Top Ten: Mark’s Favorite Christmas Movies

10. Jingle All The Way (1996)

9. Elf (2003) 

8. Love Actually (2003)

7. Miracle On 34th Street (1947 & 1994)

6. Office Christmas Party (2016)

5. A Christmas Story (1983)

4. White Christmas (1954)

3. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989)

2. Home Alone (1990)

1. It’s A Wonderful Life (1946) 

Our Favorite Things About the Holidays

Celebrating Christmas and the Holidays will be a little different this year, but here are some of our favorite ways to spend time together:

Holiday parties: Parties may need to be on Zoom this year, but they can still be fun! . Play a game, share stories, or arrange a visit from Santa.

Christmas cookies: Bake for your friends and drop them off.

Decorating: Trimming the tree, hanging lights, putting up handmade crafts or touring your neighborhood’s light displays and luminarias are fun ways to celebrate. Make it even more special by sipping hot chocolate or spiced cider.

Presents & stockings: Everybody loves presents! Sometimes it’s even more fun to give presents than to receive them.

Christmas dinner: Different families eat different things on Christmas, but it’s always nice to sit down and enjoy each other’s company.

Caroling: Spread Christmas cheer by singing songs around the fire or visiting your neighbors in a socially distanced way.

What are your favorite ways to celebrate the holidays?

Gift Ideas: Supporting Local Businesses

• Local Arts & Crafts: This year support your local artists and artisans by giving the gift of art. Commission a painting, buy a framed print, gift some handmade jewelry or pottery. There are so many options for buying from local vendors. Outdoor craft fairs like the Artwalk or first Friday events are one way to shop for local arts and crafts, but you can also find plenty of items online. For example, on our very own OT Circus Art Auction on Facebook. 
• Your Neighborhood Shop: Many local businesses are putting their inventory on their websites or their Facebook page, so you can shop from home and pick the items up. Some even have a curbside pick up option. If you can’t find anything online, give the shop a call and see what they can do for you.
• Restaurants: Though indoor dining is currently unavailable and it’s little cold for patio dining, hopefully restaurants will open back up soon. In the meantime, many establishments are providing take out options. Support your local eatery by purchasing a gift card as a present or stocking stuffer!

Top Ten: Mark’s Favorite Rankin/Bass Christmas Specials

10. The Stingiest Man in Town (12/23/78)

9. Jack Frost (12/13/79)

8. Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey (12/3/77)

7. The Little Drummer Boy (12/19/68)

6. The Little Drummer Boy, Book II (12/13/76)

5. The Year Without A Santa Claus (12/10/74)

4. ‘Twas The Night Before Christmas (12/8/74)

3. Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town (12/14/70)

2. Frosty The Snowman (12/7/69) & Frosty’s Winter Wonderland (12/2/76)

1. Rudolf The Red-Nosed Reindeer (12/6/64) & Rudolf’s Shiny New Year (12/10/76)   

The First Coronaversary

December 1st marked the one year anniversary of the corona virus pandemic. It’s only been around for a year, but things look very different. For one thing, everyday life shut down. In the US that happened in March. Some things have opened back up, like outdoor dining, but for the most part it’s still not safe enough to resume normal activities. Keeping a 6 foot distance and wearing a mask is now part of daily living. It has been difficult to see friends and family in person, especially those who are most vulnerable to the virus. Most of us are staying at home as much as possible and only interacting with those closest to us. Many people have lost their jobs and even a loved one. We’re learning to use technology to connect with each other more and more, like on video chat. A lot of schools are currently shut down and many kids are going to school remotely. Plenty of adults are working from home as well. 

December 2020 is now the worst period of the virus, particularly in the United States, but at the same time, the first vaccines are being produced and approved for distribution. We’re starting to look to the future, when most of us will be able to take the vaccine, and not long after that, we can ditch our masks and start seeing each other in person again. Hopefully by the end of the summer we can resume much of our normal day to day lives. Ultimately the pandemic will be a year and a half of our lives that we will never forget. 

Top Ten: Mark’s Favorite Christmas Sitcom Episodes

10. MASH: “Dear Dad” (12/17/72)

9. The Jeffersons: “The Christmas Wedding” (12/22/76)

8. Murphy Brown: “Jingle Hell, Jingle Hell, Jingle All the Way” (12/17/90)

7. Full House: “Our Very First Christmas Show” (12/16/88)

6. Petticoat Junction: “Cannonball Christmas” (12/24/63)

5. Full House: “Arrest Ye Merry Gentlemen” (12/13/94)

4. The Beverly Hillbillies: “Christmas in Hooterville” (12/25/68)

3. Frasier: “Merry Christmas, Mrs. Moskowitz” (12/17/98)

2. Roseanne: “December Bride” (12/12/95)

1. MASH: “Death Takes a Holiday” (12/15/80)   

Valerie Spreads the Love

Valerie is a 28 year old woman with cerebral palsy living in a group home in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She has made a video about her life to share with others. We interviewed her to learn more. First, a little bit about Val: She loves the color blue and horror movies, as well as Tinkerbell and monkeys! She even has the tattoos to prove it. She enjoys painting and acting. Val grew up in foster care and got the idea to make the video in order to reach out to others in the same situation. Her ideal audience would be kids in foster care and people with disabilities. She made the video along with her community support staff, and it took about a year to put together. She’s still adding to it. Since she’s still living her life, she doesn’t think it will ever be completely finished. Her goal with the video is to show kids in foster care that even if you are in a bad situation, you can overcome that situation. Valerie always wanted to be a scientist when she was little, and she still wants to do some scientific research in the future. She would also like to go back to school for special education, but the school is in another town. Right now the pandemic has slowed her plans, especially since she prefers in person classes to online programs. Her biggest issue with the pandemic has been boredom, but she enjoys working on painting with the help of her staff and taking arts classes on Zoom with the OT Circus Arts Connections program.