[Guinness]

It’s here again….the winter festival.

You know the thing that 20 years ago was Xmas and 30 years ago was Christmas!

This old fart remembers Christmas past…we did the nativity play, sang carols and we had a tree with about 20 lights and trimmings put up mid December, trimmings incidentally consisting of gummed paper that needed us kids to lick and stick, the old man trying to get them from corner to corner using drawing pins whilst avoiding the light bulb in the middle of the room but still looking symmetrical…advent calendars with nothing behind the doors except a picture and a cut out game on the back. Visiting Santa and getting a balsa wood plane or a paratrooper or a plastic rocket and a roll of caps. The excitement of unwrapping 3 or 4 ‘big’ presents, a couple of selection boxes (also with cut out games on the back), a book and a beano annual, and of course the U2 batteries running out before any shops opened on the 27th.

Cut to winter festival present…trees with 200+ lights, advent calendars stuffed with everything from wine to chocolates, a very dumb ..yep you guessed it.. American idea of.. ‘elf on a shelf’ which forces parents to come up with ideas everyday from the 1st to the 24th, xmas eve boxes with presents for the kids to open the day before.

The magic has gone..or is it just me being an old fart?