Christmas Tree
Opinion was divided on whether a Xmas tree as tall as me with a price tag of £45 was perfectly reasonable or outrageous even for London. But I decided against a tree anyway because all the ones I saw were also as wide as I'm tall, which means it wouldn't fit in our flat. This made me a bit sad because things didn't seem complete without a tree, now that we're staying in London for the second year running. Just thinking about making one like last year made my hands ache though.
Happily, the Buddhists came to the rescue! I was in their charity shop, the Lama's Pyjamas, on Roman Road, one evening last week, when I overheard the staff saying that the fake tree in the display window was for sale for £4.
I decided to get it the next day, but before that, Wingnut's mum arrived in the morning with a bunch of lovely papier-mâché decorations from the Kringloop, a chain of Dutch recycling shops. That woman has better hearing than Sinterklaas and Santa Claus combined.
So, having sworn I would never have an evil fake tree, I now have a very nice one with free decorations from the Buddhists, the gift of Dutch baubles, and a teddy bear from Tokyo to finish it off.
Merry Xmas, have a good one!