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The Season to be Jolly
This year, I embarked on my first ever trip to a
Christmas tree farm. How could a kid that grew up
in Wisconsin escape picking and cutting down his
own tree for this long? Well I’ll tell you … baby
boomer parents!
 As far back as I can remember, we
always had a fake tree. This year I went all out. I
loaded up the truck, drove north from my North
Carolina home (to who knows where), got lost en
route, froze my ears off, found a tree farm, picked
my favorite one, and had the teenage helper cut down my chosen tree. It was a
Peanuts moment … truly exhilarating!
Will I do it again next year? Probably not. As I drove back home — a four hour road
trip — I saw that Lowe’s down the street had trees for $29, cut and ready to move. And
there was a Starbucks right across the street! Starbucks and a Christmas tree … I’m
getting the warm fuzzies just thinking about it.
Bundles of Joy
As a child, I can recall the joy that the holidays
brought: the closeness of family and friends, the festivity
in the air, and of course, the anticipation of the gifts!
 As
we get older, some of the luster of the holiday season
seems to fade for some of us; sad, but true. For those of
you with kids, you can still vicariously experience that
delight through your children. Which brings us to our little bundle of joy this month.
Congratulations to ITD editor, Curt Blakeney, and his wife Valerie, who gave birth to
their second baby girl on November 20 at 3:00 am. Welcome Kira Blakeney!
I want to take a moment and wish all of you and your loved ones a very happy
and safe holiday season! A special thanks to all those who make this publication
possible: our staff, readers, advertisers, printing house and the post office.
Happy Holidays!
John Riccio
Publisher
Me and my tree
Little Kira Blakeney
Happy Holidays!
John Riccio
Publisher
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