nineteen

When I was a kid, there was one house in town that was famous for its super-elaborate holiday light display.  After church on Christmas Eve, we would do a drive-by--along with lots of other families--to see the moving reindeer covered in tiny white lights, the red and white flashing candy canes, and the giant sleigh that sat--mysteriously unoccupied--in the middle of the front yard.  For the under-ten set, it was absolute magic.

Now that I'm older, it takes a little more to amaze me, but I'm still ridiculously taken with over-the-top holiday lights.  In December, I plan my walk home from work according to which street has the best lights.  It's probably for the best that our building doesn't seem to have any exterior power outlets.  Who knows what kind of electrical kitsch I'd be indulging in?

I know I'm not the only person in the world that's sickly fascinated by this subject, so I hope you'll forgive me for the following links...

Find out how Christmas lights work.

Watch a light show that's so bad, it's good.  Or maybe still kind of bad. 

Put on a synchronized light show of your own.

Make it a game.