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I had a lovely Christmas with family with the usual eating, drinking, and napping. Christmas Eve, we went to my Aunty Carolyn's house. We gather around the tree to sing carols as she honors her husband's Danish traditions and lights real candles on her real tree. From what I understand, there's only been one minor fire in the 25 or so years they've done this party. I wore what was essentially a fancier version of one of my "uniforms" for work. Cardigan - Nordstrom Belt - Buffalo... Read Full Story

The cat in this vintage Christmas card is kind of terrifying, but he reminds me of my cat with his red bow. Merry Christmas! Read Full Story

I love, love, love Christmas. And the music of the season is a big part of what I enjoy; so much so that I recently wrote an essay for The Frisky about it. I'm well aware that people cover lots of the same songs--I have seven versions of "Jingle Bells" on my iPod, for God's sake--but I always love seeing what creative approaches to the standards people come up with. And while it seems like every pop sensation does a Christmas album, I love the more classic sounds of the season. New-ish... Read Full Story

I'm having a holiday housewarming this weekend (never mind that I moved a while ago ). The guest list has gotten a little out of hand, so I have a feeling this is what my apartment will look like, complete with terrified cat perched above the fray: Read Full Story

I had every intention of getting this up on Friday (see: Photo Friday above) but I've been both sick and slow so here it is, Photo Friday on Monday. Anywho, The Boy and I headed to the Making Smiles Bright event, hosted in the Etsy Labs in Brooklyn. The good people at Etsy partnered with Magnolia Photobooth and let people come take photo booth photos with holiday backgrounds. For $5! We dressed up for the Twin Peaks set, thinking we were only allowed to do one. I paired my 1960s plaid... Read Full Story

It's only early December and already I've been beset by a couple colds. This cold is particularly nasty, complete with chills, body aches, coughing, sneezing, nausea, a low-grade fever and a sore throat. I'm toughing it out, though, and entertaining myself by looking at old medicine ads (like this Vicks one! ) when I'm not knitting and watching Marilyn Monroe movies. (1949) I don't want to put Ben-Gay on my forehead (1948) I especially love the recurring theme in the Pepto... Read Full Story

Tips from former stripteaser June St. Clair. "Clumsy house frau!" "Elegant and sexy, like so. If you don't know how to undress properly, your husband will leave you!" More tips and photos from the Allen Gilbert School of Undressing, courtesy of How to Be a Retronaut and LIFE magazine . Read Full Story

Just before Thanksgiving, The Boy and I spent a quiet night at home. It was my turn to pick a movie and I settled on a documentary I'd wanted to see for a long time, called Paris is Burning. A classic documentary about the birth of voguing , I expected amazing dancing and flashy costumes. I got plenty of that plus more; it brought me close to tears. Paris is Burning focuses on the ball scene in New York. Balls are events where gay and transgender men, originally just black and Latino, came... Read Full Story

I ate an ungodly amount of food yesterday, as is the custom. I swear I'm still stuffed from yesterday, both with food and nostalgia. There's no time like the holidays to look back and feel cozy. We usually spend Thanksgiving with my aunt but my mom cooks a bit. Here's her really old recipe box: This box holds magical secrets, some of which I copied into a notebook this afternoon. I even found my great-grandmother's recipe for melt-in-your mouth rolls printed on a tiny sheet of paper. With a... Read Full Story

Just in case you were wondering what presidents of old ate for Thanksgiving, the White House Cookbook , first published in 1887, lays it out very clearly. Including instructions for removing the guts and feathers from a turkey. Thanks to the good people at Gourmet , we have the full menu from Grover Cleveland's Thanksgiving in 1887 Oysters on Half Shell Cream of Chicken Soup Fried Smelts, Sauce Tartare Roast Turkey, Cranberry Sauce Mashed Potatoes, Baked Squash Boiled Onions, Parsnip... Read Full Story