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Having the right kind of information about colleges will help your gifted child make the best decision about where to go and what to study. Use the following suggestions to guide your research:

-Start with information in the school guidance office and library. Become familiar with college guides, multimedia resources, and the videotapes many colleges/universities send to guidance departments.

-Obtain literature from your top 15 to 20 choices and read it carefully. Organize important information, such as the colleges' goals, recruitment procedures, support for incoming students, location, size, cost, academic life, course offerings, honors programs, faculty, post graduate opportunities, grading policies, selection of applicants, and availability of financial aid. Narrow your list to 5 to 10 colleges.

-Visit campuses and talk to admission personnel, faculty, and students about academic and campus life. Many have Open House activities. Write letters. Ask them about services and accommodations for students who came through gifted programs in high school.

-Talk to students from your high school that attend or have attended the schools in which you are interested.

-Attend university/college fairs in your city. They are often on weekends and can provide an opportunity to talk to representatives of many colleges you may be considering attending.

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On December 22^nd, people in the Northern Hemisphere celebrate the winter solstice – shortest day of the year. Each day following gets a few minutes more sunlight and the sun starts moving northward again on the horizon. Knowing a little more about it will hopefully make everybody appreciate it a little more and also be more in awe of the mysterious and powerfully sacred forces of the universe.

The Earth is actually nearer the sun in January than it is in June -- by three million miles. Pretty much irrelevant to our planet. What causes the seasons is something completely different. The Earth leans slightly on its axis like a spinning top frozen in one off-kilter position. Astronomers have even pinpointed the precise angle of the tilt. It's 23 degrees and 27 minutes off the perpendicular to the plane of orbit. This planetary pose is what causes all the variety of our climate; all the drama and poetry of our seasons, since it determines how many hours and minutes each hemisphere receives precious sunlight.

Winter solstice is when because of the earth's tilt, your hemisphere is leaning farthest away from the sun, and therefore: The daylight is the shortest. The sun has its lowest arc in the sky.

When it's winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, the sun is directly overhead at noon only along the Tropic of Capricorn, on which lie such places as Sao Paulo, Brazil, southern Madagascar, and areas north of Brisbane, Australia.

No one's really sure how long ago humans recognized the winter solstice and began heralding it as a turning point -- the day that marks the return of the sun. One delightful little book written in 1948, 4,000 Years of Christmas, puts its theory right up in the title. The Mesopotamians were first, it claims, with a 12-day festival of renewal, designed to help the god Marduk tame the monsters of chaos for one more year.

Many, many cultures the world over perform solstice ceremonies. At their root: is an ancient fear that the failing light would never return unless humans intervened with anxious vigil or antic celebration.

Not bad considering the sun is 93 million miles away and is so hot that a piece of it the size of a pinhead would burn you to a crisp at 90 miles distance.

To appreciate this phenomenon, watch the sunset each day and mark its departure point using a familiar marker such as a house or tree. Notice the changing point. Throughout the months into summer, you will see the dramatic difference in where it sets on the far left to directly across and then far right. In the middle of June the summer solstice (longest day of the year) then reverses the whole process.

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Aventis Biotech Challenge (science fairs related)

Go skating at Cedarena (natural outdoor rink surrounded by Cedar trees)

Oak Ridges Trail Association (go winter hiking)

Omega Centre Bookstore (considered Canada’s largest centre for self-discovery, spiritual & emotional growth)

Ontario Curling Association (join?)

Ontario Genealogical Society (do your family tree with help from experts)

Posada Navidena (Mexican festival at Harbourfront)

Red Cross Summer Experience (contact them about volunteering)

Royal Astronomical Society (visit over the holidays)

ROM Friday nights FREE.

Salvador Dali Museum (check it out on the internet or visit while in Florida)

SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Tests) (arrange to write?)

Second City Comedy Club (tickets as interesting different present?)

Society for Educational Visits & Exchanges in Canada

Spanish Centre (go for cultural events)

Speed Reading Centre (check it out, learn how to read faster with more comprehension)

Student Athlete Prospect Pool (good athletes should register)

Studio Audience Participation (go over the holidays)

Toronto Kite Fliers Club (get ready for the winds of Spring)

Toronto Swing Dance Society (winter exercise?)

Valens Conservation Area –Winter Camping spot

Willowdale Gem & Mineral Club (lots of rock)

York Academy of Martial Arts (winter exercise)

Young Peoples Press (write articles for the Toronto Star)

Youth Bowling (get winter active)

Zwiazkowiec Polish Weekly Newspaper (read or maybe try to write for them)

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December 8 – Full moon out tonight

December 17 – US national Wright Brothers Day

December 20-27 – Jewish Hanukkah

December 22 – First day of Winter - Winter Solstice (see article below)

December 25 – Christian Christmas Day

December 26 – Boxing Day

December 26 -Jan 1- Kwanzaa

December 31 – New Year’s Eve

Here are some other interesting days that we don’t celebrate but maybe should:

December 7 – Chester Greenwood Day. Mr. Greenwood invented the earmuffs.

December 12 – Poinsettia Day to honor Dr. Joel Roberts Poinsettia, a U.S. diplomat, who introduced North America to this Central American plant.

December 21 – Humbug Day. Get rid of the frustrations of preparing for Christmas. Only 12 allowed.

December 29 – Still Need to Do Day. Do them NOW!!!

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by Melinda Bell. Based on a classic poem by Clement C. Moore. Excerpt from "The Night Before Hannukah: Holiday Crafts & Activity Center on CD-ROM"

T’was the first night of Hannukah and all through the house

Pleasure was spreading, as quick as a mouse.

The children played dreidle and ate with such glee,

Oh latkes, and donuts, a pleasure to see!

So all who came by could see it from there.

We sang lots of songs, and told lots of stories,

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter

I sprang from my chair to see what was the matter.

Away to the window I flew like a flash,

Tore open the shutter and threw up the sash.

When what to my wondering eye should appear,

As he walked from the hill, he was so proud to say

The Greeks were defeated and so it was sure

The Israelites could stay in their homeland so pure.

He wanted to go to the temple to pray,

But I needed to warn of a hitch on the way.

The temple was ruined by some in the war,

It was dark, and I worried we'd be lost for sure.

As we travelled to Jerusalem on some mighty trail,

Judah assured me that we would not fail.

The night was dark, as I feared it would be,

But far, far above us, we saw a bright light

Coming from the window of the temple that night.

Those that had gathered there were quick to say

There was just enough oil to last only one day.

They worried as news of the victory spread,

Others would be lost, or left asleep in their bed.

Those that came after would not get to see

The lamp which told of our victory.

The faithful were sure that all would be right

As the eight nights befell us, it soon became clear

The lamp would stay lit -- darkness was nothing to fear.

So now to this day, each year we celebrate

The Festival of Lights for eight nights on this date.

And so as you enjoy the great gift of light,

Happy Hannukah to all, and to all a good night.

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Here are some simple ways to keep a healthy mouth and smile:
1.) Visit your dentist regularly for cleaning and preventive check-ups. Along with cleaning this may include a fluoride treatment.
2.) Floss your teeth thoroughly and daily.
3.) Keep a well balanced diet and avoid excessive snacking on sweets, starchy foods, and candy.
4.) Watch out for bleeding gums or persistent bad breath. These are signs of gum disease and you will need help from your dentist to correct the problem.
5.) Brush your teeth thoroughly (2-3 minutes) at least twice a day.
6.) Enjoy your healthy smile.

Crooked teeth affect the way a person’s smile looks, how a person chews and talks. Crooked teeth are also harder to keep clean. One method to correct crooked teeth is to have braces (orthodontic treatment). Braces work by exerting a gentle pressure over time to straighten teeth that are out of place. Retainers are used after the teeth are in the ideal position to keep the straightened position of the teeth once the braces have been removed.

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This Christmas get the special pet owner something unusual that will last a lifetime. How about pet-made music on CD’s?

Here are some of the recordings that animals have made:

Fine Animal Gorilla – a nine song CD based on the life of Koko at the Gorilla Foundation near San Francisco. Koko uses American Sign Language and knows about 1,000 words. Three songs are named after Koko’s own expressions.

Common Ground – sounds of timber wolves and other endangered species are mixed with world music arrangements.

Jingle Dogs and Jingle Cats – barks and meows of different frequency are mixed so that Christmas tunes come out.

"I’m a Green Chicken!" as squawked by a parrot into a microphone, gave Peter Gabriel inspiration for writing a CD single about it.

Ugly Dogs Need More Love – songs about dogs.

Cat-a-Tonic – songs about cats.

Bird Beat – songs about birds.

Ocean Motion – songs about sea life.

Horse Whispers – horsey songs.

The people that produced the last four CD’s want to make their next one about ferrets!

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This job is not just one of a car mechanic. It can go beyond the basics into the realm of the exotic and super fast vehicles. It involves improving efficiency and power in cars that are used off road, fine tuning for racing, building power in muscle cars, building boats, cars, other modes of transportation that require an edge over the average vehicle on the road.

The primary focus of a program in this area is in the teaching of the principles of Power Sports vehicles involving diagnosis, service, and repair. Students entering this program should have good mechanical aptitude, communication skills, and the ability to comprehend service literature. Graduates of the program are able to fill positions as dealership technicians, with many having opportunities to move into management, self-employment, or factory representative.

• The Power Sports Industry is one of the fasted growing fields in the service industry.
• With the impact of electronic engine management, coupled with the new clean air amendments effective 2007, the need for competent educated technicians in this field is higher than ever.
• Job prospects are expected to experience continued growth.

Education: BS or MS (preferred) degree in Computer Science, Ecology, Biology, Geography, or related discipline

Job Description: The successful applicant will participate as a member of a university Data Center's Carbon Science Team in a funded multi-agency project, with primary duties on the refinement of a biogeochemical modeling system for Costa Rica. She/he will contribute to a variety of carbon research and modeling activities, including modeling carbon dynamics in Costa Rica for the past 100 years, participating in calibration and validation, and exploring inverse modeling approaches for a better integration of model and data. The successful applicant is expected to combine information from two GIS databases to develop a wall-to-wall soil coverage for Costa Rica.

Required Skills: Candidates should have applied experience in computer programming using C/C++ and Fortran on Unix/Linux platforms. The candidate should have been trained with or are willing to learn the details on carbon cycling in terrestrial ecosystems. The position requires an individual who is team-oriented, self-motivated, well organized with a good work ethic and communication skills.

Desired Skills: Desired experience includes use of GIS in solution of environmental problems. Familiar with ecosystem modeling would be a plus.

Kevin Gurney: Expert on the Effects of the Carbon Cycle on the Atmosphere

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(various sources – O.S.)

At Christmas time, there is often a lot of pressure to be happy. For some people, however, it is a disappointing and difficult time when they are reminded of how their lives may not be the happiest. Expectations and hope for family closeness can become unrealistic. In the time of joy and celebration there may be reminders of loss and aloneness. There are subtle pressures to be jovial and friendly despite private problems.

Here are a few positive suggestions and strategies to help various people through the holidays and hopefully improve the ability to survive them:

• If you are single and don’t have any single friends, make a New Year’s resolution to get to know some new people.
• Find out what churches in the community are doing to provide comfort for those grieving or in other need i.e. candle light ceremonies in memory of loved ones.
• If visiting relatives is a pain, set a definite time limit for the visit.
• Be willing to visit people by yourself. If they are important to you, visit and enjoy their company. You don’t need somebody else along that might not like them and spoil the get-together.
• Avoid alcohol. It may help numb some pain but it only makes matters worse.
• Limit the number of parties you attend. Choose the important ones.
• Lower your expectations when it comes to problematic visits with family/relatives. Nobody is perfect.
• If things get tense with the adults and conversations get nasty, gossipy, too personal or just get you down, go play with children who know how to have fun.
• Decide on a goal for the day. Focus on developing an atmosphere of love, tolerance and respect. No bickering, no moody attitudes, silent treatments, no baiting, no verbal biting, no downers.
• A mark on your hand can be a reminder to stop and do some deep breathing. It can help you feel better, lets you detach and get your thoughts together, and improve your state of mind.
• Take a good friend along to make you laugh when you need it.
• Go with the flow even if traditions or beliefs are different from yours.
• If relatives are visiting, make sure everybody knows where they are going to sleep. Give them personal space and off time. Get up before your guests so that they don’t have to go on a food hunt.
• If you are a guest, help cook and clean. Don’t smoke in the house! Dress nicely.
• Play board games or cards if you think there will be tense or upsetting conversations after dinner.
• Avoid talking about your troubles and woes in life. This is not the time.
• If staying anywhere for the holidays, try to stay no more than 2 nights in another person’s home. Set the length of the visit ahead of time.

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- The first instrument on which the carol "Silent Night" was played is a guitar. The carol was first sung as part of a church service in Oberndorf, Austria.

- Electric Christmas tree lights were first used in 1895. The idea for using electric Christmas lights came from an American, Ralph E. Morris. The new lights proved safer than the traditional candles.

-Good King Wenceslas was king of Bohemia. The historical Wenceslas was actually only the Duke of Bohemia, not a king. He lived in the tenth century.

-The poinsettia, a traditional Christmas flower, originally grew in Mexico. In Mexico, the poinsettia is known as the 'Flower of the Holy Night'. It was first brought to America by Joel Poinsett in 1829.

-The real St. Nicholas lived in Turkey. St. Nicholas was bishop of the Turkish town of Myra in the early 4th century. It was the Dutch who first made him into a Christmas gift-giver, and Dutch settlers brought him to America where his name eventually became the familiar Santa Claus.

- A popular Christmas song was originally written for Thanksgiving. It is Jingle Bells. The song was composed in 1857 by James Pierpont, and was first called One Horse Open Sleigh.

-The first commercial Christmas card (1800’s) had a hostile reception from some people because it depicted a family, children as well as adults, drinking wine. The card was the brainchild of Sir Henry Cole, a leading cultural light in Victorian England who was later to become director of the Victoria and Albert Museum, among many other accomplishments. The card was painted by John Calcott Horsley. It depicted a family feast, under which appear the words, "A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You". Side panels illustrated Christmas charity - feeding and clothing the poor.

-The tradition of erecting a tree at Christmas is believed to have started in Germany. Christmas trees are known to have been popular in Germany as far back as the sixteenth century. In England, they became popular after Queen Victoria's husband Albert, who came from Germany, made a tree part of the celebrations at Windsor Castle. In the United States, the earliest known mention of a Christmas tree is in the diary of a German who settled in Pennsylvania.

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(based on articles by Shea Dean and John Rosengren, in Readers’ Digest)

The stress level goes way up around Christmas time. People wrack their brains for gift ideas and then have to also worry about everything from baking to shopping, travel arrangements, wrapping and more. There should, however, be effort made to enjoy the time. After all, it is a world-wide birthday party, isn’t it?

Here are some ways to personally savour the season a little more:

• instead of Christmas emails (bad manners), send out real cards. Write some personal message in each one to let others know you are thinking of them. You could also photocopy a letter telling people about your life over the year.
• If you have many gifts to give, find something that you can buy a lot of and give everybody the same thing, for example, wallet, book, gourmet food, a craft or something unique to your area of the world.
• Instead of telling people what you want and knowing what you are going to get, use a whisper campaign and put a relative to work telling others what you would like.
• Shop throughout the year, wrap the presents and store them away so that they will be surprises for everybody – even you. No rush at the last minute. (yah, I know. Nobody does it – except you, maybe?)
• To save last minute frustrations, keep a list going all year of things people admire, desire or wish for. This comes out in conversations many times throughout the year. Refer to it when purchasing their presents.
• If you have a particular talent/skill/expertise, use it to make special and unique gifts for all those you give to.
• Find out about the good manners everybody should have during the big meals around Christmas and practice them.
• If travelling, show your Christmas cheer by making it pleasant for airline and other transportation staff. Ask for people’s help instead of demanding service. Be courteous.
• Cell phone abuse is etiquette problem #1. Turn yours off at a party and give yourself and everybody else a break. Enjoy yourself without interruption. You are probably not that important anyway to be on call 24/7. If you MUST answer a call, excuse yourself and find a quiet place to talk.
• Send "thank you" notes and mention specifics about the gifts. Leave a positive feeling in the hearts of all the people concerned.
• Try to avoid TV which is a conversation killer and do things together that possibly haven’t been done for a long time i.e. games, playing musical instruments and singing, charades, walks, cook meals together, play an outdoor family game, etc.

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(various sources – O.S.)

Some people have tired of the bedlam around Christmas. The original idea of gift giving relates to the efforts of St. Nicholas and the gift giving of the three wise men who went to see Jesus in Bethlehem. Gift giving today has moved a great distance from that concept. Has the commercialism and materialism got to you yet?

There are some ways to put the true meaning of Christmas back into life. Here are some gifts that, on the whole, can’t be bought in stores:

• think of what people don’t like as well as what they do like. If they don’t like cooking, consider giving them frozen home made meals.
• If you are good at arts & crafts, or skilled at woodwork or metalwork, make something nice for everybody. There are lots of books of ideas in bookstores and on the internet.
• Give history. Frame: a family tree, a collage of photos, a blow-up of an old photo, souvenir items from a trip, baby items, translated letters of another culture, have a giant poster made for somebody, a personalized calendar including events in the person’s life.
• Put together a calendar or newsletter about family and relatives. List their birth dates, anniversaries, what they do and where they live.
• Share a family trip together and everybody chips in to pay for it.

• Take a clay modelling/pottery course and make something for all on your gift list.

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(based on an article in the London England Sunday Times)

There is talk in government circles about plans to have all cars in Britain fitted with microchips that are personalized to the car. If you break any rules, you can be prosecuted, fined or merely reported instantly by the built-in computer. No more radar on the side of the road, speed traps on the highways, or illegal parking and getting away with it.

The microchip can monitor many things: speeding, road-tax evasion, illegal parking. You will know you did something wrong when you get a summons or fine in the mail. Roadside sensors would be used to communicate with the onboard microchip.

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(from an article by Justin Skinner in North York Mirror)

From December 26 to January 1, African-Canadian communities celebrate Kwanzaa. It is a yearly holiday to celebrate African culture and to renew the spirits of people.

There are 7 principles that people dedicate themselves to:

• unity
• self-determination
• collective work/responsibility
• co-operative economics
• purpose
• creativity
• faith

The holiday was started by Dr. Maulana Ron Karenga in 1966. He visited Africa and wanted to bring the pride in culture back to North America.

Kwanzaa means "first fruits" and relates to African harvest ceremonies. There is lighting of 7 candles that represent the 7 principles. Reflection on the principles then translates into living better lives.

Kwanzaa has gained in popularity over the years and is celebrated all over North America. Happy Kwanzaa!

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Most tough decisions are simple. It’s just tough living them out.

We too often do wrong simply because it’s too challenging, threatening, or uncomfortable to bother to do right.

There is a big difference between cooperation out of respect and submission out of fear of rejection.

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(Editor: Don't blame me. I'm just passing this along)
While sitting on a chair, make clockwise circles with your right foot.
While doing this, draw the number "6" in the air with your right hand.
What direction is your foot going now?

The old abandoned dock sank because it succumbed to pier pressure.

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