More crap to destroy the environment.

This Christmas I've cut down on waste. I've only sent a handful of paper cards in the mail, I didn't put all the lights up outside that I normally do (I was going to, but was too ill to do it, and so I used a little 'disco lights' projector instead which costs next to nothing to run and looks great.)

I don't need or want any more stuff. What I want for Christmas is to be with people I care about, to eat nice food, to enjoy music with them, country walks, laughs around the fire, watch a few Christmas films on TV.

I sound like a Grinch, but I do like Christmas. I just hate all the consumerism and materialism that makes people think they're failing if they don't have a "perfect" Christmas.

I've invited two recent widows to have lunch at my house; even though two of us are not religious, it still seems like a good day for sharing a meal when folks are without any family nearby.

I haven't gifted anything much this year but every gift has been a consumable and it's all smallish because it's for co-workers (other than the goodies I gave my neighbor.)

I finally did a Christmas thing! This evening I made a clove orange to add to the collection.

Guess I'm made of a lot of 'snow' then. ; )

I'd forgotten about clove oranges! Are they still a traditional thing to do?

I don't know if it is really still a thing but I've been doing it on and off most of my life. My grandmother first showed me. Just a strangely centering thing to do.