Mistletoe and wine
Dec. 4th, 2008 09:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
r_scribblesChristmas meme stolen from that one stop meme shop that we like to call ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
ladybracknell
25 Christmas Questions Meme
1. What's your favourite kind of Christmas cookie?
We don't really do Christmas Cookies in Blighty, apart from a bit of gingerbread. Mind you, I really like those very posh chocolate biccies you get in tins at Christmas - the ones that are only about 10% biscuit and the rest chocolate. The MiL had a vast stock of them last Chrimble and I think somebody Scribbles shaped might have eaten them all.
2. What's your best childhood memory of Christmas?
As a very young girl, eating Christmas dinner with the family. And unwrapping presents when it's so early it's still dark outside. We have some photos of my Dad takin me and Sis out for a walk in new Christmas jumpers and gloves on Christmas day back when we were still in Wales. I was too little to remember it properly, but it looks great!
3. Real tree or fake? If a real tree, do you buy one that's already been cut or go to a farm? How do you decorate it?
Fake, baby! I grew up with fake trees, so the smell of plastic is very Christmassy to me! Our current tree is a 5ft Woolworth's one that I bought in 2001 (Hubs and my 1st Christmas living together) for a tenner with incentive gift vouchers from work and made Ian carry back to his car for me. The decs are also almost exclusively 2001 era too... I battled with Hubs back then to have a colour theme - we finally agreed on purple and gold, which was actually really difficult to do since in those days any purple baubles were more lilac than the dark purple I wanted... but I managed it, by Jove. We have plain lights, bead garlands, lots of baubles and a gold corn dollie angel that I fell for in Oxfam.
4. Do you enjoy wrapping the gifts you buy for others?
Yeah I do - it's so much fun! My wrapping never looks particularly pretty, but I love doing it anyway. Love sending cards, too.
5. How many different wrapping paper designs do you have right now?
One new one and a bit of a roll left over from last year.
6. Do you put Christmas lights up where your neighbours or passersby can see them? What kind?
Nah, can't be arsed to do anything other than a Chrimbo tree and a bit of tinsel on the shelves.
7. Does your family have any weird traditions you simply must do every year?
My mum would always put two satsumas in our stockings - one at the top and one at the bottom. We never did work out why. I have to have Toblerone and chocolate money to nosh on on Christmas day. I have also introduced the tradition of watching Blackadder's Christmas Carol either on Christmas Eve or close to it, and a non-Christmassy Christmas film (like Die Hard or Batman Returns).
8. Do you or your family go to mass or church services on Christmas Eve?
No, but we go to the lovely Community Carol sing-song in town, which has acceptably low level of religiousity, but is more a celebration of your friends, family and fellow man, which I can get with. Plus, the Archbishy always turns up on a Double Decker bus, and I like old Badger Chops.
9. How many Christmas music CDs do you own? Which is your favourite?
None unless you count the Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack. We have a small handful of Christmassy songs on our iTunes, though, and I like to listen to carols on the radio when I'm making Christmas lunch.
10. Do you have Christmas lights in your bedroom that you run all night?
No. Sounds ghastly.
11. How the Grinch Stole Christmas or A Charlie Brown Christmas?
DOn't think I've seen either... may have seen Charlie Brown but don't remember. Snowman all the way for me! Or Wallace & Gromit :)
12. Have you ever tried to make Divinity from scratch? Did it turn out?
What?
13. What kind of gift would you prefer: big and expensive or unique and thoughtful?
Unique & thoughtful.
14. Do you open presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?
Christmas morning. Christmas Eve is sacrelige!
15. Do you or your family have stockings? Do you really hang them on the fireplace mantel? Is your stocking unique?
Yes, right up until I moved in with Hubs, me and Sis would have Dad's old rugby socks as stockings. Ever since then we've used Hubs' big thick sports socks. We have got Violet a proper Stocking to fill this year though, that has never had a smelly foot in it!
16. How many times have you seen White Christmas?
Twice, I think. I actually got to watch it as part of my Film course at Uni - how cool is that?!?
EDIT - Reader, somehow last night I got confused and mixed White Christmas up with It's A Wonderful Life. I have, in fact, seen White Christmas a grand total of no times.
17. Do you get your shopping done as early as possible, or do you enjoy waiting until the last day?
I tend to get it done fairly early - I often have to, since all the presents to go to Wales and Bristol have to go on a 'Santa Run' visit (either us to mum's or mum to us) before the big day. I'm pretty ahead this year, but only thanks to online shopping - don't think I've bought a single present in a shop so far this year!
18. Should fudge have nuts in it? What kind of nuts are best?
I'm not anti nutty fudge as such... I'm not a massive fudge person, although when I worked at the paper one of my customers would bring me a bag of local fudge every year. That was nice.
19. If you have pets, do you buy them Christmas gifts too?
Don't have any now, but when we had guinea-pigs we'd always do teeny little stockings with bits of apple in for them. They loved Chrimble anyway though, because it was the only day of the year they'd get sprout leaves for dinner.
20. Have you ever performed in a Christmas play in school or church? If so, what part did you play or sing?
Yes, loads! I've been a Shepherd girl, various parts in a 'twelve days of Christmas' themed play (I was a piper piping with my recorder and a turtle dove singing a song - I think the other turtle dove was a cardboard cut out that I brought on stage with me), a dog for some reason I can't quite remember, a poppy (Wizard of Oz), the giant's wife in Jack & the Beanstalk (I had enormous strap-on tits), I think I was the Queen in Sleeping Beauty as well... lots more that I can't remember.
21. What is the strangest Christmas gift you've ever received? Do you still have it?
I once got an opened, half-eaten bag of pontefract cakes (which I hate) from my Dad, but then he was properly nuts at the time. My uncle and aunt don't have the excuse of being clinically insane and still send me some really weird shit. I got a fuckload of chutney off them once. Err, yeah. Thanks.
22. What is the best gift you've ever received?
I remember my parents getting me a massive Sindy House when I was about 7, which I adored. And my uncle (not the chutney one) got me and Sis walkmans back when they were properly expensive, which lasted us both for years and years... think I still had mine when I went to Uni. Hubs once got me a Dreamcast so I could play Soul Calibur, which was Ace.
23. Do you usually travel to see relatives over the holidays?
Lately we've been seeing my folks before Christmas (the fabled Santa Run) and the In Laws in the week between Christmas & New Year. Either us to them or vice versa with either, but we're staying put this year because Vi's outgrown her travelcot and isn't in a normal bed yet. We did so much traveling last December though, poor Vi was knackered.
24. Do you ever feel depressed by the Christmas season?
No. Never. I bloody love it. I only get depressed come the New Year when I realise my Birthday's about to roll round.
25. If you're in a relationship and have children, are your celebrations a blend of your respective traditions or have you made your own?
Both. We've been spending Christmas Day together without any extended family since we got married, and we've developed nice little traditions of our own, like the carol singing and our post-lunch walk through town, but we've both kept a handful of our favourite things from our own childhood... I couldn't have a Christmas teatime not sitting in front of the telly with cold chicken and stuffing sarnies on fresh white bread, f'rexample. It just wouldn't be right.
ladybracknell25 Christmas Questions Meme
1. What's your favourite kind of Christmas cookie?
We don't really do Christmas Cookies in Blighty, apart from a bit of gingerbread. Mind you, I really like those very posh chocolate biccies you get in tins at Christmas - the ones that are only about 10% biscuit and the rest chocolate. The MiL had a vast stock of them last Chrimble and I think somebody Scribbles shaped might have eaten them all.
2. What's your best childhood memory of Christmas?
As a very young girl, eating Christmas dinner with the family. And unwrapping presents when it's so early it's still dark outside. We have some photos of my Dad takin me and Sis out for a walk in new Christmas jumpers and gloves on Christmas day back when we were still in Wales. I was too little to remember it properly, but it looks great!
3. Real tree or fake? If a real tree, do you buy one that's already been cut or go to a farm? How do you decorate it?
Fake, baby! I grew up with fake trees, so the smell of plastic is very Christmassy to me! Our current tree is a 5ft Woolworth's one that I bought in 2001 (Hubs and my 1st Christmas living together) for a tenner with incentive gift vouchers from work and made Ian carry back to his car for me. The decs are also almost exclusively 2001 era too... I battled with Hubs back then to have a colour theme - we finally agreed on purple and gold, which was actually really difficult to do since in those days any purple baubles were more lilac than the dark purple I wanted... but I managed it, by Jove. We have plain lights, bead garlands, lots of baubles and a gold corn dollie angel that I fell for in Oxfam.
4. Do you enjoy wrapping the gifts you buy for others?
Yeah I do - it's so much fun! My wrapping never looks particularly pretty, but I love doing it anyway. Love sending cards, too.
5. How many different wrapping paper designs do you have right now?
One new one and a bit of a roll left over from last year.
6. Do you put Christmas lights up where your neighbours or passersby can see them? What kind?
Nah, can't be arsed to do anything other than a Chrimbo tree and a bit of tinsel on the shelves.
7. Does your family have any weird traditions you simply must do every year?
My mum would always put two satsumas in our stockings - one at the top and one at the bottom. We never did work out why. I have to have Toblerone and chocolate money to nosh on on Christmas day. I have also introduced the tradition of watching Blackadder's Christmas Carol either on Christmas Eve or close to it, and a non-Christmassy Christmas film (like Die Hard or Batman Returns).
8. Do you or your family go to mass or church services on Christmas Eve?
No, but we go to the lovely Community Carol sing-song in town, which has acceptably low level of religiousity, but is more a celebration of your friends, family and fellow man, which I can get with. Plus, the Archbishy always turns up on a Double Decker bus, and I like old Badger Chops.
9. How many Christmas music CDs do you own? Which is your favourite?
None unless you count the Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack. We have a small handful of Christmassy songs on our iTunes, though, and I like to listen to carols on the radio when I'm making Christmas lunch.
10. Do you have Christmas lights in your bedroom that you run all night?
No. Sounds ghastly.
11. How the Grinch Stole Christmas or A Charlie Brown Christmas?
DOn't think I've seen either... may have seen Charlie Brown but don't remember. Snowman all the way for me! Or Wallace & Gromit :)
12. Have you ever tried to make Divinity from scratch? Did it turn out?
What?
13. What kind of gift would you prefer: big and expensive or unique and thoughtful?
Unique & thoughtful.
14. Do you open presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?
Christmas morning. Christmas Eve is sacrelige!
15. Do you or your family have stockings? Do you really hang them on the fireplace mantel? Is your stocking unique?
Yes, right up until I moved in with Hubs, me and Sis would have Dad's old rugby socks as stockings. Ever since then we've used Hubs' big thick sports socks. We have got Violet a proper Stocking to fill this year though, that has never had a smelly foot in it!
16. How many times have you seen White Christmas?
Twice, I think. I actually got to watch it as part of my Film course at Uni - how cool is that?!?
EDIT - Reader, somehow last night I got confused and mixed White Christmas up with It's A Wonderful Life. I have, in fact, seen White Christmas a grand total of no times.
17. Do you get your shopping done as early as possible, or do you enjoy waiting until the last day?
I tend to get it done fairly early - I often have to, since all the presents to go to Wales and Bristol have to go on a 'Santa Run' visit (either us to mum's or mum to us) before the big day. I'm pretty ahead this year, but only thanks to online shopping - don't think I've bought a single present in a shop so far this year!
18. Should fudge have nuts in it? What kind of nuts are best?
I'm not anti nutty fudge as such... I'm not a massive fudge person, although when I worked at the paper one of my customers would bring me a bag of local fudge every year. That was nice.
19. If you have pets, do you buy them Christmas gifts too?
Don't have any now, but when we had guinea-pigs we'd always do teeny little stockings with bits of apple in for them. They loved Chrimble anyway though, because it was the only day of the year they'd get sprout leaves for dinner.
20. Have you ever performed in a Christmas play in school or church? If so, what part did you play or sing?
Yes, loads! I've been a Shepherd girl, various parts in a 'twelve days of Christmas' themed play (I was a piper piping with my recorder and a turtle dove singing a song - I think the other turtle dove was a cardboard cut out that I brought on stage with me), a dog for some reason I can't quite remember, a poppy (Wizard of Oz), the giant's wife in Jack & the Beanstalk (I had enormous strap-on tits), I think I was the Queen in Sleeping Beauty as well... lots more that I can't remember.
21. What is the strangest Christmas gift you've ever received? Do you still have it?
I once got an opened, half-eaten bag of pontefract cakes (which I hate) from my Dad, but then he was properly nuts at the time. My uncle and aunt don't have the excuse of being clinically insane and still send me some really weird shit. I got a fuckload of chutney off them once. Err, yeah. Thanks.
22. What is the best gift you've ever received?
I remember my parents getting me a massive Sindy House when I was about 7, which I adored. And my uncle (not the chutney one) got me and Sis walkmans back when they were properly expensive, which lasted us both for years and years... think I still had mine when I went to Uni. Hubs once got me a Dreamcast so I could play Soul Calibur, which was Ace.
23. Do you usually travel to see relatives over the holidays?
Lately we've been seeing my folks before Christmas (the fabled Santa Run) and the In Laws in the week between Christmas & New Year. Either us to them or vice versa with either, but we're staying put this year because Vi's outgrown her travelcot and isn't in a normal bed yet. We did so much traveling last December though, poor Vi was knackered.
24. Do you ever feel depressed by the Christmas season?
No. Never. I bloody love it. I only get depressed come the New Year when I realise my Birthday's about to roll round.
25. If you're in a relationship and have children, are your celebrations a blend of your respective traditions or have you made your own?
Both. We've been spending Christmas Day together without any extended family since we got married, and we've developed nice little traditions of our own, like the carol singing and our post-lunch walk through town, but we've both kept a handful of our favourite things from our own childhood... I couldn't have a Christmas teatime not sitting in front of the telly with cold chicken and stuffing sarnies on fresh white bread, f'rexample. It just wouldn't be right.
