Choose your own Christmas adventure

Lynley Aldridge

Christmas 2020

Christmas greetings

Most beloved of my heart, here is a Christmas gift that allows me to defer all/most/some of the decision making to you after all …

And to have a play with R to generate something that I hope will bring you joy!!

Christmas morning

Because stupid time zones are stupid, let’s pretend it’s Christmas morning, and you’ve just woken up.

If, after thinking of me, your first thought is coffee, turn to Slide 4

If it’s about what’s going to happen in the next episode of DS9, turn to Slide 5

If you’re an armchair epidemiologist processing the latest COVID developments, or a social scientist wanting to read more about what’s going on in the world, turn to Slide 6

If you’re already feeling pretty Tigger-y, and you’re wondering what to do for exercise today, turn to Slide 7

If you’re trying hard to restrain your urge to continue work on your video project, turn to Slide 8

Coffee

You thought of coffee. That’s reasonable. It is the magic beverage that soothes the savage Lynley, after all.

Even Kirk needs his cup, before he’s willing to recklessly disregard Starfleet regulations …

If you agree coffee comes first, turn to Slide 9

If you would rather contemplate violating the prime directive immediately, without even waiting for your coffee to percolate, turn to Slide 10

If both options are unpalatable to you, escape to Slide 11

Star Trek

You thought of Star Trek, are you sure?

Let’s think about priorities for a minute. Mine are clearly shown below (yes, I confess, it was me who butchered the meme).

You are mine and I am yours, always and forever. And that makes me smile as uninhibitedly as our mutual friend.

So I’m going to surprise you by saying I think I know who your first priority would be.

If your second priority would actually be a good read, turn to Slide 6

If, upon reflection, coffee, coffee, coffee is next on your list, turn to Slide 9

But if you would like to double down on your initial choice of Star Trek, turn to Slide 10

If you would rather escape from all these choices altogether, turn to Slide 11

Armchair epidemiology and social science

You said you wanted a good read? Well, how about for Christmas I offer you a gift subscription to a newspaper or publication of your choice?

(I had contemplated this before our discussion on Monday morning!)

Or you could return to the beginning and consider some of the other alternatives offered on Slide 3

Yoga

You’re already contemplating what exercise to do today? Well, how about for Christmas we try out a Find What Feels Good yoga subscription?

Adriene even shares your liking of outdoor rocks!!

Or you could run through this loop again by returning to Slide 3 and exploring some different choices.

Video editing

I’ve loved seeing how much fun you’re having editing climbing (and other) videos. For Christmas, we could always boost your current subscription level with wevideo?

Or maybe one of the other options on Slide 3 is more to your taste?

Coffee Coffee Coffee

You want coffee, coffee, coffee? Be careful with that, when Lorelai Gilmore ordered ‘coffee, coffee, coffee’ at an unfamiliar coffee shop, she walked out with three cups!!

But if it is coffee you want, for Christmas we could get you a subscription of coffee beans - ground to your taste - delivered to your home for a trial 3 months …

Or you could continue perusing the options on Slide 3

From one trekkie to another

This was one of the first Christmas present ideas I had, actually. Maybe we could get ourselves a subscription to CBS All Access to let us try Star Trek: Discovery and/or Star Trek: Picard.

Or you could return to Slide 3 to contemplate some different choices.

Escape

Ah, you found the option to escape this endless loop. Or did you?

I have heard talk of escape rooms in a box that are sent out in the mail. This is a free online game made by the authors to test out their style. If we enjoyed it and found it possible to do with you driving and me sharing your screen, we could consider buying an escape room in a box for a shared Christmas adventure (somewhat delayed).

Unfortunately, however, you have not escaped my endless loop of doom. Follow the link to return to Slide 3.

Congratulations!!!

Or maybe you’ve found the exit after all.

I hope you had fun playing my Christmas choose your own adventure. I had fun making it for you and thinking about how much I love and treasure and truly appreciate you!!!

I look forward to celebrating Christmas with you.

(If you found the exit prematurely, and haven’t yet picked a Christmas gift, use this link to return to the real Slide 3).