Anyone else here have a dislike for the Christmas season?

Now before everyone thinks I'm Scrooge, I'm not, I think I'm just getting older.. I used to love Christmas, but the overcommercialization of the entire holiday has gone past ridiculous. Stores are coming out with decorations by the end of september and commercials come on tv before Halloween. I used to like decorating too, but it seems like in the last few years it's become more of a chore than for fun.

Also, family has kind of ruined it for me. Since my aunt on my dads side decided disown me (Xmas is always at her house), I haven't had had it with my dads family for almost 6 years. I still do the holiday with my moms side and it's just awkward to me now. When you're a kid, the adults leave you alone, now they bug the crap out of you to know everything about your life. We have Xmas with the wife's family every year and it's no different than Sunday dinner.

I feel bad because my wife loves Christmas and I have lost all feeling for it. I also feel bad because there is stuff I want and have wanted to get her and I can't because money has been tight for 3 years now.

At this point I just want to get a 4x8 sheet of plywood, some 2x4s, and build a winter Lionel display in the corner of my livingroom. But I don't have the room for that either.

I have worked retail since I was 14, so holidays mean long days, and not much else.

I kinda feel the same way too. Part of it is financial issues the other is that everybody works different hours and/or live far away and we're just too lazy plan things and get together...we try but eh... i like it because the weather is getting cold.

The only part I like is seeing my kids get their presents...the rest is a major pain in the ass.

ST_ZX2 wrote: The only part I like is seeing my kids get their presents...the rest is a major pain in the ass.

This.

I only like it because the kiddies LOVE christmas. I hate decorating, I'm cheap, and am not religious. So it's got nothing going for me.

Gift cards. I HATE gift cards. It says "I couldn't think of what to get you but I didn't want to admit it by giving you cash so here's 10$ to a store that will virtually guarantee you spend triple of that just to get one item you want." Takes no thought at all.

I feel the same way. I worked my way through school in retail, and that made me start hating Christmas. It's way too over-commercialized.

I'm starting to think that Christmas is when you spend money you don't have to buy people you don't like presents they don't want.

I also have no one to celebrate holidays with anymore. This year, I'm going to try working at the local rescue mission on Thanksgiving and Christmas.

saw this a few weeks before Halloween... fitting I thought

I haven't been a holiday kind of person sine my dad decided that I needed to buy gifts for my sister, 3 step sisters, step mother, and him. Then have to spend time with step grandparents and assorted stepfamily, and make get to see mom and my grandother if we can all get the travel and scheduling strait.

Now, if I'm lucky, I'll be on the road and won't have to deal with it more than approving gift selections that my wife makes.

Call me a grinch, I don't care. I don't even like the weather.

Bah berkeleying humbug.

I love it. Always have and always will. Last year there were 24 of us all piled in my parents house. What a blast that was. Three generations under one roof.

The commercialism has gotten out of hand, but I just ignore it. It's all about family and friends to me. The rest is just background noise.

I don't do the holidays because they are all under false pretenses anyway. Either the origin of the holiday is totally bogus and/or it has NOTHING to do with that anyway. I mean, very few people even know the doctrine behind any of these holidays let alone observe them.
I love seeing my kids get gifts, that's why I do it when ever I feel like it, not when Hallmark says I should.

Cone_Junky wrote: I hate decorating, I'm cheap, and am not religious. So it's got nothing going for me.

"Like"

The wife and I usually don't even buy presents for each other. As we usually buy something when we want it.

We just put money into the house instead of buying each other stuff.

This year is having the gate rebuilt and putting a storm door on the front door.

And that is why Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.
There is no religious basis or altered religious basis. It is not cultural or racial biased but rather just an American Holiday. You do not have to wonder if wishing someone a happy Thanksgiving will offend them.
It is not about gifts other than maybe a nice bottle of wine. Sure, you still get some family competition but overall, it is just a nice meal.

Sure, you can make more of it and call it the day the shopping really starts but that is by choice and I choose not to.

Nope not very many holiday celebratons for us . We've kinda lost the vibe for any of them over the past decade or so. Not sure why just dont care about them anymore

jrw1621 wrote: And that is why Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. There is no religious basis or altered religious basis. It is not cultural or racial biased but rather just an American Holiday. You do not have to wonder if wishing someone a happy Thanksgiving will offend them. It is not about gifts other than maybe a nice bottle of wine. Sure, you still get some family competition but overall, it is just a nice meal.

X 2

I fight to keep Thanksgiving; Thanksgiving and not the " Christmas shopping kickoff day".

My son works at Target and they are opening up at Midnight on Black Friday!

pete240z wrote:

jrw1621 wrote: And that is why Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. There is no religious basis or altered religious basis. It is not cultural or racial biased but rather just an American Holiday. You do not have to wonder if wishing someone a happy Thanksgiving will offend them. It is not about gifts other than maybe a nice bottle of wine. Sure, you still get some family competition but overall, it is just a nice meal.

X 2 I fight to keep Thanksgiving; Thanksgiving and not the " Christmas shopping kickoff day". My son works at Target and they are opening up at Midnight on Black Friday!

x3. I love T-giving for its relative purity. They haven't been able to commercialize it except for the aforementioned "black friday", which is totally optional, participation-wise.

I love no gifts, I love the food, going around the table and talking about what makes you happy and what you are thankful for... what a great day with a great spirit. Christmas? Meh. Gifts for everyone, focus on commercialism....etc. I'd rather buy a gift for someone when I felt like it, rather than because its what you're supposed to do. I suppose that's why I haven't bought or received a gift from or for the wife since we've been married (that was associated with birthday or christmas). And I'm probably the only shiny happy person who doesn't do Valentines day either.

+1 for Cone_Junky's comment.

It used to be kinda fun when the kids were younger(though more of a financial burden).

Now, with relatives it feels more like "I'm a dick if I don't get you a gift, so here's my best guess at something, but you'll still hate it anyway." And the kids just want $.

I remember a story about ZZ Top sitting around & hating Christmas.

Plus, the older I get the more I hate snow & cold, and the fact I won't see my house during daylight throught thr week until March.

I like the what 3 weeks off of between Thanksgiving and Christmas, but I hate Christmas. We have flown home every Christmas for the last 4 years out of guilt. It has become more of a chore then anything. I love my family, but hate spending 1500.00 to fly home to hang out for a week of everyone bitching about everyone else. So, I booked Vegas this year and told everyone that if they wanted to have Christmas with us we would be at the Bellagio from December 20th to December 30th.

My background for a number of years has been retailer support in nature. In addition, many of these retailers are from various religious backgrounds. For a retailer (as noted) Christmas really becomes just a busy selling season. For these reasons, for years now, I have adopted the tradition of sending these retailers a Thanksgiving card rather than a Christmas card.

I'm trying to enjoy Christmas but I guess I don't make enough money.

Glad to know I'm not alone. I really dislike Christmas now, mostly due to the pressure to spend, spend, spend and the stress that places on everyone. I'd like to just take off for the entire season, spend some time volunteering in a 3rd world country, or serve meals in a homeless shelter. Anything to rid myself of the stink of crass commercialism.

the only thing I like about it is getting a day off from work. Oh wait, Xmas (and New Years) are on the weekend this year. No extra day off for me.

Bah berklyin' Humbug.

I call for a GRM late December party. Activities shall include: Video game races or slot cars, much bacon for munching, paintball target practice on a figure of Santa, and a snowy parking lot autocross.

Who's with me?

hate it

My family traditionally had a big get-together (I have 3 sisters; all are married, they have 6 kids between them) at my parents' place, then at mom's after dad died. Since mom has now joined the majority too, my nearest sister had stepped up and hosted the get-together, even though she and my middle sister (who has 4 kids and 2 grandkids) don't get along. But as a tradition it was dying and nobody would admit it.

We opted out last year. It had been a tough year at work for both of us, and we just couldn't face the stress and effort. We're not religious anyway. Plus it was our 20th anniversary (12/29) and we wanted to do something special since we never had a honeymoon and almost never take vacation. So we blew it all off and had our own little holiday / Festivus / solstice in the islands (our first and only trip there), just my wife and I and our 2 daughters. It was incredibly liberating to just bum around and swim and enjoy the sunshine.

Turns out it was the right move, too, since there were family conflicts at home while we were sitting on the beach. Only issue for us was the horrendous East Coast weather stirred up the surf and made the water too cloudy for good snorkeling.

It seems to have been a wake-up call to everybody because there is talk about eliminating the gifts this year and just giving little stocking-stuffer type things instead of the knock-down-drag-out exchange we used to do. Also we're going to more of an open-house format rather than trying to set a schedule that some people will never bother to keep to anyway.

So no, I don't hate Christmas, but I definitely don't have the energy or patience for doing it 'by the book' any more.

I was going to opt my self out this year, but this is my first holiday season married... But the only people getting real gifts is my Wife and my Mother. Maybe a cigar for my Dad, and candy for the nieces and nephews.