Happy Hanukkah!

Countdown to Christmas 5 days

Hanukkah starts at sundown tonight. Seems late this year doesn't it?

Maybe you don't keep up with the Jewish holidays where you live, but the neighborhood we live in mostly orthodox Jewish. When we moved into our house in July, as the movers loaded in the 30 totes of Christmas decorations for inside the house and then the greenery, lights and 6 foot fiberglass snowman for the outside of the house, I thought, "WOW. This neighborhood doesn't know what's about to hit it!"

At our previous house, I had placed a 4 foot star lit up with twenty 15 watt light-bulbs (it used to be a window display prop) way up at the top of our chimney. You could see that star from Santa Monica blvd 10 houses away. SERIOUSLY.

At the new house, as Halloween approached, Lyle asked if I was going to decorate for Halloween. "No, I'm not going to tip my hand. Let Christmas come as a complete surprise to them..."

Then on the Friday after Thanksgiving, I got busy.

I placed our interior tree in the front window to show off even more lights. Then I sat back and waited.



I didn't have to wait long. Two nights later, there was a knock on the front window, "Excuse me! Excuse me!" I jumped up and ran to get Lyle (I don't talk to strangers), "Someone is at the front window!" The front door? "No, the WINDOW."

Lyle came up to the window where this strange person was still waving, "Hi, I don't want to bother you, but I have to tell you how much I LOVE YOUR LIGHTS! I was driving by and they are so gorgeous I had to stop and tell you I love them... and I'm JEWISH! But religion doesn't matter, people are people, we should all get along and enjoy the spirit of the season, bring home our troops and find peace for the whole world. Bless you! Thank you! Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!" and then she ran back to her car that was parked half across the neighbors driveway and half across the street and drove away.

Lyle just stood there in disbelief, I grabbed the phone and called my parents. "Guess what!?! I can now officially say that my Christmas lights on my house have officially STOPPED TRAFFIC!"