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The Holidays are so exciting with parties, family get-togethers, special events and more. To keep up with all the festivities and entertaining you need the right beauty secrets to keep you looking beautiful and refreshed.

GET EVEN The most important beauty accessory you can purchase this holiday season is a good foundation color and try a custom made specifically for your very own skin color. If you use a foundation, it is important to match the skin tones perfectly so it looks ultra-natural. The wrong color can make your complexion look ashy, ruddy or too yellow, making you look tired and older than you actually are. Even if you are pale, you can fake it by using a slightly warmer color to give you a new and natural glow and without lines under the chin area. Here at The Rouge we are experts at custom-blending foundations and powders. Our custom blend foundation from Fleur Visage is water-based and gives you perfect coverage without feeling heavy. We offer custom blending daily and walk–ins are always welcome. Be confident, beautiful and glow this holiday season with an incredible, personalized foundation just for you.

CAMOUFLAGE those under eye circles with a correct-all concealer. You can look brand new in seconds with the right concealer, applied directly to the eyelid and under the eye. It is important to use a concealer that is slightly lighter than your own skin tone so it looks natural and even. It should have a strong pigment to conceal imperfections and look natural. Always use a powder after applying the concealer to help seal and set the concealer and it will make eye shadows look smooth and fresh and last all day without creasing. Do not use a concealer that is much lighter than your natural skin tones, because it may have an owl-like effect around the eyes that not only looks unnatural but ages you as well. Furthermore do not do the mistake of using a green or yellow concealer because it will make your eyes and skin look ashy, ghostly and pale. A lot of women think if they use a lighter color concealer it will help hide redness and dark imperfections. But if you have the right color and enough pigment in the concealer, it will hide discoloration, flaws and dark circles easily, leaving a natural, youthful radiance to the eye area and the skin.

HYDRATE SKIN for a smoother, glowing complexion. Using creams filled with Nuero-Peptides will dramatically improve skins texture and smoothness. Neuro-Peptides has been scientifically researched and are in fact one of the most aggressive anti-aging antioxidant products on the market to give you visual improvement in decreasing wrinkle formation, preventing age spots and smoothing the surface of the skin.

We welcome you to stop by The Rouge this holiday season to try our concealers, sample our Neuro-peptide creams and we will personally formulate a custom blended foundation color just for you! HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Last month, I jumped the gun by asking questions about the frustrations of the San Francisco Giants in not winning a World Series in 53 seasons playing in SF. I’m happy to report, our wait is over. They won and the entire Bay Area can rejoice. We are wonderfully blessed to have two Major League teams within our geographical area and they are both worthy of our support. Would like to do more baseball questions this month, but I am sure the readers are not all fans, so I work up some holiday cheer.

1. Who starred in the updated version of “Christmas Carol” known as “Scrooged” in 1988?
2. Who was the singing host of the perennial Christmas TV favorite “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer”?
3. What famous singer wrote the lyrics to “The Christmas Song”?
4. Who played the title role in the 1985 movie “Santa Claus”?
5. What is in James Stewart’s pocket when he is brought back to the present on Christmas Eve in the classic “It’s a Wonderful Life”?
6. Who played the music for “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” as well as all of the other Peanuts TV specials?

NOVEMBER’S TRIVIA ANSWERS:

1. Bobby Richardson
2. Ralph Terry
3. Candy Maldonado
4. Mitch Williams
5. Scott Spiezio
6. Bengie Molina

NOVEMBER TRIVIA WINNER:
Barry Tiras of Walnut Creek

WIN LUNCH ON BEN!
The first person to email or mail, no calls please, the correct answers to all of the above questions will win a $25 gift certificate at The Uptown Cafe in downtown Danville, compliments of Ben Fernandez!
Entries must be received by Dec 24, 2010. In the event of a tie, the winner will be drawn at random. Please email your answers to info@aliveeastbay.com, or mail to ALIVE East Bay, 199 East Linda Mesa Avenue, Suite 10, Danville, CA 94526. Employees and family members of employees of ALIVE East Bay are not eligible.
Restaurant may be changed without notice.

I love Christmas and I love movies. I love Christmas movies! I have to admit that for years I recorded all the Christmas movies that came on TV to video, that way the day after Thanksgiving the Christmas movie marathon would begin. Every year I added a few new ones. Then came my precious DVR. I had been set free! I threw away all my old VHS tapes and cleared the shelves. This year has been especially great because the TV programmers are running all the Christmas re-runs at odd hours so they don’t conflict with prime time. Bless them!!

I tried to pick a favorite to review but found I had many favorites depending on my mood and who was watching with me. My grandkids and I have already watched Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Who Stole Christmas this year. I can do that with the kids because they don’t know about the “after Thanksgiving” rule and probably wouldn’t care if they did. It’s a great family movie with lots of action, fun and holiday sentiment. For the little ones, it’s not too scary and Jim Carrey is absolutely amazing as the Grinch who was an outcast as a little one because of his green hairy body. Why is the Grinch a grouch? Little Cindy Lou takes the matter into her own hands and turns both Whoville and The Grinch’s world upside down, inside out…funny side up in her search for the true meaning of Christmas. Kudos to Oscar-winning director Ron Howard for this holiday favorite.

When Tom and Laura, my thirty-something children, were young their favorite was Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas. This movie is so very sweet even the littlest will enjoy. It has a message about love and family that even the toddlers can understand.

White Christmas is one of my favorite classics. My sisters and I still sing one of the songs, and we’ve passed the love on to our daughters. How can you go wrong with Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye? A more recent holiday tradition is none other than Chevy Chase’s Christmas Vacation, still funny after all these years!

Last decade brought us Polar Express with Tom Hanks. This cinematic miracle was brought to us in 3D and was truly amazing not only for it’s message but also it’s technical delivery. I also loved The Holiday, a quirky little movie with Cameron Diaz, Jude Law, Jack Black and Kate Winslet. It’s a good “cuddle up with your honey,” watch. I can’t forget my favorite Hallmark Christmas movie, Season of Miracles, to get you in the holiday spirit.

Last but certainly not least is The Nativity Story. This movie is about the birth of Christ which is obviously what Christmas is all about. If you and your family have forgotten the true meaning of Christmas, I encourage you to buy it, rent it or look for it on your TV this season. It’s definitely worth the watch every year!

No matter what your culture or religion these are great feel good movies that lift the spirit and the heart. Once again, I encourage your comments at hastings@rockcliff.com. You can find some past reviews on the www.aliveeastbay.com.

Q. Tom, our home has been on the market for about 45 days and on the advice of our Realtor we intend to leave it on through the holidays. Are we making the right decision to leave it on and what, if anything, should we do to make it more attractive to buyers?

Good for you! Many sellers take their homes off the active market during the holiday period causing the available inventory to decrease, which means from a supply/demand standpoint you have a better chance of selling. That’s good. In order to optimize your chance of selling, I recommend you focus on two fundamentals. First, review your pricing to confirm that you are “value-priced” for the market. As we say in the business, in this market everything is “for sale” – and your house must be “on-sale” as only the best values get the attention of the savvy buyers in the marketplace. Second, keep holiday decorating to a minimum by not overdoing the lights and ornamental clutter. Keep in mind it is important that the buyer gets a clear view of the real property and not personal property.

Q. What is the purpose of the appraisal contingency in the standard home purchase contract?

Great question. The appraisal is the “check and balance” in the transaction to insure that the buyer is not unknowingly paying too much for the property. The verbiage is fairly straightforward, “this agreement is contingent upon a written appraisal of the property by a licensed or certified appraiser at no less than the specified purchase price.” It also affirms to the lender that the home is, in fact, worth what the buyer is proposing to pay for it thereby insuring that lending against is it a reasonable risk. If a particular home does not appraise for the agreed upon purchase price, then the buyer and seller can agree to re-negotiate the price (generally to the lower appraisal amount) or the two parties can agree to cancel the contract with the buyer’s deposit refunded in full.

Q. I will most likely sell my home sometime in 2011. Tom, what should I be thinking of now to insure getting the highest price possible?I love sellers who plan ahead and pay attention to the fundamentals! They always end up being the happiest with the entire process. The following should be your plan:

1) Determine when you want to sell – early or late spring, summer or fall. 2) If you don’t have a professional real estate agent, start researching one. If you do have a trustworthy agent, call him or her over for a consultative appointment to review market conditions, pricing levels and property condition issues. 3) Start the de-clutter and enhancement work early as nearly every home needs to be cleaned, painted, landscaped, and/or handy-manned in some way. 4) Accept the fact that your home is worth less than it was a few years ago. 2007 values are long gone. 5) Listen to your agent when he/she recommends aggressively pricing your home. The best agents are bluntly forthright about pricing and the most satisfied sellers are the ones who understand that “value-priced” homes are the ones that sell in today’s market.

Tom Hart is a practicing Real Estate Broker and a partner at Empire Realty Associates in Danville. He is a Certified Master Negotiator by the University of San Francisco and a Certified Master Strategist by HSM Harvard Program on Negotiation. He is past president of the Contra Costa Association of Realtors (2005) and past president of the Realtors’ Marketing Association of the San Ramon Valley. Tom is in high demand as a speaker & trainer inside & outside the real estate industry.

You can contact Tom at 925-355-1187 or tom@tomhart.com

Holiday music, sacred Christmas carols and secular songs, are heard almost daily in this festive season. Sacred carols center around the birth of the Christ Child who is Lord and Savior to millions of Christians around the globe. Secular holiday music speaks of other things like Santa Claus, white Christmas, chestnuts roasting, among others.

Prominent in the classical music genre is the music of two master composers of the late Baroque Period – George Frederick Handel (1685-1759) and Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750). These giants in music history were both born in Germany but couldn’t be further apart in their personal life and world outlook.

Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was the consummate family man. An introverted conservative, he was a devoted Christian who was gifted as a master musician, organist and composer, Bach was sedentary in terms of travel and never ventured out of his native Germany. Born into a family of musicians he continued the family tradition by siring 20 children. He first married his cousin Maria Bach, with whom he had seven children. After she died, he married Anna Magdalena Wilke, and had thirteen children by her. Some of his children became gifted composers in their own right.

Bach’s main contribution to Christmas music is the great Christmas Oratorio composed in 1733-34. An oratorio is an extensive setting for orchestra, chorus and solo voices derived from, or based on, selections from the Bible. It is performed devoid of costumes, scenery or action on the part of the soloists.

The first performance of the Christmas Oratorio was on December 25, 1739 in St. Nicholas Church in Leipzig, Germany. It is in six parts and almost three hours long. Each part was presented on a major feast day between Christmas and Epiphany. It was also performed as a whole or split into two parts. Bach’s attitude towards the oratorio was one of absolute devotion. All of Bach’s music was dedicated to the greater glory of God.

George Frederick Handel
Handel was an extrovert and a “man of the world,” (unlike Bach) a bon vivant. In his early years he traveled extensively and spent three years in Italy studying and absorbing Italian music, especially Italian opera. In 1712 he went to England and remained there the rest of his life. He never returned to his native Germany. “The German became England’s greatest composer of Italian music,” said Musicologist, Marcus Weeks.

Handel’s musical talent was recognized early and he was allowed to have formal training even though he was not from a musical family. He is most well-known for his masterpiece, Messiah, often incorrectly called “The” Messiah.

While Bach’s attitude was devotional – Handel’s approach to the oratorio was more subjective, using it to express his own dynamic personality and incorporating the elements of his dramatic style. Handel’s oratorio was performed on stage in a theater for an audience, not a congregation. Unlike Bach’s religious oratorios, Handel’s oratorios were not designed for devotion but for a full evening of entertaining vocal and orchestral music using Biblical sources.

Depressed and in debt, Handel wrote Messiah in an astonishing 24 days in 1741. It contains elements of his mature, full-blown style. It is considered to be a high point of Baroque oratorical composition.

*Messiah presents an interpretation of the Christian view of the Messiah or “the anointed one” as Jesus the Christ. Divided into three parts, the libretto covers the prophecies concerning the Christ, the birth, miracles, crucifixion, resurrection and ascension of Jesus, and finally the end times with Christ’s final victory over death and sin.

The first performance in 1742 was in Dublin, Ireland. The tradition of standing for the Hallelujah Chorus was started by King George II, who was so moved by the music that he stood up – audiences have been doing it ever since.

Messiah “Sing-A-Longs”
There are many opportunities to hear Messiah each Christmas season. It is the most performed large choral work ever written. There are also local opportunities to participate in “Sing-A-Long Messiahs.” Many communities offer this to the public. To participate in San Ramon, call Dean Christman at 925-984-2860. Christman will conduct ‘brush-up” work-shops for singers to perform Messiah on December 19, at 7 p.m. at the San Ramon Presbyterian Church. Come and be part of your own Messiah performance, complete with full orchestra. A memorable family event.

Mark your calendars for the 10th annual free Christmas Concert “Comin’Home For Christmas” with the Danville Community Band, Director, Robert Calonico and Director-Emeritus, Dr. Lawrence Anderson. A highlight is Danville’s own, George Komsky, tenor soloist, Sunday, December 12, 2010 at 3:00 p.m. East Bay Fellowship, 2615 Camino Tassajara, Danville, CA 94506 (Across from the Danville Post Office.)

The Band’s annual Christmas concert is the event that helps make the holidays bright, for young and old alike. A Christmas Festival, Mary’s Boy Child, Angels from the Realms of Glory, Holst Winter Suite and the perennial favorite, Sleigh Ride are some of the featured selections. (A visitor from the North Pole may appear.)
Join us for this wonderful family event to celebrate the holidays. Concert and parking FREE! For information see www.danvilleband.org or call 925-372-8420.

Please submit your questions and comments to banddirector01@comcast.net
Visit our website at www.danvilleband.org for up-to-date information about the Danville Community Band.