TBK Asks- what will you be doing this Christmas?

 

Firstly, Happy Christmas everyone!

I have covered my preparations for Christmas and our big lunch on 10th December in many blogs prior to this. However, I thought it would be interesting to see how other people spend their Christmas around the world and so I emailed about 80 people who I send the blog to each week to see what they would be up to.

         This year TBK asks: "What are you doing this Christmas?"

One of my friends who suggested I join Little Chef back in 1986 told me:

• Dec 25^th – just me, the Mrs and the dog with a huge Turkey to consume. A trip to our local pub at lunchtime will definitely be fitted in
• Dec 26^th – Family across for lunch
• Dec 27^th – off to my brothers in South Wales to see them and my Dad!

 

So – in summary – family, food and drink!!!

Sounds like a good plan.

Family and food are definitely the centre of focus in the UK as another friend who I have known for 36 years said:

This Christmas I will be spending time with family as is our family tradition. Christmas morning mince pie and cuppa with my Mum and her partner and then christmas lunch with my dad, his partner, my 2 brothers and some of my dad's partners family. Lots of food, chocolates and rubbish TV lol

Another loyal blog follower and ex-boss told me:

WITH THE ECONOMIC CRISIS HERE IN THE UK. WE WILL BE STAYING AT HOME WITH A FEW FRIENDS JOINING IN OUR SORROW.

That one prompted me to remind you al that not everyone enjoys Christmas. I know several people who will be completing their first Christmas without a loved one for the first time this year. With my background and many friends in the hospitality industry please also spare a thought for those who have to work this Christmas. Also let us remember all those Filipinos whose parents are OFW (Overseas Filipino Workers) and will not be with their loved ones this Christmas. 

"What's that, Mr G?"

"Tell 'em a Christmas story!"

"OK po"

My favourite Christmas story goes back, again, to our Little Chef days. A very senior person in the business told me that he and his wife laid the table, put the Turkey in the oven and went to the Pub for a drink. While there they got chatting to an old guy who said he was going to be alone and did not have any Turkey. Like me, being a hospitable soul, they invited him home after several drinks in said pub, to find they had forgotten to turn the oven on, and so no one had any turkey.

Weather was the topic of the next person to email me from Scotland. I first met this lady in 2005 when running training courses for Campus Veolia and when I left the UK in 2010 and said my farewells at their offices in East Kilbride she asked where I was going.

"Oh, some little island, far away, that you will never have heard of" I said 

"Bahrain?" she replied!

It turns out she and her sister went to St Christophers school there where their mum worked as a cook. What a small world! 

This is their plan for Christmas:

"Anyway, for Christmas, parents will be here this year as my sister is not coming up, so just the six of us, which will be nice.  It’s been very mild, but I was hearing yesterday that it’s meant to be a white Christmas and then cold in January.  I was in a t-shirt today – unheard of for mid-November in Scotland!"

Do not forget to send us a photo if you have a White Christmas!

I always love to hear from people I worked with in the past and it was great to hear from a larger-than-life lady at Veolia who was on my ILM course many years ago in the UK. We had so much fun that year and when one of the other delegates announced she was pregnant we made a crib for her and bought her baby gifts. However, my friend bought bad news to say that the lady who got pregnant had died suddenly. She was an amazing lady, full of life, with a teenage son and daughter and was running in a race when she collapsed and was rushed to hospital where she died a few days later. This reminded me of two things. Don't go running, it's dangerous and life is so short it could take anyone of us at any time. Our thoughts go out to the loving husband and sports mad kids she left behind. When your former delegates start dying you known you made the right choice to retire early!

The following week I had another email from a former Training officer at Little Chef to let me know that another of our Training officers had died this week. She had a massive stroke last year or the year prior, was hardly able to move and went to live in a nursing home. So sad that all these people I worked with or taught are dying. My thoughts are with her family and friends.

                                 A typical Pinoy Nochebuena

Finally, I received details of a Pinoy family Christmas. Every Christmas in the Middle East my heart went out to the OFW away from their family, so it was great to hear from this family where the mum, who was an OFW, is home for Christmas:

"it's going to be a traditional filipino christmas with nochebuena. we usually trade food with neighbors so everyone gets a piece of what every home has, sharing the love. theres also the customary xmas family photo dressed in a theme/color, this year we chose peach shades. extra special cause we are spending it with mom

"

For those outside the Philippines Nochebuena is the traditional Christmas meal served on Christmas Eve.

"Nochebuena is a noun that means Christmas Eve (literally, 'good night')"

Source: https://blog.collinsdictionary.com/language-learners/learning-spanish/spanish-word-of-the-week-nochebuena/

I also read that:

"More specifically, it is the meal eaten after hearing the midnight mass to welcome Christmas Day."  (Accessed 20.11.22)

Source: https://www.thespruceeats.com/philippine-noche-buena-feast-3030319 (accessed 20.11.22) (This article is a fascinating insight into Christmas in the Philippines)

My neighbour, and landlord, also sent me their family Christmas photo from last year:

My wonderful landlords, and neighbours, Mick and Maggie Burnish and the kids- Xmas 2021

Another old friend- I met them when I was at University in Huddersfield in 1978- wrote to say that she was escaping the cold and wet in the UK to join one of her sons and his family in Australia:

"I shall be taking advantage of the Australian sunshine soon because I am spending Christmas and New Year with our son and family in Melbourne.  I fly on Dec 8^th and return on Feb 5^th so a nice long stretch of the Australian summer. " 

She added:

" It will be good to have Christmas dinner outdoors in the sun and not have to cook it!"

I hope you all have an amazing time and look forward to seeing your pictures!

"What's that Mr G?"

"Tell them a story about Christmas in my family? "

Our last family Christmas was around 2000 at my brother's house in the UK as my mum was too ill to cook for us all. Prior to that we always spent Christmas in the family home, and we always had a "Challenge"- like " What is the plural of DICE?"

Back then there was no Wikipedia, so we always checked the answer in a big encyclopedia my dad had.

So I thought I would bring that challenge for you on line:

All you have to do is name the people who told me about their Christmas. I threw in a few clues to help you. The prize will be an awful tie, striped socks or a jumper with a reindeer on!

Send your answers to thebritishkabayan@gmail.com by 31.12.22

 

In our family, on Christmas day, we always used to have a "Challenge". Once I  my brothers that the plural of Dice was Die. They would not believe it, until we consulted the encyclopedia (no Wikipedia back then Mr G) and I won. 

So here is your challenge for 2022. Email me (thebritishkabayan@gmail.com) t names of the people who replied to my question: "what will you be doing this Christmas?"

There will be a prize for the first correct answer ( coloured socks, a tie with a reindeer on or similar) and mince pies if you know who forgot to turn the oven o

Happy Christmas everyone!