Day Eighty Four - Part Two

Furrgus

With our commitment to Miss Poppy completed it was time to talk to Miss Andrea and Ross and Joan.

To thank them for the wonderful presents. 

And Niamh made champagne and orange juice cocktails for herself and Zita. 

We simply settled for the champagne. 

We do not need the vitamin C. 

And it was soon followed by talking to most of Zita’s family in Dublin.

Then Emmet went downstairs to talk with Alice, who was waiting for her family dinner to be cooked. 

Fortunately she did not have to be at her hospital today. 

Alice got Emmet a special notebook, all in leather with Emmet’s very own name on it. 

And it was all made by a friend of Alice’s family too. 

Now naturally Niamh was very understanding about her fabulous rain coat not arriving in time. 

One cannot control the weather. 

She was far more understanding than Dugal about the lack of his Harrod’s hamper let me tell you. 

As Zita put down the telephone Sandra appeared at the door with a gift of a local confectionery delight. 

But she could not stay as she had other deliveries to make. 

For which we were quite relieved, as the living room floor was knee deep in wrapping paper and presents.

So the remains of the wrappings were bundled into bags and an attempt was made to make the place decent. 

Now Craig, in addition to clothes and books, got Christmas treats, a giant box of oatmeal cookies from the way to much store, 

Miss Tarryn got him the biggest box of croissants you could ever find, because she regularly eats his croissants when he is not looking.

There was peanut brittle from Zita and, can you believe this, a box of Campbells Shortbreads. 

Campbells of all people. 

Our father The Laird will be rolling around in his grave at the thought. Campbells. 

Now Dugal said he once had a Major Campbell in the 42nd who never stole anything he shouldn’t have. 

Be that as it may, delicious or not, Festis and I will politely refuse any if offered. 

One has to have some semblance of standards. 

We got an especially fine strawberry jam from Zita. And it was made in Italy. My goodness.

And Craig said he would share his plethora of croissants with us. Thank goodness.

And there was a tidy tin of chocolates from Belgium. My goodness. That was a treat. 

Tonight’s dinner is going to be an amalgam of the remaining food from last night excess. 

So as our help was not required in the kitchen all three of us went on patrol.

It was a cold and windy afternoon let me tell you. 

But there were still some fools running around - with no one chasing them.

They were running just for exercise with their Christmas dinners about to be served in a hour or so. 

Makes no sense to us. 

So we ignored them, aside from a polite Merry Christmas salutation or two.

The snow is still really too deep for comfortable travel but apparently just right for tobogganing.

The hill into our pond was full of careening sleds vying for broken legs. 

We fled into the safety and warmth of our house. 

It was time for our before dinner naps. 

So the whole family reassembled for the Christmas dinner. 

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