Christmas Links #8

Christmas Campaign To Provide Homeless Women With Hygiene Products:
"In the UK, homeless shelters are provided with funding for items like condoms and razors but not female hygiene products. Despite the UK having struck a deal with the EU to remove the luxury item tax in March, no change in taxation has taken effect. This means that for the thousands of homeless women in the UK, the cost of sanitary products could be at the expense of a meal."

A robin is living at Liverpool Cathedral after arriving in their Christmas tree:
"Liverpool Cathedral has an extra member of the congregation this Christmas - a robin redbreast nesting in their Christmas tree."

Here Comes the Waxworks Royal Family in Christmas Sweaters to Steal Your Soul:
"Madame Tussauds London has decked out their collection of alarming Windsor waxworks in Christmas sweaters, rendering the group somehow even more alarming."

History of "Happy Holidays":
"As something of a history nerd, I decided to investigate the use of the term "Happy Holidays" in US history, especially given some recent controversy over whether it is an appropriate term or not. To me, the answer is obvious: yes, it's appropriate, and so are other more specific greetings like "Merry Christmas". After all, there are a number of holidays celebrated by most Americans during this season (Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years') as well as those celebrated by sizable minorities such as Hanukkah and Kwanzaa."

The 2016 kottke.org Holiday Gift Guide:
"For the past few years, I’ve featured the season’s best gift guides from other sites and pulled out a few things from each that I think you might be interested in. 2016 has been a rough year for some of us, so getting in a festive mood might be asking too much. But my determination to give is off the charts this year, and if you’re feeling similarly, maybe this will help you. Let’s dig in."



Christmas light row as neighbour decries 'tacky' icicles:
"When Alice Hughes attached twinkling lights to her home she thought she would be injecting the street with festive cheer - but instead was accused of bringing down the neighbourhood."

The Gilmore Girls revival gets the opening title sequence we’ve been waiting for:
"ere’s plenty of debate to be had about the Gilmore Girls revival. Is Rory the worst? Why is the “g” in “girls” lowercase in the title? Has Jess somehow become the sanest person in Stars Hollow? But one truth universally acknowledged is that the four Netflix movies were missing the iconic Gilmore Girls theme song. Sung by Carole King and her daughter Louise Goffin, the “Where You Lead I Will Follow” title sequence was a backbone of the original series, and the revival just wasn’t the same without it. Thankfully, the YouTube channel Rose Tyler has fixed Netflix’s oversight and created an opening sequence fit for this new era of Gilmore Girls."

Story of vandalized Christmas decorations has happy ending:
"Sometimes, even the Grinch is sorry for what he did."

Cookie monsters: why your browsing history could mean rip-off prices:
"By collecting data on how desperate we are to buy and how much we can afford to pay, companies are finding sophisticated new ways to squeeze extra cash from unwitting shoppers."

Christmas Party Food:
"Delicious ideas for party nibbles and tipples to try this Christmas, from Bloomsbury."