THE CONCRETE ROUNDABOUT (TCR)

Do you have any?

I was thinking today that I've fallen into the habit of doing the same things every festive season.

On the 18th of December, one week before the big day, I re-read A Christmas Carol. It's not a big book, and something around three quarters of an hour a day will get you to Christmas eve.
On the day I break up from work I listen to The Word podcast with Danny Baker. The one where he tells the hilarious story where him and Danny Kelly go to Amsterdam to get stoned.
On Christmas eve we always go to my sister in law's, where all the remaining uncles, aunts, and various cousins assemble. We never see them at any other time of year, just Christmas eve.
We used to go to the pantomime at the theatre on the 23rd, and this is the first year since the theatre opened, covid being the other, that we've decided not to go.

Be interesting to hear if other folk are as boring and predictable as me

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When you make your music, do you think about the man in the street? No, I've met the man in the street. He's a Ladybit.

I'm afraid after 80 odd Xmases it all becomes a rather stale chore. Bah Humbug !

Does that mean you don't have traditions?

I'm still in the midst of developing a 'new' Festive routine really, having moved a long way around the time of the lockdowns to be nearer my aging parents and help them out as they're both struggling physically.

So much of what would have been my old routine (in terms of people to visit) has changed - although, as it's moved me much closer to my parents and my older brother and his family, then there's still going to be a lot of the same people around on Christmas Day - just a lot less of a novelty seeing them now as I see them most days anyway.

I still get the house decorations, and slightly later the tree, up nice and early and enjoy them for as long as possible. Having (a Vegetarian) Christmas Dinner with my parents and brother is still a big part of it - as first me, then my brother, and later my mum, have been vegetarian for a number of years. Though as I've now taken over preparing the dinner for everyone, that gives the day itself a more busy, stressed feel for me.

I'm trying to think of anything I generally watch / read / listen to specifically as a Christmas tradition. But I'm pretty much a boring, stuck in their ways person who watches / reads / listens to a lot of the same stuff on a regular basis all through the year anyway - so I guess I'm just boring and predictable all year round, not just at Christmas.

It's become a must to choose our Christmas tree from Frosts as a family at the start of December - collective decision - even though the kids are no longer kids and OFD Junior now has her own place, last year we had to buy one for her as well!

Like Gers I always try and read A Christmas Carol, something I started to do over 20 years ago - always an essential part of the build up. In recent years I've also enjoyed reading John Masefield's Box of Delights as a Christmas treat, although at approaching 400 pages I've been doing this alternate years and starting to read in November!

I make a Christmas pudding and a Christmas cake each year although I'm now the only one in the house who eats either, my in laws take half of the cake with them after Boxing day and I spend January eating the rest. I sometimes wonder if I should stop but Christmas wouldn't feel right without either, particularly the pudding (new recipe this year, aiming for a darker offering so I've used Guinness, ginger and black treacle - fingers crossed)

I get drunk a lot.

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I don't need your ill-informed, half-baked, idiotic opinions. I have plenty of those myself.

I mentioned my dear old nan in the week and we have our own tradition.

On a Saturday lunchtime, we cook a slap-up steak lunch between us: I bring the steaks, and she's already got the onions, chips and peppercorn sauce going when I arrive at midday.

We do this three times a year: my birthday in May, her birthday in July, and Christmas. We'll be doing it this Saturday and I have two very nice Waitrose sirloins in my fridge ready to go.

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"I sometimes buy the Big Issue out of social embarrassment. I don't buy a fucking bank!"

I spend Christmas Eve morning playing golf and then go to the City centre to buy my wife’s presents. As the afternoon moves on, I tend to panic a bit. I started this when my sons were young and have carried on.

It's not Christmas unless I watch a Muppet's Christmas Carol the day before

Always watch Dr Who (if it's on).

I pickle my own onions (pardon?) at the end of October and always open the first jar to have with the cold buffet in the evening of Christmas Day.

I construct a 'treasure hunt' after lunch for my two lads - now no longer kids - with a small gift, usually chocolate, at the end. Rather cryptic clues, sometime involving pictures as well. This will send them all round the house trying to solve them. If I wrote the clue after a few glasses of red etc (likely) and they have had a drink over lunch (also likely) it can take some time....

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Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment