Elf-Improvement

July 6

While elves in Christmas lore tend to be diminutive little workshop workers, the novels by J.R.R. Tolkien paint a more complex character, and this depiction has greatly influenced many modern depictions of the creatures, such as in movies and video games. These "new age" elves, while still sporting pointed ears (from their mischievous devilish ancestors), are beautiful, intelligent, fair-skinned creatures, often smarter and more aware than humans. They have little or no body hair and are often depicted as androgynous beings.

America's March

July 5

It was December 25, 1896, when John Philip Sousa composed "Stars and Stripes Forever," the national march of the United States of America. Standing on a ferry, Sousa had just learned of the death of David Blakely, who had been the manager of the Sousa band. Sousa composed the march in his head, later penning it after arriving in America.

The Father (Christmas) of Our Country

July 4

That Washington crossed the Delaware River on December 25, 1776 is fairly well known, but people remember little else. German soldiers of fortune, Hessians, were working for the British and had taken Trenton, nine miles to the south of where Washington's ragtag, often shoeless army crossed. The suprise attack on Decenber 26 gave Washington a significant victory, and served to rally the colonists to support the cause.

George Washington had accepted his commission in 1775 and from then until 1783 was only able to visit his home in Mt. Vernon once. The great general missed his home, and after his final military act of orchestrating the reoccupation of New York, Washington began his journey with the goal of coming home by Christmas. Along the way, he was compelled to visit Philadelphia and Annapolis to bid colleagues farewell and was honored at each place he stopped.

In spite of weather delays, Washington finally arrived at his beloved home along the Potomac River on December 24, 1783, and a grand Christmas celebration was held with guests, fine food, and celebratory firing of guns. The man now considered the Father of the Country had, as his first act following war, celebrated Christmas with his family and friends.

Celebrate with a Bang

July 3

Lots of people set their Christmas table with a Christmas "Cracker" at each place setting. The rolled package that pops to reveal a small gift was the invention of Tom Smith, a baker in Clerkenwell, London. Smith got the idea watching young men slip little paper messages into his paper-wrapped bonbons. Standing in front of a fire, Smith thought the pop would be a great way to surprise the recipient. So he experimented and finally settled on two strips of paper coated with saltpeter. They were first called "Cosaques," named for the crack of a Cossack's whip as they rode through Paris during the Franco-Prussian wars.

Adopt-A-Holiday

July 2

In 1836 Alabama was the first state to officially recognize and celebrate Christmas as a holiday. It took 71 years for the rest of the continental states to adopt legislation making Christmas the only religious holiday so recognized. Oklahoma was the last, passing legislation in 1907.

Welcome to the Fold

July 1

Here is an easy way to fold your holiday napkin. Open it up and make one fold, corner to corner. Then take that corner and fold it to the center of the long fold. Fold one more time, bringing the folded edges together. You should now have a long length of napkin. Now just bring the two ends together and tie them in a loose knot.

Unique Snowflakes

June 30

Snow forms around small particles, often biological in origin. 85% of these particles are airborne bacteria with dust particles making up the remainder. The ice crystals form around these nuclei and usually form six lines of symmetry (the natural crystal structure when ice is formed). In turn, these crystals join together to form a snowflake. While individual ice crystals are clear, they appear white because of the amount of light they reflect. So why do all six arms of the snowflake appear identical? Well, actually, they are not exactly identical. While surface tension specific to each flake may be a factor to their similarity, the unique environment where each snowflake is created may cause the arms to form in a similar fashion.