Oh the weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful. And since we’ve no place to go… Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

It’s time for a special holiday edition of What’s Up Wednesdays here on Beyond the Rhetoric, so I’ve collected a handful of festively themed blog posts to share. Have yourself a merry little Christmas.

Ray Ebersole works for the schools, so he’s supposed to remain as politically correct as possible. Even so, he’s challenging the semantics of Christmas vacation, since they insist on calling it Winter Break in his district. I’m not Christian, but I’m perfectly fine with calling it Christmas Holidays.

Joseph Planta interviewed me a while back on his site and that happened to be his last interview of the year. That doesn’t mean The Commentary will go unupdated though, since Sean Cranbury will be temporarily taking over the program in Joseph’s absence. A well deserved break, I’d say.

Claudia and Sergio Olivos are perhaps better known for their art, but they’re getting into the holiday spirit too. This is partly because they’ve been buried in their kitchen by the snowstorm. Oh well. Another excuse for some good cooking and fresh baked goods!

Raul Pacheco is one of the hardest working people I know, but he’s finally decided to unplug from the matrix and take a break in Calgary. What does he do while on holidays? He says he likes to catch up on reading. A toasty fireplace sounds appropriate.

MoneyNing has a guest post from Michelle on perhaps one of the most important topics around this time of year. She offers some suggestions for smart giving in regards to your charitable donations. Remember to give back to your community folks!