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DW
Manger square, the area surrounding the Church of Nativity, where Christians believe Jesus Christ was born, is usually bustling and local businesses do their best trade of the year. But this week they are reflecting on how to turn around a stagnant economy. One that hasn't been helped by the recent snow storm - the largest in the region since 1953.An oversized artificial Christmas tree, around 55 feet (16.7 meters), that was made in China stands beside the Church of Nativity, covered in shiny red baubles with a large metal star at its top. The decorated tree is just steps away from the Omar Mosque.
Nabil Giacaman, 30, a Christian, helps his father Issa in the family shop, Christmas House, which sells holiday-themed ornaments and nativity scenes carved from local olive wood.He said local businesses are doing well, despite the setback posed when the municipality set up an outdoor Christmas market directly outside their shops, taking business away.
Reuters
U.S. consumers shopped less on the final weekend before Christmas despite deeper discounts, the latest sign of how difficult a season this is turning out to be for retailers.Shoppers also showed signs they will do more of their spending after December 25 than they did in the same period last year in the hopes of snagging even more deals.
Analytics firm RetailNext estimated on Sunday that U.S. retail sales fell by a mid-single-digit percentage at brick-and-mortar stores on Friday and Saturday, two of the four most important shopping days of the season, compared with the same days last year.
That does not include online sales, which have been strong.
The number of visits to stores fell 7 percent on Friday and Saturday, RetailNext said.
"Retailers recognize that consumers will wait as long as they need to," said Charles O'Shea, senior analyst at Moody's Investors Service.
Only two-thirds of Americans are all or almost finished with their Christmas shopping, according to a survey by consumer research firm America's Research Group and Inmar.
NPR
You might not expect "Santa's Helper" to be a career-altering gig, but for David Sedaris, it changed everything. The writer and humorist spent a season working at Macy's as a department store elf. He described his short tenure as Crumpet the Elf in "The Santaland Diaries," an essay that he read on Morning Edition in 1992.Instantly, a classic was born. Sedaris' reading has become an NPR holiday tradition. Click the "Listen" link above to hear Sedaris read his tale.
NPR
If you're like me, you'll be spending Christmas in the traditional manner of atheist Jews married to atheist Christians hosting their jet-lagged Australian in-laws while raising a 3-year-old who likes to bake: by making vegan mince pies and trying to squeeze in some work here and there.OK, so none of you are like me.
But if I did celebrate Christmas, I would probably be tempted to geek it up a bit. So, with that in mind, here are three ideas for a scientifically-informed Christmas.
First, are you tired of the standard recital of "'Twas the night before Christmas?" Spice up your Christmas Eve with this creative version by Josh Rosenau and Glenn Branch of the National Center for Science Education, which commemorates the 8th anniversary of the Kitzmiller v. Dover ruling that established the unconstitutionality of teaching Intelligent Design in public schools:
New York Times
It might take a miracle from the North Pole for video game fans to get their wish this season.New game consoles from Sony and Microsoft are sold out in many stores, with Sony’s less expensive PlayStation 4 proving to be especially difficult for shoppers to find. The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One had stronger sales during their first two weeks on the market — more than two million each — than any previous game console, according to DFC Intelligence, a game research firm in San Diego.