"Yo," hollered Ramon Medina at us from his El Camino as we were quietly walking down the street listening to Iggy Pop's Preliminaries. "Is there such a thing as a goth Christmas tree?" Then he laughed and sped away.

The answer is yes, Medina, there is a goth Christmas. Every October we put up a tree festooned with orange lights and decorated with homemade ornaments cobbled together from dollar store Halloween loot. Jack and Sally sit on the top of the tree. Then when Thanksgiving rolls around, if we have the energy we'll take down the spooky stiff and put up traditional Christmas ornaments.

What should we ask Gothic Claus for this year? We summoned the Gothic Council for ideas. Joining the Council this week is Jason Hebert, co-founder of the Age of Decay Festival Alethea Carr, author of the Encyclopedia Gothica Liisa Ladouceur, Church of Melkarth's Jvstin Whitney, fashion designer Batty, DJs Martin Oldgoth and Regen Robinson, Sarah Fanning of Night's Plutonian Shore, and living historian Morrighanne Burns.

Jason Hebert: I can rarely think of anything I would like for Christmas, so this year I was thinking about trying to use black food coloring on and through a spiral sliced ham. Watching my family of Cajun miscreants devour a solid black ham with black swine juice dripping down their chins is all I want for Christmas. And maybe Andrew Eldritch in a Santa costume, but let's face it, that's not that far fetched.

Alethea Carr: Last year I ordered some skeletal fish wrapping paper from Gift Shrouds. I'd like to get one of their other designs as well. That way, even the most ordinary or mass-produced gifts, like electronics, still have a bit of goth in them. For myself, I just want music, music, and more music!

Liisa Ladouceur: At holidays, I really try to stick to the philosophy of "consume culture." I like to give and receive music, books, tickets for arts events, etc. This year's Amazon Wish list includes:

Totally Wired: Postpunk Interviews and Overviews by Simon Reynolds

Monsters in America: Our Historical Obsession with the Hideous and the Haunting by W. Scott Poole

Now, if I'm going to daydream of an actual Satan who does love to spend money on luxury goods, I would certainly be a very good girl to get more McQueen into my life.