Christmas Tree Stands

Hey Neighbor!

Welcome back to THE NEIGHBORHOOD!  This week’s story is about magical NYC holiday tradition.  

Every mid November, right before Thanksgiving, something magical starts to happen.  Wooden structures start to erect on street corners. Then, the day after Thanksgiving, their purpose is revealed. Trucks drive in from upstate, Pennsylvania and Vermont to bring Christmas Trees to lean on those structures.

The hope is that they will be sold and grace the homes of city dwellers. 

The fascinating part is that someone is always there 24 hours a day.  

In the suburbs where I grew up, we would go to a farm or a tree vendor. There was a way for the owners to “close up shop” and go home.

Not for the people selling trees in NYC.

A few years ago, I saw a fascinating documentary on Netflix called Tree Man. It chronicles a holiday season for a tree vendor from Canada. He leaves his family on Thanksgiving Day and makes the trek to NYC, where he sells trees on the Upper West Side.  He has one local kid working with him and they trade off shifts. And no, he doesn’t rent an apartment or stay in a hotel.

He sleeps in his van! 

Isn’t that wild? 

He comes back year after year and is now a staple of this neighborhood and their holiday season.  Community members visit him and catch up on what has happened since the year before.

Isn’t that beautiful?  

I love the stands because as I walk by, I can smell the pine trees. It instantly puts me in the holiday spirit. 

Every year, I buy a homemade ornament from “The Tree House,” a vendor at West 79th Street and Broadway. They take the trunk cuttings of sold trees and make little ornaments out of them.

A few years ago, I befriended the vendor right by Levain on the Upper East Side. A few days before Christmas, the owner dropped off a small tree for me to take home.

“We had extras and I can’t just throw it out!”  My very own Charlie Brown tree.  And the best part is that it’s from a new neighbor. 

It truly is a wonderful life. 

Okay, Neighbor, it’s your turn.  What are your favorite holiday traditions?  What signals the start of the season for you?  

I look forward to hearing your stories.  

I’ve Got You in My Pocket,

Jackie Ostick 

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