Did You Know
Did World 'War come
to a halt for 24 hours
in 1914 due to a
Christmas truce?
By JACK BAGLEY
dldyouknowcolumn@gmail.com
(This is the first draft of
my letter to Santa. You’ll find
the finished product on this
week’s editorial page.)
Dear Santa Claus,
First, let me assure you
that I have been a good boy
this year. A very good boy.
Well, maybe not that good.
I would go into what I’ve
done bad this year, but you
being all-knowing, all-seeing,
and having those darned
elves everywhere already
know all about it. .
And while I’m on the topic,
I hope to get some assurance
from you that I will get cred—
it for all the good things I’ve
done. Last year, you know,
we sort of got our wires
crossed, and some of the real-
ly good things somehow did-
n’t make themselves known
, to you.
I could tell when I looked
under the tree Christmas
morning. I’m guessing all
those letters, telegrams, and
e-mails somehow got redi—
rected.
But I digress.
I’d go into what’s on my
list for this year, but you know
what? I’d chuck it all for just
one thing having people
enjoy the little trivia fun I
provide them every week.
Have a safe trip down
from the North Pole, and I’ll
leave the traditional milk and
cookies out for you. Maybe
you’ll
;before"§
milk. ,
On to the trivia this time
about Christmas!
Love, Jack
Did you know
Santa Claus has not‘
always been depicted as a “fat
jolly old elf”? In the earliest
illustrations of St. Nick, he’s
often shown as a stern sym-
bol of discipline. (In other
words, he knows you’ve been
naughty.)
_ the letters that children
write. to Santa actually‘ go
somewhere? No, not the
' “Dead Letter Office” or the
trash bin. All letters
addressed to Santa in the
t
assy cat) gets the '
at there ' this lyearh ,
The Hogansville Herald 0 Thursday, December 21, 2017 o Page 5-A
United States are sent to the
post office in Santa Claus,
Indiana. (Think of it as a satel-
lite office of the North Pole.)
not everyone enjoys
Peace on Earth on
Christmas? There’s a village
in Peru where people use the
day to settle their grudges
from the year, and they do it
by fist fighting. This lets
them start the new year off
on a clean slate. The practice
is called 'I‘akanakuy, and it
happens in Chumbivikcas
Province near Cuzco. (I guess
their Christmas list consists
of championship title belts.)
Christmas stories
around the fire used to fea-
ture some pretty scary stuff?
In the “olden days,” people
shared scary ghost stories on
Christmas Eve. The tradition
has shifted over the past cen-
tury to Halloween. (I can
imagine it: “Boo! No pres-
ents for you!”)
' you might just have an
alternative to the wood chip~
per for your old Christmas
tree? There are several zoos
around the country that
would gladly accept your old
tree, which they would use as
food for some of their ani-
mals. (Sharing the feast, don’t
you know.)
the best-selling single
record in history is a
Christmas song? “White
Christmas,” composed by
Irving Berlin for the movie
Holiday Inn, has sold more
than 100 million copies. (And
I don’t care who else, tries to
sing it, Bing Crosby ‘did it
best!)
Christmas has helped
make Sir Paul McCartney a
much richer man? His song
“Wonderful Christmastime”
gets a great deal of radio air-
play this time of year, and he
rakes in almost half a million
dollars annually in royalties.
What’s surprising about that
is, many critics feel it’s
McCartney’s worst song ever.
(After all those years of play-
ing Christmas music on the
radio, I’ve become numbed to
all the hoopla about the
songs.) .
Christmas caused a real
problem for the national
a Plns Christmas ,V
'2
restaurant chain Denny’s?
Since most Denny’s are open
24 hours a day, 7 days a week,
they were constructed with—
out locks on the doors. In 1988,
for the first time, Denny’s
decided to close on Christmas
day. Looking up the restau-
rant suddenly became a real
problem. (I wonder what they
ended .up doing? Armed
guards come to mind, but
have you ever actually eaten
at Denny’s?)
three of the most pop-
ular Christmas songs of all
time were written by people
who did not celebrate the hol-
iday? “White Christmas,”
“Rudolph the Red Nosed
Reindeer,” and “The
Christmas Song” - which you
know better as “Chestnuts
roasting on an open fire”
were all written by Jewish
people.
World War I ground to
a halt during Christmas of
1914? During a lull in one of
the many interminable bat-
tles on Christmas Eve,
British soldiers in their
trenches heard the Germans
across the no—man’s-land
singing “Stille Nacht,” the
German version of “Silent
Night.” The British soldiers
joined in, and a truce was
called between the two
armies for 24 hours. The men
emerged from their trench-
es, exchanged gifts with each
other, and even played a game
of soccer. Afterward,‘the bat—
tles resumed.
people, who .write ,
“Xmas” for the heliday are
not really taking Christ out of
Christmas? Bear with me for
a moment. The use of the let-
ter “X” is actually the use of
the Greek letter pronounced
“chi,” which is used as an
abbreviation for Christ in that
language (and is the first let-
ter of XpLO'rég, the Greek,
spelling of His name). If any-
thing, “X” is keeping Christ
in Christmas, not taking Him
out. (It’s all Greek to me.)
your Christmas shop-
ping helps the economy?
Holiday shopping accounts
for up to 1/6 of all retail sales
in'the United States.
Merry Christmas!
Visit At FDR StatePark
By ANDY KOBER
0 Saturday, Dec. 30, Fairy House Contest.
Photo‘Submltted
FAMILY EVENT - A decent telescope can provide hours of family fun, building
relation-
ships, and creating memories that can last a lifetime.
One More Meteo
By'ANDY KOBER
Just in time for the end
of the calendar year comes
the Ursids Meteor Shower.
Meteors from the show-
er were anticipated begin
flashing across the sky on
Dec. 17 and the shower is"
projected to last until
Christmas Day.
Peak activity is expect—
ed during the overnight
hours of Dec. 21—22, with
best viewing taking place
after midnight.
The Ursids shower is
described as a minor mete-
or shower with only about
five to ten meteors at peak
activity.
The shower is caused by
particles ‘of dust left the
comet 'Iiittle.
FOR THOSE of you still
shopping for the perfect
Christmas gift, consider a
telescope.
As with anything, qualia
ty is ‘often' dependent on
price, so spend a bit more
and get a good little tele-
scope.
Telescopes can be found
at a variety of retail outlets,
. including a number of sports
shops, or online.
A good telescope can pro-
vide years of fun, viewing
what is happening in the cos-
mos and it might also lead to
an interest in astronomy.
A telescope might make
a great stocking stuffer for
Harris County’s premier
skywatcher, Ms Lynn, as she
looks at the night sky, always
seeking Mars, Jupiter and
r Shower Ends 2017 *~
Uranus.
THE INTERNATIONAL
Space State is often visible
to those on the Earth’s sur-
face. A good app to help you
see when the 188 is visible
in your area is 138 Detector,
and that is also a free app or
v i s i t
www.spotthestation.nasa.go
v and enter your zip code.
The NASA website is more
accurate regarding the time.
When you do spot the space
station what you are actual-
ly seeing is the reflection of
the sun off the station’s solar
panels.
As always, to view celes-
tial events, get away from
bright outdoor lights.
The staff at FD Roosevelt State Park is
hosting a number of Christmas related events,
including:
0 Saturday, Dec. 23, 10:45 am, Saddle Up
with Santa and enjoy a One-hour horseback
ride through the winter woodlands. Bring a
picnic lunch with drinks for after the ride.
There is a fee of $35 per person and meet at
Roosevelt Stabl’e's, along Group Camp Road
which is located off Kings Gap Road, just
east of the Rock Bridge. Pre-registration
required by calling 706—628-7463.
0 Sunday, Dec. 24, look for Santa to visit
the Family Campground sometime between
6:30 pm and 7:30 pm, with the Visit sponsored
by Pine, Mountain Fire Department. Because
he is busy that night, Santa will not be able
to stop, but firefighters will be giving treats
to all the children that come out to see Santa.
' ‘\
Use sturdy, unique and recycled wood to build-
ing a Fairy House. Glass, ceramic and metal
accents are okay, but no plastic. Nails and
glue are allowed. Each hause must have a
door and window. Fairy houses must be less 6
than 18 inches high and on a base nolarger
than 24 inches by 25 inches. Prizes will be
awarded-to adult and child categories. Pre-
registration is required and there is an $8
entry fee. Check-in is 11 am with judging at
noon and fairy houses to remain on display
until 4 pm. To register or for more informa-
tion call the park office at 706-663-4858. .
These events are open to the public, not
just Campers visiting the state park.
For more information about any of the pro-
grams at the state park, call 706-663-4858..
FD Roosevelt State Park is located in Pine
Mountain. .
PhotoSubmlttod "'
NOTED GEORGIA DOCTOR Noted Georgia native, Dr. Crawford Long, was the first
doctor to administer ether as an anesthetic for a woman during childbirth.
This Week In American History
By ANDY KOBER
Here is what happened this week in
American History. ‘
0 Dec. 21..Renowned actor and producer
Samuel L. Jackson was born on this date in
1948, in Washington, DC. Jackson was pur-
suing a degree in marine biology at
Morehouse College in Atlanta, when he dis-
covered acting. The rest is hiStory.
- Dec. 22. While many are familiar with
the Boston Tea Party, only a few are aware
of the Greenwich Tea Party that took place
in 1774. It was early in the American
Revolution, and about a year after the famous
party in Boston, that a group of about 40
patriots set fire to a load to tea located in
Greenwich, New Jersey. Greenwich is now
known as Greenwich Township. Among those
patriots was Richard Howell who would go
d'h to'become the third governor of. New
Jersey. ' ‘
0 Dec. 23. The revolutionary war was over
with the young United States winning its
indeperldence from the tyrannical British.
On this date in 1783, Gen. George Washington
said goodbye to his officers and resigned his
commission as Commander in Chief.
' 0 Dec. 24. In the Pacific, Allied forces
were still reeling from the Japanese attack
on Pearl Harbor. On this day in 1941,
American forces retreat to the Bataan
Peninsula in the Philippines. American and
Filipino forces would make their final stand
before being overswhelmed by the victori-
ous Japanese.
0 Dec. 25. Merry Christmas. Not an ’j
American event, but along the Western Front,
on Christmas Day 1914, during World War
I, a series of unofficial truces took place
allowing soldier'from all side to celebrate
Christmas. The soldiers exchanged sou-
venirs, sang Christmas carols, and buried
their dead. A monument stands where this
actual event took place.
0 Dec. 26. The Dakota War of 1862 ends
on this day. The war between the United
States and Dakota Indians had started the
previous August. The war resulted in the
death of 150 Dakota Indians, including 38
that were hanged on this day to end the war.
This would be the largest one—day execution
in American History. The Dakota War took ' '
place in what is now Minnesota.
I 0 Dec. 27. It was a medical first that took ,
place in 1845 in Jefferson, Georgia. Dr.
Crawford Long, who was a Georgia native,
becomes the first doctor to administer ether
as an anesthetic during childbirth. Crawford
Long Hospital, now Emory University,
Hospital 'Midtown, was named for Dr.
Crawford Long. Incidentally, Dr. Cranord
Long was a cousiiiof dentist and gunfighter . . :
Dr. John Henry ‘ oc” Holliday. ,
