Christmas is upon us

And in honour of the impending holiday, here are a few responses to the Christmas Meme that's been going round. There's actually some knitting content down the bottom of this post, just in case you're interested.

Egg nog or hot chocolate? Neither. Passionfruit punch or chilled white wine for me on Christmas day, thank you.

Does Father Christmas wrap presents or just set them under the tree? I think this is a pretty stupid question. Who gets presents just left under the tree?

Coloured lights on tree/house or white? I have been seeing this meme on a lot of blogs and everyone says white. Well I'm here to tell you that, growing up, it was COLOURED lights on the tree. Never any lights on the house.

Do you hang mistletoe? No.

When do you put up your decorations? Sometime in December.

What's your favourite Christmas dish? Hmmm, not sure. I'll have to think that over tomorrow.

Favourite Christmas memory as a child? As the only child in the house, of course it was my job on Christmas morning to sneak in to see whether Santa Claus had come, then wake up the adults with a shout of "He's been!" I remember that once I became a teenager and was more fond of sleeping than worried about getting a pre-dawn start on the presents, my parents actually came into my room to wake me up to go and see if Santa Claus had been.

When and how did you learn the truth about Father Christmas? I think it was reading the famous New York Sun editorial, 'Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus' which was reprinted in the local paper every year. I can't remember what age though.

Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Yes, this is the only Christmas tradition that has traveled with me to Australia, we always exchange a book on Christmas Eve.

How do you decorate your Christmas tree? There is no tree, but some (white) lights and ornaments are scattered on the coffee table.

Snow! Love it or dread it? Don't mind it, but would be seriously concerned to see it tomorrow.

Can you ice skate? Yes indeed I can. I took figure skating lessons for several years as a child and am still an adept skater! Yes, this is a Little Known Fact About Meg.

Do you remember your favourite gift? I have been discussing this with Fiver and our housemate and I reckon my favourite gift must have been a 10-speed bicycle when I was about 11 or 12 years old. It had to be taken out for a spin straight away, never mind that there was a substantial amount of snow on the ground! More recently, I loved my Lornas Laces yarn from Fiver last Christmas. (See below.)

What's your favourite Christmas dessert? Traditional American Christmas cookies. The chocolate ones with the chocolate in the middle, shortbread, and snickerdoodles. We now spend Christmas with Fiver's family and I don't think they're too keen on the American Christmas cookies (being more traditinalists, with the plum pudding), but that doesn't stop me from bringing a box of cookies and putting them out come dessert time!

What's your favourite Christmas tradition? Christmas baking on Christmas Eve - I produce all of the above cookies, as well as a few salads to keep in the fridge so we can be utter sloths from Boxing Day till New Year's Eve and just wander to the fridge for sustenance without having to put any undue effort into our nutritional needs while the Boxing Day [cricket] Test is on.

What tops your tree? There is no tree.

Which do you prefer: giving or receiving? Giving. And wrapping, especially.

What's your favourite Christmas song? I love ALL Christmas songs and listen to Christmas music for most of December, amazingly without getting sick of it!

Candy canes? I don't mind them, but I don't think I've ever finished one.

And now, for knitting content.

Normally, I wouldn't bother telling you that I finished a sock. But this is timely, and I'm pleased with it, so here you go.

ONE finished RPM sock in the Lorna's Laces that Fiver gave me for Christmas last year. Yes, it has taken me an entire year to produce a single sock, but not for lack of trying!

Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!