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On Wednesday, December 17th at 7pm SST (Spindizzy Standard Time), everyone gathered in the Japanese Gardens.

Nervousness and anticipation was hanging in the air as the crowd, as well as uneasiness as 30 Aina's stood at attention at each row of seats. Soon, as dusk came and the fireflies started to come out, the Aina's drew their blades simultaneously and made an arch as Morticon made his way to the florally designed wedding arch, stood at the arch for his anticipated bride with Darius, his best man, following. After a few beautiful songs played by Borris on the bagpipes, everyone's gaze went to the back of the meadow

Borris began playing the "Wedding March" as Portia's Bridesmaid, Zoie, slowly came down the isle, followed by Mina and then Findra, Portia's Maid of Honor. Findra was holding a single red and white rose with a white, silken cloth tied in a bow, holding Portia's ring. The young flowergirl, Ember, a young kangaroo, almost skipped up to the wedding arch, spreading red, pink and white rose petals across the path she trod. Soon, everyone stood up when Borris started to play "Here Comes the Bride" and Portia slowly made her way to the arch. Her radiant dress caused the audience, as well as Morticon, to beam happily.

As Portia made her way to the arch, everyone sat down and Argon, the highest ranking centaur and highly respected Justice of the Peace, started the ceremony. He described to both Morticon and Portia the obligations of Morticon and Portia as husband and wife and declared that each had their own vows to share. Morticon, in total trust, mentioned his plans to rule Spindizzy and asked Aina to give his bride a very large folder, which made everyone in the congregation go on edge. He then announced it was a book about himself, from himself, and is a record of everything about him, his strengths, weaknesses and his life. He stated he gave it to Portia, to show his love and trust for her. Portia, in return, gave her vows of love to Morticon. She had a key to her private library, sharing with Morticon her private, secret place.

Argon moved the ceremony forward, reminding both Portia and Morticon of their obligations to love one another through the good times as well as the bad. He soon announced they were husband and wife, which caused then to share a very passionate kiss, causing the flower girl, in such elation, to throw the basket up and send flower petals all across the arch and the loving couple. Argon announced to the congregation his introduction of "Morticon and Portia Lee-Wallaby". Portia and Morticon soon made their way towards the rear of the meadow area as Borris played his bagpipes again, followed by Darius and Zoie, the bridesmaids and groomsmen, the Ainas (sheathing their swords in follow). Argon then announced to the congregation they were invited to join Morticon and Portia Lee-Wallaby in the reception being held for them.

Santa Paws, that jolly holiday ursine, came to Spindizzy Friday evening to visit all the good little cubs and kits of that realm. Patch O' Black, local jellicle cat assumed reindeer form and offered support to the jolly bear, keeping him supplied with warm cookies and cold milk all through the night.

Santa held court in the Rose Garden and invited Spindizzy's cubs and kids to tell him what they wanted for Christmas. Some requests were quite bizarre. Borris, local bear, wanted a specially made club suitable for walloping. Others were quite touching. Roofus_roo, local kangaroo fae, wanted there to be more fae children around so there'd be more playmates for him. No matter what the request, Santa promised he would see what he could do to fill it.

Along the way, Santa made sure that all cubs were taken care of and listened to. He remembered that he had snubbed Leslie, local rabbit, last year so he invited her to be one of the first children he listened to, intending to avoid making the same mistake twice.

All in all, a good time was had by all. Santa is quoted as saying. "Merry Christmas to all and I'll see you next year!"

Kefan, local centaur is quite handy. Of course he does the usual centaur things, gallop, study, and often serves as a couch. He's fast, strong and tall, not to mention the almost universal trait shared by centaurs of being good looking.

But Kefan is also quite artistic. Some of you may recall the Dalek he knitted, yes, knitted! He has also done some fine centaur artwork and some other, less attractive subjects as well.

With the holidays upon us, Kefan used his skills to make Charlie Brown's Christmas tree a real object. He has the crossed boards stand, the spindly nearly leafless "tree" and the required bend caused by the weight of the single Christmas ornament. Kefan has added a personal touch, he has a couple of presents under his tree. Looks like Santa might have brought him a few DVDs!

Our own SpinDizzy Christmas tree is also based on Charlie Brown's tree although the SpinDizzy tree usually ends up with far more decorations than poor Charlie Brown's.

As was noted in the 400th issue, Gilead is always an otter. Yet this Halloween, many SpinDizzy residents observed that Gilead was not one otter, but 1000 dogs. Doesn't that violate the always-an-otter law?

Actually, no. Gilead remained an otter the whole time. From a certain point of view... (Thank you, Obi-Wan, for giving us all a perpetual out for any half-truth or almost-lie we ever tell.) However, it's true here, because point of view counts in the always-an-otter law.

You see, Zoroastrian belief holds that the otter is the most sacred of all animals, even moreso than the second most sacred, the dog. Both dogs and otters are responsible for keeping the world in a state to allow good souls to go to a good afterlife. But since more of the world is water than land, the "water dog" must therefore be the greater. A male-female pair of otter souls is formed when 2000 dogs, 1000 male and 1000 female, die and their souls join together. So Gilead was always an otter the whole time, just in parts. And when he joined back together, many residents got to see the happy and peaceful joining of the 1000 male parts back with 1000 female parts who came by. Perhaps the female otter cub who formed at that time will come back some day too...

But now that Halloween and Thanksgiving have come and gone, happy winter holiday of choice to all.

A passage from the extant Avesta, the most ancient scriptures of Zoroastrianism shows the great respect this religion has for otters and the penalties for killing or injuring one. After chatting with Patch O'Black, local comics expert, I found this listing of the beliefs of various Superheroes, Super villians and some incidental characters. Interestingly, some very minor characters are practicing Zoroastrians - Editor

The Spindizzy raccoon community was shocked recently when it was learned the true purpose of shineys-they were put here to prevent raccoons and their kind from taking over the world!

Reached for comment on this was Dr. Morti Kahn, lead researcher at The Spindizzy Institute For Advanced Studies. "We at the institute have always wanted to know why raccoons have always had an attraction to shineys." he was quoted as saying. "We've always known raccoons to be a most industrious and devious sort. After extensive analysis and testing we have found that shineys calm them down and help distract them from their plans of dominiation and control. "

Though some questions were answered, Dr. Kahn was quick to point out more research was needed. "After all, we don't know who introduced the concept of shineys to raccoons and how long ago this was." he was quoted as saying, adding that he hoped to have the answers to those questions soon.

The various members of the Spindizzy community were too distracted by a recent influx of shineys to comment on this.

You may be interested to know that a certain Spindizzian now has his own theme song.

"I was at Midwest Fur Fest when I came across a gent named Infinity Squared.." Ba'ar bear is quoted as saying "Instead of the usual offer of comic books or plushies or such, he offered to do a theme song based on your 'fursonae'.. I was intriqued and took him up on his offer."

The tune, "Ba'ar Gives It To Ya" (click http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1779881/ to listen), Is a bright cheerful tune that Ba'ar says captures his playful personality very well.

"The best part is that you can get a theme song for your fursonae as well." noted Ba'ar, adding that one should just point their browsers here for more information.

Ho ho ho and Merry Christmas. This is Santapaws saying that I had a wonderful time in the Rose Garden on Friday evening listening to the good little cubs and kits of Spindizzy give their holiday requests.

As you know, I've got a big round the world trip planned for Christmas Eve. With this in mind, I invite you to track my progress by going to a wonderful site called Norad Santa. Simply point your browser here and you'll be all set to go. Once again, merry Christmas

o/~ Rudolph the White-Nosed Cocaine Deer
Had a very candied nose,
And if you ever saw it,
You could tell that he sniffed blow.

All of the other reindeer.
Who used to laugh and call him names,
Were too scared to speak now,
The coke made him bats**t insane.

Then one manic Christmas Eve,
Santa intervened,
"Twelve days of Christmas are just right,
To start you on Twelve Steps tonight."

Then how the reindeer sobered,
Got himself all straight and clean.
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,
Kept his brain from then on keen. o/~

Gilead's Secret Holiday Message

Your clue is: Z = Y.

E P O U G P S H F U U P E S J O L Z P V S P W B M U J O F

Thank you to everyone who contributed to the newspaper this week!

Special thanks go to:

Zoie, for the great report on the wedding,
Ba'ar. for the report on Santa Paws' visit,
Argon, for the story about Kefan's "Peanuts" tree,
Gilead, for the story about why he was 1000 dogs,
Ba'ar, for a report on shinies,
Cora, for the report on Ba'ar's song,
Santa Paws, for the report on NORAD,
Gilead, for a poem that only he could write,
Patch O'Black, for a Superhero Christmas
Gilead, for his puns, Ba'ar, for the survey,
and, Argon (and Gilead,) for a Doze Garden cartoon.

Hello and welcome back. The ol' Four-Kolor Kitty has been taking a little break, but as the holidays are upon us, I thought it would be nice to share this year's Holiday Special from DC Comics. This year, the issue is packed with ten stories.

	The first story is one that probably sounds familiar: An alien world dies, but one last survivor is sent to Earth. As a baby, the last son of this planet is found by a kindly couple, from which he learns the lessons that would lead him to choose a life-long mission. But do you really know who "The Man In Red" is?
	In the second story, Aquaman must defeat a group of pirates and guide a couple's ship to port. Will he get the ship's precious cargo safely home? And what is the cargo? The King of the Oceans finds himself "Somewhere Beyond The Sea".
	In Gotham City, Commissioner Gordon learns of a campaign that is asking for everyone to spend just one day without breaking the law. Gordon is cynical, but as the day goes on, and the police force is receiving no calls, he begins to wonder. Is something up, or is this truly to be "A Day Without Sirens"?
	Next, a retelling of the tale of "Good King Wenceslas", there the king wears dark armor, and his page is dressed in red and green. They go forth to battle against the winter in order to deliver some holiday cheer to a poor peasant.
	Meanwhile, Nightwing and Robin have some Christmas plans of their own. Robin plans to catch a favorite holiday movie, and Nightwing wants to deliver a present to him. However, what does this third person who shows up want? Will it still be "A Wonderful Night"?
	The next story takes place in jail. There, a prisoner talks to his son. It seems that crime has been the family business, And the last three generations of men have ended up behind bars due to the work of the three men who have had the title of the Blue Beetle. The father tells the young adult what he thinks of his family's tradition of "Christmas With The Beetles"
	The Huntress isn't really one for holidays. However, she manages to give a young bully a chance to change his life. We find out how in "An Angel Told Me".
	The newest band of Teen Titans decide to take in some holiday cheer in New York. They split up to take in the sights, do a little shopping, and to confront a few nagging doubts and troubles. That's just how things happen when you are a young super-hero on "The Night Before Christmas".
	Elsewhere, John "Green Lantern" Stewart and Roy "Red Arrow" Harper capture an old-time Justice League opponent The Shaggyman thanks to a tranquilizer arrow. However, they don't have time to turn him into custody before the big JLA Christmas party! So, naturally...they take him with them! As it turns out, while normally The Shaggyman is dangerous, under the effects of the medication, he is simply a "Party Animal".
	Finally, Dr. Kimiyo Hoshi is working late on Christmas Eve at S.T.A.R. Labs. However, someone else is stirring, two super-villains who plan to do her harm. You see, she is also known as Doctor Light, a name previously held by a partner of the criminals, and they are seeking revenge against what they see as a usurper. However, Hoshi isn't about to go quietly into the dark, preferring rather to "Let There Be Light!"
	The issue ends with another stand-alone page, showing members of the JSA and JLA looking out at the Earth from the Watchtower satellite, while DC Comics wishes everyone a Happy Holidays. While I will admit, the quality of the stories does vary quite a bit, if you get a chance, go ahead and pick it up. I certainly enjoyed it, though I'm a sucker for holiday specials. Until next time, this is Patch O'Black, wishing all of you a very Mewy Christmas!

Merry Christmas

Patchy

Q: What do you call eating a chinchilla?
A:: Soft vore.

Q: What do you call a soft rodent in a tortilla with cheese and sauce?
A:: A chinchilada.

Q: What do you call a soft rodent blended with ice cream?
A:: A chin-chiller.

Q: What do you call a soft rodent with beans and spicy sauce?
A:: Chinchili.

Q: What is the common side effect of eating chinchili with beans?
A:: You furt a lot.

Q: What do you get when you put a soft rodent on your face?
A:: A chinwarmer.

Q: What do you call a soft rodent playing a racially offensive Asian detective character?
A:: Charlie Chin.

Q: Why did the successful soft rodent breeder always have to put up with fat jokes?
A:: He had more chins than a Chinatown phone book.

Q: How do stoner chinchillas stay clean?
A:: They take angel dust baths.

Q: What do you call a Japanese soft rodent's privates?
A:: A chinpochilla.

Q: What do you call decorating with cheap soft rodent souveniers?
A:: Chin-tzy.

Q: What do you do if your soft rodent gets magnetized?
A:: Degus it. And now a few seasonal ones:

Q: What happened when Rudolph's sudden fame and popularity became too much for him?
A:: He became Rudolph the White-Nosed Cocaine Deer.

Q: Who tries to take over the world ever Christmas?
A:: Pinky and the Braindeer.

Q: What do you call a red and green dog you buy for the holidays?
A:: A Pointersettia.

Q: What don't foxes celebrate Christmas?
A:: Would you hang your sox by the chimney if they were part of your feet?

Q: What do bird rights activists drink in protest for the holidays?
A:: Fetusnog.

Q: What do covetous middle eastern rodents do for the holidays?
A:: Light the menorah for the eight days of Hamnuka.

Q: What do centaurs do for the holidays?
A:: Go out corralling.

Hi there, Ba'ar here with your Spindizzy @Action News Survey. Do you put up a Christmas tree?

• Zoie giggles some to Ba'ar,"I live in the tree they're decorating here.
• Kefan grins. "I have an actual Charlie Brown xmas tree that's going up as soon as I clear my table. One ornament, bent over double."
• Zen nods, "Yes I do! Every Thanksgiving evening! I always decorate it with little cheeze cubes as well but they don't last till morning...."
• DTF smiles "I would, but my place is pretty cramped at the moment. Next year likely will."
• Argon says, "Not this year."
• Shoe barks, "We have a small fiber optic (even though it has normal lights too) tree."
• Darius says, "Naw, we dont really have room in our house to dedicate to a tree."
• Sashi purrs softly, "I got tired of the mess. Needles everywhere."
• Jimun nodnodnods! "I haven't put a tree up yet, but I will soon! It's fun to decorate and always looks really nice when it's done!"
• Borris Gruffs, "No, apartment is too small, but I do decorate."
• Beltrami waves to PatchO'Black- she blinks and looks at Ba'ar without understanding and then points to the trees here. (IE "My tree is the tree the wizards have set up.")
• Logan gruffs, "Only artificial trees."
• Mischa says, "I do!!! I decorated it this past weekend."
• GrumpyBear grumbles, "I'm not a christsumer."

How "The Nutcracker" got its name.

Got something that You'd like to contribute to @Action News, but aren't sure if you should, or how to do it? Here are some basic guidelines.

Contributing a story or artwork for @Action News is easy! Just send it to newspaper@spindizzy.org!

• @Action News is published weekly sometime between Sunday and Wednesday each week, although the date of publication may vary.
• Articles received after midnight Pacific time on Saturday may be held and published in the next edition of @Action News.
• Most any type of story or article of interest to SpinDizzy's newspaper readers will be accepted. Generally, we'd prefer things that aren't out and out lies or flames about other folks, and have a basis in the reality of SpinDizzy.
• Things that occur in public areas are fair game.
• The things reported don't have to have actually happened, (any more than anything that happens here does,) but make sure you don't overstep the social boundaries and rules of interaction that we have.

These are pretty broad guidelines, but we expect good sense to apply.

Thanks!

Argon
Editor - @Action News