I had all my plans sorted out for a stress-free Christmas and hitherto I’ve not uttered one word of my usual ‘I hate Christmas, bah humbug, bah humbug…….’. I’ve smugly got on with life, knowing that all the things I needed were on order and they would duly arrive as and when I needed them.

Well, as they say, ‘the best laid plans…..’ – it’s past the last posting date for Christmas and I’ve not posted a single card yet. Why not? Because Help The Aged – the charity that I bought the cards from online, delivered them on Friday of last week and we were too busy to sort them out over the weekend because we had a footie match to go to and yesterday was spent with family (both mine and DMs). So, tonight what am I doing instead of sitting enjoying the last few days of ‘festive fun’? I’m writing bloody cards. Gggggrrrrrrr!!!!! So, that's my advent story for today - you can't ever cover all the bases - sometimes things still don't go to plan!

I suppose I’m being doubly grumpy because I have had the most stinking cold for the last ten days or so and despite my best efforts to ignore it and plough on regardless it’s still hanging around and I’m feeling, well, if not completely grotty then certainly quite a bit under par.

So, tonight’s supper is a (waiting downstairs as I type and photographed here) volcanic chilli, sloshed down with some red wine in the hope that one will burn it out of me or the other will at least numb the rest of me so I don’t feel grotty any more.

Can I think of a way around the card problem? No – I either button down and do it or I get myself in the cacky with friends and family alike. (She whispers……..bah hum…..damn, I thought I’d stopped it from coming out!!!) Crap, crap, crap!

So, think of us, half an hour or so after this is posted, mouthes on fire from the chilli, pens in our right hands and wineglasses in our left hands.