“Christmas, my child, is love in action.
Every time we love, every time we give, it's Christmas.”
~~ Dale Evans Rogers
Hi all,
Before we get to the newsletter, I have a bit of a
"programming note." The next newsletter (478) is due on
Dec. 18th. I highly doubt I'll have the Christmas story
finished by then. So... there will be a special, extra
newsletter (479) going out on Christmas Day. I'll then
likely wait until Jan. 8th to send JABB 480. But there's
a chance I'll send it on New Year's Day because that would
line us up better for the Valentine's story. We'll see!
God bless,
Jenni
Christmas
Traditions Matching Game
See if you can match each
Dyeland/Friend/TBAA character with one of their favorite
Christmas traditions. Answers are at the very bottom of
the page. Please note that it's merely *one* of their
favorite traditions. I think there'd be a bit too much
duplication if I listed their very favorite.
1. Buying ugly Christmas sweaters from thrift stores for
Andrew! And then seeing him model them, of course!
2. Enjoying orange rolls on Christmas morning!
3.
Making Froot Loops garland with the kids. And snacking
on a few Loops as we go, naturally.
4. Sipping peppermint mochas, with a certain legendarily
named fellow, by the light of our Christmas tree.
5. Gulping down an endless supply of Dad's warm
butterbeer.
6. Making a new piece for everyone's nativities.
7. Getting to see all my precious grandbabies!
8. Leading our caroling sing-a-long... and trying to
tune out Miss Wings' contribution.
9. Watching Clay and the twins duel over who has the
best lights display at the farm.
10. Sitting on the patio apartment with my new bride and
admiring the lights of the city while Bing Crosby plays in the
background.
Answer key:
Andrew
JenniAnn Joshua
Kemara and Sean
Kylie Max
Monica Peter
Raquel Tess
And now another edition of...
In this fourth iteration, I've added a
few more items which I've put in bold and yellow at the
bottom of those items that already appeared in an earlier
version.
My
Public Service Announcement (borrowed
from JABB
425)
Do NOT play this with an alcoholic beverage. Well, I
spose you could if you're a slow reader, of age, and only
intend to look at a couple newsletters/stories.
Otherwise, I highly recommend cocoa. Although, I
spose, even with that you'd have to pace yourself.
Ditto for my beloved tea and coffee. Water... water
would be good. Just too bad that water doesn't have
caffeine. ;-) Whatever your chosen beverage, I
hope you enjoy it responsibly!
So here we go!
Take one sip if:
~ An angel other than Andrew is mentioned in a newsletter.
~ Hair of any variety is discussed/mentioned.
~ A newsletter just plain gets sappy.
~ Some holiday (real or made-up) is being celebrated.
~ A Dyelander says something swoony about Andrew.
~ God is mentioned.
~ A specific TBAA episode is mentioned or alluded to.
~ The newsletter is composed of any sort of list (top ten,
You Know You're a BLANK If..., this newsletter).
~ There's a dedication to John at the bottom of the
newsletter.
~ You found the page's easter egg!
~ The newsletter or story contains the phrase "God bless." ~ Jenni makes an excuse for
the lateness, brevity, or lack of proofing in the
newsletter/story.
~ Anything Irish is mentioned or portrayed in a story.
~ A fictional store, restaurant, etc. is mentioned (i.e.
St. Genesius' Community Theatre, Adrian's, Lily's Loot,
any of the places of worship.)
~ Food is mentioned/consumed.
~ A lil Friend or other child character says or does
something adorable.
~ A newsletter feature is one that recurs (i.e. this
drinking game, "Ask a JABB Co-Founder," "Ask Andrew,"
etc.)
Take
two sips if:
~ Dyeland serves as setting for a story.
~ A random character from some other TV show, movie, or book
that in no way involves John Dye is included.
~ Someone calls someone else by a nickname or term of
endearment (ex: "Angel Girl," "Sweet Boy," "My own")
~ Two or more characters have a touchy-feely, sappy moment.
~ The AOD Band gets a mention.
~ The newsletter/story has scenes set in Dyeland but NOT in
Willowveil Castle.
~
Adam comes off as the voice of reason.
~ Flannel is mentioned.
~ A character cries. (If multiple characters are
crying in the same scene, take one sip per crying
character.)
~ Any of the following are mentioned: any variation of Beauty
and the Beast, Harry Potter, Jesus Christ
Superstar.
~ A story has a flashback or flashforward.
~ Any character who resides in a Sibling City shows up. ~ A non-TBAA angel makes an
appearance.
~ Vincent acts all fatherly with someone.
~ A pet makes an appearance either in a story or a real
pet is mentioned in a newsletter.
~ There's a vampire!
Take
three sips if:
~ Andrew is narrating or authoring the newsletter.
~ JenniAnn twists her ring around her finger or Andrew drags
his hand through his hair.
~ A non-Andrew John Dye character is mentioned.
~ Someone brings up Andrew’s pocket watch or it's "shown."
~ A turkey is mentioned.
~ Andrew actually refers to Touched by an Angel or
any of its cast members.
~ Someone mistakenly thinks Andrew is in danger or is
leaving and panics.
~ The author passive aggressively takes a swipe at Tess,
Monica, or Rafael.
~ Anyone from the Bible makes an appearance. Eat some
Froot Loops if it's Joshua.
~ Violeta is hyper.
~ Adam provides any sort of meat-like substance.
~ Someone is confused by a character's relationship with
another character and/or completely misconstrues it.
~ A character is enjoying any of the following: red velvet
cake, coffee, chai, orange juice and/or ginger ale.
~ Any portion of Ruth 1 is recited. ~ Someone starts waxing poetic
about anam caras.
~ Andrew and JenniAnn share a dance. Actually,
make that any couple shares a dance. Be sure to
add an extra sip if it's Kemara and Sean performing
Irish dance.
~ Violeta gets upset or weepy.
~ A saint is featured or mentioned.
~ A character alludes to Andrew's breakdown.
~ Someone has a dream/nightmare or talks about one they
had.
Take
four sips if:
~ Any adult character's parental unit(s) excepting
Father/Jacob make an appearance.
~ Andrew watches or reads something in the company of
Dyeland characters.
~ A demon shows up.
~ The newsletter/story looks to be over 8 pages long.
~ Characters are playing football or Andrewopoly.
~ The green shirt or white shirt pictures are brought up.
~ Anyone mentions or alludes to the "three week promise."
~ The newsletter or story is, at least in part, about an
actual social issue. ~ A pregnancy or adoption is
announced.
~ Someone gets married, engaged, or has a blessing
ceremony.
~ Joshua shows his scars to someone.
~ The ol' red caddy makes an appearance.
~ Joshua's true identity is revealed to someone.
(Exception: Take only one sip per person if you're
reading "The Carpenter," "The King," or "Chrysalis"
which is the upcoming trafficking story.
Otherwise, you won't be feeling well!)
~ The cure for vampirism is mentioned.
!!!!!
You
have clearly disregarded my sage advice at the start if any
of the following are happening:
~ Joshua is trying to mount a stage version of The Life
of Brian.
~ Violeta is voicing her utter dislike for one Hugh Jackman.
~ Andrew and JenniAnn split up and the latter really does
sue the former for reckless abandonment of a human.
~ Belle is sporting a lovely yellow dress and waltzing with
a hairy dude. (Actually, you may have just started
watching Disney's Beauty and the Beast in that
case... And, ha, now you get to take two sips!)
~ Adam has opened up a butcher's shop which serves up actual
meat...
~ The gang decides to leave Dyeland and move to Poughkeepsie
because they like how it sounds. ~ Dyeland passes a bill banning the
consumption of caffeine.
~ The Friends have a horrid disagreement and split St.
Genesius' in half. Opponents aren't allowed to
cross to the other side. Plays and musicals end up
with really bizarre staging.
~ Biff, the missing apostle, shows up. (giggle...
I couldn't resist a good Lamb reference.)
This
newsletter is dedicated to John Dye for giving me so
many, many reasons to drink caffeinated beverages!
(Photo Credits: The photograph used on this page
is from Touched by an Angel and owned by CBS
Productions, Caroline Productions, and Moon Water
Productions. It is not being used to seek
profit.)