I only take advice from 80s songs.

Hanukkah begins tonight, and to celebrate I give you a new Hanukkah song from the Indigo Girls' Christmas album. It took some time for this album to grow on me, I admit, but it has, and hopefully those of you who collect Hanukkah songs will enjoy this new addition.

Indigo Girls -- Happy Joyous Hanukkah

I wanted to include the Hanukkah song from the Glee Christmas album, since they finally got their acts together and let Mark Salling record one, but it's not out yet. Lame! I'll try to work it in once it's available.

Today's selection is a very haunting, melancholy acoustic version of "Wonderful Christmas Time" by Tom McRae. If you're not into the traditional upbeat mall carols, this one is for you.

Tom McRae -- Wonderful, Christmas Time

Today we revisit the a cappella stylings of The Sing-Off alums. Below are three tracks, two popular Christmas songs, and one bonus song that I'm including just because it's fun. And it was on the Christmas album, so if it's good enough for The Sing-Off, it's good enough for me.

Urban Method -- You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch
Nota, Committed & Pentatonix -- Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)
Jerry Lawson & the Sing-Off Contestants -- Sweet Soul Music

There's a lot of Muppets on this year's calendar. I didn't think anyone would mind.

Today I give you a duet between Kermit the Frog and Tiffany Thornton. It's not a traditional song, but it's sweet all the same. Plus, Kermit.

I Believe -- Tiffany Thornton and Kermit

It's Christmas Eve! Or, more accurately, Christmas Eve Day, since apparently Christmas Eve refers to the nighttime portion of the day only*. Anyway, usually by now we are all sick to death of Christmas music, so instead of any more traditional carols, on the last day of the calendar I offer you six songs about snow**.

Jeremy Messersmith -- Snow Day
The Leisure Society -- The Last Of the Melting Snow
Van Morrison -- Snow In San Anselmo
Pat Green f/Natalie Maines -- Snowing On Raton
Ella Fitzgerald -- Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
The Cure -- Snow In Summer

Enjoy! I wish you all a very happy Christmas, whether you plan on sitting around a tree with family opening presents, or if it's just a regular old Saturday in your world. I hope either way it will be filled with good cheer and good food. The princess dress is nearly done, and I need to go finish that, but y'all, it is something to see. I can't wait to show you!

One last thing before I go:

Since it is Christmas Eve (Day), that means in less than 24 hours, Yuletide stories will be revealed. I promised jengeorge I'd let her know when the Yuletide Madness portion of Yuletide opens for last-minute stocking stuffers. I didn't forget! It just hasn't happened yet. It's their first year completely on AO3, and the girl who usually does that portion just had a baby, so it's not happening the usual way. More's the pity!

However! If any of you are at home and wondering what you could do with your day, check out this post for an explanation of Yuletide Madness and a link to posted prompts, so you can write treats. And if you want to wait until Madness opens, it'll give you something to do during those glumpy, post-Christmas days before the new year.

Personally, I will be in a cabin in Pigeon Forge with my family during those glumpy post-Christmas days, enduring forced activities such as Dollywood! And The Titanic Experience! But I have an iTouch, so I can probably write on the sly***.
___________________________________________________________
* My father is very particular about that. Seriously, he scolds me if he hears me using the term 'Christmas Eve' to refer to the entire day. I'm almost 40; I don't really enjoy being scolded by my father. So don't tell him I said it was Christmas Eve already.
** Really this is just an excuse to post some Van Morrison. Though he does mention Christmas. And pancake houses! Can't really go wrong there.
*** I'm not obsessed. It's a coping mechanism.

Yesterday was the winter solstice, in case you missed it, which means that starting today, the days get longer again. Yaaaaaaaaaay.

Today's musical selections come to you from The Puppini Sisters, a swing-style retro vocal harmony act who are not actually sisters. Here they give us a fresh cover of "Step Into Christmas" and a fun rendition of "Mele Kalikimaka". Y'all know how I feel about "Mele Kalikimaka".

The Puppini Sisters -- Step Into Christmas
The Puppini Sisters -- Mele Kalikimaka

Last night, in addition to finishing as much of Zachary's costume as I could without going to the fabric store, I made treats for work. It's my last day until next year! That calls for treats. Mostly I just made Rice Krispy Treats because it's a tradition to bring them to my one coworker who loves them, but refuses to make the fresh ones for herself even though they are the easiest thing ever.

But I saw these in the Red Envelope catalog a few weeks ago, and they were so tiny and adorable, so I was all, "I could make those". Last night I gave it a go. ( And what do you know, they're tiny and adorable! )

For today's selection we travel to a land of warm tropic breezes and suntanned children dreaming of a Santa who delivers their presents on a jetski pulled by eight chatty dolphins. Or something. Anyway, it's Jimmy Buffett:

Jimmy Buffett -- Christmas in the Caribbean

The knight costume is nearly done. All I have left to do is sew the hood and the little boots, and then attach the dragon crest* I made for the tunic once I find the time to run by Joann for some fusible webbing.

It's possible I fucked up the cape by virtue of forgetting to cut out a piece of it, but I'm hopeful that his scrawny little neck will still fit in it, because that kid is seriously tiny and I'm making a bigger size than he needs so he can grow into it. Also, the whole thing is made out of satin, which is the worst fabric to sew with ever OMG and I have to deal with it some more tonight. Much as I hate constantly ironing wrinkles out of cotton, at least it behaves itself while it's under the needle.

Regardless, I will finish that costume tonight after I swing by the grocery store, because the cupboards are seriously bare around here, then I'll come home and sew some more. I did actually write another Yuletide treat yesterday in my vast spare time, but that's it. I'm cutting myself off from the Yuletide fic now. Honest! If I waste any more time writing this week, it'll be DIWWCF-related***, because I really want to get through Christmas Day in that universe before next year in RL.****
________________________________________
* In place of the cross on the kid's chest in the picture; Zachary's crazy for dragons, so I freehanded one that I think came out pretty well, for a one-dimensional felt dragon.
** And it's not even the one I meant to have written! Well, it's not the one I thought would be easiest, at any rate. Actually I'm pretty nervous about it, but the person I wrote it for has two other fics posted already, so if it's awful hopefully she'll still get something she loves.
*** I have 4600 words, give or take, of the next part, so if all goes well and work continues to be dead, I will hopefully finish that at some point before 5:00 pm. Stranger things have happened!
**** Does that even make any sense?

I love Joan Osborne. It's a guilty pleasure. Today's songs are from her Christmas album, "Christmas Means Love", which came out in 2007. The first, "Children Go Where I Send Thee", is a pretty faithful version of the traditional spiritual. The second is that most creepy of traditional carols, "The Cherry Tree Carol", aka the song wherein Joseph's kind of a hater, Mary's one of those pregnant chicks, and unborn baby Jesus is kind of creepy.

Joan Osborne -- Children Go Where I Send Thee
Joan Osborne -- Cherry Tree Carol

My sister and I had a pretty big fight last night. Then we made up via a series of text messages. I am exhausted this morning as a result of being up too late and yelling a lot. And I have to go back over there in an hour to watch her kids so she can work out, because her husband's still out of town. We have a very codependent relationship.

After that I need to get those costumes started, then I have an early dinner with the Weirdo Writers, then I go back to my sister's to help with the kids some more. I put in for next Thursday off work, because I am seriously never going to finish these costumes by Christmas. Though if I do, I will win Most Popular Present Of the Season, so I'm motivated. (What? It's totally a contest.)

Also this morning, I got to clean cat vomit off my couch. My couch. God. I'm so over the cat vomit, you guys.

( A list of current writing projects that will require my attention once the costumes are done. Cut for your ignoring pleasure. )

Today's musical selection is another Tom Lehrer song, this time a cynical little number about the excesses of the Christmas season. (Tom Lehrer is Dan Radcliffe-approved, for those of you who care about that sort of thing.)

Anyway, it's a fun one, and I hope you enjoy it: Tom Lehrer -- A Christmas Carol

I'm pretty sure the library is closed today due to the ice storm we had overnight. I haven't gotten the official telephone tree call yet, but the TV claims the county's shut down, so that's good news. I will wait awhile before I call my own phone tree, since not everyone gets up before God the way I do.

Do you know why the county decided to shut down today? Because I spent last evening baking not only a sour cream coffee cake, but also a double batch of cranberry orange muffins. I sort of invented the recipe and they are quite good, if I do say so. Oh, well, they'll keep for a day, I suppose. The muffins won't be quite as good as they would be fresh, but there's nothing I can do about it.

I'd claim I was going to spend the whole day writing fic*, but the truth is that I should get cracking on my niece and nephew's Christmas gifts. I'm supposed to be sewing them both costumes and I haven't even started. I fail pretty hard at Christmas this year, you guys.

ETA: We are not closed, but we don't have to turn up until 11:00. Just enough time to get my costumes cut out, I suppose. I am not going to waste my free morning refreshing my friends list. Honest.

ETA2: Now we're opening at noon. THE ROADS ARE ALL FROZEN, PEOPLE. NO ONE NEEDS TO GO TO THE LIBRARY TODAY. One of my coworkers broke his pelvis falling on ice earlier this week, yet they are still determined to open at some point. What. The. Hell. (Also, I can't cut out costumes because all my straight pins are in a box in my sister's garage. I SO fail at Christmas this year.)
______________________________________
* I have been writing stuff! I just can't show you any of it yet.

Today's song:

Copeland -- Do You Hear What I Hear

Copeland is lovely, and so is this song. They're well-suited. I hope you will enjoy.

In the end I did not make it to work yesterday. I was still waffling when novellover called to tell me they'd decided to close at 2:00 anyway, so it would have being pointless to go in after all. Typical, really.

This morning I have no excuses, though I reckon the roads are slick since it froze pretty hard last night, so I'll be careful. It's ridic cold out there (15 degrees) for this area, too. Ugh. DNW. (CRY MOAR, I know. Much like Kurt and Puck in the DIWWCF series, living in warm climes for too long has turned me into a wuss when it comes to winter weather.)

Speaking of which, I have taken a break from regularly scheduled writing projects to write a Yuletide treat which actually came in at over 3000 words, oops, and now I'm working on a pinch hit for a fic exchange of which I was not originally a part. I just started it yesterday and I still have some time before it's due, but I'm not really in love with it. It's longer than the minimum word count already, but this morning my brain's all, "Wouldn't this be better if we rewrote the whole thing to be this instead?" And I'm all..."Uh."

I want it to be the best fic it can be for the person who's expecting an awesome gift, I do. I'm just not sure I want it bad enough to rewrite what's already written.