All Saints Day Outdoor Clean up

Today is All Saint's Day. My folks came up to help with some outdoor chores. The storm windows are now up and the Christmas lights along the side street are up. Don't worry, I don't illuminate them until the day after Thanksgiving! We had the same frustrating problem as we do every year-hardly any of the previous years lights work! Will someone explain the issue here? Only one strand out of over 12 worked, 2 others half of the line lit-the other half was dead. I had 2 new packs-which worked. We put new fuses in-nada! Do I have to buy brand new lights every year??? Ugh. Mom also planted a cute little yew by my garage and we prepped the garden tractor for the winter-I just need to bring the battery in, as well as the plant sprays.