Christmas - two different ones

Christmas is a big hazzle, and this year I have to worry about two of them.

Last week, the guys I’m working with in Russia proposed a work meeting in Moscow 26-28 December. There’s no way I can go on a business trip between Christmas Day and New Year. I won't even mention it. Christmas is family time.

We can meet early in January, I suggested. No, we can’t, because that’s the Orthodox Christmas in Russia. No chance before mid of January, at best. Damn. Not good.

Christmas is a pain in the ass, and has always been. I dislike both the religious and commercial part of it. The Virginborn and Santa Claus, two quite bizarre products of human fantasy.

If I could delete two days from the callendar, I would pick Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

However, it’s not much I can do about it. I just turn off my brain, watch the Disney cartoons with the kids, and wait for it to be over on the 26. December.

Then the rest is just a mid-winter skiing vacation, which is nice >:)

(I took the picture above one year ago when I was running desperately around town doing last-minute Christmas shopping. This year we don't even have snow in town. However, my wife has bought her present from me herself. Great. Then she gets what she wants, and I avoid going shopping. I'll rather buy her a book that I want to read ... that's how meaningless this Christmas thing has become >:D)

Waste of time

I don't know anything less interesting and more boring than Christmas. Usually I don't think about it before 23rd December.

This year it's different. My old lady is away this week, off-shore, on the oil platform she's working with. So I have to take care of a lot of Christmas shopping and preparations.

Damn, what a waste of time!

Usually, Christmas preparations bring some arguing and yelling in our family, since I'm not very enthusiastic when it comes to putting up lights and stars and the Christmas tree ans so-called decorations.

I hardly get the time to write on my so-called novel. Tonight I have written only 666 words.

Now I need some good music to cheer me up, for instance Freezing Moon by Mayhem. This live version from 2004 has Attila on vocals; the original studio version with Dead on vocals is even cooler. Note Hellhammer on the drums >:)

January

It is January. I like January. Long dark nights and short days, a faint sun on the horizon, skiing in fresh white snow, reading a book by the fire, having a good time with friends. Christmas is over. I don't like Christmas. A mid-winter vacation; yes, that's nice. But we don't need a pile of crap wrapped in paper under a tree and a small Jewish boy wrapped in a cloth in a crib to have that. It's almost a year till next Christmas. That's one of the things I like about January