Christmas Lights

We drove around our subdivision last night to look at the outdoor Christmas light displays. We do this every year, and we both noticed that there aren't as many homes all decked-out for Christmas this year. We have no idea why this is, but there is surely a difference. Granted, there are no streets that have no lights, but there are many streets with just a few houses with lights.

The subdivision gives an award to the best-decorated house every year.... I don't exactly know what the award is.... it may be just a fancy stone plaque in front of their house, as they do with the "Yard of The Month" award. My husband and I picked out our own "best-decorated...." a two story home with white lights covering the lower bushes, white and red lighted balls hanging from the low branches of the trees, solid wood Nutcrackers (not the thin wood cut-outs) marching in the yard, and a beautiful ten-or-twelve-foot tree in the front yard, all decked out in silver ornaments and red bows. I've made the house sound simple in its decoration, but it really wasn't..... lots of lights, lots of tasteful ornaments.... nothing over-the-top, and none of those inflatable plastic things. I hate those tacky blow-up figures.... they're so out of proportion to everything else, and they just look like they should be sitting outside of a Wal-Mart instead of a family's home.

And, true to tradition, our neighbor up at our corner has added her yearly light display to our cul de sac's decoration....... she tossed out her one strand of multi-colored Christmas lights... just one strand on her front lawn-- wherever they land when she tosses them is where they stay till the day after Christmas. She has been doing this every year for the past 15 years, when the rest of the people on this cul de sac decided to use only white lights to decorate for Christmas. They were trying to win the "Best Street Decoration" from the community association, and they thought that hundreds of white lights would make this small street look elegant and festive. Well, the corner-lady decided that she would do something different, and that's when she started tossing out the single strand of multi-colored lights. For the most part, she doesn't bother much with anyone on the street, which is unusual for a community like this.

But.... to each their own.... and if that's how she wants to decorate for Christmas, then so be it. As our friend and around-the-corner-neighbor says: "If it doesn't bother her, why should it bother us?!"