Take a look -

Chad is holding Kaleb, the cat, who is about two years and lived most of his life at the Animal Services Center of the Mesilla Valley when he and his sister and brother were dropped off.  His brother was adopted earlier this year and his sister just last week.  Kaleb is sad without the company of his sister and brother but would make someone a great companion.  He’s a little shy but very sweet and will no doubt, warm up pretty quickly in a loving home.  The Animal Services Center is open each day at noon and is at 3551 Bataan Memorial West.

And you can help The ASCMV in their efforts by going to their Huge Garage Sale.  PART TWO! 

All proceeds from the event will benefit the Animal Services Center of the Mesilla Valley.  December 4 and 5 – 2292 Divot Drive, Jake Sims and Company,  in Las Cruces from 8am to 1pm (no early birds, please).

History 101: December 3rd, 1929: Ford Motor Company raised the pay of its employees 40 percent despite the collapse of the U.S. stock market. Ford wages went from $5 to $7 a day.

Music History 101: December 3rd, 1965: A rock star was electrocuted and knocked unconscious when his electric guitar wiring got fouled during a concert in Sacramento. It was Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones.

The 101 number one song of the day was recorded by a star of the Gospel circuit. But when he recorded a pop song under a pseudonym he was fired for crossing over into secular music.  He was lead singer of a Gospel group known as the Soul Stirrers and at that time someone who sang gospel just did not do anything else. But he was approached a man named Bumps Blackwell who talked him into recording some of his songs. Against his better judgment he did and when they were released using the name “Dale” his smooth, creamy voice was too obvious to disguise. He lost his job as lead singer but his solo career was launched. His influence can be heard in singers as disparate as Otis Redding, Rod Stewart, Marvin Gaye and Mick Jagger and on December 3, 1957 he owned the number one song in the land. Here’s Sam Cooke (You Send Me)

The 101 Gold Nugget of Knowledge:  Iowa prisons could soon be stocking prison-made toilet paper to save taxpayers money and provide jobs to inmates. Inmates at two Iowa prisons are testing a single-ply tissue processed at a Missouri prison. Roger Baysden, director of Iowa Prison Industries, says inmates could start processing their own toilet paper next year if the Legislature supports the idea.Iowa prisons use about 900,000 rolls of toilet paper annually. Processing it in-house would save about $100,000 a year and would create jobs for about 50 inmates.

Using Credit Cards Wisely

Cash may be king, but plastic is queen this holiday shopping season. In the aftermath of the Great Recession, one good money habit seems to be sticking around – swiping less plastic. In fact, a recent survey by USAA found more than half of shoppers don’t plan to use a credit card at all this holiday shopping season. However, two in five consumers still plan to use their credit card this year. And using a credit card is not always a “financial faux pas,” says Joseph Montanaro, financial planner for USAA. “You have to use them wisely, rather than as a crutch to spend more than you can afford,” Montanaro said. Here are four excuses to pull out your plastic this holiday season:

1. The holiday shopping season can be an ideal time to maximize rewards program benefits.

2. Using a credit card at least a few times per year can help keep your credit score in good standing.

3. Purchase protection or extended warranty can provide you with peace of mind on expensive purchases.

4. Debit cards can provide the best of both worlds, with some offering credit card-style rewards programs and the built-in spending limits of cash.

Here’s what that news conference from N.A.S.A was about: A U.S. researcher says she’s found an Earthly bacteria that breaks the biochemical “rules” all life on the planet. All known life on Earth is based on a single genetic model that requires six essential elements: carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, sulfur and phosphorus. But biochemist Felisa Wolfe-Simon has discovered a bacterium that has replaced phosphorus with its toxic cousin arsenic. She said the discovery opens the door to the possibility of the existence of a theorized “shadow biosphere” on Earth – life evolved from a different common ancestor than we’ve known so far – and could impact the search for life on alien worlds. Her research found some of the bacteria not only used arsenic to live, but had arsenic embedded in their DNA, RNA and other basic chemistry. Arsenic is poisonous to nearly all forms of life on earth. Even small amounts become embedded in living tissue, causing liver failure and ultimately death – in nearly everything except these bacteria.   Hmmm.