Things = Love

http://www.thejournal.ie/readme/opinion-i-find-christmas-so-false-its-all-veneer-folks-3736668-Dec2017/

Not give to linking the Journal often as I find it biased but this is a good article. I have had great Christmases yet never spent a huge amount of money, when the children were small santa always came but it was never anything expensive we had Christmas dinner and lots of warmth and love( trying not sound sanctimonious ).

What on earth is the mechanism that make people feel they have to spend on Christmas or that Children must have massive gifts that every thing should be all sparkly and amazing.

Is it really as simple as capitalism and consumerism.

uch

I'm happy with a nice dinner and a few beers myself

donegaLroad

mariaalice wrote: »

http://www.thejournal.ie/readme/opinion-i-find-christmas-so-false-its-all-veneer-folks-3736668-Dec2017/

Not give to linking the Journal often as I find it biased but this is a good article. I have had great Christmases yet never spent a huge amount of money, when the children were small santa always came but it was never anything expensive we had Christmas dinner and lots of warmth and love( trying not sound sanctimonious ).

What on earth is the mechanism that make people feel they have to spend on Christmas or that Children must have massive gifts that every thing should be all sparkly and amazing.

Is it really as simple as capitalism and consumerism.

It is as simple as capitalism and consumerism. Watch the trends. I never remember the Christmas circus starting as early as this year. Lights, bells, santa.. in a bid to get people spending earlier.

Around 20th December, we will start hearing ads for the January sales, and the big shove will be on once again.

We will have about 4 weeks of peace and quiet, then the push will start for Valentines day, followed by Mother's Day, then Paddy's Day, then Easter, Father's Day, Back to school sales, Halloween.

It is a constant bombardment of buy, buy, buy... and as someone mentioned on another thread, soon we will be building an extension on the house to store all the junk that we don't need or use.

The santa experience is an interesting one.

Neyite

I'm just waiting for my cousin to post the pile of presents she got her kid on FB as usual.

One year in the picture I counted about 27 different wrapped ones, and that was just the ones on the outside and front of the pile. And the kid who I think was barely school age at the time would go to both nans and get a similar haul, and her dads house. Utter overkill and none of it required for a small child. Then they complain about how tough it is paying back all those loans for Christmas. And complain because the kid is a bit of a brat handful.

My kid gets a Santa gift, a (small) surprise gift, stocking of a bit of tat and chocolate, a gift from Mam and dad, which this year is PJ's and books. He'll also get a gift from each godparent and each set of grandparents. And that's loads.

We don't buy for all adult siblings, just a kris kringle, and gifts are from godparents only to niblings.

I love our less-commercial Christmas, it lets us concentrate on enjoying family company and not being stressed about money.

Your Face

That article was embarrassing.

Two words. Or maybe one.

DoneDeal.

My daughter gets great high quality presents...but many have had one careful owner and are less than half the price I'd expect to pay in Smyths.

MagicIRL

As soon as I started full time work the best part of Christmas was the time off at home doing nothing.

And the food. All the ham & turkey. Mmm. And stuffing. I'm hungry.

Your Face

Your Face wrote: »

That article was embarrassing.

Why?

Your Face

mariaalice wrote: »

Why?

Because I said so.

That's how opinion pieces work.

Neyite

Neyite wrote: »

I'm just waiting for my cousin to post the pile of presents she got her kid on FB as usual.

One year in the picture I counted about 27 different wrapped ones, and that was just the ones on the outside and front of the pile. And the kid who I think was barely school age at the time would go to both nans and get a similar haul, and her dads house. Utter overkill and none of it required for a small child. Then they complain about how tough it is paying back all those loans for Christmas. And complain because the kid is a bit of a brat handful.

My kid gets a Santa gift, a (small) surprise gift, stocking of a bit of tat and chocolate, a gift from Mam and dad, which this year is PJ's and books. He'll also get a gift from each godparent and each set of grandparents. And that's loads.

We don't buy for all adult siblings, just a kris kringle, and gifts are from godparents only to niblings.

I love our less-commercial Christmas, it lets us concentrate on enjoying family company and not being stressed about money.

Thants another interesting one the compulsive need put on social media what you have got for your children as a kind of status symbol.

whisky_galore

mariaalice wrote: »

Thants another interesting one the compulsive need put on social media what you have got for your children as a kind of status symbol.

'Unfollow' option....