Christmas

Just ignore it. I left a bar Sunday night when the band started playing Christmas songs. Roll on January.
 
I thought this year it was a lot more muted - thank God - in terms of the usual deafening bombardment of tv ads. Shops are full of the usual stuff, of course, but last year I would've declared myself the Ayatollah and had it banned, it was so overwhelmingly commercialised.
 
Sainsburys was flaming murder today,

I was stood behind some woman who put about 6 loaves of bread in her trolley & her husband ask why she wanted that many when they don't eat that much bread in a year! she replied because the shops are shut for two days!

What is wrong with some people?
 
Actually, our local Sainsburys closes 11pm Christmas Eve then reopens 11am Boxing Day so not even shut for a day. I pity the poor people working at places like Next who tend to open at stupid o'clock on Boxing Day to start the sales. We've been quite fortunate this year in that the company I work for are trying to save money so they only play non commercial music on the instore radio = no overload of Christmas songs. Bliss!
 
I wouldn't touch a supermarket with a ten-foot pole most of the year - but this is the month I swerve them totally. Just use the small local shops we're blessed with here - even then, the dingbat behind the counter served the woman behind me first. Counting on fingers clearly not her forte. Luckily, it was only a couple of Krispy Kreme glazed crullers, or I might've been less forgiving.
 
I love Christmas. I've already spent treble the amount I meant to spend on presents. I've spent a normal weeks shopping budget on a side of smoked salmon for the christmas starter. I "should" have enough wine to last me till this time next year. I'm a marketing managers dream. I'm all for anything Christmasy once we get within 3 weeks of Christmas, it's the early November campaigns that piss me off, even sometimes venturing into October.
 
Thats my whole point, it starts so early that by the time christmas comes around I'm fed up with it!

My birthday is the end sept & the christmas stuff is on the shelves by then!
 
We had a Christmas party in our gaff on Saturday. Got one of my mates to dress as Santa, and he gave presents to all the kids. Beside the tree and in the warmth of the fire. 27 of them. 17 of whom are 4 and under. It would have warmed Scrooge's heart.
 
You beat me to it; I've only go two decorations up this year..one says ho ho ho and the other says bah humbug. I'm going to wear the latter round my neck when I go into work on Saturday morning.
 
Not long ago and not far away Santa was getting ready for his annual trip...but there were problems every where... four of the elves got sick, and the trainee elves did not produce the toys as fast as the regular ones so Santa was beginning to feel the pressure of being behind schedule....then Mrs. Claus told Santa that her mum was coming to visit...

This stressed Santa even more...when he went to harness the reindeer he found that three of them were about to give birth and two had jumped the fence and were out heaven knows where...more stress.

And then, when he began to load the sleigh one of the boards on the sleigh cracked and the toy bag fell to the ground and scattered all the toys...so, frustrated Santa went into the house for a cup of coffee and a shot of whiskey...but he found that the elves had hit the liquor cupboard and there was nothing there to drink...and in his frustration he dropped the coffee pot and it broke into hundreds of little pieces all over the kitchen floor... he went to get the broom and found that mice had eaten the straw it was made from.

Just then the doorbell rang and Santa cussed on his way to the door ..he opened the door and there was a little angel with a great big Christmas tree. And the angel said: Santa, where would you like to put this Christmas tree??

And that, my friends, is how the little angel came to be on top of the Christmas tree...
 
I can understand anyone being annoyed at how xmas has become but it's the same as everything in life - you need to take out of it what you enjoy, and forget about the rest.

For me, xmas is the most enjoyable time of the year. Go back to Ireland, drink proper guinness, relax at home, catch up with friends, watch hours of fantastic racing, eat too much and get fat, walk the dog and leisurely read a book and the papers every day.
 
Good story, Chef!

I love all the twinkly lights and pretty colours (now regressing to childhood, there's no doubt), lovely smells as shops start selling scented candles like crazy and the perfume counters launch 1,000 new fragrances at this time of year; love the yummy roast spuds and new ways to make traditional food more interesting; love giving prezzies (not that fussed about getting any), love getting cards from people I'd lost touch with and hearing their news.

Like some annual round-up letters, but not those which go into excruciating detail of everyone's operations and bunionectomies...
 
Could do without it...

Since going self employed, all momentum is lost over the so called festive period. Had a good week , but next week is already dead

Previously sensible people start banging on about their ugly boring kids presents and how they puked up over the office bike when they were at it in the companies bogs
 
All I want to do this Christmas is kick back on my own at home and watch Season 4 of Dexter. Instead I've been invited to my sister's and feel obliged to attend.

All this is easy to handle with Kempton to look forward to. My family knows Boxing Day is off limits.
 
Does your sis like Dexter, Euro? Be quite nice after carving up the turkey to watch old Dex carving up his latest bad boy, wouldn't it?

Got some more cards today and one from the Council about recycling - including recipes for using up leftover turkey, along with some finger-wagging about Britons chucking away 8.3 million tonnes (tonnes? Is that the feminine of tons?) of foodstuffs annually. In the throwaway are some 5,500 chickens which have died in vain. Pretty grotesque when you consider the state of millions of people in less fortunate countries.
 
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Love Christmas - old friends, time off work, decent racing, eldest kid now three so can blackmail him into being reasonably behaved for a couple of weeks! First time staging the event at home - in laws coming to us - worst case scenario is as they arrive two feet of snow falls and they have to stay for a month - none of them drink or gamble - I just hope the racing is on - please God!
 
I like Christmas too - I love all the cooking of those dishes you just have at this time of year - makes it extra special. However, this will be my first Christmas day in 28 years without my son being present, as he is spending this one with his fiancee's parents (they spent last Christmas here, so absolutely fair - am not moaning!) up in Hertfordshire. Will feel very strange but as I'm farming and have some 40 cattle and 6 horses to feed and check etc, and one due to calve down about then, Christmas Day doesn't change the fact they all have to be done!! Have a rather large family party to cater on the evening of the 27th when Giles and Alice arrive, so all that's happening for me is Christmas is postponed for a couple of days! As I'm not religious, it's not the actual day that matters, it's celebrating with my family - so 27th is as good as 25th !!
 
Yes first Christmas without son here also!
because he is working over xmas up in Bristol where he is at uni he is going over to spend xmas day etc with my sister & dad in bath, we are going up for a couple of days between xmas & new year to dish out the prezzies!

So its just me & other half!
 
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