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CostasNarrativeXP 2026 Halloween feature
"A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens

It is never too late to reclaim our humanity: wealth cannot replace love, time cannot be recovered, and a meaningful life is measured by how deeply we care for others.

Preface, Stave One & Two

00:30 Preface

01:01 Stave I Marley’s Ghost

40:40 Stave II The First of the Three Spirits

Characters

Ebenezer Scrooge — A miserly, cold-hearted businessman who values money above human connection

Jacob Marley — Scrooge’s deceased business partner, who returns as a ghost to warn him

Mr Fezziwig — Scrooge’s former employer and master during his apprenticeship; a cheerful, generous man who treats his employees warmly

Belle — Scrooge’s former fiancée, who ends their engagement when she realises his love of money has displaced his love for her

Costa's Wordbook

Stave n a set of verses, a stanza (Stayf)

Ironmongery n Tools and other hardware from an ironmonger's shop or the shop itself (iron Mung gery)

Simile n comparing one thing with another, always including the words as or like (Sim mil lee)

Unhallowed adj not conforming to accepted ethical standards, immoral

Rime n an opaque, white, granular coating of ice formed when supercooled water droplets in fog freeze rapidly on contact with a solid surface

To come down - arch. to reduce in wealth

Withal adv In addition, besides (with Thall)

Humbug n Nonsense

Liberality n generosity in giving or a broad-minded tolerance for different beliefs and behaviors

Misanthropic adj dislike or hatred against mankind

Alderman n A noble of high rank or authority in Anglo-Saxon England

Belshazzar - derived from the Akkadian Bēl-šarra-uṣur, meaning "Bel, protect the king" or "Prince of Bel”, he was the crown prince and co-regent of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, the eldest son of Nabonidus (the last native king of Babylon); in the Book of Daniel, he is portrayed as the last king of Babylon who witnessed the "writing on the wall" during his feast, leading to the empire's fall to Persians (bel Sha ser)

Jocund adv Merrily, cheerfully (Jock kend)

Robin Crusoe - an 1719 novel by Daniel Defoe, widely credited as the first English novel and a foundational work of literary realism. The story follows Robinson Crusoe, a young Englishman who defies his family to go to sea, is enslaved by pirates, and eventually becomes a castaway on a remote tropical island near Trinidad

Lath n A thin strip of wood or metal, usually nailed in rows to framing supports as a substructure for plaster, shingles, slates, or tiles

Chaise n Any of various light open carriages, often with a collapsible hood, especially a two-wheeled carriage drawn by one horse; chaise longue- a long, low seat, with an arm at one side and usually a low back along half of its length, that a person can stretch out his or her legs on (Shays)

2026 Upcoming
The Two Towers, Ramayana, A Christmas Carol, Winnie the Pooh, The House at Pooh Corner

Milestones
2021: 0 Full soundtrack, no editing, wife commentary, summary outline, irregular release
2022: 2.0 DaVinci editing, wordbook, book intro, AI intro + thumbnail, chapter summary, scheduled release
2023: 2.1 Descript, CapCut, Suno score, character intro, weekly release
2024: 2.2 Standard condenser mic, Audacity, ChatGPT annotation + illustration, timestamp, 1-hour content
2026: 2.3 Gemini definition, JP, CN, PT subtitles on selected YouTube videos

Platforms
YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Reddit, Amazon Music, Firstory, Pocket Casts, KKBOX, Castbox, Noice, Podcast Addict, SoundOn, Castro, Player FM