It’s a common point of discussion this time of year: when can we start decorating for the holidays? Brandon Kondritz found out NU Facilities is starting now, but is it too early?
(music: It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” by Andy Williams)
Picture this: you’re taking an evening walk through South Campus. You pass through Weber Arch, and as you’re heading to the Lakefill, the cold winter air whips at your face.
(natural sound: wind blowing)
You zip your coat a little higher and gaze at the trees along your path: they’re beautifully lit by an endless amount of little bulbs. The perfect holiday scene, Northwestern style.
(music: “Crazy Holidazy” by David Renda via Fesliyan Studios)
Every year, Northwestern Facilities sets out to bring some holiday cheer to the Evanston campus. Workers climb up on bucket trucks to string lights in hundreds of trees dotting the grounds.
(natural sound: truck starting and reverse alarm)
From Segal Visitors Center to Mudd Library, you’ll soon spot a brightly lit tree no matter where you are on campus.
MCKINNEY: We used to do lights on a handful of trees and some prominent locations, namely around the Arch and on Deering Meadow. It became a lot more formalized roughly the winter of 2016 into 2017, where there was more recognition that it really did create a nice aesthetic for the course of the winter on campus.
That’s Jim McKinney, a Senior Director for Facilities Operations at Northwestern. The Facilities office handles everything from planning to execution of various projects across campus. But Jim’s side of the office is responsible for maintaining campus infrastructure: including making sure those holiday lights are ready to go when the season hits.
MCKINNEY: We tried to focus in on the areas that see a lot of pedestrian activity, where people would really be able to appreciate the lights being up.
Although they won’t come on until next week, if you’re walking around campus at the right time, you might catch an early glimpse of the cheer.
MCKINNEY: You caught us testing for sure. We turn them on for the Thanksgiving holiday, and they’ll stay on for the duration of the winter—typically we turn them back off again during spring break.
Although the lights actually stay in the trees year-round, just turned off …
MCKINNEY: We did experiments with trying to pull them down and put them back up again and it just wasn’t as effective as being selective in where we make repairs or replacements.
… those repairs and replacements are a labor-intensive process that requires plenty of time and outside support.
MCKINNEY: The actual work really begins roughly between August and October—we’re ordering supplies and materials, and there’s a process of evaluating the lights that are currently on the trees to see which ones are due for repair. And in some cases, we have to pull the old strings down and put new strings up. That work really starts in earnest in October and finishes up in early November. We do engage a contractor, especially for their support on the taller trees—they have some vehicles that can reach that we just don’t have as an institution.
(music: “The Night Before Christmas” by Steve Oxen via Fesliyan Studios)
Northwestern’s timeline falls within a debate that’s become increasingly more polarizing over the years: when is it appropriate to decorate for the holidays?
Generally, the decoration strategy you take depends upon why you’re doing it. Tradition, a busy schedule, or how happy you are for the holidays might influence when you decide to pull out the dusty totes and start untangling and testing colorful lights.
(natural sound: sleigh bells ringing)
For Catholics and most other Christians, religious tradition is to refrain from putting up the Christmas tree until the afternoon of Christmas Eve. Over-anticipating the feast of Christmas, Midnight Mass, and Christmas Day by putting up decorations too early might not make the holiday feel as special as it should.
Nowadays, most Christians put up their Christmas trees on the first Sunday of Advent, so they can spend the whole season celebrating. This year, that falls on November 27th—the Sunday following Thanksgiving.
This is a widely accepted practice that provides a reasonable compromise. Otherwise, you might end up in the same boat as Charlie Brown and Linus van Pelt in A Charlie Brown Christmas, when they’re struggling to find a live tree at the last minute.
(Linus clanging on metal tree)
CHRISTOPHER SHEA AS LINUS VAN PELT: This really brings Christmas close to a person.
PETER ROBBINS AS CHARLIE BROWN: Fantastic.
Others—religious or not—break out the ornaments and tinsel several weeks earlier as a distraction from the season’s bleak winter weather.
Psychologists say that glittery bows, twinkling lights, and uber-tall trees are a signal to our brain that something’s different. That signal then spikes the dopamine levels that make the season feel so special.
Research from the American Christmas Tree Association even shows that Christmas decorations were a bright spot during COVID-19. Although fewer trips were being made to see relatives, 6.5 million US households still displayed a tree—very little change from previous years.
Treetopia, an artificial tree manufacturer, surveyed 4,000 Americans from 47 different states to find out when most happy-decorators typically trim the tree.
Their findings show that the average American starts decorating right after Thanksgiving. Rhode Island and South Carolina are the earliest states to celebrate, starting the second week of November. Connecticut, Oregon, and Florida are the latest to break out the decorations: 3 weeks before Christmas.
(music: “Presents on Christmas Morning” by Steve Oxen via Fesliyan Studios)
Additionally, those with time-intensive decor feel it’s too stressful to wait until December. Gift-buying, making it to kids’ winter concerts, and attending the never-ending circle of holiday parties all get in the way of crafting the perfect nativity scene.
(natural sound: unwrapping a gift)
Northwestern’s tree decorations undoubtedly fall into the early-decorator category. Hundreds of light strands call for very careful planning.
MCKINNEY: To our best estimate, there are around 750 strings of lights on the trees, and typically 100 lights per string.
100-bulb strands are about 21 feet long, so that means that there’s 15,750 feet of lighting in the trees across campus. For reference, the tallest building in the world stands 2,717 feet high: 13,033 feet shorter than NU’s glowing investments.
(music: “I Believe” by Alan Silvestri)
No matter what your decorative preferences are, there’s likely to be somebody who agrees. Perhaps you’re like northwestern facilities—you want to get ahead of the game to make things just right.
MCKINNEY: It’s one of those things that’s appreciated by a lot of the community and by our Facilities staff as well. The landscape shop and the electricians especially—they really put a lot of effort into making sure that it’s a pleasing and really aesthetic application of the lights.
Or maybe the Rockefeller Center tree in New York City is more your style—even though it went up this week, it won’t be lit until November 30th.
Whenever you decide to decorate, remember that the true meaning of Christmas doesn’t depend on the quality of your decorations or how many presents are under the tree. Sometimes the smallest decorations are the most important ones, like the Believer’s Bell from the Polar Express…it only rings if you believe in the true spirit of the holidays.
(natural sound: Believer’s Bell ringing)
For WNUR News, I’m Brandon Kondritz.
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Background music credit to Fesliyan Studios.