Eat a Feast of the Seven Fishes. An Italian American Christmas Eve tradition, this grand meal is composed of seven distinct seafood dishes. Typical options include anchovies, eels, and mussels. If you’re prepared for some extreme last-minute groceries, there’s still time to pull it off.
Read some wintry poetry. There’s something about the gentle melancholy of the holidays that’s complementary to poems. Get away from chaos for a moment and spend some time staring out a frost-tinted window, solemnly reflecting as you read a selection of great winter verse.
Watch A Complete Unknown, in theatres Christmas Day. Want to connect with Dad this holiday? Mention Bob Dylan. After discussing how Desire is a top-five Dylan album and how his ’90s output is underrated, head to the theatres to watch the new biopic starring Timotheé Chalamet.
Listen to the sounds of wassailing. A precursor to the more genteel practice of carolling, wassailing involved going door-to-door, making a racket, and asking for cash. Listen to this playlist for inspiration and then go to the ritzy part of town and wassail the night away!—QH