Swerve settles down by the fire

At this time of year, nostalgia grows on Christmas trees and produces at least as much warmth as any roaring fire. This week’s cover story, with its consideration of the Sears Christmas Wish Book indulges in that sentiment. For more than a few generations of Canadians kids, the thud of the arriving catalogue was the crack of the starter’s pistol. It was time to start making a list of gifts to run past Santa.

But nostalgia only takes you so far. The demise of Sears Canada means the end of the Wish Book in this country. At the risk of using the phrase “kids these days,” kids these days turn to the internet for seasonal inspiration. Of course, the same is true of everyone else; Amazon, it seems, has disrupted even Santa.

Still, even in this brave new world, the holidays remain a time of good food, family and rest. The latter applies to Swerve; we are taking our annual break and won’t be publishing Dec. 29 or Jan. 5. As a result, this issue covers events up to Jan. 11, which means we can help you with your New Year’s Eve plans and the first week of the High Performance Rodeo. And while the temptation is to wrap everything in a tidy package topped with a nice neat bow, we know that the arts and entertainment scene in Calgary won’t allow it. For up-to-date listings over the holiday season, please visit swervecalgary.com.

With that, all that remains is to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We’ll see you back in the Herald on Friday, Jan. 12.