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Did you know?
  • The original Rudolph did not have a red nose. In that day and age, red noses were seen as an indicator of chronic alcoholism and Montgomery Ward didn’t want him to look like a drunkard. To complete the original picture, he was almost named Reginald or Rollo.
  • The Christmas wreath was originally hung as a symbol of Jesus. The holly represents his crown of thorns and the red berries the blood he shed.
  • The three traditional colors of most Christmas decorations are red, green and gold. Red symbolizes the blood of Christ, green symbolized life and rebirth, and gold represents light, royalty and wealth.
  • Tinsel was invented in 1610 in Germany and was once made of real silver.
  • The oldest artificial Christmas trees date back to the late 1800s and were made of green raffia (think grass hula skirts) or dyed goose feathers. Next the Addis Brush Company used their machinery that wove toilet brushes to create pine-like branches for artificial Christmas trees that were less flammable and could hold heavier decorations.
  • ‘Jingle Bells’ – the popular Christmas song was composed by James Pierpont in Massachusetts, America. It was, however, written for thanksgiving and not Christmas.
  • Coca-Cola was the first company that used Santa Claus during the winter season for promotion.
  • Hallmark introduced their first Christmas cards in 1915.
  • The first recorded date of Christmas being celebrated on December 25th was in 336, during the time of the Roman Emperor Constantine. A few years later, Pope Julius I officially declared that the birth of Jesus would be celebrated on that day.
  • Santa Claus's sleigh is led by eight reindeer: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Dunder (variously spelled Donder and Donner), and Blixem (variously spelled Blixen and Blitzen), with Rudolph being a 20th-century inclusion.
  • Outdoor Christmas lights on homes evolved from decorating the traditional Christmas tree and house with candles during the Christmas season. Lighting the tree with small candles dates back to the 17th century and originated in Germany before spreading to Eastern Europe.
  • That big, jolly man in the red suit with a white beard didn’t always look that way. Prior to 1931, Santa was depicted as everything from a tall gaunt man to a spooky-looking elf. He has donned a bishop's robe and a Norse huntsman's animal skin. When Civil War cartoonist Thomas Nast drew Santa Claus for Harper's Weekly in 1862, Santa was a small elflike figure who supported the Union. Nast continued to draw Santa for 30 years, changing the color of his coat from tan to the red he’s known for today.
  • Christmas 2018 countdown has already begun. Will you be ready???
  • Why do we love Christmas? It's all about the traditions. In this chaotic world we can miss the "good old days." Christmas reminds us of that time.

G Host Rider

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About G Host Rider

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  • Birthday 06/17/1969

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  • Location
    Streator/IL
  1. G Host Rider G Host Rider changed their profile photo
  2. G Host Rider
    To everyone here on PC I would like to say "thank you" first of all for welcoming me back when I first discovered PC when I was using my Lights & Sounds of Christmas. Secondly; I have upgraded recently (last year 2011) to the Gemmy 6 channel MP3 with timer unit & have used it again this year with my mp3 player with 53 songs on it. (2 1/2 hrs. worth of music) I have been looking over the forums between the compatibilities (differences) between 2 products I am interested in. (Animated Lighting & LOR) I'm not going to sit here & bash either corporation or product as I have seen everyone has his/her own prefererances. I do have concerns though as to how difficult sequencing might be as I am not very computer/software savvy & do have & like the idea of AL's plug & play feature with the songs already preloaded. (sounds like this would be the way to go; however I would like to use my own songs since I already have most of my collection converted from wma files to mp3. Only thing I'm wondering is just how hard can this be?? LOL I'm seriously thinking of going with 16 - 32 channels to start with as I know I can always upgrade at a later time & not have to worry about things going "out of style" & not being able to work with newer versions. Not 100% sure where to start or even who to talk to, however my main priority is waiting until February when I have the money to afford the LOR. Any & all advice is welcome & am greatful for all input. Thank you in advance for helping to shed light onto a future LOR user. Ghost Rider (Michael Swiskoski)
  3. G Host Rider
    Merry Christmas & Happy New Year To All; First of all if I may say this is my 3rd year of decorating my house with lights & music. (although I do not own a LOR system or other unique piece of equipment.) I currently own the Gemmy 6 channel MP3 music box & have very few lights strung around the house & my trees. I can recall the first time I became interested in making my lights dance to music I bought the Lights & Sounds of Christmas & had wanted more. My son was then 2 or 3 years old when I started that & is currently now 4. I recieved alot of comments from family & friends when I first started this & they really liked what they saw & heard. Though I am not a "techy" I would still love to get into the LOR area of decorating if I could find the way to afford it. I know just by adding my mp3 player to make my lights dance might not be a big thing to some but to watch my children ages 18 14 & 4 enjoy the small amount of lights I have dance to music is a big hit. However I do understand about the large upscale decorations & as I see them here in Streator, Illinois & elsewhere's I travel it leaves me wondering how I could do that I appreciate all the hard work that people go through to make their homes look so awesome, because there have been times I have wanted to not decorate because of not being in the holiday spirit due to finances & other circumstances. (if I may say so it is because of these that help to make my holidays brighter & makes me think of what Christmas is about) So thank you for allowing me to post this & thank you for all of each of you do, for even though things might be blown up beyond explanation remember you might be putting a smile & a newness in someone's heart who otherwise might think the holidays are nothing more than a bother. Merry Christmas All Sincerely; Ghost Rider (Michael Swiskoski)
  4. G Host Rider
    Thank you all for the welcome; feels great to be part of a community full of people who love Christmas all year around. My plans for this year didn't go as expected; as I wanted to do something different than I did last year. I had planned on adding more lights than I have posted earlier tonight but with the amp limit on the plugs for the gemmy & what I actually have available at the moment for lighting materials as well as money things didn't really change much. The best thing is that I can finally add my own music to the lighting & I get to see my children enjoy the Christmas season with the yard decorated again, as I have done in the past. I have read posts where we are our own worst critics on what we do, but when you have pictures in your mind & ideas in your heart & you don't see them come to light you wonder if what you do makes a difference. Then you get unexpected compliments from your 3 yr. old son who remembers last years lights & always had to see them when he went to bed begging you to pick him up & show him out his bedroom window. ( now I know why I put Elvis' If Everyday Could Be Just Like Christmas & Ral Donner's Things That Make Up Christmas Day on the MP3 player.) Because in reality seeing Christmas through a child's eye makes all your hard work & doubts seem nothing compared to the happiness they see & feel. Thank you all again for making me feel welcome & may everyone have a Happy Thanksgiving & Merry Christmas. Michael Swiskoski ( Ghost Rider )
  5. G Host Rider
    Hello & Good Evening All; Have been sitting here looking through the forums off and on the last couple of days & have decided to become a part of the PC community. I am a father of 3 children ( 2 daughters 17 & 13, and a 3 yr. old son ) married for 18 yrs. & have lived in Streator, IL for almost 21 yrs. One of the things that brought me here was a search on the Gemmy 6 channel Holiday Lightshow control box with the mp3 player compatibilty for it. Last year i used the Lights & Sounds of Christmas from Mr. Christmas & though it did a decent job I was looking for something a little more than what this product had to offer. (though my children were impressed with it I found the need for something that might add a little more punch to the holidays.) I started & finished hanging my lights today & am still trying to figure out how to make the most of them before the actual time to light them happens ( day after thanksgiving) even though I have seen lights on throughout town & in the stores already. Currently I have hung: 3 16' strands of rope lights on the front of the house/gutter 3 strands of clear/blinking garland lights on the top fence line 2 strands of 150 count multi-colored lights on the bottom fence line 2 strands of 150 count multi-colored lights on the lamp post 2 strands of 150 count multi- colored lights in the bush on the front of the house 3 strands of 150 count multi-colored lights in the pine trees 2 light up soldiers & 5 santa teddy bears in the front yard 3 small clear lighted Christmas trees I have ran a small test on the lighting arrangements with the mp3 player attached & am still trying to decide whether to keep what I have up or try something different. I know my 3 yr. old son was thrilled to see the Christmas lights on again even though it was a short period of time tonight. He keeps asking as I am putting him to bed when the lights are coming back on. I also just received a compliment from my oldest daughters boyfriend as I just ran another test with the mp3 player hooked up so looks like I leave what I have.
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