Drop a Rose?

Everyone knows of the New Year's drop in Times Square . but what about the pinecone or the acorn drop? Here are some strange things that are "dropped" around the country:
Mechanicsburg, Pa. - Wrench
Mechanicsburg got its name from a community of mechanics who settled there in the early 1800s.
And for five years now the city has dropped a ten-foot sheet metal wrench on New Year's Eve as a nod to the past.
Raleigh, N.C. - Acorn
Since Raleigh is known as the City of Oaks, they drop an acorn.
Havre de Grace, Md. - Wooden Duck
In 1789, Havre de Grace nearly became the nation's capital, losing to Washington D.C. by one vote in a House of Representatives decision; instead the city went on to become the self-proclaimed, Decoy Capital of the World.
Port Clinton, Ohio - Walleye
Port Clinton is known as "The Walleye Capital of the World." And 14 years ago, to honor their scaly mascot, this Lake Erie resort community began dropping a 20-foot, 600-pound Walleye on New Year's Eve.

I asked what should be dropped here in Portland tonight and it was unanimous. A Rose!

See you in 2009!

Will Cynthia cook in 2009??

We were talking about New Years resolutions again today and Cynthia is making a resolution to cook in 2009. She's been eating out of boxes for years!

Here are a couple recipes sent to us...

Meatloaf
2 lbs. Hamburger
1 pkg of Dry Stovetop Stuffing Mix
2 eggs
1 cup milk
salt and pepper
can of pineapple chunks

Mix all together & put into meatloaf pan . Mix together topping for it: 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1 cup of ketchup, 1/4 cup of pineapple juice from the chunks pour over top of meat then top with pineapple chunks. I don’t do the topping I just find some sweet BBQ sauce and put the pineapple chunks. It is more simple but tastes great.
Bake @ 350 for 1 hour 15 min. It might take a few more minutes than this depending on oven.

Enjoy Cynthia!! Amy


Zita had an easy one too. Put boneless skinless Chicken breasts in a crockpot with a can of Dr. Pepper and a jar of BBQ sauce. It will make the house smell good too!

Happy New Year!

If you make a New Year resolution...

Here are a few common reasons that many New Year's Resolutions fail:
. Too Many Big Resolutions
. Not Personalizing Your Resolutions
. Not Writing Them Down
. Not Reviewing Your Resolutions Periodically
. Keeping Your Resolutions To Yourself
. Not Having A Support Group

Here's a story I found this morning...

An 8 year-old Chicago boy called 911 on Christmas Eve because his family was out of food and didn't have any toys. Chicago dispatcher Pamela Jenkins spoke to Malik Parish and his grandmother before telling her co-workers about their plight. She collected $200 and various other toys and groceries that she and her friends delivered the next morning. Malik got a G.I. Joe set and a PlayStation. Jenkins says, "There are countless times we want to help. Sometimes you sit there and you're typing and crying at the same time. ... This is my first time that I was able to do some hands-on, Christian work. I enjoyed it, and I wished we could help people more than we do.''

My Dad did say it is better to give than receive.

Have a great day,

Tim

Merry Christmas!

I wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas. Thank you so much for listening.

Christmas is fun and we also celebrate the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ.

Blessings,

Tim

Follow Santa around the world here http://www.noradsanta.org/en/home.html

Jingle Bells from Tualatin

Catherine from Tualatin sent this to us... 

You know you're going stir crazy from the weather when you come up with new 

words to a Christmas song.  For your Christmas and weather related 

humor---To the tune of Jingle Bells.... 

Dashing through the snow 

Is where I'd like to be, 

O'er the streets I'd go, 

My family I could see! 

I've dreams of one-horse sleighs, 

To get around this town, 

What fun I'd have in all this snow, 

If a one-horse sleigh was found! 

Oh... 

Jingle bells Jingle Bells, 

Here is what I know, 

Snow keeps falling on the streets, 

No plow has hit my road! 

Wish I had, Wish I had, 

That little one-horse sleigh, 

For trains, planes cars and buses, 

Just can't get around these days! 

Oh just days ago, 

My Honda I could steer, 

But now there's too much snow, 

No end in sight I fear! 

Oh what I would not give, 

For a horse that's lean and lank, 

I'd hitch him to an open sleigh, 

Plow through these snowy banks! 

O Little Town

After eight bleak years, Jesus' birthplace finally has a Christmas season to cheer about.

Hotels are booked solid through January, Manger Square is bustling with tourists, and Israeli and Palestinian forces are working to make things go smoothly.

With calm gradually returning to the West Bank, Bethlehem has again become a magnet for Christmas pilgrims. Palestinian officials say 1.3 million tourists have visited the West Bank this year, nearly double last year's level. The total for 2008 could rise to 1.6 million.

The 10 best holiday movies

Wow, 13 inches of snow recorded as of this morning in Portland. We expect another inch or two today so we hope you can stay home and enjoy time with your family and neighbors. Maybe watch a movie? What is the greatest holiday film of all time?

More than 40,000 votes were tallied in an AOL Holiday Movie Poll, and the results are:

#10: Scrooged (1988)
#9: Elf (2003)
#8: A Christmas Carol (1951)
#7: The Polar Express (2004)
#6: White Christmas (1954)
#5: National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)
#4: How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966)
#3: Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
#2: A Christmas Story (1983)
#1: It's a Wonderful Life (1947)

Communicating with pets

The weather was the big topic again today but we did mention this...

 

A new Associated Press-Petside.com poll reveals that 67% of pet owners say they understand their animals' woofs and meows. 62% of pet owners say that when they speak, their pets get the message. More than 40% of pet owners are buying gifts for their dog or cat this holiday season.  My Lab Jake always gets a gift but I have to help him open it, he has no thumbs!

 

If you have to drive be careful!!

 

Merry Christmas,

 

Tim

Winter driving conditions

Thanks for all the calls today at 503-786-1041.  Winter is here and if you have to drive you can check driving conditions here:  http://tripcheck.com/Pages/RCmap.asp?curRegion=0&mainNav=RoadConditions.

 

Merry Christmas, 

 

Tim

Christmas displays in Portland

We were talking about Christmas displays around the Portland area and here are a few...

 

One of my favorites is Peacock Lane. Since the 1920s, each house in this quaint southeast neighborhood has been decorating for Christmas. Mostly Tudors, the houses are adorned with not only beautiful sparkling lights, but also nativity scenes, rotating Christmas trees and stunningly life-like replicas of Santa and Frosty. Be forewarned: this is a very popular Portland tradition and the crowds can get quite thick. It is wise to park several blocks away and walk, rather than drive through the area. Better yet, take a ride in a horse-drawn carriage. You can visit them at www.peacocklane.net

 

Here are a few others..

 

Winter Wonderland at PIR - Click here for a Fish coupon!

 

Zoo Lights -  Click here! 

 

Deborah called and invited us out to Roy, Oregon where they have put up quite the display themselves. To get to Roy just hop onto Hwy. 26, go West, turn left at NW Mountaindale Rd then left at NW Roy Rd and your there!

 

Please be safe and only travel when the weather permits. We do have a Winter Storm Watch going into effect late tonight into Wednesday. 

 

Merry Christmas,

 

Tim

More fruitcake, and weekend plans

Have a great weekend but be prepared for some stormy weather and maybe even a little snow around the Portland Metro area.

 

I will be at the Lloyd Center Saturday at Noon reading Christmas stories if you can make it.  Click here for info!

 

I leave you today with another fruitcake recipe from listener Pam...

 

 

Texas Fruitcake

 

3/4# dates

3/4# each red and green pineapple

1 dozen eggs

3/4# each red and green cherries

1 lb. flour

1# each golden and regular raisins

1 T cinnamon

1 1/4# pecans 1 t clove

1# walnuts 1 1/2t each soda and mace

3/4 # blanched almonds 1t salt

1# butter 2 1/2 T milk 3/4# brown sugar and grandlated sugar

1/2 c lemon juice

1 1/4 T vanilla

 

Cut dates and all fruit into small pieces. Mix with nuts in large container. Melt butter; add sugars and mix together until well blended. Add well beaten eggs. Dredge fruit and nuts with 1/2 cup flour. Sift together remaining flour, spices and salt. Mix milk,lemon juice and vanilla. Add dry and liquid mixture alternately to cream mixture. Pour over fruit and nuts. Blend throughly. Line small pans with waxed paper and grease well. Fill pans 3/4 full. Bake in a 250-degree oven---Small pans about 2 1/2 hours, large pans about 4 hours. Small pans are 3 1/2 x 6 and large pan 9 x 5.

 

Special instructions: Place a pan of water in bottom of oven to keep fruitcake moist.

 

When done remove from pans and place on cooling racks.

 

When cooled, dip cheesecloth in brandy, rum or Grand Marnier. Wrap fruitcake in the cheesecloth, then in plastic wrap, then foil. Place in zip lock bag and refrigerate. After about 3 weeks, redip cheesecloth in the liquor of your choice. Refrigerate for another 3 weeks. I usually make this on Halloween day. Enjoy. Makes 7 to 8 2# cakes.

 

 

Thanks Pam!

Jan's fruitcake recipe

I found this in the news today....

 

Pierre Girard's fruitcake is making international headlines because it's 97 years old. Two of his friends, Audrey Staber and Dick Scheimo, gave it to him after finding it in a home during a 1992 estate sale. The cake came in a box that read: "Christmas cake Baked in Dec. 1911". Pierre says no one is brave enough to eat the cake. "Most people won't touch it. Others say, 'I wouldn't have that in my house. I'm afraid of it.' I think I'm the only one that really loves it."

 

...so I asked if you liked fruitcake and got lots of calls. We made fun of fruitcake (I called it a good paperweight) but after talking to some of our listeners there are some good ones out there including the Texas fruitcake which you can find here www.collinstreet.com.

 

If you'd like to make one at home Jan from Mulino was shared this recipe with us...

 

"This recipe will change most people's minds about fruitcake!! While I agree w/ the callers this morning about how dense and disgusting most of them are, this one is light and more like a real cake and everyone who has ever tasted it raves about it and wants the recipe. You can also substitute anything - don't like pecans? use more walnuts. Don't like raisins, use cranberries. Very versatile and a gorgeous Christmas cake.

 

 

So here goes:

 

3 C flour

1 TB Baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2/3 c pitted dates

1 c chopped pecans

1 c chopped walnuts

1/2 c raisins

1/2 c golden raisins

2 c sugar

1 c unsalted butter, room temp

4 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp lemon extract.

 

Preheat oven to 325F. Butter and flour 10 inch angel food or tube pan. Combine first 3 ingredients in large bowl. Add dates, nuts, and raisins and toss to coat.

 

Using electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in another large bowl until light and fluffy. Add egss 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add extracts. Add dry ingredients, fold until just combined (batter will resemble ookie dough).

 

Spoon batter into prepared pan. Sooth top. Bake until cake is golden and tester inserted near center comes out clean, about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Turn out cake on rack and cool."

 

Thanks Jan!!

America's favorite tech toys

We talked about video games on today's show. Here's some of the information we shared...

 

So which tech toy was America's favorite in 2008?

 

The answer, at least according to eBay, is the Nintendo Wii.

 

More than 2 million Wii-related items were sold on eBay this year, followed by Microsoft's Xbox 360 with nearly 1.3 million items sold, and Sony's PlayStation Portable at just over 350,000 items.

 

According to recent findings by the Pew Internet & American Life Project, more than half of American adults play video games and one in five play just about every day.

 

People from all walks of life play, though younger adults are far more likely to play than seniors, proof that video games are mainstream entertainment for the generations that grew up with them.

 

Another Pew survey this fall found that nearly every teenager - 97 percent - is a gamer. Fifty percent of women and 55% of men play video games.

 

Most of the calls were about the Wii and Wii Fit, which are great for families. You can bowl in your living room with the Wii!!

Rules for re-gifting

We talked about re-gifting on the show today and came up with a few simple ground rules...

 

1) Do not use the gift and then re-gift it. We had a listener call who got a waffle iron with a waffle in it!

2) Do not sample the item. One listener got some hand lotion with fingerprints in it!

3) Do not wrap the re-gift with recycled wrapping paper. It could have been paper they used for one of your gifts!

 

Have a wonderful day and remember there's only 17 days until Christmas

Quick Gift Ideas

Here are some more quick gift ideas from today's show...

 

- Donate a day of labor to thier particular charity

- Cat/Dog sit

- Take your giftee to a free workshop/presentation

- Search book stores and eBay for a magazine printed on the week of their birth

- If you're tech-savvy, be their computer help desk

 

Have a great weekend!

Silly Christmas Gifts

Today we were talking about silly Christmas gifts and here are a few.

 

The 'How to tie a tie" tie - this stylish tie has simple knot-tying instructions printed right on the front!

 

The Screaming Chicken, The World's most annoying toy - This rubber chicken doesn't squeak or squawk. It screams.

 

Wassabi flavored gumballs - 'nuff said!

 

Tomorrow we will discuss great gift ideas that cost nothing or next to nothing. Have a great day!

Advertisements on math tests!

Here's a funny story I shared on the show today....

Tom Farber gives a lot of tests. He's a calculus teacher, after all. So when administrators at his suburban San Diego high school announced the district was cutting spending on supplies by nearly a third, Farber had a problem. At 3 cents a page, his tests would cost more than $500 a year. His copying budget: $316.

 

So he started selling ads on his test papers: $10 for a quiz, $20 for a chapter test, $30 for a semester final. So far, he has collected $350. His semester final is sold out.

 

About two-thirds of Farber's ads are inspirational messages underwritten by parents.  Others are ads for local businesses, such as two from a structural engineering firm and one from a dentist who urges students, "Brace Yourself for a Great Semester!"

Elf Yourself and The 12 Days of Christmas

Office Max is back with their Elf Yourself Website at elfyourself.com. You upload shots of yourself before the site creates a music video of you dancing as an elf. Dave Arthur and I both spent way too much time on this site last year. It is fun.

 

The 12 Days of Xmas: This year's price for all of the items in the "The Twelve Days of Christmas" is $86,609. PNC Banks says the price is up $8,508, or 10.9 percent, from last year. The first set of prices is the cost of the item if it's purchased at a store.

 

A Partridge In A Pear Tree $219.99 .. if bought on the net $235.

Two Turtle Doves $55 .. if bought on the net $130

Three French Hens $30 .. if bought on the net $195

Four Calling Birds $599.96 .. if bought on the net $475

Five Gold Rings $349.95 .. if bought on the net $329.75

Six geese a laying $240 .. if bought on the net $660

Seven Swans A Swimming $5,600 .. if bought on the net $7,035

Eight Maids A Milking $52.40 .. if bought on the net $310.06

Nine Ladies Dancing $4,759.19 .. if bought on the net $7,237

Ten Lords A Leaping $4,413.61 .. if bought on the net $11,629.79

Eleven Pipers Piping $2.284.80 .. if bought on the net $2,100

Twelve Drummers drumming $2,475.20 .. if bought on the net $1,620

Website: www.pncchristmaspriceindex.com

Christmas shopping and Cyber Monday

Shoppers spent over $10 billion on Friday and 40% of Americans completed their Christmas shopping this past weekend.

If, like me, you are not finished yet, today is Cyber Monday and more than 80% of online retailers are expected to offer Cyber Monday promotions.  See the deals at www.cybermonday.com.

... and don't worry about getting all your shopping done right away as I hear retailers will keep slashing prices right up until Christmas!