Black Friday

Our day did not start at 5:00 AM, nor did it involve emotionally charged mobs of shoppers, pepper spray, gunshots, or ambulances.  We had a positive day, full of familiar faces ready to purchase the perfect Christmas tree for their family.  It was a steady 12 hour day and by the end I was reflecting on why someone should visit our lot (or any well maintained lot).  Why should someone pay higher prices at our business instead of visiting a chain store for the "same tree" at cheaper prices.

I must start by saying that I shipped most of those trees to the Lowe's and Home Depots all along the eastern US.  I know what they look like, when they were harvested, how they were stored and then later transported.  I'm not saying they are mistreated, they are just handled in much more of a mass production method.  I also know where the trees come from on our tree lot in Lexington, VA.  They come from a small family operation where more time is given to each tree, and it shows.  Each frasir fir is more densly branched, thicker from top to bottom. 

The trees on our lot are the same species as most of those sold at Lowe's and Home Depot, Abies fraserii, but that is where the similarities end.  We build bins to store our trees in before they are displayed.  The bins prevent the sun from drying the trees out, they also remain cool and therefore retain their freshness.  Before we display a tree, we make a fresh cut on the trunk and we shake the tree to remove any debris and dead needles (Frasirs are evergreens and needles die all year long, so their will be a small percentage of needles that come out of every tree).  The tree is then moved to the display lot, where we place the trees in bowls full of water until they are bought by a happy family.  When a tree is purchased, we remove it from the stand put another fresh cut on it, net it up, and tie it to the top of their car.

The other difference is customer service.  We know everything about the products we sell and we are ready to answer any of your questions and calm any of your concerns, all with a smile.  A customer can expect a friendly conversation and if they become a repeat customer they can expect to be recognized.  We appreciate each and every person that comes on our lot because they are also helping make our holidays joyous.

Thanksgiving Angels

Yesterday was Thanksgiving and I was working on the tree lot.  My beautiful wife and dog Harper stayed with me the night before and left around 11:00.  We displayed 76 Christmas trees on the lot in the morning and then waited for customers.  We ended up having about twelve trees leave the lot so not the most impressive opening day. 

We sold a 9' tree to a couple mid morning, and they asked if we were going to get to eat a thanksgiving meal anywhere.  We explained that we would try to find a restaurant open when we closed the lot.  Later in the afternoon they zoomed back into the parking lot with four full plates of food and a plate of desserts.  We had turkey, ham, green beans, macaroni & cheese, corn pudding, mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, pumpkin pie, and pound cake.  It was a give of selflessness on a day where I had started to lose hope in society.  Through all the commercials and commotion about Black Friday shopping I was thankful for a couple in Lexington, VA, whom I don't even know their names.  A couple who provided four roughneck country men a warm meal, prepared with love, that raised our spirits and warmed our hearts. 

November 22, 2011

This point is exactly half way through my Christmas tree odyssey.  I am 22 days down and exactly 22 to go.  I intended to write regularly during the harvest of the trees, but alas the days started out too early and lasted too long for way too many days in a row.  Now that I am on the tree lot, I have very little to do in the evenings at Holiday Inn Express other than to chronicle the journey a tree takes before standing in corners of homes across America, full of decorations and encircled by presents.  I will backtrack to the beginning after I describe what has taken place the last two days. 

I am in Lexington, Virginia until the middle of December working at a tree lot owned by my friend, Scott Henson.  We left Ashe County at 8:00 yesterday morning, November 21st.  We had a truck and goose neck trailer full of all the supplies necessary to set up a tree lot.  We came up 2 1/2 days before the trees are to arrive.  We came to the grassy area between a shopping center and the road where Scott has been setting up his lot for 15 years.

Tent Assembly

Tree Stand Assembly

 We pulled in before lunch and immediately got to work.  We rolled out landscape fabric where all trees and tents would be located.  We then unloaded 26 dug Norway Spruce (for people who's conscience won't allow them to kill a tree).  We then unloaded our storage shed.  Scott and I then left to retrieve tree stands and materials to build the bins that were stored about 9 miles away.  While we were gone, Scott's brother-in-law and nephew began assembling the tents.  After the tents were completed and securely staked down, we set out the tree stands.  At that point we called it a day

This morning we woke up and had one of two breakfasts at the Holiday Inn, sausage links and cheese omelets.  When we arrived at the lot the first priority was running all the lights and getting the radio working.  After finishing with the electrical we moved to constructing the storage bins where the Christmas trees will stay before they are displayed.  I must say this was what impressed me the most, ingenuity at its finest.  After the structure was completed, we had to hang shade cloth to prevent the sun from scalding the trees. 

Future location of Tree bins

Framework Assembly

Bins Complete

The final task of the day was working on the greenery tent and the office tent.  When the day was finished we were almost ready to display Christmas trees a 1/2 day ahead of schedule.

We had to make sure Frosty was ready for Maggi's arrival tomorrow

Trunk or Treat

October 31st, a time when people of all ages dress up to be something they are not.  A princess, a zombie, a witch, a superhero, a pirate, an indian, a cowgirl; all of which are examples of some of the costumes we saw last night at Trunk or Treat.  Twelve years ago trunk or treat was started in West Jefferson in the parking lot of First Baptist Church.  This year it spilled from the parking lot on to the backstreet by the farmers market, to include a fire truck giving rides and over to the open grassy space where there were hay rides available. 

After two straight hours of passing out candy, the end of the trunk or treaters line was finally in sight.  Five grocery carts overflowing, we ended the night with eight bags of candy left over.  (As a side note, did you know that the average child hauls home from 3,500 to 7,000 calories worth of candy on Halloween.  "Don't eat it all at once" takes on new meaning after hearing that). 

Not only is it a great time to see peoples costumes, but also to see how everybody has decorated their trunks this year.  Seventeen trunks lined the outside of the parking lot, but there was also space for hot chocolate and scary story telling.

By 8:30pm the last goblin, witch and princess had been through and all trunks were closed, but imaginations were already in full gear thinking up next years costume.

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