One thing we will be missing out on this year is a Christmas dip in the hot-tub with a glass of fizz.
The former has been decommissioned due to energy costs.
Other than that we general stick to the rule that it is just me and the Mrs for Christmas lunch, with the ritual of sharing the preparation, stopping to open each others gifts and then phoning relatives. We used to go to the local pub for a quick beer before lunch until the pub changed for the worse.
We refuse to listen to Christmas stuff before Dec 1st.
We really like listening to the Traditional Folk Christmas carols that were banned by the church by Kate Rusby.
In Sth Yorkshire certain pubs prior to Christmas sing these carols and they are extremely popular venues.
In some pubs you will get folk singers like Kate , Fay Hield and Jon Biden taking part .
Not to be missed
I like mince pies any time of year. Just a nice treat. (Ditto hot cross buns, though unlike mince pies I donāt understand their existence away from Easter - they should be the sold without the cross as spiced buns.
We donāt have or do anything overtly Christmassy until just a few days before Christmas - I used to follow my parentsā tradition of putting up the tree and decorating on Christmas Eve, but for practical reasons when when I was working, often including Christmas Eve, that changed to the weekend immediately before. Some years ago a work colleague, who had a young child, took all her Christmas decorations down on Boxing day, and didnāt like having time off between Christmas and New Year, all because it was boring. Interestingly she decorated her house every year on 1st December - no wonder she was bored by the time Christmas actually came!
And while on the subject, personally I think Christmas music should be banned in public places until December 1st - it would make Christmas more special. It is ridiculous that these days it all starts just after the summer holidays.
Iād agree with the music ban comment. Same for selling mince pies. Well maybe November for mince pies. No doubt weāll see Easter eggs on the shelves on January 2nd.
I canāt imagine any pub being lucky enough to have Kate Rusby in it (although Iām sure that the young lady likes an occasional tipple).
If there is such a pub, do tell me where it is, and Iāll be there like a shot. She is a wonderful singer, and appeared on a Christmas edition of āSongs Of Praiseā (not my usual choice of TV programme) a few years ago singing traditional and new carols.
A local supermarket had carol singers one day in early Spring , as I went in , I expressed much the same sentiment , to be told āāitās the first of Aprilāā
Iām fortunate enough to live in the Lake District so the day will consist of a short hike somewhere followed by cooking the Christmas dins with the aid of a couple of choice craft ales.
Iāll dig out my cd copy of Ki hoāalu Christmas-Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar. Beautiful versions of standards as well as Hawaiian Christmas songs. Just a bit different from the songs that are played to death at this time of year.
We try to get the hell out of England to somewhere warmer the past few years itās been Spain but before that it was Goa. Last year we where forced to stay in England and it just reinforced the fact Iām a right old Grinch, baaaah humbug.
I often wear on Christmas Day
pullover
