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ServingServing TTodd Countyodd County, MN, MN
VOLUME 23; NUMBER 2 - FRIDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2013 CIRCULATION 6,000
Country Courier FREE
Many people associate sun dogs with an upcoming cold weather pattern. This photo was taken on Thursday, December 5th. The first day of a week’s worth
f zub zero temperatures. Maybe there is some truth to the belief that sun dogs mean the weather is going to take a downward turn. The scientific explanation
f a sun dog is: The familiar 22° halo around the Sun or Moon occurs because of refraction in tiny hexagonal ice crystals in the air. With the 60° apex angle of
he prism formed by extending the sides of the crystal and the index of refraction of ice (n=1.31) one can calculate the angle of minium deviation to be 21.84°.
Do Sun Dogs really indicate cold weather ahead?
nteresting
Christmas FactsThere are many interesting
acts surrounding the Yuletide
eason. Some of these are cen-
red around the myths and old
wives' tales that inspired many
f the customs we see today
while others depict actual events
hat occurred during the period.
few of these are presented
elow for your reading enjoy-
ment.
• Ever wondered where thedea of elves came from? They
re actually modern day versions
f “Nature folk” described in
agan religions of the past.
• The Holy Days and Fasting
ct of 1551 in Britain declares
hat all its country's citizens
must attend the annual church
ervices held on Christmas day.
n fact it goes as far as stating
hat no vehicle should be used to
ravel to church on this day. The
aw still exists on the books,
lthough it is not observed.
• The tradition of burning a
ule log actually has its roots in
ncient Scandinavia. Supposedly
he Yule log was a source of good
uck and its remnants were
aved to inspire good fortune
throughout the year. It was such
a widely held belief that people
even threw the ashes in wells to
make the water safer to drink.
• It was once believed that
any woman who went under a
mistletoe and was not kissed
would not marry the coming
year.
• The annual Christmas pud-
ding was more than just a tasty
treat. Small items were placed in
them which had the power to
predict what the New Year would
bring. Coins were associatedwith a gain in wealth, a ring was
a sign of an imminent marriage
and a button signified extended
bachelorhood. This idea actually
goes back to the middle ages
where the cake being served on
the Twelfth Night would come
complete with a hidden bean.
Whoever found this bean was
declared “king” for that one
night.
• If you counted all the gifts
that were given in the song
“Twelve Days of Christmas” you
would realize that the number of
gifts being presented were 364 in
total, thus a gift was given foreach day of the year.
• Christmas was illegal in
England from 1647-1660. This
was enforced by the then leader
Oliver Cromwell who believed it
was immoral to hold celebrations
on one of the holiest days of the
year. The celebration of
Christmas was therefore a crim-
inal offence which could lead to
an individual being arrested if
he or she was found guilty of
condoning any revelry during
the period.
Strange
Christmas FactsChristmas is perhaps the
most anticipated event of the
year. It is a time of good natured
gift exchange, feasting and cele-
bration. Nothing beats the fun
and good times that can be expe-
rienced during the Yuletide sea-
son. Yet Christmas is not with-
out its strange associations, a
few of these have been listed
below, some may even elicit a
chuckle or two.
• The legendary Christmas
pudding is actually an off shoot
of the Celtic dish frumenty. The
strangeness of the pudding is
inspired by the myth that sur-
rounds it. Supposedly people
believed it was unlucky to cut a
Christmas cake before
Christmas Eve. But, the pudding
wasn't the only thing that was
guarded by a long-standing
myth. Mince pie was said to be
unlucky if cut with a knife, addi-
tionally it was considered to
encourage bad luck when eaten
outside of the period between
Christmas Eve and Twelfth
Night. The great thing about
Mince pie however, is that it
somehow had the magical power
to give you good luck if you ate
one every day for the twelve days
of Christmas.
• Christmas Carols are great,
right? Wrong, well at least
according to some folks down in
Pensacola Florida who were out-
raged at the loud singing that
accompanied the rendition of a
few old favorites at a Mall during
the Christmas season. Maybe it
wasn't so much the carols as the
horrible singing that may have
sullied the performance.
• “Pets are people too”, this
may be what pet owners are
thinking during the Christmas
season. It has been estimated
that at least 56 percent of
Americans sing to their pets. It
may just be more fulfilling con-
sidering that pets cannot possi-
bly complain.
• The people at Reynolds et al
make a substantial amount of
money selling foil during the
Yuletide season. It has been con-
firmed that at least 3000 tons of
foil are used to wrap turkeys
annually.
• Warning: Christmas shop-
ping may be hazardous to your
health. If you are an avid
Christmas shopper statistics
have concluded that you will be
elbowed at least three times
while shopping. Ouch!
• Sending Christmas cards is
still the thing to do around
Christmas time. Americans on
average send out 28 Christmas
cards to friends and family year-
ly, and guess what, it's certainly
not in vain either, most will
receive 28 for the same period.
• Christmas is a great time to
exercise. You will walk an aver-
age of five miles between the
parking lot and stores, however,
don't let this give you a false
sense of security, most people
still gain those pesky Christmas
pounds despite this.
• Leftovers can sometimes be
your enemy. Spoilt leftovers are
responsible for 400,000 cases of
post Christmas associated ill-
nesses.
What you didn’t know
about Christmas
Have a safe, Merry
Christma s!