Real or Artificial?
Merry Christmas!
Real or artificial? When it comes to Christmas trees, this is an ongoing and contentious debate. I’m a hard-core proponent of the artificial tree for the following reasons:
Some assembly required
Not much appeals more to an engineer than the opportunity to assemble something, especially when it comes in kit form and is guaranteed to go together smoothly! Modular construction – sweet! IKEA furniture looks like IKEA furniture, it’s true, but man is it fun to put together! Assembling a Christmas tree could only be better if some special tools were required.
The first family tree consisted of a green wooden pole and individual branches. Some of my fondest Christmas memories are of Dad bringing out that great big box and letting us help sort out the branches. The branches were colour-coded with a little bit of paint at the base of the stem. Trying to differentiate between ‘red’ and ‘copper’ was a challenge I looked forward to each year. Later, my siblings and I were allowed to drag the box out of the crawlspace and assemble the tree by ourselves. This was probably a greater privilege than being able to use the car. My parents might still be using that tree if the crawlspace hadn’t flooded, turning the box to pulp and making a mess of the tree.
Unfortunately, Christmas tree design has advanced considerably and the tree I obtained for my first house is an umbrella style. It does have three sections, but most of the thrill of assembly has been removed. I am left to admire this improvement and wax nostalgic about the good ol’ days when I had to install each individual branch. Almost makes me with I had grandkids to tell the story to.
Hail to the Pop-Tart
I was shopping in the supermarket and had just put an item in my basket, when a lady grinned at me. “You’re a little old for those, aren’t you?” she laughed. The item in question was a bulk package of Pop-Tarts.
Not since I was a toddler, or perhaps once or twice in early elementary school, have I claimed to be too old for something. Alas, now more and more these days, I find myself facing this accusation from others. Now that it’s being levelled by complete strangers, I feel that I have no option but to resort to a public statement of defence.
Three defining moments led to my adoption of Pop-Tarts as a morning meal, to break my nightly fast, if you will. In the following, I will describe these influences.
