The Inner Loop . . .: O Tannenbaum

It was a beautiful December afternoon. The perfect day for a Christmas tree hunt. We went to the closest lot around; the Boy Scouts were in control. A tree that was not too big, not too small, not too prickly, not too limp . . . a tall order to fill for a young couple that does not have the Christmas tree picking experiences as Annie's parents do.

Yes, Annie can recall the cold Michigan days she and her brothers were scattered about the tree farm, knee deep in snow, given the task to stand point and guard the perfect Christmas tree, only until the next perfect one came along that is. As a child she thought, "How am I going to fend an adult away from this tree, I'm just a kid, their going to have saw, axe, or something sharp and not listen to me. Oh my mom will be so mad." Other thoughts, "I've been standing here a really long time. I hope they haven't forgotten about me. What if they left me here!? No, I'm sure they would do a head count or something before they left. Wouldn't they . . . mom . . . dad . . .!?"

But I digress . . .

We pulled into the lot. Before even completely parked Annie's eyes narrowed in. It was like a magnet attracting her with such great force and not being able to pull away. Quickly exiting the car she made a bee-line to the tree. Not too big, not too small, not too prickly, or too limp. Perfect. Rojelio suggested maybe looking around for a minute to see if anything else catches their eyes. Nope, a quick trip around the rows and we were back guarding our beloved Frasier Fur. It was unanimous.

There was one problem. We only had $11 cash between the two of us. A mere overlook, who carries cash these days anyway. But that wasn't going to cut it for these Boy Scouts. Rojelio jetted across the street to the gas station to use the ATM. Annie was left at a tree yet again to protect the perfect tree from predators. She stood as close to the tree as she could. Others kept walking by, looking at the tree, even touching the price tag to investigate. "How dare they, can't they see this is my tree." She began to have flashbacks, "Where's Rojelio? I saw him go into the gas station. Oh my gosh maybe the there's a robbery over there or something." She no longer wanted to fend off the gawkers. She whistled for a young Scout. The tree was moved off the to side . . . whew no longer on the market . . . what a relief. She could relax.

A few hours later . . . sorry I mean minutes, it only felt like hours, hours of unarmed battle to save what was rightfully ours. Rojelio returned with cash in one hand and an ice cream sandwich in the other.

Here are some picture highlights of our tree, some new ornaments, and our homemade tree topper.

Happy Holidays from Rojelio & Annie!