People that can't let go of Christmas.....

[Rob Base 2.0]

When do you think peeps should take down outside Christmas decorations? What about stuff that's inside but can be seen from outside? (like a couple of my neighbors have trees that are right near their windows to the main road so I see them)

Isn't Christmas over yet, or am I being a bah humbug?

[chiver78]

growing up in a Catholic house, the decorations stayed up and lit until Little Christmas (Jan 6th). if the New England weather wasn't conducive to taking things in/down, whatever couldn't be brought it stayed where it was but unlit. 

HTH 

[msventoux]

Their house, they can do what they want as long as they’re not breaking any laws or HOA rules. This coming from a person that bought a house with Christmas lights hung on the eaves and has never bothered to remove them. I don’t use them either.

[Tennesseer]

Jan 13, 2018 16:52:15 GMT -5 Rob Base 2.0 said:

When do you think peeps should take down outside Christmas decorations? What about stuff that's inside but can be seen from outside? (like a couple of my neighbors have trees that are right near their windows to the main road so I see them)

Isn't Christmas over yet, or am I being a bah humbug?

Look at it this way, Rob. It sucks to have to put up Christmas decorations every December and then take them down come January. Up then down, up then down, up then down, up down, up down...

It's a fact Christmas is going to come every year in December, so why not just leave the darn things up.

[Rob Base 2.0]

Jan 13, 2018 17:06:45 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Jan 13, 2018 16:52:15 GMT -5 Rob Base 2.0 said:

When do you think peeps should take down outside Christmas decorations? What about stuff that's inside but can be seen from outside? (like a couple of my neighbors have trees that are right near their windows to the main road so I see them)

Isn't Christmas over yet, or am I being a bah humbug?

Look at it this way, Rob. It sucks to have to put up Christmas decorations every December and then take them down come January. Up then down, up then down, up then down, up down, up down...

It's a fact Christmas is going to come every year in December, so why not just leave the darn things up.

Except that's the same argument that I lose to my wife every day when it comes to making the bed.....

[Tennesseer]

I follow Newton's law:  what goes up, must come down.  Therefore, nothing goes up.  Win-win.

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

Our stuff is usually down on December 26. This year it stayed up until December 30 as we continued to have guests through then. While I don't honor the Epiphany (Jan 6), I don't start getting annoyed until after that. The people who haven't taken down their Halloween decorations yet, well, I just want to kick them. 

[ken a.k.a OMK]

All of ours are down except outside due to the weather. The lights freeze to the shrubs. One year it took us until March thaw. 

[ken a.k.a OMK]

Also January 7 is the Orthodox Christmas and we leave the tree up until then. It didn't make it this year. 

[Tennesseer]

Jan 13, 2018 17:32:29 GMT -5 ken a.k.a OMK said:

Also January 7 is the Orthodox Christmas and we leave the tree up until then. It didn't make it this year. 

I read something the other day some person wanted their money back for the Christmas tree they bought at Home Depot, or Lowes, or.... They wanted their money back because it was not a live tree. What did they expect-the blunt cut at the bottom of the tree trunk should have been their first clue it wasn't live.

[Opti]

I don't know why you'd care unless its a neighbor and you don't like their decorations. Down by February is good enough for me, or outside lights not turned on if they leave them on the house year-around. Found this link when I did a Google search. Some will wait until Feb.

www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/blog/index.cfm?id=106

But every year someone will say that that they are following the traditional and official end of the Christmas season, February 2nd, 40 days after Christmas, which is the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord or Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary (commonly called Candlemas, in Greek Hypapante).

[GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl]

We got that weird warm front yesterday. It hit 61 at midnight and was still in the 50s at 9 a.m. I made us all go out and put away the outside decorations (and the assorted household goods used as ski jumps on the hill on the front lawn). Everything was frozen in place until this
morning. We took the tree down on the Epiphany, so Christmas is done. Although, I often leave the candle lights in the windows year round in concert with many in southern Pennsylvania. Why is the spirit of Christmas only seasonal? Why can't we hope for Peace on Earth and practice goodwill to each other year round??

I also have a lighted peace sign on my front door. That is only dimmed during the day or when I forget to replace the batteries. 😆

[haapai]

I think that you're being a bah-humbuger.  I'm a great fan of trees wrapped in white lights that stay up and lit until spring.  It gets dark way too early in this latitude, so I'm pretty happy to see any lights burning in these long nights.  They can stay up until April as far as I am concerned.

The lights save me the trouble of fumbling with my phone to find the dog's business.  And if they're coming from inside the house, well, the person standing on someone else's lawn picking up steamers really isn't in any position to be complaining about light pollution, trespass, quiet enjoyment, taste, or decorum.  I just scoop, tie, and move on. 

But I must confess to feeling a bit differently about lights that blink and pulse.  I'm always a bit nervous being seen scooping near them, mostly for fear that I will be blamed if someone else snips the wires. 

[NancysSummerSip]

Everyone in my neighborhood had their stuff down last weekend except one diehard. Her stuff is still up, including her Christmas tree, because she works so hard at that display. Which is true but enough already. You look kinda lame, being the last one on the block with your lights on.

[dee27]

Some of my neighbors live down south until late spring, and they leave a decorated Christmas tree up year round. When they return, they are busy visiting their grandkids who live in neighboring states and are rarely home. The HOA rules state that outdoor Christmas decorations have to be removed after New Year's Day, but there are houses with lights and wreaths that have not been removed yet. It has been very cold and icy, and I think the board is waiting to send out warning notices.

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

Why is the spirit of Christmas only seasonal? Why can't we hope for Peace on Earth and practice goodwill to each other year round??

I would dispute that the majority of Christmas decorations have anything to do with Peace on Earth and practicing goodwill. 
I would agree that those sentiments and/or religious practices should be celebrated year-round, but that's generally not what or why people are decorating their house with for Christmas.

[alabamagal]

Our neighbor at the corner of the cul de sac still has his out, but I think it is more due to laziness. There is no winter frost excuse here.

We moved here 3 years ago in mid February. The guy had about 30 inflatable decorations lying in the front yard deflated. We called it the dead Santa display. They were out until first week of March. The next 2 years he put them out but we only see them inflated once or twice. Last 2 years they got put away in Feb. this year he only put out 5 of the inflatables but they were on 1 side of the yard like he was leaving room for the rest but never got to them. They are still out there deflated.

It is our neighborhood entertainment.

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

Jan 13, 2018 20:43:02 GMT -5 alabamagal said:

Our neighbor at the corner of the cul de sac still has his out, but I think it is more due to laziness. There is no winter frost excuse here.

We moved here 3 years ago in mid February. The guy had about 30 inflatable decorations lying in the front yard deflated. We called it the dead Santa display. They were out until first week of March. The next 2 years he put them out but we only see them inflated once or twice. Last 2 years they got put away in Feb. this year he only put out 5 of the inflatables but they were on 1 side of the yard like he was leaving room for the rest but never got to them. They are still out there deflated.

It is our neighborhood entertainment.

So weird that he doesn't inflate them consistently!
We are the crazy people who have inflatables--3 during the beginning of football season, 25 at Halloween, two at Thanksgiving, and 35+ at Christmas. 

I will say that they cannot be put away wet because they'll develop mildew. We have had ours inflated in our house and in our garage to dry out before we put them away because it's so damp here on the coast, they would be out until June if we waited for enough consecutive dry days for the inflatables to dry. 

[GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl]

Jan 13, 2018 20:23:17 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

Why is the spirit of Christmas only seasonal? Why can't we hope for Peace on Earth and practice goodwill to each other year round??

I would dispute that the majority of Christmas decorations have anything to do with Peace on Earth and practicing goodwill. 
I would agree that those sentiments and/or religious practices should be celebrated year-round, but that's generally not what or why people are decorating their house with for Christmas.

Hmmm, you might be right. The ginormous inflatable dinosaur on a lawn in a neighboring town is a curious Christmas decoration, as are the holiday Spongebobs, etc.

I, however, am still a purist -- white lights, real tree, fresh greens, etc. No inflatables, no cartoon characters, just a couple of crèches spotted around the house and some simple decorstions. In fact, we used a few colored lights on a shrub this year for the very first time, ever. I guess I live in my own little "true meaning of Christmas" bubble.

[Virgil Showlion]

Back when I was a teenager living near Calgary, Alberta, one of the local news stations (CFCN) broadcast a news story about a new bylaw being enforced by the city called the "Home Decorations Act" (or something similar). The law stated that homeowners who still had Christmas decorations out in April, anywhere visible on their property, had to take the decorations down or else face fines/imprisonment.

The CFCN news crew was interviewing an elderly woman who was refusing to comply with the bylaw. City police were at the door explaining to her that she had to comply, and she was insisting she wouldn't because the city had no right, etc.  Eventually the station showed footage of the police putting her in the back of a cruiser in handcuffs.

I was too young to care much at the time, but my parents, who were watching the newscast with me, were livid. Grab-your-torch-and-pitchforks, we're marching on City Hall livid.

Then the police cruiser window rolled down and the old lady said, "Gotcha!"

It was an April Fool's Day prank, put on by the news station. (This was about 1995, before these kinds of organizational pranks were commonplace and the Internet ruined them all anyway.)

At any rate, CFCN did "get us" good. My parents especially. We all still remember the stunt to this day.

[empress of self-improvement]

Hmmmm...my living room is usually decorated in lights. I had to take them down at one point because an effing CAT chewed through the effing WIRES!!! I have a new box ready to go but I have to patch some holes over the window first. So, right now they're sitting in a Moroccan lantern on the kitchen table.

My trees are still out but seeing as one is a black feather tree and the other is a 12-inch fake tree, eh.

[alabamagal]

Jan 13, 2018 20:51:34 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

Jan 13, 2018 20:43:02 GMT -5 alabamagal said:

Our neighbor at the corner of the cul de sac still has his out, but I think it is more due to laziness. There is no winter frost excuse here.

We moved here 3 years ago in mid February. The guy had about 30 inflatable decorations lying in the front yard deflated. We called it the dead Santa display. They were out until first week of March. The next 2 years he put them out but we only see them inflated once or twice. Last 2 years they got put away in Feb. this year he only put out 5 of the inflatables but they were on 1 side of the yard like he was leaving room for the rest but never got to them. They are still out there deflated.

It is our neighborhood entertainment.

So weird that he doesn't inflate them consistently!
We are the crazy people who have inflatables--3 during the beginning of football season, 25 at Halloween, two at Thanksgiving, and 35+ at Christmas. 

I will say that they cannot be put away wet because they'll develop mildew. We have had ours inflated in our house and in our garage to dry out before we put them away because it's so damp here on the coast, they would be out until June if we waited for enough consecutive dry days for the inflatables to dry. 

The inflatables looked nice the few times that we saw them inflated.

The guy is just a procrastinator. He also has blocks for an addition that have been sitting around for 3 years. He is also a doomsday prepped, but I have no idea if he is really prepared.

[GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl]

Jan 13, 2018 22:21:08 GMT -5 empress of self-improvement said:

Hmmmm...my living room is usually decorated in lights. I had to take them down at one point because an effing CAT chewed through the effing WIRES!!! I have a new box ready to go but I have to patch some holes over the window first. So, right now they're sitting in a Moroccan lantern on the kitchen table.

My trees are still out but seeing as one is a black feather tree and the other is a 12-inch fake tree, eh.

Oops, I forgot. I have a string of lights year round in my family room and at my back door. F'ing contractor didn't replace the electrical fixtures he removed while repairing my house. I have all kinds of "duct tape" fixes like that around my house until we resolve the matter. 😡

[Value Buy]

In a few select cases, families leave them up for service members who might be coming home this winter and they want it up for them and a belated celebration. They also might be doing it because a family member is hospitalized or under going radiation treatments, etc, and want to keep a positive frame for the person. I know that is a small number, but you never know what the reason is.

[wvugurl26]

In 2017 DH's oldest niece went into inpatient rehab for an eating disorder in December. Christmas stayed up until mid January when she was released.

[Spellbound454]

We have to have our decorations down by 12th Night ...6 Jan
(although the Christian calendar would say that Christmas season goes on until the baptism which is 2 Feb)

I usually go from approx Dec 14 to Jan 3 ...otherwise I get feed up of looking at them and they start to create dust.

I don't put things up in the garden..... but have fairy lights around the front windows, a tree in the window... and a holly wreath on the door.
Its enough really...takes an hour to put up and an hour to take down.
The cards are stuck on paper to the back of the door ...then I have some choice ornaments .... snow globes, Santas, reindeer and nutcrackers.

Some people go to town with their decorations....... Its up to them.

[happyhoix]

Jan 13, 2018 20:43:02 GMT -5 alabamagal said:

Our neighbor at the corner of the cul de sac still has his out, but I think it is more due to laziness. There is no winter frost excuse here.

We moved here 3 years ago in mid February. The guy had about 30 inflatable decorations lying in the front yard deflated. We called it the dead Santa display. They were out until first week of March. The next 2 years he put them out but we only see them inflated once or twice. Last 2 years they got put away in Feb. this year he only put out 5 of the inflatables but they were on 1 side of the yard like he was leaving room for the rest but never got to them. They are still out there deflated.

It is our neighborhood entertainment.

I don't mind the wreaths and tree lights, but those deflated things laying on the ground are just sad. We have one neighbor who puts on of those things out at various times of the year (Halloween and Christmas mostly) but I can't recall seeing them inflated. They just lay the ground like giant, sad wet condoms.

[happyhoix]

Jan 13, 2018 22:58:31 GMT -5 alabamagal said:

Jan 13, 2018 20:51:34 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

So weird that he doesn't inflate them consistently!
We are the crazy people who have inflatables--3 during the beginning of football season, 25 at Halloween, two at Thanksgiving, and 35+ at Christmas. 

I will say that they cannot be put away wet because they'll develop mildew. We have had ours inflated in our house and in our garage to dry out before we put them away because it's so damp here on the coast, they would be out until June if we waited for enough consecutive dry days for the inflatables to dry. 

The inflatables looked nice the few times that we saw them inflated.

The guy is just a procrastinator. He also has blocks for an addition that have been sitting around for 3 years. He is also a doomsday prepped, but I have no idea if he is really prepared.

Probably bought twenty cases of spam and a generator but no gas, and that's where the prepping stopped.

I'm married to a procrastinator. We have all kinds of somewhat started projects laying around the house.

[alabamagal]

Jan 16, 2018 8:14:57 GMT -5 happyhoix said:

Jan 13, 2018 20:43:02 GMT -5 alabamagal said:

Our neighbor at the corner of the cul de sac still has his out, but I think it is more due to laziness. There is no winter frost excuse here.

We moved here 3 years ago in mid February. The guy had about 30 inflatable decorations lying in the front yard deflated. We called it the dead Santa display. They were out until first week of March. The next 2 years he put them out but we only see them inflated once or twice. Last 2 years they got put away in Feb. this year he only put out 5 of the inflatables but they were on 1 side of the yard like he was leaving room for the rest but never got to them. They are still out there deflated.

It is our neighborhood entertainment.

I don't mind the wreaths and tree lights, but those deflated things laying on the ground are just sad. We have one neighbor who puts on of those things out at various times of the year (Halloween and Christmas mostly) but I can't recall seeing them inflated. They just lay the ground like giant, sad wet condoms.

[dezii]

Jan 13, 2018 17:06:45 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Jan 13, 2018 16:52:15 GMT -5 Rob Base 2.0 said:

When do you think peeps should take down outside Christmas decorations? What about stuff that's inside but can be seen from outside? (like a couple of my neighbors have trees that are right near their windows to the main road so I see them)

Isn't Christmas over yet, or am I being a bah humbug?

Look at it this way, Rob. It sucks to have to put up Christmas decorations every December and then take them down come January. Up then down, up then down, up then down, up down, up down...

It's a fact Christmas is going to come every year in December, so why not just leave the darn things up.

For one who's holiday it isn't, thus never hung  decorations...unless weather hurts them...seems like a good idea...even light em up for other occasions like birthdays..weddings...fourth of July..