Jordan Independent - Christmas - Comments

Love, love, love my Harry

Ruth Anne Maddox — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 15:58:16 -0600

Love, love, love my Harry Connick Jr. Christmas CD, "When My Heart Finds Christmas." It came out in 1993 but the first time I heard it (and about the time I realized Harry existed) was five or so years ago.

I then discovered that my daughter like Harry, as well, when I walked in on her marching along to "Parade of the Wooden Soldiers."

She played that song over and over that Christmas and pretty much choreographed a routine to it. Now that's a great Christmas memory!

I don't really look at the

bhall09 — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 15:44:33 -0600

I don't really look at the Christmas albums, unless you are talking about Bing, but I have downloaded a bunch of songs recently for the Ipod.

I have to go classics. I don't like much of the new songs, or the old ones by new artists. I like to stick with the classics.

I think for me, it is all about Christmas and Christmas memories. I have such fond memories of the holidays growing up, and I try and keep that going. So, I listen to the stuff I have always grown up listening too. Bing Crosby is great. I have his "White Christmas" CD, and then a bunch I downloaded on itunes (Burl Ives, Gene Autry, Andy Williams, Nat King Cole, etc.) Got to stay with the classics.

And, while I am not a big choir listener, the classic songs done by choirs (I downloaded some from the Mormon Tabernacle Choir) are great around the holiday times.

(Brian Hall is the Sports Editor for the Jordan Independent and Shakopee Valley News, and can be reached at bhall@swpub.com.)

Brandon, Glad you had a

KoolD — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 12:01:44 -0600

Brandon,

Glad you had a chance to listen to Diana Krall. I have listened to most of the Relient K tracks on Yahoo Music. Kind of like to have something that allows me lots of variety. Personally it is hard to beat Bing Crosby and David Bowie in their duet.

This year have been exploring some alternatives. The old stuff is always good. Louie Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald. At the same time, there are lots of theme albums out there like Southern Rock Christmas with Foghat and Lynyrd Skynyrd add some Willie Nelson.

Thanks

KoolD

I can’t really listen to

Brandon — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 10:22:31 -0600

I can’t really listen to Christmas music on the radio for that reason – and because there are too many awful Christmas pop songs out there.

KoolD, I downloaded the Diana Krall album this year, and it is pretty darn good.

I’m going to have to add a few great songs to my favorite Christmas songs list. I forgot about another of my childhood Christmas song memories in Amy Grant. Her version of “Rocking Around the Christmas Tree” is pretty classic, as is “Breath of Heaven.”

I also really like one of the new songs from Relient K’s recently extended Christmas disc – “Merry Christmas, Here’s to Many More.”

Yeah, my family, as it

bhall09 — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 10:45:37 -0600

Yeah, my family, as it continues to grow, decided this year to only buy for the kids. As much as I enjoyed receiving gifts, I must say it has been nice to only worry about buying for the kids. It saves some money, and really they enjoy it more anyway. It's about them. And I know, it is fun for me as I am able to see things through Logan's eyes. Seeing him light up is quite a gift for me.

"Didn't even exchange gifts"? You are talking in the past tense there. You have already done your gift exchange? How lucky are you to not have to wait? I wish I didn't have to wait.

Of course, I guess I didn't really have to wait. I already got a snow blower.....whoopdedoo!!!

(Brian Hall is the Sports Editor for the Jordan Independent and Shakopee Valley News, and can be reached at bhall@swpub.com.)

I love Christmas but dislike

Melissa Gilman — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 14:29:59 -0600

I love Christmas but dislike obligatory gift-giving. I only give presents to a few family members. This year my brother and I didn't even exchange gifts. What a relief for both of us! But we did enjoy purchasing gifts for each other's kids.

Melissa Gilman

Melissa Gilman is the editor of Southwest Saturday and Let's Go! Find more entertainment events at www.letsgosouthwest.com or submit your events and story ideas to mgilman@swpub.com.

Being bed-ridden most of the

Mathias Baden — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 10:26:54 -0600

Being bed-ridden most of the past week (more on that later) gave me a lot of time to think about what to get my family.

Every year, I thank my lucky stars that my darling wife works at Barnes & Noble -- I love 40 percent off discount week. We spent something like $155 and got a lot of stuff this weekend.

Most of the people on our Christmas list had better like B&N, Bibelot, or CreativeKidstuff, because that's where we found their presents.

(Mathias Baden is the editor of the Jordan Independent. He can be reached at editor@jordannews.com.)

I tried to finish all my

Brandon — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 07:25:22 -0600

I tried to finish all my shopping in just two days at the stores (one over the weekend and one a few weeks ago). But I haven’t even come close. And after about three hours of constantly being surrounded by people, I couldn’t take it any more. I had to get out of the mall, which means I’ll only have to go back as we get closer yet to Christmas.

That’s true – I’ve had

Brandon — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 11:43:20 -0600

That’s true – I’ve had some wonderful free meals while interviewing people for the paper. I’ve eaten everything from chicken kabobs and hamburgers to turkey dinners. I’ll almost never turn down a free bite.

A little free food can get

Mathias Baden — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 14:58:51 -0600

A little free food can get most journalists to go anywhere. Usually, I have fun at office parties.

(Mathias Baden is the editor of the Jordan Independent. He can be reached at editor@jordannews.com.)

So how are your

bhall09 — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 14:24:14 -0600

So how are your feet?

Prepared to walk on a little glass?

I won't repeat it here, but that was one of the classic lines from movies, "Glass, who gives...."

Yeah, office parties can get to be a drag. More often than not they just seemed forced. Like you have to be nice and talk to people you never (or would never anywhere else) talk to. It is rough, and the games can get cheesy too.

Best holiday party I had was a few years ago at a different newspaper. We had a very nice buffet dinner at a restaurant and then we had "Casino Night" where each employee was given a certain amount of "money" in chips and then we gambled for a few hours in various casino-like tables (which were set up in this banquet room at the restaurant). At the end of the night, we turned in our chips for pieces of paper (so many chips go you so many pieces of paper), and then we put our names on the paper, put the slips of paper in baskets for different sets of prizes. The prizes were donated by advertisers and included several different items. We could see what was in each basket, and then decide how many slips of paper we wanted to put in each basket. If you had 40 slips, you could put 40 slips in one basket, or divy it up among differing baskets. Then at the end, one name was drawn from each basket for the winner. The more you put into one, the better your chances of winning. All in all, a very solid night, easily the best holiday party I have ever been a part of.

All in all, its nice to be rewarded for a year of hard work and be recognized, but often the actual "mingling" part is rough. Especially for the non-employees. Good luck with that.

(Brian Hall is the Sports Editor for the Jordan Independent and Shakopee Valley News, and can be reached at bhall@swpub.com.)

I gotta say, though, that I

Brandon — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 14:14:22 -0500

I gotta say, though, that I feel like I’m sitting pretty this weekend. The predicted scores may say otherwise, but I feel like I’ve got a chance to pull through with a win.

I think that’s my

Brandon — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 10:18:12 -0600

I think that’s my favorite, too. I tried to take it with just the automatic settings, and it didn’t turn out, so I set the shutter speed a little slower and rested the camera on the open window of my car.

Brandon - I really like the

molly — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 17:19:44 -0600

Brandon - I really like the sun3 photo.

I love Balderdash, but

Brandon — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 09:59:47 -0600

I love Balderdash, but penmanship has gotten me in trouble countless times. In fact, penmanship has been my downfall for as long as I can remember. Even as far back as elementary school, I would get lowered grades because the teachers couldn’t read my handwriting. I often got notes on my report cards from my teachers telling my parents that I pressed too hard. You could usually read what I had written in pages underneath the actual paper I was writing on because I left indentations. There are even a few places on my parents' kitchen table where you can read my name and whatever homework I was doing.