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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 10, 1987)
when broken and examined in cross section, the tree is likely to be a spruce. Blue spruce makes a beautiful but expensive Christmas tree, with needle retention not as good as that of a fir or pine. Firs, especially the balsam, are the most aromatic. Traditionally, children receive Hanukkah gilt, which consists of money and gifts. Lewis said his parents always gave him and his sister chocolate coins wrapped in foil to represent gilt. Also, the children play Draydle, a game played with a four-sided top, each side having a Hebrew word. Together, the four words translate to “A great miracle happened here. ” Each player adds money or takes it out of a pot depending on the bet placed and what the spin indicates, Lewis said. Laves said that historically the Jewish community didn’t exchange gifts, but times have changed. Because Hanukkah was so close to Christmas it was hard for the Jewish children to understand why they didn’t get gifts. Today, they get a different group of presents on each of the eight days, he said. What do you want for Christmas? by Lawson Reilly Remember this? You’re walking down a velvet-roped aisle, toward a fat guy in a red suit trimmed with white fur. He’s wearing a matching cap and he has a bushy beard flowing to his wide, black belt. Just as you reach the pedestal supporting his oversized chair, he reaches down and swings you onto his knee. A few belly laughs emerge from behind his beard, and then the inevitable question comes. “What do you want for Christmas?” At this point, you either cry for your mommy or whip out a three-page list. The yuletide season is upon us, and that question is being asked more frequently as Christmas nears and shopping days dwindle. At Ease got into the spirit and asked students what they want for Christmas. The item at the top of freshman aerospace engineering major Jeff Redding’s list mingles Christmas with Aggie spirit. “First, I want A&M to beat Notre Dame, ” he says. Redding’s wish was the consensus among students waiting in line in front of G. Rollie White Coliseum for Cotton Bowl tickets. Sophomore general studies major Perry Liston, who started waited in line for tickets Thursday afternoon, thought awhile before deciding what else he wants. “I have straight teeth, and ’m not missing any either, ” he says. “1 guess I want an unlimited checking account for my dad.” Liston wasn’t the only student with visions of green stuff dancing in his head. “Cash, ” replied senior marketing major Jimmy Moore to the question. “Lots of cash would be nice. ” Grades are the priority on some students’ lists. Rhonda Crowell, a junior elementary education major, says she wants a “B” in her calculus class, while sophomore general studies major Katina Osth wants a new grade-point ratio. Rebecca Gillis, a sophomore biology major, is asking for divine intervention. “I want a miracle, ” she says. “That’s what I want. A four point. ” Some students, like senior computer science major Kyle Kennedy, couldn’t make up their minds. “I don’t know, ” he says. “Decisiveness. I want decisiveness. ” Most students are looking forward to the those things which come in pretty, wrapped packages. Junior geology major Lisa Falquist says she needs a computer for word processing. She also thinks hiking boots would be nice. “I’m in geology, so I’m going to need them, ” she says. Falquist says she would also like a Walkman portable stereo since she finds that her job reshelving books in the Sterling C. Evans Library can be boring sometimes. Junior computer science major Dan Schmitt wants new seat covers to replace the ones stolen from his car. Beth Kirkpatrick, a genetics graduate student, wants a calculator. “Just a plain, old calculator that does scientific junk, ” she says. “This semester killed my last one. ” Kirkpatrick also wants safe air travel during the Christmas break because her family lives in Florida and Kentucky. She says driving is a pain, but she thinks flying has become too dangerous lately. Junior construction science major Steve Knizner wants a leather jacket and some Gotcha paint guns so he and his friends can run around campus and shoot one another. In addition to new scuba equipment, sophomore biology major Ricky Smith wants a method of land travel: “I want probably what everybody else does, ” he says. “Who doesn’t want a new car?” Of course, there’s more to Christmas than receiving, and freshman business major Todd Traylor was one of many Aggies full of the generous holiday spirit. “You mean, besides world peace?” he replied, when asked what he wanted for Christmas. “Snow, we haven’t had snow in years. ” Then he continued rattling items off his list. “I want a helicopter, ” he says. “I’ve asked for a helicopter for four years but my mom says she can’t get one. “I’d also kind of like to see the Smiths get back together, or New Order. I know that’s a terrible thing to ask for Christmas, but... and socks, I need socks...” } ti