Tangled tinsel and labile lights

On December 1st the Christmas season was thrust upon me with force, as, in the course of one evening, I attended my Dad's retirement village Christmas dinner, before leaving to make it down town to meet GASP and the boys to watch Santa switch on the lights in the local town and then heading home to settle down for the Late Late Toy Show. Talk about overload ! I woke up on Saturday, still moderately hormonal and considered the fact that our 14 year old artificial tree would have to be erected over the next week. This led to a mini internal revolt, where I decided I could not physically put the same decorations up AGAIN and that action would have to be taken. The tree always looked as if a 4 year old had decorated it, and people smiled at it thinking I had left the boys to it, but the truth is, it was usually decorated by me...the very unimaginative, non artistic me. Enough was enough ! I was determined that I would find some love for the tree again, so traipsed the boys off to the shops and we came home with a box of new shiny balls and some individual decorations chosen by them....obviously all within my newly chosen colour scheme. I advised GASP that he was to bring down all the old decorations so I could dispose of those which truly annoyed me. GASP, a man who knows a woman on a mission when he sees one, did not hesitate and went straight up into the attic...I reckon he was sussing it out as a possible alternative dwelling should my humour further decline ! I duly ripped open old boxes and cartons and disposed of, or packed away, those decorations I could no longer look at, looked tired or dull or tacky.
I felt much lighter after my festive feng shui and when the 8 year old asked if we could put up the tree, I actually agreed...one week earlier than anticipated. GASP took out the 200 LED lights, plugged them in and in the true style of Sod's law, only 100 bloody lit up ! F****ng typical!!! The green sad looking tree remained in the sitting room and I promised to buy new lights the following day day. I duly headed to work, mentioned my Christmas decor frustration and was given advice by the Adorable Cynic that I would need 2 sets of lights , one to wrap deep inside the tree to deepen the lighting effect and then 100 lights per 18 inches of tree !! Who knew...twas no wonder my tree looked like crap previously...I hadn't an "elfin" clue ! I duly purchased 580 warm white LED lights with 8 functions for half price and headed home to decorate my " new" tree. While GASP managed to tangle up the perfectly bound and ordered lights I followed the advice, burying one set deep in the little tree and then circling the other 480 lights around and around. With glee I took the acceptable, sentimental salvaged decorations from the previous years and dotted them around the tree, excitedly waiting to carefully place the shiny new baubles.Nothing like a set of shiny new balls to get a girl excited . With increasing excitement I opened the box to find that these golden balls needed a tree hook to hang them....FFS !!!! Not a sign of the old plastic green hooks anywhere ! So Day one, just a tree, Day 2 a lit but sparsely decorated tree and now waiting for Day 3 to finish decorating the tree....it's only 5 feet feckin' tall !!!
Finally, after a mini melt down, a spending spree, a false start, a second trip to the shops and a third night of effort the little sparkling tree is ADORABLE and makes me smile. It actually looks as if an adult decorated it but right at its centre is a golden Paddington Bear reminding me and all of us about what it's all about. In fact this little episode cheered me up so much, I settled some of my outstanding debt with GASP ...well it is Christmas !