The official Bah Humbug! thread

[Castro]

Seek refuge here my fellow scrooges from this most wretched and commercial of holidays. If any of the following sounds familiar, you're in the right place.

• Hearing the same bloody Slade Xmas song in every shop you visit
• Spending money you don't have on presents that nobody wants
• Being cooped up with relatives you can't stand
• Receiving crap and still having to look sincerely thankful - "Gosh, a(nother) tie rack, you really shouldn't have"
• Nothing on TV except repeats and other assorted dross
• Eating/drinking yourself to oblivion (to block out the pain) and then suffering for it the next morning

So Bah Humbug to all that and roll on December 26th.. a full 364 days until next Christmas

[gbn]

	Quote:	Castro
	Seek refuge here my fellow scrooges from this most wretched and commercial of holidays. If any of the following sounds familiar, you're in the right place. Hearing the same bloody Slade Xmas song in every shop you visit Spending money you don't have on presents that nobody wants Being cooped up with relatives you can't stand Receiving crap and still having to look sincerely thankful - "Gosh, a(nother) tie rack, you really shouldn't have" Nothing on TV except repeats and other assorted dross Eating/drinking yourself to oblivion (to block out the pain) and then suffering for it the next morning So Bah Humbug to all that and roll on December 26th.. a full 364 days until next Christmas

Good call. Ho ho ho. And all that.
Happy hanging!

[Dougal's Breakfast]

	Quote:	Castro
	Hearing the same bloody Slade Xmas song in every shop you visit

Oi! Dow you knock Slade! They'm bostin!

[tigerli]

You could always escape Christmas and those relatives for a few days

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/s...st/7136288.stm

or even a few years

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uklatest/s...140108,00.html

[Uncle Max]

	Quote:	Castro
	Seek refuge here my fellow scrooges from this most wretched and commercial of holidays. If any of the following sounds familiar, you're in the right place. Hearing the same bloody Slade Xmas song in every shop you visit Spending money you don't have on presents that nobody wants Being cooped up with relatives you can't stand Receiving crap and still having to look sincerely thankful - "Gosh, a(nother) tie rack, you really shouldn't have" Nothing on TV except repeats and other assorted dross Eating/drinking yourself to oblivion (to block out the pain) and then suffering for it the next morning So Bah Humbug to all that and roll on December 26th.. a full 364 days until next Christmas

I love hearing Slade; at least they're not Phil Collins
I spend money on cool presents for those I *love*
I love my fambly, don't see them enough
I receive with grace
There's some cracking shows on TV over Christmas
I gorge myself all the time, not just this time of year

Bah Humbug you miserable old Gits...

[Castro]

	Quote:	Uncle Max
	I love hearing Slade; at least they're not Phil Collins I spend money on cool presents for those I *love* I love my fambly, don't see them enough I receive with grace There's some cracking shows on TV over Christmas I gorge myself all the time, not just this time of year Bah Humbug you miserable old Gits...

Uh oh.. Flanders alert!!

[Zug bound]

I used to be like you. Then we had a child. Seeing Christmas through the eyes of a little person is magical. The greed and avariciousness (but Isobel says that Santa is bringing her one), the need to outdo everyone else in the longest list to father Christmas, the sheer volume of chocolate decorations that can be consumed, the mess from the wrapping paper, the plaintive cry of 'is that all?'.
Just writing that down, I feel we are one and the same person

	Quote:	Dougal's Breakfast
	Oi! Dow you knock Slade! They'm bostin!

I'm technically a brummie and that guy must get pee'd off playing the same song each year. God wonder what the royalities are on that?

[Zug bound]

Catalyst, condolences to you on your place of birth first of all, secondly, I doubt that Slade get miffed hearing their record. It's all cash in the bank. I doubt that any of them (are they all still alive) will ever have to work again thanks to *that* song

[Castro]

	Quote:	Zug bound
	I used to be like you. Then we had a child. Seeing Christmas through the eyes of a little person is magical. The greed and avariciousness (but Isobel says that Santa is bringing her one), the need to outdo everyone else in the longest list to father Christmas, the sheer volume of chocolate decorations that can be consumed, the mess from the wrapping paper, the plaintive cry of 'is that all?'. Just writing that down, I feel we are one and the same person

I'm glad you've come around and smelt the eggnog - welcome to the Scrooge's Den

[Zug bound]

Reckon I will, any chance that I can stay there until new year?
Totally off topic, where in London are you? Surely you can't be miserable there?

[Castro]

	Quote:	Zug bound
	Totally off topic, where in London are you? Surely you can't be miserable there?

I live in Hendon, NW London, but I'm sure I'd be a lot less miserable spending Xmas in Switzerland.
I get the sense that its not all about spoilt brats, over-consumption and blatant commercialisation e.g. the little Swiss tykes would probably be delighted if they received in their stockings: a few hand-carved wooden animals, 2 tangerines, a bag of walnuts and a new hymn book.

How far we have strayed from the true meaning of Christmas, welcome to the 51st State of America

	Quote:	Zug bound
	Catalyst, condolences to you on your place of birth first of all, secondly, I doubt that Slade get miffed hearing their record. It's all cash in the bank. I doubt that any of them (are they all still alive) will ever have to work again thanks to *that* song

Was born in Bromsgrove, lived in Redditch, Worcestershire, so got away with that tag haha but close enough..

[Dougal's Breakfast]

There's a whole webpage devoted to the Greatest Song of All Time (not including Chicago by Sufjan Stevens, Theos An Einai as performed by George Dalaras, and quite a lot of other songs. It's still A Little Bit Great, though. Really. Well, I like it) : http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/soldonso...verybody.shtml

And Noddy Holder's still very busy- he was in Max and Paddy's Road to Nowhere, the Grimley's, and, er, an advert for Nobby's Nuts recently. (By recently, obviously, I mean when I was still in England. So not recently recently, just a bit recently). He's something of a professional Yam Yam, popping up whenever a casting director or researcher needs someone to talk proper on their programme. Bearing in mind that there aren't that many of us who are famous enough to get on the telly (There's Noddy, er, Dave Hill, er, and, er, well, some other bloke, probably. Oh yes, that footballer who was said to be somewhat unkind to his Swedish weathergirl wife... can't remember the fellow's name. Not the kind of chap one wants representing one's region, though, is he? And I think there was a snooker player from Cannock. Tiffany (I Think We're Alone Now) lives in the area now, but I don't think she has the right accent, being from the New World and all that).

Gosh. I've not really stuck to the topic, have I? Terribly sorry about that. Must be the old seasonal homesickness, creating an urge to return to squalid, grey abandoned coalfields and endless out-of-town shopping centres...

Merry Xmas Everybody!

[argus]

For this Christmas, my family and I would like

people to be kinder and more compassionate,
teachers to be more knowledgeable and enthusiastic,
parents to be more consistent,
people to want fewer expensive things,
children in poor countries to be better fed,
more well-equipped hospitals in Third World nations,
better education for every child,
governments to get their priorities right and be accountable,
our tax money to be used more wisely,
more jobs for the unemployed,
less fighting and wars in the world,
more smiles and good will.

[DaveA]

I suppose "world peace" comes under you line item : " less fighting and wars in the world" ?

These appeals might be heart-rending coming from Somalia or similar, but coming from Zug with minimal taxes "to be used more wisely" etc, it rings a bit hollow.

dave

	Quote:	argus
	For this Christmas, my family and I would like people to be kinder and more compassionate, teachers to be more knowledgeable and enthusiastic, parents to be more consistent, people to want fewer expensive things, children in poor countries to be better fed, more well-equipped hospitals in Third World nations, better education for every child, governments to get their priorities right and be accountable, our tax money to be used more wisely, more jobs for the unemployed, less fighting and wars in the world, more smiles and good will.

[Castro]

	Quote:	argus
	For this Christmas, my family and I would like people to be kinder and more compassionate, teachers to be more knowledgeable and enthusiastic, parents to be more consistent, people to want fewer expensive things, children in poor countries to be better fed, more well-equipped hospitals in Third World nations, better education for every child, governments to get their priorities right and be accountable, our tax money to be used more wisely, more jobs for the unemployed, less fighting and wars in the world, more smiles and good will.

Amen to all that.. since its not going to cost me any money

[Dougal's Breakfast]

	Quote:	argus
	people to want fewer expensive things,

But if people buy fewer expensive things, there'll be fewer expensive things bought, meaning some poor soul will lose her job and won't be able to afford a hessian bag of mandarins and monkey nuts for her poor, bright eyed child (and certainly won't be able to afford that Wii she'd been hoping to get).

Consumerism is good for the poor. It pays their wages.

Saving money just keeps it in the hands of the tight-fisted rich.

So spend, spend, spend! It makes little poor children a little less unhappy on Christmas morning!

[argus]

	Quote:	DaveA
	I suppose "world peace" comes under you line item : " less fighting and wars in the world" ? These appeals might be heart-rending coming from Somalia or similar, but coming from Zug with minimal taxes "to be used more wisely" etc, it rings a bit hollow. dave

For 15 years I was paying relatively high taxes in Malaysia, and it was heart-breaking to see tax-payers' money used on stupid things like ugly 'decorative' sculpture on roundabouts and ornamented lamp-posts when the roads were/are badly maintained in certain parts of the country and public libraries were/are so few and badly stocked to boot.
My numerous relatives are still living there paying taxes.

[chemgoddess]

Happy Festivus for the rest of us!

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