Last night was the first night of the 12 days of Christmas — and the 8 nights of Hanukkah.
Steve Stein sent a photo …
… and explained some of the items in it. He wrote:
“The 9 candles of a Hanukkah menorah represent the 8 days a tiny jar of holy oil kept the eternal light in the Jerusalem Temple ablaze — considered a miracle. The ninth special taller ‘shamash’ candle is used to light from 1 to 8 candles each night of the holiday.
“The dreidel is a 4-sided spinning top used in a game of chance. The 4 Hebrew letters represent ‘Nass Gadol Hayom Shom — Great Miracle Happened Here.’ You can spina dreidel heavy side down. With years of practice, a dreidel can be spun upside down on the thin stalk.
“Guests include Hanukah Harry, The Mensch on a Bench, the Dreidel Bear, as well as lots of kids and grandkids who get gifts on each of the 8 nights. Or they can opt for Hanukkah gelte (a cashier’s check to ‘just go buy what you want!’).”
“There are also grandma-made potato latkes (pancakes) with sour cream and/or apple sauce, and lots of jelly doughnuts from Coffee An’.
“A great time will be had by all!”
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Tragedy was averted last night, when the Westport Fire Department responded to a fire on Horseshoe Lane, between Compo Road South and Imperial Avenue.
Firefighters confined the thick, smoky blaze to a small basement area. They then cleared the house of smoke and carbon monoxide.
The WFD reminds residents to have working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in their homes.
It is important too to have a meeting place outside the home that all occupants know about, so that firefighters can be sure everyone is safe.
Westport Police and Emergency Medical Service and Westport Police assisted. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
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Westport realtor/artist/fiction writer Jo Ann Miller is out with her third book.
“Road Trip With Spanky” chronicles a journey from Rhode Island to Key West, with her dog.
Donald Trump has just won the 2024 election, when the widow of a dear friend asks an investigator reporter to drive a car from Rhode Island to Key West to give to his estranged son.
The reporter agrees — provided he can take his beloved dog Spanky, and drive only on take rural routes. He wants to meet the American electorate, and find out
what just happened at the polls.
A reviewer wrote: “Most interesting, rarely judgmental, and a fine illumination of what voters really think. You will fall in love with Spanky.” Click here to order via Amazon.
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Pam Kesselman captured these Christmas Day/pre-Hanukkah Compo Beach clouds yesterday, for today’s “Westport … Naturally” feature:
(Photo/Pam Kesselman)
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And finally … In honor of Spanky (story above):
(Happy Boxing Day! It’s an old English holiday tradition to donate to your hyper-local blog. Please click here, to support our work. Thank you all!)
Also known as ST. STEPHENS day
Happy New Year All
Chip, you are many wonderful things. Now we can add “saint” to the list. Who knew?
Also, in the far regions of Alaska, it is known as the day after Christmas.