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12/23/2006: Christmastime is here, with eggnog.

Well, here we are. Christmas weekend. Last SNT of the holiday season. First off, thanks to everyone who helped make this place a festive December stop. Doing the Advent Calendar's been a real blast this year, thanks largely in part to having had some serious time off from work this month, which was also a blast. That makes two blasts. Your unwavering holiday spirit within all the comments threads and surveys helped me keep mine even though it's like friggin' summertime outside right now, and that's a blast, too. Three blasts. Lots of blasts. Twelve blasts of Christmas.

I've been doing this site long enough to know that traffic usually dips hardcore on Christmas Eve and Christmas, so for those of you about to take off for an extended weekend of Yuletide Yuleness, I wish you the hap hap happiest Christmas you ever did have. I think that something most of us here have in common is the neverending belief that this should be and will forever be the most important time of year, no matter how much things change, no matter how old we get and no matter how much "real life" wants us to treat it like any other regular smattering of days off. And while we may no longer be able to spend weeks on end forging Christmas wish lists and renegotiating our entire schedule to make sure we catch every last snowy special on television, we do what we can, when we can, and we're happier for it.

Tomorrow, my family will gather together and eat fourteen courses of fish and pasta, gab, drink and open presents, just as it has done for decades upon decades. At points, I'll be a pig in shit. At other points, I'll ask myself, "Is this really it?" But, when it's all over and I'm going through those post-holiday blues as January draws near, I'll reflect upon December and know that most of this year's top drawer memories happened in that month — not in March, not in July, and not even in October.

So crank up the jukebox while it's still chic to do so, drink some eggnog before it becomes old hat, and find your favorite DVDs that end on a shot of Santa's sleigh silhouetted in a night sky. Don't put off now what can be done next Christmas; a year is a long fucking time to wait.

Speaking of eggnog, yours truly has never actually tasted the stuff…until this morning. I don't have any real good excuse for this, because eggnog has always fascinated me. I guess the problem is that I've read enough eggnog recipes to know that its ingredients shock and appall me, but God damn it, the 2006 season needs its hallmark, and where nothing else will take the podium, I guess it's going to have to be me drinking eggnog for the very first time.

After adding enough cinnamon to mask even a cup full of a horse shit, I took a tentative sip and…hey now, it really isn't that bad! Kind of like liquid cake! We don't have any brandy in the house, but now I'm really itching to try the stuff the proper way, which is to say, the way by which I will become twice as gregarious and red-nosed.

The Advent Calendar is up to date. Happy SNT!

Heh, Merry Christmas, Matt. I hope it's as good as you've made it for us, you noble drunken elf.

I'm off to work to get mauled by frightened tourists and last-minute Hello Kitty shoppers. Gotta love Time Square on this hotter-than-most- Christmastime.

Matt's a braver person than I. I last drank it as a child and have no intention of ever repeating the experience.

Thanks for another good year Matt. I always look foreward to comming home from work, jerking off, and reading x-e in that order.

egg nog rocks. try some perishable stuff though, man. it's better. ill still be on the next couple days. xe is good stuff!! and non perishable

MARE! MARE! MARE! …After I typed that, I realized it could also be interpreted as the Latin word for sea… but I digress. Great pen-penultimate Advent Calendar episode.

Woo! Advent is amazing! Jukebox is amazing! I have cookies! Cookies have sugar! I have sugar! Wheee!

R.I.P. Claire. You were the best. I sometimes wish people were more prone to un-happy endings. "Good guys" lose, you don't get the girl, etc. etc. Once Ethan Hawke was asked what kind of endings he preferred: happy or sad. And he said "true" endings. I completely agree with him. Not that truth has anything necessarily to do with Playmobil Advent Calenders

My final GRE scores came yesterday so I sent out all my Ph.D. stuff! Now I just wait for recommendations to roll in…

There was nothing Christmas-y enough on for my sister or my liking, so we brought out some archived footage of us as little kids at Christmastime. It's weird seeing first-hand a moment by moment account of what I simply remember.

Matt - X-E will forever be a home for us jaded twenty-somethings who are still total saps for the holidays. Thanks so much!

I know I've said it a million times, but I was actually anxious when reading this years AC.

You're fucking brilliant!! Thanks again for another hysterical year. I love this fucking site!!

I'll be going out tonight, again, but I fully expect to post in a SNT. I may be completely hammered, but I will still post, so I apologize in advance.

Well, I'll definately be around on Christmas Eve and Christmas. I'll just say my cult demands it. My family will understand.

It's MUCH better if you make it yourself, and it's surprisingly easy. Add in a little pumpkin spice and some nutmeg and cinnamon, and nothing can compare. If you don't put alchohol in it, is it bad for you (with the raw eggs and all)?

Hello Matt! Advent Calander is genius once again this year, thanks for taking the time to do it again! You are a braver person than I, trying that eggnog. I have never tasted but I HAVE smelled it which is more than enough for me thanks.

Wow. Just damn. The calendar has been simply amazing! I do wonder, though - did Box lose his blazing eyeball abilities when he metamorphosed? I was kind of waiting for him to take someone out with a flaming glance or two.

Matt, I hope you have a fantabulous time with your family tonight! I'm curious…how many people do you get together with? I know you have a huge family; it must be an amazing scene.

Thank you so much for all you do to keep the spirit of Christmas alive, as well as all of the memories that define childhood…toys, food, cartoons, movies, and best of all - imagination. Even though I'm probably the oldest person here, I love reading everything…it takes me back to the time when my kids were young and the joy I had in watching them grow. And believe me, I spent many hours with them playing He-Man guys and putting together Lego sets and listening to their proud exploits in defeating the 'end guy' in the current video game.

I can't help but think that those of you who treasure your childhood are going to be excellent parents yourselves, because you haven't forgotten all those things that are important to kids. I really believe that's why my kids are so open with me and can talk to me about anything and everything - because I took the time to listen to them about what was important to them, they knew I would listen whenever they need to talk. Unfortunately, that's something their father never learned; to him, the chatter about Nintendo was a waste of time. So they stopped telling him….

Enough of this - time to go grocery shopping and hit Target one more time (gulp…wish me luck) and do the last-minute wrapping and cleaning.

Matt: Awesome advent calendar, as always. The only way it could be better is if 2002-Santa showed up to handle Xmas this year.
*raises EggBoglin* A toast to X-E! Here's to years of great Advent Calendars, and hopefully to years more of them!

at least your family is accepting of your cult. I'm worried about mine, now! They asked what x-e is and why I read it..and I tried explaining the playmobil and lego advent calendars. Then I tried explaining knacks and mare getting it on, a baby named box, james lipton and evil mare winninghams…

Happy Christmas to Matt and everyone else! I also finish with the "Christmas Carol" show tonight, and I so looking towards the after party!! Everyone have fun and be safe….
(I also posted this from my Wii; how much fun we've had this month!)

Merry Merry Christmas you all!
Now to spread seeds of panic!
I went to the Playmobile website and the only Advent calendars they have that Matt hasn't used yet are "Pretty pretty unicorns" and "Fighting Knights". Neither of which is Christmassy!
Oh no! What is to become of the countdown?!?
I wish Matt had taken a picture of 2006 Santa before he was burned, I like to compare how the Santas look each year. They are all different.
(don't worry, I'm sure they will have a new Christmassy advent calendar next year)

Matt and my fellow X-Er's-THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! You guys have made my x-mas season. No exaggeration, no joke. I know I've said it before, but I wanted to say it again. I love you guys and you saved my Christmas, my heart so didn't want to be in it this year. Merry, Merry, to you all! For those of you eating mass amounts of seafood tomorrow, eat some extra for me! Unless they're Smelts, never like the Smelts.

That being said, I am so in Special K's cult (because I say so), and will totally be around for Xmas Eve and the Day. As long as I have internet access. Hope all y'all have a great holiday.

Boy, Knacks sure has a knack for pulling out the good in Mares! 'Course, the new one was too darned pink and blonde to be evil for long! XD

I'll join Matt in saying Merry X-Emas, and Happy Harmonica to the weekend warriors.

wow — that was a good ac today. i'm so surprised that matt burned the new santa too, it was so nice! we got it at home this morning and its all sorts of fancy. a big upgrade from last year's (which we have turned into a pirate playmobile).

also, i don't know if its been said already, but since the justin timberlake performance of alvin and the chipmunks christmas song on SNL last week, i was kindof expecting someone to air the special again. that woulda been nice.

also, this is like my 5th post ever, in the 5 years or so that i've been reading x-e. inspired!

pffffffffffft. not be on X-E for x-mas eve/x-mas?!? i'll say it again, only this time with random capitals in it, pfffFFffFfFfFFfffft.

I can't believe you've never had eggnog until now. Eggnog is a huge part of my families tradition (we don't even put alcohol or cinnamon in it). At every thanksgiving/christmas gathering it's the drink of choice no matter what your age is. Everyone complains that it's only available at the end of the year and not year round.

Anyway, I love the advent calendar and I love this site. It's especially fitting because this year my family decided to just skip Christmas. That's right, no tree, no gatherings, no presents. We just decided that we didn't have time or didn't feel like it or were too busy traveling. This site is a reminder to how wonderful the Christmas spirit is, and how its the one day when I can wake up and be joyful if nothing else but because it's Christmas, dammit!

I am at a point in my life where nothing makes me happier than taking a nap and waking up to X-E goodness. Nothing. Merry Christmas, you wonderful old Buildings and Loans!

Nice job as usual w/ the Advent Calendar. Merry Christmas everyone! And have a Happy New Year!!!

Merry Christmas everyone! Great Advent Calendar Matt! Hope everyone gets what they want from Santa!

Count me in for being around Christmas Eve and Christmas day. We did all our traveling and partying and visiting families already, so the actual holiday is just spent chillaxing at home.

I'll be around…AC was great this year…Thanks again for all your hard work, Matt!

Hahaha, MareII totally wants to get all up on Knack's lever. I hope she's feelin' limber.

Nov.22nd was my first anniversary of coming to
X-E. This place has helped me in sad times this year, like when i moved to Florida temporarily and felt very sad because i was afraid X-E would havea diffrent feeling for me when i was not living in the garden state…i used to sit in the mosqito infested backyard of my friends house in Tallahassee last february and try desperatley to get the neighbors wi-fi on my psp so i could try and read any little bit of X-E i could find, to make myself not so homesick.

This place is my pop culture home away from home, and a place to reminisce about yesteryear, and I hope some day when i have kids this place will sill be around, so i can show them waht it was like when mommy was little.

Eggnog is indeed terrible for you, almost like drinking a cup of pure cholesterol, but I love it soooo much. I figure I gain 5 pounds every December from this substance alone. Everyone once in a while I like to do a test-taste of something, and will buy every possible version of a particular product, and did this with eggnog a couple of years ago. The verdict: the very best eggnog is from Southern Comfort. The original flavor in the black carton, not the vanilla spice flavor in the red carton. I think the key is that its actually the least sweet version of them all. Liquid cake, I like that analogy; I've always thought they tasted like melted milkshakes. Anyway, look for that black carton of Southern Comfort brand eggnog in the milk section of the market, hopefully they sell it near ya. Merry Christmas, Matt!

yes, Matt. THanks for all of your hardwork and dedication to us again this year. I may be a new poster, but I'm a long time reader. The work you do is evident in the calendar entries..so thanks for entertaining me and all of us:)

It's my birthday. Let's celebrate with an eggnog party. My favorite seasonal drink. My next birthday during a SNT doesn't happen for another seven years. Who knows what Matt will be doing then.

I got home from staying with a friend for the past few days, and totally received my Christmas present early. Looks like I still have internet here, which means a little elf paid the cable bill when I couldn't. Now I just have to figure out if I use what little money I have to pay two bills that really need to be paid, or buy my honorary nieces and nephew presents. I'm leaning toward getting the kids little presents at least. Giving is the reason for the season, and my credit is shot anyway.

I'll be around on the day of. Sorta. I'll be eating Chinese for part of it. Tomorrow, not so much. I'm getting my Jingle All The Way on. And then Christmas Eve with the grandparents. After dinner, though, count me in. Anybody have any ideas about what we should discuss then. A mini-symposium if you will.

It may be too early–perhaps best saved for New Year's SNT–but we could do our Best Of's. In any medium you prefer to discuss: movies, books, concerts, tv, games, albums, etc.

Fantastic ending! One can only wonder what will happen now! Hopefully the gang can move into Waiterbot's place once they clean out the rotting lego corpses.

I've been ludicrously busy for the last semester or so, and it's been months since I had the time to just sit down and read me some XE. Fortunately, something at the funeral dinner yesterday gave me food poisoning, and so I was too busy throwing up my toenails to go to the wedding today. Net result: a space in my schedule large enough to sit down and read the first twenty-three days of the advent calendar back-to-back. Brilliant as always, Matt. The animated sequences and live blog action were especially inspired. Can't wait to see how it all winds up. Merry Christmas, you knuckleheads.

This was my first year reading the advent calander and I greatly enjoyed it. I love looking forward to daily treats like that. Also thanks for the wonderful jukebox. I will be streaming it a plenty this weekend.

Merry Christmas, everyone! It's good to know that there's always a place to share Christmas feelings in an accepting setting such as this, even with strangers.

No, Santa gave it to him on the 8th. He made the call I'm referring to on the 17th

Alright, alright, I guess that's how Santa knew how to show up at the battle. fair enough.

Sorry for not answering you the other day. I got the Christas Story Red Rider BB gun from Eddies Trick Shop in Marietta, GA back in the 80's. It's just a Daisy spring bb gun but it does have a compass on the stock. Strangely, not a thing that tells time. I wish someone would tell Ralphie it's called a mother f**kin' watch!

I'll be popping in on Christmas eve and day, so I'll try to keep everyone's drunken asses in line. *glares around accusingly*

Just all you n00bs make sure to hold off on posting your "What I got for Christmas" until the annual Fallout post.

Im basically echoing what everyone else has been saying but i just want to say thanks again to matt and everyone else who comes on x-e to read and post and share things, x-e definitely has become a part of my christmas traditions now, all of you guys are the best and the coolest!!

Drunken? Who me? Never. Especially not on Christmas Eve! It's not like my bar is having their annual Christmas party tomorrow night or anything….stop glaring at me Mystie, I can't stand the judgement!

I won't be around tomorrow night, we're supposed to be eating dinner at the Hershey Hotel while watching my stepsister's stepchildren tear through several million presents that are meant to buy their love.

Jeez, I work all day and I miss 60 posts! But I do believe in Christmas Miracles…I'M NOT WORKING AT ALL TOMORROW!!!

And, like I posted last blog, click on the link for part 1 of the UNCUT MUPPET FAMILY CHRISTMAS!! And I mean Uncut…Part 2 has both the Fozzie/Snowman scene and the Muppet Babies home movie intact! (I've only seen these 2 parts so far)

Well, I'm definately feeling in the holiday spirit now. My colleagues at the grocery store today chipped in and bought me a nice new bike. I was totally stunned. I still don't know what to say. My best friend sent me a really cute collectable teddy bear in a knit poncho and a copy of "Muppet Family Christmas" that arrived today, too. I've never had people outside of my family be this nice to me before, not in a long time, anyway.

I've had a lot of fun with the Advent Calender this year, too. Glad to see Knacks finally got himself a woman. And Kuse has reason to be proud of his woman…go Mare! Way to put Claire in pieces!

Oh, and I'm working long hours tomorrow, but I should be around Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, too. I'm just going with my uncle, biological father, and stepsister to visit my uncle's daughter and her family a half-hour away.

Tomorrow night is the big Christmas Eve shindig with my side of the family. Fortunately/unfortunately, it doesn't start until around 7. That doesn't leave a lot of time to drink myself to death. Christmas itself will be spent with the woman's family, but on both days, I'll have ample hours to do what I really want to be doing: Sitting at home, either enjoying new gifts or saying goodbye to annual ones.

For those new to the site, the "Christmas Fallout" is a post I make every year after Christmas, usually on the 26th, with pictures of all the loot I acquired. Then it's everyone else's turn to talk up how good or shitty their loot was.

I know I'm getting a Wii with Zelda and at least one other game, so even if everything else is junk, I think it'll be a pretty merry Christmas. Looking forward to seeing how poorly the site loads on Wii's Internet browser!

YESSS!! CHRISTMAS IS HERE! Just got back from Day 1 (of 3) of the Yuletide season. E. Claire cleaned up.
Welcome back to Jedoc and Happy Birthday JLAJRC.
I have started my penance for not reading this years Advent Calender by going back to the beginning. That's right, yesterday and today I read the Unfinished 2002 Countdown and the 2003. The 2003 will always have a special place in my heart since it was my first, some of my contributions were there, and I liked that format of the 3 ring circus the most. Tomorrow, 2004 and 2005. And then this years on Christmas Day.

I've always been pro-Egg Nog BUT I have never had the alcoholic version. I am not sure if how widespread that is in the South. I've never known anyone to really serve egg nog in ANY form.

Jingle All The Way + A Charlie Brown Christmas + AC = I'm ready for Christmas. I think this is my 3rd year following the Advent Calendar… and it's still great. It's good to know there's a place like X-E to keep the spirit of childhood alive. The stuff on this site may not be considered "cool" to "cool people", but I love it.

Merry Christmas to Matt and all of you X-Entertainmenter…X-Eer…X-Entertainers? Have a good one.

And egg nog truly is amazing stuff. Congratulations on your first experience. The Advent Calender bunch should celebrate with it…

Ok, if I had a couple million dollars kicking around… the first thing I'd do is get the Advent Calendar animated in stop-motion Rankin/Bass style. It would be a holiday classic!

Hey, I've been a member of the X-E cult since September 2005, though I've never um, contributed anything. I was watching "It's A Wonderful Life" and reading the Advent Calendar, and well, I'd like to paraphrase Harry Bailey: To Matt, the richest man in town. It's impossible to ever tell how much your website means to me. Merry XE-Mas!!

Over here, it's about one hour and a half until Christmas eve. As usual, brilliant calendar… I just don't know how you plan on topping your climax when the big two five rolls in…

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you all have a wonderful holiday! Great job on the advent calendar, Matt. Thanks for another great XE year. I'll probably be around for the 24th and 25th. Everything has pretty much been taken care of, shopping, cooking, vistiting family, etc. So, I'm looking forward to the rest of the calendar.

Without any particular relevance to the above, I'll just say Merry Christmas, peoples. And I'll even go so far as to say Happy December 25, if you don't subscribe to the other holiday. Also I've never had eggnog.

Dec 24th AC is great stuff as always! I guess it is now offically Chirstmas eve, damn I gotta get to bed. I hope I'll get a chance to be here in the next few days, I have my family tomorrow and my husband's family on Christmas, then my family again on Boxing Day.

I love how we all come together and get all mushy durring Christmas, this is the best place to be for the holidays fo sho!

I think I post this every year, but your inclusion of "Domenick the Italian Christmas Donkey" on your jukebox and mentions of fish on Christmas eve always warms this wop's heart. (I also enjoyed the BNL, as a Canadian

It's been an above-average Christmas season for me and an above-average Advent adventure to boot. Amazin' stuff. If Matt is ever fired from Nick I'd hire him….if he minded being paid in slices of sourdough bread.

"It's that time! Christmas time is here! Everybody knows there's not a better time of year! Hear that sleigh! Santa's on his way! Hip hip hooray for Christmas Vacation!"

I agree withe the above post! And Matt, the site doesn't look bad at all on the Wii…

I think this year I feel the most Christmasy I've felt in years; working "Christmas Carol" and hearing all those songs for a month probably had something to do with it….I'm actually sad it'd over, but we had a great last night and it was a fun cast & crew/Christmas gathering afterwards….really nice way to spend the holiday month!

actually matt, i also agree. the site looks just like it looks on the pc when loaded on the wii. i actually thinkit looks alot better… alot better quality

Mandi: First of all, it's not my cult, I'm just a follower. haha And I think my parents have come to the conclusion that no cult that requires me to purchase junk food and toys can be all bad.

I think I speak for eveyone here when I say that this place and the advent calendar MAKES the holidays. Thanks Matt.

I tried eggnog for the first time today, too. I feel so close to you right now, Matt.

Merry Christmas to everyone. Now I have to go watch Fred Flintstone fill in for Santa Claus. Celebrating Christmas millions of years before the birth of Christ? Whaaaaaa??!!

I love your Empire Strikes Back references Matt. Today we had Christmas for my dog seeing as we’re not taking him with us on our travels. He, at the age of five fluffy years, knew the drill. He knew which present under the tree were his, he tore open the wrapping, grabbed the toy, and ran. He’s adorable, he received two stuffed animals. : ) Me and my parents are heading over to my sister’s after we drop the dog off at the doggy retreat. Gonna hang with my nephews and of course, brother-in-law. So I hope that ya’all get what you wanted tomorrow. And thank you matt, thank you for all the articles, blog entries, and most especially the advent calendar. Goodnight, and may god laugh. : )

Matt, once again, great AC. Another great frikkin' year of Christmas magic at X-E. (FUCK! Mista Snowman is rubbing off on me!!)

Tomorrow is the big day, and no better way to spend than with my family, and with our little (or rather large) X-E family.

Here's hoping everyone has a safe and peaceful Christmas, and thanks for providing me personally, with a great year of reading and laughs. Here's to many more!

Wow - is it just me, or has there been genuine drama in this years advent calendar? I can't tell if that's really impressive or if I'm taking it all too seriously

I just watched The Nightmare Before Christmas, and soon I'm gonna cook a turkey. Then tonight we're gonna watch A Christmas Story, which I'm ashamed to admit I've never seen before. I'm dead set on seeing it now after a commercial for it came on and my mom blurted out "Hey, your grandmother liked that movie!" My GRANDMOTHER saw A Christmas Story and I never did?! This is not right, not right at all.

PROGRESS REPORT: Working my way through the 2004 calendar. I'm on Dec. 15th.
I read all of that one but it's been awhile. I am soon to enter unknown territory of the 2005 and 2006 A.C.'s
And all the while, Dory's Tavern is being destroyed by Gremlins in the background…

Simply amazing, Matt.
Every year I think you've reached top, but next year you pull your best calendar. I'm in awe with Mare, Kuse and Knacks.
It's fucking Magical Christmas!!!

Matt — Fan-freakin'-tastic Advent Calendar. I can only imagine the amount of hours spent on the storyline and writing. Thanks so much for producing it. It's been a bright spot in the utterly crazy-ass BS parade that is the run-up to Christmas in my family.

Wallow in the Nog. Go to the liquor store and get the pre-mixed stuff with the whisky and the brandy and the rum.

Woo-hoo! Penultimate AC chapter! Mare II has the hots for EmoBoy! I need to find a Lego Santa to balance out my Good guy/Villain/Nondescript Cannon Fodder ratio in my meager pile of bricks. I mean, you can't do better than an actual saint in your ranks.

I'll be in and out of the X all afternoon and evening, as usual. It's time for the Annual Sexy X-E Xmas Eve All-Day Holiday Bruhaha and EggBoglin Social! Let's boogie!

Oh my God, I was reading your blog and I read the words hap hap happiest at the same time Clark W. Griswald was saying them on my TV downstairs. What are the odds of that?

Merrry Christmas, and thanks for a wonderful year full of nostalgia, and chilhood memories.

Merry Christmas all. I know my Christmas wouldnt have been nearly as Christmassy without X-E. Thank you Matt for all the work you do to keep this website well alive and kickin, you really do put a lot of cheer into a lot peoples lives. As corney as it sounds, its true. Happy Holidays everyone, and be safe!

Try it with freshly ground nutmeg next time! Big egg nog lover here. Made it myself for the first time this year, well worth it! Just be sure you cook it to avoid the dreaded salmonella! And get some exercise, but then you'd know that dealing with unhealthy food before!

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