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Another day, another circus
What a lot of blathering went on at a recent House tourism committee hearing called to chew fat about the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum and its nonprofit foundation, which is threatening to sell Abe’s stuff unless the state writes a check.

What does it mean to be patriotic?
I don’t entirely buy this distinction, at least when it comes to partisan labels. I’ve known plenty of Democrats who consider it patriotic to honor the flag, the military and the Pledge. And I’ve known a lot of Republicans who value our democratic traditions.

The AgriCULTURE attitude
Not even half of the 100 or so Mayflower Pilgrims and crew who’d arrived at Plymouth Rock the previous December survived their first grim year in the New World. Still, to celebrate and offer thanks for their survival, the English migrants planned a communal meal following the fall harvest.

LETTERS
CAPITAL TOWNSHIP SHOULD GO TO CITY, NOT COUNTY Capital Township Supervisor Tom Cavanagh called it a “no-brainer” that the township should merge with Sangamon County after a large majority voted yes on the township’s advisory referendum on that question in the November election.

CRACKED
Take winter, for instance. In August, when sunshine was cheap and the city council, alarmed that an out-of-town outfit had underbid local contractors by more than $80,000, delayed a vote on a $364,000 crack-sealing contract for Chatham Road.

Familiar faces in mayoral race
In 2007, incumbent Tim Davlin shellacked Bruce Strom, who got less than 40 percent of the vote, both in the primary and the general election. In 2011, seven mayoral candidates crowded the primary ballot; in 2015, there were five.

DRINK PERRIER
Well, maybe not doomed, but nonetheless in a heap of trouble, thanks to a heap of coal ash from the city’s power plant that’s built up next to Lake Springfield.

Holiday events calendar
It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.

Celebrate the holidays German-style
The sizzle of sausages perking up your ears, the aroma of roasted nuts tickling your nostrils, the strudel melting in your mouth and the hotspiced wine warming your insides can transport your senses to the holidays in Germany. But you can experience the joys of Christkindlmarkt right here in Illinois.

The Pharmacy gallery heads downtown
The Pharmacy’s new location is at 623 E. Adams, on the same block currently playing home to downtown Springfield mainstays Recycled Records and The Cardologist. The move comes after four fruitful years at 711 S. Fifth St., in a unique building on the property of the Jack Stoldt Auto Services Center.

Black garlic
My next project was celery vinegar. Aside from problems with the stringy celery clogging up the juicer, the fermentation went well, and at day 10 all the alcohol taste had vanished and the resultant vinegar retained the taste of fresh celery. It is fragrant and bright tasting.

Creed II: Focuses on wrong fight
Now the light heavyweight champion, Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan) is living the dream. He’s just married his girlfriend, Bianca (Tessa Thompson), and they have a child on the way.

Hello to December music
Thursday is shaping up to be a full night this week, which is not always the case but always welcome. The Curve Inn hosts a roots music night (replacing the Americana night) with Kate Laine, The Deep Hollow and Wayward Motel being your source of roots music for the evening.

PUB CRAWL
Captain Geech and the Shrimp Shack Shooters.

BAND SPOTLIGHT | Reed Brothers
Up from the Lone Star State, San Antonio brothers Kyle and Keegan bring a mashup of Americana, blues and Southern rock styles into a mixture that is all Reed Brothers, all the time.

HOLIDAY HAPPENINGS | A classic holiday tradition
On Saturday, Dec. 1 from 12-4 p.m., families are invited to attend a gingerbread house decorating session at the Springfield Art Association. This is a great opportunity to partake in a classic holiday tradition by decorating a prebuilt gingerbread house with icing and candy without making a mess in your own home.

THE CALENDAR
Capital Area Concert Band Christmas Concert.

THEATER & COMEDY | Bah, humbug!
Warm your heart this holiday season by taking in the Springfield Theatre Centre’s musical adaptation of Charles Dickens’ most-loved story. With music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, A Christmas Carol: The Musical is the tale of Ebenezer Scrooge, a prosperous curmudgeon who values personal wealth above the happiness and comfort of others.

HOLIDAY HAPPENINGS | Holidays at the Henson Robinson Zoo
Enjoy the splendor of hundreds of colorful twinkling holiday lights as you leisurely stroll the pathways of the Springfield Park District’s Henson Robinson Zoo during the Winterland Holiday Zoo Lights event.