To the followers and practitioners of poker, there is no such thing as too much of a good thing. Harrah's is meeting the popular demand by opening an all new World Series of Poker Store. The store offers all manner of World Series of Poker logoed merchandise... from apparel to glassware and chip sets... and much more. Apparel items include leather jackets,

T-shirts, sweatshirts, visors, caps and novelty and trendy sunglasses. Chip sets include 300-piece and 500 piece sets. Store hours are 6 a.m. to 11 a.m. daily and until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. The store is located in the main lobby.

The 22nd Annual Holiday Parade of Lights on Lake Mohave north of Laughlin will feature 25 entries and take place on Saturday, Dec. 10 at dusk. It's free to watch and free to enter. Awards will be presented for best entries in harbormaster, commercial, non-commercial and small boat categories. Points are awarded for costumes, enthusiasm and special effects. The awards ceremony will be held in the Tail O' the Whale Lounge at Katherine Landing and it's open to the pubic. For information, call 928-754-3245, ext. 335 or 336.

A short trip to Lake Havasu City in Arizona is worth seeing the annual Festival of Lights featuring more than one million lights decorating the London Bridge and English Village. The lights will remain up through Sunday, Jan. 1.

The Pioneer features an annual holiday light display with the largest portion of the lights located along the riverwalk area. "Candy Cane Lane" is a big attraction.

The biggest light display is at the Ramada Express and its Victory Plaza where the property is bathed in thousands of holiday lights for the resort's annual "Celebration of Lights."

The Colorado Belle's casino-wide New Year's Eve celebration will feature four beautiful showgirls in classic feather-and-rhinestone costumes. The showgirls will give away traditional Mardi Gras beads and commemorative buttons and pose in photographs with One Club members. Free hats, commemorative buttons, tiaras and noisemakers will also be given away, and there will be balloon drops and traditional champagne toasts at midnight at the Grand Staircase as party-goers watch the New Year's Ball drop.

Just before midnight, free champagne will be given to guests for a special toast. At midnight at the Grand Staircase, while the New Year's Ball drop is broadcast on big screen television, balloons and confetti will descend over the crowd, and the Riverboat Ramblers will ring in the New Year with "Auld Lang Syne."

A New Year's Eve Prime Rib & Crab Leg buffet is planned in the Captain's Buffet, and throughout the casino, the Riverboat Ramblers Dixieland band will be on hand to entertain with Dixieland classics from 5 p.m. to midnight. They will also set the holiday mood from 5 to 10 p.m., Wednesday through Friday, Dec. 28-30. All entertainment at Colorado Belle is free, no cover, no minimum.

Belle hotel guests will receive special party favors in their rooms. Room rates start at $100 plus tax, call 800-477-4837 to make reservations.

"The Nutcracker" will be performed by The Anaheim Ballet at Don's Celebrity Theatre at the Riverside, Dec. 22-23. Tickets for any of the three shows are $18 for adults and $10 for children 12 and under, call 1-800-227-3849, ext. 616.

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The 4th Annual Christmas Tree Silent Auction benefiting Westcare, helping children and families in crisis, will begin on Sunday, Dec. 4 and close at noon on Tuesday, Dec 13. Fourteen beautifully decorated trees will be entered in the silent auction.

The seven-and-a-half foot artificial trees each have a theme and include lights, ornaments, tree toppers, and tree skirt. The themes are: lace and pearls; southwest; red hat; traditional red and gold; crystal blue persuasion; white doves; gingerbread men and candy canes; bears, bells, and bows; snowman, burgundy and cream; Santa Claus and reindeers; angels; snowflakes, stars, and icicles; and trains.

The trees will be displayed at the Ramada Express in the Hotel Front Registration area. Pick your favorite and place your bid at the Distinguished Players Booth. Starting bid for each tree is $75. For complete information log onto their website.

Santa Claus is set to appear in his sleigh on level two of the Horizon Outlet Center every weekend through Dec. 24 from 1 to 5 p.m. There will be instamatic photos with a souvenir folder for a $5 donation to benefit Pop Warner. There will also be artificial snow displays. For information, call 702-298-3650.

This year, Colorado Belle employees will be decorating Christmas wreaths that will be on display throughout the casino, and One Club Members will be able to cast their vote for their favorite choice. Wreaths will be numbered and ready for judging from Dec. 9-17.

The second "Rockin' Around the Tree" holiday concert will take place at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 11 at the Laughlin Branch Library. Susan Hanson will play piano and musicians from the high school will perform. For information, call 702-507-4063.

The Ramada Express International Rally featuring the sport of rally racing takes place Dec. 8-11. The event features the top drivers from around the world in three stages of driving.

The River Palms has an ongoing promotion - "Jackpot Free Room Stay." It is a promotion for Players' Club members. Players can receive a free hotel stay with every hand paid jackpot of $500 or higher every Sunday through Thursday. There's one free room coupon per player per day.

A program commemorating the attack on Pearl Harbor will take place at the Ramada Express in the Pavilion Theater at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 7, the anniversary of the attack. The program is presented free to the public and features Pearl Harbor Survivor Leo Stewart as guest speaker.

Stewart was stationed in Hawaii at Wheeler Field and assigned to the Base Aircraft Instrument Shop. Dec. 7, 1941, was just a normal day of work for Stewart, who was on duty at Wheeler Field when the Japanese suddenly attacked Pearl Harbor. Because the attack was unexpected, Stewart and several others had to break the locks off storage buildings to get to the ammunition so the airfield could be defended.

After being discharged in September 1945 as Staff Sergeant, he lived in South Milwaukee for 39 years. In October1993, Stewart and his wife moved to Bullhead City, Ariz. He is past president of the Pearl Harbor Survivors Chapter No. 4 in Arizona.

Also in conjunction with Pearl Harbor Day, Richard Saunders, Bullhead City artist-illustrator will display works from his "Ships of Pearl Harbor" series. The 16x20 acrylic paintings show ships including the USS West Virginia and the USS Arizona at sea prior to the attack. The free display will be open Monday, Dec. 5-Wednesday, Dec. 7 from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the Pavilion Theater.

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