NEWS

DSC 2844One of my favorite Christmas memories is watching “A Christmas Story” with my parents on Christmas Eve. In one of the opening scenes, Ralphie presses his face against the glass of a storefront window display in wonderment, totally transfixed by the magic of Christmas and the promise of great presents waiting under the tree. I was always somewhat jealous of Ralphie’s glamorous old-timey Christmas shopping experience, because we just don’t see grand storefront displays anymore—they’ve been traded in for plastic penguins and inflatable reindeer.

Abe’s Hidden Treasures in downtown New Carlisle is bringing back the holiday storefront display, which will be alight along Main Street every night of the week beginning this Friday. Roy Kegley, owner of Abe’s Hidden Treasures, said the display has caused some folks to circle back and drive around the block twice, so that they can get a better glimpse of the tiny village, complete with little people engaged in various sorts of winter activities.

Kegley said the display caught the eye of a woman driving through from Kansas, who stopped to view the scene before stopping in.

“You’d be surprised how many people get out and look,” Kegley said. “We just really like Christmas, and we wanted to take advantage of the storefront.”

The consignment shop, located at 131 South Main, has been doing business in New Carlisle for five years now, and has been displaying the miniature Christmas village since last year when they moved to the Main Street location. Offering a varying selection of household goods, furniture, and miscellaneous items, Kegley said they honored customer requests to carry Warm Glow candles so that shoppers don’t have to drive to an outlet or main store in Indiana. Abe’s Hidden Treasures’ holiday hours will begin this Friday, November 27, opening seven days per week. Call 846-1008 for more information and for store hours.

One thing I’ve noticed is that we still have that “old-timey” small-town shopping experience here in New Carlisle and Medway, and if I do participate in the Black Friday madness, it will be at our local shops, where I know that I can score gifts for my loved ones that weren’t mass-produced in some foreign factory. It’s not hard to find something really cool in our downtown shops to wrap up under the tree this year. Stop in and see Trish at Comfort and Joy and let her tell you about the unique new items she’s just received, then run over to World Threads and check your mom and daughter both off the list with stylish new clothes that suit all ages. Go in to the Card Depot and see Madge while browsing her huge selection of antiques and home décor items, and don’t forget to stop at Penny Lane before the shopping excursion to grab a hot cup of liquid energy. Perhaps your teenage daughter is picky and hard-to-shop-for, so pop in to the new Style Loft boutique and see what they have to offer. The Bobo Service Plaza alone is a wealth of options, with sweet treats, vinyls, graphic designs, a restaurant, and even a salon now, so maybe consider a gift certificate for someone to put to good use in the future.

Every dollar we spend at big-box retailers only helps to add to the accounts of some corporate fat cat, already rich many times over, but when we buy from the stores owned by our neighbors, we help them put their kids through college or fix the furnace that just went out.

Yes, it’s convenient to complete your shopping list with one fell swoop at a chain store, but if you have the time and the means this year, put forth that extra effort to see what you can find in New Carlisle first, before resorting to the corporate route.

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