Ray wrote:
> Mele Kalikimaka to everyone here.
> 
> BTW.....does anyone here actually MISS the Christmas rush?  After
> seven years here, it still feels kinda weird not too see the huge
> crowd of people or the traffic that seem to go on for miles. (G)
> 
> And here's a question......why aren't real Christmas trees sold in
> Japan?  Is it because the shipping?  Can't they be grown here?
> 
It's a regular old pine tree, more or less. No issues growing in Japan. 
But there's probably very little demand. With lumber being a commodity 
in Japan, it's a fairly big waste (not that that stops Japanese -- or 
anyone else). Also it would put a sizeable burden on an already taxed 
waste management system. US communities have to deal with this issue 
every year; mine has a special recycling center set up for people to 
bring in their old real Christmas trees to be turned into mulch (I suppose).

> It's not really Christmas when you walk into a department store and
> you see a big, FAKE tree.
> 
I think you'd be surprised that many stores in the US, too, use fake 
trees. Think of the expense of obtaining and maintaing a living tree 
every year. Plus the fire hazard situation. It's also very non-PC these 
days, unless of course it's an acutal living tree that gets transplanted 
back into the earth.

John W.