The Christmas Season

Despite the popular opinion, I am not a total scrooge. In fact, We even have a Christmas tree and I set it up today. See?

Now, why today you might ask? Why not sooner? Because I believe all Holidays should have their own time, and Thanksgiving needs to come to a close before I start celebrating Christmas. Yes, that means I do not attend Black Friday events and you will NEVER; and I say that with full security in all that is holy, NEVER see me in line for a midnight opening for the best sale prices.

You may ask me, "Q, what do you have against sale prices?". And I would reply that I have nothing against sale pricing. What I do have an issue with, is that Christmas shopping is supposed to be about finding a gift that means something to the recipient. Not the best deal on the most desired electronic gadget of the year. "Ahhh..." I hear you say as you nod, "You have a problem with consumerism." And there you would be closer to the point. Although, in general I realize that consumerism makes our economy run, and I see my role in the grand role of consumption. But what I see as the issue, is consumerism for consumptions sake. In scrambling to get the best price on the best toys I feel like we've lost site of Christmas; therefore you will hear my fuming when the Christams ads and decorations start going up before Halloween, much less Thanksgiving.

One, Halloween continues to be my favorite holiday. I love giving sugar packed goodies to other people kids and sending them away as I wave and shut the door on the tantrum that is sure to occur shortly before bed time. And two,I love Thanksgiving. The whole cooking a meal and being thankful for the gift of family to come over and share in it, whether the family is by birth or choosing. On that note this years meal was wonderful despite what the neighbors who witnessed the Kitchen Aid exiting the kitchen window may think or say. It was lovely. I did have the forethought through the red haze of rage to open the window and remove the screen. But dinner was wonderful, and the rage had passed.

And reveling in the joy and thankfulness of the year, is why I purposely wait to put up the Christmas decorations. I feel as though the other holidays get swallowed up by the sheer urge to buy Buy BUY! Which, if it were to give Give GIVE, I would maybe be more into it. But it's not. It's for the sake of buying. I was horrified while watching the news after Black Friday this year and heard all the interviews of the people who were buying for themselves. They were out to get that big screen TV, not to get someone else that big screen. Maybe that's why I decided to make most of this years Christmas gifts. It was quite possibly my subconscious's picketing of the Christmas Consumption Frenzy. And amazingly I got it all done early. I'm not gloating, I swear, I'm still amazed by the sheer fact that I'm not scrambling to knit the last items before running to the post office in the vain hope that my boxes will get home to AK in time.

And to be quite honest, beyond family I don't give many Christmas gifts. I've realized I think in part to the reaction of my disgust to the Christmas Buying Binge, I tend to give my gifts throughout the year. See, I'm actually knitting myself a sweater, and that in itself is amazing. I tend to see patterns or come up with other knitting ideas that strikes me for someone in particular, and never are they expecting the item and very rarely is the item for me. And it's rarely given for a reason other than I want to give it, and I know they'll appreciate it. And that to me is what Christmas is supposed to be. Maybe it's just my way of holding on to what I think the season should be throughout the year. So on that point, I'm not a Scrooge Dammit! Bob might disagree when he heard me cussing about dropping an ornament under the coffee table. I told him all he heard was the Christmas spirit overcoming me, but he was doubtful. Of course he had to clean up the kitchen aid off the front yard before family got here on Thanksgiving to. He's a saint, truly. God help him.

But regardless, the tree went up. Non-traditional topper and all. I even looked at stars for the top again this year, but the more often I put that little bear up there, the more he grows on me.

 

What's that you said? Plastic Ornaments!?! Why yes, because I have one of these...

Oh wait, let me get the little demon to hold still.

And one of theses...

If one doesn't bat them off, the other's tail knocks them off, and then somebody eats them... So we have plastic. Don't judge me.