It’s the middle of October, there’s a chill to the air , and Halloween is just around the corner . You know what that means: the very first Christmas decorations are already popping up .
One such display in England is raising a few eyebrows — not because Christmas is over two months away, but because of the potentially NSFW pose Santa is taking on in the display.
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A local store decided to get festive.
At a location of The Range , a U.K.-based retailer of home and leisure stuff, shoppers noticed something that’s being described , in classic British parlance, as “a bit dodgy.” When you see it, you’ll probably understand.
Well, here it is.
It’s your typical inflatable Christmas decoration , the type that people put on their front lawns. It shows Santa Claus bending over, a tad suggestively, to pick up or put down a present. There’s a dog behind him, either biting or humping Santa.
Good news! You can buy your own.
This wasn’t just a display that the store put up to attract shoppers. It’s also an actual product that they sell — so if you want your own version of Santa bending over to take home, you can totally do so.
Is it intentional?
I’m of two minds here. On one hand, the idea here may have been a cute display of Santa putting presents under the tree while a dog nips him on the butt. On the other hand, it’s hard to imagine anything innocent while looking at this display.
What’s with the look on Santa’s face?
Jolly Old Saint Nick ought to have an expression on his face that’s, well, jolly. But this Santa seems to have a pensive, almost regretful expression on his face. There’s just something sad about his eyes.
The retailer seems to be in on the joke.
To their credit, all the descriptions from The Range (including the one on its website where you can buy it for £71.99) offer a wink and a nod at the dodgy nature of this decoration.
They’re taking lemons and making lemonade.
I have a hard time believing the risqué nature of this display is intentional, but The Range is treating it like it’s been intentional all along. I think they’re just making the best of a bad situation, so credit to them.
Everyone’s having fun with it.
When something like this pops up, it’s almost a given that people will be wringing their hands and imploring us to think of the children. But in this case, virtually everyone is on board with the ludicrous display.
Would it have a place in your holiday display?
Some people go all out with inflatable displays, some stick with just lights, and others don’t put up anything. Let us know what your Christmas display is going to look like — and tell us if you’d consider putting something like this on your front lawn — in the comments section.
