Eve

– All done?
– I don't know. I'm running out of steam. It's getting late. Maybe time to call it a day.
– Best not to attempt stuffing the turkey when you're tired. The consequences are too dreadful to think about.
– Probably. If I get up early enough tomorrow, I should have time before breakfast.
– Nothing quite like manhandling a dead turkey on an empty stomach.
– Perhaps I'll get up early enough to have breakfast first.
– It will be Christmas Day. You should have a lie-in on Christmas Day. Gone are the days when small children would start leaping on your bed at 5 in the morning.
– Indeed.
– What time does the cat wake up?
– About 5 in the morning.
– Well, it'll be just like having small children running around the house again. That'll be something to look forward to. Especially as the cat won't be as demanding: a bowl of food and a warm radiator and she'll be fast asleep for the rest of the day. Small children, on the other hand, need to be entertained for hours before they crash out. And the cat will be happy to hoover up stray bits of turkey. Whereas children tend to grumble if you feed them on nothing but scraps.
– There are also some bits of wrapping left to do. Nothing urgent. But it never feels right to be wrapping Christmas presents on the day itself. Let alone on Boxing Day. I ought to do some now... You know, there's a carol that keeps going round my head.
– Probably a sign of intense fatigue. I would keep away from the scissors if I were you.
– Then why should men on earth be so sad?
– That's a difficult one to answer. Why do you ask?
– No, that's the carol that keeps going round my head.
– Right. You should definitely keep away from the scissors.