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Christmas

Business
Holiday Shoppers Slash Budgets, Others Spend More As Wealth Gap Grows Holiday Shoppers Slash Budgets, Others Spend More As Wealth Gap Grows
Holiday Shoppers Slash Budgets, Others Spend More As Wealth Gap Grows Holiday spending is climbing in 2025, but the divide between higher-income and lower-income shoppers is growing as many families face rising prices and tighter budgets. US retail sales rose 4.1% on Black Friday, Mastercard SpendingPulse said on Saturday, Nov. 29. According to the credit card giant, online sales jumped 10.4% from Black Friday in 2024. Mastercard said spending grew quickly in New England, boosted by sales of cold-weather clothing and winter gear. "Consumers are showing incredible savviness this season," said Michelle Meyer, chief economist at the Mastercard Economics In…

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by Chris Spiker
News
Pentatonix Is Coming To Town! Fa-La-La-La-Feel The Magic This December Pentatonix Is Coming To Town! Fa-La-La-La-Feel The Magic This December
Pentatonix Is Coming To Town! Fa-La-La-La-Feel The Magic This December It’s never too early to start thinking about Christmas—especially when Pentatonix is coming to town. The chart-topping a cappella group will bring its Christmas in the City Tour to Hershey on Thursday, December 11, 2025, at the Giant Center in Hershey. Tickets are on sale now. This holiday run is their biggest yet, with 26 cities filled with harmonies brighter than a tree lit on Christmas Eve. Hershey falls in the final stretch of the tour, giving Pennsylvania fans the chance to experience the group that has become a December tradition. Pentatonix at Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in…

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by Vira Mamchur Schwartz
Lifestyle
This Trendy Treat Is Rolling Into Spotlight As Sweet Complement To Christmas Cookies This Trendy Treat Is Rolling Into Spotlight As Sweet Complement To Christmas Cookies
This Trendy Treat Is Rolling Into Spotlight As Sweet Complement To Christmas Cookies Move over gingerbread and sugar cookies — sesame balls are quietly making their way onto holiday dessert tables this year.  Traditionally found in Chinese, Vietnamese, and other Asian cuisines, these golden, chewy orbs are earning a buzzworthy reputation as a standout complement to classic Christmas sweets. Known as Jian Dui in Chinese cuisine and Bánh Cam in Vietnamese culture, sesame balls are made from glutinous rice flour, stuffed with sweet fillings like red bean or lotus paste, and fried to perfection.  The result? A crispy exterior coated in toasted sesame seeds, with a sa…

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by Joe Lombardi
Lifestyle
Big Change Set For Christmas TV Classic 'Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer' This Week Big Change Set For Christmas TV Classic 'Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer' This Week
Big Change Set For Christmas TV Classic 'Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer' This Week The iconic Christmas TV classic "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" will return to its originating network for the first time in a half-century after its debut 60 years ago. On Dec. 6, 1964, the Rankin-Bass Animated Entertainment hour-long claymation special debuted on NBC. But after a 10-year run, CBS acquired rights. Now, NBC has reacquired the rights, and will broadcast the nostalgic show exactly 60 years after its initial airing -- at 8 p.m. Eastern time this Friday, Dec. 6. The show is narrated by Burl Ives as Sam the Snowman. The storyline begins when Donner, the lead reindeer fo…

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by Joe Lombardi
Weather
Post-Christmas Storm Ends 2023 With Days Of Rain, Possible Flooding Post-Christmas Storm Ends 2023 With Days Of Rain, Possible Flooding
Post-Christmas Storm Ends 2023 With Days Of Rain, Possible Flooding The chances of a white Christmas this year are looking slim, and the end of the year is looking wet. The holiday weekend will be mostly dry with mild temps before a post-Christmas storm moves in over the Northeast on Tuesday night, Dec. 26, according to AccuWeather. Once the rain starts, though, it's not expected to stop until the end of the week, according to AccuWeather.  More than five inches of rain fell in the first 20 days of December alone — 1.5 times the historical average, the weather outlet said. In Philadelphia, more than twice the average amount of rain fell: 6.22 inches, …

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by Cecilia Levine
Weather
Storm With Heavy Rain, Strong Winds Will Be Followed By Rapid Freeze: Here's What's Coming Storm With Heavy Rain, Strong Winds Will Be Followed By Rapid Freeze: Here's What's Coming
Storm With Heavy Rain, Strong Winds Will Be Followed By Rapid Freeze: Here's What's Coming A potent pre-Christmas storm packed with damaging wind gusts that will bring a mix of heavy rain, sleet, and snow to the region will be followed by a rapid freeze as temperatures plummet. The time frame for the storm is from Thursday afternoon, Dec. 22 to Friday evening, Dec. 23. With blizzard-like conditions in much of the Midwest, more than 1,000 flights have been canceled as of early Thursday morning. A total of between 2 to 3 inches or more of rainfall is possible. "Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects," the National Weather Service said in a Hazardous Weathe…

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by Joe Lombardi
Weather
Pre-Christmas Storm: These Areas Expected To See Accumulating Snow, Poor Travel Conditions Pre-Christmas Storm: These Areas Expected To See Accumulating Snow, Poor Travel Conditions
Pre-Christmas Storm: These Areas Expected To See Accumulating Snow, Poor Travel Conditions A storm system packed with a wide swath of snow, rain, and strong winds is expected to cause poor travel conditions and bring accumulating snowfall to some spots in the days leading up to Christmas. The system is due to arrive on Thursday, Dec.  22, the National Weather Service said. The first image above shows a look at areas (marked in red) where poor travel conditions are expected on Friday, Dec. 23. Areas expected to see accumulating snowfall Thursday and Friday are shown in blue in the second image above. Blizzard conditions are possible in areas shown in royal blue. Cu…

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by Joe Lombardi