Top 10 Christmas Cartoons of All Time

Cinema Siren's top picks for 2012.

Last year I offered my top 10 Christmas cartoons for the first time. As an animation art gallery owner of 25 years, and an animation historian, I have been studying and enjoying them a long time.   What an uproar I caused! I got a veritable avalanche of emails about the cartoons I "couldn't possibly overlook." While I stand by all last year's excellent offerings, I do have some amendments this year. Here is the list with some considered additions and subtractions.   The cartoons listed below are all classics and are wonderful opportunities for holiday viewing with friends and family. You can enjoy them while chomping down highly caloric peppermint bark, or swilling down highly spiked eggnog!   #10. Arthur Christmas - 2011  Such a new movie…

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Mutts Matter Rescue

Make A Difference This Holiday Season: Help A Pup In Need

Do you love dogs and want to make a difference? Consider becoming a foster family for a rescue dog during the holidays.

I’ve written a few articles over the past two years about fostering dogs, and multiple readers from the Patch community have stepped up to become foster families. It’s great to see more and more people becoming aware of dog rescue, getting involved, and understanding the importance and vital need of fostering. Fostering is the backbone of rescue, and we can only save as many dogs as we have foster families available to welcome them into their homes. It was only a few years ago that I learned about fostering and how it works. Fostering involves opening your heart and home to a pup in need, giving them a safe place to land and some TLC until they’ve found their new home. Some foster pups are easier than others, but all bring great joy and …

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Downtown Parking Extended for Holidays

On-street downtown parking designated for two hours extended to four hours.

The City of Fredericksburg and the Downtown Retail Merchants Association have a holiday gift for those visiting downtown Fredericksburg. On-street parking spaces with signage for a two hour limit have been extended to four hours, according to the City's website.  Parking downtown is always free. The City and the Downtown Retail Merchants Association hope to encourage people to visit the downtown shops and restaurants during the holidays. Normal parking hours resume January 1, 2013.

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Dear Santa: Here's My Registry

Many big-box retailers now allow you to share wish lists with online gift registries, but beware the pitfalls of electronic gift-seeking.

If you’re still stumped about gifts for those last few people on your Christmas list, you might want to check their online gift registries. Yes, the traditional letter to Santa might still be the preferred method of dropping hints about what kids — or kids at heart — want for Christmas. But some are opting for store registries and wish lists as a way to convey holiday hints to friends and family. Some families even take the tradition of mailing off that letter to Santa into a totally virtual experience. Websites like Santa.com and Santa’s Hideout allow kids to write their Santa letters online, create wish lists to share with family and friends, interact with elves, read blogs from Santa, play games and do activities, all under their …

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Santa Train Tickets Sell Out Fast

Virginia Railway Express reports soaring ticket sales for Santa Train event.

Just hours after the Santa Train tickets went on sale Monday, Virginia Railway Express officials reported all were sold out. Tickets went on sale online at 9 a.m. Monday—12 minutes later, all the online tickets were gone, VRE manager of public affairs and government relations Mark Roeber said. Tickets were also available at vendor locations, but many of these locations ran out of tickets by noon.  By 2 p.m. Monday, some 7,500 tickets had been sold, Roeber said. VRE offices were still being flooded with hundreds of calls about buying Santa Train tickets hours after the event was old out, he added. The Santa Train events is the VRE's collaborative effort with Operation Lifesaver, CSXT and Norfolk Southern. “The VRE Santa Trains are our way …

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