After a Thanksgiving weekend away at Granny's house up in Tennessee we just got around to Christmas decorations tonight. I picked the kids up after work and we all met mom at the local Christmas tree stand. The kids ran wild through the maze of Carolina Firs and and Evergreens and eventually found what they believed to be "The One". For the first time in their short lives they picked the tree, not me, and I thought that was pretty cool.
Not seeing a major blemish on it I nodded to the guy working the stand and then he and another large man dragged the tree over to trim and apply the stand. Two huge men dragging the tree should have been my first clue, but my kids were happy and that was all that mattered to me at the moment. That and getting home to eat the Thai food my wife had waiting in the car.
Only after we got home and my neighbor and I dragged the tree through the front door and propped it up did I realize the task set before me.
The tree is huge. I felt like Clark Grizwold in the opening scene of the movie:
"I declare this, the Adams family Christmas tree," I said.
Without skipping a beat, my wife replied, "That tree won't even fit in our yard."
It's one of her favorite movies, too.
It's one of her favorite movies, too.
"It's not going in our yard, honey," I replied. "It's going in our living room!"
After which I proceeded to string lights for two solid hours. The original plan had been to decorate the tree with the kids tonight. Looks like that's now going to be a two-night process.
I like to think Clark W. Griswold would be proud.
Go big or go home.
Go big or go home.
As for Ole Miss news there isn't much to report anyway. Djournal.com's Parrish Alford had the most interesting nugget today. If Vanderbilt (8-4) were to make the Gator Bowl, Ole Miss could miss out on Music City. Music City Bowl President Scott Ramsey said his bowl would think really hard about Georgia if Vandy got a Florida invite:
“I can say from our perspective, we try to consider everything. I know Rick (Catlett) at the Gator Bowl well. They have a lot of the same mission points that we do. You try to put the best matchup you can on the field for two or three things, for the energy and enthusiasm of the fans that want to be in the city, to the national media platform to showcase the city with the highest ratings possible for your sponsor. Sometimes a regional team fits the bill better. Sometimes a non-regional team fits what you want more than a local team. I’m sure Vanderbilt will be well-vetted from all the bowls, and we’ll see where the decision falls. If that happens, I fully expect … I can’t fathom that Texas A&M would fall to our mix, but if Vanderbilt is selected by Atlanta or Jacksonville, Texas A&M or Georgia would be teams that would fit with us.”
In one of those scenarios Ole Miss would probably fall to the Liberty Bowl.
Honestly, I'm not too worried either way. The difference between the Liberty and Music City is negligible as far as prestige is concerned and Memphis is a closer drive.
Check out our tree: