Posted by DMC on Dec 22, 2009 in
Diary We are approaching Christmas and I feel I should explain why the blog is over one month in arrears. Unfortunately Richard has suffered from an unusually heavy workload compounded by a nasty bout of flu and bronchitis. He has all of the entries up to the current date and will endeavour to put them on as soon as possible. It is our intention that the future current entry, at least, will be in chronological order from the earliest date first. As the blog is essentially a diary this makes more logical sense.
This is an appropriate time to wish all my readers a very happy and relaxed Christmas and enjoy every minute you can in the New Year. In this vein I have included an American Christmas message: Christmas Blessings – rather sugary but the sentiments are sincere.
Tags: blog, Christmas
Posted by DMC on Dec 24, 2009 in
Diary Sadly, a thaw has set in and much of the snow is disappearing fast from the garden. I had hoped it would remain long enough for the children to revel in it and perhaps make a snowman. The paddock still has a fair covering and snow is forecast for tonight, so who knows we might be in for a white Christmas yet – the first, I believe, us any of the grandchildren will have seen. The Mouse, the donkey, remains firmly in her stable refusing to submit herself to the winter weather.
The family are on their way and should be here shortly in time for tea. In past years we have always held a small party for our village friends but with so many of them now visiting their own children or their other in-laws we decided against it this year.
The Christmas tree lights are on, the log fire is blazing and all it needs now is for the family to arrive.
Regretfully I can no longer wrap presents so ‘my lovely‘ has to wrap her own and indeed write the cards that go with them but using my own words. Although I can no longer write legibly and therefore can no longer jot down notes during the night, as I have done for more years than I care to remember, I found an excellent substitute in a dictaphone on which I have had glued some pimple material to enable me to operate the switch.
Tags: Christmas, family, snow
Posted by DMC on Dec 25, 2009 in
Diary The family arrived in time for tea mid-afternoon. There was still enough snow covering the ground and the thatch to lend some Christmas enchantment. The little ones, and granddaughter Lara, almost 5 years old, particularly being a little overexcited about the prospects of the day to come.
Last year both Lara, and brother Sebastion, then 7 ¾, both climbed into my four-poster with me around 4 a.m. I did my best to keep them from opening their presents before 6.00, but after much wriggling and sighing, I gave in around 5.30. This year they have strict orders from their Mum – daughter Chloe - they were not disturb me before 6.00 and then to wait for her to join us before opening their bulging stockings. After that excitement it was down for breakfast before getting ready for church. In the old days we would always stop off at the W-P’s for a glass of champagne after church before returning home — the WP’s house being adjacent to the church. However this year they were away so it was home to our own champagne and an early lunch (or is it dinner on Christmas day?).
The meal, beautifully cooked by ‘my lovely’ was utterly traditional. The centrepiece a golden turkey, roasted to perfection, with ham. chestnut stuffing, miniature sausages, cranberry sauce and various exotic chutneys – which came with Tom Grant’s generous F & M hamper – roast potatoes and all the trimmings. The table was a picture with the flames of the tall red candles reflected in the crystal glasses and silver candlesticks. Each grandchild had a dear little papier-mâché gilded angel in its place setting and brightly coloured crackers, scattered between bowls of nuts crystallised fruits, topped off the festive scene.
This was our 45th Christmas Day, most of which have been spent here at home with the family and have never varied. The end of lunch always heralds the Queen’s speech at three o’clock, most recently on television, which we faithfully watch every year. This is the prelude to the arrival of Father Christmas – this year, as most, more recently since I gave up, son Miles, who then distributed a seemingly gross number of presents to all and sundry. Am I only person to remember when I was young it was usually one ‘big’ present and two or three smaller ones. Be that as it may, the young today undoubtedly are over indulged, at least, that’s the opinion of a stuffy 75 year old.
By the time the presents had been distributed, ripped open and scattered around the sitting room floor and sack loads, of hopefully bio-degradable wrapping paper had been collected up, it was time for tea and Christmas cake. No sooner had this been washed down with some tea we reached the witching hour, when the ‘sun was over the yardarm’ and it was respectable to have a drink. Again, traditionally champagne before a light supper of smoked salmon and scrambled eggs, a tropical fruit salad and an excellent cheeseboard. I did open some rather excellent 30-year-old Port to go with the cheese but this was really a special treat. I only have two decent bottles of port left, a ’73 and ’63, the latter being kept to celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary – will I make it? Frankly, I have my doubts.
Replete, and with the two youngest in bed, we rounded off the evening, as we have always done, with some game or other, this time it was Articulate. I think son Miles and I came last, fractionally behind my 11 -year-old grandson and sister-in-law Kimberly; but then who cares. There would have been a time, when my lack of acuity would have worried me, but no longer. And so to bed, a happy bunny after a very lovely unchanging, unchanged Christmas day. (After reading how I had described our Christmas in such detail, I was very tempted to delete the reference to all the good things that we had to eat and drink, it all sounded so boastful but because that is what it was, and to say differently would be dishonest, I decided to leave it. However, having done so, I am intensely aware of how very fortunate my family and I am, compared with many other millions of people throughout the world. It was for this reason that I included the Christmas Blessing to my readers.
Tags: Christmas, family, snow
Posted by DMC on Dec 26, 2009 in
Diary An early-morning visitation to my bed by Lara and Seb. but thankfully not so early is Christmas morning. After they were bored with their grandfather’s chat, I was left in peace to have my breakfast and then I snuggled down for an hour or so and listened to the test match from South Africa. After a very promising start, of 2 wickets for 10 runs, England allowed the Springboks to build up quite an impressive score but not out of reach by any means.
We woke to a bright blue chilly day and mid-morning Smiler and I went to the local meet. There was an excellent turnout and no hunt saboteurs. I wonder how long it will take the Conservatives to repeal the current anti-hunt legislation, which is clearly not working, if they get in at the next election. The day passed happily enough, moving seemingly incessantly from meal to meal with all doing their own thing, some reading, some playing with their latest toys or gadgets and the young with the occasional visit to the TV.
Smiler and Kimberly set off home after lunch as Miles has to leave the day after tomorrow to go to Wales to shoot. Before he left Smiler kindly installed my new large number, hands-free telephone, which he and Kimberly are kindly given to me for a Christmas present, and which will be a lot easier to use than the old one.
Tags: Christmas, cricket
Posted by DMC on Dec 27, 2009 in
Diary Chloe and family gathered up their hordes of booty and left shortly before lunch, leaving a void but restoring the house to its normal tranquillity. Next year they will be elsewhere. Where will we be I wonder! I have personally have wonderful Christmas only slightly marred by the realisation that I am increasingly finding it difficult to rise out of a low chair evidencing the increasing weakness of my legs. They actually gave way on the way to the church leaving me flat on my back on the church path, but then that might have been the ice, it will certainly before drink time.
The grandchildren seem to have taken my disability in their stride without the necessity for any great explanation. Dear Lara, for example, seeing me struggling to turn a page of a book I was reading, popped over and slotted it under the keeper peg of the book stand on which it rested. When it came to meals the children quickly accepted that grandpa was going to dress up like a clown, with an apron, wrist supports, a removable wipeable sleeve and would be eating with a bent spoon, with a funny handle, and with a long ‘shoover’ projecting from his left hand for pushing food onto the spoon.
Tags: Christmas, weakness
