Rules of Play

 

1. Bookmark the post with this year's list or screenshot/download the list.
2. Add write-ins for categories allowing them:
1. Stocking Stuffers: A song you hear so many (maybe too many) times every year.
2. Nice: A song you like.
3. Naughty: A song you don't like.
4. Christmas Miracles: Love it or hate it, you'll be surprised if you manage to hear it.
5. Ghosts of Christmas Past: *Year 5 only* Pick any song from the Christmas Miracle category lists from 2020-2023. 
3. Go about your seasonal business and keep your ears open. Seriously. One year, someone got "Fruitcake" when a friend had it playing in the background while she addressed cards.
4. When you hear a song on the list, cross it off and award yourself the points.
5. Each song only counts once. *Year 5 only: Gifts That Keep On Giving count multiple times.*
6. You must hear the song serendipitously, with no warning or foreknowledge. It counts no matter where you hear it, unless you knew you would hear it. For example, hearing a song by the Muppets on the radio counts. Listening to a Muppets-only Christmas playlist would not check off "Anything by the Muppets" because you know you're going to hear the Muppets on it. 
7. Derby ends when we ring in 2025. On January 1, let Jacki know your point total and/or the day you finished your list. Winners will be chosen based on finishing order and high scores. 

BONUS POINTS

Regifting is off the table for 2024. Last year I learned that having a mix of players who know each other and players who don't know anyone caused a big point gap for some people, so we are putting this on layaway to revisit some other year.  Regifting: ***NEW for 2024!*** You can help other Derby runners by surprising them with a song they're having trouble catching on their own. How? Any way you can. You could call them when you hear it on the store overhead. You could Rudolph Roll them. Give yourself 50 bonus points if you (uhn-uhn) pass it on.

Holding Out for a Hero-ho-ho: Got a favorite recorded version of a song? You can hold out until you hear that artist to check off the song, thus earning 50 bonus points. For example, you could decide you won't count "A Holly Jolly Christmas" unless you hear the original Burl Ives recording. You can use this strategy with any song or songs on the list, as long as multiple artists have recorded the song. Sometimes only one artist has recorded a song, in which case holding out would not count.

In Line and Offline: Each song you hear on AM/FM radio, playing in a store, or in a movie you've never seen gets you an extra 50 points. Internet stations do not count for this bonus, nor do movies you've seen, even if you honestly forgot that song was in that film.