Mark and Michelle Dabrishus love December, when all of the sight-seers ride by in cars, limos and buses to admire their Christmas lights — all 48,000 of them.
But October and November? Not so much. That's when they climb on the roof and in the trees, untangle electrical cords and set up all of the illuminated Santas, snowmen and assorted critters.
"It was always a family thing we had great fun doing," said Michelle, whose home at 2605 Whiteclift Drive, behind Deep Run Park in western Henrico County, has been a regular on the Tacky Christmas Lights Tour for most of the past decade. "This year, it was just Mark and I."
Their daughters, Jenna and Krista, are students at East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C. Their son, Andrew, plays baseball almost year-round. For Mark and Michelle, the enormous amount of work — and January, when they have to pack everything away, is no prize either — seems to have surpassed the fun.
So Mark and Michelle decided that this will be their last year of decorating the home and yard to the hilt. Further, they want to sell just about all of their decorations and wiring — except for the leg lamp in the window over the garage, the inflated Santa Claus and the singing Christmas tree. Make them an offer, and voila! you could be an instant player on next year's Tacky Lights tour. I mean, this is a house that was cited among the glitziest in the country in the 2007 book "Merry Christmas, America! Megawatt Displays Across the U.S.A."
"We're really torn," Michelle said as we sat in their home on Christmas Eve, carols playing in the background. "It's been lots of fun, but all good things must come to an end."
They'd like to unload "the whole kit and caboodle" to the highest bidder, but they're willing to sell their decorations piecemeal. They announced their intentions in fliers posted at the curb and invited prospective buyers to contact them. So far, they've received several calls of interest. They'd love to find a buyer by next weekend so they don't have to pack up everything again.
They will miss the holiday visitors, who, Michelle said, are "just so nice. You hear so many stories, good and sad."
They also hear many questions:
How long does it take to set up? About 140 hours.
How much does the extra electricity cost? About $450 to $500 for six weeks of illumination.
What does the "FDNY 343" on the roof mean? Fire Department, City of New York. The 343 is the number of firefighters who died in the World Trade Center on Sept. 11. Mark is a longtime firefighter with the Richmond Fire Department.
And, in case you were wondering, there are 17,000 lights in the big silver maple alone.
The Dabrishuses expect to turn off the display for the last time on New Year's Night.
"It'll be very sad," Michelle said. "I'll cry."'
After thinking awhile about the coming end, Mark said maybe this won't be the end forever. Maybe when the kids are off on their own and there aren't colleges to visit and baseball games to watch, a shift in priorities might allow them to consider doing up the house and yard again at Christmas.
"Maybe in three to five years," Mark said, "I might start all over again."
But for now, the decoration plan for next Christmas is clear and simple:
A candle in each window with the leg lamp — made famous in the modern film classic "A Christmas Story" — in the dormer above the garage.
"We love the leg lamp," Michelle said with a laugh.
wlohmann@timesdispatch.com
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