A holiday tradition as beloved as fruitcake

Published 7:59 pm Monday, November 29, 2010

An investment advice company has updated its price index for the gifts enumerated in “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” reporting a nearly 11 percent increase to $96,824 for the whole package from partridge and pear tree to the dozen drummers drumming.

Spending $96,824 on a Christmas gift sounds like a lot, but here’s your chance to open a petting zoo and performing arts studio.

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Poke in the eye: The latest WikiLeaks release of U.S. diplomatic cables, including less-than-flattering comments about world leaders, has the Obama administration considering changes in how it handles sensitive documents.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has ordered all members of the diplomatic corps to change their security settings on Facebook to allow only family and friends to see their posts.

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Bless the beasts: St. Philip’s Episcopal Church in Marysville is providing sanctuary to a honeybee colony that built its hive beneath the church eaves.

The bees may not be the only animal visitor this winter. When word gets out about the church’s honey source, we expect St. Philip’s will get a visit from Gladly, the cross-eyed bear.