Vintage Christmas memories from Christmas past have a very special place in the hearts of many a “kid” at this time of year.
Remember the excitement of a fully holiday stocked Western Auto showroom?
It almost measured up to the thrill of the sight of the local department stores window displays up and down the downtown streets decorated with overhead greenery swags decked to the holiday max in traditional red and green.
Almost.
Anticipation began to hit a fever pitch toward the last of October- not Halloween driven but the arrival of the Sears and J. C. Penney Christmas catalogs arriving in the mail.
If I had a nickel for every hour spent combing the pages, making a list, and checking it twice…
Hard candy, the shiny aluminum Christmas tree, color wheel and glass ornaments, and an extensive collection of inexpensive dime store decorations adorned my grandmother’s den and living room in holiday wonder as only a grandmothers den and living room could.
Our local television station gifted our community a version of must see holiday TV each weekday afternoon between Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve, complete with letters from Santa and his magic telescope made for watching good boys and girls.
Being a true believer, I was totally convinced he could see every move my brother and I made.
Our late November to late December behavior reflected that theory much to the delight of our parents.
Weekly visits to the local shopping center to visit with Santa ranked high on my lists of priorities.
Photo by Annie Spratt
Under the Christmas tree with a Suzy Homemaker stove was in my sights.
As you can see in the picture below, my Christmas wish list dreams came true.
Do you remember?
