A Draper Christmas Poem

Happy Holidays to all of our friends—whether they be customers, dealers, specifiers, architects, media folks, or little green space creatures tuning in from outer space! Here’s a little something fun as we slow things down a bit on the blog to celebrate the season–a Draper Christmas poem.

‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house
The shades were controlled by the click of a mouse;
The screens were hung in the home cinema with care,
In hopes that Christmas movies would be shown there;

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of TecVision danced in their heads;
And mamma in her wool, and I in my leather,
Had just started putting a StageScreen together,

When out on the drive there arose such a clatter,
I sprang to the window to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew at a dash,
And raised the Bottom-Up shade in a flash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,

With a little old driver, who looked familiar a smidgeon,
Then I knew in a moment it must be John Pidgeon.
More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;

“Now, Ultimate! now, Clarion! now, Profile and Access!
On, Silhouette! on EZ Fold! on, FlexShade and Large Truss!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!”

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky,
So down to our driveway the coursers they flew,
With a sleigh full of Draper products, and Draper’s President, too.

Draper HR Director Karl Dick stands in as Santa Claus.

And then, in a twinkling, I saw on the pavement
What John laid out—much to my amazement.
As I drew in my hand, and was turning around,
He dropped a big pipe, and oh! What a sound.

But, not to worry! The pipe wasn’t scratched,
Which told me the powder coat finish was unmatched.
A backboard and rim he took out of his pack,
While his reindeer dug a hole—they had quite the knack.

His eyes — how they twinkled! He was merry and fat,
And they had the goal up in 10 seconds flat!
Next he hopped in his sleigh and went up to the roof,
And suddenly he came down the chimney—poof!;

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;
He reached into his pack, and unloaded it all:
A custom lift to hide our flatscreen in the wall;

An Access Dual Roller for the front room, and then
A Salara Plug n’ Play screen to hang in my den.
He installed an AeroLift 25 in a jiff,
Then he took down our old competitors’ screen—as if!

He spoke not a word, but kept right on working,
All the while around the corner, I found myself lurking.
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
As he flew off, there was something he was saying,
But I never heard—I was too busy playing.