Christmas When You Were Growing Up

[George 1978]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

Just done the main Christmas food shopping - the total was £107.16! The most expensive thing was the Croft Original sherry.

Six Christmas cards yesterday, none today for some reason.

[amethyst]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

Just done the main Christmas food shopping - the total was £107.16! The most expensive thing was the Croft Original sherry.

Six Christmas cards yesterday, none today for some reason.

How long were you in the supermarket for

[George 1978]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

How long were you in the supermarket for?

Doing the shopping itself (and I actually timed myself), it was an hour and a quarter, although including the time to get a trolley, and the queueing to pay for the items, it would have been an extra 15 minutes, so in total, an hour and a half.

It did have so many shoppers there as well - and quite a few trolley jams, especially around the wines and spirits department.

[George 1978]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

If anyone on here could choose between the Christmas of the 1970s or 1980s, and the Christmas of now, which one would you choose?

Obviously I would choose the 1970s and 1980s Christmas, and I believe that would go for the majority of members on here - the magic of Father Christmas, getting wrapped presents at the end of the bed, and all that. A lot more exciting than a Christmas as an adult (unless having a glass of sherry while watching the Midnight Mass can be regarded as exciting).

[amethyst]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

Absolutely George it's got so commercialised I think the fun has totally gone out of Christmas.Leaving a drink for Santa and a mince pie,I remember having a pillowcase at the bottom of my bed waking up and shouting he's been.

[Twocky61]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

In prison we hung a sock on the door handle outside our cell

The sock was empty in the morning except for a note from Santa

"No presents for you this year boys; you've been naughty boys"

lol

[Richard1978]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

I still enjoy Christmas, over the years I've adjusted my attitudes towards it to get the best of it.

These days it's mostly about the family getting together & seeing my younger relatives enjoy it.

[Moonraker]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

In prison we hung a sock on the door handle outside our cell

The sock was empty in the morning except for a note from Santa

"No presents for you this year boys; you've been naughty boys"

lol

Hi Twocky61.
I am curious to know if Santa Claus still comes to the visiting hall where loved ones see the inmates.

Christmas often takes me back as a child visiting my father in prison in the early 70s. My sister and I would run off to the area where Santa Claus would give presents to the children.

[George 1978]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

Absolutely George it's got so commercialised I think the fun has totally gone out of Christmas.Leaving a drink for Santa and a mince pie,I remember having a pillowcase at the bottom of my bed waking up and shouting he's been.

I mentioned this earlier on in this thread last year if you go back a few pages - it is quite true that it is mostly about High Street stores being open longer (fair enough - Mr and Mrs Public need somewhere to go for their Christmas presents, decorations - Christmas tree, food - Paxo stuffing, etc), and even the Church of England as well as other Christian faiths say that the true meaning of Christmas has been diluted in recent decades because of commercialism. I couldn't care less if DFS were flogging sofas as soon as they reopened at 10.00 am on Boxing Day to be honest.

It is nice to see the Nativity scene with the Baby Jesus, the three wise men, Mary and Joseph and all that, not to mention Midnight Mass, Christmas Morning Service and the Queen at 3.00 pm as well. And I didn't have my pillowcases full of presents because they were needed to put the pillows inside them so I could get to sleep!

[George 1978]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

Hi Twocky61.
I am curious to know if Santa Claus still comes to the visiting hall where loved ones see the inmates.

Christmas often takes me back as a child visiting my father in prison in the early 70s. My sister and I would run off to the area where Santa Claus would give presents to the children.

Episode 76 of Prisoner: Cell Block H on YouTube is a good example of what Christmas is like in a prison, (well, inside a fictitious Australian women's prison circa 1979 at least) - it was the first episode not to have Meg Jackson in it. There is also that Christmas episode of Porridge which has been repeated this year.

[George 1978]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

Hi Twocky61.
My sister and I would run off to the area where Santa Claus would give presents to the children.

The prison had a Father Christmas? I hope it was one of the officers or the governor - his sack would have to be searched thoroughly.

[George 1978]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

Are the Royal Mail on strike today, or has my Christmas cards just not arrived yet?

[Moonraker]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

The prison had a Father Christmas? I hope it was one of the officers or the governor - his sack would have to be searched thoroughly.

Too long ago. I would hazard a guess that it was probably an employee of the prison.

[Mulletino]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

Christmas has definitely changed for me since having my own family, plus being in a different country where Christmas is in the middle of summer (which is hot) takes some getting used to. It never feels as "christmassy" here to me as it did back home.

Our eldest is at the age now where he has made a wish list for santa and is getting excited about it all. His face the other day when we took the boys for their santa photo was so cute, chatting away to santa you could see he was a little nervous/excited like you would be if you were talking to someone famous you admired. Bless him. It's time for me now to try and make my sons' xmasses as magical as my parents made mine when i was young.

Now i've got to work out if I want to share the Quality Street/Maltesers/After Eights/Licquorice Allsorts that I bought as those are sweets my mum always had/has at xmas.

[amethyst]

Re: Christmas When You Were Growing Up

Well I certainly wouldn't have been getting up this early on Christmas Eve to go shopping in the supermarket by 6am.I mean we used to look forward to some nice luxuries at xmas a fresh Turkey from the market box chocolates shell nuts etc, not same anymore queues in shops traffic jams customers moaning 45 mins queuing at the checkouts,swearing in front of children in Hamleys toy store in London because a woman couldn't be bothered to wait in line for a lift to the upper floors absolutely disgrace had my rant of day really looking forward to venturing out