Christmas Bounty

~ beetleypete

Now the dust has settled on the festive season, I spent some time going over my pile of ‘bounty’, the gifts I received this year. Having made the decision not to just get more ‘stuff’ that we don’t need, it was nice to open my pile of presents and discover that everything I had was something I wanted and could use.

So without boasting, or rubbing it in for anyone who didn’t get anything, this is a list of what I found under the tree on the 25th.

The Phantom Atlas.
This is a sumptuous hardback book featuring detailed reproductions of antique maps.
Most of them are wildly inaccurate, or deliberately misleading, and that makes the book all the more enjoyable.

A new keyboard for my PC.
I have the desired replacement for the one I am using now that is almost worn out.
It is a Geemarc brand, ‘big key’ keyboard, with black letters on a yellow background.
Perfect for not straining my eyesight after long hours at the computer.

Two long nightshirts.
Looking like very long T-shirts, I like to wear these under a dressing gown when I am mooching around the house.
It has to be extra cold for me to wear them in bed.

Four bottles of red wine.
This included one ‘special reserve’ in a fancy box.
I have only drunk one of them so far.

A tin of Scottish Butter Shortbread.
The best biscuits (cookies) you can get, in my opinion.

DVD films.
First Reformed, starring Ethan Hawke.
The Guilty.
A German film a about a police emergency operator.

Chocolate-covered Brazil Nuts. (Two bags)
I don’t eat much chocolate, but these are in dark chocolate, which I prefer.

A selection of Baklava.
Those Greek/Turkish pastries full of chopped nut and honey syrup are a big favourite of mine.

Chocolate-covered fruits and nuts.
This mixed box included Pecans and cranberries. All delicious.

Calendars.
One was a Sharpei calendar, with a different dog for each month.
The other a Dogs Trust charity calendar.

Vouchers.
Joint presents for Juie and I from two of her children.
One is for a meal for two in an Italian restaurant, Prezzo.
The other for a special afternoon high tea, in a well-know Norwich restaurant, Bourgee.

I think you will agree that this was a very good selection of gifts. They came from Julie, her children, my cousin, and some of our neighbours in Beetley.
More importantly, they will all be used, read, watched, worn, or eaten.

I hope all of you had an enjoyable time.

77 thoughts on “Christmas Bounty”

  1. The Phantom Atlas – I think Mr O would love this.

    I also got some pretty useful presents… including an aubergine shaped “snuggie” that you heat in the microwave and then use to warm yourself. Although I have not gotten to use it yet as Little O keeps throwing it over the bannister!

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    1. Snuggly things are nice to have. We have microfleece snuggle blankets over the backs of the sofas. handy to wrap around your legs when it gets chilly.
      There is a link to the book lower down in the comments. It is a lovely thing indeed.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  3. Looks like you had a great Christmas!

    My favourite gifts were a couple of NHS mugs with quotes from Nye Bevan;

    “No society can legitimately call itself civilised if a sick person is denied medical aid because of lack of means,” and

    “The NHS will last as long as there are folk left with faith to fight for it.”

    It was just a shame there wasn’t one with this quote;

    “No amount of cajolery, and no attempts at ethical or social seduction, can eradicate from my heart a deep burning hatred for the Tory Party. So far as I am concerned they are lower than vermin.”

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      1. That’s always nice, Pete. BTW, do you remember my blog posts on Starry Night, and the child discovering the little red house? My Christmas gift was a pair of fleece socks, like State Night, with a red house embroidered on the top side. Can you imagine? I am over the moon. This will be a blog post soon. ❤️

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  5. Great post 🙂 Sounds like you got a lot of goodies 🙂 I got a lot of great presents for Christmas as well 🙂 A lot of Blu-Ray/DVD’s of some of my all-time favorites (works by Bill Forsyth, Wim Wenders, etc.) I also got a lot of milk chocolate – you only get stuff like that in abundance once a year so embrace it 🙂

    As for your DVD titles, I really love First Reformed and I personally feel that along with Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters, it ranks as Paul Schrader’s greatest film as a director (he also wrote the scripts to both of course :)) Anyway, keep up the great work as always 🙂

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  14. That is an outstanding selection, Pete. You made out like a bandit!!
    (I used to go through keyboards right and left, until it hit me to use clear nail polish on the keys so I didn’t wear the letters off so quickly!)

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  15. What a fine assortment of treats, fun toys, and movies! Sounds like a great haul. Long nightshirts are so very British. Are they white striped? Plain white? Ha! Wine is always good. The German film–is it called “The Guilty”? I wanted to see that.

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  16. A great haul of gifts, Pete. This year we were also careful not to buy all sorts of stuff no one really wants so I insisted everyone write wish lists and it worked very well. On top of my list of films, books, perfume, I received a voucher for a restaurant in Glasgow. I could have sent you some shortbread – we’re still munching through previously gifted tins of it 🙂 It’s kind of a staple foodstuff here along with tablet 🙂

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    1. Thanks for the offer, Mary, but shortbread is widely available (and not expensive) in most supermarkets down here. 🙂 🙂 🙂
      I had a list too. I got all but two things that were on it.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  22. This sounds like a great Christmas haul, Pete. My husband bought me a new ipad as my is very old and the battery is failing. I got new work trousers from my mom, a new work scarf from my MIL and a lovely new dress from my sons. My haul was pretty good too.

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  26. Thew only things I got for Christmas this year were stuff that I bought for myself.But that is fine by me because Karma has a way of levelling the playing field and the a**holes who are suppose to be my family will eventually be held accountable by a force bigger than myself.

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