16 School Days of Christmas

Lindsay Lohan makes her acting comeback with the holiday movie Falling For Christmas. Following her last film, The Canyons, Lohan took a nine-year hiatus from her acting career to focus on drug addiction recovery. Fans are feeling nostalgic and overjoyed as she steps back into the scene with her leading role in Falling for Christmas. The Netflix original film is a romantic comedy telling a formulaic...

Hallmark Channel holiday movies are hit or miss for a lot of people, but oftentimes the hate is not truly deserved despite the repetition and predictability of the plots. Despite the distaste that people have towards these “repetitive” movies, the easygoing Hallmark plotlines make the movies much more enjoyable to watch. When I watch a movie, I want to finish it with a happy ending to escape...

As the holidays approach, there’s no doubt that many people are experiencing a handful of different emotions. While some are filled with joy, others are finding it more challenging to get into the Christmas spirit. High schoolers transition from letting go of childhood to entering what will soon be the struggles brought by adulthood. Now, students are more awakened to the reality of holiday c...

Holidays are right around the corner, and with that comes presents, good food, and family – but this isn’t the case for everyone.  Homelessness is on the rise, and in Allegheny County alone, the homeless population has risen by 21 percent in the past year. Along with the hundreds of homeless men, women, and children throughout the county, there are countless families that can barely afford t...

Most artists who have released a Christmas album or two have redone songs such as “White Christmas” or “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas.” But very few artists have released a Christmas concept album with original music.  Trans-Siberian Orchestra fuses classical Christmas music with hard rock and heavy metal sounds. The band is composed of guitarists, vocalists, bassists, keybo...

Most people know the classic Christmas movie A Muppet Christmas Carol, but there are two other classic Jim Henson Christmas movies that few know, but are worth a watch.  Emmet Otter’s Jugband Christmas is a straight-to-TV Christmas special from 1977 that was produced by The Jim Henson Company. It is about a poor Otter mother and son who both have to take big risks to join a talent show to buy e...

Author Mary Jane Baker’s new holiday romance novel, Santa Maybe, is sure to get readers in a holiday mood. The novel follows Elodie Martin, owner of Martin’s Toy Kingdom, and her longtime rivalry with Callum Ashley, owner of Ashley’s Department Store. After Elodie’s grandfather suffers from a stroke, he can no longer act as Santa in her store’s Christmas grotto. Just when she thinks...

When it comes to Christmas classics, Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas clearly comes out as the most iconic piece of Christmas entertainment. But with all the different adaptations, varying from the book to film, which one is superior?  While some may say nothing can beat the original, the best version is clearly the 2000 movie version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. The film k...

Netflix’s new Italian holiday rom-com, I Hate Christmas, shows a classic holiday tale with a plot that would have looked right at home on the Hallmark Channel. The series follows Gianna, a single, 30-year-old nurse living in Venice, as she gets a better understanding of herself as well as the relationships surrounding her.   The plot starts at a family dinner, where viewers meet Gianna’s family, wh...

Families who have lost loved ones face very difficult struggles during the Christmas season. And holidays also can be complicated for families who cannot be together due to distance and financial issues. Kids with divorced parents, though, have their own struggles during the holidays. One such struggle is that every year there can be a negotiation between the parents about where Christmas Eve...

As a child of a Christian and Nigerian household, my Christmas traditions and festivities differ from most.  My parents immigrated from Nigeria to America in 2004 and never adapted to Western festive traditions. We have never decorated the house or put up Christmas lights. We had a tree for a year, but never felt the need to buy another one after that.  Unlike many American children, my sib...