The Jigs LURVES Christmas

Seriously. I don't think I've ever seen a man get so excited about trees, wreathes, carols, and cider. And his favorite part of the season (as far as I can tell)? Getting the tree.

He is IN HIS ELEMENT whilst selecting a Christmas tree, which we did this weekend. We bought our tree from "Steve's" last year, but I made him go to Rite Aid this year. It's true that the trees at Steve's are beautifully displayed, and Steve's services include a vigorous *shake* (on a contraption that looks much like a giant vortex, like the ones I remember form my lab days), an end-trimming, a tree-wrapping (in netting - also involving an interesting contraption), and assistance with strapping the tree to the top of the car. But at Right Aid, all you need is a good eye, some patience, and a small dose of physical strength, and you'll get just as good of a tree for 17 fewer green backs.

When the Jigs is selecting trees, I just stand back and act like see what he's talking about when he notes minor blemishes in specimens: an asymmetric side, a bald spot where needles should be, branches growing too vertically for his taste. My gifts are more suited to selecting deals (encouraging the purchase a 5-to-6-footer instead of 6-to-7 at Rite Aid instead of "Steve's") and warming the hot cider when we get home from the tree field (or parking lot, whichever the case may be).

After our third year of selecting trees together, I have to admit that the Jigs has mad skillz in this arena. Once again, our tree looks completely symmetrical with evenly-spread branches. The only minor problem is that the tree is a wee bit too small, but I'm the only one to blame for that (and we have $10 in our pockets to show for it).