Snug

Posted on | December 24, 2004 | 4 Comments

Despite everything, I am feeling some Christmas spirit, although it’s not sherry, but James Boag Premium from my brother’s fridge. I travelled to home-town Hobart yesterday, and Christmas seems likely to consist of explaining my out of character behaviour to family and friends (I blame Christian for all of it). Then, should I choose to accept this ‘convivial’ option rather than stay home and read books or blogs, there will be the usual Christmas Eve at Knopwoods questions to deal with. (Knopwoods Retreat on Salamanca Place is the only place anyone under 30 remotely free of nuclear family reproduction goes on Christmas Eve). Scenario:

Looking uncomfortable waiting for friends to arrive after Dinner With the Family, some kind soul spots my sorry state and offers conversation:

[Old school acquaintance]: ‘So how’s Melbourne?’
[Me]: ‘Ah, fine probably, but I live in Brisbane. And before that I lived in Sydney for four years.’
[OSA]: ‘Oh, right. And how’s your mum? She was like, the best teacher.’ (My mum was a teacher at the school I went to, which explains some of my more secret neuroses)
[Me]: ‘Ah, she passed away three years ago.’
[OSA]: ‘Oh, right…’

Thankfully, if all this seems too much, I also have cable television – a whole new world of denial – to immerse myself in. Then there’s the knowledge that I’m staying in a little town called Snug, which can only make me feel better, even though it’s far from the state my mind and heart have decided to hope for.

Category: Travel

Comments

4 Responses to “Snug”

  1. Kate
    December 24th, 2004 @ 12:33 pm

    Hi Meliza,

    You should go to Snug Falls while you’re there. Not sure if my best wishes for christmas reached you last time, so Merry Holidays to the Gregg family. Love Kate

  2. jean
    December 24th, 2004 @ 1:56 pm

    Ah, Mel, all my best. And yes, Christian has a _lot_ to answer for…

  3. Rachel
    December 24th, 2004 @ 5:38 pm

    Hi Melissa,

    Nice to meet you at the ‘net masterclass. I am off work until January 4, so it’s a great time to have that dinnner we were speaking of. At the moment I’m just faffing about the house reading Manovich and Middlesex and baking chocolate cake. It’s wonderful. Let me know when you get back into town? My mob is 0417603652.

    And you’re reading Mr Frank! Do tell me what you think – I’ve read portions of of ‘Commodify Your Dissent’ and a few random Baffler’s but barely made it through the second chapter of ‘One Market…’ before someone stole my copy.

    Anyway….cyu then, and best wishes for the christmas gig,

    Rachel O’Reilly.

  4. Christian McCrea
    December 24th, 2004 @ 7:31 pm

    The best potential that this season has (for those of us without kids, perhaps) is to actually give in to that one genuine gesture of peaceful being… enjoy the danger of a moment of magical thinking.

    I’m sorry … don’t know what for.

    Anyway, now a lengthy quote from Tim Rogers, of http://www.largeprimenumbers.com

    “Writers think that it’s a sign of the creative times that the characters are foul-mothed in their hatred of Christmas, and finally are foul-mouthed in their embrace of goodness. I think it’s very rude of anyone to think that people with more than one emotion in their hearts are so shallow. I say: leave Christmas alone. People can change for better to worse on any day. Revelations go by, pleasantries come to pass, and people see things within themselves or others that reflect an image of peace, or love, and gradually, the broken-down begin to solve their heart’s puzzle one piece at a time until everything is in order. Some people end up good, and some people end up evil. I’ve seen it happen either way. Let’s just stop assuming it always happens on Christmas.

    When you can do that, you’ll find yourself left with Christmas as an excuse. It’s not a day to feel depressed about not having a family. It’s not a day to feel horrible and alone about not having that perfect boyfriend or girlfriend, or husband or wife, or children. What it can be is a day off, and a nice excuse to play a videogame or watch DVDs with the heater turned up in an apartment that isn’t yours, while the owner of said apartment is far away at her brother’s wedding — for three days.”

    That’s daammmmnnn right. Keep Christmas real.

    Mwah,

    Xian