Multimedia Reporting (Fred-Musser)

Darren McCarter never thought twice about when he wanted to extend a holiday hand in marriage to his wife Erin. He says he knew the Christmas season was the perfect time to purchase a ring for his proposal.

“It felt like many things I wanted involved came together around Christmas.” McCarter said. “I knew I wanted it to be around family, so on Christmas Eve with most of our family present I popped the question.”

Jewelers local, and around the nation hope many grooms are thinking like McCarter this Christmas season. Early projections fromInternational Diamond Exchange (IDEX) online research predicts December jewelry sales will exceed last year’s mark by an average of 5 percent for retail stores like JC Penny and Target. A more up-market, national chain Tiffany's, rose by 23 percent last month and expect sales totals to reach $29.1 million in December, nearly $6 million more than last year. Local stores like Kizer-Cummings located at 833 Massachusetts street hope these early figures prove accurate.

“I’ve been here since 1981 and the sales during Christmas time are extremely important to livelihood,” Ernie Cummings, owner of Kizer-Cummings, said. “We rely heavily on people purchasing gifts for their loved ones over the next month.”

There are still some grinches in the jeweler’s Christmas this year. For local jewelers like Cumming’s, the business has become flooded with more competition in recent years. He says not only do big chain stores around Lawrence cut into jewelry sales but also the internet can hurt business as well.

A retired jeweler after 52 years, Frank Komarek agrees that being a local business in the jewelry industry has become increasingly difficult. Komarek says that the personalization given to each customer at Christmas time has been what makes business successful every year.

“You are friends with your customers. You talk to them about things outside of gold and diamonds,” Komarek says. “I pride myself on being able to befriend the customer. They remember that and they return because of the personal service."

Along with big box competition, an unlikely outsider also might hurt the jewelry industry this Christmas season. Hollywood is releasing the movie “Blood Diamond” starring Leonardo DiCaprio. The movie sheds light on the brutal practices that are used to harvest diamonds in Africa. These diamonds are known as conflict diamonds and the diamond industry has taken steps to weed out these gems. The World Diamond Council (WDC) created a website called www.diamondfacts.org to give those purchasing diamonds a better understanding of what to watch out for.

“99 percent of diamonds sold are conflict free,” Cummings says. “From the research I have done, the risk of purchasing a conflict diamond is very rare.”

Even with four retail chains competing with the local businesses in Lawrence and movie casting a negative portrayal of diamonds, there are still positive signs for December sales figures to be firmly in the green for stores like Kizer-Cummings.

The employment rate is at a five-year low, standing at 4.4 percent. In turn, consumer wealth levels are at an all time high. Consumers have amassed more assets than ever before and are using that spending power. This year precious metals like gold, silver, and platinum have soared to record setting levels according to IDEX. Gold currently sells for $647.00 an ounce, up almost $200.00 from last year at this time. With prices going up, it means businesses will not need to hold as much inventory to generate greater sales.

Hearing these figures McCarter considers himself fortunate to have already purchased his ring. He said that another good part about buying a gift like an engagement ring around the holidays is that it takes care of the need to find the perfect Christmas gift.

“It kills two birds with one stone,” McCarter says. “You spend a large amount of money, but it’s much better than giving a ring in November and having to turn around and buy a Christmas present.”

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This holiday season you might be surprised to find a growing number of college students cutting down Christmas trees along side the families with young children. According to the National Christmas Tree Association (NCTA), people in their twenties are helping revive what was once a depleting industry.

Rick Dungey, Director of Media Relation for the National Christmas Tree Association, says that over the last three years, younger buyers have resurrected the real Christmas tree industry. He says that college-aged students enjoy getting their first experience with having a real tree.

“We have learned that students enjoy that sense of tradition and they make it a priority to get a real tree,” Dungey said. “Baby-boomers think the fake tree is economical and that mindframe hurts the real tree business.”

Studies by the NCTA show that Dungey should not have to worry since last year alone 32.8 million real trees were sold, compared to only 9.3 million fake ones. Along with that, findings showed real Christmas tree sales to exceed 1.37 billion. These figures were another welcomed sign since 2002, when only 22.2 million trees were sold. For local businesses like Strawberry Hill Christmas Tree Farm of Lawrence, these numbers are promising.

Each year Strawberry Hill plants nearly 1,000 trees to replace the 700 to 800 they sell each year. Eric Walter has owned the Christmas tree farm since 1978 and he says he has seen a rise in college-aged individuals frequenting his farm over the last five years.

“You can always tell it’s their first time, sometimes students are just as excited as the youngsters coming in with their parents,” Walther said. “Some college kids visiting us probably didn’t have a real Christmas tree as a kid, so they are extra eager to experience the real thing.”

With Strawberry Hill Christmas Tree Farm being one of only two farms around the area, they provide a unique experience during the holiday season. The NCTA says that unlike Strawberry Hill, 88% of real trees are pre-cut and sent to stores across the nation. Dungey says that while the ‘baby-boomer’ generation is content to pick up either a fake tree or possibly snag a real tree, students get as much out of the amenities that farms offer as they do purchasing their own tree.
Dane Hanson, Overland Park graduate student, says there is nothing better than selecting a tree each year. He says that you can’t replace the atmosphere of a Christmas tree farm with a fake tree from a store.

“I love the experience of cutting down my own tree,” Hanson said. “Each year I hope for snow to be falling, but lately it seems like Kansas hasn’t been too good for much of that.”

Whether it snows or not remains to be seen, but the market for real trees around the area has been proven through the years. Walther’s wife, Lyn says the Lawrence community has left many lasting impressions in their minds. She fondly remembers the child who picked out the ugliest tree in the lot because she felt bad for it and the college students who hauled off a large tree in a tiny hatchback car.

“I feel like I’ve seen it all. That’s why we never pick out a tree for someone,” Mrs. Walther said. “If we can provide people with a tree that makes their Christmas a little better, then that’s all you can ask for.”

For tips on how to find the perfect tree and how to maintain it once purchased, please visit: http://www.faszl.com/Tree_Facts.htm

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When swimming in lakes around the neighboring counties, Kansans’ may now be susceptible to naegleria fowleri, or also termed a “killer amoeba.” The rare amoeba forms in extremely hot, stale water conditions and enters through a human’s nose that has suffered a cut or some type of trauma. Studies being conducted by Dr. John Mullican of Washburn University show that the possibility of the amoeba living in Kansas is a greater possibility than ever before.

“We’ve taken several samples from lakes in the area and brought them back to the lab to incubate,” Mullican said. “The results that are coming back show positive signs of the killer amoeba being present.”

Mullican says that since 1965, only 200 cases have been reported worldwide. Of the cases reported, only two people lived to tell about it. Once the amoeba enters the nose it moves through the nasal gland, where it then proceeds to eat away brain tissues until the victim dies. The disease will end a person’s life within five days of entering the body.

“Often time’s doctors will not notice it when they run tests on a patient because it follows the same symptoms of meningitis,” Mullican says. “It is only after the person dies that the disease’s true identity is discovered.”

Many variables must fall in line for naegleria fowleria to enter the human body. Water in lakes or reservoirs must sustain a 90 degree temperature level while the water remains relatively stagnant. The best possibilities for this would come near a shore or a shallow area where the water is pooled. Accordingly, a person who is swimming in the water must have a cut or other sort of injury to the nasal area that can serve as an opening for the amoeba. Nearly all diagnosed with the disease have been healthy, college-aged adults. This pattern has not been able to be explained by scientists. While the majority of cases are found in the southern half of the United States, cases have been reported worldwide. The “killer amoeba” does not have the ability to transfer between people. Mullican says that since the disease does not affect the amount of people the way a disease like cancer does, research invested into naegleria fowleria is relatively low. He says it is likely that many cases in the southern hemisphere are commonly misdiagnosed.

Mullican says the needed variables to contract the “killer amoeba” are difficult to have aligned at the same time but he does add the affects of global warming prompted him to look into the bodies of water around the area. Since many lakes have been able to sustain warmer areas of dormant water, the focus to find the specimens closer to home has increased.

“Unless you fall down drunk in a swell of heated water, it is unlikely that you should be seriously concerned,” Mullican says. “But with global warming, this type of naegleria certainly creates an increased need for scientific study.”

Mullican, along with five research assistants, study the naegleria yielding samples on agar plates within the laboratory at Washburn. They extract the liquid form onto the bacteria plate, then place it into an incubator set, either at 37 degrees Celsius, human body temperature, or 25 degrees Celsius, to grow. Their growth is fueled by the consumption of the bacteria. Besides watching the effects of the amoeba growing, the lab also surveys the liquid version on a microscope, which captures the organism on a specially designed computer. He says his computer images have provided the positive results of the disease being in Kansas. Mullican says that until he publishes his findings he cannot state where the water samples were extracted from and also cannot 100% verify the amoeba is in Kansas, although he says by the end of next spring his research should be confirmed.

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