Christmas cheer

It really can be beautiful in Edinburgh at this time of year. The days are short, the skies clear, and Christmassy-ness abounds - even without a skerick of snow. There's ice of course, in Princes St Gardens. You can skate on it. Here's my dad doing just that, earlier this month...

















A day at the beach can even be had. Here are Fern and Andrew, out in East Lothian, soaking up the sunshine.



And although the days are short, the light as the sun sets is stunning (thanks to all those open fires?). Today we walked the vertigo-inducing Salisbury crags as the sun went down.

It's Christmas already in NZ, and word from Doherty and Taylor households suggest much fun is being had by all. We've got one more sleep to go...

Merry Christmas!

Frenzy?

The run up to Christmas seems to be passing me by this year. I'm surrounded by last-minute panickers, but am unmoved to get in on the act.

A faraway destination for Christmas parcels certainly helps - dad took all my presents back with him earlier this month, so no last-minute shopping required. Food-wise, I just have to make a trifle. Which, if it lives up to its name, should be fairly straightforward. It's winter solstice tomorrow, though. That might be a day (night?) for cooking up a big feed...

In general, I think I'm just waiting around for the year to be over. 2005, despite high points (visits from far-flung whanau, a stimulating new job, producing my first proper film), has been a stinker. I really, really hope that the new year will bring happier times.