# Christmas tree, or not? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 14, 2010, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088 "2010-12-14T04:29:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/21 "2010-12-14T15:49:26Z")
We wanted a tree but just really can’t justify spending even the small sum ☹ so we may do like last year and beg a few broken branches off the tree sellers so we can still enjoy the smell. I told Mr. Horseshoe that if we put up some lights on the bookshelves or something I won’t whine about the lack of a tree (to him - y’all aren’t part of the bargain!) plus he got me a little crystal tree kit [thingy](http://www.amazon.com/Amazing-Crystal-Growing-Christmas-Tree/dp/B000CIO5AQ)that I’m all giggly about trying out. I may have to steal **hawk** ’s idea and nominate a nondenominational holiday shrub outside! ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/22 "2010-12-14T15:58:23Z")
> [@norinew](#): > > Something I read in a non-fiction book once (written by a funny guy) was: “Our apartment was so small that if we bought celery, we had to stand it upright so it wouldn’t be out the window”. 😃 🙂 My apartment is so small I have to step outside to change my mind. ---
**Author:** ![Snickers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Snickers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snickers)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/23 "2010-12-14T16:44:15Z")
> [@DiosaBellissima](#): > > I put mine up on Black Friday. . . I found disco ball ornaments at Big Lots and decided to go a lil’ crazy. [Lady Gaga Christmas](http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs1201.snc4/155368_518387411705_139400322_30547664_1458338_n.jpg)! > > I’m a single 24 year old. WHY WONT ANYONE MARRY ME? :(:(☹ > 😛 Love the bow. Love it. I’d marry you too, but my husband might get mad. Or maybe not: 2 girls, 1 guy. Still don’t know if he’d go for it. ---
**Author:** ![Snickers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Snickers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snickers)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/24 "2010-12-14T16:49:30Z")
Oh - I put up a tree. I prefer real trees, but The Mister wasn’t going to be able to help much this year with the decorating (he started his own business a year and a half ago, and is super busy with a project right now). I don’t think I’d be able to schlep down, get a tree, get it on top of my car, and get it back to the house all by me onesies, even with the nice helper guys at the tree place. I was going to buy a fake one at Target or whatever, then remembered we’d bought a fake one a couple of years ago for outside. (Our decoration scheme involves a second tree outside with just lights, to contrast and set off the decorated one inside. But the city only takes one tree for recycling for free, and two live trees were getting expensive, so we went with the fake one.) Score! So I put it up. I use a red and gold scheme on it too, **Cazzle**. We didn’t have one last year - we went to Hawaii between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and couldn’t be bothered. So sometimes we’re lazy. ---
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/25 "2010-12-14T16:52:18Z")
Other: I have a tiny, tiny tree on top of a bookshelf. I live alone and don’t have much company, so putting up a tree seems more trouble than it’s worth. Sounds sad when I put it in black-and-white words. ---
**Author:** ![Khendrask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3e96dc/32.png) [@Khendrask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khendrask)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/26 "2010-12-14T16:58:45Z")
No kids, No spirit, No care, No tree. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/27 "2010-12-14T17:41:23Z")
The only space where a tree would fit isn’t close to an electrical outlet, and I’m not gonna rearrange furniture for just a couple of weeks. I don’t miss it. Sadie the dog would probably eat all the decorations anyway. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/28 "2010-12-14T18:13:11Z")
You need an option for multiple tree households. We’ve got 2 trees up at the moment, a 7 ft and a 12 ft. My electric meter is spinning too fast to see. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/29 "2010-12-14T18:37:59Z")
I put up [my 4.5’ fake tree](http://www.flickr.com/photos/misnomer971/5260860525/) on Thanksgiving weekend, like always, and it will come down on New Year’s weekend, like always. 🙂 I used to have a big fake tree, but I moved to a place that didn’t have room for it so I sold it and got this little one. The place I live in now could easily accomodate a big tree again, but I love the little one! It’s perfect for putting in the kitchen window (as seen in the photo; don’t mind the recycling bin!), it’s sooo easy to put up and take down, I don’t have a lot of ornaments so I don’t need a lot of branches, and it’s on a timer so that when I get home from work I can see it in the window all lit and pretty. Oh, and I also live alone and (almost) never have company. My [mantle](http://www.flickr.com/photos/misnomer971/5260880367/) is decorated, too\*, even though I’m the only one who will see it in person. I won’t ever bother getting a real tree for just me, but I can’t imagine not decorating at all just because I live alone. \*The stocking to the viewer’s left is for my dog, and has her name embroidered at the top. The stocking to the right is mine, and unfortunately is twisted so you can’t tell it says, “Dear Santa, I can explain…” ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Onimous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@Ann\_Onimous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Onimous)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/30 "2010-12-14T18:42:24Z")
Tree is up at work, but not up at home. Last year we put the tree up at home and it stayed up until about April or May or somewhere like that, so we’re not in a hurry to do it again yet. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/31 "2010-12-14T19:03:00Z")
We have a 7.5’ artificial tree we’ve used for about 7-8 years, but this year on a lark we bought a real one again. It smells fabulous. It went up on Dec 2, I think. ---
**Author:** ![legalsnugs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@legalsnugs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legalsnugs)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/32 "2010-12-14T20:04:52Z")
No tree this year. We spent all last year pulling one or both of our bad cats out of the tree. They also knocked ornaments off and knocked over the tree. Not worth the stress right now. We’ll wait until they’re too old and/or fat to do more than drink water from the base. I hope that’s soon, but it’s certainly not this year. So I put ornaments on our [sheers](http://picasaweb.google.com/Budapestsnugs/20090224SnowAndBowl#5550630618403775314) and made a FSM “[wreath](http://picasaweb.google.com/Budapestsnugs/20090224SnowAndBowl#5550630617151637426).” Yes, the cats have noticed, but nothing broken yet. Merry Fmas! ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/33 "2010-12-14T21:18:25Z")
We put up our 7 ft. tall white pre-lighted Christmas tree the first weekend in December and hung lights outside just last weekend. It’s the first time I’ve done it in probably 15 years. It looks really nice and next year, I’m prepared to even go more out. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![gone2thedogs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c67d28/32.png) [@gone2thedogs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gone2thedogs)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2010, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/34 "2010-12-15T07:55:03Z")
I won’t put up a tree because the dogs will think I’ve brought the potty indoors! ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2010, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088/35 "2010-12-15T14:30:14Z")
I put up a 6’ artificial tree that I got at Target and boy oh boy is it a crappy tree. I put lights on it and the cats have already bent the limbs downward in many areas so I won’t be adding ornaments. I’ll wait until I have a better tree to even bother. Maybe next year. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-tree-or-not/564088.md?page=1)