Christmas Two

Ah, the first of two Bank Holidays because Christmas falls on a weekend. After a luncheon of cold turkey (I’m beginning to hate turkey already) the family plus Pam and Lynne head out to my grandparents’ in Waltham Cross, and I take Anna with me to pick up my grandmother from Hoddesdon. Once we’re all there, there is the usual flurry of getting presents out and cups of tea being handed around the room. We all sat in a circle around three small tables of snacks (“It’s a bit like a dentist’s waiting room,” Chris remarks) and we all had a chat, relaying work-related information and enquiring as to whether everyone had a good Christmas.

Two hours in, and high tea was served (it's infamously known as Christmas II in our household). I was beginning to get bored. There is only so much you can talk about. I start texting friends, wondering if they were as bored as me. No replies. Crackers are pulled and I start to play with the tape measure I get, measuring everything I can, from the length of my middle finger (3.2”) and my waist (27”) to the table in front of me (18” x 12”) and my brother’s neck (14”). I start to pick at the snacks in front of me. I have a tray of Quality Street, a bowl of Pringles, and a bowl of roasted peanuts. One by one the Quality Street is consumed, and I am horrified when I discover I have actually had nine of them, not to mention the odd handful of peanuts. I go into the kitchen to escape the snacks and decide that my waist may not be a small as it was earlier…

We eventually left at 8.30pm, and I took my grandmother back home, texting Andy quickly before heading back to Enfield. He’s insisting on knowing what I’m wearing for the fancy dress party we’re going to on New Year’s Eve. I'm not telling. It's more fun that way!