Phew, the last couple of weeks have been a time of high endeavour for me. In quiet intervals here in the Proswift office, in between short bouts of doing actual work, I have been beavering away at this blog. I have been spending every spare moment seeking out the latest news-worthy stories from the world of credit systems for you, my loyal readers. Though I say it myself, my last few posts have been just what my boss ordered: meticulously researched, relevant, factual and packed with riveting expert information pertinent to the world of credit card systems. Recent topics have included changes to Credit Regulations and cyber attacks on payment websites by so-called ‘Hacktivists’ in protest at the withdrawal of online payment services to the Wikileak site. Phew, heavy stuff, but I hope you have found it interesting.
Enough of the challenging stuff. My brain needs rest and recuperation. Time for another excursion into that ever-popular series ‘101 Uses for a Dead Credit Card’.
Yesterday dawned bright and sunny (well at least we were able to get out of our driveway without first shoveling our way through 2 feet of snow) and Better Half and I decided to venture out to our friendly local farmyard in search of a Christmas Tree. We have been going to the same place every year for ages now, not far from my house in the suburbs, but a short detour down a quiet lane takes you into another world, a rustic farmyard where enterprising agricultural types have temporarily set up shop flogging trees for the holiday season. Those of you who share my enthusiasm for Radio 4, you will know what I mean when I say it’s like stepping into an episode of the Archers featuring ‘The Grundy World of Christmas’. Those of you not into Radio 4, it’s OK, you can wake up NOW.
A 20-minute trudge through what I hope was farmyard mud inspecting the various species of tree on offer – spruce, Norman fir, Fraser Fir, non-drop, bushy, tall, potted, etc etc - some heated negotiations on the price, and we had cracked it. We found the perfect tree for us: nice and substantial (it took three of us to lug it over to the car), statuesque (2 foot too long to fit in the car) and fresh (two kilos of pine needles were later hoovered up from the car). But it does look great, and has filled the whole house with the scent of pine. Needless to say there was the usual annual battle with the fairy lights, culminating in an emergency dash to the local DIY store to buy a new string.
Which brings me back to the subject in hand: Christmas Decorations, and how to improvise. It strikes me that the very best tree decorations are the home-made sort. Every year I dig out the gold-sprayed pine cones and foil-covered cardboard that my children made 15 years ago back in primary school. There would be a revolution if I ever decided to chuck them out. So what better purpose for that old plastic card at this time of year? Forget the TV and computer games for a couple of hours. Spread the kitchen table with newspaper, get out the PVA glue, glitter, foil, tinsel and scissors, get creative and have some fun!
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