Christmas comes but once a year, and for Ted Kresge it lasts a good eight months. That's how long it takes the 62-year-old karate-instructor-turned-missionary, his wife, Kim, 45, and a dozen volunteers to install—and then take down—five truckloads of twinkling bulbs and animated figures that each year turn the couple's modest St. Petersburg, Fla., home into a 55,000-watt light show. The 110,000 bulbs—each and every one hand-painted by the couple and their elves to withstand the sun—draw hundreds of visitors a night and boost the Kresges' monthly electric bill by $ 1,100 (even though the talking bear runs on batteries). Surprisingly, nearby residents are happy and don't want to be de-lighted. Says neighbor Mary Lou Eckhardt: "It's a bright spot."
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