine airplane entered in the 1973 all-women transcontinental air race. There was a total of nine Windecker Eagles made, with two currently owned by museums, one is on display here at LJHA, and the other is at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. LJHA also has a flight simulator so you can try your hand at flying the Windecker Eagle during your next visit! Yep. My kids loved flying the simulator plane when they were little. 249 Circle Way. 979-297-1570. What a perfect thing to do while everyone is out of school. Just saying.
It is the holidays, therefore we will be with family, for good or for bad. The article I read said there are two words you should never say when you’re apologizing… 1.) “I’m sorry but…” 2.) “I’m sorry if…” – just suck it up and say I’m sorry. Period.
Let’s talk about the elephant in the room… holiday lights. Many words come to mind… disappointment, discouragement, annoyance, anger, defeat, and frustration, and those are just the words that I can repeat in this column. This was definitely not a good year for me to try and spread joy with lights. I had a most difficult time the past two years finding replacement bulbs for my outside lights, so at the end of last year I bought five new strands of lights – four boxes that I needed to line the beds and one extra… in case. The weather was better so I thought I should be able to get the lights done in a couple of hours. I found and popped open the new boxes. Oops. I had forgotten that I needed new wire sticks to attach the lights off the ground. I had lost a few when I decided to pull up and remove the lights after dark. I tried Target. Hobby Lobby. Lowe’s. Big Lots. I even checked online. No wires. I guess they don’t make them anymore. I couldn’t even find plastic ones. Finally, a trip to Lowe’s and I had five new boxes of cheesy (inferior) plastic light stakes in my possessions – four boxes that I actually needed… one extra in case… which was good because five of them unusable, therefore thrown into the recycle bin. The sun was shining, and I knew I could knock it out pretty fast, especially NOW THAT I HAD EVERYTHING in front of me. Let me tell you… plastic stakes are pathetic, but I made it work, it just doesn’t look as pretty and straight as wire stakes, and the skin on my fingers will never be the same. Ahh, did I mention that someone had opened the new boxes of lights while in the store and helped themselves to 13 bulbs from the new strands. I guess they couldn’t find replacement bulbs either. Oh, my goodness… Does Jesus really care about lights! But, putting out lights is like having a baby, you forget how painful it was, because you have 12 months to forget before you do your part to help bring a bit of joy to the season.
Actually, it is Thomas Edison’s fault that we risk our own safety and attach lights to our homes each December. In 1880, after the great inventor had secured the patent for his incandescent light bulb, he decided to illuminate the outside of his laboratory with the new invention. His associate was so overcome by the idea that he began marketing strings of 80 red, white, and blue light strings for Christmas trees. Remember that the bulbs were not tiny back then either, plus they were very expensive (about $350 in today’s money for a string of 16). It took years, but by 1914 people were trading in their dangerous, fire-hazard tree candles for the more affordable lights costing then, $1.75.
Christmas is a box of tree ornaments that have become part of the family. – Charles M. Schulz
Last night I slept really hard, so I headed towards the refrigerator to find my chilled gel eye mask which I never think about using. I couldn’t find it and really didn’t want to unload the whole refrigerator to look for it, so I just pulled out two squishy leftover condiment packages and placed them both under my eyes. Perfect! So, if you happen to see me over the holidays and I smell like mustard, mayonnaise, pickle relish or tarter sauce, be sure to look straight into my beautiful, sparkling, non-puffy eyes. Hope you have a lovely holiday with family and friends. Thank you again for reading us this year. Don’t forget to sell something. Soon.
LISA
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
