Hard to believe, but I think it's time for us to start thinking about Christmas! I think that we are going to make a start on the Christmas shopping tomorrow, because before we know it Christmas will have arrived. I can't help thinking about the fantastic time we had last year in New York, we really enjoyed being in a town that was visually part of our Christmas experience thanks to all the celluloid memories we have acquired over the years. Waking up on Christmas morning in our great little apartment on west 18th street, exchanging simple gifts with Orynthia and Ashton, lunch at the splendid Empire Diner and then a long walk along the Hudson river in cold clear intense sunshine. It was a very different kind of Christmas for us, made even more enjoyable for the simplicity of it all. This year, it's back to normal and although you hear a lot of people moaning about the whole Christmas thing, I have to say that for the most part I enjoy it. I enjoy the shopping experience, I do think it's great fun trying to get the right gift for the right person. You can't always do it, but when you spot the perfect present for someone it's a really nice feeling.

We had a lovely evening last night, went over to Orynthia's Mum and Dad's for another get together with Don's brother from Burma. At times, I felt as though I was an extra in the Burmese version of the old Woody Allen film Broadway Danny Rose, as the 4 brothers and 1 sister sat around and swapped tails of teenage high jinks from 50 years ago. The years just seamed to drift away as the stories came thick and fast. Then we enjoyed a huge array of splendid Burmese food (much of it cooked by Orynthia) before heading home.