Black Friday. The day when all the deals and all the steals are available at every single store including the Acme. While this day means a lot to the shoppers of the world, to young kids and adults alike, this is the day where all the decorations start to come out. And by God, they better be done by the end of the weekend.
When I was kid in the 60’s we lived in a rowhouse on W 21st St. in Chester. #103 to be exact. These houses were not big. They were 3 bedrooms, and 1 bath. That’s where me, my four siblings, and parents lived until 1973. Yes, it was cramped. Even though the houses were not large, you would not believe how many lights and decorations you could hang. My Godfather, Ralph, worked for Lane Sign Company. He was very talented and he custom made the lights that went around ours and his front doorway. There were matching lights to go around the front windows. First and second floor. Then, you had the candles in the windows. Yes, both first and second floor. Then on the lawn, there was a mixture of plastic figurines. You had Santa, the snowman, a reindeer or two, and the nativity scene complete with black Joseph, Jesus and Mary. I’m not sure where my Dad got that collection but I am sure it did not come new from the store.
In 1973, we moved to 2516 Edgmont Ave. This house was much larger. The bigger the house, the more the decorations. And my mom loved to decorate. The porch had a huge bay window back then. That window was decorated to the nines. And my mom would decorate for every occasion. People would actually wait and see what she would create each holiday. By that time, I was a tweener and the last thing I wanted to do on our short break from school was decorate with my mom. Truth be told, my dad was not into it too much either. Bu there we were, up on the front porch roof, my dad precariously perched on a ladder, with me holding it, stapling Christmas lights under the eve of the house. The roof was pitched so he would have to put blocks under one leg. My only job was to hold the ladder. But every car that passed and beeped their horn, I would turn around and wave, and my dad would yell at me to “hold the Goddamn ladder”! This went on most of the day.
As I got older, and had kids of my own, it became fun and something I looked forward to. Getting the house decorated really set the holiday mood. And like my mom and dad, we would go all out. Back then we would get a real Christmas tree. But this was not the weekend for that. If you bought one now, it would be drier than yesterday’s Thanksgiving bird which cooked too long because you were drinking way too much and watching football. I can’t think of a single year when I didn’t decorate. We even decorated our shore condos for Christmas even though we didn’t spend the holiday there.
Speaking of decorations, I have to get the tree out of the attic, and lights ready to be wrapped around the palm tree. Haave a great decorating weekend, and by God you better get it done!