Terminal in the background

[Logan McNaughton]

 I dunno if this goes more in an X window mailing list, but hopefully you
guys can help

How do I put a terminal in the background of my X display (ie a window, full
screen, no border, transparent), I dont even need to be able to type, I just
want to be able to see system shutdown notices and the likes.

Does it matter what window manager im using? (icewm)

thanks