The Ghost Of Christmas Spite
Dec. 4th, 2010 07:20 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
bloodyrosemccoyTree get!
It’s a nice tree—as Dad pointed out, it is the first year he has found a really STRAIGHT tree, rather than one that leans slightly to the left. No one will be surprised when I note that having a straight tree is part of The Rules for Dad.
The poor tree lot guys looked a little haggard—all except one veteran Tree Guy, possibly because his age exempted him from having to haul trees around and climb up to tie them onto cars. He just followed customers around chatting.
Thus, he was there when we found the tree we wanted. “I like it,” I said. “It’s straight!” Dad said. “Good size,” my sister said. “It will get needles all over the carpet,” said Mom, who hates Christmas.*
Tree Guy lit up like, well, you know. “I’ll give you a discount,” he said eagerly, “if you buy THIS SPECIFIC TREE.”
“That is very kind of you!” we said.
“No, it’s not,” he said. “You see, this family came in this morning to get a tree. They liked this one, but they told me they were going to check some other tree lots before deciding—and then they asked me to hold this tree for them in case they wanted it.”
There was a pause as we digested this.
“They were comparison shopping for a Christmas tree?” I finally said.
“I told them they’d have to take their chances,” he shrugged.
My family shared some calculating looks. This was an odd little ethical dilemma. We would have to consider—
“We’ll take it,” Dad said.
“Definitely!” the rest of us chimed in.
Tree Guy cackled gleefully as two of his minions prepped our tree, and I admit we cackled all the way home, too, because we are judgmental spiteful jerks. What can I say? Anyone who treats buying a Christmas tree that nitpickily needs a reality check. Christmas trees are weird enough already.
Either that or maybe a Foreign Tree Dealership made them a better offer, anyway, on a Luxury Tree with, I don’t know, pre-tinseled branches and self-cleaning needles, and they won’t give it a second thought. You never know!
The point is, we have our tree now. The living room smells like pine, the tree is ramrod-straight by god, and the cat thinks we are insane. Damn, I love this time of year.
*My brother didn’t vote because he’s in California, which made Mom and Dad slightly mopey.
It’s a nice tree—as Dad pointed out, it is the first year he has found a really STRAIGHT tree, rather than one that leans slightly to the left. No one will be surprised when I note that having a straight tree is part of The Rules for Dad.
The poor tree lot guys looked a little haggard—all except one veteran Tree Guy, possibly because his age exempted him from having to haul trees around and climb up to tie them onto cars. He just followed customers around chatting.
Thus, he was there when we found the tree we wanted. “I like it,” I said. “It’s straight!” Dad said. “Good size,” my sister said. “It will get needles all over the carpet,” said Mom, who hates Christmas.*
Tree Guy lit up like, well, you know. “I’ll give you a discount,” he said eagerly, “if you buy THIS SPECIFIC TREE.”
“That is very kind of you!” we said.
“No, it’s not,” he said. “You see, this family came in this morning to get a tree. They liked this one, but they told me they were going to check some other tree lots before deciding—and then they asked me to hold this tree for them in case they wanted it.”
There was a pause as we digested this.
“They were comparison shopping for a Christmas tree?” I finally said.
“I told them they’d have to take their chances,” he shrugged.
My family shared some calculating looks. This was an odd little ethical dilemma. We would have to consider—
“We’ll take it,” Dad said.
“Definitely!” the rest of us chimed in.
Tree Guy cackled gleefully as two of his minions prepped our tree, and I admit we cackled all the way home, too, because we are judgmental spiteful jerks. What can I say? Anyone who treats buying a Christmas tree that nitpickily needs a reality check. Christmas trees are weird enough already.
Either that or maybe a Foreign Tree Dealership made them a better offer, anyway, on a Luxury Tree with, I don’t know, pre-tinseled branches and self-cleaning needles, and they won’t give it a second thought. You never know!
The point is, we have our tree now. The living room smells like pine, the tree is ramrod-straight by god, and the cat thinks we are insane. Damn, I love this time of year.
*My brother didn’t vote because he’s in California, which made Mom and Dad slightly mopey.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2010-12-05 11:14 am (UTC)Sure, you want a nice Christmas tree--maybe you want it straight like Dad does, and you want it to be green instead of withered and brown, and you don't want to find unpleasant vermin in it, and of course it should fit in your house. But those criteria could fit quite a few trees on any Christmas tree lot--they're grown on Christmas tree FARMS, so they're all pretty similar. Beyond that basic list of criteria, most people aren't picky--the plan is to pile on decorations, anyway, and after all you're going to mulch it when the holidays are over. Plus, most of the lots around here have similar prices, so it's not a question of cost. So insisting on ONE PARTICULAR tree out of all of them, and deciding you'll check with other vendors to see if they're offering better trees, seems a little ... overzealous.
no subject
Date: 2010-12-05 10:35 pm (UTC)