There are things in this world I can tolerate and there are things I cannot. Hanging Christmas lights falls under the latter category.

I’ve bemoaned the annual task several times in this space before. At our old house in Ocheyedan, the chore fell on yours truly with no other options in sight. It was an intricate battle of wills between my wife and I up north, but now that we’ve moved to Hartley, I’m kicking my legs up – this year, at least.

I absolutely hated hanging lights at the Ocheyedan home. We strung them around the gutters on all four sides, and I’d always wait to do it on...