That’s what it’s called.  Even though it is actually a visualization of death.  See, each light on this tree represents a life lost on a North Carolina road in the past year.  Those who died in an alcohol-related fatality are represented by red lights.  This tree has 1453 lights and 440 red lights.

This tree with its tragic lights is on the grounds of the capitol each December.  And each year our family stops and looks and reads the numbers and feels the sadness and thinks about the people and the families behind each lightbulb.   It’s powerful.

Raleigh is decked out in holiday finery and ready for company.

The weekend of December 12-13 was a big one in the Downtown Raleigh area featuring beautiful holiday decorations and live music by local performers.  There was the annual Historic Oakwood Candlelight Tour, the holiday open house at the Governor’s Mansion, and the holiday open house at the N.C. Capitol Building.

The elaborate decorations at the Governor’s Mansion take six months of planning, and it takes 15 people four days to put them up!  One of the Christmas trees is a tree decorated with items special to North Carolina and its people.  It’s covered in dogwood flowers, pine cones, cardinals, seashells, acorns, and sanddollars.  Another special tree is decorated with more than 650 ornaments made by the sons and daughters of N.C. military service personnel.

Walking around and taking in the sights this time of year is always a satisfying family activity.  And a chill in the air just seems to add the finishing touch.

That’s Life in Raleigh.

This is a truck we saw traveling west on I-40 Labor Day Weekend.

They’re baaaack!

The students at N.C. State have poured back into Raleigh for the start of the fall semester.

Did we miss them this summer?

Um, not so much.  While they were gone, things were a little calmer, a little cleaner, and a little quieter.  We could actually drive down Hillsborough Street—even with all of the intense construction of the soon-to-be new-and-improved Hillsborough Street.  All the streets near campus were wide and clear, free of all the parked cars.  And driving near the campus without having any close encounters with pedestrians is a special treat.  We could even eat at the restaurants and frequent the businesses on Hillsborough Street.  I mean find a place to park and everything!  No long lines of scholars at the Harris Teeter weighed down by cheap twelve-packs, either.  So yeah, we enjoy their summer vacation, too.

Raleigh has plenty going on even without a university of twenty-thousand-plus students.  We’re the state capitol.  We have the Research Triangle Park.  Our economy doesn’t rise and fall on the backpacks of college students.

But the heart of our city just may.  With our NCSU students back in town, Raleigh is a richer, more vibrant city, humming with creativity.  Serious creativity.  Barrel Monster, anyone?  We’re younger, hipper, and smarter.  The brain power, enthusiasm, and sheer energy concentrated in that part of our city makes Raleigh a better and more exciting place to be.

Memories of long, carefree college days come flooding back at the sight of all these throngs of young Wolfpackers.  Who can see all these young adults and not wax nostalgic about the Ed’s Grocery of yesteryear and the Circus Room at Darryl’s?  Add to that the fact that Sidney Lowe is back on campus, and I feel young again and ready to hit that Brickyard for another celebration!  Yep, I was there when Sidney brought it home last time.

So welcome back, N.C. State.  We’re glad you’re here.  Go Wolfpack!

But about that large group of male NCSU students living in the house directly across the street from my home and my two teenaged daughters—well, I’ll save that for another day.

That’s Life in Raleigh.