Teh unofficial "I hate Christmas" thread

[O.Z.O.]

I despise the materialism associated with the holiday. The whole concept of giving and getting gifts. I especially hate car commercials this time of year- "gee honey, I bought you a 70K Lexus, it's out in the driveway with a big bow on it"...yeah, from my private stash of money that I haven't told you about because that's how I pay for my hookers...

Gomez, I get where you're coming from with your fvcked up childhood, as mine was brutally fvcked up as well but in a different manner. These days, it's me, Mrs. O.Z.O., O.Z.O. Jr. and the hounds. That's all that matters. Gift exchanges in our home are becoming more limited now that O.Z.O. Jr. is an adult. I'm moving Mrs. O.Z.O. and I towards not exchanging gifts at all...we're buying them out of our joint account, so what the hell does that mean? :shrug_n:

As I get older, Christmas for me is more about time with family, down time at the end of the year, relaxing and counting the ways that I've been blessed. It greatly reduces stress. When you cut through all the sensationalist bullshit, all the marketing and commercials, all the garbage designed to encourage you to spend ridiculous amounts or money and feel like an asshole if you don't...it's actually a pretty cool time of year.

Oh...and no turkey. Order a prime rib. In the O.Z.O. home we do a big Christmas Eve spread featuring sweet/spicy meatballs and a Chick Fila nugget platter. Christmas dinner is prime rib and a Honeybaked Ham boneless ham.

 

[mikiemo83]

As I get older, Christmas for me is more about time with family

O.Z.O. this is what it is about. Family

 

[Darth Despot]

I used to be a big Christmas person but life took care of that.

Now I see it as a month of bother for what's usually an OK afternoon with family and friends.

 

[Dwight Schrute]

I despise the materialism associated with the holiday. The whole concept of giving and getting gifts. I especially hate car commercials this time of year- "gee honey, I bought you a 70K Lexus, it's out in the driveway with a big bow on it"...yeah, from my private stash of money that I haven't told you about because that's how I pay for my hookers...

Gomez, I get where you're coming from with your fvcked up childhood, as mine was brutally fvcked up as well but in a different manner. These days, it's me, Mrs. O.Z.O., O.Z.O. Jr. and the hounds. That's all that matters. Gift exchanges in our home are becoming more limited now that O.Z.O. Jr. is an adult. I'm moving Mrs. O.Z.O. and I towards not exchanging gifts at all...we're buying them out of our joint account, so what the hell does that mean? :shrug_n:

As I get older, Christmas for me is more about time with family, down time at the end of the year, relaxing and counting the ways that I've been blessed. It greatly reduces stress. When you cut through all the sensationalist bullshit, all the marketing and commercials, all the garbage designed to encourage you to spend ridiculous amounts or money and feel like an asshole if you don't...it's actually a pretty cool time of year.

Oh...and no turkey. Order a prime rib. In the O.Z.O. home we do a big Christmas Eve spread featuring sweet/spicy meatballs and a Chick Fila nugget platter. Christmas dinner is prime rib and a Honeybaked Ham boneless ham.

PpppaaaaaaRrrrrreeeeeeeeaaaaaccchhhhhhhh!!!!

 

[sprocketboy]

I miss the shopping with my late brother, it was buy a gift, get a beer, buy a gift, get a beer and repeat until finished.

When you say "finished," do you mean "finished with shopping," or "finished, as in passed out on the floor from drinking all that beer?" :shrug:

 

[Dwight Schrute]

When you say "finished," do you mean "finished with shopping," or "finished, as in passed out on the floor from drinking all that beer?" :shrug:

What happens at Christmas stays in Christmas...

 

[mooseontheloose]

I happen to really love the Christmas season but it has nothing to do with the gifts.

When I was growing up my family wasn't super close. I had no extended family and my siblings and I weren't very close in our younger/teen years. My sister and I especially didn't get along when we were teenagers. But at Christmas time we usually put our differences aside and had at least a few days of quality family time playing board games or watching lame Christmas movies or whatever. My mom bakes the same Christmas treats every year and we eat the same homemade sandwiches for breakfast every Christmas morning.

Now we are closer. My sister and I are good now, but Christmas time is still a time when I feel especially close to my family. We still share the holiday season together and watch lame Christmas movies at least once. I never knew what it was like to have a large family for special occasions, but December was always a fun time of the year because it's when many fun family traditions/memories were formed.

Gifts are fun and all, but I typically get everyone a single present that's thoughtful and inexpensive. I don't care about what I get - in fact, I tell my family not to buy me anything but they never listen. This year I'm excited to bring my girlfriend to share the experiences, especially Christmas morning hanging out together.

So as OZO and Mikie already said, I appreciate this time of the year for family reasons. The materialism associated with childhood wore off long, long ago.

 

[imapig]

When you say "finished," do you mean "finished with shopping," or "finished, as in passed out on the floor from drinking all that beer?" :shrug:

I think he means finished with the TD signal.

 

[mikiemo83]

When you say "finished," do you mean "finished with shopping," or "finished, as in passed out on the floor from drinking all that beer?" :shrug:

yes

 

[mikiemo83]

I think he means finished with the TD signal.

I can not do the TD signal correctly yet. I am getting close but not there yet.

Nutkick

 

[gomezcat]

Nobody has a gun to your head making you shove turkey down your neck? By a ****ing roast beef for Christs sake. Oh, and while your at have a merry Christmas.

I wish. The problem is that turkey is what gets served at Mrs Cat's family so we're stuck with it.

 

[gomezcat]

Rent some hardcore porn, cook a prime rib not a bloody turkey and listen to a Metal Christmas

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4AC3sZB-v7Q" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

You can *rent* porn? A friend of mine tells me it's freely available on teh interwebs. Apparently.

 

[gomezcat]

I do not do the Christmas thing..32 years ago on Christmas eve my ex wife decided to do the partying thing went out drinking with my 6 month old daughter she hat a car head on..my daughter was killed.
Only if I didn't let my daughter go she was to be with me for the holiday eve and I would have taken her to her moms in next day....
Since that day I got remarried...and divorced again but my kids spent the holidays with their mom...I have nothing to do with all the gift buying and tree crap...as far as the holiday I I do what I have to do for the birth of Christ with out all the glamour................

Really sorry to hear that and it rather puts my own unhappiness into context.

 

[Coltsfan2theend]

We have Turkey on Thanksgiving and a ham on Christmas traditionally. I remember having big family gatherings (the part I like the most) on both sides of my family up until about five or six years ago (or so). On my moms side, everything basically stopped when my grandma on her side passed away. On my dads side, we still get together, but it is only about ten people (we are actually doing this on Sunday) as many of my Grandma's siblings have passed away. A few years ago, the year before I got married, I went to my wife's dads side of family Christmas. Big house, around 20-30 people. I loved it. I hardly knew anyone, still don't. My favorite part was watching all the kids open up presents, especially the real little ones. Makes me excited for Christmas' to come. I already decided that I am going to try to get my moms side of the family back together for a dinner next year (hey, I can exploit my daughter to get them to come for a babys first Christmas). My father in laws side Christmas is the 30th and hopefully just as many of more will show up. I hope we can make it, one way or another, it will be a family gathering (with big family or at the hospital with a new family member). On my wife's mothers side, there isn't many left and it is Next Sunday at the assisted living facility her grandma lives at. I personally don't care about gifts anymore but I expect my daughter will be getting some and Sarah's grandma (dads side) always makes noodles for everyone (you have to cook them).

 

[MontanaBrady]

This thread sucks. Christmas is wonderful!

 

[patswin]

My wife and I and our siblings both have large extended families so it's always a scheduling nightmare for dinners and such. I have mine and her siblings and their families here tomorrow for our get together. I'm very much not excited, dreading it actually... this is our first Christmas without Mom and she was always the center of our holiday, more and more as she got older. My wife's whole family treated my Mom like their own too. I'm hoping it doesn't turn out like a wake.

 

[sprocketboy]

When you say "finished," do you mean "finished with shopping," or "finished, as in passed out on the floor from drinking all that beer?" :shrug:

yes

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[gomezcat]

This thread sucks. Christmas is wonderful!

No it doesn't and no it isn't. Christmas is like being smacked in the face by someone who then says, "ha, ha. You had a miserable time growing up and we're going to rub your nose in it". Every single year, I'm reminded that my biological mum gave me up to the care system because she had Schizophrenia and my biological dad ran off when I was born. I'm reminded that I last saw her when I was 8 and won't ever see her again, because she passed away 22 years ago. Is that good enough?

 

[gomezcat]

My wife and I and our siblings both have large extended families so it's always a scheduling nightmare for dinners and such. I have mine and her siblings and their families here tomorrow for our get together. I'm very much not excited, dreading it actually... this is our first Christmas without Mom and she was always the center of our holiday, more and more as she got older. My wife's whole family treated my Mom like their own too. I'm hoping it doesn't turn out like a wake.

Really hope it works out OK for you.

 

[gomezcat]

I put up one thing for decorating. The only people I buy christmas presents for is my sister family. I wish people a merry Christmas not happy holidays that PC crap .
This will be the first year since my mom died I celebrated it. Since it was her favorite holiday. Only because I be at my sister house during Christmas.

I'm as liberal as it gets (I really am) and I would always wish people Merry Christmas. If I want to wish people like Mrs Cat's family a Happy Hanukkah, I will do so specifically. There is a tendency in some people to assume offence on the part of others. I have lived in one of the world's most diverse cities for over 16 years and *no one* has ever been offended by "Merry Christmas". Who would be offended by having two days off? (25th and 26th are both public holidays here. If they fall at the weekend, they're just moved to the Monday and Tuesday).