holiday

The children were logged off all snug in their beds While visions of Pokemon danced in their heads. And Mama in her Gucci and I in my Speedo could hardly keep awake to click off the Tivo.

When out on the roof there arose such a clatter
I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter
Away to the window I flew like a flash
Hoping the DSL had not caused my computer to crash.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my hand, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur,from his head to his boot And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot. &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp Though dirty and worn, in his suit not a hole
and around his neck draped a Pashmina stole.

A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.
His eyes -- how they twinkled, this i could see!
His dimples how merry, as he unfurled the Samsung DVD!

His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;
It rest upon his chest completely unfurled,
and whence from it he produced tickets for two around the world!

Puffing his pipe, he stood like the mayor,
all the while jamming to MP3s on this new Rio Player;
He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.

He was chubby and plump,
a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him,
in spite of myself;
His girth was so large, no one could have missed him,
until he merrily unveiled his Pioneer Home Theater System

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread; Carefree and capricious as if just back from the islands,
he nonchalantly came forth with a bag full of diamonds!

He spoke not a word, though his presence did boom, then proceded to fill my stocking with a digital camera with zoom;

Then turned with a jerk,
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;
He sprang to his sleigh, and launched from the deck-a,
leaving behind a gift certificate to ArtMecca.com!

And away they all flew, out into the night
with nothing to fear but a low-flying flight,
I gave him a wave and tried not to morn,
there was no way to finish but to fill out the form!

"Happy Holidays to all, and to all, a good-night!"

Click on the Official Rules link for a complete list of rules. No purchase necessary. Must be 18 to win. Void where prohibited.

Thank you
for entering the "Holiday Soliloquy Giveaway!" presented by Salon.com and sponsors. Duplicate entries will be deleted. No purchase necessary. We will notify the lucky winner on or around January 3, 2001!


Good Luck!

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OFFICIAL RULES

The Sweepstakes is brought to you by Salon Internet, Inc. ("Salon.com") and Tivo, Diamondology.com, Artmecca.com, Express.com, Forzieri.com, Zappos.com ("the Sponsors"). By entering, participants agree to be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of the judges, which shall be final. Salon Internet is not liable for and accepts no responsibility for complications due to: issues of safety, unexpected maintenance, safety issues or complications, issues of additional tax or cost and any affiliates negligence.

HOW TO ENTER: There are two ways to enter this sweepstakes, an online method and a write-in method. Online Method: To enter online, participant must fill out the registration form provided on the contest's main page. Online entrant must be the registered subscriber of the e-mail account by which the entry is made. Online entrants must have at least one active account on the date of the drawing. Online entrants agree that for the limited purpose of determining whether such entrant is a qualified winner, the Sponsor and its authorized agents may review and share with each other the accounts. Online entries must be received by 11:59 p.m. EDT on Dec 31, 2000, in order to be eligible. Write-in Method: Though electronic entries are preferred, submissions may also be mailed to Salon Internet, 16th Floor, "Holiday Solilioquy Giveaway," 22 Fourth Street, San Francisco, CA 94103. Submissions by mail must be typed, double-spaced and on white paper, with the participant's mailing address, phone number and e-mail address (if available). NO PHONE INQUIRIES PLEASE. Write-in entries must be postmarked by Dec. 28, 2000, and received by Dec. 31, 2000, in order to be eligible. Limit one entry per person, regardless of method of entry. Multiple entries submitted by a single entrant, whether via online or write-in, are void.

SWEEPSTAKES DESCRIPTION: This sweepstakes begins at 12:00 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) on Nov 15, 2000, and ends 11:59 p.m. EDT on Dec. 15, 2000 ("promotion period"). There are multiple first prizes available during the promotion period. Participation in this sweepstakes constitutes entrant's full and unconditional agreement to and acceptance of these Official Rules. You may enter only once. Duplicate entries will be deleted. One winner will be selected to win each of the prizes. TAXES ASSOCIATED WITH THE RECEIPT OF ANY PRIZES ARE THE SOLE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE WINNER. All prizes are non-transferable, non-replaceable and cannot be redeemed for cash, bartered or sold. PRIZE #1: (1) TiVo Personal Video Recorders(tm). MSRP of the Phillips (14 hour) HDR112 PVR is $299. Tivo units provided by the sponsor. All other taxes and costs associated with the prizes not stated herein, including taxes, are the responsibility of the winner. To create your own TV network, winners can subscribe to the TiVo Personal TV Service for $9.95 per month or $199 for a lifetime subscription by calling 1-877-For-TiVo or by logging on to www.tivo.com. Subscription is not necessary for use of product. No substitution or transfer of prizes permitted, except at Sponsors' sole discretion. If the prize is unavailable, Sponsors reserve the right to substitute the prize with equal or greater value. PRIZE #2: $300 Zappos.com Gift certificate. PRIZE #3: (1) Pashmina stole from Forzieri.com EV= $188. PRIZE #4: Samsung DVD PLAYER EV= $159.95. PRIZE #5: Pioneer HTP-209 Home Theater System EV= $549.95. PRIZE #6: Olympus D-460 Zoom Digital Camera EV= $499.95. PRIZE #7: (1) Rio Player EV=$220.00. PRIZE #8: Diamondology.com Diamonds, Tennis Bracelet and Earrings, EV= $2450. PRIZE #9: $200 ArtMecca.com gift certificate, PRIZE #10: $200 gift certificate to Simon and Schuster Audio Books, Prize #11 $3000 credit for Airtreks.com flight tickets.

WINNER SELECTION: On or around Jan 1, 2001, the multiple winner(s) will be selected in a random drawing from among all eligible online and write-in entries received. Winners will be notified by mail and/or e-mail. Winners will be required to sign an affidavit of eligibility and a liability release and, where legal, a publicity release as well as appropriate tax release, and return same, properly executed, within fourteen (14) days of issuance of notification. Failure to sign and return these documents in the time noted will result in disqualification of the entry and an alternate winner will be selected. By entry into this sweepstakes, winners consent to the use of their name and/or photograph for promotional purposes, including online announcements, without additional compensation, except where prohibited by law. Odds of winning depend upon the number of eligible entries received. Purchasing a product will not enhance your chances of winning. If, in the judges' opinion, there is any suspected or actual evidence of electronic or non-electronic tampering with any portion of the sweepstakes, or if technical difficulties or any other factors compromise the integrity or administration of the sweepstakes, the judges reserve the right to void any entries in question and/or to modify or terminate this sweepstakes, in whole or in part, at any time without notice and to select a winner from among all eligible entries received by this termination date. Any attempt to deliberately damage the content or operation of this sweepstakes is unlawful and subject to legal action by the sponsors or their agents. Sponsors are not responsible for and shall not be liable for late, lost, misdirected or unsuccessful efforts to notify winner. By entering, participants agree to be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of the judges, which shall be final. Sponsors, agents and representatives of Sponsors, their parent companies, affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising, promotion, and fulfillment agencies, and legal advisors, are not responsible for and shall not be liable for:

(i) late, lost, delayed, damaged, misdirected, incomplete, illegible, unintelligible or postage-due entries;

(ii) any condition caused by events beyond the control of the Sponsors that may cause the Sweepstakes to be disrupted or corrupted;

( iii) any injuries, losses, or damages of any kind a rising in connection with or as a result of the prize, or acceptance, possession, or use of the prize, or from participation in the Sweepstakes; or

(iv) any printing or typographical errors in any materials associated with the Sweepstakes. Salon.com reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to suspend or cancel this Sweepstakes at any time.

By participating in the Sweepstakes, participants agree to release and hold Sponsors and the employees, officers, directors, shareholders, agents, representatives of Sponsors, their parent companies, affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising, promotion and fulfillment agencies, and legal advisors, harmless from any and all losses, damages, rights, claims and actions of any kind in connection with the Sweepstakes or resulting from acceptance, possession or use of any prize, including without limitation, personal injury, death and property damage, and claims based on content of the story, including but not limited to publicity rights, copyright infringement, defamation or invasion of privacy. All entries become the property of the sponsor. By participating in the sweepstakes, entrants agree to the use of their names, voices and/or likenesses for the purpose of advertising, trade or promotion without further compensation, unless prohibited by law, and acknowledge as a condition of participation their names may be used in conjunction with the business of Salon.com.

By accepting and/or using the prize(s), winner agrees to the use of their name, voice and/or likenesses for the purpose of advertising, trade or promotion without further compensation, unless prohibited by law. If a selected winner cannot be contacted, is ineligible, fails to claim a prize(s) or fails to timely return the complete and executed affidavit and releases as required, the prize will be forfeited and an alternate winner will be selected. The participants' individual contact and demographic information is likely to be shared with participating sponsors, who may use this information as they wish. A participant's personal contact and demographic information will not be released to any third-party organization other than named sponsors without the user's consent, and Salon.com will request that co-sponsors of such events uphold the privacy of the registrants' information by not distributing or sharing such information with any other businesses or organizations.

ELIGIBILITY: Open only to legal residents of the United States, 18 years of age or older. Void in Alaska, Florida, Hawaii & Puerto Rico and where prohibited by law. Not eligible to enter are employees and their immediate families and household members, of the Sponsor, its respective parent company, affiliates, subsidiaries, divisions, advertising and promotion agencies. This sweepstakes is subject to all federal, state, and local laws. Void where prohibited. Entrants agree that the Releasees shall not be liable and shall hold Releasees for claims, actions, injury, loss or damage of any kind resulting from participating in this promotion or from the acceptance or use of any prize awarded. The Sponsor reserves the right to verify eligibility qualifications of any winner. U.S. law governs this sweepstakes. The Sponsor may, but is not required to enter into correspondence, including e-mail, with any entrant regarding entry status.

GRAND PRIZE-WINNER: To receive the name of winners, available after 12/31/00, send a self addressed stamped envelope by 01/05/00 to: "Holiday Soliloquy Winner", Salon Internet, 16th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94103.

Salon Internet is not liable for and accepts no responsibility for complications due to: issues of safety, unexpected acts of nature, safety issues or complications, or issues of additional tax or cost.