The 2011 Christmas Mega-Blog - Part One

Is it really already this time of year again? Is Christmas really almost upon us? Then that can only mean one thing - the inevitable return of my annual Christmas Mega-Blog!

For the uninitiated, allow me to explain. Every year, over the Christmas period, I write a huge blog. A blog so indescribably massive that the parameters of a single blog entry can't contain it, and I'm forced to split it into three parts across three days. Because I'm lazy and like to trot out the same analogy every year, I encourage you to think of this Mega-Blog as a sort of three-course Christmas dinner - Part One is the prawn cocktail starter, designed to whet your appetite for the ensuing meal; Part Two is the enormous turkey dinner with all the trimmings, the real meat-and-potatoes of the Mega-Blog; and Part Three is the Christmas pudding drizzled with custard, a nice, light-hearted way to wrap up proceedings.

Given that it's become a tradition of sorts over the last three Christmases, this year will be no different. On Christmas Eve I write the first part of the Mega-Blog, which has traditionally always been about my own plans for the festive season. On Christmas Day and Boxing Day I put up the second and third parts of the Mega-Blog. In the past these have covered pretty much every base imaginable, from a look at The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask to a Giant Bomb-themed festive poem. While I don't have anything quite that creative planned for this year's Mega-Blog, I'm still really looking forward to writing all three parts and sharing them with you guys.

With all that said, let's not waste any more time. Ladies and gentlemen, I present:

Part One - Dan's Christmas Plans

I think this is the bit of the Mega-Blog that changes the least every year. Not just because its subject is set in stone, but also because how I spend my Christmas hasn't really altered at all in the twenty-one years I've been celebrating it. I guess a big part of that is the fact that most of both sides of my family still live very locally, so it's a lot easier for us to come together for Christmas. For as long as I can remember, the Kempster family standard of Christmas Day at home, Boxing Day with my Mum's parents and New Year's Day with my dad's father has been Christmas tradition. Last year that tradition was finally broken, with my grandad conceding he was getting too old to keep up his New Year's Day Kempster Clan gatherings. Our solution to that was to invite him to our place last year, and so in a way we've kept that tradition alive by inverting the roles of host and guest. This year, the plans look set to repeat themselves once again. I guess we're so stuck in our ways that things like Christmas routines will probably never change until - God forbid - I lose one of my grandparents.

I had hoped that this year things might have been different. I was really hoping that by now, my girlfriend and I would have had our own place and would be spending our first proper Christmas together. Sadly, though, it wasn't to be. Since I moved back to my hometown from University at the end of July I've been unable to find work, meaning we were unable to get a flat. Of course, even that wouldn't have guaranteed the Christmas I thought I was going to have, as at the start of this month my girlfriend and I separated. We'd been together three years and the end of the relationship came completely out of the blue for me. Because of all this, Christmas for me this year is as much about what could have been as it is about what's going to be.

But hey, it's Christmas, and I'm not going to let this state of affairs prevent me from enjoying it. As I said above, things look like they're going to follow the traditional plan this year, so at least I have that sense routine to keep me feeling comfortable and contented over the festive period. Tomorrow, Christmas Day, my grandad is going to come over for the afternoon and evening. If previous years are any indication, I anticipate we'll be eating a huge turkey dinner, bowling on the Wii and playing board games until the early hours of the morning. On Boxing Day we'll be resting and recuperating during the day before heading to my mum's parents' place just around the corner from us in the evening. New Year's Day, I'm pretty sure we'll be repeating what we did last year, and having my grandad over once again. I love the fact I get to spend Christmas with my family every year - for me, that's the most important thing about this time of year.

I've never really been big on the commercial side of Christmas, but I've really tried to throw myself into it enthusiastically this year. One of the ways I've done that is by buying presents for a lot more people than I have done in previous years. The last few years, while away at University, I'd only bothered to buy for family and very close friends, due to limited funds. This year, however, despite even more limited funds, I've been able to buy for more people than ever before. A couple of months ago I sold a lot of my CDs, DVDs and games in exchange for money to buy this year's Christmas presents. The money ended up going a lot further than I thought it would, and I was able to buy presents for all of my family, most of my friends, and some important acquaintances who've really made this year special for me. Despite having to part with so much stuff, I feel really good about what I've done this year - sacrificing my own material goods so that I can gift happiness to others really seems to capture the spirit of Christmas, and gives me a warm fuzzy feeling in my stomach that's worth more than any amount of CDs, DVDs or games.

As for presents that I'm expecting to receive, they're few in number and fairly low in price. From my parents, I've asked for the Super Deluxe Edition of The Who's Quadrophenia. It's far and away my favourite album of all time. I have a lot of memories attached to it - some fond and some not-so-fond, but all of them instrumental in making me the person I am today. The chance to own a 'complete' version of that album, including a wealth of extras like Pete Townshend's original demos, is one I simply couldn't pass up. I've also asked them for the complete set of Stephen King's Dark Tower series of novels, books which have been on my radar for some time, but that I never got around to buying. As far as other presents go, I know for a fact my sister has bought me a copy of Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, but other than that anything I get will be a surprise and a bonus. I'm mainly hoping for money from everyone else, so I can put it towards a nice new shiny HDTV for my bedroom. I've been stuck with this cathode ray monstrosity for too long, and it'll be nice to finally play Skyrim and be able to read the text.

Here ends Part One of my 2011 Christmas Mega-Blog. If you've got any exciting plans for the Christmas period this year, please share them in the comments below. I've always found it nice to hear how others are spending their holidays. If you can find the time tomorrow, between the exchanging of gifts, the carving of turkeys and the bickering of relatives, I encourage you to come back for Part Two. Without giving too much away, it's going to tackle a somewhat contentious subject that I've been wanting to blog about for some time now. In the meantime, I hope you all have a great Christmas, however you're spending it. Thanks very much for reading guys, I'll see you around.

Dan

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Currently playing - Halo: Combat Evolved (XBOX)