But then it’s perfectly OK to not enjoy it if it’s not your thing, just don’t try and bring others down if they’re having fun.
I agree with this 100% I try to avoid that at all times of year, for the record getting involved in the annual 'I hate Christmas' thread doesn't count.
The problem is, it's nearly impossible, how many times have my fellow scrooges been told "oh come on, join in, it's CHRISTMAS!" or "We've got to go to see Aunt Beryl, it's CHRISTMAS!" "Oh have another drink, it's CHRISTMAS!".
It's seems unless you're will to pretend to be all giddy about it, then you're ruining it for everyone else simply by existing.
I'm not fussed about trees, carols or decorations etc but enjoy food (curry!), mulled cider, giving gifts, seeing friends and family.
Just need to do it on your own terms and enjoy other folks' enjoyment of it
Bike rides are nice but none of that Festive 500 nonsense
Makes a big difference not having a TV
Agreed. I wax quite surprised when I opened the thread to find that all the shit had actually started. I was blissfully oblivious to it all.
I've yet to figure out why you'd have the biggest get together of the year at the worst time of year... The whole Pagan/Christian festival thing is a long way in the rear view now so surely we can move on from December 25th? The Aussies have it right, Christmas in the middle of summer. We should move ours to summer and then i could get onboard, but late December? I'd rather be at work TBH. It's a waste of perfectly good time off having it at that time of year.
Well that version of little drummer boy was disappointing. Was expecting about 10 seconds of that then a Ramones ort of 1,2,3,4 and something similar to Babymetal.
or this
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+stiff+little+fingers+white+christmas&view=detail&mid=996DD0683949B88D270B996DD0683949B88D270B&FORM=VIRE0&ru=%2fsearch%3fq%3dyoutube%2bstiff%2blittle%2bfingers%2bwhite%2bchristmas%26FORM%3dAWRE
I’ve yet to figure out why you’d have the biggest get together of the year at the worst time of year…
BECAUSE it's the worst time of year. It's not difficult to work out is it?
How do we make these bleak, long winter nights a bit brighter? Let's have a party! Oh no we can't do that, it would be better in 6 months time, carry on being miserable..
TBH I'd prefer it if it was closer to about 14 minutes long but you can't have everything!
There is some fabulously ludicrous Christmas music out there if you fancy an hour on Spotify. The Death Row Christmas album usually gets a spin here at some point....
BECAUSE it’s the worst time of year. It’s not difficult to work out is it?
Sorry but that doesn't wash for me. If you're only going to have 1 major holiday period a year, December into January isn't the time to do it. The French have it right - shutting down for basically the whole of August. Thats how to do time off.
Once again we brits have been duped - taking a big bunch of time off when it is historically the least productive time of year. Don't want to pay for heating at the factory? Nothing worth toiling over in the fields? Lighting costing you a bit much? How about we have a basically compulsory holiday where you can send all your staff home and they not get paid so that they can pick up the tab for the heating and lighting at the darkest/coldest time of the year?
Clearly its evolved a bit beyond the Victorian workhouse mentality of closing up shop when it suits the factory owners, but somehow we've never moved on from it.
Love it
It doesn't need to start at the end of October though
Of course this time of year always resurects a dilema. Do I saturate the kids at school with the Phil Spector Chrismas albumn and risk the wrath of some over sensitive mum?
It’s seems unless you’re will to pretend to be all giddy about it, then you’re ruining it for everyone else simply by existing.
There’s always a Christmas tyrant. In my case usually a girlfriend, but sometimes a family member. “Have a bloody drink. Stop bloody drinking. Why aren’t you wearing the plastic Christmas jumper I bought you from Sainsbury’s?! You’re SO ungrateful! You HAVE to wear it, it’s CHRISTMAS. You’re ruining MY CHRISTMAS”.
So, all the posters saying you’re a miserable old git if you don’t love Christmas can balls. I’m not miserable, I party all year round. I just hate three months of sleigh bells and tyranny.
Its mixed for me. Daughter lives with her mum and has a big family on her side and bugger all on mine. So she does xmas day at mums then boxing day at mine. We try and make boxing day into xmas part two but as such a small family on our side its not quite the same. Hearing people moaning about large families full of tyrants actually makes me feel better as its something i always feel ive missed out on.
But its what you make it. On xmas day itself me and my partner go to the pub, eat what we want (veggies, so i sometimes do pizza) and have the xmas we want not what we are told we should have. And its fine.
I dislike Christmas and all its religious and conspicuous consumption connotations. I can understand its a great opportunity for familiies to get togther, but being single and with no close family I find the constant reminders to have a jolly good festive time with your family every time you turn on the commercial TV channels, go into a shop or pub, or use social media quite disheartening - especially when the build-up to Christmas seems to happen earlier every year.
Rather than spend the day on my own being miserable, I have spent the last few years volunteering: firstly on a farm which supports people with learning disabilities (although they are spending the Christmas with their families) doing the jobs that need doing on a daily basis on a farm - mucking out, feeding the animals, taking the horses out to pasture, egg-collecting etc.; and for the last two years volunteering with a homeless charity which provides food and a range of activities and support services over the Christmas period. I shall be signing up tomorrow for this year's programme of support and activities.
I'm thankful in a way for Covid and moving to permanent work from home. No more over enthusiastic younger office staff who decide they must do festive activities for the whole of December and you are required to "join in the fun". Bad enough as an introvert being asked to be involved and enjoy work social activities at any time of the year.
Humbug
three months of sleigh bells and tyranny.
That would make a good album name - get it done, try and get to xmas No.1 next year...?
if you meet up with people that have the expectation of over indulging you get puyt under huge pressure to join them in the overindulging
Crikey what do they do to you?
Just say no. One little word. Or don't meet them at all if it bothers you that much. They're probably just trying to get you to smile to be fair.
Particular the geezer who didn’t get past his dog taking a piss on the M-I-L’s lawn 🤣
Thats my Christmas highlight scuttler… see i am already cheering up.
We’re all good now and back on speaking terms. MIL has calmed the **** down, and accepted that people do thing differently and that I’m not a complete tool.
As I said on page 2, I love it.
Not this year, no. With just me here, I just can’t work up any enthusiasm for it, not having anyone to share it with, and who loved putting up decorations, etc. 😕
I once worked in a country where it was banned. Drove over the border for the weekend before, to get my usual freedoms. On return I have border control checking out my car. Guy picks up a long white box with a picture of a fat man in a red suit on it. He looks confused. Shakes it a bit. Throws it back in the boot. Looks in a carrier bag at two clear boxes of metallic shiny balls and cheap plastic chains of coloured lights. Looks confused again. Slams the boot shut and let's me go through.
I invited a couple of workmates round for a chat on the day, and the food wasn't cooked too well on the single portable electric hob and a small toaster oven, but turkey legs, mash, carrots and gravy was really appreciated. They had assumed the day would pass unmarked.
It's hard as an adult, if your kids are all grown up, and far away, to find the motivation to get into gear. And the last couple of years has put a downer on things. But the effort can be appreciated and things float back to the surface if you look outwards.
no, not at all, i'm no fan
pointless arguments, which side of family to see, what present to buy/receive
the aftermatch annoys me too, people saying how fat they are.. etc
well don't eat 5k and drink 4k calories a day and give up exercise for 2 weeks.
did somebody say MEGASACK? Videos are something to look forward to at Christmas time, despite never winning.
Well I do enjoy a Singletrack Christmas thread of course. It never disappoints! Though the thread does seem to start earlier each year 😂
I like Christmas well enough. Mainly because I'm a foodie, love to cook, love to eat and hate winter so it's a glimmer of joy at a crap time of year and my work is seasonal so I have a lot of time on my hands. I've had all sorts of Christmases from getting on it early with mates in my 20's and forgetting the dinner, full family Christmas with the other half's young nieces and extended family in oz to small Christmas with my tiny family or just me and the other half. We mix it up each year and do a mix of what we feel like or sometimes a bit of sacrifice to visit family who live far away and don't see us often.
No presents but charity donations instead and just spend a bit more than a normal shop on a nice joint and all the trimmings.
I get that some people are trapped into Christmases they hate but maybe this thread could inspire some to consider telling those you are close to you that you want/need to try something different. It's what my Mum did to me when I turned 18. 'sorry love no more presents or decorations but we can still have a nice meal'
I might have been disappointed for about 5 minutes but I've ended up doing the same thing myself now. We had a brief bit of friction from the mother in law who's expectations were for presents but now she knows what to expect if she comes to ours it's fine.
This Christmas we're abroad so will be a basic home cooked meal or restaurant and a long walk with the dog.
I'm loving P7eaven's Solstice celebration ideas and am inspired to do something similar in future years, though probably a smaller group of friends.
I feel genuinely sorry for people who work in retail, it must be absolutely insufferable for them.
Thanks,I'm a Supermarket trucker & we dread it.Years ago I thought it was just me being miserable,turns out pretty much everyone,from the Depot warehouse pickers to the person on the till dreads it..
I actually like Christmas day,as it's a rest day & a chance to recharge your batterys before going back to work on Boxing Day.I try & get out on the road bike or Gravel bike for an hour Christmas day morning depending on how shattered I am from all the overtime & extre shifts we're forced into from early December.It's a parralel world,we're to busy working to go out socialising,yet in mid January when we get back to normal & want to get down the pub etc everyone else is skint paying off Christmas.Not my favourite time of year..
Do I saturate the kids at school with the Phil Spector Chrismas albumn and risk the wrath of some over sensitive mum?
I follow "the MJ rule" - that it's OK to listen to music made before the artist turned into a wrong un'.
Conveniently allows me to enjoy Off The Wall, Thriller and Bad (and the Jackson 5 obvs).
So Spector's Xmas album (1963) appears to be safely before his behaviour became too problematic.
HTH
Used to. Then I became a postie
I enjoy Christmas but mainly the family time, the glorified Sunday roast, few glasses of whisky and relaxing watching Christmas films.
We set a budget of £200 to spend on each other and it works well.
Christmas Day at ours, Me, missus her daughter and boyfriend and the miserable mother in law.
Then round to my Mums on Boxing Day for part 2.
Really do feel sorry for people who are alone at Christmas as it’s not nice at all.
Used to. Then I became a postie
Postman plod the miserable bastard?
I love it usually. Though I don't do the month-long christmas which some people think makes me a grouch- I'm not, I just don't like to water it down, a week of cask strength christmas is better.
This year, not so much, but that's just because of losing family, it'll pass.
Sweetness and light, me😎
As a child I loved it and still believe the festive season is for children.
The run up to Christmas work wise is stressful in my line of work, trying to get jobs finished for the big day.
Since a family falling out years ago hubby and I usually go away in our caravan and enjoy the Cumbrian countryside, walking, cycling and still cooking a full turkey dinner in the tiny caravan kitchen.
But I despair over the fact the whole thing has turned into a month long consumer fest.
But I despair over the fact the whole thing has turned into a month long consumer fest.
Aaaaaand we're back to the start.
When do we think this happened then? Because that's pretty much how I remember it from the 1970s and 1980s.
As someone who doesn't watch terrestrial TV or go shopping for leisure, I get much less Xmas overdose now than in the past.
I didn't used to but since having kids I do, it is hard not to go along with it when you see the excitement on little kids faces.
I also use it as a week off to rest, catch up with family, have some long walks in the hills and some muddy, cold and wet rides that end up in a country pub with a fire going.
Yes
When do we think this happened then? Because that’s pretty much how I remember it from the 1970s and 1980s.
😀
If the assertion that 'it gets earlier every year' is true then we're actually celebrating Xmas 2024 this year. I agree with you - in the 70s I remember complaints of 'too commercialise' and 'earlier every year'. (Although ITV was on while I was reading in the living room last night - it was wall to wall Xmas ads. It would be easy to fall into the trap of believing that everyone's gone Xmas mad if all you do is watch ITV, I suppose?)
