Rituals are an important part of the holiday season. Why, you ask? I'm not sure. I just needed a lead in. I went to Wikipedia to read about it, but the article was kinda long and used some confusing terms like "non-contiguous," "etic" and "sports events." For the rest of this column, therefore, I'll be switching to the term 'tradition' (which was still a long read on Wikipedia, but used a lot of bullet points so I've got a better handle on it.) As I was saying, holiday traditions are important for some reason or another. I partake in several. There's the Everyone Got Divorced And Now I Have …

I remember in excruciating detail the moment I stopped believing in Santa Claus. The realization came over me in an instant, the quick cover-ups by my parents had the lid blown open, my mind flashed back to every chat with that jolly old guy during my short life, and I came crashing back to reality, holding a present, to me, from Santa, on Christmas Eve. My parents, younger sister Abby and I had made the long drive from Warren to my grandparents' house in Michigan a few days earlier, and we had already taken care of the important things: we found a place for our stockings, helped my aunts and…

When it comes to radio, I like to know what to expect. In the industry it's referred to as programming format, and internet-based services such as Pandora have perfected it, playing exactly what you want to hear before you even know you want to hear it. A dependable format is like an aural guardian angel, soothing you with reassurances that you won't be forced to listen to Joan Baez segue to Insane Clown Posse. Or vice-versa. As someone who hasn't used the radio wake-up on my alarm clock since Black Sabbath's Iron Man destroyed my mood for an entire week in 1986, format is important to me. …