On Today’s Show
December 24, 2019 9:35 amThe BBC did a heartwarming story on a man named Terrence who does tons of volunteer work. He also struggles with depression and loneliness, and doesn’t have a Christmas tree this year, so they decided to change that. They got together with a nearby college and surprised him with presents, a Christmas tree, and a choral group singing his favorite carol,
“Silent Night”. You can’t help but be moved when you see how touched he is by it all.
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An oncology nurse found out that her patient was Penn Pennington, a Nashville original guitar player since 1980, so she brought him her guitar and sang “O Holy Night” with him to try and lift his spirits after a tough treatment.
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ENTERTAINMENT
On Saturday, (Dec. 21,) Cam and her husband Adam Weaver welcomed their first child. She made the announcement via Instagram, with a post that read: “Breech at 39 weeks, a next-day c-section (ouch) & here we are… three of us now.” The couple named their newborn, Lucy Marvel.
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If you missed it the first time around, CMA Country Christmas will air again tonight, (Christmas Eve.) This year’s host Trisha Yearwood will be joined by an all-star cast of country artists. You can expect 2 hours of Christmas music by stars like Rascal Flatts, Lady Antebellum, Chris Young, Chris Janson, and Brett Young.
CMA Country Christmas airs tonight at 9 p.m. ET (Christmas Eve) on ABC.
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TODAY IS……………….
- “Christmas Eve”, a family gift-giving occasion in many countries.
- “Egg Nog Day”, celebrating the seasonal rum or brandy drink that has nothing good for you in it but sure tastes good. A coffee spiked with egg nog and brandy is called a ‘tom-tom’.
TOMORROW –
• “Christmas Day”, a holiday in at least 105 nations.
WEDNESDAY –
• “Boxing Day”, a legal holiday in Australia, Canada, Germany, New Zealand, and the UK, which takes its name from the old English tradition of boxing up gifts & food for the less fortunate.
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COUNTRY MUSIC NOTE
DECEMBER 24TH, 2010 Rascal Flatts were at #1 with “Why Wait” which became the group’s eleventh #1 hit.
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RANDOM REPORT
- The number one song on the Country charts at the end of the last decade was “Need You Now” by Lady Antebellum. The final number one two decades ago, in December of 1999, was “Breathe” by Faith Hill.
In 1989, it was “Who’s Lonely Now” by Highway 101. And in 1979, it was “Happy Birthday Darlin” by Conway Twitty.
- The dog who played Spuds MacKenzie in those Bud Light commercials in the ’80s was really a FEMALE. And her real name was Honey Tree Evil Eye.
- An inventor in Illinois and an inventor in Washington simultaneously invented the garage door opener in 1931, and neither of them knew about the other.
- “Girls Just Want to Have Fun”was written by a DUDE. A guy named Robert Hazard wrote it and recorded it in 1979 . . . but it didn’t become a hit until Cyndi Lauper covered it four years later.
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GOOD NEWS
When you’re flying for the holidays and packed into your seat back in coach, it’s totally natural to HATE all those lucky jerks up in first class. But here’s one of them who sounds like an exceedingly decent person . . .
Last week, a guy was getting ready to board a Virgin Atlantic flight from London to New York with his family when he started talking to an 88-year-old woman in the terminal.
We only know their first names are Jack and Violet. But they hit it off and really had a good talk. And apparently Jack mentioned he was up in first class.
Violet had always dreamed of sitting up front, but never had. So when they boarded the plane, he told her he wanted to SWITCH SEATS. And he sat in coach for their entire transatlantic flight.
Violet recently had a knee replacement. So the extra leg room was probably nice. Meanwhile, Jack sat in her seat right next to the bathrooms in coach.
A flight attendant posted photos on Facebook, including one of Violet sitting in his seat with a glass of wine, a slice of cake, and a sampling of fine cheeses in front of her.
The flight attendant said she’s worked hundreds of flights in her career, but they were her two favorite passengers ever.
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BIRTHDAYS
[45] Ryan Seacrest, TV host
CHRISTMAS DAY –
Singer Jimmy Buffett is 73; Movie actress Sissy Spacek (“Coal Miner’s Daughter”) is 70
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HOW TO TELL IF IT’S A COLD, FLU, OR ALLERGIES:
A few tips from health experts ….
✓ Colds and the flu are viral infections that usually bring fever, aches, and fatigue.
✓ Allergies do not come with a fever.
✓ If you’re sneezing and blowing your nose endlessly, it could be a cold or allergies, but a cold will leave after a week-to-10 days. Allergies linger.
✓ Allergies are not accompanied by pains, upset stomach, or exhaustion like the flu.
✓ Symptoms for allergies include ‘allergy shiners’, where blood vessels under eyes dilate, creating dark circles; and the ‘allergy salute’, whereby people constantly rub their nose.
✓ For colds, well, grandma was right. Chicken soup really is a good remedy, though doctors are not sure why.
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60-Second Breathing Trick for When the Holidays Are Driving You Nuts
You’ll probably hit your breaking point at least once over the holidays. Family, shopping, screaming kids. It’s all stressful. So when you think you’re about to LOSE IT, here’s a 60-second breathing trick you can try.
It works by calming down your nervous system and forcing you out of “fight or flight” mode. And there’s actual science behind this that proves it works. Here are the two steps you need to remember . . .
Step One: Breathe in through your nose. Then with your lips pursed, do 10 to 15 SHARP half-second exhales through your mouth.
You should make a “shhh” or “ffff” sound with each one, like the sound a boxer makes when they throw a jab. Push from your diaphragm, and flex your abs with each breath. It should almost feel like a light ab workout if you do it right.
Step Two: Close your eyes, and take a series of SLOW breaths. Breathe in deep through your nose and out through your mouth. But don’t let your shoulders move up and down with each breath. Let your stomach expand instead.
Do that a few times . . . try to slow your breathing down a little more with each breath . . . and you’re done.
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TUESDAY DECEMBER 24TH
TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS
[45] Ryan Seacrest, TV host
CHRISTMAS DAY –
Singer Jimmy Buffett is 73; Movie actress Sissy Spacek (“Coal Miner’s Daughter”) is 70
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- NHL
TOR 8 – CAR 6 MIN 3 – CGY 0 BOS 7 – WSH 3 TBL 6 – FLA 1 CBJ 3 – NYI 2 PHI 5 – NYR 1
OTT 3 – BUF 1 NSH 3 – ARI 2 MTL 6 – WPG 2 NJD 7 – CHI 1 STL 4 – LAK 1 VAN 4 – EDM 2
COL 7 – VGK 3
- FOX “A Christmas Story” Live (repeat)….ABC “Santa Claus is coming to town” and CMA Christmas and NBC “It’s A Wonderful Life”
- Two 11-year-old girls in Ottawa found a guy in his 60’s unconscious in a park, and he wasn’t breathing. So they ran and got help, and saved his life. Their names are Juliet Murphy and Darcy Power. They say they didn’t even know if the guy survived until later on
- Buddy Fitzpatrick He talks about when you fall down, young vs old. And how car horns should have different sounds to fit the situation at hand.
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MITCHELL TENPENNY CHOSE SOME OF HIS FAVORITE CHRISTMAS SONGS TO RECORD – (12/20/2019)
It was a good year for Mitchell Tenpenny. Among other things, he got his Opry debut in February, just days before his first ever ACM nomination was announced. Now he’s ready for the holidays and has even recorded a few Christmas songs. We asked him about how he chose each song and he told us this about “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas: [Yeah, “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” has always just been one of those melodies that kind of latched onto me as a kid. When I think of Christmas songs, it’s kind of always the song I’m humming in my head and so I just wanted to give it my version, but also a little kind of John Mayer kind of vibe. Slow it down and that’s kind of what we did.]
Mitchell will play the Grand Ole Opry on January 10
JUSTIN MOORE SAYS SANTA WORKS HARD AT HIS HOUSE – (12/20/2019)
Justin Moore and his wife Kate have four children. Three daughters and one son, all under the age of 10. He says Santa works too hard at his house He explains: [Probably my favorite part is Christmas morning when Santa Claus comes. My least favorite part is probably Christmas Eve when Santa Claus is working till 3:00 AM. I know how busy he must be. Naw, Christmas morning, when the kids are so excited and the whole bit. We have a tradition, Kate makes waffles every Christmas morning and so we have breakfast together. I just love being around family, you know, my parents and aunts and uncles and obviously my kids and wife and all that. Seems like everybody’s in a good mood around that time of the year. If it could only last throughout the year.]
Justin Moore – says that his 10-year-old daughter has an odd gift request for Christmas: Crutches. And it’s not like she needs them. Moore says: “It’s just the strangest thing I’ve ever heard of. It’s bizarre, right?”
ELI YOUNG BAND CHRISTMAS
Eli Young Band’s Mike Eli says he loves almost everything about Christmas. He and his wife, Kacey have two young children and they love glitter, the one thing he could do without. Mike explains: [For better or for worse, when glitter starts floating around, I kinda give a little eye roll to Christmas. Because that is the only thing that I don’t like about Christmas is glitter. I live in a house full of girls and they like glitter and that’s just one of those things that is a part of the holidays. So, they’re very nice and understanding sometimes and try to pull back the amount of glittery items that make their way into the house. But it’s funny because we get rid of the glitter, it takes six to seven months before you ever get rid of all the glitter, and then it’s back in November. So, there’s a lot of it. Ahhh, the holidays and glitter.]
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WHAT AN 8 YEAR OLD LUKE BRYAN GOT FOR CHRISTMAS
Luke Bryan told us recently that he and his family were going skiing for Christmas this year. He wanted the kids to have a white Christmas. We talked to Luke about pasts holidays and he told us of a very memorable gift he received, when he was 8 years old: [My favorite Christmas gift is definitely my first Honda 50 motorcycle that I got back in 1984. It was just an amazing gift to have under the tree, and I never will forget seeing that as I walked out.]
KEITH URBAN WILL BE TAKING HIS FAMILY TO THE BEACH FOR CHRISTMAS
On this Christmas holiday, you can bet you’ll find Keith Urban, his wife Nicole Kidman, and their two daughters Sunday and Faith, on an Australian beach. It’s an annual event in Keith’s family. We talked to him recently and asked – if he plans to carry out the tradition again this year. He told us this: [Yeah, we still love going to the beach at Christmas time, as long as we’re in Australia, because it’s like the Fourth of July. It’s huge. Everybody’s out. It feels very celebratory. It’s in the ‘90s. It’s crazy, but having grown up with that, it feels very natural to me. Albeit it, we still had all of the same Christmas songs, so we’re in like 90-degree heat with shorts and tank tops singing ‘Walking in a Winter Wonderland,’ and I remember getting Christmas cards of like Santa on a surfboard, so that probably explains a lot.] SOUNDCUE :33 (OC: that probably explains a lot)
FAST FACTS
Keith just released his first Christmas song, “I’ll Be Your Santa Tonight.”
After Christmas, Keith will be getting ready for his fourth headlining gig on New Year’s Eve in Nashville. It’s a free show.
Keith’s dad took him to the beach growing up. He passed away 4 years ago this month.
LITTLE BIG TOWN
Each member of Little Big Town has their own Christmas traditions that they share with each other. And Although Kimberly is the one known as the cook of the group. It was Karen that talked to us about spending time in the kitchen, making candy for Christmas… A candy that even Kimberly had never heard of… Potato Candy. Karen told us this: [Christmases at our house usually included making candy with my mother and my grandmother. We did everything from potato candy to chocolate dipped peanut butter (JIMI: “That all sounds amazing.”) and fudge. My mom’s fudge recipe is amazing.” KIMBERLY: “What is potato candy?” KAREN: “It does use a potato, but it’s rolled and it has peanut butter inside]
Little Big Town’s first show of 2020 will be January 16, in New York City.
Categorised in: Mornings
This post was written by Dave Palmer