*foot notes

Colorful lights are going up and stores are decked in red and green. Soon tree lots will open and silver bells will be ting-alinging. The holiday season is upon us, and it won’t let us go until it’s finished.

* This morning, former world skating champions Tai Babilonia and Randy Gardner will perform at 10 at the opening of a holiday outdoor ice-skating rink at Universal CityWalk. The annual attraction, which will run through Jan. 7, will even have its own artificial snowfalls. (818) 622-4455.

* Glendale Centre Theatre’s 36th annual holiday production of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” opens tonight and runs through Dec. 23. $12.50-$21. (818) 244-8481. Also, the Canyon Theatre Guild’s production of “Scrooge, the Stingiest Man in Town” opens tonight at the guild’s new venue in downtown Newhall. $8-$15. (661) 298-0058. The American Renegade Theatre in North Hollywood opens its first “Holiday Vaudeville Revue” on Dec. 1, running through Dec. 17. $5-$10. (818) 763-1834.

* Six Flags Magic Mountain is offering free admission (regular admission is $40.99) to anyone bringing a new, unwrapped toy valued at $10 or more Dec. 2, 3, 9 and 10. All toys collected will be distributed to needy children. (818) 367-5965.

* The city of Burbank will have its official tree-lighting ceremony Dec. 5 at 5:30 p.m. on the front steps of City Hall. It will be followed by a community sing-along at the Media City Center. The Burbank Chorale will perform.

* The holiday season is for giving, but the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works is asking that its landfills be taken off your gift list as much as possible. Each year between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, about 6 million tons of extra waste is generated nationwide, mostly holiday greeting cards. In L. A. County, the holiday season generates a 25% hike in landfill deposits. Public works suggests reusing and recycling, which means staying away from flocked trees or metallic-surfaced wrapping paper. Both are non-recyclable.