| 11:46p |
christmas, presents, the sales, and a new year!
How was your Christmas? Mine was great! The Christmas spirit doesn't really kick in with me until two days before the day. That's probably because I kind of get immune to Christmas from working at Grace Bros. Plus I think about Jesus a lot on a daily basis, and not just at Christmas and Easter. At GB's, I usually get a shock in October when they put the trees up, and from then on, anything about Christmas isn't new anymore. Anyway, working on Christmas Eve was heaps of fun. Ro came to visit me (I think? Or maybe it was another day...the past week is a bit of a blur), and once the store's doors closed, we had to set everything up for the sales. It was fun- a bit of a bonding session. I really wanted to be at church with my family, but being at work was also cool.
I woke up at around seven a.m. the next day, with my baby brother shouting, "MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYBODY!" This year, I managed to get enough sleep, which was definitely good, because I really don't fancy doing the Britney Spears look on Christmas Day. My little family then went to my Uncle Brian's place to hang out with my Mum's family (cos my Dad's family is in Indonesia, even though I'm not any part Indonesian- it's a bit complicated) and open presents and eat and stuff. All of it was great. Every year, all seventeen of us sit in this huge circle, and we take turns opening presents. It takes hours, but it's so much fun! Every time someone opened a present, I yelled out, "OOOOH, WOW, THAT'S SO COOL!", or something like that. But now I can't remember what anyone got apart from me.
Here are the things that I got for Christmas:
> A Jeeves and Wooster book by P.G. Wodehouse, from my Aunt Elaine and Uncle William and their kids
(Very funny and camp- strongly recommended, especially for bathtime reading!)
> Lots and lots of chocolate, from everyone
(Hurrah!)
> "The Princess Diaries Guide to Life", by Meg Cabot, from my Mum and Dad
(It teaches you how to curtsey and behave princess-like- very excellent!)
> The "Pride and Prejudice" DVD to share with my sister, from Derrick
(Yes! YES!!! Our old video that we taped from the TV was getting so yellowy and fuzzy!)
> A second-hand copy of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" that used to belong to someone called Eunice Hyslop, from Sonya
(I've already practiced some of Puck's lines- I've always wanted to play a female Puck)
> A pink wallet pursey thing from Sonya
(Very nice and made from leather- I have to be careful I don't wreck it)
> A blue bag with blue and red stars on it, from my parents
(Very cool and made from weird plastic stuff, so I'm not likely to wreck it)
> The "Amelie" DVD from my parents
(Yay! YAY! Where is my Nino?)
> Some mugs, from my Aunt Helen, Uncle Mark and their kid Max
(Because all of my mugs have gross tea stains in them, because I leave them in my room for weeks before washing them)
> Berry-scented stuff from the Body Shop from my Uncle Brian and Aunt Anne
> Money from my grandparents
Yay! I thought that it was really nice that people remembered what sort of stuff I like, and that they thought of me at all at Christmas. Anyway, the rest of that hot, hot day was spent sucking blue M&M's with the kids (Zachary, Max and Jeremy- they're all under nine, I think) to make our tongues blue, and also sticking ice down their shirts and spraying them with the hose. Little boys are so much fun- you can chuck or splash anything at them, and they think it's hilarious! It was so great to have a day to stop and do something different. I think that lately, I've been working so much that all I think about is money- me needing it, other people spending it, and the store making it.
So today, I found myself on the bus to work in a pleasant public holiday haze. I'd spent the night before watching World Idol (I've developed a crush on Guy Sebastion, which is probably a lot safer than having a crush on a real guy I actually know) and eating more pudding and stuff. So walking past my store was such a shock today. It was teeming with people! I worked half of my nine-hour shift in Manchester, where it was so so busy. I was in the beach towel section, and I spent like THREE HOURS re-folding the towels and trying to fix them, and when I left, it still looked messy! Then I went to hang and work with my buddies in Books, who are so very cool.
Isn't it exciting that this year is almost over? I always love how God gives us a new year to start over again. New years always feel so fresh and exciting and promising. So much can happen when you least expect it! Bring on the fireworks and sleepy hugs, I say! |