[Niamh.]

Originally Posted by MTVN

Great messages Barry, Ammi and Rusti

Feel like every year I just post the Pogues and Bad Santa content so this year I have done a poem. Have written this over a lovely pint of Guinness in Dublin where I am enjoying a quick pre-Christmas getaway. I am actually seeing the Pogues here later this evening so can't think of anything more Christmassy than that and there's some very cheerful festive vibes in the city.

Jolly James saves Christmas

Twas just a week before Christmas
But Santa's work was not yet done:
He knew this list was vital business
But it was no ones idea of fun.
How to decide who's naughty and nice;
He turned to an old friend for advice.
So he paid a visit to James at the Towers;
There he stayed for hours and hours.
Niamh and Annie were there on standby
To explain every ban and infraction.
'Dear me what a mean interaction!'
Santa despaired with a cry.
The naughty list was growing by the second
Until James called him over and beckoned.

'Now look Santa we've had our tough times;
Some members have had their beef.
But let us now forgive them these crimes:
It's time to turn over a new leaf.
It is Christmas, after all
And the members are having such a ball;
Just look at the advent calendar thread
And let's add names to the nice list instead'.
Santa went to give it a read
And afterwards he had to agree
That the joy was there for all to see
'Presents all round' he now decreed.
With that he flew off into the night
Wishing a Merry Christmas to all on this site.

And here's a bit of Chris de Burgh to round it off

Youtube video

Merry Christmas all and here's to another great year on the forum

That's brilliant Matt Enjoy the concert

[Ammi]

……wonderful poetry with that Dublin touch…have a lovely evening and an excellent Christmas, Matt……

[Cherie]

Originally Posted by MTVN

Great messages Barry, Ammi and Rusti

Feel like every year I just post the Pogues and Bad Santa content so this year I have done a poem. Have written this over a lovely pint of Guinness in Dublin where I am enjoying a quick pre-Christmas getaway. I am actually seeing the Pogues here later this evening so can't think of anything more Christmassy than that and there's some very cheerful festive vibes in the city.

Jolly James saves Christmas

Twas just a week before Christmas
But Santa's work was not yet done:
He knew this list was vital business
But it was no ones idea of fun.
How to decide who's naughty and nice;
He turned to an old friend for advice.
So he paid a visit to James at the Towers;
There he stayed for hours and hours.
Niamh and Annie were there on standby
To explain every ban and infraction.
'Dear me what a mean interaction!'
Santa despaired with a cry.
The naughty list was growing by the second
Until James called him over and beckoned.

'Now look Santa we've had our tough times;
Some members have had their beef.
But let us now forgive them these crimes:
It's time to turn over a new leaf.
It is Christmas, after all
And the members are having such a ball;
Just look at the advent calendar thread
And let's add names to the nice list instead'.
Santa went to give it a read
And afterwards he had to agree
That the joy was there for all to see
'Presents all round' he now decreed.
With that he flew off into the night
Wishing a Merry Christmas to all on this site.

And here's a bit of Chris de Burgh to round it off

Youtube video

Merry Christmas all and here's to another great year on the forum

have a great time with the Dubs Matt

[rusticgal]

Brilliant Matt…the Guinness worked a treat

[MTVN]

Originally Posted by Holly Christmas

Aah genius Matt. That's amazing. Great job. Merry Christmas to you and yours. Xx

Originally Posted by ChristmasNeeve

That's brilliant Matt Enjoy the concert

Originally Posted by Pigeon Lady

……wonderful poetry with that Dublin touch…have a lovely evening and an excellent Christmas, Matt……

Originally Posted by Cherie Christmas

have a great time with the Dubs Matt

Originally Posted by Rustic bauble

Brilliant Matt…the Guinness worked a treat

One of the best gigs I've ever seen tonight. Crowd so lively and a stream of special guests who all did real justice to the Pogues songs. The Wallopers were out in force and did a great job @Pigeon Lady

Shane McGowan's wife came out at the end and said a few words too which was a lovely touch

[Ammi]

Originally Posted by MTVN

One of the best gigs I've ever seen tonight. Crowd so lively and a stream of special guests who all did real justice to the Pogues songs. The Wallopers were out in force and did a great job @Pigeon Lady

Shane McGowan's wife came out at the end and said a few words too which was a lovely touch

….ahhhhh, if you didn’t have the Christmas spirit in your soul before then I’m sure that Dublin has put it right there for you…such an amazing and special memory for you and everyone there……

[Cherie]

Originally Posted by MTVN

One of the best gigs I've ever seen tonight. Crowd so lively and a stream of special guests who all did real justice to the Pogues songs. The Wallopers were out in force and did a great job @Pigeon Lady

Shane McGowan's wife came out at the end and said a few words too which was a lovely touch

that was a nice touch, I feel you probably have some Irish blood in you somewhere Matt, you give off an Irishy vibe

[Niamh.]

Originally Posted by MTVN

One of the best gigs I've ever seen tonight. Crowd so lively and a stream of special guests who all did real justice to the Pogues songs. The Wallopers were out in force and did a great job @Pigeon Lady



Shane McGowan's wife came out at the end and said a few words too which was a lovely touch

Ah brilliant have you been anywhere else in Ireland besides Dublin?

[Beso]

https://youtu.be/arY57gOCdV8?si=_ZOkT9_o8AX4Hdt2

[Kazanne]

Starting with something for everyone

Youtube video

HOPE........
We can lose many things in life
We may find we have had our share of strife
But the one thing you never want to lose
Is your hope, you get to choose.

You can stay focused on the negative today
You can blame others in every way
But at the end of it all,
Our hope will prevent us from a fall.

You see focusing on things will get better
Will keep our lives centered
To look forward with positive hope
Rather than sit around and mope.
Hope you all have a fab Christmas and a hopeful 2025 xxxx

Spoiler:

[Kate!]

That's perfect Kaz.

Merry Christmas to you and your lovely family. Xx

[Zizu]

Youtube video

[Cherie]

Kaz I hope we dont have to wait until 2035 for Hope

Merry Christmas Kaz and family

[Kazanne]

Originally Posted by Cherie Christmas

Kaz I hope we dont have to wait until 2035 for Hope

Merry Christmas Kaz and family

OOOOps silly me ,I have edited it now,eagle eyed Cherie,i hope you and yours have the best of times.xx

[Niamh.]

Lovely message Kaz

[Ammi]

…beautiful words, Kaz……I wish you and your loved ones a wonderful Christmas and a safe and happy 2025….…

[AnnieK]

Some fantastic messages over the last few days. This years advent calendar has been amazing

[Maru]

Full size (4K): https://i.postimg.cc/MxVqmnxV/231212-tibb-eye-2024.jpg
Full size (No Text): https://i.postimg.cc/Rmjvt7rv/231212...-sans-text.jpg

I reworked last year's wallpaper to be current and chosen a song for the mood of the day. Please enjoy

Youtube video

[rusticgal]

Lovely words Kaz….happy Christmas

[Ammi]

Originally Posted by MaRuDolph

Full size (4K): https://i.postimg.cc/MxVqmnxV/231212-tibb-eye-2024.jpg
Full size (No Text): https://i.postimg.cc/Rmjvt7rv/231212...-sans-text.jpg

I reworked last year's wallpaper to be current and chosen a song for the mood of the day. Please enjoy

Youtube video

..you’re so incredibly talented in creating images, Maru…thank you for sharing that talent with us…and also a perfect music choice, I loved it……a very Merry Christmas to you and your lovely little Miss Maru and your big Mr Maru……

[Cherie]

Originally Posted by MaRuDolph

Full size (4K): https://i.postimg.cc/MxVqmnxV/231212-tibb-eye-2024.jpg
Full size (No Text): https://i.postimg.cc/Rmjvt7rv/231212...-sans-text.jpg

I reworked last year's wallpaper to be current and chosen a song for the mood of the day. Please enjoy

Youtube video

Very talented Maru, Merry Christmas:love;

[Kazanne]

[Ammi]

Originally Posted by Tinsel balls

……

[Kate!]

Amazing entry @MaRuDolph

[Maru]

Originally Posted by Tinsel balls

Reminds me of those Myspace posts we used to leave on people's profiles

Originally Posted by Pigeon Lady

..you’re so incredibly talented in creating images, Maru…thank you for sharing that talent with us…and also a perfect music choice, I loved it……a very Merry Christmas to you and your lovely little Miss Maru and your big Mr Maru……

Originally Posted by Cherie Christmas

Very talented Maru, Merry Christmas:love;

Originally Posted by Holly Christmas

Amazing entry @MaRuDolph

Thanks <3 I still have yet to catch up on the rest of the thread

Recent Life stuff:

Spoiler:

Holidays have been chaotic. I did get most things in advance this year present-wise but kept getting ideas also and started making new gifts But in-between all that, I've really been struggling with grief this year (and lack of time to deal with any of it).

Anyway, fast forward and we adopted an older pup (6yrs) from the shelter who is also a black lab mix. She fits in perfectly and I swear she knows my other dog's spirit in the home and has caught on really quickly how to integrate and has even picked up her little odd jobs as well. But still her own pup and very well socialized and child-friendly. Not as she was advertised as her owners left a mark on her with vague "not good with small children", which didn't match up with her behavioral screens.. turns out had a 2mo baby after finding the right shelter worker with the not vague reasoning, so not quite an issue with the children so much as the new baby...

My oldest girl passed away in October from cancer (Hemangiosarcoma) as I'd mentioned in another thread (not its own...). Holidays have been grim in recent years with a death every holiday season it feels like and this year, I think because of this big loss, all that grief caught up, I suppose. I cried several days before making the decision to adopt and otw to the shelter to screen. I knew it was going to be grief no matter when I went as it'd be closing that chapter out for sure, but the empty house, avoiding the backyard and my other pup also not really being that active as a result of grief couldn't continue.

She has some medical as she'd been in shelter 2 months nearing her end time there and so dealing with the inevitable shelter bugs from overcrowding and there's been a lot of medical care in managing that, getting her weight back up so that her immune system can also recover and keeping everything sanitary to make the process easier. Special dietary food, cooked meals, timing her medications and trying to rehab her tummy. She was not quite emaciated, but it wasn't far off and so could see her body needed a lot of help to get better on its own, otherwise it all becomes cyclical (illness), so we're doing everything we can first. (She's gained 1.4lb (0.1 stone?) in 7 days since start of treatment, so we're on the right track..)

And I wouldn't have it any other way. It's keeping me active and I'm not sitting in grief. My other pup is just happy for the new energy in the house. He and my prior girl before she passed were used to little pup friends coming and going for staying/rehab and so he is just glad our own dog family continues on with another special member to continue that tradition. But yes, it's brought much needed joy to the house after months of grief and worrying over my other little guy. I also welcome the hysterical responses to a quiet street suddenly becoming busier with the unprompted visit of a Fedex/Amazon visit, sneaky dog walkers and at the backdoor, the playful teasing of the dozen squirrels that come into our yard into the daily to play on our swingsets and to bury/unbury their Winter Pecans... all as it should be.