Trees of Christmas Past
December 21st, 2009 by Rodney LeeSurprisingly, nobody has blogged about this year's hottest Christmas item - a Christmas tree.
If you've been hiding under a rock for the past few weeks, you probably didn't know that there is a shortage of Christmas trees this year in Hawaii. People waited in line for over 8 hours just to get their hands on a Christmas tree last week - and paid over $50 for one.
Even artificial trees are sold out!
Here's an article written by Will Hoover about locals paying $120 for a 4 foot tree. Crazy!
But this is MLC where we're not interested in the sheared Douglas or the Noble fir Christmas trees that went on sale the day after Thanksgiving. No, we like to remember when Christmas trees were purchased at the local market, hardware, or department stores. And they were all the same - what I like to refer to as "Charlie Brown" Christmas trees.
Maybe some of you might remember this picture from a blog entry from last Christmas:
Paula with a Charlie Brown Christmas tree
We must've paid around $7 for a tree back in the day.
And then there were the artificial Christmas trees. Who remembers seeing one of these Christmas trees?
See that colored wheel? It rotated so the aluminum tree would reflect different colors. Ingenious. Plus, being a "metal" tree - it wasn't really safe to string electrical lights on it I suppose.
Yup, those days of simple Christmas trees as all but a memory. Nowadays, you're lucky to even get your hands on a Christmas tree.
Were you fortunate enough to score a Christmas tree this year? Or do you have an artificial tree that you put up? Or did you even bother to put up a Christmas tree? Our state-of-the-art fiber optic tree is still sitting in it's box, stored away. But hey, we've still got a few more days before the big day. Maybe, just maybe, we'll have our tree up yet.
Tags: aluminum Christmas tree, artificial Christmas tree, Charlie Brown, Charlie Brown Christmas tree, Christmas tree, colored wheel, fiber optic Christmas tree, midlife crisis blog, Noble fir, Rodney Lee, sheared Douglas, shortage of Christmas trees in Hawaii, Will Hoover
December 21st, 2009 at 5:03 am
Foist? Again, really? Is nobody awake yet? M/Masako still down from all that baking yesterday?
December 21st, 2009 at 5:11 am
Rod/Paula: Those $7 trees were the best! They have the best smell (altho' it gives me stuck nose) and have the best spaces between branches for ornaments. They're cuter and more "homey" than those fancy shmancy trees.
But that's just me. : )
December 21st, 2009 at 5:13 am
My apt is too small for a tree, I take all my decorations to work and use them there. My big bro had the hardest time finding a tree, my SIL and I tag teamed between locations calling each other while we were shopping... no tree sightings. She finally found a really nice artificial one at Target.
THEN the announcement: Tajiri bringing in trees, cheapest one would be WHAT?!? $40? For a Charlie Brown Tree? And people waited in line for one?
December 21st, 2009 at 5:22 am
No tree for me again this year....I'll FedEx a tree to anyone who can't find one....lots of them here
Couple lives on lot while selling Christmas trees
http://www.azcentral.com/community/gilbert/articles/1212gr-trees1213.html
December 21st, 2009 at 5:22 am
Ohhhhhhh....sally is up early today
December 21st, 2009 at 5:26 am
I remember working at Sears during their Xmas tree sale...pushing the tree thru the tube so the plastic netting would bundle it up nicely for transport.
December 21st, 2009 at 5:35 am
Wife requires a fresh Christmas tree every year and we get ours as soon as they come in. I remember the first year we were married, living in a small apartment in Punchbowl, that first Christmas tree took up most of the space in our tiny living room. We liked it so much it was left up for months. The needles were all petrified and covered with dust. A fire hazard for sure. For my wife, the enjoyment is putting up the decorations, we have an assortment of ornaments, some handmade, some bought kine, we even have a toy Godzilla up near the top stalking the angel.
Growing up in the country, we burned our rubbish in this rubbish pile next to the garage. No garbage pickup at our town. It was amazing how that dried Christmas tree lit up like a torch.
December 21st, 2009 at 5:38 am
Good Morning anklez! Yes, I fought the urge to stay in bed "just a few more minutes" cuz that would have turned into another hour. Having my bkfst as I sit here.
After reading the whole story, it makes sense. hmph, typical news headline grabber. Makes perfect sense to me.
December 21st, 2009 at 5:49 am
hemajang: that stalking Godzilla is giving me a visual and I'm crackin' up!
December 21st, 2009 at 6:12 am
I remember those trees. Also remember getting trees with bare spots that we faced to the wall.
December 21st, 2009 at 6:16 am
NaPueo: the "wall side" of the tree. bhahahaha! Every tree had one.
December 21st, 2009 at 6:18 am
Seems like we go through this tree "shortage" every so often. Then we have the years of too many trees. Part of it depends on how many containers get rejected by the agriculture inspectors!!!
December 21st, 2009 at 6:24 am
Good morning Rodney and MLCers!
A few years ago we gave in and bought a 4foot fake tree. I put about 300 or more lights on it, I like lots of lights.
Still tired from the marathon baking....
December 21st, 2009 at 6:27 am
My brother's fake tree looks really nice. And the keiki boy isn't complaining. Their only concern now is ... where to store it the other 11 mos of the year?
December 21st, 2009 at 6:35 am
Hey sally leave em up like the wreaths on the doors.
Hey Rod, I remember WAY BACK WHEN that aluminum tree with the color wheel. So funny, just like putting that cellophane on our black and white tv to make it look like we had color tv.
Oh yeah, don;t put lights on that tree.....shocking
December 21st, 2009 at 6:40 am
Heading for work soon, see y'all back tonight!
December 21st, 2009 at 6:49 am
I think Sweetie's sister picked up a silver tree with the color wheel lights at a thrift store - some years she puts it up in their front window; some years not. She also has a store mannequin that she sometimes dresses up in Santa clothes and sets up by the silver tree (I think she calls the mannequin "Rodney," but I gotta double check.
Notice I didn't call this mannequin a "dummy" - that's too mean, even for me.)
We did get a little tree from a lot where the proceeds to go a local charity. There was lots of swearing (from me) last Tuesday night as I tried to get the very large tree trunk into a very small tree stand. I know it sounds like an O&E joke, but it was true. Said little tree is now draped in lights and ornaments and smelling good on our side table.
December 21st, 2009 at 7:06 am
I remember that color wheel and the tree...
Gotta buy another Kitchen Aid mixer, we worked ours to hard yesterday and it broke....
December 21st, 2009 at 7:50 am
It took me a long time to find my 4-foot fake tree! But it was my fastest time ever to decorate it and I could nearly carry it with one hand! Woo-hoo! Work those muscles!
Oh yeah, I got it at Pricebusters for $19.99!
December 21st, 2009 at 8:02 am
Mornin everybody
Finally got my laptop back and online
No wireless tho 
We gave up on real trees awhile back
doc. told me bad for kids with allergies with all the chemicals they spray on them 
NKHEA..... jus waitin for Christmas
December 21st, 2009 at 8:04 am
Growing up we always had a real tree, though a couple of years my Mom insisted on getting them flocked with that fake snow stuff.
One yeard we didn't get a tree. I was about 9 years old and my Dad was in the Navy and overseas. Times were hard and there just wasn't enough money for presents, much less a tree. We made do and the family next door gave us kids (5 of us at the time) one of their gifts. It was very kind of them to do so. When my Dad came home he had a whole box full of gifts for us that he had gotten while he was in Japan. It was the best be-lated Christmas ever!
December 21st, 2009 at 8:25 am
We had a tree like the silver one, but we couldn't even afford the color wheel. But that was our family tradition, the same tree, year after year. I think my Dad still has that tree.
But small kid time, only the 'rich' families bought the fresh trees from the mainland. A lot of my friends' families had some sort of artificial tree.
December 21st, 2009 at 8:49 am
People think I'm nuts but I buy my REAL Christmas tree the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. As soon as we open presents on Christmas morning, I start dismantling the tree right after breakfast! Good Japanese girl...must clean house before the New Year!
December 21st, 2009 at 8:50 am
yep, we had one of those aluminum trees. Easy to put up, pre-drilled holes, all the "branches" were the same length. Like the cardboard fireplace, they were tacky things, but really ingenious feats of engineering. Could use them over and over again.
I began to complain to my parents because you could not put lights ON those aluminum trees, we put them around the window frame in the living room and that was the trade-off, because that was a real hassle. You would tape them on the frame, but it would start falling off after a couple of days...so you would have to re-tape them back on....and they would fall off again......
Back in those days, we did not have the small lights yet, they were big bulbs, and they got HOT! Lotta weight to a string of lights.
We finally began to buy real Christmas trees, and by then, the smaller lights were coming out, so they were much easier to string.
And here I am now, firmly in middle-age...with an artificial tree again, not silver, a fake pine one, using it again for the 13th year!
December 21st, 2009 at 9:18 am
@Shawn: my tree comes down before New Year's too. My Sweetie's family used to keep theirs up until Epiphany (Jan. 6), so it was a real adjustment for him to live with someone who cleans for New Year's each year.
December 21st, 2009 at 10:30 am
Wow! that aluminum tree and color wheel sure brings back memories. I always wanted one but my dad would say it cost too much and you guessed it, we wound up with the Charlie Brown tree. Those trees were so thin all the wires from the lights were visible and the branches would all be sagging from the weight of the ornaments. It was even worse when you got one with a bald spot. Boy, those were the days.
December 21st, 2009 at 11:01 am
Way back when I lived with my folks, we had a 3-to-4 foot aluminum tree and a real tree, too. When I was on my own, it was always a real tree, through getting married and having a daughter. My wife and I got a real tree saying it was for our daughter (but it was for us, too). Then, I got tired of picking up needles beneath the tree, and we got an artificial fir tree, which we used for about ten years. By then I was tired of picking up artificial needles. So, we went back to a real tree until our daughter moved out. Since then, we don't buy a tree We go to my in-laws' and open gifts.
December 21st, 2009 at 2:03 pm
we used cut our x-mas tree from our farm. (btw....i need more neighbors on Farmville)
*shameless plug*
we had a bunch of them Norfolk pines growing there. was fun to go down to da farm and pick out the best one each year.
but i never knew had different kinds of pines before.....so when i finally saw them sheared Douglas firs and Nobles.....i thought.....ho da ugly our Norfolk pine x-mas tree. and with them beeg kine lights....that no even blink!
December 21st, 2009 at 2:10 pm
opso:
I need more neighbors on Roller Coaster Kingdom
December 21st, 2009 at 2:30 pm
@anklebiters...I need more neighbors for Roller Coaster Kingdom too...invite me as a friend and be my neighbor..:-)
December 21st, 2009 at 2:49 pm
Sassydog - hey! hey! i said first! go join Farmville!
ankles - eh! no steal my requests!
and i have been neglecting my park.
December 21st, 2009 at 2:57 pm
Who wants to join my Yakuza Lords clan? Tell me what kind of free gifts you want.
Christmas tree <--- just staying on topic
December 21st, 2009 at 3:40 pm
@opso..already on farmville...you should check it out...got it all decked up...
christmas tree....same as Rod!!
December 21st, 2009 at 3:40 pm
opso:
You need some Xmas trees (in topic) in your park to give it a spark
December 21st, 2009 at 3:51 pm
I don't have a tree but there is a tree farm right up the street from me in Whitmore...all the cars I see going by with trees...don't look like a shortage...this morning I saw at least 10 cars go by with trees on the roof...
December 21st, 2009 at 3:54 pm
Was that "mainland" Christmas trees or "Hawaiian" Christmas trees?
December 21st, 2009 at 4:04 pm
Since it's growing here I would imagine it's Hawaiian trees...you have to go cut your own..
December 21st, 2009 at 4:14 pm
Yes, I think the Hawaiian Christmas tree (Norfolk pine) is available, but it's the mainland kine with the Christmas tree smell that everyone wants.
Some people even selling them on Craigslist.
December 21st, 2009 at 4:28 pm
Yes kinda a bummer with no smell...when my kids grew up, I got a artificial tree then I would either get branches or get a wreath make with the tree branches just so I could get the odor...now I don't decorate at all..
December 21st, 2009 at 4:32 pm
Sassydog:
I dunno who you are...just look for a moose with Xmas lites on its antlers as my avatar and send me an invite to be a Roller neighbor.
The best time to buy an Xmas tree is Xmas eve in the afternoon here...the tree vendors want to get rid of their inventory at a really cheap price. Otherwise they will just throw it away when they dismantle the tree lot. Maybee I'll get a tree for a buck or two
December 21st, 2009 at 4:34 pm
Yeah, we have an artificial tree so last year, Paula picked up scrap branches and was planning to make a wreath - just for the fragrance - but the branches never did make it into the house.
More easy (and cleaner) to just up the plug-in scents.
December 21st, 2009 at 4:45 pm
Anklebiter; I'm a friend of Sally, Seattle Gail, and Superman....so you can go to thier site and invite me, that's if I can't find you...
Rod..the branches really make a mess, but I would just lay it on the skirt and when it come time to take the tree down I would just grab the skirt and shake it into the trash....less mess that way
December 21st, 2009 at 4:47 pm
Anklebiter: I think I found you...hope I invited the right one...haha
December 21st, 2009 at 5:24 pm
We still get a real tree. (We tried an artificial one year, but it just didn't work) It's kinda a must for me to get a real one. So I usually buy the tree and set it up. Also, put on most of the ornaments. But with time wife and girls get their favorite ornaments on. Over the years we've just collected too many ornaments...too, too many. So we're selective on which ones go on the tree. When the girls were young, we'd get one for them every year. Also, collected many others along the way.
I remember when we'd go to Star Market to get our tree every year. Back then a 6' tree was in the $7-$8 range. If you got a "premium" it was about $12-$15. Today a nice grand fir will cost you between $60 - $80.
But cannot beat the smell of a real tree in the house on a cool early morning.
December 21st, 2009 at 5:49 pm
Sassydog:
Found you...
A few years ago I had a real live tree up...my son's weiner dog knocked it over and broke most of the glass ornaments when it fell
That was the last time I put up a tree 
Now I have my daughter's pit bull to babysit.... 
December 21st, 2009 at 8:21 pm
@anklebiters - We used to buy our trees from Sears when our girls were small. We'd go on the last day - everything marked down 50%.
@hemajang - Like sally, I'm laughing at that toy Godzilla stalking the angel. I could just image it climbing up the branches.
I remember on of our neighbors - who had the Kawainui marsh for his back yard had a 55 gallon drum where he used to burn rubbish. I remember being lucky and catch him burning the dried up Christmas tree. Just as you stated - went up like a torch.
@sally - I remember a previous post you made about the accordion like shaped ornaments. I know exactly which ones you're talking about. We had them too.
@NaPueo - Seemed like every Christmas tree came with a bald spot. And yes, that side always faced the wall.
@M - 300 lights on a 4 foot tree. Surprising the tree didn't fall down!
@Ynaku - cellophane on the black and white TV for make um look colored? Why just neva wrap um around your eyes? Then when you look at the old b & w photos, the bugga stay in color too.
@KAN - so sweet for not referring to your sister's Santa dressed mannequin, "Rodney", as a dummy. No lump of coal for you this Christmas.
@Shauna - now when Christmas is over, where do you plan to store your $19.99 4-foot Christmas tree? Not my cubicle I hope.
@NKHEA - they spray chemicals on the Christmas trees? Or was that just your doctors ways of discouraging the kids from wanting a Christmas tree? Pretty good idea, I must say.
December 21st, 2009 at 8:43 pm
@jaydee - That's such a heartwarming story; that your neighbors gave one of their gifts to each of you. Now that's what Christmas is all about.
@zzzzzz - you folks had the silver tree but not the color wheel? Should've tried Ynaku's trick and wrap it with cellophane.
Nah. But you folks had a tree - that's the main thing.
@Shawn - If you started taking down the tree right after Christmas gifts were opened, then who cooked the Christmas dinner? You started cleaning house for the new year starting a Christmas - like one good Japanese girl. You must be on Wahiawa Japanese girl.
@theDman - yeah, those old Christmas lights with the big tear drop shaped lights that burned hot. And sometimes the paint would start chipping off of them. I wonder how much lead those paint chips had.
And when one of those lights blew out, you'd have to try to unscrew it without breaking the glass part. Once the glass broke off, it meant busting out the pliers and ripping the rest of the bulb out of the socket. PITA!
@buddabelly - Yes! The tree limbs would sag from the weight of the ornaments. Our tree was never complete until the tinsel was on. More weight for the branches.
@Mike in Waipio -
Too funny "picking up artificial needles". Boy, just like having a real tree, eh? 
@opso - you guys had Christmas trees on your farm? You sure wasn't one papaya tree and your parents just told you it was a Christmas tree?
@Sassydog - You live way out in the country by Whitmore village? And you come all the way to town for party? WTG! When Anklebiters is in town again, we gotta have one Haw'n Brians party.
And when Ynaku comes to town.
And when HNL2LAS comes to town.
And when David In Oregon comes to town.
And when... (you get the picture)
@visitor - we too used to buy an ornament every year. We'd look for one with the year printed on it for when we became MLC and couldn't remember. And we'd keep some of the ornaments that our girls made in elementary school. And we have quite a few that Paula's obaachan made when she used to go to Lanakila and do crafts.
So many memories come rushing back just from looking at the ornaments. Makes Christmas time that much more special.
December 21st, 2009 at 8:59 pm
Rod: I guess you know I like to party, so driving to town from Whitmore is nothing..LOL..
Just let me know when all the ones you mentioned comes to town....I'm always ready for a party...sounds like we're going to have a bunch unless they all come into town at the same time...."-)
December 21st, 2009 at 9:10 pm
Hey Gang!
Sat Dec 26th night after Christmas... Hawaiian Brians for FREE karaoke from 7pm - 1am! Whoo Hoo!
These are pics from our Christmas Party at HB Lounge this past Sat. Supes takes a gajillion pics everytime we do anything (think Nightclub Reunion pics... thousands!) so this is a small album of 400. Skip to page 24 to get an idea of the karaoke.
Pikchas from Wasabi Christmas Party;
http://www.superman808.com/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1260506993
3rd post has the photo gallery link.
Supes' Lois in #304 and me in #340, look at where we got our hands up in Rodney Reindeer. I hope you don't feel violated Rod.
Come join us!
December 21st, 2009 at 9:34 pm
GAH! That reminds me. I need to have my annual (careful with the spelling) check up.
December 21st, 2009 at 9:48 pm
GAH! TMI TMI TMI
bahahaha! Glad to be of service. See? I'm a guud secretary. I usually say
"I kick a$$ as a receptionist" but in light of the subject....
December 21st, 2009 at 10:22 pm
No tree in our house this year. Sad, but we got renovations under way. We supposed to be finished, but our architect took over a year to draft and finalize our plans. God bless him, with a lump of coal that is.
December 21st, 2009 at 11:34 pm
Back in the day.. started with the real tree, then dad bought the aluminum one with the color wheel (looked kinda cool then).
Today, no tree for me- get the small artificial one with lights. I still put up Xmas decorations.
December 22nd, 2009 at 4:30 am
Rodney:
I'll be in town again in May, probably on May 19 for two weeks.
December 22nd, 2009 at 5:08 am
volleymom2 (and everyone else with those aluminum trees w/ color wheel): Psychedelic shack, that's where it's at!
Guuuud Morning Everyone! Wake UPPPPP!
anklez: marking my calendar!!!
December 22nd, 2009 at 5:25 am
aokami: isn't that typical of home renovations/rebuilding? I've never heard of one getting done on time. If I were a contractor I'd give a date about 5mos extra so when it's done only 2mos extra they think I'm early. ha!
NKHEA shakin' his head at me.
dat's why I don't build houses. hee hee
Guud morning NKHEA. Merry Christmas to you and IKHEA and KeikiHEAS!
December 22nd, 2009 at 6:05 am
But Rod, I wear my rose colored glasses
Yeah sally you tell em. You old futs (oops sorry, wrong blog) GET UP. The sun is
almostshining and the birds (freezing their beaks) chirping.I can smell bacon
December 22nd, 2009 at 6:06 am
Oh Good Morning MLCers
December 22nd, 2009 at 6:13 am
BACON?!? Ynaku are you at Ken's?
Me luuurve bacon... crispy crunchy cremated bacon. oh so guuuud!
Ynaku happy to see sun yah?
December 22nd, 2009 at 6:19 am
whoa, gotta get ready for work...
December 22nd, 2009 at 6:39 am
sally, no not at Ken's BUT that's an idea
Have fun at work.
♪ Let the sun shine. ♫
♬ Here comes the sun! ♪
December 22nd, 2009 at 6:43 am
Ynaku you just like the birdies... start singing when the sun comes out.
Have a "bright, bright sunshiny day" everyone!
December 22nd, 2009 at 7:07 am
Good morning Rodney and MLCers!
I remember we use to have those lights with a tube fill with liquid, maybe water? When the lights heat up the liquid it will bubble in the tube...
December 22nd, 2009 at 8:12 am
M:
I have those lights....had to find replacements thou...
December 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
@anklebiters, we went to a pah-tay this past Saturday and they had it on their tree. It was plastic though not glass how I remember it.
December 22nd, 2009 at 8:34 am
Mornin all
UR; das wat the doc. told me
das why da trees look so green he said 
sally;
You have a Merry Christmas too 
NKHEA.....out
December 22nd, 2009 at 9:34 am
@aokami - Apologies. I forgot to welcome you in your first post in the previous entry - so Welcome to MLC, Alan! One of these days we'll meet up. I know you're super busy and have a hard time making it to our parties. Maybe we'll just have to have one of our parties come to you.
@volleymom2 - Yeah, those silver trees with the colored wheel was so 60's-70's. I have this sneaky feeling that we'll be seeing those for sale again sometime soon. (You know us MLCers - always trying to relive our youth).
@sally and Ynaku - Ok you early birds - according to the National Weather Service today's sunrise was at 7:05. You guys posted around 6:00 and said the sun was shining. No can be. Okay, I understand that the Big Island is little bit more East than Oahu, but not far enough for the sun to come up one hour earlier.
** I think you folks confusing the sunshine with the bathroom light **
December 22nd, 2009 at 10:33 am
But Rodney, It was 7:05 somewhere
At least we had each other for company. Some guys sleepyhead.
December 22nd, 2009 at 1:58 pm
Wow, with the high prices of trees, does this mean that if I ever come for a visit during the holidays, my omiyage to the Triad should be a container full of trees?
December 22nd, 2009 at 5:34 pm
Last year we got a tree and put it up in our front window at our house in Palolo. M and Masako could see the tree from their house across the valley
December 22nd, 2009 at 5:40 pm
Rodney:
Maybe I was the one netting the tree for you
December 22nd, 2009 at 6:08 pm
Whenever I go to open houses (I can dream), I always look for two things.
#1 Da kitchen
#2 Da Christmas Tree window
December 23rd, 2009 at 8:40 pm
I have 2 pink trees and I love them!