Oh the things we worry about in South Carolina ... As published on Yahoo! this morning.While the legislature worries with such pressing issues as impeaching Gov. Sanford and the residents of South Carolina worry about jobs and unemployeement benefits, those walking by the State House in Columbia worry about the pressing issue of the Christmas Tree.
It wasn’t long after the state Christmas tree was in place in front of the Statehouse in Columbia Monday that Benita Jacobs was walking by as she talked on her cell phone.
“Well, the bottom of it, everything’s coming off, all the green limbs are coming off of it. And it looks kinda shabby looking. Looks like Charlie Brown,“ she said, referring to the cartoon in which Charlie Brown picks a small, pitiful tree with very few branches or needles.
LaTina Morris also complained, shaking her head in disbelief that the tree is so much shorter than in previous years. It’s also missing a lot of branches at the bottom in back and on the sides. “I can’t believe they’re putting that up,“ she said.
It’s not the first time there have been complaints or problems with the state Christmas tree. In 2003, the Columbia Garden Club had just taken over the responsibility of decorating the tree and members wanted it to really sparkle. When a company donated 40,000 CDs, the club used those to decorate the tree.
They did sparkle, catching the sunlight as they spun in the breeze. But the wind also sent some of the CDs flying off the tree and smashing on the sidewalk. So the club pulled them off and redecorated.
The next year, the club wanted to use a South Carolina-grown tree. It found a beautiful one in Horry County, but it was a different kind of tree than what’s normally used. The limbs on this tree grew up instead of out, so when workers cut off the bottom branches so it would fit in the ground, all the greenery around the bottom of the tree was gone. The tree looked butchered, with some calling what happened the “Columbia Chainsaw Massacre”.
So what happened this year? The club had been buying the state tree from North Carolina, but found a less expensive grower in Pennsylvania. There aren’t many places that grow trees large enough, so there aren’t many choices.
They found a suitable tree, but the grower bundled it for shipment the same way he does smaller trees, with netting that surrounds the tree. That broke off some of the branches, leaving the bare spots that passersby were complaining about.
This tree is also shorter than previous ones. The state tree is usually taller than the Confederate Soldier Monument that it stands in front of, but not this year. Jane Suggs, with the Columbia Garden Club, calls it a “recession tree”, since it is smaller and was less expensive.
After the 2004 incident, the Columbia Garden Club brought in smaller trees and placed them around the base of the larger tree. Since they were the same kind of tree, they blended in, filling in the gaps and making the tree look full and symmetrical. They’ll do the same this year.
It should be noted that the Columbia Garden Club and the South Carolina Garden Club pay for the state Christmas tree, not taxpayers. The Columbia Garden Club decorates it, with members volunteering their time and energy. The club also spent $6,000 on an electrical box for the tree’s lights and $1,500 for a new stand that’s built to keep the tree in place in hurricane-force winds.
It wasn’t long after the state Christmas tree was in place in front of the Statehouse in Columbia Monday that Benita Jacobs was walking by as she talked on her cell phone.
“Well, the bottom of it, everything’s coming off, all the green limbs are coming off of it. And it looks kinda shabby looking. Looks like Charlie Brown,“ she said, referring to the cartoon in which Charlie Brown picks a small, pitiful tree with very few branches or needles.
LaTina Morris also complained, shaking her head in disbelief that the tree is so much shorter than in previous years. It’s also missing a lot of branches at the bottom in back and on the sides. “I can’t believe they’re putting that up,“ she said.
It’s not the first time there have been complaints or problems with the state Christmas tree. In 2003, the Columbia Garden Club had just taken over the responsibility of decorating the tree and members wanted it to really sparkle. When a company donated 40,000 CDs, the club used those to decorate the tree.
They did sparkle, catching the sunlight as they spun in the breeze. But the wind also sent some of the CDs flying off the tree and smashing on the sidewalk. So the club pulled them off and redecorated.
The next year, the club wanted to use a South Carolina-grown tree. It found a beautiful one in Horry County, but it was a different kind of tree than what’s normally used. The limbs on this tree grew up instead of out, so when workers cut off the bottom branches so it would fit in the ground, all the greenery around the bottom of the tree was gone. The tree looked butchered, with some calling what happened the “Columbia Chainsaw Massacre”.
So what happened this year? The club had been buying the state tree from North Carolina, but found a less expensive grower in Pennsylvania. There aren’t many places that grow trees large enough, so there aren’t many choices.
They found a suitable tree, but the grower bundled it for shipment the same way he does smaller trees, with netting that surrounds the tree. That broke off some of the branches, leaving the bare spots that passersby were complaining about.
This tree is also shorter than previous ones. The state tree is usually taller than the Confederate Soldier Monument that it stands in front of, but not this year. Jane Suggs, with the Columbia Garden Club, calls it a “recession tree”, since it is smaller and was less expensive.
After the 2004 incident, the Columbia Garden Club brought in smaller trees and placed them around the base of the larger tree. Since they were the same kind of tree, they blended in, filling in the gaps and making the tree look full and symmetrical. They’ll do the same this year.
It should be noted that the Columbia Garden Club and the South Carolina Garden Club pay for the state Christmas tree, not taxpayers. The Columbia Garden Club decorates it, with members volunteering their time and energy. The club also spent $6,000 on an electrical box for the tree’s lights and $1,500 for a new stand that’s built to keep the tree in place in hurricane-force winds.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment