We have now officially entered the final week before Christmas, so time is running out to help Santa find just the right presents to place under that artificial, fully illuminated, LED-powered Christmas tree, the one with perfectly shaped PVC needles indistinguishable from a real dead conifer.
Studies show that about 30 percent of shoppers wait until the final week before St. Nick’s arrival to make their holiday purchases. This is especially true for men and younger demographics, meaning Generation Zs and Generation Alphas, all born after 1997, meaning some of the earliest joys of their childhood included the Great Recession, the COVID-19 pandemic and Nickelback.
As it turns out, Christmas Eve Eve—Dec. 23—is often the busiest shopping day of the season. But if you wait that long, you’d better hope those Amazon drivers don’t call in sick.
Speaking of which, I asked Amazon for a list of the most popular Christmas gifts this year. And the best seller is (drumroll):
“The Comfy Original Sherpa Lined Microfiber Fleece Wearable Blanket, Oversized Design with Hood and Pocket.”
Yes! Who among us has not put a wearable blanket at the top of our wish list to Santa?
Imagine those chilly winter evenings by the fire, wrapped in your very own blanket lined with genuine Sherpas, which, until now, I thought were mountain guides on Mount Everest.
Of course, to get the most out of that experience, you’ll also need to imagine yourself somewhere besides Florida unless you plan on further enriching Florida Power & Light by turning your AC down low enough you don’t get all your Sherpa’s sweaty.
And nobody wants a sweaty Sherpa at Christmastime.
This Weekend
December 20. National Sangria Day. This may help you get through the busy weekend of Christmas shopping. The word “sangria” comes from the Spanish meaning “blood” because of the drink’s deep red color. There is also white sangria. It’s called anemic sangria.
December 21. Today is the first day of winter, the coldest season of the year. It begins with the winter solstice, the day with the fewest hours of daylight in the northern hemisphere. You do not have to adjust your clocks for this.
This also unofficially starts the countdown to the new year. There are only 10 days left in 2025.
The Week Ahead
December 22. Today is National Short Person Day, a time to celebrate those who are vertically challenged. This could apply to Kris Kringle. Nobody’s sure because he’s done a world-class job at clandestine operations, and nobody has actually spotted him or his reindeer. Klingon stealth technology may be involved.
It is also the last day of Hanukkah.
December 23. It’s Festivus! This annual made-up holiday was concocted by the family of Seinfeld writer Dan O’Keefe and aired as an episode of the show in 1997. Created as a counterpoint to the excesses of Christmas, Festivus involves a plain aluminum pole (instead of a Christmas tree) and is a time for wrestling, meatloaf eating, and airing of grievances.
December 24. Christmas Eve. Depending upon where you live, Santa arrives on Christmas Eve, or he sneaks into your house in the dead of night on Dec. 25 while you sleep. It is appropriate to leave milk and cookies out for the jolly old elf. Chocolate chip cookies, of course.
December 25. Christmas, of course, celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ, although his actual birthday is unknown. The celebration morphed from the ancient Roman holiday of Saturnalia, celebrating Saturn, the god of agriculture. As Rome merged the burgeoning religion of Christianity into its polytheistic culture, Saturnalia seemed a good time to celebrate the birthday of Jesus.
December 26. For our few remaining Canadian visitors, we note that today is Boxing Day, a popular celebration around the British Commonwealth where rich people like the Crawley family in Downton Abbey give gifts to the downstairs people who keep their mansion running. In America, this is informally known as re-boxing day, a time to prepare your Amazon returns and set aside unwanted presents for next year’s re-gifting.
December 26 is also the start of Kwanzaa, an annual celebration of African American culture culminating in a communal feast called Karamu. Created in the 1960s, many people celebrate Kwanzaa and Christmas together.
J.C. Bruce is an award-winning journalist and author of the Strange Files series of mysterious adventures. He holds dual citizenship in the United States of America and Florida. Check out his website, jcbruce.com (www.jcbruce.com/p/books), for details on how to order copies of his books, which make dandy Christmas presents. Copyright, 2025, J.C.Bruce