Merry Christmas from Cymax Stores!!!

Cymax Stores would like to wish everybody a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS! May the holidays and the coming New Year be joyful and filled with happiness!

Big thanks to all Cymax customers and supporters! Because of you 2008 has been our most successful year in our 4 years of serving you! For that, we thank you!

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM CYMAX STORES!!!

Plan Bs for St. Nick

The big guy sat back at his desk, swimming in a sea of opened letters and still-sealed envelopes that took up every inch of space of the most chaotic office in all of the North Pole. In pondering the question before him, one that he was now receiving with increasing regularity, he could only assume more and more parents were aware of www.electricfireplaceselect.com. He sighed, contemplating how his legendary gig used to be so much more simple.

The question that gave him such fits arriving en masse? “How do you get in through our fireplace when there’s no chimney to the roof?”

“Jolly” Old St. Nick wasn’t so jolly at this particular moment. “Gosh darn it,” he thought, “Why can’t parents just amend the tale a little, make up something, ANYTHING! Does anyone think I enjoy behaving like a common thief wedging my ample midsection through windows, picking locks and more?” He grumpily rebuked an elf who’s anxious knock at the door annoyed him at just the wrong moment.

Sure, the shift to multiple family dwellings, “condo life” as it were, was predicted years ago but maybe he hadn’t paid enough heed to the warnings. He’d assumed, perhaps foolishly, there would still be chimneys to slide on down the way there had been for decades upon decades. However impractical those traditional fireplaces might have been in modern city homes, it would have been nice if they’d even considered just how set in his ways old Santa was. But no, everybody had to embrace the electric fireplace and as much as he disliked the fact, truth was he couldn’t blame them as the warmth and charismatic presence of those simulate fires just made so much darn sense.

Suzie from Chicago wrote “Don’t worry Santa, my parents’ Dimplex Promotional Free Standing Fireplace will be switched off on Christmas Eve, but can you please tell me how you come out of it? Can you do magic too like the guy on TV? Please tell me. PS – I will leave extra cookies if you respond ASAP.”

Quentin from Vancouver queried “Our Fire Sense Georgetown Electric Fireplace doesn’t need a chimney because there’s no smoke. If there’s no chimney, how do you bring in our presents? Last year I was locked in my room because I wanted to stay up and watch you pull it off, so please write back or I’ll leave a running camcorder on the sofa.”

Sara from Boston said “Santa, I have determined there’s no way you can fit into our Classic Flame Victoria Black Electric Stove. Sorry, but you’re too chubby and it’s perfectly compact for our condominium and provides a lovely radiating warmth in our living room on cold winter nights. I’m concerned you will break it if your try. Please respond with your alternate plan.”

Ole Saint Nick leaned back again and lit his pipe, resolving to get his PR department to put a spin on this without delay. He picked up a remote on his desk and pointed it to the wall. A Southern Enterprises Whiteman Mahogany Fireplace roared to life and warmth instantly flooded the room.

“If you can’t beat ‘em” Santa muttered quietly to himself.

Pub Table Chic

It’s understandable that at this time of year, most everyone’s mind is on entertaining. And, especially if you live in an apartment or condominium where space is at a premium, you’re probably wondering where you’re going to put everyone. At MorePubSets.com you’re sure to find some seating solutions that will not only get you through the holidays, but will be useful year-round when you gather with family and entertain friends for whatever reason or occasion.

Pub tables aren’t restricted to restaurants or other commercial settings anymore. Partly a sign of the fluctuating economy and just the general rising costs of everyday living, more people are staying in and entertaining at home. The growing decorating trend of furnishing a family room, living room or den with a home bar, a pub table and barstools is a reflection of the current economic climate.

Turning an unused corner of your home into a place to gather with family and friends is a practical way to increase the versatility and functionality of your living space. It’s as easy as choosing a pub table and matching barstools or the perfect pub set to make an area more usable and guest friendly.

Pub sets are available in a wide range of styles and materials, from ultra-modern to contemporary to traditional. Generally round or square, a pub table usually seats two or four people. Pub tables are typically higher than dining tables or counter-height dining tables (also known as gathering tables). Dining tables stand about 30 inches high while pub tables range from 40 to 42 inches in height. When selecting matching barstools, keep in mind that to be seated comfortably at the table, the stools should be 10 to 12 inches shorter than the pub table.

When selecting a pub table or a pub set, decide if you want it to blend with your existing décor or if you want your pub set to “stick out” and make a statement. Have some fun; pick a theme and transform part of your family room into a trendy wine bistro with the Tempo Napa Pub Table or a great place to play a game of pool with the Tempo 8-Ball Bar Height Pub Set.

Since space is hard to come by when planning a Christmas get-together or other holiday gathering, adding a pub table or pub set to the room in your home where you’ll be entertaining the most is a practical way of getting the more mileage out of your living space. For Christmas meals when your dining table shrinks as the number of people increases, it can also do double time as the “kid’s table” (you know it will be called that even though adults will be sitting at it). If you want to create a comfortable place for your guests to “perch” while they snack on appetizers and other Christmas goodies, MorePubsets.com can help.

Change for Christmas

Here at www.moretronics.com, Christmas spirit is in full swing, and this past weekend you could sense the Christmas rush being in full swing as well. Too many people out and about clogging up the arteries in from the suburbs on Saturday and Sunday annoys me to no end. I happily took the train into town for some Xmas shopping while the missus took the car to visit a friend near home.

Sure enough it was full and I settled into a spot near the middle of the train. Within two stops it’s packed and a young woman stood close enough to me that I could hear the rhythm of the song playing loudly on her ipod. The same dun-chikka dun-chikka dun-chikka 2/4 beat rattled away repetitively over the course of minutes, the same beat monotonously rolling along like the rhythmical equivalent of a burden mule plodding mindlessly through a muddy field. Her eyelids began to dip drowsily, almost as if she was being sedated by the ceaseless inflexible chugging of a synthetic bass, snare and hi-hat.

Now I’m sure she was just your average sleep-deprived commuter, but I couldn’t help but draw a line between the two. What’s more, I found it somewhat unpleasant and saw no recourse but to don my own ipod for percussive salvation.

A random on Incubus’ Make Yourself found the song Out from Under with tasty rhythmic progressions and fills / accenting courtesy of the talented Jose Pasillas. I had a late Saturday night as well, but the undeniable vibrancy of dynamic music brought a contrasting tap to my foot and soothed me just right. Being the holiday season and all, I pictured my own “little drummer boy” masterfully wielding the sticks next to his ordinary robotic counterpart in the pod across the way. The drumming equivalent of the defective stammering protocol droid across from C-3PO in the Jawa Sandcrawler.

Change is good people, and for the music enthusiast in your family we’ve got some great ideas for Christmas gifts. If he or she might be so lucky as to have a Sirius 4 Plug&Play Radio on the way, they’re going to love having so much music at their fingertips. A Sirius Boombox would make a perfect on-the-go compliment, as would be a Sirius Universal Vehicle Kit with a sleek mounting panel and connection outputs for older auxiliary / line-level inputs on older car stereo units.

Having the freedom to connect your ipod directly to your in-dash player will be a welcome convenience for any motorist that needs their music while on the road. 5 different Scosche ipod connectors are compatible with JVC, Pioneer, Kenwood, Sony and Alpine car stereos, and you’ll be tapping on the steering wheel in no time. An Iluv Digital FM Ipod Transmitter offers the same freedom by relaying your ipod songs to a range of selectable frequencies on your radio, and is a sleek mounting option as well.

Lastly, take a look at this Ilive Portable Music System and tell me there’d be even one music-loving ipod owner who wouldn’t be thrilled with this sleek and lightweight portable stereo unit. Those bulky “blaster” portable stereos won’t hold a festive candle to this guy.

To each their own, to be sure. That’s what makes music such a special art loved by almost everyone. However, there’s nothing like the sway that grabs hold of you in creative, expressive music where the rhythm moves like a fish in water – and thankfully dun-chikka dun-chikka just doesn’t provide it for me. Whatever your tastes, we’re fortunate that technology has made personal music devices so much smaller and easily-portable, and that there are so many stylish and practical accessories outgrowing as a result.

At MoreTronics, there are more different audio accessory products sure to fit the music nut on your list than could ever be listed here. Take a look, and make this Christmas a special one for any tune fanatic in the family.

My Letter to Santa Claus

Dear Santa,

Just to set the record, I had a great childhood and got lots of stuff for Christmas (as you know) every year. But when I was growing up, we didn’t have Children’s Furniture Select. Since I know that a Ferrari convertible won’t fit in the elevator of our office building, please bring the following:

I always wanted a train set. My theory is I had no brothers, so no train set. So please put the The Kidkraft Santa Stacking Train in my stocking. It looks like a lot of fun! Great picture of you, by the way.

A rocking horse – either the Derby Rocking Horse by Kidcraft or (and I know it’s not really a horse, but it’s kind of a horse) the Kidkraft Harley Davidson Lil' Diva Rock 'N Ride. If you can’t bring both, surprise me!

I love to read. The KidKraft Princess Bookcase looks absolutely divine. Books would be even more magical if I had some place pink to keep them.

And the absolutely last thing on my wish list is the Savannah Dollhouse. To be honest, I did have a dollhouse when I was growing up, but not one as tall as I would have been back then.

Thanks.

Yours truly,
A Cymax Stores copywriter

P.S. You know where I sit, but just in case, it will be the desk that has the big plate of cookies on it.

Holiday Specials

Christmas is the one time of the year when holiday enthusiasts, children in particular, can look forward to TV broadcasts of the same classics they saw at this time last year. A Charlie Brown Christmas, How the Grinch Stole Christmas and Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer, among others, have stood the test of time in much the same way many of the coat rack designs features at www.coatrackselect.com have remained a staple of entryways over many, many years.

I was one such enthralled youngster, but the years have dulled my memories of these specials considerably. I only remember smaller parts; the Abominable Snowman being a misjudged antagonist wrongly cast for doing nothing more than being as fearsome as clay would allow, or the Grinch’s pillage of Whoville on his suped-up sleigh knockoff. When I think of Charlie Brown, I automatically picture Charlie flying through the air unceremoniously after another field goal is thwarted by Lucy preemptively pulling the pigskin away, and that has nothing to do with Xmas.

A coat rack has always had something of the identity of a welcome salvation post when coming in from the bitter December cold. You know, the individual sighing in the warmth of the home as he or she hangs their coat and scarf before proceeding to doff snow encrusted footwear. Further, it wasn’t exclusive to benevolent types like Jimmy Stewart in It’s a Wonderful Life, even that ne’er do well Grinch was seen to discard his toque and scarf upon the only fixture that decorated his snowy foyer – a coat rack that was much the animated version of a Powell Nostalgic Oak Twist Coat Rack which just might be a similarly stylish choice for yours.

Santa had a resignedly down look on his face as he plunked his classic long toque atop a claymation version of a Safco Cherry Wood Costumer all those Christmases ago in 1962. It was just before he was to break the news that Christmas was to be cancelled, before a certain red lightbulb-nosed reindeer came to save the best day of the year. I seem to remember Linus following Charlie’s lead after coming in from the cold, yet pausing for a second before thinking better of hanging his beloved blanket on a Home Star Manhattan Coat Rack.

For whatever reason, a coat rack or hall tree always seemed to play a subliminally-relevant role in these Christmas specials, usually being the only fixture of notice in otherwise non-descript entryways to the home. Perhaps they were meant to signify the value and warmly welcoming role of the home during the holidays and the respite it provided. The transition point where one came in from the cold, shedding layers in the presence of both literal warmth and that more figurative offered by family / loved ones.

Whether or not a coat rack could ever have such an identity in your home over the Yuletide season, it almost certainly will be an appreciated and tidy convenience with the inevitable influx of guests to your home. Rather than their coats being draped over the banister post at the foot of your stairs, they’ll hang charismatically from an attractive and tall coat rack.

And be nice to that shaggy white-haired “Abominable” Snowman outside lurking amidst the snow drifts, he may prove invaluable before long in the days leading up to Dec. 25th.

Entertaining Ideas

When getting ready for Christmas, you want your home to look warm and welcoming, but you don’t want to have to do a major renovation to get it to look that way. Entertaining for the holidays translates into the living room, dining room and kitchen seeing a lot of the action. The holiday season can be stressful, but with a little planning ahead and some decorating strategies, you will be able to entertain (almost) stress-free, and in style too, with a little help from Cymax Stores.

Nothing makes guests feel welcome faster than walking into a living room with candles, bowls of Christmas goodies dotted around and table lamps that shed warm, soft light. But where to put everything? How about a group of nesting tables? Nesting tables are different sized tables designed to fit one underneath the other, giving you the option to separate them and move them around a room as needed. The Kathy Ireland Bradley Living Room Table Set which includes end tables with usable cabinet space for added storage solutions would be an excellent choice.

If you were planning at some point to spruce up your dining room, now might be the perfect time to invest in a dining set. MoreDiningTables.com features seven-piece dining sets, both dining and counter heights, for under $1,300.00. Don’t need to seat that many people or you need a table for more than six; MoreDiningTables.com has a wide selection of casual and formal dining tables in a price range sure to suit your budget. If the table still has some mileage left and just the chairs need replacing, MoreDiningTables.com can help. No matter whether it’s the Christmas season or not, extra chairs will also come in handy. The Linon Firenze Folding Chair is the perfect choice, with its stylish appearance and convenient design.

Even if you are perfectly happy with your dining table and chairs, perhaps you’re tired of running back and forth to the linen closet or the kitchen every time you need to set the table. Make your dining room entertaining-friendly in a chic and stylish way with a buffet or sideboard. Many types of buffets will include wine storage, a stemware rack and a flatware drawer, features that make hosting holiday meals comfortable and easy.

To get your kitchen organized for the holiday rush, consider buying a kitchen cart that can do double duty as a serving cart. It will be handy for food prep and will increase your existing counter space, while providing convenience and mobility when you’re ready to serve your guests. Get the most out of your kitchen counter by adding two or three colourful barstools; you can keep friends and family nearby while you’re busy in the kitchen.

Christmas comes once a year. And it’s a good thing, too, because it can make us a little stressed out with decorating the tree, buying gifts and all those other little things we need to do before the 25th arrives. But with some planning ahead, you can at least have your home look good for the big day.