Stop Ruining My Day and Turn the Lights Out

A man travels with his pregnant wife in the middle of winter. It's cold and they're trying to find their way, and if it wasn't for that light in the sky they'd be lost.

In this case we're not talking about a star, we're talking about my neighbor's Christmas lights.

It's over. The radio stations have stopped playing Jingle Bell Rock, the stores have moved on to Valentine's Day and even my kids have stopped giving me boxes of toys to open. So why can't my neighbors, and a few others, take down their Christmas lights?

It's irritating. Every time I drive past those bright lights they remind me that the fun part of the season has ended, that we're in for a few months of cold and snow. There's nothing festive about scraping off the windows of your car.

Why can't these people realize that the rest of us have moved on? We're now prepared to be miserable. They're probably over there right now listening to Bing Crosby, drinking eggnog and cuddling by the fire. Disgusting. It's January. The fun has ended. It's time to stop smiling.

So I'm starting to come up with a plan. If by Feb. 1 those lights aren't at least unplugged I think I need to take action.

Do I unplug them myself? Maybe unscrew one bulb and see if a whole strand goes out? Wait until they're gone and take them down for them?

Or do I dare walk over there and ask them politely to stop ruining my day with their festival of lights?

How would you handle such a travesty? And what's the very latest date they should be allowed to keep their lights up?