christmas 2011...
I wanted to post this a lot earlier but I'd never have thought that it would take the mail until TODAY to deliver the last of my presents! O_O So here it is now!! :D
Last year's Christmas was definitely one of the best EVER. It would have been the best Christmas of my life if I didn't have to celebrate it without my dad, who couldn't join the celebrations because he caught the flu the day before Christmas Eve. :( But we thought of him a lot and he got his presents the next day and by now he's fine again, so thanks for that at least!
My mum picked me up around 6pm on Christmas Eve and we drove to my brother's flat. Those who have been reading my journal for a bit longer probably remember that we usually celebrate at my parents' place, but this time my brother complained that he and his girlfriend always put so much effort into decorating their Christmas tree and nobody ever looks at it, so we decided to celebrate Christmas at their place and give the tree the attention it deserves. ;) When Mum and I arrived, my brother immediately ushered us into the living room where he and his girlfriend had set a quite awesome Christmas dinner table. There was incredibly yummy local beer, three types of Scotch (nom nom nom!), and (same procedure as every year), our traditional dish of Russian Eggs, prepared by my grandma. My brother's girlfriend was celebrating with her parents and her sister, but she joined us later.
After the very yummy dinner, we started unwrapping our gifts. I had brought everything that I got in the mail (unopened, of course! XD), and actually managed to wait until both my brother and my mum had opened their gifts. Mum got a Senseo coffee machine from my brother and his girlfriend, and since they have the same machine, we immediately got a presentation of the functions (and very yummy coffee!). Too bad my brother and I hadn't talked about the presents in beforehand, because my present for my mum was about a kilo of freshly ground coffee from several countries in South America and the Caribbean, and for the new machine she needs coffee pads. ;) Ah well, at least she still has her old coffee machine. XD
Our Christmas tree with all the presents! By the way, my dad painted the picture above it. :D
"El Pollo Diablo" from the "Monkey Island 3" game, painted by my brother. XD I LOVE IT.
My brother and his girlfriend set a great table!
Our Christmas dinner: Russian Eggs!
See the Scotch bottles in the background? There was Johnnie Walker Red Label, Ballentines and Glenmorangie - my absolute favourite!
A souvenir from this year's Oktoberfest... XD *nudges july_v
And then, whilst sipping Scotch on the rocks, I unwrapped my gifts. And couldn't believe my eyes.
ombu_tree sent me this adorable Christmas card and a postcard calendar of Sydney, which I put up in my office so I can look at pretty pictures at work. :D Thank you so much!
The Athletic Club Foundation sent me a Christmas card drawn by a 5-year-old girl who won a postcard competition!
My parents got me this awesome radio/CD-player (which can even play data on a USB-stick and a SD card!) so I don't have to cook without music anymore!
My parents also got me yummy chocolate!
crazy_girl_86, arancione and jenlan sent me Christmas cards! Thanks a ton!!
My brother and his girlfriend got me a calendar from Nichtlustig and two Tintin comics!
The Farmer gave me this very useful lamp for my kitchen to illuminate my sink! XD
The wonderful zimena sent me this awesome Athletic photo including the lyrics of the anthem, a card and a pocket notebook! Thank you so much, Countess! The photo is now on my wall at work, hehe.
The amazing Kellie sent me a phallic postcard and a book about codfish! I nearly died laughing when I found that book in my mail! Though judging by the reviews the book got on Amazon, it must be a really amazing book and I can't wait to read it!
John, the guy who accompanied me to the Europa League match in Salzburg, sent me a scarf from the Bayern-ManCity match, a match programme, a card and a postcard of Manchester.
bibi_bloom officially wins the title of "Person Who Picks The Best Cards"! XDD The one last year made me laugh like a loon, and so did this one!! Also, I got an Argentine film which I'm very excited about! Thank you, Bibi, you rock!!
xurda87 sent me the gift that got the most attention from my family: A figure of Olentzero (the Basque equivalent of Santa Claus and - if you remember - the guy that the Athletic and Real Sociedad players sang about in their hilarious Christmas Carol!), a sack of coal (because apparently I've been very bad XD), some yummy turrón, two mini-calendars (especially great because they have the months in Euskera on them!), a Christmas card and a letter! :D I also got a BBK pen with a magnetic cap but I'm using it already and forgot to include it in the picture. Milesker, Iratxe!! :D
My princess july_v actually promised to give me Javi and Fer for Christmas (and then promised to travel here and put herself underneath my Christmas tree!), but in the end I didn't get any of that. However, I got a "Men In Black" double DVD, a very interesting Christmas card (spot Fernando Llorente there? XD), a gingerbread heart to remind me that I have a sweet princess, a postcard about amusing oneself royally (AHAHAHAHAH!), and lots of sweets and chocolate! *glomps best princess ever*
The wonderful blue_eyed_miss sent me a Spanish language calendar (now on the desk in my office so I can learn a new sentence in Spanish every day! :D), two Liverpool pens, a Liverpool air freshener, a pyramid game, Liverpool chewing gum (I don't know if you can get any player's picture and number, but I love you for picking Carra's!! :D), a letter, a card, and British Christmas sweets!!! Mince pies, Christmas puddings, little cube cakes, chocolates... mmmmmm. I love British Christmas food so I'm going to enjoy this lots and lots. Thanks a million, Becky!!
My queen sheep_emilia gave me a huge surprise by sending me all this!! A Liverpool scarf, a Liverpool poster (I put that up in my office next to my Athletic poster, hehe!), a huge Athletic sticker, a player card that features Fernando Llorente (omg!) and Dani Jarque on the other side (after going "omg!" I got a bit sad because he died way too early), amazing stamps featuring the World Cup and Fernando Llorente (dude, how did you find these???? O_O), and DELICIOUS sweets and crisps and the like from Israel! I've tried several types of crisps already and they're incredibly yummy. Devil's stuff, in fact, because you can't stop eating, they're just so good. :D Thank you so much, my wonderful queen!!!
jennis_footie sent me "The Book of Awesome" (do you want to tell me something with this? XDD), some delicious-looking chocolates, ginger tea, and a Christmas card!! Thank you so much for this, Jenni!!! It only arrived today but it made me VERY happy nevertheless!!
The most surprising Christmas present of the year came from the Basque Country. On Christmas Eve, before my mum picked me up, I had a little conversation on Twitter with a guy called Andoni - we'd been following each other for a while and even though we don't talk much on Twitter, we get along well - and he said that he and his friend Benja (who was one of the first people in the Basque Country to find and add me on Twitter and chat with me in Spanish) would hit the town later. I wished them a good time and told him to say hi to Benja from me.
In response, they tweeted this picture for me, wishing me a Merry Christmas:
But that's not even the most surprising part. A few days later I got a direct message from Benja in which he asked me for my address so he could send me a Christmas letter. I thought that nothing would probably come of this because they probably have better stuff to do than to write letters to a guy they have never met or spoken to in person, a guy who lives in a different country and all. But, why not, let them have my address.
Then, on the Friday before New Year's, I found an envelope from Bilbao in my mailbox. And in it, there was this:
A letter (with an ikurrina and a Christmas tree drawn on it), a window sticker of Athletic (the gabarra!! ♥), a little purse (the new home for my spare camera battery and SD card!), and a necklace with a lauburu! I guess it's an understatement to say that I was pretty speechless!
True friendship is not about material things. The time and consideration and effort people put into making me happy all throughout the year is worth a lot more than a Christmas gift. However, I am one of the few incredibly lucky people on this planet to have kind, amazing, wonderful and extremely generous friends who don't just make me happy throughout the year but also think of me at Christmas time and do everything to see me smile and laugh and grin and just have a great time. For this, I am eternally grateful. More grateful than I can say with words here. I really have the bestest (yes, the extra superlative is appropriate here!) of friends. :)
On the next day, we went to my grandma for our annual Christmas Day lunch, and it was once again delicious! We had two different kinds of sauces/stews with 3 sorts of dumplings and lots of cake and cookies!
The dark sauce/stew had beef and mushrooms in it and was very spicy.
The light sauce had pork and mushrooms and paprika. Nom nom!
I tried the dark one first.
Raspberry yoghurt cake and home-made cookies!
Christmas stollen!
I hope that your Christmas was as fantastic as mine was!! :)
Last year's Christmas was definitely one of the best EVER. It would have been the best Christmas of my life if I didn't have to celebrate it without my dad, who couldn't join the celebrations because he caught the flu the day before Christmas Eve. :( But we thought of him a lot and he got his presents the next day and by now he's fine again, so thanks for that at least!
My mum picked me up around 6pm on Christmas Eve and we drove to my brother's flat. Those who have been reading my journal for a bit longer probably remember that we usually celebrate at my parents' place, but this time my brother complained that he and his girlfriend always put so much effort into decorating their Christmas tree and nobody ever looks at it, so we decided to celebrate Christmas at their place and give the tree the attention it deserves. ;) When Mum and I arrived, my brother immediately ushered us into the living room where he and his girlfriend had set a quite awesome Christmas dinner table. There was incredibly yummy local beer, three types of Scotch (nom nom nom!), and (same procedure as every year), our traditional dish of Russian Eggs, prepared by my grandma. My brother's girlfriend was celebrating with her parents and her sister, but she joined us later.
After the very yummy dinner, we started unwrapping our gifts. I had brought everything that I got in the mail (unopened, of course! XD), and actually managed to wait until both my brother and my mum had opened their gifts. Mum got a Senseo coffee machine from my brother and his girlfriend, and since they have the same machine, we immediately got a presentation of the functions (and very yummy coffee!). Too bad my brother and I hadn't talked about the presents in beforehand, because my present for my mum was about a kilo of freshly ground coffee from several countries in South America and the Caribbean, and for the new machine she needs coffee pads. ;) Ah well, at least she still has her old coffee machine. XD
Our Christmas tree with all the presents! By the way, my dad painted the picture above it. :D
"El Pollo Diablo" from the "Monkey Island 3" game, painted by my brother. XD I LOVE IT.
My brother and his girlfriend set a great table!
Our Christmas dinner: Russian Eggs!
See the Scotch bottles in the background? There was Johnnie Walker Red Label, Ballentines and Glenmorangie - my absolute favourite!
A souvenir from this year's Oktoberfest... XD *nudges july_v
And then, whilst sipping Scotch on the rocks, I unwrapped my gifts. And couldn't believe my eyes.
ombu_tree sent me this adorable Christmas card and a postcard calendar of Sydney, which I put up in my office so I can look at pretty pictures at work. :D Thank you so much!
The Athletic Club Foundation sent me a Christmas card drawn by a 5-year-old girl who won a postcard competition!
My parents got me this awesome radio/CD-player (which can even play data on a USB-stick and a SD card!) so I don't have to cook without music anymore!
My parents also got me yummy chocolate!
crazy_girl_86, arancione and jenlan sent me Christmas cards! Thanks a ton!!
My brother and his girlfriend got me a calendar from Nichtlustig and two Tintin comics!
The Farmer gave me this very useful lamp for my kitchen to illuminate my sink! XD
The wonderful zimena sent me this awesome Athletic photo including the lyrics of the anthem, a card and a pocket notebook! Thank you so much, Countess! The photo is now on my wall at work, hehe.
The amazing Kellie sent me a phallic postcard and a book about codfish! I nearly died laughing when I found that book in my mail! Though judging by the reviews the book got on Amazon, it must be a really amazing book and I can't wait to read it!
John, the guy who accompanied me to the Europa League match in Salzburg, sent me a scarf from the Bayern-ManCity match, a match programme, a card and a postcard of Manchester.
bibi_bloom officially wins the title of "Person Who Picks The Best Cards"! XDD The one last year made me laugh like a loon, and so did this one!! Also, I got an Argentine film which I'm very excited about! Thank you, Bibi, you rock!!
xurda87 sent me the gift that got the most attention from my family: A figure of Olentzero (the Basque equivalent of Santa Claus and - if you remember - the guy that the Athletic and Real Sociedad players sang about in their hilarious Christmas Carol!), a sack of coal (because apparently I've been very bad XD), some yummy turrón, two mini-calendars (especially great because they have the months in Euskera on them!), a Christmas card and a letter! :D I also got a BBK pen with a magnetic cap but I'm using it already and forgot to include it in the picture. Milesker, Iratxe!! :D
My princess july_v actually promised to give me Javi and Fer for Christmas (and then promised to travel here and put herself underneath my Christmas tree!), but in the end I didn't get any of that. However, I got a "Men In Black" double DVD, a very interesting Christmas card (spot Fernando Llorente there? XD), a gingerbread heart to remind me that I have a sweet princess, a postcard about amusing oneself royally (AHAHAHAHAH!), and lots of sweets and chocolate! *glomps best princess ever*
The wonderful blue_eyed_miss sent me a Spanish language calendar (now on the desk in my office so I can learn a new sentence in Spanish every day! :D), two Liverpool pens, a Liverpool air freshener, a pyramid game, Liverpool chewing gum (I don't know if you can get any player's picture and number, but I love you for picking Carra's!! :D), a letter, a card, and British Christmas sweets!!! Mince pies, Christmas puddings, little cube cakes, chocolates... mmmmmm. I love British Christmas food so I'm going to enjoy this lots and lots. Thanks a million, Becky!!
My queen sheep_emilia gave me a huge surprise by sending me all this!! A Liverpool scarf, a Liverpool poster (I put that up in my office next to my Athletic poster, hehe!), a huge Athletic sticker, a player card that features Fernando Llorente (omg!) and Dani Jarque on the other side (after going "omg!" I got a bit sad because he died way too early), amazing stamps featuring the World Cup and Fernando Llorente (dude, how did you find these???? O_O), and DELICIOUS sweets and crisps and the like from Israel! I've tried several types of crisps already and they're incredibly yummy. Devil's stuff, in fact, because you can't stop eating, they're just so good. :D Thank you so much, my wonderful queen!!!
jennis_footie sent me "The Book of Awesome" (do you want to tell me something with this? XDD), some delicious-looking chocolates, ginger tea, and a Christmas card!! Thank you so much for this, Jenni!!! It only arrived today but it made me VERY happy nevertheless!!
The most surprising Christmas present of the year came from the Basque Country. On Christmas Eve, before my mum picked me up, I had a little conversation on Twitter with a guy called Andoni - we'd been following each other for a while and even though we don't talk much on Twitter, we get along well - and he said that he and his friend Benja (who was one of the first people in the Basque Country to find and add me on Twitter and chat with me in Spanish) would hit the town later. I wished them a good time and told him to say hi to Benja from me.
In response, they tweeted this picture for me, wishing me a Merry Christmas:
But that's not even the most surprising part. A few days later I got a direct message from Benja in which he asked me for my address so he could send me a Christmas letter. I thought that nothing would probably come of this because they probably have better stuff to do than to write letters to a guy they have never met or spoken to in person, a guy who lives in a different country and all. But, why not, let them have my address.
Then, on the Friday before New Year's, I found an envelope from Bilbao in my mailbox. And in it, there was this:
A letter (with an ikurrina and a Christmas tree drawn on it), a window sticker of Athletic (the gabarra!! ♥), a little purse (the new home for my spare camera battery and SD card!), and a necklace with a lauburu! I guess it's an understatement to say that I was pretty speechless!
True friendship is not about material things. The time and consideration and effort people put into making me happy all throughout the year is worth a lot more than a Christmas gift. However, I am one of the few incredibly lucky people on this planet to have kind, amazing, wonderful and extremely generous friends who don't just make me happy throughout the year but also think of me at Christmas time and do everything to see me smile and laugh and grin and just have a great time. For this, I am eternally grateful. More grateful than I can say with words here. I really have the bestest (yes, the extra superlative is appropriate here!) of friends. :)
On the next day, we went to my grandma for our annual Christmas Day lunch, and it was once again delicious! We had two different kinds of sauces/stews with 3 sorts of dumplings and lots of cake and cookies!
The dark sauce/stew had beef and mushrooms in it and was very spicy.
The light sauce had pork and mushrooms and paprika. Nom nom!
I tried the dark one first.
Raspberry yoghurt cake and home-made cookies!
Christmas stollen!
I hope that your Christmas was as fantastic as mine was!! :)