Keep an eye on jolly guy in the sky

Santa keeps a nice list, a naughty list and – he’s online now – a mailing list. That’s naughty in itself, and worth keeping in mind before small fry are allowed to e-mail Santa their wish lists.

But one safe drop for such missives comes through the “NORAD Tracks Santa” program, which has been around since 1955. Funded through contributions and staffed by volunteers, it’s managed by the U.S. and Canadian North American Aerospace Defense Command and the U.S. Northern Command Public Affairs Office, at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado.

Starting at 4 a.m. Christmas Eve, the site ( www.noradsanta.org) provides hourly updated videos and Santa tracking in 3-D. Until then, the site offers games and information for kids in six languages.

More fun for kids is at www.northpole.net, which has greetings from Santa, Mrs. Claus and Rudolph, a North Pole weather report, downloadable pictures to color and Christmas traditions around the world. Among others: www.northpole.com, www.santas.net from Australia, www.santaclaus.com and www.santaland.com.

And you can watch a city near Fairbanks try to capitalize on its name, complete with live Webcams, at www.northpolealaska.com.