Round 4: Christmas Lights

I have a Christmas Dork obsession with Christmas lights. No really, I do. It all started when we were kids and we thought it was so cool that Dad would get ON THE ROOF to put up our lights. I'm not sure what it was, maybe the fact that he was risking his neck and life for some lights, so they must have been really important, or the fact that it always looked so cool when he was done... Not sure, but something about it made me love them a lot. And then as Christmas got closer, our parents would take us for a drive just to look at Christmas lights. Growing up in West Chester, there was a lot of lights all around, but one house in particular, on the way to our best friends' house, was always spectacular. They had nicknamed them the Griswolds, but I didn't understand what that meant at the time. I actually thought that was their name.

This isn't it, but it looked like this in my mind. Cool, huh?

Anyway, I know better now, but I still remember the excitement and awe that I felt every time we were going to take our Christmas Lights drive. It was during the last of those drives, in 1997, when my parents informed us what they were going to name our youngest brother, who was due the next month. It was a very special night.

Now that I'm older, I still get a childish delight out of Christmas lights. Especially when they are done well. I have a few rules about Christmas lights/decorations that go outside.

1. Plastic figurines look tacky most of the time.
2. Very very rarely are plastic figurines a good idea, See #1.
3. Blow up things are worse than plastic things.
4. Under no circumstances may Christmas light nets be used.
5. If nets must be used, refer to #4.
6. Setting lights to music gets you 1,000 automatic bonus points, and may possibly negate rule #1.
7. A poor job of lights is not worth any lights at all. If your lights are going to suck, save them for your tree. If you even have a tree. Grinch.

But generally, I'm not picky. =)

Lately, I've really liked the red/white light combo. Just white lights are always gorgeous, just red lights slightly creepy. But the combo is really very nice. This year, my parents and I opted for just white lights on the outside, mostly because all of our colored strands were busted. But inside on the tree, we ALWAYS have colored lights. I love that. I LOVE the way the lights play off of the ornaments and shine onto the walls. One of my very favorite things is to turn off all of the lights in the house except the tree and just lay on the floor in that room and stare. With Christmas music playing, of course.

The best lights I have ever seen are these one Temple Square in Salt Lake City:

Isn't it beautiful? If you've never gone, go. Seriously, amazing.

For those of you more local, come by my parents' neighborhood. They have a neighbor who sets lights to Trans-Siberian Orchestra. That's about 5,000 bonus points alone, and it's FABULOUS, which earns another 2,000. So, really, he wins.

I love Christmas lights. Don't you?