Doug Aroma

You know those little pine-tree air fresheners (“There’s one in every car”) you see hanging from rear-view mirrors?

There’s an even better way to make your car smell good. Get the tree itself.

It’s been a lot of years since I felt the urge to put up a Christmas tree. Most years over the past decades my plans have taken me away from home for the holidays. Back when I lived in New York, I sometimes put up a tree anyhow, if I was having a Christmas party that year. If I’ve put up a tree of my own since I moved to California, I don’t remember it.

Someone told me the Douglas firs are the ones with the great smell. He said the Noble firs look fine, but they don’t smell the same.

The joint does smell nicer than it usually does.

Looks nicer too.

So far, I’ve got one gift to put under the tree, and an ornament for it. (I have other ornaments to hang on it, but I haven’t taken them out yet. Actually, I think I have some leftover gifts too from last year that I could put under the tree to help it feel festive.)

Last year I was way too busy at this time of year to do much with decorations. This year I’ve picked up a couple of new ones. The theory is that if every year you get one or two new bright twinkly things, before long you’re that really obnoxious house with a totally commercial feel and no Christmas sincerity.

Christmas is a time for joy and brotherhood and community spirit. In the far corner of this picture you can see the balcony of Jaime and his wife. Jaime put out some new flashing ornaments this year, on his balcony. Christmas is not about competition. I got the new bright blue flashing snowflakes out of a sense of community spirit. We are all making the neighborhood more cheerful. Just because in this picture Jaime and his wife’s lights are smaller and further away, that doesn’t mean I’m trying to be bigger or better than they are.

Maybe next year I’ll get a blinking reindeer.