The Halls are Decked....

stike · December 2008

i have a mini now too. yours. too bad you had to go to work today. i just went into your garage, next to the adirondack chair you were making for ellen, and there it was.

she's a good woman, bob. they all have their baggage, just like us. i went over once and you weren't there and she and i talked for a while as she painted your dining room. beautiful job, beautiful house. yes, beautiful wife.

my place?
toys everywhere, sneakers and cleats all over the place, holes in the wall. hahah
your's looks like a home were adults AND children live. my house looks like a preschool exploded.
but i think we're both lucky.

except you have to work today. i'm playing hooking. 60 in december? going fishing! ...and hanging lights, and raking. have a good one.
J

stike · December 2008

of course, at 42, i can now say i have mastered the idea of 'woman', and have nothing left to learn. :blink: :ermm: :huh:

stike · December 2008

you know, i hate to say it. that story (A Christmas Story) was absolutely my life as a kid. the fight, the soap in the mouth, the swearing father, everything. My dad worked on a '35 ford in the driveway every day of summers 1975-1977 it seemed. he would swear exactly like Darin McGavin in that movie, only he didn't say 'fudge'. hahaha at least the dad in the movie only swore in the house. my dad's swears echoed of the neighborhood.

i had glasses that i broke weekly. dad soldered them permanantly open, because i'd broken the hinges so much. it's absolutely tru that "nothing brings such swift and terrible retribution on a kid as a pair of broken glasses"

here's me at maybe 7, 8

see any resemblance?

ugh

Last year, to round it out, i got a leg lamp, a bowling ball, and a can of simonize for Christmas. no kidding. and until four years ago, we had that damn furnace, too.

i got a 30/30 winchester lever action when i was 13. already had the BB gun. hahaha

i like your idea for the ornaments. my wife's mom passed away a couple years ago, and they split up all her ornaments the other day finally. hundreds. i gotta get into the ornament biz. people will buy new ones even if they have a full tree!

do post a pic. kinda fun to peek into someone else's world.

merry christmas to you, too sir.
(how'd the wellington turn out, by the way?)

stike · December 2008

the real santa will have REAL boots. everyone else is Santa's helper, which is ok. but if you want the big man, got to check the boots.

stike · December 2008

my wife does most of the decorating too. i really enjoy sitting back on the couch watching her decorate the tree with the boys. the boys keep asking why i don't want to help. they'll understand some day...

merry christmas to you, too
J

FlaPoolman · December 2008

Beautiful Stike, gives me that warm fuzzy feeling. The kids are grown and gone but the grandkids will be over a few times. Every year I say I'm gonna cut back on the outside lights and every year the neighborhood kids come by and ask "Mr. Pat, are you going to do the light's again like last year?" Well I'm still working on them and will post a pic when done but this is last year.
Merry Christmas to You and Your Family.

stike · December 2008

WOW. that's a lot of work.

we have a street the next town over where everyone goes over the top. try to take the kids down there on christmas eve when we are getting back home, if they are awake.

here's a few photos..
http://bostonrestaurants.blogspot.com/2007/12/lynn-fells-parkway-christmas-lights.html

found some more. keep in mind, most of these are of the same two houses, which are next to each other)

http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=Christmas+lights+Saugus&m=text

i set out to do the lights today, and it started raining.... and the neighbor who always has their aluminum ladder out laying against a wall out back seems to have put it in their garage. so i can't 'borrow' it. looks like our house will be the dark house on the street this year.... unless we get another 60 degree day in december before christmas!

[Deleted User] · December 2008

He's not kidding about the houses being next door to each other. They are set back from the main road (which is busy) and share a driveway which goes over that little bridge you see in the pictures. they have those candy cane lights on either side of that section of the driveway. There are TONS of houses that go over the top on that street so I'm surprised they only showed one- but I guess that one white house wins the award for use of least restraint. That street, a main drag, has incredible traffic this time of year. Everyone drivin' slow and eyeballin'.

There's one guy who is an electrician -Pats house kind of reminds me of his-except he does all white lights and has more of them. He lives onna side street and people will park on the street and get out and walk around in his yard (like night of the living dead, only happier) We invaded his yard once when the kids were real little, I saw his electric meter spinning like a record player.

We've been in our house almost 9 years and still haven't figured out how to decorate at Christmas. One thing that's interesting is we have large sized windows that the candles get kind of lost in. We did put up some lights on the porch this year too. Maybe we'll expand to the bushes next year!

YB · December 2008

I have some of those cherubs that live in my back yard.
Larry

FlaPoolman · December 2008

Those houses are done up right. I started small and kept adding and over the years because the kids loved it. I had to increase my service when I got tired of not being able to use certain appliances while the lights are on but now have dedicated 40 amps, 20 on each side of the house, just for the lights. Glad I don't live on a big lot $$$$$

It is nice when parents bring the toddlers by and their faces light up. Oh well gotta get back to stringing.

[Deleted User] · December 2008

Pat, speaking for Christmas lights spectators everywhere, thank you for the effort!

I just turned 50 and we've been checking out the lights in that neighborhood for as long as I can remember. I still remember the lights on a couple of those houses from when I was a kid. I remember driving by in the summer and looking to see if they left the lights up all year long. They did- it was too much to put up and take down every year.

The house in the picture Stike posted changes their lights with the Holiday. St Patricks day and 4th of July come to mind immediately. Don't know if there are others.

Grandpas Grub · December 2008

Very nice. I well remember the bubble lights when I was very young. I loved laying in front of the tree and watch the bubbles in the light.

I have a few depression era ornaments from my grandparents days.

Every since my wife and I was married we got 1 ornament which had something to do with whatever we were involved with during that year. Now decorating the tree is always full of fun memories of our life.

Your boys are the perfect age for a lot of Christmas fun.

Merry Christmas to you and your family.

It would be interesting to learn what you do for the snow flakes, I would like to do some with the grand kids.

Kent

FlaPoolman · December 2008

I'm 52 now and putting up and taking down is easy, it's all the troubleshooting thats a pain. We went all out for halloween for years with tombstones, dummy's, lights etc,,, but now it's just Christmas. With all the work it is a lot of fun and helps get you in the spirit. Guess I'll be doing it as long as I can climb a ladder.

BENTE · December 2008

looks great stike!!!

ok i finally got everything up and here are the picks

the lamps

and yes that is the front window for the large one the small usually sits somewhere else but for photo ops they will go together

here is the tree you can see the steelers skirt.. and yes that is the only skirt i own... and the only steeler skirt :( i cant talk leah into wearing one :pinch:

as far as ornaments we have big ben

and the egg ornaments along with another grilling ornament

at least we have our priorities right :P

rockytopsc · December 2008

may have to do a drive by for this !
i'll bring my daisy red rider w/o the compass.

BENTE · December 2008

i was just thinking about you!! i just read the story on wyff about forestry employee's being "forced" to take 5 days off and wondered if you were one of them?

rockytopsc · December 2008

might be if i stay here too long

just need rain man, just rain

stike · December 2008

i got the small egg lamp last year. it sits in my office to the left of my computer.
hahaha year 'round!

stike · December 2008

here you go!

(if my diagram isn't making sense, you should be able to google it. it's nothing new...)

i never liked the bubble lights. my family was all white lights and white garland, etc. my wife got me into the older stuff. i like the bubble lights now, but will never let her know!

hahaha)

Bobby-Q · December 2008

Oh man that is awesome. You don't even need to write memoirs for your kids, just slip them the DVD...well at least to cover "Stike...the early years"

I overcooked the dang thing actually...both in the class and the next day for lunch. Everyone still loved it though.

BENTE · December 2008

well we got some today

BENTE · December 2008

if you want the larger one get it in june they are cheap then :laugh:

stike · December 2008

i got extremely lucky with my wellington i think.

of course, i started making it at noon and we ate at 9pm
hahahahaha

i'm no chef.
i'll stick to chicken breasts, my own special aged kind!

The Halls are Decked....

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