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Charming Christmas Lights 2015
It’s that time of year again! The time to capture those delightful lights. The weather in the center of the US has been incredibly mild so I have yet to see the lights in snow, but I can’t say I am complaining since it has given me the opportunity to take long walks on many nights to take in the sights.
When I was a kid, I celebrated Christmas week in the rural midwest with my maternal grandparents and family. Christmas Eve was spent diving in gifts and wrapping paper in my grandparents’ living room. Afterwards, I had the option of doing the dishes or going to church.
On Christmas Day, my family and I would drive three blocks (still kind of crazy that we took the car) to see my eccentric great-aunt and gentle great-uncle, “the engineer” with a hard g. He was from Sweden and had really pretty eyes but when he spoke, it sounded like svenska gibberish, and I had no idea what he was saying most of the time.
When we arrived to the house, cousin Muggsy, an obnoxious Boston Terrier, would eagerly greet us by slobbering all over our legs, biting holes in nylons and causing overall chaos until he was gently directed to the basement. Muggsy morphed into Muggsy 2 and the trilogy ended with naming her last dog Hercules. Hercules made the previous Boston Terriers look like stuffed animals.
There were tons of homemade cookies in the back of the house and my other great-aunt would squeal, “Would you like to have a coooookie?” and her sister would back it up with, “Have one of eaaaaaach!” But I digress.
I saw many wreaths with lights this year, but this one is my favorite.
Christmas Lights – Awesome Sights
When I was a kid, I would awaken Christmas morning to the hypnotic sound of the chirping bird on the Christmas Tree and the pitter patter of my maternal grandparents stirring about upstairs. My Christmas Stocking greeted me with a chocolate marshmallow Santa, a ballpoint pen from the local bank, and a waiting-to be-ripe orange. I’m sure there was more in there – but that is what stands out as I write this memory. Now these moments would be captured on social media or Facebook…but not then!
Here are some photos of Christmas lights to warm up your inner holiday spirit. It doesn’t appear it will be a White Christmas in my part of the world but this weather condition has allowed me the opportunity to stroll along the streets at night to take in the lights and not be cold!
House Outline and stars – a good beginning…
A bright colorful tree with Rudolph watching over things…
Introducing the Ho Ho Helicopter…
When Snow Day Becomes Tow Day
Snow is beautiful to watch as it falls down without gusty winds. I love walking in it, especially when the Christmas lights are still out.
The snow seems comforting at night, especially with lights along the way.
This morning, my efforts to ge to work were thwarted by the deep snow in the alley. Then snow becomes a pain.
Years ago, Read the rest of this entry
Christmas on Cleveland Street
Last year, a friend of mine alerted me to some amazing lights not too far from where I live. There are many light sequences – each in synch with a different song that can be found on a radio frequency. I took some stills last night and some are below.
Elvis is singing “Blue Christmas”..sigh!
The lights dazzle!
Christmas Light Delight
Last night, despite the frigid weather, I covered up in warm clothing so I could walk around town to complete my annual mission of capturing Christmas lights on film. The slabs of concrete were slick with ice and crunched as I spotted various delightful lit up displays. I waited for my blurred lenses to de-fog and used my fingers (slowly transforming into icicles) to snap some shots.
Starring…star lights!
Classic Christmas Feel – with a wreath, of course!
Love the wreath and all of the color!
If I Fall For You, I’ll Never Recover
Dear Voracious Fan Base of me, myself, and I:
Apologies for the delay in correspondence, I have been pre-occupied but today’s daily prompt inspired me because I only have to mention the third line of the last song I heard and make it the post title and then rant for 15 minutes.
THAT, I can do! So, thanks to Maroon 5 for invading my brain with “Love Somebody”, but I digress.
During the last couple of weeks, I have seen posts on Facebook of adorable children with a sign reading, “First Day of (please fill in the blank). It’s back to school already, hard to believe.
Back in the day before technology spoiled us, we didn’t have 10,000 photos of us by the age we were two. Not even for the first child! We had that old-fashioned camera where one had to put film in it, shoot the entire roll, and then transport the film to the drug store and wait a few days to have them developed and it was pretty expensive!
The anticipation was awesome and having any redeemable photos became treasures representing a snippet of a precious moment in time.
Our expectations were very low. In fact, if one got a good shot, it was a major surprise. One would have pinky prints on the picture or unexpected views of feet or bodies without heads.
Not to get “ahead of ourselves” but this was a typical photo on a roll of film at a family gathering. Is that my uncle, is that my dad? Will we ever know?
They could be blurry or they could be full of shadows with a fabulous background.
Check out the fabulous background of a family vacation – scenic shadow takes over. Wait, who is in that picture, anyway?!
One would shoot the photo and have no clue if the photo was any good and perhaps a couple of years later, the roll of film would get developed and one would be treated to a fabulous flashback of a lifetime milestone that got lost in a drawer somewhere.
Technology has made it a no-brainer to capture events such as the first day of school. No more waiting until the roll is finished to have the satisfaction of knowing if a photograph turned out. Back then, photos would be taken and developed – whether you were ready or not! It was kind of charming! Think of all of the photos we threw away because they were of poor quality!
You are NOT taking a photo!
So, while everyone was all giddy over the shots of their kids back to school, I dug into the photo albums I absconded from my childhood bedroom at my house and found
surely, there is something riveting when you click this, right?
Short & Sweet – My Wish for 2013
I’m not going to lie. I have not been inspired to write for a while now. One of my new year’s resolutions is to get back on my writing game because when I write, I feel sharper.
Here are my wishes: Read the rest of this entry
Dazzling Christmas Lights
When I was a kid, I celebrated Christmas week in the rural midwest with my maternal grandparents and family. Christmas Eve was spent diving in gifts and wrapping paper in my grandparents’ living room. Afterwards, I had the option of doing the dishes or going to church.
On Christmas Day, my family and I would drive three blocks (still kind of crazy that we drove) to see my eccentric great-aunt and gentle great-uncle, “the engineer” with a hard g. He was from Sweden and had really pretty eyes but when he spoke, it sounded like svenska gibberish, and I had no idea what he was saying most of the time.
When we arrived to the house, cousin Muggsy, an obnoxious Boston Terrier, would eagerly greet us by slobbering all over our legs, biting holes in nylons and causing overall chaos until he was gently directed to the basement. Muggsy morphed into Muggsy 2 and the trilogy ended with naming her last dog Hercules. Hercules made the previous Boston Terriers looks like stuffed animals.
As an adult, I stopped traveling north for Christmas but since Thanksgiving, I have been taking long walks after dinner to admire the Christmas lights. Ironically, we have had no snow on the ground, until today. Here are some photos of treasures taken on my walks. Read the rest of this entry
Peekaboo Moon: The Garden After Dark
Last night, I took a “class”with my mom called “The Garden After Dark” at the Chicago Botanic Garden, taught by Julie Siegel of J. Siegel Designs. Julie, the creation of a photographer and painter, developed a strong appreciation for art and passion for plants which was the perfect recipe for her to blossom into a landscape design authority.
The first twenty minutes was a power point presentation. We were reminded about how our other senses kick into overdrive when one of them is diminished. So, the smell of the garden increases as does the power of touch and hearing. Clearly I was in the class, as in most cases, to provide comic relief. Read the rest of this entry
Rein Rant N' Rave 