Do You Hate Christmas And All The Fuss That Goes With It?

_Dara_

Zebra3 wrote: »

Utterly despise it.

A real event for losers with nothing else in their lives.

What a stupid comment.

I'd say more than 50% of people love Christmas. So, in Ireland, that's more than 2,000,000 people who have "nothing else in their lives"?

At least try to be logical.

_Dara_

Stoner wrote: »

For as long as I can remember people have been moaning about Christmas starting in "November this year"

But when in November? Yeah, people didn't like it kicking into gear in the last week of November. But now it's all of November and that's a recent development, last five years or so.

"Things were exactly the same back then, people just don't remember" is the new "It wasn't like that in my day". Sometimes things do actually change.

freshpopcorn

_Dara_ wrote: »

But when in November? Yeah, people didn't like it kicking into gear in the last week of November. But now it's all of November and that's a recent development, last five years or so.

"Things were exactly the same back then, people just don't remember" is the new "It wasn't like that in my day". Sometimes things do actually change.

I was born in early November 1992 and we kept the papers from the time my mam was in hospital. Toys were advertised to the Christmas market and electrical goods.
The Smyths catalogue used always come out around the last week in September since the late 1990's!
Take for instance the Cork Christmas lights used be tuned on around the 25th of November when I was a child. This year they were switched on the 19th of November and people around my ages were saying they use not be switched until December in my day.

_Dara_

freshpopcorn wrote: »

I was born in early November 1992 and we kept the papers from the time my mam was in hospital. Toys were advertised to the Christmas market and electrical goods.
The Smyths catalogue used always come out around the last week in September since the late 1990's!

That's not quite the same thing as the onslaught there is now. The toy catalogues were the only hint of Christmas until the end of November and their early release was practical for parents to plan the Christmas presents logistics.

Now the Christmas TV ad floodgates open the day after Halloween. What was once a trickle is now a torrent. And you'll see Christmas decoration shops set up in various departments stores from September onwards. These are relatively recent developments.

Optimalprimerib

I can never hate Christmas as I get time off work. But that's all that really gets me through these days.

huddlejonny

Zebra3 wrote: »

Utterly despise it.

A real event for losers with nothing else in their lives.

Orphan alert..

Stoner

_Dara_ wrote:

But when in November? Yeah, people didn't like it kicking into gear in the last week of November. But now it's all of November and that's a recent development, last five years or so.

It's a good example he gave you. The start of November is a 7 week wait until Christmas, that's not that long, certainly kicking things off in early November wouldn't be just in the last 5 years

And compared to 1992 I watch very little TV adds, far less traditional screen time these days that's changed for many

It's different now but Christmas has always started in November
Retailers have always in my memory anyway started it around then and ramped up.

splinter65

Old Catholic Ireland had it going on I must admit.
November was the month of the holy souls. We remembered our dead and your dad swore off the demon drink for the whole month to get plenary indulgences for his dead dad who was languishing in purgatory.
If you remember Ireland in the 70s there wasn’t a word about Christmas in November, except maybe towards the end you would get the smell of it if your mother was mixing a cake and a pudding.
Christmas shopping started in the shops on the Feast if the Immaculate Conception 8 December a holy day of obligation . All the schools, all the civil service and slot of private industries closed that day and the country people went to town preferably Dublin to get shopping and see Santa etc.
It was Advent though not Christmas.
4 Sunday’s at mass getting more and more tense as another candle was lit on the wreath on the altar .
Would the 4 candles ever be lit???Would we ever get to midnight mass?
Primary school was all about the flight into Egypt the Star Herod the baby Jesus the Innkeeper.
The rehearsals for the Nativity play. Making paper decorations.
Drawing holly.
Everyone can draw holly and berries.
Then Christmas Eve . The big build up to going to midnight mass.
Every bloody one went.
So we threw all that out the window and now we’re trying to replace the feeling with the John Lewis ad.
Not working really.

nice_guy80

All the advertising is connected to emotions. Plucking at the heart strings

I mean look at the current Boots ad.
'How did you know'? says one sis
Know what? That I will probably never use the bang average perfume that you just bought me, sis.

Malayalam

I like that the light starts to come back after the Winter Solstice. I like the tree and putting up twinkling lights that I can sit on the couch in the evening and look at, it's peaceful. I like having my children home and everyone goofing about the place for a week or two, mostly in their pyjamas. I like cooking lovely stuff for them all. I am not Catholic but I like the hymns, the carols, the archetype behind ''baby Jesus''.

I hate the buying stuff element. Really, really dislike it - it is stressful, and reminds one of the subtle psychosis of Christmas past when parents struggled to keep up and fell into some kind of manic depression on Stephen's Day. I truly wish Christmas could happen without presents and commercialisation of any sort.

My ideal is to go away somewhere with the family where we can take long, preferably snowy walks, share yummy food, and banter about life and the year gone past over a few drinks in the evening.

Sue Pa Key Pa

I hate everything about it. The decorations, the adverts on TV, the forced fun with work colleagues at parties, the overspending, the overeating, getting and giving shlte because they got you something last year, endless hours confined in small rooms with people who don't get on, money draining away and general stress.

The only good thing is families taking time to be together but all of the above takes away from that. My family now makes a point of all getting together to enjoy the October Break Holiday. Good company, good food, good drinks and no pressure

branie2

Nope! I love Christmas!

Zebra3

Zebra3 wrote: »

Utterly despise it.

A real event for losers with nothing else in their lives.

Allow me to reply through the medium of song.

OldGoat

It's not just Christmas, ALL holidays matter.

Speedwell

branie2 wrote: »

Nope! I love Christmas!

What are you doing on this thread? Don't you have some cranberries to string and tinsel to feed to reindeer?

seamus

Christmas is awesome.

I've been playing Xmas FM for about two weeks now.

splinter65

Zebra3 wrote: »

Utterly despise it.

A real event for losers with nothing else in their lives.

This makes me feel sad for you.
Anyone with even a couple of family or friends wouldn’t feel like this.

Speedwell

splinter65 wrote: »

Christmas shopping started in the shops on the Feast if the Immaculate Conception 8 December a holy day of obligation.

Oh. I was brought up Protestant (in the US) and the churches I went to never really made a thing of the Immaculate Conception day. But the "penny just dropped", as they say, and I realised why, during most of my childhood, the tree didn't go up till partway through December.

Church was cultural camouflage for my family, anyway. My mother was an actual convert, but my father used to refer to his religion as "Spinozan". :rolleyes: We were, in the last analysis, secular Jews. My brother is an American fundamentalist and the white sheep in a family of black sheep, heh.

_Dara_

Stoner wrote: »

It's a good example he gave you. The start of November is a 7 week wait until Christmas, that's not that long, certainly kicking things off in early November wouldn't be just in the last 5 years

And compared to 1992 I watch very little TV adds, far less traditional screen time these days that's changed for many

It's different now but Christmas has always started in November
Retailers have always in my memory anyway started it around then and ramped up.

The dam-burst of ads directly after Halloween absolutely is relatively new (post-2010) as well as Xmas shops being in department stores in September.

7 weeks of constant ads as opposed to 4 weeks. That's almost twice as much.

It is just more intense now. You even say yourself that it's different now. It is, it's very different.

mojesius

We don't but presents for each other in our family, haven't for years as we all see it as a bit of a waste of money buying crap we don't need and have mortgages/rent , and there's no kids, nieces or nephews. I might get OH a stocking present or two but we usually go away in January so keep our cash for that.

We all like a nice dinner and drinks on Xmas day and put a tree up. Go out a few nights to catch up with old friends.

I'll get the dogs a present, mostly because it's hilarious watching them rip the wrapping paper.

I find it crazy that people spend every weekend from late Nov to Dec running around shopping centres like mad eejits with big lists of presents. Used to live near Henry street in Dublin and it was a no go area from Dec 1st...packed to the hilt everyday.

HelgaWard

Female Colleague, in the canteen, mid-November:"Have you your shopping all done?"
Me (also female): "What Shopping?"
Colleague (in a slightly exasperated tone): "Your Christmas Shopping"
Me:"No"
Colleague: "Oh my god, have you nothing done?"
Me:"Nope. The way I see it, it involves one trip to Smyths and one to Lidl/Tesco, I don't get the big fuss"
Colleague: "Well do they at least have their lists done"
Me: "Nope, will wait till after toy show"
Colleague: "Oh my god"
Me: "I take it you've all yours done so?""

She has since asked me every time I see her if I've anything done. Eh, still no. The only people who ask you have you your shopping done are smug over-spenders who have their shopping done.

Leave it to December. Don't talk to kids about it day and night for 2 months.

quickbeam

I have my Christmas shopping constantly 'done'. That's the joy and relief of not partaking. There's never any stress about doing anything so it's always in a state of completeness.

SAMTALK

The older I get the less I;m able for all the stress and fuss.

I like the atmosphere in the build up to Christmas but hate the shops and the panic buying.
I'll put up tree the weekend of the 16th and take down about 2nd/3rd as the dust/dirt will get to me by then

Present buying will all be done local and will be scaled back big time

Looking forward to the break but about 5 days in will be sick of cooking for everyone and cleaning up after them!

Wanderer78

What a scam! Spend, spend, spend, it's good for you and your family! Enjoy your time off folks with your loved ones, and ignore this marketing scam

bnt

I've actually gotten pretty good at ignoring it, letting it all bypass me, so I don't have to hate it as such. Let the kids of all ages have their fun, but it's not for me.

valoren

I see Christmas as important because it happens in the dead of winter, shortly after the shortest day of the year.
Ignoring the religious aspect and the rampant consumerism, it is important to just 'stop' for a while, to take time to socialise and strengthen bonds with friends and family. Meet together and catch up with them. We're social animals and as such to allow time to get together at 'home' whatever and wherever that is, to allow for some time to rest and chill out is important. That's Christmas for me. You can ignore the religious, consumerism aspects easily, you could even eschew it all together and continue to work or do what you do and let it bypass you but to taking a break mentally and physically particularly during the cold, short days and for those inclined they get to spiritually reinforce their beliefs. Christmas is applicable to each of us in our own ways. If we didn't have a focal point such as 'Christmas' then December would just simply be a precursor for January, which for me the most miserable month of the year.

whisky_galore

The time off is good, but if it were up to me, it would be better if I could take those days off some other time of year and just work though it.
Not really invested in it, don't have a large family or anything so that bit is unimportant.

The commercialism/starting Xmas in Nov is just hype-creating by shops, I pity people who have to put themselves into hock just to buy piffling things like expensive kids' presents. The recycled songs every year are annoying, so I turn off music radio and keep the headphones on for an (almost) Xmas free zone.

pilly

I can't stand Christmas anymore and I'll explain why:

1. Extended family fractured, at best tense interactions.
2. My own children grown, 1 in Canada, 2 in Dublin, both will be working over the Christmas
3. Work closes down for 2 weeks in poxy weather forcing us to use 5 days holidays.
4. Bad memories of Christmas past ruined by alcoholic parents/brother/aunts/uncles, to name a few.
5. I don't drink - 99.9% of others do at Christmas
6. Can be a very lonely time when you just go to someone's place for you dinner and go back home. Festive ads with huge families having a great time in don't help.

As a result of all of the above I'm off away again this year, Tenerife. Kind of nervy about it because I will be on my own Christmas day for the 1st time ever but sure it's a new adventure.

And people insulting others who don't like Christmas and calling them Grinches doesn't help matters. Stop doing it. Is it any skin off your nose if someone doesn't like Christmas? NO. Are we trying to cancel Christmas? NO.

You love Christmas, off you go and enjoy it your way. Just don't try to make everyone feel they should enjoy it the same way.

Steve F

Ted_YNWA wrote: »

It's gone way too commercialised.

People feel forced to buy stuff for people they don't like with money they don't have.

Yeah I heard some thing along the same lines but it was connected to the boom and bust era

We buy things we don't need with money we don't have to impress people we don't like.

Christmas has an element of "keeping up with the Jones" about it.Not many will admit to it but its a fact

Steve F

pilly wrote: »

I can't stand Christmas anymore and I'll explain why:

1. Extended family fractured, at best tense interactions.
2. My own children grown, 1 in Canada, 2 in Dublin, both will be working over the Christmas
3. Work closes down for 2 weeks in poxy weather forcing us to use 5 days holidays.
4. Bad memories of Christmas past ruined by alcoholic parents/brother/aunts/uncles, to name a few.
5. I don't drink - 99.9% of others do at Christmas
6. Can be a very lonely time when you just go to someone's place for you dinner and go back home. Festive ads with huge families having a great time in don't help.

As a result of all of the above I'm off away again this year, Tenerife. Kind of nervy about it because I will be on my own Christmas day for the 1st time ever but sure it's a new adventure.

And people insulting others who don't like Christmas and calling them Grinches doesn't help matters. Stop doing it. Is it any skin off your nose if someone doesn't like Christmas? NO. Are we trying to cancel Christmas? NO.

You love Christmas, off you go and enjoy it your way. Just don't try to make everyone feel they should enjoy it the same way.

Close the thread now.Tenerife huh.Have a ball whilst the rest of us are freezing our knackers off here :rolleyes: