10 holiday themed things to do as a developer
Tags: christmas, holidays, githunt, opensource
Published: 2021-12-15 05:47:08

As we all wrap up for the year, here's a few fun, Christmas-themed things you can do.

## Advent of Code

It's like an advent calendar, but for code! Each day, a new (small) programming puzzle will be issued. Coders and problem solvers of all levels jump in and solve these puzzle using any language they like. People often pit these against their friends in a speed contest to see who can complete it first. [Advent of Code](https://adventofcode.com/) is a fun way to challenge yourself and get in the Christmas spirit at the same time.

![Advent of Code](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/00tkqqmnp65yaod3lhme.JPG) 

## Countdown to Christmas
Want to know _exactly_ when it's Christmas? This neat [Christmas countdown](https://christmascountdown.live/) will show you how many sleeps until Santa comes. There's even a Discord bot and lots of random Christmas jokes to entertain the family. Fun fact, the code is on [GitHub](https://github.com/christmas-countdown).

![Christmas Countdown](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/mhw1kzrdhwp7acyyudzk.gif) 

## Add some holiday flair to your video calls

Spice up your team meetings with some holiday cheer. There are hundreds of Christmasy-themed frames on sites like [WebStockReview](https://webstockreview.net/explore/christmas-frame-png/). Add these to your [OBS](https://obsproject.com/) and wow your friends. [Read more about how to setup OBS for your virtual calls on this post](https://dev.to/mishmanners/how-to-setup-obs-for-live-streaming-presentations-and-virtual-meetings-1chf).

![Zoom call](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/klu2pu9o65laixgfkmvp.JPG)

## Santa hat on your GitHub profile

Using some simple facial recognition, you can quickly Christmas-ify your GitHub profile. Upload a photo to [Santa Hat](https://santahat.vercel.app/) and in seconds you'll have a Christmas-themed image to share all over the internet. There's lots of hats to choose from :santa: Hint: it doesn't _just_ have to be for your GitHub Profile pic.

![Santa hat profile](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/t0eml852ohxuuaykhyma.JPG)

## Dear Santa

Writing letters to Santa as a kid was one of the best parts of Christmas. At times, you might have even received a reply from the North Pole. Now, Santa will respond to all your Christmas wishes with this GitHub Action. Add this [Dear Santa Action](https://github.com/imjohnbo/dear-santa-action) to your repo and he'll respond to your wishes.

![Dear Santa Action](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/wdc7nr70zoogmi36m7q5.JPG)

## Light up someone else's Christmas tree

Last year [Martin Woodward](https://twitter.com/martinwoodward) created an action for others to light up his Christmas tree. Go head and [ :star: star his repo :star: ](https://github.com/martinwoodward/smart-xmas) and make his tree sparkle ✨. You can fork his project and add some magic to your Christmas tree.

## Christmas Spotify playlist

There are lots of great Christmas playlists to choose from, including the [Top 100 Greatest Christmas Songs Ever](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5OP7itTh52BMfZS1DJrdlv?si=d101470712bf4924). Choose a playlist or create your own. Whatever you're listening to, you can even add it to your GitHub profile. Check out [kittinan's](https://github.com/kittinan/) [Spotify play card that you can add to your GitHub Profile README](https://spotify-github-profile.vercel.app/api/callback?code=AQDFwZV4TtNRosVPBx5oXzBCnY802FjbOYg7jNqg9P7dq4Ot6XgxRJM9dDvwMEziYRdnK6zR3OrQH00AtvaiTrvdlNv0Uf7yoCkqPPVHcrkzUuI43GBzJW3otXo1xFCFI8ukbtgb9DL1O5NVZGUYUxe82-WToqnm9wAoCNIttt3_QBpnhxTiAzbTr7rbJxgFvxKKsbrT5I8rdTDEZ0grk66olOfQ6926qm7LQYR-pPFm5hoRKVKeV4MoQQR_8HAXmAxL4NI7rU5doxfprpSg29nK).

![Spotify on Profile](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/eyf98vkb91xaecpmnssb.gif)

## GitHub Saint Nictocat

GitHub has an Octocat for every occasion. Aside from purchasing a [Mona plushie](https://thegithubshop.com/products/octoplush) which is already sold out this Christmas, you can use the [Saint Nicholas Octocat, AKA Saint Nictocat](https://octodex.github.com/saint_nictocat/) to bring you some holiday cheer.

![Santa Octocat](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/9wq682ay5kh1pcw4wrfs.jpg)

## Check out your Skyline

As 2021 comes to a close, it's time to check out your GitHub contributions... in three dimensions! Head to [GitHub Skyline](https://skyline.github.com), type in your GitHub username, and change the URL extension to "2021". The option to select 2021 from the drop down should be available early next year. But in the meantime, you can check out how your graph is stacking up.

![2021 GitHub Skyline!](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/88w9pk3emo48rxex8nbb.gif) 
 
## GitHub wrapped

What better way to celebrate all your achievements with a video you can share on socials. Head to [GitHub Wrapped](https://www.githubwrapped.com/) and enter your username. You'll immediately get a cool video - complete with music - showing some of your top stats for 2021 to date. Don't forget to share it on socials with #GitHubWrapped.

![MishManners GitHub Stats](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/q3iplt8m45abgztlcrxk.gif) 

## Christmas time

Well that's it. Did I hit the mark? Are there other ways you like to celebrate the festive season? Put your suggestions below and let's share around the Christmas cheer.

Remember to take some time to yourself this season. It's been a hectic year so make sure you relax, unwind, recharger, and refresh. You want to come back ready to kick goals in 2022!

And if you need ideas for Christmas gifts 🎁[check out Riz's post](https://dev.to/github/top-11-gifts-for-the-developer-in-your-life-893). Merry Christmas 🎄