Liberty display

I’m still on a buzz from the weekend…

We got back on Saturday evening with a sense of ‘did that all really just happen?’ and decided to continue the fun by going to watch the new Star Wars film on Sunday morning, which I really enjoyed. Unfortunately (as is the usual case with the cinema we go to) I had to put my teacher voice on and ask the teenagers to take their feet off the back of The Bloke’s seat and stop kicking him, despite the fact that their parents were sitting right next to them. Thankfully, they did, and we watched the rest of the film without further interruption. I always feel like a whingy toe rag when I say something, but it always gets on my nerves when I have to get into teacher mode.

I’m just starting to get to the point where I’m feeling a bit more Christmassy. Last week I planned and cooked a full Christmas dinner for my friend who I won’t see over the holidays, and had my annual drinky-poos at the pub with another friend who has not only given up loads of her time to look after the cats (including administering insulin injections to one of them, who sadly passed away a few months ago), but she decorated my living room with amusing balloons when we got back after getting engaged earlier in the year. I’ve sent my cards out and bought my presents, so today was spent mainly wrapping them and tidying up a bit before I go up to my mum’s house for the holidays in a few days. Despite the fact that The Bloke and I have been together for years, we still go to our own families for a few days separately, so we decided that next year (as we will have just got married), we’re going to stay here. By then, Baby Squidge will be here too, so I know that both mine and my brother-in-law’s family will be spoiling it rotten, and it also means that I don’t have to worry about finding someone to look after the cat – I’m lucky in that my lovely next-door neighbours are caring for him this year.

There are still a few things to look forward to here – The Bloke and I are going to have our own little Christmas together, complete with dinner, A Muppets Christmas Carol and exchanging presents – and hopefully I will have everything organised so that my journey up north will be an easy one. I managed to get a really cheap ticket at ridiculous-o’clock and have avoided the chaos that surrounds Manchester Piccadilly a this time of year, particularly as the trains to Bolton are often replaced with buses. Aside from presents, I don’t have to take much up with me as I have jammies at my mum’s, so it’s already working out much better than it has in previous years.

As always, the news elsewhere in the world isn’t quite so positive. I was saddened by the news of the attack in Berlin yesterday and the stories of hatred and genocide across so many places. They serve as daily reminders of how lucky I am to live this life, and my thoughts go out to everyone who isn’t in a safe place.

What about you guys? Are you prepared for Christmas?

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