Ho! Ho! Ho! Merrrrrrrrrryyyyy Karaoke

You know, if you’re not careful while typing, it’s pretty easy to turn SANTA into SATAN.

So last night, was I Santa’s little helper, or minion to that other guy in red?

You decide.

First, photographic evidence:

The show at the Nomad Bar started with one of our old friends Helena rocking the stage with “Shout at the Devil.” She’s about 6-feet tall, reed thin, and sang like she was possessed… in a good way. (Paying homage to Satan? check.)

The evening ended with about a dozen people crammed onto the tiny stage, belting out “Highway to Hell.” (Ditto.)

In between, I handed out candy (gluttony), danced with the crowd (lust), drank a vodka & soda (gluttony), insisted people contribute to the tip jar (greed), and forced them to sing things like “California Uber Alles,” “Do You Wanna Touch,” and “Mother.” (wrath). If I’m being honest, I also primped in the bathroom a few times (pride) and at about 1:50 a.m., was thought wistfully of lying my head on my pillow at home (sloth).

The only deadly sin missing from that list is envy — and I might, for a second, have been a little jealous of the fact that my friend Adam (our drummer) is going to England for two weeks… so I guess I got the Seven Deadly covered.

SANTA? SATAN?

In other karaoke news, thanks to my mom who sent me this news story …

The Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston is offering a karaoke stage for travelers waiting for flights.

There it is, just past the security checkpoint, set atop a small stage: a karaoke machine adorned with Christmas lights and stockings shaped like cowboy boots. There’s even a team of Christmas elves — airport employees the rest of the year.

The airport usually includes more traditional holiday music this time of year — choirs, local bands — but this year, they decided to spice things up with a karaoke kiosk. Their song options are all Christmas favorites, however; no Ramones or Ozzy Osbourne.

A tiny boy in a Goofy T-shirt squeaked out a rendition of “Feliz Navidad,” with his mother kneeling by his side singing harmony. A dark-haired songstress vamped her way through a coquettish “Santa Baby.” A pair of blonde-haired gymnasts opened their version of “Jingle Bells” with synchronized handstands.

Read the whole story here.

Oh! I should also mention… had an excellent run yesterday. We only had to do four miles this week for our “long run,” and I was cookin’ during the first half. Nine-and-a-half minute miles for the first 2.7. I could tell I was pushing, but each time I thought “slow down, take it easy,” I’d find myself running hard again. So I just went with it, and was having a great time, even though my sides were aching a little. Then I rounded a corner and ran into a friend I haven’t seen in more than a year. Our wave hello turned into a 10-minute conversation. Sometimes you gotta blow off a PR for your favorite people.