Christmas Lights Synchronized to Music
Sorry if any of you have encountered a ‘You Are Banned’ message when trying to visit here. I had an some issues with my blocking plug-in, including locking myself out… sheesh. Anyhow, the issue is resolved. Thanks for your patience. -B
It’s been a time of planning, trying to get all of the display updates and changes laid out, and then procuring the necessary controllers and lights to make it all happen. I think I have everything accounted for (crossing fingers).
Recent progress includes:
-Completing three additional 8 channel controllers for some added versatility
-Completing a fourth 64 channel controller, which has been tested and will be a backup for the three of these that are already used in the show
-Ordering pieces for a new controller, affectionately dubbed the Renzilla, that in basic design is able to control 96 channels. The controller is extremely flexible, though, and with a couple of small adapter plates, I will have it running approximately 530 channels, more than last year’s entire display. This will all be used to control one new display item.
-I have purchased a number of blue led lights in order to begin switching over the longer lasting, better looking leds. I started with blue because most blue mini incans look like junk right out of the box and I hated the thought of buying any more.
– I also found a cache of new mini incans in red, green and clear, which will replace a number of faded strands, and also be used for expansion. Total lights bought so far, approx 33k.
I hope to have all the new electronics built and tested in the next couple weeks, the get my channel profile laid out and begin sequencing while finishing up new display items. Lots to do, and time will grow short quickly. Here we go 🙂
Those of you who know me, likely know that I enjoy listening to radio shows from the 1930’s-1960’s. I primarily like the detective and police dramas, but there are also some westerns and comedies that I listen to regularly. Most of these shows were weeklies, and reflected the season in which they were broadcast. Many of the shows did Christmas episodes, some funny, some more poignant. As I like most things Christmas, it should come as no surprise that many of these episodes are among my favorites. I have uploaded a few of these shows, and will list them below with a brief description of the series. Most of these shows can be found on archive.org by searching for Old Time Radio, or OTRR. Happy listening 🙂
First, an episode of The Saint, featuring Vincent Price. As The Saint, he helps people who end up in difficult situations. His character is similar to a detective, though not in an official capacity.
Nineteen Santa Clauses
Next, an episode of classic Dragnet. Jack Webb played Joe Friday, a detective in LA. Most episodes are fairly dark, with bits of humor thrown in. For several years, the show titles started with the word ‘big’
Big Little Jesus
The next show is an episode of The Six Shooter. James Stewart plays Britt Ponsett, a drifter in the old West. Though there are many classic radio versions of Dickens’ Christmas Carol, I chose to share this interpretation.
Britt Ponset’s Christmas Carol
Most folks are familiar with at least one iteration of Sherlock Holmes, and his partner, Dr. Watson. This is a Christmas episode from an early radio series from 1945. Don’t let the title throw you- it has nothing to do with the poem A Visit from St. Nicholas.
The Night Before Christmas
The next two shows are both feel-good shows. They do a good job of evoking some of the emotion that is tied to the Christmas season. The first is an episode of Gunsmoke. The Gunsmoke radio show is wide recognized as one of the best-written of all classic radio shows. It is one of my favorites, as well. I enjoy this episode, as it verbally paints a great picture of a Christmas in Dodge City. The second show is from Nick Carter, Master Detective. This show generally had a fast pace, and shows tended to wrap up quickly, almost too quickly at times, due to the amazing observations of Nick Carter. This episode, though, is a roller coaster of emotion, and ends grandly. Keep a Kleenex handy 🙂
Xmas Story
Nick Carter’s Christmas Adventure
The last show is from the series Broadway is My Beat, a police drama from NYC. This show tended to be dark, and not all episodes ended on a high note. Lt Danny Clover, the main character, tends to be a cynic. His character is offset buy an offbeat sergeant who keeps the mood lighter.
Nick Norman & Santa Claus
I hope you can make time to listen to at least one of these. These old shows are truly treasures. -B
Yes, more lights… I think I have purchased all the lights I will need for replacements and upgrade for this year’s show. I stumbled into a large cache of unused mini incans (which really helped my budget), and also purchased all my blue lights in LED from Paul at Creative Displays, taking advantage of some generous sale pricing. This is the first in my steps to move the display to LED, so I will have less strands to repair or replace each year, and cut down on some of the electrical load that the incan bulb produce. I am also in the process of completing a new storage building, and once done, it will be onto building new items for the display.
Some goals for this year’s display:
-Fill in some of the empty space in the front yard
-Find a method to fill the driveway and help help the cohesiveness of the layout
-Simplify assembly and connections
We’ll see how it goes, and keep updating here on the progress…
Almost every family has some holiday traditions.
I remember as a youngster going out driving to see Christmas lights. We grew up in a rural area, so this was no small venture- we often drove into a nearby town, just so the houses would be more condensed and we had a better chance of actually seeing some lights. I also remember that, each year, my sister and I would exchange our presents on Christmas Eve. Then there was the plywood Christmas tree cutout that my dad had made, which we hung on the bedroom door and decorated each year. Even further back, I remember being in a Christmas play at the Lutheran church we attended, and not being able to sing Silent Night without choking up. Even then, the songs of Christmas got to me.
As a father myself, we have started some traditions of our own. There are the lights, of course. We also enjoy driving around to the local displays and visiting Longview Lake’s display each year. We have a daily advent calendar that my mother made for us, and we couple that with reading and discussion of the Christmas story. The kids decorate our main Christmas tree with their Hallmark ornaments- each child gets to pick out a new one each season, which we purchase and hang the next year. That tree also gets the ornaments that my mother makes for the kids annually. It is a fun, colorful tree. My wife and I (mostly her) also do a ‘pretty’ tree, with ribbon and more classic decorations. The lights start running Thanksgiving night, and Christmas music plays for much of the season.
Something I have just found out in the last couple of years, is that my wife’s grandfather did a large Christmas display, well before they were common or popular. I had heard snippets and bits about it, but that was about it. Recently, however, I have come into possession of a video of his display from some time in the 1960’s. Much of his display was hand built. It included not only lights, but also a life-size nativity scene, Santa and his sleigh (with reindeer) on the roof, a singing snowmen cutout, and the really unusual part- an animated snowman playing a pipe organ! None of these items could be picked up at your local big box store, so his creativity and ability really came through. I have a newspaper clipping from the era, showing that he won a decorating contest put on by the local newspaper.
Though I started my lighting hobby before I knew the full extent of his display history, I would like to think it has become a part of the tradition of our family. I hope that my kids will not lose the fascination and joy of Christmas, and will follow the examples set generationally by sharing it with others.
Here is a video of Charles Spendal’s Christmas display:
For those of you who have asked about videos from the 2013 season- I have them recorded, but will need outside help to combine multiple angles into one video. I have found someone to do this, it is just a matter of getting together to get it done. Hopefully I will have them posted prior to this year’s show 😉
…but that doesn’t mean we haven’t made any progress!
Our latest news of note is that the first pixel matrix proof of concept is functional:
Stay tuned, should be a fun season!
B
As usual for this time of year, we find ourselves deep in the throes of planning, collecting, and building, getting things ready for this season’s show. I have added 10 new controllers for this year, giving me more flexibility in the layout of channels, as well as incorporation of more wireless controllers. Just last night I updated the firmware on all 8 wireless units that I have on hand, as well as setting them to operate on a different channel to eliminate some interference issue that we had last year. Also, I am currently awaiting the arrival of some pixels to assemble and test my scrolling signs. I have to do some pvc construction for a new element, as well as revamping the giant candy cane. Once the basic layout is complete, then it is back to sequencing. Lots to do, and the summer will fly by as soon as it gets here. All of our time management skills are put to the test 🙂
Happy First Day of Sping!
We’re dipping our toes in the water, it looks like we will take the plunge. You can now follow us on Twitter: @WilliamsCmas
Happy Tweeting!
…but that means I will need to take the lights down first, lol. I have about 85% of the display down, including all of the controllers and cabling. I have to pull the roof line lights down, disassemble both megatrees, and bring the giant candy cane in. Not too bad.
I have already begun working on next year’s show, including building two controllers for two new pixel matrices that will primarily be for scrolling text, such as song titles/artists, greetings, and any other text notes. They may also be used for simple graphics, but I’m not sure that I want to do that at this time. I have designed a new large display element, as well, which is unlike any I have seen before. Other changes are in the works, including changes to our border, general layout, and house outlining. I’m pretty excited about this year’s show, so stay tuned!
…for this season, anyhow. Our last visitors left about 10:00, and I pulled the power cords, pulled the signs, and brought the donation box in. I also powered down the fm transmitter, the wireless transmitter and the show pc. Now on to next season. Stay tuned 🙂
As seems to be our tradition, we will be presenting an encore of the light show tonight, January 14. Inevitably, there are folks who, for one reason or another, do not make it out during the normal run of the show. With this season having been so short, and it being a busy season in general, I can easily see how it happened. I have had a couple requests, so tonight is it: our final show for the year. Lights will run from approx 6:00 until about 9:30.
I will be dismantling the show computer and removing some of the main signal cabling starting tomorrow night, in order to start making changes to how the show is controlled next year. Lots of excitement for me, lots of blah, blah, techie, blah stuff for everyone else 🙂
Last night was the last time the display will run for this season. The show ran well, with nothing more than a couple computer glitches, an accidentally unplugged cord, and a couple wireless bugs right off the bat. The donations did just about as well as they did last year, and I will post the totals for that later this week.
I have already started building for next year, with two pixel controllers already built for a scrolling sign, and a number of ideas being fleshed out for new display items.
Thank you for the support this year, and we look forward to a big year next year 🙂
Tonight is the last night for this year’s display. There’s a nice layer of snow on the ground, which makes for great viewing. We will run until about 10:45 or so, so if you want to see it, now is the time!
We took the family out tonight to see a few more lights before the season is wrapped up. First stop, Christmas in the Park out at Longview. I could include about 50 different pictures from there. Mostly wireframes, nothing terribly technical, but still fun for the kids. We then went to see Chris Simmons’ display in Lees Summit. His display is almost completely pixels, and he makes good use of them. The last stop was Chris Bell’s house, also in Lees Summit. This is Chris’s first year, but he has a nice display, and the kids loved the talking (and singing) trees.
If you haven’t had a chance to come by and see our lights yet, you are running out of time. I plan to run them through the 6th, but if traffic isn’t any heavier then it has been the last couple nights, we may consider pulling the proverbial plug a couple days early.
The last couple nights have been great on the donation side of things. Many people have been to the drop box. We have received a couple of nice notes, a card, and of course some cash 🙂 We appreciate all of you who have joined in to help us in supporting KCRM. To the anonymous donor who left the ‘larger than average’ gift last night, thank you! That was awesome. We appreciate everyone’s help, and I feel safe in saying that the rescue mission does, as well.
I love this comic. Even if I weren’t a Calvin and Hobbes fan, I would love it. It captures so many of the sentiments of the season- anticipation, friendship, warmth, tradition- and manages to do this without being sappy or clumsy in doing so.
We hope you are able to spend time today with friends or family, remembering the true essence of the season. I encourage you to take a time of respite at your church of choice, to shut out the craziness of the season and reflect on the meaning of Christmas, the depth of love that was shown to us, and what means we have to show that love to others. B
When I emptied the donation box tonight, I found this handwritten note:
If you see this, Adrieanna, thank you very much! Merry Christmas!
Well, it looks like we are going to get some snow. If the weather folks are correct, it will likely still be here for the Big Day.
If you want to get out and see the lights before it hits, it looks like tonight is the night 🙂
In the meantime, a clip from one of my Christmas favorites:
If you want to see the lights before Christmas, you’ll need to get on with it 🙂 Six more nights remain to view the lights prior to Christmas. Of course, if you’d rather see them later, that’s fine, too. Just don’t wait too long- the lights will go dark for the season after 1/6/14.
Thank you to those who have come by, commented, donated to KCRM, and left notes with their donations. It is all appreciated.
For those of you who haven’t come by, here’s a quick list of what you’ve been missing:
-Bill Watterson Tribute
-11′ Tall Candy Cane
-17′ and 10′ Mega/Spiral Trees
-36 More Lighted Trees
-Over 45000 lights, all sequenced to fun songs, most of which are a nice break from the constantly rotated selections on the radio.
Come by and check us out tonight before the ice hits and you are stuck at home 😉
I usually save all my videos until after the show season as a means of encouraging people to come out and see the show in person rather than watching videos online. This year, though, I am going to make a small exception. I took a quick, rough video from two angles to show the display on one of the Christmas forums that I visit. I figured I can post it here, as well, maybe to pique some curiosity and bring some folks out. The video is short, blurry, and cut in the middle to change views, but I did add the proper audio tracks for each video section, so that one could get a taste of the show:
I came home from work and the show computer had crashed. That in itself was odd, but once I restarted it, I didn’t have access to one of the com ports that runs the show. After a little checking, I found that my usb hub had died. Good grief. I had one open usb port on the back of the pc, so I plugged in there, restarted and held my breath. Bingo. Show was up and running, only about 25 minutes late. Sorry to the folks who had pulled up in the van 🙁 Hopefully you have another chance to come by.
In the last few minutes, our website zoomed past 11000 page views. Seems like it wasn’t that long ago that we had just crossed 9000. Pretty cool.
ABC is doing a short series on some of the craziest Christmas lights in the nation. The first of four episodes is tonight. ABC’s full write-up is HERE
I’ll be watching for some ideas for our display 🙂
Gosh, that is a lot of lights 🙂 I had counted in my head early on, and had come up a couple thousand higher than that, but I had a couple items that didn’t make it into the display this year, so the numbers were a little lower.
Have you come by to see the display yet? Traffic has picked up some tonight, and I hope that trend continues. Everything is running as it should be, and I would love for you to see it! Crank up the heater, tune in the radio, and watch the lights. The whole show is about 23 minutes long, and repeats continuously from 5:30 to about 10:40. Come on out!
| S | M | T | W | T | F | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | |||||
| 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
| 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
