Saturday

At 7:45, it's 31.8 degrees and snowing gently.

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I took a ride through the village, yesterday afternoon, finding more and more lights on every street!

Above: the Holics' on W. Bacon Street.


On W. Main Street .......




....... on E. Main Street .....


......... and on Babbott Avenue, South.

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At a little after 6:00 P.M., yesterday - not long before the Parade of Lights was set to begin - it was a relative balmy and very comfortable 34 degrees and Main Street, from the Park to the Fire House, was packed with parade-watchers. (It looked more like "Cruise-in" or even Firemen's Field Days than in recent, colder, years!)

At 6:30, the new wreaths and spiraling garlands on our Victorian lamp posts came to life with (what I believe is) the cool-white glow of LED mini-lights. (The only person who had seen them all lit, before then, was DPW Superintendent Jamie Bechy, who had tested them at 4:30 that MORNING!)

Waterville Fire Department

I was on Park Place, during the Parade, where the view of all of the vehicles and floats was much better than indicated by my photographs! (Taking pictures at night of moving lights is .... well ....
never as successful as I'd like it to be!)

The Street Sweeper.

?

The Harding Nursing Home float - a giant cake with fiber-optic candles, celebrated the Parade of Lights' twentieth anniversary!

Even when the Parade had ended - it was shorter than in some other years - the crowds stayed, waiting for more!

One of the many pictures that I took that were, simply, nearly beyond recognition, was of Santa and Mrs. Claus, riding in a sleigh pulled by ...... well: the reindeer were tired and alternative "deer-power" was substituted! But they were followed to the Fire House by so many children who wanted to confide their Christmas Wishes to them that, according the Pat Louise, Editor of The Waterville Times, the line of hopefuls and their parents reached out of the Fire House and all the way 'round the corner to the old library building! (You can be sure of finding some of her photographs in next week's issue of "The Times!")

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It's been several years since that tree at the point of Monument Park has been lit - it has outgrown its strands of lights and is probably much taller than any of those who planted it in 1940 thought it would ever be!

- And while I was digging through history, I found this draft of a Christmas Card that I thought of using several years ago ..............

Once upon a time, back in the 1970’s, before the “old” Christmas Tree became too large
to decorate and before anyone complained that religious displays might be “offensive” and should be banned, this “Christmas Cross” was set up each year on the point of Monument Park - a guest of the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument Association. It was sponsored by the Waterville Clergy Association, designed by Doug Sexton and built by Rev. Dean Shaw and Dick Brown.

One year, it was damaged in storage and was never replaced.

Is it too late to do that, now?

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If you hurry!

MADISON — The Madison United Methodist Church will hold a pancake breakfast on Saturday, Nov. 29 from 7-11 a.m. at the church.

There will be pancakes, sausage, home fries, scrambled eggs and orange juice and coffee. The breakfast is all you can eat. The cost will be $5 for adults and $3 for children age 5-12 years of age.

Later on!

MUNNSVILLE — St. Therese’s Church will hold its annual spaghetti dinner on Sunday, Nov. 30 from noon to 3 p.m. at the church hall, Route 46.

The menu will include spaghetti, salad bar and homemade pies for dessert. The cost will be $6 for adults, $4 for children younger than 12 and free for children younger than 5.

FOR THE RECORD


(While I was in Ballston Lake, north of Schenectady, my son-in-law pointed out a gas station sign that read "$1.99.9"!)

LOOKING AHEAD


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NEXT WEEK

From Library Director Jeff Reynolds: "We'll be showing eight really nice Adirondack images, inspired by the time that the Gales spend at their Raquette Lake retreat. All available for purchase directly from Gail. She'll also have samples of her latest notecards, which can be purchased from her."

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Have a great weekend, everyone!