Santa Declassifies 2011 Post Delivery Debriefing

Santa has officially released his declassified post delivery report for the 2011 trip.

Some information remains classified as it would potentially cause unnecessary dangers for future trips if the entire trip outline would be distributed.

Included; however; is information on communications issues while over Germany (and the cause of said communications disruption) as well as several other items.

It has been posted by the DES and the report can be read by clicking here.

Santa Post Delivery Medical Report

Dr. Harold Twinklestein has released his post delivery medical report on Santa.

No major concerns were identified in Santa's examination. He does have several issues to work on this year in preparation for next year's journey and to keep him healthy, but he has been listed as "Fit for Continued Duty" as Executive Director of the DES and all other duties.

Please click the link for his full 2011 report.

Santa Second Check Complete and Satellites Scheduled for Take Off

Santa has completed his second check. There are only a few changes and they have been sent over to the workshop so that changes can be made to the loading schedule.

All satellites will be launched at the scheduled times in the morning.

NORAD has been notified of the lift off and will be tracking out progress starting at 8 a.m.

Those who are on the lift off crew are to report to command central at 7 a.m. for pre-launch checklists. We will follow the lift off schedule as in previous years and hope that there will be no issues in the morning. All rockets are on the launch pads and ready to go.

 

Santa Second Check Scheduled for 3p.m.

Attention Naughty and Nice List Elves.

Santa will be moving his operations to his home office this afternoon and he plans on going through his second check of the list starting at 3 p.m.

Please deliver all lists to his office by then. All updates need to be done by 2:57 p.m. to make the EPS (Elf Postal Service) truck shipment over to Santa's house. If you have any changes after that time, you will have to deliver them yourself (just remember to protect the list, Santa does not like them damp it we have snow reported for today).

Santa should be working late into the night and will send any adjustments to the workshop as he comes across them.

EMERGENCY NOTICE

We just lost the red bow making machine in the workshop.

We need all available elves to report to gift wrapping immediately.

This machine has been a problem and we have no time to get it repaired before Saturday night.

If you are not experienced in bow making we will teach, just come as soon as possible!

Bonus pay will be given to those who are working multiple shifts. This is an emergency and we need your help.

Electronic Toy Seminar Scheduled

All elves working within the electronic division are to report to mandatory training from January 10 - January 15 in the Meeting Hall.

We will be discussing and going over the schematics of next year's electronic toys, as well as, going over the new laser cutter the will arrive in the workshop on January 20^th.

There will be a few changes in circuit boards and wiring coding, so please be sure to bring your wiring handbooks with you during the training. These training sessions will be the same as previous years. If you are new to the division, please report an extra hour early for orientation and sign-in. We will distribute your handbooks and specialized tools during the orientation training.

At the end of the sessions, there will be a brief certification exam; however, you will be allowed to use your notes. Please be sure to take good ones.

Lunch will be provided for all sessions so we can continue working through lunch.

Prep and Landing Crew Update

The entire Prep and Landing Team (Including the Coal division) are to report at 09:00 hours tomorrow to the main auditorium in the meeting house.

We will be going over this year's naughty/nice list update as well as the new landing equipment demonstration. Please be sure to bring your landing modules with you so that you can have them updated.

As you recall there is a defect within last year`s module that does not allow deployment if there is a triple chimney configuration on the roof. The Toy Maker has made an update module that can be inserted into your landing equipment that will fix this defect.

Also, there is a significant increase in the nice list this year. We may be moving some of the coal division over to the "Prep and Landing" division. This will be discussed during the meeting.

Arnold has also asked that all "Coal" division elves please take a bath and do not show up at the meeting with your work clothes or boots. This is a brand new facility and we would like to keep it clean as much as possible.

Mrs. Claus will have cocoa and pancakes available at 8:30 a.m. for those wanting to come for breakfast before the meeting. BYOS (Bring your own syrup).

12 Day Check Starts During the Morning Shift

The Department of Elfland Security will begin the 12 day countdown checklist starting at 12:01 a.m. The first part of the checklist is to cover all animal deliveries, as well as, the reindeer stable status. If you work within these areas, please be prepared for inspection so that all goes quickly.

As you remember from last year, when we entered into the gift wrapping stations we had to wait for the station workers to finish their cocoa break which set us off schedule for the rest of the day.

The following will be the schedule, so please be at your posts during these times.

12:01 a.m. Animal Delivery and Stables

1:01 a.m. Santa's Sleigh and lift-off testing

2:01 a.m. Satellite to Sleigh present transfer

3:01 a.m. Santa's Wardrobe and dressing area

4:01 a.m.- 6:00 a.m. Breakfast and Cocoa Break

6:01 a.m. Gift wrapping Center

7:01 a.m. Security and tracking center

8:01 a.m. Gift to Satellite packaging Center

9:01 a.m. Coal Polishing Center

10:01 a.m. Naughty/Nice list briefing and update

11:00 a.m.- 1:00 p.m. Lunch and Cocoa Break

1:01 p.m. Conference Call with NORAD

3:01 p.m. Review of 10 Day checklist schedule

Santa Returns from St. Nicholas Day Run

Santa reported another great St. Nicholas Day run this year. He had plenty of gifts for the children`s shoes despite the concerns of the accounting department. We are conducting an audit now to see why the count was off and to make sure we don`t run into issues for the December 24^th run. If we are off on the count then we can make it up using the storage warehouse and accounting has assured us that they will send staff members down to the workshop to help us get caught back up.

He continued to report that several of the children again forgot to untie their shoes and he had to use extra magic in some of the German neighborhoods, but it was not as close to the problem he had last year.

We will be sending a team out to the eastern satellite in order to stable the donkeys and arrange for transport back to the pole tomorrow. Santa also said that the basket transfer system works much better now that we have all of the glitches worked out (thanks to Arnold in engineering).

For more information about St. Nicholas Day, click here.

Snowball Challenge Results

GREAT TURNOUT AND FUN TODAY!

Thank you to Julie and Anderson for putting together another great event at the last minute. I heard all kinds of positive feedback and we all look forward to the next challenge.

The following are the results from the events:

Gift Wrapping Challenge: 1^st Place: Arnold Greeson with :21 seconds and a perfect bow. 2^nd place: Melanie Peirson with :24 seconds. 3^rd place: Jackie Wetson with :28 seconds.

Snowman Challenge: This was a close one, the Red team won with 3:42 seconds. Their snowman was 28ft 8in. Tall. GOOD JOB RED TEAM. 2^nd place: Green Team, 3^rd place: Gold Team

Candy Cane Eating Contest: The winner was Jacob Carnolsworth with 987 candy canes in 1 minute.

Jacob left the Snowball Challenge after the contest and went to the workshop to do all the work we had scheduled for Monday… so when you report to work on Monday, please follow Tuesday`s schedule.

Santa Approves New Jet for DES

A little known fact is that Santa actually travels via jet when he not making Christmas gift deliveries. After visiting Air Force One a few years ago, he always makes the comment when boarding and leaving the current plane that we have to get a new one. He liked the private quarters and offices on Air Force One, especially if it would allow himself and Mrs. Claus to have areas to rest from the security elves while they are travelling.

After this year`s Macy`s Day Parade trip, the big guy finally gave us approval to purchase a new upgraded jet, so the department is now having the new jet built. We will be getting a brand new Boeing VC-25 (the same place as the current Air Force One).

When we met with the employees at Boeing, we secretly sprinkled them with some elf dust so we would get our plane done quicker (at elf pace).

They have already sent over some preliminary photos of the interior and it looks like this is going to be a palace in the sky.

Delivery is expected to be within the week, and everyone is excited for the maiden voyage.

 

 

 

Here are some interior photos of the new DES-1 that were e-mailed over earlier today:

Security corridor next to Mr. and Mrs. Claus suite.

DES on-board conference room.

Inside Mr. and Mrs. Claus` suite.

 

Santa`s BIO May Take Longer Than Projected

Arnold Breckensmith (DES Historian) just submitted an update on Santa`s Biography for the website.

He says it is going to take much longer than he expected. The volumes of research he has to review now takes over about 15 rooms within the meeting complex.

He has hired on 5 more elves to help him cross check his facts and it appears that there are several reports that conflict with each other.

He does plan on at least having the summary for us very soon so that it can be posted on the website.

Snowball Challenge Schedule

In light of having the this weekend free, the Department of Elfland Security has scheduled the 2375^th Snowball Challenge starting Saturday morning at 9:00 a.m.

As always, events include: Snowman construction contest, Candy Cane eating contest, Reindeer in Training Rides, Gift Wrapping Contest (Gift wrapper workers will judge), and a performance by Rocky and the Mistletoes at noon in the square.

Food and Hot Chocolate will be provided.

If you wish to participate in the contests, please sign-in by 8:30 a.m. with Judy. She will have a sign-in table set up in front of the workshop doors.

Weather report is: Cold and snowy, so dress appropriately.

Elves Get the Weekend Off

SPECIAL NOTICE TO ALL DES AND PRODUCTION ELVES!

Due to being ahead of schedule, Santa has declared this coming weekend to be a non-working holiday break for all elves. He is proud to announce that we are down to loading the last satellite with gifts and there is no need for extended production… work will continue the following Monday; however, and there will be no time off until after the delivery night.

Enjoy your time off with family and friends, and give yourself a big pat on the back for a job well done!

Please note, this does not include Security Details that will be traveling with Santa and Mrs. Claus over the weekend for public appearances.

Chat Services Tested at Department and Santa`s Office

The IT department reported that the test for the chat services link at Santa`s home office worked successfully. Today`s live chat is on task and still scheduled for 5p.m. Mr. and Mrs. Claus will be joining the chat from their home, as well as, several elves from the department. There will be a few located at the new meeting center and a couple at the headquarters building. We are getting a great satellite connection to the Internet today and they feel we will have a great chat session. Weather reports look very favorable.

Santa adds to his resource page!

Santa used his time today to create and publish several items for his resource page.

He has posed some math practice sheets, puzzles, and a domino game.

Click here for quick access! Have fun!

Tom Turkey's Biography and Summary Complete

Arnold Breckensmith (DES Historian) reported that he completed the Official Biography of Tom Turkey and submitted the summary to the web department. The web department immediately placed the summary on-line. It can be found here. Arnold continued his communication by saying he will continue on researching and start on Santa's Biography. His office has sent out letters to all of the Assembly of Legendary Figures asking for interview dates that are reasonable for them. Once he hears back from everyone he will post the research schedule.

He did say that the Biography's are quite larger than he originally planned and we may want to look into having them published within book volumes. This will be discussed at the next Department meeting.

Security Detail from New York Wrap up Report

Another successful mission!

At the end of the parade, Mr. and Mrs. Claus were invited inside Macy`s for their annual meet and greet. They spent about 45 minutes with the administration and employees of the store before boarding their transportation back to the airport. At 2:37 p.m. EST, DES-1 lifted off from JFK International Airport in route to the North Pole.

At 3:30 p.m. Santa called a debriefing meeting on board. He congratulated all of the elves for a job well done. He said that he love the new team and wishes that everyone can return again for next year`s Macy`s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

The only negative item reported by Santa is that he thinks we should consider either renovation or replacement of DES-1. The jet is getting rather aged and is in need of updating. I have created a memo to submit to headquarters about this comment.

Mrs. Claus was a cheerful as always and gave all of the elves on board "I Love New York" T-shirts and large chocolate chip cookies.

The meeting was over at 4:13 p.m. EST.

Santa and Mrs. Claus retreated to their private cabin and the elves spent the rest of the trip singling carols and playing games. All elves were accounted for before taking off for the North Pole.

Security Detail Reports in From New York

The Department spent most of the night and morning reviewing the security plans for the parade route for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. There was only one issue found. The street department forgot to collect one mailbox on the corner of Central Park S. and 7^th Street, but it was removed immediately after it was reported. Santa arrived about 5:27 a.m. and was escorted to his private staging area with no incidents. Step off began on-time and all are excited for this year's parade.

We have issued maps to all of the parade spotters within the security detail. Although we communicate through our closed radio frequency, last year we had issues with two of our spotters trying to find fellow security members within the crowd. We were not clear if this was due to poor planning or if the security elves were distracted by one of the parade balloons. Either way, we implemented the spotter location map this year as part of the security planning.

Tom Turkey Creates Presidential Pardon Page

One of the unique things related to the TAOLF member Tom Turkey is the U.S. Presidential Pardon that takes place every Thanksgiving. Tom has created a new page called Presidential Pardon were you can see this year's pardon by President Obama and the history behind this yearly ceremony.

The origins of which is unknown exactly; however, there is some interesting history on this page even dating back to Abraham Lincoln.

Sit back and give it a read.

Tom Turkey' s FAQ page now available

Tom Turkey has been working with the Department of Elfland security to create his F.A.Q. page. They have come up with 75 questions and answers relating to the first Thanksgiving, parades, and turkeys. You can now connect to that page to find out some interesting information about the holiday.

We have our Facebook Username

BREAKING NEWS!

This just in from the Department of Elfland Security, The North Pole:

Attention all Assembly of Legendary Figures and Fans, it is official, we now have our Facebook username. Our official Facebook page is now, http://www.facebook.com/taolf. All websites and marketing material will be updated to reflect the new address. Thank you to our Facebook fans for helping to make this happen.

The History of the Wishbone Superstition

One of the elves working with Tom on items for his website asked Tom an interesting question that we found when reviewing the interview tapes. You see, we record our sessions with the Legendary Figures, because you never know when you have to go back and review what was said. Elves are not really great note takers, and we have found the recordings to be more dependable when it comes to getting the facts straight.

But anyways, back to the question. The following is a transcript that is between Tom the Turkey and Eugene Becklner (one of our researcher elves). Eugene asked Tom, Where did that superstition about the wishbone come from?

Tom: I cannot believe you asked me that... gobble, gobble.

Eugene: Well, I was working on these FAQ questions, and one of them was about the wishbone... I didn't mean to upset you, I was just curious.

Tom: Oh well, that's ok; you know I am a little edgy this time of year. You see, that superstition actually started many, many, man... gobble, gobble... ny years ago. Back during the times right before the Romans.

Eugene: Really, it is that old?

Tom: Yes. You see there was this group of people called the Etruscans...

Eugene: Etru...

Tom: Yes, the Etruscans. You see, they believed that fowls, like myself, were soothsayers.

Eugene: soothsayers?

Tom: Gobble, Gobble... yes... those who could tell the future. Well anyways, that is when they believed that... and this is hard for me to say... gobble gobble, that my collarbone had special powers.

Eugene: Wow... really?

Tom: Yes, and the Romans took over this thought and believed that if you would take out the bone… then two people rub it and make a wish... then each person take a side and pull... the one who... gobble gobble, got the biggest piece would get their wish. This is how it became to be called the wish bone.

Eugene: Oh... Ok, I see, hmmmmm...

Tom: Why are you looking at me like that?

Eugene: What, no... I'm not... nothing.

Tom: Yeah... Gobble, gobble... don't get any ideas.

Eugene: Tom, I would never...

Tom: Ok, well anyways... that tradition carried on throughout the years. Most people think is just an American tradition.

Eugene: Oh, yeah?

Tom: Yes, but the pilgrims actually brought that with them from England. Actually, In England they used to call it the merrythought.

Eugene: The merrythought?

Tom: Yes, because the wishbone is sometimes associated with festive holiday feasts and the thought or promise of the wish coming true.

Eugene: Oh, I see...

Tom: Yes, and even in the 1930's they used to have postcards that would show pictures of wishbones.

Eugene: Wow, so it is a pretty big custom then huh?

Tom: Yes, yes, it is... unfortunately... but you know what...

Eugene: What?

Tom: Chickens have wishbones too.

************** END OF TAPE

Resources:

http://www.luckymojo.com/wishbone.html

http://www.blurtit.com/q7623823.html

http://www.bigsiteofamazingfacts.com/why-is-breaking-a-wishbone-considered-good-luck-and-where-did-the-superstition-come-from

New Meeting Complex Completed

The Department of Elfland Security has just completed their new meeting facility located on the southern banks of Candy Cane forest at the North Pole. This facility houses the state of the art technology for communications and conferences and has a private wing dedicated to the entire Assembly of Legendary Figures.

A cocktail party was help tonight for selected guests and the facility will be opened for all starting tomorrow morning at 8 a.m.

EB Returns to Easter Island

The Easter Bunny just sent in that he has just arrived back at Easter Island to get his office and factory back into production for next season. After leaving the meeting yesterday, he stopped off in Southern California (Anaheim) for a brief visit with Mickey Mouse and for negotiations on next year's Disney character candies. He stated that the factory needs a few repairs since one of the jelly bean machines was left on accidently and they have flooded one of the rooms with billons of watermelon flavored jelly beans. They are going to have to move some of these out using heavy equipment and take out one of the walls in order to get to them all. Other than that, all is well and production should be in full flow after the first of the year.

Tom Turkey and Thanksgiving Page Now On-line

The Department has established the webpage for Tom Turkey. We will be working the rest of the weekend adding information to the site. Tom is currently staying up at the North Pole with us working on putting together items and doing some research on the Internet. His page will have a Biography page, resource page, FAQ page, and some other items relating to Thanksgiving.

He is looking at some possible activities for kids to do for Thanksgiving dinner, as well as, some activities for them while they are off school for the long weekend.

He said it is easier for him to just work on it from up here with us since it is much safer for him to be up here with us doing the Thanksgiving season.

Track Santa's Flight on NORAD

Now that Santa has his webpage up, he wanted us to post a reminder to all of the kids out there who would like to track him this year. You can follow along with his flight on NORADS Santa Tracking site. Please check their website for more details. We will also post the link on Santa's resource page once we get that up on the site.

Chat with Santa Scheduled for Nov. 27, 5-7p.m.

Come chat with Santa on November 27, 5 p.m. - 7 p.m. Right here on www.taolf.com Santa and his elves will be on-line to take your questions and you can chat with them live from the North Pole.

The department of Elfland Security will turn on the chatting service at about 4:45 p.m. and you can will be able to connect live others in the chat room.

Come Join In!

TAOLF Meeting Minutes for November 2011 now available

As of November 2011, the Department of Elfland Security has been instructed to post all meeting minutes for The Assembly of Legendary Figures on-line. We have created a new page off of the main website that will house all of these meeting documents. You can access this page here. We also posted the minutes from the meeting that took place today in order to get the page established. You can read the November 2011 meeting minutes here.

This page will be updated after each meeting, and we will post a notice on the news feeds when there are new meeting minutes available for you to review.

Edward H. Posts his Christmas Scrapbook

Well it is finally ready! My scrapbook of our North Pole Christmas is ready!

If you haven't been following, we are much too busy in December to celebrate Christmas, so we celebrate our Chistmas up here on July 25^th.

Here is a link to view the scrapbook. Hope you enjoy it!

Easter Bunny and Staff Chat Training Scheduled

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

In preparation for the live chat scheduled on Saturday, the Technology Division of the Department of Elfand Security has scheduled a training session with The Easter Bunny and his staff for Friday evening.

The training will take place at our headquarters and we ask that all available technology staff members be available to assist with network logins or password changes on the training accounts if needed.

Also, the schedule has been posted for Saturday's chat so please be sure to check if I have placed you on the schedule.

If you have any questions, I will be in the office most of the day on Friday.

Thanks in advance, and go team!

E.H.

The Easter Bunny Sets Live Chat Date

The Easter Bunny will be having a live chat on April 16th from 5pm-7pm EST.

The Easter Bunny adds Brain Puzzlers

Hey everyone! I have added a few brain puzzlers to my resource page. Check them out on the Easter Bunny's Resource Page

The Easter Bunny Resource Page Added

The Easter Bunny has added a resource page to his website. Here you will be able to download pictures to color and games to play.

The Easter Bunny has learned to TWEET

Hey everybody! I just had some training by the Dept. of Elfland Security (DES) and now I know how to TWEET! So... TWEET. TWEET! =) Watch for my Twitter tweets under the TAOLF page.

DES Creates Web Presence for the Easter Bunny

The Easter Bunny has joined the 21st century! The Easter Bunny now has his own webpage! The DES has just completed the Easter Bunny's webpage. Look forward to updates from him as he prepares for his upcoming delivery schedule.