The Unexpected Dangers Of Holiday Decorating In Wyoming

Ask me what my favorite Christmas movie is, and I'll quickly reply "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation." No doubt about it, Clark W. Griswold and his family are relatable, and you know we all have that one relative whom you refer to as 'Eddie.'

I remember watching that movie with my Grandpa, and his cackling in his recliner saying "That stupid idiot" over, and over, and over, and over through the entire movie.

READ MORE: Wyoming's Favorite Christmas Movies

I'm not sure if he laughed harder at the opening road rage scene, when Clark was covered in sap and sticking to everything, or when he fell off the roof while putting up the lights.

The Griswolds' messed-up Christmas festivities aren't the only things that have inspired people for almost 40 years, but Clark's decorating has been featured in many home decor collections. So much so that Good Morning America did a feature story on one particular Clark decoration.

I understand that Hollywood played a huge role in creating the situations Clark got himself into, but in real life, the same things happen to typical Holiday decorators. I was reading a list of the most common holiday injuries in Wyoming, and was pretty surprised by what the most common was.

Even though Clark W. Griswold(ish), accidents occur, which are all preventable, but falling off a ladder, sliding off a light-filled roof, or stapling yourself to the house aren't at the top of the list.

50% of injuries are caused by glass baubles, 29% by falling or collapsing Christmas trees, and 15% by burns or shocks from a string of Christmas lights.

READ MORE: A Casper Children's Author Offers A Holiday Tradition

Honestly, I was shocked by the list of injuries, not because falling off a ladder wasn't toward the top, but because I didn't know what a bauble was and why it caused so many injuries.

Example of a Christmas glass bauble: a decorative ornament, typically spherical and often made of glass or plastic, used to adorn Christmas trees

Yeah, I know, me either. I'd never heard these called "baubles"; my redneck family referred to them as "Christmas bulbs." For 48 years, the tree was full of pretty Christmas bulbs. Now, I get the pleasure of telling everyone they've been saying it wrong all of these years.

I may have to turn it into my own personal drinking game: A swig of a Christmas cocktail every time someone calls the Christmas baubles a bulb.