Holiday happenings

The Post-Standard had a delightful post today about downtown Syracuse’s Christmas-pasts and invited readers to share their memories. It’s a bittersweet mix of nostalga and depressing reality of how far the city has fallen since those memorable times.

Sure, Syracuse could do a lot better economically, but I think the city still has something to offer people, especially SU students.

5 things to do in Syracuse during the Christmas season

1. Ice skating in Clinton Square
For $3 “admission” and $3 rentals, you can’t go wrong! The rink is actually quite large, covering the pond that is usually there any other time of the year. The square’s huge lighted Christmas tree and various light displays illuminate the landscape around the rink, as Christmas music hangs in the air. I had a great time; it wasn’t too crowded, the rentals were pretty good and the company was delightful.

2. Simmer down now
My mom always used to make a “simmer pot” during the winter, combining spices in a small pot on the stove and leaving it on simmer. Result: a house that smells just like Christmas. So drown out the smell of beer and laundry sheets with this seasonale scent!

CHRISTMAS FRAGRANCE SIMMERING POTPOURRI
5 to 6 cinnamon sticks, broken
1 tbsp. lemon peel
1 tbsp. orange peel
1/2 c. whole cloves
1 tbsp. nutmeg
1/4 c. whole allspice
1 tbsp. bay leaf pieces
2 slices dried apples, optional

Combine ingredients. Add water to simmer on stove top or in potpourri pot.
(from Cook.com)

3. The Christmas Story at the Landmark

The Landmark Theatre on South Salina is having a holiday movie series. Today they showed Jim Carrey’s The Grinch but next Sunday they’re showing the classic The Christmas Story. What is Christmas without leg lamps, “you’ll shoot your eye out” references and boys getting their tongues stuck to freezing metal poles? Incomplete. Don’t watch it on TBS like you do every year; go to the Landmark instead with a group of friends. $3

4. Lights on the Lake
Buckle up and drive around a two-mile stretch of road near Onondaga Lake to bear witness to an assortment of light displays. I’m going with a car-full tomorrow night. $6 if you go on Monday or Tuesday with a Wegman’s card; $8 otherwise. Open 5 to 10 nightly until Jan. 4.

5. Hang some mistletoe
The tenants that lived in my apartment last year must have been really into the holiday season because their mistletoe still hangs from the ceiling in the doorway to our living room. People have been avoiding it all year, especially during beer pong (a few guys have had a few close calls). Hang up some of that poisonous plant in common places and demand compliance with the tradition: you have to kiss! Take pictures of goofy occurrences and share them with us!