Merry Christmas - how do you celebrate?

[Steven Fraser]

Greetings, all!

We do family-time, presents and reminisce WITH FOOD!

What do you do?

All the best, to you and yours...

[ronws]

A lot of the time, it's just my wife and me, at home. Tomorrow, I will be cooking a turkey breast, potatoes, carrots (all cooked together.) And making some homemade cranberry sauce. The wife has been decorating the house and put up this little christmas tree with fiberoptic lighting in it.

 

Thanksgiving, we went to south Texas to visit her mom. Her (my wife's) father passed away in August and would have been 90 this month. Charley was in WWII and was in the 9th USAF, 410 Light Bomber Group, 646th Squadron, stationed in France. Because he spoke german, he was caretaker of german POW's, since he was in the mess hall part of the squadron.

 

We're kind of lean on presents, this year. I have been paying off heavy bills, including a lien on the house. It was up for seizure auction last year for non-payment of taxes.

 

But we still have the spirit and I have so much to be thankful for. A home, a wife, two pets. Neices and a nephew. November 1st, we were near Baton Rouge, Louisiana seeing our younger neice (BIL's younger daughter) getting married. To a vet. Her high school sweetheart. When they had graduated high school, he joined the Marines and then was deployed over there in the desert. I think he was mostly providing support and assistance to the displaced people in Iraq who have suffered because of the war. Semper Fi, Luke ...

 

Finally got around to working up my own rendition of "Ciara" by Luka Bloom, which I had first heard many years ago on a CD we have called "Celtic Christmas."

 

Pulled out and dusted off my tree ornament, which is Santa Claus on a harley.

 

My aim this Christmas weekend is to find a display case. My FIL Charley was buried with full military honors, including gun salute and draped flag. The display case would display the flag, folded as a triangle. And the bottom compartment would hold the shells from the gun salute at his funeral. 

 

My only regret was that I could not be at his funeral but I was there the weekend leading to it for a viewing. My wife stayed there for a week, as I had to haul bottom back to north Texas to be at work, no way to get out of it. I may not be important but my job cannot be left vacant for a day.

 

I hope that doesn't sound morose and I don't mean it to be. MIL gave me Charley's watch, a military grade knife I had given to him (we were big into fishing and you need a good, sharp knife to clean fish.)

 

So, this is a good Christmas.

[KillerKu]

Maestro

 

We are honored to have you here in our community. Im excited to learn more from you in the coming years.

 

I know, right? From reading Steven's posts he's one of the most knowledgeable people I've ever encountered about the voice and is so articulate. It's a blessing he's here. 

 

For me, I spent Christmas Eve with family and childhood friends. This holiday season was the best in years. Health problems finally weren't much of an issue and I could interact more fully and not just be there out of obligation. I'm getting healthier in every way.

[Khassera]

We don't, really.

 

Due to my partner's studies we moved to a small village in the Dartmoor national park, England, and I work part time in a local pub (with no experience on alcohol due to abstaining, it's funny as sh*). I was on shift last night, and 24th is when we're used to celebrating christmas.

 

They celebrate on the 25th here, apparently, but since all our relatives are in Finland we're kinda skipping this christmas.

 

On top of that, the last time I posted in the TFPOS thread I said I had laryngitis. I had overcome that a while back, but now I'm down with a crazy chest cold again. Black mould sucks, dudes and dudettes.

 

Merry Christmas, though.

[Kari]

Thanks Steven,

We had our christmas gifts yesterday (24/12) a lot of food, herring, salmon, schrimps, paté, a big ham on the table, roedeer etc. etc typicall Swedish christmas smörgåsbord, with the family. We drink snaps and sing a lot of snapssongs.

We have 14degrees (-10C) but not much snow, so skiing is not possible at the moment but a walk in the sunny day is nice, and drink of warm glögg and pastry with saffron after is good.

It gets dark early this time of year around 14.00, and we light a candle for those who are not with us anymore at the cemetery, it looks nice with all the candles in the dark.

Yesterday we saw 2 roedeers and later a moose with her calf.

In those moments life feels good.

Merry Christmas !

[ronws]

^ That sounds good. I'll trade you some roasted turkey for a cup o glogg.

[Kari]

Thanks, if you dont have glögg over there i can give you a recipe.

[Jens]

Thanks Steven,

We had our christmas gifts yesterday (24/12) a lot of food, herring, salmon, schrimps, paté, a big ham on the table, roedeer etc. etc typicall Swedish christmas smörgåsbord, with the family. We drink snaps and sing a lot of snapssongs.

We have 14degrees (-10C) but not much snow, so skiing is not possible at the moment but a walk in the sunny day is nice, and drink of warm glögg and pastry with saffron after is good.

It gets dark early this time of year around 14.00, and we light a candle for those who are not with us anymore at the cemetery, it looks nice with all the candles in the dark.

Yesterday we saw 2 roedeers and later a moose with her calf.

In those moments life feels good.

Merry Christmas !

Fler svenskar vad kul!

Sounds exactly like my christmas glögg is the shit

[ronws]

Thanks, if you dont have glögg over there i can give you a recipe.

That would be awesome.

 

In the meantime, I can share a few drink recipes:

 

My step-grandfather came up with this and I don't know the name, so I just call it the Fog Machine. Two servings, and you will understand why.

 

Using a bartenders little measuring thing,

1 part Southern Comfort (sweet flavored whiskey)

2 parts Sloe Gin

2 parts sweet Vermouth

mix with egg nog. Don't drive anywhere, find a comfortable spot on the couch.

 

Another one I have liked. It's scottish, called a bannockburn.

 

In a tumbler or mixer: 1 to 1.5 oz of scotch whiskey.

add a dash or two of ground black pepper

Fill the mixer with ice, add tomato or vegetable juice.

Shake and serve with the ice.

Some will say, that sounds like a Bloody Mary. So, I also called it Bloody Mary, Queen of the Scots.

[Khassera]

You guys need to grab a bowl of finnish raisin vodka:

 

- 1l Vodka

- 1 raisin

 

if it's too sweet you can remove the raisin.

[Robert Lunte]

Maestro

 

We are honored to have you here in our community. Im excited to learn more from you in the coming years.

 

This year I spent the entire day working yesterday... and slept at the studio last night. No family this year to go to this year... Just enjoying quiet time in my studio.  This afternoon I go to my beautiful girlfriends house and shower her in the gifts I bought her; a big tool box from home depot, a new iphone 6, and new boots... women love boots.

 

I recorded this last night for you guys.

 

Rob Sings "White Christmas":

 

If that linky doesn't work, this one will. 

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/11616972/White%20Christmas_Robert%20Lunte.mp3

 

FYI guys.. if you embed a dropbox link into the system, it automatically embeds this media player... cool!

[Kari]

Swedish glögg recipe

2 pieces of whole cimarron

12 cloves

2 pieces of whole dryed ginger

1 teaspoon Cardamom seed

2 dryed pomerans peel

2 dl raisins

2-3 dl Absolut or similar

Put all in a glassjar for 4 days and shake it twice a day.

Drain into a pan and ad 2 bottles of redwine you like and 2dl of sugar

Heat it up so the sugar melts but dont boil it.

(If you dont want to wait, put all in a pan and warm it slowly-dont boil it,

for 1 hour and drain it.)

You can keep it in bottles for 3 months, if you dont drink it at once.

Serve it warm and ad raisins and peeled almond.

Serve it with gingerbread or pastry with saffron or both.

For a low bass like me this is good for my throat when i try to find some headvoice :)

[MDEW]

  I didn't get to do much this year, But I did get to sleep past 10:00 am. That was a big plus for me.  

 I usually spend some time with friends and family. never get to spend much on the presents aspect of it but I am more into the Brotherly love and Holiday cheer than the buying and selling of products. I try to do that year round anyway.

          Merry Christmas everyone.

[ronws]

Swedish glögg recipe

2 pieces of whole cimarron

12 cloves

2 pieces of whole dryed ginger

1 teaspoon Cardamom seed

2 dryed pomerans peel

2 dl raisins

2-3 dl Absolut or similar

Put all in a glassjar for 4 days and shake it twice a day.

Drain into a pan and ad 2 bottles of redwine you like and 2dl of sugar

Heat it up so the sugar melts but dont boil it.

(If you dont want to wait, put all in a pan and warm it slowly-dont boil it,

for 1 hour and drain it.)

You can keep it in bottles for 3 months, if you dont drink it at once.

Serve it warm and ad raisins and peeled almond.

Serve it with gingerbread or pastry with saffron or both.

For a low bass like me this is good for my throat when i try to find some headvoice

Amazing. It sounds like the prep for it can be a holiday thing, too. "It's your turn to shake the jar."

 

"No, it's your turn to to shake the jar."

 

"Oh, both you whiny butts just stay there, I'll shake the jar."

 

Reminds me a little of traditional pro barbecue, where the meat can be smoked over a low flame for 24 hours or more.

 

A case of where the time and ceremony seem as important as the end result. Thanks for sharing that.