The Christmas holiday season is known for being the most wonderful time of the year. It can also be one of the most expensive times of the year, especially with inflation going through the roof right now!

During this time of the year, we all need to contend with the high cost of a number of different holiday-related things like gift giving, food costs for holiday celebrations, travel costs, and yes, even interior and exterior illumination costs during the Christmas season.

Whenever I think about Christmas lights, Clark W Griswold from the motion picture "Christmas Vacation" always comes to mind. I mean nobody knows more about twinkling holiday lights than Clark. After all, his father taught him everything he knows about exterior illumination.

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Whether you're rather modest when it comes to Christmas lights, or you choose to go all Clark W Griswold crazy this time of the year and put together a display the entire community drives by to see, the cost of running Christmas lighting does take a bite out of your wallet.

Recently, a company called Joybird.com put together a study that identified the cost of running Christmas lights by state. They based the study on the "typical" user running 10 strings of lights, one wreath, one garland, and two outside displays.

They also compared the cost of running LED lights versus Incandescent Christmas lights (which are far more expensive) according to each state's residential electricity rate.

Allow me to illuminate you with their findings.

First, Joybird.com made the assumption the typical user would run their holiday lights for 7 hours each day, for a total of (34) days from Thanksgiving to New's Years Day.

Here's no shocker, if you live in California, be prepared to pay the most. The average cost for LED Christmas lighting in Cali is $5.02 during that time frame. Incandescent lights will cost you $33.93 over a 34-day period.

Conversely, the cheapest state in the nation for Christmas lighting is Washington state. The cost to run LED lights during that time period is $2.29, while incandescent lights will run you on average around $15.48 over a (34) day period.

So how much does South Dakota break the bank?

Actually, we tend to lean somewhat on the expensive side believe it or not.

If you plan on putting up LED lights on your home this Christmas, plan on spending an extra $2.87 in electricity over a (34) day period. If you're going the incandescent light route, you can expect to pay an additional $19.42 throughout the holiday season.

And if you go all bat-shit crazy like Clark, and plan on having a "fun, old-fashioned, family Christmas" with 25,000 twinkling lights, Joybird factored "enthusiastic" usage too.

The Clark Griswolds of South Dakota will pay $72.39 for LED lighting, and a whopping $560.65 if you deck out your dwelling with incandescent Christmas lights.

Your neighbors might hate it, but the astronauts in the International Space Station will love it!

Source: Joybird.com

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Do You Remember These 10 Crazy Snowstorms In South Dakota?

Here's some news that some South Dakotans prefer not to hear this time of year. Winter is coming. In denial? The dropping temperatures and early snowstorms out west by Deadwood speak for themselves.

Slowly but surely, people of the Sioux Empire are bracing for colder weather and snow-covered roads. Even though snow will soon be gracing the Sioux Empire with its presence, some snow showers will not compare to these ten dreadful snowstorms that hit South Dakota.

Only In Your State highlights these ten snowstorms in South Dakota as a reminder for people to always be aware of the roads during the winter. These South Dakotan winters can be harsh, which is why it is always a good idea to plan ahead and prepare for the worst.

Do you remember any major snowstorms that hit South Dakota?