The 2021 'Bah Humbug' Christmas thread.. 🎅

[oldwheels]

I did nowt to cause upset to anyone.
Not sure what local customs you are implying I flouted.
Hell I didn't do any washing (not that I need much encouragement to neglect that) on the sabbath.

Thread has taken an interesting turn I must say.

Am warming more to the banishment of religion from Christmas (and the rest of the year) though.

You may not be aware that in some extreme quarters even going for a walk was not approved of so I cannot say anymore than you what you may have done wrong.
Did you intend to leave on the Sabbath to travel further?
The landlady sounds pretty typical of many I have come across and I have also stayed in some very weird hotels, particularly in Wales.

 

[oldwheels]

Not sure what we did the rest of the dead sunday in stornoway - don't think the plan had ever been to sail away that day anyway so probably had a lucky planning escape - guardian heathen angel looking over us - I think we probably drove off out of town, maybe to that campsite with the admonishing notice about washing. I maybe have a vague memory of wondering what I was actually allowed to do on the sabbath. Drive?
Thinking abiout it, the dodgy charity bookshop (it was religious as I recall) must have been on a day other than sunday - quite probably on a return there later in the week to sail away. I do definitely remember that some of the books were so dodgy I felt that I should protest/make my feelings known.

have a happy christmas all - may your god go with you - as the great Dave Allen used to say back in the much maligned 70s.

Drive? Not unless you were going to church but only if it was too far to walk.
I liked the irreverence of Dave Allen. A sad loss to humour.
I should have mentioned to @bluehills that there has been for many years a well liked and thriving Moslem community in Stornoway.

 

[Blue Hills]

You may not be aware that in some extreme quarters even going for a walk was not approved of so I cannot say anymore than you what you may have done wrong.
Did you intend to leave on the Sabbath to travel further?
The landlady sounds pretty typical of many I have come across and I have also stayed in some very weird hotels, particularly in Wales.

>>The landlady sounds pretty typical of many I have come across and I have also stayed in some very weird hotels, particularly in Wales.

I've never come across anything quite like it I must say - well apart from the one somewhere (can't remember where) who struck the fear of god into her "guests" with her shower rules.

As I said above, I don't think I had a particular plan to sail away that day, so were lucky. We must have left Stornoway to explore the rest of the island that Sunday and overnight somewhere else. Am pretty sure that if I had spent an entire day in Stornoway under those restrictions I would have remembered it - we were out and about pretty early* - would have been stir-crazy as tourist by the end of the day if we had stayed and therefore surely rememberd it. Now my mind drags back I think I even remember seeing one or two folks around - presumably on their way to church or whatever the approved term is - clutching small books/bibles.

Don't remember any burnings though.

 

[Blue Hills]

I liked the irreverence of Dave Allen. A sad loss to humour.

Glad to hear it oldwheels - there was a very nice tribute prog on him made a few years ago - probably a BBC4 production.
I'm pretty sure he wouldn't be allowed on screen these days.

 

[Sterlo]

>>The landlady sounds pretty typical of many I have come across and I have also stayed in some very weird hotels, particularly in Wales.

I've never come across anything quite like it I must say - well apart from the one somewhere (can't remember where) who struck the fear of god into her "guests" with her shower rules.

As I said above, I don't think I had a particular plan to sail away that day, so were lucky. We must have left Stornoway to explore the rest of the island that Sunday and overnight somewhere else. Am pretty sure that if I had spent an entire day in Stornoway under those restrictions I would have remembered it - we were out and about pretty early* - would have been stir-crazy as tourist by the end of the day if we had stayed and therefore surely rememberd it. Now my mind drags back I think I even remember seeing one or two folks around - presumably on their way to church or whatever the approved term is - clutching small books/bibles.

Don't remember any burnings though.

Come on you can't leave it hanging, what "shower rules"?

 

[KnittyNorah]

I should have mentioned to @bluehills that there has been for many years a well liked and thriving Moslem community in Stornoway.

Didn't a Sikh lass - from a very well-established family on one of the islands - win a prestigious prize at the Royal National Mod back in the last century? Or am I misremembering and it was a Scottish-Pakistani teenage girl? I remember it clearly as my father used to follow the results and he's been dead many years.

 

[KnittyNorah]

The landlady sounds pretty typical of many I have come across and I have also stayed in some very weird hotels, particularly in Wales.

My strangest guest house experience was in the Isle of Man. The landlady 'rationed' your breakfast according to what she thought you 'needed', was quite open about it and hostile to any remarks, requests or comments! She was also odd about the showers - they were on a very short time-limited system and woe betide you if they switched off while you were all lathered up, they wouldn't come back on again for half an hour. Which also - even if you 'beat the shower' - made it rather difficult for two of you to get ready as there had to be a half-hour's break between you each having a shower! Fortunately we'd only booked for two nights as we were undecided what to do and where to go for the rest of our time there, and it wasn't in high season.

 

[Jenkins]

With so many places being closed on both the 25th & 26th this year, it's going to be quite funny watching all the poor souls not being able to go shopping.

What will they do instead?

 

[Drago]

My strangest guest house experience was in the Isle of Man. The landlady 'rationed' your breakfast according to what she thought you 'needed', was quite open about it and hostile to any remarks, requests or comments! She was also odd about the showers - they were on a very short time-limited system and woe betide you if they switched off while you were all lathered up, they wouldn't come back on again for half an hour. Which also - even if you 'beat the shower' - made it rather difficult for two of you to get ready as there had to be a half-hour's break between you each having a shower! Fortunately we'd only booked for two nights as we were undecided what to do and where to go for the rest of our time there, and it wasn't in high season.

A quick wink and a flash of my winning style and I'd have all the granola and hot water I could handle.

 

[KnittyNorah]

A quick wink and a flash of my winning style and I'd have all the granola and hot water I could handle.

Yes - thrown after you as you exited, covered in suds!

We didn't stay, as you can imagine - slept there overnight, suffered the 'breakfast' and decamped, still with sticky unrinsed hair in my case, to the very nice place a short distance away and much cheaper too ... where the landlady regaled us with hilarious-in-hindsight stories of other guests who'd decamped to her and to her friends' guest houses and b&bs.

 

[oldwheels]

Didn't a Sikh lass - from a very well-established family on one of the islands - win a prestigious prize at the Royal National Mod back in the last century? Or am I misremembering and it was a Scottish-Pakistani teenage girl? I remember it clearly as my father used to follow the results and he's been dead many years.

More likely Pakistani I think. No idea if there are any Sikhs in residence but it is not impossible. Certainly i know from my business connections that there were Pakistanis in Stornoway as one of them bought a large department store when the owner retired. I did business with them about 25 years ago.
We have Mod Gold Medal winners here but I do not follow results any further than that.
Not sure about the Royal bit.

 

[oldwheels]

Come on you can't leave it hanging, what "shower rules"?

Thread seems to have got a bit mixed up somehow. See @KittyNorah on shower rules.

 

[DRM]

Now we have an new variant of COVID 19, the Omicron B, those who detest Xmas might like to know that it’s a clue from Boris that we’ll all be in lockdown again with Xmas cancelled, the reason for this is it’s an anagram of ……No Crimbo! I’ll get me coat

 

[gavgav]

Chap opposite me in the cul de sac, had his full outdoor Christmas lights, inflatable snowman, etc, up 1st weekend in November. I mean I actually quite like some of the Christmas tradition, but that is WAY too early. Mine will go up around the 10th and it will be just a few indoor things

 

[Brandane]

I have worked a lot of Christmas days during my adult life. First 3 after leaving school, I was at sea in the Merchant Navy. Christmas was just another working day, but the catering staff did put on a great meal on each of the ships I was on, and there was plenty alcohol on tap.

Following on from that I joined the Police and from memory, I worked most Christmas days (or nights). On days, I recall buying carry out chinese meals on Christmas day. On nights we were too busy dealing with domestics to find time to eat ourselves. Even when off for the odd Christmas day, you generally found yourself working the days either side. No-one was allowed to take holidays over the Christmas and New Year period due to it being exceptionally busy. Night shift at New Year was your worst nightmare, and I "copped" (!!) that several times.

Even after leaving the Police, I always seem to have found jobs that required festive working to some extent, whether it was driving HGV's, taxis, or care home working. Believe it or not, I played at Santa on Christmas day for 3 years, fully suited up, while working in a care home. So I can't be that much of a Scrooge! 🎅

Perhaps my history of working Christmas is one of the reasons why I am somewhat unfazed by the whole hysteria that seems to erupt amongst some of the population. I just don't get the fuss. Yes, enjoy it, but it is only one day of the year after all, and not a season as we are being groomed to believe.