A 65-foot white fir tree is loaded onto a truck for its 20-day journey to Washington on November 5, 2011 after the U.S. Capitol Christmas tree was cut from the Stanislaus National Forest near Sonora, Calif. The tradition of "The People's Tree" began in 1964, and the job of providing it rotates among national forests. Come January, when the tree has served its purpose, it will be ground into mulch and spread across the Capitol gardens. (Jerry Snyder/Stanislaus National Forest/AP) #