December 2013 COUNTRY LIVING ADULT DAY CENTER 5622 DELMAR * ST. LOUIS, MO * 63112 DECEMBER BIRTHDAYS Mr. Hamilton December 16th DECEMBER ACTIVITIES Shopping Trip December 6th December 12th Sensory Stimulation Jerry, 1st place winner of Let’s Make a Deal Costume Contest. December 20 Annual Christmas Party On October 31st, CLADC celebrated by playing Let’s Make a Deal! Part of the activities of the day was a costume contest for the participants. Pictured above is our 1st place winner Mr. Jerry, as the Planter’s Peanut man. Jerry spent a lot of time with the assistance of Mrs. Sarah, who is our Arts and Crafts teacher, making his costume. We would like to congratulate Jerry, all of his time and effort really paid off! December 2013 Almost Time to Time Travel The idea of a time machine has long captured the imagination of storytellers. Hindu mythology speaks of a king who ventures to heaven and upon his return to earth finds that thousands of years have passed. A Japanese tale from the year 720 tells of a man who is transported 300 years into the future. In Charles Dickens’ famous novel A Christmas Carol, the despicable Ebenezer Scrooge visits Christmases past, present, and future. Time travel is not just a fascination for artists. Stephen Hawking, the noted scientist, believes that time travel is possible. It has to do with speed, and not just any speed, but the speed of light, the fastest speed in the universe. When things travel at or near this speed, they travel slower through time. If you boarded a train travelling at the speed of light for one week, the rest of the world would have travelled 100 years. In this sense, you would step off the train having traveled 100 years into the future. Amazingly, experiments of this kind are being conducted at a giant underground laboratory in Switzerland known as CERN. Scientists are shooting tiny atomic particles so fast that they are living long after they should have disintegrated. They are travelling into the future. Hawking himself admits that he would prefer the past to the future, visiting Marilyn Monroe or Galileo. On December 8, Pretend to Be a Time Traveler Day, you too can imagine where (or when) you’d like to visit. Do you want to visit the age of the dinosaurs or watch the pyramids be built? Would you rather see the future? It is interesting to think about how your ancestors may remember you. It is even more interesting to think about a time when we could perhaps visit aliens in outer space. According to Stephen Hawking, we may not have to pretend much longer. Someday, December 8 may just be called Be a Time Traveler Day. CLADC Annual Christmas Party On Friday December 20, 2013, CLADC will have their annual Christmas party. This is an event you don’t want to miss! There will be games, food, prizes and fun! Please RSVP by December 6th, 2013 if you plan to be a guest of your loved one by returning the form that was sent home, or by calling Mrs. Courtney at 314.361.7778. RSVP is a must as seats are limited this year. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the center for more information. Hope to see you there! . Mrs. Mary as a Butterfly CLADC staff member Mrs. Mary was our 1st place winner in our Let’s Make a Deal Costume contest for the staff! Congratulations Mary! December 2013 Train Your Brain December Scripture Don’t forget these dates: November 30–December 2. On this weekend, competitors from 24 countries will compete in London, England, in the World Memory Championships, the ultimate test of memory and the mind. Are you prepared for Christmas? Not prepared financially, but spiritually. Just as you prepare for Christmas by decorating and gift buying, also prepare your hearts to celebrate the greatest gift possible. The birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Memory championships are a component of a larger group of mind sports co-founded by author and mind researcher Tony Buzan. Perhaps it comes as no surprise that Buzan’s co-founder, Raymond Keene, is a chess Grandmaster, that being the highest title a professional chess player can obtain. These two men pioneered the belief that if there are sporting events that require physical skills, then why are there not equal events that require mental skills? Mind sports are far more than board games and parlor tricks. Sure contestants square off against each other in popular games such as backgammon, bridge, chess, checkers, cribbage, poker, and even board games like Othello and Stratego. However, the ante is upped during the Memory Championships where contestants must speedily memorize and recall facts and figures: match a hundred names and faces, regurgitate a single number with 2,000 digits memorized in minutes, identify historic dates, speed read, and recite poems. Memory champions claim that their memories are no better than anyone else’s. The only difference is that they have trained their memories through years of practice. It seems that a current trend in memory exerise is playing video games. Recent research has shown that when people in their 60s, 70s, and 80s play video games, they can strenghten their memory, multitasking abilities, and attention span. Whatever the method, it certainly seems worthwhile to train both your body and your brain. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace Isaiah 9:6 Cold Hard Facts On December 1, 1959, twelve countries signed the Antarctic Treaty, which proclaimed that all countries would use the land of Antarctica for peaceful purposes only. Any and all scientific discoveries must be shared and used in a spirit of cooperation. Since 1959, the number of countries to sign the treaty has grown to 50. Many significant discoveries have been made on Earth’s coldest continent. Research has detected the rise of global carbon dioxide levels, which contributes to global warming. Scientists have discovered fossils of plants, animals, and dinosaurs, as well as four new species of fish. This treaty has helped warm the spirit of international cooperation. Postage Information Country Living Adult Day Center 5622 Delmar Blvd. St. Louis, MO 63112 Your Mailing Address Street Number and Name City, State ZIP Code Directions Christmas Gingerbread Man Ingredients 1/2 cup shortening 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 cup molasses 1 Eggland's Best Egg 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon ground cloves 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1. In a large bowl, cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in molasses and egg. Combine the dry ingredients; add to creamed mixture and mix well (dough will be soft). Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle. 2. On a lightly floured surface, roll out to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with floured 2-1/2-in. cookie cutters and place on greased baking sheets. 3. Bake at 350° for 8-10 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool. Yield: 4-1/2 dozen