# Is it just me or are those inflatable decorations less prevalent this year?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [December 14, 2007, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931 "2007-12-14T00:14:05Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/1 "2007-12-14T00:14:05Z")
Maybe it’s just my neighborhood, but I’m seeing less of those god-awful gigantic nightmare-fuel inflatable Christmas decorations on people’s lawns this year. Last year, we had one dude up the street that had an inflatable snowglobe with Frosty the Snowman inside it. It was hooked up to a blower that made fake snow fly around inside it. Every time my brother-in-law saw it, he darkly muttered something about a BB gun. I also saw a lot of inflatable giant Santa Clauses and one really exceptionally awesome house two streets over from us had a full inflatable Nativity scene. Boy howdy, you haven’t lived until you’ve seen inflatable Mary patting inflatable baby Jesus with her backlit, wobbling, rubbery hand.
My point being, none of those people have inflatable crap in their yards this year. I’m wondering if the fad is passing, or whether they were all BB-gunned out of commission last year, or what. Any anecdotal evidence?
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### Author:  [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/2 "2007-12-14T01:28:34Z")
double post/blame the hamsters
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### Author:  [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/3 "2007-12-14T01:29:22Z")
I’m seeing more of them, but that’s probably because fads take awhile to make their way to the boonies, so we’re late ditching them.
Santa on a motorcycle? I’ve seen three of those.
I kinda like the one that looks like a snowglobe.
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### Author:  [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/4 "2007-12-14T01:33:55Z")
God, they’re multiplying like feral cats around here. Ugh and yuck. I’m not sure which one I hate more: the carousel or Santa on the motorcycle.
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### Author:  [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/5 "2007-12-14T01:35:53Z")
One yard on the way to town has Santa on the motorcycle, Santa driving a car (there’s a light inside to make the headlights shine and elves or penguins in the back) and a lit from the inside igloo with penguins frolicking on it.
I’d like to sneak a mannequin under the wheels of Santa’s ride.
Maybe shoot the penguins with a .410.
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### Author:  [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/6 "2007-12-14T01:46:48Z")
Many many many more.
Every other house on my block either has an giant inflatable, a giant _singing_ inflatable or a herd of lit up re-animated reindeer skeletons. The next door neighbor has a house high inflatable of Sponge Bob with a Santa hat. The one next to that has a pair of dueling musical inflatable snow globes.
I live on a SW Walmart Way.
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### Author:  [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/7 "2007-12-14T01:50:01Z")
[QUOTE=koeeoaddi]
The one next to that has a pair of dueling musical inflatable snow globes.
[/QUOTE]
I… I have no words.
Ye gods.
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### Author:  [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/8 "2007-12-14T01:58:01Z")
[QUOTE=koeeoaddi]
a pair of dueling musical inflatable snow globes.
[/QUOTE]
We’re not talking swords or pistols at twenty paces, right?
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### Author:  [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/9 "2007-12-14T02:16:51Z")
[QUOTE=carnivorousplant]
We’re not talking swords or pistols at twenty paces, right?
[/QUOTE]
Would that we were. No, we’re talking about two elephantine inflatable snow globes playing unsynchronized perky yuletide dreck, simultaneously.
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### Author:  [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/10 "2007-12-14T02:25:31Z")
[QUOTE=koeeoaddi]
playing unsynchronized perky yuletide dreck, simultaneously.
[/QUOTE]
Ah, but our potential for mayhem increases if we can gain control of the audio.
Say, [Kol Haneshama](http://www.kolhaneshama.com/) Hebrew satellite radio.
Of course, if you could get the other one to do something in Arabic…
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### Author:  [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/11 "2007-12-14T02:27:27Z")
A friend of mine’s son is fascinated by inflatable yard decorations. They have a collection of them for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Og knows what else. I’ll be staying with them over the Christmas holidays, so I’ll get to see the latest additions. Last year they had a snowman and a Santa that went up and down a chimney, and I’m pretty sure he was telling me they’d bought another recently.
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### Author:  [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/12 "2007-12-14T02:29:46Z")
I only wish. More than ever around here, too. There are two on the lawn kitty-corner from us.
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### Author:  [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/13 "2007-12-14T02:32:34Z")
[QUOTE=LurkMeister]
A friend of mine’s son is fascinated by inflatable yard decorations. They have a collection of them for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Og knows what else.
[/QUOTE]
A house down the street from me is absolutely devoted to these things - I’m not sure there’s any time of the year when they are entirely absent. Presumably they have thousands invested (what do the stupid things cost?).
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### Author:  [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/14 "2007-12-14T02:37:33Z")
[QUOTE=carnivorousplant]
Ah, but our potential for mayhem increases if we can gain control of the audio.
Say, [Kol Haneshama](http://www.kolhaneshama.com/) Hebrew satellite radio.
Of course, if you could get the other one to do something in Arabic…
[/QUOTE]
I have no imagination, I was sort of thinking a hat pin would fix me right up. You are _so_ hired!
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### Author:  [@AHoosierMama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHoosierMama)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/15 "2007-12-14T15:21:03Z")
Inflatables spotted this week (in addation to ones already mentioned upthread):
Santa in a Nascar with elves as the pit crew
Santa bass fishing
Santa in shorts with a margarita under a palm tree
One neighbor has the huge house-high Santa that keeps deflating, but they faithfully keep pumping it back up.
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### Author:  [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/16 "2007-12-14T15:26:36Z")
[QUOTE=carnivorousplant]
One yard on the way to town has Santa on the motorcycle,
[/QUOTE]
Two Motorcycle Santas this morning. One of them has a sidecar. I couldn’t see what was in it in the twilight; something large and black. Either a huge penguin with waving wings or Death with his scythe. I rather like the latter; sort of evens out the Holiday Spirit.
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### Author:  [@Canadiangirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadiangirl)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/17 "2007-12-14T15:39:25Z")
Santa in shorts with a margarita under a palm tree
I can’t imagine how that looks…and funny, too! Wonder how it would look with a foot and a half of snow around it.
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### Author:  [@Sublata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublata)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/18 "2007-12-14T15:46:24Z")
They haven’t abated in the slightest around here.
What’s funny is when people don’t keep them properly inflated and they start looking droopy and depressed, or completely deflated, lying on the ground, dead. Yes, kids, Santa is DEAD. Bwahahahahaha! The other day I saw a partially deflated giant snowman; his head was drooping forward and down so far that it looked like he was performing an unspeakable act on himself. Merry Christmas, indeed.
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### Author:  [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/19 "2007-12-14T16:32:22Z")
My brother-in-law has a whole Nascar set-up this year with three Santa clones racing in stock cars from Lowe’s, Home Depot and Menard’s. With an elfin pit crew assisting. :rolleyes:
Tacky as I may think it is (and I do think it is), a much bigger “fuck you” to the shit who thought s/he needed to express his or her views by throwing a slab of ice at their old inflatable snowglobe. Nothing says “Holiday spirit” like vandalism, asshole.
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### Author:  [@ethelbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ethelbert)
#### Post date: [December 14, 2007, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-are-those-inflatable-decorations-less-prevalent-this-year/429931/20 "2007-12-14T16:44:20Z")
My brother has two of the Homer Santas. He puts them up on Christmas day and takes them down the day after Christmas. He claims this puts the Christ back in Christmas because when people see them they say “Jesus F\*\*king Christ!”.
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