It’s fast approching Christmas time, and things are starting to go slightly nuts. Work’s ramping up (though after the staff party tomorrow night, I’m not sure how much the start of next week will produce), shopping is a nightmare, and trying to do anything in public leaves you open to being slain by Christmas Carols, the numerous Santas, or even stray reindeer. For us in our little two-person-one-puppy existence, this Christmas will be one of firsts. It’s the first time we’re not doing the extended family on Beth’s side, and we’re yet to hear about my extended family – though I suspect that will be a Boxing Day affair as it usually ends up as, which counts Beth out due to work. The biggest first, however, is the fact that this year we’re having Christmas at our house. We’re still making the trip to see my family for lunch, but then it’s back home again.
Christmas Evening will see Beth’s parents along with her Sister and Brother-in-Law arriving, to share in what will hopefully be a festive feast. I’ve been thinking about just what I had been planning on cooking before my recent health developments surfaced, and whether or not they would be suitable for me to eat. Half of me wants to continue down the line of no saturated fats, no excessive sugars, cutting back on all the junk that I had been eating, as it’s led me to lose 3kg in the past 12 days – something I am quite proud of, and has spurred me on. The other half of me wants to declare a Christmas Amnesty on foods, and weigh in with all the usual goodies. I think I have managed to walk a middle line, however. It’ll taste fantastic (all going to plan), and still not undo all of December’s hard work.
The plan is to roast ourselves into a festive heaven. Roast potatoes, pumpkin, carrot and parsnip, some broccolli (as yet undecided how to prepare that one), some garlic-sauted beans, and possibly a few more vegetables (I’m finally starting to get big on vegies – including counting how many serves I manage each day). Add to that the two rotisserie-cooked chickens, marinaided in a yet-to-be finalised marinaide, some ham (does real, leg ham count as processed meat? I’m off processed meat, and I’m hoping like hell real leg ham doesn’t count), stuffing in the chickens, as well as some fresh-baked rolls as sides. I’m even contemplating baking those rolls myself, instead of simply buying the bake-at-home ones that I usually go for – purely because it’s Christmas, and I want to go all out. Desserts are being looked after by our Brother-in-Law (I can’t figure out what relation he technically is to me, so seeing as my sister is as yet unmarried, I tend to go with the Brother-in-Law line), and considering we’ll all have been at a Christmas lunch of some form or another, I’m sure that will be more than plenty. It’s a feast. At least, I’m hoping it’s going to be a feast. Yet it’s only the beginning.
I get 11 days off from work. Beth will kill me for even mentioning my holidays, as she is back to work Boxing Day and manages only a couple of days off over the whole Christmas/New Year period, but I can’t help it. I’ve got time to sit and relax and get a few things done around the house that I want to. Not that there’ll be much sleeping in – Macy, Beth’s parents’ dog is staying with us for the week after Christmas, which means I’ll be up at 7:30am every day, like clockwork. And the dogs will be playing rather noisily (Macy seems to be unable to play without doing a kind of playful growl constantly). But it’s 11 days, and I’ve got a project lined up.
The studio has been severely lacking in both use, and any form of change room. The problem I face when people come to do portrait shoots, is they invariably bring clothing options with them (my fault – I tell them to), and there is nowhere for them to change. To get changed, I sent them up to our bathroom, which is up a half-flight of stairs (the studio sits around a metre and a half lower than the house), and at the other end of the house. It’s a long walk up there and back if there’s a few clothing changes to be made. To remedy the problem, I’ve wanted to bang together a little change room in the studio, so there’s somewhere people can get changed. It can also double as somewhere to keep a few big items if we want to have a serious game of table tennis – though I’m for it not to become a dumping ground. I’d contemplated this in the past, but had always come up against the problem of connecting the walls of the change room to the brick walls of the studio – I’m not too keen on bolting to the walls. However, stupidly, I had overlooked the two 4×2′s that are currently bolted to the wall, and provide the necessary means to securing the whole thing. Problem solved. I’m also going to put together a work bench along one of the walls (potentially under the dart board, but I’ll see how that figures if I end up putting my laptop there while working – the last thing I need is a dark stuck through 17″ of Mac goodness.
So the coming season fast approaches. I’m hanging out for it though. A chance to have some rather good food, spend some time with family, and then get the studio looking better and a lot more useable. What more could you want?
==
Edit: Incidentally, I just realised this sounds almost like an end-of-year farewell post. It’s not. I’m still here. Probably more so as work slows down and I’ve got a bit more time to kill.
