Sami Middleton

Some of my best guy friends were graced with the “penthouse” nine-man in Vanderslice as sophomores, and it wasn’t until only recently that I became truly, truly jealous of their common room, half kitchen, long hallway, and enormous “window room” that serves no purpose other than looking awesome.  However, when I saw this infamous window room adorned in hundreds of twinkling Christmas lights, I had never seen anything so beautiful.

My family, like the majority of the BC student body, takes Christmas lights very seriously.  I spent so many childhood winters sitting on the roof of my first house, watching my dad cuss incessantly while setting up reindeer on the roof, swearing he would never do the light display again.  Over 10 years later, my dad has yet to give in, and our new house has permanent Christmas lights that are in our siding.

And while this may seem ridiculous, there is something about lighting up the outside of your house that makes Christmas even more cheerful.  I now present to you the craziest Christmas lights and streets traditions from around the U.S.  From the tacky to the fabulous to the incredible synchronization of these crazy families, I hope that you are able to find happiness and joy in the twinkling lights around you this holiday season.

Yeah, yeah, you’re probably saying “Of course this is amazing, it’s Disney World!”  But the cool part of the light at Disney’s Hollywood Studios is not only that it is synchronized to our favorite Disney tunes and to an accompanying parade, but that it was all started by an actual family, the Osborne Family, in Arkansas.

For as long as I remember, I have woken up on fall Sunday afternoons in my home in Chicago to the sounds of ESPN SportsCenter. From upstairs, I could always hear the roar of a crowd, the booming voice of the sideline reporter, and the popping of popcorn in the microwave. And for someone who doesn’t know my family, it is easy to assume that the popcorn and increasing volume is occurring due to the hands of my father or older brother. But when I grab my Chicago Bears jersey and hop down the stairs, it is to plop down next to the biggest football fan of the household: my mother.

I can’t lie to you though; it isn’t that my mom and I are eager to see how many interceptions the Packers throw or to see if Jay Cutler gets his act together that day. Sometimes, we get up on Sundays just to see Drew Brees exist (we have a huge crush on him and his adorable son). Nevertheless, NFL game days are an experience in my house, and I argue an important study break for every BC student on Sundays.

Sundays are no longer just for the guys.

For me, there is nothing like seeing my guy friends on game-days. There is something about seeing male testosterone at its finest, screaming at a television set and being so passionate about something that could seem so trivial, that makes games an important social event and something I look forward to every week. Whether it is your boyfriend, your crush, or just your best guy friend on campus, seeing a BC bro pull out their Patriots footie pajamas, or those lucky Giants socks they refuse to wash until good ol’ Eli gets them to another Super Bowl, watching the game with the boys is something you don’t want to miss.