I took in the 37th Street Christmas lights last weekend and was sorry to see that more than half the houses on the block were unlit. The famous plastic-wrapped house whose light tour extends into the back yard was in fine form, but nobody else was up to the usual standard. Is 37th Street on its way to becoming another lost Austin glory, or did I simply go too early in the month?
[Update: I was completely wrong; I went back on the 15th and 37th Street was in fine form.]
On the up side, Mr. Sinus Theater's Christmas show is terrific. Not only did the boys detourn Rudolph, It's a Wonderful Life and other holiday classics, but they dug up a sleighload of those patented Alamo oddities (among others a Star Wars Christmas special, a disturbing lecture by Santa on primate behavior, and some items guaranteed to put the X back in Xmas). They improvised a few new Christmas carols based on themes provided by the audience -- one was a reggae opera about an incident at a truck stop in Kansas -- and the Alamo provided milk and cookies to all. MST should become an Austin Christmas tradition. But one word of warning: you'll never see Frosty the Snowman the same way again.