Onondaga Central
Senior year can be the most memorable of one’s life. For seniors, it is the end of one chapter and the start of a new. All their hard work has finally paid off. They will celebrate on graduation day and, not long after, they will be pursuing their dreams. This edition of Senior Spotlight is featuring one outstanding senior, Allee Mack. Allee Mack has applied “early action” to Yale University and will attend, if accepted in December. If she is not accepted, she will apply to Boston University, University of Virginia, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Villanova University, Wesleyan University and St. Lawrence University. Allee said “Being involved in extra curricular activities is not only important when applying for colleges, but they are fun, a way try new things and meet new people.” Allee Mack is extremely involved in school clubs. Allee’s most notable extra curricular activities are: Drama Club, Yearbook Club, Key Club, National Honor Society and writing for the school newspaper. Allee is interested in majoring in Neuroscience with a possible minor in either Spanish or Music. One of Allee’s hobbies is playing the guitar. Allee said that, “my older brother plays the guitar and he started teaching me when I was fifteen. I also genuinely love all types of music and I regularly attend music festivals and concerts.” During high school, she ran Cross Country and Track, but, due to a hip injury, was unable to participate this season. Allee Mack has been in many of Onondaga’s plays and musicals and enjoys them immensely. Allee has been in the following: The Princess Who Had No Name, Grease, The Three Musketeers, Once Upon a Mattress, You Can’t Take it With You, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Is He Dead?, Bullets Over Broadway, Treasure Island, Newsies, The Wiz, and soon, The Little Mermaid. For a long time, Allee’s favorite musical was Thoroughly Modern Millie because she said “It was our best show in my time being here and we had a great cast of upperclassmen.” Now she says, “Newsies is probably my favorite now, though, because I’ve always loved the show and I had a lot of fun with my part.” Auditions for the upcoming musical have not occurred yet, but Allee is looking forward to trying out for the role of Ariel in The Little Mermaid. When it comes to going to college, Allee says she is most excited about getting out of Syracuse and being able to “meet lots of new people from all walks of life.” However, she is a bit nervous about the workload that’s going to come with her major. As a senior, reflecting on your life is important. It has been a long road to reach graduation day and many students say they could not have done it alone. The people who impacted Allee the most was all four of her siblings. They have impacted her “differently and equally.” Allee’s advice to a 7th grader is “Join as many extracurriculars as you can because you’ll make so many new friends. Also, don’t stress about that one bad test grade or that one bad homework grade because in the end, all your hard work will be noticed and will pay off.” Allee doesn’t have a favorite grade because “there are bad things and good things about each grade” Although, Allee does not have a favorite grade, she does think that “senior year is definitely pretty sweet because you’re almost done.” Allee is going to miss the OCS teachers the most. She believes that “all the teachers here are kind and helpful as long as you put in the work.” Allee said that the teachers “will always have your back.” She is relieved to have had such a nice and strong support system throughout the “craziness of high school.” Good luck Allee in all your future pursuits! Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh announced for the first time that the City of Syracuse will use an artificial/fake Christmas tree for the city’s Christmas tree located in Clinton Square. Syracuse’s artificial tree is four stories tall. Mayor Walsh cites the cost savings as the main reason. Having an artificial Christmas tree will save the City of Syracuse $37,000 per year. These costs stem from the labor required to cut down and transport a real tree. For context, the City of Syracuse’s total budget for fiscal year 2019 was $252.5 million. Opponents of an artificial Christmas tree cite that having a real tree is a decades-old tradition. Proponents argue the artificial tree is a new tradition. Syracuse is in a prime location for evergreens leading some to wonder why Syracuse would have a fake tree. With an artificial Christmas tree, Syracuse was now able to hang ornaments on the tree. According to a Syraucse.com poll, 55.1% of respondents voted that the fake tree is fine and 44.9% voted that real trees are better. One major city in the Northeast that has an artificial tree is Pittsburgh, PA. Key Club and IBIP (International Business Internship Program) are partnered in selling Onondaga themed Christmas ornaments. Price: $10 and an additional $2 to personalize To purchase see any member of Key Club or contact [email protected] The Tiger Branch Wishes OCS a Merry Christmas
Open a savings or checking account with the Tiger Branch SECNY Credit Union in the month of December and receive a Christmas gift from underneath our Christmas tree. This is in addition to $10 Target Gift Card for opening a checking account and the first $5 being put into your savings account. The Tiger Branch is located in Miss Byrne's room. Scholarship Opportunity: Open a savings or checking account with the Tiger Branch SECNY Credit Union and if you are a Senior, you are eligible to apply for a $1,000 scholarship! Don’t miss out on this great opportunity! The Memory Project’s purpose is to connect kids around the world and spread kindness through art. The Memory Project is a nonprofit organization that has been running since 2004. They have helped 250,000 kids around the world by touching their lives with art. Our school is participating in the program for our 9th year. In the past, they have made portraits of kids from Sierra Leone, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Ethiopia, Bolivia, a Syrian Refugee Camp and the Philippines. This year, Mrs. Passetti’s Painting and Drawing and Portfolio Prep students, as well as Mrs. Passetti and Mrs. Pristash, are creating 28 portraits of fourth grade students from Nigeria. These portraits will be mailed out at the end of January and our school will receive a video of the children getting their portraits at around April. It is the best part of the project to many students, to be able to see the kids’ faces as they are given the gifts they worked so hard on. This project is intended to spread intercultural awareness and happiness to youth worldwide. Each year during the holiday season, some of Onondaga’s clubs travel around the community, spreading Christmas cheer through community service or Christmas carols. This winter, two of our schools ́clubs, Key Club and Senior High Chorus, will be traveling out into the community. Key Club is a community-service based club run by Mrs. James. Throughout the year, Key Club holds several fundraisers and completes a number of service projects. Each year around the holidays, Key Club attends the Salvation Army Toy Drive, which is usually held at the Oncenter. Mrs. James and nearly twenty members of Key Club help sort food and other items, or they become personal shoppers. One year, our Key Club sorted non-perishable food such as pasta and cans of soup into bins for people to shop through. Most recently, Key Club members have taken part in being personal shoppers for people, taking them around the Oncenter so they could pick out gifts, books, and games for their family. In the span of three or so hours, each member may be a personal shopper to nearly twenty families. The Salvation Army Toy Drive is personally my favorite field trip to go on because it's such a rewarding experience. It's so nice to see the Salvation Army and volunteers all over Central New York come together to help those in need during the holiday season. Senior High Chorus is an option for students in grades 9 through 12. Senior High Chorus is run by Mr. Cambareri and meets every day during 2nd period. In the past, Senior High Chorus has traveled and performed at Syracuse Crunch games, Syracuse Mets games, Destiny USA Mall, and the Everson Museum Festival of Trees. This holiday season, Senior High Chorus will again travel to Destiny USA Mall and the Everson Museum Festival of Trees to perform their Christmas set list as well as classic carols to sing along to. At Destiny USA, Senior High Chorus will perform in the Canyon area or near the food court. Last year, Senior High Chorus performed near the food court of Destiny USA Mall, where we received much foot traffic. Students wear OCS apparel to show their tiger pride and represent the music department of our school well. At the Everson Museum Festival of Trees, Senior High Chorus performs in the main lobby on the staircase, where the songs are echoed throughout the museum. Members of Senior High Chorus have a chance to peruse the collection of Christmas trees and wreaths that have been creatively decorated and displayed in the museum. Senior High Chorus usually wears their concert attire, as the museum is a more formal setting. Nonetheless, Mr. Cambareri and the Senior High Chorus enjoy traveling into the community to spread Christmas cheer through music during this time of year. Blood Drive
This year, Student Council has become increasingly active in school affairs. On Wednesday, November 20th, Student Council hosted our annual Fall Blood Drive. This was a success with 28 students and staff signing up to donate! Student Council is planning to have another Blood Drive in March between winter and spring sports, allowing more athletes to donate blood. Principal’s Cabinet Student Council initiated the process of beginning Principal's Cabinet for the 2019-2020 school year. Student Council Officers provided recommendations for students. The first Principal’s Cabinet Meeting is December 17. Student Council will also play a role in setting the agenda and presiding over the meeting. As Student Council President, I created a google form to develop an agenda for the first Principal's Cabinet meeting. The questions included: 1. List at least 5 improvements to Onondaga Jr/Sr High? 2. What are your favorite aspects of Onondaga Jr/Sr High? 3. What would you change at Onondaga Jr/Sr High? 4. What do you believe the biggest challenge Onondaga Jr/Sr High faces? 5. Do you feel it is easy to have your concerns or thoughts about things occurring at the high school heard? What are ways that it would be easier for your concerns to be heard? School Christmas Activity On Friday, December 20th, Student Council has planned Christmas activities for the entire school. This is the first time Student Council has done this and it will be a great new Christmas tradition for OCS. Here are the activities to choose from: 1. In the auditorium, we will have a Christmas Movie to watch (Elf) with cookies and hot chocolate in the hallway near the library 2. In the gym, we will have open gym basketball/volleyball, scatter dodgeball in the wrestling room 3. In the art room, we will have crafts or coloring 4. In the cafeteria, we will have bingo or board games 5. If there is snow, students can go outside to snow shoe. This will take place during period 10 and 11. *Any ideas or suggestions for Student Council see any of the Officers, your homeroom Representative or Mrs. Ferris- the Club Adviser. It’s that wonderful time of year again where we hear our old familiar Christmas favorites! Here are some fun facts about a few of the most popular Christmas songs: #1) “White Christmas” (1942) performed by Bing Crosby “White Christmas” is a best-selling song recorded originally by Bing Crosby. An estimated 50 million copies of the album were sold. The song reappeared in the 1954 musical film called White Christmas. Crosby once again sang his hit song in the film. #2) “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” (1934) performed by Eddie Cantor Written in 1932 by Haven Gillepsie and J. Fred Coots, “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” was outsold only by “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer” by Gene Autry and “White Christmas” by Bing Crosby. This song was originally performed in 1934 by Eddie Cantor on his own radio show. #3) “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer” (1949) performed by Gene Autry “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer” was originally a short story in 1939 until it was turned into a song performed by Gene Autry in 1949. It was then made into a film in 1964. Little did Robert Lewis May know that his story would “go down in history.” #4) “The Christmas Song” (1946) performed by Nat King Cole Also known as “Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire,” this song was rerecorded in 1953 and once again in 1961. It was originally written during a hot summer as an effort to stay cool. Did you know “Jingle Bells” was written for Thanksgiving, not Christmas?
*PC stands for Political Correctness
The New York Commission on Human Rights issued new guidelines that fine people up to $250,000 for using the term “illegal immigrant” or “illegal alien”. Threatening to call Immigration Customs Enforcements (ICE) is also a violation. In addition, using the wrong gender pronouns such as not using “ze” or “hir” can result in a fine. A business expecting employees to speak English is also a violation (CNN). Teachers at a Colorado School District, Cherry Creek, were asked to take a “White Privilege” survey. This survey was based on a series of statements to see if teachers are fair towards minorities. Previously, students at an Oregon high school were asked to take a “white privilege” survey for homework (DenverChannel). The San Francisco School Board voted 4-3 to cover a 1,600 square foot mural of George Washington called “Life of Washington” at George Washington High School. The mural was painted in 1935 by a Russian immigrant. There was an even more extreme plan to paint over/destroy the mural that was abandoned. The reason cited for covering the mural was that it showed slavery and the conquest of Native Americans. (NBC News). After Democrats gained control of the House of Representatives the Democrats on the House Natural Resources Committee adopted rules that eliminated “so help me God” from the oath stated before testifying (Daily Wire). This shows many of their true colors. Sources:" School Staff Quizzed on 'White Privilege'.” https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.thedenverchannel.com/news/investigations/cherry-creek-schools-defend-white-privilege-survey-issued-to-staff?_amp=true. “San Francisco School Board Votes to Keep George Washington Mural.” https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1042111. Bois, Paul. “Yes, Democrats Have Removed 'So Help Me God' From House Committee Oaths.” The Daily Wire, The Daily Wire, 6 June 2019, https://www.dailywire.com/news/yes-democrats-have-removed-so-help-me-god-house-paul-bois College Craziness At Binghamton University a group of conservative students with a chapter of Turning Point USA and College Republicans were “tabling” on campus. They were handing out literature for a visit by conservative economist, Art Laffer who worked with President Ronald Reagan. Other pamphlets included information about 2nd Amendment rights. While tabling the students were attacked by a mob of about 200 leftitist students. The leftists used social media to encourage other members of their ilk to come join the assault. Expletives were being shouted at the conservative students. The leftist mob was also chanting “Pack it Up”. In the end conservative students were forced to leave for their own safety. The campus police during the confrontation told the conservative students that would never table on campus again. Due to protests Art Laffer’s speech was canceled and later in the week Republican State Senator Fred Akshar’s visit was cancelled. Binghamton University decided not press charges on the mob students meaning no accountability. This further shows the mob they will get their way and can shut down speech they disagree with (NY Post). The Harvard student newspaper, Harvard Crimson, faced backlash from far-left student organizations about an article they wrote. The Harvard Student government even went as condemning their own student paper. The Harvard Crimson wrote a story about campus protests against I.C.E. Basic journalistic standards would be for the reporter to reach out to the other side for in comment, in this case I.C.E. Since the Harvard Crimson followed this basic standard they were condemned by student organizations that viscerally hate I.C.E (Fox News). At the University of Oklahoma the Undergraduate Student Congress passed a resolution removing the Pledge of Allegiance from the congressional agenda. This was the first time to Pledge of Allegiance has been removed from the congressional agenda since it was first added in 2008. The Undergraduate Congress deemed this necessary because they believe the Pledge of Allegiance offensive to international students and indingeous people (Oklahoma News). Sources: “To Protect Free Speech, SUNY Binghamton Must Throw the Book at These Bullies.” NY Post, NY Post, https://www.google.com/amp/s/nypost.com/2019/11/19/to-protect-free-speech-suny-binghamton-must-throw-the-book-at-these-bullies/amp/. Phillips, Morgan. “Harvard Student Newspaper Facing Backlash for Requesting Comment from ICE.” Fox News, FOX News Network, 23 Oct. 2019, https://www.foxnews.com/us/harvard-student-newspaper-facing-backlash-for-requesting-comment-from-ice. “Pledge of Allegiance Removed from OU Undergraduate Congressional Agenda.” KFOR.com, 27 Sept. 2019, https://kfor.com/2019/09/27/pledge-of-allegiance-removed-from-ou-undergraduate-congressional-agenda/. Every year millions of Americans celebrate Christmas with beloved traditions such as decorating a Christmas tree, setting up nativity scenes, baking Christmas cookies are among many more. However, some in the media and some politicians do not see the importance of these Christmas traditions to American culture.
Wisconsin Governor’s War on Christmas During Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers’ (Democrat) first Christmas in office, he referred to the Wisconsin State Christmas Tree in their State Capitol Building as a “holiday tree” instead of a Christmas tree. Since 2011 former Republican Governor, Scott Walker, started calling the Christmas Tree by its name a Christmas Tree. Up until that point secular organizations had their way since 1985 by referring to the Wisconsin Christmas Tree as a “holiday tree” (Wisconsin State Journal). Unfortunately, the new Wisconsin Governor caved to the Secular-Progressives- a term coined by Bill O’Reilly. In the Wisconsin State Legislature there was bipartisan support for officially recognizing the state Christmas Tree as so. The resolution passed 64-30 with four Democrats and all Republicans supporting the measure. The vast majority of Democrats opposed the measure. In the Wisconsin State Senate, four Republicans and one Democrat is sponsoring the Resolution (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). New York’s “Holiday Tree” Unsurprisingly, New York State government refers to the State Capitol’s Christmas Tree in Albany as a “holiday tree”. With Andrew Cuomo as Governor, the N.Y. State Assembly controlled by Democrats 107-43 and the N.Y. State Senate controlled by Democrats 40-22 it is unlikely the New York State Capitol Christmas Tree will be called anything but a “holiday tree” anytime soon. Nevertheless, it is still worth N.Y. Republican politicians to push for a resolution that recognizes the N.Y. State Capitol Christmas Tree as a Christmas Tree and bring attention to this attack on Christmas in New York. Rewriting Christmas Classics John Legend and Kelly Clarkson rewrote the classic American song “Baby It's Cold Outside” for not being politically incorrect in the age of #MeToo. The writer of “Baby It's Cold Outside” Frank Loesser won an Academy Award for the song. The duo took issue with several lines and changed the lines to: Clarkson: “What will my friends think …” Legend: “I think they should rejoice" Clarkson: “… if I have one more drink?” Legend: “It’s your body, and your choice.” (NPR) Re-writing a classic lacks creativity. Why don’t they just write your own song and make it a classic? Canadian author Pamela McColl eliminated two lines from the original ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas” poem due to a reference about smoking a pipe. Two lines in stanza 11 of the original 14 were the lines removed. They read “The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth, And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath” (Daily Caller). Apparently, Santa smoking a pipe causes kids to smoke. With all the problems related to juuling, I’m not sure that this is the main problem. Sources: Vetterkind, Riley, and Wisconsin State Journal. “With 'Holiday Tree' and 'National Bible Week,' Church-State Controversy Begins Anew.” Madison.com, 9 Nov. 2019, https://madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/with-holiday-tree-and-national-bible-week-church-state-controversy/article_419ae142-456f-5f49-9468-5e673240e704.html. Beck, Molly. “Wisconsin Lawmakers Are Divided Once Again - This Time over a Tree.” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 13 Nov. 2019, https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/2019/11/12/wisconsin-lawmakers-divided-once-again-time-over-tree/2580094001/. https://dailycaller.com/2012/12/13/canadian-author-offers-politically-correct-version-of-twas-the-night-before-christmas/ Thompson, Stephen. “'Tis Already The Season To Argue About 'Baby, It's Cold Outside'.” NPR, NPR, 8 Nov. 2019, https://www.npr.org/2019/11/08/777575439/-tis-already-the-season-to-argue-about-baby-it-s-cold-outside. Every Christmas, we hang up our stockings with care, decorate our Christmas trees, some of us have real trees, cut by ourselves, while others have artificial trees. We make gingerbread houses, eat candy canes, and so much more. We do have many Christmas traditions every year without realizing how long they have been around or why we do them.
When was the tradition of the Christmas tree started? Using Christmas trees dates back to the Pagans. Pagans used the branches of the trees to decorate their homes for the winter solstice. The branches were meant to make them think of the spring to come. The Romans used the first Fir tree to decorate their temples during the festival of Saturnalia. Christians used the trees as a sign of everlasting life with god. Although nobody knows for sure when Fir trees were used as Christmas trees, it is thought to have been 1000 years ago in Northern Europe. Many of the early Christmas trees may have been hung upside down from the ceiling or from light fixtures. Christmas trees varied throughout Europe, some used cherry or Hawthorne plants and put them in a pot for hope of them flowering by Christmas. Those who could not afford a real plant built pyramids of wood and decorated them to look like trees with paper, apples and candles. The first Christmas tree in one’s house was in the home of 16th German Preacher, Martin Luther. The story goes that he was walking through the forest and saw the stars shining through the tree branches. He thought it was so beautiful. He went home and told his children that it reminded him of Jesus, who left the stars of heaven to come to earth at Christmas. In Germany, many trees were first decorated with edibles, like gingerbread and gold cover apples. In Victorian times, Christmas trees were decorated with candles to look like stars. Some Europeans still follow this tradition. Christmas Trees did not become popular until 1841, when Prince Albert (Queen Victoria's German husband) had a Christmas Tree set up in Windsor Castle. In 1848, the drawing of "The Queen's Christmas tree at Windsor Castle" was published in the Illustrated London News. The illustration was republished in Godey's Lady's Book, Philadelphia in December 1850. In the republished illustration, they removed the Queen's crown and Prince Albert's mustache to make the picture look like an average American couple. The publications helped the popularity of Christmas trees flourish. Fir and Yew trees signify the everlasting life with God. At first, baby Jesus was placed at the top of a tree. As time progressed, it was replaced with an angel to represent the angel that told the Shepherds about Jesus. People also use stars to represent the star the wise men saw. When was the first recorded candy cane? In 837. They began as a white stick and then eventually were given red stripes. The first recorded connection to Christmas was not until 1874 and then they were being flavored with peppermint and wintergreen. Around 1920, Bob McCormack started making canes for his friends and family. They became popular, so he started his own business called Bob's Candies. Some people believe the J shape represents the Shepherd’s hook who visited baby Jesus, while some believe the J stands or Jesus. Some say the white represents purity and the red stripes are for the blood Jesus shed when he was crucified on the cross. The peppermint flavor can represent the plant mentioned in the Bible that was used to purify people and things. Why do we write Xmas to abbreviate Christmas? Many use the term Xmas because it is a quick way to write Christmas. Some believe it is not correct to use the abbreviation. However, the X actually represents a Greek letter pronounced chi, “kye”. This rhymes with “eye” the first letter of in the Greek Word for Christ (Christos). The church used the first two letters of Christos in the Greek alphabet 'chi' and 'rho' to create a symbol to represent the name of Jesus. This looks like an X with a small p on the top. The symbol of a fish is sometimes used by Christians. It began when Christians had to meet in secret. This was when Romans wanted to kill them, before Emperor Constantine became a Christian and ruled the Roman empire as a mainly Christians place. Jesus said that he wanted his followers to be 'Fishers of Men', so that symbol was used. When two Christians met, one person drew half the fish shape and the other person drew the other half. This was usually done in the dirt by one’s foot. The Greek word for fish is 'Ikthus' or 'Ichthys'. It creates a sentence that says 'Ie-sous Christos Theou Huios So-te-r' which in English means "Jesus Christ, Son of God, Saviour". The second word of the sentence is X or Christos! Where does the Poinsettia plant come from? Poinsettias originated in Central America, where they have the ability to flower in the winter. Ancient Aztecs called them 'cuetlaxochitl'. The Aztecs had many uses for the plants including using the flowers. The flower is special types of leaves known as bracts, so technically the flowers are leaves. They could make a purple dye for clothes and cosmetics out of the Poinsettias. The milky white sap was made into a medicine to treat fevers. This white sap is now known as Latex! Poinsettia became famous because of a man named Joel Roberts Poinsett. He is also the reason why we call them Poinsettias! Joel was the first American Ambassador for South America (1825). Poinsett had greenhouses on his plantations in South Carolina. When he visited the Taco area in 1828, he became very interested in the plants. He had some shipped back to South Carolina, where he began growing the plants and sending them to friends. The poinsettia’s shape, flowers and leaves are sometimes thought to be a symbol of the Star of Bethlehem, which led the Wise Men to Jesus. The red colored leaves symbolize the blood of Christ and the white leaves represent his purity. Do you know where the 12 days of Christmas originated? The Twelve Days of Christmas is a famous song, but really, it as an actual celebration, beginning on December 25 and ending January 5. This celebration is thought to have started before the Middle ages. Usually, each day celebrates a Saint. Day 1 is for remembering the birth of Jesus. Day 2 is St Stephen’s Day, who was the first Christian martyr. Day 3 is St. John the Apostle, Day 4 is The Feast of the Holy Innocents. This is when people remember the baby boys killed by King Herod in his pursuit to find and kill baby Jesus. Day 5 is St. Thomas Becket, an Archbishop who was murdered on December 29, 1170 for challenging the Kings’ authority over the church. Day 6 is St Egwin of Worcester, Day 7, New Year’s Eve… Day 8 is Mary- the Mother of Jesus Day 9 is St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen. Day 10 is the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus, this remembers when Jesus was officially 'named' in the Jewish Temple and is celebrated by many different churches. Day 11 is St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, the first American saint. In past times, it also celebrated the Feast of Saint Simon Stylites, who lived on the top of a small platformed pillar for 37 years. Finally, Day 12, also known as Epiphany Eve. This day celebrates St. John Neumann. He was the first Bishop in American. At the Twelfth Night, the Twelfth Night cake was eaten. Italian Panettone is a modern time cake most like the old Twelfth Night cake. A dried pea or bean was cooked in the cake and if you found it, you would be the Lord (or Lady) of Misrule for the night. The Lord of Misrule led the celebrations. They dressed like a King (or Queen). This tradition goes back to the Roman celebrations of Saturnalia. In later periods of time, to make the Twelfth Night 'gentile', two tokens were put in the cake. One to be found by a man and one for a women. The person who found the token became the 'King' and 'Queen' of the Twelfth Night party. Epiphany is celebrated 12 days after Christmas on January 6 or January 19 for some Orthodox Churches. Some Orthodox’s Christmas is not until January 7. This is when Christians remember the Wise Men who visited Jesus. For some Churches, Epiphany is a time to remember when Jesus was baptized. After he was baptized he started to teach people about God. Epiphany means 'revelation' and both the occurrence of the visit made by the Wise Men and Jesus’ Baptism are important times. At this time, Jesus was 'revealed' to be very important. Epiphany is mainly celebrated by Catholics and Orthodox Christians Sources: https://www.whychristmas.com/customs/trees.shtml If you were to describe Christmas, chances are there are two colors you would use more than any others: red and green. For hundreds of years, red and green have been the traditional colors of Christmas, but why is that?
Even though Christmas trees are green, Santa's clothes are red, and Rudolph's nose is red, these modern Christmas decorations and characters were not the inspiration for the colors we associate with Christmas today. To find their root, we have to go back in time. Although no one knows for sure, there are a few popular theories. One of those theories is that red and green were inspired by the life of Jesus. For example, green represents the eternal life of Jesus Christ, just as evergreen trees remain green all winter long. Red represents the blood shed by Jesus Christ during his crucifixion. This representation of Christmas colors is commonly believed among Christians. Another theory that some scholars theorize was that the red and green date back to the 1300s, when churches would present Miracle Plays. These were religious plays that were meant to educate the illiterate public who could not read the Bible. One popular Miracle Play was performed on Christmas Eve. It was called The Paradise Play. This play tells the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Those familiar with the story know that God instructed Adam and Eve not to eat fruit from the Tree of Good and Evil. However, they did so anyway and were banished from paradise. Since apple trees were barren in winter, churches would instead bring in pine trees. Then they would place apples on the branches to represent the Tree of Good and Evil. Over time, people began to mimic this practice in their own homes. This developed into the tradition of the Christmas tree along with using red and green as Christmas colors. Many historians believe the practice of using red and green goes even farther back in history. They look at the ancient Roman celebration of Saturnalia, which honored the god Saturn. This occurred each year between December 17 and December 23. During the celebration, Romans would decorate their homes with holly and place small figurines called sigillaria on the branches of evergreen trees. Over time, evergreen leaves and red berries came to symbolize the festive and merry season. As you can see, there are many theories of why we use red and green as Christmas colors. Although we are not sure if they are correct, it is still fun to know about them! So next time someone asks you why red and green are Christmas colors, you know how to respond! Source: https://www.wonderopolis.org/wonder/why-are-red-and-green-traditional-christmas-colors
Sources: https://thefactfile.org/interesting-facts-christmas/ President Trump recently signed The Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act (PACT) into law. This law makes it a federal crime to intentionally suffocate, crush, burn or drown any "living non-human mammals, birds, reptiles, or amphibians." Additionally, this law bans any video or image depicting animal cruelty. This law had significant bipartisan support (NPR).
President Trump signed Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act. The Senate sponsor of this law was Florida Senator Marco Rubio (R). This law supports Hong Kong Protestors who are seeking freedom. The provisions of this law include: requiring the U.S. to confirm every year that Hong Kong’s freedom/sovereignty is being upheld by China and establishes a process to institute sanctions and travel restrictions on individuals who violated the rights of people in Hong Kong. Violations of rights would include: forced confessions, arbitrary detention and torture (CNN). Update from Thanksgiving Priceless Briefing Since the publication of the Thanksgiving edition Priceless Briefing article regarding cartel violence in Mexico, President Trump designated Mexican drug cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs). This will allow for more sanctions to be imposed and tougher actions against cartels (Fox News). With Christmas approaching you may get into the baking mood and want to prepare something for Christmas morning or over break. Here are some recipes ranging from a beginners level to that of people who want a challenge. Also, some of these recipes can be inclusive for people with dietary restrictions.
Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies: Ingredients: - ½ cup of white sugar - ¾ cup of brown sugar - 1 teaspoon of salt - ½ cup of coconut oil or choice of plant based oil - ¼ cup of choice of plant based milk (almond, soy, etc.) - 1 teaspoon of vanilla - 1 ½ cups of flour - ½ teaspoon of baking soda - your choice of vegan chocolate (semi-sweet, dark, ect.) Combine white sugar, brown sugar, salt, and oil into a bowl. Add your choice of milk and vanilla to the mixture and combine them. Next, add flour and baking soda and mix until smooth. Add your desired amount of chocolate and combine. Let your mixture chill for at least 30 minutes or overnight. Then, place your dough onto a baking sheet and put in the oven for 12- 15 minutes at 350 °F. Enjoy! Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies: Ingredients: - 1 cup of softened butter - 1 cup of white sugar - 1 cup of brown sugar - 2 eggs - 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract - 1 can of pumpkin - 4 cups of flour - 1 ½ teaspoons of baking soda - 1 ½ teaspoons of baking powder - 1 teaspoon of salt - ½ teaspoon of cinnamon - 2 teaspoons of pumpkin spice - desired amount of chocolate chips (dark, semi-sweet, milk-chocolate) Combine butter, white sugar and brown sugar until smooth. Next add eggs one at a time and beat in. Add vanilla and pumpkin and stir until blended. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin spice until mixed together. Stir in desired amount of chocolate chips and other desired ingredient (ex walnuts, raisins). Place dough onto cookie sheets and put in the oven for 12-15 minutes at 375 °F. Cinnamon Rolls Dough: Ingredients: - 2 Cups of warm milk - ½ cup of granulated sugar - ½ cup of melted, unsalted butter - 2 ¼ teaspoon of active dry yeast - 4 cups of flour - additional cup of flour, AFTER dough rises - 1 teaspoon of baking powder - 2 teaspoons of salt In a bowl combine the warm milk, sugar, and MELTED butter. Stir this until the ingredients are equally incorporated. Then add the yeast into the mixture, and then stir to make sure the yeast is also incorporated. Leave the mixture for 10 minutes, to allow the yeast to “bloom” and you will begin to see bubbles. Next, add 4 cups of flour to the mixture and stir until mostly smooth. Then cover your dough and let it rise for 1 hour. Once you have let the dough rise, you will add the additional cup of flour, baking powder, and salt and stir as best as you can. Next you will begin to knead the dough. You may need some additional flour to knead and make the dough less sticky. To knead you can roll, push, and push the dough for about 10 minutes and make sure the dough is smooth and no longer sticky. Filling: - ¾ cup of light brown sugar - ¾ cup of softened butter - 2 tablespoons of cinnamon In another bowl, combine the brown sugar, SOFTENED butter, and cinnamon and stir until smooth. This will be spread out onto the dough. Rolling the Dough: To roll the dough you will want to stretch it into a flat rectangular shape. You may want to add some flour to your board where you will roll your dough to make it not stick. Make sure the sides are straight to make rolling it easier. Once the dough is flattened, you can add your filling and spread it out evenly across the dough and to the edges. Now you will actually roll the dough. You will take one side of the dough and begin to roll evenly and tightly all the way through until you reach the end and make a cylinder shape with the dough. Now you can cut the dough into even sections to make individual rolls. Baking: You can place your individual rolls into a pan of your choice, that is buttered or greased. Then, you will let the rolls “proof” for 35-45 minutes. This will allow your rolls to expand a little more before they go into the oven. Once they are proofed, you can place them in the oven for 25-30 minutes at 350 °F. Cream Cheese Frosting: Ingredients - 4 oz of softened cream cheese - 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter - 4 tablespoons of milk - 1 teaspoon of vanilla - 1 cup of powdered sugar Combine the cream cheese, butter, milk, and vanilla into a bowl until combined. Next, add your powdered sugar gradually until smooth. Finally, you can add the frosting to your rolls once they have cooled down and enjoy! Sources: Tasty Mandela effects are when a large amount of people remember something one way, even if it never was that way. The term comes from the widespread belief that Nelson Mandela passed away in prison in the 1980s. When he really died in 2013 as a free man, there was a lot of confusion as to why so many had remembered him dying thirty years earlier. Over the years, hundreds of Mandela effects have been discovered. For example, many people remember the Monopoly Man wearing a monocle, but he never has.
Curious George has been falsely remembered with a tail. People even say they specifically remember books or episodes in which he used his tail to hang from tree branches and to steal the man's hat. This couldn't have happened though, because he never had a tail. There are countless small Mandela effects like how Froot Loops is correct and Fruit Loops is not. Jif Peanut Butter is how it always was, but people swear it was Jiffy. So many people remember the Fruit of the Loom logo having a cornucopia, but it doesn't. One of the most shocking is probably the Mona Lisa. Mona Lisa supposedly didn't smile at all before. So many remember her being expressionless, but now if you see the painting, she very obviously has a smile, even if it is small. There are several theories as to why so many people have these false memories. The first is that time travel does exist and it has just slightly altered small things in reality such as logos. Another explanation is that memories can be wrong. Lastly, there is the theory of alternate realities. In this idea, alternate universes are mixing which causes groups of people to have the same memories, even if they are not “correct”. · The coldest temperature ever recorded was -123° C at Vostok Station in Antarctica in 1983.
· The Weta, a New Zealand insect, freezes completely solid when temperatures drop during the winter. Then, when temperatures warm back up, the insect unfreezes, thaws, and resumes its activities. · The Southern Hemisphere typically has milder winters than the Northern Hemisphere. This is due to the Southern Hemisphere having less land and a more maritime climate. · Winter cold kills more than twice as many Americans as summer heat does. · While it seems counter intuitive, Earth is actually closest to the sun in December. · According to the Guinness World Records, on January 28, 1887, a snowflake 15 inches wide and eight inches thick fell in Fort Keogh, Montana, making it the largest snowflake ever observed. · Chionophobia is the persistent fear of snow, especially becoming trapped by snow. The term is derived from the Greek words chion and phobia, meaning “snow” and “fear.” · Every winter, at least one septillion (that’s 1 followed by 24 zeros) snow crystals fall from the sky. · The average snowflake falls at about 3 mph. · The most snow ever recorded in 24 hours in the United States was at Silver Lake, Colorado, in 1921 at 76 inches. Source: https://www.factretriever.com/winter-facts |
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