Tales From The Crypt - Sunday 2nd January 2022

Christmas is officially over - at least in this house - as today we're going to take all the decorations down, take the trees out and chop them up. I know it's not twelfth night yet, but life is too busy to wait until then, so today it has to be.

Before we can begin the process of taking everything down, I need to enlist the help of one or more sons.  After breakfast...

I started stripping the smaller tree on my own, mainly because I am impatient to get things over and done with so I can get on with the rest of the day.

Son #3 joined me and together we took everything down and took both trees outside ready for chopping. After lunch we'll pack everything back in the boxes and, while we're at it, get rid of old decorations we no longer need/use.  We also did a bit of vacuuming to clear up the few pine needles that were dropped: these trees were remarkable this year as the barely dropped at all, even when we man-handled them out the front door.

Last thing before making lunch #3 and I sort, discarding and re-pack the decorations for next Christmas.  We'll put decoration boxes back in the cupboard upstairs after we've made and eaten lunch.

Over lunch I watch more of 'Get Back'.  Tensions between the band seem to have eased and John and Paul in particular seem to be having fun and revelling in their friendship. Even George seems happier. Interestingly they are having problems with the tabloid press making up stories about them, in particular the 'Daily Mail' (quelle surprise!), and so it is interesting to see how some things have always been the same. The bonhomie between the band is especially enriched when Billy Preston joins them on keys and he seems to add some excitement to their playing. So far the documentary has proved a fascinating insight into the dynamics and interrelationships of the band members, though their have naturally been longueurs.

After son #3 and I have eaten we take all the boxes back upstairs and put them in the cupboard for next year. There's one more job for me to do now: chop up the trees until they fit in the garden waste bin.

Chopper now safely put away (it's getting wet and windy out), I'm going to chill for a bit and read the papers. I think I've earned it.

Son #2 is making dinner tonight - baked haddock with veg - and whilst he's doing this, as is traditional, I discover the one decoration that didn't get put away - this year it's a green bauble that somehow rolled under the table that the smaller tree had sat on.  The green bauble now resides on the windowsill in son #2's office, ready to do a baton change with whichever item will get left out next year.

Son #2 is eating with his gf so the rest of us watch Frankie Boyle's 2021 special as a reminder of all the joy of the year we've left behind.

For dessert we eat the remaining Christmas pudding - a very fancy and expensive one with candied figs (from the Bay of Pigs) - which, as is so often the case, proves to be a let down and, though nice, is not as good as the one I had with a friend a couple of weeks before Christmas.

After that, bed, convos and sleep...I hope

Manic Street Preachers  / 'Still Snowing In Sapporo' / 'The Ultra Vivid Lament' 

[[ ]]