"It was imprudent of us, in the first place, to become authors. We could have become something regular, but we managed not to.
We were lucky, but we were also determined." Roy Blount Jr

"I don’t change the facts to enhance the drama. I think of it the other way round, the drama has got to fit the facts,
and it’s your job as a writer to find the shape in real life."
Hilary Mantel

Saturday, December 08, 2007

It's Tree Time!

Over this weekend, within a 48-hour span, we will have attended four Christmas parties.

This morning I went from this...



...to a very busy and crowded shopping mall. (Not as bad as I expected, though.) There, I'm thrilled to say, I completed my Christmas shopping. All done! Wrapping ensues Monday morning, Christmas cards go into the post that afternoon. With luck parcels will begin their journey to family and friends by Tuesday afternoon. Thursday at the latest.

Then what? Um...writing a novel. More holiday parties. Imbibing eggnog.

Late yesterday after a panicked glance at our calendar, it suddenly occurred to me that we had a very small window of time--a couple of hours this afternoon--to acquire a tree.

The tree farm where we usually cut our tree isn't open for business this year, so we went to the other one, atop the mountain. Where it was oh, so windy.

Look! The Claus family was also tree-shopping this afternoon!



Oh, holy tree...



The Chosen One.



I step aside and let my woodsman do his thing.



I believe the tree grew several feet on its journey from the mountaintop to the Lodge. It is now installed in our upstairs sitting room, practically brushing the ceiling, and sending out a wonderful scent of fresh green needles. I can't predict when the ornaments and lights will be put in place. For now, I'm content with its lovely greenness.


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