1. GET A CHANUKAH SWEATER: The folks at Geltfiend.com want you to remember last year, “when we, like, got invited to that ugly-sweater party but didn’t have sh*t to wear.” Problem solved. Because everything is better in a Chanukah sweater, Geltfiend offers spirited sweaters for Jewish hipsters looking to make a statement, whether it’s through the Crown Heights sweater covered with Hassidic snowman and described as “a playful homage to our Hassid peeps who keep it real 365 days a year” or the Geltdigger sweater covered in gelt-print and described simply as “we ain’t sayin’ she a Geltdigger…”
2. OPEN A BOTTLE OF RAMUNE: The best part about this Japanese soda isn’t the variety—it comes in more than 35 flavors from chocolate and pineapple to green apple and chili—it’s the way you open the bottle. Seriously. Created back in 1876, Ramune comes in Codd-neck glass bottles, sealed with a glass marble. You open the bottle with a mini plunger found in the cap. A lot of Americans have had issues opening the bottles, and you can watch all these mishaps by searching “Ramune” on YouTube. Or you can try for yourself by grabbing a bottle at your local Japanese market.
3. BUY A LEG LAMP: Every year hundreds gather at Northport Hardware for the annual Leg Lamp Lighting, a homage to the classic movie, A Christmas Story. If you’ve never seen the movie, do yourself a favor and watch it now. Then visit RedRiderLegLamps.com and get your very own authentic 50-inch deluxe full-size leg lamp replica, complete with butt cheek, thigh, fringed gallery shade, fishnet stocking, and stiletto heel. Every leg lamp is shipped in a “FRAGILE” box or crate for added authenticity. After all, it is a major award.
4. DONATE TO TOYS OF HOPE: Help Hurricane Sandy victims and Long Island’s neediest this season by donating to Toys of Hope, which provides toys to more than 65,000 needy and homeless children every year in our area. All donations—100 percent—go directly to helping LI families. Visit ToysOfHope.org for details.
5. READ FORBES’ MOST OVERPAID ACTORS LIST: Actors get paid millions per film and sometimes even per episode. Forbes has picked 10 stars who have not earned their exorbitant salaries based on their last three projects. It calculated how much, on average, each star’s last three films earned at the box office per dollar of pay. And no, Lindsay Lohan did not make the list.
6. YOUTUBE “ZEBRA & PONY RUN WILD ON STATEN ISLAND”: If you somehow managed to miss this video late last week or even if you didn’t, this one will make your day, unless you’re a cold-hearted bastard. Watch a baby zebra and a pony escape from the petting zoo and frolic on the streets of SI. The zebra apparently thinks the pony is his mom. It’s adorable.
7. BUY LIMITED-EDITION HOLIDAY COOKIES AT TRADER JOE’S: If you’re a Trader Joe’s shopper, you know that this is the time of year when the Chocolate Drizzle Star Cookies and the Almond Snowman Cookies dusted with sparkling sugar crystals come out, and if you don’t catch them within a few days, they’re gone till next year. So, what we’re saying is…leave now! You can thank us later.
8. DOWNLOAD FESTIVUS: Highline Records has released its first Christmas album Festivus, a newly recorded, 15-track indie pop collection featuring Glam Chops (with Eddie Argos, also of Art Brut), Piney Gir, Correatown, Real Tuesday Weld and others. The compilation skips between new wave, Phil Spector-inspired pop, synth-pop, glam rock, garage, and ’80s-inspired pop—and yes, it’s named after the Seinfeld episode, which makes it even better.
9. WATCH THE 12-12-12 SANDY BENEFIT CONCERT: Tickets to the fundraising concert featuring Bruce Springsteen, Eric Clapton, Billy Joel, Kanye West, Roger Waters, Bon Jovi and a slew of other artists at Madison Square Garden are selling for up to $2,500. If you can’t afford a seat at the event, no worries. Enjoy the show from your couch. 12-12-12 will air live at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 12 on dozens of TV stations and websites, including AOL, iHeartRadio, Thirteen and WLIW.
10. HAVE A HAPPY HANUKKAH!
Visit LongIslandPress.com/Hanukkah2012 for a full rundown of festive local events.
