Black Friday got its name in 1965, from the Philadelphia Police Department when they dubbed the Friday after Thanksgiving "Black Friday," because officers had to deal with an unusually high number traffic jams and shopping mobs on that day.

Yes, Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus . . . and NORAD Is Tracking Him! by Bruce Watson

As politicians argue over government spending, there is one line item that is likely to stay in the budget for the foreseeable future: the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD's) yearly Santa Watch. For the last 54 years, the military command -- tasked with protecting the US and Canada against missile attacks -- has answered phone calls from children who want to track the jolly old elf's progress across the Western Hemisphere.

Actually, the Santa Watch began long before NORAD came into being. In December 1955, Sears Roebuck ran a newspaper ad with what they claimed was Santa's direct number. Unfortunately, the phone number they offered was one digit off; instead of Sears, it linked to a top secret line at CONAD, the Continental Air Defense Command. When Colonel Harry Shoup, the command's director of operations, answered the phone, he expected to hear about a missile strike against the US. Instead, he got a little kid who wanted to talk to Santa.

Although the conversation ended with the child crying and Shoup fuming, the Colonel eventually came around and began giving the children updates on Santa's travels through the night sky. The following year, CONAD offered a new, non-secret, phone number that children could call. In 1958, when CONAD became NORAD, the new command continued the tradition.

Over the following decades, the tradition has grown. In 2008, 1,275 people, 100 phones, and 25 computers handled 69,845 phone calls and 6,086 e-mails from around the world. In order to ensure that the many volunteers don't issue conflicting reports, Santa Watch uses a large wall-sized map that integrates the latest Santa sightings with Google maps. For basic Santa tracking, NORAD relies on the same 47 radar installations, fighter jets and spy satellites that help it identify enemy missiles. In addition, the command's website states that it uses digital cameras positioned around the world that capture images of Santa.

Presumably, this four-pronged defense system protects against friendly-fire incidents: after all, it isn't hard to imagine how the combination of a red sled, eight reindeer, a red-clad gift giver and a highly vigilant military defense system could result in roasted venison and a ruined holiday.

As NORAD has gotten more complex, so has its Santa tracking. In 1998, the command introduced the program to the Internet, enabling children to watch Santa's movement from the comfort of their own computers. In 2007, Google came on board, giving NORAD access to its 2-D maps and 3-D Google Earth resources to improve its tracking. Gmail also provides an address that children can use to email their lists directly to Santa. With a presence on most social networking sites, including Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, the program is prepared to tell children around the world about the wonders of Santa -- and NORAD.

12 Days of Christmas

What do leaping lords, French hens, swimming swans, and my true love giving a partridge in a pear tree have to do with Christmas? Answer: From 1558 until 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. Someone during that era wrote this carol as a catechism song for young Catholic children. The song has two levels of meaning: the surface meaning, plus a hidden meaning known only to members of their church. Each element in the carol has a code word for a religious reality which the children could remember.

A partridge in a pear tree was Jesus Christ.

Two turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments.

Three French hens stood for Faith, Hope and Love.

The four calling birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Five golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament.

The six geese a-laying stood for the six days of creation.

Seven swans a-swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit - Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy.

The eight maids a-milking were the eight beatitudes. Matthew 5:4-11 "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted;. the meek, for they will inherit the earth; those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled; the merciful, for they will be shown mercy; the pure in heart, for they will see God. the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God; those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven; when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you - because of me."

Nine ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit - Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control.

The ten lords a-leaping were the Ten Commandments.

The eleven pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples.

The twelve drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in the Apostles' Creed. "I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary,suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. AMEN."

You now know how that song became a Christmas Carol.

Christmas Traditions: The Candy Cane

Part of the Christmas celebrations at the Cologne Cathedral were pagents of living nativity scenes. Legend has it that in 1670, the choirmaster at the Cologne Cathedral in Germany handed out pure white sugar sticks among his young singers to keep them quiet during the long living nativity ceremony. In honor of the occasion, he had the candies bent into shepherds' crooks. This became a popular tradition.

The use of candy canes on Christmas trees made its way to America by the 1800’s, however during this time they were still pure white. They are represented this way on Christmas cards made before 1900. It wasn't until the turn of the century that the red and white stripes and peppermint flavors became the norm.

In the 1920s, Bob McCormack began making candy canes as special Christmas treats for his children, friends and local shopkeepers in Albany, Georgia. It was a laborious process - pulling, twisting, cutting and bending the candy by hand. It could only be done on a local scale. In the 1950s a machine was invented to automate candy cane production. Packaging innovations eventually made it possible to transport the delicate canes on a large scale.

Although modern technology has made candy canes accessible and plentiful, they have not lost their purity and simplicity as a traditional holiday treat.

Many people have given religious meaning to the shape and form of the candy cane. It is said that its shape is like the letter “J” in Jesus’ name. It is also in the shape of the shepherds’ crook, symbolic of how Jesus, like the “Good Shepherd” watches over his children like little lambs. It is a hard candy, solid like a “rock”, the foundation of the Church. The flavor of peppermint is similar to another member of the mint family, hyssop. In the Old Testament hyssop was used for purification and sacrifice, and this is said to symbolize the purity of Jesus and the sacrifice he made.

Some say the white of the candy cane represents the purity of Jesus and his virgin birth. The bold red stripe represents God’s love. The three fine stripes are said by some to represent the Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Others say they represent the blood spilled at the beating Jesus received at the hands of the Roman soldiers.

- from a card attached to candy canes