54 Gscene
GOLDEN HOUR
STUFF & THINGS
BY BILLIE GOLD
BY JON TAYLOR
CHRISTMAS SPIRIT
JUST CHILL
) I wondered to myself the other day why I feel more Christmassy this year. Usually at this time of year I’m already stressed with how I’m going to afford everything, and how I’m going to get around to visit everyone. Considering that this has been the most turbulent year most of us have ever lived through, with stress less so on thriving and being the best we can be, and simply being put on surviving, you would be forgiven for thinking that Christmas 2020 would be looking pretty damn bleak.
) I haven’t been away this year. Haven’t gotten on a plane. Haven’t travelled to far-off cities with their exotic weather and cheaper beer. I’ve not been able to upload holiday snaps to various social media sites and bask in the glory of being away while others aren’t. The furthest afield I’ve been is a day trip to London which was cool as I don’t get to go to the capital for any reason really so it was nice to mooch around and have a drink or three in Soho.
“I reckon I can give up a cheap flight to somewhere just a little bit warmer in favour of something closer to home, and closer to the people who need a little bit of extra kindness this year” Instead I’m finding myself getting excited when I see Christmas lights being put up, and last night being happy to be standing on my balcony on the first night of lockdown with a blanket around my shoulders watching the fireworks. And when I asked other people, it seems as a nation we have simply given up on thoughts of excess. Could it be that Christmas spirit could be a real thing?
I was due to go to France for 10 days with my mum, dad and brother but that got shelved as France got put on the travel ban list, which made it non-viable. I know that folks who work from home have been able to go away to travel ban hotspots and then self-isolate on their return because they’d be at home afterwards anyway. As I work for the minimum wage in a shop, I didn’t have that luxury unfortunately. Try as I might, I can’t sell things at the shop from my sofa. It did strike me as ironic with the travel bans that those who weren’t engaging with the public and putting themselves at risk on a daily basis were able to escape these shores, whereas those who do interact with the public couldn’t. Hey ho.
I remember when my family was on a mission to prove how big we could do Christmas when I was a kid. All 14 of us crammed on to a coach and over to Spain, where I had one of the worst Christmases of my life, not just because my family is a living nightmare, but because it just didn’t feel like Christmas and the gastric flu we all caught on the way back didn’t help. Going to another country to prove that we could be fancy too only left us feeling like something was missing. With us not being able to travel much of anywhere this year, or if we did manage to get a holiday in it was ruled by restrictions and safety concerns, it makes sense that the little bit of sparkle at the end of the year would feel more sentimental than usual. I’m not really one to get mushy, but this year has made me re-evaluate what’s important. At the start of the year I was set on getting away at the end of the year, but for a year when people have hardly left their house, I reckon I can give up a cheap flight to somewhere just a little bit warmer in favour of something closer to home, and closer to the people who need a little bit of extra kindness this year.
I’ve been travelling to France with my family since I was four years old. We used to go camping when I was younger and stay in various dubious hotels on the way down to the south of France. When we got there, I used to love to wander the campsite with a carry mat, find some French people playing boules (French bowls game) and just sit there and watch them. This started my deep love of peoplewatching, which endures to this day. There’s nothing I love more than sitting with a cuppa and a cake, watching the world go by. I tend to write down the things I see and put them in my blog: www. teapotscoffeeshops.weebly.com (shameless plug). But back to France! When we’re abroad we tend to do as little as possible. We’re a ‘sit in the sun for a bit, then read a book in the shade with a beer’ type of family. We don’t go far. We’ll mooch about a couple of towns, might have a meal out once or twice, but that’s it. So holidays for me are for sitting about relaxing with some form of alcohol readily available. None of this getting up, getting out, then visiting places and doing things. Oh no. I will swim if we’ve got a place with a
This year has been weird enough, so it stands to reason that Christmas will be equally as weird. Perhaps I’ll go to a creepy cottage and stare wistfully out of the window, in a house that looks like it should be on a biscuit tin, or perhaps I’ll just host Christmas here with my family – chosen and blood – and be grateful that we’re able to be together and trade awful cracker jokes. Holidays are great, and one day soon we’ll be able to travel without restriction, but in the meantime I’m happy to peel and roast the spuds myself.
pool. That’s the busiest I’ll get. I’ve had the typical gay holiday of Gran Canaria with beers, beaches and bunk ups. It’s not my natural habitat though. I prefer a hammock, a book and a small beer. You won’t see me then till pre-dinner drinks.
