A few tipsters have informed us that CourseWorks is now host to Columbia's annual nondenominational seasons greeting slideshow! O, happy day. Let's check out this year's offering, hm?

A few rather dreary pictures of a snowy Central Park (see above) and then a non-exclamation-marked wish of "happy holidays." Well, Bwog certainly prefers last year's fancy alumni-only video animation thing, in which a student drew a lion that came to life and spread joy or somesuch.

This weekend, Bwog ventured into the heart of Brooklyn to find the best and the bushiest of the pinus genus. If you know of any noteworthy XMAS tree purveyors around town, please let us know in the comment section below.

Last week, Bwog posted a list of "Things We're Looking Forward To,", which at the time seemed like a romanticized montage of normal life. But this week, Bwog hopes to find you fulfilling fantasy by sitting in front of a fire, standing "in-line," eating free home-cooked food, hanging out with high school friends and enjoying many, any or all of the other activities on the list.

Fortunately the aforementioned activities are relatively self-explanatory, but one of the more popular activities on the list, trimming the Christmas tree, is decidedly more difficult for those of us in the city and away from home for the holidays for the first time.

Columbia, welcome to no man's land.

For the next two weeks, life will most likely not be fun. You are stuck in the in-between holiday purgatory, having just left home and not far from returning. You must somehow fit what now seems like a lifetime of paper-writing and furious studying into this short amount of time.

Bwog isn't really going to suggest you do anything during finals week except sigh loudly, complain with your friends and have occasional nervous breakdowns, but until the second week of December, we suggest that you punctuate your finals-induced misery with one or a few of the many lovely free mostly-holiday-themed events taking place in our fair city. A full listing after the jump.

Shoppers thronging the streets outside of Macy's

Someone's going bankrupt Friday—either you, because you scraped the bottom of your bank account taking advantage of sharply reduced prices, or the nation's retail stores, because their discounts couldn't reverse months of slumping sales.

Whatever happens in the final accounting, the crowds out shopping Friday in Manhattan were horrendous.

Many stores opened at 5 a.m. to hordes of bargain-hungry shoppers pouncing on deals like Butler Library pigeons on bagel scraps, and the flagship Macy's in Herald Square was no exception.

Photos and more after the jump.

Holiday spirit is being trucked into the city today, in the form of that huge Rockefeller Center tree. (The tree lighting will be on December 3rd.) Urban forestry photojournalist Sumeet Shah is on the scene at an extremely high vantage point.

More pictures after the jump and throughout the day.

Here is another joyful indication of the approaching holiday season: yesterday, local mom-and-pop coffee shop Starbucks began its annual tradition of serving coffee in wintry red cups. Bwog doesn't even like Starbucks, and yet there's something about Red Cup Day that makes us inordinately happy.

So, take your red cupped hot chocolate and take a stroll amongst College Walk's secular tree lights. After all, whether it feels like winter or not (and today it definitely does not), classes end in a month!

Bwog kicks off Halloween early this year with a special guide to two of the neighborhood's best costume purveyors, Ricky's and Possibilities @ Columbia.

You can divide the world in two camps: Those who love Halloween and those who hate it. Bwog falls into the former camp and we hope you do too. But we understand, fun is not for everyone. If you're a Halloween hater, a self-conscious self-customer or just not in the spirit yet, Bwog's here to help. Today, we're guiding you through two of Morningside Heights' most unabashed Halloween haunts, the already infamous Ricky's and Possibilities@Columbia.

Right outside Lerner, the Lubavitchers are here! A caravan to bring you Orthodox cheer. The Sukkah Mobile may seem somewhat queer, but they come in peace--that much is clear.

Econ profs bring crisis to the classroom.

City food pantries and soup kitchens feel the pinch.

Columbia professors, always bailing you out.

Manhattanville saves Cotton Club, gobbles up old gas stations.

Hurrah! Enjoy your holidays while you still can.

In celebration of the beginning of High Holidays, Bwog offers a roundup of the city's finest nosh purveyors. Spice up your Rosh Hashanah spread with some alternatives to Zabars.

Russ and Daughters
If Westside's lox doesn't do it for you, then head to the Lower East Side for delicious smoked salmon in addition to a wide selection of other fish, including stable, sturgeon and other standbys. The prices are high, so order carefully. This is also a great place to stock up on more affordable treats like tsimmis, kugel and herring.


Barney's Greengrass
Barney's claims it's the city's sturgeon king, but Bwog disagrees; your best bet is a Corned beef and sliced onion triple-decker. Prices tend to be high -- $12 for a sandwich -- but you're getting a lot of meat.

Oh look, here is a depressing thing: Duane Reade has already begun stocking up on Christmas decorations. In hopes that these were actually just leftovers from last year, Bwog checked with the salesperson who confirmed that yes, these are new for the season.

So if you're looking to start your Christmas paraphernalia collection early, at least they're really cheap, what with this being September and everything.

You may have seen the campus-wide email announcing that, next Wednesday, Columbia will join schools across the country in celebrating Constitution Day. You might also be asking "Constitution Day? Why are we getting a campus-wide email about a holiday I've never heard of?"

Well, you have probably never heard of it because the day itself is not that old. Constitution Day only began in 2004, when Senator Robert Byrd stuck an amendment into a big spending bill. The amendment forces any school that receives federal money to provide "educational" materials related to the Constitution.

Once again, Columbia is rolling out John Jay's papers to meet the requirement. Also, per the email, "for all of you who have lost or mislaid your pocket version of the constitution - copies will be available for free, while supplies last - at the Law School's Faculty Panel and in the Government & Community Affairs Office in Low Library, Room 309." It's almost like they're not taking this seriously!

This weekend, America is turning 232, making it just slightly older than the Columbia College website. Traditionally, Americans celebrate their country's birthday by cooking meat on grills outdoors and then watching fireworks. For this week's Guide to the Weekend, we've consolidated a few events that will give you the opportunity to do just that.

Macy's Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular; 9PM
Prime Viewing Spots: Manhattan: East River Park, South Street Seaport, FDR Drive between 14th and 42nd Streets; Brooklyn: Greenpoint, Empire Fulton Derry State Park (in DUMBO), Brooklyn Heights Promenade

Brooklyn Independence Day Parade; Between 66th and 86th Streets on 13th Ave in Dyker Heights, Brooklyn
Head to 66th Street in Dyker Height's for the 103rd Annual Independence Day Parade! Who knew Brooklyn had a 66th Street? Featuring classic parade staples like floats and veteran marching bands.

After Saturday's Flag Day and Sunday's Father's Day, our glorious three-day holiday trifecta continues as Bwog would like to take the opportunity to wish everyone a very merry Bloomsday, a special day reserved for celebrating the events of a book we most likely have not read.

Every year, on June 16th, bibliophiles commemorate James Joyce's Ulysses, which follows protagonist Leopold Bloom as he wanders around Dublin on that same date in 1904.

Local James Joyce retailer Book Culture features nothing on its calendar indicating any Bloomsday reading, but Symphony Space, on Broadway and 95th, will be holding a performance of the Ithaca Episode and Molly Bloom's soliloquy tonight at 7 PM. Also starting at that same time and going until 4 AM, 99.5 WBAI will be broadcasting its annual Radio Bloomsday, which features readings from Ulysses and Joyce's other works, and stars apparent Joyceans Alec Baldwin and Anne Meara, among others.

If you know of any other Joyce-centric activities, use the comment thread and we'll update the post.

Bwog editor Mariela Quintana tells you about a holiday you might have missed.

There's been a lot of talk about April being the cruelest month. But what's everyone got against poor old April? Just look at the facts, April's got the best holidays — April Fool's, Earth Day, often Easter, occasionally Passover, always 4/20, and Al Green's birthday's on the 13^th. But April 17^th celebrates the loveliest day of all, Poem in Your Pocket Day.

In honor of National Poetry Month (April), PIYP encourages you, dear Bwog reader, to print out a poem that you enjoy or perhaps that you have even written. As you carry it in your pocket, read your poem to as many or as few people as you so wish — don't be shy, let the inner poet come out!

The holiday is meant to honor not just Erato — our divine Muse of the Lyric Line — but also to promote poetry, literacy an the arts. Today's celebration will culminate with an open mic reading in Byrant Park. And there's even a website, so it's legit!

After the jump, Bwog offers some pocket-friendly poems.