Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Childhood Christmas Memories City & Country


The week before Christmas in the city (Baltimore) helps Pet recall her childhood memories.

Karen's disco ball ornament. Makes her want to get up and dance!

Pet

For sure ‘tis the season going full swing. This time of year, when looking out at the cows nibbling that winter brown grass, I can’t help thinking of Christmas past, way back into my childhood when I spent the big day in the city. I didn’t live in Manhattan, but my grandparents did and their big brownstone was my home away from home. The year Santa Claus sat on the window sill while he and I held a long conversation I was sleeping on the third floor. Undeterred, the jolly elf had a ladder and stopped by to tell me all my presents were at home in Queens. To this day that image remains so real, I almost think our late night chat wasn’t a dream. Actually Santa and I first talked when I boarded a space ship and met the real Santa. So, Karen Anne, should I stop there or do you want me to tell all about my city adventures from those long ago holiday seasons?

Karen

That’s funny you should bring up the ghost of Christmas past as I was just thinking about the year when I was ten. The snow must have been 12 feet high as it was past my second story bedroom window. One of the worst blizzards in New York history. The electricity was out so my grandparent’s farmhouse was only illuminated by kerosene lanterns. Needless to say the Christmas tree looked like a large blob with only a hint of glimmer when the faint light from a lantern would catch the edge of the foil icicles. I complained to my mother that I wouldn’t be able to open my presents when I couldn’t see them amd my Christmas was ruined. I was quite the grinch. : ) I’d love to say that in the end it turned out to be the best Christmas ever but I’d be lying. : )

Pet

Oh my! Your ten year old Christmas could be fodder for a Scrooge story. No wonder you have a phobia about the dark days. My grandparents dragged me all over the city for every holiday event available. We started with the Thanksgiving Day Parade. That kicked off Macy’s favorite season when Santa set up shop there. Getting to see him wasn’t easy in those days. First we kids had to wait on a long line leading to what looked like an elevator decorated like a space ship. Once on board an attendant confirmed this was indeed a terrestrial vehicle and we would fly to the North Pole and see Santa in his shop. Actually we took the elevator up to the very top floor. Santa was there all right, surrounded by elves and ho ho ho-ing his head off. I don’t remember what I asked Santa for that year, but I do remember a little book they gave us with the starting verse, “Once RH Macy’s was so small, Pygmies could hardly fit in there at all…”

Karen

Wow times have changed! I love the big city store window Christmas displays but the country has its attractions too. Nothing like seeing a long chain of real snowmen lining a country road waving their stick arms as you pass by. And the sight of huge real fur trees decked in lights 20 feet high. The Christmas lights look even more beautiful as they twinkle in the total darkness of the night. Or the way the lights reflect in the fresh powder after a good dusting of snow. One of my favorite things is going for a horse drawn sleigh ride the night before Christmas. The sound of the horse’s hooves crunching through the snow with their large bell ringing as they prance along is total Christmas heaven!

Pet

I see a Norman Rockwell scene with the sleigh and horse riding out of the Christmas card. Too bad the scene is not repeated in the country except for the tourist places. You’re more likely to find hay wagons attached to those ever present green John Deere tractors. Christmas magic can come to city kids too. Walking through Rockefeller Center with what seemed like millions of trees adorned with lights and baubles was, and probably still is, a holiday treat. I wasn’t so happy the year we went to tour the trees with my girl scout troop. We were using the buddy system to keep track of everyone. I flunked a survival badge because I lost my buddy. One minute she was there and the next poof. No buddy. Panic set in but a few minutes later she returned. She’d seen a friend of hers ice skating on the sunken rink below the sidewalk where we stood, and scooted away to say hello. Nowadays she’d have simply used her cell phone to alert her ice skating pal. Yes, things do change.

Karen

Well in small town upstate NY a cell phone still doesn’t do much good. You either have to drive 30 miles out of town for 10 miles or up a large hill till you’re practically next to the tower before you can get a signal! During Christmas time the tower becomes a landmark as the company puts a large lighted star on top. It really looks beautiful perched way up on top of the hill the only light for miles. My other favorite light display is the on the one and only bank. It’s a cute brick building built at the turn of the last century. For the holidays they trim all the windows in white lights and hang big wreaths in the center of the glass. The contrast with the red of the brick makes for a very festive display. My runner up has to be the Methodist church. It’s your classic white gothic style with a pointed steeple. All the congregations chip in their labor and literally blanket the church in white lights. With lights blazing the church looks like it belongs on Main Street in Disneyland. Spectacular!

Pet

I’ll admit. Those small town lights, Norman Rockwell style win out over the trees in Rockefeller Center, or on the mall in D.C. Or maybe they get equal billing. Now I have a story to tell when I lived in the Greater Washington/Baltimore metroplex. At that time I was a resident in a neighborhood advertised as being “on the doorstep of the pentagon”. The highlight of the season was a neighborhood contest with awards going to the house with the prettiest lights. This was fun until new neighbors moved in…country folks…who loved to share. That is they thought the lights on all the trees were community property, so in the wee hours the teenage boys would tour blocks and blocks for miles picking one or two (never missed right?) lights from each and every tree. They ended up stringing lights all over their small house. Totally dazzling. And when they won the prize the rest of us took a virtual bow. After all, their decorations turned out to be a neighborhood endeavor. Shouldn’t we all be proud?

Karen

I call that grand theft! Well Pet, all this talk of childhood memories makes me want to hop on a plane for smallville New York! But I’m a city girl now so I’ll have to be content with the nicely lit historic homes in my neighborhood, the huge Christmas tree on the steps of Pasadena City Hall guarded by statuesque stone lions, and last but not least my Christmas tree loaded down with over 300 ornaments that this year sports a disco ball with multi colored lights!

Pet and I wish our faithful blog readers, whether country or city, a wonderful holiday season and a happy and healthy 2010!

2 comments:

Fran said...

You have really put me into the Christmas spirit! Now, we'll have to drive around Baltimore to see all the beautiful city lights.Then make our way out to Baltimore County and into horse country to see the other side. Happy Holidays!

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