So here is the obligatory Christmas post. I spent the holidays at my parents’, as usual. Though this year, I did all of the cooking on my own, because my Mom was in hospital until a few days ago and still isn’t 100% well. I also forgot my camera, so the following are all smartphone pics.
So let’s have some photos:

The Madonna of the Burning Heart, which is not a miracle, but a kitschy votive candle holder. Though it inspired my crime short “Our Lady of the Burning Heart”, where she puts the fear of god into a small time crook.

Wrapped presents (mine). Except for the hairdryer, because I used it a day before Christmas. For why should I keep using the old, annoying hairdryer, when I have a brandnew one just sitting there?

Unwrapped presents (my Dad’s). The Wonder Woman DVD is from me. I actually wanted to buy him a different movie, but when two stores didn’t have it, I bought Wonder Woman instead. After all, my Dad says he had a bunch of golden age Wonder Woman comics inherited from an older cousin.
Coincidentally, this is the first year I don’t have to “censor” the calendar with strategically placed socks and the like, because the model on the cover is wearing a top.

Unwrapped presents (my Mom’s): The books are the German versions of “Midnight Bayou” by Nora Roberts and “Honour’s Knight” by Rachel Bach respectively.

Unwrapped presents (mine). The books are evenly split between romance (Alyssa Cole), mystery/thriller (Rachel Caine and G.B. Williams) and science fiction (Mike Brooks and Catherine Cerveny). The gender split is one man (Mike Brooks) and five women.

Christmas eve afternoon coffee with holiday cookies and a vintage Scandinavian Modern candleholder. I rediscovered the candleholder in a closet and liked it so much I promptly put it on the table.

Christmas Eve dinner: Cobb salad, olive bread and truffle butter. I decided to forego the herring salad this year, because it is too much work for just one person to make.

And here is the pickle tray to go with the sailor’s curry (clockwise from top left to bottom right): Mango chutney, pickled beetroot, banana, hard-boiled egg, lime pickle, chopped gherkin, chopped onion, atjar tjampoer
For more about sailor’s curry, see this post from 2016. And yes, I decided to take my own advice and use the dish in a space opera setting.

Christmas is also Star Wars time, so enjoy Paige, Rose, Chewie, a Porg and a random panda pose for a picture.
And that’s it for today. I hope you all had a lovely Christmas or other seasonal holiday of your choice.
Happy Holidays, Cora! Thanks for sharing so much of your celebration, it was lovely to see.
And a happy holidays right back to you, JJ. Glad you enjoyed the holiday posts and tweets.
Belated Merry Christmas and a Healthy New Year to you and your family. I always read your own posts, they’re very interesting in their depth and articulate in their opinions.
Thanks. It’s good to hear from you again. A belated Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy new year right back to you.