The Reasons...

Hi again!
Well, as this season gets rolling, I have been thinking about some of the reasons I love Christmas so much. Obviously, being Care'n Presents, I love the presents! Not the getting but the giving! There's nothing like the fun of making cookies, candy or other little goodies to give to friends and family. On top of that I LOVE wrapping gifts! I think that is at least half of the fun!  
And yes! I love Living Christmas trees! I love the smell, lighting the lights, and I especially love having a live tree inside my house around the holidays. It's something you can care for, talk to, sing to! Okay, well, the talking and singing thing is probably just me, but still...you can if you want to, and I highly recommend it. It's really good stress relief. I guarantee you, the tree will not give you any lip, or argue, or whine. He or she will just listen to your troubles, breathe in your stress, and in return, give you wonderful fresh oxygen. The Living Christmas elves try and relieve a little of your stress too, by delivering your tree right to your house, and picking it up afterwards. You don't have to run around to the lots, or strap one to the roof of your car. Even better, you don't have to fight with one of those water tray thingies, while you make a brave, yet futile attempt to get the tree to stand up straight. Right there, knowing I can avoid that, that takes me right to my happy place. Something pleasant to think about this holiday season, don't you think?

Well it's getting busy at The Workshop, so I better scurry. 

Merry Merry!

Care'n Presents

Dream a Christmas Dream

Day 74 - Dream a little dream.  When I was a wee elf I grew up in Southern California (before my family moved to the North Pole of course). Although now I realize how fabulous it is to live here, as opposed to somewhere where it's winter all year long, when I was a kid I dreamed of snow. Every Christmas Eve I prayed that somehow it would snow. This never happened, but it didn't stop me from praying the same thing the next year. Do you have a Christmas dream? Did you ever? Maybe it's time to start believing in that dream again. Crazy? Probably, but I think sometimes, and maybe a little more during Christmas time, crazy is okay.

Day 73 - Look toward the light! No, I'm not having an out of body experience. I'm just thinking about all the pretty Christmas lights that will be hung on people's trees and outside on their houses.  If at all possible, consider using LED lights. LED stands for Light Emitting Diode. They require less wattage and last longer than regular light bulbs. LED lights stay cool, so imagine how much safer it is to have them on your Christmas Tree. You won't have to worry about toasting the branches, or for that matter, little curious hands. If you want to know more about LED lights check out http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/led.htm.

I hope you all are having a wonderful weekend so far. We're almost halfway through October. Halloween is just around the corner, and not long after that...well, you know the deal...




Merry Merry!!

Care'n Presents


photo: www.iowaenergycenter.org

Z is for...

It seems funny to be getting to the end of our Living Christmas alphabet, at a time when our company has just had a fabulous new start!! For those of you in the North Pole where there is no television reception, and those of you who well, just don't watch TV, our beloved Scotty Claus was on the show "Shark Tank". No, he wasn't wearing a wet suit, he didn't feed live sharks or (thankfully) get eaten by one. "Shark Tank" is a show where people with big ideas try and find people who believe in them. Hopefully those believers will be willing to invest a lot of money too.  Scotty Claus took a risk that the Shark Tank investors wouldn't just chew him up and spit him out. He pitched his Living Christmas idea and...Yay!! Mark Cuban decided to take a risk and invest in Scotty. You thought Scotty smiled a lot before? Hugs all around! All of the elves (including me) are so excited we can hardly keep our hats on.

Oh, but wait...before I forget why I was here in the first place...

Z is for Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z

This is what you are supposed to be doing on Christmas Eve when Santa comes. This is also what Scotty Claus has NOT been doing since...I think, September.  I'm thinking maybe after Christmas, or at least after the trees get picked up after Christmas, or maybe after they get picked up and resituated at the farm, then he'll catch some Zs. Possibly it will happen after the adoptions are all registered in February...
Sorry, Scotty. A Claus's work is never done. Sleep is over-rated anyway, right?

Take a nap. Relax and have a Merry Christmas!


Care'n Presents

W is for...

I considered waiting on this one, because it may make more sense once we start delivering trees, but what the heck. It won't be long now anyway.

W is for...WATER YOUR TREE!!

I was at the Orange County Farmer's Market over the weekend, and a few people asked me. What happens if my rented Christmas tree dies while I have it?  Well, just like any living thing, the goal would be...not to kill it. On the upside, our trees are fairly easy to take care of. Mainly, you have put it somewhere away from heaters or fireplaces, water it (not too much of course) and occasionally say nice things to it and give it a (gentle) hug. Consider it part of the family, but one who requires a lot less maintenance than say...a teenager, or a two year old. For more details on how to care for your Living Christmas tree check out:  http://livingchristmas.com/info/tree/care.php Of course you'll need to order one first, haha.


Merry Christmas!!

Care'n Presents

 

 

 

photo: thegreenhead.com

U is for...

♪♫ Up on the housetop reindeer pause,
out jumps good ol'  Scotty Claus! ♫♪

When I was growing up, we never had a fireplace. Of course I still expected to hear Santa's reindeer on the roof even though we didn't have a fireplace for him to come in. So how did he bring all those gifts to my elfling siblings and me? Obviously he came in through the mail slot in the front door, duh. 
Christmas is all about believing. Sometimes it's not easy to believe in things that other people look on as a "dream".  Scotty Claus wanted to make Christmas more Earth friendly, more tree friendly, and more environmentally friendly. Let's face it, he's a friendly guy. One of the things he does is to replant the trees once they've become too big or just not suitable to be Christmas trees. He lets them "retire" and at the same time, adds some greenery in places that need it.

Urban Infill and Urban Forestry  (our official U words for today)

In the off seasons our trees live in their cozy little pots on brownfields (unused industrial lands) where they suck up carbon and produce lots of oxygen. This improves air quality and combats global warming (how cool is that?).  Our retired trees also help with storm water run-off, and of course add beauty to well, wherever they are planted. Some things are just nicer to look at than others, don't you think?


Merry Christmas!!

Care'n Presents

Imagine 1000 Living Christmas trees instead of just brown.

photo: njtpa.org

R is for...

I always feel a little bad when I go for the obvious choice, but what kind of Living Christmas elf would I be if I didn't say that R is for...

Recycling!!

I know some of you might be thinking that recycling is a pain, but depending on where you live, it can be very easy. In our area, we have a special bin that we put all of our cardboard, glass, plastic etc. in an it gets picked up on trash day. Easy, right? But what if you don't have that option? A lot of grocery stores have recycling collections in the parking lot, and you can get money for your recycled items there. Even if you don't have pick up, you don't feel like taking your cans to the store parking lot, or even sorting the stuff in the  first place, there are still things you can do! 
"Reuse-Reduce-Recycle". (All R words too!) Use something more than once. Use that plastic grocery bag as a waste can liner instead of going out and buying a roll of liners. Use the container your sandwich meat came in to put leftovers in.  There are lots of ways to keep our planet green, that aren't really too hard. (Need I mention renting a living Christmas tree instead of a cut tree? Nah, I didn't think so...)

To see how we are keeping green check out:
http://livingchristmas.com/

For more information on recycling:
http://www.epa.gov/osw/conserve/rrr/recycle.htm

photo: openairbigbear.com


Merry Christmas!
Merry Merry!

Care'n Presents

O is for...

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree...

I apologize for going for the obvious choice this time, but I couldn't resist. The cool thing though, is that when I looked up this song, I found out some really groovy things. This song started out as a German folk song, (OTannenbaum) and originally, it didn't have anything to do with Christmas. Tannenbaum just means "Fir Tree" and the song was about the fact that these trees were evergreen, and symbols of consistency and devotion. Re-written into "modern" lyrics in 1824 by Ernst Anschutz, verses were added which included a Christmas theme. 
This all got me to thinkin' about the idea of an evergreen tree being a symbol of faithfulness...something constant. This makes living Christmas trees make even more sense! The trees are meant to be evergreen, for forever or as long as possible anyway. Cut trees don't get to stay green. They dry out and die, which is why Scotty Claus started this whole Living Christmas Company in the first place. Our trees live on, like true love, or family memories, or that wine stain on your favorite throw rug. (Sorry, it was getting way too serious.) 

So lets all sing to our trees (when we get them) to thank them for being loyal, beautiful and green for another Christmas!

Merry Christmas! 

Care'n Presents




photo and information found:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O_Tannenbaum

N is for...

Naughty? or Nice?

As far as Scotty Claus is concerned, if you are renting or adopted a Living Christmas Tree, you are on the "Nice" list. Seriously, would a naughty person care about the environment? I think not. This is not to say that if you don't get one, you are on the naughty list or anything, it's more of a gold star, or brownie point kind of thing. We all should do something to make our planet a better place. As long as everyone does what they can, we'll see a better tomorrow. 

I tried to find a Christmas song for N and the only one I found was called "Nuttin' for Christmas" by Sid Tepper and Roy C. Bennett.

I'm getting nuttin' for Christmas
Mommy and Daddy are mad
I'm getting nuttin' for Christmas
'Cause I ain't been nuttin' but bad.

Clearly, this kid is on the "Naughty" list.  Maybe he should get a Living Christmas tree, haha. Hopefully all of you out there are working on being nice. Christmas seems kind of far away, but I have a feeling it will be here before I know it. Being nice when we're all stressed out around the holidays can be tough, so practice now. We elves try to practice every day.

Merry Christmas!!


Care'n Presents

Photo:  kidzcoolzone.com
http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/c/christmas_songs/nuttin_for_christmas.html

L is for...

Well...let me think...oh! I know!! 

L is for Living Christmas!!

Seriously, what did you think I was going to say?  Oh, I realize there are plenty of Christmas words that start with L, like Lights and Love and Ladies Dancing, but Living Christmas is pretty close to my heart, so there you have it. I've pretty much given you the basics of the company. We rent beautiful trees, drop them off, pick them up and take care of them all year. The trees stay alive which is good news for them. They smell wonderful and are safer because the are not dead and drying out in your living room causing a fire risk. This is good news for you. Did you know that plastic trees can give off chemicals into the air that are harmful to people? Something to think about anyway, right?


So if you haven't already, check us out at 
http://livingchristmas.com/index.php

Since we're not in full swing quite yet, I don't think you will be able to place an order, but if you can still get information and even see video clips of Scotty Claus in the News! 

Speaking of getting into full swing, I better get busy!  Merry Christmas!!

I is for...

"I'm dreaming of a GREEN Christmas..."

What? Did you really think I'd say "white" Christmas? What am I, crazy? (Don't answer that.)  I live in California, and don't get me wrong: I love snow. I like to visit it once in a while, and then go back to my neighborhood, 30 minutes from the beach, where it's considered cold if the temperature dips below 60. What I'm talking about here, however, is a different kind of green. It's more the eco-friendly green. It's the planet-loving, tree-hugging green. 

I is also for IDEA. 

People lately have been coming up with some great ideas to keep this world human-friendly for years to come. Sure, we can keep going the way we are: allowing waste to collect in landfills and the oceans, and depleting our resources. The world could last for a long time, but would it be a nice place to live? I'm thinking not. Scotty Claus didn't think so either, so he had the idea to start The Living Christmas Company. He's hoping the idea will catch on. 

Now before this post gets way too preachy, I found some other great songs that start with "I".

I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
I Saw Three Ships
I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas
I'll be home for Christmas
It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas
It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

So keep singing, and keep thinking. Maybe we can put our ideas together and make this a truly green Christmas, or white, if that's what you prefer. Merry Christmas!


Care'n Presents



Some information from:  http://xmasfun.com/lyrics.asp



Photo: pathtogreen.wordpress.com

H is for...

"Have a Holly Jolly Christmas...."

I love how in the Christmas Classic "Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer", the animals decorated the trees in the forest just as they were. Of course who knows where they got all the tinsel and ornaments, but they all seemed to have a great time. I watch that movie every year, and every year I cry when all the other reindeer make fun of little Rudolph, I mean, wow, even Santa turns his back on the guy. Okay, I'm a sap; I cry watching Hallmark commercials. What can I say? We actually have a rule in our house that we are not allowed to watch any Christmas movies until at least November and even then it's movies like "The Holiday" and "Sleepless in Seattle'. These are movies with Christmas in them, but not necessarily "Christmas" movies. "It's a Wonderful Life" is traditionally watched the day after Thanksgiving, and after that, anything goes.
Sometimes I watch these movies and think, wow, what a great fantasy. Too bad real life is not really like that. Yet there is still a part of me that needs to believe that while these fantasies are completely unrelated to my life, the central idea in them is always the same: Hope.

So H is for... HOPE

Think about it. Every one of those Christmas movies leaves you with that same feeling: the hope that this world could somehow be a better place, that people can change for the better, that circumstances can improve, that there will be a better tomorrow, or a better future. 

Scotty Claus saw how Christmas trees were just being discarded and hoped he could find a better way of providing this wonderful symbol of Christmas without the sad waste. So he came up with the Living Christmas Company. His goal was not to make a gzillion dollars as much as to make people see that there is a better way of doing this great tradition.  He knows it may not be for everyone, but he hopes it will make a difference, one Christmas tree at a time. So maybe think about it...and meanwhile...


Merry Christmas!


Care'n Presents



Photo: digitaldreammachine.com

G is for...

G is for GREEN!! 
...and while, to quote a famous frog, it's not always easy being green, there are a lot of things you can do that are fairly easy. Just recycle a few things now and then. Try to conserve resources. Plant something. Start small, and after a while it will be second nature. 
On a more literal note, green is a lovely color. Being an elf I see a lot of green...clothes, shoes, hats...but one of my favorite green things is a tree. 
No, really...it is. I'm not just saying that because I work for Scotty Claus. I love trees. I love the way some of them smell. I love how there are so many different types of trees. I love that people and trees have this great trade off. We breathe in oxygen and give off carbon dioxide; and trees (and other plants of course) take in the carbon dioxide and give us the oxygen that we need,
(...and there's our science lesson for today, folks, hehe).

Another great G word is Gifts. Every year The Living Christmas company tries to donate trees to charities and special programs that bring Christmas trees into homes and places that might not otherwise be able to have one. Most times the best gifts aren't under the tree. Sometimes it is the tree. Sometimes it's the love someone gives whether there's a tree or not, and whether it's Christmas or not. 
So like I always say (even in August) Merry Christmas!!

Care'n Presents






photo: en.wikipedia.org

F is for...

"Feliz Navidad!"

That's Merry Christmas in Spanish. Sadly, that's about the extent of my Spanish, other than food. I know you're thinking: You're an elf! You should know other languages! Let me dispel that misconception. Santa speaks every language. Scotty Claus speaks a LOT of languages. We elves...not so much.  Speaking of international things brings me to an important phrase that starts with F:

Fair Trade Ornaments. At The Living Christmas Company, we offer a lovely array of Fair Trade and Recycled ornaments to decorate your living tree for the season. "Fair Trade" items are those purchased from developing countries in order to help them out. We give them a fair price and they give us a high quality item. So check out our website at http://livingchristmas.com/index.php and click on "ORNAMENTS" to see all the beautiful decorations for your Christmas tree. I know you'll love them!

Peruvian Ceramic Ornament

Care'n Presents

E is for...

What else? 


E is for Elf! 


That would be me: one loyal, hard-working, somewhat crazy elf! There are lots of us and we do lots of different types of things. Most, of course, have the glamorous job of working in Santa's workshop on the North Pole. Personally I think that job is over-rated, but don't quote me. I don't want to offend any of my relatives or friends up there. Working for Scotty Claus is much more fun. The other day he got us milkshakes. All they get at the Pole is hot chocolate...day after day. Seriously, how much hot chocolate can you drink? Okay, I guess I do enjoy a bit of hot cocoa now and then...but I digress. Where was I? Oh yes...working for Scotty Claus. 


This brings me to another E word: Evergreen, just like the trees we have here at The Living Christmas Company. Evergreen trees are called that because they stay green all year long, at least when they are in nature. Our living trees take love and care to stay green and beautiful, but we do our best to keep them healthy all year until they are ready to be rented or adopted at Christmas time. When the trees get too old or big to be Christmas trees anymore we always try and plant them somewhere, as part of an Urban Reforestation Project which is good for the Environment. Hey, another great E word! 

Scotty Claus' elves replanting.

Merry Christmas!  


Care'n Presents

D is for...

"Deck the halls with boughs of holly, falalalalalalalala..."

What are you, nuts? Have you ever stepped on a holly leaf? You start putting that stuff in your hallway, and after one barefoot adventure, you'll be thinkin' twice about all that falala-ing. You'll definitely be singing a different tune.  So let's keep the holly outside, and in the ground where it belongs.

The trees at The Living Christmas company may not be in the ground, but they do live in pots with dirt so they stay alive. Living trees are happy trees, and happy trees smell better, and last way longer. So, aside from D being for "Decking the Halls", the only other thing I can think of is:

D is for Delivery.  

One of the coolest things about The Living Christmas Company is that instead of you trying to tie some tree onto the roof of your car and driving through town thinking the entire time "Please, please, don't fall off!" our elves can bring the tree to you. How cool is that? Then, after Christmas, instead of dragging it out to the curb, leaving a huge trail of needles behind, our elves will come and pick it up again. Now we can't guarantee there won't be any stray needles, at least it will be carried off as carefully and safely as possible. 

We can deliver the trees, you provide the love that will surround it. It's not about the gifts, it's about the "presence".


Care'n Presents

photo: voices.yahoo.com

C is for...

In the immortal words of someone I've admired since I was a wee elfling:

"C is for Cookie, that's good enough for me..."

Seriously! Oh, I know I could have said "C is for Christmas" but that seemed a little too predictable. Besides, cookies make the world go 'round. My mom's name was Ginger, as in Ginger-bread, and she made (and still makes) the best cookies in the world! No really, I checked. I personally have never met a cookie I didn't like. I guess cookies aren't too big a stretch from "Christmas" when you consider Santa's reputation. Scotty Claus likes a cookie now and then too I've heard, but since he'd rather not go the "belly like a bowlful of jelly" route, he tries to resist.

Scotty Claus thinks C should be for Conservation, but I thought that was just too big a word for a small elf like me. I decided to look it up though, and as it turns out, it is a pretty good word to know. On dictionary.reference.com it says that conservation is

"the act of conserving;  prevention of injury, decay, waste,or loss; preservation".

The Living Christmas Company is all about that idea. Our trees are not injured by cutting, they are not wasted, because after Christmas we pick them up again and take care of them, and they are not lost, because even when they get too old or too big to be Christmas trees any more we let them retire. They are planted somewhere where they will help improve the environment, or beautify an area.

Finally, last but hopefully not least, C is for Care'n Presents (that's me!) Merry July!

B is for...

"Believe in what you feel inside, 
And give your dreams the wings to fly.
You have everything you need,
If you just believe."

That comes from one of my favorite Christmas songs, coincidentally called "Believe" by Glen Ballard and Alan Silvestri (performed by Josh Groban).  It's all about believing the way you did when you were a child, and at Christmas time, we're kind of allowed to tap into our inner child so... 

B is for BELIEVE!


There are so many great things to believe in. You can believe in yourself, or in someone you love or respect. You can also believe that an idea can change the world!  Christmas seems to get crazier and crazier every year. It's so easy to get stressed out, and really, doesn't that go against all that Christmas is supposed to mean? Instead of venting on the poor sales clerk or helpful elf (ie: yours truly), try a little patience. It might make their day, and wouldn't that make you feel good too? I believe that kindness goes a lot further than well...grumpiness.

B is also for Blue Cedar, another one of the trees available to rent or adopt through The Living Christmas Company. No, we don't have 26 different trees, it's just the some of the ones we have just happen to be at the beginning of the alphabet. This tree's actual name is Cedrus Deodara which means (you're gonna' love this) "wood of the gods". This tree is even is included in legends and is even worshiped in the Hindu culture. In Pakistan it is the National Tree. On top of all this it smells really good, and bugs don't like it much. What more could you ask for in a tree?  

Back to "believing," Scotty Claus believes that we can all help change the world, one tree at at time. If you can't do that, you can start by recycling some of your stuff, or even just picking up your trash. Changing the world sometimes is a matter of changing the way we think. So think about it. Believe it can happen. 




Care'n Presents

Photo: cinemalicious.com

Some information found on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cedrus_deodara

A is for...

Well, since there are SO many great things about Christmas, I thought maybe I'd go alphabetically, and create the Living Christmas ABC's: unabridged, unofficial, and hopefully a little unusual. Being an elf, I figured the best way to start the ABC's is well...with E for Elf. Okay, just kidding. Really, we should start with S for Scotty Claus. Oh, all right, we'll do it the "normal" way, and start with A.


A is for "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth." I know you know that song. We all sang it at some point. (Now it's going to be stuck in your head all day, right? Don't you just love me?)





Also, A is for Aleppo Pine, which frankly, I'd never even heard of until I started working for Scotty Claus. It's one of the types of trees available to rent from The Living Christmas Company.  I looked it up, and it's a really pretty tree.  It's so pretty that the artist Paul Cezanne painted a picture called "The Big Trees" because he was inspired by one growing in his garden!  These trees are native to the Mediterranean region, but they grow well in Southern California too. There's even a Greek wine that's made from the resin of the Aleppo Pine called Retsina.  Not that we elves ever drink wine or anything...well, not when we're working anyway.


Come back again later for...well the rest of the alphabet. I guess I'll do B next. Why not, right?

nationalgalleries.org

Care'n Presents

Merry Christmas!

What's that you say? Christmas in July? Please! But let's face it people, it comes faster and faster every year! Any minute there will be decorations in the malls, street banners, tree lots. That, however, is not what I'm here to talk about. 


Allow me to introduce myself: I am Care'n Presents. Think of me as "care and presents" or "a caring presence", whichever floats your boat. Put simply: I'm an elf. I work for Scotty Claus and The Living Christmas Company. Scotty is sort of Santa's younger brother from another mother, only sometimes I think that the Claus's may not entirely want to admit it. Scotty changes his mustache and/or facial hair I think, every season. His "Santa" hat is about five feet long, and well, he's a little goofy. On the other hand, his heart is in the right place. He likes to concentrate on some of the things Santa doesn't always focus on, primarily: the trees. It's not Santa's fault, by any means. I have a cousin who works at the North Pole and she says it's a mad house! All those toys, and now especially, since the kids these days want electronics. There's a lot of stuff to do, and not a lot of time to even think about the trees. 


This brings us back to Scotty.  He was helping deliver trees one year, and that made him so happy...until the weeks after Christmas. He saw these same trees, just dumped on the curb. What for years was a beautiful living thing, and for a few weeks was a sparkling symbol of love and family, was now just a lump of dry wood and needles to be cast aside. That, made Scotty Claus very sad. Oh sure, once in a while a tree got composted, but for the most part they were thrown in a dumpster and left at the landfill. So Scotty created The Living Christmas Tree Company, where you don't buy a tree and throw it out, you rent a living tree, you water it, it stays alive and happy in your home, and then Scotty sends out his elves and reindeer, to collect it back again. Then, and throughout the year, the trees are given a little tender loving care (TLC - hey, just like The Living Christmas) and if you want you can even rent that same tree the next year. I've heard, that the trees like it better too. Who can blame them?


Okay, I know you're thinking "here comes the sales pitch" but alas. I'm an elf, not a sales person. Obviously, I think it's a great idea, but my point is to give you some things to think about: some things that are not about what you should buy Uncle Dave, or your mother-in-law. I want you to think about what you can do to keep Christmas in your heart...all the time. I want you to think about ways to make the trees happy, and the world maybe a little bit better place. Mostly, I just want to give you some things to think about that will make you smile. The holidays can be crazy and stressful. As an elf, don't I know it? So take a moment once in a while, take a deep breath, visit me, and remember what it's about.


 My present is Care.