MACQUARIE Hills is in the grip of a villain. Or is it a hero? It’s the Christmas Light Critic.
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In the past week, residents of the suburb’s Kenley Crescent have switched on their Christmas lights to find, the next day, a note in the mail, with a candy cane.
Each note is a kind of report card, complete with a grade, signed ‘‘Your friendly neighbourhood Christmas Light Critic’’.
Jack, 57, was awarded a D-minus.
‘‘I hope you have just started putting your lights up and there is more to come,’’ his note read.
‘‘Where is your Christmas spirit?’’
Slightly rattled, and finding the line about ‘‘Christmas spirit’’ hard to swallow, Jack bolstered his display. Giant candy canes now stand guard over his shrubs, and neon flowers send shadows darting across the lawn.
When he scored the D-minus, Jack was still waiting on a package of lights he ordered online.
‘‘It’s not really nasty, but it’s a bit rude,’’ he said.
‘‘They don’t know people’s circumstances.’’
The house across from Jack received a C-minus.
Further up the street, Glenn and Jo Currington also found the critic’s calling card. They got a B.
The Curringtons’ report card hints at the critic’s softer side.
‘‘I can see your vision with the lights and like where its [sic] headed,’’ it reads.
‘‘Looking forward to next year ... PS I love the tree in the window.’’
Mrs Currington said she was ‘‘highly amused’’, and hadn’t realised the critic was critiquing other houses. She left a reply stuck to her letterbox, asking if additional lights would improve her grade, signed ‘‘Your friendly Christmas lights putter uppers’’.
‘‘We took it as a bit of fun, that’s why we responded,’’ Mr Currington said.
They haven’t had a reply.
In a street where residents wave hello but are reluctant to speak on the record, theories on the critic abound. Neighbours privately suspect each other. Facebook rumour has it that surrounding streets have been struck. For some, including Jack, this urban mystery needs to be solved.
‘‘Maybe they should come out and let everyone have a look at their lights,’’ he said.
‘‘Or at least give their reasons.’’
