Small done Right.... Friday night Soup and Sweets Stroll in the Village...

There are so many wonderful events happening this time of year.  My favorite is the annual Detroit Thanksgiving Day Parade that travels down Woodward Avenue each year.  As a young boy my sisters and I participated in this annual event through our participation in a precision marching drill team.  I know that may seem like an unfamiliar extra curricular activity to most.   Our elementary school happened to have a teacher that was a patriotic guy who put this group together and brought it to life.  When I stop to consider what he and the group of parent volunteers accomplished in this group... well... it was a thing of beauty.

He taught and instilled in this group of elementary school age kids things that are sorely needed in today's kids.  Thinking of the term "precision" as the main element of this group... we were... well... precise.  Not only in the way we dressed in our uniforms, hats, metal heel cleated boots (polished for every event), long pants with stripe down the side for boys and perfectly pleated skirts for girls.  We were taught to stand at attention in military fashion.  We were taught to perform in perfect lock step harmony never looking anywhere but straight ahead.

Please... for your own fun today... click on this link... and you can play with a giant clown balloon with your mouse... careful this could suck you in for hours of fun?  

http://www.theparade.org/

The point of this brief description is all to say that we marched down Woodward Avenue every year for the annual turkey day event... and that was back in the day when Santa arrived at the J.L. Hudson building for his reception  key to the city, and flight to Santa's Wonderland up in the still then standing Hudson's department store.  

We loved to perform and my roll in this group was fairly simple.  Because I was the tallest guy in the group the instructor found me to be best suited to handle a job that at the time I did not appreciate or really understand the meaning.  While my buddies got the job I wanted of flinging fake riffles around while marching in lock step... I was placed in the more conservative position of the colored guard.  My job was to represent our group and I guess in a small way... our country in carrying the American flag.  And so it was... while the guys behind me got the glory of slinging their riffles and precision marching in various every changing flanking patterns... my guys in the colored guard lead the way... in a more conservative... much less action pace.  Years later I began to appreciate and understand the significance of this privilege and honor to carry the American flag.  More on this in a future blog...

Now... fast forward to 2012 and we are past all the turkey day events... including a new way for the Detroit Lions to lose a game on T day... and we are on the thresh hold of Christmas.  With Black Friday and Cyber Monday behind us... we now enter the first full week in December.  That means local small town events like the Soup and Sweet Stroll in the Village of Oxford and the special night time event in the Village of Lake Orion in the wonderful Lake Orion Light Parade.


http://www.facebook.com/downtownoxfordmi?fref=ts

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Oxford-Chamber-of-Commerce-Oxford-MI/98385592375?fref=ts

I am officially inviting you, your family and friends for a bonding experience with "Small Town America".   The activities begin on Friday night in the Village of Oxford, Michigan with the annual "Soup and Sweet's Stroll".   You can purchase a wrist band at "Christmas central" or Centennial Park that gives you a sampling of soups from local restaurants or sweets from local merchants as you stroll through the Village and visit their stores while window shopping.  At 8:01 the Christmas Tree lighting officially takes place... but not before performances and caroling from local high school groups.  Be sure to stop in at local merchants to visit their "Small done Right..." stores.   Your's truly will have the new entry in "The Little Green Store..." open into the evening... we are just south of the activity center on the east side of S Washington.... look for the green light and bright white LED Christmas lights on the front of our store.

Saturday afternoon will kick off the Village of Oxford's noon time Christmas parade which marches down the main street. The great news about small town parades are that for those in the parade... it's over before you know it... while back in the day we marched in the freezing cold with the cold wind shooting down the tunnels effect created by the huge buildings in the city and covering well over a couple of miles of street lined parade goers.  Small town America is different in that you get started...cover several blocks and pack up... go home.  Fun... but in a "Small Done Right..." kind of fun.

But wait... it's not over yet... head down the highway a couple of miles... stop in to a local pub or restaurant to warm up and refuel.  Then when the day grows dark and the newly installed LED street lights come up along with the wonderful assortment of holiday decorative lighting... for the "Lake Orion Light Parade".  It is truly small town America at its best.  Done Right!

http://www.facebook.com/LakeOrionDDA?fref=ts

http://www.facebook.com/orionareachamberofcommerce?fref=ts


Stop in to our new brick and mortar location known as "The Little Green Store" and try out our free samples of chocolate covered cherries, fair trade olive oil, AND our organic candy canes.  Yes Virginia... there is an organic candy cane!    ;)

http://www.facebook.com/donaldman.1?ref=hl

Enjoy it all before it comes and goes....

Best of the holiday season to all of you and your family!

Regards,

Don Sherman