London
The supermarkets have upped their advertising for food ahead of the Christmas holidays. I have noticed lots more of these being shown on tv, and also in the papers.
And I noticed others are advertising more too… presents, clothing, liquor, perfume, with a Christmasy theme.
I am glad I am not celebrating it, because it must be a chore to be having to cook Christmas dinner for a lot of people.
I read online that the americans even have two holidays, around now. Once at thanksgiving holiday on 28th nov, and then Christmas on 25th dec.
That is even worse than in uk. After eating turkey for thanksgiving, they have to think of cooking something else for Christmas.
Ah well, I guess their souls wants it. Haha. Of course they don’t have to celebrate it.
I was at the Trafalgar square yesterday (thurs 21st nov), for a free pig meal. it was in aid of a campaign to feed waste food to pigs. I always thought farmers were doing it already, but it seems not so.
added. 24.11.13 i suspected there is a reason why pigs are not fed waste food, and why the EU bans it. here is why.
It was rather nice to get free food. Pigs were reared and fed waste food in a farm and now they are being fed to us. I had a mince pork ball in a lentil sauce, and a bun with coleslaw and pork. There were lots of stalls, and another was giving out pulled pork in a bun, which I really wanted but I was on the wrong queue.
I went early and so there was not a long wait, by the time I finished my food, the queue was getting long, and I did not fancy going back to queue again.
I asked a lady next to me, if she thinks the food is too salty. She said well, it is salty but that is normal. I fear it is normal nowadays for food sold to the public to be salty… it is only me who finds it too salty. (it was so salty that I became extremely thirsty. Luckily I always carry with me a bottle of water.)
Ah well, I am reconciled to this, with me being out of sync with the majority. So I guess I can continue not to bother eating out with a clear conscience, in that I am not missing out on anything, as the food won’t be to my liking anyway being too salty.
It is an admirable aim, to get more food waste being diverted from being dumped to being food for pigs. Hope they succeed in it.
With nothing to worry about, esp over the coming holiday season, I can look forward to December with joy instead of dread. And enjoy everyone fussing over the holidays without me having to do the same.
I would not like to be in the shoes of those who have to host family or friends or have to put on entertainment for them. Or even worse have to buy presents for them.
Long ago, I have initiated the idea of not buying presents for each other, and so now I reap the reward haha. No need to send or receive unwanted presents from anyone.
The other side of the coin to not celebrating christmas is that I shall be spending Christmas on my own. That goes without saying, as those who want to celebrate Christmas wont be interested in spending it with you, and you wont be accepting invites from friends to celebrate with them either.
So if u don’t like to celebrate Christmas but don’t like to be alone, I am afraid u have a dilemma. Haha.
A lot of people think that being alone at Christmas is a failure. And the movies and stories keep telling us so. If u are alone at Christmas, it means u are a scrooge. Dickens Christmas carol is to blame for this. I am glad I don’t conform to what others think. I want to be alone at Christmas. So there!
I think there are lots of people who feel the same, and don’t mind being alone for Christmas.
Now as for being alone at New Year… I like it, but I think not that many will feel the same way about it as I do.
For those who don’t like their own company this would be something to dread, but I welcome it. Haha.
I even turned down an invitation from john, in poole to join him and his friends for Christmas.
There are a glut of books being put out this time of year, I guess to catch the Christmas giving season, so I have loads of books I borrowed from the library to read.
I was at the library today and borrowed doomed, by chuck Palahniuk, tom Lloyd, the god tattoo. And I already have about 7 other books to read.
And then there are all those tv programs to see.
browsing the web this morning and this came up in my reader. bitter melon with spam and tofu cooked in a new york street . as a child i did not like it, but as i grew older i got to like it. knowing the modern world i would bet the bitterness is bred out, so that it is not as bitter as it used to be.
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Tags: bitter melon, books, christmas, free food, london, Pork, trafalgar square
alifesgayventure 
You know we have been skipping town on Chinese New Year for three consecutive years now. I kinda like it at the same time to avoid all those huzzle and buzzle that come with this new year celebration too. Just like what you said.
how did u manage that? i dont have kids (or a wife, for that matter haha) so it was easy for me to do it…if u have kids how did u explain that to the relatives,grandparents, uncles and aunts?. i always thought it is a chance for the young generation to know their relatives and make friends with their cousins. perhaps if everyone knows that is the reason, people might go to the reunions more willingly.i think u can only stop doing it if the grandparents are no more. i noticed our tradition of get togethers on chinese new year stopped when my parents died. and my eldest brother did not take up the tradition.
It all started when I noticed my mom was too tired to prepare everything for new year few years ago. So I thought I might just take my parents with me during Chinese New Year all together. We have been vacationing from one country to another and come back so refresh and guilt free for that matter. Haha…
Here in the USA, the two holidays that you mentioned (Thanksgiving and Xmas) have sort of blended into one. The retailers have been promoting these since the beginning of November. It really has become a commercial madhouse. I try to avoid it all as much as possible. I agree with you as to food being too salty!
so even in the states, food in commercial eating places are salty! i wonder if that is common in every country. or are we just unusual.
yeah the media keep the pressure up to make us all feel like a failure if we don’t spend a lot of money on ‘traditional’ xmas stuff. It’s good that you’re confident enough not to respond to it and not to get suckered in.
hi sarah, i have a feeling there are lots of us around, who are not suckered in by the advertisers. we enjoy the hoo haa, all the more because we dont have to fund it. i am not against people celebrating it, because it makes things more fun. and lets not knock commerce because it is commerce in goods and services that generates the money that pays people’s salary and get money circulating. i think the principle of commerce is a good one, it is lots of people buying and selling each spending a relatively small amount, but collectively it is massive amounts of money. and this wall of money funds lots of things, not least the incentive to invent new things or services, to tempt people to trade in it, and so on it goes.
some individuals will spend too much and get into debt. those are the people who dont understand the game, and i say game advisedly, because it is a game. an exciting one too. haha.