Please don’t festoon too soon

I was asked the other day if I had my Christmas tree up, and I said that I did have it up, up in my loft, and that’s where it’s going to stay until December is well and truly underway.

It seems that no sooner have we said ‘Boo’ to strangers, upset the neighbours with a couple of fireworks, and worn a poppy with pride, are we gearing up for the big day, but is it me or is it getting earlier and earlier with each passing year?

Or am I just getting older?

Putting retail to one side, already in the local residential areas, there is a resplendence of sparkle and shine, a dazzle of illuminations that appear unaware of the energy crisis, and inside homes, there are a plethora of heart and wallet-tugging commercials on television, and on the radio, a certain pop diva warbles, which stirs up the frenzy, as we send out premature ‘Season’s Greetings’ before the first frost has settled on the crisp and even ground.

When I was a puppy, the Christmas build up didn’t start until early December, and house decorations rarely went up more than a week before Christmas Eve, and lighting up your house and garden to confuse planes approaching Heathrow’s runways was unheard of.

Now, I won’t deny that this festive festooning doesn’t bring a bit of cheer to the daily proceedings, and we can certainly do with some cheer these days, but what worries me, is that if we start too early with the decorative displays and lingering light shows, that come the actual days of Christmas, some of the shine may have dulled, and the lights fail to dazzle anymore, and you are going to scream if someone wishes you ‘Merry Christmas’ one more time or even worse, Mariah Carey sings!