holiday season

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Holiday Sales Takeaway: 'The Consumer Showed Up'

Sales were up 3.1% in November and December

(Newser) - The holiday shopping season is in the books, and retailers will likely be relieved, the New York Times reports. Retail sales were up 3.1% compared to last year between Nov. 1 and Dec. 24, according to stats released by Mastercard SpendingPulse. "This holiday season, the consumer showed up,...

This Is America's Most Christmas-y City

Atlanta is No. 1 on WalletHub's list of where the spirit of the season shines, affordably

(Newser) - Looking to get your Yule on? WalletHub has sought out the cities across the US where celebrating Christmas doesn't have to break the bank. The site looked at 100 of the nation's largest cities, tapping into more than two dozen metrics in five main categories: traditions and fun,...

Online Shoppers, Today Is Your Big Day

With Black Friday, it's on to Cyber Monday, wrapping up 5-day Cyber Week for holiday shopping

(Newser) - Consumers are scouring the internet for online deals as they begin to cap off the five-day post-Thanksgiving shopping bonanza with Cyber Monday. Even though e-commerce is now part and parcel of our everyday lives and much of the holiday shopping season, Cyber Monday—a term coined back in 2005 by...

Here Are the Most Festive US Cities
Here Are the Most
Festive US Cities

Here Are the Most Festive US Cities

New York tops LawnStarter's list

(Newser) - Do you don your party hat on Dec. 1 and not take it off till the new year? You might want to seek out cities where you'll find like-minded festive souls. LawnStarter gathered public data from 200 of the nation's largest cities to see where those in a...

Kraft: Skip the Holiday Cheesecake, We'll Give You $20

There may be a silver lining for your wallet amid our national cream cheese shortage

(Newser) - First it came for our bagels . Now, our Christmas cheesecake. Thanks to a cream cheese shortage around the nation, the holiday dessert staple may be scarce this season, but Kraft is trying to put a positive spin on things with its newest offer. CNN Business reports the company, known for...

These US Cities Have the Most, Least Holiday Spirit

New York City is the most festive of all, while Enterprise, Nev., is a bit of a Grinch

(Newser) - With 2022 almost upon us, it's the time of year when we wind down and kick back, which often includes a fair bit of festivities. LawnStarter wanted to know which places boast the most spirit of the season, so the site looked at the 200 largest cities in the...

Barely Anyone Goes to State Dept.'s Indoor Holiday Party

More than 900 were reportedly invited

(Newser) - Perhaps America's appetite for attending indoor parties during a pandemic is waning? The Washington Post reports an annual State Department holiday party that was to be hosted by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his wife had anemic turnout on Tuesday. Of the 900-plus guests invited, about 70 RSVP'...

Bad News: The 'Clauses' Have COVID
Bad News:
The 'Clauses'
Have COVID

Bad News: The 'Clauses' Have COVID

Santa at Georgia parade and his 'wife' tested positive, may have exposed dozens of kids

(Newser) - You might want to leave some Purell out with the milk and cookies and go to bed wearing your mask on Christmas Eve, because Santa's got COVID. Well, not the real Santa, but the actor who played him at two holiday events in Ludowici, Ga., as well as the...

Amid COVID and the Holidays, a 'Profound' Move by 'Fierce Rivals'

UPS, FedEx are teaming up for a COVID vaccine 'shipathon' during holiday shopping season

(Newser) - With people hunkered down at home during the pandemic and doing even more of their holiday shopping than usual online, delivery companies like UPS and FedEx are already facing unprecedented shipping demands over the next few weeks. Now, what Axios calls another "heavy lift" has been added to that...

White House Plans Parties Amid Warnings to Hunker Down

Melania Trump will host 'holiday reception,' with other parties to follow

(Newser) - Health officials have been issuing warnings against traveling and gathering for the holidays in the midst of a coronavirus surge across the US, but 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue doesn't seem fazed by the cautionary advice. Despite the White House's own issues with COVID-19 after an indoor election night party...

Got $5K at Your Disposal? This Doll Can Be Yours

Three of these American Girl dolls are available, decked out in 5,000 Swarovski crystals and beads

(Newser) - Don't know what to get for the girl who has everything? How about a doll decked out in thousands of dollars worth of bling? If you've got $5,000 lying around and can make arrangements with an American Girl flagship store in Los Angeles, New York, or Chicago,...

Popular Holiday Song Cut in #MeToo Era

Cleveland's WDOK says 'Baby, It's Cold Outside' is 'inappropriate'

(Newser) - A Cleveland radio station says it has stopped playing "Baby, It's Cold Outside" after listeners said the song heard on countless holiday playlists is inappropriate. They're certainly not the first to question the song's undertones and criticize the duet, in which one singer tries to persuade...

Sub Spoils Santa (and Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy) for First-Graders

Letter sent home to NJ parents so they can bring back 'childhood innocence of the holiday season'

(Newser) - The "childhood innocence of the holiday season" has been snatched away from a bunch of elementary school students, a New Jersey principal laments—and it's all because of a substitute teacher gone rogue. Not since the Elf Foreman told Hermey that elves couldn't be dentists has there...

Guy Grumpy Over Christmas Greeting Thrown Off Plane

Would-be flier didn't like being wished 'merry Christmas'

(Newser) - You may not like it when people wish you "Merry Christmas," but if you're traveling today, you may want to try not to lose your temper over it. One man in New York couldn't quite do that Tuesday, and he got tossed off a plane as...

Today Will Be Busiest Day in UPS History

Shipping firms say there will be no repeat of last year's chaos

(Newser) - After last year's debacle left a lot of people without presents on Christmas Day, UPS and FedEx say they've spent a lot of time and money making sure there is no repeat this year. For UPS, today will be the busiest day in its history, with 34 million...

Holiday Deliveries Kept on Track by ... Weather Nerds?

Corporate meteorologists are 'secret weapon' during high shipping season

(Newser) - Santa had Rudolph's red nose to get him through the winter storm so he could deliver our holiday packages; we have corporate meteorologists. They're what the Washington Post calls "the secret weapon" of shipping companies trying to cash in during the hectic holiday season: "a motley...

Ugly Christmas Sweaters Are Making People Rich

Demand for festive garb shows no sign of slowing

(Newser) - It's time to raid your grandma's closet for all those bauble-covered holiday jumpers, because ugly Christmas sweaters are the coolest thing in festive fashion—and a booming business. Not only do many retailers carry the hideous getups—sometimes with a hefty price tag—the sweaters have their own...

Why Christmas Should Be on January 25
 Why Christmas 
 Should Be on 
 January 25 
OPINION

Why Christmas Should Be on January 25

It gives us more time, less stress: Erin Gloria Ryan

(Newser) - Face it: Nobody likes the end of the year. You spend a ton of money on gifts and travel, plus you have to shove so many Christmas activities into the few weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas, you barely get to enjoy any of them. Which is why, on Jezebel , Erin...

Fed-Up Lady Calls Cops on Bell Ringer
 Fed-Up Lady 
 Calls Cops on 
 Bell Ringer 
...happy holidays?

Fed-Up Lady Calls Cops on Bell Ringer

Sarah Hamilton-Parker says Salvation Army ringers violate noise ordinance

(Newser) - Sarah Hamilton-Parker is sick of the Salvation Army bell ringers that set up shop outside the New Hampshire store where she works—so this year, she called the cops on the very first day of bell ringing. “I listen to this for 200 hours a year,” she tells...

Hot Christmas Gifts: Ferrari, $45K Ping-Pong Table
Hot Christmas Gifts: Ferrari, $45K Ping-Pong Table
NEIMAN MARCUS LIST

Hot Christmas Gifts: Ferrari, $45K Ping-Pong Table

Fantasy gifts for 2011 unveiled in 'Christmas Book'

(Newser) - It’s that time of year again: time for Neiman Marcus to say, “Recession? What recession?” and urge you to purchase a $250,000 mahogany speedboat for your beloved this Christmas. Yes, the Christmas Book was unveiled yesterday. To really get into the holiday spirit, read on for the...

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