Dad still wants to light up the yard

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. At least, that's true inside our house.

Outside, I still haven't managed to put up any holiday lights unless you count the two lighted grapevine deer on our back porch. And I only turn those on when I'm out on the porch at night.

It's not that I'm in a "humbug" mood. I love outdoor Christmas lights.

Rather, it's a matter of scheduling.

With birthdays, family get-togethers and other social and business appointments, it's nearly impossible to find time to light up my front yard with holiday cheer.

As a result, my outdoor lights are still stored in the attic. With Christmas less than a week away, Joni and I wonder if it's even worth hauling the stuff outside and hooking up all the extension cords.

Bailey, our 11-year-old, wants us to put up some outdoor lights.

Apparently, it's not enough that we've taken her by other people's homes so she can get a glimpse of the holiday spendor in other yards.

She wants us to put up our string of lighted candy canes and other assorted outdoor decorations.

So at some point I'll probably try to get up a few outside lights. I just hope I'm not lighting up the yard on Christmas Eve.

Personally, I'd think even Santa would be hardpressed to decorate his lawn for Christmas. Of course, he has one advantage. He's got all those elves to help deck out the yard in Christmas lights.

He also has that red-nosed Rudolph who could double as an outdoor Christmas light without a single extension cord.

Some people light up their front lawns with enough lights to double as an airport runway. One such yard in Cape Girardeau has so many lights and inflatable Christmas decorations that it could double as an amusement park.

Another house several blocks away on Kent Street has thousands of Christmas lights synchronized to music played through a low-wattage radio transmitter. A sign in the yard instructs passersby to tune to a certain FM channel.

The result is a symphony of racing, blinking lights that draw an audience of motorists every night. The street is lined with cars in both directions as people slow down or park to watch the holiday light show. The show takes place daily from 6 to 9 p.m.

You've got to love the dedication of people who are willing to turn their holiday lights into performance art.

Several other houses on Kent Street are decorated with lights for the holiday. But obviously none can compare to the tuned-in, dancing lights.

Our outside lights, which are still inside in the attic right now, don't begin to rival this light show.

Of course, it can be hard work just wiring up outside Christmas lights. One year I tried to add a spotlight to my outside Christmas decorations, but it pulled too much power and repeatedly tripped a circuit breaker -- putting my decorations in the dark.

Buiness ingenuity has helped solve our indoor decorating needs with prelit, artificial Christmas trees.

Maybe some enterprising businessman could do the same for outdoor decorations. Imagine how great it would be to have prelit gutters. Prelit lawns might be a good idea, too.

That way we wouldn't have to unravel knotted up strands of Christmas lights to bring good cheer to our yards.

Centuries ago, outdoor decorations required less work. A few lighted candles and your yard was decorated for the holidays. Of course, it was a major fire hazard. But set-up was a lot easier.

Today, we rely on electricity to help light up the season. If nothing else, it gives plenty of holiday cheer to the local utility company.

Mark Bliss is a staff writer for the Southeast Missourian.