Book excerpt: I grew up on my mother's stories. Although an Irish woman of small stature and imaginative mind, stories didn't come any 'taller' than those tales told by my mother. They would stretch the bounds of one's credulity beyond the realms of possibility, and yet, she always made me 'want to believe them'. I have taken the germ of her fact and added a bit of my fiction with a dash of author licence. This sixth volume of 'Tales from Portlaw', 'The Alternative Christmas Party' is the story of two Portlaw Christmas Party events that are booked by the same social events secretary for Boxing Day of 2012. One event was for the Catholic Church of Portlaw which is attended by priests, nuns and Catholic parishioners and the other event is for the 'Portlaw Rugby Club.' When the secretary of these two institutions makes a small mistake, the consequences for the people of Portlaw are enormous!