A couple weeks ago, I wrote about a battle Mrs. 1500 and I were having over the thermostat. Writing it was a lot of fun, but we usually get along well, so I didn’t expect to write about another fight this soon. (Mrs. 1500 note: I wouldn’t characterize this as a fight…more like a disagreement because I am right and he is not…) However, a new conflict has broken out in the 1500 household. This time, it’s over our wayward Christmas tree.
Somewhere in our garage of chaos, there is an ugly plastic Christmas tree in a battered box. “Somewhere” is the key word because we have no clue where it actually is and the garage remains a disaster. (Mrs. 1500 note: I wouldn’t use the word ‘disaster.’ Let’s say untidy.) The tree is the plastic version of the Charlie Brown tree, so ugly that it’s barely even worth looking for. However, the holidays are upon us and Mrs. 1500 insists that we set up a tree. The kids eagerly support her position, so I’m outnumbered.
There are 2 problems:
- The tree could take years to find: It is in a small box and there is a lot of crap in our garage. Because of construction, the garage became our storage space. Neither car even fits at the moment. I don’t even recommend entering unless you’ve had a tetanus shot (Mrs. 1500 note: Oh, how I wish this weren’t true…) and aren’t afraid of box avalanches. (Mrs. 1500 note again: I have stacked the boxes very nicely, and the Mr. 1500 boxes now outnumber the Mrs. 1500 boxes combined with the Little 1500 boxes, so don’t try to pin this one on me, bub.)
- The tree may not even be there at all: This past year, we donated a bunch of stuff. We used to have multiple trees and we donated some (we had even uglier ones), if not all. So, we could spend a couple hours out there searching and come up empty. (Mrs. 1500 note: When we first got together, Mr. 1500 was living in his recently deceased grandmother’s house. She had 3 fake trees, and we just kept them. I think we are down to one now. Maybe zero. Yay decluttering!)
Me and the real tree to the rescue
I had a fantastic idea that I thought Mrs. 1500 would love. We’ve had this plant for years and it is some kind of pine tree (Norfolk Pine?). So my thought was this, “Hey, let’s just bring the plant out and substitute that for a tree. It isn’t the sturdiest thing, but the kids can make paper ornaments. Problem solved!”
Mrs. 1500 did not see it my way. When I told her about my idea, she glared at me and shook her head:
- Mrs. 1500: We are not using that. It looks nothing like a Christmas tree.
- Me: What’s wrong with it? Nothing! I don’t want to buy another tree when there is a good chance ours is in the garage somewhere!
- Mrs. 1500: What if it isn’t?
- Me: What if it is?
- Mrs. 1500: We are frugal in most ways. I am not spending Christmas without a tree!
On and on it went. I tried again and again to convince her that the plant was a worthy substitute, but she was having none of it. (Mrs. 1500 note: Probably I was having none of it because it looks nothing like a Christmas Tree…)
I suggested that we could decorate the tree in our yard. Mrs. 1500 reminded me that we cut that one down because it was invading our sewer line.
I suggested we just get a painting pole out of the garage and celebrate Festivus instead. That suggestion didn’t even warrant a verbal response, just a dirty look.
A Christmas Miracle
The battle was deadlocked. I went upstairs to do some work and the Mrs. stormed off into the garage. Not more than 10 minutes later, she announced excitedly that she had located Ugly Tree. (Mrs. 1500 note: Guess where I found the tree? In the attic above the garage. Up a rather sketchy wooden pull-down ladder – complete with one missing rung which is an ideal way to give yourself a mini heart attack when you forget it as you climb down. This was too heavy for me to have put up there. Mr. 1500 is much stronger than I am. Wonder how it got up there? Such a puzzler…) Our marriage and Christmas was saved.
I’m still going to decorate my plant though. And I hope Ugly Tree doesn’t go “missing” again…
Classic. You outdid yourself today. Thanks for the laughs.
…..or should I say selves. Mrs 1500 kicked your butt.
Thanks Wayne, much appreciated.
Thanks, Wayne!
Mrs. 1500 recently posted…10 Questions and a Pizza Place with The Wealth Sergeant
Nice, some good natured Christmas conflict and resolution! I typically land on the frugal side in my household, but I will say I have to side with the Mrs on this one. Christmas trees & some decorations definitely add to the Christmas flavor and mood. They’re constant reminders of the season.
We are more in the real-tree camp, but I get why people go with plastic ones. We got ours at Costco this year – $28 this year for a beautiful tree. Ideally for me would be a Griswold-esque trip the the NC mountains (not far for us).
Sir Salty recently posted…Buying for Babies
We’ve done real trees in the past too. Here in Colorado, you can get a permit to get one from the forest. It helps keep the forests healthier, so everyone wins. This year, we just ran out of time.
A festivus for the rest of us!!!
We’re treeless by choice this year (you should see what our garage and kitchen look like right now – only half of a wall separating them!) and I feel like it’s the best decision I made in a while. Though we can pull out an aluminum pole and air some grievances. =)
Mrs PoP @ Planting Our Pennies recently posted…Prepaying For A High ROI
LOL! I can’t imagine that you and Mr. PoP have any grievances with each other. No Seinfeld-esque drama there!
Can’t wait to see what your improvements look like!
Sounds like a similar discussion in our house. We finally agreed to be tree less by choice. Happy holidays!
“Tree less by choice.” Can I have you speak to the wife?
Happy holidays back at ya!!
We, too have been tree-less by choice in the past. But we have children now, and they really like having a tree.
I’m going to side with the Mrs on this one. First off – your ‘tree’ looks even sadder than Charlie Brown’s tree. And second – a tree is the quintessential Christmas decoration – it is spring from which all Christmas joy extrudes. Without a tree Santa will have no idea where to put your presents, you will have no where to gather every night holding hands, looking at your family with love and joy and singing Christmas carols while sipping some hot chocolate…
Mrs SSC recently posted…How horrible customer service is going to save me money
My tree is beautiful! OK, OK maybe it is a little pathetic. Well, maybe a lot pathetic. OK, I admit it, I’m just too cheap to spring for a new one!
The Mrs. and I are definitely Christmas Tree people. Hell, we even plan for where to put a tree when we’re shopping for houses.
Look at it this way: There are plenty of delicious canned microbrews that can double as ornaments*. Why else do you think can tabs stay attached now?!?
(*I’m only joking. That’s as redneck as pickup hitch jewelry. But, I’ll admit, better than pot holders.)
Mr. Maroon recently posted…Happy Anniversary
Cans as ornaments! Brilliant!!! I can’t wait to tell the Mrs. about this! You are a genius!!!
You say “redneck,” but I saw “frugal!”
The pot holder is courtesy of the littlest 1500. She has a happy heart, and when we couldn’t find the ornaments, she just went into her bedroom and found things she could hang on the tree. What isn’t pictured are “cat tails,” which are long strips of fake fur, for a birthday party game called cat tails. You stick the piece of fur into the back of your pants like a tail, and everyone tries to step on the tail, pulling it out. The last one with a tail wins. We have a lot of these tails, and they are now lovingly draped over the tree like garland.
Hahaha I had a good laugh reading this article. It was great. We got a tree for a good price this year and afterwards Mrs. T told me she thought it was expensive considering that her mom got 2 trees for the price that we paid. Now I just need to convince her that we should just go treeless next year. 🙂
Tawcan recently posted…Boom Shakalaka
Ha, it is nice to see others have these issues too.
Treeless is fine by me. Hell, I’d be fine decorating the thing we hang our coats on and sticking that in the middle of the living room.
LOL, the potholder is a brilliant touch.
Allie recently posted…Scrap Veggies
Yes, I love it! Our 5 year old actually came up with that one, so I can take no credit.
I enjoyed this one. I always enjoy the way you intersperse both of your comments throughout the post. And being a husband who didn’t really want to dig out the Christmas tree this year I could relate to a lot of the conversation.
Although I’d also draw the line at the Festivous pole. The holidays shouldn’t be a time for the airing of grievances. Although with some relatives around you can’t really escape it 😉
Frugal Buckeye recently posted…Big news for the Frugal Buckeye Household!
Ha, some of our holiday parties are nothing BUT airing of grievances. Pour some booze on the fire and things really get nuts. Ahhh, the holidays!
ha ha
When putting things in boxes, I always label the outside of the box with a description of the contents. SO when I need to mess around in the garage to find the “lost” widget, I can find a clue… if I labelled the boxes correctly 😉
“area man” Just like The Onion! Ha!
I need everything in my life to have RFIDs on it. Seriously, I will totally do it when the technology catches up.
What a great idea. Since I have moved so many times, you would think that I would know this little trick. Nope. “I’ll remember what is in that box…” Hence the pot holder tree ornament…
Ha! I really love the interjected notes. It just goes to show that couples are at their best when they work together 🙂
Mario recently posted…Holiday PSA: Re-check the prices for gifts you already bought RIGHT NOW (Regarding refunds)
Yep, a good partner will make you a better person. And a better blogger.
So I’m at work right now and I literally laughed out loud when I saw the potholder…..my boss gave me a weird look 🙂 Super glad you found the Christmas tree – all materialism aside, it’s not Christmas without a decent tree.
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Thanks Gretchen, but don’t get in trouble because of this stupid blog!
I’m with Mrs 1500 on this one – you really need a tree. I would have probably gone out to buy a real tree for this season though – not the Charlie Brown one! – and hoped to find the fake one before next Christmas. Ours is in storage, but Grammy has a small skinny one held together with duct tape. A strong wind might blow it over though….
Mom @ Three is Plenty recently posted…To rollover or not – the importance of choice and fees
A duct tape tree, now that is awesome!
It’s a Christmas miracle! I think the thing that Mr. 1500 is missing is she was not letting the Christmas tree being put up, happy wife, happy life let us not forget;)
Even Steven recently posted…Interview of Sorts: FrugalWoods more like FrugalWeirdos
Yes, Happy Wife, Happy Life indeed. Another Christmas miracle would be permanently “losing” this ugly tree.
I vote that since Mrs. 1500 found the tree, YOU, Mr. Scrooge, have to find the ornaments! I mean it’s only fair, right??!! (the pot holder is too funny!)
Oh no, no one is on my side! I am going to go hide somewhere now while I choke back my tears… 🙂
We have had many different types of trees. The kids LOVE coming up with creative Christmas trees. One year recently we found a tumbleweed out in the country, brought it back, flocked it with fake snow and decorated it with the lights and ornaments. It was beautiful! Another year we decorated a fake ficus we have. And another we created a large wall tree using brown and green streamers and hung light ornaments from it, The kids love remembering that one! Last year I found a little realistic plastic tree with lights at a local thrift store for a few bucks. It sits on the table and is just so cute. Mrs 1500, you might find that the kids will enjoy coming with new ways to express their Christmas spirit. It doesn’t have to look the same every year.
Retired, this is awesome! I especially love the tumbleweed one; that is just great.
Can I put you in touch with the Mrs.? 🙂
It’s a Norfolk Island Pine 🙂 Although some people use them as Christmas trees, I won’t be decorating mine. For me, trees are all about the lights. Christmas is all about the lights. Enough said.
Yeah, lights would make my little pine sag. So would empty beer cans unfortunately.
Why didn’t we offer you our Christmas ladder? It’s made out of sticks that broke off a tree in our yard during an October snowstorm a few years back. We built a Christmas-tree shaped ladder out of it and pull it out when there isn’t enough room or we won’t be home enough to justify a real tree. It’s so easy to store…. Since we’re already out of town, we could have loaned it out! (And it would only take a handful of potholders to decorate….)
Ha, that is awesome! I want to see it sometime!
Lol….I love the plant and I think it would have been an awesome tree! Please decorate it and post a picture. Glad the ugly tree turned up. You know what they say…Happy wife, happy life.
Petrish @ Debt Free Martini recently posted…Financial Fitness Program
Yes, will do. Stay tuned….
Hah! I agree with Mrs. 1500, that plant looks nothing like a Christmas tree. That’d be like if I hung ornaments on Frugal Hound’s tail and called it a tree :). Nice potholder–I appreciate the inventiveness!
Mrs. Frugalwoods recently posted…Weekly Woot & Grumble: Mom’s On Email and My Hands Are Dry
I very much like the Frugal Hound idea, but I don’t think she would go for it. Try it anyway though!
I love you guys. You are hilarious, even when fighting! 😀 It looks like you’re in need of a serious decluttering. Check out my series if you need some help. I do like that “tree” and I love Mrs. FW’s hound “idea”! My favorite Christmas trees are palm trees. Even the fake ones are fantastic! Keep on keepin’ on 1500’s! OH, and thanks again for that vandwelling video. I’ve almost got the hubmeister convinced! 🙂
kay ~ lifestylevoices.com recently posted…Hey, What’s That Bucket For ??? 😛
Kay, we ARE in serious need of decluttering. I am a pre-hoarder, not quite there but family tendencies are hard to fight. I would love to check out your series. Can you send me a link? Mrs1500 (at) 1500days (dot) com.
Looks like everyone came out a winner – Mrs. 1500 got her tree and Mr. 1500 can have the kids make paper ornaments to decorate the tree! Yay!!
Great story, thanks for sharing.
Even a cheap artificial tree looks great with lots of lights and ornaments.
No Nonsense Landlord recently posted…How to Get the Best Tenants into Your Rental Property
Too funny! Glad to see no nuclear option was mentioned this time!
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