Happy Holidays!

Hello everyone, happy holiday to all my friends out there.

I've been working throughout most of the holidays, trying to make the most of the statutory holidays. On Christmas eve we were let out early from work (about 2pm) which gave SL and I some time to pack the car and head up north to Manchester. The plan was to spend the holidays with SL's family, returning to London on Sunday in time for work on the 29th.

The roads weren't too busy, and we were able to make it to Manchester in fairly good time - about 4 hours. We had already made plans to go over to SL's friend's place for Christmas Eve - to hang out and play Rock Band on the X-box. We rang in Christmas day with the mandatory fireworks at midnight which just about woke up all the neighbours!

For Christmas day, SL's mom roasted a huge turkey with all the fixings - potoatoes, brussel sprouts (which I typiclaly don't like), carrots, gravy. She roasted it overnight and it was perfectly cooked the next day. We spent the whole day working the bird down to the bone, watching movies and finding the bottom of a big box of chocolates. Boxing Day was a bit more adventurous, with a trip out to the local stores to try to find some good deals. Despite hours of shopping, I only managed to find a shirt and a pair of pants!

To burn off all the calories from the previous few days, we headed out for a little walkabout on the 27th. Apparently, it's a tradition in many English families to go out hiking in the hills. Unfortunately, the weather turned for the worst so it was constantly threatening rain for most of the day. While it was a bit chilly, we found some comfort at a local pub were we warmed up with some hot chocolate and some hot lunch.

6 hours, 28 minutes

The Americans have World Series and the Superbowl. The Canadians have the NHL Playoffs. The English ... well, they have the World Championship Snooker and World Championship Darts! On primetime TV, the World Championship Snooker game was featured for 6 hours and 28 minutes, going the full 19 frames, right down to the wire. Now that's excitement!