I know it's not yet 2011, but we're going to be out this evening and I shall probably be too tired to post anything tomorrow. I don't know quite where 2010 went; time seems to fly faster than ever, the older I become. After a fairly warm and sunny week with our visitors, yesterday was rather overcast, today is worse with a distinct chill to the air. I expect it will rain later.
I've finally remembered to post this year's Christmas newsletter on our family website for the record, and for anyone who hasn't seen it already by mail or email. If anyone new to this blog wants to know quickly what our family did in 2010 - in a nutshell: I turned 50, we celebrated 30 years of marriage, and our older son became engaged to be married - our 2010 newsletter is the best place to find out.
Happy New Year! Wishing many blessings to all in 2011.
Friday, December 31, 2010
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Family frivolity... and farewell
A roundup of extra random photos from the past week, which don't fit with Christmas or Agia Napa, or Lefkara.
We had a very pleasant lunch and early afternoon out on Sunday, but for some reason I didn't take any photos at all.
On Monday afternoon, when we took Stephen and Dulcie to Agia Napa, Tim had some young friends over for a game of Risk, as has become traditional in his visits home to Cyprus:
Sheila came over on Tuesday morning, as she usually does, with Katie, Helen and Elisabeth. Elisabeth is now six months old, and very interested in Lego:
My 'baby' still likes playing with Lego too, if there are small people around to enjoy it with him:
Elisabeth was pretty keen on Tim:
Tuesday evening, their last night, Stephen and Dulcie took us out for a meal at our favourite meze taverna, not far from where we live:
Wednesday morning, they wanted to say goodbye to our friends, so we popped over. The sun was shining, and the family were outside, working (or, in some cases, not working) in their front yard. They didn't mind stopping to socialise for a while:
And since I hadn't taken many photos of Tim, I snapped another:
But, as always, the week had to come to an end - and all too soon, we were back at the airport again. The flights were supposed to be about an hour apart, but Tim checked in online so only had to be there an hour in advance, so we took them all together:
Perhaps life will get back to normal next week...
A week ago now, we played a game of Settlers of Catan (surprise, surprise...) with Tim, who had not played enough for the past few months, and Stephen and Dulcie who had only played a couple of times before. It was fairly lengthy, but we enjoyed it:
On Christmas Eve, when the cats were trying to get at the turkey, we played some Rummikub:
On Christmas Eve, when the cats were trying to get at the turkey, we played some Rummikub:
We had a very pleasant lunch and early afternoon out on Sunday, but for some reason I didn't take any photos at all.
On Monday afternoon, when we took Stephen and Dulcie to Agia Napa, Tim had some young friends over for a game of Risk, as has become traditional in his visits home to Cyprus:
Sheila came over on Tuesday morning, as she usually does, with Katie, Helen and Elisabeth. Elisabeth is now six months old, and very interested in Lego:
My 'baby' still likes playing with Lego too, if there are small people around to enjoy it with him:
Elisabeth was pretty keen on Tim:
Tuesday evening, their last night, Stephen and Dulcie took us out for a meal at our favourite meze taverna, not far from where we live:
Wednesday morning, they wanted to say goodbye to our friends, so we popped over. The sun was shining, and the family were outside, working (or, in some cases, not working) in their front yard. They didn't mind stopping to socialise for a while:
And since I hadn't taken many photos of Tim, I snapped another:
But, as always, the week had to come to an end - and all too soon, we were back at the airport again. The flights were supposed to be about an hour apart, but Tim checked in online so only had to be there an hour in advance, so we took them all together:
Perhaps life will get back to normal next week...
Lefkara on Tuesday
Stephen and Dulcie wanted to visit Lefkara again - they went there in 2004, last time they visited us, and Dulcie wanted to buy a couple of tablecloths. We decided to go on Tuesday afternoon, since we weren't sure how many of the shops would be open on Monday.
Lefkara is not far from Larnaka. It took about 25 minutes to get there, the last part being an uphill, slightly windy road. Since we first went there a lot of the shops have closed, but there are still plenty on the main roads in the town:
Some of them display their wares outside:
We looked fairly quickly around the first shop, not seeing anything that appealed. In the second one, Dulcie saw something that was a possibility, but wasn't certain, so she said she'd like to look elsewhere first. The shop owners try to persuade every visitor to buy something, offering discounts and special offers, throwing in extra items, and - if all else fails - explaining that they haven't had any customers that week... they're not pushy, exactly, but decidedly manipulative.
Still, they're pretty helpful and are always happy to get things out. This shop had several that Dulcie liked, although by then I'd had more than enough of looking in shops:
She looked at a large number before deciding on something she liked, as a gift for a friend. The shop owner kept getting out more and more...
Then, after more discussion, she found one she liked for herself. And then, going into yet another shop just to have a quick look, she found yet another that she thought was attractive, and a very good deal...
.. However, she decided it would be better not to go into any more shops. So we drove around to the church that has amazing views over the mountains, chatted for awhile, and then came home again.
Lefkara is not far from Larnaka. It took about 25 minutes to get there, the last part being an uphill, slightly windy road. Since we first went there a lot of the shops have closed, but there are still plenty on the main roads in the town:
Some of them display their wares outside:
We looked fairly quickly around the first shop, not seeing anything that appealed. In the second one, Dulcie saw something that was a possibility, but wasn't certain, so she said she'd like to look elsewhere first. The shop owners try to persuade every visitor to buy something, offering discounts and special offers, throwing in extra items, and - if all else fails - explaining that they haven't had any customers that week... they're not pushy, exactly, but decidedly manipulative.
Still, they're pretty helpful and are always happy to get things out. This shop had several that Dulcie liked, although by then I'd had more than enough of looking in shops:
She looked at a large number before deciding on something she liked, as a gift for a friend. The shop owner kept getting out more and more...
Then, after more discussion, she found one she liked for herself. And then, going into yet another shop just to have a quick look, she found yet another that she thought was attractive, and a very good deal...
.. However, she decided it would be better not to go into any more shops. So we drove around to the church that has amazing views over the mountains, chatted for awhile, and then came home again.
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Ayia Napa on Monday
The end of last week was taken up with Christmas preparations, and of course Saturday was Christmas Day. On Sunday some other friends invited us to lunch, which was very enjoyable, and we ate a few leftovers in the evening, but were all too tired to do anything much else.
On Monday afternoon, Tim had some young friends over for a game, so we decided to go out for the afternoon with Stephen and Dulcie. Richard suggested Ayia Napa, and although there's not a great deal there - shops and night-clubs, and beaches that attract singles groups in the summer - they'd never been there before, and we all felt like a walk somewhere different.
We thought we might have a look at the old monastery in Ayia Napa, but it was closed:
When we saw that, we remembered that it had been closed before, for some renovations. Maybe it hasn't re-opened, or perhaps it was shut due to the Christmas break.
Still, it was a lovely afternoon, so we walked around the surrounding area. There was a pool with large fish just opposite:
And trees shedding leaves as if it were autumn rather than winter:
There was a rather friendly cat, too:
And an attractive Greek Orthodox church:
Then we decided to walk down to the harbour area. I was struck by the number of oddly shaped Christmas decorations, looking roughly like sailing boats:
And of course there was the ubiquitous Santa with a couple of reindeer:
It's years since I was last in Ayia Napa, so I was pleasantly surprised to see that the harbour area has been modernised, looking really quite attractive; even the fishing boats look as if they've been done up:
We were amused to see this:
Although when we walked closer to it, later on, we saw that it's advertised as a 'surface' submarine. An oxymoron if ever there was one!
Which in fact is a bar - it looked very quiet, but no doubt is packed during the summer.
and found some more cats:
I was breathing deeply, enjoying the fresh, clean air around the sea.
We walked a little further, but an unpleasant stench came up, rather spoiling the fresh, clean air feeling. So we turned back, and gradually made our way back to the car.
On Monday afternoon, Tim had some young friends over for a game, so we decided to go out for the afternoon with Stephen and Dulcie. Richard suggested Ayia Napa, and although there's not a great deal there - shops and night-clubs, and beaches that attract singles groups in the summer - they'd never been there before, and we all felt like a walk somewhere different.
We thought we might have a look at the old monastery in Ayia Napa, but it was closed:
When we saw that, we remembered that it had been closed before, for some renovations. Maybe it hasn't re-opened, or perhaps it was shut due to the Christmas break.
Still, it was a lovely afternoon, so we walked around the surrounding area. There was a pool with large fish just opposite:
And trees shedding leaves as if it were autumn rather than winter:
There was a rather friendly cat, too:
And an attractive Greek Orthodox church:
Then we decided to walk down to the harbour area. I was struck by the number of oddly shaped Christmas decorations, looking roughly like sailing boats:
And of course there was the ubiquitous Santa with a couple of reindeer:
It's years since I was last in Ayia Napa, so I was pleasantly surprised to see that the harbour area has been modernised, looking really quite attractive; even the fishing boats look as if they've been done up:
We were amused to see this:
Although when we walked closer to it, later on, we saw that it's advertised as a 'surface' submarine. An oxymoron if ever there was one!Then there was this pirate ship:
Which in fact is a bar - it looked very quiet, but no doubt is packed during the summer.We strolled gently around the harbour:
and found some more cats:
I was breathing deeply, enjoying the fresh, clean air around the sea. By then it was around 4.30 and the sun was setting over the sea:
We walked a little further, but an unpleasant stench came up, rather spoiling the fresh, clean air feeling. So we turned back, and gradually made our way back to the car. Sunday, December 26, 2010
Christmas Day 2010
My day started around 6.30am when I got up to have my coffee, and sit quietly for a while... before doing a few things around the house to prepare for later. Tim and Richard had cooked and carved the turkey on Christmas Eve, and Tim had peeled potatoes and carrots. Gradually the family emerged, and by 9.00 we were ready to open parcels:
Stephen and Dulcie will be opening most of theirs back in the UK, later on, and unfortunately ours to them had not yet arrived in the post... but they had one or two things to open, Tim had more, and the majority was for Richard and me. Mostly books, DVDs and chocolate from relatives - what more could anyone want? In addition, a hand blender - which I hope to use for soups. Plus a couple of generous cheques. My present to Richard was a hand coffee-grinder for the boat (and something else which also hasn't arrived yet..). Richard and Tim gave me something I've been wondering about for months... a Kindle!
At 9.25 Tim left for St Helena's Church where he was playing for the morning service; ten minutes later, Stephen and Dulcie and I set out. Richard would have come, but was getting over a flu-like cold, and coughing quite badly. So he stayed at home.
It was 11.15 by the time we were home, and Tim and I set to work in the kitchen whipping cream (for a trifle), preparing brussels sprouts, organising the potatoes for roasting, and so on.
Around 12.30 our friends arrived, and Dulcie was immediately captivated by six-month-old Elisabeth:
Stephen held her for a while too:
Richard and his youngest sailing buddy Jacob were looking at something on Richard's phone:
Elisabeth decided she was happier on Dulcie, and they discussed some Duplo:
I put the camera down during lunch, which was a mistake as I'd like to have caught twelve of us (plus Elisabeth) sitting down to eat. There was plenty of turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce and potatoes, and four types of veg; the only thing we ran out of was sausages, but Tim only had room to cook 24. I don't think anyone went hungry. We moved seamlessly on to Christmas pudding, mince pies, trifle, satsumas and dried fruit, and then to coffee.
The children asked if they could watch a movie, so Richard put the classic 'Miracle on 34th Street' on for them, and after much discussion the adults decided to play some board games.
Elisabeth is fascinated by toys of any kind, and tried to grab at Dulcie's Rummikub tiles (successfully in a couple of cases)
Jacob decided he would rather play a game than watch a film, so he, Tim and Jörn played Settlers of Catan at one end of the table, while Stephen, Dulcie, Sheila and I played a few rounds of Rummikub. Then the film ended; Lukas appeared and thought he might like to learn Rummikub, while Tim and Sheila played a two-person Settlers game:
Jörn kept an eye on Lukas's board, to advise if necessary, and Jacob joined in the Rummikub end of the table:
Marie, meanwhile, had found a book to read:
I wasn't needed for any of the games, so I took Helen to the study to play with some Lego:
Actually we blew some bubbles from my birthday bubble mixture, and then I read her a couple of books.
Since by this time it was about 6.30, we cleared away the games and I put various bits and pieces out on the table - pitta bread, and cheese, and tomatoes, and hummus, and a few leftovers from lunch.. and also the Christmas cake, which I remembered to photograph before cutting into it. I just rough-iced it this year:
Everyone (other than Jacob and Helen) had claimed that they weren't hungry, but most of us had something to eat. Richard - who had gone to lie down for a couple of hours during the afternoon - took Tim out to spend an evening with some of his old friends, and as the children were getting tired, we gradually wound down.
Katie managed to persuade Stephen to read a book to her and Lukas, which kept them occupied for a while:
Richard was looking at one of his new books, chatting to Jacob about it:
Helen posed for another photo with Dulcie and Marie:
Then, while everyone else finished getting ready to leave, Marie picked up the Discworld Companion book again:
By 9.00 the house was peaceful again after a very enjoyable afternoon. The cats emerged from seclusion, and we phoned - or attempted to phone - a few relatives in the UK.
Stephen and Dulcie will be opening most of theirs back in the UK, later on, and unfortunately ours to them had not yet arrived in the post... but they had one or two things to open, Tim had more, and the majority was for Richard and me. Mostly books, DVDs and chocolate from relatives - what more could anyone want? In addition, a hand blender - which I hope to use for soups. Plus a couple of generous cheques. My present to Richard was a hand coffee-grinder for the boat (and something else which also hasn't arrived yet..). Richard and Tim gave me something I've been wondering about for months... a Kindle!
At 9.25 Tim left for St Helena's Church where he was playing for the morning service; ten minutes later, Stephen and Dulcie and I set out. Richard would have come, but was getting over a flu-like cold, and coughing quite badly. So he stayed at home.
It was 11.15 by the time we were home, and Tim and I set to work in the kitchen whipping cream (for a trifle), preparing brussels sprouts, organising the potatoes for roasting, and so on.
Around 12.30 our friends arrived, and Dulcie was immediately captivated by six-month-old Elisabeth:
Stephen held her for a while too:
Richard and his youngest sailing buddy Jacob were looking at something on Richard's phone:
Elisabeth decided she was happier on Dulcie, and they discussed some Duplo:
I put the camera down during lunch, which was a mistake as I'd like to have caught twelve of us (plus Elisabeth) sitting down to eat. There was plenty of turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce and potatoes, and four types of veg; the only thing we ran out of was sausages, but Tim only had room to cook 24. I don't think anyone went hungry. We moved seamlessly on to Christmas pudding, mince pies, trifle, satsumas and dried fruit, and then to coffee.
The children asked if they could watch a movie, so Richard put the classic 'Miracle on 34th Street' on for them, and after much discussion the adults decided to play some board games.
Elisabeth is fascinated by toys of any kind, and tried to grab at Dulcie's Rummikub tiles (successfully in a couple of cases)
Jacob decided he would rather play a game than watch a film, so he, Tim and Jörn played Settlers of Catan at one end of the table, while Stephen, Dulcie, Sheila and I played a few rounds of Rummikub. Then the film ended; Lukas appeared and thought he might like to learn Rummikub, while Tim and Sheila played a two-person Settlers game:
Jörn kept an eye on Lukas's board, to advise if necessary, and Jacob joined in the Rummikub end of the table:
Marie, meanwhile, had found a book to read:
I wasn't needed for any of the games, so I took Helen to the study to play with some Lego:
Actually we blew some bubbles from my birthday bubble mixture, and then I read her a couple of books.
Since by this time it was about 6.30, we cleared away the games and I put various bits and pieces out on the table - pitta bread, and cheese, and tomatoes, and hummus, and a few leftovers from lunch.. and also the Christmas cake, which I remembered to photograph before cutting into it. I just rough-iced it this year:
Everyone (other than Jacob and Helen) had claimed that they weren't hungry, but most of us had something to eat. Richard - who had gone to lie down for a couple of hours during the afternoon - took Tim out to spend an evening with some of his old friends, and as the children were getting tired, we gradually wound down.
Katie managed to persuade Stephen to read a book to her and Lukas, which kept them occupied for a while:
Richard was looking at one of his new books, chatting to Jacob about it:
Helen posed for another photo with Dulcie and Marie:
Then, while everyone else finished getting ready to leave, Marie picked up the Discworld Companion book again:
By 9.00 the house was peaceful again after a very enjoyable afternoon. The cats emerged from seclusion, and we phoned - or attempted to phone - a few relatives in the UK.
Friday, December 24, 2010
A very happy Christmas to all
Once again, the ten days or so between my card-writing day and Christmas Eve seem to have whizzed past. I don't quite know where they've gone. I didn't think I had all that much to do, but I hardly seem to have sat down.
On Thursday a week ago, we hosted a sort of pre-Christmas get-together lunch for Richard's colleagues and their families. So as that was our first Christmas event, I suggested we put our tree up the night before. Richard got it down and assembled it, and I did a bit of decorating. We don't go overboard on Christmas decorations. An understatement if ever there was one. But we put up our old faithful tree, now about twenty years old, and a few favourite hanging ornaments, and throw a bit of tinsel around the place.
The tree looks quite pretty when its lit up, though it's hard to get a photo that works:
The meal went well, everyone bringing plenty of food, but by the end I was exhausted.
A day or two later, I put the marzipan layer on the Christmas cake. I gave up on the nicer tasting Cypriot almond paste and bought a pack of British marzipan, since it rolls so much more easily. The cake is put on it, upside down:
Then I turned it over, trimmed the edges, and it was done:
I didn't ice it until yesterday, and haven't yet taken a photo of the finished product. Perhaps I will tomorrow before we cut into it.
By Monday we were wondering whether or not our visitors from the UK would be able to make it. Heavy snow meant that many British airports were closing for hours at a time, and we read of chaos for holiday travellers. I really don't know why so many people get excited about the idea of a white Christmas. I suppose a gentle fall of snow in the afternoon can be pretty, when lunch is finished and families are sitting around the fireside. But freezing temperatures for a week before Christmas mean families can't get together, parcels are delayed, food is in short supply, heating bills are high, and the homeless will have a totally miserable time.
Still, I thought we should probably get our usual poinsettia, so we went out to our local plant shop, and got a smallish one for the table in the living room:
I wanted some bedding plants too, so we bought a few petunias, and I decided to try a small poinsettia outside too, wondering if it might last longer than our indoor ones have done:
Then, instead of cleaning the guest flat as I intended to do on Monday afternoon, I spent my time re-potting various of our large plants, and cleaning the front porch.
So it was Tuesday when I finally tidied and cleaned the guest flat, and made up the bed, still hoping my brother and his wife would get here. They were flying from Heathrow on Wednesday, and Tim was flying from Birmingham. By Tuesday night, Tim was pretty sure he wouldn't even make it to the airport, since ten inches of snow was predicted overnight.
But he kept in touch via his phone... he took off half an hour late, but compared to the recent chaos in airports, that seemed like a miracle. My brother and his wife were about half an hour late. So by Wednesday evening we were all together!
So I've been cooking, and shopping, and chatting, and playing games... today we went to Metro at 8.30am - it wasn't at all crowded - to pick up the turkey, which Tim stuffed and cooked this afternoon. Richard's carved it, and it's i the fridge waiting to be re-heated for lunch tomorrow.
Of course we had to close the sliding doors to the kitchen/dining room area while Richard was carving:
Cleo kept out of the way, but was just as interested in the nice smells:
I made 46 mince pies and some more lemonade; Tim has peeled a small mountain of potatoes.
Tonight Tim's playing at the midnight service at St Helena's; I don't do late nights, otherwise I'd go too. But he's also playing at the 10am service in the morning, so I shall go to that.
Most of the family are watching a DVD right now, but I decided it would be better to clean the kitchen, and then sit down for half an hour at the computer.
Happy Christmas!
On Thursday a week ago, we hosted a sort of pre-Christmas get-together lunch for Richard's colleagues and their families. So as that was our first Christmas event, I suggested we put our tree up the night before. Richard got it down and assembled it, and I did a bit of decorating. We don't go overboard on Christmas decorations. An understatement if ever there was one. But we put up our old faithful tree, now about twenty years old, and a few favourite hanging ornaments, and throw a bit of tinsel around the place.
The tree looks quite pretty when its lit up, though it's hard to get a photo that works:
The meal went well, everyone bringing plenty of food, but by the end I was exhausted.
A day or two later, I put the marzipan layer on the Christmas cake. I gave up on the nicer tasting Cypriot almond paste and bought a pack of British marzipan, since it rolls so much more easily. The cake is put on it, upside down:
Then I turned it over, trimmed the edges, and it was done:
I didn't ice it until yesterday, and haven't yet taken a photo of the finished product. Perhaps I will tomorrow before we cut into it.
By Monday we were wondering whether or not our visitors from the UK would be able to make it. Heavy snow meant that many British airports were closing for hours at a time, and we read of chaos for holiday travellers. I really don't know why so many people get excited about the idea of a white Christmas. I suppose a gentle fall of snow in the afternoon can be pretty, when lunch is finished and families are sitting around the fireside. But freezing temperatures for a week before Christmas mean families can't get together, parcels are delayed, food is in short supply, heating bills are high, and the homeless will have a totally miserable time.
Still, I thought we should probably get our usual poinsettia, so we went out to our local plant shop, and got a smallish one for the table in the living room:
I wanted some bedding plants too, so we bought a few petunias, and I decided to try a small poinsettia outside too, wondering if it might last longer than our indoor ones have done:
Then, instead of cleaning the guest flat as I intended to do on Monday afternoon, I spent my time re-potting various of our large plants, and cleaning the front porch.
So it was Tuesday when I finally tidied and cleaned the guest flat, and made up the bed, still hoping my brother and his wife would get here. They were flying from Heathrow on Wednesday, and Tim was flying from Birmingham. By Tuesday night, Tim was pretty sure he wouldn't even make it to the airport, since ten inches of snow was predicted overnight.
But he kept in touch via his phone... he took off half an hour late, but compared to the recent chaos in airports, that seemed like a miracle. My brother and his wife were about half an hour late. So by Wednesday evening we were all together!
So I've been cooking, and shopping, and chatting, and playing games... today we went to Metro at 8.30am - it wasn't at all crowded - to pick up the turkey, which Tim stuffed and cooked this afternoon. Richard's carved it, and it's i the fridge waiting to be re-heated for lunch tomorrow.
Of course we had to close the sliding doors to the kitchen/dining room area while Richard was carving:
Cleo kept out of the way, but was just as interested in the nice smells:
I made 46 mince pies and some more lemonade; Tim has peeled a small mountain of potatoes.
Tonight Tim's playing at the midnight service at St Helena's; I don't do late nights, otherwise I'd go too. But he's also playing at the 10am service in the morning, so I shall go to that.
Most of the family are watching a DVD right now, but I decided it would be better to clean the kitchen, and then sit down for half an hour at the computer.
Happy Christmas!
Monday, December 13, 2010
Writing Christmas cards, and a rainbow
Living in Cyprus, we have to ensure that Christmas cards to the UK are sent in reasonable time, with the hope that they might arrive at least a day or two before the 25th. I know that many people are well-organised, and sent out cards on December 1st. I am not one of their number. But kudos to those who do.
I did actually write our annual newsletter about ten days ago. But I wanted our sons to check it first; then it required some tweaking. It was Friday last week before it was finally printed. I thought I might write cards on Saturday, but somehow didn't get around to it... however, Sunday, I determined, would be The Day. Richard was out at a VHF radio course all day, and I wanted to get them in the mail today.
I knew it was going to take me a few hours, so, of course, I found several other vitally important things I needed to do instead. Some of which were indeed important and others which weren't. The sky was grey, and it was rainy and windy so I didn't plan to go out anywhere. But by 10.30am I still hadn't started on the cards.
I decided to turn the heating on for an hour's boost - it was that chilly - and make myself a cup of fruity tea.
Then I just wondered if any email had arrived in the past five minutes - as you do - and sat down at the computer. And browsed Facebook, And started playing one of those fast-moving silly games that I do at least limit to weekends.
Then suddenly my computer screen went blank.
It was a power cut. The first one we've had in a long time. And while I don't wish to spiritualise everything, it did feel as if God was taking rather drastic measures to ensure that I finally got started on my card-writing...
Despite the greyness of the day, and the rain, there was enough light in the dining room without using electricity. And the radiators had at least warmed up, and I'd made my hot drink... so I gathered my resources:
Cards. List. Newsletters. Address book. Pens. And the hot fruity tea.
It's sad that I think of card-writing as a chore. Once I've started, I love thinking about our relatives and friends, despite their being thousands of miles away, as I fold the newsletters, choose the cards, and write the addresses.
Last year (and I find it interesting that it was also on December 12th), I did something of a production line system for writing Christmas cards, adding all the addresses at the end. My fingers were cramping by the end, so this year I decided to do one card at a time. It worked considerably better.
After an hour, I'd finished about fifteen cards. I had decided to reduce the numbers somewhat; last year I posted 69 to the UK and wrote 29 for local people. In the event, I only gave out about half the local ones - people went away, or we didn't see them, or I forgot. Lots of people don't do Christmas cards any more, anyway.
I decided that if I hadn't heard from someone for three years, I would not send out a card. Of course I don't only want to send cards to people who send them to us - people can get in touch in all kinds of ways. But if I haven't heard a thing from them in the past three years, I think it's probably safe to assume that they don't particularly want to hear from us... that cut the numbers down somewhat.
Happily the electricity resumed after about an hour and a half. I took a break for some lunch, and noticed the sun coming out briefly. For a few minutes, there was a rainbow:
Then I got back to card-writing, with a cup of coffee and another hour's boost to the central heating. Unlike last year, the cats showed no interest until Tessie decided to come and help towards the end:
Even with reduced numbers, I had 51 to post, but I only wrote five for local friends. If I decide to write some more, I still have plenty.
Then, feeling virtuously efficient, I did the majority of my Christmas shopping online at Amazon.co.uk and Play.com.
This morning, the skies were blue, the rain had stopped. After a couple of hours of housework - rather necessary, inside and out, after the stormy weekend - I had a pleasant twenty-minute walk down to the Post Office where I bought stamps and then spent half an hour sticking stamps and air mail stickers on to my 51 envelopes.
Waiting in the PO Box were some Christmas cards from friends and relatives who are a great deal more efficient than we are. When I got home, I found the ones we had been given by local friends already, and discovered that there were ten altogether. Rather than risk losing them amongst other paperwork, I decided to hang them up.
I did actually write our annual newsletter about ten days ago. But I wanted our sons to check it first; then it required some tweaking. It was Friday last week before it was finally printed. I thought I might write cards on Saturday, but somehow didn't get around to it... however, Sunday, I determined, would be The Day. Richard was out at a VHF radio course all day, and I wanted to get them in the mail today.
I knew it was going to take me a few hours, so, of course, I found several other vitally important things I needed to do instead. Some of which were indeed important and others which weren't. The sky was grey, and it was rainy and windy so I didn't plan to go out anywhere. But by 10.30am I still hadn't started on the cards.
I decided to turn the heating on for an hour's boost - it was that chilly - and make myself a cup of fruity tea.
Then I just wondered if any email had arrived in the past five minutes - as you do - and sat down at the computer. And browsed Facebook, And started playing one of those fast-moving silly games that I do at least limit to weekends.
Then suddenly my computer screen went blank.
It was a power cut. The first one we've had in a long time. And while I don't wish to spiritualise everything, it did feel as if God was taking rather drastic measures to ensure that I finally got started on my card-writing...
Despite the greyness of the day, and the rain, there was enough light in the dining room without using electricity. And the radiators had at least warmed up, and I'd made my hot drink... so I gathered my resources:
Cards. List. Newsletters. Address book. Pens. And the hot fruity tea.
It's sad that I think of card-writing as a chore. Once I've started, I love thinking about our relatives and friends, despite their being thousands of miles away, as I fold the newsletters, choose the cards, and write the addresses.
Last year (and I find it interesting that it was also on December 12th), I did something of a production line system for writing Christmas cards, adding all the addresses at the end. My fingers were cramping by the end, so this year I decided to do one card at a time. It worked considerably better.
After an hour, I'd finished about fifteen cards. I had decided to reduce the numbers somewhat; last year I posted 69 to the UK and wrote 29 for local people. In the event, I only gave out about half the local ones - people went away, or we didn't see them, or I forgot. Lots of people don't do Christmas cards any more, anyway.
I decided that if I hadn't heard from someone for three years, I would not send out a card. Of course I don't only want to send cards to people who send them to us - people can get in touch in all kinds of ways. But if I haven't heard a thing from them in the past three years, I think it's probably safe to assume that they don't particularly want to hear from us... that cut the numbers down somewhat.
Happily the electricity resumed after about an hour and a half. I took a break for some lunch, and noticed the sun coming out briefly. For a few minutes, there was a rainbow:
Then I got back to card-writing, with a cup of coffee and another hour's boost to the central heating. Unlike last year, the cats showed no interest until Tessie decided to come and help towards the end:
Even with reduced numbers, I had 51 to post, but I only wrote five for local friends. If I decide to write some more, I still have plenty.
Then, feeling virtuously efficient, I did the majority of my Christmas shopping online at Amazon.co.uk and Play.com.
This morning, the skies were blue, the rain had stopped. After a couple of hours of housework - rather necessary, inside and out, after the stormy weekend - I had a pleasant twenty-minute walk down to the Post Office where I bought stamps and then spent half an hour sticking stamps and air mail stickers on to my 51 envelopes.
Waiting in the PO Box were some Christmas cards from friends and relatives who are a great deal more efficient than we are. When I got home, I found the ones we had been given by local friends already, and discovered that there were ten altogether. Rather than risk losing them amongst other paperwork, I decided to hang them up.
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