Get out the Argos catalogue my friends, Christmas is coming.

Yes, the time has come to arm yourself with a highlighter and start circling the goodies you want – and don’t pretend you don’t do it.

I know it’s still October but Christmas is officially on its way. I know this not because of the decorations in some shop windows, or the fact that they have started stocking selection boxes. No, I know the big day is coming because SCS, DFS, CSL, and all the other three-letter sofa companies have started playing those irritating adverts back to back.

How could we forget that we can have the sofa of our dreams before Christmas when the guy who used to be on Corrie is telling us every 15 minutes?

A new suite won’t be on my list this year, which is probably a relief to The Plumber as he is still recovering from our first Christmas together, when there was a costly misunderstanding on his part.

Being unable to comprehend the ‘it’s the thought that counts’ train of thought which I happily champion, he insisted I jot down a few ideas.

After several days’ pondering, I presented my list, which he pocketed without a look.

Days and weeks passed until Christmas Eve and he remembered he’d not bought a thing – which is doubly problematic when your birthday, like mine, is on Boxing Day and double prezzies are required.

A last minute dash to the Trafford Centre ensued with The Electrician – a friend of The Plumber who had also delayed in present buying.

It was an ordeal so horrific he wouldn’t set foot in the place for a year (until the following Christmas Eve when the same 11th hour sprint to Selfridges occurred) but he left with what he needed to get. Or what he thought he needed to get .

Having misunderstood my list – which contained, among other things, a first, second and third choice of perfume, new boots, designer bag, matching purse, latest iPod, and several items of clothing – I awoke on December 25 to find he had bought me all 16 items. I only expected one.

Of course I tried the same thing the year after, extending the list to 21 items. And I’ll try again this time round. You never know your luck ...