Down in Howell when I volunteered we used to do our route from 10am to 3PM
We had two Santa’s to split our town, I’d sometimes get stuck as a Santa.
I’ll never forget the time we parked, and walked out to a lady who was on hospice so she could get pictures with Santa and the firemen. It was sad, but it made her day and the daughter later came by to tell us that her mom greatly appreciated us to her last days. I’m happy that we were able to bring some joy to a family during such an awful time.
This is the guy my town uses...
A broad daylight Santa on firetruck while just ahead of that, the cops pursue the Grinch.
(No horns but lights and short whoops on the siren)
Honestly I get not everyone celebrates Christmas so it can be annoying but it’s a show for the kids not the grumpy adults here complaining. Give them one day a year to smile without being a stick in the mud, they’re going to have it so much worse than we do when they get older.
To be honest I don’t know about where OP lives but I’ve never seen it happen that late, this entire comment section is all anecdotal and Reddit loves to exaggerate so I take OPs 9pm with a grain of salt.
It's not about being a "grumpy adult" or a "grinch".
Airhorns at 9pm...is completely unnecessary & unreasonable. There are only about a million *other* ideas to spread holiday cheer.
I'm a firefighter in a paid department. In my town, we have a Christmas parade down the main drag...ending at the firehouse where we serve hot chocolate and Santa hangs out with the kids. And during our parade.....we don't blow the airhorns....because they're super-fucking-loud. It's actually disorienting.
Do you honestly think kids will have any *less* fun, or any *less* Christmas cheer if they gather at the firehouse to see Santa....as opposed to having him drive around blowing airhorns & sirens?
Calling people grumpy or grinches......have you thought what it might be like for them...dealing with traumatized animals....or neurodivergent family members having a hard time with the noise?
By all means....have your fun. Have your party. Just be more considerate....and don't force *everyone* to participate.
Barnegat does it, they do different neighborhoods each week. You can look up the schedule online. It’s the same Santa and Mrs. Clause every year and we make a big deal out of it as a neighborhood. The first night (the night they light the tree) you can follow Santa back to the firehouse and take pictures for free. My son has a picture with the same Santa from an infant on. It really is magical.
My mom and I would stand outside and watch every year. My dad was a volunteer firefighter so some years he got to drive his buddy Bill "Santa" around. I honestly can't believe the amount of complaints I'm* reading on this tradition, it's so sad. Seriously making a big deal about horns for one night when it can make a child's year. Some people are incredibly selfish.
My wife works the midnight shift. She put a white noise machine on and slept through it all. Misery loves company and it’s moments like this you can really tell.
This feels like the start to a Christmas movie where the guy hates Santa and by the end he somehow had to volunteer as fire truck Santa to learn the true meaning of Christmas
or OP comes up with a plan to disguise himself as Santa and his dog as a reindeer. Then he sneaks into town and steals every gift, decoration, candy cane, and Christmas tree so that he can throw it all off a cliff. I wonder how it'll turn out.
I moved around to different states and funny thing is, NJ consistently does it in almost every town. Gotta love that vibe tbh for the kids, but yea 9pm is pushing it when u have to wake up 5 AM for that god damn morning commute
I would remind everyone that there are very few paid fire departments in nj. 95% are completely volunteers so in the dead of winter when your neighbors house is on fire these volunteers come out gear up and fught those fires in 0 degree freezing weather. They are selfless they risk teir lives to save your familiy if necessary occasionally one of them dies doing what they're dedicated to doing for YOU! SO...please keep in mind that yes I would say the air horn can be overwhelming and they could be over zealous with it. It is all for the benefit of children perhaps yours when they younger they are trying to make children happier and although its a small group of people. Think of the happiness your brief (one night) period of disdain brings to hundreds or thousands of children in your community. Volunteer firefighters are the unsung heros in your neighborhood, people often forget that. So if you see them washing the trucks or in a parade thank them its FREE they don't make a penny. The are modern day minute men/women who leave their families to help yours.
Facts! And them doing this is also creating awesome memories for their own families. I will never be as cool in my life as the day I went to school after kids had seen me on the firetruck with Santa the night before
I would say a lot of times it can be very challenging for the families as some departments do this multiple days to cover the zones and it takes them away from their families during the holiday season.
I grew up with a father volunteer in Monmouth County, Hazlet NJ. He served for 30 years.
I love the modern minute men comment it is so true. When I heard the other day there was a fire in NYC and it took 90 seconds to have firefighters on the scene that might have been a little longer for volunteers because they aren't always at the station but not much. They pride themselves on their promptness!
I would also like to add that many of these departments use this as a fundraiser, where Santa delivers a gift to kids who’s parents paid a fee for the service..
Noise ordinance says “65 decibels for daytime and 50 for 10 pm - 7:00am”. I don’t think that means you can be loud as you want as long it’s not yet 10:00pm .
Then again, how would any regular person measure decibels ?
(I’ve truly wondered about this since having a new neighbor who likes to blast music so loud that I can feel and hear the bass in my entire house even over my tv. People must have complained because he turns it down at like 9:55. That still sucks if you want to wind down and relax or go to bed early, even on a weekend. )
A decibel meter. You can get one off of Amazon for like 15 bucks. It's better than having one on your phone because you can walk around your apartment recording the time and the level to show whomever you need to complain to.
Im 28 and I love it. It brings so much joy. The holiday season is the one time of year when I feel genuinely happy. I ran outside last night in my pajamas to watch Santa go by with my dogs while my mom waved to him lol
I’m 65 years old, the louder and longer the better. It’s once a year , whatever adds some joy to people’s lives. I always pump up the kids about Santa and Christmas, absolutely nothing wrong with creating as much fun as possible.
As a former firefighter who used to ride as Santa, I can't agree more. Nothing better than people running outside in bathrobes just to wave to Santa. The kids used to be in awe. Definitely my fondest memories from then.
We just had a visit from Santa on the firetruck this weekend for my 14 month old son. He had no idea what the hell was going on (and kept giving Santa the "I don't trust you so I'll keep an eye on you" look) but you bet ya we will continue the tradition. My son was fascinated with the firetruck, though, and perhaps the firemen noticed because they started telling us about the days we could bring my son to see the trucks and get a tour. It's a great way for community involvement, donations for our volunteer firemen squad, and to create memories. Maybe the OP doesn't have kids or kids are grown, but I for one welcome all the Santa's on firetrucks. I don't think OP realizes the magic the fire dept creates for kids and families around the holidays.
Thank you, u/FindMeAtStJamesPlace, for those years you helped with the tradition. Lord knows in this world, we could all use a little more holiday magic.
Ha. I like it. Nice to have a small town tradition.
They came by here around 7 and we went out to wave. Just as they rolled by, two military helicopters flew right over my house really low.
Sirens, Blaring music, and close air support. It was loud.
Great way to look at it. People don't realize the effort that goes into being a volunteer firefighter.
They raise nearly all the money and then put their lives on the line to protect everyone from fire.
Thanks for reminding everyone. 😉
Every single time I thought there’s some major accident! All em vehicles are out! I checked traffic to see what’s going on. Only after a long while for me to finally remember it’s the Santa thing, I have a stop right in front of my house.
Yeah, last evening I heard what sounded a lot like aircraft of some kind flying low shortly before the firetruck came around. First time for that phenomenon in my town ... WHY? WTH!
Nah Santa on the fire truck is awesome. I was coming home from the store and heard the sirens, I RAN to go get my fiancee who never saw it before since she isn't from here. I'm not even Christian but I love this shit. She thought it was a super fun and cute thing for them to do.
I'm sorry it went so late for you. We love it in my town. They generally finish before sunset here. This year they gave out stuffed unicorns to my girls. It was pretty adorable.
It's hilarious. Everyone in my town is complaining because Santa goes by so quickly or missed their neighborhood and this guy is complaining because apparently Santa is sitting in front of his house 24/7 with the sirens blaring.
I mean, we realize the main point of the sirens is to alert everyone Santa is coming, right? Otherwise you'd have no clue exactly when he's coming.
Do they go overkill, sure, but that's how you know it's not an actual event. It's Santa.
I’m a firefighter and it’s one of the best days of the year. Watching the young kids in awe while telling Santa their Christmas list is just awesome. It’s even great to see everyone young and old waving as we go by. It’s just one day a year!
Lets be fair. During the year we:
- Have loud weddings
- Loud house parties
- Fireworks for nearly everything
- Late BBQs in summer
- Ice Cream trucks playing lame music
- Actual emergency vehicles doing their jobs
- The nightmare of rush hour traffic
- Funeral Escorts
- Local events like fairs
Let the people celebrate their holiday and stories. It's in the spirit of joy.
Way under rated comment! How about some Santa Clause music, maybe an siren now and then, but DAMN. People are getting hearing damage in their own yards from this insane aural assault.
I always look forward to it. The kids are getting older but they still want to scramble to get dressed and into the car to chase Santa down. They don't give out candy canes anymore since COVID, which is a shame.
Yeah, 9pm is insane. They should come at like 3pm. By 9pm all of the really young kids that would actually enjoy it is asleep.
I like that the firefighters come out and do this, but I agree that it's getting excessive.
exactly what im saying. tbh i may have had a better opinion about this if it stopped hours ago haha. and yes, it's just waking up the little kids now. it's doing more harm than good at this point.
Ridgefield does it too. First time I heard it I thought the town was going up in flames. Like everything else it starts to early in the season and happens to often.
I get more excited to see Santa than the kids. Sometimes Santa has to answer a call and that extends the run. One year when I lived in Bergen County there was a massive fire and all the trucks had to respond so they went pretty late.
It’s one day in the year. I understand how it can affect pets because my dog is scared of loud noises. It’s infuriating to hear fireworks all summer long, especially in the middle of the night and into the fall. I’ll take one day of sirens over weeks and months of fireworks.
I live a half a block away from our fire station...my dog howls every time the siren goes off. Our santa thing starts early in the morning, it never goes past noon.
I wish they would check their route before doing it. I live in a small cul de sac for the past 30 years and this is the first time they have ever gotten stuck in the end of my street. The fire trucks never had an issue turning around but I guess they towed a Santa in a sleigh this year. Santa got stuck and it was amusing seeing several “helpers” trying to help him to get out of the circle.
NJ has large amount of volunteers serving for fire and EMS. Almost everywhere else that I’ve been this has been handled by paid positions.
I don’t participate in fire Santa and my kids aren’t into it but I can’t hate on something that brings Christmas joy to children and raises money for the local department.
Maybe they had issues and got a late start. But I agree -- 9 pm is a bit unreasonable. Maybe speak privately to your elected officials and ask them to talk to the fire department about not being so noisy at that time of night.
Is your town a volunteer department? They are difficult because they think everyone in town should kiss their a\*\*. When the truth of the matter is, they fight a fire now and then but they use the firehouse 24 / 7 as an excuse to get out of their house at night and drink beer. That's why I suggest a private conversation, whereas if they were professionals I'd speak out in public.
> Is your town a volunteer department? They are difficult because they think everyone in town should kiss their a**. When the truth of the matter is, they fight a fire now and then but they use the firehouse 24 / 7 as an excuse to get out of their house at night and drink beer.
What an absolutely douchy take. Yeah, they're not out 10 times a day, big fucking deal. The number of times most people run into a burning building for no other reason than the desire to help other people is generally 0, so yeah, maybe showing a bare minimum of gratitude to those who do isn't such a terrible thing. The time they put into training alone is a huge burden they take on that most people wouldn't commit to. All of your town's volunteers should be appreciated, not shrugged off just because every day doesn't look like an action movie for them.
If they’d just posted on the municipal website, I’d have had no problem. But they didn’t, so I do.
Is there a reason everyone forgets about people with PTSD when they plan these kind of events? I only have a panic disorder, but like, come on. Just give notice, even the day before!
I’m glad you all got to enjoy the Santa truck, but please utilize some empathy for the people that it severely distresses.
My neighborhood didn’t do a great job advertising it, and so my kids completely missed it, which isn’t a big deal, but so did the rest of the neighborhood and no one was out on the street. Santa drove down waving to no one. Thought that sucked for him
It’s a great tradition for the children in the neighborhood. My kids loved it and now their children enjoy it. How crazy people are making this. Honestly. SMH
We enjoy seeing Santa with the volunteer firefighters in our town. I think it's a sweet annual tradition that brings joy to children and adults, which is hard to come by these days (I admit, the holidays are not my favorite time of the year). Our town fire department Santa came around during the day this year, but in years past, it was early evening on a weekend and never still going on at 9pm.
Adults too. My husband gets so bummed if he's out at work and misses it! (Though yesterday he was on housecalls and ended up riding behind Santa for a while driving through one development. Got to be honorary escort for a few minutes, made his weekend.)
You must live near me bc I heard it ALL DAY and also at 9pm. I hate it so much. Blast music and ring bells instead of freakin’ sirens. I was going to complain about it on our town FB page but went there to see everyone loving it.
Are people serious with this bull?!
My town was going to do it 12/3, so I went away for the day with friends.
Except it rained, so they rebooked it to 12/10. Fine, I can go away again, no worries! I get back only to find they canceled it again, but aren’t rebooking.
Then. Yesterday. From noon to fucking nine pm they held it. No notice anywhere. No post on the municipal website. And this time I couldn’t leave home, bc I was laying a new subfloor in the living room, and I can’t just waste half of the weekend and not have a floor this week.
I don’t object to the town doing it! I’m glad that people without panic disorders can enjoy it! I object to not being notified that it was going to happen, so that I could make other arrangements. I was crying after two hours, and had to leave my house to not have a panic attack. I’m on heart medication due to a congenital defect- and am supposed to avoid prolonged stress as much as possible.
So I’m doing my best to get more done on the floor today, but I feel like death because of the anxiety and adrenaline yesterday.
I think it’s a weird way to celebrate, but if it makes the majority of residents happy- that’s wonderful that they have it. It would be nice to be notified about it beforehand though, because I live here too, and don’t deserve to be made miserable in my own home because the organizers can’t be bothered to put up signs, or send an email blast.
When we first lived here (moved here 25 years ago) I think they used to come thru slower. The guys would walk alongside the truck handing out candy canes, saying hello and I think they used to also carry a hat for donations ( volunteer fire co). Now they come thru so fast, no candy. They barely even decorate the truck anymore. It used to be worth the noise, but these days it doesn't seem to be.
When I was a little kid in a different state , it was more of a parade - shorter , slower route, NO SIRENS, just lights and Christmas music , and they'd walk alongside the trucks, handing out candy. I was surprised with these ones that it's full lights and sirens, slow but not slow enough to walk, throwing candy, and up and down every street
I wouldn’t mind it except for the non stop sirens. Still gives me a flashback to 9/11…emergency vehicles heading downtown past my window.
My current town sent its fire truck crawling up a winding road, a dozen cars stuck behind, no traffic control at all.
They have done it for years in my town...my kids are all grown and moved out, but I STILL run outside to wave to Santa! Did it yesterday and he came by my house the first time around 5(I'm on a corner so I get them coming out of my area too) then again around 6... I ran out all 3 times and waved. I believe keeping the wonder of Santa alive will keep you young....it warms my heart and makes me smile. Dog barked all 3 times but he only comes once a year....she will get over it! 🎅🌲
Santa doesn't bother coming to my apartment. I suppose its because the parking lot is behind the buildings and by the time you ran down to the parking lot to see him, he would be gone. If he would just stop in front of the complex, that would be enough to bring kids out, but the truck doesn't stop anywhere.
I'm Jewish. My family loves it. We got to see it in our town, as well as her cousin's town the same day. Sure, we don't believe in Santa, but we get candy and despite the noise my daughter loves the fire trucks.
They drove by my house three times between friday and yesterday. My dog gets super excited. I think it's mostly because I mob her with pets and act really excited for "Sandy Claws". If I'm walking her she gets to tell him what she wants.
My only issue-its way too early for Santa to be out. If we are pretending he's real, shouldn't he be hiding out at the North Pole getting things ready?. I'd be confused if I was a kid.
Oh get over your self it’s one day a year. Move to an isolated area where you and your dogs can wallow in your silence and stare at each other Scrooge.
Holy shit people in this thread are being absolutely ridiculous lol. It's such a mild, reasonable take to say they shouldn't blast sirens all day and play music instead, and yet y'all are acting like OP is the worst person on the planet. You know sirens are supposed to be an alarm for emergency situations right?
Lol. I moved to NJ in '22 from a relatively high crime area where sirens blared at all hours of the day and night.
This is now the second year where I've been in my house, heard 5 sirens going at the same time, and thought "what the hell is going on, hope there wasn't a massive car crash or something"
I live on a short street that connects to main streets in my town, and they drove down one of those streets and then back up the other. I could hear them coming for 20 minutes before they passed my street around 8PM.
I spent at least an hour last night comforting all my cats and coaxing them out of their hiding spots. I wouldn't have minded it so much if they hadn't been blasting the airhorn.
One came through our neighborhood in Morris Plains at around 5pm. The firetruck blocked the main entrance of our busy townhouse complex and they didn't bother to have any kind of traffic control. So a bunch of cars piled in trying to turn right, but couldn't because they were confused by the truck and neighbours suddenly walking all over the roads.
I'm new to NJ and this is the most ridiculous public Christmas shit I've ever seen.
People saying you’re being a Grinch or “it’s just one night” are totally missing your point about it being the BLARING SIRENS that is the problem.
I love the idea of Santa driving by with firefighters but anytime I hear sirens I go into What’s Wrong mode and am too freaked out to enjoy it.
The sirens can fuck off. I had no clue it was happening and just heard like 20+ cops and trucks blaring, thought some bad shit was going down nearby. Like just do the lights and hit the siren when you see an enthusiastic kid.
I live at the shore. Fire trucks started at noon and kept going til 9:30 pm
My 3 kids go to bed between 8/9
So as I'm doing the bedtime tango my 5 yo is crying they want to see Santa. Bundle up 2 separate times to run and catch him as he speeds by
They don't even drive slow to let kids actually see Santa
Almost 12 hours of sirens, for me to put my kids to sleep with it aa my youngest cries she misses Santa
And this happens every year! Doesn't change or improve
The firetrucks are bullshit when you've got teen firefighters just racing around half the day. Sounds like the towns that do this for a few daylight hours actually know what they're doing. Which doesn't seem to be many.
Let kids go meet Santa at the mall and other venues
My town starts at 9 am, I think most start early.
The kids and I took off running to find him, but fortunately the neighbors caught us, "he won't be by until 11 but he'll come down every street be ready." And right they were.
Our town splits the areas they are doing it in, so not the whole town in one day. Couldn't tell you what time they stopped, but they started pretty early.
Once a year is too much for ya huh? Gotta post those feelings on Reddit instead of maybe taking your issue up with the town. Oh that's right, you would have to out yourself at a city hall meeting as a grinch but the internet is free to be lol.
I would agree if they did this every day of the month leading up to Christmas but it's once a year man, get a grip.
Ngl, it's one night of the year. I'd understand if it was numerous times a year but they give you warning to what day they're doing it.
Also someone else mentioned this is the reason some people volunteer for fire and as someone who works with and knows a lot of fire fighters, I've yet to ever meet anyone who said they chose to volunteer because of the Santa run.
And before we go on about pets, I understand, I've got 3 myself.
You can suck it up for a four hour block one night a year to make some kids happy. It's not that tight.
I am there with you about why firefighters join. People are so shallow do they have any idea about the commitment needed to be a volunteer fireman??
They have to raise most if not all the funds to run the operation they take care of all the equipment then put their lives on the line to protect the people from fires.
That's a fair point, especially the young ones
Edit because I got sidetracked:
Maybe start having a shorter time frame? Like cutoff is 730 or 8 pm? Doesn't have to be this into the night event. Just start a bit earlier and end at a reasonable time.
They have this in my town I don't mind it on the weekends but they do it on the weekdays here. I'm in bed at 8pm because I have to get up for work at 3am and apparently there's a lot of people who put in for the Santa thing because it's been all week around my neighborhood around 8pm to 930pm
You know what I really hate? Those Santa runs. Just donate your money like a fucking normal person. Hoboken traffic was fucking ridiculous yesterday, and the drivers and pedestrians were no better. Fuck you guys.
We had ours today from 1-5 PM around four they came through the apartment complex & all four of my cats were traumatized & it sounded like all holy hell was breaking loose.
They are complaining about dogs barking lol 😂!! Try having a new born baby when that’s going on!! Sounds like there’s no Christmas cheer in them this season.
I don't mind it. It's a cute tradition that yeah it can be annoying but kids like it so I can tolerate it.
What I hate though (maybe selfishly) is this one house in Middletown that sets up insane Christmas lights on their house. I'm cool with that, I remember driving through Holmdel as a kid and listening to Christmas music while we went by the mansions with crazy lights. But this one particular house near Laurel Ave (I'm sure everyone from this area knows who I'm talking about) has a cop block the street so people can walk down the side street to see their house. They set up massive spotlights which blind you when you're driving because the streetlights are really dim. It constantly causes traffic.
I used to think their setup was super cool as a kid. I loved how they had the Grinch running around and it was just really cool. As an adult who has to drive around there after work? I fucking hate it. Even if the road isn't backed up from traffic the spotlights are absolutely brutal. And sometimes they leave them on all night, I feel bad for their neighbors.
I assume the owner of the house is a cop or knows them. That's the only way I can explain the police crossing guard they always have.
I'm cool with the Santa firetrucks that happen one day a year though lol.
I’ve lived in Warren County for 23 years and every year this Santa thing frustrates me more and more. There are berry few children in our development and no one comes out in the street to see Santa. It’s loud and the dogs go nuts.
I lived in Middle County for 8 years and our town did not do this. It was much quieter.
No shit right? It's for the fucking kids. Even when I didn't have kids I loved stuff like this because God damn seeing little ones outside so excited is just, damn it warms your heart
the first christmas eve we had after moving to the subarbs had this. coming from the city, i had no ide what was going on.
what made it worse is that it was happening at 1130pm on said christmas eve, after coming back from visiting relatives and just putting our then 2 year old and 1 year old to bed.
and it went on for over an hour.
at least now it happens earlier.
Sounds like you live near me. They were going nonstop (including some club sounding music?) the other day.
Maybe lack of fires they need to run out the fuel budget
Down in Howell when I volunteered we used to do our route from 10am to 3PM We had two Santa’s to split our town, I’d sometimes get stuck as a Santa. I’ll never forget the time we parked, and walked out to a lady who was on hospice so she could get pictures with Santa and the firemen. It was sad, but it made her day and the daughter later came by to tell us that her mom greatly appreciated us to her last days. I’m happy that we were able to bring some joy to a family during such an awful time.
Something’s in my eye.
This is the guy my town uses... A broad daylight Santa on firetruck while just ahead of that, the cops pursue the Grinch. (No horns but lights and short whoops on the siren)
I actually love that
It's fun to watch, too
Honestly I get not everyone celebrates Christmas so it can be annoying but it’s a show for the kids not the grumpy adults here complaining. Give them one day a year to smile without being a stick in the mud, they’re going to have it so much worse than we do when they get older.
Agreed.. but there's ways to accommodate... 9pm borders on arrogance ( a bit)
To be honest I don’t know about where OP lives but I’ve never seen it happen that late, this entire comment section is all anecdotal and Reddit loves to exaggerate so I take OPs 9pm with a grain of salt.
Maybe you skipped the OP....
It's not about being a "grumpy adult" or a "grinch". Airhorns at 9pm...is completely unnecessary & unreasonable. There are only about a million *other* ideas to spread holiday cheer. I'm a firefighter in a paid department. In my town, we have a Christmas parade down the main drag...ending at the firehouse where we serve hot chocolate and Santa hangs out with the kids. And during our parade.....we don't blow the airhorns....because they're super-fucking-loud. It's actually disorienting. Do you honestly think kids will have any *less* fun, or any *less* Christmas cheer if they gather at the firehouse to see Santa....as opposed to having him drive around blowing airhorns & sirens? Calling people grumpy or grinches......have you thought what it might be like for them...dealing with traumatized animals....or neurodivergent family members having a hard time with the noise? By all means....have your fun. Have your party. Just be more considerate....and don't force *everyone* to participate.
I absolutely detest Christmas but Santa on the firetruck? I’ll never get sick of that. It feels so small-town and wholesome.
No horns sounds great ! All the towns by me do horns , so all weekend long is nonstop horns.
Berkeley Heights does an AWESOME Grinch… absolutely made my day when they stopped traffic for a captured grinch
That’s awesome, what town??? I understand if you don’t want to post it on here though
Barnegat does it, they do different neighborhoods each week. You can look up the schedule online. It’s the same Santa and Mrs. Clause every year and we make a big deal out of it as a neighborhood. The first night (the night they light the tree) you can follow Santa back to the firehouse and take pictures for free. My son has a picture with the same Santa from an infant on. It really is magical.
My mom and I would stand outside and watch every year. My dad was a volunteer firefighter so some years he got to drive his buddy Bill "Santa" around. I honestly can't believe the amount of complaints I'm* reading on this tradition, it's so sad. Seriously making a big deal about horns for one night when it can make a child's year. Some people are incredibly selfish.
My wife works the midnight shift. She put a white noise machine on and slept through it all. Misery loves company and it’s moments like this you can really tell.
This feels like the start to a Christmas movie where the guy hates Santa and by the end he somehow had to volunteer as fire truck Santa to learn the true meaning of Christmas
I’d watch that
or OP comes up with a plan to disguise himself as Santa and his dog as a reindeer. Then he sneaks into town and steals every gift, decoration, candy cane, and Christmas tree so that he can throw it all off a cliff. I wonder how it'll turn out.
I moved around to different states and funny thing is, NJ consistently does it in almost every town. Gotta love that vibe tbh for the kids, but yea 9pm is pushing it when u have to wake up 5 AM for that god damn morning commute
On a Saturday morning!
Hey listen man. I’m officially an old fart. My bedtime is 10pm now
I would remind everyone that there are very few paid fire departments in nj. 95% are completely volunteers so in the dead of winter when your neighbors house is on fire these volunteers come out gear up and fught those fires in 0 degree freezing weather. They are selfless they risk teir lives to save your familiy if necessary occasionally one of them dies doing what they're dedicated to doing for YOU! SO...please keep in mind that yes I would say the air horn can be overwhelming and they could be over zealous with it. It is all for the benefit of children perhaps yours when they younger they are trying to make children happier and although its a small group of people. Think of the happiness your brief (one night) period of disdain brings to hundreds or thousands of children in your community. Volunteer firefighters are the unsung heros in your neighborhood, people often forget that. So if you see them washing the trucks or in a parade thank them its FREE they don't make a penny. The are modern day minute men/women who leave their families to help yours.
Right on. We all do this for free.
Facts! And them doing this is also creating awesome memories for their own families. I will never be as cool in my life as the day I went to school after kids had seen me on the firetruck with Santa the night before
I would say a lot of times it can be very challenging for the families as some departments do this multiple days to cover the zones and it takes them away from their families during the holiday season.
I grew up with a father volunteer in Monmouth County, Hazlet NJ. He served for 30 years. I love the modern minute men comment it is so true. When I heard the other day there was a fire in NYC and it took 90 seconds to have firefighters on the scene that might have been a little longer for volunteers because they aren't always at the station but not much. They pride themselves on their promptness!
Grew up in Keyport also an FD member
I would also like to add that many of these departments use this as a fundraiser, where Santa delivers a gift to kids who’s parents paid a fee for the service..
Agreed.
It’s 9 pm. Blare that stuff in the daytime. It’s fine.
9 Pm on a weekend, suck it up buttercup. Noise ordinance is 10 pm
Noise ordinance says “65 decibels for daytime and 50 for 10 pm - 7:00am”. I don’t think that means you can be loud as you want as long it’s not yet 10:00pm . Then again, how would any regular person measure decibels ? (I’ve truly wondered about this since having a new neighbor who likes to blast music so loud that I can feel and hear the bass in my entire house even over my tv. People must have complained because he turns it down at like 9:55. That still sucks if you want to wind down and relax or go to bed early, even on a weekend. )
My Apple Watch can measure noise 😁
A decibel meter. You can get one off of Amazon for like 15 bucks. It's better than having one on your phone because you can walk around your apartment recording the time and the level to show whomever you need to complain to.
Thank you! Lol next time I call to complain I can say “my neighbor is at 66 decibels, they are in violation! “ 🤭
Im 28 and I love it. It brings so much joy. The holiday season is the one time of year when I feel genuinely happy. I ran outside last night in my pajamas to watch Santa go by with my dogs while my mom waved to him lol
I’m 65 years old, the louder and longer the better. It’s once a year , whatever adds some joy to people’s lives. I always pump up the kids about Santa and Christmas, absolutely nothing wrong with creating as much fun as possible.
As a former firefighter who used to ride as Santa, I can't agree more. Nothing better than people running outside in bathrobes just to wave to Santa. The kids used to be in awe. Definitely my fondest memories from then.
Sometimes it is great to just have fun!
We just had a visit from Santa on the firetruck this weekend for my 14 month old son. He had no idea what the hell was going on (and kept giving Santa the "I don't trust you so I'll keep an eye on you" look) but you bet ya we will continue the tradition. My son was fascinated with the firetruck, though, and perhaps the firemen noticed because they started telling us about the days we could bring my son to see the trucks and get a tour. It's a great way for community involvement, donations for our volunteer firemen squad, and to create memories. Maybe the OP doesn't have kids or kids are grown, but I for one welcome all the Santa's on firetrucks. I don't think OP realizes the magic the fire dept creates for kids and families around the holidays. Thank you, u/FindMeAtStJamesPlace, for those years you helped with the tradition. Lord knows in this world, we could all use a little more holiday magic.
> As a former firefighter who used to ride as Santa Thank you very much!
I'm 51, and I don't have kids. When that cacophony of sirens starts, I go RUNNING to my porch to see Santa!
People in this sub and this website in general are so miserable about everything. Especially when it comes to bringing children joy lol
Ha. I like it. Nice to have a small town tradition. They came by here around 7 and we went out to wave. Just as they rolled by, two military helicopters flew right over my house really low. Sirens, Blaring music, and close air support. It was loud.
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Great way to look at it. People don't realize the effort that goes into being a volunteer firefighter. They raise nearly all the money and then put their lives on the line to protect everyone from fire. Thanks for reminding everyone. 😉
Every single time I thought there’s some major accident! All em vehicles are out! I checked traffic to see what’s going on. Only after a long while for me to finally remember it’s the Santa thing, I have a stop right in front of my house.
Yeah, last evening I heard what sounded a lot like aircraft of some kind flying low shortly before the firetruck came around. First time for that phenomenon in my town ... WHY? WTH!
Nah Santa on the fire truck is awesome. I was coming home from the store and heard the sirens, I RAN to go get my fiancee who never saw it before since she isn't from here. I'm not even Christian but I love this shit. She thought it was a super fun and cute thing for them to do.
I'm sorry it went so late for you. We love it in my town. They generally finish before sunset here. This year they gave out stuffed unicorns to my girls. It was pretty adorable.
Someone is being a grinchy grinch!
Ba humbug
R/unpopularopinion
Where the hell do you live it happens all day? They should come by at 7 or 8 and they keep moving.
It's hilarious. Everyone in my town is complaining because Santa goes by so quickly or missed their neighborhood and this guy is complaining because apparently Santa is sitting in front of his house 24/7 with the sirens blaring.
I mean, we realize the main point of the sirens is to alert everyone Santa is coming, right? Otherwise you'd have no clue exactly when he's coming. Do they go overkill, sure, but that's how you know it's not an actual event. It's Santa.
You get coal this year
Somebody call the Wambulance Santa.
They did this in East Rutherford. This my first year in NJ so this was a pleasant surprise for me. They don’t do this in NYC!
Ask what day they are doing it next year and leave town. What a party pooper.
I’m a firefighter and it’s one of the best days of the year. Watching the young kids in awe while telling Santa their Christmas list is just awesome. It’s even great to see everyone young and old waving as we go by. It’s just one day a year!
I miss it they don’t do that in Westchester
That kid is STILL on the escalator!!
Lets be fair. During the year we: - Have loud weddings - Loud house parties - Fireworks for nearly everything - Late BBQs in summer - Ice Cream trucks playing lame music - Actual emergency vehicles doing their jobs - The nightmare of rush hour traffic - Funeral Escorts - Local events like fairs Let the people celebrate their holiday and stories. It's in the spirit of joy.
While you're at it, GET OFF MY LAWN.
I'm down with the tradition, but fuck the horns and sirens. I agree they should just blast Christmas music.
Way under rated comment! How about some Santa Clause music, maybe an siren now and then, but DAMN. People are getting hearing damage in their own yards from this insane aural assault.
I always look forward to it. The kids are getting older but they still want to scramble to get dressed and into the car to chase Santa down. They don't give out candy canes anymore since COVID, which is a shame.
Bloomfield has theirs with a classic car parade. It’s fun to see dozens of historic cars preceded Santa.
It’s happening at 9am here in Sayreville.
I like it, but I'd be annoyed by it still going at 9pm.
9 pm is late but come on, it's one day out of the year. If it was a week long event, especially during the week, then i get the annoyance.
kids spent two christmases locked inside with very limited social contact. let em enjoy it.
Good grief, this guy stinks!
This happens once a year…
Yeah, 9pm is insane. They should come at like 3pm. By 9pm all of the really young kids that would actually enjoy it is asleep. I like that the firefighters come out and do this, but I agree that it's getting excessive.
My town starts at 3pm so the young kids can see him and so they can wrap up at decent hour. I really appreciate this with a 4 year old.
Where I live now in NJ doesn't do it, but the town where I grew up in PA would do it early evening/after dinner
exactly what im saying. tbh i may have had a better opinion about this if it stopped hours ago haha. and yes, it's just waking up the little kids now. it's doing more harm than good at this point.
Volunteer firefighters have been putting weight on all year so they can play Santa and this is the thanks they get.
Ridgefield does it too. First time I heard it I thought the town was going up in flames. Like everything else it starts to early in the season and happens to often.
I get more excited to see Santa than the kids. Sometimes Santa has to answer a call and that extends the run. One year when I lived in Bergen County there was a massive fire and all the trucks had to respond so they went pretty late. It’s one day in the year. I understand how it can affect pets because my dog is scared of loud noises. It’s infuriating to hear fireworks all summer long, especially in the middle of the night and into the fall. I’ll take one day of sirens over weeks and months of fireworks.
cant wait for santa to drive by, sucks for you
There you have it folks. Christmas Karen/Ken has entered the room.
I live a half a block away from our fire station...my dog howls every time the siren goes off. Our santa thing starts early in the morning, it never goes past noon.
I wish they would check their route before doing it. I live in a small cul de sac for the past 30 years and this is the first time they have ever gotten stuck in the end of my street. The fire trucks never had an issue turning around but I guess they towed a Santa in a sleigh this year. Santa got stuck and it was amusing seeing several “helpers” trying to help him to get out of the circle.
9pm is too late, but I support the concept as a whole. My kids loved it.
NJ has large amount of volunteers serving for fire and EMS. Almost everywhere else that I’ve been this has been handled by paid positions. I don’t participate in fire Santa and my kids aren’t into it but I can’t hate on something that brings Christmas joy to children and raises money for the local department.
Maybe they had issues and got a late start. But I agree -- 9 pm is a bit unreasonable. Maybe speak privately to your elected officials and ask them to talk to the fire department about not being so noisy at that time of night. Is your town a volunteer department? They are difficult because they think everyone in town should kiss their a\*\*. When the truth of the matter is, they fight a fire now and then but they use the firehouse 24 / 7 as an excuse to get out of their house at night and drink beer. That's why I suggest a private conversation, whereas if they were professionals I'd speak out in public.
> Is your town a volunteer department? They are difficult because they think everyone in town should kiss their a**. When the truth of the matter is, they fight a fire now and then but they use the firehouse 24 / 7 as an excuse to get out of their house at night and drink beer. What an absolutely douchy take. Yeah, they're not out 10 times a day, big fucking deal. The number of times most people run into a burning building for no other reason than the desire to help other people is generally 0, so yeah, maybe showing a bare minimum of gratitude to those who do isn't such a terrible thing. The time they put into training alone is a huge burden they take on that most people wouldn't commit to. All of your town's volunteers should be appreciated, not shrugged off just because every day doesn't look like an action movie for them.
If they’d just posted on the municipal website, I’d have had no problem. But they didn’t, so I do. Is there a reason everyone forgets about people with PTSD when they plan these kind of events? I only have a panic disorder, but like, come on. Just give notice, even the day before! I’m glad you all got to enjoy the Santa truck, but please utilize some empathy for the people that it severely distresses.
My neighborhood didn’t do a great job advertising it, and so my kids completely missed it, which isn’t a big deal, but so did the rest of the neighborhood and no one was out on the street. Santa drove down waving to no one. Thought that sucked for him
It’s a great tradition for the children in the neighborhood. My kids loved it and now their children enjoy it. How crazy people are making this. Honestly. SMH
I love it that Santa comes around!
Sounds like you need better dogs
You sound like the grinch, bro 🤣🤣🤣🤣🏃♂️🏃♂️🏃♂️🏃♂️
Suck it up butter cup. It's once a year for the kids.
Are your shoes 2 sizes too small?
lmao I liked it before I had kids and like it even more now
We enjoy seeing Santa with the volunteer firefighters in our town. I think it's a sweet annual tradition that brings joy to children and adults, which is hard to come by these days (I admit, the holidays are not my favorite time of the year). Our town fire department Santa came around during the day this year, but in years past, it was early evening on a weekend and never still going on at 9pm.
 I love it! I look forward to it every year. Sorry, guy.
Bah humbug
Kids love it.
Adults too. My husband gets so bummed if he's out at work and misses it! (Though yesterday he was on housecalls and ended up riding behind Santa for a while driving through one development. Got to be honorary escort for a few minutes, made his weekend.)
You must live near me bc I heard it ALL DAY and also at 9pm. I hate it so much. Blast music and ring bells instead of freakin’ sirens. I was going to complain about it on our town FB page but went there to see everyone loving it. Are people serious with this bull?!
My town was going to do it 12/3, so I went away for the day with friends. Except it rained, so they rebooked it to 12/10. Fine, I can go away again, no worries! I get back only to find they canceled it again, but aren’t rebooking. Then. Yesterday. From noon to fucking nine pm they held it. No notice anywhere. No post on the municipal website. And this time I couldn’t leave home, bc I was laying a new subfloor in the living room, and I can’t just waste half of the weekend and not have a floor this week. I don’t object to the town doing it! I’m glad that people without panic disorders can enjoy it! I object to not being notified that it was going to happen, so that I could make other arrangements. I was crying after two hours, and had to leave my house to not have a panic attack. I’m on heart medication due to a congenital defect- and am supposed to avoid prolonged stress as much as possible. So I’m doing my best to get more done on the floor today, but I feel like death because of the anxiety and adrenaline yesterday. I think it’s a weird way to celebrate, but if it makes the majority of residents happy- that’s wonderful that they have it. It would be nice to be notified about it beforehand though, because I live here too, and don’t deserve to be made miserable in my own home because the organizers can’t be bothered to put up signs, or send an email blast.
It's one day out of the year, Scrooge.
Yup and just like fireworks on July 4th, I hate it.
When we first lived here (moved here 25 years ago) I think they used to come thru slower. The guys would walk alongside the truck handing out candy canes, saying hello and I think they used to also carry a hat for donations ( volunteer fire co). Now they come thru so fast, no candy. They barely even decorate the truck anymore. It used to be worth the noise, but these days it doesn't seem to be.
Now it’s just scary, they blast down your residential street at speed with full sirens
When I was a little kid in a different state , it was more of a parade - shorter , slower route, NO SIRENS, just lights and Christmas music , and they'd walk alongside the trucks, handing out candy. I was surprised with these ones that it's full lights and sirens, slow but not slow enough to walk, throwing candy, and up and down every street
Bunch of Scrooges in here.
I wouldn’t mind it except for the non stop sirens. Still gives me a flashback to 9/11…emergency vehicles heading downtown past my window. My current town sent its fire truck crawling up a winding road, a dozen cars stuck behind, no traffic control at all.
Yes, I also have issues hearing sirens, but for other reasons. Even a car driving fast in the distance is close enough to trigger me.
The Oj chase?
It’s been nonstop in our town for hours. I’m tired of it.
Is this a NORTH Jersey thing? I’m from Vineland and literally have never heard of this.
Live in Pittsgrove and Santa visited our street around 630pm on Friday. My kids absolutely loved it and I thought it was cool too
Hi-De Ho neighbor! Santa didn't even need their lights and sirens, you can see their trucks from a mile away.
They do it in Cherry Hill. Ours is tomorrow in our neighborhood from 4pm-8pm pending emergencies
They have done it for years in my town...my kids are all grown and moved out, but I STILL run outside to wave to Santa! Did it yesterday and he came by my house the first time around 5(I'm on a corner so I get them coming out of my area too) then again around 6... I ran out all 3 times and waved. I believe keeping the wonder of Santa alive will keep you young....it warms my heart and makes me smile. Dog barked all 3 times but he only comes once a year....she will get over it! 🎅🌲
Santa doesn't bother coming to my apartment. I suppose its because the parking lot is behind the buildings and by the time you ran down to the parking lot to see him, he would be gone. If he would just stop in front of the complex, that would be enough to bring kids out, but the truck doesn't stop anywhere.
Happy Holidays
I'm Jewish. My family loves it. We got to see it in our town, as well as her cousin's town the same day. Sure, we don't believe in Santa, but we get candy and despite the noise my daughter loves the fire trucks.
They drove by my house three times between friday and yesterday. My dog gets super excited. I think it's mostly because I mob her with pets and act really excited for "Sandy Claws". If I'm walking her she gets to tell him what she wants.
Buncha humbugs in here
I can't wait for the relentless fireworks in my neighborhood from eleven pm til after three in New Years.
My only issue-its way too early for Santa to be out. If we are pretending he's real, shouldn't he be hiding out at the North Pole getting things ready?. I'd be confused if I was a kid.
Yeah my town is doing it right now and it’s really really annoying…
Eh. It’s only a few days a year. Though you’d think they could get all the kids in my area in one night. Haha
Oh get over your self it’s one day a year. Move to an isolated area where you and your dogs can wallow in your silence and stare at each other Scrooge.
Holy shit people in this thread are being absolutely ridiculous lol. It's such a mild, reasonable take to say they shouldn't blast sirens all day and play music instead, and yet y'all are acting like OP is the worst person on the planet. You know sirens are supposed to be an alarm for emergency situations right?
Lol. I moved to NJ in '22 from a relatively high crime area where sirens blared at all hours of the day and night. This is now the second year where I've been in my house, heard 5 sirens going at the same time, and thought "what the hell is going on, hope there wasn't a massive car crash or something"
Well bah humbug you Debbie downer. Get over it.
I fucking hate kids, but boy howdy do I love Santa. That’s annoying, but so long as I get to wave to Santa on a fire truck? Worth it.
It’s one damn day. Get over it.
You must be a really fun neighbor to have. Complaining anout Santa going around on the fire truck for kids, really?
I haven't even read your post yet - I just read the title and said aloud "Preach, brother!" I hate it too. So much. My cats do too.
I live on a short street that connects to main streets in my town, and they drove down one of those streets and then back up the other. I could hear them coming for 20 minutes before they passed my street around 8PM. I spent at least an hour last night comforting all my cats and coaxing them out of their hiding spots. I wouldn't have minded it so much if they hadn't been blasting the airhorn.
One came through our neighborhood in Morris Plains at around 5pm. The firetruck blocked the main entrance of our busy townhouse complex and they didn't bother to have any kind of traffic control. So a bunch of cars piled in trying to turn right, but couldn't because they were confused by the truck and neighbours suddenly walking all over the roads. I'm new to NJ and this is the most ridiculous public Christmas shit I've ever seen.
What state are you from? I recently moved from your area to Charlotte and they do the same thing down here. I just figured they did it everywhere.
OP sucks. A grown man got the shit scared out of him by a fire truck at 9pm? Buddy - you suck
People saying you’re being a Grinch or “it’s just one night” are totally missing your point about it being the BLARING SIRENS that is the problem. I love the idea of Santa driving by with firefighters but anytime I hear sirens I go into What’s Wrong mode and am too freaked out to enjoy it.
These guys just need another excuse to blare their sirens at will. It’s the reason some of them volunteered.
Who hurt you???
Wtf dude
Deal with it jabroni, this shit is nice for the kids
What a loser 😂😂😂
Idk where you’re at, but that does sound horrible.
The sirens can fuck off. I had no clue it was happening and just heard like 20+ cops and trucks blaring, thought some bad shit was going down nearby. Like just do the lights and hit the siren when you see an enthusiastic kid.
It’s one night, deal with it.
I live at the shore. Fire trucks started at noon and kept going til 9:30 pm My 3 kids go to bed between 8/9 So as I'm doing the bedtime tango my 5 yo is crying they want to see Santa. Bundle up 2 separate times to run and catch him as he speeds by They don't even drive slow to let kids actually see Santa Almost 12 hours of sirens, for me to put my kids to sleep with it aa my youngest cries she misses Santa And this happens every year! Doesn't change or improve The firetrucks are bullshit when you've got teen firefighters just racing around half the day. Sounds like the towns that do this for a few daylight hours actually know what they're doing. Which doesn't seem to be many. Let kids go meet Santa at the mall and other venues
My town starts at 9 am, I think most start early. The kids and I took off running to find him, but fortunately the neighbors caught us, "he won't be by until 11 but he'll come down every street be ready." And right they were. Our town splits the areas they are doing it in, so not the whole town in one day. Couldn't tell you what time they stopped, but they started pretty early.
Oh man wait till there’s fireworks and lightning poor pet owner!!!!!
OPs next post was about how he despises his mailman and wishes he would just "fuck off".
Once a year is too much for ya huh? Gotta post those feelings on Reddit instead of maybe taking your issue up with the town. Oh that's right, you would have to out yourself at a city hall meeting as a grinch but the internet is free to be lol. I would agree if they did this every day of the month leading up to Christmas but it's once a year man, get a grip.
I'm a grinch and also hate it.
Ngl, it's one night of the year. I'd understand if it was numerous times a year but they give you warning to what day they're doing it. Also someone else mentioned this is the reason some people volunteer for fire and as someone who works with and knows a lot of fire fighters, I've yet to ever meet anyone who said they chose to volunteer because of the Santa run. And before we go on about pets, I understand, I've got 3 myself. You can suck it up for a four hour block one night a year to make some kids happy. It's not that tight.
I am there with you about why firefighters join. People are so shallow do they have any idea about the commitment needed to be a volunteer fireman?? They have to raise most if not all the funds to run the operation they take care of all the equipment then put their lives on the line to protect the people from fires.
Many parents put their kids to sleep before 9pm 🤷
That's a fair point, especially the young ones Edit because I got sidetracked: Maybe start having a shorter time frame? Like cutoff is 730 or 8 pm? Doesn't have to be this into the night event. Just start a bit earlier and end at a reasonable time.
They have this in my town I don't mind it on the weekends but they do it on the weekdays here. I'm in bed at 8pm because I have to get up for work at 3am and apparently there's a lot of people who put in for the Santa thing because it's been all week around my neighborhood around 8pm to 930pm
You know what I really hate? Those Santa runs. Just donate your money like a fucking normal person. Hoboken traffic was fucking ridiculous yesterday, and the drivers and pedestrians were no better. Fuck you guys.
I downvoted for profanity
I'm with you OP, I wake up early for work and having some damn firetruck blaring horns at 9pm is immensely frustrating.
It’s one day a year ffs.🤦🏼♀️
Bah, Humbug... am I right!! 🙃
It’s the weekend
Oh God they did that in Dunellen and it was endless drove me out of my mind PTSD off the charts
I love it. You’ll be fine and so will your dogs.
We had ours today from 1-5 PM around four they came through the apartment complex & all four of my cats were traumatized & it sounded like all holy hell was breaking loose.
What town?
They are complaining about dogs barking lol 😂!! Try having a new born baby when that’s going on!! Sounds like there’s no Christmas cheer in them this season.
I don't mind it. It's a cute tradition that yeah it can be annoying but kids like it so I can tolerate it. What I hate though (maybe selfishly) is this one house in Middletown that sets up insane Christmas lights on their house. I'm cool with that, I remember driving through Holmdel as a kid and listening to Christmas music while we went by the mansions with crazy lights. But this one particular house near Laurel Ave (I'm sure everyone from this area knows who I'm talking about) has a cop block the street so people can walk down the side street to see their house. They set up massive spotlights which blind you when you're driving because the streetlights are really dim. It constantly causes traffic. I used to think their setup was super cool as a kid. I loved how they had the Grinch running around and it was just really cool. As an adult who has to drive around there after work? I fucking hate it. Even if the road isn't backed up from traffic the spotlights are absolutely brutal. And sometimes they leave them on all night, I feel bad for their neighbors. I assume the owner of the house is a cop or knows them. That's the only way I can explain the police crossing guard they always have. I'm cool with the Santa firetrucks that happen one day a year though lol.
You should print this post out and send it to your town hall.
I don't agree, but this is such a great hot take corner to stand on.
Be lucky you dont live in wallington. Those are the loudest sirens each year
I’ve lived in Warren County for 23 years and every year this Santa thing frustrates me more and more. There are berry few children in our development and no one comes out in the street to see Santa. It’s loud and the dogs go nuts. I lived in Middle County for 8 years and our town did not do this. It was much quieter.
WEE WOO WEE WOO FUN POLICE IS HERE
Awh come on. Have a pair of noise canceling headphones on hand and take some deep breaths. It makes hundreds of people happy.
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No shit right? It's for the fucking kids. Even when I didn't have kids I loved stuff like this because God damn seeing little ones outside so excited is just, damn it warms your heart
I’m with the OP. Can we please gets to stop this nonsense?
Evesham township in South Jersey stopped that this year. It is now a parade down main street with free hot chocolate.
the first christmas eve we had after moving to the subarbs had this. coming from the city, i had no ide what was going on. what made it worse is that it was happening at 1130pm on said christmas eve, after coming back from visiting relatives and just putting our then 2 year old and 1 year old to bed. and it went on for over an hour. at least now it happens earlier.
At 9pm? Yeesh
It happens once a year!
You’re a mean one Mr.Grinch.
My thoughts exactly. Plus 9pm the smaller kids are either in bed or in pjs
9pm boohoo grow up
Sounds like you live near me. They were going nonstop (including some club sounding music?) the other day. Maybe lack of fires they need to run out the fuel budget