Holidays.MyNC.com

This post was submitted by mmarsden@nc.rr.com.

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO (AP)–The people who monitor air and space threats against the U.S. and Canada will be on special alert later today, looking for the target they only get to track once a year.

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This post was submitted by Dannette Sharpley.

This post was submitted by Hunter Lee Long.

The holidays are here and folks are in the spirit of giving.

That’s exactly why consumer security experts say you have to be on guard more than ever from the grinches looking to rip you off.

“People want to help people, but you also have the scammers out there who want to take their part,” says Better Business Bureau spokesman Carol Venello.

The most likely scams to target you this year include charitable phishing scams out to get your credit card and personal information on line.

Watch out for email requests from what appear to be legitimate charities.

“It doesn’t necessarily have to be money.  You can donate your time, you can donate gifts.  If you have a charity that’s calling you and they’re being very pushy, do not succumb to that because you need to call and check to make sure they’re legit,” Venello warns.

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Much like Christmas trees, lights and wreaths, the study of the science behind Santa has become an annual Holiday tradition.

This year, North Carolina State University Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering professors have taken on the daunting task of explaining just how it is that Santa Claus can visit the home of every child in the world on just one night.

“Santa is using technologies that we are not yet able to recreate in our own labs,” N.C State professor Dr. Larry Silverberg explained.

To read Silverberg’s full study, head over to the N.C. State Web site.

By CLOE CABRERA
MEDIA GENERAL NEWS SERVICE

The festive holiday sweaters; you’ve seen them. Heck, you probably own one.

Those fleecy pullovers and knit creations sequined with Santas and sparkling with snowflakes are as much a part of the holidays as cookies and eggnog.

While merry-wear is enjoying a resurgence in popularity, in a backhanded sort of way, for others they’re a lifelong love affair.

Phyllis Barringer of Tampa has been collecting Christmas sweaters since she was an elementary school teacher in the 1960s.

“Around the holidays, I pull them out and it really gets me into the spirit,” she says. “It’s fun because people always make comments about them,”

Now a guidance counselor, Barringer wears her sweaters at both work and play. Her all-time favorite is a black button-down featuring Santa Claus and liberally sprinkled with snowmen and stars.

Christmas sweaters have become hot sellers on eBay in recent weeks.

Karen Bard, pop culture expert for the online marketplace says as of Dec. 5, there were more than 48,000 “ugly” Christmas sweater listings, with bidding wars breaking out over the tackiest. Read the rest of this entry »

For Rent

Businesses seeking entertainment for children this holiday season have been hoofing it to rent live reindeer as their Christmas party animals.

“Revenue is about the same as last year, but that was up 30 percent from the year before. So doing the same this year is excellent,” said Kyle Wilson, owner of Rocky Hill Reindeer in Knoxville.

About 10 years ago, the Christmas spirit hit Wilson to the point he decided to make a career change.

“I wanted to do something different. I was fencing in my yard to keep the native deer out, and I got this reindeer idea,” said Wilson. “I talked to my wife about it and said, ‘This is crazy enough, it might just work.’”

Wilson researched the animals thoroughly and after some training, bought three reindeer. After years of work, the herd grew to 16 reindeer, as Wilson helped lead the Reindeer Owners and Breeders Association. Read the rest of this entry »

Safe Kids N.C. is reminding residents to practice toy safety this holiday season. According to Safe Kids N.C., emergency rooms see about 217,000 toy-related injuries each year.

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By David Bare
MEDIA GENERAL NEWS SERVICE
KING, N.C. – Walk into Judy and Jim Mitchell’s greenhouse on a cold day and the color fairly smacks you in the face.

The bands of red, cream and green color mix with splashes of deep merlot, neon orange and splotches of snowflake white.

The 9,000 poinsettias stand in sharp contrast to the leathery tans and rusty browns of the leaves still clinging to the oaks and beeches outside.

Most of us think “red” when we think of poinsettias, the official flower of the holiday season and the most popular potted plant in the country. But red is just the beginning. Breeders are developing and introducing new varieties all the time. Some of the differences in varieties are so subtle that they are lost on all but the growers. Others are so radically different that they barely resemble poinsettias. Read the rest of this entry »