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Photo: Greg Gorman

John Waters loves Christmas. He just celebrates it in his own unique way.

"This year, I'm having everyone over to my house, and it's actually going to be very traditional," the actor/director says of his holiday plans for this year. "Well, sort of. It's my own version of what's traditional. Like I have an electric chair decorated instead of a tree, and one of its legs is in a Christmas-tree stand. I have lots of things like that; it's just my version of tradition."

It's because of that unique sense of humor that Waters's hilarious, off-center, and slightly uncomfortable one-man holiday show has been going strong for the past 10 years. This weekend, the "Prince of Puke" comes to town to spread holiday cheer with A John Waters Christmas.

Before his triumphant yuletide return, the man who brought us classic films such as Hairspray and Cry Baby sat down with City Pages to explain why the holidays make him feel like "a drag queen on Halloween." 

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John Waters causes trouble at the Walker [video]


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Half-Pint Crafts at Craft-o-Rama

The gift-giving season can suck for those who hate malls and find shopping online a little dodgy. Fortunately, there are other options. This season, there will be a handful of special shopping events at pop-up shops, galleries, and local markets around town. Here you'll find unique and unexpected items to wrap and put under the tree.

So screw getting up early on Friday -- or leaving Thanksgiving festivities at 9 p.m. -- to shop. Mark your calendars, for these great events. And be sure to check back as we'll be updating this list as happenings are announced.

Related stories:
Best holiday gifts for the eco-friendly (and all under $40)


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Olivia LaVecchia

Clockwise from top left: solar food dryer by Outback WoodWorks, license plate cuff by MakeShift Accessories, beeswax candles by Scent from Nature, canjo by Resist Instrument Works, coasters by Vinyl Afterlife.

On Saturday, Do It Green! Minnesota took over the back hallways of the Midtown Global Market to throw its seventh annual Green Gifts Fair. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., more than 70 vendors set up shop, all hawking goods that fit, in some way, under the "eco" umbrella.

Some of these embraced extreme green, like worm compost bins. Others, like scrap metal jewelers, were more in the "reuse, recycle" camp. But wherever the crafts were on the spectrum, their collective presence offered an antidote to the midnight-on-Thanksgiving, Black Friday big box madness, and a reminder that November and December don't necessarily have to include heaps of plastic packaging.

We combed the green goods to pick out our top 10, a list of gifts that will work for a range of earth-friendly friends this season. Shopping for a chef? A cyclist? Here are your best bets.

See Also:
- Give the gift of green this holiday season
- Best Gift Shop 2012: Goodthings
- 5 great gifts for foodies


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Nick Devries

In a matter of weeks folks will be hitting the malls and online stores in search of the perfect gift. For those who like to shop local and give unique presents, this season will boast one more opportunity to do so as the Soo Visual Arts Center is planning to set up a pop-up shop in Nicollet Avenue.

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Photo by stephen.moore

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Photo by MoonLightBulb

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​OMG you guys! New Year's Eve is just a few days away, and that means it's, like, totally time to hop online and let everyone know that 2012 is going to be YOUR year!

Stop it. Just stop it.

It's that time of the season where everyone becomes an eternal optimist, setting goals and making blanket statements with the best intentions for the year ahead. Losing weight, traveling more, not catching chlamydia; basically whatever you're ashamed of from 2011, this is the time to wish it away beginning January 1.

While there's nothing wrong with making a few New Year's resolutions, there's a growing trend out there thanks to this new thing called "Facebook" where people can't fight the urge to share their respective goals with the world. And that's a problem.

To help you avoid looking like a complete asshole this new year, we've put together some basic tips for broadcasting your resolutions on the FB. Be sure to "like" it!*

(*Reminder: Facebook is the worst.)

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