Christmas music at Kmart

It was weird enough seeing the racks of discounted leftover Halloween costumes and other Halloween items on the sidewalk at Kmart today. Is anyone actually buying that stuff nearly three weeks after the fact? I, for one, am not gonna decide on a Halloween identity for next year till August at the earliest, though I might do so earlier than that. But I'm still not ready to think about Christmas and have only minimal plans for Thanksgiving next week. Some family and I are planning to go out to dinner and to a movie that will open that day. And of course, I knew once I got into the store the Christmas stuff would be everywhere.

But I was a bit shocked to hear Christmas music over the store intercom. A Christmas tune by Elvis came on the intercom as I was exploring the display of 2011 calendars, one of the things I need to get over the next two months. I don't know when Kmart started playing the Christmas music as I can't remember exactly when I last entered the store, other than on Halloween eve.

My work's intercom hasn't started their day-long stream of Christmas music yet and I'm hoping when I go back tomorrow that it won't start then as it did last year, exactly one week before Thanksgiving last year. If that happens, then I feel that I have free rein to listen to my own Christmas CDs at home before turkey day is over. It is only one week from tomorrow.

So far Kmart is the only store at which I have heard any Christmas music over the intercom as of today. I also made runs to Target and to Safeway today and heard no Christmas music on the intercoms, just the displays of Christmas merchandise that have likely been coming in since September. A listening kiosk of Christmas music CDs has been at Target and I passed by it, hearing a sample. I didn't press any of the buttons and did not see any other customer do it, so I do not know how this happened. And I know I was not imagining it either. I'll admit I did try this display on a previous trip to Target earlier this month, however.

Already tired of seeing Christmas stuff

And it's not even Thanksgiving yet.  Of course, Christmas stuff seems to come as early as September and it's always up during November.  But seeing it already in October has always seemed to early for me, especially when it gets placed near the Halloween stuff.  It was like this at my local Kmart, prompting a fellow  customer to comment on the large artificial Christmas trees placed on the floor near the aisles of Halloween costumes and accessories.   At my work, Christmas displays start to overtake halloween displays before the calendar even switches over to October.  

I always vow not to put up any Christmas until Thanksgiving is over, with hopes of having Christmas decorations up by December 1, though I don;t always make it by that date.  Last year I started listening to my Christmas music CDs a week before Thanksgiving, since the music system at work switched over to its all-Christmas music then, rather than the day after turkey day as in previous years.  If you've ever worked anywhere that plays Christmas music all during winter, then you know what I have to endure all of December, not to mention the last few days of November.  By the first week that the holiday music run starts, I will have heard a at least five versions of the same Christmas songs by everyone including Bon Jovi, George Michael, Mariah Carey, Harry Connick Jr., Macy Gray,  the Jacksons---and that's not even the half of it!  December 26 can't come fast enough for me as far as this month-long music cycle goes.   I do like Elton's John's "Step Into Christmas" and Paul McCartney's "Wonderful Christmastime," and I have DCs that contain these songs that I got years ago.   And another person at work has been not looking forward to the upcoming Christmas songs over the store intercom for the next month or so.  

I cannot imagine how much more Christmas merchandise we can receive over the next month or so.  Last year, around December 5, Valentine stuff began arriving. yeah, can you believe that? before it was even Christmas.  I think that one could alt least wait until January, as I don't mind the idea of  Valentines stuff in January, since so little else happens that month after the first day.  August, to me, seems to early for Halloween (although I work in a store that doesn't carry school merchandise so there isn't much else to display that month) and September seems to early for Christmas.   

I'm not sure how soon I plan to start Christmas shopping.  But I'm not against the idea of doing so in November.  

Quiz: The Chocolate chip Cookie Oracle

You Are Easygoing and Forgiving

Your sense of humor is goofy and silly. You try to never hurt people with your jokes. You are the type of person who is more life smart than book smart. You are creative and intuitive. You have fun when you're doing something new. You crave novelty and different experiences. You are the type of person who completes projects easily. You like to do one thing at a time.

The Chocolate Chip Cookie Oracle

Blogthings: A Fine Line Between Insight and Stupidity

Quiz: WHat Wizard of Oz character are you?

You Are Dorothy

You are a little lost right now, but you are slowly finding your way home. You are a kind and loyal person. You are the truest friend anyone could ever have. You have an active imagination, and you are intrigued by far away places. You make friends easily. But at the end of the day, there is no place like home. You value your family and roots.

What Wizard of Oz Character Are You?

Blogthings: Take a Quiz. Annoy Your Friends.

How weird is this since this was who I was on Halloween this year?

Happy Halloween everyone!

Hope everyone had fun this weekend and stayed safe.  Since it's Sunday, I'll be home tonight waiting for the kids to come for candy.  all the festivities were on Friday and Saturday.   I never know how many to expect in my neighborhood, so I always wonder how much candy I'll have left, along with the candy I won.  I made and distributed the bags like I said I would.   

It's been fun participating in the Countdown to Halloween.  Will be back next year.  

A Trick and Some Treats

On either Wednesday or Thursday, the yearly phone directory was delivered to my neighborhood. I noticed it on one of my neighbor's doorsteps before finding my own copy.  I suspected they'd dropped it on my porch that I had decorated for Halloween.  The door on that porch doesn't work (long story), but the fact that it's there makes a lot of people try to knock on that door, and they often leave  the phone directory and some of my newspapers on those steps.  Sure enough, when I went to look for the directory, there it was in an orange bag (because it's almost Halloween?) that almost blended in with my jack-o-lantern bags as seen in the photo.  I felt tricked,  though I know no one intended it! It was kind of funny seeing the orange bag against the pumpkin bags!

Last night I went to a party put on by a local restaurant that also serves as a venue for local bands. A man from this band turned out to be a resident of the mobile home park where I live, and one of the residents nearest me. He gave a free copy of his band's CD.  A very nice treat. They put on a good live performance.

Some neat costumes were worn by the many guests.  Lots of devils, maids, witches, and other common and unusual fare,  but one that seemed funnier than all the rest was a man in the old lady with a baby costume. I've seen this one for sale on the Internet, but last night was the first time I actually saw someone wearing one.  It's quite hilarious.  And wouldn't ya know, he won the best costume overall.  I believed that he was most worthy of that prize.

After this party I headed over the bar on the next block to find out the results of their 

contest to guess how many candy corns were in a plastic jar.  The karaoke DJs had sent out an email saying that three people had come close to guessing the right number on the first night (October 8) they'd  begun the contest, and that they would be announcing the winners  at midnight on October 29.   I made sure to get over by then to hear the results.   Turned out one of my guesses was the third-closest, and as result I won the the jar of candy.  Along with the candy corn, there are also some gumballs and Mellow Creme pumpkins.  I knew I could not eat all this, so I put a handful of them on pieces of plastic wrap and tied then with ribbons to share with the family.  I plan to deliver them some time tomorrow.  

Only two days left

...till Halloween and not much to put up on the blog for today.  No time to look for candy at the last minute, but will have to get some on Sunday afternoon for the kids who show up that night. 

Tonight I will be attending a party at local restaurant with a  local band playing.  I received the invite via Facebook.   And tomorrow night is the Halloween Karaoke contest at a bar in my town. Usually they have this only on Fridays and that was the case last year when the holiday was on a Saturday.  I'm now wondering what they will do next year when the holiday is on Monday. 

Today I saw a sign in the window of an empty carpet store building advertising the upcoming seasonal See's Candy Christmas store in Gilroy, CA.   These are like the Spirit Halloween stores, opening for two months in a building left empty by some retailer.  Oddly, this abandoned carpet store is just across the way from the building left vacant by Linens and Things, when that bed-and-bath chain went out of business in 2008.  The former Linens and Things is currently housing the Spirit Halloween store.  I guess this building is too big for  seasonal candy store.  

And even though it's still not Halloween yet,  Christmas has already been coming in at the store where I work since September.  Only a few Halloween items are left and they have all been moved to the front of the store.  We must have sold a whole lot of it since it began coming in the second week of August. 

And last night on the news they were predicting Black Friday to come early this year, right before Halloween. Usually it's the day after Thanksgiving.  As far as I have seen today, there is no news of this being true.  

And today I on the way home from work, passed by a house several blocks away from my residence with a Halloween decoration in their front yard, another decoration I really liked. Unfortunately, since I was driving, I was not able to get a picture, and I was  a little too lazy to stop.