The awful day

I'm not a Christmas person. Well, to be honest, I am. But the kind who'll think more about the current state of affairs in the Holy Land than what passes for "festive spirit" in our corner of the globe.

My best Christmases have been in Thailand & Morocco. Almost no festivity at all, in fact. Athens 2 years ago was great too. The locals seemed to have grasped that its possible to mark the event modestly, and have fun along the way.

Athens '10

D is at the opposite extreme. I'll say no more.

Our day involved a 1 hour drive over to her mum's to have lunch with her mum and her sister. 5 women, plus me. The situation was saved by several coinciding facts. First, we had a free range, organic goose raised so close by that it could have walked over to the house. Wonderful. Next, the MiL almost set the kitchen on fire by leaving the oven on with the bird's carcass inside. Last, they all have a great sense of humour.

The Blip - evening entertainment.