The one part of Christmas that has always been my favorite - aside from the whole presents thing - is the tree. It has to be real. It has to have ornaments on it that mean something. It has to be a fir at least 7 feet tall. There is also the tradition of the 'tree search.' Some people like to go from lot to lot, persuading the guy to hold another tree out so you can see if it's straight enough. Some people like to tramp across fields of trees in search of the perfect one - that usually turns out to be bigger than you expected because damn it looked smaller outside. And then there's the issue of getting it back to the car and you've just realized it's muddy, starting to rain or snow, you've got an all uphill walk back and the tree now weighs more than a pony. Been there. Done that. A few years ago I started a new tradition in my search for the perfect tree. Online. Yep. Omni Farms. My tree. My tradition.

This ornament is very special. Two years ago an artist friend made it for me. She was new in town and I'd interviewed her for the paper. She said I was a red and gold person. I liked that.