Christmas lights and decorations have gotten rather over the top, don't you think? My family lives in a fairly middle-class neighborhood that mainly consists of one-story ranch houses built in the early 1960s. Decorations used to be very charming, years ago.
Not always the case any more.
This is the house across the street from my mom's place. Two of their THREE giant, inflatable characters are lying half on the ground. The spiral tree in the center has blinking lights that are enough to give someone a seizure. This is one of the worst in the neighborhood but not THE worst, and certainly not the most over the top I've ever seen. But still, pretty tacky. The people that live there are very nice, though.
This house at the end of the street has a lot going on but at least there is some consistency with the white lights and snowman theme. And they have a small child at home, and I think it's nice to do a little extra when there are little ones around.
This is my mother's house. Just two lighted reindeer, a green spotlight on the front door and wreath, and some candles in the windows. Subdued compared to some of the neighbors, but still in the spirit of the season.
By the way, the reflections of the lights on the snow is because we had ice storms a few days ago and there is a nice layer of shiny ice on top. It sure does create a nice effect with the lights -- even the over-done ones.
In Paris, I've noticed that some people DO dress up their windows and balconies with lights and the occasional Santa-Flew-Into-The-Wall decoration... but it's tame in comparison with what typically goes on around here.
