What's Your Tradition?

Christmas brings out the tradition in all of us.
Whether you do everything including the plum pudding or you sit alone watching tv with a bag of crisps, you have your own likes , rhythms and routines that centre about the holiday and which is so often rooted in childhood.
The Prof enjoys one of our traditions and it is a simple one which is becoming rarer given the cost of the humble postage stamp nowadays .
Every year I loop string around the living room and one by one, Christmas cards when they arrive, are hung in a rectangle underneath the smoky coloured white painted beams .
It pleases us both when all the spaces are eventually filled .
A simple tradition.

1970s Prawn Cocktail as a Christmas lunch starter, always brings back affectionate memories of my mother's labour intensive Christmas cooking where she would leave them standing on the meticulously prepared table settings for hours and hours.
How we all didn't die of severe food poisoning bugger alone knew.

So what is your simple tradition? I'd be interested to know?
Today is my only day to prepare for the day....I am working night shift tomorrow night and on Christmas Eve....so when I am ironing the lunch napkins, I will enjoy your stories
Over to you

Yuletide Village Prep

The Prof has taken the car to Snowdonia for his department Christmas soiree this evening. He won't be back until tomorrow night ( This btw was the cause of Sunday's ROW ( row as in spat and not in rowing a bloody boat) as we had originally arranged to have dinner with the affable despots)
So today, in bloody awful weather, I sorted all of the village Christmas jobs out.
50 cards were hand delivered ( With a bouncy and increasingly well behaved Mary in tow) and gifts were passed on to Auntie Glad, Animal  helper Pat, our neighbours down the lane ( Sailor John, The Barkers and Trendy Carol) and to Trellis ( the artist formally known as Mrs Trellis)
I tried to  keep socializing to a minimum as everyone is busy at this time, but I was buttonholed by policeman Ian, who told me a rather harrowing story about his new dog Lily going missing for five hours the other day and caught by Pippa B, who launched into a vociferous debate about badger culling.
Subsequently I got soaked in the winter rain.
I collected holly from Pat ( animal helper's ) garden and she kindly gave us a beautifully wrapped cake and when I got home Bernard the German , popped in with a gift of some homemade jams and sweets.

Gifts from Animal helper Pat and Bernard the German

It's these little gestures that make you feel just that little bit more Christmasy .
This afternoon, there was a brief sunny period in the grotty weather, so I made ham sandwiches from leftovers and the dogs and I shared a late lunch sat on a bench in the new churchyard.
Now I am not a grave visitor, so I was surprised to see a steady stream of people arrive with Christmas wreaths in hand . I counted over 80 wreaths in total ,all placed with care on a large selection of graves,
It's a nice tradition.
Back home, I decorated the mantle ( which just lends itself to Christmas) hung the cards and cleaned up the poo which william had thoughtfully deposited ten inches up on The Prof's office door ( why does he do that?)
Tonight in lieu of dinner at the despots' , I shall have a mulled wine with Victoria Coren Mitchell and " Only Connect"
I'm rather looking forward to it.

Cheese

It's 1.42 am and I have just got home after shift ( gotten home Rachel?)
We had my aunt up for dinner last night and I forgot to lock up the hens, what with the picking up from the station and cooking and all that shit....anyhow by the time I remembered ( 6.30 pm) the badgers had struck and the coop with  the remaining geriatric hens was emptied.
I only know it was the badgers cos when I was out just now with William ( and his overactive bladder) a large huffing badger passed us in the lane with a large white Sussex in it's mouth.
My fault.....my fault but you can't keep all the balls in the air at once.
So apart from the geese, the Ukrainian village is sadly empty.
I will restock in spring
Hey ho!

Anyhow I was stopped by the police tonight too...I knew I would be. I was breathalysed and asked what I was up to and when I said " going home" the policeman quickly noted a bottle of port on the passenger seat!
" It's from my auntie Judy for Christmas  " I told him "and  there's a box of cheese to go with it"
I waved a marks and spencer multi cheese set in his direction to prove my point
" I only get socks from my auntie" the policeman said sadly and waved me on.

Hey ho...ho ho ho

I'll be asleep in five minutes time, I know it, I'm cuddled up on the couch with George

The Prof is snoring very quietly in his arm chair.

We have just gotten our Christmas Row out of the way.

I'm glad it's done and dusted...

Christmas Rows

Another unsung tradition of late December Hey ho

Ho ho ho

Strictly News

One moment you are appearing in one of the top class shows on British tv and the next you are bouncing around in a silver leotard in a parochial Welsh Theatre Winter Panto......
Go figure...

Strictly's Robin Winsor turned up as the gay mirror in our local Production of " Snow White" and although he was pretty dire the production itself was fun enough to make us all ( The Prof and my sisters et al)  feel just that little bit Christmasy .
Ironically Strictly finished this evening with the cute and diffident  " The Wanted" band member Jay McGuiness crowned a worthy winner........

Mind you I think this year's series will be known for the arrival of the Russian dancer Gleb Savchenko.....who is so much more tasty that poor old Robin..........
Mind you Gleb......things havea  tendency to change and so do  tastes....given a few dozen months......and I am wondering is they have Panto in Moscow

 

Woof

Btw does anyone know why my followers numbers are up and down like a whores'  knickers?

Virtual Card

Tom Stephenson's virtual Card is a little more " salty" than mine

But we both feel the same about our followers

So to you all out there is the blogosphere

Happy Christmas from me, The Prof

Winnie, George, William and Mary

And  not forgetting Albert

Xxxxxx

Cards

 Our postman gave me a cheery wave yesterday and waved this Christmas card through the window.
" kids!" He chuckled.
Thank you to all of the bloggers that that taken the time and effort in sending me a card......
This one by Rachel.......made my day.
It gave the post office a chuckle too

Sad

Tonight I asked someone I know vaguely what they are doing for Christmas.
She told me that she usually goes to a cousin for the day but this year she said without an edge that for the first time , for the Christmas holiday,she had booked herself into a budget hotel 25 miles away.
It's a faceless, budget hotel the sort rife with stag nights and poor businessmen.
I wasn't sure, just what else to say except a light " what have you planned for Christmas Day?" and
She said " Nothing" without any hint of self pity .

I feel incredibly sad