The meaning of December stems from the Latin word decem, meaning ten.  The old Roman calendar started in March, making December the tenth month.  When the Roman senate changed the calendar in 153 BCE, the new year started in January, and December became the twelfth month.  The December solstice on December 21 or 22 is also known as the winter solstice.  It is the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and marks the beginning of the (astronomical) winter season there.  In the Southern Hemisphere, it is called the summer solstice.  There, it is the longest day of the year and the beginning of the (astronomical) summer season.  https://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/months/december.html#:~:text=Why%20Is%20December%20Not%20the,December%20became%20the%20twelfth%20mont

advent  noun   arrival of a notable person, thing, or event    

adventure  noun  Synonyms of adventure 1 a  : an undertaking usually involving danger and unknown risks  a book recounting his many bold adventures  b : the encountering of risks  the spirit of adventure

2  : an exciting or remarkable experience  3  : an enterprise involving financial risk

adventure  verb   

adventured; adventuring  transitive verb  1 : to expose to danger or loss  2 : to venture upon (see venture entry 1 sense 2) : try   

intransitive verb  1 :  to proceed despite risk   2 : to take the risk  https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adventure    

Ice eggs, or ice balls, are a rare phenomenon caused by a process in which small pieces of sea ice in open water are rolled over by wind and currents in freezing conditions and grow into spheroid pieces of ice.  They may collect into heaps of balls or 'eggs' on beaches where they pack together in striking patterns.   The gentle churn of water, blown by a suitably stiff breeze makes concentric layers of ice form on a seed particle that then grows into the floating ball as it rolls through the freezing currents.  Given enough time, the frozen balls can grow to become boulder size.  In 2016, giant snowballs washed up on a beach in Siberia, some measuring a metre (about 3 feet) across.  An ice specialist from the Finnish Meteorological Institute has been quoted as saying ice balls are rare, but not unprecedented, and occur about once a year on the Finnish coastline as conditions allow.  They also appear on the American Great Lakes along with pancake ice, forming in the middle of the lake, where they are called ice balls.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_eggs    

Noun  pawternity leave (usually uncountable, plural pawternity leaves)  (informal) Time off work granted to an employee to take care of a pet, especially a cat or dog  https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pawternity_leave#English

December 2 is one of two National Mutt Days in 2024 in the USA established by the American animal welfare advocate Colleen Paige.   

http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com  Issue 2880  December 2, 2024