Z displays rather more self-assurance than is warranted

Oh darlings, two posts in a day, and you can hardly believe your luck. Or can you?

i realise that I've relaxed into Christmas, which is all well and good but I've done it a couple of days early. You see, I've always had it as a rule that the deadline is the end of the day before Christmas Eve. CE counts as Christmas and besides, it leaves space for sorting out problems. A secondary deadline, if you see what I mean.

Of course, this rule applied long before Al had his shop, when CE (excuse the familiarity; I know I could copy'n'paste Christmas Eve but the repetition would pall on us all) became his busiest day of the year, but business is excluded. So is church-related stuff. Gradually, CE has become a very busy day for me too, but still a relaxed one, as all should be under control and it's too late to do much about it anyway.

Today, I got up far too early, as you know, and actually had got a lot done by mid-morning. I went into town after lunch and first of all (flouting a whole raft of traffic rules - oh, the joys of being on a bike and going the wrong way round the roundabout and the wrong way down a one-way street) visited Al for veggies. He was serving a customer. When said customer left, he wondered if I had a few minutes? He had a lot of orders to write in his book. Well, this was no problem as I wanted to talk to him about the demands of customers' orders anyway. We talked. I served. He listed. It all took an hour or so. It was a good job I'd brought a light for my bike.

Finally I left, and didn't do the shopping I'd intended except to go to the hardware shop and buy a new tea infuser to tide me over until I find the one I've mislaid. *Sigh* It'll turn up. Then I freewheeled down the hill and had to stop at the junction and then go uphill again to the Little Green Shop. I didn't half wobble. I don't usually take that hill from halfway up with a couple of stone of veggies in my panniers. Still, I made it and went and stocked up on Highly Desirable chocolate, some of which might even be reserved for myself, hem hem.

You can tell how relaxed I am. I had dinner in the bag already; or at any rate in a handsome blue-enamelled Le Creuset casserole dish. But I haven't wrapped anything and a couple of family members haven't actually got much in the way of presents yet. I'm confident it'll all work out.

Oh, and my charming lunch companion from Thursday brought wine. As it was a special occasion - the Eating of the Lost Venison - the bottle has been broached. It's very good. I've drunk two glassfuls already.