It's the most wonderful time of the year

I like December 1st.

It's my mum's birthday - happy birthday mater! - and it's also the day when I allow myself to start playing Christmas music. Now, I know most Christmas hits are full of throwaway cheesiness, but I've loved them ever since I was small; when I was much younger I probably liked them simply because they were associated with holidays and presents, but nowadays I find they help evoke happy memories of the days of Christmas past.

It's around Christmas time that I most miss my family back in the UK, and I guess that wrapping myself in my festive music helps create a sort of mental pathway back to the Christmases we used to have together. It's also easier and more practical than wrapping myself in actual wrapping paper, which would be messy, difficult, wasteful and just plain bizarre.

If I get around to it I might give you a rundown of my 'Festive Top 10' or something like that over the next few posts, but in the meantime I shall bid you adieu and wish you, dear reader, an early and nostalgia-filled Happy Christmas.

The demise of Angus

After bemoaning the fact that we needed a change to liven things up, I've been struck down by the Arctic equivalent of Delhi Belly - 'Tundra Tummy' maybe? - and am currently enjoying, or should that be enduring, an unscheduled day at home. To compound matters, I also received some sad news from the UK.

You may remember, a couple of posts ago, that I wrote about the terrible winter that the home country is enduring, and I posted a picture of Angus the snowman in my mum's back garden. Well, it would seem that winter has now released its icy grip, and it is my sad duty to inform you that Angus is no more:

May he rest in peace.

Happy Birthday!

With the indulgence that writing my own blog allows me, this post is really for one person only:

Happy Birthday Mum!

Now, further to the conversation we just had on the phone, here's how you leave a comment on any of the posts:

1. Click on the 'comments' tag at the end of the posting (it will most likely say '0 comments').
2. On the page that comes up, write your comment in the box provided.
3. When you have finished, select 'Name/URL' from the options under the Choose An Identity heading. The other options are for people who have certain other internet accounts or who simply wish to remain anonymous; you don't need to worry about them.
   
4. Write your name in the 'name' box; you can ignore the 'URL' box.
5. Click on 'Publish Your Comment' and you're done!

So there you go. I shall now expect a plethora of comments over the coming weeks! (That goes for anyone else who is still reading this post, too).

Finally, did you know that December 1st 1887 was the first time that Sherlock Holmes appeared in print, in the story A Study In Scarlet?

Happy Birthday!