FEATURES
By ROB KASPER | January 10, 1998
LIKE MANY HOUSEHOLDS, ours has been busy trying to dispose of the remnants of Christmas. Last weekend, we stripped the Christmas tree of its finery, pried it loose from its holder and carried it, in a not-so-solemn procession, to a resting place.The Christmas tree fought back. It scratched its pallbearers, my 17-year-old son and me. It took a swipe at a living room lamp. It dropped needles faster than some Block dancers drop garments.Once we got the tree out of the house, we wrestled it to the sidewalk.
NEWS
By YVONNE BASKIN | December 20, 1992
Encinitas, California.--In a greenhouse in Madison, Wisconsin, a row of ordinary-looking six-inch spruce trees may represent the ghosts of Christmas future. These tiny trees are clones of superior white spruces, fortified with a bacterial gene for pest resistance and rooted in soil after long incubation in a lab dish.They represent only the second success scientists have had in regrowing conifers (cone-bearing trees) from genetically engineered embryos. The first came last year at Michigan Technological University with a European larch, and similar manipulations of fir and pine are close behind.
NEWS
By Susan Reimer | December 23, 2007
In this country, it is informally called "the Christmas tree," but in its native France it is croquembouche, or "crackle in the mouth." Both are descriptive, but if you want to serve one of these fantastic pastry centerpieces at your holiday party, there is only one place to go -- Joseph Poupon's traditional French bakery on East Baltimore Street, Patisserie Poupon. The croquembouche is a cone-shaped tower of cream puffs held in place by a sugar mixture that is at first sticky and then crackly.
NEWS
By Arnesa A. Howell | December 2, 2007
Whether from the evening glow of the Christmas tree or the candles of Kwanzaa's kinara, there's a warmth surrounding the holidays that evoke a spirit of family, love and giving thanks. For many, that means sharing in the joys of giving to both loved ones and the less fortunate through food, fellowship and music. So, in the celebration of the season, several area celebrities took the time to reflect on their fondest holiday memories and traditions. Here, their reflections: JOYCE J. SCOTT visual and performance artist From making pipe-cleaner ornaments with her mother, Elizabeth T. Scott, to playing the tambourine during church street ministries at the age of 3, visual and performance artist Joyce J. Scott has countless fond memories of how she spent the Christmas holiday as a child.
NEWS
By DAVE BARRY | December 12, 1999
TODAY'S HOLIDAY TOPIC is: Christmas Tree Care.The Christmas tree is a cherished holiday tradition that dates back 500 years, to the early Germans. What happened was, one night right around Christmas, a bunch of early Germans were sitting around, and one of them, named Helmut, said: "I know! Let's chop down a perfectly good fir tree, drag it inside, and see if we can get it to stand up again!""Why in the world would we do that?" asked the other early Germans, who also happened to speak English.
NEWS
By Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan | December 20, 1999
Annapolitans had thought that this year's city Christmas tree could be no worse than last year's nautical wonder -- featuring a mannequin in a rain slicker that startled some who thought it was a body dangling from a branch.But this year's "Yuletide Harvest" theme tree in its prominent spot in downtown Annapolis has managed to rekindle a heated debate about an object put up to bring the community together during the holiday season.Decorated to honor Maryland's agricultural heritage, the 22-foot Colorado blue spruce features fruit baskets with bananas and apples, bunches of dried tobacco and ears of corn, and red rakes and pitchforks jutting out in all directions.
NEWS
By Nancy Gallant | December 7, 1999
EACH YEAR, visitors to Crofton are welcomed by the sparkling lights of a Christmas tree in front of the Crofton Country Club. The lighting ceremony, which typically features local politicians, music, refreshments and a visit from Santa -- was scheduled for last night.My favorite community Christmas tree is the one behind Town Hall. This tree doesn't have lights. The ornaments filling its branches are not always elegant or sophisticated. Still, the decorating ceremony for the Town Hall tree, held Saturday morning, was full of love, fun and excitement about the holidays.
FEATURES
By Rob Kasper | December 18, 1999
IT MADE NO SENSE. It was totally impractical. It was one of those rare occurrences, a few hours of spontaneous fun. The other night, on a whim, my 14-year-old son and I set up the model train in the living room.The living room floor is not the recommended spot to put a train. If you put a train track on the floor, there is a good chance someone will trip over it. Threading the tracks through the furniture can be problematic.A better spot would have been down in the basement, on top of the long, flat ping-pong table.
FEATURES
By Rob Kasper | December 11, 1999
THERE ARE milestones in a father's life. Your kid takes his first step. Pretty soon your kid takes your car. Then one day your kid, not you, cuts down the family Christmas tree.Last weekend I passed the latest of those milestones. I was the one holding the tree while my teen-age sons took turns sawing it down.I was the one who watched as they hoisted the tree onto the roof of the car. I was the one standing on the edge of the action; they were the ones in the thick of the fray and the fir.Passing the Christmas tree saw to a new generation was a somewhat unsettling experience.
ENTERTAINMENT
By Sloane Brown | December 26, 1999
Concert Artists of Baltimore celebrated Christmas the old-fashioned way at the Garrett-Jacobs Mansion, home of the Engineers Club. After its annual holiday concert there, many of the 230 audience members joined chorus members for a champagne reception in the mansion's lobby -- singing carols around the Christmas tree, accompanied by artistic director Edward Polochick on piano.There were even holiday gifts, as supporters donated about $1,000 to a Fire Damage Fund to help Concert Artists recover losses from a Dec. 2 electrical fire at its offices.