•A Dash of Cinnamon, A Pinch of the Past, A Smidgen of the Future
A Dash of Cinnamon, A Pinch of the Past, A Smidgen of the Future
by: Kristin Johnson
Close your eyes and remember December, the smell of cinnamon in your mother's or grandmother's kitchen and the warm scent of dough baking in the oven. Imagine opening the oven door and, with assistance, taking out the heated cookie sheet. Devour the cookies, small works of art, with your eyes: Fudge Brownies, Gingerbread, Nut Rolls, Painted Cookies, Sugar Cookies... With each bite, taste your childhood and...
•I Just Love It!
I Just Love It!
by: Kristin Johnson
You know the scenario. You're sitting at the family Christmas gathering and your ten-year-old opens one of Aunt Martha's itchy homemade sweaters. Or Uncle Bobby, who's been swearing to lose twenty pounds for years, opens an exercise cycle. Of course, if Uncle Bobby follows the politeness rule, he'll say, "Thank you, it's just what I wanted." (Then he'll conveniently "forget" about it in the basement or storage closet.) your ten-year-old may not be as...
•Let's NOT Talk Turkey
Let's NOT Talk Turkey
by: Kristin Johnson
The carving. The leftovers. The endless stuffing. Actually, you love the stuffing, cranberries and turkey trimmings. However, it's been seven years and you know your family will throw the turkey out the window if they have to eat the bird one more Christmas (and never mind the lectures about starving children in Ethiopia---or better yet, send them the turkey if you can get it through security.)
The Pilgrims and your third-grade teacher started...
•Low on Cash for Christmas? Try Gifts in a Jar
Low on Cash for Christmas? Try Gifts in a Jar
by: Kristin Johnson
Time is money, and right now you don't have either the time or the money to answer the call of the shopping mall at Christmas. The only way you can show your friends love, peace on earth, goodwill towards men is by shopping at Macy's, so you think.
It's a safe bet that the Three Kings didn't buy the gold, frankincense and myrrh given to Jesus Christ in the manger from Macy's or Pottery Barn.
This year you, too, can give...
•Real Women Love Martha
Real Women Love Martha
by: Kristin Johnson
Martha Stewart will make sugar cookies and a whopping pitcher of lemonade out of lemons after she’s finished serving her sentence at “Camp Cupcake” and house arrest.
Why?
Let’s look beyond the “she said/she didn’t say” particulars.
Savemartha.com, Marthatalks.com, and other Web sites indicate that Ms. Stewart is not the most hated woman in America.
Why?
Despite all the jokes about Martha passed on the Internet and by Jay Leno/Conan...
•REVIEW: TV Critic Reviews… “Higglytown Heroes”
REVIEW: TV Critic Reviews… “Higglytown Heroes”
by: Kristin Johnson
As aunt of a preschooler and an aspiring voiceover actress (I knew all those hours of watching Bugs Bunny would come in handy), I know all the kids’ shows as well as every kids’ DVD out there. My TV Critic column will be a regular family-fare guide to Kids’ TV.
In my opinion, there’s no better way celebrities can recoup their outrageous salaries than entertaining and sometimes educating kids. And They Might Be Giants get...
•Taking Back Christmas
Taking Back Christmas
by: Kristin Johnson
John Grisham wrote a book called SKIPPING CHRISTMAS. Amazon.com reports: “John Grisham turns a satirical eye on the overblown ritual of the festive holiday season, and the result is Skipping Christmas, a modest but funny novel about the tyranny of December 25. Grisham's story revolves around a typical middle-aged American couple, Luther and Nora Krank. On the first Sunday after Thanksgiving they wave their daughter Blair off to Peru to work for the...
•Use H-O-L-L-Y to Beat Christmas Cooking Stress
Use H-O-L-L-Y to Beat Christmas Cooking Stress
by: Kristin Johnson
What does holly, that untidy traditional greenery you just have to festoon your house with every year, have to do with not tearing your hair out before it's even Thanksgiving? Plenty. You can use H-O-L-L-Y to help you get organized.
1. H: Help
How many times have you tried to do the perfect turkey all by yourself just so your mother-in-law would be impressed? Here's a reality check: (a) If your mother-in-law is any kind...
•“Christmas For One: Mental Health Over the Holidays"
“Christmas For One: Mental Health Over the Holidays"
by: Kristin Johnson
My dear friend, poet Dessa Byrd Reed, often spends holidays alone as a widow. However, she doesn’t see this, as many people often do, as a depressing circumstance. In a November 2000 POETIC VOICES interview, she said, “Because I am single and live alone, I eat out a lot. I love to talk to strangers. That's one of my favorite things. I go out for breakfast and talk to people.”
Another talented writer, Leslie...
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