The daily digest of Twin Cities culture | Secrets of the City

I'm not a big fan of the Big Three: Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa.

I believe in the power of redemptive music such as Rock, Rap, Reggae and the Rach 3. Because it is Christmas today, I am thinking first and foremost about Rock and Roll.  Jesus the man, the myth, the Messiah was a rebel after all. He also truly cast his lot with the people in the shadows.

How can anyone expect to experience the requisite peace on Earth and goodwill necessary to truly get into the holiday spirit when even Jolly Old Saint Nick is affected by our economic doldrums and growing increasingly frustrated with man’s lack of childlike innocence and faith. And can anyone blame him? Man’s faith in his fellow man has been shaken to its very firmaments in this, our season of discontent. The auto industry, once America’s pride and joy, is now the unemployable uncle passed out at the family holiday party in a pool of eggnog and urine.

The Bedlam Theatre has created a piece of dinner theater for their Christmas show, which they have named The Turducken, after a rather absurd holiday invention that consists of a de-boned turkey stuffed with a de-boned duck, which, in turn, is stuffed with a small de-boned chicken, all of which is then filled with stuffing and sometimes sausage. Sometimes this whole monstrosity of bird meat is then deep fried.

It is well known that Nick Mason (of Pink Floyd fame) is an avid automobile collector. He has a book that is available in England with a CD of the best engine note soundtracks called Into The Red (for redline, of course.) Check it our here for a gift. 

For the past eight winters, I've sold Christmas trees in the Twin Cities.  Shopping for a Christmas tree is universally regarded as a joyous yuletide experience.  But selling Christmas trees can be a brutal and sometimes sordid job.  Here is an inside look at life on the Christmas tree lot.

According to actor and storyteller Kevin Kling, Michael Sommers of the Open Eye Figure Theatre always wanted to be the devil.

Kling, looking gnomish in a green winter coat that seems military surplus, a salt-and-pepper beard, and a fur cap, is talking about The Holiday Pageant, the Open eye's annual Christmas show, in which Sommer's actually plays the devil.

 'Tis the season again.  Atheists, free thinkers, and other assorted non-Christians purposely sit out the most over-blown religious holiday of the year.  Some are passionate in their non-participation; others simply watch the procession from the sidelines.  While some have pointed out the incongruity of an ostensibly secular government proclaiming Christ's birth a national holiday, others have countered that such observations constitute a war on Christmas.  When we consider the drain on the environment and checkbook that is Christmas, coupled with the overt religiou

Here at Secrets of the City and MNSpeak, we thrive on the hustle and bustle of the holiday season. We love to feast and be merry with our friends and families...and to exchange cool presents, which is often easier in theory than in practice - especially with all that merriment. But gifts happen, so we prepare! Think of this guide as your brainstorming jump-start: gift ideas, tips for fun shopping efficiencies (oh yeah), and thoughts on how to make your holiday season sparkle in a creative and original way.