Blue Ridge Country January/February 2022 - 71

Weather Aphorisms
An early winter, a surly winter.
If the ice will bear a goose before
Christmas, it will not bear a duck
after.
Who doffs his coat on a winter day,
will gladly put it on in May.
A winter fog will freeze a dog.
Regional Notes
Stand among the giants at
Farnham's Fantasy Farm in Unger,
WV, where you'll find a collection of
fiberglass colossi (that's big things
made out of fiberglass) including
Santa Claus, a shark, surfer dude,
and the Simpsons. This is private
property, but visitors are welcome.
39.419380, -78.26008318
The Gatlinburg Christmas Parade is an annual spectacular in downtown Gatlinburg.
EVENTS
Early Dec, Mountain Memories Christmas Show, Elkins, WV,
gandydancertheatre.com
Early Dec, The Polar Express, Bryson City, NC, gsmr.com
Early Dec, Gatlinburg Christmas Parade, Downtown Gatlinburg,
TN, gatlinburg.com
Early Dec, Victorian Christmas at Hardman Farm, Sautee, GA, explore.
gastateparks.org
First 3 Fridays, Dickens of a Christmas, Downtown Roanoke, VA,
downtownroanoke.org
Mid-Dec, Holiday at Peace, Greenville, SC, visitgreenvillesc.com
Thru Jan 1, Christmas in the Park, Prestonsburg, KY, prestonsburgky.org
DEC MONTH AT A GLANCE
Day of
Mo
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
Day of
Year
Day of
Week
335 Th
336
337
338
F
Sa
Su

Age
8
9
10
11
339 M 12
340 Tu
13
341 W 14
342 Th
343
344
345
F
Sa
Su
20
15
16
17
18
346 M 19
347 Tu
348 W 21
349 Th
350
F
351
352
Sa
Su
24
25
353 M 26
354 Tu
27
355 W 28
356 Th
357
358
359
F
Sa
Su
29
1
2
360 M 3
361 Tu
4
362 W 5
363 Th
364
365
F
Sa
6
7
8
Woodrow Wilson born, 1856
Andrew Johnson born, 1808
Minus 37 degrees F, Lewisburg, WV, 1917
Minus 32 degrees F, Mountain City, TN, 1917
New Year's Eve
Winter begins
Winter Solstice
Federal Reserve Act passed, 1913
Christmas Eve
Christmas Day
First day of Kwanzaa
sunrise sunset
Dec. 4 - sun rises 7:18; sun sets 17:02; length of day 9h 43m
Dec. 11 - sun rises 7:24; sun sets 17:02; length of day 9h 38m
Dec. 18 - sun rises 7:28; sun sets 17:04; length of day 9h 35m
Dec. 25 - sun rises 7:32; sun sets 17:08; length of day 9h 36m
22
23
SIGNIFICA
Rosa Parks keeps her seat, 1955
First permanent artificial heart implant, 1982
First successful heart transplant, 1967
Walt Disney born, 1901
13th Amendment ratified, 1865
Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day
Beatle John Lennon assassinated, 1980
Poet Emily Dickinson born, 1830
Germany declares war on US, 1941
First radio transmission sent across Atlantic
Ocean, 1901
George Washington dies, 1799
Bill of Rights enacted, 1791
" Gone with the Wind " world premiere, 1939
Boston Tea Party, 1773
Wright Brothers first flight, 1903
" Poor Richard's Almanac " published, 1732
skywatch
 New moon - 23rd
) First quarter - 29th
 Full moon - 7th
( Last quarter - 16th
December's full moon is the Cold Moon.
Factoids
The ski resorts in the Appalachian
Mountains have 422 ski lifts which serve
more than 100 snow slopes, for skiing,
snowmobiling and other winter sports.
The shortest complete sentence in the English
language has two letters- " Go. "
If 1/10 of all discarded American newspapers were
recycled annually, approximately 25 million trees would
be saved.
Recipe or kitchen hint
GINGERBREAD SMOOTHIE
You will need:
3 cups milk
1 frozen banana
1 TBS sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cloves
Directions:
Place all of the ingredients in a
blender and whirl together until
smooth. Divide between two glasses,
sprinkle each with grated
nutmeg and serve.
Gardening Hints
Beware of the following
plants if you have animals or
children in your house.
Holly-The red berries of a holly
plant can make children, dogs and
cats sick if they eat them. If they eat
20 or more, they can be toxic.
Mistletoe-The white berries are very
toxic in even small amounts.
Poinsettia-Contrary to popular
belief, these plants are not
poisonous, although the milky sap
will irritate any soft tissues such as
those found in the mouth or eyes.
Old Saws
WHICH IS IT?
Either the best things in life are free,
or there's no such thing as a free
lunch.
Either you're never too old to learn,
or you can't teach an old dog new
tricks.
Either birds of a feather flock
together, or opposites attract.
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2022 71
DECEMBER
DEC
ADOBE STOCK
http://www.gandydancertheatre.com http://www.gsmr.com http://www.gatlinburg.com http://www.gastateparks.org http://www.downtownroanoke.org http://www.visitgreenvillesc.com http://www.prestonsburgky.org
Blue Ridge Country January/February 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Blue Ridge Country January/February 2022
