So Retirement Christmas number 9. Have they got better or worse as the years have rolled by? Well better in the sense that they have got simpler and that means with less obligation to others. No parents, or cousins or relatives of relatives or friends of children. Not all at once of course but in recent times all of the above have called in or even stayed at various times over Christmas and New Year. Makes me tired just writing it.
Is there anything that has got worse about Christmas? Well it feels less of an occasion, in fact this year I’ve had to remind myself that it actually is that time of year but that I suppose is the price you pay for simplification. You can’t have it both ways, so they say.
Fewer presents but that’s not a problem because anything I really wanted I’ve bought throughout the year. The food has been every bit as good as in past years. Mrs Summerhouse and I had a proper Christmas meal on the day itself (she insisted) even though it was only the two of us.
Talking of presents, which means books. The rules for book reading are somewhat relaxed during this period. I’ve been reading one of my presents namely Joan Bakewell’s The Tick of Two Clocks (see above). A lovely book about her selling her home of 53 years. I’m about half way through it and there is much about her experience that coincides with our own, without the selling of the house, if that makes sense. Her comments on old age I think she said she is 87 (a comfort to read about somebody older than us but still going) her comments on getting old and down-sizing will doubtless figure in future blogs. So no more for now
No White Christmas which was a blessing but then no MR James ghost story on Christmas Eve which was a loss in my opinion. But we did have the usual ghost story on DVD. One we’d had before – The Cat and the Canary with Bob Hope. OK a repeat but nobody except me remembered it so not a problem.
And talking of Christmas Eve, I would have to pronounce it perfect which if you know me from these blogs, you would realise is praise indeed. This is the evening that daughter and son in law came round. Not number one son because he’s in Australia but then given past Christmases when he was here is not entirely a loss. Nuff said.
Anyway, as I was saying, Christmas Eve was perfection. And it went as follows. The children arrive and we have home-made sausage rolls with a glass of our own (made from our own grapes) sparkling pink wine. Then, made to order, (and what they always order as their meal), Cannelloni with more, better-than-usual drinking, classy red wine. Sadly no time for Christmas pudding which only I seem to like, we were short of time, because…
Then we all trek up to the attic for, you’ve guessed it, a legendary ‘attic club’. To those not in the know this is the time of year when I can indulge my inner DJ and play my specially selected album tracks. I won’t bore because unless you’re of the same generation and taste you won’t have heard of them. Heart, Clifford T Ward, Linda Ronstadt, Blind Faith, Harry Chapin.
I did worry, before I started, whether I would be able to place the ‘stylus’ on the space between the tracks as in past years (on account of my increasing shakiness) but while not quite as accurate, I was good enough for the task. Much great / old music followed with some unwise dancing although not mine I hasten to add.
And then exhausted as we were, it was downstairs for chocolates, dessert wine (I think) and the above ghost DVD. As I’ve commented it’s not easy to find suitable films, i.e. scary but not too scary. Horror with a light touch you might say. The Cat and the Canary hits the spot for all of us. I’m banned from showing The Ghost Train again in the way that White Christmas has out-stayed its welcome. But no problem.
Retirement Christmas number 9 summary
So there we are, probably, on reflection, neither better nor worse, simply different. But no that’s not right, I think it really has been better. True one or two niggling health problems. Possibly a bit more than that but we will all have to wait to find out where, on the scale of concern, these niggles are. In the meantime let’s be thankful for a nice time and a happy new year if I don’t get round to an end of year retirement blog.