LITTLE TOWN OF BETHLEHEM

O little town of Bethlehem,
How still we see thee lie!
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent starts go by.
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting Light;
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight.

For Christ is born of Mary;
And gathered all above
While mortals sleep, the angels keep
Their watch of wondering love.
O morning stars, together
Proclaim the holy birth,
And praises sing to God the King,
And peace to men on earth.

How silently, how silently,
The wondrous gift is given!
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of His heaven.
No ear may hear His coming;
But in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive Him, still
The dear Christ enters in.

O Holy child of Bethlehem,
Descend to us, we pray;
Cast out our sin, and enter in;
Be born in us today.
We hear the Christmas angels
The great glad tidings tell;
O come to us, abide with us,
Our Lord, Emmanuel.

Arnold still needs a Sacramento Home

Via Voy, I stumbled across this old (but interesting) news.

Sacramento lawyer Steve Merksamer thinks he has the solution: Take the never-used mansion created by Nancy Reagan for subsequent governors.

Place to call home

This structure, not to be confused with the house Nancy and Ron lived in, is the 12,000-square-foot, pretentiously dubbed Casa de los Gobernadores, chosen by Nancy from more than 80 design proposals. It sits commandingly on a bluff overlooking the American River not far from the current governor's home. Wild turkeys roam the five acres that include a swimming pool and a sweeping lawn that doubles as a helipad. It has a dining room that comfortably seats 22. The home, like the White House, is divided into private and public wings. It features a large, manly den, partly designed by Ronald Reagan himself, perfect for smoking cigars and drinking cognac after a hard day cutting the budget deficit.

Moreover, it's on the market for a mere $5.9 million. "It's the kind of house built with security in mind," said real estate agent Geoff Zimmerman, who conducted a tour for a reporter. "It has 2-foot thick walls gauged to withstand even an artillery barrage. It's perfect for a very high-profile person."

The mansion would solve the Schwarzenegger-Maria Shriver tennis problem. It's only blocks away from the Arden Hills Country Club and Spa, which has the area's best, if not most exclusive, tennis facility.

Arden Hills is also where Olympians Mark Spitz and Debbie Meyer trained.