New moon: In Sagitarrius, Wednesday, Dec. 16
Full moon: In Gemini, Wednesday, Dec. 2
Astrological sign: Sagittarius, Nov. 22 to Dec. 21; Capricorn, Dec. 22 to Jan. 19
Gem stone: Turquoise, blue topaz, tanzanite
Flower: Narcissus
Harvard history snippet:
“On occasion [in the late 1700s] individuals or families moving into Harvard would threaten to become a burden to the town. With these people the town was not so generous, and had an instrument for dealing with them—the institution of ‘warning out.’ Under Massachusetts law, a town had to provide relief to any person demanding it, provided that person had resided in town for six months without being asked to leave. If the selectmen learned of a recent arrival who might be in need of support, they would send the constable to warn this person out of town. In most cases those so warned did not leave town, but the formal action of the selectmen protected the town’s treasury from drainage in this direction.”
—from Directions of a Town, by Robert C. Anderson (1976)
Household tips:
- When washing windows, use vertical strokes outside and horizontal inside, so you can tell which side has the streaks.
- To remove caked-on splatters from the inside of the microwave, place a water-soaked sponge in the microwave and cook on the highest setting for two minutes. Let sit for five more minutes. The spills should wipe up easily.
Going green:
- Replace old holiday lights with LED holiday lights. LEDs use as little as 1/160th the energy of traditional lights, and look just as festive.
- Avoid buying traditional single-use wrapping paper for holiday gifts. Instead, use newspaper, old maps, or something that might be part of the gift, such as towels or shirts. Use colorful raffia to tie packages instead of ribbon.
- Replace single-use batteries with rechargeables.
What to do in the garden:
- Attract birds to garden areas where pests are known to be a problem by hanging suet or bird-seed blocks.
- Kick back and relax—seed catalogues will arrive, and garden planning will start, in one short month.
Thought for the month:
“In cold December fragrant chaplets blow,
And heavy harvests nod beneath the snow.”
—Alexander Pope, English poet, (1688–1744), The Dunciad
Do you have an almanac tidbit you’d like to share? E-mail to editor@harvardpress.com.