Not really - I've got most of the presents and the turkey (frozen, sorry, but organic bronze), made the pudding (very late) with a small one for my son-in-law and written and posted most of the cards.
However - I have NOT put up the decorations. All right, I have put the wreath on the door and bought the tree and the mistletoe, but the latter are still sitting in the garden. When I was a child, my father always put the decorations up on Christmas Eve. These included paperchains of crepe paper in all colours making a tent from the walls to the light fitting. It was part of the whole Christmas experience, and to put the decorations up any earlier still feels like devaluing the currency. I have relented in later years but I don't like it.
The real panic was getting Murder In the Monastery ready. The revisions came in late, (Dear Editor very overworked!) but I did a 48 hour marathon on them, then proofs arrived and I managed to do those in a day. The covers have already been printed, now there's got to be a heroic effort to get the text inside by the release date of January 3rd. I have a feeling it might be a little late!
I have started the next one, Murder In The Dark, title courtesy of son Miles, who also supplied the setting and took me on a guided tour through rural Kent and to see the Tudor house owned by one of his clients. I went off on my own a few days later and found the exact location for the story, and creeped myself out driving along what started out as a lane but ended up as a track through an impenetrable, fog filled forest. Well, that's what it felt like.
Miles, on form, obviously, also supplied the setting and raison d'être for the book after next. Which I shall keep to myself for now, but suffice it to say he and I will be going on a jolly jaunt next year - for research purposes, of course.
That's it for now. I'm going to cheat and use this blog post for the Rather Random Newsletter, too, so to all friends, family, readers and passers-by a Very Merry Christmas and a happy and peaceful New Year.
4 comments:
I remember those paperchains. We used to make them at school from strips of coloured paper and some of that milky, pre-Copydex glue. Great fun. Especially when you wer trying to get the glue off your shirt and trousers when we were done.
Looking forward to Libby's new adventures.
When we moved into my parents-in-laws' house my husband found all the old paper chains, tissue-paper stars and snow-flakes, rusted-tinsel angel, old tree decorations, etc..
They took hours to put up, and even longer for me to roll up to put back into storage!! [Left most of the drawing pins in the picture rail as the paper chains came away.]
Finished wrapping presents yesterday... feeling festive now...
Happy Christmas, Lesley!
from
Caroline Praed
Lesley - I haven't put up my tree either because at home (in Denmark) we always did this on the 24th of December. However, as a concession to living in England, and my daughter's nagging, we did put our other decorations up on the 1st. I'm looking forward to decorating the tree with Bach's Christmas Oratorio playing in the background.
PS: The cover for Murder in the Monastery looks fab!
Ah - those paper chains - brings back memories! Lucky you having Miles to bring you that inspiration... love the cover of Murder At Monastery too ... Xx
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