🤪👖 Pants are optional this week

🤯 The perfect gingerbread house doesn’t exi … Merry Christmas to whoever made this mini replica of Kowloon … completely out of gingerbread. The pipework alone is award-worthy.

🎉 And a happy early birthday to B-Sider Nellie Wisnia! May your special day be filled with pu pu platters that smell faintly of molasses. We love ya!

👀 What’s on tap today:

Up first…

You’re on your third rewatch of “The Office.” You don’t know what day it is. And you’re approximately 70% cheese. 

Ah yes … the weird week between Christmas and New Year’s, when leftovers become meals, pants are optional, and your screen time is … concerning.

Here are eight ways to get out of the house when you start feeling stir crazy: 

🍜 Make room for more ramen. Kyuramen is running the ultimate soup season deal where guests can enjoy unlimited (!) noodle refills with any ramen order now through Dec. 28 (dine-in only). Just save some broth! And reminder for those whose eyes are bigger than their stomachs: Unfinished refills will be charged $2.

🧶 Start 2026 on a *cozy* note. Read: This chunky knit blanket-making workshop — no knitting needles required. Walk in with a vision. Walk out with a soft chenille blankie to accompany your next Netflix binge. 

🥶 Freeze your butt off (for a good cause). Out: The Ice Bucket Challenge. In: The Plunge for Pete challenge on Dec. 27 where hundreds of people run into the ocean to raise money for the Peter Frates ALS Foundation.

🐶 Downward dog with … dogs. You down? Park-9 Dog Bar is bringing in a crew of adorable, adoptable (!) puppies from Sweet Paws Rescue for its puppy yoga class on Dec. 27. And make sure to stick around: There will be a post-class puppy meet and greet!

🎨 Get crafty on the cheap. Trident Booksellers is clearing out its craft supplies on Dec. 30 and wants YOU to paint their leftover projects. Think: wine glasses, champagne flutes, mugs, etc. Each ticket comes with a dish of your choosing plus painting supplies. 

💎 Bring your bestie to make a bracelet. New year, new … intention jewelry workshop? That’s what’s on the agenda at Assembly Row on Dec. 30. Design your own gold-plated charm bracelet that’s infused with your 2026 intentions. Even better: They’re running a two-for-one ticket deal!

🧶 Give rug tufting a try. Tutuland’s cutie DIY rugs are typically outside our budget, BUT … we found a 20% off discount for their crafts with code HOLIDAY20. Book your sesh here.

☕ Get a free coffee on Capital One. Step 1: Enter your phone number here. Step 2: Download the pass to your Apple or Google Wallet. Step 3: Redeem the coupon at any Capital One Cafe for a free bev now through Dec. 31.

🍕 It’s very important you use it. Not that you’ll need much convincing. Dirty Water Dough has pizzas for everyone, from a classic like barbecue chicken to the Boston-themed Fenway Frank. And, yes, there’s a discount. Order any large pizza and get $5 off using code BSIDE before Dec. 31.

Burgers? Truffle fries? Mozzarella sticks? Back Bay Social is serving up all the hot classics, and with the promo code BBS25, you can get $8 off any order of $30 or more. Beat the cold by going for something warm and comforting. It’s the grand finale of a season well savored.

❄️ TL;DR: If you can hold off traveling Tuesday, do it. It appears a lil’ storm is a-brewin’, potentially snarling your trek home for the holidays. Tuesday starts with mostly cloudy skies, with snow creeping in come afternoon, then eventually flipping to rain. Don’t worry, it’s not a heavy hitter. But with so many people on the move, it could get messy. Christmas Eve on Wednesday looks like the more ideal travel day. Need some good weather news? The days are getting longer from here on out (or at least till June 2026)!!!

🚃 “Cheers to the freakin’ weekend!” — probably the T. The MBTA’s good news streak keeps chugging along after the agency revealed that weekend T ridership is nearly back to pre-pandemic levels (overall ridership sits at 77% of 2019 levels; weekday ridership is at 73%). Leadership suspects the weekend bump is due to riders having an easier time getting around thanks to improved train service. The cherry on top? After a grueling pre-holiday shutdown, the Green Line should be back up and running Dec. 23. We imagine this is how MBTA GM Phil Eng feels right now …

💀 Pour one out for Charlie(Card). The MBTA launched a public test phase for its new Charlie Card this month, and the iconic illustration of the dapper commuter hanging out the T window is GONE (sad!). Instead, the new design features a modern-looking map of colorful lines a la the T’s modes of transit (yawn). The upside? The new cards will work on ferries and can be managed online where riders can track fares and trips. The catch: Said cards will cost an unspecified one-time fee and only work with upgraded readers and vending machines.

There’s a new No. 1 guy in the group … the Hasty Pudding group, that is. 

Michael Keaton, known for his iconic roles in “Batman,” “Beetlejuice,” and “Spotlight” has been named the 2026 Man of the Year by Harvard’s Hasty Pudding Theatricals.

ICYMI: Every year, the student-run social club crowns one man and one woman who’ve made lasting contributions to the entertainment world. Past honorees include Jon Hamm, Cynthia Erivo, Jennifer Coolidge, and Jason Bateman — so Keaton is very much in good company.

The prize? The coveted Pudding Pot trophy, a front-row seat to a Hasty Pudding Theatricals show, and most importantly, a (loving) roast by student actors. Basically, an Academy Award with more jokes and fewer speeches.

“The Pudding has big plans for Keaton on the Farkas Hall stage,” said the group’s president. “We know he can handle the Joker, but let’s see if he can handle the jokes.” We’re sat!

— Written by Emily Schario

😂 Thanks for reading! Petition to let the Hasty Pudding kids produce the next Tom Brady roast.

💜 Special shoutout to today's sponsor, Dirty Water Dough, for supporting local journalism and keeping our city fed. 

🎄 The results are in: And more than a third of B-Siders are skipping the planes, trains, and automobile nonsense and staying put for the holidays. “Hosting 40 people in an 800-square-foot apartment... Bring on the merry and the mulled wine!” OK, hostess with the mostess!

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