Grandiose Spending

[Bir48die]

Bah humbug to some of you. I get it but I also remember how our family loved driving around to look at the Christmas lights. Was a treat for the kids.

Used to do this the weekend of Thanksgiving but since it's later I'll need to dust off things early.

 

[kgtest]

My house compete's with Dr Phil's wife's xmas setup (the inside at least).

We would never pay for that service. I wrap lights around the front entry pillars and around the back. Sometimes I get frisky and buy a wreathe from the boy scouts.

 

[Chuckanut]

I totally agree, but my concern would be that the service provider is probably not insured so what happens if they fall and have an injury, especially if the injury disables them.... so I would want to go with a service provider that has insurance.

That's a great point I had not thought about. I'll stick to tossing the solar powered fairy lights over the bushes myself.

 

[O2Bfree]

We have LED lights, bought half-price at after-Christmas sales, that DH strings up on hooks under the eaves. We're in a rambler, and the eaves is low enough that he can get the lights up there without a ladder. I usually make a lighted wreath to hang by the front door. In the backyard, I string lights over our weeping Atlas and around a cement pagoda. Our view is out the back through three big windows, so we get to enjoy some lights from inside that way.

Here in Washington the dark hours are so long that I wish people would leave their lights up at least through January. Until Valentines day would be nice.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

So are you new to the neighborhood, or do you have a reputation from past years?

Around here Christmas light hanging is usually offered by people who are fund-raising for something, like high school athletes earning money to go to a tournament, or young Navy or Marines supporting Toys for Tots.

Ha!! We are still pretty new as we approach the one year point being in the house. I think some of it stems from the previous owner. She was quite the troublemaker in the 'hood and I think there has been a sigh of relief that we are more "normal" than the last inhabitant. Our last neighborhood was quite a bit older and most of the residents had lived there for 20+ years...we blended in quite well.

The OP's location is "Country Living".

Apparently, even country folks are not free from peer pressure to keep up the appearance.

Probably a little bit. We are in a pretty small neighborhood (about 30 homes, each on 1.5 to 5 acre lots) but for the area, it's pretty nice.

The aforementioned neighbor is a part owner of a successful company and from some of the discussions I have had with him, it comes with all the trappings (spend! spend! spend!). I have no knowledge of their finances except a small hint that they would need to get a HELOC to help pay for the MASSIVE pool they just had put in. I don't know the exact cost, but the permit showed an estimated cost of over $300K, which isn't too far off from the value of the home.

Across the way we have another neighbor who is a dentist, but he's more my speed; he keeps a low profile and as far as I know, only my DW and I know that he's a DDS. He tells everyone that he's a "contractor." I am not sure why, but I am guessing so he doesn't feel compelled to "fit in."

Anyway, like most neighborhoods, this one is somewhat interesting but since it's small, there is very little in the way of gossip/rumors/issues/etc. and I like it that way.

Actually, it sounds like this precisely what you are doing...

Thanks for the input Doc, I appreciate it.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Sounds like you should buy a 20-foot tree next year, just to mess with your neighbors:

HA! That's a good idea! The neighbor doesn't seem to have much of a sense of humor, either. A couple months ago, we purchased the vacant lot that is behind our house to avoid someone coming in and clearing the trees that are there (or riding 4 wheelers all the time). Originally, the neighbor approached me about going in with him and another neighbor to purchase it (it abuts 2 of my neighbor's land included said neighbor) and I had put some thought into it, but decided to purchase it outright. When he found out about it, he expressed some confusion as to why we purchased it on our own. Jokingly, I told him that I was interested in starting up a hog farm and since it was zoned appropriately, it was a good way to get that started. I guess I didn't say it in a jokingly-enough manner because he thought I was serious.

Anyway, a couple of years ago, I did splurge on this decoration...and yes, it will be displayed in the front and lit all night long.

 

[Go-NoGo]

Two electric candle in each window, run by timers. Takes me 20 minutes to put up and 10 minutes to take down each year. love it!

 

[Teacher Terry]

I think owning a lot with others would be a headache.

 

[pacergal]

I enjoy looking at Christmas decorations!
We have a couple of neighbors here who go all out--every tree and bush plus roof line and windows are decorated.
We put up LED lights on the eaves, easy peasy since we have hooks up all year and can reach with a step stool--no ladders involved. I also have LED garden lights that I keep up all year long around our deck. I add a wreath by the door. Used to have walkway lights, but did not replace after they wore out.
I decorate more inside. It usually takes us three-six hours to get things done in and out.

 

[NW-Bound]

It has been a long time since we did any Christmas decorations. I did it for the kids, and stopped when they became teenagers and did not care themselves. Even back then, it was nothing extravagant, although I did put lights on the roof line up to the 2nd story. I am just glad I don't have to do it anymore. Some neighbors did not do anything either.

Up in my high-country boondocks home, the few years when we went up during the holiday seasons, did not see anyone do anything extravagant. Just a bunch of bah-humbugs, like myself.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

we don't do outside lights, lawn ornaments, etc. i put a small wreath on the front door and call it a day. thank God we don't live near the certifiably insane types who try to out do Clark Griswald. but riddle me this...just when did Halloween become a contender for first place in poor taste in outside decorations?

What is poor taste to you might be really fun times for your neighbors' 9 year old kids. Halloween was a big deal to our kids when they were little. Our kids are grown now but we still get a lot of trick or treaters these days. I'm trying to find a good balance between fun times for the neighborhood kids and simple living for us. Though simple living still means keeping a box of costumes for us as we usually go out to some kind of party with a costume contest.

 

[The Cosmic Avenger]

I think owning a lot with others would be a headache.

It's easy-peasy....as long as you all agree 100% on everything and never try to change anything about the property or its ownership. Doing any of that even with extended family is a nightmare! It seems everyone I know who has a "family cabin" has stories about the family discord that can be caused by shared property ownership and management.

 

[wmc1000]

Our next door neighbors have all their maintenance hired out. Lawn mowing, fertilizing, bush and tree trimming, mosquito spraying, irrigation system maintenance, Christmas lights hung and removed, Of course they also have once a week maid service too. This is not for a McMansion either. A relatively basic 2400 sq. ft house with a partial, finished basement.


On another note these same people who moved in about a year ago and are very nice, had their basement flood because both their main sump pump and their battery backup failed while they were away one weekend. They asked me if I knew you had to have additional coverage for water backup on your insurance! This is not their first home either.

 

[Rummy]

I had a friend who gave up on fresh Christmas trees. After putting it up in their living room an opossum decided to jump out of its hideaway...

 

[tryan]

I don't understand all the fuss ... put it up once and leave it up year round.... lol

 

[aja8888]

I don't understand all the fuss ... put it up once and leave it up year round.... lol

We just move our 4' decorated Xmas tree to a closet and cover it with a sheet until next December.

 

[ncbill]

I don't understand all the fuss ... put it up once and leave it up year round.... lol

that's what one of the neighbors did near DW's family home.

ala Clark Griswold, they stapled strings of the big colored bulbs to their home's fascia boards & left 'em up all year 'round.

 

[O2Bfree]

I had a friend who gave up on fresh Christmas trees. After putting it up in their living room an opossum decided to jump out of its hideaway...

"POSSUM!!!"

Hmmm, doesn't have quite the same effect as "SQUIRREL!!!".

 

[Teacher Terry]

Daylate, the other poster might be referring to some creepy things people did this year like have a guillotine cutting off a baby's head. When we lived in a neighborhood with kids we dressed up ourselves and our 6 dogs. The kids loved it and I put up a baby gate so the kids could see the dogs but not escape. The dogs never barked at the kids. It was lots of fun.

 

[Badger]

Most of our neighbors decorate their houses and a few use a service complete with "cherry pickers" for the tall palm trees. We don't bother although I did put up a few lights many years ago. We haven't put up decorations in the house either since there are no more children living here and since we have cats that would more than likely climb the trees and swat at the decorations. Who knows what they would try to eat. Tinsel would be a very bad thing.



I guess I will just dance naked in the moon light at midnight on the Winter Solstice like last year.


Cheers!

 

[tb001]

I love holiday decorations. I would pay someone to do it, but $1k+ seems crazy high. And we have a policy--if work requires a ladder, we required any workers to be bonded/insured.

Other than maybe getting up on a ladder to hang a wreath, no way am I doing the roofline lights. Too much potential for injury. This is our first year here and we bought color changing leds to wrap the trees. I got one wrapped a few weeks ago and made it orange for halloween. I'm seriously considering leaving the trees wrapped year round. The wires are teeny!

I'm in agreement with whoever said halloween has become nuts. Home depot had life sized animated boats and pirates this year!! And I have to say, they were pretty cool. But it's one night and then you have to store all that junk!

 

[SOKYguy]

I stopped putting up a tree 20 years ago. I've never done house decorations. So paying someone to do that seems really silly to me.

 

[SpinDoctorTX]

The outside is decorated when the seasonal wreath goes on the front door. Inside, we do a tree and a few other areas, but nothing big.

Done & done. We're lazy and don't have storage space for a bunch of stuff.

I'm still trying to get to the stage a friend of mine reached when she figured out how to put her entire decorated tree in a tree bag and stuff it- decor & all- in the back of her coat closet. Nice...

 

[Bamaman]

I seldom pay for any help doing any job. That includes plumbing and electrical.

But I did fall 12 years ago and break 2 legs falling off a ladder @ 14' off the ground. I'm grounded.

My neighborhood is pretty luxurious, and the local party rental company is going door to door installing lights on houses. They do a pretty nice job. But these are the same people that pay $1200 per year for fertilizer services.

 

[explanade]

Used to love the Xmas lights as a kid. The more gaudier the better.

Now, I don't see it around here so much and I don't miss it.


Anyways, for other examples of grandiose spending, check out some of the Blow that dough thread.