In hindsight, Jo-Ann Thompson should have been a little more specific when she asked her husband to put up some outdoor Christmas lights on their house in Carleton Place, Ontario.
“I think the shock was when he says he has an electrician coming in,” recalls Thompson.
Yes, an electrician – to install the extra circuit to power the thousands of LED lights hooked up to the 40-channel lighting board run by a special computer program.
It seems Steven Thompson had a vision, one he’d seen on those viral YouTube videos – the ones with a house covered in lights all flashing and pulsating in time with the music.
“Well she never said how much I could spend,” he points out.
Steve Thompson has a thing for Christmas lights. He likes putting them up for their three children. And every year he tries to one-up his brother-in-law in B.C. This year he just might have done it. He says he started putting them up in September, and estimates he spent close to 100 hours hanging, wiring and programming his 9-minute light show. He even mixed the music himself.
Some of the specialized equipment had to be ordered from the U.S. He’s a little vague about the cost, saying the whole project is probably “over a couple thousand dollars.”
Once the initial shock wore off, Jo-Ann Thompson was actually quite impressed with what her husband was able to accomplish. “Now that I see the end product, yeah, I absolutely love it,” she says.
Most of the neighbours seem to like it as well. “I think it’s great for the kids. It gets everybody in the spirit. It’s wonderful,” says Linda Hamilton from a few doors down.
Here’s hoping they still feel that way after the lights and music have played all December long. And here’s hoping Jo-Ann Thompson feels just as generous next year. Her husband already plans to add more lights.
The Thompsons are on Prime Place in Carleton Place (map this location). They are officially launching their Christmas light show Saturday, Nov. 30th after the Carleton Place Santa Claus Parade.
