When it's time to hang your chicken wire light balls the goal is to hang 'em high- as high up in the trees as you can possibly get them.
Some folks use fishing rods. Others go for slingshots. But around here, the gun is mightier than the rod. We use a potato rocket launcher. Nothing like overkill for the holidays.
We load a specially made "bullet" into the gun. The bullet has one end of the big twine ball attached to it. The weighted bullet shoots the wire up and over the tree limb.
The gun makes a loud "burp." It frightens neighborhood joggers- but that's just a side benefit.
It is a manly art- the hanging of the balls. There is shooting, smoke, bullets, cussing and spitting...
With 20 balls to hang, the process can go on for hours, especially when the bullet gets hung up on a branch.
People get a little crazy...
We plug and juggle circuits.
Night falls. The moon rises.
And eventually there is light....
5 comments:
I found your blog at BlogHer, under Books, and had to click on a title like that :). I love your style and have added you to my daily reads.
I see you live in NC--I grew up there. I now live on the other side of the Atlantic, in Holland. Beautiful fall pictures....mmmm.
Your house looks truly fabulous in all its Christmas finery. (Makes ours look downright Grinchy) I really love the light balls. But how do you get them back down out of the trees?
I thought about trying this but then got to wondering, "how do you get them down?"
Sarah
I thought about trying this but then got to wondering, "how do you get them down?"
Sarah
Hey Sarah, When you shoot the string up over the branch you then tie it to the light ball and plug the ball into an extension cord. Once you haul the light up, the string is still dangling down. Tie it to a tree or other secure thing to keep the light ball up in the tree. When it's time to take the balls down, you simply untie the string from it's post or tree trunk and gently lower the ball. It's a lot like lowering the sail on a sailboat. Try it!
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