Page 1

Abraham Lincoln, the father of Thanksgiving
The idea of a thanksgiving was nothing new. On Oct. 3, 1789, George Washington had issued a proclamation for a day of thanksgiving, scheduled for Nov. 26 of that year. It had been celebrated on various days throughout the nation, as many states had their own designations.

What they had to do
Thanksgiving is the time of year when some white people serve up a heapin’ dish of guilt. The season reminds us all of the circumstances of the founding of the nation, when it was the white people who were the takers, the generosity of the native...

.

McDonald’s: Low-Paid Workers, High-Flying Execs
He was CEO of the hamburger behemoth, McDonald’s, pulling down a hefty $8.8 million in pay. Last year, though, Skinner retired, and, rather than getting a gold watch, he was given a load of gold – so large that even a Brink’s armored truck would have been too small to haul it all away.

LETTERS
Sure, kids do a lot of playing while at the Play Museum, but docents (mostly volunteers) strive to point out to children, for example, digging in the fossil pit that this is what archaeologists do.

.

.

Unions mull endorsement options
Some union honchos are looking at endorsing a candidate in the Republican primary. State Sen. Kirk Dillard, for instance, already has strong support from the Operating Engineers, a union that is now even more opposed to Rauner since the candidate’s endorsement by the strongly antiunion Associated Builders and Contractors group.

EQUALITY CITY
With same-sex marriage becoming law in Illinois on June 1, 2014, LGBT folks in Illinois have had a good year. But a recent report from the Human Rights Campaign shows plenty of work remains to be done at the local level in the name of equality.

Clash over fracking rules
The extraction method, known as hydraulic fracturing or simply “fracking,” has been used for decades, but has been updated to inject far more water, sand and chemicals deeper underground than before.

.

.

Hat trick
Who else donned a cowboy hat and Wranglers on Halloween to go trick-ortreating as one the biggest stars in country music? When tickets went on sale for Paisley’s concert last week at the Prairie Capital Convention Center, Andrea Lynch, Timmy’s mother, bought a pair as quickly as she could.

.

Grocery stores galore
The city, including “island” municipalities such as Jerome, is now home to at least 21 supermarkets, and that’s not counting small stores such as Food Fantasies or Country Market on Wabash Avenue.

.

.

.

An art guide to Indy
Indianapolis is known for the Pacers, the Colts and the Indy 500, but this heartland city has much more to offer. Indy has a wonderful mix of cultural treasures such as the Indianapolis Museum of Art, now hosting a special Matisse exhibition.

.

Holiday events
Each week throughout the season, fi nd fun holiday activities here..

Elevate their photo game
For everyday use, smartphones are tough to beat. They have full-featured cameras, large, high-resolution displays, and fun apps for editing and sharing photos.

.

.

.

PlayStation & Xbox: The next generation
The PS4’s controller, the DualShock 4, evolved more over its predecessor than the Xbox One controller did from the Xbox 360’s. Yet, Xbox fans will argue that Microsoft got it right the first time around. The DualShock 4 designers changed the back surface, analog buttons and triggers for better grip.

.

.

Turkey tales
Food-centric periodicals don’t typically devote much space to leftovers – but turkey is an exception, no doubt because, well, there’s often a lot left over. Fortunately, cooked turkey, much like cooked chicken, lends itself well to many dishes. One of my favorites is a recipe I developed years ago: curried turkey salad with dried cranberries.

.

McConaughey, Leto shine
Very little was known about HIV or AIDS in 1985 when Ron Woodroof was diagnosed as having contracted the virus.

.

BAND SPOTLIGHT | Whiskey Medicine
Ready for a shot of good music that will knock you for a loop like a good blast of decent whiskey? Welcome the high-energy sounds of Whiskey Medicine to the Springfield scene as band mates Heather Mundhenke, Mike Webb, Tim Bahn, Kevin Mundhenke,...

PUB CRAWL
Josh Catalano & the Dirty Thoughts, Boon, Go! Tsunami, Jukebox Casanova.

.

.

.

Thanks for Thanksgiving
The one thing we often forget to be thankful for at Thanksgiving is the holiday itself. That may sound silly or redundant, but that one little day on the fourth Thursday in November, set aside by governmental regulation for the entire country to give...

.

THE CALENDAR
Morriseey, educator and fi ction writer. $10-$5. Register vachellindsay@.

ART | Own it
University of Illinois Springfield Visual Arts Gallery will hold its annual Silent Auction Benefit Dec. 2-12. This is a great opportunity to support art programming at UIS while acquiring extraordinary art for a steal of a price.

.

.

.

MUSIC | Holiday hymn
The Blessed Sacrament choirs will present an Advent Concert on Sunday, Dec. 1, at 4 p.m. The concert will include all of the Blessed Sacrament choirs, professional woman’s ensemble Seraphim (pictured) and other singers from the community. The orchestra will include several members of the Illinois Symphony Orchestra.

.

.

HOLIDAY | Downtown adornment
Downtown Springfield, Inc. presents its Old Capitol Holiday Walks on Thursdays through Christmas, plus a kickoff date on Wednesday, Dec. 4. Mayor Mike Houston will light the holiday tree at 5:30 p.m. on the Old State Capitol Plaza at the corner of Sixth and Adams streets and there will be holiday music.

.

.

MUSIC | Select seasonal sounds
The stunning harmony of California ensemble Venice comes to The Legacy Theater Thursday, Dec. 5. Mixing the sounds of 70s rock ’n’ roll with the storytelling of James Taylor and harmonies reminiscent of the Eagles, this guy group will move you with their Christmas music and some of their own music, including material from their new album.

.

.