Reality Check - December 2009

[Zudane]

Reality Check
Harsh Reality Monthly News

Ack! It's the end of the year! Well, not quite, but this IS the final news of the year. So...

Thanksgiving is over in every country... I'm trying to spruce up the forum, so if you would like to help, we need to settle on a logo and a motto, if you would like to help, please see these topics:

Logo:
viewtopic.php?f=45&t=2350

Motto:
viewtopic.php?f=45&t=2403

Besides that... Christmas is coming soon! (Yay!) and I might throw a gift or two at some of our top contributors. But otherwise the forum has been EXTREMELY dead, though I can't complain much because I haven't even posted much.

So, Merry Hanukkah and Happy Christmas! Oh, and a Festive New Year! (Don't forget to start planning your resolutions!)

[Zudane]

Facts and figures:

As of this post, these are the current figures for the forum:

• Member count: 135
• Total Image count: 104
• Total post count: 23677
• Total topic count: 2272

Top three forums by post count:
1) Games Room (6645)
2) Common Room (6313)
3) Pictures and Videos (2030)

Top three forums by topic count:
1) Common Room (656)
2) Pictures and Videos (348) (yay, one new topic!)
3) Showcase (291) *request forum not included

And lastly, a few important topics and notes about the forum:
Forum Rules
Forum Guide and FAQ
Information on disabling the censor
Forum Yellow pages (links to important threads)
Image links for the forum (use banners/signatures to advertise!)

Spotlight
This month... we shall spotlight...
SANTA!


Countless years of breaking and entering, stalking, and letting a creepy old guy that watches you near your children... and never gotten caught.

Good job old timer!

[Zudane]

Editorials

Here is a selection of editorials for your perusal. If you would like to contribute an article for an edition of the news, feel free to contact me. And if you disagree with anything here and want your own view of the topic published, feel free to send me that as well.
--------------------------------------------------------

Welcome to...

DR. APRICOT'S RANDOM KORNER

Dr. Apricot has been shipped to the North Pole. I am still expecting his letter for the Random Korner... but I'm not sure if the elves know where to send it. If I do receive it, I will post it here and let you know!

Disclaimer: Harsh Reality holds no responsibility for the accuracy of information given in this post

--------------------------------------------------------

And lastly... some notes about Christmas!

Santa Claus is not just a fictional character... though he's not a jolly old fat guy in a red suit. Children (and adults) used to leave shoes sitting outside their door (keeps dirt and what not outside). During a time of famine in the winter (It was a Dutch country (I forget which one though)) there was a man that went around town putting food into these shoes at night, it wasn't candy - but when you're not getting much food anything is a goodie. He was Nicolas Klaus. Praised as a Saint he was known as Saint Nicolas (Saint Nick), Saint Klaus (saint in Spanish is Santa - so Santa Klaus (later changed to Claus)).
-- Watch the claymation movie about it, it's similar - but a bit more fantasized.

• Since the 1930's, Hollywood Boulevard has officially been renamed Santa Claus Lane during the parade.
  
• Christmas has only been an official holiday in America for about 150 years. Alabama was the first to officially recognize it in 1836 and Oklahoma didn't recognize it until 1905.
  
• Christmas trees remove dust and pollen from the air.
  
• In 2002, 21% of United States households had a real tree, 48% had an artificial tree and 32% had no tree.
  
• An acre of Christmas trees provides for the daily oxygen requirements of 18 people.
  
• Christmas trees are grown in all 50 states including Hawaii and Alaska.
  
• Tinsel contained lead at one time, and was banned by the government.
  
• If you send your Santa letter addressed to North Pole, then the letter will actually go to the North Pole, since the place exists.
  
• Santa Claus is dressed in red because Coca Cola changed it for an advertising campaign. Before that, his suit was green.
  
• According to a 1995 survey, 7 out of 10 British dogs get Christmas gifts from their doting owners.
  
• According to historical accounts, the first Christmas in the Philippines was celebrated 200 years before Ferdinand Magellan discovered the country for the western world, likely between the years 1280 and 1320 AD.
  
• Christmas trees are edible. Many parts of pines, spruces, and firs can be eaten. The needles are a good source of vitamin C. Pine nuts, or pine cones, are also a good source of nutrition.
  
• Christmas was once a moveable feast celebrated at many different times during the year. The choice of December 25, was made by Pope Julius I, in the 4th century A.D., because this coincided with the pagan rituals of Winter Solstice, or Return of the Sun. The intent was to replace the pagan celebration with the Christian one.
  
• During the ancient 12-day Christmas celebration, the log burned was called the "Yule log." Sometimes a piece of the Yule log would be kept to kindle the fire the following winter, to ensure that the good luck carried on from year to year. The Yule log custom was handed down from the Druids.
  
• In Britain, the Holy Days and Fasting Days Act of 1551, which has not yet been repealed, states that every citizen must attend a Christian church service on Christmas Day, and must not use any kind of vehicle to get to the service.
  
• The story of Santa Claus changed when Samuel Clemmens (also known as Mark Twain) wrote the story that gave Santa his flying reindeer.

*for more facts about Christmas, see this thread:
viewtopic.php?f=8&t=2401

**Special thanks for Dark Rayne for posting so many facts.

***Eating your Christmas tree is not recommended, as it may contain potentially fatal chemicals.

[Dark_Rayne9]

Oh you sneaky little ****! That facts thread had a purpose. Haha.

And I love the new festive layout!

[Zudane]

It didn't have a purpose for the start... I just figured I'd throw it in after.

And thanks, I had to work on it for a while. I figure the new theme I make will be similarly styled (prosilver vs subsilver2) because it's list based not table based, so the thing should load easier (plus I won't have the images around every box).