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JEFF: Merry Christmas!
RON: What?
JEFF: Merry Christmas.
RON: Marry Kris Mess?
JEFF: What the hell's wrong with you?
RON: Nothing's wrong with me, I just don't know what you're talking about. Who is Kris Mess?
JEFF: Have you never heard of Christmas?
RON: Oh, CHRISTMAS! No.
JEFF: You've never heard of Christmas?
RON: Well I don't recall it. What is it?
JEFF: It's the 25th of December.
RON: And they're ringing the last bell?
JEFF: What?
RON: What?
JEFF: What?
RON: Sorry. Apart from being that day, what is it?
JEFF: It's when the Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus, and--
RON: Okay, I've heard of Him. He's the guy who always gets His pronoun with a capital letter because the Christians are in control of the English language, right? So it's His birthday?
JEFF: Umm, well not exactly.
RON: Why don't they celebrate His birth on His birthday then?
JEFF: Because they don't know exactly when it is.
RON: Why not?
JEFF: Because He died almost two thousand years ago.
RON: Fair dinkum?
JEFF: Yeah. Look, are you sure you've never heard of any of this?
RON: Not that I recall. Do go on.
JEFF: Okay, well the Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus, not because it's His birthday (though it might be), but just because they need a day to celebrate it. And a lot of other people celebrate it just as a day of being nice to people, giving presents and cards, catching up with family and so on.
RON: Isn't that the kind of thing you should do all year? Being nice to people, and--
JEFF: Well it is, yes, but the difference is on Christmas Day people actually try to do it.
RON: Ah okay.
JEFF: And there's various other parts of the tradition, such as Father Christmas, a jolly fat bloke in a red suit who comes down chimneys in the middle of the night to leave presents.
RON: You made that bit up!
JEFF: No I didn't, honestly.
RON: Well that explains that guy in the shopping centre yesterday. I ran away when he shouted at me.
JEFF: What, "Ho Ho Ho"?
RON: Yeah.
JEFF: So I won't be expecting a present from you this year?
RON: Probably not, no.
JEFF: Ah well, I didn't get you anything anyway.
RON: But most other people give gifts and are nice to each other?
JEFF: Yes. Well, kind of. Actually most of them end up spending all their money on gifts, stuffing themselves with way too much food and having big family arguments instead.
RON: Well that sounds more like it! Yeah! Okay! Merry Christmas!
13: Holiday
