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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2010-01-07, Page 10PAGE 10. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 2010. Mrs. Santa Claus, aka Laura Scott, was emcee and Santa’s helper for a very casual evening and most enjoyable Olde Fashioned Family Christmas Concert at the Londesborough United Church on Monday, Dec. 20. Stage fright was a problem for a couple of acts involving young children but it needn’t have been for the audience was made up of family members and neighbours, an easy and appreciative audience. The acts were varied and displayed the versatility of folks we all know. The story of the first Christmas was shown by the Brohman Family. While Teague, with Dad’s help, read the story, Brett and Darcy, with Mom’s help, moved around shadow puppets. A neat little act. There were two recitations, The Snowman by Sean Whyte and Bessie’s Boil by Gordon Shobbrook. Recitations were always a favourite at Christmas concerts in one room schools. Marsha Szusz read the story At Christmas, All Things Are Possible. New to Christmas concerts are dance routines but three groups brought the concert into the 21st century. Four Whytes, Karen, Nicole, Kerri and Avery, demonstrated clogging. Paige Gibbing and Avery Wright did a jazz dance to "Santa Claus Is Coming in a Choo-choo Train. Mikayla and Mary Kate Allen performed an acro-jazz routine to Winter Wonderland. Instrumental music was also a part of the evening. Ken Scott sang, Winter Wonderland and accompanied himself on guitar. Also revealing his talent on guitar was Terry Fletcher with, What Child Is This? The Drost brothers, Brent on bass guitar and Zach on acoustic guitar, also entertained with Christmas tunes. Barb Bosman at the organ accompanied John Jewitt who played, Highland Cathedral on his bagpipes. A humorous Merry Christmas by letters was told by members of the Londesborough UCW. Daisy, a St. John Ambulance dog, with the help of Jane Hoggart, ‘sang’ Happy Birthday and Silent Night. Vocal numbers as well were part of the night’s entertainment. Brother and sister duo, Madelaine and Jake Yantzi , sang Silent Night. Christmas ABC’s were sung by Elianne Kreuger, Brett and Darcy Brohman and Shaina Hunking. The trio of Hunking sisters were a hit with The Chipmunk Song. Barb Bosman told the story of a girl yearning for a doll in Shake Me, I Rattle. Cassie Elliott, in her sunglasses, delighted the audience with Jingle Bell Rock. The Prayer was beautifully sung by Kelsey Falconer. The senior choir rounded out the evening. The man himself, Santa Claus, made an appearance to the delight of the youngsters who got a chance to sit on his knee and whisper in his ear just what they wanted for Christmas. Mrs. Santa emcees concert Challenge: No time to prepare a healthy meal Solution:Planning and shopping ahead may seem like a time-consuming effort initially but over the long run can help save time and money, reduce stress, and improve nutrition intakes. • Get organized – stock your cupboards, fridge and freezer with basics that will help you pull together nutritious meals in a hurry. These include: – Grain Products: whole grain bread, cereal, pitas and flour tortillas; pasta and rice. – Vegetables and Fruit: fresh vegetables and fruit in season as well as a variety of canned and frozen vegetables and juices. – Milk Products: milk, yogurt and cheese. – Meat & Alternatives: meat, fish, poultry; eggs; canned fish; canned beans and lentils; nuts and seeds; tofu and soy products, and peanut butter. – Other foods: butter, soft margarine, vegetable oil (canola, safflower, sunflower, corn, olive); sugar, honey, syrup; mustard, ketchup, salsa, vinegar, soya sauce, and spices. • Plan ahead – Choose three or four main dinner meals to have during the week and make a list of items needed. Be sure to include something from each of the four food groups in Canada’s Food Guide to Healthy Eating. Buy all the ingredients you need ahead of time to avoid unnecessary trips to the store. Post the menu plan on the fridge so everyone knows what’s for dinner. Leave out simple instructions or the recipe so that whoever gets home first can start the preparation or cooking. • Make only one meal – No one has time to be a short order cook for different family members at different times. Avoid cooking one meal for each person – no matter what time they get home. Store leftovers safely in the refrigerator for latecomers to heat up when they get home. • Share the tasks – Younger children can set the table, older kids can help with food preparation and everyone can help with the cleanup. Assign jobs to share the load and so everyone knows what is expected of them. • Make life interesting – Try a new recipe or new food every once in a while – ask family members to find and suggest recipes that they would like to try. Remember variety is the spice of life! Happy New Year everyone! Although the new year has arrived, it seems this column is dealing with Christmas items still, concerts and Christmas trivia. Christmas arrives with such anticipation and seems always to be over in the blink of an eye so this column will keep the feeling for just a little longer. Eating mincemeat pies for the 12 days of Christmas is thought to bring good luck for the coming year. Many folks find the pairing of meat and fruit that makes up a traditional mince pie a trifle heavy. Cooks today substitute other ingredients for themeat, such as green tomato alongwith suet. The cinnamon, cloves andnutmeg used to spice up the tasteseemingly represent the gifts of theMagi.Boxing Day was inspired bychurch alms boxes and I have foundno explanation why. Folks make lots of noise at midnight on News Year’s Eve supposedly to ward off evil spirits. People may also want to celebrate the departure of the old year and look hopefully to the new one. At time of reporting, Pearl Mason is a patient in the Clinton hospital. She went by ambulance on Dec. 27 but is showing improvement. She would surely welcome a visit to lift her spirits. This next item is a forewarning. Canada Post rates will increase again on Jan. 11. We have noticed a decrease in the volume of mail in the 3 1/2 years we have handled the post office in Londesborough and apparently that trend is typicalacross the country. E-mail and directdeposits and payments are two of thereasons. Consequently, the system isnot making a profit.Just as an aside here, I did thinkthere were more Christmas cards inthe post in December. Also, manyfolk are still pleased to receive a card or letter in the mail. There is something special about it, especially to a senior citizen. My sister regularly wrote to my mom in addition to her phone calls for she felt Mom could always go back time and again and reread the letter. A first-class letter will increase from 54 cents to 57 cents. A letter to the United States will increase from 98 cents to $1. Oversized mail will rise two cents as well to $1.20 and international mail will now cost $1.70. A question I’ve been asked more than once has to do with older stamps. The new regular stamps now have a P on the corner which meansit is a permanent price. If the postagerates change, that stamp will behonoured at current first class mailrates. No additional postage will beneeded. So use up those stampsbefore purchasing new ones.Any stamp with a value can beused provided it has not been cancelled. So if you come across an old stamp – a 40 cents or 50 cents for example – postage can be added to bring it up to the current price. Don’t discard them; you would be wasting your money. Just spend a little time at the counter and you can use them up. On Boxing Day we decided to leave the bustle of things to do at home and headed to the movies. We laughed ’til we cried at Meryl Streep and Alex Baldwin in, It’s Complicated. Nice light entertainment. The scene with the computer that is part of the trailer is hilarious. It’s a flick you might want to catch. NEWS FROM LONDESBORO By BRENDARADFORDCall 523-4296PEOPLE AROUND LONDESBORO Ms Antoniuk’s last public duty at Hullett Central Public School was to welcome the audience to the school’s annual Christmas concert. The musical evening was directed by Mrs. Barnett, the school’s music teacher. Piano accompaniment was provided by Barb Bosman. All pupils in the school took part. The numbers reflected the meaning and joy of Christmas. Grades 7 and 8 pupils take instrumental music. The members of the band opened the evening with a holiday medley then played, Upon the Housetops. The flutes were featured in, Deck the Halls. Body Talk was a demonstration by these pupils of ‘body percussion’. It was interesting to watch the rhythmic clapping, slapping, stamping, etc. These senior students sang, Jingle Bell Rock in both English and French. Kindergarten A performed a Christmas dance wearing headbands decorated with Christmas balls. Kindergarten B sported headbands with holly decorations and reindeer ears for their number, Reindeer Love to Boogie. Together these young pupils used the alphabet to sing about how Santa comes to their homes each year. The Primary classes offered, Rockin’ Reindeer Christmas. Another of their numbers included singing, choral talking and a little acting to present, When Santa Claus Gets Your Letter. Let It Snow and Here Comes Santa Claus were presented by the Junior classes. The Primary and Junior pupils joined to sing ’Tis the Season Once Again, a medley of familiar tunes. It is always refreshing in the midst of Christmas preparations to take time out to enjoy the children who make the season so special. And at the same time see how they are growing musically. Hullett’s new principal, Shawn Allen, was introduced to the parents and community folk gathered that evening and he bade everyone farewell and a Merry Christmas. SAVE up to $2850 a year Off the newsstand price Newsstand price - $1.25/week Subscription price - 68¢/week Yes - I want to save money. Enclosed is $34.00 for a 1-year subscription Students perform at annual concert ON $6.00 THURSDAYS Drop into either of our offices any Thursday with your word classified (maximum 20 words) and pay only $6.00 + GST (paid in advance). That’s $1.00 off regular rates. The Citizen