💦😫 ’Tis the season to stay ... moist?

🍕 Our pizza giveaway is still on! Dirty Water Dough, home to the (delicious) Dirty Water IPA pizza dough, is giving away a $100 gift card to one lucky B-Sider! Enter here before Dec. 17 at 11:59 p.m.

👀 What’s on tap today:

Up first…

⛳ On the 10th day of B-Side, the newsletter gave to me … 10 sets of two free mini golf games (valued at $45 each)! Puttshack is Boston’s high-tech, high-energy mini golf destination, blending immersive gameplay, great music, and a full food-and-drink menu into an unforgettable night out. With two free games per winner, B-Side Members can challenge a friend, plan a fun date, or spark some friendly competition during the winter season. It’s the perfect way to get out, get moving, and have a little fun.

👀 Want in? Just be one of the first 10 B-Side Members to fill out the form in your email TODAY between 11 a.m.–12 p.m.

Now, onto our regularly scheduled programming …

As your self-appointed emotional support newsletter … We can’t leave you for the holidays without some reinforcements. 

So, we’re back with another B-Side Care Package, a.k.a. our roundup of media, things to do, food, and everything else that we (and our pals!) have been loving lately.

💦 Hydrate (your skin) or die-drate. Eczema girlies, rise! With cold weather szn in full swing, Emily is tending to her parched dermis with this luxe-feeling Bioderma shower oil that’s surprisingly inexpensive (this massive bottle is ~$20). But if you’re looking for a spa-day splurge, she’s been a long-time member of Skoah’s $85/month facial membership in the South End that keeps her glowing year-round. 

💅 Make your holiday travel a smidge more bearable. For Gia, that involves listening to “Sentimental Garbage,” a pod by author Caroline O'Donoghue about the culture we love that society sometimes makes us feel … ashamed of (think: romcoms, boy bands). On a long drive or flight? Def binge their multi-part series about “Sex and the City” or “Friends.” 

🍜 Add more liquid to your diet. That’s Boston.com food writer Katelyn Umholtz’s strategy to survive the freezing temps. Her go-tos? She says Dakzen’s khao soi noodles (a Thai coconut curry noodle soup) are the best and cheapest around. For drinks, she’s cozying up with a Green Maize at Somerville’s Tall Order, which has the “friendliest bartenders who prepare A-plus beverages.”

📚 Drop in on some friend group drama. Looking for a holiday read? Angela Flournoy’s “The Wilderness,” comes recommended by Globe books editor Kate Tuttle. The story tracks four friends as they journey through their twenties and thirties, and Tuttle promises “you’ll get sucked into these women’s hopes and dreams (and dramas and disappointments) as if they were your own friend group.”

🎥 Watch an all-time great on the big screen. Globe film critic Odie Henderson recommends spending the days before Christmas at The Brattle’s tribute to Robert Redford series (Dec. 18-23). They’ll be screening classic bangers like “Ordinary People” and “All The President’s Men” alongside lesser known must-sees like biting (and timely) political satire “The Candidate,” and the massively entertaining heist movie “The Hot Rock.” 

🎶 Re-enter your Tumblr era. If you had The Neighbourhood’s “Sweater Weather” on repeat circa 2013 (guilty), Globe lifestyle and arts correspondent Isabella Bernstein says you’ll love their new album (((((ultraSOUND))))), too. “The warm, scratchy, soft-grunge album is a reminder of the band’s early music,” Bernstein said. She’d start with “Lovebomb” and “OMG.”

✈️🍴 Gone are the days of chips and a granola bar for “dinner.” At Boston Logan, MarketPlace has upgraded the airport food situation with a lineup of local favorites and national go-tos, all right by your terminal (read: no sprinting with a backpack). Whether you’re grabbing coffee, something comforting, or a meal that makes you say “wait, this is actually good,” there’s a solid option near your gate. See what’s closest, plan ahead, and arrive hungry. 

⚠️ Is Boston really the safest major city in America? If you ask Mayor Michelle Wu … yes. Though crime has slightly rebounded from last year’s historic lows, 2025 was still full of good safety news, per a recent City of Boston press conference. Homicides were down 16% from the city’s five-year average, and increased police patrolling led to declines in violent crime by 24% downtown, and 8% around Mass. and Cass. That said, calling Boston the safest city in America may be a stretch. According to one expert, “one of the safest” might be more accurate. 

🏒 We’re spilling the beans on this hockey tourney. Literally — we’re talking about the Beanpot, a.k.a. Boston’s annual hockey tournament where BU, BC, Northeastern, and Harvard duke it out at TD Garden for … bragging rights, mostly. This year, the women’s champs are slotted for Jan. 20 (which, if it sells out, will break the record for the largest U.S. women’s hockey crowd ever, NBD), and the men’s are on Feb. 9. You can grab tickets to both here.

🌴 Last-minute gift idea: A tropical vacation! Hear us out: Now through Dec. 25, low-budget airline Arajet is offering 60% off base fares on flights from the U.S. to the Dominican Republic, plus over two dozen connecting destinations like Aruba, Medellín, Mexico City, and Buenos Aires. Yes, 60%! The deal applies to travel between Jan. 14 and Sept. 30. All you have to do is use code ARAXMAS at checkout. Name one person who wouldn’t want THAT under the tree!

🔥 It’s cold outside, but these local openings are piping hot. See: Ballers, the Seaport’s newly opened boujee sports club-slash-social lounge. It’s currently set up as an ice skating rink, where you can skate for $15 to $20/hour (depending on the time), or cozy up and grab a bite in these private igloos. Come spring, it’ll transform into pickleball and padel courts. Also see: Kuya Jay’s Ube Kafe, which just reopened on Sunday after a licensing tiff with the city. They’ll be serving up IG-worthy purple lattes, pastries, and other Filipino sweets. 

Arcade energy meets comfort food cravings. Score $8 off $30 using code GAMEGLOBE and let Game On! handle dinner with their wings, pizzas, bowls, and elite waffle fries. Perfect for pre-gaming, mid-gaming, or “I refuse to cook tonight” gaming.

Below are some of the hottest local things to do. This month, B-Side members can save more than $150 across our events, in addition to over 60 other awesome perks. 

💎 Stay at Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport and win diamonds! | Dec. 12-24 | Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport | Will YOU be the lucky guest who finds Angara diamonds under your pillow during your staycation? Just book the right room and you might uncover a pair of 14k white gold, lab-grown, 1-carat diamond stud earrings. 

😂 A Very Nova Christmas Carol | Dec. 19 | 9:30 p.m. | The Rockwell | $23-$28 regular, $18-$22 member | B-Side Members get 20% off tickets to The Nova Comedy Collective’s Dec. 19 show, A Very Nova Christmas Carol. See the best sketches of 2025, new laughs, and special guests! 

❄️ Girlfriends Boston Holiday Party | Dec. 20 | Alibi Bar & Lounge | $67 regular, $60 member | Celebrate the season with Girlfriends Boston for an evening of laughter, holiday cheer, appetizers, great wine, and raffles. B-Side Members get 10% off! 

👀 Want to feature your upcoming event above? Click here.

He sees you when you’re sleeping, he knows when you’re awake. No, we’re not talking about Santa. We’re talking about Creepy Santa. 

Creepy Santa is a 15-foot tall, 1950’s vintage Santa statue that’s become the unofficial holiday mascot of Manchester, N.H. For 35 years, he’s been creeping out Christmas tree shoppers with his faded jolly red cheeks, his missing left foot, and, creepiest of all, his vacant, wide-eyed stare, courtesy of salesman Justin Rheaume. 

But despite his looks, the town loves Creepy Santa. People travel far and wide to snap a Santa selfie, he has his own merch, and, as of this year, Black Friday is now officially Creepy Santa day in Manchester. 

As Rheaume said: “Christmas hasn’t begun until Creepy Santa has risen.” Eep!

— Written by Gia Orsino, Emily Schario, and Claire Nicholas

🧑‍🎄 Thanks for reading! And, like all good New England lore, there’s a dedicated Facebook page with some WILD posts.

💜 Special shoutout to today’s sponsor, Marketplace Logan, for supporting local journalism and making airport dining something to look forward to. 

🗞️ The results are in: 58% of B-Siders were paying attention to the newsletter, and correctly guessed that the REAL headline was that Boston rent is going down. One reader said: “How could I forget this??”

💃 Keep up with us @BostonBSide on IG, TikTok, and Twitter. Send comments and suggestions to [email protected] or [email protected].