Bah. I missed posting this final Santa pic. Maybe it was because I wanted to block it from my mind. I mean..this guy is freakin’ SCARY looking! Seriously! Look at him. Serial Killer for sure.
Archive for December, 2008
Day(s) late and a dollar short
Tuesday, December 30th, 2008A Normal Santa?
Monday, December 22nd, 20081980. At first glance, you wouldn’t think this Santa is such a bad guy, really. But his friendly appearance hides a dark, dark secret.
That’s right, this “santa” is really an alien! The lack of visible mouth is a dead giveaway. That, and those eyes. And, you know, the thing about an alien… he’s got lifeless eyes. Black eyes. Like a doll’s eyes.
So yeah, sure, he looks all jolly and good. But I know his secret. It’s out now. Alien Santa must be stopped!
Why so serious?
Sunday, December 21st, 2008It’s 1979, and this Santa just looks pissed. He certainly doesn’t look like he’d shake like a bowl full of jelly if he laughed. Hell, he doesn’t look like he laughs at all. Why so serious Santa?
Nice Timex, by the way Santa.
Are you there Santa? It’s me, Jeff.
Saturday, December 20th, 20081978. This Santa has that faraway look that suggests he’s either high, or just waiting for his shift to be over. I’m not sure which. But given that it was 1978, he was probably high.
What’s up with that sweater my mom put me in…I’m pretty sure it’s 2 skateboarders, one is crouched down…maybe he’s going for the land-speed record or something. The other one…I’m not sure what the hell that guy is doing. Dancing? On second thought, maybe the guy that’s crouched down is just trying to go as fast as he can to get away from Mr. Dancin’ Shoes.
Yes, that’s my brother in the black sweater and black checked pants. Such a mod dork. You’re like, 12 years too late Jim! Mod was dead by ‘78. Poser.
Scary Santa!
Friday, December 19th, 2008So my mom dug up 5 old Christmas photos taken when we still lived in Illinois. The years represented are 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, and 1981. These are years when Santas were still…well….interesting looking. Let’s face it. These days, every mall in the country is looking to hire the best and most realistic looking Santa they can find. Typically they’re older men, with a real white beard and moustache. In fact, they’re probably professional Santas. And there’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, I love it! I love seeing how good the Santa at South Coast Plaza looks in comparison to the one at the Mission Viejo Mall (they’re both good, by the way).
Anyway, I’d guess that the majority of these photos were taken at Marshall Field’s – it was THE place to go during Christmas in Chicago. I’ll post ‘em chronologically over the next 5 days, starting today. And with that….
The “Get-Me-Out-Of-Here” Santa
The year was 1975. Chet, from the Accounting Department, was new that year and needed the extra cash. He had never liked kids all that much, but the money was going to help him get his Christmas drunk on, and besides, that Rebecca from Human Resources was cute in her Santa’s Helper outfit. Yeah, that’s right cutie, I’m lookin’ at you. Maybe we can hook up after I get this damn kid off my lap. Hit the disco, add in a little “snow” to get us going, and maybe I can show you my North Pole. Knowwhatimean?
Meanwhile, there sits little Jeffrey, oblivious to the fact that Santa is lookin’ to jump Rebecca’s bones.
Apparently he also felt the need to bring a chrome-plated handgun to work. If that’s not a gun on the bench next to him, then my name isn’t Harvey Wallbanger. Wait…it isn’t Harvey. Or Wallbanger for that matter.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Thursday, December 18th, 2008Let’s see…Wolverine, check.
Liev Schreiber as Sabretooth, check.
Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool, che…wait, Ryan “Van Wilder” Reynolds? That’s…ummm…interesting.
Yeah, I’ll see it anyway.
Zee Avi
Wednesday, December 17th, 2008So the other day I’m just perusing through iTunes looking for some Christmas music for a CD I was putting together for my wife. And I happen upon this album called This Warm December, which is a compilation of artists under the Brushfire label. There’s some great music on there – Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer by Jack Johnson, and Silent Night by Zach Gill being two standouts. And then there’s a song called “No Christmas for Me” by Zee Avi. I can’t embed her original video on YouTube, but go check it out, I’ll wait while you do.
Go on! Get over to YouTube and check it out!
If you’re refusing to go to YouTube, as I mentioned, I can’t embed “No Christmas for Me”, but I can embed some of her other stuff. So here’s her cover of Charlie Chaplin’s “Smile”:
She’s got an awesome voice and is a talented songwriter – “No Christmas for Me” is her original work – I’d totally rank it up there as one of my favorite Christmas songs. And the rest of her stuff is just as good.
Fleet Foxes
Tuesday, December 16th, 2008White Winter Hymnal by Fleet Foxes:
The Santa Photo
Tuesday, December 16th, 2008Went to South Coast Plaza last night with Heather and the kids. We had planned to go to Disneyland, but the rain forced a change in venue. Since we’ve learned our lesson about over-promising and under-delivering, Jack had no idea that the original plan had been Disneyland, only that we were going to do something fun.
So we went to the Rainforest Cafe for dinner, which Jack totally loved (although the moving gorillas kinda freaked him out a bit). Then we colored a little wooden pull-toy. South Coast has these stations where you can buy small wooden toys and figures and then use Crayola markers to color them. So we got Jack one of those, and he spent some time scribbling on it.
Next was the carousel. For anyone who isn’t from the area, South Coast Plaza has a carousel in one courtyard (called, wait for it…Carousel Court!). During the holidays, they remove all the regular horses and replace them with reindeer. At a $1 per ride, it’s well worth it – Jack absolutely loved it.
There’s a Santa station right there in the same area too, but we decided we would walk across the bridge to Crystal Court. If you get your picture taken with Santa there, you also get a free ride on a small little Christmas train. Jack loves trains, so it was pretty much a no-brainer.
Yep, that’s my two rugrats with Santa. I was surprised at how well Ronan did. He was a little concerned at first, but once the camera’s flash started, he focused on that pretty quick and forgot that mommy and daddy weren’t holding him.
After Jack asked Santa for “A Polar Express train, and an airplane, and some toys”, we took him to the small train for his free ride. It’s a cool little setup – a small train decorated as Santa’s Express. The kids get a couple rides around the giant tree that’s in Crystal Court and BAM, it’s a happy, happy night.
Just for comparison’s sake, I’ll have to get my mom to dig out and scan a couple of the santa photos I had taken when Jim and I were kids. I was looking at them last weekend – it’s amazing how low the standards were for Santas back in the 70’s and early 80’s…
That Christmas Spirit
Tuesday, December 16th, 2008Just a little somethin’, somethin’ to get you in that good ol’ Christmas Spirit