<<
Home , Elf

Page 4 December Horoscopes and Birthdays Residents In astrology, those born between December 3 Jonnie Butler Arbor Oaks at Tyrone

December 1–21 are Archers December 4 Judith Voight December 8 Barbara Barnes December 2017 of Sagittarius. Sagittarians are December 10 Patricia Borders travelers, open-minded, and December 13 Gladys Brunner constantly in search of meaning. December 13 Virginia Angle December 15 Calvin Cardieri Archers seek change and take th December 17 Esther Bishop 1701 68 Street North concrete steps to achieve their December 17 Daniel Fitzgerald Saint Petersburg, Florida 33710 goals. Those born between December 20 Miriam Ekhoff December 30 Ann Howell Phone:(727)345-8900 Fax:727)347-0709 December 22–31 are Capricorn’s Employees Goats. Goats are practical, December 3 Joan Johnson determined, and focused on December 7 Lashinda Cogdell Celebrating ambitious goals. They persevere December 17 Dustin Isabell Iceland’s Lads December 18 Eleanor Kirby December with grit and honesty. December 24 Melissa Ferrer Children eagerly anticipate the from unwashed pots; Bowl Licker, December 30 Barbara King December 31 Deri Williams Write a Friend arrival of Santa Claus on December who steals food from under the bed; Month 25, but in Iceland children await no Door Slammer, who stomps around Iceland’s Yule Lads continued from pg. 1 fewer than 13 different Santa Claus- the house and keeps everyone steals leftover smoked lamb; and a giant black beast. According to like visits. Beginning on December awake; Skyr Gobbler, who eats up Candle Beggar, who steals candles. legend, they would gobble up any Bingo Month 12 and for 13 nights leading up to all the Icelandic yogurt; Sausage Notable These Yule Lads arrive to fill a good person found not wearing one new Day, homes are visited by Swiper, who steals sausages; child’s shoe, left on the windowsill, item of clothing. The Icelanders Quotable Safe Toys and the -like Yule Lads, mischievous Window Peeper, who peers into with a gift or treat. Bad children find definitely take their seriously. sprites who are naughty and nice. windows and sometimes steals their shoes filled with potatoes or Magnus Skarphedinsson, a top elf Gifts Month “Laughter is things he finds inside; Door Sniffer, America’s most turnips. This may sound like a researcher and headmaster of The Yule Lads, like Snow White’s who has a big nose and steals harmless Yuletide tradition, but Iceland’s Elf School, says that Eat a Red important export.” dwarves, have unique names and baked goods; Meat Hook, who in the past, the Yule Lads were 54% of Icelanders believe in these Apple Day personalities and get into unique - Walt Disney, far more terrifying. beings. The image of the Yule Lads continued on pg. 4 December 1 mischief. According to the National animator may have changed from naughty to Museum of Iceland, they are: In olden days, the Yule Lads—the nice over the centuries, but many Sheep-Cote Clod, who disturbs offspring of two —were joined Icelanders still fret over their arrival International sheep; Gully Gawk, who steals foam on Christmas Eve by the Yule Cat, each December. Volunteer Day from buckets of cow’s milk; Stubby, December 5 who steals food from frying pans; When Brown Is Best Spoon Licker, who licks batter from spoons; Pot Licker, who licks food On December 4, it’s time to add a brown in town” or “No brown after Hanukkah new color of footwear to your shoe six.” Black is likely best. But are December 12–20 closet —it’s Wear Brown Shoes Day. you wearing earth tones like khaki, Keep Your Footing Most men play it safe when dressing tan, or green? Then dare to go Look for an and opt for black shoes. Black is brown. Brown even pairs well with Scotland’s Hogmanay is one of threshold. Any first-footer must versatile and goes with most any varying shades of red, white, and Evergreen Day the world’s greatest New Year’s arrive bearing symbolic gifts of salt, outfit. But sometimes black just navy. Are your shoes brown suede? December 19 celebrations. Hogmanay is the coal, shortbread, whiskey, and black won’t do, and brown shoes are the Brown brogues? Antique brown Scottish word for the last day of the bun. Another ritual is redding the perfect finishing touch. patina oxfords? As you can see, Christmas Day year. For Scots, the celebration of house, which involves cleaning the

brown shoes can be just as fancy December 25 Hogmanay was traditionally even home and hearth and then “reading” When choosing a pair of shoes, as black. So on December 4, don’t more important than Christmas. The your fortune on the hearth’s ashes. one must always first consider the play it safe. Ditch the black, take most important ritual of Hogmanay No Hogmanay celebration is colors of the outfit. Are you wearing a fashion risk, and wear a pair of Make Cut-Out is the practice of first-footing, which complete without singing a rousing a smart, suave ensemble for a night brown shoes. If you’re particularly Snowflakes Day begins immediately after midnight. rendition of “Auld Lang Syne,” out in the city? You may want to play stylish, pair those brown shoes December 27 This entails being the first person composed by Scotland’s own it safe and follow the maxims “No with some colorful shoelaces. to cross over a friend’s or neighbor’s national poet, Robert Burns.

Page 2 Page 3

On Top of Technology The Meaning of Messy December 3 is Roof Over Your look nicer and more natural than December 21 is the shortest an individual’s personality. Some Head Day, a day to give thanks the clunky rooftop panels. day of the year in the northern psychologists claim that those who for the gift of shelter. Nowadays, hemisphere, so why bother making make their beds set a positive tone however, roofs provide more than Another innovative roof option is your bed when you’ll soon be back for the rest of the day. Bed-makers warmth and safety. Technological the “green roof,” where shingles under the covers? That was the are organized go-getters. What advances allow roofs to provide us are completely eschewed for a rationale behind fifth-grader about those who don’t make their with renewable energy, a cleaner roof composed of soil, plants, and Shannon Barba’s appeal to the beds? These people are not environment, and even fresh food. shrubs. Residential home owners U.S. Congress asking to make necessarily unorganized, but and urban building managers are Don’t Make Your Bed Day an instead enjoy not knowing Entrepreneur Elon Musk is best opting for living rooftop gardens, Moisture evaporates official holiday. Perhaps Barba what happens next. They enjoy known for his company Tesla and where plants help clean the air, quicker from an unmade doesn’t appreciate what making surprises that bring excitement bed, making it more its electric cars. Lesser known, but manage stormwater runoff, reduce a bed in the moring reveals about and energy to the day. just as visionary, is his work to air conditioning and heating costs, hygienic than produce a new kind of roof. Tesla absorb heat, provide habitat for a made one. The roof of the future Seeing the Light is designing solar glass roof birds and animals, offer park space may do more than just shingles that look like traditional for people, and even provide fresh On the eighth day of the 12th or “Awakened One.” What is keep out the rain. shingles but have the benefit of fruits and vegetables. Innovations month, Buddhists celebrate Enlightenment, in this Buddhist

harnessing the sun’s power and do not stop at green roofs; there Rohatsu, also known as Bodhi sense? Some believe it is the turning it into valuable energy to are also designs for green walls, Day, which commemorates the moment he achieved liberation run a home. The durable glass bridges, and railroad tracks. In all Buddha’s Awakening. This is from the endless cycle of rebirth, is specially designed to withstand of these cases, success depends the moment that the first Buddha, suffering, and dying again. He hailstones falling at over 100 mph. on the expertise of the engineer in Siddhartha Gautama, achieved achieved nirvana, extinguishing At $42 per square foot, these tiles considering a roof’s ability to retain Enlightenment, or bodhi, as it is any sense of self and, along with are much costlier than the average moisture, allow drainage, prevent called in Sans krit. it, any feelings of desire, hatred, or asphalt shingle, which costs $5 per erosion, repel pests, and ignorance, which lead to suffering. square foot. And while these tiles determine which plants will Scholars know relatively little about Rather than abandon humanity also cost more than the large, be most successful. In the near Siddhartha Gautama. and continue on his own path rectangular solar panels now future, homes will provide more He was the son of a clan chieftan to enlightenment, the Buddha perched atop many roofs, they than just a roof over our heads. and a princess, and so became returned to the world to teach a prince in his own right. But at others this path to the end of Sticky Business age 29, Prince Siddhartha left his suffering. For the remaining palace to walk among the people 45 years of his life, the Buddha Begin December 17 with pancakes, This dripping sap is collected and and was appalled at their pain traveled throughout India waffles, or French toast covered in boiled down to remove excess and suffering. He abandoned his sharing his insights. a puddle of maple syrup because water and create a concentrated kingdom, family, and riches to it’s Maple Syrup Day. Maple syrup syrup. It takes almost 40 gallons become a wandering holy man Modern-day Rohatsu traditions typically comes from sugar maple, of maple sap to create one gallon Practicing Buddhists searching for a means to release include deep meditation in the red maple, or black maple trees. of maple syrup. In South Korea, view Buddha as a humanity from pain and suffering. manner of the Buddha. While very In cold climates, these trees store the sap is not even boiled down teacher and not a At one critical moment, Siddhartha few ever reach Enlightenment, starch in their trunks and roots. to syrup. Instead, maple trees god or deity. seated himself under a pipal tree, it is in this practice that we come When the weather warms, this known as gorosoe are tapped, now known famously as the Bodhi to a better understanding of how 80% of the world’s starch is converted to sugar and and the sap is drunk fresh from tree, and vowed to never rise until to ease the suffering of ourselves supply of maple syrup then rises in the form of sap the tree. In some regions of South he discovered the truth. After and others. Perhaps the best way comes from Canada. to feed the tree. Maple sap is Korea where the sap is believed to 49 days of deep meditiation, he to commemorate Bodhi Day is to collected by boring a hole into the have health and spiritual benefits, supposedly attained Enlightenment extend simple kindnesses to ease tree trunk and attaching a spile, or people drink as much as five and became known as the Buddha, the suffering of others. tap, through which the sap “runs.” gallons at once.