I love holidays -- all holidays! And, I definitely know that my neighbors love them, too, because they start celebrating them so early! I'm all for lawn ornaments and pretty trees festooned with garlands of this month's special event. I really am. I swear it. But...
Is it really necessary to set out Halloween decorations the week before September ends? Do they have to stay up through Thanksgiving Day, only to be replaced with Christmas
decorations? What does this mean to us less than johnny-on-the-spot neighbors? Does it show a lack of love of the holiday to not add our own display of this year's new caricatures? I don't know; I really don't know.
What I do know is:
- It irritates me, no end, to see how commercial each holiday has become, and, then, not putting up my own Easter tree.
- I'm not always in agreement with choices made for publicly expressing the joy of that particular season.
- There's always one neighbor who goes w-a-a-a-y overboard, covering every nook and cranny of their roof, yard, and car.
- I hate feeling GUILTY about not following suit.
display with the same fervor as my neighbors -- especially, when every visitor to our neighborhood is drawn to my lawn by the brilliant display of... no wooden creatures, no air-filled greetings, no sparkling decorations... just, lots of empty.
Have I created a "them-against-me" situation? Do I need to watch out for tp-ing next year? Should I move? All of these thoughts are racing through my head whilst I try to resolve my own feelings about caving in and festooning.
My personal decorating pattern means the tree goes up on December 15th and comes down January 15th. It's an eco-conscious artificial tree, filled with the memories of every Christmas before.
I love sitting by my tree with all its lights and personal decorations created by my family through the years. At the end of the day, when all the gifts have been opened and visitors have gone, it's my special time to enjoy a hot cup of cocoa, rocking and savoring newly created memories along with those of family and friends who are no longer with me, except on memorial ornaments. I want to enjoy it as long as possible.
But, I did wait until the same month as the holiday to decorate. Is that too much to ask of my neighbors? To wait until the same month? to keep the voltage under a million watts? To be, well, more like me! Alas, I fear I ask too much. Oh, Lordy-lordy-lordy, where did the time go? It's getting late; I have shopping to do. Where are my dark glasses?
I don´t like the holidays, but I don´t mind the time we get away from work :-) :-) For me a perfect Christmas would be to stay at home, watch Donald Duck and his friends (a show that they have sent here every Christmas eve at 3 pm since over 50 years ago), have something nice to eat (like Christmas ham, meatballs, prince sausage and root beet salad)and just have a nice day.
ReplyDeleteBut friends really doesn´t allow that because they always believes I would feel to alone :-) :-) :-)So I usually goes to some friends living in a village not far away. This year they have separated so I might get my wish to come true.
There isn´t that much decoration over here. Mostly it´s lights in a spruce and perhaps in some other trees too, but thats it. There are however a few homes that uses all the power from a nuclear power plant to light up their homes at christmas :-) :-) It´s so rare that they usually ends up in the newspapers :-) :-) :-)
I do love Christmas music and I love sitting in a dark house eating ginger breads and drink Julmust. I can´t describe Julmust really (You can find it at any IKEA before Christmas though) but it´s so big here around Christmas that not even Coca Cola has a chance :-) :-)
But I agree, they do all start to early! Since we don´t have Thanksgiving over here they can start even earlier. So when Christmas comes most of us hates it :-) :-)
Have a great day now!
Christer.
Well, you intrigued me, Christer, and I decided I wanted to find some Julmust... Alas, it's the best kept secret since the early 1900s and can't find a recipe, either... So, I hope you are able to enjoy it to your heart's content this holiday season! I'll check out Ikea as we get closer to the 25th... I have to at least try it...
ReplyDeleteI'm glad your friends like to include you in their festivities. You can be alone the rest of the year and continue to take those wonderful pictures.
Yes Julmust is a well kept secret! It´s only one person in the whole world that knows that recipe :-) Well it´s actually several different ones depending on what company sells it. This man makes essences with some variations for them. He is sitting on a treasure box to be honest :-) :-)
ReplyDeleteHave a great day!
Christer.