Christmas Tree Experiment

What does one do with a Christmas tree after Christmas? In most places they put it out at the curb to be picked up as trash for landfill. It's not a very efficient use of the tree, even though it is a renewable resource. But in New Orleans we recycle our Christmas trees. Every January on a specified date, the local government picks up the trees in special trucks and holds them for recycling.
Later volunteers meet and bundle the trees which are then taken to marshes, bayous, the wetlands and coastal regions to act as barriers to block erosion of the land there. So the trees stop our coastal land loss. It's a great way to dispose of old trees. In San Francisco there is now a new use for the Christmas tree that seeks to avoid the waste of the typical Christmas tree disposal, this time with live Christmas trees.
For $90 the city is renting 100 live, potted trees, from, Christmas pines, fruitless olive trees to Brisbane boxes to homes for the holidays. Yep, instead of them getting tossed to the curb when Christmas is over, the city of San Francisco will pick them up in January and plant them in a neighborhood in need of more trees. The city is trying it this year to see if can eliminate much of the waste from cutting live trees and the the environmentally unfriendly practice of making artificial trees with petroleum products.
So far parents who bought the trees say their kids love them while environmentalists say growing real trees to chop down for a few weeks of pleasure is a waste of valuable resources, and that discarding them often clogs landfills. Too, artificial trees may contain lead or other harmful chemicals that eventually end up in landfills. I have bought smaller live trees before and replanted them after the holidays, one at my former home is about 25 feet tall now. But it seems people here still prefer the ease of the disposable tree.
Well, Americans are often easily pushed to fads. We shall see if this becomes one next Christmas. How stupid does a driver have to be to illegally park in a handicapped zone? Well, maybe as dumb as William Shufro, 46, of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. You see, not only did non handicapped William park his car in a handicapped person's spot, he faces a felony charge and possible 3 year prison term after trying to alter the ticket police gave him for parking there. Police allege that William tried to alter the ticket to give the appearance that it had been issued for parking in a no-parking zone, which carries just a $20 fine (the handicap parking violation is a $100 fine).
The altered ticket was sent to city hall by William with his $20 payment. But police had a copy and saw the alteration and have charged William with forgery. It looks like William will have a real handicap this time. He'll have a stint in prison and a prison record to overcome when he is release from jail.....but I doubt he will park in a handicap zone.