Merry Time

There is always something special about the Christmas season. Maybe it is at the end of the year when most are winding down and looking forward to another refreshing new year. Or it could be the cooler weather that brings out the best mood in people. Look around you, people, in general, are happier and smiling more during this time of the year. I see lesser hate news on social media, my news feed is flooded with endless photos of happy reunions. For those with friends and loved ones around you, this is indeed a blissful time to chill out and enjoy the joyous moment with those who matter most. Nevertheless, this can be an extremely sad and lonely season for those who are away from their families and friends. Hang on there, there is always something bright and positive to look forward to.

I never like to count down to any occasion cos’ it feels like the final moment of an awesome party.  On the contrary, I enjoy the moments leading up to the final countdown. If you have been to any firework countdown celebration, you know what I mean. Everyone is so hyped and excited right before the strike of midnight. Once the countdown and fireworks are over, the atmosphere becomes really awkward. It feels like someone has just broken the “happy spell”. Instantly, the people who were celebrating wildly minutes ago turned Cinderallas. Suddenly, everyone is heading home.

What I do love most is the festive gatherings! Mine was the healthy family version, no hard liquor, and other unhealthy activities. Like the year before, we had an hour of pretty intense violent indoor games (with guns, arrows, and bows), followed by a 3-hour long outdoor BBQ dinner at Taipo.

The BBQ venue is big! It is unlike any other venue I have been. There are different formats of space where you can BBQ – standard tables, on platforms and even inside private huts. There is even a giant air castle slide for the kids. We made a mistake by parking ourselves right beside a big playing field. There were a lot of kids playing soccer by the edge of our platform. I wasn’t too comfortable having these amateur kids around me. A few times, the ball came flying into our space. I even yelled at a kid to buzz him away. Dear Joe, where is your Christmas spirit, Harshad asked.

Thanks to 2 youthful friends – chatty Christy and crazy Fiona – they definitely lighten the atmosphere and made us feel younger with their youthful childlike not-so-old company and personalities.  Christy was so hyper that day. She was there for 2 things – fun and photography. I have never seen any girl so engrossed in selfies and bananas. Now, I understand the pain of “Instagram Boyfriend”.

Being a nice senior, I decided to end our little gathering before 930pm so it gives these youngsters enough time to head home, get dressed for their ultimate Christmas Countdown! Me? I slept soundly at 11pm leaving my poor son counting down to Christmas Day all alone by himself. My son was planning to open all his gifts at midnight but he was so nice to wait for us the next day.  Elkan also made us a very “green” Christmas Tree out of paper shopping bags and personalized greeting cards using old magazines this year! As usual, I got him a new gadget, this Christmas, a mini retro arcade machine.

Merry Christmas to all! Can’t wait for my next festive reunion trip in Taiwan next week with my Taiwanese friends! Perhaps I shall make another exception and experience the firework countdown at 101. And here is another ZEPETO moment of us (while the fab lasts). See if you can recognize the fancy people here.