An Open Letter to the Night Crew at the Christmas Tree Lot:

My name is Austin, and I open the lot in the mornings. It is my
responsibility to open the gate, light up the lot, get the sign lit, get
our giant inflatable snowman inflated, clean up, price the trees, fill
in display holes, and generally prepare for and serve customers. In just
a short time I've gotten good at it. That is my job.

You might think I should mind my job and you mind yours. That would work
out fine, if you would mind your job better. I know your job, I've done
it on several occasions. There are several areas where you could
improve. I thought you should know about them.

Don't leave food here when you leave. Refrozen french fries, with
ketchup, is very gross. A full cup of soda, aside from being wasteful,
will freeze, the liquid expand, and spill all over the counter. I've
noticed you let those cups pile up, night after night. You should just
throw them away.

If trees don't have a price on them, put one on. The customers like it,
and it prevents us from having to haggle.

If there is excessive foliage or ice on the ground, clean it up. It's
dirty, unsightly, and a potential hazard to our customers.

Don't leave the tree preservative outside "on display". You need to take
it in at night, or it will freeze, burst the bottle, fall off the
counter, roll across the lot, and become unsellable. And gooey. I can't
stress that one enough. Or the food thing.

Other than that, you seem to be doing a fine job. Thanks for taking the
extension cables in at night.
--Austin