Dear Lily,
With Christmas now behind us, I’m feeling that familiar creeping sense of dread as I come to terms with the fact that there’s virtually nothing on the horizon except for ominous credit card bills and the overwhelming task of burning off the mountains of party food I foolishly indulged in during the holiday season. To make matters worse, I’ll likely find myself embarrassingly inebriated on cheap Cava at a lackluster New Year’s gathering, waking up on January 1 wrapped up with some unkempt gentleman whose name I can’t even remember. Any advice on how to avoid contemplating the worst?
Lily says – This season can be particularly bleak for a lot of folks: the gifts have been opened and most are underwhelming; the Quality Street is gone save for the dreaded orange creams; and the tinsel droops sadly on the fading tree while your horrid grandmother passes gas through the Doctor Who Christmas special. All you have left is to squander the final days of the school break writing half-hearted thank-you notes to hefty ladies named Jean who masquerade as your aunt, and commence the yearly hunt for your swimming kit, which you had carelessly tossed aside at the end of last term while still wet and odorous, likely growing mold in the depths of your wardrobe. But don’t let this get you down. Remind yourself that it won’t be long before you can unveil your new Powerpuff Girls pencil case and impress your classmates with an array of shiny new felt tips and a matching strawberry-scented eraser. If luck is on your side, your peers will be so consumed by envy over your Christmas bounty that any lingering feelings of melancholy will quickly dissipate.
Hope that helps!
