if you're the only thing i ever get for christmas

ready steady go 

okay so my pity party hasn't finished just yet and i'm back to work tomorrow so what better way to force yourself out of a funk than by spending 5 hours wrapping presents, writing cards and watching christmas films. it's been a weird weekend all in all but maybe today was what i needed to pick me up. i don't feel particularly uplifted right now but it's helped me to realise that a) i still love buying things (for other people) and b) home alone and elf are classics.

"what the fuck are you on about?"

christmas time. mistletoe and wine. children singing christian rhymes. okay, so not the last thing at all. ACTUALLY on reflection, when the kids try to sing "when santa got stuck up the chimney" in nursery, it does start to thaw my frozen heart. i spend 364 days of my year getting excited for christmas but, as i've said previously, as you get older, the magic lessens and lessens. after the year i've had, i'm more than inclined to force myself into excitement about the upcoming festivities. everyone's presents are wrapped, their cards are written, stamped and stickered but the magic just isn't there. 

yes, we bought a tree today. yes, the decorations will be going up asap. yes, it's christmas jumper week in work. so maybe my chistmas happiness is impending but right now, i'm just trying to be happy about the prospect of showering those i love with thoughtful, sentimental, indulgent, over the top presents. i've spent my whole month's wages on presents this year but i still feel like my haul is lacking and i have this horrible feeling everyone will be silently underwhelmed. do you suffer with this december paranoia? i do not envy those who have to buy birthday presents alongside these. that stress? no thank you. 

okay. this was dull, uneventful and directionless. let's talk about something else. 

"what the fuck is that song?"

not christmassy at all but amazing all the same. it's "about the boy" by little mix which is probably the best song from their best album although the jury's still out whilst we're all waiting for their third album. "salute", as an album, was a triumph - we didn't really expect it to be so good and it sounded all the better because of it. it rocketed the girls to superstar status and, after their above average debut album, instilled a lot of faith in us listeners that they're just about ready to take their rightful place as the UK's best girl group (RIP girls aloud, gone but never forgotten). the record was full of destiny child-isms, 90s throwbacks, delicious harmonies and record breaking high notes. all of these components are present on "about the boy" which is sheer bliss and this live version, packed with forgotten words and awkward dancing, is as funny as it is amazing xo