Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Share these tips with your family and friends to keep man’s bestfriend safe.
This holiday season is almost over, and as you toss plants and holiday decorations away make sure to keep the family pet in mind. Five Quick Tips: Read more: 20 Tips to Keep Your Pets Safe this Holiday Season Join Patch’s Local Voices! We want to provide a platform for your message. Email Tamika Smith, the Community Manager for Montgomery County, at Tamika@Patch.com to sign up.
Monday, December 24, 2012
Christmas carols can bring holiday cheer to the season (and evoke other emotions, as well). Here are a few favorites.
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Monday, December 24, 2012
What's your favorite holiday song or carol? Tell us in the comments or upload the YouTube video to this post so others can enjoy!
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Planetary nebula called NGC 5189 that looks a lot like a glass-blown holiday ornament.
Do they celebrate the holidays in space? Looks like it. NASA's Hubble Space Telescope captured a nearby planetary nebula called NGC 5189 that looks a lot like a glass-blown holiday ornament with a glowing ribbon entwined.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Five quick tips for keeping toys safe for kids.
As the countdown to Christmas Day continues and parents rush out to get their children gifts this season, safety tops the list for one expert. Local Voice’s blogger Anna Schmitt from the American Academy of Ophthalmology advises parents to keep in mind their kids' eye safety. Schmitt says toys such as airsoft guns, bb guns and paintball guns can be particularly hazardous. Read more: Keep Eye Safety in Mind When Choosing Gifts this Holiday Season. Join Patch’s Local Voices! We want to provide a platform for your message. Email Tamika Smith, the Community Manager for Montgomery County, at Tamika@Patch.com to sign up.
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Take note of these holiday shipping deadlines, and plan accordingly.
Time is running out for holiday gift and card shipping through the U.S. Postal Service. Mail parcels and packages by Dec. 14 for parcel post delivery by Christmas, and cards by Dec. 21, the post office's blog advises. If you miss those days, though, you're still OK—as long as you're fine with paying a little extra. Here are the absolute-last-day deadlines to keep in mind, according to the U.S. Postal Service's holiday calendar: One more date to keep in mind is Monday, Dec. 18: Traditionally, the post office's "busiest day is ... the Monday before Christmas as people mail cards and packages they prepared over the weekend," The Huffington Post reported last year. A good way to cut down on time spent waiting in line is to order your holiday…
Thursday, December 6, 2012
With help from Montgomery County police, Santa will ride from Germantown to the Children’s Inn in Bethesda to deliver gifts to sick kids.
As part of a charitable effort by Montgomery County police, a motorcycle-riding St. Nick—flanked by 20 of Montgomery County’s finest—will carry donated gifts to Children’s Inn in Bethesda on Wednesday. Santa’s “sleigh” ride begins in Germantown at 10 a.m. at the District 5 station in Germantown then makes two stops — Gaithersburg-Germantown Chamber of Commerce on Clopper Road and Sheehy Ford on Frederick Road. Santa plans to lunch at Vince & Dominics Pizzeria in Bethesda. The motorcade is expected to reach Children’s Inn by 5:30 p.m., just in time for a party. Part of the National Institutes of Health, Children’s Inn is a nonprofit facility that offers lodging for children receiving treatment at NIH and their families. Police are still …
Sunday, December 2, 2012
Thanks to a special U.S. Postal Service program, "Santa" will reply to children who mail him their Christmas wish lists this holiday season.
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Sunday, December 2, 2012
Every year, millions of children sit down to make a wish list for Santa, hoping he will make all of their Christmas dreams come true. But what if Santa actually wrote back? The United States Postal Service is now accepting "Letters From Santa," a program that allows any person to play Santa by sending a letter signed by Saint Nick to any child. According to a postal service news release, "The 'Letters From Santa' program helps parents fulfill the dreams of their own children." Instructions to send a letter from Santa: Letters to Santa can be dropped off at any Montgomery County post office location. TELL US: Will you participate?
Friday, November 30, 2012
Study reveals we buy according to our age and life stage. But, for gifts, is cemetery lot maintenance really a crowd pleaser?
During the holiday season, many struggle with the anxiety of wondering if a recipient will really like his or her gift. Are you considering opera tickets for your great aunt? What about purchasing a photograph session for a person under 30? Or, maybe grabbing a game for granddad? If the data in a recent article on The Atlantic’s website is any indication, you may want to think foremost about a person's stage in life before purchasing. The article cites a report from HS Dent, an economic forecasting firm that looked at U.S. Census data regarding spending behavior by age groups. Some of the data is less that shocking – spending on hearing aids, prescription drugs and the upkeep of cemetery lots rises dramatically as we age. Expenditures on…
Monday, November 19, 2012
"Gratitude is the sign of noble souls" - Aesop.
A few years ago, I started a "gratitude journal" as a way of turning my many complaints on their head. Finding what to be grateful for among all that happens each day can be a challenge at first, but it's an exercise in thoughtful awareness of the good things in life. Below are some stories that might help in applying that philosophy toward Montgomery County during the Thanksgiving season. Who says there's no positive news? Just click and think thankful thoughts: After Decades on the Street, a New Home for Bethesda Veteran MCPS Achievement Gap Shrink Noted at National Conference Toys for Tots Drop Off Locations Sending the Troops Holiday Cards and Gifts State Touts Successes in Investment and Innovation Chamber of Commerce Announces …
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Retail 'sale' creep hits the all-American holiday big time this year.
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Sunday, November 18, 2012
If all you can wait to do after you chow down on your Thanksgiving meal is start the holiday shopping marathon, retailers are ready to help you. Other Americans, including some retail workers, are saying they want to keep one Thursday in November free of American capitalistic intrusion. Target, Walmart, Sears, KMart and Toys"R"Us have all announced they will open as early as 8 p.m. Thanksgiving Day, making 2012's holiday shopping season of 32 days and four hours perhaps the longest ever due to the way the calendar fell this year. At least one online petition says enough, already. A campaign on the site Change.org entitled, "Target: Take the high road and save Thanksgiving," had been signed by more than 230,000 users as of Friday night. …
John Floyd II
10:50 am on Tuesday, December 25, 2012
My very favourite Christmas tune of all time is "Do You Hear What I Hear?" as sung by the incomparable Bing Crosby in 1963. Written during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 and being released only a few days before the assassination of President Kennedy, that beautifully-crafted number struck a literal chord with the American people. It became a massive hit for Mr Crosby and is still being played … more ›