Every female has pondered the age-old holiday dilemma -- finding the perfect gift for every guy in her life. Since 1982, the gift gurus at Wireless, a catalog for curious minds, have offered gifts that are the antithesis of the traditional tie.

Calling the crime "the worst physical bludgeoning" he had ever seen, a Montgomery County Court judge sentenced a former University of Pennsylvania economics professor to five to 10 years in prison for the "hot-blooded" killing of his wife.

There are images that stay with Tricia MacFarlan from her travels as a volunteer for Operation Christmas Child.

CLEVELAND----Money may be tight, but consumers still want to support charitable organizations. This season Things Remembered expects that to mean greater interest in cause-based gifts supporting deserving non-profits, including the Things Remembered Make-A-Wish® gifts, which donate $2 per sale back to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

St. Cyprian's Ecumenical Food Pantry coordinator Ruth Riederer said demand for the pantry's services is higher than it's been in the 17 years she's been there.

For the seventh consecutive year, Susan Greeley will display her growing collection of more than 300 nativity scenes at St. Matthew Center for Health, 1601 Western Ave., Park Ridge (just south of Advocate Lutheran General Hospital). The display will be open from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Dec. 6 and 7.

Heidi Joy in concert Heidi Joy will perform a concert of religious songs for the holidays at 2 p.m. on Dec. 7, at First Lutheran Church in Papillion. A free-will offering will be taken. Her annual "Holiday Joy" concert is on Dec. 1, at the Holland Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Omaha.

Barrington native Deborah Chabrian recently illustrated a children's Christmas book and used her family and memories of growing up in Barrington as inspiration. "The Gift of the Christmas Cookie: Sharing the True Meaning of Jesus' Birth" is set in the outskirts of Chicago and tells the story of a young boy named Jack and his mother who bake cookies for needy families during the Great Depression.

As mentioned in the review of Vicki Price’s CD below, her already-potent musical gifts have expanded by leaps and bounds since she boldly stepped out of her personal squirrel cage (i.e. the ol’ 9-to-5 grind) and threw herself full time into the blues.

(ARA) - It's holiday shopping season again, and for those of us that love to give life's little luxuries as gifts, the economic downturn may affecting our plans. But luxurious doesn't necessarily equal expensive. With a little ingenuity you can give lavish gifts on a limited budget.