So this is the New Year
And I have no resolutions
For self-assigned penance
For problems with easy solutions
— Ben Gibbard, Death Cab for Cutie

I’m dreaming of a white Christmas
With every Christmas card I write
May your days be merry and bright
And may all your Christmases be white

Made famous by Bing Crosby, the song’s lyrics were penned by Irving Berlin for the 1954 film classic White Christmas. Berlin was prolific, composing more than 3,000 songs within 17 film scores and 21 Broadway plays. While we can’t promise that Nashville will have a white Christmas, we CAN pledge to make the holidays green.

Come here sister ... Papa’s in the swing
He ain’t too hip ... about that new breed babe
He ain’t no drag
Papa’s got a brand new bag

Come here mama ... and dig this crazy scene
He’s not too fancy ... but his line is pretty clean
He ain’t no drag
Papa’s got a brand new bag
 

Well she got her daddy’s car
And she cruised through the hamburger stand now
Seems she forgot all about the library
Like she told her old man now
And with the radio blasting
Goes cruising just as fast as she can now

And she’ll have fun fun fun
’til her daddy takes the T-bird away
(fun fun fun ’til her daddy takes the T-bird away)

Ah, mercy, mercy me,
Ah, things ain’t what they used to be, no, no, no.
Where did all the blue skies go?
Poison is the wind that blows from the north and south and east.

I got back into listening to Marvin Gaye after watching an episode of “American Masters” on PBS of which he was the focus.
“His father was a cross-dressing preacher,” I mentioned to a friend.
    “Screw Marvin,” she replied. “I wanna see the episode about his daddy.”

It’s the end of the world as we know it.
It’s the end of the world as we know it.
It’s the end of the world as we know it,
and I feel fine.