THURSDAY 23 NOVEMBER 2023 (post begun 1211hrs GMT)

 

Oh. My. Goodness - he's only bloody gone and done it again! GRRRRR!!!!!

 

Last year I genuinely believed I'd worked out THE perfect way to ensure Christmas decor was quick and easy to retrieve for Thanksgiving Night decking the halls. Everything - and I do mean EVERYTHING - very carefully packed into a huge zip close red storage bag. He took the bag out to the shed and I did the very happy dance at the thought this year it would be quick and easy to pull that bag out of the shed Thanksgiving Eve 2023 to be ready to open today, Thanksgiving 2023.

 

Quick sidebar moment - yes we live in Scotland. Yes it is true generally the British do not celebrate Thanksgiving. But I lived in America for a very long time and Thanksgiving means quite a lot to me. It is good for a country to have a day of thanks in late autumn and I wish if Britain is going to gleefully import 'Black Friday' they would first import Thanksgiving. Paul is now used to the day and enjoys not only the meal but the ringing over to the US families (daughter and her lot on the West Coast, son and his lot on the Gulf of Mexico coast), the Christmas movie on at dusk while I begin the indoor hall decking. Outdoors decor goes on First Sunday of Advent but the indoor decorating happens Thanksgiving night.

I knew he'd done it again back in June when we were doing a serious clear-out of the sheds and I tried to grab the huge red bag to set it to one side...

When I'd packed it to be put away, it was heavy but not so heavy I couldn't lift it. 

When I tried to lift it in June - IT WEIGHED AN ELEPHANT TON!

He immediately confessed he'd needed that exact sized bag and so removed all the things I'd oh-so-carefully packed, scattered those removed items every-anywhere and as a consequence misplaced THE FONTANINI NATIVITY SET (his most serious crime as I'd hunted long and hard to find that vintage set and it formed the centrepiece of my Christmas decorating). 

I think he understood he'd made a terrible mistake this time (yes, he's done this before - I still can't find the air popcorn maker he misplaced when we moved house in 2018) when I marched back into the house and refused to speak to him for several hours. 

I started over. I bought another bag, I bought new baubles. I began crafting new snowmen and toy soldiers and stockings and mantel garland. I found a new door decoration to replace the missing TWO I'd made over the years. I bought yet another countdown calendar - this one a space-saver with perpetual turn-as-you-go blocks. I made a slip-over partridge in a pear tree quilted thing to put over the countdown snowman when it is time to start the countdown to Epiphany (the song The Twelve Days of Christmas was written as a code countdown to the Feast of the Epiphany).

I bought a new mantel tree - flocked 2ft 'most realistic', it will be a nice change and now I can do a green or white tree as I feel in a particular year. I bought new lights - multi-colour - and I bought a new topper (red finial so it doesn't fade into the white tree). I found a vintage five branch candelabra to use for an Advent Wreath (and a holly-berry garland to wind through the branch bends). In short, I have now managed to assemble a reasonable amount of Christmas decor AND I've even managed to replace the Chanukkiah (Chanukkah menorah, used in memory of my Jewish ancestors).

And now it's Thanksgiving afternoon - and I'm not feeling it. I'm feeling defeated, I've lost heart. I can't even be bothered to drag out the movie and carols DVD collection and set up the DVD player we only use at Christmas. 

I'm feeling so defeated I'm not bothering to make the Thanksgiving Lunch. Turkey never on the menu as the stores and butcher shops don't sell turkey until the second week of December - I usually find a huge chicken and roast that. 

But. But not this year. It's burgers and chips ('steak fries' if you're an American reader) going in the oven today. I haven't even bothered to find an online feed of the Macy's Parade and a link to the Rockettes annual performance. 

In part my lack of interest is down to Paul once again losing all the decorations but also other, frankly more serious concerns including fear and dismay at the war Hamas started (Simchat Torah Massacre 7th October 2023) and their repeated statements since the 7th that they WILL do this again and again until Israel is wiped off the map and they will then go on to murdering ALL Jews and Christians EVERYWHERE in the world until they 'cleanse the planet' of 'unbelievers' and establish a global caliphate.

I wish those who are doing Thanksgiving today a very happy day.