DC to get its own quarter

Congressman Jose E. Serrano of New York inserted language into the spending bill to provide quarters for the District, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands.
The local government will design the flip side of the quarter.
If it were up to me, I’d have Tai Shan yank one [...]

Top 5 Stocking Stuffers

When it comes to Christmas stockings, I tend to give practical gifts that are needed than clever, but useless, trinkets. This year I’ve stocked up on:
5. candy canes
4. AA batteries
3. penlights
2. SD cards
1. flash drives
What did you buy in bulk this year?

Top 6 Holiday Songs

Ding-a-ling-aling Dingaling … Ding-a-ling-aling Dingaling …. I’ve been listening to iTunes’s holiday radio station for the last month. Here is my list of favorite songs based on how high my happiness level jumps when one of the following songs comes on.
6. I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Clause - Jimmy Boyd
5. Blue Christmas – Elvis Presley
4. [...]

Top 7 Holiday Movies

Tis the season for drinking hot cider, eating chocolate marshmallow Santas and sucking on candy canes while watching Christmas classics. When I take a break from decorating the tree or stringing up blinking lights, I watch:
7. The Family Man
6. Love Actually
5. Frosty the Snowman
4. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
3. Yogi’s First Christmas
2. Home Alone [...]

What does snow smell like?

I tried to describe what snow smells like and came up with nothing useful. That’s not the same as saying I wouldn’t recognize the smell if I came across it.
Snow is wet and clean and sharply cold.
For me, the smell of snow is usually mingled with the smell of gasoline (of the school bus idling [...]

Top 8 Winter Smells

There are some scents that not only bring back memories but can wholly transport me back to a specific moment.
8. snow
7. smoke from the wood stove (or a fireplace)
6. plastic tape
5. Old Spice
4. Nivea hand lotion
3. pumpkin and pie crust
2. cinnamon
1. pine
Which smells cause you to travel back to a specific holiday memory?