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Post by Righteous Indignation on Nov 1, 2008 5:36:11 GMT -5
...Until our favorite month of the year: December! Everyone counting down the hours until we can start opening our Advent calendars?
A number of Christmas celebrations -e.g. parades, either random celebration and/or Father Christmas's arrival, and town/city Christmas light switch-ons- usually begin in mid to late November, does anyone attend any of these? And do any of you put your Christmas decorations up in November? To have them up throughout December (not just a few minutes into December 1), of course ;D
And for our lovely Stateside visitors, what are your plans for Thanksgiving?
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Post by sonicheroes4ever on Nov 1, 2008 13:28:19 GMT -5
Okay, I don't put up Christmas decorations to the 5th. I put the tree up around the 15th- 30th. Ileave the tree up to little Christmas.
As for Thanksgiving. Nothing. Our family doesn't live near us. So just another day really.
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Post by wildgoose on Nov 2, 2008 18:42:47 GMT -5
its too early to be talking about x-mas!
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Post by Righteous Indignation on Nov 2, 2008 23:47:54 GMT -5
It's never too early ;D
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Post by wildgoose on Nov 5, 2008 14:35:19 GMT -5
bah humbug!
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Post by Righteous Indignation on Nov 5, 2008 15:07:49 GMT -5
Wild Goose, better not come crying to me if Jacob Marley and the Three Spirits come to get you
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Post by sonicheroes4ever on Nov 5, 2008 23:25:34 GMT -5
its too early to be talking about x-mas! Christmas Christmas Time is here Time for toys And Time for cheer!
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Post by wildgoose on Nov 6, 2008 13:45:14 GMT -5
*checks cupboards and under bed* anyone got the number for the ghost busters?
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Post by Righteous Indignation on Nov 7, 2008 7:44:21 GMT -5
Don't even think about it, Wild Goose! There was one Real Ghostbusters cartoon episode, 'X-Mas Marks the Spot', in which the 'Busters capture the Three Spirits... and it results in Scrooge never changing his ways and banning Christmas forever, so Egon must rescue the Three Spirits from the containment unit while the rest of the 'Busters pose as the Spirits! Want me to look the episode up on YouTube or somewhere for you? My town is slowly making a start on our Christmas celebrations, particularly the pantomime cast at my family's local theatre. On Sunday the cast -including my mom- will be handing out panto leaflets and I think also sweets at the shopping center which opened last week, and the town's annual Christmas lights switch-on is on November 20 and the cast will take part in the event. I'm not in the cast but I plan to attend the events, if I get tired I can go and rest either at the theatre or in my mom's car - and if I wanna take a break at the handout on Sunday then I can go and put my knees up at the bowling alley ;D The cast will also take part in the annual Father Christmas parade (with real reindeer!) at a popular garden center, and once the parade is complete the cast will hand out leaflets, sweets and (hopefully) also those cute wooden Christmas decorations made all the way in Bethlehem we handed out last year; while Father Christmas heads to his grotto for the classic tradition of asking kids what they'd like him to bring for them this year. Dates have not yet been issued but I certainly look forward to it
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Post by wildgoose on Nov 7, 2008 11:24:54 GMT -5
wow it sounds like your family realy gets involved in the christmass period, i think thats great! you never see that anymore these days...
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Post by Righteous Indignation on Nov 7, 2008 12:10:38 GMT -5
Well we're not very religious (although yes, my parents were born when religion was still -ahem- 'in vogue', and I dunno about my mom but my dad was Baptised), but we do celebrate Christmas, Shrove Tuesday AKA 'Pancake Day' and Easter (we don't believe in Lent though); and we occasionally go to Church for weddings, Baptisms and funerals but holiday-wise we MIGHT go to a caroling service, however despite my suggestions every year my mom is too tired to do a Midnight Mass. Instead we watch the occasional religious programme -as well as such classic films, animations and shows- and if any Jesus programmes are on TV on Christmas Day, then unless anything else very important is on at the same time my mom likes to have those on TV.
I've always had Advent calendars -sometimes I have more than one- every year too, I generally prefer the standard 24-/25-day ones but only on occasion do I get the ones which go up to the New Year, yes the Millennium being one such exception. Gotta love 'em!
At any time throughout December, my mom -often accompanied by yours truly, unless I am ill and/or otherwise engaged- goes to visit family to exchange presents and cards, or the family may come to visit us. If I go with her it's always a treat, especially when we go to visit my maternal uncle David MacKegg, himself a professional tattoo artist and body piercer. His studio is in an Indian community so I love to get myself some cute Indian earrings and/or scarves, bangles etc. whenever I go to visit him! And if I have enough money I may also go games shopping in either Telford or Shrewsbury, following a visit in December 2006 my mom dropped 21-year-old me off in Shrewsbury, and I did a spot of games shopping then got the train home.
I always put my decorations up in late November (November 30 at the latest) because I like to have them up throughout December, I don't have a tree though because my cats Blinky and Raul might destroy it. My parents have theirs up in mid-December, along with a real tree. Mom hangs up all the standard decorations, puts the present-shaped lights in the window and hangs a wreath on the door; while it is my duty to decorate the tree and set up the Nativity scene. We used to have very old and naff decorations (and who the FRELL would want ROSES on a Christmas tree?!?), but eventually my mom and I decided to have a color scheme - I chose white/silver since white is my favorite color and silver... well, it matches white. But my mom has one very deep but certainly respectable rule: I absolutely must play the family's old Christmas caroling album while I decorate the tree!
On Christmas Eve my family often attends the theatre's annual pantomime - the Christmas Eve performance being particularly special because after the show, the cast encourages the audience to join in with a spot of caroling and there is also a Christmas party in the bar. I may however sometimes opt out of attendance - but it ain't a total loss! While everyone is out I can set the table for Christmas dinner, decorate the Christmas cake and anything else which needs done, to take some of the strain off my mom on Christmas Day; and I can have the caroling record and/or any Christmas stuff on TV on in the background - then once everything is done I can come online and check my internet stuff. If I do go to the show, then I decorate the cake a few days before and my mom has to set the table.
My mom gets up early on Christmas Day to put the Turkey -and then all other foods, sometimes with my dad's help- in the oven, and I walk over as early as I can and yes I can have a bath when I get there. We wait for the parents and the bro to wake up -my bro has his own place now, we dunno if he'll stay with the parents or drive over on the day- and the four of us open presents together, not forgetting to exchange greetings of "Merry Christmas!" After lunch the paternal Grandparents and uncle arrive for Christmas dinner, more greetings and presents are exchanged and we pull crackers during the main course. My Grandma also has a 'giant cracker' with extra presents in since she thinks standard crackers usually contain rubbish, she has decided to stop doing the giant cracker for everyone but by special request has agreed to continue it just for me and thus at some point we are going to modify the cracker to my liking.
Boxing Day is usually uneventful, though my family may either hold or attend a party.
But the real important date in the House of Farrell is December 27. Why? It's my birthday! I go over in the morning to open my presents, then my mom takes me birthday shopping in any location of my choice. And I may try to complete a videogame on my birthday, I've always wanted to and I got my wish when I completed Baten Kaitos on my 23rd.
I actually got my real name 'Natalie' -'Naz', for short- because of me being a Christmas baby, so obviously my parents wanted me to have a Festive name but a lot of them are all too common, 'Natalie' -which comes from a Latin phrase referring to Jesus's birth- however is just treated like an everyday name and I think despite its roots and such foreign greetings as "Buon Natale," many people fail to notice the association. I do however often joke how if my parents wanted to give me a proper Festive name, they could have called me 'Ivy'!
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Post by sonicheroes4ever on Nov 7, 2008 12:15:35 GMT -5
Wow, you got alot of things going. Good luck in December.
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Post by Righteous Indignation on Nov 7, 2008 15:26:54 GMT -5
Absolutely Sonicheroes4ever, it's a very happy month! I know there can be one or two sad events here and there but we should do just the right thing to keep the merriment going! It's also a bonus if any favorite movies or shows -Christmas-related or not- are on TV in December. The Bucky O'Hare cartoon was aired in December 1994 and the episode Kreation Konspiracy was aired on my 10th birthday! My parents have a home video of me watching it. Another major tradition I forgot to mention is the theatre's annual Christmas lunch. I don't attend but my parents usually do, they sometimes bring me back any cracker novelties and stuff... but the food is always very filling, so on the morning of whenever the lunch is held my family holds what my mom calls our 'Ball Before the Hunt Ball' - she cooks a large breakfast for not only her, my dad and also my brother (if he turns up) and me but also whichever of the theatre members wish to accompany my parents to the lunch. I've even started bringing Christmas crackers to the breakfast I also understand it's especially saddening when a loved one passes away in December - especially on Christmas Day, and/or someone must face their first Christmas without a loved one. My maternal Grandma 'went to Heaven' in December 1991, but still not without leaving one last batch of gifts for Father Christmas to bring for us; and the son and widower of my friend who died from Cancer in mid-April are gonna have to face their first Christmas without her. And not forgetting how the world woke up on Christmas Day 2006... only to the sad news of James Brown's departure... I have however read, in Ireland there is a belief saying the gates of Paradise open at twelve a.m. -i.e. the first stroke of Christmas Day- to welcome in the souls of anyone who dies at such a time... And for my fellow needlephobes out there, surely you'd even sort of agree it's especially annoying to have shots done in the jolly month of December! I know in some extreme operations, and of course pregnancy tests and then the labor, it cannot be avoided, and some people are allergic to gas... but if not avoid needles altogether my advice is to have shots done in other months (but not on your birthday, if it isn't in December), and arrange to have an operation and/or check-up done in a private hospital as they are more accommodating than a standard one... right down to the fact they will accommodate a needlephobe, such as inserting an IV tube while the patient is still under gas sedation. I had both of my wisdom teeth ops -the first of which was in fact done in a December- done in my local private hospital, they didn't even give me a blood test while examining me prior to the op (I'm okay on the 'armband' for checking blood pressure though)! Also... another benefit of being sedated with gas is if you arrange it, the anesthetist and/or anyone else can tell you an 'anesthetic story' while the gas is administered ;D
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Post by wildgoose on Nov 7, 2008 17:34:40 GMT -5
it must realy suck having a birthday 2 days after christmass huh?
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Post by Righteous Indignation on Nov 7, 2008 23:55:35 GMT -5
LOL it doesn't suck in the slightest! It's a nice round-up to the year But rest assured I have requested Christmas presents on Christmas Day, birthday presents on my birthday...
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