Conference back40::soapbox

Falls on a Sunday. In my younger days of being Catholic, I always loved
it when it fell on Sunday because it meant I only had to waste my time
going to church once that week, instead of twice.

    
    well Jack, being that i is Catholic, I have to agree. Only have to
    go once this year. Haven't started my shopping yet, but I did at least
    set my Christmas club funds free last week.

    I love Christmas. I love the decorations. I love the way children react
    to it. I _love_ giving presents. I love the lights. I love the fact
    that everyone seems to get along for a brief moment in time. I love the
    music. I love the goofy movies. I love the food. I love the parties.
    I love the cheesey Santa suits you see at the mall. I _love_ mistletoe
    (wink wink).
    
    -b

    
    brian
    
    You sound like a walking advertisement for the retail industry:-) :-)
    
    Mark

 Christmas should be in July...that way we could do our shopping without 
 all the crowds that are in the malls in November/December.




Jim

Who started this topic?!

It's not even Thanksgiving yet!

    Must be the same person who decided that Santa Claus arrives at the
    Pheasant Lane Mall on Friday, November 18th, for your lap sitting
    enjoyment.

    Cancel it!

Come, thou long-expected Jesus,         Born thy people to deliver,
  Born to set thy people free;            Born a child, and yet a king,
From our fears and sins release us,     Born to reign in us for ever,
  Let us find our rest in thee.           Now thy gracious kingdom bring.

Israel's strength and consolation,      By thine own eternal Spirit
  Hope of all the earth thou art;         Rule in all our hearts alone:
Dear desire of every nation,            By thine all-sufficient merit
  Joy of every longing heart.             Raise us to thy glorious throne.

    <-.1> Nope, not for me thanks. I think I can pass Noel without being
    indebted to anything.
    
    Hope you have a nice one, whatever.
    
    martin

Besides Halloween, it's the coolest time of the year,, and yes
of course, it's a pretty neat holiday too...

    It`s good for kids and it`s good for religious types,but other than that
    it`s just a commercial exercise in getting punters to spend as much of
    their hard earned cash as possible.
    
    Other than that it just clogs up the pubs.
    

    Clogs up the arteries too. All that good food, and, oh ya, and the
    copious amounts of Brador!

    I got a Christmas card yesterday.  Yesterday!
    
    Oh, by the way... it was from my dear friends at Sears.
    
    Chris

    
    .13
    
    oh dear.

    oh beer. (tm)

    over here.

    Weihnachtliche Bescherung
    
    Der Gabentisch ist �d und leer,
    die Kinder schauen bl�d umher.
    
    Der Vater pupst,
    die Kinder lachen.
    So billig kann man Freude machen.
    
    
    
    (C) Deutschnotes 

I got a Christmas card from Sears the other day as well. The Manchester store,
where I don't think I've bought more than $25 worth of goods in the last 15
years. I spent about $1K in the hardware dept. at the Nashua store in the last
10 months. Didn't get a damn thing from them.

    
    Well...it's now one month until Christmas Eve...the temperature is
    holding steady below freezing...there's a small amount of ice and
    snow on the ground...anticipation building...shopping started...
    decorations up...wine & cheese party scheduled...
    
    ...it's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas!
    
    Of course, my excitment will wane around January 2nd. :*(
    

	My excitement has already ended..... bring on SPRING!

NICHOLAS OF MYRA (6 DEC 326?)

The story of St. Nicholas offers a possible way of dealing with the
"Santa Claus" problem, to parents who do not want to lie to their
children, even in fun, but do not want to say simply: "Bah, humbug!
There is no such thing as Santa. Forget about him."

Nicholas was a native of the western part of what is now Asiatic
Turkey. He became Bishop of Myra in the fourth century, and there
are many stories of his love for God and for his neighbor.

The best-known story involves a man with three unmarried daughters,
and not enough money to provide them with suitable dowries. This
meant that they could not marry, and were likely to end up as
prostitutes. Nicholas walked by the man's house on three successive
nights, and each time threw a bag of gold in through a window (or,
when the story came to be told in colder climates, down the
chimney). Thus, the daughters were saved from a life of shame, and
all got married and lived happily ever after.

Because of this and similar stories, Nicholas became a symbol of
anonymous gift-giving. Hence, if we give a gift to someone today
without saying whom it is from, it can be called "a present from
Saint Nicholas (or Santa Claus)." Some parents explain this to their
children and invite the child to join them in wrapping a toy (either
something purchased for that purpose, at least partly with the
child's allowance, or else a toy that the child has outgrown but
that is still serviceable) or an outgrown but not shabby item of the
child's clothing, or a package of food, and then going along to
donate it to a suitable shelter that will give it to someone who
will welcome it. This gift is then called "a present from Santa," so
that the child understands that this is another name for an
anonymous gift given to someone whom we do not know, but whom we
love anyway because God does. (Presents within the family can be
"From Santa" or "From Santa and...")

Pictures of Nicholas often show three bags of gold next to him, and
often these bags have become simply three disks or balls. Nicholas
became the patron of an Italian city (I think Bari, which is where
his body is now buried) that was a center of the pawnbroking
business, and hence a pawnbroking shop traditionally advertises by
displaying three gold balls over its front. It is thought that some
persons looking at pictures of Nicholas confused the three round
objects with human heads. Hence there is a story of a wicked
innkeeper who murdered three boys and salted their bodies to serve
to his guests, to save on the butcher's bill. Nicholas visited the
inn and confronted the innkeeper, who confessed his crime, whereupon
Nicholas prayed over the brine-tub and the three boys leaped out
unharmed. Other stories have him saving the lives of three innocent
men who had been condemned to death. Still other stories have him
coming to the rescue of drowning sailors (could this be related to
the brine-tub incident?). Nicholas has always been popular with
children, mariners, pawnbrokers, the Dutch, the Russians, and
recently, the department-store owners. (American readers may
remember the story of the brine-tub through reading it as children
in the book THE DUTCH TWINS, by Lucy Fitch Perkins, author of THE
SPANISH TWINS, THE ITALIAN TWINS, and many similar books, all
children's favorites in the middle of this century. They may now be
banned as politically incorrect -- I have no idea. If your children
know the brine-tub story, from this book or elsewhere, they may be
interested to know how it may have originated.)

In many countries, Nicholas visits children on his feast day, 6
December, and brings them gifts then. In these countries, there is
usually no exchange of Christmas presents, but there may be gifts
again on January 6, the feast of the coming of the Wise Men, who
brought gifts to the Holy Child of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. In
America, it may be thought necessary to yield to outside pressure
and let Nicholas distribute gifts on December 25.

We are told, but it is uncertain, that Nicholas was imprisoned for
his faith before the accession of Constantine, and that he was
present at the Council of Nicea in 325. We may note in passing that
the picture of him as roly-poly is a late development. Early stories
indicate that he was generous to others, but not given to
self-indulgence. Indeed, even as an unweaned infant, he fasted
regularly on Wednesdays and Fridays....


   Let thy continual mercy, O Lord, enkindle in thy church the
   never-failing gift of charity, that, following the example of
   thy servant Nicholas of Myra, we may have grace to deal in
   generosity and love with children and with all who are poor and
   distressed, and to maintain the cause of them that have no
   helper; for the sake of him who gave his life for us, thy Son
   our Saviour Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with thee
   and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and ever.

    the wife and I saw the remake of "Miracle on 34th St"...the little girl
    steals the movie, although overall, the original was alot better and
    I'm glad I have the tape and we watched it again on Monday when I was
    out sick!

    Is it Christmas time already? I didn't even notice! :-)
    
    ...Tom

>    Is it Christmas time already?

No.  Christmas begins at sundown on December 24th and runs for twelve days.

/john

	Well, it's gonna look like Christmas time later today, well, unless you
live in Boston. They say tomorrow mornings commute should be a fun one. I
believe Paul Simon gave an accurate description of tomorrows commute in his
song, "Slip Slinding Away". 


Glen

Note 68.25, /john
    
     >Christmas begins at sundown on December 24th and runs for twelve days.

    
	If this is true there are a lot of people jumping the gun here in 
    	Colorado.
    
    	Mary was in labor for 12 days?! That is worse than what my mother
    	told me about her labor experience at my birth. :-)
    
    ...Tom

THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY'S CHRISTMAS MESSAGE

The Most Reverend and Right Honourable George L Carey

I wonder where you were last Christmas! My experience was quite unique.

    It began normally enough with Christmas in Canterbury. There seemed to
be more people than ever celebrating Christmas. In the shopping precincts
on Christmas Eve I joined with three thousand people singing carols. The
Cathedral, also, was packed with worshippers on Christmas Eve and Christmas
Day. As I preached at the Eucharist, I could see the faces of young and
old, from all walks of life, gathered before the altar to hear once again
the message of peace and joy that this season brings. It is clear that in
this Decade of Evangelism we are being made aware that people are yearning
to hear the proclamation that God loves them and sent his Son into the
world that we might have life.

    The usual round of family activities followed the cathedral service.
But during the festivities, we were planning for a rather unusual New Year.
My wife and I, together with colleagues, were to spend a few days over the
New Year with the wonderful people of Sudan. I had accepted an invitation
from the Archbishop and the people of the Episcopal Church to visit their
Province. Many of you will have read about the visit. It was a vigorous and
exhilarating time and I was sad not to be able to visit the whole country.
People in the Sudan, and many other places, suffer enormously from the
effects of war and famine, and are crying out for help, so I was delighted
recently to find that the Appeal to help the people of Sudan which I set up
on my return has raised over �300,000.

    My heart bleeds for Rwanda at this time. For me the agony of that
suffering land is caught by a sad letter from the wife of a former student
who was murdered in the terrible massacre. She has five children and her
letter to me says simply: 'Please, please, help us'. How can we help her
and the many thousands of Anglicans and others who are still enduring
untold miseries?  How may we build up our Communion so that we may move
faster when fellow Anglicans need help? I am conscious from my experience
of the Sudan and my feelings of impotence with regard to Rwanda that we
need structures that will truly make us a Communion. As plans are being
made for Lambeth 98 this is one practical thing that ought to engage the
minds of all bishops. In the meantime pray for Rwanda and let us all seek
to assist the Church there.

    So my dear friends, whoever you are and wherever you are, may your
Christmas this year lead you to transcend all the uncertainties of this
suffering and sinful, yet beautiful, world, to live in a Communion of
unbroken joy with a Father who loves, a Son who is one with us and a Spirit
who indwells us.

    I pray that our Communion will remain faithful to God's call as we look
to 1995, and begin to prepare for the next Lambeth Conference in 1998.

    My wife, Eileen, joins me in wishing you a happy and holy Christmas and
a New Year filled with peace and joy.

+Cantuar

    stobit you're making me chuckle

    Y'all have a Merry Christmas, Happy Chanakuh, Happy New Year, etc.
    etc. I'll see you in the 1995... Warmer climes beckon!
    
    God Bless!
    
    -b

    Not so fast buster!  You cannot leave until you have been dismissed. 
    Seeing as you are off to skulk around in warm weather which we all know
    leads to an increase in libidinous activity, you may not go.  It's for
    your own good.  *<|:-)> (santy claus smiling at you) 
    
    Brian

    And as the comedy channel says...have a happy CHANOOKA!

    have a cool Yule.
    
    

    
    Yul personified cool. 
    

    Speaking of The Comedy Channel, anyone see that little station
    identification bit where they casually toss a 6" Barney doll
    into the yuletide blaze, and then cut to a closeup of the poor
    misunderstood purple thing?  The funny thing is, his expression
    never changes; even though you know it can't, somehow one expects
    it to.
    
    Chris

Er, Chanuka was 28-Nov to 5-Dec.  I hope those who celebrated it had
a blessed observation.

Next year it's 18-Dec to 25-Dec.

/john

    gonna finish up my Xmas shopping today with a final visit to victors
    seekret in the mall of the universe.

>>    gonna finish up my Xmas shopping today with a final visit to victors
>>    seekret in the mall of the universe.

	Gene,

	Would this be a gift for your wife or for you???

	Pat

His sheep.

    cossack!!!
    
    pat dear, its for my wife. i get her one of those every year.

Speaking of Christmas, and hacking, does anyone know of an easy way to
modify those animated Mr. Claus & Mrs. Claus Musical Talking Figures
so that they can be made to say something disgustingly obscene at full
volume while they rock and knit, respectively?

    Finished my Christmas shopping yesterday!!  A new record me me.  
    I still have one stocking stuffer I'd like to get, tho.

RE:              <<< Note 68.36 by COVERT::COVERT "John R. Covert" >>>
           -< Next Jewish holiday is Purim; 16-Mar this year (5755) >-

>Er, Chanuka was 28-Nov to 5-Dec.  I hope those who celebrated it had
>a blessed observation.



 Does that mean that all those radio and television commercials can now say
 "Christmas shopping" instead of "Holiday Shopping", or "Christmas wrapping
 paper" instead of "holiday wrapping Paper"?


 Jim

    
    Chanuka (the Festival of Lights) was great.  Saturnalia next.
    Keepers of the flocks stood in their fields in Israel (in December?)
    and shivered in their boots, because it was cold.  Yeshua had been
    born three months earlier, during the Feast of Tabernacles.
    
    ;^)

    give the fact that several other religions also have holidays at this
    time of year, you will have to live with holiday paper and gifts.
    
    Although after wednesday you can call it what you want for all I care,
    Kwanza starts after xmas, there is a ba'Hai holiday coming up and
    several other also celebrate around this time of year.
    
    meg

    
    time to get Kwanzafied then eh?

    .44
    
    > Keepers of the flocks stood in their fields in Israel (in December?)
    > and shivered in their boots, because it was cold.  Yeshua had been
    > born three months earlier, during the Feast of Tabernacles.
    
    horsepuckey.  yeshua was born in late february or early march - that is
    the only time of the year when shepherds stayed in the fields all
    night; they stayed there to help the ewes with lambing.  a conjunction
    of jupiter and saturn on december 15 in the year -7 was almost
    certainly the "star" that the wise men saw (matthew 2:2).  if you like,
    i can post a research paper i did in the subject some years ago.

What time of year did shepherds wash their socks?

    
    That's easy Gerald, they never wore any.
    
    Mark

    
    Speaking of stocking stuffers, I would love just one, but I'm afraid
    she wouldn't fit. Maybe under the tree with a big red bow.

Note 68.50 by POBOX::BATTIS 
    
    >>Speaking of stocking stuffers, I would love just one, but I'm afraid
    >>she wouldn't fit. Maybe under the tree with a big red bow.
    
    that's got to be one of the GDnist sexist things i've seen in awhile
    boy. and to say it in a wolrdwide public forum no less. your lucky your
    butt ain't being hauled in front of the "man". now apologize to the
    lady right NOW before this is interpreted like i think you meant it.

    	re .47
    
    	Dick, perhaps you want to add the following to your research.
    	It supports your march birthdate, but contradicts the year.
    
    	Joe.
    
    --------------
    
From: "Judith A. Litton" <[email protected]>

The Star of Bethlehem could not have been a comet, let alone Halley's
Comet.  Comets were signs of approaching catastrophe; it was thought that
they fortold war, famine, plague, etc., not the birth of a baby thought
to be the Messiah.
The Wise Men, or Magi, were almost certainly Persians; they were
accomplished astronomers because they were astrologers.  They believed
that the position and movement of the naked eye planets against the stars
ruled our actions and history here on earth.
In 6 BC and in 2 BC there were very unusual mass conjunctions of the
planets; the one in 2 BC occurred in the constellation Leo, which was
believed to be the Lion of Judah.  Jupiter, in 2 BC, moved into Leo on
its eastward journey against the stars.  It passed Regulus, the King
star, and came to a stop; it then began its retrograde motion, passing
Regulus again and stopping again.  It then resumed its eastward journey,
passiing Regulus for the third time.  At the same time, all the other
planets, Mercury, Venus, and Saturn moved into Leo.  Jupiter then moved
out of Leo and into the constellation of Virgo the Virgen.
The Magi were well aware of the prophecies of the Jews.  To them, this
movement of the planets would have been momentous, indicating that the
baby had been born of a virgen, or maiden in some translations, and that
babe would be the Messiah.
Clues to the date can be found in the Gospels.  We know it was spring
because the shepherds only stayed in the fields with their flocks during
lambing season.  We know that Herod was King; Herod died after a total
eclipse of the moon visible from Jericho, but before a war between the
Jews and the Romans.  There was just such an eclipse in January of 1 BC
and in the summer of 1 BC, Herod's son was King.
So, to draw some conclusions, the Magi observed the movement of the
planets in 2 BC, organized and began their journey.  Jesus was born in
the spring of 1 BC.  The Magi reached Jerusalem, saw Herod, traveled to
Bethlehem, or perhaps Nazereth by this time, worshiped the child and
presented their gifts, and slipped out of Israel.  Herod, in rage, began
killing all children under 2 years of age, the little family left for
Egypt.  Herod then died, and the family returned to Nazereth, where Jesus
lived until he started his teaching.
Judy
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Reply-To: Astronomy Discussion List <[email protected]>
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In-Reply-To:  <9412141331.AA04954@foothills>

    .52
    
    joe, i've been down that fallacious path.
    
    you see, it is recorded that herod died in march or april of -4.  which
    fits perfectly with the xian tradition that joseph brought his family
    back to israel when jesus was a small boy - if jesus was born in -6,
    then he was 2 when herod died.
    
    my whole paper is available for decnet copy at this path:
    
    vortex::caliph::"/usr/public/bethstar.nro"

    Hey Jack, was that you I saw playing Santa at Laurel Mall?
    
    Have a good one!
    
    Ron

    .53
    
    Having instigated this line of conversation, I looked but could not
    get to the BETHSTAR.NRO file...RMS FNF error.
    
    Mail it to me, at the above address...I'll read it.
    
    Thanks,
    
    Barry (Mr. Baruch is you're nasty.)

    Ooops...apparently we must keep our filenames in LOWER case.
    
    Got the BETHSTAR.NRO file.  
    
    Thanks,
    
    Mr. Baruch, if you're nasty.  (I can't get that stoopid song by Janet
    Jackson outta my head.)

Well, getting back to the topic title, y'all have a good one, and a happy
New Year, too. As soon as I Next Unseen my way through the rest of this
mess I'm outta here until 1/5/95, although, like a fool, I'll prolly
check in once in a while in the meantime.

-Jack

O Sapientia, quae ex ore Altissimi proditi attingens a fine usque ad finem,
fortiter suaviter disponensque omnia; veni ad docendum nos viam prudentiae.

			O come, thou Wisdom from on high,
			who orderest all things mightily;
			to us the path of knowledge show,
			and teach us in her ways to go.

    
    
    >who orderest all things mightily;
    
    with a Golden Visa?

O Adonai, et Dux domus Israel, qui Moysi in igne flammae rube apparusti,
et ei in Sina legem dedisti: veni ad redimendum nos in brachio extento.

			O come, O come, thou Lord of might,
			Who to thy tribes on Sinai's height
			In ancient times didst give the law,
			In cloud, and majesty, and awe.

    i bought my wife a pretty good present. a new house. i told her
    
     "honey, let's get whatever you want"
    
    i cost me dearly.

    Gene:
    
    was it the gun that "i cost me dearly"?
    

O radix Jesse, qui stas in signum populorum super quem continebunt reges os
suum, quem gentes deprecabuntur: veni ad liberandum nos, jam noli tardare.

			O come, thou Branch of Jesse's tree,
			Free them from Satan's tyranny
			That trust thy mighty power to save,
			And give them victory o'er the grave.

    
    51.
    >>Speaking of stocking stuffers, I would love just one,but  I'm afraid
    >>she wouldn't fit.Maybe under the tree with a big red bow.
    
    >>that's got to be one of the GDnist sexist things i've seen in awhile
    boy. and to say it in a worldwide public forum no less.  your lucky
    your butt ain't being hauled in front of the "man" now apologize to the
    lady right Now...
    
    You GD idgit, I was refering to a long barreled  Colt .45 I saw last
    week, at a gun shop. Don't jump to conclusions so damn fast. As for
    the "man" I doubt Bob Palmer cares much about guns, but I could be
    wrong. You need a vacation son
    
    Mark

    Christmas in Colorado Springs is predicted to be sunny and temps around
    60 deg. Santa delivers toys in a Chevy. Snow and cold if for you guys
    in the N.E. and you can keep it. Hope for all to have a happy and warm 
    holiday. I LUV COLORADO!!!!
    
    ...Tom

    
    Weatherman this morning predicted 40's all week long.

    	re .66
    
    	I'm still dreamin' of a white Christmas though.

O clavis David, et sceptrum domus Israel: qui aperis, et nemo claudit; claudis,
et nemo aperit: veni, et educ vincteum de domo carceris, sedentem in tenebris
et umbra mortis.

			O come, thou Key of David, come,
			And open wide our heavenly home;
			Make safe the way that leads on high,
			And close the path to misery.

    RE: .69
    
    What a waste of a good SNARF!!

    in your own words, Doubtin' Thomas, one man's food is another man's
    garbage.
    
    Bon appetit".

    RE: .71
    
    	>in your own words, Doubtin' Thomas, one man's food is another man's
        >garbage.
    
        >Bon appetit".
    
    Did I say that? It must have been after dinner. Naw, I doubt it!
    
    ...Tom

    
    .47, .52, .53, .56, .57, etc.
    
    1) There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain
       priest named Zacharias, of the COURSE OF ABIA...
    
       The priestly courses are dictated in 1 Chronicles 24:7-19.
       This would have fallen on 12-18 of Sivan (Hebrew calendar for
       you infidels) which would have fallen on June 13-19, 5 BC.
    
       The quote in 1) is Luke 1:5.  To make it short, while Zacharias
       performs his duties in the course of Abia, he has a vision of 
       the birth of his son, John the Baptist. In verse 23, he leaves
       to go home (i.e. 20 Sivan, 5 B.C., the 19th was a sabbath, so he
       couldn't have left Jerusalem till the 20th).  He's an old man,
       and most likely walking.  The distance to his house is roughly
       30 miles.  Let's give the old man 2 days to get home.  Of course,
       if you've been out of town for 11 days (he had to walk TO Jerusalem,
       remember), and you get along with your wife, what's the first thing
       you think Zacharias did when he got home ?  Luke 1:24 says it
       flatly : "And after those days, his wife Elisabeth conceived and hid
       herself for 5 months...".
    
    2) Luke 1:25 starts "...and in the sixth month (referring to
       Elisabeth's pregnancy)...Gabriel was sent...to a virgin espoused
       to a man whose name was Joseph..."  Get the picture ?  6 months
       later, Mary becomes pregnant.  OK, John the B. was conceived on
       June 23, 5 B.C.  Jesus is conceived 6 months later. Add them.
       We're talking around December 25th for CONCEPTION.
    
    3) A average pregnancy lasts 9 months, correct ?  Nine months later,
       Jesus is born.  Around Sept 29, 4 BC, which happened to correspond
       to the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles.  On the 8th day, as is
       traditional, Jesus is circumcised and named.  The 8th day was the
       last day of the Feast of Tabernacles.  Incidently, both the first
       and last days are Shabbat (Sabbaths). (Luke 2:21 for the
       circumcision reference)
    
    4) Note I didn't try to ascribe the star to a conjunction of planets, 
       although I do believe the Wise Men were Zoroastrian astrologers,
       and probably on the cabinet of the king of the Medes (Persians) at
       the time Christ was born.  Chalk the star up to the Shekinah glory,
       which manifested itself in the Temple until the days of Manasseh.
       Besides, Scripture makes it clear that this was no star or comet.
    
       Matthew 2:1-9 sez: "When Jesus wss born in Bethlehem of Judea in
       the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the
       east of Jerusalem...(9)when they heard the king, they departed;
       and lo, the star which they saw in the east, WENT BEFORE THEM,
       till it came and STOOD OVER where the young child was."
    
       a) This star, which they saw from the east, and followed, led them
          to Jerusalem.  Now, in verse 9, they follow this same star to
          Bethlehem, which is SOUTH of Jerusalem.
    
       b) The star "went" before them, south apparently.  A star which
          changes directions. Right.
    
       c) "It came and stood over where the yound child was."  I don't
          recall any star standing directly over my house.  How did
          the wise men determine WHICH house in Bethlehem was the one
          where Christ lived ? And I don't recall stars or comets 
    	  STANDING over a particular spot.
    
    5) And, finally, the "fact" that shephers stayed in the field at night
       only during the spring "lambing" season is horsepuckey.  I suppose
       these shepherds tucked in at night for the remaining part of the
       year while the sheep were torn asunder by wolves and other
       carnivorous creatures.  This makes NO sense.
    
    This "proof" is derived directly from scripture, which sets the dates.
    Why conjecture on planetary phenomenon or the fielding habits of
    shepherds to prove your point ?
    
    --- Barry
    

O Oriens, splendor lucis aeternae, et sol justitiae: veni, et illumina
sedentes in tenebris et umbra mortis.

			O come, thou Dayspring from on high,
			And cheer us by thy drawing nigh;
			Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
			And death's dark shadow put to flight.

    we havin fun now or what!

    i've had enough of Xmas '94. you hear? ENOUGH! after over 6 weeks of
    being deluged with Xmas from every possible angle i'm simply holding on
    to good cheer for the kids sake. and it's all our fault. if we would
    simply ignore this Xmas stuff until about 12/15 it wouldn't be so bad.
    
    last week alone there were 32 (COUNT 'EM 32!!!) Xmas specials on the
    boob tube here. i DON'T have cable. just 11 free channels.

    
    Merry Christmas, Gene!
    

>if we would simply ignore this Xmas stuff until about 12/15 it wouldn't be
>so bad.

Good idea; I agree wholeheartedly.

It ain't Christmas till sundown Christmas Eve.

Today is the Feast of St. Thomas the Apostle.  No doubt he gets mostly ignored.

/john

    
    It's all a big joke anyway...
    
    At 12:01 A.M. Dec. 26 1994, you'll not hear one more Christmas carol,
    or a "Tis the Season"... 
    
     All you'll hear is "After Christmas Sale!!!!"
    

    	re .78
    
    	I doubt it.

>    At 12:01 A.M. Dec. 26 1994, you'll not hear one more Christmas carol,
>    or a "Tis the Season"... 

Depends on where you go.  If you're with me, December 26th is only the
second day of the twelve day Christmas season.

And when Christmas is over, it's time to start singing "We Three Kings".

/john

    
    
     Gene,
    
     Man I know what ya mean, its a big joke anymore, very few people even
    give a hoot what the real meaning of Christmas is, its just gimme gimme
    gimme to the kids! and the people in the stores are unreal, pushy,
    uncareing, yeah there are the few still around that are friendly that
    will say a friendly hello or give a warm smile but most are stone faced
    gotta get something for someone because its Christmas.
    
        its just as bad for all the holidays but I think its just more
    noticable at Christmas time since it is the biggest holiday of the
    year, ya know haalloween stuff out right after the 4th, thanksgiving
    right after oct 31st its all the same.  
    
        I think the whole gift idea has been blown WAY outa proportion, if
    ya wanna buy someone a gift why should ya have to wait till Christmas,
    we shouldnt be made to buy gifts just for Christmas.
    
        Christmas time should be a realxing time to enjoy with new and old
    friends not the whatcha get me scene we deal with in todays society.
    
                                                                   Lee
    

	[fwd's removed]

>----- Begin Included Message -----
>
>
>_
>Want to do a kind thing for some hungry kids this holiday season?
>If not, press delete now. If you have a heart and a minute, read on.
>
>Sun Microsystems is donating $0.10 to a food bank each time an Internet
>user sends an email msg to any (or all) of the three addresses below:
>
>   [email protected]
>   [email protected]
>   [email protected]
>
>Doesn't matter what the msg contains; it could be an empty msg, full of
>invisible holiday spirit. Pick your favorite and send email there a few
>times. If *everyone* on the net were to BCC all three addresses with every
>msg they posted to a list for one day, the counter would top out almost
>instantly, so this is like a weird and wonderful test of Mass Human
>Kindness.
>
>You can do your part to help big fat international corporations make
>good on their Promises of donations to charities. It only takes 250,000
>msgs to reach the $25,000 Sun promised to donate to a Bay Area food bank
>for homeless families. Other corporations are donating to selected causes,
>including a banking firm in Washington DC that will donate up to $5,000 to
>the Chesapeake Wildlife Heritage (only 50,000 msgs...li'l baby
>birdies...furry baby rabbits... c'MON now! :)
>
>Other corporations are participating too: any firms wishing to add
>matching funds should contact Luther Brown at <[email protected]>. The
>announcement's in the Dec 94 Advanced Systems magazine (pg 22). Who knows,
>someday you might see companies all across the globe donating part of
>their obscene profits to children's charities in Sarajevo, San Francisco,
>Manila, Mogadishu, Bombay, Moscow, Port-au-Prince, Bucharest, Shanghai, Rio de

>Janeiro... everywhere Santa stops in.
>
>Remember: any user can send multiple msgs, so please be counted at least
>_once_, OK? There are not many such opportunities to directly affect
>something with your computer, and it doesn't take the Compassion of
>Siddhartha to see what's good about putting food in the mouths of little
>children with no home, wherever they are.
>
>  "So this is Christmas,
>   And what have you done?..."
>                  -John Lennon

Subj:	More holiday humor...


To the tune of Walking in a Winter Wonderland
    
Lacy things, they are missing,
Didn't ask the wife's permission,
I'm wearing her clothes, her silk pantyhose,
Walking 'round in women's underwear.

In the store, there's a teddy,
With straps like spaghetti,
It fits me so tight, like handcuffs at night,
Walking 'round in women's underwear.

At the office there's a guy named Melvin,
He pretends that I am Murphy Brown,
He'll say are you ready, I say...Whoa, man,
Let's wait until the wife is out of town.

Later on, if you wanna,
We'll dress up like Madonna,
We're wearing her clothes, her silk pantyhose,
Walking 'round in women's underwear.

     

(Sung to the tune of "Oh, Little Town of Bethlehem")

Oh, little Bank Americard
You bring me Christmas Cheer--
Without your clout
I have no doubt
No gifts I'd give this year.
Your credit line allows me
To run up bills quite large
And when I'm through 
Exhausting you
I'll use my Master Charge.

(Same tune, sung in late February)

Oh, little Bank Americard
You bring me discontent
I calculate
Your interest rate
Is over nineteen percent.
Each month your cry for payment
My letter-box bombards;
I'm one more sap
Caught in your trap
Next year I'll just send cards.

    	re .81
    
    	We're waiting to open many of the gifts we received from family
    	back east.  We'll be opening them on Epiphany instead of Christmas.
    	It seemed most appropriate to do that with the gifts coming from
    	the East...

    .76
    
    > last week alone there were 32 (COUNT 'EM 32!!!) Xmas specials on the
    > boob tube here. i DON'T have cable. just 11 free channels.
    
    you actually have 12 free channels; the 12th is called POWER OFF.

    yup blindus. power off is available, and usually the choice. 

      
    IS THERE A SANTA CLAUS?

As a result of an overwhelming lack of requests, and with research help from
that renown scientific journal SPY magazine (January, 1990) - I am pleased to
present the annual scientific inquiry into Santa Claus.

1)  No known species of reindeer can fly.  BUT there are 300,000 species of
living organisms yet to be classified, and while most of these are insects
and germs, this does not COMPLETELY rule out flying reindeer which only Santa
has ever seen.

2)  There are 2 billion children (persons under 18) in the world.
BUT since Santa doesn't (appear) to handle the Muslim, Hindu, Jewish and
Buddhist children, that reduces the workload to 15% of the total - 378
million according to Population Reference Bureau.  At an average (census)
rate of 3.5 children per household, that's 91.8 million homes.  One presumes
there's at least one good child in each.

3)  Santa has 31 hours of Christmas to work with, thanks to the different
time zones and the rotation of the earth, assuming he travels east to west
(which seems logical).  This works out to 822.6 visits per second.
This is to say that for each Christian household with good children, Santa
has 1/1000th of a second to park, hop out of the sleigh, jump down the
chimney, fill the stockings, distribute the remaining presents under the
tree, eat whatever snacks have been left, get back up the chimney, get back
into the sleigh and move on to the next house.  Assuming that each of these
91.8 million stops are evenly distributed around the earth (which, of course,
we know to be false but for the purposes of our calculations we will accept),
we are now talking about .78 miles per household, a total trip of 75-1/2
million miles, not counting stops to do what most of us must do at least once
every 31 hours, plus feeding and etc.

This means that Santa's sleigh is moving at 650 miles per second, 3,000
times the speed of sound.  For purposes of comparison, the fastest man- made
vehicle on earth, the Ulysses space probe, moves at a poky 27.4 miles per
second - a conventional reindeer can run, tops, 15 miles per hour.

4)  The payload on the sleigh adds another interesting element.  Assuming
that each child gets nothing more than a medium-sized lego set (2 pounds),
the sleigh is carrying 321,300 tons, not counting Santa, who is invariably
described as overweight.  On land, conventional reindeer can pull no more
than 300 pounds.  Even granting that "flying reindeer" (see point #1) could
pull TEN TIMES the normal amount, we cannot do the job with eight, or even
nine.  We need 214,200 reindeer.  This increases the payload - not even
counting the weight of the sleigh - to 353,430 tons.
Again, for comparison - this is four times the weight of the Queen Elizabeth.

5)  353,000 tons traveling at 650 miles per second creates enormous air
resistance - this will heat the reindeer up in the same fashion as
spacecraft re-entering the earth's atmosphere.  The lead pair of reindeer
will absorb 14.3 QUINTILLION joules of energy.  Per second.  Each.  In short,
they will burst into flame almost instantaneously, exposing the reindeer
behind them, and create deafening sonic booms in their wake.
The entire reindeer team will be vaporized within 4.26 thousandths of a
second.  Santa, meanwhile, will be subjected to centrifugal forces 17,500.06
times greater than gravity.  A 250-pound Santa (which seems ludicrously slim)
would be pinned to the back of his sleigh by 4,315,015 pounds of force.

In conclusion - If Santa ever DID deliver presents on Christmas Eve, he's
dead now.

    
    Christmas is the season of love.
      At no other time of the year, it seems, do genuine warmth
    and affection seem so natural. Freinds are remembered, family
    ties are bound more tightly, and the whole world is a brighter,
    cleaner place.
       Christmas feels good.
       Whether the day breaks cold and tingling or warm and
    sultry, there's that unmistakable something in the air every-
    where that says CHRISTMAS! And in tinsel-hung capital
    letters.
       It's a special time for everyone. Children greet the morning
    saucer-eyed at the tree and the gaily wrapped wonders beneath
    it. Grown-ups wake to find the most important things all about
    them in those they love.
      For Christmas is a family time...a time for being with
    the ones you love. A time for the happy ring of the telephone.
    A time for the joyful peal of the front doorbell. A time for
    reaching out across the months and the miles to share a happy
    event.
      "Home for Christmas" is more than a pat phrase. It means
    a bounding up the steps, a hearty hug, and a spell of breatless
    chattering. "Home for Christmas" can be the three most imp-
    ortant words of this season, for one is a very lonely number
    when the bells begin to peal on Christmas Eve and the lights
    begin to glow in the early winter evening.
       Christmas is so many things...so many good things. It's
    snow sifting down on a quiet town...the bright lights and
    decorations...the last-minute shopping...happy cards com-
    ing and coming and coming with every mail call.. the merry
    Christmas songs and the gentle sacred carols..the glorious
    kitchen smells filling an entire house...the misletoe and the
    laughter...the opening of the gifts..the being with each other.
      It's a time for going to church to hear again that old, old
    story of Bethlehem and the star and the Child born in the
    manger, so humbly. It's the time for prayers of gratitude for
    this day...this life.
     .
    

O Rex gentium, et desideratus earum, lapisque angularis, que facis utraque
unum: veni, et salva hominem, quem de limo forasti.

			O come, Desire of nations, bind
			In one the hearts of all mankind;
			Bid thou our sad divisions cease,
			And be thyself our King of Peace.

    
    When do we get to the chorus?

    
    
    FA LALALALA LA LA LA LA...
    
    
    (oh, not that one???)
    
    

    
    Bah, humbug.
    
      bb

>    
>    When do we get to the chorus?
>

Tomorrow.

/john

Was reminded when I arrived home yesterday evening... this will be 
a mixed-emotion Christmas.

When I was looking thru the mail, I found an Xmas card envelope
with unfamiliar handwriting.  Opened it and realized that the card
is from my brother-in-law and my three nieces.  I didn't recognize
the writing because my sister always signs and addresses the cards.
She died in March.

Strange writing, and four names rather than five.  Very, very odd.

Reminded me, too, how my family celebrated Xmas a week early last
year.  We found out around the 13th that Jan was going into the hospital
on the 20th to start the lymphoma autologous (self-donation) bone marrow 
program, so we scrambled to get a "holiday" together and find gifts 
that'd be allowed or useable in a super-clean isolation room.  (I
gave her a 4-day pass to Disney World -- favorite vacation spot.
Now my nieces bug me about which one of *them* gets to inherit it.
Of course I tell them that whoever treats me most like a deity will
be the lucky one!)

joanne

It must seem odd to non-Anglicans the way we Episcopalians celebrate
the four Sundays preceding Christmas.

When all the rest of the world turns all gooey with canned carols,
department store Santas, and aluminum foil Christmas trees, the
Episcopalians talk about the day of Judgment, the end of the world,
repentance, John the Baptist, and the Second Coming of Christ.

This of course, is as it should be -- for the celebration of Christmas
season starts only at sundown on the 24th of December and not one
second sooner.  However, once the Episcopalians finally _get_ to
Christmas, they do celebrate it for 12 whole days, until the eve of
the Epiphany (Twelfth Night).

But up until the setting of the sun on the 24th, the Episcopal Church
in her liturgy and life won't even manage a "Glory be to God on High"
much less a "ho, ho, ho!"

And this is a good thing, for the season of Advent is a time of
preparation, a time to make our souls ready for death, for judgment,
for everlasting glory at that eternal Christmas which is the Kingdom
of God.  So "God rest ye merry" Episcopalians, and cool it!  We have
this time of Advent to prepare ourselves for the Great feast.
Therefore, give thought to repentance while the rest of the world
rushes by with eggnog on its breath.  Give sober thought to preparing
the way of the Lord, to casting off the works of darkness and putting
on the armor of light, so with a pure heart and a life prepared we can
meet Christ our Lord at Christmas, at death, and at the Last Day.

					-- Father Gary Leeson
					   Rector, All Saints Parish
					   Los Angeles

	how inspiringly self-righteous

    >Soapbox will suffer a powerdown at 14:30 today, Thursday.
    >It should be back up by 18:00.  
    >If not, well, it might not be back up until after Christmas.
     
    
    I'm sorry, this cannot be...we won't get to the chorus if so, and I've
    been waiting patiently for _days_.

    I'm getting ready to go into a morning meeting, then lunch with Sarah
    and Santa, back to the office and meetings all afternoon.  Might not
    get back into the 'Box today.
    
    I want to wish each and every one of you a very enjoyable Christmas
    Celebration.  Everyone should rest, enjoy the time off with family and
    friends, and forget about Digital, Bill Clinton, Newt Grinchrich, the
    economy and all that other stuff.
    
    Try and remember the real reason for Christmas.  The celebration of the
    birth of the Messiah!
    
    Good bye, all!
    
    Ron

    Merry Christmas Boxers!
    
    Don't drink or eat more than you can handle, and I hope Santa brings
    you everything on your list.
    
    And why do I have the sneaking suspicion that my 9 month old will find
    the greatest joy in playing with the empty present boxes and wrapping
    paper?
    
    Have a good one.
    
    Dan

    It is probably good that Da Box will close early today so that I can go
    around and eat as many of the Christmas cookies that I can find.
    Cookies are even better than presents, doncha think?
    
    To all you loving boxers, hope everyone has a very very very merry merry
    merry Chri, ah holiday!    o<||:-{)>
    
    ...Tom (This will be the first year that Santa doesn't come to my
    house, I'm gonna miss him.)    

To:	[email protected]
CC:	
Subj:	New(?) Secret Craft being developed at Arctic Base?

There have been recent rumors surfacing regarding a new (or at least
recently discovered) clandestine airborne delivery system being developed
by unknown sources at a far north Arctic based secret development center.
It is believed that the secret base is heavily camouflaged since numerous
aerial reconnaissance and satellite intelligence gathering missions have all
returned with only "snow" on their monitors.  One mission did, at first,
seem to offer some photographic information however this was later ruled 
to be an artifact of the photographic processes used.  The anomaly appeared
as a single stripped vertical cylinder displaying red ands white stripping.
There was an indication of it perhaps having a "curved or hooked" upper 
surface.

This base seems to be involved with only a single program.  It does appear
that more than a single government may be involved in the staging of this
project.  This is based on the fact that although there have been numerous
supposed sightings of the craft and personnel involved in this program,
no government has yet undertaken any seriously funded action to discover
the basis for these "sightings".

The craft(s) in question appear occasionally on AC&W radar "screens" operated
by several northern countries but "sightings" have been reported at all 
locations on the globe at one time or another.  There have also been 
unconfirmed reports that Air Defense Pilots and other pilots flying the 
northern commercial air routes have visually spotted this craft and its
pilot.  A curious thing about these sightings is that they seem to peak
shortly after the winter solstice, last for about a week and then seem
to vanish for almost a year.   It is possible that geomagnetic anomalies
at this time of year may contribute to a partial failure of the "stealth"
systems this vehicle employs.

It is believed that the system involved is used as a heavy cargo hauler with
"stealthy" characteristics which allow the pilot to enter or exit virtually
any and all airspaces almost undetected.  Other characteristics of this craft
would seem to indicate extremely high speed operation with a globe circling
endurance capability.  It is unknown if mid-air refueling capability supports
this mission.  No evidence of ground based fueling, other than a few "cookie
crumbs and white liquid residue"  and an occasional apple or carrot stem
have been noted in the operations area of this craft and its pilot.

Another system seems to be either under co-development by the same contractor
or perhaps it is being developed by "extremely low factual sighting" personnel.
This group (nicknamed elfs) is often seen in conjunction with the above 
mentioned craft.

This related system seems to be related to "stealthy" ingress and egress of
a single individual into almost all facilities, including military housing,
operations centers, hospitals, and commercial shopping centers.  The only
indication that entry may have occurred is the very rare spotting of ashes
or soot in the area of direct combustion heating systems.  It is believed that
this system allows the person concealed by it to enter, most often under
cover of darkness, while being unseen by virtually any observer.  Numerous
attempts to detect these late night visitations, especially by observers
blessed with the especially sharp vision of younger children, have always
proved fruitless.  There seems to be no illegal intent with these entries,
especially since most often the intruder leaves various colorfully wrapped
objects behind while departing the area.

On the occasions when an individual has reportedly been sighted conducting
these missions, the sightings have been proven to be less than verifiable.
This seems to be due, in many instances, to an (over?) indulgence of
various ethanol based liquids on the part of the observers.  In the cases
where no such liquids have been consumed, the sightings are debunked solely
on the basis of an over-active imagination on the part of the observer.

So I would like to ask all potential observers to keep a sharp eye scanning
the northern skies, especially in the period of December 24,25 for any
sightings of this craft, it's pilot or support personnel (elfs) or
especially its propulsion unit(s).  (The reported propulsion units which
have been reputed to power this craft are so incredible as to not
even justify printing more detailed information other than there appear
to be eight (or on foggy nights), nine units (perhaps a visual anomaly
since this ninth unit seems to exhibit a reddish glow not shown by the
eight "normal" units).

If you should detect such a craft or it's pilot please file a report to
the office of Sub Normal Aircraft Flying Units (SNAFU) at Internet
[email protected]  It should be noted that this site is only active,
and hence sightings can only be reported, on the SECOND TUESDAY of NEXT WEEK!


Direct from the halls of Edinboro University  - (814) 732-2484
and directly from the terminal of,            - 142 Miller Bldg.
                                              - Edinboro Univ.
Joe Pyrdek   [email protected]          - Edinboro PA 16444

    I'll be spending Christmas in Melbourne. Starting with a flight
    at 0620 tomorrow (Saturday). I won't return until the 2nd of Jan
    10 whole days of work. sigh.
    
    It's to be party in the city for Christmas and then party/surfing at
    the beach house for the New Year. Then back to Sydney to work, humph.
    
    Waheeeeey.
    
    Only problem with the early morning flight tomorrow is it takes just
    over an hour to get to the airport (maybe longer at that time of 
    morning) and I am expected at a party tonight, that's after I finish
    work (late) and after I've washed and packed all my clothes (later).
    
    Sheesh, that makes me one busy camper, oh well... snigger.

IN OUR IMAGE
Meditation for Christmas, 1992

When He came the first time
They wanted a King
NOT
A helpless Baby
In a manger.
They had salvation--
The Pharisees and Sadducees
Were in charge of that, and they
Were quite sufficient.
But they wanted
Deliverance.
The hot and dusty mile
Trod unwillingly, the rendering
Back to Caesar of the hard-earned coin
That bore his image--
These they hated.  So they looked
For one who could, with signs and wonders
And a strong right arm,
Set up a kingdom earthly
Of which they would, naturally, be
The pinnacle.  The manger and the cross
They could not accept.  And so the Cornerstone
Became to them
A stumbling stone, rock
Of offense.

When we heard about the Baby
We said,
"What a lovely story!  What was wrong
With those stiff-necked Jews?"
And--for awhile--
We heard the angels sing
And made the arduous journey
With the Wise Men.
A daring few labored with Him
To the cross and found the glory
Of Resurrection.
But those who stayed behind said,
"There is no Resurrection"; and the cross
Became something smooth and shining
To be made from gold and hung
Around the neck.  The story of
The sinless Baby, born of a virgin
Dimmed to a dusty myth, an excuse
For annual celebration.

But....
We keep the concept, anyway.
Because now
We want a helpless Baby
NOT
A king.  (One needs
Some religion, of course.  And
As the dust has gathered on the Word
We can hope it wasn't true--
That He was flesh and dwelt among us--
And His hard sayings remain only
An uneasy memory.)

The Baby, though, is rather nice,
Sweet and dimpled, non-threatening.
We need nothing beyond the manger;
We have salvation, too:
Democracy, Multiculturalism, World Peace
(If we ignore the distant thunder
In Croatia, the fisticuffs in Russia);
Psychotherapy, Equal Rights for women,
Dogs, cats, fish, and 'specially spotted owls
And trees--rights for all
(If we ignore the silent scream of those unborn);
LIBERTY, EQUALITY, FRATERNITY
And we see not
That we are poor, blind, naked serfs
Clutching to ourselves the miserable rags
Of our psychological self-righteousness
While our Lord delays His coming.

Whether we like it or not
He will return and sweep away
Our refuge of lies.

      They wanted a King--
      They got a Baby;
      We want a Baby--
      Our knees shall bow before
      The King.

                      --Ardella M. Crawford (c) 1992

    Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrg

Have a joyous Christmas all.

Chele

Missa ad Praesepe.................George Malcolm
Hodie Christus natus est..........Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck
O beatum et sacrosanctum diem.....Peter Philips.

    .91
    
    Why Rudolph's nose glows has now been adequately explained.

O Emmanuel, Rex et legifer noster, exspectatio gentium, et Salvator earum:
veni ad salvandum nos Domine Deus noster.

			O come, O come, Emmanuel,
			And ransom captive Israel,
			That mourns in lonely exile here
			Until the Son of God appear.

			Rejoice!  Rejoice!
			Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!

    Dis, by you, is a chorus?
    
    MzDeb will prolly be mucho disappointiato...  
    
    And it's not nice to fool wif MzDeb.
    
    (Not having done so, I really wouldn't know)
    
    |-{:-)
    
    OBTW, Happy Holiday Wishes to you, 'BoxLand, and all the little 'Boxers!
    

Wake, awake, for night is flying        Sion hears the watchmen singing,
  The watchmen on the heights are         Her heart with deep delight is
        crying,                                 springing.
  Awake, Jerusalem, arise!                She wakes, she rises from her gloom:
Midnight's solemn hour is tolling,      Forth her Bridegroom comes, all glorious
His chariot wheels are nearer rolling,  In grace arrayed, by truth victorious;
  He comes; prepare, ye virgins wise      Her star is risen, her light is come!
Rise up, with willing feet              All hail, Incarnate Lord,
Go forth, the Bridegroom meet:          Our crown, and our reward!
        Alleluia!                               Alleluia!
  Bear through the night                  We haste along
  Your well-trimmed light,                In pomp of song.
Speed forth to join the marriage rite.  And gladsome join the marriage throng.

                        Lamb of God, the heavens adore thee,
                          And men and angels sing before thee
                          With harp and cymbal's clearest tone.
                        By the pearly gates in wonder
                        We stand, and swell the voice of thunder
                          That echoes round thy dazzling throne.
                        No vision ever brought,
                        No ear hath ever caught.
                                Such rejoicing:
                          We raise the song,
                          We swell the throng,
                        To praise thee, angels all along.

    Merry Christmas all!
    
    And, when you standing in front of the Christmas tree before you turn
    the lights of and go to bed, take a long hard look at it, then, check
    and see if anybody's looking, and
    
    
    	DO SOME WHIRLY TWIRLIES!

	I'm sure that most of you boxers won't read this until AFTER
	Christmas.  Hope everyone enjoys (enjoyed) a *very* happy
	holiday with their family and friends.

				*
			       ***
			      *****
			     *******
			       XXX

	M E R R Y   C H R I S T M A S   &   H A P P Y   N E W   Y E A R



	Chris 	 

    
    .113, .114
    
    Yes!  Yes!  The chorus!
    
    I feel so much better now...{sigh}

O come, O come, Emmanuel,               O come, thou Wisdom from on high,
And ransom captive Israel,		Who orderest all things mightily;
That mourns in lonely exile here,	To us the path of knowledge show,
Until the Son of God appear.		And teach us in her ways to go.

			Rejoice!  Rejoice!
			Emmanuel shall come to thee,
			O Israel.

O come, O come, thou Lord of might,	O come, thou Branch of Jesse's tree,
Who to thy tribes on Sinai's height	Free them from Satan's tyranny
In ancient times didst give the law,	That trust thy mighty power to save,
In cloud, and majesty, and awe.		And give them victory o'er the grave.

			Rejoice!  Rejoice!
			Emmanuel shall come to thee,
			O Israel.

O come, thou Key of David, come,	O come, thou Dayspring from on high,
And open wide our heavenly home;	And cheer us by thy drawing nigh;
Make safe the way that leads on high,	Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
And close the path to misery.		And death's dark shadow put to flight.

			Rejoice!  Rejoice!
			Emmanuel shall come to thee,
			O Israel.

O come, Desire of nations, bind		O come, O come, Emmanuel,
In one the hearts of all mankind;	And ransom captive Israel,
Bid thou our sad divisions cease,	That mourns in lonely exile here
And be thyself our King of Peace.	Until the Son of God appear.

			Rejoice!  Rejoice!
			Emmanuel shall come to thee,
			O Israel.

                         Well, that was good fer me!

Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht!		Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht!
Alles schl�ft, einsam wacht		Wo sich heut' alle Macht
Nur das traute, heilige Paar.		V�terlicher Liebe ergo�
Holder Knab im lockigen Haar:		Und als Bruder huldvol umschlo�
  Schlafe in himmlischer Ruh!		  Jesus die V�lker der Welt!

Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht!		Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht!
Gottes Sohn, o wie lacht		Lange schon uns bedacht,
Lieb' aus deinem g�ttlichen Mund,	Als der Herr vom Grimme befreit
Da uns schl�gt die rettende Stund':	In der V�ter urgrauen Zeit
  Jesus in deiner Geburt!		  Aller Welt Schonung verhie�.

Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht!		Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht!
Die der Welt Heil gebracht;		Hirten erst kundgemacht
Aus des Himmels goldenen H�h'n		Durch der Engel Alleluja,
Uns der Gnaden F�lle l��t seh'n:	T�nt es laut von ferne und nah:
  Jesum in Menschengestalt.		  Jesus der Retter ist da!

    got me a brand new 9 in. bowie huntin' knife from santa. could shave
    with this hummer.

    
    um, gene...be careful what you call a 'hummer'...
    
    

                      This troubles hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmme.

         
    >>um, gene...be careful what you call a 'hummer'...
    
    yes'um.
    

    A hummer?  I'll leave that one right where it is.
    
    The husband and I exchanged toys this year.  For him:  a cellular bag
    phone for the jeep.  For me:  a portable CD player with adapter for
    sound output via the cassette deck in my car.  Now we need more
    cigarette lighters in the cars!  (Also got 3 CD's -- Clapton's
    "From the Cradle", Bowie's "The Singles, 1969-1993", and Allman
    Brothers "An Evening with the Allman Brothers")
    
    I loves toys.
    
    joanne

    Joanne, I just bought a multiple outlet cigarette light adaptor for my
    car.  It allows me to use the CD and Radar detector at the same time. 
    There are units with up to three outlets available.  You may find that
    the portable CD for the car is more a pain than anything else.  I have
    but it sound better than the tapes and I get to listen to my fave
    tunes.  SOunds like my kind of Christmas though.  Kids of all ages
    should get toys under the tree :-).

    Yes!  A cigarette lighter adapter!  That's what makes this country
    great.
    
    Now if I can just avoid a car accident....  I can picture my
    clumsy self getting tangled in all those freakin' wires whilst
    driving, something like John Candy and his winter coat in "Planes,
    Trains, and Automobiles."
    

    Safety tips for ya Joanne.  Uncoil the wires only far enough to allow
    for being plugged into the cig. lighter outlet and for the tape adaptor
    to get into the deck.  This keeps the spaghetti to a minimum.  Get a CD
    wallet (about $9.95 or so) so you can look at all the discs at once 
    without having to shuffle through the jewel cases and chase the errant 
    ones around the cockpit.  Takes up far less space as well.  This should 
    help keep the area semi-clutter free and minimize the time your attention 
    is diverted from your driving tasks.  Learning to steer with your knees 
    helps as well ;-).  
    
    Brian

    Thanks, Brian.  I'm actually the queen of coiling wires, and clutter
    is right out!  I hadn't thought of the CD wallet, though, good idea.
    
    I was fiddling (well, OK, not actually *fiddling*) with the remote
    control today and finally read the "caution" label on the back of it:
    
    		"Do not leave it in the place where may be have a
    		 high temperature, such as the closed car.  This 
    		 may cause leakage of battery liquid and deformation
    		 of enclosure."
    
    Somehow I believe the Japanese text, directly above it, reads a
    lot more smoothly.  Looks like Kenwood may have an opening for a
    translation specialist.
    
    j.
    

 I've had a few chuckles with the translation in the manual for my CD and
 receiver..funny stuff..




 Jim

    
    
    Ahhhhhhhhhh, Christmas of 1994.....
    
    Gives me warm fuzzies just thinking about it. :*)  It lasted
    four days, and was absolutely wonderful!!!!!  The look on the
    kids faces...the look on Alan's face....all the relatives loving
    their gifts from us....all the wonderful time spent with family...
    long distance phone calls to my brother in Florida....the food...
    the home made N.Y. style cheese cake!!!!....the applesauce I made
    with my new Foley Food Mill (What a cool invention that is!!)....
    and of course, all the lovely gifts that people bought for me. :*)
    My favorite gift of all, I'd have to say, was the gift certificate 
    for a one hour massage at Silva's gym. :*)  I am gonna *LOVE* going
    in to 'spend' that one!!  hehehe :*)
    
    This year, with so much time on my hands, I wrote down the names of
    everyone I would be buying gifts for on a seperate piece of paper,
    then started writing under the name, the things about their lives
    and personalities that stuck out in my memory.  Also little comments
    they had made over the past year, or things that had occured that
    involved them.  Then I started writing down gift ideas that matched
    the people.  It was alot of fun, and quite a challange, but I managed
    to come up with the so-called 'perfect gift' for everyone, and my 
    family was totally amazed that I had been so observant of such little
    things.  It made me really happy to see them so happy.
    
    
    Terrie
    

    
    Terrie
    
    Good to see you back in the box again!! Glad your holidays were happy.
    
    Mark

    got everything I wanted and a little more!  The only TTH was the ever
    present MIL...but there shall always be a need for a little salt on the
    earth, eh?