Posts in Friends
The Guilt Frame

I am not Catholic.  Which is not a problem or a solution.  It’s simply a statement.  It’s probably for the best if we steer clear of religion.  Even though a lot of them are very pro forgiveness, their biggest supporters seem to practice very differently to what’s been preached in their direction.  I’m just saying, before we get into this, that I’m not Catholic.  I was married in a Catholic church, but I’m fat and privileged with a beard.  Which is probably why I was taken to Church of England services.  Fat, white and bearded is basically their mascot, after all.

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Halfway Out of the Dark

Things are getting hectic, they always do at this time of year.  It’s like being trapped on a merry go round that refuses to slow down.  Every time we ask someone to apply the brakes, it only accelerates.  Sure, there are festive lights and catchy tunes circling around us, but this close to the event horizon of Christmas Day it all starts to get out of hand.  The music deafens us.  The motion makes us feel ill.  The horses under us start to leer and grin as it all lurches past our control. 
   There are cards to write, presents to deliver.  There’s food to hunt and gather, sometimes against shoppers who are racing against the exact same clock as us to the exact same shelf for the exact same final box of stuffing.  The season of goodwill can get pretty nasty down a supermarket aisle.

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