WASHINGTON — When Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., faced his first deadline to prevent a government shutdown in November, he knew his own party wouldn’t let him bring up a bill the normal way. And so he short-circuited the process and called the vote under “suspension of the rules,” sending the stopgap funding bill straight to […]
Every year, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, demands changes to Groundhog Day traditions through a letter. The group, whose motto includes the phrase “animals are not ours to use for entertainment,” believes every animal is someone, according to PETA. What does the letter say? On Jan. 22, Ingrid Newkirk, president of […]
Ahead of Groundhog Day, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) have drafted a group letter to The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club’s president, Tom Dunkel, suggesting a change to their standard tradition. Since 1887, locals and those who travel to Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania for the occasion have gathered in suspense to see if the groundhog Punxsutawney Phil will emerge from his temporary […]
In the Christian faith, the Christmas season isn’t over until Epiphany. And First Christian Church in Corpus Christi has been marking that time for more than 40 years with a festival rooted in the 14th century. On Jan. 9, 1983, First Christian’s congregation performed their first Boar’s Head and Yule Log Festival. The festival is […]
If you have read the last four columns I’ve done about how we’ve observed Christmas in Licking County, thank you! We considered Christmas in 1800, 1844, 1864, and 1944. I know, it would have been nice if I could have found a cool Christmas story from 1804, but the Stadden-Green wedding on Christmas Day in […]
Andrew Chun remembered starting high school in 2020 while the COVID-19 pandemic was in full effect and the damper the virus put on one of his favorite activities: debating. “I saw that a lot of different middle school programs, specifically, were being shut down or discontinued through the pandemic,” Chun said. “I found that there’s […]
KANAB, Utah (ABC4) — Over 400 dogs at a southern Utah shelter received a new toy for Christmas as part of a tradition that began in the ’90s. This Christmas, toys donated by animal lovers across the country were piled into a trailer, deemed “Santa’s sleigh,” and delivered to hundreds of dogs at the Best […]
Spouses and sweethearts enjoy the holiday tradition of affectionate kisses under the green, leafy sprigs of Yuletide mistletoe. Wild songbirds also have a tendency to actively seek out this native flora, but it is because the mistletoe fruits are highly favored food items. One might wonder what is the wild plant’s reaction to all of […]
When Mike and Linda Staheli saw the notice that a chocolate company in Salt Lake City was going on the market, they decided to investigate. When they found out the name of the company was Fernwood, they immediately made their offer. How often does a bona fide made-in-Utah Christmas tradition come up for sale? * […]
Dec. 23—Chesapeake students make unconventional Christmas trees CHESAPEAKE — For shoppers at the Huntington Mall in Barboursville, West Virginia, it was beginning to look a lot like Christmas….in ways they wouldn’t have expected. They saw a unique display this year for the holiday season in the form of trees from Chesapeake High School’s art classes. […]
ALLIANCE − An Alliance High School counselor recently contacted Mike and Stacie Buzzelli to tell them that their 16-year-old twin daughters were on a Secret Santa’s gift list. So the Buzzellis were at their northwest Alliance home Saturday morning, two days before Christmas, waiting for a mysterious Santa to appear with a couple of gifts. […]
“Tell me a story of Christmas,” she said. The television mumbled faint inanities in the next room. From a few houses down the block came the sound of car doors slamming and guests being greeted with large cordiality. Her father thought awhile. His mind went back over the interminable parade of Christmas books he had […]