Languish.org

So the argument Princesca and her mom are having over email about Christmas lists inspired me to create this poll. :)

I would have to say that I hate it.  It's the time of year where you're forced to spend time with relatives that you may well hate just because "it's family time LOL!", there's all kinds of pressure to get gifts for people who probably don't need or perhaps even want them, and in the case I mentioned there's even pressure to provide a damn Christmas list, when Princesca and I do NOT NEED her poor-ass relatives to give us anything. :rolleyes:

I couldnt agree more with the last 2 points.  My brother and I stopped givign each other birthday presents a long time ago, once we realized we just passed the same $50 Home Depot Gift Card back and forth (not really, but it seemed like it).

My kids are old enough, youngest turns 18 3 days after Christmas, and they don't seem to care a  whole lot about it either.  If we could just get together with family (who I like, but it is just my familym no in-laws for me) with no pressure of gift exchange it would be great.   Not as long as my mom is around though. :D

Yeah, my brother and I don't give each other presents for any occasion, since we agreed that we don't need each other's 'charity'.  When I asked him what he wanted as a wedding present, he said "your presence at my wedding is enough for me." :wub:

Princesca and I do give each other one relatively cheap (~$50) gift every year for Christmas, with no hints as to what it should be, as a way of seeing how well we 'read' each other for the past year.  This year was different though as she begged me to get her the Mass Effect Risk game and actually pointed me to the order page for it (I bought it last night). :lol:

I love Jul. Makes me connect with prehistory.

I love Christmas. :wub:

But I'm really good at ignoring the stupid bits and just enjoying the fun. Most of the gifts that I give friends/family are homemade. (The kids are different, but then, it used to be the only time of year that I bought them anything other than school clothes and supplies.) I refuse to stress over the whole getting/giving thing. I usually don't travel. I refuse to make dinner (we order pizza on Christmas day), and I stay in my pajamas all day.

This year will be a bit more stressful because we're getting Max's and my families together for the first time ever. (Yes, we've managed nearly nine years of marriage without our families having ever met.) I'll be making a big meal for that and there is, of course, the cultural differences to navigate.  :ph34r:

Quote from: merithyn on November 14, 2013, 08:11:36 AM
But I'm really good at ignoring the stupid bits and just enjoying the fun. Most of the gifts that I give friends/family are homemade.

That would mean a hell of a lot more to me than just getting gift cards and shit. :yes:

I love christmas & people who hate it annoy me.

but I can understand how kid less xmas just seems a pointless exchange of 50$ gift cards between adults.

Quote from: Caliga on November 14, 2013, 08:15:01 AM

Quote from: merithyn on November 14, 2013, 08:11:36 AM
But I'm really good at ignoring the stupid bits and just enjoying the fun. Most of the gifts that I give friends/family are homemade.

That would mean a hell of a lot more to me than just getting gift cards and shit. :yes:

It started because I had more ability than money. Now, it's because I enjoy making things that I know people appreciate more than something store-bought. This year, I'm thinking stockings with baked goodies and homemade cordials for the adults. :)

I'm a Jew who loves Christmas.  :D

Really, I love it because of the kid.

The pointless gift-giving among relatives we eliminated as a family - the notion is that each year, we each choose one book to give to each parent and sib, which takes care of that.

I enjoy it, though I enjoy it more when I'm not bombarded with Christmas crap from labor day on.  The only thing preventing it from starting on the 5th of July is Halloween.

I can do without the crazed I HAVE TO BUY A 5 DOLLAR PRESENT FOR SOMEONE I HAVEN'T SEEN IN A YEAR AND WON'T SEE AGAIN UNTIL NEXT! stuff though.  I'd rather give 200 bucks to Toys for Tots and dispense with a lot of the gift stuff.

I love celebrating the birth of Christ.

Christmas is awesome.  This is pretty much the only time of year I go shopping, which is sort of fun for its novelty, I love spending time with my family, and my job typically gives me almost 10 days off.  What is not to like?

Quote from: Phillip V on November 14, 2013, 08:51:08 AM
I love celebrating the birth of Christ.

Stay on topic!  :P

Quote from: Caliga on November 14, 2013, 07:39:44 AM
I would have to say that I hate it. 

Any surprise that someone who works in HR hates Christmas? 



:P

Love. One time a year I am guaranteed to be in California. And my family is not so bad. :cool:

Quote from: Peter Wiggin on November 14, 2013, 08:57:55 AM

Quote from: Phillip V on November 14, 2013, 08:51:08 AM
I love celebrating the birth of Christ.

Stay on topic!  :P

:D

Easteer is a bigger religious holiday.  I like the songs, the weather, the general feeling. Then there is the darker side of watching people freak out at the mall over things they'd shrug off or barely notice any other time of year.  So long as I'm not invovled with it I find it funny.

I love the chistmas season, fun stuff. I don't have to believe in it and I can ignore the gift giving part. I love the family deal, I like the kids toys and stuff. The fact that I enjoy winter adds to it.

I like Christmas carols and I like "the Christmas spirit," which is a good excuse to be positive and friendly.

Gift buying is a wash.

I think that Christmas is great, a magical time for kids, for childhood and something to always remember, and it can be gratifying for adults too. But I think some parts are too much, too stressful such as the over emphasis on gift giving, for adults anyway. Great for getting gifts for kids but too much pressure to buy for too many people. Most of my family stopped a lot of the buying for adults, except spouses and a few others, maybe siblings.

I tolerate it for the kids. But damn, I'm already tired of the toy commercials. Haven't seen anything as stupid as Doogie Doo yet, but I expect something to top it.

Quote from: Ed Anger on November 14, 2013, 09:33:41 AM
I tolerate it for the kids. But damn, I'm already tired of the toy commercials. Haven't seen anything as stupid as Doogie Doo yet, but I expect something to top it.

Yeah, sure, whatever, mister I-put-tree-up-on-the-first-of-November.

Quote from: Grey Fox on November 14, 2013, 09:34:25 AM

Quote from: Ed Anger on November 14, 2013, 09:33:41 AM
I tolerate it for the kids. But damn, I'm already tired of the toy commercials. Haven't seen anything as stupid as Doogie Doo yet, but I expect something to top it.

Yeah, sure, whatever, mister I-put-tree-up-on-the-first-of-November.

For the kids, plus it is a visible reminder to calm the fuck down. SANTA IS WATCHING

I'm really pretty neutral on Christmas.  It doesn't depress me (anymore than anything else) like it does some people, but I don't have any real connection to it anymore as an adult with very attenuated connections to kids (only my cousins in Fort Worth are still children, and I hardly see them). 

I agree with Yi re: the Christmas spirit, but I've found it easier and easier to unintentionally avoid most Xmas related things to the point it doesn't really sink in until December 22 or so.

Giving gifts is occasionally very gratifying if I know I found something perfect, but often tedious, and getting gifts always entailed a lot of stress for me, even as a kid, making sure to seem properly appreciative of whatever I got.  This dollar-store alarm clock is amazing!  I really needed a new alarm clock.  Let me set it up right now!  Thank you so much, Uncle!

Depends on how much discretionary income I have at the time.  This year Xmas sucks Baby Jesus ass balls.

I do really like other people really liking Christmas, though.  :)  I briefly had a Japanese roommate who had a treasured collection of generic American Christmas lights that he wanted to start putting up on the first cool day of October.  It was heartwarming.

Quote from: merithyn on November 14, 2013, 08:24:26 AM

Quote from: Caliga on November 14, 2013, 08:15:01 AM

Quote from: merithyn on November 14, 2013, 08:11:36 AM
But I'm really good at ignoring the stupid bits and just enjoying the fun. Most of the gifts that I give friends/family are homemade.

That would mean a hell of a lot more to me than just getting gift cards and shit. :yes:

It started because I had more ability than money. Now, it's because I enjoy making things that I know people appreciate more than something store-bought. This year, I'm thinking stockings with baked goodies and homemade cordials for the adults. :)

Now that's a good idea. I think as adults many of us feel some kind of obligation to go to stores, or buy online, just to get gifts. But when something different is done like this, something someone made, less commercial, it seems more like the spirit of the Holiday.   

Oh I am trying to convince my cousins that we should stop buying each other gifts. Most of them don't have much money that we don't really need to be passing around $5 dvds.

@KRonn I agree, but for some reason nobody in my family will do that. :(

I don't really care for it, but "hate" would be a strong word.

I do like me a good Christmas dinner, though. And I like my extended family, so hanging out with them is no burden.

Quote from: Caliga on November 14, 2013, 09:54:16 AM
@KRonn I agree, but for some reason nobody in my family will do that. :(

Heh, yeah, it just seemed to get a bit odd that we adults were giving others things we didn't really need, or if we did need we could just go out and get it ourselves. What I or some of us may do is if something different comes along, like some item such as a book or whatever that I really like and I know it would be useful, I'll get one for my brother or someone else. But there's very little pressure to do a lot of shopping and gift giving among adults.

I LOVE Christmas :wub:

Quote from: Sheilbh on November 14, 2013, 10:04:46 AM
I LOVE Christmas :wub:

Ameican over the top Christmas or the more restrained Euro version?

Or the German one with the demon whipping kids?

All :blush:

Christmas rules.  It's fun to spoil the kids and laugh at them behind their backs for believing the Santa crap.

Christmas for me is always at my Mom's house in Big Sur, the weather is usually ok, the food is great, the beer and wine are top notch, and my family (though insane) is nice and getting more mellow over time.  We don't do a lot of gifts, I usually get Mom a half pound of Jamaica Blue coffee each year, but we enjoy the time.

Ambivalent.  Forced to confront the abjection of my life's failure in comparison to parents' mansion, sister's new car/money, step-sister's even larger mansion, combined $200k household income, and children.  Have to travel.  But I get some gift cards, and see people I love, I guess.

Got a telepathic message from Jacob, reminding me that comparing myself to others is recipe for depression.

Quote from: Ideologue on November 14, 2013, 01:13:09 PM
Ambivalent.  Forced to confront the abjection of my life's failure in comparison to parents' mansion, sister's new car/money, step-sister's even larger mansion, combined $200k household income, and children.  Have to travel.  But I get some gift cards, and see people I love, I guess.

Tell them they can mail the gift cards.  Stay home.  Go do something fulfilling on Xmas, like volunteer somewhere.

I kind of miss traveling for Christmas.  Kind of adds something to the occasion to make a trip out to see your family & other people you don't see very often.  And I guess I'm lucky I don't have any family that I dread hanging out with.

It reminds me how lonely I am. :(

You get to drink glögg. :mmm:

Quote from: The Brain on November 14, 2013, 02:26:41 PM
You get to drink glögg. :mmm:

And eat pepparkakor.  I swear I can make a whole tin of those disappear in 2 or 3 days.

Quote from: derspiess on November 14, 2013, 02:34:27 PM

Quote from: The Brain on November 14, 2013, 02:26:41 PM
You get to drink glögg. :mmm:

And eat pepparkakor.  I swear I can make a whole tin of those disappear in 2 or 3 days.

:yes:

Quote from: The Brain on November 14, 2013, 02:26:41 PM
You get to drink glögg. :mmm:

Would you happen to know if there is any common ancestry shared by glogg (mitt tits) and grog?

Quote from: CountDeMoney on November 14, 2013, 02:09:24 PM

Quote from: Ideologue on November 14, 2013, 01:13:09 PM
Ambivalent.  Forced to confront the abjection of my life's failure in comparison to parents' mansion, sister's new car/money, step-sister's even larger mansion, combined $200k household income, and children.  Have to travel.  But I get some gift cards, and see people I love, I guess.

Tell them they can mail the gift cards.  Stay home.  Go do something fulfilling on Xmas, like volunteer somewhere.

I concur.  I've had some bad Christmas' that I wish I had stayed home and watched A Christmas Story marathon or gone out and done something else.  Like go to this Fransciscan Monastery in Vermont.

Quote from: Admiral Yi on November 14, 2013, 02:36:38 PM

Quote from: The Brain on November 14, 2013, 02:26:41 PM
You get to drink glögg. :mmm:

Would you happen to know if there is any common ancestry shared by glogg (mitt tits) and grog?

Not to my knowledge, no.

Quote from: Admiral Yi on November 14, 2013, 02:36:38 PM

Quote from: The Brain on November 14, 2013, 02:26:41 PM
You get to drink glögg. :mmm:

Would you happen to know if there is any common ancestry shared by glogg (mitt tits) and grog?

I don't know about glogg, but I've read that grog comes from a nickname for the British officer who introduced it to the navy. 

Wikipedia backs me up: 

QuoteThe word originally referred to a drink made with water or "small beer" (a weak beer) and rum, which British Vice Admiral Edward Vernon introduced into the Royal Navy on 21 August 1740. Vernon wore a coat of grogram cloth and was nicknamed Old Grogram or Old Grog.

Quote from: derspiess on November 14, 2013, 10:13:45 AM
Christmas rules.  It's fun to spoil the kids and laugh at them behind their backs for believing the Santa crap.

What about the Santa crap??    :unsure:  Don't ruin things for me!! You have to believe!!

Christmas with kids is awesome.  Specially this year - every time a toy commercial comes on Timmy says "I'm going to ask Santa for that".

We had quite a few Chirstmases without kids and yeah, those can be pretty mellow affairs.

Every time Tommy sees something he wants on TV I tell him to put it on his list.  Got him to start writing/spelling early that way.

Quote from: KRonn on November 14, 2013, 03:34:31 PM

Quote from: derspiess on November 14, 2013, 10:13:45 AM
Christmas rules.  It's fun to spoil the kids and laugh at them behind their backs for believing the Santa crap.

What about the Santa crap??    :unsure:  Don't ruin things for me!! You have to believe!!

When my oldest two boys asked me outright if there was really a Santa just before Christmas one year, I told them that since I only gave them one present - and Santa gave them all of the rest - I would leave it up to them to decide if they believed in Santa or not.

They "believed" until they were 16.

That's some skillful Mom-Fu there :thumbsup:

Quote from: derspiess on November 14, 2013, 03:50:41 PM
Every time Tommy sees something he wants on TV I tell him to put it on his list.  Got him to start writing/spelling early that way.

"If you can write a paragraph about why you want it, with no spelling mistakes, you can have it".

Not a bad notion ...  :hmm:

Quote from: Barrister on November 14, 2013, 03:48:14 PM
Christmas with kids is awesome.  Specially this year - every time a toy commercial comes on Timmy says "I'm going to ask Santa for that".

:lol:

You know, there are things that I occasionally regret about not having children, and Christmas is one of them.

Quote from: Neil on November 14, 2013, 06:14:36 PM

Quote from: Barrister on November 14, 2013, 03:48:14 PM
Christmas with kids is awesome.  Specially this year - every time a toy commercial comes on Timmy says "I'm going to ask Santa for that".

:lol:

You know, there are things that I occasionally regret about not having children, and Christmas is one of them.

That's when having nieces and nephews come in. They're the absolute best for holidays. You can give them all of the horrible toys you pray no one gives your kids, and then send them all away. :)

Quote from: merithyn on November 14, 2013, 06:19:06 PM

Quote from: Neil on November 14, 2013, 06:14:36 PM

Quote from: Barrister on November 14, 2013, 03:48:14 PM
Christmas with kids is awesome.  Specially this year - every time a toy commercial comes on Timmy says "I'm going to ask Santa for that".

:lol:

You know, there are things that I occasionally regret about not having children, and Christmas is one of them.

That's when having nieces and nephews come in. They're the absolute best for holidays. You can give them all of the horrible toys you pray no one gives your kids, and then send them all away. :)

Yeah.  It's going to be nice this year.

Quote from: Neil on November 14, 2013, 06:14:36 PM

Quote from: Barrister on November 14, 2013, 03:48:14 PM
Christmas with kids is awesome.  Specially this year - every time a toy commercial comes on Timmy says "I'm going to ask Santa for that".

:lol:

You know, there are things that I occasionally regret about not having children, and Christmas is one of them.

Ya. Know how you feel.

Yepper.  Christmas with small children is my favorite holiday.  Christmas with 18-19 year old kids and adults, not so much.

I know my brother won't have kids, so I hope it is a very long time until I spend a Christmas with small children again.

Quote from: merithyn on November 14, 2013, 06:19:06 PM

That's when having nieces and nephews come in. They're the absolute best for holidays. You can give them all of the horrible toys you pray no one gives your kids, and then send them all away. :)

I am the uncle that gives the 3 year old boys a drum for Christmas.  Also, I buy sugar cereals for them to eat all day.

When they get older I am buying them cigars.

I do that too.  I aim for a trifecta of messy, noisy, and loud.

Nothing for my "niece" or "nephew."  They are not of my blood, and they certainly didn't get me anything.

HUMBUG.

Quote from: Ideologue on November 14, 2013, 07:14:00 PM
Nothing for my "niece" or "nephew."  They are not of my blood, and they certainly didn't get me anything.

HUMBUG.

Get them books and all interested in history.  That will teach 'em

Quote from: Darth Wagtaros on November 14, 2013, 06:38:10 PM
I do that too.  I aim for a trifecta of messy, noisy, and loud.

After last Christmas, I sent a blast email out to all family members warning them to never buy markers for my kids again.  Thankfully my kids are too lazy to put the caps back on and the markers dry out pretty quickly.  But there's ample time for them to mark all over everything in the living room. 

That's what markers are for!

PM me your address, I will send the kids some Sharpies(tm).

I'll throw in a caligraphy brush and ink block.  Nothing's too good for Speesh' kids.  :)

And glitter.

Fuck you all.

What about the sequins and beads for jewelry making for Lola and model kits with tiny bits and pieces and "get-me-high" glue for the boy, too? :)

Christmas rocks!

I went through most of my twenties not really liking it, due to some shitty memories.  But I suppose Christmas does have two sides to it.  In that vein, here's my favourite cinematic Christmas moment:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWH_P5YL8jA (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWH_P5YL8jA)

However, now that I'm in my 30's, I enjoy it a lot more, even in its wholeness.

Quote from: derspiess on November 14, 2013, 09:47:50 PM

Quote from: Darth Wagtaros on November 14, 2013, 06:38:10 PM
I do that too.  I aim for a trifecta of messy, noisy, and loud.

After last Christmas, I sent a blast email out to all family members warning them to never buy markers for my kids again.  Thankfully my kids are too lazy to put the caps back on and the markers dry out pretty quickly.  But there's ample time for them to mark all over everything in the living room. 

That leaves silly string (a favorite) plus noisemakers, holiday crackers, etc! 

Quote from: Camerus on November 15, 2013, 02:32:06 AM
I went through most of my twenties not really liking it, due to some shitty memories.  But I suppose Christmas does have two sides to it.  In that vein, here's my favourite cinematic Christmas moment:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWH_P5YL8jA (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWH_P5YL8jA)

However, now that I'm in my 30's, I enjoy it a lot more, even in its wholeness.

Hehe, Bad Santa!!   :lol:

Out of interest, so other countries have adverts that compete to make the public weep, then share their weeping on social media? This year it's between Sainsburys and their cinema vérité offering (the end got me):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49sKKbmuQCg (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49sKKbmuQCg)

and John Lewis and the unlikely bear/hare pairing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqWig2WARb0 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqWig2WARb0)

I do enjoy Christmas, but coming from the North, I find it difficult to get in the Holiday spirit here where it's 80 degrees and sunny every day. 

I lead a hard life.   :(

Quote from: Savonarola on November 15, 2013, 02:08:12 PM
I do enjoy Christmas, but coming from the North, I find it difficult to get in the Holiday spirit here where it's 80 degrees and sunny every day. 

I lead a hard life.   :(

JELLY  :(