Merry Christmas (part 1)

For the umpteenth time in my reasonably short life, I was pleased to see that the ratio between wrapping and unwrapping Christmas presents remains stable at about 30 to 1. Within a flash, our first Christmas sprang into life this morning. The stack of presents was unwrapped in exactly one thirtieth of the time it took us to wrap them up and the normal debris of the festive season was soon all over the place. I received the anticipated 'Andy' presents; tyre paint, emergency puncture repair etc but I also became the proud owner of some plastic fish. Hmmm. Apparently, that's what I asked for. Hmmm.

Anyway, preparations for our trip are well advanced and well in hand now with just a few final bits and pieces to load. The route has been loaded onto the Lappy as have several films. We are sticking resolutely to our travel plan for the first day (staying at a booked site near Auxerre) and will work out from there where we will stay next. I don't think we will be too adventurous so will not try to avoid the toll roads. The extra expense will probably be worth the peace of mind.

We are now turning our minds to getting the house ready for being empty for the next two weeks. Max (the dog) has gone to the kennels and Mr. Wilks (the cat) will be looked after by our neighbours in return for the loan of a set of cutlery, ten plates and the use of Mrs. F's immaculately pre-cleaned fridge and cooker. I wouldn't be surprised if this is Mr. Wilks' last Christmas actually. Mr. Wilks is named after a 'Fat Cat' director I used to work with. He's very old and very fat and has started doing odd things old fat cats normally do in their twilight moments. The central heating is still on the blink but we'll have to get that sorted when we get back. I'm not sure I want to leave the Christmas lights to come on outside whilst we are away. They resemble the Griswolds and are powered by a series of plugs, extension leads and timer switches. All very dodgy really.

Mrs. F realised for the first time this morning that as we came in below the weight limit of the van that she has the capacity to add more luxuries. Suddenly, the inventory has increased to the extent expected of a travelling superstar. I have had to remind her that the weight limit is a maximum, not a target.

As we are off at 5.30 in the morning, this will be our last update until we get to France. I've checked the travel situation at the Port and it seems the problems of the last few weeks have been resolved. The French strikers either got what they wanted or got bored of striking. Either way, I don't care. The ferry is due to run on time so that is one less worry. The weather looks like it will be kind to us too. The 5 day forecast on our route shows light winds and mild temperatures. There is a small chance of a shower as we approach Spain, but I'll settle for that.

Fingers crossed that when I submit my next update that I will be in a similarly jolly mood.