I suppose I'm supposed to be a cynic about this kind of thing...

... but I love Easter. I mean, it's such a brilliantly useless holiday... based around CONFECTIONARY, of all things. What's not to love?

Christmas frequently makes me feel a smidgen guilty. I love the food, the booze, the generally festive atmosphere and, of course, the presents, but all of the above inevitably leads onto guilt about Those Less Fortune etc. Tin rattlers corner me on the street and in desperation I make a monthly pledge I probably can't afford but will never get around to cancelling. Ho Frickin' Ho.

Birthdays don't count because, although you get spoilt rotten if you're lucky, you don't actually get any time off work and nobody other than yourself (and hopefully your loved ones) gives a shit.

But easter.. Easter! I mean CHILDHOOD easter was good enough, what with the treasure hunting for eggs, weekends at the beach house and the end - dear god the end - of Lent. Adult easter is even better, given I no longer care a fig for the religious stuff. On the downside, I no longer dream about the easter egg haul with quite such enthusiasm (I would but I'm not sure anyone buys them for me anymore) but the pleasure of a)having a rare Friday off work, and b)gorging on Cadbury Cream Eggs I have purchased myself, makes up for it.

Best of all everyone's in a vaguely good mood for very little reason. It's a long weekend! We can eat chocolate openly in the street! Let's CELEBRATE! All of which makes up for the dispiriting fact that the pubs will be closed tomorrow rather well I think.