Frazz by Jef Mallett for September 24, 2024

Face it, Mrs Olsen is ahead of her time.

When Mrs. Olsen does(n’t do) it, she forgives herself because she KNOWS why. When someone else abrogates what she sees as their requirements, forgiveness isn’t automatic. But it CAN be taught. Some.

I hung a giant spider in the center ceiling of my classroom. When Hallowe’en was over, I decided not to take him down, so I put a pilgrim hat on him. After Thanksgiving, I put a Santa hat on him and little Christmas stockings on all legs. When Christmas was over, I just put a Utah Jazz hat on him and a mini mini foam basketball by one leg, and left it that way for the rest of the year.

You lazy old son-of-a-gun…

“It’s different because I do it.”

I’m with Mrs. Olsen on this one. If you turn off your Christmas lights but don’t bother taking them down, the only message that sends if that you’re lazy. That remains true even if you continue to be lazy for a full year (or more). But, if you make a deliberate effort to put up decorations eight weeks before the holiday, that’s not laziness. That’s intentionally sending the message that you think the holiday has already started, which implies that Halloween is a two-month-long celebration. This turns it from a fun day into a boring season. Stop doing it.

Some think installing decorations for Christmas each year shows one is honoring the season anew once again. Some think permanently installed lights are a continuous reflection of the spirit. Either is good enough. To each his/her own.

Because you have to work to put up the Halloween decorations. You have to not work to leave the Christmas stuff up.

I could explain, but I’ll just wait to see what Mrs. Olsen comes up with.

“Show your work.”

What work?

I stopped taking my Christmas lights down and left them up when it got too dangerous for me to be climbing…

Because Christmas lights are not a decoration when they’re turned off. Sheesh.

Ah, the return of pointy-finger girl.

One can leave Christmas/Solstice/Yule lights up but not switched on except in December.

Can’t do that with the typical Halloween décor.

I hate “show your work”, especially when some new fad comes out, like “New Math” or “Common Core”, where the academics want you to get to the solution in a particular way, and will mark you down for using another method.

Process over results is never a good method of doing anything, unless there is a valid safety concern as in manufacturing or engineering.