Carbondale Bytelife

Via the official NORAD Santa Tracker. Merry Christmas to one and all!

Labels: Christmas

The house at the corner of Tower and West Sunset has a 40 foot tall fir in the front yard encircled with strings of lights from top to base, along with 2 dozen or so electrified ornaments interspersed among the branches. Just getting lights to the top of the tree is impressive.

Two blocks east at 278 West Sunset is another well lit display. While the one at Tower and Sunset impressed me because of the sheer height of the display, this one is impressive because of the sheer number of lights covering the eaves, front of the house and yard.

Labels: Christmas

Can't give the street address on this one because I got turned around looking for it but it's off Lake Drive and clearly visible from Hwy 13. In fact, the display is designed to be visible from Hwy 13 rather than Lake Drive. Go west on 13 about 4 tenths of a mile past Striegel Road. The display is on the south side of 13. There's an illuminated "Merry Christmas" sign that's got to be 25 feet long and somewhere between 75 and a hundred plastic lawn ornaments. They weren't lit up when I drove by Friday evening but Saturday night, they were burning in all their glory. Pretty impressive.

Labels: Christmas

Hickory Lodge has a very nice display out, with strings running up into the trees and icicle lights outling the eaves of the building. You get a threefer if you go behind the building, as not only are there more lights, but the still lit City of Carbondale and Rotary Club floats from the Lights Fantastic parade are parked as well.

601 North Allyn also has a nice display with lots of lights and lit, but unmoving, animal sculptures fit into a pretty small area.

Labels: Christmas

1019 West Willow has a lot of lights. No inflatables or moving things but a heck of a lot of lights.

Labels: Christmas

The house at 409 North Oakland has a nice assortment of lights outlining the eves and fits 5 inflatables into a pretty small yard. Well worth a look.

Labels: Christmas

The house at 314 West Walnut crams a whole lot of lights, inflatables and animatronics (is that a word?) into a postcard sided lawn.

Labels: Carbondale, Christmas

It's that time of year again. Time for cookie walks. The churches have wised up this year or at least two of them have. The First Christian Church (Gee, I didn't think any organization used geocities anymore) at Monroe and University is having their's tomorrow from 9 to noon, then St. Francis Xavier hosts their's NEXT weekend from 9 until noon as well. You see the cunning plan, don't you? The FCC sucks you in: "Why bother baking? Get your Christmas cookes for the home and office parties here." But what happens to those delicious cookies next week? They all get eaten, that's what. Then St. Francis comes along, a week later, with plenty more cookies to add to your holiday parties (and wasitline). In past years, wehn they had the cookie walks on the same weekend, there wasn't the opportinity to hit the cookie buyer with that one-two punch, but now.....

Labels: Christmas, church, downtown Carbondale, holidays

If you're looking to give someone a gift made in Illinois, here's the link to the Ill. Dept. of Agriculture Illinois Gift Guide. Scrolling down the page, I found listings in southern Illinois for Blue Sky VInyards, Country bob's, Darn Hot Peppers, Genkota Winery and Hodgson Mill but quit after the Hs.

Labels: Christmas, southern Illinois

From an email I received:

• The second annual Holiday Home Tours will be held Saturday and Sunday, the 6th and 7th of December, featuring all different homes and new locations, as well as a silent auction for 15 unique tabletop Christmas trees. Ticket prices are the same as last year ($20 for Saturday, $50 for Sunday’s tour and reception, or a combined ticket for both days for $65). The proceeds will benefit the Stage Company. For tickets for the Holiday Home Tours only, call 618-516-4520 before November 24.
  

• Continuing the holiday cheer, the second show of the season is Daniel Sullivan’s comic farce Inspecting Carol, the story of a struggling theater company (ahem) having yet another run at old Charles Dickens. Slapstick results. The show runs two weekends: December 12, 13, 14 and December 19, 20 and 21, 2008. Tickets for this show go on sale November 28. The box office phone is 549-5466.
  

Labels: Christmas, Stage Company

Is it just me or are there fewer Christmas lights around this year than in past years? I was walking through the Arbor District and West Walnut Street areas last night and could count maybe half a dozen houses with lights on them. The neighborhoods off S. Oakland and Glenview were similarly barren of light.

Labels: Christmas

For the first time ever, I received a Christmas card from the mayor. Technically, it's an oversized postcard that probably went to all businesses in Carbondale. It features a photo of of a scrimmage by the 1930's football Maroons on one side and a brief history of football fields at SIUC on the other, concluding with a reference to the city's support of the Saluki Way initiative. How do I know it's a Christmas card? It says "Seasons Greetings," of course.

Labels: Christmas, Saluki Way