WEll now, it was a stinker this year - 37° and I was in my singlet, shorts and thongs as were all our guests bar two. Junior kindly did Christmas Dinner (served at lunch time) I would happily have had all cold foods, but no no no no no , that would never do says Junior - Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas without hot food! And so, there were two Turkey Wellingtons, two slow cooked lamb shoulders with garlic and other stuff, he didn't to the pork because the butcher gave him the wrong cut, but we had ham off the bone, pasta salad, pumpkin salad, beetroot and pear coleslaw, green and red salad, plus gravy and assorted dressings and sauces.
Then, came Le pièce de résistance - the Christmas pud or if we wish to be fancy - Pudding de Noël with cream and vanilla custard. Washed down with suitable amounts of grog or in the political correct nonsense-world - processed liquids and fluids allowed to ferment.
A very strange bear paid us a visit and surprised the children.
Christmas in Australia is a happy time of year
We have no snow or icicles and yet we're filled with cheer
For we are from a distant land a land both old and vast
And if you chance upon this land of ours you'll see a Christmas last
As long as day till the sun goes down
It's been so very hot
The cockies have been wilting and then squawking round the cot
And dad says get another coldie from the fridge
And mum says father slow it down we have a ways to go.
WEll, the cooking's been done and the pudding all eaten
It was standing room only cos of not enough seatin'
It was chaotic and noisy with much out loud din
Christmas at our house is guaranteed to either give you a headache or a jolly good time!
WE were 20 this year, or was it 21, wait please while I count ......there was 22 and one on the way. Hot summer's day 35°, (35° in the shade too) lots of hot food, hot pudding, hot everything. with the cooling influence of potato salad, garden salad, alcoholic egg-nog (nice but not really our style - such an unsophisticated lot are we), cold beer, cold cider and cold soft drink. Pity we ran out of cider, I wouldn't mind a cider now.
The man in the red suit made an appearance mid afternoon (after pudding) and gave stockings filled with jelly babies, fags, sticky sweets, lollies and lots of other junk guaranteed to annoy the parents of the little darlings.
After that, it was present opening time (the man in the red suit had left as he had to feed his koala, and his six big boomers pulling his holden ute were getting a tad restless), big mess on the floor, lots of joyous delight and look at this, and thank-you nan/auntie/uncle/whoever and merry rumbulations all around.
After that, it was time for some to drift off into the sunset (well. not it was sunset, I just said that because it sounded good and that's what they say in the movies!) time to go, time to say goodbye and then there were, um....how many? MMM, eventually the merry makers leave and there is now only moi. While ot's good to have the chaotic noise and rush rush rush over, it's very quiet around here at the moment bar the whirring of the fan as it circualtes to dry the dripping sweat off my brow as I sit here in my little room typing out these Christmas words.
The majority were dressed appropriately for a typical Aussie hot summer day - singlet, shorts and thongs, although there were a few who were flash as a rat with a gold tooth!
Just for a laugh, though it's not really Australian it is added for amusement.....
Quote of the day: "Everybody wears these thongs, they're very common. Especially in the North Pole" ~ Santa
