The Acorn and the Thousand Oaks Acorn will be delivered on Christmas Eve next week. This will create early deadlines for both papers. Press releases and letters to the editor for Dec. 24 editions are due by noon today, Thurs., Dec. 18, which is also the deadline for reserving real estate ads. More...

For African children orphaned as a result of the rampant spread of AIDS, Mama Faraji has been a godsend. Faraji runs the Tuleeni Orphanage in Tanzania, an east African country facing the Indian Ocean. Jackie Weiss, an Oak Park High School graduate, wants to help Faraji provide a home and education for more children than she's able to do now. More...

THURS., DEC. 18 Conejo Valley Bonsai Society Hosts annual holiday party at Westlake Village Community Center, 31200 Oak Crest Drive. Phone: 805.495.7480 Time: 7:30 p.m. Date: 12/18/2008 The Nutcracker Suite Electronique Presented by Earthwalk Dance Company and Santa Monica Contemporary Ballet at 1651 18th St., Santa Monica. 8 p.m. today, 2 p.m. Dec. 21. More...

The Thousand Oaks pastery shop Chocolatine is bringing a bit of France locally with an edible cake in the shape of a traditional Christmas Yule log. The Yule log tradition began when all the family members would gather around the hearth for Christmas. More...

Acceptance was the theme of a series of activities at Oak Park High School last week. Through classroom presentations, assemblies and evening parent programs, the school encouraged discussion about such topics as the Darfur genocide, gay and lesbian equality, and the internment of Japanese people in the United States during World War II. More...

Great coaches make great calls, and great players execute those calls. On Friday, with the Oaks Christian football team up seven points against Serra High and backed against its own 35-yard line with 31 seconds to play in the first half of the CIFSouthern Section Northwest Division title game, More...

GOOD GIRL— Tila, an 8-month-old female pit bull terrier, would make a sweet, mellow and snuggly holiday present. She is obedient and friendly with dogs and cats too. To adopt Tila, ask for No. A3915580 at the Agoura Animal Shelter, 29525 Agoura Road. More...

Agoura Hills A resident in the 5400 block of Cedarhaven Drive reported that she was the victim of mail theft. The culprit forged a $264 check stolen from her outbound mail in an incident that occurred Dec. 8. More...

Seventy volunteers from Congregation Or Ami gathered at Kohl's store in Newbury Park on Dec. 7 for the annual Adopt a Child Abuse Caseworker Holiday Shopping Childspree. Participants chaperoned foster children throughout Kohl's, helping them pick out new clothes and toys for the holidays. More...

Backyard bird-watching with children may pay a number of unexpected dividends. That's because the early experiences in children's lives affect how their brains develop and lay the foundation for intelligence, emotional health and moral development, according to the National Association for the Education of Young Children. More...

Barbara Alice Zimmerman born August 5, 1956 passed away very peacefully at her home on December 10, 2008. She was truly loved as a wonderful mother to Michael, daughter to Seymour and Myrna Zimmerman, sister to Sheila Richards, sister in law to Chris Richards, aunt to Adam and Sean and friend to all. More...

300-Special Collector's Edition (Warner Bros.) More...

Am I the only person concerned about my neighborhood? I've lived in Oak Park for 15 years, and while I enjoy reading The Acorn every week, what I really enjoy is reading the Sheriff's Blotter and rarely seeing a crime incident in Oak Park. More...

As banks and investors around the world continue to declare billions of dollars in losses in an alleged fraud perpetrated by Bernard Madoff, here's an historical note about the method that the 70-year-old Wall Street shyster allegedly used—the so-called Ponzi scheme—and how it came about. More...