Still Dreich

The mist lingers yet.  Dreich indeed are the days so there is little to see outside, not unusual in December.  Sunday saw a Christmas service with lots of kids reading things and making things in church, not deeply spiritual but a laugh for all concerned.  Last night I took my aching knees back down again for the carol service, the usual reading sandwich type of thing, and returned mince pie full and ready to sleep.
A dreich day brightened by the occasions and the people around (all the young women wanted me) and I found several Xmas cards awaiting me.  On top of that all those little jobs that must be done I avoided and hopped it before they began!
I answered the cards received by making use of the web.  A home made card which satisfied all, well not the one who didn't know who I was.  Much easier than scribbling out a hundred cheap cards for folks. 

While mist can lead to nice pictures it is just dreich when the sun fails to break through.  All around is gray and miserable, a bit like the people wandering around town, with added pressure of those last minute gifts required.  
World news is boring, all is being put aside for the Christmas break and journalists forced to work over the period are looking forward to a disaster somewhere (preferably warm) from where they can fill the time.  Otherwise it is shopping trips, weather and road accidents, not great news coverage.  

One good thing today was the Water bill.  This told me I owed the greedy money grabbers no more than a mere 25 pence!  The lowest bill I have received ever.  This of course is because of the monthly direct debit, it cost £205 over the entire year, which would be worse if I bathed more than once in a blue moon.  It never fails to amaze me how much water I waste.   How often the tap is left running, how much is wasted in the kitchen and how deep the bath water tends to be when I am reading my books in there.  From today water, along with electric, will be used sparingly.

Sexist!

Cards...

This, the second card to have arrived, reflects somewhat on the sender in my opinion!
Each year we exchange expensive gifts, this year I sent one of those small tubes of coffee costing about 20 pence, this is the reply!  A card designed for those who send large cheques to their family and friends arrives and as the wording tempted me to believe in a fortune awaiting inside I opened it with much anticipation.  Here is the result, one much used worn penny that may have found a home in her shoe for some considerable time stuck to a picture of an old man and his hat!   I mean really!
In times past I have received a short length of glittering blue cord, a chocolate biscuit and a pencil that had been tied in a knot!  When it comes to spending money on great gifts this lass has not yet started!  I imagine her granddaughter will however be piled with vast amounts of gifts none of which will contain a hat with a penny inside!
And what does she mean by 'old man's hat' anyway...?

More old fotos!
I like this one, it speaks of the sea and journeying to far off places on an adventure of some sort.  I am afraid the 'Brent' never quite managed that as it spent most of its life pulling and pushing boats in the Thames around London Docks.  However the time spent near water is never wasted in my mind especially when there are few about, you can enjoy what views there are, note individuals working on their boats and just enjoy an atmosphere very different form that found in car laden towns.  If I ever find the energy I may rush back to Maldon and see how the Tug is preparing for Christmas.

I noted it again today when wandering about the shops, the stress that comes with Christmas.  People are often grumpy and inconsiderate while shopping, the woman are, men are always thoughtful I find, but at this time of the year when the 'season of goodwill to all men' is in operation I find that 'goodwill' is harder to discover than at any other time.  The lassies at the checkout are a wee bit stressed with the constant flow of people but still happier and more considerate than many customers.  I did find one or two decent folks today and while the checkout girl gossiped with one slow old dear I gossiped with a lass who has lost three stone by avoiding sugar!  Sad to say she had to as diabetes arrived but it goes to show how much we can lose.  I considered the two large Xmas puddings, the ice cream, the three small Xmas puddings and the many sweet things I have to stuff down this Xmas and considered a new diet after this is over.  I started some of it today but will slowly remove the rest over time.  How often have I began a new diet...?
Anyway it is a stressful time but it need not be.  Presents must be bought for important people and folks always leave it too late.  Not all are strapped for cash and buying things as the money comes in many can prepare throughout the year but don't and leave it all to the last minute, not a good idea.
The cheerful music, played over and over again until the folks in the shops speak through gritted teeth, does not help matters.  Much is irrelevant to Christmas anyway, soppy and sentimental but meaningless in regard to Christmas itself.  Most cannot be heard from the hubbub below and interestingly while many sing along few will consider visiting a church carol service and join in.  
Ass it is the phrase 'Goodwill to all men' is incorrect.  I believe it actually reads 'Peace to men of goodwill,'  the word 'peace' probably being 'shalom' and having more than just 'peace' in the meaning.  You can check it out for yourselves.  So many phrases we use are incorrect and far from their original meaning.

Football will be on soon, must fly....

Sweet Tooths

On Saturday I bought four of these Mediterranean cakes from the Turkish stall for a mere £9:90!  I wish In had the money to buy more!  These are wonderful cakes which I first tasted in Israel years ago and are found all over the Middle East (covered in dust in Syria mind) or so I believe.  Wonderful things to eat, a great variety of fillings, not sure what this one was but the others had walnuts and sticky sweet stuff.  Almost anything that grows can be found as a filling which occasionally makes them very heavy, he sells them by weight rather than individual price!   
I managed to avoid eating them all in one go and adding a stone to my fat and allowed them to go down individually day by day.  Now the stalls have gone and nobody near here sell such things.  I think it is time they did!  Maybe one of the craft stalls can come up with this idea and we can have another special craft day?  
Sounds good to me and my weight problem.

There I was happily finishing off the Christmas cards this morning, only a few to do and check all the names on the (short) list.  Happily I began to pack them into their specified order for posting ensuring each of the girls had the Gift card in the Christmas card when I realised I had one more niece than I thought!  Disaster!  Now instead of grinning evilly when mentioning my Christmas has been done I have to go out again and find yet another Gift card!  More expense!  Still they prefer Gift cards as it makes it easier to choose what they want rather than what I give them.  It is easier for me when it comes time to post them and above all I am really pleased 'Poundland' do these Gift Cards now!

Bah!

I found myself writing Christmas cards today.  Not that I write many, you need friends for that, but I had the list of requirements in front of me, selected appropriate cards, cheap ones for them, a couple of good ones for the others, and began to slug it out.  Luckily I soon realised there was one or two things to buy before I could complete the job so dumped it back in the cupboard. 
Some years ago I was sending a lot of cards and realised many folks returned them simply because I sent them one, this did not indicate they wished to know me.  So one year I only sent cards to those who may well have expected one or wished to keep in touch.  Amongst these for some years was an aunt who I always wrote a wee note to around this time reminding her of my need of Christmas presents, I never received any!  She expected something from me mind! having curtailed the cards I sent the next year those who offered cards 'just because' fell away, both saved time and money.  We have family and close friends, we then have friends and acquaintances we know well, around them lies a third ring as it were, these represent people we may meet often, get on well with but do not need to supply with gifts, cards or anything but a greeting and a handshake. Today of course all can be dealt with by internet cards or email greetings, cheap, more efficient than post, and for those who feel the need to describe the past years activities to the world a far better thing all round.  
My biggest expenses  have been paid, only one or two things to think about, one or two funny cards maybe, and then prepare to send them at the beginning of December.  I always post early as I understand what the post is like, this also of course reminds others to get their cards sorted and then send me one.  

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All Done

All my Christmas shopping and card writing has now been done.  Nothing cash wise to spend so little bought, cards cheap, stamps and postage dearer than I reckoned, but everything done. Pah! Some people have not even started yet, would you believe that?



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Christmas Cards

It's all Sir Henry Coles fault! Instead of writing Christmas messages he decided to send a Christmas Card instead! He had helped develop the 'Penny Post' with Rowland Hill and clearly was a man of talent. Talent which taught him how to avoid writing Christmas letters needlessly and his idea, which must have appeared clever at the time, now means we, that is you and I, have to trail through shops full of women to select, buy and post, at great cost, cards to friend (and foe on occasion) alike. Cole thought his card such a good idea that he printed over two thousand of the things. He sold his card at 1/- (a shilling) a time! Remember that in 1843 you would be lucky to earn 15/- a week. (20 shillings to one pound). Clearly the middle class were able to buy, but a quick read (?) of Dickens books reflect real society at that time, at least the bits that spoke to his poverty when young, and 'A Christmas Carol' probably spoke to many clerks who came across it!

I have just returned from being barged around by thoughtless women, and one man out of his depth, intent on looking at EVERY SINGLE CARD before not buying one. I have also looked at every single RELEVANT card and been, on the whole, disappointed. Far too many are slushy, some religious, others just plain unfunny or smut, and that is all too often not funny either. Cards for Mum are the worst. If my mother ever got a card with 'Love for my dear Mother' on the front she would think I had turned funny. Flowery slush is abundant but she has lived 93 years in the real world so she wants something amusing or worth looking at. I tried the 'Just what you want for Christmas - ME!' card once, but that brought a rare degree of sarcasm that need not be repeated. However,'Next year, just try money,' was an oft repeated phrase I noticed. For the younger kids I wanted 'Happy Christmas Brat!' but it appears these are not stocked by any card shop round here. I bet they would sell mind! I think I will suggest this to one of those companies that makes millions from poor suckers like you and me. (Notice that in the UK we can still have 'Happy Christmas' in our cards, not the PC, 'Happy Holidays.' That is what you call a democracy! Until the fascists change it of course!

As for the price! if I wanted to I could pay a fortune for cards, and we do! These folk have us over a barrel. They know that we MUST buy an expensive card for Mum, wife, concubine, daughter, someone important and so on. They realise that if Aunt Jessie sends a card she needs one back, and if we have a business large or small cards (and bribes) MUST be sent to ensure the customer comes back, especially in these world wide recession days, (Thanks for that American Bankers! Enjoy your bonuses!). I discovered however, that simply by not sending cards to those you feel send one to you because you send one to them because they send one to you is a circle that can be broken by 'forgetting' to send them one this year. The next year 'Glory be! you both save the cost as they don't send one because you sent one because they sent one and all are glad. Far too many cards are sent this way, and much dosh can be saved by a Christmas note over the e-mail to many of those you feel may still hope you live well and prosper (is that a biblical phrase, and why are my fingers joining together?) Now I send to those that matter, and in return receive almost no cards back. This, I am constantly being reminded, should tell me something, but I can't think what? When I first got the PC I decided to make my own cards and save money. I ended up paying almost three times the amount I usually spent! Never again!

It is of course nice to receive a good, funny, card stuffed with £20 notes at Christmas, and one year I hope to actually see this happen outwith my cocoa induced dreams. It is nicer to find suitable cards in one shop and avoid trekking around several of the female dominated areas, and they are, pushing aside the one who has clearly died (laughing?) which perusing the stock, and if an appropriate card is found, finding one that is not bent, spat on, or covered in some brats sticky fingerprints! It helps also, I discovered, not to trip over the lassie kneeling at the drawer under the shelving while attempting to replenish the stock. Such language from a lady! I bought a lot of (Cheap) cards from the hospice where my sister died, as I thought this would save money. Oh yes it does, but the kids need their own cards, different from the adults, Mum needs that special card, and then there is another who appears out of the blue and I begin to wonder where the money is going! Sir Henry may well have gone off and bought a stationers after he sold his card, but I would still like to have a word or two about him and his invention. I bet he did this just to encourage folk to use the 'Penny Post,' and by this means rise up the hierarchy at the General Post Office. For myself I hope he got rickets!