I've had my eye down on Main Street the past few nights - looking for, missing, and wondering about - the town's annual Christmas display. When I was a little girl, Bob Bassett and his father-in-law, Bill Silva, would be downtown stringing the wires for the trees the weekend after Thanksgiving. In later years, Bob's son Tom and crew - including Tom's son Jake and brother-in-law Danny Kaeka and Dan's son, Finn, took over the task, and as was the tradition, always on the weekend after Thanksgiving. You could practically set your clock to this annual event (and if you're keeping track, that's four generations of Christmas light stringers).
At last, Monday morning - a perfect day for working outside, as it happens - found the Christmas crew out in full force.
Ed Willoughby and Stephen Woodbury of the town's highway crew carefully prepare the stands and fit each tree to its stand. These unique lattice-work stands have been holding the town's Christmas trees since at least 1950, making them (and me) practically antiques.
After just the right amount of whittling, the tree fits perfectly into the stand.
Ethan keeps a watchful eye on the activities, and more importantly, he keeps his eye out for any interesting trucks or police cars that may be in the area.
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