All I want for Christmas is...

.......Two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear... no, actually. Why should I have the inclination to participate in the rampant christian propaganda commercialisation of Christmas?


But let us, for the sake of faith in a better future for all(and me, especially), wonder what I want for Christmas.

In the spirit of zen and the abandonment of non-essential material objects, I wish for:

1. Perfect self-discipline and no more procrastination in my life.
2. The persuasive communication skills of Steve Jobs.
3. Luck and opportunity.
4. 4% body fat.
5. An even stronger upper body and the flexibility of olympic gymnasts.
6. For my dad to get a huge raise and the long-delayed acknowledgement from his backward Chinaman company.
7. The ability to reverse dunk a basketball, two-handed(or a 44-inch vertical leap).
8. The ability to climb 7c(5.12c, or 'very fucking hard' for you non-climbers) by the middle of next year(and to be able to do a one-arm pullup by the end of January).
9. To finally master French, and brush up on Japanese.
10.To meet, have a great time with, and charm the hell out of SailorGirl again.

And for the hedonistic, sinful, materialistic list, I wish for:

1. Feta, pecorino, and parmesan cheese; prosciutto(italian ham); capers; red wine and balsamic vinegar; saffron; 1kg of loire valley truffles; codfish, trout and smoked salmon; fresh basil, rosemary, thyme, and oregano; a perfect cut of pork tenderloin; osetia caviar; and a huge magnum/jeroboam/nebuchadnezzar(=20 regular wine bottles!!!!) of a 1990 Moet & Chandon Grande Cuvee.

Great ingredients = Great food.

Great food + Great booze
= Happy, satisfied friends + happy, satiated girls lusting after the cook :)

2. A good cast iron griddle, copper pots, and a Wusthoff knife set, to replace my non-stick pan, stainless-steel pots and carborundum-steel cleaver and cheap knives. Oh, and a stainless steel pasta strainer. I don't wish for much. Just the essentials to cook great food.
3. A two-week snowboard holiday in Argentina in May, and a dive trip to Sipadan and Mabul in September.
4. A Canon Eos 5D with a super-wide-angle lens, to create magic and enrich the lives of those who hunt for beauty.
5. A new, superfast desktop PC with a 30-inch Apple Cinema display.
6. For my business plan to finally get funded.
7. Flying lessons.
8. $10,000 gift certificate for books at Borders/Amazon.com.
9. An American Green Card.
10. A 2006 Yamaha YZF-R1 motorcycle(or a second-hand Ducati Monster 600 if that's too much to ask for).
11. A Ferrari F430(Why not?)