Monday, December 31, 2012
If you're out celebrating on New Year's and don't have a designated driver, here are some choices for getting home.
The highest number of alcohol-related traffic fatalities in the last decade occurred on New Year's Day, according to Michael Green, AAA spokesman. But once you start your 2013 pre-celebration, you may not be thinking about statistics. So right now while you're thinking clearly, consider your options. Getting a designated driver or hailing a cab are some of your choices. But if you find yourself with empty pockets and no driver, you have options. Sober Ride Call Sober Ride 1-800-200-TAXI (1-880-200-8294) for a free ride home (up to a $30 fare) from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., according to the Washington Regional Alcohol Program (WRAP). It says rides started Dec. 14 and are available every night until Jan. 1, 2013. People using the service must be 21…
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
What toys are kids asking Santa for this year in Prince George's County and Maryland?
Topping off the toys' list the week before Christmas, this year's best sellers at Toys"R"Us include the Time For Your Checkup Doll and the 1980s comeback, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, according to Adrienne O'Hara, Toys"R"Us spokeswoman. The items that are selling best in Prince George's County and Maryland are also the ones selling best nationwide at the toys store, according to O'Hara, who described them below: Holiday Best sellers 1. Disney Doc McStuffins Time For Your Check Up Doll Doc McStuffins is a Disney Junior show that features a girl with stuffed animals and dolls that she nurses back to health. Time For Your Checkup Doll is one of the most popular in the series. She comes dressed in a lab coat and sings songs and repeats …
Friday, December 14, 2012
While the two holidays fall in close proximity to each other and are celebrated in popular culture together, Hanukkah does not hold the religious significance for Jews that Christmas holds for Christians.
Each year, Hanukkah falls in close proximity or during Christmas according to the Hebrew calendar. Because of that, the two are celebrated side by side under the “Happy Holidays” moniker. But in terms of religious significance, Hanukkah doesn’t rank as high for Jews as Christmas ranks for Christians. “It’s hard to not make a big deal of out Hanukkah living in America, and I’m not sure it’s a bad thing,” said Rabbi Rhoda Silverman of Temple Emanuel in Reisterstown. “That’s not a problem for me as long as we don’t forget about everything else that makes us Jewish.” Jonathan Schwartz, senior aide to Baltimore County Council Chairwoman Vicki Almond and a member of Temple Emanuel, sees Hanukkah as having two roles in the lives of American Jews…
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Comptroller kicked off 'Shop Maryland for the Holidays' campaign by patronizing downtown Bethesda businesses Wednesday.
BETHESDA—Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot kicked off his “Shop Maryland for the Holidays” tour in Bethesda Wednesday, encouraging Marylanders to get off the Internet and shop local for the holidays. “There is something to be said for the personal interactions with other shoppers and store employees at the holidays. It’s warm and inviting, unlike a cold, unfeeling computer,” Franchot said in a statement. “Plus when you shop in state and support your community businesses, you are bound to find great deals and help the more than 500,000 Marylanders employed in our state’s retail sector. And really, isn’t the spirit of the holidays all about helping others and kindness?” Franchot spoke in Veteran’s Park with Bethesda-Chevy Chase Chamber of…
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Did you decorate your house for the holidays this year? Enter our "Deck the House" contest and you could win $100,000 for your local school district and $500 to pay your electric bills!
We’re launching our annual Deck the House Contest to find the most over-the-top holiday decorations in America—the best “decked” house in the country—the one home so spectacularly decorated that everyone in town jokes your holiday decorations could rival Rockefeller Center’s. If this sounds like your house, upload a photo or video of your home to our contest page from Nov. 26 to Dec. 16. (Check back here next Monday for a direct link to our contest page so you can enter.) Only residents of Patch towns are eligible to enter. We’ll select 24 regional finalists, and from them, pick one grand prize winner. Patch will pay up to $500 of the utility bill for each finalist, while our national winner will have $100,000 donated to his or her local…
Monday, November 12, 2012
Popular event runs for a total of 24 nights in 2012.
On Nov. 23, almost two weeks before the First Family lights the National Christmas Tree, the Smithsonian’s National Zoo will brighten the metro area with ZooLights, the popular annual DC event. Thousands of environmentally friendly LED lights – in the shapes of pandas, snakes, flowers, trees, butterflies, elephants and more – lining the pathways and decorating buildings such as the Small Mammals House, Reptile Discovery Center, Great Apes House, Think Tank and Kids’ Farm – make for a unique and fun experience for the whole family. Also on display will be entries to the zoo’s “Gin-GRR-Bread Habitat Contest,” with a theme of “A Winter’s Tale on the American Trail. Winners will receive a special behind-the-scenes tour of the American Trail …
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Support animal care, science and research with these great gift options.
- HOLIDAY GUIDE
- Ben Gross
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Sunday, October 28, 2012
Do some good for yourself, your family and friends and the animal kingdom by doing your holiday shopping at the National Zoo this year. For the kids: Bring home plush versions of Crystal or Cody, the zoo’s gray wolves with these realistic 16” renditions of the popular canines for just $20. Colorful owl or butterfly-themed purses are always in style and sure to be a hit with the girls in your life. Each version features working zippers, an inside pocket and a 10” strap for $22. For the animals: Show your favorite zoo animal how much you care by purchasing one of these great enrichment toys. You can either purchase items on the zoo’s online store, or visit the Enrichment Giving Tree to find out what’s on their wish list and you can drop it…
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Montgomery County Councilman George Leventhal suggests MCPS should adjust its calendar to provide two school closing days for the two most religious Muslim holidays.
Christmas and Easter fall during winter and spring breaks. Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the two most religious holidays on the Jewish calendar, are granted off-days by Montgomery County Public Schools. Montgomery County Councilman George Leventhal thinks two additional high holidays should be added to that list. Leventhal wrote to MCPS Superintendent Joshua Starr and Board of Education President Shirley Brandman on May 23 urging the school system to "provide two school closing days each school year in order for American Muslim members of our community to observe Eid-ul-Adha and Eid-ul-Fitr, the two most significant holidays in the Muslim calendar," according to a report by Maryland Juice. Currently, the two holidays are designated as non-…
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Choir's performance at the White House takes an unexpected turn.
Congratulations to choral director Lisa Itkin and the Watkins Mill Chamber Singers on their outstanding performances at the White House on Tuesday as part of the President's 2011 Holiday Tours. Watkins Mill singers have performed at the White House before, most recently in 2007. Little did we know that this time around, we would be singing for anyone other than the guests taking the holiday tour. Our 18-member choir performed a fabulous first set of songs, to the smiles, delight and picture/video-taking by arriving guests. After the first set, the group was suddenly hurried away to a small room in the White House, where we gathered for an official group photograph. Chairs and lighting were arranged perfectly in front of the fireplace, and…
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Saturday, December 25, 2010
Winter Lights on Christmas Eve
The night before Christmas and all through the park, the cars were driving slow to the mark. Winter Lights at Seneca Creek State Park was the place to be on Christmas Eve. The animated displays included Teddy Bear Land, Candy Land, boats in the lake and more representing holiday tradition and fun for the family.
Gregg Roberts
4:11 am on Sunday, December 16, 2012
It drives me crazy when people keep repeating the line ''Hanukkah is a minor holiday.'' In Israel children have off all week for Hanukkah. Orthodox Jewish schools in Baltimore have a 4 day weekend. Hanukkah is other then Purim the only holiday that traditionally doesn't have restrictions on music, travel etc. and is the last holiday historically and the only one to have happened in Israel. No …   more ›