Five Things to Know Today, Dec. 21

Welcome to Wednesday. Let's get over the hump and coast as best we can toward Christmas. And happy Hanukkah!

The weather: This may be bad news for some, but there's absolutely no chance of a white Christmas, according to the National Weather Service. Rain is likely today (70 percent chance), with a high of 67 degrees. The low tonight will be about 57 degrees. The good news: No sleet or snow to hinder your holiday shopping and preparations! Right?

Gas prices: Check Patch's Traffic and Gas report before heading out this morning. Prices reported to www.georgiagasprices.com for Lilburn in the past 24 hours ranged from $2.98 (at 3050 Five Forks Trickum Road near Oak Road) to $3.09 (at , 32 Killian Hill Road at Lilburn Industrial Way).

Solstice. Welcome to the shortest day of the year, or the longest night, as you like. Winter is at its darkest now, though not its coldest. Perfect time to build a fire, indoors or out, and think about the sun's long, slow return. Happy Yule!

Calendars. Speaking of cycles, we're exactly a year out from the fabled end-date of the Mayan calendar that some people look to as the next date for some kind of cataclysm. Those people, I hasten to add, do not generally include the historians, anthropologists and modern Mayans who seem to know something about the old calendar. Most of them seem to say it just happens to run out then. But people love a good doomsday that promises to end the monotony of paying the bills, so: If you want to believe in the Mayan calendar tick-tock, you have a year to run through your bucket list. Go!

Upcycling. One more play on the idea of cycles. In this case, it means taking things you already have and turning them into something new, possibly as a gift idea in place of buying something off the shelf. The Gwinnett Envronmental & Heritage Center is running daily programs this week for kids on how to upcycle. There will be upcycling crafts and suggestions on things to do at home. Today and Thursday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the center in Buford. Admission is $3.50 for kids to age 12 and $7.50 for adults.