Episode 43 - Santa Claus

Welcome to episode 43

of Let's Talk Claremont. And as I'm sure you've noticed from the intro music,

I've my Christmas spirit continues to remain high, and it is even higher,

because we have a very special interview today.

And we're gonna do things a little bit different today. Normally, you know, we talk about the news and talk about value for value and donating and all that stuff.

I'm not gonna do that in the intro today. We're gonna save that for after the interview. So if you wanna hear the news, stick around for after the interview, and we'll go over news and events. And I'll give you the whole value for value pitch and all that stuff.

But because today,

we are talking to the one and the only,

Santa Claus. It took me

honestly, it was pretty hard getting him.

You know, it's it's a very, very busy time of year for Santa.

Thankfully, he was very, very generous with his time, and we get into all kinds of stuff. We talk about how to stay off that naughty list. We talk about

what it's like preparing for the big night and flying around the world and giving gifts to everybody.

Talk about the Christmas spirit. Talk about his favorite cookies,

which

I don't mean to brag, but Santa and I share a favorite cookie. He also loves all cookies, but

he has in my opinion, he has a very, very good taste in cookies. So like I said, I don't wanna talk too much before we get into the interview because,

frankly, it's just a special interview.

So with all of that said, let's just get right into it, and I really hope you enjoy this interview with Santa Claus.

I will start,

frankly, what is a very special interview for me and for hopefully a lot of people, like I do all of my interviews and just ask you who you are and what you do.

Well, my name is Adam Claus, and I am from the North Pole.

And, basically, we do delivery of Christmas spirit and,

otherwise, the gifts of the season.

So

it's a really busy time for you. I know. So I really do appreciate you sitting down with me and taking the time. How has preparation for for Christmas been this year? Has it been going smoothly? It's been smooth. We had a little benefit,

in your general area in the Midwest. We had some great snow, which makes it a lot easier for everybody to get around from

up north. Yeah. But,

all of our helpers have been very, very,

excited about Christmas this season,

and that translates

to,

adrenaline and adrenaline

translates to getting the work done. So, yeah, we've had a really great start. Yeah. The elves aren't too too strung out or

or tired. We don't get strung out or tired. Most of us, all elves, I'm technically an elf.

All elves feed on adrenaline, and so they get excited. When you get excited, that energy multiplies. It's kind of like love. Yeah. It doesn't diminish when there's more of it, does it?

No. I don't believe so. That's right.

So how has how has Christmas spirit been this year? Have you found people are generally in a good mood? I think people are are drawn more to Christmas spirit this year than than many years in the past.

There's a lot of uncertainty with some people Mhmm.

For their own reasons, and and I can understand that. But,

one of the things that's constant is,

on Christmas Eve,

I will show up. Mhmm. And that's comforting.

I think it is. It comforts me. It absolutely comforts me. Yeah. And I'm 40, and it still comforts me.

Just to know that you're out there giving gifts to people. I'm a little bit older than you. It's comforting for me as well.

So I think and this is something when I was a kid, I definitely wanted to ask Santa. Sure. How do I stay on the nice list, and how do I stay off that naughty list? You know, boys and girls worry about that a lot. And, you're not alone.

And I guess it's because sometimes,

they're in the process of being a child.

The children are gonna make mistakes. And

Christmas is about unconditional love. Mhmm. And the thought that they'd be on the naughty list

is conditional.

Mhmm. So for most children,

it's,

you know, I I do things and, not with malicious intent,

but will that will that take away that unconditional love? And that's on a deep level, on a more surface level.

They wanna know if little things they did would put them on a naughty list. And I always ask,

is there something you're thinking about

that you're worried might put you on the naughty list?

And they'll say yes. And I said, well, you know what? Maybe you shouldn't do that.

And that's, you know, it's just, checking your own behavior is

is something children are capable of. If you direct them to think about it. Mhmm. And,

we've met, so far this year, we've met lots of children,

in our our community work Mhmm. And

reached out to them and to a person. They have just all been

sweet souls, and I looked deep into their

hearts, and they're all on the nice list.

That's good to hear. That'll absolutely make my daughter feel better. Oh, well, now her. That's another story.

Yeah. Actually, that's a good point. That'd be good. Oh, I I do tell,

parents that,

ask yourself when when the child is

not listening,

or not cleaning up or not doing what you're asking them to do. Ask them why why haven't you done that? And and I forgot. That's honest. Oh, yeah. When you're a child and you're focused on something,

you have 100%

attention poured in one direction. Mhmm. And you may say, come in here three times.

And they literally did not hear you because they're hyper focused.

And,

the add has brought attention to that, but we all have a little bit of that hyperfocus when we're learning something new. Yeah. And when you're a child,

pretty much everything's new. Absolutely. Right. So sometimes I wish I had you know, you describe it like that. Sometimes I wish I had that focus. I'm gonna look at my daughter a little different. It's it's a superpower. Power. The the the what they call attention deficit is really

attention, focus, and readiness.

So if something more stimulating comes into the purview Mhmm. They will be drawn to that. And,

that's a survival skill that some of us have and some of us don't.

Yeah.

Yeah. So you visit lots of kids and listen to lots of kids across the county. How are how are kids across the county doing? Are they are they generally on the nice list? Would you say, well, generally they're all, they're all very nice.

They're all very excited about Christmas.

A lot of them are, are, eagerly

wanting to do good things.

What do you want for Christmas? And, and I'm getting a good number of, I just want people to be happy. I want my family to be together.

I want to spend time playing games with my friends,

those kinds of things. And in addition to,

squishmallows and Yeah. Yeah.

Lububoos and all the things that the toy makers,

manufacture with names that are hard for Santa to comprehend. But

we're up on it. We're ready. We're totally ready for Christmas this year. We've we did a survey of all the toys with,

a good team of crack elves. And boy, I tell you what, there's a lot of fun things out there. Yeah.

But everybody wants something with a remote control. Really? You know, I'm surprised a remote control plate of cookies for crying out loud.

And so if I were you, I'd invest in batteries.

So So there's a tip for all the parents out there. Invest in batteries. Oh, yes.

It's a booming business.

So I I do wanna ask you about the toys that you're being asked about a lot this year. But what are some of the things because you mentioned it before. Like, what are some more of the just heartfelt things that not toys or anything that kids ask you about pretty regularly?

Well,

children,

will ask about lots of things.

Some children ask about,

Christ. Mhmm. And,

I had a child the other day said,

my dad says you and Jesus are brothers.

And I I had to say, well, technically, he's not correct, but we both have epic beards. Yeah. And,

and I said, but, you know, Christ is the reason for the season. And,

I think if you can

move out 2005,

and five twenty five years,

you realize that the Christian ethic is about unconditional love. It's about loving your neighbor. And so Christmas is about that. In that sense, we are brothers. Mhmm. We believe that, you have to find the good in people. Mhmm. And we have to,

remember to feed the good in ourselves

and be

that promise.

And,

it's hard to believe there was a time when people,

that was a

revolutionary

thought that changed the world, but it is and it does. And,

now our job is to love our neighbor and and find it in ourselves to bring out our best selves. Yeah.

That's wonderful. So that's a good question they ask. They also ask,

is my brother on the naughty list?

Had somebody yesterday

asked me,

they named a kid by name, which I won't do.

But they said, he's in our class, and he sticks a pencil up his nose and chases girls around. Is he on the naughty list?

Now he's just a boy. I said, yeah. He's he's on a list. It's not the naughty list. But,

so you hear some fun stuff like that. And,

but they're all concerned. And,

Santa's been, kind of the scapegoat here where parents are trying to elicit

better behavior, and they'll say, well, you know, Santa, I can call him. And,

and,

so I'm I'm aware of that. I think all parents,

need a little leverage this time of year. Again, that adrenaline is high. Mhmm. And trying to direct that, in a positive way, sometimes you need to call out the Santa Claus card. Yeah. And I call out the Santa Claus card. Yeah. And I'll definitely be telling her that I talked to you today. So Well, there you go. That's great. You know, she she is very sweet.

I'll tell you what we know. Would you like to know our intel from the North Pole? Oh, yeah. I'd love to know. Yeah. So so she's very sweet, and she's got a kind heart. Good.

And I know she loves art, and I suggest you encourage that because she is she has a a sense about those things, a gentle sense about those things. She also loves nature and animals. And,

that's near to my heart because, one of our mottos at the North Pole is to bless the beast and the children

and,

because they need us. Yeah. They need us to show them the way. Mhmm.

So at Christmas time, what better time to show them the way, but in this wonderful cell oh,

you hear that? Yeah. You're getting a are you getting a call from the elves? No. That means somebody's on the nice list.

Oh my gosh. The nice meter went off right here in our blog. How about that? That's perfect. Yeah.

I have to talk. Can you excuse me one Oh, absolutely. Mister Ralph, we need to turn off the nice meter. Would you yeah. Yes. I appreciate that. Thank you. Sorry about that. No. That's fine. It's good to know there's another on the nice list. Well, it really goes off all day long. It's just when somebody's really crossed over, and I have to explain. The nice list is where the vast majority of people are. Certainly. There are

people who are dark Mhmm.

Who

are sinister

Mhmm.

Maybe use the word

evil. Mhmm.

And it's very rare

for one of them to change their ways. Mhmm. And it's sad,

because as much as we'd like to think they would. See?

There's another one. I'm telling you.

Hello, mister Elf. I need to call you back in just a moment, please. Thank you.

So,

Easy. You got a very dedicated elf there. Oh, oh, yeah. They they I I'm sure he wants to celebrate. They get so excited when somebody makes the crossover from the naughty list.

And,

but what I was saying is it's difficult to do because if you've,

spent your life being naughty Mhmm. And that's how you get your needs met,

It's hard to trust people

to fulfill your needs by being nice. Yeah. So That's unfortunate. Yeah. Yeah. That is that's just the way the world works. Yeah. So

So if we can talk toys,

what kind of toys have you been hearing about this year?

Well, you know, I hear about these Labooboo, which I think are really,

funny names. But Squishmallows

was a a funny name too, and Hatchibals was a good name. Hatchibals. I haven't heard of those. Well, you know, you're not in the business. I'm not. But, the the the the standards keep coming back again and again and again. So the standards are, American Girl dolls. Okay. Big, big thing. Those are still those are still pretty Oh, very popular. Okay.

Barbie dolls and Barbie dream house. Mhmm.

Legos. Mhmm.

There's, a whole cadre of children who,

have very,

analytical

creative minds who like science things like,

telescopes or microscopes or who are interested now in robotics.

Yeah. And so that's exciting for us because we know that,

if if they really are good at those kinds of things,

and, they want to, they can always,

interview, for a job at the North Pole. Oh, yeah. They gotta get a four year degree first. So Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I imagine

robotics is and electronics

is in high demand now. Oh, it is. Hundred, two hundred, 300 ago, it was probably just wood and It was a lot of wood. A lot of wood. Yeah. I was cleaning sawdust out of my beard all day long. It was Now you're cleaning solder out of it. Yeah. Well, that's right. That's right. And, that's kinda dangerous, that's all. Yeah.

You could send your beard. Before I forget, I

I wanna ask you as a fellow

person with a beard,

how do you keep your beard so nice? Well, you know, I noticed you got a kind of an epic beard, kind of a grizzly Adams look. And and,

you know, the beard is, it takes care of itself.

We're very close to nature at the North Pole,

and it's very cold. So,

we have to bring in,

some of our own animals because the only

indigenous animals within the Arctic Circle are polar bear and seal and and of course, reindeer. Mhmm. And so, we at the North Pole have a sanctuary,

and we have birds and

chipmunks and mice and all those little creatures. And,

usually after I eat, bluebirds particularly like eating crumbs out of my beard. Yeah. So that helps a lot. So I need to find some birds to help clean my beard out. Yeah. You gotta find something.

Fair enough. Fair enough. I I like to think it's coming in. It'll be Yeah. Well, you know, I noticed you get a little white coming in. So, you know I do. I do.

Kids may mistake you for Sunday. You've got a jolly good laugh. Well, thank you. You're welcome.

So can you walk me through what it's like preparing for the big night Christmas Eve? Oh my goodness. Well, you know, we,

we get started.

And,

we start, we take Christmas day off at the North Pole. Mhmm. And everybody just,

relaxes

and,

enjoys

the benefits of the day. I sometimes I'll bring some cookies home. Missus Claus says, what are the cookies like? So I've been bringing cookies home for her last several decades.

And, we all sit around and have a nice meal and and talk about all the wonderful things we've experienced. And

and then we,

then we

next morning, the twenty sixth, you, you call it Boxing Day here. On a boxing day, we start boxing up stuff again. We're we're in production.

And, the first production are the standards. We always do those. And then as the year progresses,

there are toys that are new and toys that children want. And,

we start we start including those in. And,

by about,

probably by about the the first of, February,

we're in full production. So it takes you It's nonstop. The whole year just Oh, yeah. Yeah. We we're we're I guess toys for the world that you'd have to work hard. We worked, twenty four seven and March

with Christmas day off,

and, the elves are eager to do it.

I've had to put in some some rules because,

they just don't wanna sleep. They just love doing it. And, you can only run so long on cookies. Yeah. Oh, yeah. So I know I've tried before. We all have.

By the way, I wanna thank you, and your wife for bringing me these wonderful gingerbread cookies. Oh, you're very welcome. Well, I'd I'd said on the podcast, I you're the only guest that ever asked to be paid for a for an interview, but, fortunately,

you only wanted cookies. Alright.

And that's a that's a very easy price to pay. That's right. These are really,

really good.

So how, how are the reindeer doing? Are they in good spirits? You know, the reindeer boys and girls,

ask a lot about the reindeer. And

on Christmas Eve,

many of them have spotted Rudolph's nose as I, depart,

from house to house to house. Mhmm. We only fly about a 100 feet up in the air. Oh, I didn't know that. I thought you'd be higher. No. You know, the air gets thin. Yeah. It's hard on the reindeer's lungs,

and it's just it's just extra time. Yeah. You think about it, when you're on a plane,

you're flying from here to wherever,

and it seems like the last descent

takes forever. And and so we don't wanna be up too high. We wanna be able to hit and go and hit and go.

And,

so we we're only about a 100 feet up in the sleigh. Okay. Yeah.

So but the reindeer are great, you know? And, everybody knows about Rudolph. He's the big rock star, but, you know, all these girls do a wonderful job. And, you know, all my reindeer are girls. Most people don't know that. Actually, I don't know if I did know that. Yeah. So, if you if you study reindeer, you know that both male and female,

do have,

antlers. I didn't know that at all.

It's a caribou trait,

and it transfers over to reindeer in the European continent.

In North America, they refer to as caribou. Mhmm. And,

but after the breeding season, the males lose their antlers because they're not competing Mhmm. For the females.

And but after breeding season, the females keep their antlers Really? To protect their children now they're pregnant.

And then they lose theirs after childbirth.

So reindeer that people know are my reindeer that pull the sleigh Yeah. Are actually all girls. And Did they? At all. Girls have been pulling the heavy lifting for a long time. We shouldn't be surprised. Yeah. Sometimes boys take credit for that, don't we? I I do. I know. Well, that brings us to a good point. You know, missus Claus does a lot at the North Pole. She really does.

It wouldn't be Christmas without missus Santa Claus.

You know,

everything is done. The table's set. The candles are lit. The list is checked. The elves are fed.

The reindeer groomed.

She,

make sure that all that gets done. She is the on the ground person, and I'm on the field. I'm you know, I I

would defy anyone to beat me in a slack.

But, boy, she can run a good household at the North Pole, and she does a wonderful job. My wife does the same. There you go. I think we can all be very grateful for Oh, you know, we do. You share that responsibility.

And and,

if if your spouse welcomes that, that's great. We we, we all play our part in a relationship. Sometimes we pull,

fifty fifty duty, and sometimes you pull a 100% while,

your partner needs a break. Yeah. So,

that's what makes a partnership a nice thing. Yeah. Is sometimes

you need to rely on somebody. Absolutely. And it's great that you have missus Claus, and she's in good health and marrying. Missus Claus is fit is a fiddle. She,

she is,

she's a little bit,

younger than me. Yeah.

And so I'm, I think I'm 697

years old, and so that would make her 694.

Yeah. Looks great for that age. I saw her briefly when I was coming in. She looks wonderful. She's, yeah, she's she's Both look great for being that old. Well, she's running around doing her thing, and and,

people think she's, you know, a good twenty years younger than me, but, she's three years younger. Very, very, very, very busy lady.

So you brought up you're 600 and 97 years old. 97 years old.

How do you how have you kept in shape all these years? Because it's gotta be physically taxing to fly around the world and give all these kids gifts. I kinda,

I kinda live a

a good lifestyle. When I was, younger, I,

I ate way too many cookies. And Yeah.

And, you know, you get stuck in a chimney once or twice. You you rethink your whole plan for diet.

With the help of of missus Claus and and with doctor Elf,

I have been, working on being in better shape so I can because there's more and more children.

And we started out. We had a one horse open sleigh Mhmm. Which I'll be glad to show you when you're right there. Yeah. We got to show you. And,

but that's certainly not enough. We've got,

children all over the world, and we've gotta do it in in time that rivals

the speed of light. And,

for a human being to endure that,

you not only have to be in shape, but you have to be supremely blessed. Mhmm. And,

that's a gift I accept openly, and,

it hasn't let me down yet. That's that's so we can expect Santa for many more years now. Oh my goodness. Yes. I I I don't plan on going anywhere.

My namesake,

Saint Nicholas,

was a bringer of gifts. Mhmm.

And,

a bishop

in Turkey. Mhmm. And, Nicholas was an inspiration to all of us

who,

wrap our heads and our hearts

around

the idea of,

Christmas,

which if I I had to sum up, I would say it's unconditional love. You know, there's five ways

to show love, and one of them is gifts. Mhmm. And so Christmas is about gifts and

gifts that mean a lot to people. And what's difficult at Christmas is people feel they have to just find something and give a gift. Yeah.

And most people, if they see something that they think you would like, they'll buy you that gift then. It it didn't wait till Christmas.

So there's where a lot of the anxiety comes is trying to find the perfect gift

at the perfect time, and that doesn't always happen. Yeah.

That's kind of our job at the North Pole. And we we get it most of the time. Sometimes we we miss it. You know, sometimes we don't bring the red rider.

So Yeah. So,

the second thing is,

words of affirmation.

People need to know that you

love them and you need to know that they love you. And that's, I think, why people send cards and people because they want you to to hear

how important you are in their lives. So that's important.

Acts of service, the people that help out in shelters or,

donate clothing.

That's another way,

a gift of unconditional love.

Quality time, the time you spend with your family singing Christmas carols,

that is. And,

the last one is physical touch. And that's why children like Santa.

They may wanna come up and give him a high five or sit on his lap if they like,

or just touch his coat, but, that's the fifth. So there's a lot of ways to show that unconditional love, and they're all present Yeah. In Christmas. Yeah. So that's kinda cool. I think my favorite one of those is spending time

with my family,

especially during Christmas. That's one of the things I love about about Christmas. I I I would say you were in the vast majority. I think people,

God. Don't get me wrong. I like gifts. Oh, yeah. It's always fun to get gifts. I'll do my best. I promise. But, you know, I I think that's where most people are. To be honest with you, it's,

it's hectic. It's hectic. It's hectic. And then,

ah,

it's Christmas. And,

then the kids open the presents. It's hectic again. Yes. It is. But, then the next But you see their faces when they open. Oh, that's wonderful. I don't mind. I I will clean up as much wrapping paper as I need to clean up just to see their faces. Wrapping paper and pine needles. Yeah. Pine needles. They're everywhere. And do you guys have your Christmas tree up? Oh. Or do you have one that's up all the time? Well, the North Pole,

again, most trees don't grow at the North Pole, and we've we've got a sanctuary space there,

because,

we want to, we don't want it to be so stark. Mhmm. You know, when you're an elf and you're working, twenty three and a half hours a day

and going from building to building, if you're actually,

in a, a tundra environment, much like most of Antarctica, That's why we didn't go to Antarctica. Yeah. You know? That's a really rough place. It is rough. The winds there are just exceedingly

And then you'd have to have penguins pull your sleigh. I don't know how it works. That's right.

Yeah. The penguins are are a big crowd there, and we we we really,

we we give a nod to them because they've got their own territory. But Yeah. You know, we're the land of reindeer, polar bear,

and and walrus and seal, and few few narwhals,

you know. Yeah. Few of them. Those are cool animals. They are cool. Yeah.

So, yeah, that that's that's kind of our our deal is,

trying to,

do that family time as when I think about it, seeing their faces when you open their presents,

and they open their presents,

quickly. Mhmm.

But then when you kinda gear down and everybody's piled on the couch and

and watching a Christmas movie and laughing together, that is Baking hot chocolate. Baking hot chocolate. And I know movies are an important part of your history. Oh, yeah. Yeah. I love movies. Yeah. We watch movies with our kids at night, and it's So what's your favorite movie? Christmas movie? My favorite Christmas movie.

You know, I am kinda partial to White Christmas. White Christmas. We were talking about that earlier. Yeah. White Christmas is Christmas. That's it. Well, you know what's nice is it,

for those,

of you that are your age, it gives you an idea of Mhmm. Perhaps what your parents and grandparents,

some of the sacrifices they made Yeah. To keep the world a place,

that we see today. And,

and you see the camaraderie of two men Mhmm. The,

contentiousness of relationships

Mhmm.

And the exuberance of,

dance and song. It's it really is

a a very good feel,

movie and, particularly the

the the tribute that,

I think it's Bing Crosby

makes to his general when he sings,

what do you do with a general when he stops being a general?

And I've,

I've thought of that myself on the slate many times. What do you do with a Santa Claus when he stops being Santa Claus? Yeah. And that's why I'm in such good shape. I don't wanna stop being Santa Claus. Yeah. My other favorite part of White Christmas. I'd I think White Christmas,

it the tribute to the veterans and

but that scene when I think of Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye, they do that sister song. Oh, yes. Oh, I it cracks. My mother loves that movie. Well, you know I love it too. It it's funny how that got in the movie. Did you know that? I don't. So, they were filming the movie and and the Haines sisters,

Vera Allen and Rosemary Clooney,

were dancing Mhmm. And doing that song. And,

it was, probably Danny's idea, but the guys came out

with their boas

and mimic them.

And they said, we need to put this in the movie. Yeah. So, and it is an iconic thing that's in the movie. So,

locally at one of your theaters, they do a, white Christmas preshow. Yeah.

They do it at Kenwood, Marymount, and Esquire.

And, people come dressed up in Christmas clothes, and some people dress, so they bring pink or,

blue flowers. And,

some people,

get dressed up in Christmas sweaters, and it's a wonderful thing. And and so that's a pretty iconic

movie Yeah. For sure. It it's the, and then, of course, it has the greatest,

highest

selling Christmas song of all time. Which one is it? That's white. White Christmas. White Christmas. Of course, it's white Christmas. Yeah. And it it's it was featured in several of the,

of the movies of the era Mhmm. Including White Christmas. Yeah. So,

and and I I as I look out here and look out at the snow and the trees and,

I'm reminded how

snow affects people. What it does is in the bleak of winter,

it puts a clean

coating, and it lets you see the definition of the landscape. Mhmm.

And it hushes the noise

of the landscape,

and it brings a peaceful feeling. And that's

pretty much

perfect Christmas.

Yeah. I absolutely agree. Without a doubt. I'm a huge fan of winter in the snow. Some people think I'm crazy. But So so I need your help with something here. Sure. So I I, I have a really,

good sense

of what children want for Christmas.

A lot of them,

have allowed us to put elves in their home,

little red fellows. And and, of course, we've got certain spies at school because we really that's where some of the misbehavior

does take place at school. I imagine you have an extensive intelligence network. We do. We do. The actually, the CIA has actually,

called us in on a few cases. Oh, really? Oh, yeah. Can you talk about those or is it We can't. We can't. You know, it's kind of, it's kind of like that's a line we're not gonna cross. And that's fair enough. I wouldn't ask you to. But,

at the same time, they don't share much information with us. So,

and then, you know, the government things, you know, it's it's kind of like a separation of church and clause. Yeah. Or or, clause and state. Excuse me. But,

like NORAD. Yeah. And and, of course, the sonar they run to find out where my sleigh is. That's why we another reason why we're down a 100 feet. It's hard to track. Get under yeah. Keep under radar. Yeah. We don't every once in a while, if we're between two big cities, and we need to get up where there's better air because there's turbulence, we we may go up to up to two fifty Mhmm. But not much higher than that. So anyway,

yeah, we,

what what my problem is is,

with moms and dads, sometimes I really don't know. So

I was wondering if you could share with me

what your ideal Christmas gift would be among those five unconditional ways to show love your idea.

Honestly, my ideal,

and

hopefully it will come true this year, is just

that wonderful Christmas morning when all my kids wake up, and they're all excited for gifts, and they all open the gifts that you brought them. And I get to see how excited they are for them, and then just spending time with my children and my family.

That's what I love the most about Christmas. And fortunately,

for my family,

it's pretty easy for us to do every year. Yeah. That is great. Which it it's not easy for some families to do that. And

Well, quality times tends to to slip away. Mhmm.

Babies become toddlers and toddlers become,

youngsters and youngsters become tweeners and tweeners become independent. Yes. And the closer you've been as a child,

the more

violently you come apart to become independent, if that makes sense. It's like tearing off a band aid that really sticks well. Yeah. And so it's very hurtful,

for the parents, even though they want to give children good roots Yeah. And want them to have wings when they start to fly away and start tugging at that roots. It's tough. And that's where Christmas sometimes gets

not

the good family time. Yeah. And it's not that it's not a good family time. It's that you don't recognize that they're growing up. Yeah. If you recognize they're growing up, you say, they're just kids being kids. You know?

And that can happen

early on or later. It could happen now. Six, seven. Yeah. Something like that.

Oh, not you too, Santa. Six Oh, I see it every day. Every day.

They've got you too.

No. I you're right about that, and that's something you know, it's kind of the bittersweet thing of being a parent is Yeah. You know, I look at my five year old girl, and I love her to death, but she's getting older and more independent. And I know at some point,

she's not gonna be my little girl anymore. Well, she's gonna be your she's gonna be your daughter.

That's probably the quintessential

struggle I see in families.

And I I wish I could help them, but,

I have my job to do. Yeah. And but, is

transitioning

from an adult

child relationship to an adult adult relationship by the time they're in their twenties. Yeah. And it's a murky

murky several years to do that, usually from,

you know, early teens through

maybe their early twenties. It's like, where where did my kids go? Yeah. And, I remember being that age, and I remember not wanting anything to do with my time. You you were you were a little obstreperous

as I remember. Know that word. Oh, that means you were a boy Oh, okay. Growing up to be a man. Yes. The short short word for that is obstreperous.

Streperous. Obstreperous.

I pride myself on knowing quite a few words. I've had some I'm gonna have to remember that one. If you if you're around

697

years, you've learned a lot of words. I imagine. You do have a little bit of a head start on me. I gotta jump on that. Yeah. Yeah.

So,

at your house,

have you done would you and your wife exchange gifts? Oh, certainly. Yeah. Well, you They're just small gifts. Yeah. It's something something meaningful.

And what we try to do for everybody

is get everybody a Christmas ornament. So that That's nice. That every year, we have Put it back on the tree, and you can look back and see that's a wonderful tradition. What we did growing up. And, actually, if anybody's loud, I would highly recommend it as a tradition because I have ornaments

that my grandparents gave me,

and they're no longer with us from

forty five years ago. Oh, that's wonderful. No. Not forty five. Thirty five years ago. But you you take the ornament and you look at it and you go, oh, I remember that. And then you remember the people that aren't here anymore, and you remember those Christmases and what they were like, and you look at the tree. Absolutely. We're trying to do that for our children too. And you look at the tree and there's a pine cone with glitter on it, or there's a a bunch of popsicle sticks glued together with a red pom pom, and that's Rudolph. And you

the people that have family and have children,

we all understand what's going on there. Yeah. And to people that don't, they go, why I don't think it's some good ornament. Yeah. Well, that's our tree is covered with I mean, there'll be things that my daughter makes in school or I made in school, even my wife made in school. Yeah.

And then there's just fun they're just all fun or I I don't wanna go on too much because I love our Christmas tree. I

think we have one of the best Chris well, hopefully, we're gonna get it up this weekend.

We have one of the best Christmas trees ever, but that's just me. I'm I'm sure there's wonderful Christmas trees out there. Oh, yeah. So and and I think everybody's idea of a ideal Christmas tree is a little different. Mhmm.

So, the Christmas tree is is a real tradition. I mentioned the sanctuary at the North Pole. Mhmm. And so,

missus Claus and I got together many, many, many, many, many years ago.

And,

when she missed,

the deciduous and the evergreen trees that really aren't

indigenous to the Arctic Circle. Mhmm. And so for Christmas every year,

we bring up another tree. So imagine that we've got

quite a few trees. Yeah.

Hundreds of trees.

But that is my gift to her to to,

make it a little bit more like home, and that's why all the animals are there. Yeah. The the Christmas Sanctuary has been built

for missus Claus specifically

and

in a larger part for all of us. Yeah. So yeah. I mean, it sounds like a nice place. Oh, it's terrific. You know, I I brag a little bit, but we actually have our own maple trees. We tap in Oh. You know, in the in the spring for Yeah. Maple syrup. And we we,

you know, there's a four food groups that they that's a real thing, by the way. Yeah.

Candy canes, candy corn.

What are the other two? Do you know what I'm talking about? Candy cane, candy corn.

Boys and girls know what that is. Yeah. Buddy, the elf talks. Oh, syrup, of course. Syrup? Okay. Syrup is big. Yeah. And so,

elves do eat cookies. So Yeah. So that's the Well, I mean, they're working all the time. I imagine they need sugar.

Yeah. Yeah.

We pay them in cookies, basically. That's how we keep track.

Some of them take a little more time off than others. We're fine with that. Yeah. We've got elves that do nothing but reflect on the joy of the season. Wow. And they help us with our Christmas,

cards and letters and notes.

And, we've got elves that do nothing but design Christmas wrapping paper. Mhmm. And we have elves that do nothing but wrap packages. Mhmm.

And then we have an extended network of helpers, and you probably know them.

They they well, they're kinda plainclothes elves. Mhmm.

You'll see them driving around here, in big trucks,

Amazon and UPS. And

and, Cincinnati

Cincinnati has a wonderful postal service. Mhmm. And they all,

are under contract with the North Pole,

to help us because it takes a world Yeah. To deliver the credit Christmas we celebrate on this planet. Absolutely.

Oh,

so I did want to ask you about cookies.

Cookies. What are your favorite cookies?

You know, I get, the the

I would say,

I can give you a good answer and an honest answer. Which would you want first? Oh,

let's do the honest answer first. The honest answer is Santa Claus

absolutely loves an oatmeal raisin cookie. Yeah. I I

people think I'm weird. I love oatmeal raisin cookies. It's like a it's like an energy bar. Yeah. But it tastes good. And it's always kind of soft. It's got the raisin in it. Yeah. I'm I'm with you. Missus Claus, sometimes treats me, and she'll put walnuts and chocolate chips in as well. Oh, really? That's wicked good. But I tell people that my favorite cookie is, arm's reach. Yeah.

Do you have a preference on on milk?

Well, yes. I do. But you can't get good reindeer milk down this way. That's fair enough. But, the reindeer is wonderful milk, and it's got it's full of Christmas spirit. My sleigh runs on,

it's a hybrid. Oh, okay. We've come a long way, and we've got elf engineers, and it's a hybrid. It runs on a combination

of reindeer adrenaline.

Mhmm. And Christmas spirit. Yeah. And so,

the reindeer milk is full of, wonderful,

antioxidants

and and,

energy and,

as another reason I'm as good as shape. If if you really, if you're struggling,

I don't know. The only place around here that might carry it, you might call them. Matter of fact, if you I wish you would. If you would, if you're listening, please call, Jungle Jims and tell them Santa Claus himself,

implores that they, bring in some reindeer, man. Rain well, if anybody can get it, it'd be Jungle Jim. Why? Because I don't wanna take that run back to the North Pole. It takes four point five seconds. Yeah. You know, sometimes I don't have times. I got margins of milliseconds

on Christmas Eve. So That's a tight schedule, aren't it? It is. It's very, very tight. Yes. What happens if you get behind?

Well, that is a problem.

You know,

you you know what twilight looks like, and there's times when, boy, the twilight's right over my shoulder, and I'm just

and,

and, I'm pressing. And that's when people hear me calling out to the sleigh. Let's go, boys. Let's go. Let's go, girls.

And so the elves I take a couple of elves with me, and and and they help me. And the elves are usually boys,

and

on the sleigh anyway. But we've got a big thing I'll tell you about. Missus Claus and I on the sleigh. Okay. But, and so we really press. But we always seem to just

get there on time, but sometimes it's tight. Yeah. Weather can make a difference. So you've heard of the polar vortex.

That can push us off course. And, of course, you saw some beautiful auroras here in your town. Yeah.

The the solar winds

make a difference.

So, weather conditions can

can make us

a little bit slower in some seasons. Sometimes if we get the ride, we ride the wave of a of a solar

polar vortex with

with

tailwind. Yeah. So you can push it a little faster. It's it is like easy pickings. Yeah. It's like surfing in Maui, baby. It's sweet.

Very sweet. I mean, it's gotta be pretty exhilarating up there

during the ride when you're when you're going across the sky. Oh, it's it is exhilarating. And It's gonna be beautiful too. You know, I really don't get much chance to enjoy it because we're moving so quickly.

I will hear the faint sound of,

people singing,

Christmas carols, and I'll hear to the church bells.

I'll hear children's,

prayers,

for a wonderful Christmas, and I'll

I'll sense the parents'

wishes

for that perfect Christmas morning you talked about. Mhmm. And so that fills my heart. But my real joy

is just as the sun is picking up, and it doesn't really peak up at the North Pole. So I get to see it South Of The Arctic Circle. Because you get six months of light and six months of dark up there. Well, it's not six months of dark. It's actually sixty seven days of total no sun. Okay. But we get, like, a twilight up there. Okay. But it's pretty dark. Yeah. Yeah. So that

just beautiful warm,

sunrise on Christmas morning as I ride back into Christmas town. It's just

perfect. Yeah. I imagine it makes everything worth it. I, that's my perfect time. I,

we pull up the sleigh.

We immediately there's a huge celebration.

Elves are dancing everywhere. Missus Claus comes out, gives me a big hug. Always brings me cocoa. Yeah. I reach in my pocket and say, I found some great cookies for you this year.

And, so and then we we we celebrate the day as as one big family. And,

so that's my special time is Christmas morning. Yeah. Riding back into Christmas town on the

on the tailwind of, a beautiful sunrise.

So can I ask you about

letters? I imagine you get tons of letters. I have this question for my daughter. Oh, yeah. We get letters.

Lots of letters.

And, they come from all different directions.

Sometimes we get them, from the United States post office or from,

you know,

another country's post office, postal service.

We get letters of you via,

chimney wishes.

Well, I was about to ask you about that because in our family,

kids will write their letters, and then we burn them in the fireplace. And we tell them why it goes right to Santa, and he's got a letter reconstruction

magic machine in it. Well, he constructs the letters.

You know what happens is usually the children send letters, and they like to draw pictures,

surprisingly good likenesses of me and missus Claus, although most of them have never seen her. Mhmm.

And,

as that letter

decomposes into smoke,

it passes up and does get captured by the by the polar vortex. That's why it comes down at wintertime so far down because it's capturing,

chimney wishes.

And it pulls them back up and it pulls them through the aurora borealis,

and that's where they get recolored and reconstructed. So it's the aurora that actually does that? Yes. It's it's it's it's very natural. It's it's no magic machine. It's just

the nature of wishes that So I was a little wrong about that. I'll have to go back and tell her. Well, yeah. You need to tell her because, it's a very organic natural thing. It's very explainable.

And,

it also

is

is nature that if you put your wishes, hopes and dreams out there in the universe

in a very clear and concise way

and

carry it in your heart,

it will do everything to manifest itself. It'll do everything to make those wishes, dreams, and hopes come true. Now you're gonna have to do your part sometimes. Oh, yeah. But,

this world

is open to letting you be and do and have

what you really want.

Excellent. You've gotta do your part. Yeah. I always tell

my wife and I talk a lot, but it's about listening to that voice that's telling you the right thing. You always know what that thing is. Yeah. And you know when it's that voice telling you to do the right thing. Yes. And you just have to listen to it and go for it. That's right.

You you know,

boys and girls,

we used to call age seven the age of reason

where,

hopefully, they have a solid foundation,

and that voice is,

is a guide, is a,

a spirit guide, a guardian angel. You know, there's all kinds of names for it.

And, that's why it's so important to spend time with your children during those those formative years because

they will grow into

the people that they decide they are by the time they're seven or eight years old. Mhmm. Yeah. I

I don't know if this is harsh or not, but I I talked to my wife a lot about our children and raising children and raising good children.

And I tell her, you know,

we're always gonna love our children no matter what they do.

The trick

is raising children that we like.

Yes. That's the trick. Well, you know,

and you're right. It it is, we've got some elves that are,

more difficult to like than others. So,

we've the guy in charge of the reindeer,

he he is a he think of

a think of a crusty old cowboy with pointy ears about three foot tall. That's

And,

and he's got a great heart, but he's just a little rough around the edges.

And, a lot of people don't like him. I found him to be somebody I can totally rely on. Yeah. And I need to because the reindeer important job. Reindeer are everything. Yeah. So,

and,

so he's that way. And of course,

the chef in the kitchen,

my gosh.

He's one of those finicky chefs, you know. A bit of a perfectionist?

He's an artist. Oh. You see what I'm saying? So I was like, like, you can't just bring me a cookie. He's got to arrange them right on the plate, and I'm supposed to

tell the subtle nuances of the ginger. And I'm like,

it's good cookies.

Can you He he needs a little more. Can you give me I need a little something more. And I'm like, well, they're really good cookies. That's not what he wanted. So,

but, yeah, they're they're they're they are just a lot like people the elves are. They they, they are proud of their work.

They're committed to their work.

And like all of us, they want some affirmation. They want some words of affirmation to tell them, hey. You're doing a great job. And that's really what Christmas day is about the North Pole. We all know we've done a good job on Christmas morning. Yeah.

So this is a question I really wanted to ask because I'm not sure you get asked it a lot. What do you want for Christmas?

You know, I I, that is a good question, and I do get asked that. And,

and I appreciate when people ask that,

because I sense that,

the biggest part of Christmas,

the joy of Christmas

for me

is bringing

joy

and facilitating

time

and delivering gifts

that make the season bright.

So I would say,

my gift is

please let me continue doing this.

I don't think anybody's gonna stop you. Yeah. I don't think so either. Yeah. No. You're you're very much wanted and loved. Well, you know, and just between you and me, we do have

Bruno the elf.

Who's that? Bruno. I don't know if I know about Bruno. Oh, he's our heavy. Oh, yeah? Yeah. Oh, okay. Yeah. Yeah. That's what people So you have kind of an enforcer. I don't have to mess with people. You know? Bruno's

Bruno takes care of that stuff. But Bruno actually is more like intelligence these days. He just keeps me away from people that are,

bad mojo. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And I think that's That's good you got Bruno then. Yeah. Yeah. Bruno Bruno says, Santa, you really don't wanna go in there. Yeah. Or, Santa, you probably wanna come in this door or that door. Yeah.

It looks for my safety, not only from,

people that might wanna

be harmful, but situations that might be harmful. You know, there might be a rough terrain or a

Mhmm. Or too small an opening. Yeah. Santa, you don't wanna go down that chimney. Yeah. So, yeah, I I had a one issue. I I was talked about missus Claus and the I had an issue in 1881.

Mhmm.

A very unusual anomaly.

I developed,

jingle pox.

Jingle pox? Yeah. Sure. That sounds pretty serious. That is. You know, it it it is,

it is a kind of a combination of being around, so many children and the different flus and stuff that are going around. And You have another elf calling. Yes. I got it. Okay. And and and the,

and and flying through an intense

geomagnetic

storm.

And I developed jingle pox, and it's basically is a 24,

but I

it was on Christmas Eve. That's no good. I woke up. Is there a cure for jingle pox? Well, no. And you just have to ride it out, but I I got up.

I got these spots all over my face and my beard, everywhere.

And I went out to check the reindeer. Missus Claus had already fed them. Those was good. And I went in to check on the owls, and she was getting the list and everything together. And everybody, like, looked at me like I was

I don't know what. And they said, Santa, are you alright? I'm fine.

I said, what do you say? You know, you don't look so good. I said, I feel fine. And I was actually lying. I felt terrible. My head was aching. My

eyes were blurry, and and missus Plaza, Santa, you've got jingle pox. You can't go tonight. I said, I I have to go. It's Christmas, and I never missed a Christmas, and I never will miss Christmas. You said, Santa,

you've got jingle pox. It's highly contagious.

You need to go to

bed. So I said, well, just give me a minute. And I went and talked to the Blitzen. I said, listen, could you do the run? You know, I I just I guess I'm sick and I can't he said, Santa, I don't think these antlers will fit down the chimney. And I said, oh, yeah.

And so we have a head elf, and he's brilliant. And I said, would you, would you,

I mean, you've seen the list. You know the routine. Could you he says, Santa, I I am deathly afraid of heights. I'm not three foot tall. Yeah. So I I I really was stumped, and she reiterated, you know, we I I tried to rally. I had some, Yuletide stew, and Mhmm. I couldn't touch it. I was just that bad. And

she said, go to bed. And she says, the children will be fine. And I laid there and I worried about that.

And in the back of my mind, she'd always wanted to drive the sleigh. I never let her. Yeah. Because I didn't want her to know how dangerous it was. Certainly. She thought I was just, you know, keeping it all for myself. There's plenty of things I don't let my wife know. Oh, yeah. If she

knew I was doing that, she'd be like, Sandy, you get back here. So,

but anyway, so she snuck out,

got me to sleep, and I was just tossing and turning worried about I knew she was gonna try to make it because she'd been bugging me for years to ride and just lay.

And,

she went put on my suit. It was way too big, so the elves whipped up a new one for her.

And,

she took the rod. Yeah. And,

everybody was so helpful for her. She came back,

record time. She must've had a tailwind. I can't believe she beat my time. That was kind of humbling. Yeah. And, she said, Santa, I brought you some milk and cookies. And she brought me some special cookies that she she she got a turn to return that favor. Yeah.

And she said the night was wonderful. You know, I heard the Christmas bells, and I heard the singing, and

and,

I saw the sun come up over the

horizon and as I came back and what a beautiful ride.

And, Santa,

no matter what,

next year,

I really do wanna go with you. So in the last couple centuries, she does ride along some years and Yeah. You know, in the other years.

But she did a great job driving a sleigh, not a scratch. And she's done some wonderful things for me lately. She's added GPS.

Nice.

That must have been a really nice Yep. And How did you navigate before? It was just a compass and I did a lot of the press. I did a lot of this This

code.

But, you know, the the aura of Christmas magic helps a lot. And,

of course,

reindeer

get very hot,

extending all that energy. And so there's kind of a an earthy,

reindeer smell, but it's warm and it's it's nice. And of course they

carrot breath, you know? Yeah. Yeah.

Not my favorite, but it's comes with the job. Yeah. So, yeah.

She added,

heated seats.

Nice. GPS

and,

both welcome. And, probably about

probably before she took her ride in 1881,

she insisted on seat belts.

I I didn't have them before that. She was just so worried I'd fall out. So

she is the chief of, she and Bruno Yeah. Of of my safety. They

they realized that I take chances. And after her run,

she did run into a little aurora squall. Oh, did she? And she said that was kinda fun, but it's kinda scary. I said, well, I didn't want you to know.

So now we're we're clear.

And, thanks to, cell technology, I I can call her. Nice. I'm only on her feet up. Yeah. And, so we keep touch through the night, little quick calls. And Yeah.

And, sometimes there's a last minute thing that we

fell off the list Yeah. Or that got broken. And, so we we've got a team that takes care of that. That's awesome.

Well, I know you're busy, and I've kinda run out of questions for you. But I just wanna give you the chance to

give your Christmas Christmas message to all the boys and girls out there that are getting excited for the big day. Well, I want you to know that,

I'm

very much looking forward to Christmas.

It is,

what we call the big day. It is the big day. And on the big day,

we're both happy

and we're sad. Mhmm. And we're happy that it's here,

and we're sad

that tomorrow

it

another another run, another time at it. So,

I'd like to share with you, if I might,

a a little,

a little poem Oh, please do. That sums that up, and I I think you'll like this.

And I'll just read it to you.

So it goes like this.

Every year, the seasons change.

That's nature's solemn promise.

Cool dry days and deep blue skies. Now

autumn is upon us.

The crisp fresh air, the lovely leaves of red and brown and gold, and

our love is all

that makes a fall,

a wonder to behold.

Gratefulness for every day for

all nature

provides a bounty of her harvest

as her harvest soon subsides.

And winter comes to take her turn, she breathes in long and deeply

and exhales lonely icy winds

and all things

take to sleeping.

Then Christmas comes, but once a year.

Believe me, I should know the days grow short, nights grow long, and the skies may fill with snow.

And as the sun is setting low, there's so much to be done in just one night to spread the love and joy to everyone.

Those autumn leaves all blown away, the tree limbs dark and bare, and a Christmas star will light the sky.

There's magic in the air.

And all your wishes,

hopes,

and dreams ride with me on this night.

I pray

for strength

and lots of

love. I gotta get this right,

but it's you who never let me down. You keep Christmas alive. Thanks to the fact that you believe on Christmas, I will arrive

and the all the many presents I will leave are just the smallest part because the biggest gift of Christmas

is the gift that's in our heart.

Merry Christmas, Patrick.

Merry Christmas, Santa.

Thank you so much. Thank you.

I hope you enjoyed that interview with Santa, and I want to give a big thank you to him because, like I said, it's a very, very busy time of year for him. So it was very generous of him to take time out of that busy schedule to sit down and talk to us. And, of course, we're gonna try to get him back on next year,

you know, depending on his schedule. Like I said, it was kinda hard to hard to schedule this with him because he's, you know, he's trying

to get all the toys ready for all the girls and boys in the world. So that's a that's a big job. So thank you again to Santa, and I really hope that everybody

enjoyed that interview.

Like I said in the intro, we're gonna go over some news and events and value for value stuff. So let's get right into it, and we're gonna start with some news from Clermont County as a whole.

Starting off, the animal shelter upgrades are progressing.

Interior and exterior construction projects at the Clermont County Animal Shelter are on schedule, and the contractors

expect to finish everything up by the end of this month.

Crews have recently framed the roof for an outdoor kennel That's going to more than double the number of outdoor kennels.

So it's nice to hear that project is progressing well, and that'll be good news for the animal shelter.

Next up, Clermont County is going to ded dedicate a newly expanded juvenile court on Friday, December 12 at 2340

Claremont Center Drive in Batavia.

And then afterwards, there'll be a reception hosted by judge James a Shriver.

The project adds 29,000

square feet to the south wing, bringing the entire complex up to 40,000 square feet total, and there'll be a single public entry and security checkpoint

for both courts.

The expansion features five new courtrooms,

offices for the juvenile clerk clerk and juvenile probation,

plus space for the prosecutor and public defender.

The north side of the complex is gonna,

remain home

to the domestic relations court, and there'll be a connector that links the juvenile court area to the detention center.

So that's I suppose that's good news. You know, you

don't don't really

want to have a need for a gigantic juvenile court, but, you know, it's good that things are getting upgraded.

And last bit of Clermont news, there were a little over 70 black vultures found dead outside Saint Bernadette School in Pierce Township,

and the staff noticed them on December 1, and then state crews were on-site December 5 to test and remove all the birds.

Preliminary testing indicated that the vultures died from a highly pathogenic

avian influenza,

h five.

Two birds were sent to the state lab on December 5 with samples,

being forwarded to a national lab for final confirmation, and that should take place in about ten days. So around the fifteenth,

we'll get, I suppose, final confirmation that this is in fact some sort of avian influenza.

Now officials are emphasizing that the risk to the general public is low,

So you don't need to be worried that there's some COVID two point o lurking out there in the county.

Everything should be fine, unless, of course, you're a bird and then, you know, then you should probably be worried.

They do say to avoid contact with sick or dead wildlife, and if you have to handle a dead bird or any birds, really, use PPE, which is personal protective equipment. That's things like gloves, n 95 masks, eye protection, stuff like that. Be sure to wash your hands

and double bag the bird for disposal if directed to by officials.

If you own birds, like chicken or ducks or I suppose parrots or, you know, whatever kind of birds you own, you should separate your backyard flocks from wild birds. Try to keep your birds away from wild birds,

just so you know they don't get sick.

If you are exposed to a bird that has avian influenza,

just monitor your health for ten days for respiratory flu like symptoms,

and let the health department

know if you do develop symptoms.

So nothing to worry about. Just try to stay away from dead birds. And if you gotta handle 10 birds or dead birds, just, you know,

monitor yourself for ten days and make sure you're okay.

Alright. Let's move on to Miami Township.

There is a zoning meeting at 7PM on Thursday, January 8 at the Miami Township Civic Center.

It's to discuss

rezoning for a parcel of land behind 1804

State Route 131

from plan from a planned industrial park to a resident's

district.

I couldn't really find much more about this, so I don't know why they're trying to do this or what the plan is. But if you live in Miami Township or you live around that part of State Route 131,

I'd go check it out just to see what, what kind of stuff they're planning on doing with that little bit of land.

Moving on to Pierce Township, there's some CPR training at the Pierce Township Fire Department headquarters

on February 7

at 9AM.

It costs $30 per person. And to register, you should contact lieutenant Goodman

at tgoodman@pearcetownship.org,

or you can call the station at (513)

752-6273.

I wanted to include this in here because it is very, very good idea

to get training in CPR. You can save

someone's life, frankly. So, you know, if you've got the time and the will, I suppose, I would highly recommend getting trained in CPR.

It's a very, very useful skill that can save someone's life.

Alright. Moving on to Union Township. This was a fun one. The seventh annual

Cincinnati

Pinball Tournament

was held on December

at the Eastgate Holiday Inn in Union Township. It's one of the world's largest pinball tournament, and it typically draws thousands of enthusiasts.

The event featured three tournaments including one on the Stern Pro Circuit.

So I guess there's a pro circuit for pinball players. I had I had no idea. I love pinball. I didn't know I didn't know you could be a pro, though,

which I don't know. Maybe I'll quit the podcast and become a a pinball pro. I don't think Katie would like that.

Might be an odd move. Anyway,

there were a 140 competitors, and they were all vying for cash prizes and trophies.

So that sounded like a fun event. And, maybe next week, we'll try to find, find the results of that, see who won.

And finally, we're gonna wrap things up with my favorite place for updates, New Richmond.

There are no more plumbing no more plumbing news from New Richmond, which I suppose is good. I think that means they they might have fixed all the issues that they have, but there's some other news.

The normal scheduled personal finance, safety rules, and laws, and council meeting

that was scheduled for this week has been moved to December 15,

and the Rose Vesper Park lighting project has been completed. They got some pictures on the website. It looks really nice. So

that is

all the news I've got, kind of a light news week. So that'll lead us right into value for value. And we don't have any producers to thank today for donations, which is fine.

We are still running the holiday special from now until January 1. There's a half off the note donation special. If you donate $25

or above,

you'll still get a special mention on the show, and you can tack on a short holiday message, which is a well constructed sentence, not a paragraph long sentence.

That wouldn't be fair for anyone that might donate over 200 and above.

So take advantage of that, and shout out to whoever is special to you. You know, live on I'm not live. I keep saying live. On air.

So I think that's a fun little little thing, and I suggest you take advantage of it.

Also, if you want to donate and you still wanna remain anonymous while we're running the special, just don't send in a note, and I think that should be good to keep you under the radar.

And we do all of this because we are a value for value podcast. And what that means is you listen to the show, and you decide what the show is worth, and you give that value back in the form of time, talent, or treasure.

This is what's gonna keep this show independent,

and it's gonna keep us focused on the things that matter to our listeners.

And one of the most important ways to give back value with your time is just tell people about the podcast.

Word-of-mouth is a big deal. That's how I find all my podcasts. And if you're like me, that's how you find yours.

So

if this show is bringing you value, just tell people about it. You know? Tell them to listen. Share it on social media. Whatever it is that you do, it would really help out the show.

Now for treasure, go to the website. Click donate. You can donate via PayPal or Stripe. And with PayPal, you can do reoccurring donations, which is great.

And any dollar amount is very, very, very appreciated. Like I said, it's gonna help keep this show going.

And

as I mentioned earlier, until January 1, $25 and above will get you a special

show mention and a brief holiday message, and that can be wishing your family happy holidays, your loved ones, whatever it is whatever it is. Again, brief, well constructed sentence.

For donations 200 and above, you will get an executive producer credit that I will vouch for, and I'll read a nice full note on the air. And that could also be a holiday message if you'd like or an ad read for your business. Whatever it is,

I'll read it if you donate $200 and above. And, again, I will caveat that with, I'm not gonna read weird

you know, I I will read weird things, but not like hate manifestos or whatever. You know? Keep it relatively PG.

And a quick note, if you do donate above $25,

please email at info let's at I'm sorry. Please email info@let'stalkclaremont.com

with your name and donation amount so I can match that up. If you don't do that, I won't know who you are, and I won't be able to mention you on the show. And, again, if you wanna remain anonymous while this special is running, just don't send in a note, and that should do it.

And we saw we also have that Facebook page, Let's Talk Claremont podcast, Instagram at Let's Talk Claremont,

and the newsletter's still out there.

I don't think I'll have a crossword puzzle for this week because, honestly, it's been kinda busy, and I haven't had a chance to sit down and do it. But we'll get back to the crosswords next next week. But it's I I think it's a pretty good, pretty good newsletter. So I'd highly suggest you sign up for that, and we're only going to email you once a week when a new show comes out.

And, of course, follow us on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or whatever it is you happen to use for podcast.

It really helps the show out,

and you'll get notified every anytime a new show goes up.

And if you just wanna say hi or give us a boots on the ground report, whatever the case may be, info@let'stalkclaremont.com.

Send in a note. I would love to hear from you.

Alright. Next Next Thursday, we're gonna talk to Liz Betemps from the Williamsburg Garden Club.

As you might expect, we talk a lot about gardening. We also talk about the garden club in general, which is a lot bigger than I thought it was. They're they do a lot of it's more of a regional garden club than it is just for Williamsburg.

And it was a great conversation. I really enjoyed talking to Liz.

So I hope you tune in next week for that.

Well, again, like I said in the intro, we're just gonna keep rolling, and we're gonna go right into events. And the first event that we have is holiday cryptids and hot chocolate on December 12 from six to 7PM

at the Hartman Log Cabin. This is a family folklore program with a winter theme. You can enjoy stories of local cryptid legends while sipping hot chocolate.

The event encourages creativity with a self serve cocoa bar and a discussion of folkloric

creatures tied to winter

holiday traditions. This is free, and you do not need to register.

Next, we have Christmas in Loveland on December 13 from three to 8PM in downtown Loveland. This is a free community holiday festival transforming Loveland's Main Street into a winter wonderland.

Attractions include horse drawn carriage rides, a children's train ride, a holiday trolley tour, and there's gonna be some live entertainment staged on Main Street and a holiday market

featuring about 25 local vendors.

Santa visits,

Santa visits North Pole activity stations, and missus Claus is gonna be doing crafts, and there'll be photo ops throughout downtown.

And it's completely free, which is always nice.

Next, we have DIY stained glass ornaments for kids on December 13 from four to 05:30PM

at the Clingman Nature Preserve. This is a holiday craft program for families, children with adult accompaniment.

Create colorful stained glass ornaments under the guidance of a local artist from the Glass Garden Club.

Supplies are provided, and it is a free event, but you do need to register online.

And given the nature of the event,

I would do that quickly if that's something that you wanna do.

Next, we have winter solace celebration on December 19 at 5PM at Sycamore Park. It's an annual winter solace fest, festival hosted by the park district to celebrate the longest night of the year. Families can enjoy cozy winter crafts, a glowing Nutcracker light trail, hot drinks, and more in a free all ages evening of festive outdoor fun.

You don't need to register, but they do say dress warmly,

because it's an outdoor event, and it's been pretty cold this year.

Next up, natural wreath making workshop, December 20 from one to 2PM at Clingman Park. This is a hands on workshop where participants create their own holiday wreath using forged natural materials provided by the park staff. It is free and open to all ages, but you do need to register,

due to materials preparation. So they gotta go out there and get all these materials, so they need to know how many people are gonna be there. It is a great family craft activity to celebrate the season in nature.

And the last event we've got for you sounds like things are kinda winding down for Christmas. People are starting to,

kinda close-up shop and start spending time with their families. So that's nice. But last one we have, Milford Community Fire Department, Santa Sunday on December 21

from one to 6PM

at the city of Milford. It's gonna be in various neighborhoods. It seems like it's all over Milford. But this is a sixty seven year tradition

in Milford.

Santa Claus, escorted by the Milford Community Fire Department, is gonna tour through the city's neighborhoods on a fire engine to spread holiday cheer. Residents can step outside to wave at Santa as he passes by with lights and sirens.

This annual Santa ride is free, and the route covers all areas of the city between one and 6PM, like I said earlier.

Alright. Those are all the events that I have for you. And a quick note on the events, I do the best to find as many as I can, and I know I don't get all of them. So if you have an event or you, know of of an event that you would like people to know about, just send an email, info@let'stalkclaremont.com.

I can't promise that I'll give all events a shout out, but I will do my level best.

Alright.

I'll tell you what. I think that's it for today. I really appreciate you tuning in. I was really excited about this interview, and I I gotta just give another thank you to Santa for taking time out of his busy schedule.

So I hope everybody enjoyed that, and we will see you next week.

Let's Talk Clermont