All Hail the Christmas Ladder!

These days, almost everyone I know has traded in the pungent aroma and naturally perfect needles of a real Christmas Tree for an aluminum and plastic version of a fake one. I don’t get it, but to each his own. Some say they don’t like the mess of the needles after the holidays and that it’s just simpler and cheaper to put up the fake one year after year. I have to agree that wasting a tree is silly, but, personally, I cut them up and burn them in the fireplace when they are dried. (not the needles…just the trunks)

At any rate, a few years back one of my sisters said she didn’t have a tree that year and had decided to use a ladder from the garage to hang a few ornaments on. And that image came to mind this year when I was visiting my son in Boise. While he was at work, I scoured the shed to see if he had one and found only a huge extension ladder. I hit up a hardware store, and spent the afternoon wrapping the individual sections in plaid wrapping paper.

A string of lights, some ornaments i found and a few cat toys wrapped up, made quite a statement when he got home from work. We enjoyed it for a few days. And it didn’t take long for the cat to discover that the toys had catnip in them and rip through them as if it had been Christmas morning. It all added to the atmosphere.

My son, Sammy, came with me back to Reno for the holiday. But when he got home to Boise, he had a colorful, and reusable Christmas Ladder.

Last I heard, the cat still lies under it hoping for more catnip.