It’s almost mid-December!!!! And am I on schedule? NO! Everything is AWFUL!!! The GUILT!!!! Jesus was born to make us all feel like we should do more than we are doing. In a larger sense of “helping others”, but also in a very specific sense of “putting ribbon on packages when you wrap them”.
Well, the tree is up and decorated. The decoration boxes are not put away, and instead strewn about the room like an obstacle course. The Big Box for my nephew is mailed, but the Little Boxes for everyone else aren’t even started. I haven’t baked ANYTHING. And I’ve only listened to 4 hours total of Christmas music and watched 3 Christmas movies. And I haven’t even started burning my peppermint candle.
Also, my Project Room is a disaster with half finished projects, I haven’t put clean sheets back on the guest room bed, the batteries ran out in my bedroom Christmas tree and I haven’t changed them yet, and everyone else’s decorations on the block STILL look better than mine.
And instead of doing all those things I should be doing, tonight I am going with my housemates to do a illuminated trees walk with hot cocoa! Like a FOOL!!!!
(And that’s not even getting into all the Indian movies I should be watching and am not)
How are your Decembers going? Are you being Sane People, or are you also focused on Winning Christmas like I am?
UPDATE: I did at least manage to take this vital holiday photo. Albie Dog LOOOOOVES Christmas! You can see it in his eyes!
dontcallitbollywood 
No, sanity would be wandering about in my socks eating a cheese sandwich for lunch if I want to. Instead I’ve ordered the turkey, sausagemeat, bacon, sausages, and gammon, which I will be assembling into trad Christmas fare and carting up to father-in-laws in London to cook on the day, in an attempt to convince ourselves that Everything Is Alright. Which is one of the rules of being a grown-up, I believe. Or perhaps we’re still trying to make sure the sun comes up on winter Solstice, I dunno, this stuff is hardwired in somehow.
Enjoying illumined trees, now that’s sanity.
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PS I have never seen such a look of deep resignation on the face of a dog. Merry Christmas, Albie.
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Thank goodness, we don’t have a traditional Christmas meal. Thanksgiving, yes, of course, but Christmas we get to do whatever the heck we want.
On Fri, Dec 10, 2021 at 12:09 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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Wait, is that actually a British superstition, about the sun not coming up on solstice if you don’t celebrate right? I only know it from Pratchett’s Hogfather.
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I’ve never been a particularly neat person, so the idea of putting clean sheets on the guest bed less than a day before the guest arrives is totally foreign to me. However I have been sampling various Spotify Christmas mixes during the day and I’m about the make the six year old, who is home sick, make clove oranges with me. Then depending on how he is feeling we’ll so some Christmas shopping, or I’ll ditch him with TV and do some Christmas shopping. One of the interesting things I’ve discovered is that I can grocery shop, and Christmas shop at the SAME TIME, because grocery stores sell toys and gifts now! Discount fake lego G.I. Joes sweet! Now I have another package for the kid who’s really just getting a Chromebook for Christmas because he needs one. I’m giving lots of people scarves for Christmas because I discovered THredup and joys of affordable pashmina scarves – so now everyone else will discover it too. Last night I stayed up till 11 PM (unheard of in our family) picking out the perfect scarf for different relatives. And I regretted it when the six year old woke up vomiting at 1 AM. (To give the kid credit it only got one blanket gross, it could have been a lot worse).
Last year we couldn’t see family for Christmas, but with vaccines we can this year. So despite the messy house, despite the gifts, or lack there of, I have an overwhelming sense of gratitude for family. And I’m trying to do things to make the season memorable, rather than buy things. And that is why the whole family participated in the Santa Run before our local parade https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10219587100880426&set=a.1495902989858
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I’m going to shame my sister: the first time her son threw up (age 8 months), they called the emergency line for the pediatrician. Response: “sometimes babies throw up”. Anyway, isn’t it nice that now you have had 3 babies and the oldest is mostly grown, your response to throw up is just “thank goodness it didn’t make too much of a mess”.
Also, does being able to see family this Christmas mean you will be more or less available for DCIB comments during Christmas week?
On Fri, Dec 10, 2021 at 12:23 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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I will be less available during Christmas week. Just like I was less available during Thanksgiving week. OMG that less availability was awesome! Thank you though, for taking the place of family when they’re not around!
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I took the jack-o-lantern off the front porch and put up a wreath. Done.
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I am just trying to finish up schoolwork and haven’t even decorated my apartment at all. I am more of the “organized chaos” person, where it might not make sense for anyone except me where everything is. Been writing all night with schoolwork and hoping to finish one massive essay (5 pages) before I leave back home. The rest is easy peasy.
Anyway, since I am the VicKat wedding poster here, mainly because of time differences. We have Haldi pictures!!! They are so precious!!!
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Why won’t they marry meeeeee
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Also, Anushka is becoming like Preity, posting pictures so ordinary that you forget that these people are famous. Like, if passed by on the street kind of ordinary. It is so cute!!!
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I’ve given up on baking and decorations and anything traditional for this year. There’s a string of lights on our balcony and I may still put up the little incense men, but it feels so much more important that we’ll see the family again at Christmas. Little presents are a must, though, because Christmas Eve is all about playing with the new stuff together.
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Is this Big Boy’s first Christmas as NOT the only grandchild/focus of the entire universe?
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Well, he has older cousins on my side of the family, but we’ve been spending the past few Christmases with my in-laws. So I guess yes, he has to adjust quite a bit this year. But I think he’ll prefer having someone to play with.
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