Thursday - December 24, 2009

AND ANOTHER MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM ME … CHEERS FROM THE MOTHER COUNTRY

These days I seem to spend more time reading newspapers then I do novels.  Which is really a shame cos I get far less pleasure from the daily news then I do from the world of make believe.

One way I have found to escape for a fraction of time, is YT.  You Tube. YT videos and audio.  The Jazz age and then Rogers and Astaire and the Swinging Years of the big bands.  Clips on YT of TV when, IMHO, there was something worth watching.  Once upon a time in the USA when “pushing the envelope” wasn’t the only reason to put on a show.  And some of the very best comedy was being produced here in England. Of course it’s all a matter of taste and opinion.

Some American copies of Brit shows failed miserably.  For example, our version of the Cleese classic, Fawlty Towers lasted one episode. It was that bad.

I’ll bet nobody even remembers it. Of course it wasn’t worth the effort it might take to remember.  It starred Bea Arthur who I could never stand anyway.  She reminded me of one of those loud mouthed left wing liberals I can’t tolerate.  I don’t even know for a fact that in real life she was a loud mouthed, left wing libtard.  (?) On the other hand, another Brit rip off that was popular, was Red Foxx in Sanford and Son.  But I always thought of it as a one joke show. 

So back to the news of the day where a lot (not all) of the real world exists.

Some poor bastard was killed it’s reported, after taking part in a snow ball fight. Jeesh.  That’s all it takes these days I guess.
In the real world we live in, we never know for certain unless some sawbones tells us, how much time we have left with friends and family.  I put friends first cos the wife aside, I no longer have family.  There are some I miss naturally, but only at Christmas.  No, I don’t get that either. 

This guy woke up one morning angry.  Why angry?  At who?  Even he doesn’t know. He just did and so decided to go out and kill someone. Anyone. Didn’t matter who. And so he saw a lady walking her dog and he killed her. In broad daylight.  Just like that. He went home and changed into unblooded clothes, then called the police to turn himself in. I couldn’t help but wonder what Christmas plans the poor victims may have had.  No one who may have loved them knew how little time they had left with them.

As I mentioned at the start, I’ve been reading a lot. I’ve been reading that the family get together at Christmas is a myth. Like Santa Clause and the Tooth Fairy.  According to a couple of unhappy, lonely columnists – the family gathering is made up of mostly quarrelsome cliques.  We buy presents we don’t like for ppl we can’t abide.  Except at Christmas.  Apparently it is the “LAW” that gifts must be exchanged.  Then, the one on the receiving end must pretend to to be thrilled with the gift while thinking of who they can pass it on to.  I think there’s some truth in that last remark.

We have a dear friend who is elderly and kind and very well meaning.  She is also mostly housebound.  Every Christmas (and B.days) she manages to find various gifts, none of which we use, need and usually don’t want. Some items may take up room we can not spare.  My wife accepts whatever’s given with thanks and will not say anything because in this case, with the giver is all alone in the world, and because she gets pleasure from the giving which is almost the only pleasure she has anymore.
She does not want to hurt the feelings of an old friend.  Neither do I for that matter.  But sometimes I can’t help the thought that says just once, I wish we could say dear ‘E’ – we can’t use it.  We don’t know where to put it.  Or, thank you for the wonderful spinach from your own garden but:  Spinach like all good things in the world of food come from Tesco. They come pre washed in plastic wrap. Tomatoes do not come out of the ground. A popular misconception.  NO.  They come from Tesco washed and packaged in neat rows or Tesco would not sell them. LOL.

Sadly, this lady who is a former teacher and a wonderful person please understand, buys stuff.  She gets these gift catalogs from everywhere – signs up to everything the Readers Digest sends her, and so always has a houseful of “gifts.” Generally just junk items but she honestly doesn’t know that.  So she’s pretty much alone, even at Christmas except for a few of us that go over to pay a visit and spend an hour.  At which time she will press unwanted gifts on her visitors.  Hmm. Wonder if that’s why she has so few.  That is an unkind thought.  Didn’t mean it to be.

I don’t know what you consider to be your best Christmases when you look behind.  When I recall mine, and I do every year, I recall the Camel Cigarettes billboard on Time Sq. in NY, blowing smoke rings.  Must have been the years 1946 to 1952.

There were live shows on the Great White Way, and they weren’t peep in those innocent years.  There were the Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall(wow).  Benny Goodman live on stage at the Paramount. The Automat and Boston Crème Pie, The Edison Hotel and block after block after block of theaters.

I saw Oklahoma with the original cast although to be honest, I was a bit too young to appreciate it at the time.  I remember being a little bored with the slow songs.  We went to NY every Christmas holiday. One thing I do not remember at all, was any acrimonious family gathering, as written about today.

I always favored the Italian/Catholic side of the family and most especially at Christmas.  That’s because the non Jewish side had Christmas trees.  An aside here to set a record straight.  There are many Jewish families that do indeed have Christmas trees.  But back then, ours didn’t.  So I enjoyed an Italian Christmas and the gifts under the tree, and helping to decorate the tree.  And the food.  Hey gang.  We had people from the olde country who really did know a thing or two or three about Italian cooking. 
Well anyway, I do not recall any Christmas that was a trial.  I can not of course speak for the adults. 

These days my Christmas day is a quiet one.  Every Christmas since coming here we have had dinner on the day with friends of long standing.  They are a couple whose own kids are grown and gone.  So it’s a wonderful and traditional English Christmas dinner tomorrow, put together by an absolute first class, grade ‘A’ super cook.  It’s the only day of the entire year that Joann will put on a spread like this.  The usual up early and cooking the bird etc. 

So tomorrow remains a special if different sort of Christmas day from the ones I remember when very young. I confess, I do miss em.
I wish I could spend just one more Christmas in 1946 again.  It could be possible but only in the Twilight Zone. 

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE. AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT.

Posted by peiper     on 12/24/2009 at 02:14 PM   
Filed Under: • Miscellaneous • Personal •  
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Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:

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It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.

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