The Christmas

For anyone who is not in Cardiff, a few weeks ago, they turned on the Christmas lights. It was quite the event, the Dr. Who cast was there and "pressed the button" so to speak... Bob the Builder sang some songs and most importantly, they turned on the lights. The Christmas is what I'm calling the beautiful decorations all around town. The lights, little stands, it's like Christmas Town at Bush Gardens... but real! (and minus the Amy and Steph and the worst snow storm of 2009) Songs were being sung, the lights dance and sparkle everywhere. Its just so exciting every time I walk into town. I want to go to the ice-skating rink and ride the ferris wheel, go to Starbucks and get hazelnut latte, have roasted chestnuts... they are frickin' everywhere! I have only heard of them in the Christmas song, not actually seen them in real life! I'm pumped... but sadly I can only participate so much in all the festivities. Now as an American, I am strictly banned from listening to Christmas music until after Thanksgiving.

Here is the problem: there is no Thanksgiving here. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite Holidays. Maybe that is because I bounce back and forth between my two families: one where a house of almost 100 people gets together and you vaguely remember that you are related to every single person in the room (isn't that terrifying) and then the other I get to go to the beach and hole up with the Bitto side of my family and have a great time at the Outer Banks, NC and just sit around, shop, and eat for a week. The best part about Thanksgiving is seeing most of my family in such a short period of time. There is also the food! I love Thanksgiving dinner, don't get confused... dinner is not at 6 PM, oh no, its at 2 or 3 at the latest. That way you essentially eat everything you can at that meal and you don't eat dinner. I mean can you really stop someone from finishing off that turkey leg and I mean, the Cranberry Sauce! That is hands down my favorite part of Thanksgiving dinner. I don't want any home-made with the cranberries still being all crunchy on the inside of my sauce, give me the can and i'll open it and cut it into slices based on the lines from said can. Yes, I know, it sounds horribly lazy and frankly American, but hey... we are the ones who celebrate this holiday of feasting!

But as Thanksgiving is coming up this Thursday... I will be missing my family. I will not be in the Outer Banks with my siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles, parents, and my granny. I will miss them, but this also means I have something to look forward to. Christmas. I get to go home and see them, I get to listen to my Jackson 5 Christmas CD that my mom mailed me a month or so ago, I get to do everything but decorate the Christmas tree because it will already be done by the time I get home. I have already made the Christmas playlist on my iTunes, and I'm psyched! Come this Thursday night, my flatmates will be sick of me because Christmas is all that will be coming out of my computer's speakers for a quite some time.

So now, something to look forward to.... The Christmas