Good morning and welcome to Summit Up, the world’s only daily column that is starting to get really excited to put up the Christmas tree. It’s that wonderful tradition that, for us at least, is the real kick off to the holiday season. You all can keep your Santa at the end of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and Black Friday mad-rush for the last toaster oven, which you don’t actually need, but which is marked down so low they’re practically paying you to take it off their hands so it really does make it worth getting out of bed at 2:27 a.m. while the previous night’s turkey is still digesting and let’s face it, you have a bit of an eggnog hang over.

No siree, for us, it’s the Christmas tree putting-up festivities that really start the season off. It always takes us back to the days when we were a wee little columnist and we would gather with our parents and brothers and sisters around the tree, sipping hot cocoa and cider, listening to carols and unwrapping all the ornaments. And then of course, the fighting would break out and soon we’d be chucking those ornaments at one sibling or the other and squabbling over who got the last sugar cookie or whose turn it was to put the angel on top of the tree. It was really magical.

But this year we’re having a hard time deciding whether to go with a fake tree or a real tree. Of course, a fake tree has a little more staying power. And, frankly, we’ve still got a small grudge against real trees since that one fell over on us when we were crawling underneath it going about the very serious business of trying to figure out what was in our Christmas presents. Then, of course, there’s the whole environmental guilt for having supported an industry that cuts down trees, which is a kind of an un-Christmas-y thing to do anyway. On the other hand, getting a fake tree just feels like cheating, not to mention, most of you Millions of Summit Up Readers out there know how we feel about allowing fake vegetation to take up residence in or on our house. Plus, with fake trees you miss out on that lovely pine-needle smell.

It’s a matter of some contention with the other people in our house. Some are on team real-tree, some are on team fake-tree … and then there’s this one guy who’s pulling for a Charlie Brown tree (not sure who invited him).

Anywho, if you decide to go with a real tree, Summit Middle and High School’s Boy Scout Troop 187 has a prime selection of them down on Main and Wellington in Breck. Stop by Monday through Thursday from 4 to 6:30 p.m., Fridays from 4-7 p.m., Saturdays 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. or Sundays noon to 6:30 p.m. and check out their Frasers, Concolor firs and Scotch pines. They’ve also got stands and wreathes. All proceeds support the Scouts!

Head over, they’ll hook you up.

We out.