Xmas - hate it, hate it, hate it.

[mattx]

Is it just me or does anyone else hate Xmas ?

Last year was not too bad - I was working Xmas day [ from home ] and had a few issues to deal with. This year I'm not so expect the usual xmas crap.

I hate the crap that is on the telly, I hate the crap presents I'm going to get, I hate having to fork out for crap, I hate having to look happy when people come over, I hate having people coming over to us and drinking my booze, I have having to go to other people's houses and I hate the fact that the weather is normally crap. 5 weeks and it's almost over - I'm counting the days.....

Thank god I don't work in a school anymore and have to listen to bloody badly sung Xmas carols and the crap that comes with Xmas there.....

Bring on Spring and Summer so I can start talking to my bees.

Edited November 23, 2012 by mattx

[Steve21]

It's you! We just decorated our office this week! Lots of trees, lots of lights, and lots of tinsel! IT'S CHRISSSSSTTTMMASSS!

 

Steve

[mattx]

It's you! We just decorated our office this week! Lots of trees, lots of lights, and lots of tinsel! IT'S CHRISSSSSTTTMMASSS!

 

Steve

 

Excuse me whilst I'll vomit....

[SYNACK]

Its not just you. The streets turn into packed madhouses with tired angry people trying to get all sorts done and stressing so that they can 'enjoy' Christmas when it comes. It honestly seems to do more harm than good burning everyone out for a good fortnight and stressing out a large proportion of the population to the point that good cheer is a very foreign concept.

[3s-gtech]

I love it, but for a mix of reasons. It's the only 'proper' time off I get from work in the year - the site is shut, can't do any work or think about it - so I can unwind! I usually drink and eat too much, two of my favourite things, and I like spending time with my family.

 

Many of the 'traditions' are nausea-inducing though. Christmas songs being played in November (or indeed, any time before mid December), wrapping presents, driving between various places along with half of the rest of the country...

[bodminman]

Usually I love it but not for all the rubbish TV etc.

 

As a family we tend to keep everything low key and almost try and keep xmas sort of old fashioned. We don't indulge our daughter with crap and we don't allow anyone else too either.

 

However, this year will be very difficult with us losing our child in the summer so I think we'll be shutting ourselves off from the world from 24th Dec to at least the 27th. During that time I'll be lighting the wood burned and teeing up loads of films I've been recording on Sky+

[dezt]

I heard on the local radio that Christmas had been cancelled this year as all the elves had gone on strike, made me augh, but my 7 year old daughter was heart broken.

[6Foot2]

You are not alone. I don't like Easter, birthdays, anniversaries or any other occasion where I have to pretend to enjoy myself for the benefit of others. Childhood memories of these occasions are not good so I guess that's where this feeling might come from. That aside I am happy to leave the others to it as much as I can. Can't always do that though.

[elsiegee40]

I shall have husband home from India, daughter home from uni and shall thoroughly enjoy Xmas.

 

Bah humbug matt!

[SpuffMonkey]

I spent last Christmas in hospital - and I can tell you its not all its cracked up to be - VERY happy to be doing all the usual stuff this year!

[mattx]

I spent last Christmas in hospital - and I can tell you its not all its cracked up to be - VERY happy to be doing all the usual stuff this year!

 

I was hoping to be in Mexico myself but that has fallen through. My boss has pulled rank and taken the job himself !! [ Don't blame him ]

[featured_spectre]

Personally, I don't like Christmas, or any present giving celebration. I really dislike getting presents, and would rather the money goes to Age Concern/Help the aged - as both have helped my grandparents when they were dying.

 

I don't mind giving presents, but in the long run, unless you write a list and people stick to it, you'll always end up disappointed, in 1 way or another.

[dezt]

Here's the link for Christmas being cancelled The Bee - News - Christmas 2012 cancelled?

[rad]

But Matt, your kids love Christmas...happy, smiling faces. As for the TV crap, get a dvd for xmas

[john]

Nope not a Christmas person here really anymore, too much sadness and disappointment [none-present related im my case] happened to me at Christmas to make me celebrate, I enjoyed modifying XML code last Christmas and trying to break my copy of ePortal by doing funky things with it best way spent in my mind. Only good bit was the turkey dinner with the trimmings as we don't do that often enough. Edited November 24, 2012 by john
clarified my disappointmnet

[elsiegee40]

Christmas can be difficult. Several of you have mentioned present disappointment.

 

Mr gee40 and I have been in each other's company for so long that 'Christmas presents' have become purchasing something that we both want that's low on the priority list compared with other things. This year it's a new desktop PC.... and upgrading the broadband to fibre. Not essential, but we want it. The flat screen tv was last year. It makes us both happy.

 

I realise that not all families have such strong bonds as my immediate family. But we do enjoy the time we have together.

 

Christmas to me is a few days off when we can enjoy ourselves. We eat well, go out for long walks regardless of the weather, and actually relax for a few days at home. Duty visits to in-laws are borne with good grace and we're ready to start the new year.

 

With the unexpected death of a cousin last new year's eve, this year isn't going to be easy for us, but it is what we each choose to make of it.

 

Christmas is what YOU choose to make of it. Presents, crackers and 24/7 family may not be your thing. Develop you own tradition!

 

Our Christmas & New Year period isn't complete without:

- Carols in the square in Hadlow on Christmas Eve

- The Big Game ((Quins v whoever) at Twickenham

- A panto ( a cheapy in Maidstone or Southborough) not the big name ones

- a walk round any or all of Bedgbury Pinetum, Hayesden, Leeds Castle

- Roast turkey & trimmings on Christmas Day

 

But that's us. Do what make YOU and your immediate family happy. It might involve putting your foot down with in-laws to get time to yourselves (we had to!), but don't just do things because that's what you're expected to do. Make it YOUR time of year.

[witch]

Our Christmas is fairly low key.

Musts include the children telling me they will help with the tree decorating and then sloping off after 15 minutes

The big discussion about who is having what for Christmas dinner - with two veggies, one beef hater, one turkey lover and a true carnivore, that can take a long time!

The annual plea for everyone to go for a walk after Christmas dinner and the summary rejection by the three not-teens-anymore.

The visit to the in-laws

The visit from the sister on Christmas Eve (a difficult time as we lost our mum on Christmas Eve two years ago) but a family tradition we are determined not to let go

Presents are just a bit of fun in our house. I don't expect anything and am not disappointed. I appreciate the thought people have put into things. mrwITch and I do try to find something unexpected for each other - he is almost impossible to buy for and I am not much better!

 

@elsigee40 - if your children still attend carol concerts and go for long walks with you - you're a better parent than me!

Edited November 24, 2012 by witch

[localzuk]

I'm not really too bothered about Xmas. I have myself a tree - its 1 foot tall and has 12 lights on it. That's about as far as I go really. I expect my Xmas dinner this year will be Macaroni & Cheese.

 

Presents don't really interest me - I don't want much. For my birthday when people wanted to know what I wanted, I said slippers. This Xmas, I want some new socks and a duvet cover. That's about it! I'd much prefer money was spent on things that they themselves need, or if they need nothing, donate it to charity.

 

My Xmas gift to myself this year will be a new book.

 

Gotta say, I do look forward to one thing though - watching the 2 Ronnies on TV. And Only Fools and Horses.

[sparkeh]

I love Xmas, all the family get together and have a good time. Presents are unimportant.

I can't wait

[flyinghaggis]

I love Xmas, all the family get together and have a good time. Presents are unimportant.

I can't wait

 

+1 Xmas is great apart from having to buy all the pointless cards and presents IMO. The kids should get their presents from Santa (assuming they've been nice!) but I just don't see the sense in adults buying crap they don't need for each other

[ozydave]

Hate it too. Thinking of running a script on Xmas day so I have to go in and deal with it

[speckytecky]

Never liked Christmas, birthdays, Easter, Guy Fawkes night or any other of these largely silly and hugely commercialised annual occasions. Now at the age of 60 they all come round far too quickly and it seems to be a constant escalator of one event or another.

 

All these occasions are a desperately sad and lonely occasion for far too many of our elderly an homeless and other unfortunates and an excuse for excess, greed and gluttony by many of those who by dint of luck, talent, skill, cunning or the silver spoon have too much.

[Quackers]

Christmas is the best one, 2 weeks off. If your not enjoying it your doing it wrong. The best Christmas i had was 2010. First day off, thought i want a holiday, went the travel agents booked for spain and spent 27th to 3rd there was great.

 

I put my Tree up last night, i love the lights. Sounds like you need to stop doing what you do every year at christmas as your not enjoying it and do somthing else with your christmas holiday so in future you look forward to it.

[elsiegee40]

@elsigee40 - if your children still attend carol concerts and go for long walks with you - you're a better parent than me!

No @witch... just different.

 

'Carols in the square' is half an hour of carol singing in the village square followed on Christmas Eve, whatever the weather, which we have done every year since they were born. It's as much a social occasion as anything. It's as much a part of our Christmas as opening an advent calendar. Turning out at 6.30pm marks the start of everyone having a few days off.

 

My kids won't let me do the tree now. It goes up the day after Grandma's birthday, December 15th. My job is to test the lights (I'm in IT, it's got a plug... )

 

As for walks... we've always done them, not just at Christmas. Even teenage son can be prised away from his Xbox if there's promise of a pub lunch or hot chocolate and cake somewhere along the line!

[localzuk]

Christmas is the best one, 2 weeks off. If your not enjoying it your doing it wrong. The best Christmas i had was 2010. First day off, thought i want a holiday, went the travel agents booked for spain and spent 27th to 3rd there was great.

 

I put my Tree up last night, i love the lights. Sounds like you need to stop doing what you do every year at christmas as your not enjoying it and do somthing else with your christmas holiday so in future you look forward to it.

 

Oh, I enjoy the holiday, there's no denying that one. Proper time off, with no distractions. Bliss. Some people don't understand how I can like being alone on Xmas day though. As if its some big sad disaster to enjoy a day alone.