I realize I’m going to have to do something like Sandy and put this blog on hiatus if I’m ever going to be ready for Christmas in time. I’m also going to try my best not to watch the news.
We’ve had several more terrific video selections from BLY readers. I’ll post a few more here for your viewing pleasure. Thanks to everyone for your submissions.
Bec has recommended David Hobson’s Holy City:
* * * *
In the Bleak Midwinter was suggested by Batb:
* * * *
Linda recommends Tom Jackson’s version of The Huron Carol:
* * * *
This one was also suggested by Batb and came from a terrific site dedicated to Christmas nostalgia – Big Balls of Holly:
My apologies to anyone whose submission I missed.
Have a very Merry Christmas and we’ll see you back here again sometime before the New Year.
* * * *
Update: Christmas Greetings from our Prime Minister Stephen Harper (H/T Darryl Wolk):
* * * *
R.I.P. Lt. Andrew Nuttall
Merry Christmas all!
There is only one Christmas song that can express our reaction to this post, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUyuGFoiWJ0
Swift – Too funny!! Merry Christmas.
I wish each and everyone a very Blessed and Merry Christmas!
God Bless you all!
Here’s one of my favourites:
Daniel O’Donnell “Be Not Afraid”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37UTH2-Vb_8
Joanne, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you and your family – and, especially, your grandson!!
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all the bloggers and posters at bluelikeyou!!
The intelligence, wit, humour, insight, valuable information and breaking news provided by BLY regulars is outstanding!! You are the “real” Canadians!!
And all of this is because of one hard-working, intelligent individual: Joanne!! Thank you, Joanne, for this blog and all the time and effort you have expended for so long!! You have shown that “One Person Can Make A Difference”!!
MERRY CHRISTMAS ONE AND ALL!
Merry Christmas Joanne and everybody . Hey, did you ever see Peter Sellers in the movie
“The Party ” . In the beginning of it he was playing a bugler that was shot but wouldn’t die . Every time they’d try to carry on he’d half sit up and blast another note . Anyways peace on earth and all that . Relax Joanne , we’ll all be here after Christmas .
God bless everyone at BLY at this Advent and Christmas Season — and all through 2010!
been around the block
LOL, Swift. For sure!
Merry Christmas Joanne and to your family.
I also wish all bloggers who although we have not met personally but have become great friends bearing each others grief and joy, I wish you all a Blessed CHRISTMAS and a Fruitfull New YEAR.
PS. you guys are awesome. GOD BLESS.
Swift perfect
Merry Christmas everyone
fh
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAtZBE5XXFo
This is one of my favourite Christmas songs.
Merry Christmas to everyone who visits here.
A trinity of my favourite carols:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHudzSBGoD0&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n08I6D3VR7w&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFPTQSbxKNE&feature=related
And it goes without saying … to our hostess, as well.
Merry Christmas everyone!
+
…-
“Atmosphere of fear at Christmas in north China
Christians in north China are facing a Christmas of fear after 10 local religious leaders were jailed in recent weeks and their new church shut down amid a crackdown on unauthorised worship.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com”
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413364/posts
Gee, how could I forget!!
We’d like to wish the best Prime Minister Canada has ever had, Stephen Harper, and his family, and all the Conservative members of parliament a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!! You have all done Canada proud!!
Democrat Congressman abandons party goes to Republicans
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/73329-blue-dog-dem-griffith-to-switch-parties
With the mid terms coming up the Climate Bill is all but dead and will this be the first or only Blue Dog Democrat to jump ship?
My guess is that this won’t be the last defection.
If the U.S. brings in a Cap and Tax Canada will have to do the same or face penalties.
Myself, I am not too worried that the Obama administration will pull off their Climate policy, especially as it comes to light that Obama was a director of the charitable society that created the privately owned Chicago Climate Exchange, with advice from non other than Al Gore and Beijing refugee Maurice Strong of Oil for Food Scandal fame, which occurred while he was No.2 at the UN.
Plus Maurice Strong is on the board of directors at the Chicago Climate Exchange.
Just follow the money and you’ll find the crooks every time.
From API;
The tawdry tale of the top two global warming gurus in the business world goes all the way back to Earth Day, April 17, 1995 when the future author of “An Inconvenient Truth” traveled to Fall River, Massachusetts, to deliver a green sermon at the headquarters of Molten Metal Technology Inc. (MMTI). MMTI was a firm that proclaimed to have invented a process for recycling metals from waste.
Gore praised the Molten Metal firm as a pioneer in the kind of innovative
technology that can save the environment, and make money for investors at the same time.
“Gore left a few facts out of his speech that day,” wrote EIR. “First, the firm
was run by Strong and a group of Gore intimates, including Peter Knight, the
firm’s registered lobbyist, and Gore’s former top Senate aide.”
(Fast-forward to the present day and ask yourself why it is that every time
someone picks up another Senate rock, another serpent comes slithering out).
“Second, the company had received more than $25 million in U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) research and development grants, but had failed to prove that the technology worked on a commercial scale. The company would go on to receive another $8 million in federal taxpayers’ cash, at that point, its only source of revenue.
“With Al Gore’s Earth Day as a Wall Street calling card, Molten Metal’s stock
value soared to $35 a share, a range it maintained through October 1996. But along the way, DOE scientists had balked at further funding. When in March 1996, corporate officers concluded that the federal cash cow was about to run dry, they took action: Between that date and October 1996, seven corporate officers–including Maurice strong–sold off $15.3 million in personal shares in the company, at top market value. On Oct. 20, 1996–a Sunday–the company issued a press release, announcing for the first time, that DOE funding would be vastly scaled back, and reported the bad news on a conference call with stockbrokers.
“On Monday, the stock plunged by 49%, soon landing at $5 a share. By early 1997, furious stockholders had filed a class action suit against the company and its directors. Ironically, one of the class action lawyers had tangled with Maurice strong in another insider trading case, involving a Swiss company called AZL Resources, chaired by Strong, who was also a lead shareholder. The AZL case closely mirrored Molten Metal, and in the end, Strong and the other AZL partners agreed to pay $5 million to dodge a jury verdict, when eyewitness evidence surfaced of Strong’s role in scamming the value of the company stock up into the stratosphere, before selling it off.
In 1997, Strong went on to accept from Tongsun Park, who was found guilty of illegally acting as an Iraqi agent, $1 million from Saddam Hussein, which was invested in Cordex Petroleum Inc., a company he owned with his son, Fred.
These are the leaders in the Man-made Global Warming Movement, who three years later were to be funded by the man who was to become President of the United States of America.
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL in the Blue Blog Caucus! (You can’t beat Doris Day and Bob Hope!) We are thankful for the best Prime Minister in most of our memories, who represents and leads us in a country still FREE. Our thoughts and prayers go out to our service people, courageously giving of themselves and advancing our principles in hostile lands. In the yet futuristic-sounding 2010, might peace still be the buzz word, and may God bless us, each and every one.
Just wishing everyone here – and especially you Joanne – a very Merry Christmas and best wishes for a New Year filled with everything we wish for.
…-
“CFRA Polls
This week – we will ask you to rate the 2009 job performance of the Mayor, Premier, Prime Minister and U.S. President. Today, please rate, on a scale of 1 to 5, the job performance of Stephen Harper.”
1. 1 – Excellent
42.6%
2. 2 – Very Good
34.8%
3. 3 – Good
13.2%
4. 4 – Poor
4.03%
5. 5 – Very Poor
5.20%”
http://www.cfra.com/
Merry Christmas everyone. Just to let you’all know that I couldn’t stay away. Have left Crux of the Matter as is — about education, but just set up a blog just about politics. It is still going through propagation so some will get it and others won’t until later today.
I can just hear Joanne chuckling! I have a feeling the new year is going to be very busy, in terms of the blogosphere.
It will be called “Just Politics.” I liked the fact that the word “Just” has two very distinct meanings. Will start posting there after the new year. Hopefully, will be back on the BT by then — but as JP.
http://www.justpolitics.info
Just an update on a project by my MP, Rick Casson. I posted about it somewhere, but he was trying to get 500 5.00 Tim Cards for the troops, and as of last night news his office has received over 2000. He has now raised his sights to one card for every member over there.
Families have become involved (I gave 20.00/family member in lieu of gifts for those far away) and organizations are donating. What a great idea.
Maybe the detainee faux scandal has made voters mad and this is their way to tell the libs, we don’t care about shoegate.
Did any of you hear for a couple of sec on television, what the RCMP has to say about the abuse which the OPPOSITION PARTIES accused our troops of doing. well, it is not true. no such abuse occurred, only bumps and bruises that’s all but torture, no way.
From the Canadian Press
Harper’s steady statesmanship earns him title of Newsmaker of the Year
——————————————————————————–
at 15:04 on December 23, 2009, EDT.
Congratulations Prime MAinister Stephen Harper.
Perhaps the PM should tell Charest, when you have an inquiry re construction mess, I will think about an inquiry re the liberal plan for transferring prisoners.
Why are the media and opposition so anxious to spread rumors of recessing the House for a few extra days and saying it would be to get rid of the detainee scandal.
Or do they hope the request would not be granted and an election called so they can dump iggy.
The “skeptics” have busted out of the GULAG/community imposed by the Red-Green commissars/MSM.
The AGW veil has been rent forever.
Let there be light.
…-
“The Climategate Timeline: 30 years visualized
23 12 2009
The always sharp Jo Nova tips us to this:
Here’s a Spectacular Poster of ClimateGate covering 3 decades
You have to see this to believe it. Look up close and admire the detail while you despair at how long science has been going off the rails.”
“To better appreciate the past and what was exposed by the CRU emails, the time-line chart consolidates and chronologically organizes the information uncovered and published about the CRU emails by many researchers along with some related contextual events. That the chart exists at all is yet another example of how skilled experts are flocking in to the skeptics position and dedicating hours of time pro bono because they are passionately motivated to fight against those who try to deceive us.”
http://wattsupwiththat.com/
Now that the Copenhagen political games are out of the way, marked as a failure by any realistic standard, it may be time to move on to the science games. To get the post-Copenhagen science review underway, the world has a fine document at hand: The Climategate Papers.
http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/columnists/story.html?id=78aa4157-da68-4596-859a-a7e49a6207ae
Latest update, over 2500 Tim Cards have been received, along with letters of support and cards. Great job and there is still one day to go. We have 2400 over there so each one will get a cup of coffee from the supporters of Rick Casson.
Merry Christmas to all the Blue Like You readers.
Classic Irish Christmas song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCr30OVMjHA
And all of this is because of one hard-working, intelligent individual: Joanne!! Thank you, Joanne, for this blog and all the time and effort you have expended for so long!! You have shown that “One Person Can Make A Difference”!!
Ed, thanks very much but you are too kind. This blog would be nothing without the readers, and especially those who take the time to comment. We have become a family here.
We are all making a difference because we discuss things here and then we take that back to our communities and our own families.
Merry Christmas everyone!
I found the PM’s Christmas message very understated almost subdued. I’m also now thinking that he needs a new one based on this morning’s news of another fallen Canadian soldier.
Merry Christmas
You did it again Joanne!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Prime Minister Of Canada’s Christmas message
I wish Stephen Harper and his family a very Merry Christmas
I say to you Joanne no news until the new year turn off the Tv news
take a well deserved holiday and give all your family your attention
hope you have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year
fh
I say to you Joanne no news until the new year turn off the Tv news
take a well deserved holiday and give all your family your attention
hope you have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year
lol!! Sorry Fh.
Merry Christmas to Joanne and all of her readers/commenters!
Merry Christmas!
Yes, Richo, another fallen soldier, killed on foot patrol by a roadside bomb set by the enemy called the Taliban, whose treatment our three opposition parties have such deep concern about.
Let’s hope for a Christmas miracle and the Leftist/Socialist troika come back with their heads screwed on right. There are some Socialist zealots who appear to be beyond change, Bob Rae,Ujaal Dosanjh and Dipper Jack and his gang.
Just heard that the latest victim in Afghan was a blogger, anyone know his site. Could he be the one who comments re conditions etc in Afghan on various blogs.
Excellent post from the NP on Steve Janke’s column,
by Les Bolschitt
Dec 24 2009
3:28 PM
The failure of the Copenhagen extortion festival was the second best Christmas present we could have hoped for.
We definitely do not need any ‘bridges’ built on such fraudulent and deceptive foundations, particularly when the corrupt UN was the building contractor.
As for Canada’s allegedly ‘bad reputation,’ I have yet to find Canada even mentioned in any international media. Just from our usual home-grown eco-extortionists, getting their ususal free publicity in our media.
The best gift was Climategate. That ultimately was the elephant in the room in Copenhagen that killed the scam. The Chinese and Indians can read and they are not held hostage by the Big Green Extortion Machine.
And any talk about the ‘peer reviewed science’ being settled is now laughable.
Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas. So glad that Santa is not wearing a green suit. That kind of Santa comes down the chimney to lie to you and rob your house.
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fullcomment/archive/2009/12/24/steve-janke-we-don-t-need-to-build-no-stinking-bridges.aspx
“”So I pulled over, knocked on the door and asked, ‘Is there room in the inn?’”"
…-
“Woman Stranded at West Virginia Fire Station Finds ‘Room at the Inn’
Bridgeport resident Ann Booth, looking forward to a weekend away from her busy schedule as a stay-at-home mom, was more than eager to spend it at The Greenbrier. But her trip to the state’s luxury hotel and resort turned into quite the adventure after a severe winter storm dumped a blizzard of snow on most parts of West Virginia…
Booth set out for The Greenbrier Hotel for a weekend with girlfriends from her home in Bridgeport in Harrison County at 4:30pm Friday. “I called The Greenbrier ahead, and they said it wasn’t spitting a thing,” she said. “I figured I could make it. I looked at the radar and it didn’t really look that bad. “And I have a front-wheel-drive car. I can drive in the snow, no big deal.”
Soon after she had made it across the New River Gorge, the road conditions worsened, she said…When she reached Oak Hill, “it was like the snow monster just threw up.” Traffic gradually slowed to a stop, Booth said. After stopping, she overheard some truckers talking.
“They said (the main road) was shut down, the (West Virginia) Turnpike’s a mess,” Booth said. “Basically, they told me, ‘You’re not going anywhere.’” Booth decided to find the closest Holiday Inn. She figured she would stay overnight, wake up, eat some breakfast and travel the rest of the way to the resort.
“Then all of a sudden, within 30 minutes, there was 8 inches of snow,” she said. “I’ve never seen anything like it. I’ve never seen snow come down that fast. It was just unbelievable.” Next thing she knew, she had missed the turn for the Holiday Inn. Instead, she started traveling down a back road, confused and scared…That’s when she spotted the Oak Hill Volunteer Fire Department.”
http://www.newmediajournal.us/usa/12242009.htm
It might be a while before you read this but I have a beautiful new great grand daughter. Born a few hours ago, mother and baby doing great, but they probably wont be home for Christmas.
Next year, two gifts for her.
Wow! Isn’t that something? Born Christmas Eve. What a special blessing.
Thanks for sharing, Mary T. All the best to you and your family.
Congrats.
Not a grandpa yet, but probably not too long now.
Aaaackkkk!
Moebius, you’re going to be a Grandpa soon?
Merry Christmas to Joanne, and BLY nation…
Congratulations, MaryT!
Gee Mary,I was feeling pretty lucky that the hubby got me a new laptop for Christmas..then you come along and top that with a new gr.grandbaby! I’m feeling kinda cheated now! Congrats..and I’m wondering if new babes name will be Mary? You know,with the Christmas eve birth,and Gr.Granny named Mary..just wondering.
Hope you all had a great Christmas..I was stuck here in SE Man,literally buried in snow,and it’s still falling!No travel advised..hubby away working..so,I had the tough choice of cereal and toast for Xmas supper,or go ‘gourmet’ and have the fancy crackers with homemade chicken soup!!! No pity-party here folks!Actually it was lovely and peaceful and gave me time to reflect on how truly blessed our family has been the past yr…got to watch the grandkids open gifts via computer ( thanks for inventing the internet Al Gore!)..am off to shovel more ‘global warming’ for the 3rd time.
BTW,don’t forget the yr-end chat with PMSH tonite on ctv! That,and the Juniors Hockey will be the highlight of my day!!!
Sammy, no, Mary is not in the name. And yes, thank you algore, for the internet. Pictures of the new one on facebook, so have pics of her on the scale showing 7lbs/4oz, and numerous nude photos. Porn on my computer. I have sent a message to parents saying, yes she is beautiful, and intelligent, and could be the first female conservative PM elected with a majority. When she is running for election I hope those nude photos don’t ruin her chances.
And I did get Susan Boyle’s CD, beautiful music.
OT, but I wonder how many bleeding hearts are out there feeling sorry for the guy that tried to blow up a plane. Libs would be furious if he is sent to jail.
Watch for outcries of profiling of passengers.
Cheers for the passengers that come to the rescue.
got to watch the grandkids open gifts via computer
Ah, you were using Skype? That’s so cool.
Thanks for the reminder about the interview Sammy!!
Not that tech-savvy Jo (skype)..just emailed vid.clips,and lots of ‘still’ photos! Thank God for modern technology.Praise the Lord for gov’t workers..making BIG o/t bucks today..likely double time and a half..but the grader just went by my VERY rural location,and I am FREE! Honest to goodness folks,we had hardly any snow here,had been basking in glorious weather(for Man)..and in past 2 days got a winter’s worth of ‘Al Gore’..at least a foot of it!I am sick to death of shovelling,and wiping up the floor from not one,but 3 dogs that come in covered in a thick blanket of snow.At least it’s pretty mild temp..just -3 right now,so thankful for that.
Soon is a relative term.
My prediction is, by the end of 2010!
[...] CHRISTMAS greetings from Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper Wow, he said Christmas. (H/T Blue Like You) [...]
Watched the PM’s year-end interview/chat with Lloyd Robertson and Bob Fife. What a plain talking, straight shooter our PM is, not a shred of phoniness or ambiguity. He’s proving to be the best PM we’ve had in many decades. He deserves a majority government.
Liz J – I only caught the end of the interview but I recorded it and will check it out later today. What I did see was very impressive and it looked as if Fife & Robertson failed to trip him up yet again.
Yes, we are truly blessed to have Stephen Harper as our Prime Minister.
I see that CTV has the whole interview available online now – CTV’s ‘A Conversation with the Prime Minister’.
Does anyone know if any other interviews are coming up? CBC? Global? Thanks.
Watched the interview with PMSH last eve,and I must say it was great..even tho both Lloyd and Bobby seemed a lttle sceptical,and a bit aggressive over the ‘detaineegate’ affair.Lloyd didn’t seem to want to let it go and move on to other matters.
I especially liked the bit,when they spoke about ‘piano-man’..pay attention to comment from Fife after they discuss this..with Bobby actually seeming to be quite amused by PMSH surprising the audience..and interesting that Bobby admits he was with a ‘bunch of Liberals’ at the concert.All in all I give interview a big 2 thumbs up!!!
Also watched the interview, and was impressed that the PM did not hesitate or appear flustered with any question. I felt Lloyd and Fife tried to trip him up and failed. I read somewhere that the PM was only giving one year end interview.
The detainee issue is not catching on with the public, and with the death of a soldier by a roadside bomb, and the attempt to blow up a passenger plane, people might think more of those terrorists should be held forever.
If there are others planning to blow up planes, and this guy knows who and when and where, are the liberals prepared to treat him with kid gloves or given a little rough treatment to save lives.
Oh Lord…Iggy interview on QP today..just settling in to watch.And to top it off,Layton as well!Could there be a phonier ‘smile’ on Iggy??? Take note of how lib-friendly,and happy Craig seems when interviewing Iggy,as opposed to how angry and aggressive he is when he interviews any Cons politician.
Iggy:’you have to hear the mood music from Canadians!’……………what the hell does that mean??..now he’s yapping about the detaineegate affair..blames ndp for non-election,and propping up the gov…Craig smiling..says,it’s not his job to be positive..NO hardball Q&A for Iggy..Iggy:’I want to be a good PM..I’ve been shot at overseas,I can take shots here at home’
Craig:why did you want to be PM?
Iggy:bunch of nonsense about being a Liberal,mentions his Dad,Bosnia,blah blah
Craig:asks what he stands for
Iggy:nothing concrete for an answer
What a waste of good airtime this is..Iggy is a blathering fool.
True Patriot Love Iggy was interviewed by Oliver and still has that ear to ear smile as if there’s nothing to worry about in Camp Liberal. He also said again he loves his country, he’s here to serve. Good line from an opportunist.
Compare and contrast Craig’s ‘touchy/feely’ pussyfooting around Iggy in his yr-end interview,with the scowly,almost aggressive and confontational interview with Jim Flaherty…hmmmmm,where do your political allegiances lie Craig?? Could someone not have given Craig a lecture of non-partisanship for Xmas?
There are no negatives about the CTV interview from me. The interviewers tried but failed to move the PM off his focus.
All positive for the PM who demonsrated more than a couple of times that he was in charge of that interview and not Fife or Robertson.
He did what he does best ignores the bias and the BS and gets the job done.
I have to also give CTV credit for a very good and accurate rating of some of the PM and Ministers in their year-end review now up at Bourque.
The one disagreement with the CTV grading that I have is that I wouldn’t have failed Prentice. I would have given him an average grade because even from a conservative perspective I don’t know where he’s coming from on this file. Could do better.
Who cares about what Iggy said to who and how they framed it? Take a cue from the PM and seriously turn the channel.
At the end of the day the PM got top marks from those who make up the CTV crew NOT The Waffle.
I sure hope that Iffy’s still writing his own script because it’s as irrelevent as he is to Canadians.
There is no doom and gloom on the side of the victor. When the Liberals are anywhere close to representing either a threat to the government or an understanding of the mood of the nation I’ll start paying attention to the pap. Until then, not at all.
Remember, despite the bias you get antsy about the crux of the matter(hi sandy) is CTV gave the PM an EXCELLENT grade.
Proof that maybe, just maybe the bias is a play to only a small percentage of their viewing audience and that their gut and substance based on the PM’s achievements to date stand as their true feelings on how Harper and co. are doing.
Don’t get QP till 4.00p.m. here so really appreciate the heads up. Did Craig really ask, why did you want to be PM and not why do you want to be PM. Freudian slip, or does he know something we don’t. Wonder how Craig would have handled the interview with the PM last night.
Not one question threw him and he was on top of his game.
Would have loved to be a fly on the wall for the exchange between Lloyd and Fife when the cameras and mikes were off.
If we all agree that the PM’s interview with Roberston and Fife was a terrific one for the PM, then consider that in that entire interview I was hard-pressed to hear Harper talk about, or even mention the opposition (I counted one time when Harper talked about if the opposition wants to carry on about nothing (paraphrasing) than he’ll leave it to them to do that but as PM he’ll continue to work hard for Canadians.
Harper’s comments were all about him and the positive stuff his gov’t has accomplished. He turned all those attempts at negative jabs by Robertson and Fife(which I though were lame attempts) in a positive message for him to deliver.
That, in my opinion is why he’ll stay PM for quite a while yet.
Two columns of note that I recommend today are “Lost in the Leadership Vaccuum” by Randall Denley who has some choice words for Ottawa….all parties.
Also, Lorrie Goldstein’s column today re:The Climate Blame Game” contains within it a paragraph that could apply to any issue re: why politicians play the blame game, and why like the environmental issue voters hate it.
Gotta say I cannot tolerate even looking at Jim Travers, he seems to think he’s such an expert on matters of economics and our Economist PM really hasn’t. He doesn’t agree having a good economy will help with the deficit.
There are thousands of Canadians, very afraid of, 2010. Wage earners low income families and seniors, will have to pay the HST, that tax, is going to cause a lot of homeless people. We, in, BC have had massive job losses, we, are losing our homes. The HST burden, will, be shifted on to the very people, who are not making it now. As a senior, I had to sell my car, I couldn’t afford the gas, nor the insurance and I was very behind on utility bills. With the HST, I will lose my home. I have put it up for sale, however, in northern BC, our mills were shipped to China by, Gordon Campbell. So in a badly distressed locale, my house probably won’t sell. There were many of us who had to skip x-mas this year.