late December lament and raves

Well, this Christmas was one I had been more excited about than any in recent memory, but Mother Nature finally destroyed my good cheer. We had decided to do essentially a "no gift" Christmas (minus a few select gifts and people), I was looking forward to spending time with my family (with whom I've had a truly renewed relationship lately) and I was really in an advent state of mind. However, we had to miss out on a whole bunch of fun/significant events due to bad weather, I put my car in the ditch in an accident that was impossible to avoid, and I missed 14 hours of work (and thus pay) because of terrible road conditions. If you think I am discouraged, my wife was even more so than me, which is interesting because she tends to be the more "balanced" of the two of us.

However, consider that the end of my whining and complaining (for this post--don't think you're going to get away from it completely!). There have been some really cool things that I've been into over the holidays.

I truly enjoyed this year's six-pack of Hermannator, Vancouver Island Brewery's seasonal, limited edition ice bock. I am a really big fan of Granville Island Brewery's Lions Winter Ale, but the Hermannator gave me just as much enjoyment this year as did the Winter Ale. Both are darkish caramel-y type beers with really lovely finishes, though the Hermannator has close to twice the alcohol in it. They used to only release it in a 750 mL bottle and I remember thinking that I'd been run over by a truck when I downed one of those at a Christmas party a number of years ago. I am happy that they now have put it into a six-pack format! This beer is a favourite of my stepfather Alan, who first introduced me to it--it's a family tradition that we continue yearly.

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I tend to not be a fan of non-traditional Christmas music; for example, almost every popular artist who puts out a Christmas album tend to make my Absolute Crap List for the year. I always think the albums are cheesy, poorly done, and trite. However, I have been totally enamoured with both Bruce Cockburn's and Sufjan Stevens' Christmas albums--in the case of Stevens it is actually 5 Christmas EP's.

I have been on a real Cockburn kick lately and Christmas is yet another in a fine canon of work from this Canadian singer/songwriter icon. His guitar playing is astounding and he interprets soem classics along with some very esoteric Christmas music, doing it all beautifully. Spanish, French, and First Nations carols all find their way onto this disc.

Sufjan Stevens Presents Songs For Christmas is a collection of 5 EP's recoreded between 2001 and 2006 that showcases some very offbeat, but brilliant interpretations of classic carols and hymns, along with some original compositions (including "Get Behind Me Santa!"--a hilarious take on Matthew 16:23). His version of the traditional hymn "Holy, Holy, Holy" is one of the most heartbreakingly gorgeous things I have ever experienced. These EP's amount to 42 songs, a little over two hours music and they have been a revelation. I loved his Illinoise album, so it has been nice to further delve into Stevens' music.

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Through much of December I indulged myself in Margaret George's 900+ page tome The Autobiography of Henry VIII: A Novel. With Notes By His Fool, Will Somers. I have a B.A. in History and I enjoy it very much, but I am especially fascinated by the figure of Henry VIII and his six wives. This was a work of fiction, but nevertheless an intriguing look into what potentially was Henry's mind and the motivations for his thoughts and actions. If you are a fan of historical fiction, I highly recommend it.

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I want to plug my friend Michelle's blog again, mostly because she makes me laugh every time I read it with her self-deprecating humour and witty observations. Check it out!

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The Doghouse, a JC Penney ad, has been making the rounds for the last little while and it is laugh-out-loud funny. Check it out here. Those men with significant others, we've all been here. Don't lie to me and say that you have managed to avoid this if you've been with said lady for any longer than six months!

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Supposedly Chuck E. Cheese's is a real hot spot for violence (seriously!). This article is both sad, but hysterically funny, at least it was for me. God bless 'Merica!

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New U2 album, March 3!!! Check out this sarcastic little notification from Paste magazine--hilarious! FYI, Paste is hands-down one of the best music mags out there and FAR superior to that rag known as Rolling Stone.


Well, that's all for now folks! The Dynasty will see you in the New Year, if not before!