2019 Northfield Winter Walk Ornament Hunt

Again? People are going to think I’m very Odd!

“A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas”, (how about that original extended book title) commonly known as A Christmas Carol, is a novella (a shorter story) with 5 chapters. He called his chapters staves which are derived from the music “staff”, or the lines in which the notes are drawn. There are 5 lines in a musical staff, 5 “chapters” in the book and 5 lines per clue (if only I had a 5th clue, right?).

T’was my attempt at Old English. We’re doing a Charles Dickens story and it all has to do with the recent past. The September Horseshoe Hunt (yes, a shameless plug for my other annual hunt). I drop the Oliver Twist character to reinforce the theme is of Dickens. A Christmas Carol’s time-travel plot will ultimately lead to the exact location but in reverse “Spirit” order. Future, present THEN past. Once someone picks up on the ghosts in the wrong order, you calculate the last clue to be about the past.

“God bless us, everyone” is a famous Tiny Tim quote.

3 words here are from clue #2 of this year’s horseshoe hunt. “Sound of”, “Enter” & “Bob” (Younger). Come what may/ahead points to Stave 4 from the book...Christmas yet to come. As seen in the ghost-of-Christmas-future chapter, the ghost did not speak (sound of silence). And Scroges grave was dark and clearly no one had visited. Also, Scrooge sees that Tiny Tim has died in the future if the present is left as-is. I didn’t mean to misspell Cratchit.

Heavens= Heavens Will Fall (Cole Youngers book), tying back to DJJD themes.

“Enter” is another keyword used in clue 3 of the horseshoe hunt last year. “The three entered” (also 3 links). I looked up “repeat” at thesaurus.com and there was “echo”. The perfect word to signal to repeat.

The “gathering” references the park’s shelter that is available for parties and picknick gatherings.

But tiny Tim with his crutch makes reference to the 3 Links retirement center next door. I see a lot of walkers over there.

I know, the format changed slightly here. It’s rhyming time, I fear. Ok ok.
The first line will be the give-away for the seasoned hunter. Especially if you’ve hunted for the DJJD horseshoe over the years. We see “chains” and “strange”. Translates to “Three Links” and “Odd Fellows”.

Line 2 is just telling you its been in the same place as before. This is the 3rd time I’ve hidden something there including the first time I ever hid anything. Under the little sink in the shelter. Oh, and I just wanted to include something Zeppelin, thus “The Song Remains the Same”. And it rhymed.

Softer is an anagram of “Forest” the street its on. Timmy’s pain is my trying to rhyme.
Taking shelter (shelter) and rain is in reference to the only sink in that Odd Fellows shelter structure.