It's a Brand New Year....

I still like ours better. So there. 

.......and my resolution this year is to avoid any repeats of the incident that I alluded to in yesterday's post, which went something like this:

Terese: Let's go look at the neighbors' Christmas lights!

Julia: OK!

Daughter-in-law: Me too!

So we all hopped into Goldie and slowly cruised through the neighborhood, oohing and aahing along the way. We finally came to a stop in front of the home of a family that has a light show similar to ours -- except that it's at least twice as big, with more songs, and each light bulb is perfectly aligned with it's neighbor bulb. Their tree made of light strings is twice as tall as ours and is far more complex with the ability to make eye-popping swirly effects. Their show has been a work in progress like ours, but theirs started two years before ours. The street in front of their house is packed with cars every evening.

They are our competition.

Not that it's a competition, or anything......but our two houses are the only ones in our little town that have attempted this kind of Christmas lights.

So it's a competition.

We decided to get out of the car and watch their show from the sidewalk to get a better view. Several other spectators had left their cars with the same idea, so there were lots of people standing shoulder to shoulder on the sidewalk. Most of them watched in silent appreciation, maybe occasionally pointing and commenting quietly.

Me? Not so much. I stood next to daughter-in-law and Terese and pointed out all the defects in the competitor's display. "What's with those stupid pole thingies? They don't do anything but blink. That's just stupid and a waste of space. Honestly.........I heard that this guy BOUGHT all these components. What a cheater way to do it. We made ours from scratch. I'll bet he even hired somebody to put his lights up on his roof.......And the music, geez. Somebody should tell him that this is NOT a Christmas song. It's so boring and long. Pfffft....."

And on. And on. And on.

Daughter-in-law became increasingly fidgety as I blabbed and blabbed. She would point out GOOD things about his show, which really is amazingly great, by the way.....to which I would counterpoint with some minute flaw.

We decided to head back home, but just before returning to our car, I noticed that the gentleman that had been quietly standing next to my daughter-in-law stepped off the sidewalk, crossed the road, walked up the driveway and into this house's FRONT DOOR. Meaning that he LIVED THERE.

.::blink::.

Yes. I had snarkily dissected this awesome light display with the creator standing almost next to me. At my blabbing pitch of voice, meaning that it could probably be heard two blocks away, and definitely was clearly audible to this person who was standing only one person away.

.::gulp::.

Terese and daughter-in-law of course realized immediately what a foot-in-mouth incident of enormous proportions had just taken place. And being the very supportive friend that she is, Terese broke out into unrestrained hoots of laughter. All she could manage to say was something like, "Snort! Ha! Julia......Hee hee....guffaw!"

Oh my gosh.

We discussed all possible interpretations and repercussions of what had just happened all the way back home.

I came to the conclusion that this was entirely my daughter-in-law's fault. She should have known that I was shooting my mouth off at great risk of ticking somebody off, and therefore it was her sacred DUTY to smack me alongside the head. Or stomp on my foot. Or something like that. But NOOOOO. She just made cheerful and positive comments and let me blab and blab and blab.

What kind of daughter-in-law would do that? Doesn't she know that it's her responsibility to save me from myself? AND my alter-ego BICJ?

Terese disagreed. But then what does she know? Pfft.

The story ends like this: The very next day we packed up a brightly colored Christmas tin full of homeade treats: fudge, divinity, decorated sugar cookies, and chocolate coated toffee. My son and daughter-in-law took the treats and a Christmas card to our competitor's home; RANG THE DOORBELL, and gave them to this gentleman in person, saying that we had a show as well, and that theirs has always been an inspiration to us to attempt to create something similar. And that we enjoyed their creativity enormously. And that our WHOLE FAMILY (presumably including the dopey matriarch of the group) wished him and his family the very merriest of Christmases and a Happy New Year.

Whew. After the fudge delivery, hopefully this guy doesn't think that all of us are mindless. Just me, which is a given.

So my new year's resolution is this: to avoid blabbing as much as possible this year, because regardless of topic or situation, my blabbing ALWAYS gets me into some kind of trouble.

It will definitely be a challenge.