NS November 6th, 2007

You know how I spent most of October whining and bitching about having to paint, unpack, buy and assemble furniture? Well, now that that’s all pretty much finished, I have finally been able to enjoy the autumn. And thank goodness because oftentimes it’s well into winter by November: cold, dreary, leaves dead and branches bare. But I’ve managed to get out and about in the last week and really take in the gorgeous scenery and spectacular colours. That’s why my blogging has been relegated to evenings after TNC is in bed. It’s too nice out to sit inside and tap away at a keyboard!

I’ve also really loved exploring our new town with the kiddo. It’s like an adventure we get to embark on daily. Today, I whipped out the map, determined to find a playground nearer than the one we’ve been going to which is a good 20 minute walk away, and figured out a route to get us to territories unknown. Through the wilds of leafy suburbia we ventured, dodging piles of leaves and twigs, waving hello to friendly old folks out tending to their front gardens and avoiding the piles of dog poo that some unfriendly and unsanitary soul decided not to scoop. But finally we found it, the grand mecca of playgrounds. Shiny blue roundabouts, green and red slides, swings of all types and sizes, three different climbing frames, a massive car with a beeping horn for the kids to pretend to drive in and a little playhouse restaurant where the kids go behind a partition and pretend to serve their parents fake food and drinks. There was even a miniature diner-style table! I expected one of the kids to walk by with a cigarette dangling out of her mouth, a pot of coffee in one hand and a name tag that read ‘Flo’ pinned to her pink and white dress. Ah, isn’t it great how childhood imagination can be sullied by the actual adult experience? I prefer to pretend that eating in a diner is still an experience worthy of our glee and awe, personally.

The other thing that has really hit home with me this week is that Christmas is fast approaching. My family has been bugging me for a Christmas list for a couple of weeks now so I finally sat down and wrote one out. Felt weird doing that so early in November. Then, today, TNH told met that he’s ordered a case of red wine especially for the holiday season and in preparation for my sister’s arrival, seeing as we usually drink our body weight in wine most nights when we’re together. Is it really that time already?!

But I’m so unbelievably excited to see her and have her spend Christmas with us, I almost can’t bear to wait another 5 1/2 weeks for her to get here. I love love love Christmas in England and have been dying to share it with at least one member of my family for some time now. Unfortunately, my parents can’t make it, which makes me sad as it would’ve been so amazing to have them all here together for TNC’s second Christmas, but I am definitely happy to ‘settle’ for just having my sis around. Over two weeks of shopping, talking, laughing, drinking, watching movies, putting up decorations and the tree, going into the city for various outings, eating good food and making fun of the British traditions while secretly adoring them and finding them charming. I. cannot. wait.

I suppose it’s part of being an expat in a foreign land that makes me nostalgic for childhood memories while embracing new ones and wanting so badly to have someone from my past experience my present. It’s like a bridge between my two lives, my two worlds and two homes, and makes the gap between us seem that much smaller. After this year, my sister will know what I’m talking about when I mention pantos, Christmas telly, the Queen’s speech, the cheesiness of the pop chart competition for the Christmas number one (which often aren’t even Christmas-related songs), crackers and crowns, the traditional Christmas dinner, the importance of going for a drink in a cozy pub on Christmas Eve, a brisk walk on Boxing Day followed by a gorge on chocolate of monumental proportions, the madness of New Year’s Eve in London (along with the Great Taxi Ripoff that is New Year’s Day) and the art of scouring the shops for bargains in the January sales.

I will always cherish and miss my childhood traditions but by god, if I’m going to live here for years or even decades to come, I’m glad I’ve embraced the British Christmas and all it’s little eccentricities.

• Britishisms , Home and Hearth
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