It's Beginning To Look Way Too Much Like Christmas
So I went Christmas shopping today, which was just perfect because everybody of course wants to drive around in the rain and stand in line for hours and hours and hours. On the other hand, at least I took care of dethorats' Christmas presents (heh heh heh, I done took care of Price real good) and X-chan. That's the plus side of giving yourself permission to stop when Christmas shopping isn't fun anymore.
Also, I had an eggnog latte made of WIN and finished a couple of books, so yay.
Oh, and I was very restrained when I got to Best Buy, because not only did I not buy duokinneas some adorable Hello Kitty swag, but I also did not buy a couple of anime DVDs which were, basically, tales of Edo-period horror involving the Goblin Cat and the one about the samurai who poisons his wife. (You know the story; the one where he poisons his wife so he can marry another girl who would be a better alliance but the poison backfires and disfigures the wife and she's so demoralized she dies and then she haunts him for aeons. I'm too lazy to go Wikifag it right now, so that's all you get if you don't already know the story.) This was tremendously restrained for me, since as you know I think the presence of a samurai automatically constitutes Great Art. A samurai could have saved Ishtar. And Bratz: The Movie.
Because it's That Time Of Year:
1.) "You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch" (Boris Karloff). There's something about this song that makes me think it must have been fun to record, and the mental images just crack me up. Also, "a sauerkraut-and-toadstool sandwich" and "your heart is full of unwashed socks" are rather apt descriptors of my inner workings, too.
2.) "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing". This is largely due mostly to the line in the second or third verse, "Veiled in flesh/the Godhead see". As an adult, I understand that this is a reference to the theology wherein God becomes man and all that. As a kid, being rather more literal-minded, I thought it was a reference to the veils worn by Roman brides; they were a reddish-orange color and would have looked somewhat fleshtone to modern eyes. I've carried the mental image of Jesus in a Roman bride's getup ever since, which is probably exhibit #11677Q-A15 in Why Lee Is Going To Hell.
3.) "Snoopy's Christmas" (The Royal Guardsmen). Yeah, it's a novelty hit, but it amuses, and plus it's got a reference to the Christmas armistice in WWI. What's not to like?
4.) "Sleigh Ride". I've lived all my life in places where we get a lot of snow, and before people get out and drive all over it, it does indeed look like a print from Currier and Ives. Southern Indiana, even today, is still predominantly rural; though I live in the Evansville area, you don't have to go too far out to hit farmland.
5.) "I Am Santa Claus" (Bob Rivers). This is a glorious parody of "Iron Man" by Black Sabbath, and features such verses as "How much does he weigh?/How can the reindeer pull his sleigh?" I haven't heard it since we moved from San Antonio, but if I catch it on WABX, I'll crank it all the way up.
6.) "Father Christmas" (The Kinks). Screw "Jingle Bell Rock". You want a Christmas rock song? This is it. It doesn't get nearly enough radio play, either.
7.) "Silver Bells". I know it's a bit maudlin, but there's something about it that I like. I can't put my finger on it.
8.) The Alleluia Chorus from The Messiah (Handel). I'm fond of this because it's great music in and of itself, but it also reminds me of a scene from the book The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, when after hearing the entire "Wonderful, Counselor, Almighty God, Prince of Peace" sequence rattled off, Imogene Herdman says, "My God! He'd never get out of first grade if he had to write all that!"
9.) "We Three Kings". Admittedly, when I was growing up, the popular lyrics began "We three kings of Orient are / Tried to smoke a rubber cigar / It was loaded, it explooooded...". The most surreal version of the real lyrics that I've ever heard was sung by the Beach Boys, I swear to God, in absolutely funereal tones. It was as weird as it sounds.
10.) "Twisted Chipmunk Song" (Bob Rivers). Wow, two by Bob Rivers. I don't care; I loathe the Chipmunks and their goddamn Christmas song, and I find this a far more enjoyable version, the more so since thinking about Alvin--excuse me, Melvin--with an ear growing out of his back is pretty funny.
Also, I had an eggnog latte made of WIN and finished a couple of books, so yay.
Oh, and I was very restrained when I got to Best Buy, because not only did I not buy duokinneas some adorable Hello Kitty swag, but I also did not buy a couple of anime DVDs which were, basically, tales of Edo-period horror involving the Goblin Cat and the one about the samurai who poisons his wife. (You know the story; the one where he poisons his wife so he can marry another girl who would be a better alliance but the poison backfires and disfigures the wife and she's so demoralized she dies and then she haunts him for aeons. I'm too lazy to go Wikifag it right now, so that's all you get if you don't already know the story.) This was tremendously restrained for me, since as you know I think the presence of a samurai automatically constitutes Great Art. A samurai could have saved Ishtar. And Bratz: The Movie.
Because it's That Time Of Year:
1.) "You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch" (Boris Karloff). There's something about this song that makes me think it must have been fun to record, and the mental images just crack me up. Also, "a sauerkraut-and-toadstool sandwich" and "your heart is full of unwashed socks" are rather apt descriptors of my inner workings, too.
2.) "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing". This is largely due mostly to the line in the second or third verse, "Veiled in flesh/the Godhead see". As an adult, I understand that this is a reference to the theology wherein God becomes man and all that. As a kid, being rather more literal-minded, I thought it was a reference to the veils worn by Roman brides; they were a reddish-orange color and would have looked somewhat fleshtone to modern eyes. I've carried the mental image of Jesus in a Roman bride's getup ever since, which is probably exhibit #11677Q-A15 in Why Lee Is Going To Hell.
3.) "Snoopy's Christmas" (The Royal Guardsmen). Yeah, it's a novelty hit, but it amuses, and plus it's got a reference to the Christmas armistice in WWI. What's not to like?
4.) "Sleigh Ride". I've lived all my life in places where we get a lot of snow, and before people get out and drive all over it, it does indeed look like a print from Currier and Ives. Southern Indiana, even today, is still predominantly rural; though I live in the Evansville area, you don't have to go too far out to hit farmland.
5.) "I Am Santa Claus" (Bob Rivers). This is a glorious parody of "Iron Man" by Black Sabbath, and features such verses as "How much does he weigh?/How can the reindeer pull his sleigh?" I haven't heard it since we moved from San Antonio, but if I catch it on WABX, I'll crank it all the way up.
6.) "Father Christmas" (The Kinks). Screw "Jingle Bell Rock". You want a Christmas rock song? This is it. It doesn't get nearly enough radio play, either.
7.) "Silver Bells". I know it's a bit maudlin, but there's something about it that I like. I can't put my finger on it.
8.) The Alleluia Chorus from The Messiah (Handel). I'm fond of this because it's great music in and of itself, but it also reminds me of a scene from the book The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, when after hearing the entire "Wonderful, Counselor, Almighty God, Prince of Peace" sequence rattled off, Imogene Herdman says, "My God! He'd never get out of first grade if he had to write all that!"
9.) "We Three Kings". Admittedly, when I was growing up, the popular lyrics began "We three kings of Orient are / Tried to smoke a rubber cigar / It was loaded, it explooooded...". The most surreal version of the real lyrics that I've ever heard was sung by the Beach Boys, I swear to God, in absolutely funereal tones. It was as weird as it sounds.
10.) "Twisted Chipmunk Song" (Bob Rivers). Wow, two by Bob Rivers. I don't care; I loathe the Chipmunks and their goddamn Christmas song, and I find this a far more enjoyable version, the more so since thinking about Alvin--excuse me, Melvin--with an ear growing out of his back is pretty funny.