First thing's first: it's never too early. For what, you ask? Christmas music. Forget about Halloween; nobody has time for that. If you're from anywhere near Upstate New York, snow has already fallen. Temperatures have dropped. The Canada Geese have started to fly. Nature has already begun the transition from Fall to Winter, and that means that Christmas music must accompany it. But I don't want to cause any confusion here: you can listen to Christmas music in the middle of July. It's completely acceptable. I've done it. We've all done it; the time of the year doesn't matter as much as the feeling that you get when you hear it. And that feeling is one of comfort, warmth, coziness, and magic.
There's just something about Christmas music that puts you in a good mood. Or makes you a better person. Or makes life seem not as bad. I mean, for me, listening to "Last Christmas" by Wham! makes me ten times more productive when it's 2 a.m. and I'm writing a really great essay or way back in senior year when I was struggling through AP Chem homework with my sister.
Here are some of my favorites. Make yourself a mug of hot chocolate, curl up by the fireplace with your favorite book and your L.L. Bean slippers and your goldendoodle puppy like I assure you I will in exactly ten years, and have a listen.
1. "Last Christmas" by Wham!
2. "Same Old Lang Syne" by Dan Fogelberg
3. "Wonderful Christmastime" by Paul McCartney
4. "Christmas Wrapping" by The Waitresses
5. "Blue Christmas" by Elvis Presley
6. "Do They Know It's Christmas?" by Band Aid
7. "Christmas Eve / Sarajevo" by Trans-Siberian Orchestra
8. "The Christmas Song" by Nat King Cole
9. "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" by Brenda Lee
10. "Little Saint Nick" by the Beach Boys
11. "What Christmas Means to Me" by Stevie Wonder
12. "Feliz Navidad" by Jose Feliciano
13. "Christmastime is Here (Instrumental)" by Vince Guaraldi Trio
14. "Boots" by The Killers
15. "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" by Frank Sinatra
There you have it. As each of these songs comes to an end, you'll probably begin to hear the jingling of the bells on Santa's sleigh on your dorm roof. Or perhaps you'll smell the faint odor of peppermint in the air (unless it was just remnants of a compound you synthesized in orgo lab that got on your notebook). Or maybe you'll hear the crinkling of wrapping paper next door. Whatever the case, I hope these songs will help you get into the spirit of the holiday season quite quickly. After all, anticipating the holidays is the only way we can hope to find the motivation to push through these last few weeks of the semester.
