A few weeks ago, during the turmoil of personal crises and the atmosphere of constant global calamity, we took a pause and asked readers a series of questions over a series of days on our Facebook page..
Depending on circumstances that your personal life circle has encountered, this year has been trying. Perhaps more so than even 2020, the year rated the worst in modern history. In the end 2020 looked at 2021 and said, “hold my beer.”
So we figured it was time to turn off the present and go back to the past, the nostalgia.. and take one last venture back in your personal history to get some thoughts on what exactly makes a Skooky Christmas–boilo included, for sure..
So we started with …. a pig..
The essential LEFTOVER meal of Christmas..
WHAT DO YOU PUT ON YOUR HAM SANDWICH
One personal note I received immediately was how gross it was to show Porky Pig in a ham sandwich post. Well perhaps you should have thought of that sooner before you ate him. After all, at the Bloomsburg Fair, I have seen people happily eating porky at the stand RIGHT OUTSIDE of the live hogs. Smell and all…… you disgust me.
As for the answers, there were some similarities and a few variations.
For the most part, mustard reigned supreme.
As a matter of fact, many said that mustard alone was enough, spicy or sweet.
Others occasionally mixed their mustard with mayo, or just went mayo all the way.
A few daring folks mentioned horseradish…
One person brilliantly showcased his red beet horseradish sitting and ready to go for leftovers ’21.
One added “miracle whip” as an option.. Eh>>>??
And finally a standout–perhaps a very weird standout–said ketchup. While not unheard of, it certainly was uncommon among those who participated…
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WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CHRISTMAS SONG
Perhaps a sign of our times, Mergle Haggard was a TOP answer with IF WE MAKE IT THROUGH DECEMBER.. but will we be fine?
Another offered the Wheeland Brothers’ “BIG OL’ CHRISTMAS TREE” as the best..
Other mentioned: White Christmas by Bing Crosby..
Blue Christmas–we asked and it was the Elvis version, not Porky..
Silent Night as a traditional…
And finally Josh told us that his favorite was “We need a Little Christmas” by the great Angela Lansbury!
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What about dinner itself!?
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE FOOD AND TRADITION?
fish! Fish! FISH!
That seemed to win the debate.
Fish cakes as a matter of fact. Or crab cakes depending on your wealth status…
Cory said that seafood was abundant on Christmas Eve, and his wife makes an Asian peppercorn crag leg meal, that may be the best thing he ever had.. that sounds delicious. I hope you enjoy it in 2021.
Marinated shrimp was another’s mother’s feast. I bet he wishes he could go back and years and appreciate it just one bit more…
Someone went the meat route and said a spiral ham, the kind in the gold foil.. Mmmmmm… we know what you mean.
Finally one mentioned that traditions are gone and now it’s just Chinese food on Christmas day..
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The always debated controversial topic of DIE HARD came up in our next question..
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CHRISTMAS MOVIE?
We made a special rule on this question: DIE HARD and GREMLINS will not be counted..
And the first response of best movie?
DIE HARD!
While we cannot count it officially, it certainly addresses the long debated idea of whether DIE HARD is a Christmas movie or not. College thesis papers can be based on this perplexing conundrum …
Someone else said The Santa Claus with Tim Allen… the first was their favorite but they liked the sequels too…
Others included but not in particular order:
A Christmas Vacation…
Christmas Story..
Miracle on 34th Street…
It’s a Wonderful Life…
Polar Express..
And one more time…………
Die Hard!
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A great segway to the next question..
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE THAT TOOK PLACE AROUND CHRISTMAS BUT IS NOT BASED ON CHRISTMAS
What was not mentioned was our favorite: BATMAN RETURNS.
But…. of course.. DIE HARD was ..
Gremlins as well..
There are so many others not talked about, but yet somehow an abundant amount of them!! Get with the picture Skook!
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We asked a bonus movie question:
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CHRISTMAS HORROR MOVIE
We expected Silent Night Deadly Night.
We expected Krampus..
I think even the Australian movie FORTRESS from 1985 since a killer wears a Santa mask..
But none of those were mentioned..
Instead the old faithful, which is fine: Gremlims (And yes it counts) ..
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WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CHRISTMAS CARTOON?
Sadly no mention of Charlie Brown and the Peanuts gang…
They are old news. Despite the fact you see them in abundance in wooden cutouts at Koziar’s Christmas Village.. Do kids even know who Charlie Brown is anymore!?
How the Grinch Stole Christmas stole the prize. The constant through the ages..
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When do you decorate, and when do you take the decor down?
We have consensus on November.. but not when they get stores back into the attic.
Skook has its fair share of blowups and lights.. but how long are they present in yards?
The common thesis seems to be that the day after Thanksgiving starts the decorating trend. A few even went earlier and said November 1!
WHEN DO THEY COME DOWN?
Various answers persisted.. but some said the Epiphany… others said January..
February..
And one even joked (*maybe a joke?) EASTER!
Finally… one last reference from a die hard DIE HARD fan: “After Die Hard on Christmas Day”.
🙂 Love the fandom!
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The clear winner of Christmas in the Skook is not fish cakes, bayberry candles, or Charlie Brown..
It’s something much stronger. Much mightier..
And we may as well admit it: DIE HARD is Christmas …
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