Top 12 Christmas hymns

It's the holidays, so it must be time for a holiday-themed list, right? Well this year, I'm I thought I would list my Top 12 Christmas hymns. Most of them will be familiar, but I expect there might be one or two most of you won't recognize.

These are the songs I associate most with Christmas. Sure you have to have the Chipmunks singing about Christmas time, and it really isn't Christmas for me until I hear Snoopy facing off against the Red Baron on the radio, but these are the songs that really put me in the mood.

I'd totally forgotten one of our traditions growing up was to call my grandma on my Mom's side and sing Silent Night to her on Christmas Eve, and then we got to open one present.

Another important part of this music is singing it with a group of people. The church I grew up in was a singing church. We had a strong history and present of singing accapella, and that really made these songs special. I was going to write about each song, but that was when I was going to do a set of posts. For this, you just get the video and no explanation. I will mention that I really love songs that have a lot going on, especially in a minor key, hence the top pick. But enough of all the background, let's get to the list.

Number 12-Hark the Herald Angels Sing

Number 11-O Come all Ye Faithful

Number 10-Joy to the World

Number 9- To Us a Child

Number 8-The First Noel

Number 7-It Came Upon a Midnight Clear

Number 6-Silent Night

Number 5-Oh Holy Night

Number 4-What Child is This?

Number 3- We Three Kings

Number 2-Angels We have Heard on High

Number 1-Oh Come Oh Come Emmanuel

Top Twelve Christmas Specials (Top 3)

Number 3- Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Sure Rudolph is adorable and there are some amazing things going on with the animation here, but there's more to my placement than that. Rudolph is a cute tale and it has one of the most memorable holiday songs out there, but I don't really find myself missing it if I don't happen to catch it. It's still one of the major holiday draws for sure, but it's not the best.

Number 2- Charlie Brown Christmas Special

This is one of the best Christmas specials ever. The story is simple but touching. The characters are familiar and delightful. More importantly, the music is unforgettable. Charlie Brown just can't get into the Christmas spirit. I'm sure most of us have been there at some point in our lives. Thankfully Charlie Brown shows us that it could be worse.

Number 1- How the Grinch Stole Christmas

 Here it is, the number one special of Christmas. Just like the Peanuts special this one has great music and a simple story that delivers. It also has something the Peanuts just can't offer-the voice stylings Boris Karloff and that guy that does the voice of Tony the Tiger. It was a tough choice, but the Grinch wins this one. (Just don't ask me to watch the Jim Carey movie.)

Top 12 Christmas Specials (6-4)

Number 6-Frosty the Snow Man

Yes, this is a classic. Yes, it has a great song that inspired it. Yes, I know you probably won't agree with me on this one, but it's my list. Frosty is a fun little story, but it isn't all that Christmasy to me. Sure Santa comes in and saves the day, but that doesn't really change the fact that it is really a winter-play-time story. There's nothing wrong with that, but it does hurt poor Frosty in my standings.

Number 5- Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol

The myopic, Mr. Magoo, takes on the role of Ebenezer Scrooge in Dicken's immortal Christmas Carol. It's a musical and Magoo does a great job of playing the character of Scrooge. It's pretty close to the original story with the subtraction of Scrooge's nephew. It moves quite quickly, and the musical numbers are cute for the most part. It's a good storyline even though Mr. Magoo isn't a very well known character these days.

Number 4- Disney Christmas Carol

Who better to play Ebenezer Scrooge than Disney's own Scrooge McDuck? The people at Disney did a great job of casting the various characters. It's almost like Scrooge was created to play this part at some point. He's got the nephew and the money grubbing ways. It gets everything from the story and does it in a way that is fresh because it is done with Disney characters in ways that make sense.

Top 12 Christmas Specials- Part II

Number 9-Santa Claus is Comin' to Town

This is the somewhat fictionalized story of how Santa came to be. OK, fine, this one was pulled out of someplace and it doesn't really have anything to do with reality. Some of the story lines are fun to watch, especially the main bad guy that is trying to keep toys out of his town.

Number 8- Jack Frost

Did you ever wonder who Jack Frost actually was and what kind of a story he might have? Well, now you can find out the real story of Jack Frost, the spirit of wintertime that became a man for the sake of love. Well, that's really all there is to say about that one.

Number 7- The Little Drummer Boy

I'm sure you know the song, so the plot of this special won't surprise you too much. It's a very well done adaptation of the song and regardless of your beliefs, you can't help but be touched by a poor small child doing what he can with what he has available.

Top 12 Christmas Specials Part I

Number 12-The Nutcracker

OK, I don't have anything specific with this one. Sure there are tons of interpretations and versions you can watch, but I think that I'm thinking of the ballet performances primarily. Regardless of how you see the story, it's an important part of the holiday. You know you know the songs from the ballet and as soon as you hear them you think of Christmas. It's not an actual special like what the other entries will be, but it is a special part of the holidays.

Number 11- I want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown

I know when you think Christmas and Peanuts, you're thinking about the story where Lucy and Linus' brother Rerun wants Snoopy to be his dog when he wakes up Christmas morning. Yeah, I'm thinking of a much better story too. This isn't terrible, but it doesn't nearly compare to the original Christmas special done with the Peanuts crew.

Number 10- A Year without Santa

 Santa is sick just before Christmas and this puts him in a bad mood about the holiday. Isn't there anyone out there that still believes in Santa? While he's laid up in bed recovering, Mrs. Claus sends a couple of elves to find some Christmas cheer. The elves run into the never ending battle between Heat Miser and Cold Miser. They both have similar songs and it makes sense that they would be at odds. I probably would have put this higher on the list if the Cold Miser song hadn't been a part of Batman and Robin.

Last minute April Fools pranks.

If you're anything like me, you've been making plans for April for a while. There's so many things that happen this month if you're not planning ahead, you're going to miss out on something. I've also been making some plans for April-specific articles, but it wasn't until this morning that I realized I was missing a very important part of April in my plans-April Fool's Day. If you're in the same boat, there's no need to worry. I have just what you need, a list of last minute pranks you can pull with little to no preperation or materials.

1. The Globetrotter's Confetti-Filled-Cup TrickMaterials: a lightweight non-clear cup (paper, plastic, or styrafoam), confetti
How it works: Take your confetti and place it in the bottom of the cup. Make it look like you are drinking from the cup even though it's actually empty. Find your mark and make it look like you're going to spill it on them. Then dump on the confetti.

2. The 3 O'Clock High PrankMaterials: You don't 'need' anything, but a leather jacket, tattoo, and scar are optional and will make it an easier sell.
How it works: Find your mark and bump into him in the hall. Act really upset and tell him you'll see him right after school. Continue to threaten him (or her) during the day. When you finally meet up for the big fight tell them it was all a joke for April Fools.

3. The Make-Shift Whoopie CushionMaterials: A sandwich bag.
How it works: Grab your lunch (or just take someone else's if you have to) and find a baggie. You're going to either want one of the kind that seal itself or also find some tape. Get rid of whatever's in the baggie. How you get rid of it is up to you. Now fill the baggie with air and set it on the seat of your unsuspecting victim. Watch the fun when they take a seat.
Bonus: If you wanted some extra fun, you can leave the food in the bag, especially if it's really messy.

4. The "I was just in a car accident" Gag.Materials: Whatever you can get ahold of, specific ideas-scissors, fake blood or ketchup, black make up, black sharpie, etc
How it works: Rip some holes in your clothes, mess up your hair, and give yourself some fake bruises and cuts. Walk around with your hand on your head and stumble around. When someone asks what's up, tell them you were just in a car accident. Play it up a bit and tell the fake details of your epic encounter with death before shouting "April Fools."

5. The Fake Shoe BombMaterials: A shoe, some wires and a clock face.
How it works: Take the shoe and shove the wires in it. Then 'connect' them to the clock and let the wires dangle around. Place it in a prominant location and enjoy the laughs when people think it's a bomb and start to panic. (Disclaimer: This is just a list and not a recommendation for a prank. You could get in a lot of trouble for preparing a fake bomb, so think before you act on this one.)

6. The Old "I'm Gay"/"I'm not Gay" GagMaterials: none
How it works: The how is a little different depending on your sexual orientation, but basically if you're straight, you suddenly declare that you are gay. If you're gay, suddenly declare yourself straight. Play it up a little. Flirt with the opposite people of your particular orientation. Give your audience a reasont to believe your tale. Then when you've got people convinced, shout 'April Fools!' If you want you can keep switching sides all day and really mess with people's heads. If you need some inspiration for your role check out this "I kissed a girl" spoof by Karen Gillan.
Well, those are a few quick prank ideas that you can still pull off if you're quick about it. I'm sure you can come up with plenty of other ideas. Why not share them below?

Top Twelve Christmas movies (part II)

We've already gotten the preliminaries out of the way in part I so if you haven't seen that yet, check it out. Here's the first half of our list.

Number 12

"While You Were Sleeping" takes full advantage of the Christmas holiday to make Sandra Bullock's character's believable. A lonely single young woman saves the life of a man she's been interested in for years and is mistakenly thought to be his fiance through some miscommunication. Who can blame her for going through with the deception?

While the man she thinks she likes is in a coma, she gets to know his brother and things get really complicated from there. I'm not sure we can say that the movie does more than take advantage of the holiday to play with our emotions, but it isn't obvious about it. It's a fun movie, and if you haven't' seen it already, you should get your act together and check it out.

Number 11

"Babes in Toyland" has had a long history. It started as a popular operetta in 1903 written by Victor Herbert. In 1934, it was made into a movie that started the comedy team of Laurel and Hardy. This was probably their best-known and best-loved movie. In 1961, the Walt Disney company remade the movie. This version starred one of Disney's favorite Mouseketeers, Annette Funicello. 1986 saw yet another release with Drew Barrymore and Keanu Reeves, but not in romantic roles since Drew was playing an 11-year-old at the time.

These are the main three versions, and there have been plenty of others that I have no interest in at all. I also never saw the 1986 version. I recommend that you find one of the older versions (or both) and spend a night checking them out. I think it will be a fine addition to your holidays.

Number 10

"The Santa Clause" is the movie that kept Tim Allen from disappearing into obscurity after his television show, Home Improvement, went off the air. This movie has two sequels, and like most sequels they get a little more ridiculous as they progress, but it is a fun franchise to enjoy during the holidays.

The plot is pretty simple even if it is a little bizarre. Allen's character accidentally kills Santa on Christmas Eve. It turns out that there is a Santa Claus the makes whoever might kill Santa the new bit man of Christmas. Allen spends the next year slowly turning into Santa and fighting the change all the way. If you haven't seen this movie, get off your backside and watch it. Then you can decide what to do about the other movies.

Number 9

"Die Hard" is the ultimate Christmas action movie. This is the movie that made Willis an action star and moved him from TV to the big screen. Follow Bruce Willis as he plays John McCain trying to stop terrorists from killing his wife. Wait, let me back up a little bit.

John McCain is a NYC cop who has flown out to LA to see his estranged wife and kids for Christmas. She is working for a large corporation on the West Coast which just happens to get their building taken hostage on Christmas Eve.

 Look for Die Hard I and II to give you a healthy dose of Christmas action. There are plenty of explosions and Willis just dishes out the snappy banter throughout the entire movie.

Number 8

What are the people of Mars to do when their children discover Earth television and learn about Santa Claus? Well of course the best solution is to kidnap Santa and force him to make toys for all the Martian children. That's the plot for "Santa Conquers the Martians," and the movie is just about as bad as you might expect.

This is one of those "so bad it's good" movies. The kind they use on Mystery Science Theater 3000. (In fact, the team did release their commentary on this,) Special effects are seriously old school and the aliens are definitely just people in cheap costumes and let's not talk about the quality of the acting.Do yourself a favor and check it out even if you only see it once in your life.

Number 7

You know this kind of thing happens every Christmas. Some kid gets left behind in the chaos of trying to get the whole family to the airport. That's no big deal. Of course there has to be the burglars trying to get into the house while the family is away. Wait, when does that ever happen? That's right, it happens in the "Home Alone" movies.

A poor stranded boy stops two experienced thieves the only way he can-lots of goofy traps and pratfalls. Be on the lookout for the scene where Kevin orders a pizza and uses a movie to tell the delivery guy what to do

This franchise would get a much higher rating if the story hadn't been beaten to death. The first movie is truly a classic and deserves to be a part of your Christmas movie routine, and "keep the change, you filthy animal."


Be on the lookout for part III of the list coming out soon, and feel free to leave a comment below to tell me what you think.

Top Twelve Christmas movies (Part I)

When it comes to holidays, Christmas is definitely the one that gets the most attention. Movies, music, and television specials abound during this holiday. I'm going to tackle them all, but let's start with movies. What better way to look at the Christmas season than to look at my Top Twelve Christmas movies.

Honorable Mentions

Serendipity has almost nothing to do with Christmas, but it does start and end at Christmas time. Jonathan and Sara meet while shopping for a pair of gloves. They just happen to be looking for the exact same pair. He's looking to buy them for his girl friend for Christmas and she wants them for herself. They connect but they are both in relationships. When Jonathan pushes Sara for her number, she makes a deal with him. She writes her number in a copy of the book she's reading and he writes his on a five-dollar bill.

Several years later just before his wedding, Jonathan decides he needs to try to find Sara to convince himself that he didn't miss out on something important. Sara meanwhile has just gotten engaged to her musician boyfriend and looks for Jonathan for the same reason. I'll stop there. You should see this for yourself.



Holiday Inn starts with Jim (Crosby) deciding to get out of show business after his partners Ted (Astaire) and Lila are leaving the act to get married. Jim has the crazy idea of buying a farm and living the easy life. After trying the easy life he gets another crazy idea. He decides to that the farm house and turn it into a club that is only open for holidays. He figures he can make enough on the holidays to live the easy life.

While getting things around on Christmas Eve for the opening night on New Year's Eve, Jim meets Linda an aspiring dancer and singer who is hoping to work for at the Inn. There's an immediate connection and he teaches her "White Christmas" one of the songs for the following year.

Things get interesting when Lila leaves Ted for a millionaire and Ted decides Linda is the perfect choice for a new partner. This movie is great for every holiday of the year. 

In "Going My Way," Crosby plays Father O'Malley a young priest who has been sent to help out at a struggling parish. While helping Father Fitzgibbon, the older priest, figure out what the parish needs, he also manages to help out a struggling singer, turns the local ruffians into a choir, and make life in the parish a better place all the way around.

I won't say much more about this movie and its connections to Christmas since that will ruin the ending, but it is a fun movie. Also if you look closely you can spot the boy who played Alfalfa in the "Little Rascals as one of the boys in the choir.

Bing Crosby is the voice of Christmas!

I was listening to the radio today while I was driving home and the guy was talking about Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra. He called himself a "Frankie fan" and that's all good and fine, but since it is almost the end of December, I'm more inclined to be thinking about the music of Bing Crosby.

Let's jump in the time machine for a minute and go back to the days when movies were in black and white because there wasn't another option rather than for artistic reasons. Hollywood saw the potential to take the Christmas holiday and turn it into a money-making opportunity. All it would take is a few good movies that would set the standard, and draw audiences into the holiday. Another big part of the old black-and-white movies, was music. The musical movie was an idea that got overused at times, but that was how the era worked. There were plenty of Christmas movies: "A Miracle on 34th Street," "It's a Wonderful Life," and a little movie called "White Christmas."

"White Christmas" wasn't the first Christmas movie, and it wasn't the first time Bing Crosby had sung the title song in a movie. (It was fist sung in "Holiday Inn," starring Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire.)  Nevertheless, "White Christmas" became one of the main songs of the holiday even in parts of the country that seldom see any snow.  We can look to other popular songs of the holiday, but it is this song and others sung by Bing Crosby that really speak to the holiday.

There are plenty of Christmas songs, and just about everyone tries their voice at them at some point, but Bing Crosby is the man that makes it really happen.  You may disagree, but that's how I feel about it. Feel free to share your opinion below.