MERRY KITSCHMAS!
To compliment my Halloween gallery, here’s a veritable smorgasbord of Christmas simulacra. For those of you who may think I leapfrogged Thanksgiving, like most retailers these days, I offer this colorful cornucopia of holiday mirth, uploaded a mere three days ago. These pictures were taken in Seattle and Leavenworth (not to be confused with the giant prison in Kansas), which is home to the “Bavarian Village,” a feaux German district replete with maypoles and feaux chalets filled with thousands of nutcrackers, tree decorations, ceramic reindeer, and salespeople wearing lederhosen. If you are a photographer of tchotchkes, this rivals even the hallowed “Precious Moments” compound in Missouri. Leavenworth is celebrating “Christkindlmarkt” from November 23rd through the 25th, so if you want to stock up on freaky Christmas items before December, well, there you go. It’s eternally Christmas in this little patch of heaven, so I recommend buying in bulk in the summer months.
The first five pictures were taken in front of Champion’s costume shop over a span of two years. The sixth picture, Frosty, belonged to my neighbor…unfortunately, I slid down the rain-soaked hill with my camera, right into his inflatable display. The Christmas carousel toward the bottom gets trotted out every year to Union Square, which is kitty-corner from Macy’s.
