Vol. 2 No. 11 14 December 2012

2 EDITOR’S LETTER 14 Dec 2012

Well Well Well. The time of year that all stu-dents (and staff) love has finally arrived! We are well into the second week of December, and many people have already left for their holidays. Some of you may have gone to the coast, and may even now be lounging on the beach, enjoying the amazing ocean view. Oth-ers may be at home, sleeping until the after-noon, and only emerging from your room to have a night out on the town. Others (crazy people like me) are still going to work every morning.

Now some of you may be asking why I even decided to bring out a December Edition. My answer: Why not? Just because it’s technically holiday time, doesn’t mean I have to stop the press (so to speak).

I thought it would be nice to bring out the De-cember Edition more as a reminder of the year. While a lot happened, I couldn’t fit it all into one paper; it would have exceeded 100 pages then... So instead, I tried to pick some of the best events that we had on Campus and show them off.

In doing so, I hope that you will show it off to your friends, and also add a New Years resolu-tion to join in next year!

A few of our usuals are still here as well. Vuvu wouldn’t lose the opportunity to quack his opnions on certain matters, so check out page 3 to see what his topic of the month is.

Since this is the Editor’s page, I guess I can pretty much write whatever I want here... So what I would like to say is a HUGE THANK YOU to everyone that has supported Student 24/7 this year! Without all of our amazing read-ers and supporters, having such a great paper would not have happened. I promise next year will be even better (if at all possible!).

THANKS to Annette Willemse for believeing in

me, and my strange ideas. Without you having confidence in me, and a little screw loose (that would be my fault) I don’t know where I would be right now.

To Mrs Angelique van Rensburg, dziękuje za wszystkie wasze wsparcie!

A BIG thank you to the Rector, Vice Rector, and EVERYONE who had faith, patience and a little imagination to help make the paper the way it is!

ALSO THANK YOU to my AMAZING mom who always pushed me to reach my dreams, and of course who would help me with A LOT of stuff for the paper! From baking to decorating, you are by far the best mom a girl could ever have!

Well, let me not bore you with my soppy words anymore. Have a look at what our year has brought us, and enjoy the paper!

P.S: MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY NEW YEAR! SEE YOU ALL IN 2013!!!!!!!

Thank you!

3VUVU’S SOAPBOX14 Dec 2012

Vuvu’s Soapbox...

The season to be jolly is upon us and, with it, the insanity that almost always characterises this time of the year…. holiday season mad-ness! Quack! You know…over spending, over eating and over drinking. Sound familiar? Not to mention the fact that at every visit to the su-permarket you get assaulted with a larger-than-life Rudolf the reindeer … and yes, I know my bias towards hooved animals might be cloud-ing my judgement. The truth of the matter is that it totally nauseates me to think that whilst Rudolf and his hooved gang is spreading holi-day cheer, many of my feathered friends are being basted and grilled for Christmas lunch! Quack! Quack!

Don’t get me wrong, I love the holidays - I just dislike the whole running-around-all-over-the-place-race to get everything done. The lines at the malls and checkout counters go around in circles and the parking lots are so stuffed that you need to park your car in another time zone (I suspect that I might be over-exaggerating a little – but you get the idea?). I tell you, you will get more exercise walking to the store than you got all year doing your food shopping. To me, Christmas shopping borders on jungle warfare… quack!

What about a green Christmas? Before you la-bel me as totally insane and having been over-come by holiday fever, hear me out. We find ourselves on the green Campus and therefore we have to find ways to still have a great time whilst embracing our environment….and not to mention save money and time. How about it?

I propose a Christmas Day Bird Count (and feed, if you insist!). Take your binoculars, a field guide to local birds and enjoy the fresh air. I will most graciously act as your compan-ion (and henceforth share in the scrumptious cakes you packed for the trip) and who knows, we might make a surprising discovery… How-ever you decide to spend the holidays, spread

joy and good wishes to young, old, feathered and hooved!

Christmas in Africa How to say ‘Merry Christmas’ around the con-tinent:• Akan (Ghana): Afishapa • Zimbabwe: Merry Kisimusi• Swaziland: Sinifisela Khisimusi Lomuhle• Lesthoto: Matswalo a Morena a Mabotse• Tanzania: Kuwa na Krismasi njema• Ethiopia: Melkam Yelidet Beaal• Egypt: Colo sana wintom tiebeen• Nigeria: E ku odun, e hu iye’ dun!

FROM THE RECTOR’S OFFICE4

Dear students

Christmas is a time when families and friends meet and share with each other, their experiences of the past 12 months – their aspi-

rations, memories and joys. It is also the time when, as a campus community, we look back on ev-erything that has been achieved over the past year… and what an amazing year it has been!

To all the students, congratula-tions on your achievements so far – I look forward to watching your academic progression in the years to come. For those students who have completed their degree studies in 2012, I applaud you and will be congratulating you on the graduation stage in 2013. . Fur-thermore I want to pay tribute to the memory of the students we lost during the course of the year – our heart-felt sympathy goes out to their loved ones during this cel-

ebratory time of the year.

I am very proud of the incredible commitment from all the staff members of the campus – be it within the academic departments or the support divisions. With-out their dedication the numer-ous milestones that have been achieved would not have been possible.

And so, as we reach the end of 2012 may I take this opportunity to wish everyone, a safe and hap-py Christmas and a peaceful new year. I look forward to an equally successful and exciting 2013.

Kind regardsProf. Thanyani Mariba

14 Dec 2012

– In just three years after the Netherlands Ini-tiative for Capacity Development in Higher Ed-ucation (NICHE) was launched in South Africa, a collaborative working agreement between the Netherlands Organization for International Cooperation in Higher Education (NUFFIC) and the Vaal Triangle Campus of the North-West University has given way to the devel-opment of a one-of-a-kind business incubator and curriculum innovation project.

The Faculty of Economic Sciences and Infor-mation Technology on the Vaal Triangle Cam-pus is home to the multidimensional BHive project (Bridging Business and Education by Establishing a Hub of Innovative Ventures and Expertise) and during a recent gala event, the Vice Chancellor of the University officiated the opening of the project’s Enterprise Develop-

Vice Chancellor officiates Bhive EDC launchment Centre (EDC). This centre can be viewed in much the same way as an incubator – that is, to create a controlled and closely monitored environment. Within this controlled environ-ment students and young entrepreneurs will enjoy support and guidance to accelerate the success of their entrepreneurial ventures. The centre will therefore develop and maintain dy-namic relationships between industry and vari-ous educational institutions.

In his address the Vice Chancellor stated that entrepreneurship is regarded as the corner-stone of all future economic and social de-velopment in South Africa and that through innovation entrepreneurs create new and com-petitive markets and businesses which in turn lead to job creation and as such have a mul-tiplying effect on the economy. “This initiative

Annette Willemse

CAMPUS NEWS 514 Dec 2012

is in line with the University’s mission to not only deliver quality students, but also to pro-actively bridge the gap between the academic- and business world by engaging with the com-munity and industry leaders” said Dr. Eloff and added that the Vaal Triangle Campus is aware of the immense contribution that entrepreneur-ship makes towards alleviating unemployment and therefore the launch of the EDC mirrors the efforts made to establish South Africa as an entrepreneurial nation.

All programmes offered at the EDC will also be incorporated into the current curriculum of some relevant degrees within the Faculty of Economic Sciences and Information Technol-ogy to enable students to graduate with an operational business that will not only create jobs but also contribute towards addressing the skills shortage in the country. “The Faculty feels strongly that applicable education is the primary building block of a successful South Africa,” said Prof Herman van der Merwe, the Dean of the Faculty, and adds that it is there-fore imperative that the Vaal Triangle Campus delivers quality entrepreneurial students that can positively impact on the future.

The EDC will support a business life cycle in the following ways:• It will host and support business idea gener-ation workshops, which will include the devel-opment of a business idea into a viable busi-

ness concept or product.

• The EDC will assist and train entrepreneurs to use an approach called Business Model Generation to investigate the viability of a busi-ness idea before resources are wasted on a business plan.

• After a feasibility study of a business concept the EDC will support and train entrepreneurs to write a business plan that can be commer-cialised within the EDC.

• After the finalisation of the business plan the entrepreneur can enter the business incubator program at the EDC, which will provide sup-port with funding, mentoring, training, network-ing and infrastructure. The business incubator will select entrepreneurs to operate on-site, inside the EDC infrastructure, or off-site for en-trepreneurs who already have adequate infra-structure off-campus. This incubation process creates a synergistic environment where en-trepreneurs can share learning, create work-ing partnerships and act as enablers to access markets and resources.

• After graduation from the business incuba-tion program the EDC will keep on supporting these graduates through its business accel-eration programme in which these businesses will have the option of additional training, net-working events and consulting services.

CAMPUS NEWS6 14 Dec 2012

The Directorate Marketing and Communication recently host-ed a very successful breakfast forum for more than 50 head-masters from across the Vaal Triangle region. The head-masters represented the top feeder schools of the Campus and as such they share a close working relationship with the Campus’s student recruitment team.

In his welcoming address the Campus Rector, Prof. Than-yani Mariba, shared with them

MAC welcomes principals to Campusthe achievements and high-lights of the year that has been and by doing so reaffirmed the Campus’s commitment to regeneration and growth as a regional asset. “This forum grants us a chance to dream together and inspire each other to continued excellence, despite the challenges we may face within our different sec-tors,” said Prof Mariba and added that the Campus is cur-rently engaging in a dynamic process to shift from mere achievement to significance in

all activities and endeavours. Within this paradigm shift the role of educators as enablers of significance must, according to Prof Mariba, never be over-looked. Aspects pertaining to the pressures associated with the secondary schooling sys-tem as well as the changing face of the higher education landscape were discussed. In his closing remarks Prof Mari-ba thanked the guests for their continued belief in the philoso-phy that everything is possible through education.

Two English Honours students from the Vaal Triangle Campus recently attended a seminar presented by world-renowned linguists, Prof. Tove Skutnabb-Kangas and Prof. Robert Phil-lipson at the University of Pretoria. The seminar was ar-ranged by Prof. Vic Webb (as-sociated with the University of Pretoria and the University of Stellenbosch) and was sup-ported by the Academy of Sci-ence for South Africa (ASSAF).

These two distinguished schol-ars presented a series of pub-lic lectures at various venues across the country and ad-dressed audiences on the vital issue of language rights and the need fro African languages in South Africa to be devel-oped and promoted. Profes-sor Phillipson is the author of the influential book; ‘Lin-guistic Imperialism’ and Prof. Skutnabb-Kangas coined the

concept “linguicism” to refer to discrimination against people based on the languages they use.

The students, Caroline Pi-otrowska and Natasha Ravyse are in agreement that the sem-inar was a “great experience”

Honours students attend seminar by distinguished scholars

Annette Willemse

Annette Willemse

and that they feel honoured to have met the scholars whose work they have been studying. Both Caroline and Natasha is conducting research within the research focus area, UPSET (Understanding and Process-ing Language in Complex Set-tings).

CAMPUS NEWS 714 Dec 2012

– “The art of managing a business is not to rely on yesterday’s data, but to peer into the future and ask what might happen tomorrow.” These words from Mr. Daan Maré, CEO of the Riskflow Group, encapsulate both the neces-sity and the potential of using technology to transform and enhance the process of acquisi-tion of knowledge. The Serious Games Insti-tute South Africa (SGI-SA) recently co-signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Riskflow Group to aid in the pioneering of simulated learning within the field of financial risk management through the concept of seri-ous gaming. Since the concept of ‘serious play’ is not new, it offers businesses a technological alternative to explore new combinations and perspectives with regard to risk management training.

According to Mr. Werner Ravyse, Head of SGI-SA, the MOU signifies a new chapter in the his-tory of the institute – which is vested within the Faculty of Economic Sciences and Informa-tion Technology on the Vaal Triangle Campus of the North-West University, and gives testa-ment to the importance of innovative learning and smart technology in the global business sphere. “Fundamentally serious play evokes innovation moving from the fringes of financial markets into the engine room of organisations,”

SGI-SA signs Memorandum of Understanding with Riskflow Group

says Ravyse and adds together with the Risk-flow Group, integrated learning methodolo-gies will be explored and vested that will place the emphasis on pro-active scenario planning rather than re-active response management.

Through the implementation of serious games an element of real time learning is introduced and as such future outcomes can be simulated. The MOU will see both the Riskflow Group and SGI-SA work towards the development and im-plementation of several training programmes in financial risk management in the near future. The Action Learning training methodology – used by the Riskflow Group, sees a learn-ing situation being created in which individu-als explore and investigate scenarios and as such the concept of serious games will further enhance the learning processes by empower-ing individuals to change behaviour –within a structured and safe environment, to ultimately mitigate risk.

Annette Willemse

8 CAMPUS NEWS 14 Dec 2012

The Faculty of Economic Sciences and Infor-mation Technology on the Vaal Triangle Cam-pus of the North-West University (NWU Vaal) is set to become a leading authority on risk management education in South Africa. The Faculty launched its state-of-the-art Centre for Applied Risk Management (UARM) earlier in the year and this centre will serve as an edu-cational hub and provide specialised training for professionals who seek to gain a better understanding of risk management as well as offering postgraduate students the opportuni-ty to further their academic pursuit within this field. The centre is situated at the Quest Con-ference Estate in Vanderbijlpark. According to Prof. Hermien Zaaiman, Director of the UARM Centre, the results of an audit of the available courses in qualitative risk management during 2011 indicated that most of the postgraduate courses in South Africa concentrate more on the quantitative (mathematical models) of risk management training. “The aim of UARM is to address the void that exists in the sector with regard to qualitative risk management,” ex-plains Prof. Zaaiman. “What makes the UARM approach so unique and industry centred is that we will directly impact on the levels of pro-fessionalism of this field of specialisation. We are not replacing what is already being done but are actually adding a much needed dimen-

UARM to specialise in Risk Management Educationsion to the field and turning it into a form of discipline.”

The Centre has a strong working relationship with the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU) and the professors of that course there; as well as the Professional Risk Managers’ International Association (PRMIA). The Centre recently hosted a project with Dr Robert Mark, founding CEO of Black Diamond Risk and Vice Chairper-son of PRMIA, for a course on the Essentials of Banking and Financial Risk Management. It was a successful imitative that saw lecturers of Risk Management from the campus as well as delegates from the financial industry attend. The UARM is currently setting up seminars with guest lecturers as part of their Applied Risk Think Tank (ARTT), which will focus on topical risk-related questions at executive and board level. The faculty is also developing a Masters course in Applied Risk Management in different specialisation fields and will be a taught Masters presented on the business school model.

Annette Willemse

9INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS14 Dec 2012

International Students of 2012!

International Students of 2012!

10 INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS 14 Dec 2012

Christmas is a time when everyone usually spends time with the family, opening presents and eating lots of delicious food. With what is seen in most movies (majority being Ameri-can), we all assume that everyone in the world celebrates Christmas similarly. What we seem to forget, while wrestling another person for the last soap set for Grandma, is that Christ-mas is as unique in other countries, as each day of the year.

So here are but a taste of some interesting In-ternational Christmas celebrations.

Christmas around the worldKinga Siejek

BethlehemThe town is ablaze with flags and decorations every Christmas. On Christmas Eve, visitors and townspeople gather for a parade which leads to the church of Nativity.

FranceOn Christmas Eve, children put their shoes in front of the fireplace. This is in the hopes that Pere Noel (Father Christmas) will fill them with presents.

GermanyAdvent starts on the first Sunday after 26 No-vember, and continues until Christmas. Chil-dren get Advent calendars (a poster type cal-endar with 24 small ‘windows’). Each morning the children open one of the windows to dis-play a candle, snowman or ball. This is a way for the children to countdown to Christmas.

GreeceChildren celebrate by travelling from house to house in small villages offering good wishes and singing carols. Children are rewarded with sweets and dried fruit.

IndiaChristmas is set against a background of scar-let poinsettia trees and tropical plants. Children in brightly coloured dresses, accompanied by an orchestra of drums and cymbals, perform group dances using coloured sticks.

11INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS14 Dec 2012

IrelandAn Irish Christmas lasts from Christmas Eve until 6 January (The Feast of Epiphany). Fa-thers put a tall candle on the sill of the largest window. It is lit by the youngest child, in honour of Baby Jesus. It is left to burn all night to light the way for wanderers who are in need of shel-ter, Like Mary and Joseph long ago.

ItalyChristmas starts eight days before Christmas and lasts until the Feast of Epiphany. Musical salutes are made at the shrine of the Virgin Mary and songs are played at the homes of carpenters in honour of Saint Joseph.

NorwayOn Christmas Eve, after the family’s big dinner, it is time to open presents. Then all the brooms in the house are hidden. The Norwegians, long ago, believed that witches and naughty spirits came out on Christmas Eve and would steal their brooms for riding. They also hid the first shovel and tongs so that the naughty couldn’t play with them. Spruce logs burned in the fire-place to keep the witches away.

PolandRight after Christmas, people travel in horse-drawn sleighs for the Kulig; the winter sleigh party. Families gather in the forest, light fires and prepare festive meals. Later in the eve-ning, they celebrate with dancing and fire-works.

SwedenSwedish families celebrate Saint Lucia Day on 13 December. The oldest daughter wears a white robe, a red sash, and a crown of lighted candles as she serves coffee and buns to the other members of the family.

EVENTS12 14 Dec2012

– Entrepreneurship can be defined as the prosperity of mind to take calculated risks with confidence and to achieve a pre-determined business objective. Or, as the well-known au-thor and speaker – Jim Rohn, puts it: “Entre-preneurship is living a few years of your life like most people won’t, so that you can spend the rest of your life like most people can’t!”

For six students and future entrepreneurs of the Vaal Triangle Campus of the North-West University (NWU Vaal) months of hard work and perseverance recently culminated into success when they came out tops in the first-ever Entrepreneur of the Year Competition hosted by the Enterprise Development Cen-tre (EDC) within the Faculty of Economic Sci-ences and Information Technology. During a glitzy presentation ceremony the six finalists were put through their paces by a panel of ex-pert judges – including Dr. Theuns Eloff, Vice Chancellor of the University. The competition saw students take part in two categories that were decided in four stages. The winners, per category, were:

Entrepreneurship competition makes business sense

Category 1Olivier Tshimbidi – BlackSheep (a clothing brand)Motheo Mokwena – Vaal Piranhas (nurturing soccer talent in the Vaal Triangle region)Shegofatso Betha (intermediary platform be-tween secondary school learners and institu-tions of higher learning)

Category 2Zaakir Choonara (reward generating recycling station)Melanie van der Merwe – Safe T-quip (training and supply of safety equipment)Ernest Nkambule – Stuck Forward (edutain-ment network platform)

The winner of the competition received a cash investment of R10 000 towards his business venture as well as a year contract with the EDC to further develop the business concept whilst receiving mentorship from knowledgeable and established business professionals.

Annette Willemse

13SA NEWS14 Dec 2012

Once again South Africa takes time to look beyond skin colour, race, culture and gender. Reconciliation Day forms one nation, of one culture and one race.

16 December is celebrated as Day of Recon-ciliation in this country and before you go out to celebrate it in style, take a moment to re-member how it came about. Usually a holiday of this nature would be due to an event that played a role in changing the country, but this one has two events. Although they did not hap-pen on the same year, 16 December carries two historical events that turned lives around and memories that will be passed on genera-tions to come.

The first event was formerly known as Day of the Vow. On this day in 1838 one of the greatest battles in South Africa took place. With the Voortrekkers moving into the inte-rior of the country, a land that was occupied by the Zulu people, negotiations did not seem to benefit both parties. Hence the Zulu chief and the Voortrekkers leader had to settle it on the battlefield. Chief Dingane and his people had made a vow to God that they would build a church should they be granted victory, and would remember that day as Day of Thanks-giving. Unfortunately the Voortrekkers leader, Piet Retief, and his people had better weap-ons for the battle. At the end, the 10 000 Zulu warriors lost to the 470 Voortrekker soldiers. 16 December remained Day of the Vow until 1961.

The second event took place in 1961 when Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) was formed. This party was the military wing of the African Na-tional Congress (ANC), a party mainly formed

to fight against the apartheid government and bring freedom to the oppressed. After the Sharpeville Massacre, the ANC felt the need to strengthen its fight for freedom and there-fore resolved to forming the MK, which car-ried out acts of sabotage in the fight against apartheid. Unfortunately the government was more powerful and overcame those acts of MK and arrested most of its leaders. In spite of the problems MK faced, 16 December was celebrated every year as a day of one of the bravest acts undertaken by the ANC in forming one of the most powerful parties in the history of this country.

As the apartheid era ended and democracy took over, everybody became a free and equal South African citizen. And thereafter those two events were joint together and the day became Day of Reconciliation. National unity and rec-onciliation were the government’s main prior-ity, and so division and separation had to be a thing of the past. Reconciliation Day was first celebrated as a public holiday in 1995.

One Nation, One RaceWinnie Theletsane

14 Dec 201214 INSPIRATION

Another academic year has come and left. Surely we have learnt a lot besides academics. With all the challenges we may have faced with regards to all the assignments and tests we’ve received and submitted, the results are the fruits of the seeds we’ve sown.

Endurance and perseverance may have been a key lesson for us in especially the second semester. Should we have

taken good enough time and care to sow those seeds, the harvest itself ought to be good as well, right?

It may be that some of us have not harvested a good load. Hopefully those of us have learnt from the mistakes and have made an even greater ef-fort to produce a better harvest come the new academic year.

As students, we’re often ac-

customed to partying hard, yet, though we do so, we should also remember to study hard too. Some of us may have had the hazy experience of getting lost at M-Café, having mistak-en it to be an internet café. It happens, you know?

However, it’s all about find-ing one’s direction again and sailing towards that end goal, which is completion of that de-gree.

On your marks, get set, complete!Roche Artz

2012 @ A GLANCE 1514 Dec 2012

Class of 2012

14 Dec 20122012 @ A GLANCE16

Homecoming project labelled a great succes

s

2012 @ A GLANCE 1714 Dec 2012

Saint Patrick’s Day 2012!

18 2012 @ A GLANCE 14 Dec 2012

RAG 2012

192012 @ A GLANCE14 Dec 2012

OPEN DAY 2012

20 2012 @ A GLANCE 14 Dec 2012

We will never forget you...

Sasha

Teko

2114 Dec 2012 2012 @ A GLANCE

2012 Graduations!

14 Dec 201222 2012 @ A GLANCE

Mandela Day 2012!

Youth Day 2012

Casual Day 2012

2314 Dec 2012

Mandela Day 2012!

2012 @ A GLANCE

14 Dec 201224 2012 @ A GLANCE

Alumni Committee 2012

Alumni Function 2012!

2514 Dec 2012

Snow Day on Campus 2012!

2012 @ A GLANCE

14 Dec 201226 2012 @ A GLANCE

ADS Womens Day Event 2012

ADS Womens Day Event 2012

2714 Dec 2012

Mr & Miss NWU Vaal 2012

Mr & Miss NWU Vaal 2012

2012 @ A GLANCE

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Halloween 2012!

Halloween 2012!

Dance Club 2012!2012 @ A GLANCE

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Dance Club 2012!

Dance Club 2012!

2012 @ A GLANCE

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Culture Day 2012!

Culture Day 2012!

2012 @ A GLANCE

3114 Dec 2012

Societies Launch 2012

2012 @ A GLANCE

14 Dec 201232 FASHION

You may have seen people wearing them; you may have worn them yourselves. Look-ing on Facebook, some people make jokes using them, while others pretty much say they should all be burnt. Crocs are bringing in all kinds of noise, be it good or bad; but then again, some may say any sort of pub-licity is good publicity. So what makes these foamy shoes so hated and loved at the same time?

Crocs: A brief historyThe shoe manufacturer Crocs Inc was founded by three friends; Scott Seamens, Lyn-don Hanson and George Bo-edecker Jr in 2002. The design of the Croc, however, was ac-

The lowdown on Crocs...Kinga Siejek

quired from a Quebec compa-ny called Foam Creations, and was originally developed as a spa shoe.

In June 2004, Crocs were made in Tanzania, Africa; and is made from a foam resin called Croslite. This foam forms itself to the wearer’s feet and offers purported medical benefits.

Crocs: First showcaseThe first model by the Crocs company was called the Beach, and was unveiled in 2002 at the Fort Lauderdale Boat Show in Florida, USA. The 200 pairs that were pro-duced, as a ‘test run’, were all sold in that one day.

Crocs: The stylesIt is said that Crocs come in a variety of styles and colours, depending on the model. The ‘Classic’ styles are available in more than 20 colours, while others are produced in be-tween four to six colours, or even two-colour combinations.A Croc accessory is the Jib-bitz; decorations that can be clipped to the ventilation holes in the shoes.

Crocs has also released a line of purses, so now your shoes and bag can match!

So they may not be for every-one, but with so many styles, colours, and new products emerging from the company, it just goes to show that Crocs are indeed a choice in style, and not going anywhere soon.

FREAKY FACTS 3314 Dec 2012

• The Germans made the first artificial Christ-mas trees out of dyed goose feathers.

• All the gifts in the Twelve Days of Christmas song would equal 364 gifts.

• According to the Guinness World Records, the tallest Christmas tree ever cut was a 221 foot Douglas fir, that was displayed in 1950 at the Northgate Shopping Center in Seattle, Wash-ington.

• The traditional colours of Christmas are green, red and gold. Green as the symbol of life and re-birth, red as the bllod of Christ, and gold repre-sents light as well as wealth and royalty.

• According to data analysed from Facebook posts; two weeks before Christmas is one of the two most popular times for couples to break up.

Ho ho ho! A Freaky Christmas to all!

Now our dear Mr French is enjoying a lovely holiday at the coast, so I thought I would fill in for him until he comes back.

Since it is the month of Christmas, I thought it would be nice to have a few facts about the spe-cial day... ENJOY!

Kinga Siejek

However, Christmas Day is the least favourite day for breakups.

• Christmas wasn’t declared an official holiday in the US until 26 June 1870.

• Mistletoe is from the Anglo-Saxon word, mis-tletan, which means “little dung twig” because the plant spreads through bird droppings.

• It is estimated that the single “White Christ-mas” by Irving Berlin, is the best selling single of all time, with over 100 million sales worldwide.

• The first printed reference to a Christmas tree was in 1531 in Germany. • In Germany, Heiligabend, Or Christmas Eve, is said to be a magical time when the pure of heart can hear animals talking.

• Commisioned by Sir Henry Cole (1808-1883), British illustrator John Callcott Horsley (1817-1903) invented the first Christmas card in 1843.

• Before turkey, the traditional Christmas meal in England was a pig's head and mustard. • In 1647, after the English Civil War, Oliver Cromwell banned festivities. The law wasn't lift-ed until 1660.

• The largest Christmas cracker - 45.72m long and 3.04m in diameter - was pulled in Australia in 1991.

• Santa has different names around the world - Kriss Kringle in Germany, Le Befana in It-aly, Pere Noel in France and Deushka Moroz (Grandfather Frost) in Russia.

• Santa Claus comes from a Dutch folk tale based on Saint Nicholas, or Sinterklaas, who gave gifts on December 6.

• Kissing under the mistletoe is thought to spring from Frigga, the Norse goddess of love, who was associated with the plant.

14 Dec 201234 CALENDAR