Decorations, music, Christmas parades, they all go together to get us into the spirit of the season. We've got the mantle around NaNa's fireplace nicely decorated. We've whipped out a couple of nice renditions of some traditional carols. They have all been sung in our best voices. The ones that would make fingernails on a chalkboard sound like the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
To really get us into the holiday spirit there were a few events on the island this weekend that we were looking forward to attending. Well............here it is Sunday night. Sometimes things go as planned, sometimes they don't.
It started Friday afternoon when the City of Anna Maria (one of the three small cities that make up Anna Maria Island) was hosting a Holiday Carols in the Park event. It was scheduled from 4:00-6:00 at a fairly new park on the bay side of the island. We arrived a few minutes early, took our seats and waited, and waited some more and then a little bit more. Santa, who it was advertised was going to "fly in" actually walked across the street after being delivered by a county sheriff. There was music alright, however it was coming from an i-pad plugged into a speaker system. The chairs for the "live choir" sat empty. The good mayor kept assuring us that the choir would be there soon but after 45 minutes we gave up. At least we had a glass of egg nog and a sugar cookie before we packed it in.
No worries, two more days and two more events. Up Saturday morning was the annual island Christmas Parade. We've witnessed this spectacle before. It's typically a float or two, the local group of fun loving citizens dressed as pirates, a bunch of decorated golf carts, trucks and of course Santa bringing up the rear. Unfortunately the chilly, windy and drizzly weather kept a lot of the participants away. The parade which usually lasts about 15-20 minutes came and went in about 7 minutes. We did get a bunch of colorful Mardi Gras style beads without having to lift our shirts a single time.
No worries, one more day and one more event. I had read in the local newspaper that the Anna Maria Island Orchestra and Chorus were having a concert titled "The Many Moods of Christmas" at one of the local churches. This one sounded like a "can't miss event". It also sounded a little high tone so I put on not only my nicest pair of jeans but also a pair of socks. We pulled into the busy parking lot full of anticipation. The ad in the paper conveniently left out one little tidbit of information. Tickets for this extravaganza were $25 each. We're three retired people! We don't carry around large sums of money like that on a regular basis. To the best of my knowledge this was the first time any of the three of us have been denied admission to church (not really the churches fault in this case).
So...........here we are, it's Sunday night. We've had a bunch of laughs about all three of these attempts to capture the spirit of the season. I think we've done it. After all it wouldn't be Christmas without a lot of laughter!
To really get us into the holiday spirit there were a few events on the island this weekend that we were looking forward to attending. Well............here it is Sunday night. Sometimes things go as planned, sometimes they don't.
It started Friday afternoon when the City of Anna Maria (one of the three small cities that make up Anna Maria Island) was hosting a Holiday Carols in the Park event. It was scheduled from 4:00-6:00 at a fairly new park on the bay side of the island. We arrived a few minutes early, took our seats and waited, and waited some more and then a little bit more. Santa, who it was advertised was going to "fly in" actually walked across the street after being delivered by a county sheriff. There was music alright, however it was coming from an i-pad plugged into a speaker system. The chairs for the "live choir" sat empty. The good mayor kept assuring us that the choir would be there soon but after 45 minutes we gave up. At least we had a glass of egg nog and a sugar cookie before we packed it in.
No worries, two more days and two more events. Up Saturday morning was the annual island Christmas Parade. We've witnessed this spectacle before. It's typically a float or two, the local group of fun loving citizens dressed as pirates, a bunch of decorated golf carts, trucks and of course Santa bringing up the rear. Unfortunately the chilly, windy and drizzly weather kept a lot of the participants away. The parade which usually lasts about 15-20 minutes came and went in about 7 minutes. We did get a bunch of colorful Mardi Gras style beads without having to lift our shirts a single time.
No worries, one more day and one more event. I had read in the local newspaper that the Anna Maria Island Orchestra and Chorus were having a concert titled "The Many Moods of Christmas" at one of the local churches. This one sounded like a "can't miss event". It also sounded a little high tone so I put on not only my nicest pair of jeans but also a pair of socks. We pulled into the busy parking lot full of anticipation. The ad in the paper conveniently left out one little tidbit of information. Tickets for this extravaganza were $25 each. We're three retired people! We don't carry around large sums of money like that on a regular basis. To the best of my knowledge this was the first time any of the three of us have been denied admission to church (not really the churches fault in this case).
So...........here we are, it's Sunday night. We've had a bunch of laughs about all three of these attempts to capture the spirit of the season. I think we've done it. After all it wouldn't be Christmas without a lot of laughter!
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| Good Looking Mantle! |
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| Anna Maria Island Christmas Parade You can rent this cart (minus the decorations) simply call 877-778-7264 https://gulfcoastcart.com/call-to-reserve/ |
