Last night H.E. and I went carolling with Steph and friends. It’s a yearly tradition, and I love, love, love going because it’s the only time I ever get to sing any more since I was a soprano in Concert Choir and Vocal Ensemble, back in my college days.

This year we actually got to sing “Carol of the Bells” several times. It’s one of those really ambitious pieces that require a bit of courage and know how, and considering that our group is made up mostly of regular folk who normally only sing in the shower, it was kind of a feat to do it halfway decently.

We sang mostly popular Christmas songs though, as we do every year—the favorites that are tried and true and always a hit. It’s when I hear, play, or sing these songs that I really start to feel the spirit of the season because I grew up listening to them. My mom and dad had several Christmas albums that we’d play on the record player every December—Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, Andy Williams, et al. My dad was also a big fan of Dean Martin.

So anyway, I grew up listening to these big time crooners singing what are now considered Christmas standards, standards which are now butchered by rap stars and bubble-gum pop singers.

I can’t stand that, by the way. It never feels like the holiday season when I hear my old favorites done by people backed up by the most over-produced studio mixes ever. I miss the pure talents of those old lounge-singing guys with the smooth and mellow baritone voices, voices that could soothe an angry beast. Who could resist them?

That’s probably why I have such a weakness for baritones. Tenors always get the leads in singing groups, and they always get the play and the popularity, but baritones … sigh … I’m a sucker for baritones.

H.E. is a baritone. LOL, he can’t sing worth much, but he’s a baritone with a broadcasting experience. That means that, although he does the cooking and is more tearfully sentimental than most women, when he talks, his balls are ten times bigger than everyone else’s and every tenor around him looks like a little pig-tailed girl.

That’s the charm of a baritone voice, which is the charm of those old crooners, which in turn are the charm of all those great standard Christmas songs I love, which of course is the charm of going carolling with H.E., Steph, and friends.

I’m already looking forward to next year’s event.

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